Everywhere Everything

Never in any of my eighteen years did I ever imagine my childhood crush would be sitting right in front of me. His mustache may have greyed a bit, but that didn’t make him any less attractive. It actually added to it. We had a very awkward introduction about five minutes ago. Now we were both sitting on opposite ends of the couch, waiting on the other to possibly break the ice. Luckily, I didn’t have to do it.

“If I were twenty years younger…” was all he said, followed by him quickly running his hand through his thick hair. He took a quick drag of his cigarette and continued to study me. “You look just like your mother.”

“So everyone tells me,” I smiled, sitting back and continuing to study him. “I won’t tell anyone if you don’t,” I winked, earning a chuckle and a shake of the head. I normally am not a flirty person, but Austin Gibbs was sitting on the other end of the same couch. This would more than likely ever happen again.

“I’m a married man,” he smiled that incredible toothy smile. Good thing I wasn’t standing or my knees may have buckled.

“Happily married?” I asked, curious. I never figured Austin for the marrying kind, but I remember when my mom told me he got married and I cried in my room for what felt like days. She told me that his wife must have tamed the wild beast. I was still mad at my mom for never letting on that she knew Austin.

“I couldn’t imagine my life any other way. She’s on a business trip.” He sighed, rubbing the stubble on his chin.

“I hope I get to meet her before I leave,” I shrugged, looking around the dim living room for any pictures. I smiled when my eyes finally landed on a wedding photo.
“She’s beautiful.”

“Of course she is!” he said, lighting another cigarette.

“You do know that those can kill you, right?” I asked, waving the smoke away from my face.

“Say that again,” he demanded. My brows furrowed in confusion, but I did as he asked. He closed his eyes and listened to me talk.

“You do know that those can kill you, right?”

“Takes me back. You are just like Lena,” He smiled, reaching for the envelope I hadn’t noticed sitting next to him on the side table.

“How well did you know my mom?” I asked, taking the envelope he had extended to me.
“We were close. She was always mad because I would never date her,” he winked at me, grabbing his ashtray and started making his way into another room. “Come find me when you’re done. We’re not done chatting.”

I watched the slight wiggle in his hips as he exited the room. I was even more in love.

I shook my head and looked down at the envelope my mother had left for me, opening it slowly and pulling out the first page.

“Inhale. Exhale. I can only imagine how mad at me you are for never letting you know that Austin Gibbs was one of my dearest and closest friends. I wish I could have seen your face when he opened his front door. Don’t let him hit on you. Also, please get your life together faster than I did. Don’t judge me for things you will read in this story.”

I smiled and flipped to the next page, ultimately the next chapter in my mothers past.

When I woke up the next morning, I had the worst hangover I had ever had in my twenty-one years. The smell of bacon was making me nauseous, but the sight of a glass filled to the brim with water had my mouth reeling with excitement.

“Is this what you want?” the guy I had met the previous night asked, swirling the clear liquid around in the glass. The ice cubes clinking against the side of the cup were enough to send my head into a pounding steady pain that made me wish I had been visited by the Headless Horseman during the night. I would rather have no head than have it feel like it did right now. It was that bad.

“More than anything,” I croaked out, reaching towards the cup that was so far out of my reach, it didn’t seem fair.

“You can have it on one condition,” the guy said. I nodded, willing to do about anything in that moment. “You have to help me finish breakfast.”

“Done,” I said, tossing the covers off of me. It wasn’t until I heard a groan and felt an arm wrap around me that I realized I wasn’t alone.

“Stop making me look like an asshole,” Ben said to the guy standing in the doorway.

“You do that all on your own,” he replied with a smile. With a wink and skip, he was out of the door. With my water.

I peeled Ben’s arm off of me and followed the other guy out of the room and down the hall.

“I never got your name,” I whispered, stepping over 2 guys that I met last night, Nick and Halvo, lying in the hallway, cuddling.

He told me his name. I, however, am not going to tell you. I know you will go on your fancy computer and look him up. So for the stories sake, we will call him “Rusty.”

When we got the kitchen, I was finally able to gulp down that glorious glass of water.

“I think you drank more than anybody else did,” he said, pulling some fruit out of the refrigerator.

“That is a lie,” I smiled, grabbing the aspirin he had set down on the counter. “Nick and Halvo are asleep in the hallway. Cuddling.”

