The Garden of What Once Was

CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

The night of the Predator and Prey dance ended and made way for the next day. Morning came without warning, forcing Ember to awaken with a monster of a headache biting at her temples. Her drooping eyes snapped open at the feeling of her arm brushing against something next to her. That something could be a 'someone'. She yanked the covers downward to reveal an abnormally large pillow beside her. It seemed she had cuddled with it last night, thinking it was a certain vampire. That vampire wasn't in bed with her though. Based on the blanket hanging off the edge of the loveseat pushed against the window, he most likely slept there. This came as a bit of a disappointment for Ember. She would have at least liked to wake up in his arms. In a futile attempt to stop herself from thinking about such things, she focused her attention on her surroundings. She let herself look over every single detail of Reed's dorm, hoping that she might discover something new about Reed, as in every bedroom, there is a piece of a person in everything. From the clothes forgotten on his dresser to the old paintings lining one wall, it all said something about him as a person. But, in a room full of the afternotes of Reed, there didn't seem to be a single spec of Ember in sight. That was what she glumly thought until her sights were set on his translucent trash bin that was full of a pair of pants and dress shoes.

"Kill me now!" She cried out, immediately remembering all of the embarrassing things she said and had done when she was with Reed last night.

The pillow she had once been drooling on was brought to her face as she let out a much-needed scream. She hunched over with her face still smushed into the pillow. Maybe I should just suffocate myself. If she had to see Reed this morning, she would definitely go through with that thought. Unfortunately, just as she was pulling the pillow from her face, the door opened. Reed emerged from the doorway wearing plaid pajama pants and a black t-shirt. His hair lay in a tangled mess that almost seemed to resemble a poorly made bird's nest. When he realized Ember had finally woken up, a smile appeared on his face. The sight he was blessed with was her sitting up in his bed with her hair strewn every which way and a bit of dried drool at the corner of her mouth. Despite all of this, he found her to look more beautiful than the very flowers spanning the gardens outside.

"Heads up," Reed said, softly chucking a small bottle at Ember. She didn't even flinch when the drink almost hit her. Her eyes went from Reed to the drink, then back to Reed again. "Fun fact: you're supposed to drink it, not stare at it."

"I'll only drink this if you wipe my memory of last night," She attempted to negotiate with him as she pulled at the loosened strap of her prom dress.

"Everything from last night? Or just the part where you threw up all over me?"

His teasing prompted her to respond with her middle finger. Although she was much more interested in yelling some sort of curse word at him, the pain in her head kept her mouth sealed shut. Her eyes trailed back to the drink. At first, she thought it was coffee, but, upon further inspection, she realized it was a remedy for hangovers. That product was something only found in the drug stores deep within the city, which was an almost twenty-minute ride. Struggling to contain her smile, she grabbed it, unscrewed the cap, and downed all the horrible-tasting contents in one go.

Ember shuddered, gagging, "What sane person buys grape-flavored drinks? That tasted like shit!"

"You're the insane one for not liking it," Reed shrugged.

Ignoring Reed, she focused her attention on a box of tissues located a little ways from the bed. She went to get out of bed, eager to wipe the artificial flavor of practical trash from her mouth. Instead of gracefully stepping down onto the floor, she fell straight toward it. The culprit of her fall would be her foot which had been tangled within the sheets. Fortunately, Reed, like always, was there to catch her. His arms wrapped around her back to give her a form of support as she pulled her foot from the sheets. When she looked away from the bed and back to Reed, she was shocked to find that he was already staring at her with the funniest expression on his face. It kind of looked similar to someone who was in pain, but the obvious blush on his cheeks said otherwise.