V O T E AND C O M M E N T
Happy Reading
Ann x

"I’ve never had a moment’s doubt. I love you. I believe in you completely. You are my dearest one. My reason for life." -Atonement by Ian McEwan

Niall's POV

I lay on the bed, eyes wide open, as I try to wrap my head around everything that Ana told me. I let out a groan in my hands before turning on my side to look at her, she's looking so peaceful and beautiful as always but there are dried tears on her cheeks. I push the strand of her hair out of her face and trace the back of my hand against her cheek. She hums in her sleep and a small smile reaches my lips. "I'm so sorry, I wasn't there for you tonight," I say in a soft voice. "But I promise you that I'll never let you down again," I vow and lean to kiss her temple.

I'm feeling very exasperated, mostly at myself for not being there for her and Jo. If I were there, I would've fucking slit his throat, first for abusing Ana and then for having the nerve to continue it and dragging my sister into it. I don't even want to imagine what could have happened if Zayn wasn't there, I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if something ever did and I'm fucking terrified, not of that fucking coward who is afraid to even come in front of us but of Ana being hurt and now of Jo, too.

I'm not sure how she even knows Tyler and what was she doing at the club when she's not even legal! I don't know how she managed to get herself into so much trouble and I'm very mad at her right now but I want to be there for her and make her understand the kind of guy Tyler is. The first thing that I'm gonna do in the morning is definitely talk to her, as calmly as I can, about how she knows him. Even though I deeply hope that Jo is not involved with him, a part of me knows that she is and I fucking hate that fact.

I'm very lost right now and I don't know what I'm going to do or how am I going to find him. This has been dragged for far too long and I'll not let him continue it anymore. I want Ana to be free from her past and for her to not worry about that prick anymore and I'm going to do it as soon as possible.

My mind is very fuzzy right now and all I want is for it to be clear of thoughts about what had happened and think about some way I can make everything right. So I do the best I can and sit on the bed, pick out a pack of cigarette and lighter from the drawer before carrying them to the balcony.

Ana has constantly been there for me, helping me get over this addiction, and I think we had been doing great but I can't help it anymore. I just want it in my system so that it can help me think clearly and make me feel a little better.

I light the cigarette before keeping it in between my lips and inhaling it. I lean against the railing as satisfaction fills my lungs. After smoking three of them, I finally decide to do something about the situation. The only thing that came to my mind was asking Louis for help. I originally planned to call him tomorrow since it is too late but then I decide to go for it, not wasting any time. I quickly walk back inside after putting out the cigarette, pick up my phone and dial Louis. He picks the phone on the seventh ring.

"Louis."

"Hey, is everything alright?" He groggily speaks, concern clear in his voice. "It's four in the morning."

"I don't know," I say and massage my head. "Can you come here? It's important," I ask and hear shuffling from the other side.

"Yeah, sure. I'll be there in fifteen," He says, before hanging up.

I lock my phone before keeping it on the shelf behind me and getting back in the bed next to Ana. She rolls over and snuggles herself into my chest and I do the same, pulling her dangerously close to me. I'm so petrified of her getting hurt and it kills me to even think about losing her, I can't even imagine how she must be feeling. She's already been through a lot and I hate that she still does.

She puts her leg over my waist and hides her face in the crook of my neck. I softly skim my hand on her smooth skin and I feel her sigh against my neck. "We'll get through this, Ana, I promise," I softly mumble in her ear. I'm aware that she's not awake and cannot hear me but I still continue, wanting to tell her how I feel because I couldn't do it earlier. "And you'll never have to worry about him again," I say and kiss the top of her head. "I love you and no one matters to me the way you do, baby. You're my all and more and I'm never letting anyone ruin it." I contently sigh in her arms, grateful that she's right next to me.

The moment is broken when I hear the bell ring and turn to look at Ana, checking to see if it woke her up or not and breathe a sigh when I realise that she's still soundly sleeping. I struggle a little to untangle her from me as she whines in her sleep. I mumble an 'I love you' again and place a kiss on her forehead before getting off the bed and walking out.

