Zalfie--I Fall Apart

seven

I woke up to a tentative rapping noise on my door. My eyes struggled to adjust to the fact that it was ridiculously bright outside. What fucking eon is it? I wondered to myself as I sat up and rubbed my eyes. Where in the hell am I?

That's how you know the nap was good, isn't it? When you wake up with amnesia and can't process or remember anything?

There was another knock, this one harder.

I got up and opened the door. Some boy I didn't know was standing outside my door.

He giggled when he saw me and I was immediately resentful. What kind of a person wakes someone up from a well-needed nap? A god damn animal.

"Who are you?" I demanded.

"Oh, hi," the boy blustered, sticking out his hand. "I'm Sammy. Pleasure to meet you."

Oh, Jesus. What a first impression.

With one hand I shook his, with the other I brushed my hair back, attempting to look at least somewhat decent. He was kind of cute. In a very British way.

"Oh!" I exclaimed, lightening my tone and desperately trying to get my hair under control. "Yeah, I've heard so many wonderful things about you. I was just taking a nap, I'm sorry--"

Sammy waved his hand. "Yeah, sorry for waking you. It's just we were going to the beach and Hazel wondered if you wanted to come?"

"Oh, God, yeah. Absolutely. Let me just get ready . . . " I trailed off as I turned back into my room and began digging through my suitcase, searching for something more LA to wear.

"What are you doing, bugger?" Hazel said. She looked at me and punched Sammy in the arm. "I told you to see if she was already awake, not wake her!"

"I was curious!" Sammy exclaimed. "I got very well have someone I haven't met living in the same house as me!"

"What, did you think you would never meet her if you didn't wake her up? Did you think that she would just silently come in and out? Are you fucking stupid? Christ, Sammy! It's been a big day for her."

I finally found some shorts and a tank top.

"I'm closing this now," I told them. "Unless you want to see me change. Would that make us close enough for your comfort, Sammy?"

Hazel laughed.

"Well, if you're offering . . . " Sammy said, starting to step into my room.

"She's not. We're leaving." Hazel grabbed him by the ear and dragged him away. I shut my door before he could escape and changed into my clothes before I unpacked my mirror and laid it on one of my bare walls.

I started throwing my clothes everywhere as I searched in desperation for my makeup. One glance in the mirror had proved that I naturally had dried drool on my chin and about a dozen spots on my face. Typical of my skin and spit. Always making appearances at the worst possible time.

Finally, I had finished my makeup and my hair. I was definitely feeling myself and (unashamedly) posting selfies to every social media I could. It was my first day in LA. Everyone would be jealous.

I slipped into some flipflops and ran downstairs, hoping that they hadn't left without me.

They were standing in the living room when Hazel saw me. She placed a hand to her heart. "Oh, don't you look stunning!"

The boys turned and patted me on the back. "You look lovely," Jack told me.

"My first night out!" I exclaimed and they laughed.

"It is rather exciting," Sammy offered.

We walked a few blocks to the bus stop, Sammy and Jack trying to trip each other.

"We're going out to eat and meeting up with some pals, is that okay? You and I can go somewhere else if you're nervous. It's a lot of new shit, you know. A lot to take in."

"You're so sweet," I told her. "But I think I should be okay. If they're as great as you guys."

"Did you hear that?" Sammy said, taking a break from kicking Jack. "She said that we're the most incredible people she's ever met."

"Well, by golly, of course we are," Jack said.

"I wasn't talking about you, Sammy!" I called. "But Hazel and Jack are."

"My wounded ego," Sammy said. "I truly am in utter despair." He kicked some more sand on Jack.

Hazel rolled her eyes. "Boys," she said.