That Monday, Lauren was still nursing the effects of a hangover, despite staying in bed most of the day Sunday. Even a shower couldn't wake her up, and she'd crawled back into bed fully dressed, not sure she was going to make it to class. But then Julia rapped on the door.
"I made breakfast," she called through the door.
Lauren heard footsteps heading back downstairs, trusting that the promise of food would be enough to get her out of bed. And it did; she wandered downstairs, dishevelled, took a seat next to Julia, and pulled the plate towards her.
"You are a godsend," she mumbled, eating a few mouthfuls before reaching for the coffee Julia had also made.
"Saturday really was a wild night for you," Julia laughed. Suddenly, she looked at her with great clarity in her eyes for the first time that morning. "Were you feeling okay that night?"
"Yeah, fine," Lauren reassured her quickly. "I was just tired. My body's not up to this anymore." The two girls shared an understanding smile.
"I was just worried it was about Joey," Julia said.
"Oh. No." Lauren chewed on her lip, unsure if she was lying without even meaning to. Something had gone down at the party, she had a feeling. She just couldn't quite remember what.
"So, how are things with him?"
A great deal of interest entered Julia's voice, and Lauren inwardly rolled her eyes. "Good," she said, curling her hands almost protectively around her mug.
"You've been spending even more time together lately."
"What's wrong with that?"
"Nothing," Julia said. She pressed her lips together, then took a sip from her own coffee. "You haven't thought any more about asking him out?"
"That's not a good idea," Lauren said. She'd thought about it. Thought about it every time she saw him, and plenty of times lying alone in her bed at night. But too much was at stake.
"Why not?"
"Maybe he's not even interested."
"This is Joey we're talking about."
Lauren's phone lit up before she could respond. Joey asking if she was coming to class today.
"Well, he's waiting, so," Lauren said pathetically, grabbing her bag and slipping outside, closing the door quickly behind her so that Julia couldn't shout anything after her.
Though he'd been the one to text her, she thought Joey might not make it when she got to class before him. But watching him walk in and sit down next to her was like a shot of espresso straight to her veins.
"Hi," she said, pulling her water bottle closer to her so he'd have room for his stuff. "Glasses?"
"Uh, yeah," he said, reaching up to touch the glasses on his face.
"Cute," she smiled.
He smiled back, settling into his seat. "So you did have a good birthday in the end then?"
"Yeah, it was fun," she admitted.
"Even though you didn't want a party?"
"I still don't believe it was a birthday party."
"Not even with the balloons? And the cake? And the fact that we all sang happy birthday to you?"
"Mm mm. But there was enough cake left for me to have for breakfast on Sunday."
He laughed. "Living the life of luxury."
"Did you have a nice time?" she asked.
"Yeah, it was good," he said. But he didn't meet her eyes, and Lauren knew him well enough to know there was something he was holding back. She found herself thinking back through that night. There'd been the panic of her friends switching up the game on her and ending up in that closet with him, but that had turned out to be surprisingly pleasant. She didn't remember seeing much of him after that. Except...

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Right Place, Wrong Time
FanfictionLauren and Joey meet and fall in love in this slightly-adjacent-universe take on their college years