Billy Carter

Chapter 4: The Night Before

"Billy! Are you ok?" I heard Mum ask. I mumbled something even I didn't understand in response, then I tried to open my eyes. After a few tries I finally squinted at the bright lights around me, and recognised I was in the hospital. I fucking hate hospitals, they creep me out.
"What happened?" I asked. My throat was really dry and sore.
"Alcohol poisoning, you knob," she answered. Her tone was harsh but her eyes were sympathetic.
"Oh God," I moaned. "What's that?" I looked at the drip hanging at the side of my bed.
"Fluids, you're severally dehydrated. How's your head feeling?"
"Like it's gonna tear open," I sighed. "Why does bad shit like this always happen to me?"
"Well, everything happens for a reason Billy, but sometimes that reason is that you're not very bright and you make bad decisions."
"Thanks Mum, that's very comforting."
"You made a huge mess in the kitchen you know. There was glass, alcohol, blood and vomit everywhere."
"Glass? Blood?"
"You dropped your father's bottle of tequila on the floor and cut yourself all over trying to clean it up, you silly boy."
I frowned, desperately trying to remember anything from last night. I dredged up a few memories, then I remembered Dad beating the shit out of me in the kitchen.
"Oh. Oh..."
"What are you so excited about?" Mum asked. I looked at her and swallowed.
"Nuth'n." I said glibly. She sighed and shook her head at me, but I was distracted by familiar voices in the hall.
"What the Hell happened after you two left, anyway?" I heard Tony ask.
"I don't know," Cynthia replied. "I mean, nothing - not while I was with him."
"Well, he was pretty drunk..." Trent vouched for me. Kind of.
"You know I can hear you!" I called. My friends stuck their heads in through the door and grinned simultaneously.
"Hey, the tosser's awake! What the fuck were you doing, Billy? You had no business getting into the condition you were last night." Trent told me, and pulled up a chair at my bedside. Tony sat on the arm of Trent's chair and Cynthia sat on the end of my bed.
"Yeah!" Tony agreed. "What were you doing?"
"Well I dunno. I can't remember." I told them. "I can't remember much from last night at all, to be honest."
"Oh." Tony and Trent looked disappointed, and Cynthia frowned at me curiously.
"What's up with you anyroad?" I asked her.
"I just don't understand why you get into such crazy situations," she said, sighing.
"Well I don't do it on pur- oh, hang on, I think I'm going to be violently ill," I moaned as a wave of nausea rolled through me. Mum gave me a weird little hospital tub and I emptied my stomach into it.
"Well, that's disgusting," Trent said, got up, and left the room.
"Yeah, that's my cue too," Cynthia agreed, hurriedly following Trent, her hand over her mouth.
"No offence Bill, but you puking is gonna make me puke so I better leave," Tony told me, patting my shoulder before he followed Trent and Cynthia.
"Oh, baby!" Mum rubbed my back and kissed the side of my head. "I'll go see if I can't get you some water, maybe some mints, or gum. You're ok here on your own?"
"Mum, I'm basically an adult-" I began to complain.
"You're only fifteen, William," Mum reminded me.
"Only for twenty more days," I pointed out. Mum raised her eyebrow and I sighed. "I'll be fine. Thank you."
After Mum left my friends returned - although Cynthia only came back to say goodbye before leaving for work. Tony and Trent however stayed to badger me.
"So I guess you won't be helping us clean out the garage then," Tony said.
"Lucky bastard," Trent muttered.
"It's your garage," Tony reminded him. Trent pulled a face.
"But none of the shite in there's mine!"
"At least half of- no, I'm not getting into this with you again," Tony sighed and turned back to me. "So Bill, did you pull Annabelle last night? If you can remember, I mean?"
"Well, I can remember that. There was a bit of slap and tickle, and she was 'bout to give me a jobby when Kenny Leary came and started making a bunch of noise."
"Wicked!" Trent grinned excitedly.
"So're you meeting her today?" Tony asked.
"Yeah, she's coming 'round at two o'clock for a piano lesson. Hey, what's the time?"
"Ten. I heard the nurse saying they're sending you home at twelve."
"Brilliant, I fucking hate hospitals."
"Yeah, I know. Hey, are you feeling any better? Last night you were an utter prick."
"Huh? Oh, yeah. Sorry about that."
"What was that all about anyway?" Trent asked.
"I dunno, that Guy guy was pissing me off."
"You barely spoke to each other," Tony told me. "Why don't you like him?"
"He's a toff, you can tell," I grumbled.
"Ollie's a bit of a toff, and you like him just fine," Tony pointed out.
"That's different, alright? Ollie's brilliant. That Guy character seems dodgy."
"Well what did Ollie say to you?"
"What? When?"
"Last night, after the fight with Kenny. Ollie followed you inside, he told us afterward you'd had a chat - he wouldn't say much about it though. He left not long after you and Cyn, anyway."
"Oh, uh..." I focused and tried to remember the conversation we had. I remembered after the fight my nose was bleeding pretty badly and I went inside to clean it up. Ollie followed me because we'd been arguing, then we had a fight in the bathroom. But how did it end? I could remember telling him how I was upset he'd never mentioned Guy to me before.
