Jo [COMPLETED]

M

"Alec, wake up! I made breakfast!"

Groaning, Alec raised his hand and shielded his eyes from the dark room that somehow still managed to burn his eyes. His head throbbed uncontrollably and his breath reeked. His eyes were crusty and dry, his mouth chapped and stinging. How much did he drink the night before? The night was a slight blur with clear patches here and there. Brian handing him a shot...Ali tripping over her own feet...drinking some more...beer pong...Brian stripping himself of his shirt and dancing on the pool table...a phone?

Trying the recount the events that transpired only a few hours ago caused the throbbing in Alec's head to increase from dull, aching pain to intense raging bull. He groaned again and threw the covers of his bed off, pulling himself slowly up to his full potential and feeling around the room to get to the bathroom.

A cold shower will help, he thought as he turned the water on. But as he pulled his shirt off, Alec noticed something written on his arm: had a great time last night ;) call me. xxx-xxx-xxxx. It was written in Sharpie, but its promise of permanence was already broken; the words were slightly smudged and the numbers on the verge of greying, as if someone had made a vain attempt at licking them off. Without hesitation, Alec dumped soap onto his arm and began scrubbing at the Sharpie until he knew they had gone completely. He then proceeded to wash the rest of his body.

The cold water helped calm the pulsing of his brain, but it didn't help the disgusting feeling as the back of his throat. It smelled so bad he could taste it--the type of bad that you felt without opening your mouth. And although brushing his teeth definitely helped, there was no shaking away the grogginess of his body or the slight feeling of deep disgust he had as he walked around. He had broken every promise he made to himself the night before. To say he was surprised would be a lie--Alec knew it would happen. Just like his father, Alec lacked the type of self-control it took in order to pace himself (not that being friends with Brian helped).

Alec walked into the kitchen and sat at the cold marble island. The throbbing of his head came back even worse than before, which, incidentally, brought back the need to cool himself down. He groggily and slowly lowered his head onto the marble countertop and sighed as the coolness seeped into his skin and immediately remedied the pounding headache.

"Rough night?" his mother asked.

"No kidding," Alec grumbled back. Then, all at once, his heart stopped beating in his chest. "Mom," he drawled, suddenly alert, "what day is it?"

"Saturday. Why?"

So he hadn't slept through the entire weekend. "Why are you home? I thought you said you'd be gone for three days."

Alec's mom smiled down at him and set down a plate of scrambled eggs and toast. "I just missed you too much," she said with a shrug. "Didn't seem like you missed me, though."

"Hm?" Alec mumbled through a mouthful of toast.

His mom rolled her eyes and pointed to the sink behind her. "I made your friend some breakfast before she left." Behind her, there was an empty plate with avocado smears and toast crumbs. "Pretty, but she seemed a little too full of herself. I hope you two aren't dating."

Alec felt his cheeks redden. "No, we're not dating," he muttered.

Before his mom had a chance to make more fun of him--something she enjoyed doing--Alec shoved the last of the toast and eggs down his throat and stood up. He rinsed his plate and left it in the sink before he dashed out of the kitchen and flopped onto the bed upon entrance to his room.

His phone buzzed on the nightstand, causing Alec's head to vibrate as well. He picked his phone blindly, his hand skimming the stand until it curled around the familiar sleek object. There were a bunch of messages in the group chat for Alec's group of friends.