She laid upon the bed with an empty pit growing in her stomach. Colin had already disappeared into the other room, still drunkenly shouting at his flatmates, boasting about his score for the night- a hot, drunk slag that would let you do what you wanted. The truth was he probably didn’t think she was awake- or that she’d care. And if she’d still been drunk, maybe she would have crawled out there and laughed with them before slyly dragging another off.
Instead she laid there, staring up at the ceiling with an empty feeling crawling through her stomach, her chest…hollowing her out as she listened through a cracked door at all the seedy details of her night were recounted, expanded upon, and labeled ‘gross’. She was gross, one said disdainfully, harping on how he hoped Colin wore a condom. How he probably should still get tested….
Blinking, she pushed herself up and scrubbed a hand through her disarrayed hair before she hunted out her clothes. She dressed as silently as she could, before she turning to the only exit that didn’t take her through the shared living area, away from the voices that were still taking the piss out of some drunk slag that didn’t matter. Leona carefully worked her way onto the desk before pulling the window open and peering outside and two stories down. Not so far, she thought, dropping her bag down.
She only paused when a burst of laughter erupted from the door, before looking back and trying to work her feet around and out the window without knocking anything over.
“What are you doing?” A voice asked her as she squirmed through, feet flapping about as they searched for something to rest on. Her head snapped back, though, staring wide eyed at one of the flatmates she didn’t know, and quickly trying to imagine how to explain what the hell she thought she was doing. “Are you seriously trying to go out the fucking window?” He asked, his voice hushed despite his dismay.
“Didn’t think I wanted to go out there,” she said, trying to smile a little as she found a groove to catch her shoe on haphazardly. “Tell your mate, sorry- I split. But if he wants ta get tested, the free clinic down the street has a banging hot nurse he might like.” She didn’t want to sound so scornful, hell- she didn’t know why it even mattered so much what those guys thought of her. They didn’t matter, not in the long run.
“You want me to tell him that….before or after you breaking your bloody neck?” He asked, moving deeper into the room and closer to her. “Do you even know what you are doing?” The light from the street lit up his face in a warm yellow hue, reflecting off his glasses. His cheeks were a bit chubby, and with pimples littered across them (and his forehead and chin). It was hard, she thought, to imagine him living with the others in the flat- all tall, clean cut and decently average to handsome in looks.
“Climbing out a window last I checked.” She said, pointedly with a roll of her eyes before rolling to the side in an effort to get on her stomach. Leona stopped, though, when the stranger’s hand suddenly snapped out and around her wrist.
“What the hell is wrong with you? You’re drunk, you can’t…”
“So I could climb out it if I wasn’t?” She rolled her eyes at his floundering expression. “I’d rather break my neck than walk out past those assholes.”
“That has to be the most idiotic thing I have ever heard someone say. You’re going to care more about what those fuckwads have to say about you, than you getting out of here….unhurt?” He stared at her for a moment, before shaking his head and resolutely standing his ground. “You aren’t going out that window unless you plan on dragging me with you.”
“Oh piss off, wanker.”
“No! You’re crazy cunt, but I’m still not letting you go.” He punctuated his statement with a look at suggested ‘try me’ was the next statement to slip through parted lips. “Look, I can sneak you back to my room, go down and grab your bag, and we can….sit and watch a murder mystery until the fuckwads go to bed. No one has to know you’re there still…And when they go to sleep? I’ll walk you out.”
A long silence stretched between them, interrupted by the sound of laughter and shouting as the others went about their night oblivious to this personal drama shared between two strangers.
“Come on,” he said, coaxing her gently, “I’ll even stay on the floor.”
Leona wasn’t sure how she ended up with both feet on the floor again, though the guy in front of her was smiling rather cheerfully. “Alright, Matthews…”
“Wait…How do….”
“We’re in the same study,” he explained, without batting an eye. “Not that you really seem to notice. I’m James….James Monroe? Don’t worry about it, I’m sort of used to no one noticing me.”
