Come Back to Me
II
It was obvious: My alarm clock was doing its best job possible to be my worst enemy. I slapped the snooze button and buried my face into my pillow. All I wanted to do was get some more uninterrupted sleep before facing the day. Unfortunately, a large, flying projectile landing roughly on my back had other ideas. I flailed as I tried to make sense of what was happening – and who would be dumb enough to awaken me after a drunken night out.
“Wake up, sleepy-butt.”
I groaned. “Damn it, Alex. Get off!”
“Come on, butthead. It’s time to rise and shine.”
“It’s too early,” was all I could whine before covering my face with my comforter.
My best friend groaned and jerked my blankets off my bed, leaving me in just my boy-shorts and tank-top. I closed my eyes in frustration at the sudden exposure to the air outside of my fabric cocoon. She smiled innocently; after dropping the blanket to the floor, Alex turned and walked out the door, calling down to the others that I was now awake. I glanced at the alarm clock. To my surprise, it was almost one in the afternoon. I rolled out of bed, pulled on a pair of Eeyore pyjama pants, and headed toward the hallway. Someone was already in the bathroom when I approached it.
“Who the Hell is in here?”
“Mind not yelling, you fucking moron?”
I rolled my eyes but walked away, knowing arguing wouldn’t do any good. Johnny, though a sweetheart in everyday situations, could be a downright asshole when he was hung over, especially with the amount of alcohol we’d drank the night before. Alex placed a plate of fried potatoes, bacon, sausage links, and an over-easy egg on the table in front of my normal spot. I couldn’t help myself; I immediately dug in, relishing in the greasiness of the potatoes and bacon. No one spoke, as if we’d all had the same idea to eat the food as fast as possible to get rid of the hangovers. Finally, all the plates were cleaned and in the sink, and I walked up the stairs to see if Johnny was out of the bathroom.
“Sorry for snapping at you.”
“Meh, it’s alright, Shorty. Alex made breakfast. I suggest you eat it. It’ll help.”
“I will. Thanks.”
It wasn’t until I’d stepped out of the shower and wrapped myself in a towel that I remembered I hadn’t brought clothes into the bathroom with me. I poked my head out the door to check if the coast was clear. When no one was around, I ran down the short hallway to my bedroom and slammed the door shut behind me. It took a moment of digging through my dresser drawers to find a black tank-top and my black-and-white-striped crop top to throw on over it, and a few more minutes was spent looking for my dark wash shorts. I quickly dressed and slipped my feet into my black wedged flip-flops. My brother gave me an appraising look when I entered the living room.
“You going somewhere?”
“Yea, going for a walk. Gotta get my vitamin D somehow.”
“Got your cell phone?”
“Yes, Jimmy,” I groaned as I opened the front door.
The sun felt absolutely amazing on my skin as I strolled down the sidewalk. I had no concrete destination in mind; I just had an urge to get out of the house. Kids were playing in sprinklers in their front yards, and their parents sat on their front porches, keeping an eye on the children. Occasionally, a mother or father would have to call out to stop the kids from getting out of hand. I merely smiled and continued my walk. My brother texted not even twenty minutes later.
Going to Matt’s. Be back later.
I sighed, locking my phone again. Of course he’d leave me at the house alone. It wasn’t that I couldn’t stand being by myself in the house; I had just really missed having him around. And I guess I just couldn’t understand why he’d prefer to spend time with his friends – the same friends with whom he’d been enclosed in a van for the duration of a tour – over hanging out with the sister he hadn’t seen in so long. I exhaled sharply once more and turned towards home.
.:.
I opened the door and grinned. “Hey, guys.”
Alex entered first with Elliot right behind her. They followed me to the kitchen, where we gathered up bags of chips and cookies, a couple jars of French onion dip, and a tray with a bottle of Crown Royal and tumblers. My parents had called earlier that day to tell me they would be home around ten-thirty, but they didn’t mind that the girls had come over for a girls’ night in and a few drinks. Elliot slipped Queen of the Damned into the DVD player as Alex and I set up the snacks on the coffee table. My friends gave me a curious look when I downed my half-full tumbler of Crown in one go.
“What’s wrong with you?”
“Nothing. Except the fact Jimmy left me all alone here at the house, all day, because he wanted to go hang out with the guys.”
“Wait. The same guys he sees all the damn time?” questioned Ell with a raised eyebrow.
“Yep.”
“Guys suck.”
I laughed at Alex and took a sip of my drink. “Yea. They do. Let’s just watch the movie and ignore the fact that my brother is an asshat.”
When my parents came home, it was to three slightly drunk girls, singing along loudly to Grease, and an almost-empty bottle of Crown Royal sitting on the table. They merely shook their heads and sent us up to my room to sleep off the buzz. Ell and Al immediately curled up against me once we were in my bed, and I sighed happily. They’d made me forget how my brother had made me feel, and for that, I was incredibly grateful.
