When the Lights Go Out {complete first draft}

Day Four: I Want to Run Away

Days pass by quickly on this very slow Friday

  

I’d failed. I’d said – no, I had promised – George that I’d take him home, to sort things out with Kendal, and instead I was selfish. I had stayed and drank with Vincent until I could no longer use my senses properly and had a self inflicted a hangover. I realised this when I woke up in one of the bedrooms in Laura’s house in my underwear next to my boyfriend. He was fast asleep and I smiled before noticing that something heavy was crushing my leg.

                  When I looked down to see what it was that was crushing my leg, my smile dropped and a sickening feeling spread through my stomach. Matthew stirred behind me, when I tried to free myself from my leg, which was lying over mine. I knew I needed to get him off me. After struggling for a moment, he turned over, huffing in his sleep – at least he was a wriggler – and settled down facing the other way.

                  I placed my cold feet against the warmth skin of his back, and tried to push, but I was hitting against Vincent, and he grumbled. After a mean defeat, I cursed and turned again so I was facing my boyfriend. The covers were suffocating me, and being next to Matthew in only my underwear was making my skin crawl. I felt dirty and horrible. I wanted to go home and shower. I didn’t have my phone on me – I hadn’t brought it – and I didn’t want my mom worrying.

                  I had to get out of here and get home. I didn’t care about Vincent, but I thought to myself, I needed to get George and get him home so he could reconnect with Kendal and I could shower and get as far away from Matthew as I could.

                  Starting to panic, I tried to free myself from the covers from the middle of the bed, but both boys were gripping the edges, meaning I was limited to space. I wanted to get back, and get ready – get in the zone – for swimming later. I wanted my family to see me from the bleachers, and smile. I wanted to see their proud faces and know, even though I missed out on it in real life, I could bask in the glory in this world. And today, that was good enough for me.

                  I looked around the bedroom, trying to figure out what I was going to do. I couldn’t wait for the boys to wake up – they could be here all day for all I knew – and I didn’t have time for that. The curtains didn’t completely cover the window, and I looked out, noticing that the sun was still rising and it was still slightly dark outside. The walls were a light grey colour but the bedspread was a dark navy. This didn’t seem like a feminine bedroom, so it must have belonged to one of Laura’s brothers – unless this was just a spare room in their house. 

                  Someone passed the room, and coughed. I wondered if that was Laura, or just another guest who’d crashed overnight. Either way, they   only hovered for a moment, and then they were gone. Grumbling in frustration, I shook my head as I tried to think of a way to get out of this situation and then find my clothes. If my clothes weren’t in the room, I’d scream. I couldn’t’ go out without them, because if the person that had walked passed the door was only down the hallway, they would see it, and it would be embarrassing for me. It didn’t matter too much; I could do what I wanted in this parallel universe. I would die again tonight, and everything that happened today, wouldn’t exist when I woke up again. They wouldn’t remember anything because they’re not really here with me… they’re in their own world, without even realizing that the in-between exists. 

                  Luckily, I noticed my clothes were lying over a chair tucked into the corner of the room by a lamp, which was off and looked dusty. Finding no other alternative, I put my feet against Vincent’s skin, which wasn’t so hot, and pushed him out of bed. He hit his head and I scrambled over to my clothes and chucked them on quickly. If he was going to scream and shout about his head, he might awake Matthew, and I wanted my clothes on for that.