Pimple-faced Monroe lead her from Colin’s room and down to his own before getting her bag, and not for the first time in Leona life she sat one some guys bed, wondering what was wrong with her.
Instead she laid there, staring up at the ceiling with an empty feeling crawling through her stomach, her chest…hollowing her out as she listened through a cracked door at all the seedy details of her night were recounted, expanded upon, and labeled ‘gross’. She was gross, one said disdainfully, harping on how he hoped Colin wore a condom. How he probably should still get tested….
Blinking, she pushed herself up and scrubbed a hand through her disarrayed hair before she hunted out her clothes. She dressed as silently as she could, before she turning to the only exit that didn’t take her through the shared living area, away from the voices that were still taking the piss out of some drunk slag that didn’t matter. Leona carefully worked her way onto the desk before pulling the window open and peering outside and two stories down. Not so far, she thought, dropping her bag down.
She only paused when a burst of laughter erupted from the door, before looking back and trying to work her feet around and out the window without knocking anything over.
“What are you doing?” A voice asked her as she squirmed through, feet flapping about as they searched for something to rest on. Her head snapped back, though, staring wide eyed at one of the flatmates she didn’t know, and quickly trying to imagine how to explain what the hell she thought she was doing. “Are you seriously trying to go out the fucking window?” He asked, his voice hushed despite his dismay.
“Didn’t think I wanted to go out there,” she said, trying to smile a little as she found a groove to catch her shoe on haphazardly. “Tell your mate, sorry- I split. But if he wants ta get tested, the free clinic down the street has a banging hot nurse he might like.” She didn’t want to sound so scornful, hell- she didn’t know why it even mattered so much what those guys thought of her. They didn’t matter, not in the long run.
“You want me to tell him that….before or after you breaking your bloody neck?” He asked, moving deeper into the room and closer to her. “Do you even know what you are doing?” The light from the street lit up his face in a warm yellow hue, reflecting off his glasses. His cheeks were a bit chubby, and with pimples littered across them (and his forehead and chin). It was hard, she thought, to imagine him living with the others in the flat- all tall, clean cut and decently average to handsome in looks.
“Climbing out a window last I checked.” She said, pointedly with a roll of her eyes before rolling to the side in an effort to get on her stomach. Leona stopped, though, when the stranger’s hand suddenly snapped out and around her wrist.
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“So I could climb out it if I wasn’t?” She rolled her eyes at his floundering expression. “I’d rather break my neck than walk out past those assholes.”
“That has to be the most idiotic thing I have ever heard someone say. You’re going to care more about what those fuckwads have to say about you, than you getting out of here….unhurt?” He stared at her for a moment, before shaking his head and resolutely standing his ground. “You aren’t going out that window unless you plan on dragging me with you.”
“Oh piss off, wanker.”
“No! You’re crazy cunt, but I’m still not letting you go.” He punctuated his statement with a look at suggested ‘try me’ was the next statement to slip through parted lips. “Look, I can sneak you back to my room, go down and grab your bag, and we can….sit and watch a murder mystery until the fuckwads go to bed. No one has to know you’re there still…And when they go to sleep? I’ll walk you out.”
A long silence stretched between them, interrupted by the sound of laughter and shouting as the others went about their night oblivious to this personal drama shared between two strangers.
“Come on,” he said, coaxing her gently, “I’ll even stay on the floor.”
Leona wasn’t sure how she ended up with both feet on the floor again, though the guy in front of her was smiling rather cheerfully. “Alright, Matthews…”
“Wait…How do….”
“We’re in the same study,” he explained, without batting an eye. “Not that you really seem to notice. I’m James….James Monroe? Don’t worry about it, I’m sort of used to no one noticing me.”
Pimple-faced Monroe lead her from Colin’s room and down to his own before getting her bag, and not for the first time in Leona life she sat one some guys bed, wondering what was wrong with her.
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