Stay With Me (Liam Payne)

Part 26

Liam was exhausted. Without his assistant, he had so many things to do that he never thought about. Like, when he ran out of underwear. Jen had been sending his clothes to be washed for two years. He had to remember how. He kept forgetting where he was supposed to be and to charge his damn phone. Like now. The damn thing was dead. Harry hadn't had time to replace Nicki, so borrowing someone else's PA was not going to work.

He sighed and plugged in his phone. Bed was all he wanted, so he laid down and hoped for sleep. He had almost drifted off when the phone had enough charge to start. It started to ding and chime, telling him he missed a lot while it was dead. He grabbed it and scrolled through it. Text from mom, sister, Harry and Louis. Twitter and facebook notifications. And a voicemail. Weird. Nobody called anymore. He touched it and Lee's name popped up. Shit. Had something happened to Nicki? He told him to leave her alone, so he did. He pressed speaker and heard Nicki's voice:

"Hey, Liam. It's Nicki. I just...I wanted...Well, thanks for the grave marker. It means so much to me. I'm sure it was all paid for before you kicked me out, so if you want me to pay you back, text Lee and he'll get the message to me."

He listened to it five times. If he'd kept the damn thing charged he could have talked to her, told her that he was sorry. He made a mistake. He missed her. Now he was back to Lee for the go between. He sent a text to Lee letting him know he got the message and he didn't want any money. He would like to talk to her, if possible. But he didn't want any money.

Nicki handed the phone back to Lee. "Thanks. He didn't answer. I'm not really surprised. I got excited over nothing. He must have paid for the entire thing at once, months ago. Well, at least I said thanks. Let me know how much I owe him."

"Uh, no. I won't, And if he sends me a dollars amount, I'll find him and beat the shit out of him." Lee pocketed the phone and got back to work. Nicki went home to finish her day off.

Liam's phone rang early the next morning. Way to early in the morning. He answered, hoping it was Nicki, not knowing of the time difference. Instead, it was an automated message telling him that Nicki Baker was being informed of the release of Matt Karl at noon tomorrow. It was a warning call basically. The man who beat you is out of jail. And they called Liam because Nicki's phone was turned off. He must still be her emergency contact. Matt was coming and she didn't know.

First he called his lawyer wanting to know how he was getting out.Then he called Lee, who didn't answer. The lawyer called back, telling him that Matt had pleaded down to a 60 day sentence so there wouldn't have to be a trial. By law, all victims of assault or rape had to be notified if the perpetrator is released 24 hours before they are set free. So, it was noon in the UK, Matt would be out of jail in 24 hours and Nicki didn't know. Lee wouldn't answer. Why did he fire Jen? She'd have him on a plane in 10 minutes.

Nicki was working the late shift today. 11 pm until morning. Once the breakfast rush was over, she would get to go home. She looked at the clock on the wall. It was only noon. She decided to sleep until at least 3, just because she could.

Lee was sleeping. He'd had a rough shift. Burned his hand, cut a finger and dropped his cell in dishwater. Everyone told him to stick it in rice and it would be fine. So, he stuck it in rice, plugged in the charger and went to bed. He didn't need to work until 11 that night. He was sleeping until the last possible second.

It took Liam hours to find the right person to help him book a flight. The tour manager was angry, telling him that if missed a show he'd be sorry. What could he do? Fine him? Let them. They had 2 days off before the show in Quebec. It was 12 hours from here to the UK. He might not even make it. Time was ticking away. Finally, he borrowed Lori from Niall and she helped him book a flight, get a ride and pack. She took charge of most of his luggage, promising to get it to the next city and gave him a small carry on. Really, they didn't pay these girls enough.