A Train To Anywhere

Liam was crashing. No, actually, he had crashed.

Head pressed against the cool tile of his shower, Liam let the tears fall freely. In the beginning, the town was like a sanctuary and Astin was like an angel; but he couldn't breathe and even this small town was suffocating him. The water dripped down his body, mixing in with the crimson blood that was flowing from his hand.

In the midst of his episode, Liam didn't hesitate to raise his fist and thrust it through the closest thing to him, which happened to be the bathroom mirror. The glass had shattered under his touch, tiny shards flying into his face and his bare chest. They had lodged themselves into the knuckles of his right hand but really, it felt like they had actually went straight through his heart.

Finally, after what could have been hours, Liam managed to pry himself from the chilled water, wrapping his lower half in a towel and dropping to the floor. He began scooping up the glass with his hands, not even caring that they were just leaving more and more cuts on his skin. He didn't mind; the stinging felt amazing, even better than the medication. He could only imagine how they felt together.

Tossing all the glass into a small trashcan, he stood up, glancing at his appearance in the broken mirror. His cheeks were sunk in, probably from the lack of eating over the past two months. His eyes, once so bright and full of life, were dull and completely emotionless.

Liam Payne was gone. In his place was an empty shell. And honestly, Liam wasn't quite sure how long that would last either before it too disappeared.

When Liam left the bathroom, at first he didn't notice the girl seated on the edge of his bed until she squeaked out a muffled ”Hi”, a blush making it's way up to her cheeks. They stared at each other for a minute, Liam finally looking down and realizing that he had only a towel covering his most important parts.

“I'll just,” Astin whispered, pointing to the door. “wait outside.” The blush was still present on her face as the door closed behind her. Liam chuckled slightly before sliding on a pair of boxers and sweats. He couldn't really put a shirt on yet without staining it with blood.

“It's clear.” Liam said, pulling the door open. Still, Astin peeked through her fingers, making sure he was clothed before removing her hand and opening her eyes completely. They were silent, Liam avoiding her eyes and Astin watching as the boy moved throughout the room, looking for any sort of distraction from her.

She cleared her throat, walking over and running her finger over the scratch on his collar bone, staining her finger in his blood. “You're bleeding.” She said. She linked their hands together, pulling him back into the bathroom he had just walked out of. She glanced from the broken mirror to Liam, chewing on her bottom lip. “Sit.” She pointed at the floor and Liam obliged, falling into an indian style position.

Liam watched intently as Astin scampered around the small bathroom, grabbing random things and sitting them on the floor in front of Liam. After a few minutes, she was down too, legs placed on either side of Liam's body.

“This is going to sting a bit.” She said, removing a cotton ball from the peroxide she had just dipped it in. She leaned in, brushing the wet cotton over each of the cuts on his face and chest. While Astin was busy with his wounds, Liam was too focused on the way her eyebrows knitted while she was focused, the way her lips tightened into a straight line, the way her eyes scanned over the scratches, the way her fingers accidentally brushed against Liam's bare skin. Skin to skin contact. Not a lot, barely any really. Just enough for Liam's body to be covered in goosebumps.

It wasn't until Astin poked her finger into his chest did Liam finally pop back into reality. “I'm done.” She pushed herself off the floor, running her hands under the water from the sink before turning around and staring down at the boy. Liam hadn't even noticed when she lifted his hand to bandage even that. “Are you okay?” She asked. Liam looked up at her, shrugging his shoulders.

“As okay as I’m ever going to be.” He replied. To say that Astin was worried about her new friend was an understatement. They had only known each other for a little over 48 hours but she cared about this boy and she wanted to help him.

“Well, if you need anything, I’m here to talk.” She smiled comfortingly, resting her hand on his shoulder. “Even if you need a good cry, I’ll be here to wipe your eyes, okay.” She laughed to herself, leaving the bathroom and the room completely. Liam stared at the door, chewing on his thumb nail.

And then he was pushing himself from the floor, throwing open his room door. As if she knew, Astin stood there, a smile pulling up at the corner of her lips. Liam fell into her arms, his body raking with sobs and they both collapsed to the floor. Astin brushed her fingers over his jawline, rocking him back and forth as if he was her child.

They didn't know each other but in that moment, they both knew that, for some reason, they needed each other and that was enough.