It All Started With A Tampon

(18)

Pain. Omg. Pain. I open my eyes to a blinding light, and I roll out of bed, groaning. Where the hell am I? I look around and widen my eyes. Why am I in Liam's room? I look down to see that I'm in the clothes I wore yesterday. I gasp, as it all comes back to me.

"Relax." "Smoke it." "Now." "Are you sleepy?" "I can't feel my face." "Liam?"

Oh shit. The last thing I remember is Liam carrying me inside his house. Oh god. I got high yesterday. I can't believe Josh did that. He's never done that before. I look at the clock to find it's already noon. I open the door, and see no one, so I head into the kitchen. They're all sitting around, eating what smells like the best burgers in the world.

"Good morning." Liam says.

"Good afternoon." Ben corrects.

"Thanks." I say, sitting down. I hold my head in hands, it's throbbing. Liam puts a glass of water, and two aspirin in front of me. I look up at him, and he smiles.

"First time?" He asks. I nod, embarrassed. "Well." He continues. "Don't feel ashamed. We know it wasn't your fault."

"Your brother a dick." The triplets sing. I laugh slightly.

"Yeah." I say tonelessly. I take the aspirin, and down the water.

"Are you going to be ok?" Liam asks. "What's....What's the last thing you remember from last night?"

"I'll be fine." I murmur. "I just remember you picking me up outside." They all let out a sigh, like they were relieved. "Why?" I ask confused. They all go silent, and look at each other.

"ADAM DID A STRIP RUN!" Brodie bursts out.

"....Yeah..." Dean adds. "We just hoped you forgot about that." I look at Adam, a little alarmed. He's bright pink, and he glares at Brodie.

"Umm." He says. "I don't know what to say."

"Don't worry about it." I say quickly, not wanting to know the details. "You're fifteen. It's ok." He groans, and goes back to eating his burger. Everyone goes back to eating, and out of nowhere, my stomach grumbles. Everyone looks up, and laughs.

"Hungry?" Liam asks, and hands me a plate.

"Thank you." I says desperately, piling on a burger and fries. "I haven't eaten since yesterday morning." We all go back to eating, and I start to stuff my face. "Ohhh my god." I moan. "Ben, marry me please." He chuckles.

"So where are you going with Ryan to eat tonight?" He asks. I pause, and widen my eyes.

"I totally forgot." I say, eating the last fry. Liam looks at me, and frowns.

"You still going?" He asks.

"Yeah." I answer. "Of course." He sighs.

"Fine." He says, giving up. "Just be careful. Please." I nod slightly, and finish the burger.

"I will."

"Josh's car and his friends just pulled up in their driveway!" Sam calls from the window. I jump, and run to the window.

"Did they not come back last night?"

"No." Liam says. "We were keeping an eye out."

"What am I going to do?" I whimper. "He'll kill me."

"Go through my window." Liam says. I nod, and we run up the stairs. I open his window, and stand up on his landing. It's not a large gap, just a small step over. Liam steadies me, and I look back at him.

"I hope you have a good time tonight." He says sincerely. I nod and smile.

"Thanks." I say.

"Dude, hurry up!" We hear Adam call from downstairs. I quickly say goodbye, and make the quick jump over. I wave to Liam, then shut my window. I quickly change into tights and a loose shirt, and jump into bed, turning off the light. I hear footsteps in the hall, and my door bangs open.

"Hello, sweetems." Caleb's sickly voice says. "You still stoned?"

"No." I say cautiously, sitting up.

"Damn." He answers, sitting down on my bed, stumbling a bit He's obviously a little drunk. "You were hilarious last night." I pull my covers up in front of me, wanting him to go away.

"So, where are you going tonight?" He asks casually, flipping through one of my textbooks.

"Charlie's." I answer, way to quickly. He looks at me curiously.

"Really?" He questions.

"Yeah." I say more casually. "Movie night."

"Hmm." He says, before going back to my history textbook. "God, I'm so glad I'm not still in high school. I do not miss this." I nod slowly, not knowing what to do. Is he going to leave?

"So." I say, slowly. "Where did you guys go last night?" He looks at me, and grins.

"We went to a bar." He says. "Started a fight."

"Mature." I say, bored.

"Hey." He said annoyed. "He stole from us. He deserved it."

"Whatever." I sigh. He throws my textbook away, and stands up.

"Come on." He says, opening the door. "The guys want food."

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The rest of the day, went as usual. The guys wouldn't leave me alone, making me clean all day. Whatever's happening tonight, must be important. I cooked dinner for them, burgers. Finally, it was five, and Charlie's horn beeps from the driveway. Finally. I grab my stuff and head for the door, but just before I could it open it, I'm jolted back by my arm. I turn around, to see Mark, Josh and Caleb towering over me.

"You be home by twelve." Mark says seriously.

"You don't leave her house." Josh adds.

"We will know, and we have a lot of stuff on you" Caleb finishes, and I see him wink at me. Uh.

"Fine." I say quickly. Charlie beeps again. "I gotta go." Josh lets go of my arm, and I run out the door, jumping into her car.

"Hey." She says cheerfully, chewing her gum.

"Hi." I answer. "Thank for this."

"No probs." She says, starting to drive. "But you need to explain." I look at her curiously.

"What do you mean?" I ask.

"I want to know why Ryan can't pick you up from your house." She says simply. I look at her, thinking. I haven't told anyone about any of it. Ever. "Gemma." She says smiling. "Best friend code. You can tell your best friend anything. They're not allowed to judge. They're not allowed to laugh, no matter how embarrassing. And to be honest, I have no one to tell."

I look at her, and smile. I take a deep breath. And I tell her. Everything. About Mark. My parents. Josh, Caleb. Liam. And you know what? It felt great.