Believing Lies From Broken Relationships

In the end, I asked some mother with three kids running around, pulling at her dress and yelling for toys how to get to the nearest convenience store. Pitifully, she tucked her hair behind her ear and recommended the best place for plain old brown sugar Poptarts, a guilty pleasure of mine. I forgot all about texting Curtis as soon as I sunk my teeth into the gooey mess warm filling; Warm only because they had a microwave there, something I’d never seen in America.

When I finally got home a few hours later, Sofia was on the couch watching TV, ignoring my greeting and mom was having a complete panic attack. She was pacing in the kitchen and as soon as I walked past the door, trying to make a getaway to my room, she jumped at me.

“Matt! Where the hell have you been!? I woke up this morning and you were gone! What was I supposed to think?! The only people you’ve met here are boys! Am I to expect you went out with them? Or wandering on your own? You know how dangerous that is! You don’t know your way around here!” I waited for her to finish her rant.

“I went to get a Poptart. That’s it.”

“By yourself?”

“Um, yes?”

“You could have gotten lost, or hurt, or raped!”

“But if I stayed I could’ve starved.”

“Or eaten something here.”

“Sorry. Won’t do it again,” blah, blah, standard apology.

I’m sure she said something else after that, probably about how stupid it was, how I better not do it again, would Sofia have done something like that, why couldn’t I think things through like her, etc, etc. By this point in life, I’d made my fair share of mistakes, just like everyone else, but I’d also gotten lectures for every one of them, so I their was one ting I was great at, it was tuning them out.

Her background noise yammering quickly pointed at my sister, which caught my attention. All I heard was Sofia agreeing to take me and heatedly telling me to put decent clothes on. The look in her eyes had me running up the steps to follow her instructions like a dog; Anything to get back on her good side.

As I pulled on my clothes, I wondered just how far I would go to win her back over…or how far she’d have me go. Honestly, it was something I’d thought I’d get used to, but it yet to grow on me. Part of me was hoping that the boys would help bring us back together, or having mom to hate because she made us move, but all of it seemed to turn back on me instead.

At least she brought me along with her, even if it was because of our mother. She made the extra gesture of calling me from Oli’s car, which was apparently in our driveway, ready to make its way back to wherever we had been yesterday, instead of just honking the horn. Knowing Sofia, since today was the last Saturday before school, the end of our almost four day freedom, she had a something more than video games in some guy’s living room planned.

Not that Oli or her were going to clue me in on those plans. They sat in the front of the car, flirting and laughing, leaving me to once more awkwardly watch and squirm beneath my seatbelt until we pulled up in front of, to my surprise, the same house as yesterday. I remained in the back seat, watching the two advance the door, his arm around her shoulder, expecting them to come back with a few more people to cram in beside me and go somewhere exciting until Sofia shot me a glance that held a mix of ’what are you doing’ and ’don’t embarrass me,’ causing me to bolt from the car after them.

Inside, I could hear Curtis’ voice shouting over loud theme music, Lord Of The Rings, if my inner nerd is still faithful, about guitars. In passing, Oli gave him a knock upside the head before falling beside him onto the plush couch, which somehow managed to survive the boys seemingly constant attacks, and earned a thankful glance from everyone in the room save Lee, who broke the silence.

“All I’m saying is if you’d just try using my guitar, yeh’d see how much better Ibanez’s are.”

Curtis through him a hateful glare before turning to Oli and asking, “alright mate, now that yeh got our attention, what’s on the agenda today?”

“Party at Matt Hurst’s house in about an hour.”

The guys all shrugged and someone popped in another video game and soon all five boys were consumed in it. There was light banter about the nights events, but mostly it just remained silent, aside from the sound of the dying screams emitting from the game on some sort of surround sound speaker, which made them honestly a bit creepy. The time seemed to fly for me, but a quick look over at Sofia, who was tapping her fingers on her knee and taking her cell out every few seconds told me it was dragging like a rock for her.

At any rate, after only forty-five minutes, at least by my count, one of the Matt’s stood up, shut off the TV, and, waving a hand beckoned the rest of us out. We all filled into the Oli’s car with some difficulty, me ending up double buckling, something I had never done before, with Curtis. Though the ride was rather short, along the course I decided it was a good idea for me to stop getting in this car because, one way or another, I always ended up awkwardly trying to stay still in the back seat.

The house the party was at was far from deserted. There were cars all the way up and down the streets, dim light radiating from around the house, and loud music booming out over the yard. As we approached the door, we practically had to wade through the discarded plastic red cups, which had my nerves riding high since my last experience with beer had been sub par. My breath became shaky in my throat and Curtis reached out and gave my arm a gentle squeeze. On his face was painted a matching reassuring smile as he murmured,

“stick with the Matt’s, Lee, or me. Yeh’ll be fine,” before plunging through the doorway into the crowd.

I wondered briefly why Oli was not on that list and if it had anything to do with more of Curtis’ completely incorrect assumptions that I like him, but I didn‘t have long to dwell on the thought as I was to busy struggling to stay with someone I knew. The smell of alcohol burned my nostrils harshly as I stalked Curtis across the floor and switched off to one of the Matt’s when another girl took my place following Curtis, trying to collect my nerves as I stood behind him. He gave me a curious glance, but my attention was on the other side of the dance floor where my sister was sucking face none other than Oli. A shudder ran through my body and I quickly ditched him; Regardless of past experiences, I would let go tonight. That’s what I was here for.