I open the door to reveal Louis, his hair is dishevelled and is sticking to all sides. "What's wrong?" Is the first thing he asks as I open the door and let him in. "What happened?"

"C'mon in," I say instead and walk to the couch, he follows me. I take a seat on it and he does the same before I begin to tell him everything that Ana told me, frowning as I repeat the events.

"Fuck!" He almost screams and I ask him to tone down his voice. He glares. "What the fuck does it have to do with Jo? And how the fuck did she get inside the bar? And how is Ana?"

"Jo's still- sleeping, so I don't know," I shortly say. "And Ana- um I've never seen her like this before." I sigh. "I love her so much that it hurts me to see her like this. She's miserable and so scared and there's so little I can do about it," I confess and bite the inside of my cheeks.

"Love is shit," He comments and I furrow my eyebrows. "It's not-" He takes a pause. "Real."

"Excuse me?" I scoff, a little hurt by his words.

"Love makes you do stupid stuff, it makes you miserable and weak instead of strong." He shrugs his shoulders. "It makes you feel bad about things you don't have control over," He continues and I can hear an edge in his voice. I always knew that Louis thought love made people miserable but I never knew that he didn't believe in it! He has never talked so openly about it. "Love is overrated."

"You're wrong, Louis. Love is the most beautiful thing a person can feel," I say. "How could you say that it's not true when two of your best mates are in love?" I speak, referring to me and Liam and shake my head. "And it most definitely is real," I finally say and his face scrunches up in disdain.

"Look, I don't want to start my why love is shit speech at fucking five in the morning, even though I'm pretty sure I'll win so let's not." He purses his lips together.

"You'll soon realise why you're so wrong," I promise.

"Not any time soon, mate," He replies. "So what are we gonna do now?" He raises his eyebrows.

"I don't know but we really have to do something as quickly as we can," I say. "You have to help me, mate."

"I really think you should have Ana file a complaint, Niall. I told you before that he's very dangerous and I know that he's probably not alone. We need help, we cannot do it alone," Louis presses and I shake my head, not even thinking about his proposal.

"No, not now at least. She's already terrified of the whole situation and it took a lot of effort to make her believe that I've got everything in control. I don't want to ruin it and make her more despondent," I say.

"Okay." He nods. "What do you want me to do, then?" He questions and I take a deep breath.

"Find out who else is with him, who's helping him and everything," I say. "I might have a plan, I think."

"I could do that," He says and I offer him a thankful nod. "It'll just take a few hours and I'll inform you about it in the morning."

"Thank you, Tommo. I owe you." I sigh.

"Yes, you do." He lightly chuckles. "What I'm doing is illegal and, you know, I wouldn't do it for anyone." I nod.

"Yes, I know and I'm very thankful that you agreed to do it." I smile, blowing him a kiss.

"Yeah, yeah. Don't go all soft on me, I hate it." He gags and I roll my eyes at him. "I guess, I'll head out now, try finding all I can about that prick!" He disgustingly mutters. "And you, take care of Jo and Ana." I nod.

He shortly heads out, leaving me to think about so many things. After a few minutes, I feel like getting some fresh air so I put on a black T-shirt and some shoes before grabbing my phone and house keys from the nightstand. I kiss Ana on the cheek and walk out of the house. I mentally feel better as the cool breeze hits me. It's the month of October and it's a bit chilly out here early in the morning.

I run around the block for a few minutes, trying very hard to process things. I don't know how long I run but it's fifteen past six when I reach home. I wipe my forehead with the sleeves of my T-shirt and remove my shoes along with the socks.

I walk into the kitchen and pour myself a glass of water but before I can drink it, I hear voices and small whimpers coming from our room. I furrow my eyebrows and keep the glass by the sink before walking towards it. My eyes widen when I see Ana squirming on the bed, her hand tightly clutching the bed as she let's out small whimpers.

I rush towards her and hop on the bed, trying to shake her awake, and realise that her cheeks are wet with tears. "Ana?" I call, continuously shaking her. "Baby, wake up, it's just a dream," I hurriedly say, wiping her tears and she whines. "I'm here, Ana, and everything is fine and it's just a nightmare, please wake up," I mutter, softly tap on her cheeks until she flickers her eyes open. She searches around before her eyes land on me. Her bottom lips quiver and tears start rolling down her eyes, old ones quickly being replaced by the new ones, before she shuffles to straddle my lap.

