Gone

Chapter 2: The Morning After

I woke up in unfamiliar sheets, on an unfamiliar pillow, in an unfamiliar bed. My head pounded and the sunlight pouring through the windows wasn't helping. I sat up in the bed and leaned against the head board. I looked to my right side and saw a mess of hair laying next to me. I focused to find it was Harry.

I rolled my eyes. I knew it wasn't just a dance. I tried to remember the events from last night but most of it was just a blur. I got up out of the bed and looked around for my clothes.

They were nowhere to be seen. I rolled my eyes again and walked over to Harry's suitcase and found an old band shirt. I slipped that on over my nude body and headed for the kitchen.

I saw all my clothes from last night scattered across the floor. Wow. I just chose to ignore them and started to make some coffee. I heard shuffling and assumed Harry was awake. I turned around and he was shuffling toward a bar stool.

"Good morning," he said low and heavily.

"Morning but not good," I said back.

"Please tell me your making coffee." He gestured to the coffee machine behind me. I nodded my head.

"Do you have any aspirin?" I asked leaning on the counter.

"Yeah hold on." He got up and shuffled back to his room. I starred. He was wearing sweatpants that hung extra low on his waist and it was impossible not to notice.

He disappeared into his room for a minute and reappeared with a small bottle of aspirin. He walked back to his previous seat and sat down. I poured our cups of coffee and sat down next to him.

He handed me the bottle and I took down two. "What happened last night?" I asked sipping from my cup.

"We had sex," he said blankly.

"I figured that much," I rolled my eyes.

"Look Charlie are we really going to do this again? Are we really going to have this same routine every time we just happened to be at the same club together?" He asked looking at me exhausted.

"I don't know." Yes, Harry and I have had a pretty tight routine. We're a string of one night stands.

"What don't you know exactly? I can tell you one thing. You don't know me and you keep refusing to get to know me no matter how much I want you to. So if this is just another morning after or apart of our terrible routine then I'm done here ok." He grabbed his cup of coffee and went back to his room closing the door behind him.

He left me sitting there alone and suddenly I felt lonely. That wasn't fare it's his fault just as much as it was mine. He's the one who wanted to dance. He's the one who took me to his hotel. But you're the one who won't let him in. My subconscious whispered to me. I rolled my eyes.

I gathered my clothes and changed. I called a cab and waited to get picked up. When it finally came I quickly left not even saying goodbye to Harry. I just wanted to get out of that hotel room.

I got into the taxi and went home. When I walked through my door Mickey was there sitting on my couch. She looked at me and I silently walked over and slumped down next to her.

"So how was Harry this time?" She asked. I rested my head on her shoulder.

"Same I guess. I'm usually to drunk to know what's going on. I just know there won't be another night like last."

"How could you be so sure?" She asked.

"Because Harry explained to me if I don't want anything more he doesn't want anything at all."

"So why not just go on a date with him?"

"Because I don't want to date a rock star. They're all the same and I really don't need a guy who's unreliable."

"You know to be a writer your really judging a book by its cover. Maybe it's time you see him as him and not some stereotype. Allow him to be himself and stop being such a snob."

I rolled my eyes. I wasn't going to change my mind. I wasn't sure why yet but I wasn't going to do it. Something kept annoying me about Harry. I knew that if I gave him a chance something bad would happen and I wasn't ready for that yet.

"So you're going to go shower and change then we're going to go to my parents house have an early dinner."

I rolled my eyes and stood up.

~

Dinner at Mickey's parents house was less then interesting. They were happy to see me but I quickly faded into the background of their family reunion. Not like I minded or anything.

Today was the day Mickey was leaving. She was going back to New York to study at Juliard. She plays the viola like an angel and has been ever since we were eight.

I woke up at six and put on a huge sweater and beanie. I changed my pajama pants for sweatpants and put my glasses on. It was to early in the morning to care.

I walked into the spare room where Mickey was already packed and awake. She was wearing jeans and an old t-shirt. Her long curly black hair was back into the crazy curls she was usually to lazy to care about.

She smiled at me. "Lets go?" She said taking her suitcase off the bed and rolling it into the living room.

"Let us," I said and we left. The rain was pouring this morning. Not like California rain was ever to serious. But it was morning and I was cautious.

We got to the airport and said our goodbyes I tried not to cry but I couldn't help it. It's always hard to say goodbye to your best friend.

I got back in my car and decided a try at the Starbucks thing would be perfect right now.