Triad Tourists

Chapter 2

"Woah!" I jump up from bed, trying to figure out whose beside me. "Get-" I'm rudely interrupted by a painful groan from my own lips.

My head is killing me

My legs are killing me

"What happened?" Rhetorical question.

I try to wake the person on the floor beside me, but they're not waking up. I can't scream at them because my head will literally explode. So, I resort to throwing pillows at them until I hear a groan.

At least I know it's a male: good.

As they stretch, their joints pop. "Goodmorning."

I find myself clenching my thighs together. "Who are you?" My tone is demanding. "Did we... we had sex?"

"No." He groans. "You got drunk over your brother and had to get a ride home."

"Who are you?"

"Ryder."

"Roku?"

"Ryder."

"Ryker?"

"Ryder, Ryder. Last night, you mistook me for your brother's doctor. The "fresh meat" as you call it."

I gasp. "You sure we didn't have sex? I'm a mess when I'm sad, I slept with a homeless guy before."

He laughs, probably thinking it was a joke. "I'm sure I'd know if I lost my virginity to a woman as beautiful as you."

I smile. "Don't get too confident."

"Do you remember anything that happened last night? Anything at all?" He starts to get up from the floor. Fully dressed. We couldn't have had sex.

"I remember Sayora buying shots."

"Sayora, me, Jessie Nu. We bought like 5 bottles."

"For how many people?"

"Like 6, just me and my buddies so it wasn't a lot."

Memories start flooding back. "Did I backflip off of a car?! Is that why my legs hurt?!"

He starts laughing! "Dude! You totally landed the first one! Hold on, where's my phone!" He starts to look for it. He pulls up a video of me on a grey sudan screaming F My Baby Dad with a bottle of Hennessy in my hand. A large, empty bottle of Hennessy.

"DO A FLIP!"

I laugh. "I'm gonna do a flip!"

"No!" "No" "no!"

I point my middle finger at them. "F--k y'all! I'm gonna do my flip!" I throw the Hennessy bottle down in front of me as Ryder and another man start to come to he car. The glass explodes and pieces of it and what liquor was left in that bottle hit them both. I can tell because they jump back.

Someone I don't know shakes his head into the camera. "She too old for that. This too wild for me."

I flip, right onto the glass. Thankfully, looks like I wore Tims. "I DID IT!!!" The volume goes up as people cheer and scream hoorays. "I'ma do it again!" I start to climb on a different car away from the glass.

"Tallulah, no!" Sayora tackles me away from it.

The video ends.

"You don't remember last night, you damn near broke both your legs flipping off of that car. "

"I landed it tho!" I watch myself flip again, very impressed that I could do it.

We laugh. "Thank you for staying with me, and especially being nice enough not to take advantage of me. I must've been out of it to drink that much. Would you like breakfast as a thank you?"

He nods. "That would be nice. Also, I kinda gotta take you to your car. We had to leave it at the bar."

I climb out of bed, forcing my legs to do what I want them to. "Do eggs and sausage sound alright?"

"Splendid."

15 minutes later, we're both holding plates of food while exiting the door. He holds good conversation as we look for the bar. Ok the way he even points out where I threw glass.

After making it to the hospital, I visit Kelan.

"I miss you, little brother." His body lies there in the same position the nurse puts him in every few hours. His breathing sounds fine, but knowing he can't respond to me hurts. "You're 16 this year... how will you take that information? You're gonna have to re-do freshman year for sure. It's fine, you can do online to save you the embarrassment... Hopefully you're awake for 17."

Tears fall from his eyes, which tells me he can hear me. "Let me get that." I wipe his face. "Get up, Kelan. It's not the hard! You're acting weak, get up!" I lightly shake him.

When I feel the weight of his body, I stop and put him back in place. "S-sorry, I just can't do this without you. Dad is-" he can hear me, I can't break his heart like that. Dad wasn't even making it known that he was trans until we were 16. "Dad is busy, and I'm lonely."

I lightly squeeze his hand, praying that he wakes up. "God, wake him up for me, I need my brother. He can't die again, if he does-"

"Ms. Oliver?" A nurse comes in. "Someone asked for you in the hallway."

I put on my business face. Anything could be going on. After one last squeeze to Kelan's hand, I vaporize all vulnerability and stand from his bedside chair.

"Yes? Another patient?"

She politely shakes her head, which causes me to slouch slightly. This is my job, but the things I see daily is what 100k gets you: bad mental health. The ONLY thing that gets me through it is the good Lord.

She shakes her head. "No, he has a few papers."

I go into the hall and cringe when I see a man in an army suit. He looks as if he's waiting for someone.

Since I'm here, I may as well try to get him out of that suit tonight.

No! I have to act like I work here.

"Hi?" I politely speak, grabbing his attention. "Are you looking for someone?"

"Yes, but I don't know how they look."

"Ah, do you have a name? I'm a Doctor here, I could help you find them."

He glances at the papers. "I dont have a first name. Oliver? I'm looking for an Oliver? Do you know him?"

My chest starts to hurt. Why is the army calling? Never have I ever I mean never enlisted, and we aren't at war.

"Dr. Oliver?" I ask.

He glances at the papers again. "I don't know, it says T. Oliver. Someone just asked me to take it to this floor and find an Oliver in this room. You seem tense, is he your kin or something?"

I hold out my hand. "I'm Tallulah Oliver, Sir."

He scans me up and down. "Sorry, I expect you to be... A man."

I smile. "It's ok, Oliver is a male first name so I get typos and confusion all the time. Thanks for my papers! And thanks for the service!"

"You're welcome! Have a good day!" He replies.

"You as well!"

I quickly go to the break room and warm my food as I open my mail. My eyes get blurry as I read the paper. All I can catch is: liberated, Shanghai, and experience. "Did a reserve send this as a joke? This has to be someone from this hospital." I read over the papers again, realizing one thing.

I'm licensed to travel abroad! SHITAKI MUSHROOMS!