All Just Pretend

“Oh fuck me,” Blake muttered as she cracked her eyelids open ever so slightly, only to slam them back shut the second the harsh sunlight almost blinded her.

“Already did, love,” he mumbled from beside her.

She snapped her head over to look at him and she almost screamed. The deathly hangover she was experiencing, luckily, made her shut her mouth before any loud sound could escape. Oliver was on his stomach, his face planted in the pillow but he was still facing her so he wouldn’t suffocate. The sheet wrapped around his body had gotten pushed down to his waist and was only covering his bottom half, but she could see he was shirtless. Blake glimpsed down at her own body and realized she too was naked.

“Fuck me!” she repeated, louder this time. She wasn’t able to stop herself and she winced as she did, her own voice hurting her ears.

“Stop yellin’,” Oliver groaned from next to her, flipping over on his side so he wasn’t facing the crazy bird who thought being loud was a good idea when everyone in the flat had a hangover from hell.

“Oh my God how much did I drink last night?” Blake muttered, ignoring him as she sat up, wrapping the sheet tightly around herself with one hand and rubbing her temples with the other. She vaguely remembered Nicholls accusing her of having feelings for Oli, but she had put that little idea out quickly. The events after that were hazy. She remembered some games, and she remembered a lot of alcohol, but the people, the faces, and any and all conversations that may or may not have taken place were blank.

She looked over at Oliver--who had obviously fallen back asleep--and groaned, falling back against the mattress. She didn’t even want to think about the fact that they had slept together. She barely remembered a girl Oliver had been with at the beginning of the party, but why he wasn’t currently tangled in sheets with her while Blake slept in her own warm and comfy bed was beyond her.

“Oliver,” she muttered, trying not to raise her voice too much. But he didn’t move, so she reached her arm out to shove him slightly. He still didn’t move. “Dammit Oli!” she hissed, pushing him harder.

“Wha’ the fuck do yeh wan?” he spat, flipping over so he was facing her. “”m ‘ungova and tired and yet ‘ere yeh are insistin’ I wake up. Wha’ the fuck could yeh possibly wan’, Blake?”

She scowled. “You know, I’m hungover too. No need to be a little bitch. I was just going to ask if you were planning on dealing with the bird you ditched last night or if I can go out into the kitchen.”

He groaned again, burying his face in the pillow. “She probably left already. I ‘ope.”

Blake rolled her eyes and sighed before she climbed out of the bed, grabbing the first piece of clothing on the ground she could find. She slipped it on--one of Oli’s Dropdead tees that went down to her mid-thigh--and found her underwear before she left his room. She currently had two things on her mind: find her phone and get some caffeine and maybe even an IV of ibuprofen into her system.

Walking into the kitchen, the smell of fresh coffee took over Blake’s senses. She vaguely noticed Ashley sitting at the island but ignored her and went right for the coffee, pouring herself a huge cup and not even bothering with cream or sugar. She liked her coffee plain and simple. She didn’t drink it for taste she drank it for caffeine and that was it really.

After inhaling half of the cup, she slowly turned around to face her friend. “Morning,” she mumbled, still focusing mainly on her coffee.

She couldn’t miss the smirk on Ashley’s face though. “So... good night?” her friend asked, nodding to the shirt on Blake’s body. Ashley noticed it was the same shirt Oliver had been wearing the night before. She wasn’t born yesterday.

Blake rolled her eyes before taking a seat next to Ashley, not caring in the least that she was only wearing a t-shirt and her underwear. “Has everyone left?” she asked, changing the subject momentarily.

Ashley smirked. “If you mean the brunette Oliver was attached to all night, then yes. At least I haven’t seen her. I think Felix is passed out somewhere and a few others, but other than that everyone else is gone.”

“Oliver and I slept together,” she responded nonchalantly, because that was exactly how she felt about the matter.

“WHAT?” Ashley shrieked, her normal voice going up about five hundred decibels.

“Oh my GOD,” Blake hissed, smacking her friend on the shoulder. “Hello, hangover? You just killed me I think.”

Ashley lowered her voice significantly and laughed. “Sorry, but can we get back to the whole you slept with Oli thing? Because uh, last I heard you didn’t like him?”

“God Ashley, are we in high school? Do I have to like someone to sleep with them?” Blake cringed at her own word choice. “Okay, so that made me sound like a total slut, but you know what I mean.”

Ashley scoffed. “You’re telling me no feelings were involved last night?”

Blake gave her a look that said that’s exactly what I’m telling you, now get off my back. “I don’t even remember it happening if we’re being honest. I think I blacked out.”

“Oh my God Blake,” Ashley spoke, shaking her head while an amused smile covered her face. “You’re a mess.”

Blake just shrugged and continued to nurse her coffee.

The two girls chatted for a little while about the party and about the upcoming days since the boys were set to leave the next day. Blake refilled her coffee several times while they talked and Ashley attempted to pick up some of the mess, but finally gave up when she took a brief look around the flat.

“This is disgusting,” the blonde said as she wrinkled her nose.

Blake shrugged. “Shoulda saw it yesterday,” she smirked and both girls laughed.

