Hazel's

December Twenty-Fourth

Considering the fact that New Years was only a week away, I was debating whether or not to go home for the holiday or stay on campus with Clair. She had mentioned to me that she would be more than happy for me to go with her back to her house for the holidays, but I didn't know if we were ready for that yet. Her mother was very accepting but I had no clue what the rest of her family would think of me.

All of a sudden, my roomate Kyle stormed into our dorm room and fell onto his bed. It looked like he had been crying which was strange because he seemed like he was so put together.

"Hey Kyle, are you alright man?" I reached out to him. Our relationship was nowhere near 'best friends', but we occasionally had a conversation or two about whatever we had on our minds. He was a cool guy.

"Spence... Olivia just broke up with me," he looked up at me with tears streaming down his face. I grabbed a box of kleenex and sat next to him putting an arm around his shoulder. He grabbed a tissue and blew his nose loudly as the crying began again.

"Are you okay?" He looked up at me and shook his head.

"Dude, I just don't even know what happened! I mean- like-" he blew his nose again. "One minute we're having so much fun, laughing and dancing at a party, the next she's yelling at me for being five minutes late to Starbucks. I just can't win, man". He sobbed into my shoulder as I patted his back a couple times.

"It's okay, man. Really. She's stupid for not seeing how awesome you are," I tried comforting him. It felt strange talking to Kyle like this considering the fact that until now we had never really had a deep conversation like this one. I didn't have anything against Kyle, but he was just such a busy guy that it was usually hard to find him.

"Thanks, Spencer," he choked out. "It really means a lot to me that you're here for me right now. I know that we don't talk a lot, but you're a cool dude," he smiled at me.

"Kyle, I'm here for you man, okay? Don't worry about it". I got up and threw on my jacket, brushing my hair in the mirror.

"Where are you going?" he asked me.

"Don't you mean where are we going?" I asked him. He had a confused look on his face.

"What are you talking about?"

"Put your coat on man, I'm not gonna sit here all day waiting for you. We're going out to grab pizza tonight and have some bro time. To be honest here, we should've done this a while ago". He smiled at me and got up, wiping away the last of his tears before putting on his North Face.

"Thanks, Spencer".

"No problem, Kyle".

~ . ~ . ~

The bar was crowded and smelled like beer, but that didn't stop Kyle from pushing our way through the bouncers.

"Hey hey hey! Do you shitheads even know who I am?" the bouncers looked at him dumbfoundedly. Kyle let out a snort. "The name's Kyle Meyer. Now move it before I move you!" he yelled at them all. They scattered away and let us through the busy entrance. I followed Kyle and then shoved him on the shoulder.

"Dude! What the hell was that?" I asked him in hysterics. All of a sudden he burst out laughing and pulled me over to a corner of the club.

"Don't let anybody see me, okay? That was terrible acting," he winked at me. After Kyle bought us some beers (with a fake ID of course), he told me a little bit more about his acting scheme. Apparently Kyle was a theater major and loved practicing in the 'real world'. He said that it gave him a bigger challenge than acting in the classroom because he could see if people actually believed him. Clearly people did.

Forty minutes later did I realize that Kyle had brought me to a strip club. I had never been to a strip club before because I was underage. Nobody in New Jersey really talked about strip clubs, only about porn and stuff. You can imagine the surprised look on my face when a blonde in a skimpy police officer costume came over and pressed her breasts against my back. I jumped in shock and turned around as she fingered my collar and breathed on my neck seductively. Kyle patted my back and was whisked away  by some brunette in a firefighter costume. She was clearly not a real firefighter because her skirt ended above her butt and her top cut far below her collarbone.

I was not going to lie and say that I wasn't enjoying myself, but in the back of my mind I couldn't help but feel guilty about Clair. What would she say if she saw me grinding up on this kinky little blonde? Before I could respond to my own conscience, a man in a black vest came over to me with a tray of shots. Kyle came up next to me and downed two of them. I gave him a curious look and he just stared at me.

"Dude. Let loose, okay? When's the last time you've let yourself have a little fun? Stop being so damn uptight!" he smiled and ran back to the girl in the flashy red costume. I turned back to the tray and picked up a small shot of liquid. It sloshed back and forth in the glass and looked like oil floating on water. I cringed, but downed it quickly and felt the acid burning the insides of my throat. It was a rush, and I almost felt as if I were vibrating. Before another minute could pass, I grabbed two more off the tray and guzzled them both down.

I turned back around to face the blonde girl in the police outfit. A sudden feeling of excitement came over me as I grabbed her hips and grinded against her. She gasped but did not pull away. In fact, she turned around and ruffled my hair with her fingertips. Grabbing my wrist, she pulled me into a single bathroom and locked the door behind us. I pressed her up to the door and began kissing her lips. They tasted like apple martini and bud light. Her hands were wrapped around my back as she pressed her stomach against mine. It felt warm considering the fact that her top was cut short. She pulled away quickly and looked at me.

"I'm Beth," she gasped.

"Hi," I panted before pulling her face back towards mine. She felt like Clair. All of a sudden, I forgot who Beth was. Instead, I was kissing Clair. Her hair was soft and her back was small. I pulled away again to look at her. She was beautiful. Her eyes were blue like an ocean, and her nose looked like a cute little buton.

"What's your name?" she whispered in my ear huskily.

"Spencer," I replied slowly. Had Clair already forgotten who I was? I felt myself droop down in sorrow. I thought we were soulmates.

"Spencer, are you okay?" she asked me. I shook my head slowly. "Do you want to come home with me?" she asked sexily. I snapped back to look at her and stared deep into her eyes. Without saying anything else, she pulled me out of the bathroom and into the street. A black mini cooper was parked in the front of the parking lot, and I followed her into it.

Turning around, I watched the club fade from behind me as I looked at Clair and played with her hair.

"You're so pretty," I said to her groggily. She smiled at me and pinched my cheek. I frowned a little because it kind of hurt. It reminded me of something my great grandmother used to do before she died.

I looked out the window to see trees stretching on for miles. Little rabbits played in the street next to us at a stoplight. It was silly to watch them and I almost started laughing because it looked like they were trying to go to the bathroom.

~ . ~ . ~

So, you have all just met drunk Spencer. I know it might be kind of confusing so I'll clarify: Spencer is so drunk that he is hallucinating. This girl Beth reminds him of Clair, so he is convinced that she is Clair. UH OH! What's gonna happen next?! :) VOTE AND COMMENT!

XOXO

- Stephanie