The Hamptons (paused)

Eight

My head is throbbing and I feel like I have to die. No, I have to vomit at first. And then I can die.

"Hey, it's okay...", a voice says and a hand caresses my forehead.

I slowly come back to consciousness and try to open my eyes. "Oh god...", I sigh when my stomach immediately turns.

"I know, it's hard", the voice says and I realize it's Peter who is talking to me. "I got you two aspirin and a bottle of water", he explains.

I finally manage to open my eyes and see him sitting on the edge of my bead, wearing sweatpants and a striped shirt. "Good morning", he smiles and grabs my hand. "First hangover, huh?"

I don't answer him because first, I can't, and second, this is far from my first hangover. I just never thought I would ever experience this again. And now I know why I stopped drinking. This is awful. Nevertheless, I sit up and take the aspirin Peter put on my night stand. Then, I drink up half of the water bottle to fight the dehydration process.

"Good girl", he grins and gets up. "Come down when you're ready, we are just chilling by the beach. Sarah was worried that you died, so I thought I would check on you."

"Still alive, thanks", I half-grin back at him and he leaves the room.

As soon as he's gone, I let myself fall back down onto the pillows and immediately regret that. I feel the insides of my stomach make their way to the top, so I jump out of bed and rush to the bathroom.

+++

About an hour later, I managed to take a shower and put on some clothes. Doing that, I wondered who undressed me last night. While thinking about it, I realize that I can't remember anything that happened last night. We got something to drink and Luke unnerved me with his disrespectful comments. We went on to some club and I drank too much. That's it.

"Good morning, sunshine", Luke greets me when I reach the downstairs. "Had a good night sleep?"

"Um, yes, thanks", I murmur, making my way through the living room to get outside.

"Cassie!", Sarah exclaims and hugs me tight. "I thought you died on us", she laughs, grabs me by the hand and leads me into the warm sand.

"You won't get rid of me so easily", I tell her.

"That's good", she smiles and we sit down on a huge blanket. She starts telling me about the guy she met last night and that they will go out for dinner tomorrow when Luke and Peter join us.

"Hey, thanks", I say to Peter and smile at him. "You were right, I really needed this."

"What part?", Luke asks, taking a sip from his coke bottle.

I frown at him and turn to Peter again. "I think I forgot how to have fun. It has been only work and... him for me, you know?"

Peter nods and smiles proudly. "Well, I know what's best for you!", he says.

"You had fun last night as well, huh?", Sarah changes the topic to Luke so that we stop talking about me. She knows I don't like to be the center of attention for that long. "Did you fall off the stairs or what happened?", she laughs and Luke looks at me.

"Umm", he starts and I really start to feel uncomfortable. Why is he staring at me? "Yea, kinda", he finally says and takes a sip of his coke.

"So, movie night?", Sarah asks to break the weird silence.

+++

In the evening, the nausea is finally gone and my stomach growls from hunger. I spent the rest of the afternoon in my room, reading the book I started yesterday. Peter and Sarah decided to go shopping and Luke just disappeared. Thinking about it, he acted quite normal towards me today.

Before I can keep thinking about the weird guy that somehow can afford to live in the Hamptons, I make my way downstairs into the kitchen to grab something to eat.

Of course, Luke is making a sandwich when I enter the room. Instead of making a remark about me, he just smiles and stays silent.

I go over to the counter, grab a knife and plate and start making a sandwich myself.

"So", Luke suddenly starts. "You really forgot, huh?", he looks at me, chewing on his sandwich.

"What do you mean?", I ask and grab some ham to put on the toast.

"Last night?", he apparently tries to trigger something in my memory.

"Oh", I make and let out a laugh. "I can't remember anything really. It's not even a blur, it's black", I explain. Suddenly, something comes to my mind. "Oh my god, did I do something embarrassing?", I ask with widened eyes.

Luke chuckles. "I don't know, you tried to seduce me", he says, wriggling his eyebrows at me.

I roll my eyes. "Okay, thanks for the talk", I close my sandwich and try to leave the kitchen.

"No, wait", he laughs. "Just kidding, you danced and had fun, that's all", Luke assures me. "I have to go to work now, see you", he grabs his half eaten sandwich, a takeaway coffee mug and puts on his leather jacket. Then he's gone.

I let myself fall on the couch and put on the tv. Since no one is home, I need something to keep me company and distract me from my throbbing heart. I have to admit, I liked the feeling I had last night. I felt free and had fun instead of crying and missing my ex boyfriend. But now, all alone and definitely sober, I start to think about Matthew again. What is he doing right now?

I look at the clock. It's 6.25pm, I bet he just came home from a run and thinks about what to get for dinner. Maybe sushi? I love sushi and he knows that, so we often ate it while watching a movie.

Before I know it, I dial his number and hold my phone against my ear. When his mailbox starts talking, I quickly end the call. Low, Cassie, really low. I can't believe I just called my ex with the intention to beg him to take me back. 

I throw my phone at the coffee table and stand up, sighing. I need to get out. Upstairs, I change into my running clothes and leave the house to clear my head.