Chapter 10 #2
Candy was glad, too. Yule joined them once Candy pulled away from Xyxy, and Xyxy moved her hands from Candy in favor of grabbing one of Yule’s.
Candy took her other hand, and in that moment, she wasn’t sure she’d ever been happier.
She’d missed this. A lot. When she was dating Ross, she hardly had the time to spare to go out with her friends.
He kept her on set until late into the night, and the few times she did go out with her friends, he always had something to say about it.
About how she should’ve been with him instead, how he needed her more than her friends did.
But the truth was, Candy needed them. She’d dug herself into a hole of loneliness that only Ross could pull her out of, and even then, he was all too willing to let her sink back into it when it was convenient for him.
Xyxy was her only constant, calling her every night even when she wasn’t free, and she loved her for it.
After a few songs, Candy needed a break. When had she gotten so out of shape? She used to be able to go all night, but they were only about five songs in and Candy’s lungs were on fire. She weaved her way off the dance floor and headed for the bathroom for just a few minutes of reprieve.
She was just about to go into the bathroom when she spotted a familiar figure out of the corner of her eye. Qaed braced his back against the wall, head tipped back slightly.
“Hey, you look like shit,” she said, resting a hand on his upper arm. “You okay?”
“I am fine.” He didn’t exactly look fine. “Totally fine. More fine than I have ever been, in fact.” His words slurred together more than they had earlier.
Her eyebrows crept up and she rested her hands on her hips. “You don’t look fine. Jesus, how much did you drink?”
“Too much.”
“Yeah, I gathered that. Come on, I’m taking you home.”
“I do not know if I can move away from the wall without falling over.” He giggled to himself, pushing off the wall as if to test his theory. And, true to his word, he wobbled violently and Candy grabbed his thick forearm to steady him. “Hm. Yes. I was right.”
Candy huffed. Xyxy and Yule wouldn’t be much help–Qaed was easily over two hundred pounds of dead weight. “Hold on. I’m gonna go get Jorai and call Votra to pick you up.”
“Noooo, not Votra. Anyone but Votra.” He screwed his eyes shut, and for a moment, he looked like he might actually throw up. And Candy really didn’t want to be here for that. “Just shove me in a taxi, I will be fine.”
What a pain in the ass. “I’m not shoving your drunk ass in a taxi. I’ll come with you. Just… stay there. Don’t move.”
“I could not even if I wanted to.”
This wasn’t exactly how she’d planned on her night going, but she couldn’t just leave him.
Not Votra’s best friend. She retrieved Jorai from the front door and recruited her help to bring Qaed out of the bar.
He shifted all of his weight against her, but she hardly seemed fazed.
She walked him out of the bar like it was nothing.
Candy really hoped that the fresh air would sober him up a little.
“God, you’re strong,” Candy said, at which Jorai grinned.
“I’m a wrestler. I gotta be.” She propped Qaed up against the bar’s exterior wall. “You doin’ okay, bud?”
“I am fantastic, thank you.” His eyes were slightly less glassy than they were inside, which put Candy at ease. “You do not have to come with me, Candy. You should stay with your friends.”
“You’re my friend too, unfortunately, and I gotta make sure you get home safe.” She rested her head against his arm. “Jorai, can you tell Xyxy and Yule where I went? I told them I was just going to the bathroom real quick.”
“Ooh, Jorai would love to talk to Xyxy,” Qaed grinned, his head drooping to rest against Candy’s. God, even his head was heavy.
“Don’t listen to him. He’s drunk.”
“Hey, as her best friend, I think I’ve earned the right to ask questions,” Candy said, her knees buckling under Qaed’s weight. Xyxy would sooner die than tell Candy what was going on in her life, so Jorai was possibly her only hope. “What is the deal with you two?”
“Nothing! We’re just friends,” Jorai said. She opened her mouth to speak again just as the taxi pulled up. Dammit, there went her chance. “C’mon, let’s go.” She looped her arms around Qaed and hoisted him into the back seat of the taxi.
“Thanks for your help,” Candy said, giving Jorai a brief hug before climbing into the taxi. She was going to have to get the story another day. Jorai shut the door behind them and Qaed immediately laid all of his body weight against Candy as the taxi took off.
Without the filter of the alcohol-soaked air of the bar, Qaed smelled like a bar mat. But she let him lean on her anyway. “If you throw up on me, I’ll kill you,” she muttered.