“Wake up, sleepy-butt.”
I groaned. “Damn it, Alex. Get off!”
“Come on, butthead. It’s time to rise and shine.”
“It’s too early,” was all I could whine before covering my face with my comforter.
My best friend groaned and jerked my blankets off my bed, leaving me in just my boy-shorts and tank-top. I closed my eyes in frustration at the sudden exposure to the air outside of my fabric cocoon. She smiled innocently; after dropping the blanket to the floor, Alex turned and walked out the door, calling down to the others that I was now awake. I glanced at the alarm clock. To my surprise, it was almost one in the afternoon. I rolled out of bed, pulled on a pair of Eeyore pyjama pants, and headed toward the hallway. Someone was already in the bathroom when I approached it.
“Who the Hell is in here?”
“Mind not yelling, you fucking moron?”
I rolled my eyes but walked away, knowing arguing wouldn’t do any good. Johnny, though a sweetheart in everyday situations, could be a downright asshole when he was hung over, especially with the amount of alcohol we’d drank the night before. Alex placed a plate of fried potatoes, bacon, sausage links, and an over-easy egg on the table in front of my normal spot. I couldn’t help myself; I immediately dug in, relishing in the greasiness of the potatoes and bacon. No one spoke, as if we’d all had the same idea to eat the food as fast as possible to get rid of the hangovers. Finally, all the plates were cleaned and in the sink, and I walked up the stairs to see if Johnny was out of the bathroom.
“Sorry for snapping at you.”
“Meh, it’s alright, Shorty. Alex made breakfast. I suggest you eat it. It’ll help.”
“I will. Thanks.”
It wasn’t until I’d stepped out of the shower and wrapped myself in a towel that I remembered I hadn’t brought clothes into the bathroom with me. I poked my head out the door to check if the coast was clear. When no one was around, I ran down the short hallway to my bedroom and slammed the door shut behind me. It took a moment of digging through my dresser drawers to find a black tank-top and my black-and-white-striped crop top to throw on over it, and a few more minutes was spent looking for my dark wash shorts. I quickly dressed and slipped my feet into my black wedged flip-flops. My brother gave me an appraising look when I entered the living room.
“You going somewhere?”
“Yea, going for a walk. Gotta get my vitamin D somehow.”
“Got your cell phone?”
“Yes, Jimmy,” I groaned as I opened the front door.
The sun felt absolutely amazing on my skin as I strolled down the sidewalk. I had no concrete destination in mind; I just had an urge to get out of the house. Kids were playing in sprinklers in their front yards, and their parents sat on their front porches, keeping an eye on the children. Occasionally, a mother or father would have to call out to stop the kids from getting out of hand. I merely smiled and continued my walk. My brother texted not even twenty minutes later.
Going to Matt’s. Be back later.
I sighed, locking my phone again. Of course he’d leave me at the house alone. It wasn’t that I couldn’t stand being by myself in the house; I had just really missed having him around. And I guess I just couldn’t understand why he’d prefer to spend time with his friends – the same friends with whom he’d been enclosed in a van for the duration of a tour – over hanging out with the sister he hadn’t seen in so long. I exhaled sharply once more and turned towards home.
.:.
I opened the door and grinned. “Hey, guys.”
Alex entered first with Elliot right behind her. They followed me to the kitchen, where we gathered up bags of chips and cookies, a couple jars of French onion dip, and a tray with a bottle of Crown Royal and tumblers. My parents had called earlier that day to tell me they would be home around ten-thirty, but they didn’t mind that the girls had come over for a girls’ night in and a few drinks. Elliot slipped Queen of the Damned into the DVD player as Alex and I set up the snacks on the coffee table. My friends gave me a curious look when I downed my half-full tumbler of Crown in one go.
“What’s wrong with you?”
“Nothing. Except the fact Jimmy left me all alone here at the house, all day, because he wanted to go hang out with the guys.”
“Wait. The same guys he sees all the damn time?” questioned Ell with a raised eyebrow.
“Yep.”
“Guys suck.”
I laughed at Alex and took a sip of my drink. “Yea. They do. Let’s just watch the movie and ignore the fact that my brother is an asshat.”
When my parents came home, it was to three slightly drunk girls, singing along loudly to Grease, and an almost-empty bottle of Crown Royal sitting on the table. They merely shook their heads and sent us up to my room to sleep off the buzz. Ell and Al immediately curled up against me once we were in my bed, and I sighed happily. They’d made me forget how my brother had made me feel, and for that, I was incredibly grateful.
Notes
Dami's outfitI had this almost completely written out after I'd posted the first chapter, but my laptop crashed, so I had to rewrite it. And now, I'm off to bed!
4/7/13