My mother's bestfriend

Chapter XVII

The morning sunlight filtered through the thick curtains of the guest room, casting a soft glow over everything. I blinked a few times, my head throbbing lightly, but the previous night's haze was mostly gone. I groaned, rolling over, and buried my face in the pillow, willing the headache away.

Last night. God, what was I thinking? Sneaking out, running into Charlie, the awkward car ride with Miss Essington—the memory hit me like a slow-motion train wreck. I had hugged her. My principal. I cringed into the pillow, trying to disappear under the sheets.

After a few minutes of wallowing in my embarrassment, I forced myself to sit up. I could hear movement outside the room—probably Miss Essington, already up and being annoyingly efficient, like she always seemed to be.

I dragged myself out of bed and padded out of the room, my feet sinking into the soft carpet. The smell of fresh coffee hit me as I reached the kitchen, and there she was, standing at the counter, her back to me as she poured herself a cup.

"Good morning, Sleeping Beauty," she said without turning around, her voice teasing. "How's the head?"

"Throbbing," I mumbled, sliding onto one of the bar stools. "But I'm alive, so there's that."

She finally turned, raising an eyebrow as she sipped her coffee. "Surprised you're alive after last night. The amount of trouble you managed to cram into one night was impressive, even for you."

I groaned, dropping my head onto my arms on the counter. "Don't remind me."

She chuckled softly, setting her coffee down and grabbing another mug from the cupboard. "Here," she said, sliding it toward me. "Coffee. It won't fix the bad decisions, but it'll make facing them easier."

I lifted my head just enough to grab the mug, taking a tentative sip. "Thanks," I muttered. The warmth spread through me, and I sighed, feeling a little more human. "I'm still surprised you didn't just lock me in a room after the whole sneaking out thing."

Essington leaned against the counter, arms crossed, a faint smile on her lips. "Oh, trust me, I thought about it. But then I figured you'd probably find a way to escape and make it even worse for both of us."

I snorted. "Probably. I can be pretty resourceful."

She tilted her head, looking amused. "That's one word for it."

I shot her a sideways glance. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Just that you seem to have a talent for getting into situations that require... intervention," she said, smirking slightly. "First sneaking out, now calling me from a frat party when you're tipsy. What's next? A jailbreak?"

I groaned, resting my head on my hand. "I didn't mean to call you! That was a mistake."

Essington's smile widened. "Oh, I know. But it was still entertaining."

I buried my face in my hands. "I'm never going to live this down, am I?"

She chuckled. "Probably not. But hey, look on the bright side—you didn't end up in a police station. Small victories."

I peeked at her from between my fingers. "Very comforting. Thanks."

"You're welcome," she said, her voice laced with sarcasm.

I sipped my coffee, the warm liquid slowly clearing the last of the fog in my head., an idea struck me. "You know," I said, a sly smile creeping onto my face, "we never really settled that challenge from last night."

Her eyebrow quirked up. "Challenge?"

"You know, the brutally honest game," I reminded her. "You never gave me a chance to win it back."