➳ Mistakes || WillNE

05. Do-over

09/04/18 - 1 year, 1 week, 2 days a/b (after breakup)

Beep.

Beep.

Beep.

My alarm was relentlessly going on, as if it were trying to torture me. My head was pounding and I sighed, slowly getting up. Hopelessly disorientated, I stumbled into the bathroom and looked at the mess that stared back at me.

Mascara streaks were under my eyes, complimented with eye bags, smudged lipstick on my chin and my hair looked like a birds nest.

I began to run a bath to try to clean myself up and start the day right. A nice, hot, steaming bath always had the capacity to calm me down. I poured in some bubble bath and walked back into the living room.

"What do I need to do?" I mumbled to myself, trying to think of what a normal human being did in the morning. Breakfast? My stomach rumbled aggressively, seemingly in agreement. Fuck, I craved a bacon sandwich. I hadn't had one that was as good as Will's since he made me one.

My phone vibrated loudly, and, instead of making breakfast, I went and checked it.

Alex Elmslie
hey, do you wanna have a do over of last night?

Cas
yeah sure, see you at 7 again

Alex Elmslie
sounds good, see you then

I was quite surprised that Alex had kept my number, and that I had kept his. I guess I had just changed his name.

I put my phone down and went to the bathroom, undressed and sunk into the hot bath. God, I needed it. I played with the bubbles, held my breath underwater, and everything else I did as a child in the bath. It felt good to escape adulthood for a bit and to forget my problems. And Will.

The sudden reminder of Will caused me to quickly get up, out of the bath and dry myself. I had remembered I wasn't the carefree person I wished to be. I was plagued with regret.

Glancing at the clock, I saw that I had spent two hours in the bath and it was now 5pm. I guess I hadn't really been aware of the time since I got up, or at least only subconsciously logged it. 

How late had I gotten back last night? How long was I drinking alone for? 

—-
I walked into Alex and George's flat just after 7, armed with a plastic Tesco carrier bag. 
"You alright, Cas?" Alex yelled from the sofa as I put another bottle of pink gin on the kitchen counter.
"Yeah!" I yelled back as I walked towards the sofa. I sat down next to Alex and noticed that George wasn't with us.
"Where's George?" I asked, looking around.
"Taking a shit," he yawned, and then George decided to make his voice known.

"FUCK! ALEX, CAN YOU GET ME SOME TOILET ROLL?" George yelled, and it echoed in the flat. Alex rolled his eyes, groaned and looked at me.

"Mind getting it for me? It's in the storage closet in George's room. His is the one on the right," he did a pathetic attempt at puppy dog eyes, which I laughed out. He feigned offence.

"Now that you've hurt my feelings, you need to go do something for me," he laughed, and I got up.

"Since you're insisting, Alex," I grinned, and walked into George's room. It was pretty big, but incredibly messy. Food wrappers, take-away cartons, cups and plates littered the room. His bed was also not made, and his quilt was in a weird lumpy position. 

"Storage closet," I mumbled to myself, before seeing a door. I opened it and was presented with a cardboard box full of shitty 1ply toilet roll. I grabbed a couple and closed the closet door behind me. The quilt looked to be in a different position. Weird. I walked to the door and pulled the handle,  but the door didn't open. 

"ALEX! GEORGE! UNLOCK THE DOOR!" I yelled, banging on it. I heard something behind me - was it the bed creaking? - but ignored it. 

"Cas, you'll thank us one day," George said from the other side, making me nervous. What the hell were they doing?

I could hear slow footsteps behind me, and slow breathing. Fear froze me. Was this an elaborate set-up? Some kind of prank? Were George and Alex faking to get some sort of revenge?

Then I heard it. A voice. A heavenly voice that belonged to an angel. A heavenly voice so heavenly it made me imagine the blissful paradise of heaven. A strong, Geordie accent. 

"What the fuck?!"