Hold Me Closer

Part Five

"Holy cow," I muttered, my eyes still firmly shut.

It felt like ten tiny little ballerinas were dancing on my eyelids while screws were being drilled into the sides of my head. Well maybe that was an exaggeration, but I have a vivid imagination, okay? And was pretty sure I was also dealing with one of the worst headaches that I had ever had in my life. 

Last night after the party, Meg and I had clambered into the back of someone's car and made it up to our rooms puke-free. Although there was a little mercy in that, the shots that I had done last night had obviously had an after-effect as I could feel my hangover poking at the sides of my head. Today was going to be a long day.

I had a quick shower and let the hot water unknot the muscles in my back, swallowing some water down by sore throat to try and ease the pain of my migraine. By the time I was dressed and my hair was mainly dry, I met Meg in her room who looked as bad as I felt.

"Mate," I said, as we walked down the stairs.

"Don't start," Meg replied, rubbing her eyes blearily.

"You look how I feel!"

"I look how I feel!" Meg corrected. "I don't think I've been this hungover since my first year at the Academy. I accidentally tried the founder's day punch and it was a killer."

"What was that last round of shots that we had? The blue ones?"

Meg belched a little. "I don't want to know what went in those."

"Well maybe the other double-vision Meg I'm seeing can tell me."

As we walked into the hall, we met Mike and Ben who frustratingly looked fine as they tucked into their breakfast. I felt like smacking their stupidly happy faces. 

"How are you guys sitting upright?" I said.

"You guys are such dumb-asses," Ben said, flexing a muscle casually. "You need to be at least 6"2 to drink as much as you did last night."

"Yeah, and what are you? Six feet of douche and two inches of fat-ass?" I joked.

"Well at least I didn't hook up with Lord Nicholas last night," Ben countered.

"You did what?" Mike said, stopping eating his cereal.

I flicked a little bit of my water at Ben as pay-back. "Ben's exaggerating. There was no hooking up whatsoever. I just kissed the guy."

"Oh, that's fine then." Mike scowled sarcastically. "You just kissed the guy. You do realise that he's a major jerk, don't you?"

"It was Truth or bloody Dare. We're not about to get married or anything." I rolled my eyes to the heavens.

"But," Meg said, looking at me seriously..."Did you leave room for Jesus?"

Mike and Ben cracked up at that, and I buried my face in my hands. "Come on! Like you guys are sooo innocent," I argued.

"Oh we've kissed at parties, Olive," Ben said. "We just didn't realise that you were into the whole title thing. I mean, I'm like the third cousin of a Baron," Ben leant across the table and waggled his eyebrows suggestively, "do you want to make out?"

I looked at Ben dead in the eyes. "Yes, Benny boy. I want you desperately. Right here, right now." 

I waited until Ben's eyes widened and his cheeks began to blush before breaking into hysterical laughter. Meg soon joined in, and we both decided to make fun of Ben until breakfast was over as pay-back for the Nick comment. What can I say? Girls stick together.