“No promises.” His eyes fluttered closed, and she hooked her arm around his. Poor thing. Candy hadn’t gotten as drunk as Qaed in years–once she hit twenty-five, the hangovers just stopped being worth it.
Her comm buzzed, a message from Votra appearing on her screen. Shit, she should probably tell Votra what was going on. If she knew Votra, she was probably still at work, and the last thing she wanted to do was distract her.
Do you mind coming in a bit early tomorrow morning? I discovered a bug with the virtual reality interface that I would like your feedback on, and I have a feeling it will not be an easy fix.
This would be Candy’s luck. She groaned, and Qaed let out a groan in response that she was pretty sure was meant to be mocking her. Maybe she should’ve just thrown him into the taxi after all.
ill try but no promises. your best friend is passed out on me rn
Wait, what? Qaed?
Before Candy had the chance to explain herself, Votra called her. Candy tapped her comm to answer. “Hey.”
“What is going on?” Votra sounded nervous. “Is Qaed alright?”
“Nooo, I told you not to tell Votra.” Qaed leaned into Candy’s comm. “I am fine, do not worry. Candy is prank calling you. I am not drunk.”
“Qaed, you are not supposed to be drinking this much.” Votra sighed, her voice crackling through the comm. “Where are you?”
“We’re in a taxi right now. I’m gonna take him home and get him into bed. I might stay with him.”
“There is no need. I will be there.” Votra’s voice was suddenly small. “Thank you for taking care of him, Candy.”
“No problem.” Candy glanced out the window to see the shuttle coming to a stop. “Oh, I think we’re here. How long before you get here?”
“I am already here. I will come down and help you with him.”
What was Votra doing at Qaed’s apartment?
“Okay, cool. See you in a second then.” Candy hung up and got out of the taxi after paying the driver.
Qaed seemed a little less out of it when she rounded the taxi to his side; he managed to force himself to his feet with Candy’s help, and he wobbled in her grip as she helped him onto the sidewalk.
The apartment complex stretched out in front of them in a wall of doors; there had to be at least ten floors of them. Candy really hoped they wouldn’t have to go up many steps. Her own legs were turning to jelly, and she couldn’t imagine how Qaed was feeling.
“You holding up okay, champ?” she asked him, holding him around his thin torso.
“Ask me again after we get up the stairs.” He started towards the first set of stairs, and Candy followed his lead. Just before they reached the steps, Qaed let out a groan. “Dammit, you called Votra?”
“Yes, Qaed, you were there.” Candy looked up just in time to see Votra descending the stairs in a large t-shirt and baggy pajama pants.
She’d be distracted by how cute she was if she didn’t look so stressed.
She launched into what Candy could only assume was very spirited nagging in a language that Candy didn’t understand.
Qaed shrunk against Candy, and Votra pulled him from her grip.
“I can take him from here. Thank you.” Votra’s tone was clipped, and Candy flinched against it. She must have noticed, because her voice softened. “I am sorry that you got dragged into this. You should get home.”
“Let me help.” Candy took Qaed’s opposite arm. “I don’t know if you know this or not, but this guy is dead weight.”
“Hey!”
Votra smiled. “Thank you.”
Candy and Votra lugged Qaed to his apartment–up four flights of steps and down one more–and by the time they reached the door, Candy felt like she was going to pass out, too. Every muscle fiber in her body screamed for rest.
Votra took him to his room, and Candy took the liberty of plopping down on the couch. It would just be for a minute, she told herself. She was going to have to prepare herself for the journey back down those stairs. God, why would Qaed subject himself to living somewhere like this?
When Votra came back out of Qaed’s room, she seemed surprised to see Candy still there. “I am sorry again that you had to do that,” she said, tucking a leg under herself as she sat on the couch next to Candy.
“No, it’s okay. I didn’t wanna just leave him there.
” Now that Votra seemed more relaxed, Candy let herself appreciate how sweet she looked in her oversized pajamas.
The Votra Candy saw every day was always dressed so sharply, in a way that only accentuated her harsh features.
But this Votra looked… soft. “Are you gonna spend the night with him?”
“Well, I live here, so I do not have much of a choice.”
That explained a lot. “Oh. Right.”
The corner of Votra’s lips curved into a smile. “Would you like something to drink? Some water?”
Candy had never needed water so badly in her life. “Yes, please.”