"I dunno, I can't really remember. I remember pissing Greg off."
"Oh, yeah, he fucking hates you at the moment," Trent told me, laughing.
"I can't even remember what I said to him. I still can't remember much at all."
"Really?" We looked up at the doorway and saw Ollie leaning against the doorframe.
"Hey," I smiled at him, but there was something off about the way he looked at me. We're usually happy to see each other, but he looked defensive.
"Are you alright?" Ollie asked me, keeping his distance.
"Yeah, I'm fine - well, I'm a tad sore, and my head's killing me."
"What happened?"
"I'm not really sure," I sighed. "I don't really remember much of last night."
"Yeah, Tony was asking him what you two talked about inside after the fight with Kenny Leary. Whatever you said really made him pull his head in," Trent gave Ollie a grin. "On behalf of everybody, thank you."
"Shut up," I snapped at Trent.
"Get over here, won't you?" Tony asked Ollie. "I can't have a conversation with you all the way over there."
Ollie hesitated, his gaze flickering to me for a second. Then he came over and sat on the empty chair by my bedside.
"Christ, did I piss you off last night too?" I asked him after he sat down. He furrowed his brow and looked at me questioningly.
"You really don't remember, do you?" he asked me.
"Nuh. What'd I say to you? I'm sorry for whatever I did, if it helps," I told him. He gave me a weird look, like he was making a decision, and took a pack of gum out of his trouser pocket. "I swear to god you're addicted to gum," I said as he unwrapped a stick and popped it in his mouth. "No wonder your breath always smells like peppermint-"
And then I remembered everything. I stared at Ollie, my mouth gaping open in an unattractive way and when I saw him pause mid-chew I knew that he knew what I knew - or remembered, more accurately. I could've died, I swear to God.
"What? Why are you two staring at each other like that?" Trent asked us.
"Uh, um, I just, uh-"
"I think Billy just remembered our, um, argument," Ollie told Tony and Trent, not taking his eyes off me. "We were arguing, then he slipped up and, well, he called Kenny a faggot," Ollie lied. He could've thought up a better lie though, surely. Even if I didn't call Ollie that, using that word at all was horrible.
"Oi! Billy, that's not cool!" Tony smacked the back of my head - which was already pounding. "That's fucked up!"
"Yeah, that's not right, Bill," Trent said, looking crossly at me.
"It was an accident, it slipped out!" I told them, trying to recover some dignity.
"Yeah, it's ok now," Ollie assured them. "He apologised at least a thousand times."
"Well, alright then," Trent conceded. Tony nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, we both agreed to just forget it ever happened," Ollie told them, then turned to me. "Right?" he asked me.
I swallowed nervously. It was all so complicated for some reason, especially having him right there in front of me. If he wasn't there I would've carried on pretending I didn't remember it and act like it had never happened. But it didn't feel right, looking at him now, remembering what we did just last night. Because, what we did last night - the kissing - I didn't want to forget it. It didn't make me feel ashamed, disgusted or regretful. It had felt right, good and natural. That was the confusing bit. That was the reason I felt so awkward about it.
But what if he was ashamed? What if he was disgusted and regretful? What if, when he thought of last night, all he wanted to do was be ill? That thought stung a fair bit.
"... Yeah," I said finally. "Bury the hatchet and all that."
"Excellent," Trent said. "Now I'm hungry. What's the hospital food like, Bill?"
"I dunno, I haven't eaten," I told him, certainly not feeling very hungry.
"I'll risk it," Trent said, getting to his feet. "You guys coming?"
"I'm not hungry," Ollie told him.
"I'll come," Tony said, standing up. "Bill, you want us to bring you anything?" I shook my head and they walked out of the room, leaving me and Ollie all alone. We looked at each other awkwardly for a moment.
"So you just want to pretend it never happened?" I asked. He frowned at me.
"What, you don't?"
I thought about how embarrassing it would be if Ollie thought I fancied him - he clearly didn't fancy me. I wasn't even sure that I did fancy him, anyroad. Fuck, I was so confused.
"Wha- I-" I scoffed and laughed nervously. "Of course I do, that was... Embarrassing. I mean... ew." Maybe the 'ew' was taking it too far. "We're just friends. We're really good friends- best friends, even - but that's it, because, y'know, you're a guy, and I'm completely straight - I love girls, girls are awesome, I'm into tits and stuff-" I rambled.
"Yeah, I get it," Ollie interrupted me. "And I don't think of you like that anyway. We both had too much to drink, that was all."
"Exactly, exactly." I nodded.
"So we'll just pretend it never happened. We'd never hear the end of it if anyone else found out," he pointed out.
"Yeah," I agreed. "Neither of us want that, so... y'know."
"Yes. Alright, well, I've got to go - I have a chemistry test tomorrow and I want to do some more study. I'm glad you're feeling better. I'll see you tomorrow at school then," he said, getting up off the chair.
"Alright. See you tomorrow." He gave me a small, grim sort of smile and I watched him leave.
"Fuck me," I sighed and slumped back.