Liam POV:

It had been almost six weeks since Rene` had last woken up. There had been no improvement to her memory and since then only doctors had been allowed to see her. She was still in and out of consciousness and trying to recover. But today was different. Today she was leaving the hospital after over three whole months. Today she was coming home with us, and I'd never been so happy about anything in my entire life. Going from thinking the person you love most in this world might die; to being able to walk out the door with her safely in tow…it was enough to make you believe. In God, and miracles, and love in all its endless wonder. And I believed more than ever now.

They thought it was just amnesia; her memory could come back at any time but because of the damage that had already been caused it would probably take much longer and there were very strict rules set for us to avoid additional damage. That was the least of my worries.

"Now, you will be allowed to take her home today but you need to remember what we said. You can tell her some things but try not to tell her too much. You can't avoid telling her about her fame, but do not tell her about personal relationships that might overwhelm her. To her she is only fifteen." The doctor looked pointedly at Niall. "She has spoken to her brothers on the phone so she knows some things. Right now she is coming to terms with her mother's death. Deal with her gently. Now, physically she is fine—miraculously—but she will still need to come in sporadically for checkups. And because of the extent of her brain injury she will be prone to migraines."

We all nodded in understanding, and waited. Harry was bouncing on the balls of his feet and Zayn was checking his reflection in the shiny surface of a picture on the wall. When the door to room 394 opened Rene` slowly crept out. She had made a remarkable recovery considering, but she was still fragile. She was wearing a black sweater and jeans that Louis had collected from the house. She was fidgeting a little as she walked out, eyes traveling from face to face with no trace of recognition. I knew why she was fidgeting. Louis had grabbed the bra she'd gotten last year that was a bit too small for her. It was something I should know, so I couldn't call him on it but I hated that the material was going to be tight right around where she had just has surgery. The doctors were looking at her as if she was a miracle, which I guess she kind of was. I still remembered that one day last month when Rene's` heart had stopped. The monitor had flat lined and I'd full on freaked out. I was all sobbing and calling for nurses and promising God everything I own if he let her live. I'd never known real fear until that moment.

And now look at her. As stunning as ever, relatively healthy. She wasn't the Ray I knew, but she was in there somewhere.

"Hi," she said sheepishly, putting up her hand in a kind of half-wave, her French manicured nails chipping. I'd never seen Rene` look so utterly lost. Normally she faked confidence even when she was scared. Apparently, fifteen year old Ray was a bit different.

"Hi!" Harry was the first to respond. She shuffled further out of the room to get a better look at him. "I'm Harry."

"And I'm Louis!"

"I'm Zayn."

"I'm Niall." You could tell it hurt him to say it…or rather to have to say it. But he smiled at her and she smiled back. Then she turned the force of her big brown eyes on me.

"I'm Rene`," she said to me softly. "But I guess you knew that." I couldn't figure why she was giving me that strange look, until I realized I was crying. How odd it must seem to her, to have a boy she didn't know shedding tears over her.

"Sorry. Yeah. I'm Liam," I whispered, wiping my eyes on the back of my hand. "Sorry I'm just really glad to see you." My heart swelled as I watched her, all the pain and sheer terror I'd experienced these past few months seemed to vanish.

She smiled back at me warmly. There was such confusion on her face, but I could see the wheels turning in her brain like she wanted to remember.

"I'm glad to see you too," she lied, blushing.

"So, I don't mean to rush you, but I'm kind of sick of this hospital…"

"Oh right! Of course!" Niall said quickly. He took the lead, almost running to the elevator. We all started to walk, looking over our shoulder every now and then just to see Rene` up and moving.

"Be prepared to deal with the fans outside," Louis warned a wicked glint in his eye.

"Right. The doctors and my brothers told me about that. They said we were in a band…my brothers said we suck." She smiled in fond remembrance. The boys and I shared a look. We couldn't imagine anyone in our families telling us that.

"They were joking," she clarified when none of us laughed.

"Oh. We've never met them. Are they arseholes?" Harry piped up. Niall elbowed him in the ribs but Ray just laughed softly as we all piled into the elevator.

"Yes."

We all laughed then, relief flooding the small space. She was in there. Our Ray was still there.

"But I love them very much…I guess…you guys are like my brothers in the U.K?"

Niall dropped his head and the look on his face was like he'd just taken a bullet. This must have been hard on him, but it was hard on me too. It was like the same situation with none of the sympathy.

"Yeah for sure," Zayn supplied, punching her arm playfully. God she looked uncomfortable.

When we got to the hospital lobby I could already hear the dull roar of the fans outside. They didn't know Rene` had amnesia, and I was terrified it was going to be too much for her.