I wrap an arm around her waist as she locks her ankles around my torso and weeps in my neck. "N- Niall," She whimpers and tightens her hold on me. "He- he was here!" She shivers in my arms. "He- he was touching me everywhere and you weren't there," She says and I grit my teeth. Even though it was just a dream, I'm so fucking furious. "Why would you leave me alone?" She weeps and I rub her back.

"It was just a dream," I mumble in her ear. "I would never leave you alone, Ana," I say and she shakes her head at me.

"You- you don't love me, he said you don't," She cries, fisting my T-shirt and I shake my head. "Y- you left me," She whimpers and it breaks my heart to see her like this.

I untuck her face from the crook of my neck. "Look at me, Ana," I say and she lifts her face, still crying. "Shh, Ana. It was just a dream and I love you more than anyone. I'd never leave you, love," I confess and lean to peck her pouted lips a couple of times. I wipe her cheeks with the back of my hand and whisper how much I love her over and over again until she stops crying.

She doesn't say anything and wraps her arms around my neck before leaning to press our chests together. She rests her chin on my shoulder and tightens her legs around my torso. "I'm- I'm so sorry, Niall, that- that Jo got dragged into this. I- I really didn't-"

"It's not your fault, Ana, nothing is," I whisper. Even after having her own problems, she's still worried about Jo. "It's his. He's a fuck up and I don't blame you, I never did," I honestly speak as I draw circles on her back. "I love you very much, don't ever believe otherwise," I speak and feel her nod against me. "Let me get you some water-" I offer and move to unwrap her from me/but she tightens her limbs around me and furiously shakes her head.

"No, no, no," She repeats. "Don't leave me," She mutters.

"I'm not, baby. I'm just going to get you water-"

"No. Don't go," She beseeches and I nod, mumbling an 'okay'. I gently sway her in my arms, continuing to whisper things in her ear and she stays silent, breathing heavily against me as I rub her back. Her hold on my torso loosens and her breathing uniforms, making me realise that she has fallen asleep.

I push the strand of her hair that's sticking to me before gently unwrapping her arms from my neck, she whines a little but doesn't wake up. I lay her on the bed and get in with her, not having the heart to leave her even for a few seconds again. I pull her closer to me and peck her a few times before spooning her and letting my eyes shut.

***

I flutter my eyes, rub them sleepily as I look around the room. I panic when I don't see Ana next to me and get out of the bed, calling her. "Ana!" I shout as I scurry towards the ensuite and open the door. I see Ana's body through the curtain and mentally sigh. She's standing under the shower and I furrow my eyebrows when I discern that she's not moving. I quickly get out of my clothes before moving the curtain and stepping in with her, letting the hot water cascade down my body. I wrap my arms around her from behind and she flinches before she realises that it's just me. She leans against my chest and sighs.

"Hey," I speak and she replies with a small hey. "What are you thinking about, baby?" I press and she shrugs, remaining silent. I turn her around in my arms and she steps forward before wrapping her arms around me and resting her cheek against my chest. "Tell me," I urge and she shrugs again so, I pull away a little and pinch her chin between my fingers, making her look at me. She blinks when water drops on her face from my hair, crinkling her eyes, before I turn the shower off. "Please."

"Just things," She says and bites her lips.

"And what exactly are those things?" I ask, pushing away the wet strand of hair off her face. "Are you thinking about the handsome boyfriend of yours?" I joke when she stays silent and a smile breaks out on her face, making me forget about everything but her. "How would he feel about us being completely naked and having a shower together?" She giggles and my heart warms, a huge smile spreading across my face.

"He would flip." She smirks and I curl my lip out. "But I'm sure I can handle him." She gives me suggestive eyes and I chuckle.

"Are you suggesting that you're gonna bribe your boyfriend with sex?" I wriggle my eyebrows and her eyes widen, only a little, at my blunt words. "Are you?" I press, a smirk forming on my lips.

