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When the pair of brown eyes opened the next morning, it was Alex behind them. Ethan was safely tucked away in the back of his mind. For now.

Alex blinked a few times, the early morning sunlight streaming through the blinds that hadn't been shut properly, casting soft patterns on the floor. He stretched out, his muscles sore and his head foggy like a cloud, as if he hadn't slept at all. There was a dull, throbbing ache at the base of his skull, the kind he recognised all too well. It was a telltale sign that Ethan had been out and Alex sighed, closing his eyes once more in annoyance.

He rubbed his temples, trying to shake the lingering grogginess. The memories were hazy, disconnected, but he could feel the tension still lingering in his body, as though it hadn't quite let go. He didn't know what Ethan had done, but he could remember where he had been last night. On the balcony.

Pushing himself up, Alex winced at the sound of his own footsteps on the wooden floor. His room was relatively quiet, but the faint chatter from the living room confirmed that not everyone had cleared out from the night before. Some must have been too drunk and decided to stay over on the sofas. He sighed to himself. Great. It was going to be one of those mornings.

As he threw on a t-shirt, the memories started to flicker in the back of his mind. The shift. The frustration. Ethan had been angry about something. Alex couldn't fully piece it together, but he knew it had something to do with the party, with all the people that had flooded their normally quiet apartment. Ethan hated other people. Alex tolerated them. Ethan was so uptight sometimes, it made Alex quite mad.

It figures, Alex thought. Parties weren't exactly Ethan's thing. Alex might have enjoyed them, kind of, but Ethan? He barely tolerated small talk, let alone strangers crowding into their space.

He moved towards his bedroom door, mentally bracing himself for whatever mess was waiting outside.

As Alex stepped out of his room and walked down the hallway, he stopped short just before he walked into the living room, because he could hear the low murmur of voices. He hesitated momentarily before approaching.

Seated on the couch was his roommate Sam, who was chatting with two girls Alex didn't recognise. Empty bottles and red plastic cups were scattered around the room, remnants of last night's party. Alex cringed. He'd probably have to help clean that up later even though he hadn't been the one to cause that mess.

Sam spotted him first, flashing a bright smile. "Alex!" she exclaimed happily, clearly feeling up and ready to go. "You slept through all the fun last night."

Alex gave a sheepish grin, rubbing the back of his neck. "Yeah, sorry about that. I know I said i'd join but I guess I wasn't feeling too great."

One of the girls, a brunette with a nose ring, looked up from her phone and offered a small wave. "Hey, I'm Rachel," she said, and the other girl, a redhead with freckles, chimed in, "And I'm Sophie."

"Nice to meet you both. Sorry I missed it," Alex said politely, his usual warmth in his voice despite the slight haze still clouding his mind. He could feel the fatigue hanging on, like a weight he couldn't shake off.

The conversation meandered into harmless small talk, something about the classes they were all taking and how the party had somehow managed to spill out onto the very small balcony they opened.

Alex played along, engaging in polite conversation as he always did. He was kind enough, nodding and laughing at the right moments, though his mind was elsewhere, still trying to piece together the fragments of last night.

He hadn't been the one at the party. Ethan had. And that always left a mess behind for him to sort through because he couldn't put the pieces back together quick enough. It was always like this and it sucked.

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