My Brother's Roommate

e l e v e n

Chapter 11 : The Last Puzzle Piece

I awaken with a groan from discomfort in my neck. I open my eyes and I'm greeted with a view of the bottom of the couch and the wooden floor.

"What's going on?" I mumble to myself. All I could see was my arm, so I turn my head slowly to find the rest of my body. It turns out, my bottom half was still on the couch.

How I slept through the night hanging off the couch, I'll never know. I use my arms to push my torso enough to slide my legs off. They hit the ground with a loud thud, and I clench my teeth at the sudden sound.

My neck was very stiff and hurt to move even slightly, so I thought the best move would be to take some Advil. I stand up and walk over to a kitchen drawer to get it.

When I reach for the drawer, a soft gasp left my lips. My knuckles were a deep purple and slightly red from the blood. The wrap Jay put on didn't do much to hide my injury. Now that I think about it, my hand hurts a little too.

I can just tell now, my day is going to be long and painful. I pop two pills with a glass of water and my eyes slip over to the clock on the microwave. It's 11:32...hm. "I'm late!"

I scramble to my room and begin to panic. In the panic, I seem to have stupidly lost my sense of orientation and can't remember where anything was, including my closet.

By the time I rip open the doors, I pause. "Wait." I count my fingers. "It's Sunday, it's still the weekend." I sigh in relief.

"Well, I have nothing to do today, until work, so I might as well work out." I look down at my hand. "No boxing today, but I can still run."

I change and slip on my sneakers before heading out on my usual path.

The usual light breeze has picked up lately, which is good in my opinion, because that means the seasons should be changing soon. I hate hot weather and sweating. I'm more of a sweaters and winter person.

The air feels thicker and more humid today, which hints at possible storms soon. The overcast in the sky is another indicator. Hopefully I can finish my run before any rain falls.

There are surprisingly many people on the trail today. Many couples walking, some groups of students with service dogs in training, even some fellow athletes jogging.

I run my usual hour before I find myself back in front of the apartment complex. My shirt was sweatier that usual, because of the humidity. Fortunately, right as I got back, the rain drops start to fall, and I was able to run inside quickly.

I hear yelling from outside the door, so I quickly rush inside. "What's happening?" I yell once I was inside.

I stop in my tracks when all I see is Alex on the couch playing his video games. He glances at me then back at the screen. "Oh, hey Bree."

I lift my hand and give him a small wave even though he probably didn't see it. I drink some water then walk to my room, but my brother stops me.

"Hey, wait, Bree, can you come here for a sec?" He asks, and I turn around to take a seat. I have a feeling I know what he's going to say. "So." He sighs and scratches the back of his neck. "I know you defended yourself last night, and you didn't seem to shaken up but, are you okay? Really okay because you can talk to me."

And there it is. I haven't thought much on last night for a purpose. Yeah, I knocked out two guys, but it was still the scariest situation I've been in. What if they weren't already drunk, what if that door wasn't there? I don't want to think about what could've happened.