A chance to love again

Chapter 12

"Mr. Styles?" a doctor comes out into the waiting room. He's got Ava sleeping on his chest and Liam is letting the boys play with his iPad to keep them busy. Louis stands up carefully holding Ava close.

"How is he?" he asks quietly.

"He's got a herniated disc. It's pretty severe, and we think the sudden, forceful twisting that he did on the field must have caused it to slip the way it did. We're going to have to do surgery to repair it before the vertebrae suffer damage and he's with back pain forever."

"God," Louis sighs. "Is it dangerous? The surgery?"

"There is a possibility of paralysis," the doctor says slowly. "But it's very unlikely. Our orthopedic surgeon is one of the best. It's in Harry's best interest that we do it right away and then get him started on physical therapy."

"His football career is over, innit?"

"I'm afraid so. 49ers are going to lose such a valuable player, unfortunately," the doctor sighs. "You can come see him before surgery. He's been asking for you ever since he came to after his MRI. We'll give you two some time to talk before we take him in, but we have to take him in soon."

"Is he still in a lot of pain?"

"He's on pain killers, but he's very uncomfortable. Someone will be in to explain to you both what to expect and what it'll be like afterwards."

"Thank you," Louis says. He doesn't think he wants the kids to see Harry, not like this. He's probably full of drugs and IVs and tubes and he doesn't want them getting scared. They'll see him after, when he looks more like their papa.

He drops Ava off with Liam, telling them he's going to see papa and they can see him a little later. Liam takes them home for now, which Louis is grateful for. He doesn't want his kids stuck in the hospital. He tells Liam he'll be home soon and figure out what exactly he's going to do.

He goes into Harry's room hesitantly, knocking on the door quietly before stepping in. Harry looks just as bad as he thought he would; IVs, tubes, the whole scary package.

"Harry," Louis whimpers, walking over to him and grabbing his hand. "Hi, honey. How are you feeling?"

"Louis," Harry mumbles tiredly. "You're here."

"I've been here the whole time. They didn't want me to see you. I was with the kids in the waiting room. Liam just took them home for now. They'll come see you after your surgery, I promise."

"Surgery," Harry moans pitifully. "No more football."

"No more football," Louis agrees sadly. "I'm so sorry, babe. But lets focus on getting you better first. That's the most important thing. We're going to get through this."

"Hurts so much," Harry groans. "So much pain."

"I know, sweetheart. But soon they're gonna put you under and you won't feel anything. It's going to hurt for a while but we're going to go to physical therapy and make you feel so much better. I'm here for everything," Louis promises, kissing the inside of his palm.

"I love you," Harry says. "Thank you."

"I love you too. You gave us a proper scare. The boys were so worried, and Ava was reaching out for you when she saw you on the ground screaming. They can't wait to see you."

"I'm glad they can't see me like this. I must look like some sort of monster," Harry says.

"A little bit. That's why I sent them with Liam. They can see you when you're settled."