Through the Lens

Familiar Sounds

Harry's POV

I was half awake, listening to the sound of the waves crashing onto the shore through the open patio door, when I rolled over to pull Hailey closer to me and found she wasn't there. I groggily patted her side of the bed in search of her before I realized her side of the bed was cold and finally opened my eyes to find I was alone. I opened my eyes, looking to where she should be before my eyes scanned the room and landed on the stream of light coming from the bottom of the bathroom door.

I laid back down, closing my eyes but missing the feeling of her beside me, when I realized she must have been in there a while for her side of the bed to be cold. It was then when I could have sworn I heard a soft sniffle coming from behind the bathroom door.

I sat up in bed, listening for a second, before I got up and made my way to the bathroom, softly knocking against the wood of the door.

"Bear?" I said softly as I heard her sniffle once again. "You okay?"

I slowly turned the knob, a bit relieved to see it was unlocked, before I pushed the door open to find her hunched over on the bathroom floor. Her back was to me, so I couldn't see her face, but I got confirmation that she was crying as she reached up and wiped her cheeks. I took a few steps toward her and crouched down beside her, placing my hand on her back as worry started to rush through me.

"What is it? What's the matter?" I asked as she continued to hunch over, closing her eyes tightly and wrapping her arms around her abdomen.

I saw her wince and suddenly realized she was in pain, which was the last thing I was expecting. I think I thought maybe she'd had a bad dream, or she was missing home or something, the sight of her in physical pain instantly made my heart ache.

"Hails, talk to me. Are you in pain? What hurts?" I said as I reached over and tucked her hair behind her ear.

"I...I have really bad cramps." She sniffled as she reached up and wiped her nose with the back of her hand. "I'm getting my period."

I felt a bit of relief wash over me that it wasn't something more serious, but instantly felt horrible at the idea that she'd been in there in pain for god knows how long while I slept soundly.

"Oh, Bear. I'm sorry." I sighed as I shifted to sit next to her on the floor, putting my arm around her and pulling her into me. "What can I do?"

"I don't know...they're really bad, I don't usually get them this bad." She sniffled as I ran my fingers through her hair.

"Why don't you take a bath? I know it can help sometimes, the warm water helps blood flow or some shit." I said as I pulled away to look at her, wiping the wetness from her cheeks with my thumbs. "I'll run you a bath and then see if I can find a hot water bottle around here."

Growing up in a house full of women, I'd picked up a trick or two in my life about these things. I remembered my sister used to spend an hour in the bath before she'd be on the couch in the fetal position for the rest of the day, clutching a hot water bottle like it was a newborn child.

"Okay." Hails sighed as she nodded, and I immediately stood up to turn on the water for a bath.

I poured in the bubble bath as the tub slowly began to fill, making sure it wasn't too hot, before I reached down and pulled her up to stand. She winced immediately, doubling over while she clutched her side and a small cry escaped her lips.

"It really hurts, Haz." She cried, and all I could do was try to get her into the bath as soon as possible.

"I know, babe. I'm sorry. This is gonna help, let's get you undressed." I said softly as I pulled my t-shirt that she'd worn to bed over her head, taking her hand as she stepped into the tub and slowly sat down.