“They do that sober,” he shrugged.

“Oh. Do you always cook breakfast for hungover party goers?” I asked, trying to change the subject.

“Always. That’s why they keep me around,” he chuckled. “I’m not big on the party scene, but what I am big on is food.”

“I am big on the microwave. This all looks like too much work.”

“Come to more parties. I will give you cooking lessons.”

“Sounds like a plan,” I smiled.

“Do you want to chop up these strawberries while I finish the pancakes?” he asked. I shrugged.

“Sure. Anything to get my mind off of this headache.” I grabbed the knife from him and went to town on those strawberries.

An awkward silence fell over us and I knew he was as aware of it as I was.

“Mind if I turn on some music?” he asked.

“Oh god, please,” I replied with a smile, thankful that he read my mind.

He turned on Ryan Adams. You know how I feel about Ryan Adams.

It was then and there that I decided I wanted to have his children.

I did.

He is your father.

I flipped the page. I was disappointed with the length of this installment. I threw the papers in my bag and sought out Austin, who was on his back deck, smoking yet another cigarette.

“Hey hot stuff,” he said, exhaling all of his smoke. I hated smokers, but damn it, he made it sexy. “How was it?”

“Well,” I sighed, plopping down in the chair next to him, “I know my dad’s name. Oh just kidding, it’s a fake name.”

“What?”

“Rusty. Rusty is my dad’s fake name.”

“What the fuck is your mom thinking?”

“That I will google my dad and find out who he is before she wants me to or some shit.”

“You need a beer,” he said.

“Well I -”

“That wasn’t a question,” he cut me off, sliding the glass door open.

I didn’t argue. I had actually never had a drink before. It wasn’t my scene, but if Austin Gibbs was offering me a beer, there was no way I could refuse.
//\\\///\\\///

“I’m just going to call a cab,” I slurred, tossing my sixth empty beer bottle into the yard.

“Stop throwing those in my yard!” he said, for the sixth time. “I have to fucking pick those up.”

“Cry me a river,” I sang, giggling at how mad he was.

“Don’t have to worry about you becoming a singer,” he mocked.

“Oh fuck you, Gibbs.”

“You wish,” he winked. And I did. But he was over twice my age. And married.
“You can’t call a cab. I called you a ride. I think he just pulled up.”
“Aw Gibbs, you called me a ride,” I placed my hand over my heart and smiled. He winked and threw his bottle in the yard. It clanked with one of mine.

“Gibbs, you back there?” my ride, I assumed, asked, opening the back gate.

“Yup. Brayden, this is Carolina. Carolina this is Brayden.”

“Hello again,” Brayden smiled at me.

“You again!” I exclaimed, shooting up out of my chair and throwing my arms around Brayden.

“You guys met already?” Gibbs asked, popping the cap off of another beer.

Brayden nodded after steadying my teetering body.

“Do you know which hotel she’s staying at?” he asked Gibbs, who shook his head from side to side.

“Um, the Hampton. Or was it the Hilton?” I said, trying to remember. It started with an “H.”

“Alright,” Brayden shook his head. “Gibbs, next time you get an underage girl drunk, you deal with her.” They both chuckled and gave each other a fist bump.

“I won’t be a problem,” I said, doing the signal with my hands for scouts honor. “I don’t feel so good,” I said, clutching my stomach.

“No, no, no. Don’t puke on my de-”

But the sound of my vomit hitting the deck cut off his demand.

“I’ll take puking beauty back to my house. Mom will know how to take care of her. She took care of Peyton all of those years.”

“Oh my god, Austin. Your deck, your beautiful deck,” I said, falling to my knees.

“Get her out of here before she starts mopping it up with her hands,” Austin sighed. “I’ll see you later, sweetheart.” Austin said, helping me up and kissing my cheek.

I will never forget the way his mustache tickled my skin. At least I hoped I wouldn’t.

Brayden helped me to his car and kind of threw me in the passenger seat.

“Sorry,” he said, buckling my seatbelt. “I’ve never had to take care of a drunk person before.”
“Well, I’ve never been drunk before.” I shrugged. “So you win the award for being the best person to ever take care of drunk me.”

“Lucky me,” he smiled.

I would let him have my babies.

Then that thought made me think of my mom’s story, and it made me mad all over again.