Chapter Eleven: Straight Edge Perks

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I wake up on damp grass, Brody beside me, Megan near my feet. One arm behind my head, the other being used as a pillow for Brody. I feel like someone has dropped a bowling ball on my head. I sit up and look around, squinting and trying to shield my eyes from the sun. My arm is dead from Brody lying on it. I see plenty of people in the same predicament, scattered about the land around Beth Brooks' house. Some are asleep, some dry heave and make zombie-like noises.

“Good morning!” Kyra sings, handing me a glass of water.

“You're loving this, aren't you?”

She sits down beside me, looking as lively as ever, as if she's had twelve hours of sleep. “What ever could you mean?”

“Everyone lying on the floor feeling like death while you look like a promotional image for a healthy living campaign.”

“Straight edge perks.”

With that, Megan props herself up on her shoulders. Her red lipstick is no longer on her mouth, it's all over her cheeks, and her mascara runs down her face. Her hair, perfectly curled yesterday evening, is now in knots. She kind of looks like The Joker.

Brody doesn't look much better. There are beads of sweat on his forehead and wisps of hair stick to them. He's still asleep.

Megan crawls towards Brody and pokes his cheek, then slaps it. “Wake up, Bro.”

He groans and pushes her hands away from his face.

Kyra laughs and rolls her eyes. “Leave him. He'll soon realise the ground isn't that comfortable and wake up.”

“Where did you sleep last night?” I ask her.

“I went home to Fairchild. I should be in trouble for not asking them if I could stay out past curfew, but the workers like me, for the most part, so it's cool.”

Brody twitches, opens his eyes and then slowly heaves himself in to a sitting position.

“Good mornin'!” Kyra chirps at him.

He isn't sitting up for long before he dives away from us and heaves. A waterfall of vomit splashes on to the tiles near Beth's pool.

“Nice,” I say, moving away from the vomit to avoid the smell.

Kyra rubs his back. “Better to get it all out now, you won't feel as bad through the day.”

He throws up again and Megan and I look away. My head pounds, but I don't feel like I'm going to puke. I've never puked from drinking too much. Instead, I just get headaches from the depths of Hades.

Megan doesn't look to good, either.

“You're not gonna throw up too, are you?” I ask warily. I can only be around so much vomit before I throw up myself.

“Probably,” she says with a slight guilty smile.

She doesn't disappoint. On the walk home, she tells us she needs to stop for a few minutes, and out it comes all over the side walk, in front of somebodies lawn.

When we get back to the farm, Megan goes back to sleep, but Brody insists on sitting with me in my barn. I hope he can't remember last night. It will be better for both of us if he doesn't. I don't think I can handle the awkwardness of him practically admitting he wanted to hook up with me while drunk, and me turning him down.

He lights a cigarette and lies down on my couch. I don't mind him smoking in here. I find the smell of his cigarette smoke strangely comforting.

“Feeling any better?” I ask him.

“A little. Not much.”

“Just please don't puke in here. Please?”

He shakes his head and releases a mouthful of smoke. “I won't. Hey, listen, about last night...”

Here it comes. I decide to act like he has no idea what he's talking about.

“What about last night?”

He looks so embarrassed. It would be adorable if I wasn't cringing internally, too.

“I- Nothing,” he looks at the ceiling and shifts awkwardly.

I can't put him through this. Sooner or later, we're going to have to have this conversation. It might as well be now. It will come up eventually, otherwise, or the next time we drink he'll try to kiss me again.

“You kissed me.”

He continues staring at the ceiling intensely, but then starts to laugh, and covers his face with one hand. “Wow. Oh God. I was hoping you didn't remember.”

I feel slightly relieved, he seems a lot more laid back about this than I thought he would be. “I was hoping you wouldn't, either.”

He looks at me with an unreadable expression. “How about we just forget that ever happened.”

I feel my heart sink. That wasn't what I wanted to hear, but at the same time, I don't know what I wanted to hear. I have feelings for Brody, I can't deny that to myself any longer, but I don't want to complicate our friendship, or be in a relationship I have to hide. Maybe this is for the best.

“Alright. Sounds good to me,” I tell him, trying to hide my disappointment.

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