Just Friends

Chapter Thirty

Buzz Buzz... Buzz Buzz... Buzz Buzz

"Ugh," I moan groggily through sleep. "Shut up."

The buzzing finally stops, and I breathe in a big sigh of relief, needing nothing more than to drift back to sleep.

It can't be my alarm yet, it's still way too dark, and I don't have class until 9 am.

It's not my alarm, is it?

I panic slightly and force my arm up to grab my phone from my bedside table. I squint open my reluctant eyes and flinch a little from the light coming off the screen. 2 am. Definitely not my alarm.

I look at the notifications, noticing two missed calls and about six texts, all from Braden.

What the hell?

My heavy eyes want to drag me back into sleep.

"I'll call him back tomorrow," I mumble to myself, my hand falling back down to my side. "I need to sleep."

Just as I am about to fall back into darkness, I hear the noise again.

Buzz Buzz... Buzz Buzz... Buzz Buzz

"Ugh," I cry again in frustration.

I can't ignore it this time as the device continues to vibrate in the hand laying by my side.

A loud pounding sounds from down the halls, and I sit up in a panic.

"What the hell?!"

The phone finally stops ringing in my hand, and I climb out of bed to investigate the noise. Where's a baseball bat when you need one?

My bare feet slap against the floor as I make my way into the lounge, guided only by the streetlights pouring in through the windows.

"Okay, okay, I'm coming!" I shout as the thumping continues. Despite my efforts to shout over the noise, clearly, they don't hear me as the sound doesn't seem to subside.

"What the hell is going on?" Ellie asks sleepily, making me jump.

I turn to see her stood in the corridor, her hair sticking out everywhere and her mouth set in a deep frown.

"I have no clue," I shrug.

Walking towards the door, I hesitantly take a look through the peephole and smile a little.

Is he drunk?

"Ellie, it's fine," I say, looking back at her. "Just go back to bed."

"Jo! Open up!" The voice on the other side of the door slurs.

"Loverboy?" Ellie asks, amused, any trace of worry now gone. "Goodnight!"

"Goodnight!" I shout back as she disappears down the hall.

I open the door, and Braden spills into the room with little elegance.

"Hey, you!" He smiles up at me.

I look down at him and giggle, closing the door gently. "What are you doing here?"

"I replied," he says, the smell of booze practically oozing off him. "But you didn't text me back." He points at me and stumbles upright, tripping slightly as he wraps his arms around me.

"I was asleep," I defend. "Plus you are very drunk."

"Yeah, so?" Braden says defensively.

"Come on, let's go to bed." I try to pull him along, but he only pulls back, spinning me towards him.

"I think that sounds like a brilliant idea," he slurs, the smell of beer and cigarettes on his breath.

"Have you been smoking?" I cringe.

"Yeah," Braden says, his eyebrows furrowing as he looks down at me, his bloodshot eyes staring into mine. "And? Who are you, my mum?"

"Haha, very funny." I grab hold of his hand a pull him towards my bedroom, hoping that his loud drunken words don't wake up the rest of the house, that's if they're not already awake.

When we get to my bedroom, I turn on the lamp, wincing a little as the light illuminates the room.

Braden falls onto the bed, slips his shoes off, and they fall to the floor with a thud. He looks up at me, his drunken smirk sloppier than it usually would be, but I would be lying if I said it wasn't still just as effective.

Braden sits up, pulling his trousers off and tossing them onto the chair in the corner. "Hey, join me in bed," he says with a suggestive look.

I giggle a little and lift the covers to climb into the bed next to him. "Don't look at me like that," I say. "We are not having sex right now."

"Oh, why not?" Braden pouts, walking his fingers up my thigh, sparking a fire there that I'm just too tired for.

"I'm not going to have sex with you in your state," I laugh a little.

"You've not complained before." His fingers still working their way up my thigh, teasing the line of my underwear from under my pyjama shorts. Braden leaves a trail of kisses down my neck, and a part of me wants to give in to his touch.

"Maybe not," I giggle, amused by his drunken mood. "But I was also drunk. I'm not about to take advantage of you in your state."

Braden sighs and removes his hand. "What am I even doing here then?" He sits up and for a moment a lay there, shocked by his sudden change of attitude.

"I'm sorry?" Did I seriously just hear him right?

"I said," Braden starts, "if you're not going to have sex with me, why am I even here?"

"Are you joking?" I ask, shocked and unsure what else to say, but he only responds with a sullen expression. "I don't know why you came here. I didn't ask you to come!"

He doesn't say anything and instead just lays down with a disappointed sigh.

"Just get some sleep," I huff, turning off the lamp and wrapping the duvet around myself.

After a matter of minutes, Braden's breathing slows into soft snores as he quickly falls to sleep.

The smell of alcohol and cigarettes overwhelming. When Braden's breathing gradually gets louder, I realise I am not going back to sleep any time soon. Lifting the blankets, I climb out quietly and head to the lounge with the full intention of curling up on the sofa and watching junk on TV.