Tonight The World Dies

Chapter 19: Avery

Brian was hungover.

He'd insisted on getting into a drinking contest with Johnny last night, and now he was reaping the consequences of downing nearly two bottles of whiskey between themselves, and that wasn't counting the five bottles of beer that they'd already drunk.

It hadn't been a pretty sight when I'd finally managed to get Brian back up to our room. It had been quite a feat considering I hadn't exactly been sober, and neither had Zacky, who'd offered to help me drag Brian's corpse back to our room.

"Brian, get up." I insisted, gently kicking him in the ribs with my foot as he continued to lay, face down, into the white, fluffy pillow. It practically swallowed his entire head into it, only leaving his dark, feathery hair on show.

Brian groaned, lifting his head slightly from the comfort of the pillow to look at me. But, since hotel rooms were drastically decorated in white, the light shining in through the window from the morning sun had been intensified, causing Brian to squint as the harsh potency in light sunk into his freshly awoken eyes.

Letting out another groan, Brian buried his head back into the pillow.

"Brian, come on, we have to be at the bus in an hour." I said, this time using both of my hands to shove at him. I'd been up for an hour already, having been rudely awoken by Brian's snoring. I'd showered and got ready before I'd decided to attempt to wake the snoring beast in my bed.

"What's the time?" Brian asked, his voice muffled by the pillow.

"Nine o' clock." I answered, folding my arms across my chest as I continued to stare down at Brian, willing him to get up. It didn't work, and I could see that his breathing was beginning to relax as he drifted back into sleep. "Brian, come on." I said exasperatedly, taking a step forward to take hold of the edge of the duvet before hauling it onto the floor, revealing Brian in nothing but a pair of black boxers; his tattooed skin contrasting well against the pale white sheets.

Brian finally stirred and pushed himself over onto his side, looking up at me through his weary eyes.

"Come on," I said, my voice a lot softer this time, "once we get on that bus you can go back to sleep." I pointed out, folding the duvet up before placing it back on the end of the bed. Brian shifted his legs to sit them over the edge of the bed before he cradled his head in his hands, letting out a tiresome groan.

"Do we have any Advil?" Brian asked, rubbing his temples, presumably as his head began to pound viciously against his skull in protest against all the alcohol he'd consumed last night.

"No." I answered as I fetched a bottle of water for Brian from the small fridge that they had in the corner of the room. It was tucked away behind a cabinet door that blended in with the rest of the small counter unit they often placed in hotel rooms. "But, drink this, it'll help." I said, handing the bottle to Brian before I sat down next to him, placing my arm around his back. I leant my head on his shoulder, looking over into the corner of the room absentmindedly as Brian unscrewed the lid to the water before taking a couple of moderate sips.

"Do I want to ask how I got back up here last night?" Brian asked regretfully.

"Probably not." I agreed, taking in a large breath. "Hmm."

"What?" Brian asked, turning to face me with furrowed eyebrows.

"I think you should shower." I suggested, leaning away as my nose scrunched up in mild disgust. "You still smell of the entire liquor counter." I added, laughing a little.

"That, I do." Brian agreed after double-checking my statement himself. "Alright, I'll be quick." He said, before using my knee to push himself up to a standing position before he slowly made his way over to the bathroom. He didn't bother shutting the door, of course. Instead, he simply stripped himself of the only item of clothing he was wearing before hopping into the shower.