“I need to talk with the detective on my sister's case.”
“What?” Tess shakes her head, then takes me by the shoulders and shakes me, too. “Honey, I don't know what crack you're smokin' right now, but you are ablaze with something I don't understand. What happened in there?”
“Yeah, sweetie,” Clair agrees. “One second you were sitting in Ace's lap and the next you high-tailed it out of there like you'd witnessed a murder.”
“It's bad. Like, so bad.” I press my fingertips to my eyes, trying to squeeze out what I should do.
“We've gotta get here out of here,” Claire says, tugging me by my elbow toward the taxi line. Tess follows, and a minute later we crawl in the back of the yellow car.
“Where ya headed?” the driver asks.
“4213 Carlos Street,” Claire directs him. She's given him the address to my place.
“Can you swing by Jack in the Box first?” Tess asks.
Claire gives her an Are you kidding me? look, but Tess just shrugs.
“What? I love me some spicy chicken sandwiches. And we've been out all night.”
She flashes her phone screen at us. It’s four a.m.
FML.
“I should head to the hospital.”
“In that? Honey, you have sex written all over you.”
“No, I don't,” I say defensively, before turning to stare out the window. My eyes are numb to the bright lights as we drive down the Strip, where they sell sex and thrills for a price that suddenly seems too high.
Right now, the cost for everything seems too high.
I can't believe I had sex with Ace after I found out my sister was getting yanked off life support. Where the hell are my priorities?
After going through the Jack in the Box drive-thru, we pull up at my apartment. My friends follow me up the stairs to the second floor unit, Tess carrying her bag of greasy goodness.
“You guys don't have to come with. You can go home.”
“Like hell. We aren't going anywhere until you fill us in on whatever the heck is going on with you.”
I jam my key in the door and then swing it open, revealing a modest apartment that feels only half lived in.
I'm still paying for my place in Steel Rock, Washington, and all my crap is there. I had no idea when I got here two months ago that my stay would be as long as it has been. A couple suitcases were all I brought when I boarded the plane to see if my sister was still alive.
“Your apartment is so depressing,” Claire said, kicking off her heels. “Every time I come here I think, This girl needs a house plant.”
The apartment was furnished by the landlord, so nothing here feels very loved or homey. A pair of plastic chairs circle a small wooden table; a thrift store coffee table is set before an old couch. The small bedroom is the best room in the house, because at least the bedding is new.
What can say? Even if I'm on a budget, I gotta have a cute Target duvet.
I flip on the lights and walk to the kitchen sink, pouring us each a glass of water from the tap. I fish for ibuprofen from my purse and shake out a substantial dose. We've all been drinking a bunch in a smoky club. We need all the help we can get.
“Do you have any coconut water?” Tess asks, opening her fast food bag. “It helps restore electrolytes.”
“Says the girl chowing down on a processed chicken sandwich,” Claire says.
“Hey, this is all white meat.”
“Just stop, okay?” I squeeze my eyes shut again, trying to absorb the night I've just had, and debating how much I should actually divulge.
“Emmy, just out with it,” Claire says, snatching a fry from Tess. “Holding it in isn't doing you any favors. You look like you've been run over by a bus.”
“A sex bus,” Tess says, smirking.
I look down, realizing that this dress does scream fuck me. Opening the bathroom door, I take in my appearance in the full-length mirror.
My hair is uncharacteristically tousled; my breasts still plunge from the neck line. My lips are permanently swollen from Ace's kisses, not to mention the space between my thighs is still sticky and sweet.
“I think I should shower.”
Tess sets down her food and stands like she's been given an order. She digs a clean towel out of the closet. Meanwhile, Claire turns on the faucet in the tub and runs her hand through the water to check the temperature.
“Step out of your shoes,” Tess says, taking my hands, helping me keep my balance as I take off the ridiculous heels Ace bought me in exchange for a few fucks.
Claire reaches behind me and pulls a few bobby pins from my hair. I unzip my dress, letting it fall to the floor.
Getting in the tub, I hear my friends scoop up my clothes and gently shut the door.
The warm water runs over my body. I wrap my arms around myself, trying to clasp hold of something.