"Are you okay? Are you going to be able to handle this?" Niall asked gently. You could tell just by looking at him he was resisting the urge to reach out and touch her. Normally he was all over her, not in a sleazy way but as if it caused him pain not to be near her. This was killing him.

"I'm tougher than you think." She raised an eyebrow as our bodyguards appeared out of thin freaking air. Paul was among them and he was smiling so hard at Ray it looked painful.

"Oh we know," Louis and Harry said in union. I tried to hide my grin. If there was one thing that girl was, it was tough.

"Hi Rene`. I'm Paul, it's so good to see you. Alright, I'll lead the way guys. You two grab the flank," Paul told the other body guards. Then he turned to us. "You boys make a circle around Ray."

"Protective cocoon. Excellent idea," Louis agreed. We all fell into place and braced ourselves as the door opened. The roar got louder and I fixed my gaze on the limo, our target.

"Get back! Get back!" Paul screamed. I had somehow been shuffled right next to Rene`, she was taking it all in, awe in her face when she saw the sheer number of people. I was suddenly wishing we had quite a few more bodyguards.

Rene` POV:

We had hardly taken a step outside when I realized this was going to be a problem. There were people everywhere, screaming things I didn't understand and begging for autographs. The boys tried to stay in tight formation around me but there wasn't enough security and soon the fans were clawing at them, yanking them in every direction.

"Rene'! I love you," One boy called. He looked like he'd been here for days but that couldn't be true, why would anyone camp out overnight in this cold? He had a red rose in his hand and he was holding it out to me. The boy's eyes were pleading with me to notice him. Niall had been on my left side but had been yanked away by a mob of screaming girls. He was more scared than I was and the two bodyguards behind me were rushing to help him. Harry and Louis had been ripped away as well, leaving Zayn and Paul in front of me, and Liam firmly by my side.

I reached over and plucked the rose from my fansoutstretched hand.

"Thank you!" I called over the array of shrieking girls. The boy looked like he was about to cry with joy, and the thought that I could do that to someone was staggering. Just to try my hand I blew him a kiss and he didfaint.

"Whoa," I breathed. Liam smiled at me and again I was struck by his beauty. He was so close to me I could hardly hack it. I certainly understood why all these girls would camp out overnight for him.All the 'I 3 Liam' posters were very reasonable.

I gasped as a rush of fans broke passed the feeble security and rushed Zayn. He was literally dragged into their hold. Then it was just Liam and I, and they were certainly closing in. We were close to the limo, but it may as well have been a thousand miles if the fans 'attacked.' I didn't normally worry about myself but people started pushing and pulling on me right after all that…I'd probably be turning around and going right back into the hospital. I looked up at Liam, panic stricken. As my eyes met his he seemed to make a decision. With a motion so fast I hardly saw it, he swooped me up in his arms, making sure my head was cradled against his chest. The fans went wild. Phones and cameras were taken out and pointed in our direction. Shouts of "Riam is real!" flooded my ears.

Whoa. He was holding me.Something inside me melted and I found myself clinging to him, one arm around his neck. He moved fast, much faster than I would have. He opened the car door with one hand, still holding me with the other, like I weighed nothing at all. Then he slid into the car, still holding me tight.

Liam pulled me along until we were on the far side of the limo. The second he stopped he cupped my face in his hands and I froze. His touch was so gentle, intimate that I was caught off guard. Why was this beautiful person dealing with me so kindly, was he gay? God I hoped not. His thumb skimmed over my cheek.

"Are you alright bab—" he cut himself off abruptly, dropping his hands. "Rene`." He corrected. "Are you alright Rene`?" I was still half on his lap, brain frozen from the proximity. Had he been about to call me baby? My heart leapt at the thought only to sink again. No. Niall had called me baby when I first woke up. Clearly, it meant nothing. Numbly, I nodded. He was realizing how close we were too and he gently scooted away from me.

"Sorry for man-handling you back there."

"I quite enjoyed it." I always had been a little too honest.

Liam grinned and had just opened his mouth to respond when the other boys and the three bodyguards came piling into the limo. Niall had a torn collar, Zayn's quiff was deflated, Harry's jacket was ripped, and Louis sunglasses were gone. Had Liam and I been the only two that made a clean break?

"What the hell was that Paul?" Liam demanded the second the car started moving.

"I'm sorry we greatly miscalculated how many fans were out there. It was a lot more than yesterday."

Liam was still fuming, you could tell by how red he was getting. Niall and Harry looked pissed too.

"If it were just me and the boys it would have been fine. But she could have gotten hurt!" Liam growled.

"And she would have if Liam hadn't pulled that ninja move! Thanks for that by the way man," Niall agreed. Why was he thanking someone for my safety? Shouldn't I be doing that? For some reason I found it really unsettling.

"I know I'm so sorry," Paul seemed genuinely upset so the boys grudgingly let it die.

