Seven Twenty-Eight

30.

Tossing and turning in bed, Elisa groaned when she rolled into another body. She jolted up with an all too familiar feeling burning in her stomach.

She sighed heavily when she looked down at Oliver sleeping peacefully beside her. She fell back into the cloudy pillows, grateful that her raging headache was absent from her agenda.

Her eyes fluttered close, and she smiled softly when he rolled closer to her, and draped his arm over her waist, resting his head against her chest.

"Are you faking it?" She teased him, gently pulling his curls to tilt his head up at her.

A smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth, "No," He whispered, turning his head away from her, burying his face deeper into the layer of blankets rested over her chest.

"Liar," She giggled, grabbing onto his chin to tilt his face up to hers.

Oliver groaned, hugging his arms tighter around her waist. "My head hurts," He pouted.

She pouted back at him mockingly. "Well that's your fault for drinking last night."

He shook his head, rolling away from her dramatically. "I wanted to have fun," He grumbled into his blankets.

"Since when do you associate drinking and fun?"

Elisa nearly jumped out of her skin, lifting her head to find an unknown woman standing in the doorway.

She wore silk robes that hung down her lanky arms and was tied loosely around her waist, hiding her body beneath. Her hair was pinned up into curlers and her makeup was half done, dulling down her botox-induced features.

"Mama," Oliver scrambled away from Elisa, sitting up on his knees as though his hangover brushed itself away.

"I'd be lying if I told you I wasn't displeased to find my child in the middle of an awkward morning after," The woman scowled, strutting into his room on red-bottomed heels, "I taught you better than this, Oliver. Why are you not like your brother?"

He bowed his head down to her. He didn't dare ask which she was referring to. He knew that she believed that any one his siblings were brighter in her eyes, despite any scandal they may have caused themselves.

"I'm sorry," Was all he could manage, flinching slightly when she pulled his curtains open, allowing the hot sun to pour into the room.

Elisa frowned, reaching forward to squeeze his hand.

"Mama, this is Elisa," He introduced, squeezing her hand right back as he lifted his head to look at his mother. A subtle accent placed itself at the tip of his tongue when he spoke, causing the corners of Elisa's mouth to twitch up.

His mother turned around with a grimace on her face. "Por qué me presentas?" She sighed, crossing her arms over her chest.

Oliver huffed back at her, moving closer to Elisa. "I didn't just meet her last night," He rolled his eyes, lacing his fingers with hers, "She's my-" He paused, knitting his eyebrows together as he looked at her, "Um-"

"Elisa," Caroline said slowly, looking back forth between them. She moved around to the other side of the bed, looking down at both of them quizzically. "Levántate."

Elisa jumped when Oliver nudged her back, glancing back at him quickly before moving to her feet. She took a deep breath when Caroline drew closer, and looked down at herself, acknowledging she had fallen asleep in her bathing suit from the day before.

Oliver sat up, moving to the end of the bed when Caroline walked around her. "Ma-"

"What's this?" She asked, pointing her finger down at Elisa's forearm