Escapism (CL 16)

13. We need to talk

"Anna I can't, I'm so hungover I genuinely think I might die. Look at the state of me." Laura cried as her friend tried to turf her out of bed the next morning, or rather a few hours later that morning, given she hadn't got into bed until well after 3am.

"You'd better get up and get in the shower because as much as I love you, you look an absolute mess." Anna agreed. "But you're coming with me, whether you like it or not. Get up, get ready. We want you to look your best for Charles."

"We are not going anywhere near Charles Leclerc today." Laura went to shake her head, but even the slight motion made her nauseous. "Whatever you're plotting, stop it. Right now."

The laughter that escaped Anna as she left the room was bordering on evil, but Laura relevantly peeled herself out of bed. Her head was pounding, and she had absolutely no recollection of getting into bed or how much they'd actually had to drink in the end.

As she stood in front of the mirror looking at herself she started to doubt whether there was actually anyway she was going to make herself look presentable enough to go out. Her hair was all matted to her forehead, her face red and her eyes swollen from all the crying she'd done over Mike.

She switched on the shower, knowing she could hide from Anna in there for a little while at least. The hot water was soothing as she set about trying to wash her hair and untangle it to the point that she might actually be able to get a brush through it.

She'd obviously taken too long though, because Anna was back before she'd finished washing the shampoo out of her hair, pounding on the bathroom door and demanding that she hurry up.

When she emerged from the bathroom, still dripping wet and wrapped in a towel, Anna was sitting on the bed, fully dressed and ready.

"Just go without me." Laura tried again. "You can still catch Josh up I'm sure."

"Not gonna happen." Anna shook her head. "Just give it up. Now, sit down and close your eyes to get some rest, I'll sort your hair out. I've found you some clothes to wear too."

"Do we really have to go?" Laura sighed.

"Yeah, we do." Anna told her, steering her into the chair at the dressing table and picking up the hairdryer. "I know you don't think you do, but you need this. You need to get out of the house and think about something else for a bit."

"Alright, alright..." Laura sighed. "Just let me sleep for a bit and wake me up when we need to go."

****

Laura had absolutely no idea how long she'd slept for, but eventually Anna was nudging her awake, holding out a dress for her to wear. She had apparently managed to dry and style Laura's hair, and apply enough make up to hide how red and blotchy her skin was and make her look halfway presentable.

"Come on, get dressed." Anna told her. "I told Josh we'd be there in half an hour. We'll be just in time for the start of the third practice session if you hurry up."

"I don't think I'm going anywhere in a hurry. I feel so rough." Laura groaned. "Why did you give me all that wine?!"

"Because it was necessary." Anna shrugged. "You'll be fine once we get out and get moving."

"If not I'm coming back early." Laura warned.
"I'm not spending all day there like this."

"Alright, we'll see." Anna agreed, but she agreed almost a bit too quickly and Laura was fairly sure that she wasn't going to let her leave once she got there. "Come on, let's go!"