Summer Before Her (Completed)

12- Drunken Damsel In Distress

Kirsten's POV

"Hellooo Kirsteennn" he slurred

"Hey Novak, everything okay?" I enquired, concerned about his slurring, maybe he was having a stroke.

"No, no I am lots, I mean lost"
Oh, he was definitely having a stroke, Confusion is one of the symptoms.

"Are you drunk?" I asked.

"No, Shit Sherlock"
Perhaps I should have ruled out drinking first before jumping headfirst into dangerous conclusions.

I definitely expected that out of him, drunk and lost, he was not so well put together after all.

"Where are you?"

"I don't know, its the middle nowhere of this shitty town"

"what do you mean nowhere? Do you see shops? Restaurants? Anything?"

"I see you, Kirsten, I see you hiding behind the lies"

"Do you want me to help you or should I hang up?"
He really was testing my patience.

"Noooo boo, don't leave me alonnneee, I will be sad" he plead. I can't believe my ears, Novak is being decent, dare I say almost adorable, this might be a prank.

"Fine, I won't, now tell me where you are?"

"Bu.. but you have to promise that you won't leave me alone" he hesitated.
Oh, he is going to regret all this vulnerability tomorrow.

"Okay, I promise, Now will you tell me where you are?"

"I think its the white house" He responded with an air of awe in his voice.

"The white house? We are in California Novak, Can you please for the love of god tell me where you are?" I questioned sternly, how many times would I have to ask the same question before he answered.

"But it is the white house, its all white and it has pillars" he responded innocently, who knew Novak was this cute when inebriated?

And then it clicked, Fred's house front was like that of a white house, that's where he was

" ....... and so I was thinking about how to do that?"
He was the complete opposite of the usually quiet, reserved Novak, he was talkative, hesitant, vulnerable, adorable and oh so much more likeable.

"Hey Novak, I know where you are, Can you stay right there so I can come and get you?"
Fred would definitely kill him if he found him there.

Not bothering to change out of my sleeping shorts, I grabbed my keys and tiptoed through the house, winding through the halls and made my way out through the backdoor.
Thank god for soundproof rooms, the roar of the engine would definitely have woken up my parents.

All this while Novak kept talking about a number of things I couldn't make sense of.

"Hey Bud, you still okay?"

"Yes, I think I feel sleepy"

"Hey hey, don't sleep on me, I am just there," I said swerving in Fred's driveway.

Novak was stretched out on the grass without a care in the world, despite how he sounded on the phone, he didn't look one bit less cocky or like an ass.

"Heyy, there you are," I said walking towards him.

He was still speaking on the phone
"..... you are so annoying but so charming, why? Why can't you just be cute?"

"Umm... Hiii, Novakkkk" I tried gaining his attention again, nonetheless he continued rambling on.

I kneeled on the grass next to him and grabbed the phone from his hand, At this, his attention shifted to me and for the first time since I met him, he smiled, it was an Oh so beautiful sight.
It lit up his face, the corners of his eyes creasing as it reached them.

"Yesssss, you are here to star watch with me? Come on, lie dowwwn" he said, enthusiastically tapping the space next to him, his arm outstretched in invitation.

I couldn't find it in me to deny smiling, excited Novak. There probably won't a repeat of this, might as well take my only chance.

And there I Ias lying on carpet-like grass, trespassing on private property while we counted stars.
His arm nestled in the nook between my head and neck as we lay there talking endlessly about how ever-expanding unpredictable the universe was, the chaos of our existence, the magic of stardust and fairies. Yeah, fairies.

"I know a fairy, I summoned her today and answered, I was like wow, that happens", he said, his head tilted towards me as he eyes drank in my features.

"Novak, are you just drunk? Did you take something else as well? What I am asking is Are you high? responded, now sitting upright.
I don't know, I feel tired and floppy, maybe be something else"

"it's one am genius, no wonder you are tired" I countered.

"yeah, so I am going to sleep" he shut his eyes and lay motionless for a while.

"We have to go, if you sleep here, Fred is going to killl you" I plead, tugging on his arm.

"But I don't want toooo" he whined.

"We seriously have to go, come on" I begged, trying to lift him by his shoulders and effectively failing.

"I don't want to go homee" he began pleading now.

"We don't have to go home, let's just sit in the car for a while"

And on and on we went for the next fifteen minutes till I successfully had him in the car, all buckled up, ready to go.

"Fred loves you" he stated out of nowhere.

"You are drunk" I countered.

"I know I am drunk, but Fred loves you."

"that's not possible, he is gay"

"sexuality isn't a rigid concept, its fluid, he might be bisexual or bi-curious"

"okay sure, whatever, give me your address"

"Will you for once not just push away things you don't want to discuss and answer" he snapped.

Oh, where did that come from?

"Fred loves you, and I know it" he continued.

I did not acknowledge him with a response and tried configuring my GPS.

You are currently located at Ashmore street, would you like this to be your home location?

"No, my place is in Willberry"

Oh.

Willberry was in the part of the town where you couldn't keep your car doors unlocked. Most houses were empty and occupied the squatters, not the best place to live if you ask me.

I put in the information and tried to make small talk to keep him as well as myself awake, it was one am, excuse me if I am finding it difficult to keep myself awake.

"Soooo, who do you live with?"

"Dad"

"Oh, no siblings? Or did your mother get them in custody?"

"Dead"

Oh God, count on me to make stupid assumptions.

"I am sorry, I didn't know"

"you sound like hundreds of social workers I have spoken to, the exact same thing, the exact same questions"

"Oh, I didn't know you were in the system"

"I wasn't, I was just interviewed because my mother killed herself"

You have reached your destination- the speakers blared.

He silently disembarked and stumbled inside the old house.

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Hey guys,
One day, two chapters, wohoooo!
I just felt you guys deserved it all at once. Thank you for reading!

Q: Did you think there would be a kiss in this chapter?

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