While they were laughing, a new face joined them. Brunette bitch, Blake thought to herself with a mental shake of her head. “Can we help you?”

The brunette looked sheepish and didn’t even try making eye contact with either girl. “I were jus’ wonderin’ where Oli was.”

Ashley gave the girl a sympathetic look. When she heard her friend opening her mouth, obviously ready to let a snide remark slip, Ashley kicked Blake under the table to shut her up. “He’s still sleeping. I’m sure he has your number though, we’ll tell him to call you.”

The brunette beamed at Ashley, obviously thinking her chances were higher than they were, nodded, and then left.

As soon as the girl stepped outside, Blake barked out a laugh. “You’re ‘sure he has her number’, aye Ash?”

Ashley rolled her eyes and smacked her friends shoulder. “Quit being a bitch and help me clean, will you?”

The two started to clean up, wiping sticky surfaces down and throwing empty bottles away--their usual post-party clean up--when Matt made his appearance. Ashley was in the process of picking all of the garbage up while Blake was thoroughly cleaning the kitchen counter. Ashley greeted her boyfriend with a quick kiss before she asked, “Have you started to pack yet?”

He shook his head and stepped to the side, grabbing his own cup of coffee. He held his mug and leaned against the counter while the two girls cleaned, moving only when Blake made him.

“You know,” the blonde spoke while she scrubbed the counter, “why are we the ones cleaning when this is all you guys’ fault?”

“Actually love, I fhink tha’s where yeh were goin’ shot for shot last night wiff Felix,” Matt smirked, nodding his head in the direction of where Blake was cleaning.

She opened her mouth to protest but then looked back at the counter littered with shot glasses and realized the drummer spoke the truth. She gave a short nod and said, “Fair enough,” before she continued to scrub the sticky alcohol from the surface.

“By the way, nice outfit choice, Blake,” Matt said, his smirk growing and revealing his dimples again.

Blake glanced down at her shirt and remembered she was still wearing the Dropdead shirt from Oli. “Fuck off,” she muttered, flipping Matt off in the process.

“‘ave a nice nigh’, did yeh?” Matt continued to egg her on, trying to get a rise out of her. He wasn’t stupid either. He knew a theoretical walk of shame when he saw one, and Blake’s whole demeanor just screamed it.

The blonde whipped around to face him with her hands on her hips. She glared at him and said, “You know, you could just stop beating around the bush. I slept with Oli last night. Happy?”

Matt howled with laughter which Blake just rolled her eyes in response to before she continued to clean. “Your boyfriend is a tool!” she threw over her shoulder at Ashley, who just laughed in response.

The girls continued to clean and even got Matt to help a little bit before the last few stragglers from the party actually came to and left, saying their final goodbyes to the guys they wouldn’t be seeing for a few months. Then finally, after an hour or so of non-stop cleaning, the girls were finished.

Ashley and Matt headed into Matt’s room so she could help her boyfriend pack--or they would try and pack and end up doing it, Blake was sure. So she headed out into the living room with her laptop in tow and got comfortable on the couch with her blanket. She opened up her computer and started checking her email, making sure James or none of her clients had emailed her about appointments. When there were none, she opened up a few designs she had been working on. They weren’t for anyone specific but rather just a few designs she had in her head and wanted to get onto paper. She was completely wrapped up in the art and didn’t even hear the footsteps come out into the living room.

She didn’t notice when Tom sat down beside her either. She only looked up when he spoke. “Wha’cha workin’ on?”

She shrugged and turned her computer towards him to let him see. She didn’t usually let people see things she was working on, but Tom was different. The two of them had this unspoken artistic agreement--if Tom had new photographs or was working on a new project, he always told Blake about it, and if Blake was working on new designs or something, she always showed him. “Dunno yet, but it’s been in my head for a few days so I just wanted to get it down on paper.”

The design was much like one Tom had seen before. He reached out and pointed at the woman. “Tha’s Oli’s tat’oo, righ’?”

Blake shrugged. “Sorta. You mean the one on his thigh right?” The younger Sykes brother nodded. “Yeah, I did that. So it kind of looks like her, but I want this to be more...” Blake trailed off, trying to find the word.

“Skeletal?” Tom filled in and she nodded in excitement.

“Yeah! Like, more of a skeleton or dark look to it, y’know?”

Tom nodded. He did know. He watched as she worked some more and was quiet for the most part, but then suddenly spoke. “Yeh slep’ wiff Oli.” It was a question, but his tone indicated otherwise, like he knew the answer already.

Blake groaned and threw her head back against the couch. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before speaking. “Yes.”

Tom sighed from beside her. “Stupid idea, Blake.”

She sat up and glared at him. “It wasn’t a big deal. Still isn’t. Why is everyone making it out to be such?”

Tom gave her a look that told her she knew exactly what he was talking about, and she did. She was trying to forget it, but she knew.

“They leave tomorrow, Blake. Try not ta blow everyfhing up in the next twenty four hours, aye?”

Blake rolled her eyes but gave him a short nod, and then with that, the younger Sykes brother got up and left.