FLUFFED

10: Worry Wart

ERIC

I got a call from Sookie telling me her cousin was in. I wanted to meet her so I could see what kind of mess Sookie was dealing with when it came to Hadley. I'd dealt with way too many drug addicts over the years. The porn industry is a mecca for meth and heroin users. There had been some actresses I refused to work with because they couldn't seem to get to the set sober.

On my way to Sookie's I stopped to get lunch for us all since it was a little later in the day. I suspected Hadley wouldn't eat much, but I still got enough Chinese for four just in case Kennedy was around too. When I got to the house I walked up and knocked on the door. I wasn't quite at walking in status yet, but I had a feeling it wouldn't be too far off.

Kennedy came to the door with an uneasy look on her face.

"Hey," she said and stepped back.

"Hey. That bad?" I whispered as I walked into the house.

"It's not the worst I've seen, but close," she whispered back. "They're up in the living room."

"I brought lunch or dinner or whatever it is if you want some." I lifted the bags.

"Awesome," she smiled. Kennedy closed the door behind me and followed me upstairs.

When we reached the top Kennedy took the bags from me so she could take them to the kitchen. Sookie was sitting on the couch. Her cousin looked like a corpse sitting there in a chair. She looked really, really bad. It was clear that if she had been clean she would have looked a lot like Sookie.

"Hello," I said. I walked over to Sookie and leaned over to kiss her cheek. I looked over at the girl with stringy blonde hair, pockmarks, and eyes dilated to little pins. "You must be Hadley."

"Sure am. You must be the boyfriend," Hadley replied. "You're cute."

"Thanks..." I sat down next to Sookie. I put my arm over the couch behind her almost possessively.

"What's in the bags?" Sookie asked. She kissed my cheek. "It smells good whatever it is."

"I picked up Chinese for us all. There's some chow mein, fried rice, potstickers, these fried dumpling things. The barbecue pork, because it's delicious, orange chicken... I wasn't sure if anyone was hungry but it's getting closer to late lunch/dinner time."

"I always have room for Chinese food," Sookie replied. "Thank you for bringing it."

"You're welcome. So... Hadley... I'm glad to meet you," I said awkwardly. I wasn't really that excited to meet her and I got a really bad vibe.

"Sookie's had lots of nice stuff to say about you," Hadley replied in an accent much thicker than Sookie's. "How long y'all been fucking?"

Wow, that's direct.

I looked down at Sookie, allowing her to answer.

"That's not really any of your business, Hadley," she said.

"Well you said he's in porn. I didn't think you'd be a prude about it," Hadley shrugged.

"I don't think she's being a prude. I think what Sookie and I do is private. That's completely different from what I do on screen," I said.

Hadley just shrugged again.

"Are you hungry, Had?"

"No. I think I'm gonna go outside for a smoke," she said. Her skin and bones frame got up from her chair and went to the patio door in the dining room.

"I'm sorry about her," Sookie apologized once the door was shut.

"Lover, you have nothing to apologize for," I assured her. Sookie wasn't the drug addict with zero tact. "Do you want to eat?"