"I don't kiss and tell," She slyly comments and I raise an eyebrow at her.

"Aren't you one of a kind, love." She giggles again and I realise at that moment that it is my favourite sound. "You know, you're ten times prettier when you giggle," I state and a blush reaches her cheeks. "I'll always try to nurture it."

I turn on the shower again after kissing her sweetly on the lips and help her wash herself even when she asks me not to. After a few minutes, I walk out of the shower and grab a couple of towels, wrapping one around my waist and another one around her torso before throwing her over my shoulder, keeping my hands under her ass. She squeals as I carry her out, hitting me with her arms and asking me to put her down but I don't. She slaps my ass a few times before kneading them and I let out a groan.

"Stop," I whine and she chuckles.

"Then put me down," She demands, continuing what she was doing, and I choose to put her down because I know that if I don't, we'll end up doing what we didn't plan to. "Thank you." She pecks my lips after I put her down and I roll my eyes but stay silent and walk inside the closet, Ana following me. I stare at her as she puts on her clothes, a pair of my cotton pants and my T-Shirt, and she shakes her head at me. "You're a perv," She says without looking at me and I chuckle.

"Only for you," I comment before picking out my clothes and putting them on. "You need to stop hogging my closet, love," I playfully tease and she curls her bottom lip out.

"No, your clothes are more comfortable." She shrugs. "And big," She says and hugs herself. "And they're yours."

"Come here." I motion her with my fingers and she steps forward. I pull her when she's at arm's length before kissing her properly on the mouth. My lips move against hers as I knead her back and she intertwines her hands in my hair. I sigh into the kiss. She comes closer, standing flushed against me, before biting my bottom lip and earning a moan from me. "I love you," I mumble over her lips after I pull away and she repeats it, a smile spreading over her, now swollen and red, lips. "I think we should talk to Jo now," I mention and Ana visibly freezes in my arms.

"Oh." Her demeanor completely changes and her hands slide off my head to rest against her sides and I frown, thinking how her mood changed in a split of a second. I thought that she might be feeling better about it but I guess that she just forgot about it for a few minutes. Why the hell did I mention it!

"Or we can also not do it?" I propose, scratching the back of my head as I try to think of something that'll distract her mind.

"We- We have to," She mumbles softly and I nod, sighing a little, knowing that as soon as we finish this conversation, it'll be better for all of us.

"Can you wait at the dining table? I'll go wake her up," I say and she nods before walking out of the closet. I take a long breath before following her out. I walk to Jo's room and gently knock on the door. The door swings open after a few seconds and I notice that she's wearing sweats and that she's looking very lost and hungover.

"I was just coming out," She groans, clutching her head. "How did I get here?" She asks and I try to keep my cool as I remember the previous night's events.

"About that, we need to have a talk," I say. "C'mon," I continue before she can say anything and walk towards the dining table, knowing that she'll follow me. Ana is seated at the table and I take one next to her while Jo sits in front of us.

"Hey, Ana," She greats and Ana does the same. "Niall, can you get me some advil? My head is killing me." I nod before getting up from my seat and bringing her advil and a glass of water before handing them to her and taking my previous position. The confusion on her face and the calmness in her voice made me realise that she doesn't remember anything that happened last night. "Thank you," She says before gulping the medicine down.

"So," I prompt, not really knowing where to start from. "What were you doing at the bar last night?" I ask and she furrows her eyebrows before widening them, panic evident in her eyes. "How did you get in?" I continue.

"Niall-"

"I don't want your excuses, just tell me the truth," I speak through gritted teeth.

"You're not my dad. Why are you interrogating me?" She scoffs. "I think I'm old enough to do what I like."

"But you're not old enough to go in a fucking bar with some sleazeball that you don't even know," I almost shout and she flinches a little. I've never actually shouted at her before and I hate you do it right now but I can't see my sister making the worst decisions. Ana puts her hand on top of mine and I take a long breath. "Tell me, right now, Josephine. I'm in no mood to joke," I flare. "Who was that guy? Do you know him?"

"He's- we- we've been going out for a month," She stutters after a few seconds of silence and I grit my teeth, my jaw tightening. "We met at