"So…how are you feeling after that?" Liam asked me tentatively. To be honest it was kind of a power high. I felt like I ruled the world. And hadn't I always dreamed of being famous? It's literally like I woke up and all my dreams had come true. I had nothing to complain about.

"I feel good. Just one question though." All eyes were on me, waiting expectantly. "What's Riam?" the answering pause was downright awkward. Every gaze turned to Niall, who seemed really uncomfortable.

"They tend to morph our names together. They ship people together…ship means you support the coupling. Riam is you and Liam together who is probably going to triple in popularity after that video hits the web. Larry is Louis and Harry. Riall is me and you. It goes on for ages," Niall explained.

"Oh that's cute." I felt like I was poking at an awkward subject but I didn't know why. Were they gay? Did any of them have a crush on me? Had I had sexwith any of them? They were all really cute. My eyes flicked to Liam and I felt my body flush with heat. Had I had sex with him? No…

"How did we get so famous?"

"When we get home we'll let you watch all the tapes," Zayn promised. And watch I did.

It was amazing how much information about us there was on youtube. Video after video of interviews and X-factor moments and video diaries. It was crazy. By hour six I was slumped in front of Louis' laptop and unable to endure another minute. It was beyond odd watching yourself on screen doing things you had no recollection of doing. But the boys were really weird about which videos they let me watch. Only live X-factor shows and video diaries that was 'safe.' I only got to see a few interviews, apparently those were too much for me to handle.

"I'm done I think," I said softly. It was a lot to take in. Louis, Harry, and Zayn were laid out in the living room watching T.V. Liam and Niall were making dinner in the kitchen, but since I was sitting on the counter I was the closest to them.

"Are you ok?" Niall asked gently, leaning over and putting her hand over mine. I nodded gratefully. Liam looked over at me as he chopped up the onions. His movements were so swift and effortless. Even something that simple was fascinating to watch.

"Why won't you guys let me watch some videos?"

"It's just a lot for one day," Louis shouted from the living room. Something told me he was lying but I didn't push it. My head was really hurting and the noise from the television was starting to hurt me head. I just wanted my mom. She would hold me and tell me it was okay. The thought that she'd never do that again made me sick.

"Can I go lay down?" I asked softly. Niall gave me a sympathetic look and nodded.

"Sure."

Liam POV:

We'd made Ray's favorite for dinner—chili. She'd been upstairs laying down for almost an hour and we'd all finished. I spooned some into a bowl and was getting ready to head upstairs when I paused.

"Hey guys…" they all looked away from the T.V. and waited for me to continue.

"We didn't tell her which room was hers…" They all sat up a little straighter, suddenly interested.

"So whose room is she in?" Harry asked. I shrugged and headed upstairs. The bowl of chili was hot in my hands and I rushed to find her. I started towards the room Niall and her shared and then paused. I turned quickly and opened the door at the other end of the hall, the door to my bedroom.

Rene` was curled up on my bed, snuggled under the covers and fast asleep. I could hear her soft breath. Her too tight bra had been thrown on my floor along with her sweater and pants. Holy crap was she naked in my bed? No…couldn't think like that. It was getting dark, the sun fading in the sky. I was about to back out of the room when she stirred. Her eyes opened groggily, she couldn't have been asleep long but she grinned at me.

"Hey," she said, sitting up. Her nipples were hard. I could see them jutting against the thin fabric of my shirt. Wait…she was wearing my shirt. I slipped into the room, closing the door behind me.

"I brought you some dinner." I handed the bowl to her and she took it, sniffing cautiously.

"Chili?"

"Yep. You like my chili," I told her. She took a bite and chewed slowly. Her eyes closed and she moaned softly.

"The first hot food I've had in six weeks…or I guess even longer than that. And you're right it is good." She patted the spot next to her in invitation. I sat down, watching her eat for a little while until she finally spoke again.

"Thanks for bringing me this."

"Sure thing. Hey Ray…can I ask you something?" she nodded her consent. "Why did you choose this room?"

"Oh my God I'm so sorry! My head hurt so bad I just kind of…" she started to kick the blankets off and edge towards the side of the bed.

"No! No it's fine, I was just curious."

"Oh." She stopped her movement and thought about it. "I don't know. I didn't even think I just walked in here." She looked down at herself, just now realizing that the shirt she was wearing was thin and her nipples were as hard as little rocks.

"I suppose this is your shirt?" she asked sheepishly. I nodded.

"I'm sorry."

"No. You keep it. Looks good on you."

"Thanks. So you made this huh?" she asked, scraping the bottom of the bowl. I nodded again, glad she was eating.

"Thanks for being so nice to me."

"Thank you," I said quickly.

"For what?"

"Surviving."