I ventured off to the kitchen, grabbing an already filled beer cup, swallowing it in one gulp, and then downed a few more before wandering back to what seemed to have been proclaimed the dance floor. As I was finding out, I was rather lightweight. After only four? Four, I think, cups, my head was swimming, my body wasn’t listening well, and I could feel my sense of rationality slipping away. Bumping against a few strange guys, I danced clumsily for a few minutes before someone flashed me a warm smile, drawing me to him.

My hips moved close to his, touching slightly then pulling away teasingly while his eyes bore into me, mine slipping closed behind my heavy lids. His lips met my neck and I shivered, more with memories that barely hit my drunken mind then pleasure. My eyes clenched shut tighter as his hands went to my hips, forcing them to his, then reaching around slowly to grab my ass. I almost let out a yelp as I struggled to control my breathing and my clumsy body on which his hands had taken free roam.

One slid up my shirt, feeling what it would, the other fighting with the clasp on my bra through the thin material of my shirt. The tears were threatening to spill over when someone caught my arm, breaking me away from the guy and whirling me around to face him instead. My throat closed with fear, until I heard the voice.

“Bugger off, yeh wanker,” it growled threateningly, pulling my closer.

As the safe feeling returned, all was once more right in my drunken wonderland and I giggled, “Lee!“ Hiccupped, then began dancing again.

“Matt,” He hissed. His voice carried on into, I’m sure, some lecture, but it was picked up and lost in the sea of people under the loud music.

He didn’t let go of me until I was seated in the back of the car again and given instructions not to move. To say what happened next would be somebody else’s place because all I can remember is that car seat feeling a lot more comfortable than I remembered it and slipping slowly into blackness on its cushy upholstery.
$*$*$

The room I woke up in was distinctly, well, not mine. I bolted upright, a wave of panic washing over me before the pounding in my head over took that and I feel right back down to the pillow with a thump. On the nightstand across from the bed, directly at eyelevel, I could see to little white tablets and a glass of water. Unquestioningly, I swallowed them and rose from the bed in search of the owner of the house.

My search was a lot shorter than I had been expecting because as soon as I stepped out of the door, my body collided with that of Curtis, sending me backwards. His quick hands caught me before I could hit the ground and his face was twisted into a mix of disgust and amusement.

“Sofia is down the hall,” his voice boomed to loudly, “the two of yeh got wasted last night. Yeh’re incredibly easy to get drunk, Mattie, yeh know that? I take my eye off yeh for ten minutes and Lee finds a very drunk version of yeh dancing with random boys. Never knew yeh were such a party animal.” He chuckled lightly at his own joke and handed me a phone, reminding, “yeh might want to ring home. They’re probably worried.”

I nodded and dialed my number quickly as Curtis padded down the hall to give me some privacy.

“Mom?” She answered on the third ring. “I’m sorry. Sofia and I fell asleep here watching movies. Yes, we’re safe. Yes, she’s fine. Mom, don’t worry. Can we-okay okay!” I could hear the receiver slam on the other side. “Curtis?” I called down the hall quietly, “any chance Oli’s awake?”

“Need a ride?”

I nodded slowly, biting my lip as my cheeks reddened. It felt like shit asking him for more when he has already done so much for us, but Mom had been beyond pissed about us not calling and hardly bought the falling asleep thing, so it was either ask for a ride or never go home.

“Go get Sofia, I’ll start the car. She’s in the last room to the left.” He disappeared down the stairs.

I snuck into the room where she was tucked beneath Oli’s large, ink stained arm and gave her a shoulder a small shake, muttering her name quietly. When her eyes opened a few seconds later and I yanked her out of bed, she appeared to be still fully dressed, to my relief, so I chose to think that she had stayed a virgin. Even so, I placed my finger to my lips in a motion to keep her quiet as I lead her out the door because I was still figuring out why I was so angry about her and Oli and didn’t exactly want to talk to him now.

She followed me, eyes half closed down the stairs before mumbled, “what happened last night?”

“Got drunk.” I replied so as not to upset her hangover.

Curtis was faithfully waiting in the driveway right outside the car door with a warm smile, waiting for us. He took both our arms and lead us to our seats like a gentleman before sliding into the front seat beside me, flashing a grin. As small as the gesture was, I didn’t miss it; He was letting me up front in Sofia’s seat. It was nice to feel like I finally had someone on my side.

“I’m really sorry to ask you to do this, but our mom was insanely mad.”

He waved it off, “don’t worry ‘bout it. What’re friends for?”

There was a few moments in which he said nothing, but I could feel his eyes flicking every few seconds from the road to me. “Mattie?” He asked quietly after a little.

“Hm?”

“Last night when I took yeh into the bedroom, yeh were talking to me. You sounded scared, but I had no idea what you meant. Did something happen to yeh? Back in America, I mean.”

“No. Just the, uh, alcohol talking,” even as I talked, I could feel my skin paling and my breath hitching quickly as memories flashed through my head. And yet I hadn’t managed to convince myself there, he just shrugged his shoulders and dropped it because it was all to clear I didn’t want to go back there. I had an angry mom, a hung-over little sister, and a hell of a lot of sleeping to deal with.

The rest of he car ride was, predictably, just as awkward and uncomfortable as the rest after that little remark. Of course.

I could feel his eyes glued to my back once we had reached home even as I walked up to the door and rang the bell. I ignored them and instead grateful that I had already thanked him, went in to face my mother.