Chapter Five #3
And if there’s anyone I can turn to right now, it’s Caleb.
I stumble toward the door, trying my best to look sober, which I’m fairly sure I’m not pulling off.
Someone bumps into me along the way, sending me crashing into a table and knocking a few glasses to the floor.
The people around it stare, but I mumble something that might be an apology and keep going.
When I finally push through the doors, I spot Caleb outside making out with the heiress, and for some reason, it is the funniest thing I’ve ever seen.
I start laughing.
The cool night air hits my skin and feels incredible, and as I wipe the sweat from my brow, I try to hurry toward him, but my feet have other ideas. I stumble straight into the heiress, knocking her into Caleb so their heads crack together.
I hit the ground laughing.
Caleb and the heiress both clutch their heads.
“Jesus Christ, Annie. What the fuck?” Caleb snaps, sounding furious, which only makes me laugh harder. Then I do the most unladylike hiccup ever.
He looks down at me, eyes narrowing. “What’s wrong with you?”
I giggle and shrug.
“Shit! Annie, are you drunk?”
I shake my head, which is a terrible idea because the world immediately tilts, and my stomach surges into my throat. I gag.
Caleb scrubs a hand over his face. “For fuck’s sake. I need to get you out of here before someone gets a photo.”
That idea is weirdly hilarious to me.
The drunk daughter of rock royalty. Honestly, iconic.
He bends and scoops me up, and I loop my arms around his neck while he presses a quick kiss to the heiress’s cheek. “Rain check?” he asks.
She nods, glancing at me with a smirk.
“I drink your stole!” I announce, then immediately crack up at my own mangled words.
Caleb blinks. “What?”
The heiress bursts out laughing while Caleb stares at me in complete confusion. “You stole her drink?”
“Nooo, I said I drank her stole.”
Caleb rubs his forehead. “Jesus Christ.”
The heiress shakes her head, still smiling. “You should probably look after her, Caleb.”
I swing my arms outward, feeling the freedom of the night air around me.
“Jesus, Annie, stay still,” he mutters, tightening his hold as he takes me through the back exit toward his car.
“Weee… I’m flying,” I sing, flinging my arms out as Caleb carries me away.
“You’re not flying. You’re drunk.”
I gasp dramatically. “I’m sparkly.”
“You’re my cousin, and I love you, but you can be a fucking idiot sometimes,” he says as he sets me down beside the car and digs his keys from his pocket. He hits the button, and the locks chirp.
“Beep beep, like the Road Runner,” I say, dissolving into laughter because, for some reason, that is the funniest thing in the world.
“Get in the car, Annie.”
He yanks the door open, and I spin once in a clumsy circle before collapsing into the seat, still giggling. Oh my God, I feel… amazing.
He shuts the door, rounds the car, and slides into the driver’s seat.
“Sorry for ruining your smoochy time with Princess Hair Extensions,” I tell him, and he finally lets out a reluctant chuckle.
“Buckle up.”
I grab the seat belt and tug, but it keeps locking, and I burst into hysterics. “Your belt is broken.”
He leans across me and pulls it smoothly into place.
“Wow,” I breathe. “You’re like a magician.”
“Yeah, incredible talent,” he mocks.
I shrug, but the movement turns my stomach instantly. He goes to pull out of the parking space before glancing sideways at me. “How much did you drink?”
The warm, floaty feeling disappears so fast it’s almost cruel. My stomach lurches, and I clap a hand over my mouth.
“Nope, absolutely not. You are not throwing up in my car.” Caleb slams the car into park and is out of the car in seconds, rushing around to my side. He yanks open the door and undoes the belt. “Annie, lean forward.”
I obey, barely making it out of the car before the dizziness hits full force. My head hangs low, the spinning is unbearable, and then my stomach heaves.
Caleb throws his hands in the air. “Jesus Christ.”
I keep heaving while Caleb stands there watching me in my dazed state. When I finally stop, I groan miserably. “I don’t feel so good anymore,” I whisper.
Caleb takes a quick step back just before I throw up everything I’ve drunk over the last fifteen minutes. “No shit.”
I heave again, acid burning my throat, the taste even fouler coming back up than it was going down. I spit weakly, trying to get it out of my mouth, while Caleb opens the boot and grabs a bottle of water. “Drink this.”
I slump back into the seat, feeling absolutely awful now, the high gone and misery settling in its place.
“Think you’re gonna throw up again?” he asks.
I slowly shake my head and rest it back against the seat, closing my eyes as the world continues to spin.
“Okay. I’m buckling you in.” He fastens the seat belt, shuts the door, and a second later, I hear him get back behind the wheel and start the engine.
Darkness tugs at me from the edges, pulling me under, and as I drift, I hope I dream of floating music notes and quiet, peaceful melodies…
Not Aston.