Anna and the French Kiss: Etienne's POV

14

I'm drunk. My face is buried between Anna's thighs. I'm minutes away from vomiting, and Anna pushes my head up toward her knees in a slightly less awkward position, and I moan.

Josh and I showed up--was it fifteen minutes ago? Ohhh, I don't remember. Something like that. All I know is that my head was spinning when we came in, and Josh was dragging me across the floor. "Sorry." He said "wehadtuh comeup 'ere." He dragged my body into Anna's room. "Wouldn't shutup about tit. Tit. Ha ha."

I burbled in heavy, slurred British. "Me dad issa bastard. I'm gonna kill 'I'm. Gonna' kill, I'm sooo pissed." Then my head rolled, and my chin smacked violently against my chest. Anna seemed alarmed, and she guided me to her bed and propped me up against the side for support.

"Tit," Josh said.

"Ahhh-nuhhh, he's an arse. I'm serious." I widened my eyes for emphasis.

"I know, I know he is." Anna's face looked really pretty--I just wanted to touch it. Why was there two of her? Oh, whatever. "Is he okay?"

"His mom is dying. I dontthinkhe's OKAY." Josh stumbled down and reached for his phone. "Told Rashmi I'd call her."

"His mother is not you-know-what. How can you say that?" She turned back to me. "She'll be fine. Your mom is fine, you hear me?"

I belched.

"Jesus." Anna said, she closed her eyes as if she was thinking.

"Cancer." I hung my head. "She can't have cancer."

"Rashmi iss me," Josh said into Anna's phone." "Mer? Put Rashmi on. Iss emergency."

"It's not an emergency!" Anna yelled. "They're just drunk."

Seconds later, Meredith pounded on Anna's door, and she let her in. "How'd you know we're here?" Josh's forehead creased in bewilderment. "Where's Rashmi?"

"I heard you through the wall, idiot. And you called my phone, not hers." She held up her cell and dialed Rashmi, who arrived a minute later. They stood there staring, while I babbled and Josh continued to look shocked by their sudden appearances. Meanwhile, I saw two of everything.

Finally, Mer knelt down. "Is he okay?" She felt my forehead, but I smacked her hand away. I don't care if she gets insulted.

"I'm fine. My father's an arse, and my mum is dying and--oh my God, I'm so pissed." I looked at Anna again, her face is cute when she's worried. My head was spinning. My head, was, spinning. "Pissed. Pissed. Pissed."

"We know you're pissed at your dad," Anna said. "It's okay. You're right, he's a jerk."

"Pissed is British for 'drunk,'" Mer said.

"Oh," Anna said. "Well. Definitely that, too."

I looked over at Rashmi and Josh who were fighting. "Where have you been?" Rashmi asked. "You said you'd be home three hours ago!"

Josh rolled his eyes. "Out. We've been out. Someone had to help him--"

"And you call that helping? He's completely wasted. Catatonic. And you! God, you smell like car exhaust and armpits--"

"He couldn't drink alone."

"You were supposed to be watching out for him! What if something happened?"

"Beer. Liquor. Thatsswhat happened. Don't be such a prude. Rash."

"Fuck you," Rashmi said. "Seriously, Josh. Go fuck yourself."

He lunged for rashmi, and Mer shoved him back onto Anna's bed. The weight of his body hitting the mattress rattled me, and my head fell forward again, chin hitting chest with another disturbing smack. Rashmi stormed out. Mer chased behind--"Rashmi! RASHMI!"--and Anna's door slammed shut.

And that was the moment my head landed between Anna's thighs. The smell of her detergent smells--so--niccce.

She eases me off her legs, and I grab her feet. "I'll be right back," she says. "I promise."

I snuffle. I want to cry, but it would be so lame for me to cry in front of my best friend--who appears to be passed out--and Anna. I don't really know what to call her. We are friends but I like her.

She holds up my head, and angles a bottle of water in front of my lips. "Drink."

I shake my head slowly. "If I drink anymore, I'll puke."

"It's not alcohol. It's water." She tilts the bottle, and it spills into my mouth and dribbles down my chin. I take the bottle and then drop it. Water pour across her floor.

"Ohhh no," I whisper. "I'm sorry, Anna. I'm sorry."

"It's okay." She lies down next to me, the puddle soaking into her jeans. "What happened?"

I sigh. "He's not letting me visit my mum."

"What? What do you mean?"

"It's what my father does, what he's always done. It's his way of staying in control."

"I don't und--"

"He's jealous. That she loves me more than she loves him. So he's not letting me visit her."

"How can he do that? Your mom is sick. She'll need chemo, she needs you there."

"He doesn't want me to see her until Thanksgiving break."

"But that's a month away! She could be--" She stops. I know why she stopped. My mum can't die, she's the only person I have left. I love her more than anything else in the world. I'm nothing without her. "So what are you gonna do?" Anna asks. "Fly to San Fransisco anyway?"

"My father would murder me."

"So?" Anna's outraged. "You'd still get to see her!"

"You don't understand. My father would be very, very angry."

"But. . .wouldn't she ask your dad to send for you? I mean, he couldn't say no to her, could he? Not when she's. . .sick?"

"She won't disobey my father."

My father has pushed my mother around for as long as I can remember. I hate him. I hate him. I HATE HIM.

I look at Anna again, her face is guilty. I can't hold it in anymore. I like her and I'm going to tell her.

"Anna?"

"Yeah?"

I pause. "Never mind."

"What?"

"Nothing."

I close my eyes. "What?" She asks again, sitting up. I open my eyes, noticing she moved. I struggle, trying to sit up, too, and she helps me. When she pulls away, I clutch her hand to stop me.

"I like you," I say.

Her body is rigid.

"And I don't mean as a friend."

"Uh. Um. What about--?" She pulls her hand away from mine.

"It's not right. It hasn't been right, not since I met you." My eyes close again, and my body sways.

She doesn't talk for awhile. I'm so stupid. So stupid. She probably doesn't know what to say because she doesn't feel the same in return. I'm so drunk. I should've thought this through. UGHH.

"Do you like me? I ask, breaking the awful silence. I look at her--almost about to cry.

She doesn't say anything. I'm going to--I'm going to--I'm going to--

Puke. And I do, right on Anna.