All Too Well || Caswen

VIII. Last Friday Night

Yeah, we danced on tabletops

And we took too many shots

Think we kissed, but I forgot

Last Friday night

EJ woke to blinding sunlight and the smell of beer. He immediately scrunched his eyes closed in a fruitless attempt to ease the pounding in his head.

As he grew more aware, he realized there was an arm draped over his face—an arm that definitely wasn't his. He dared to open his eyes once more, wincing as his vision was flooded with light. Once it cleared, he found himself face to face with a sleeping Ricky Bowen sprawled across the sofa.

For a moment, he didn't even register the sight as unusual. He'd woken up like this a million times before, after all. Ricky never could stay in his own space.

Then, EJ remembered that he and Ricky were not back in middle school. They were in—he looked around—Carlos' house? Right. The party.

There were a number of other bodies strewn across the room, many of them on the floor. He supposed he should be grateful that he'd at least fallen asleep on the sofa.

"You look like shit."

EJ looked down to see Ricky staring back up at him.

"So do you."

"I feel like shit." This was evidenced by the slight green tinge that rose to Ricky's face. "I think I'm gonna be sick."

"Come on." EJ staggered to his feet, fighting the slight dizziness he felt. He dragged Ricky off the couch and led him down the hall to the nearest bathroom. They made it just in time, Ricky sprinting the last few feet to the toilet and heaving up whatever he'd eaten yesterday.

"You gonna be okay if I leave to grab some water?" EJ asked, getting only a half-hearted thumbs up in response as Ricky continued to throw up.

He made his way to the kitchen, where Carlos was putting together a plate of food. Upon seeing EJ, he gave a smug grin. "How's the hangover?"

EJ answered with a groan.

"That great, huh?"

"Why did I think it was a good idea to drink so much last night?" He grabbed two glasses from the cabinet next to Carlos.

"Oh, you were having fun in the moment." There was a mischievous gleam in the boy's eye.

EJ started to fill the glasses with water. "And what's that supposed to mean?"

"They say that alcohol brings people's secret sides to the surface."

He did not have the mental capacity for these cryptic answers. "What did I do?"

Carlos eyed the second glass in EJ's hand. "That for Ricky?"

EJ froze. Sure, that could just be Carlos changing the subject, but the way he said it...

"What did we do?"

"Well, you managed to sing the worst rendition of Katy Perry's I Kissed a Girl that I've ever heard, that's for sure. My ears were so grateful for some peace and quiet after you guys started making out."

His eyes went wide.

"At least you weren't going around whining to everyone who would listen about how hard it was to keep your bisexuality a secret to uphold your perfect reputation."

EJ laughed uncomfortably. "That's very specific."

"Yeah, you were pretty melodramatic at last year's party."