Restart. || DNF ; ENEMIES TO LOVERS.

7 - You're sick, darling. - CLAY WAKES

     My throat burns.

     The skin below my nose is so irritated.

     My nose is stuffed.

     My head hurts.

     And my alarm is blaring loudly.

     Instinctively, I reach out and turn my alarm clock off, checking my phone. It's 6:30, and the light from my screen alone is killer. I sigh, turning the alarm off and kicking half of my blanket off, closing my eyes again.

     My head is throbbing, even moreso about 20 minutes later when lights are getting flicked on and people start talking and shouting. My mom bursts into my room, purse in hand and makeup half done.

     "Clay! What're you doing? We're leaving in ten minutes!" Her voice is rushed, and she's out before I can even say anything. She's irritable in the morning, annoyingly so.

     I groan, sitting up in my dark room. My breathing is heavy and my vision is foggy, but I push myself to stand up anyways. Honestly, I don't even know what I'm doing.

     My hands reach for my doornob and I pull it open, squinting as light blared in my face. Charlie runs past my door, and I turn to look at him. The bare back of his entire body flashed at me, a towel only covering the front of the small boy's body.

     "Gross, Charlie!" I shout to the best of my ability. My voice comes out gargled and dead, and it honestly hurt my throat. It threw me into a fit of coughs, my fist burrowing in front of my mouth as I hacked and coughed.

     I hazily walked through the bright hallway, when a door slammed open, hitting me square in the face. I barely have time to yelp, just lose my footing and fall backwards.

     Behind me, Patches screamed and ran, I had accidentally fallen on her foot- so much had happened in such a short amount of time, I didn't know where to start. I rubbed my face, twisting around and reaching my other hand out. "P-Patches, I'm so sorry!"

     "Oh, Clay, honey! I'm so sorry, I didn't know you were there!" Mom's panicked voice fills my ears, and my head throbs harder. I groan, wobbily standing up. Her hand reaches my forehead, and she gasps. "Oh goodness. You're burning up, honey."

"Yeah.. But I need to go to school." I grumble, the thought of my horrid grades flashing inside my mind. She scoffs, grabbing my shoulders and pushing me back.

"No, no. You'll get others sick too, baby. Go to your room, and get some rest." Mom says, no room for argument.

"Mom-!" I try, but she cuts me off with a stern glare.

"Room, Clay. I'll call your brother, and he can take care of you while I'm at work." She says to me sweetly. I open my door, and thats when she gave me a fat kiss on the head, patting my back and walk away. "Get some sleep, honey!"

"Right, mom." I sigh, entering my room. I feel Patches run into my room between my legs. I smile slightly at that, and then crash on my bed, hearing my mom shut my door.

I black out before I can even dig myself under my covers, but.. If theres one thing I'm sure of, it's the blonde girl standing in front of a cliff in my mind.

•»

When I wake up, someone is entering my room, a sweet smell of chicken noodle soup fills my nose and fogs my brain. Maybe thats just the haze of waking up.

"Clay, you up?" My brother's sweet voice fills the room, and I hardly hum. I'm under my blankets now, Patches laying on the pillow next to mine and a cold cloth on my head. "I got you some soup. Chris is here too, by the way."