asset [h.s.]

seventy eight // dead end

Harry

I haven't slept in days.

It's not like last time though. I'm not drinking or shouting at everyone or throwing things around. I'm focused. I'm determined.

I stay awake most of the night with Liam, sat beside him while he works on his laptop. We've been trying to track down Alicia for days, although our options are pretty limited from where we're trapped inside Zayn's apartment.

We've hacked into security cameras, traffic cameras, looked at different hotel bookings all throughout the city, but we haven't found a trace of her yet. Half of me is proud that she's managed to disappear so easily, and the other half of me hates myself for teaching her to do it so well.

At first, I didn't believe that Alicia had left out of her own will. I think that was because I didn't want to accept the fact that she left me, that she chose to run off and leave me behind. But then Liam figured out the only way the window could've been opened was from the inside, no signs of forced entry or any kind of struggle, so she must've fled on her own.

I know she didn't just leave for the sake of it though. She's smart, intelligent. No matter what she's feeling right now or what emotional turmoil she's experiencing, she wouldn't just leave without having a reason to. She obviously has a plan, so we just need to figure out what that is.

But most importantly, we need to find her and bring her back. Bring her back to me. Bring her home.

Throughout our days of trying to track her down, we haven't really had any breakthroughs. This is why both Zayn and I were pretty surprised this morning when Liam burst into the living room, telling us about some girl he spotted on a security camera. It turns out he saw a figure of similar build and age to Alicia at a petrol station, and then managed to track her down to a nearby motel where she's apparently staying.

That's why the three of us are now sat in a car that Zayn hired, on our way to the motel. Zayn's driving while Liam's sat in the front giving him directions, and I'm leaning forward in the middle seat, too agitated and nervous to even sit back properly. My leg is bouncing up and down, my jaw clenched and my eyes firmly fixed on the road ahead.

"How do we even know this lead is accurate?" Zayn suddenly asks. "Didn't you just spot this random girl on a security camera? How do you know it's Alicia?"

"We don't, but it's pretty likely. They looked the same age and build. And she must be still in the country because I can't think of any other way she could've got onto a flight," Liam replies. "Besides, it's the only lead we've got."

"Seems like a bit of a stretch," Zayn comments negatively, causing both Liam and I to shoot him a glare. "But I'll support it, if it'll make Harry happy again."

"Wow, thanks mate," I reply sarcastically. "It's nice to know my happiness is a last resort to you."

"Ignore him," Liam says to me, rolling his eyes in Zayn's direction. "If it is Alicia, what are you going to do when you see her?"

"Well, I'm going to give her a piece of my mind for running off and scaring me like that," I tell them honestly, fiddling with the rings on my fingers. "Then I guess I'll just......I don't know, hug her?"

Zayn lets out a laugh, shaking his head in disbelief. "Yeah, right. I think you'll be doing more than that. Maybe Liam and I shouldn't come in with you."

I roll my eyes. "As if we're going to start screwing right in front of you," I scoff. "Our relationship is about more than just the physical side. Most are. Not that you'd know."