Anyone But Him

4

Sunlight poured through the open curtains, draping over my hotel room like a blanket. My back was extremely sore after having to sleep on the floor and my head was pounding, reminding me of the consequences of drinking excessively the night before. I rose from the hard, carpet floor, half expecting to see Alex still sprawled out on my bed, strands of chestnut hair hanging on his  sweat-glazed forehead, glistening in the golden light of the morning. Unsurprisingly, all that was left on my bed was my duvet tangled in the corner of the mattress with wrinkled pillows strewn across the bed.

 I imagined what it would be like if he were still there. I envisioned him in a starfish position, his arms carelessly thrown above his head. White shirt slightly riding up his torso, leaving his black boxers poking out from beneath his distressed jeans whilst perfectly showing off his sharp v-line. His veiny hands reaching up to rub his eyes as he awoke from his slumber, and his husky morning voice uttering a soft "good morning"  as his brown puppy dog eyes gazed up into mine. I imagined his toned, muscular arms reaching up to caress the side of my face and tuck a strand of unruly hair behind my ear. 

God, it hurt me to think of him this way, knowing I probably couldn't have him, even if I wanted to. It would be wrong. My best friend's best friend. Matthew's bandmate. I was here to have fun and to get to know his friends, let alone fall for them.

I'd like to think that I wasn't falling in love with Alex Turner, but his nonchalant attitude and his masked persona only made me want to know him more. To really know him. Know him beyond 'the lead singer of the Arctic Monkeys' or 'my best friend's bandmate'. I wanted to explore past his stage presence and white lies.

My ringtone snapped me out of my daydream and I rushed over to my vibrating telephone, clearing my throat before answering. "Hello? Who is this?", I spoke in a hushed tone, conscious of it being fairly early in the morning. I was met with a hoarse, strained voice on the other end of the phone. "Anastasia, hey, um- It's Alex." My heart skipped a beat as I opened my mouth to answer, only to be cut off by his morning voice echoing through my speaker once more. "I'm sorry for leaving without telling ya, I guess I were a bit embarrassed that I got absolutely pissed and passed out on your bed.", he spoke, evidence of his hangover displayed in his croaky and tired sounding voice.

"It was my pleasure, Al." I chuckled "As long as you're safe. Matt would kill me if I let anything happen to you."

Alex let out a small giggle before pausing , as if to analyse what I'd just said. There was a moment of silence before he repeated, "Al.." and giggled again, this time as if he were a little girl. My cheeks flushed red, realising I'd just unconsciously invented a new nickname for him, unsure if he approved of it. As I was about to apologise he begun to speak once more. "Say that again, Stas."

Stas? Were we only just on a first name basis and now he was using Matt's nickname he had for me? Fair play. I smirked, acknowledging the game we were now playing. "Feel free to sleep in my bed whenever you want, Al."

I could almost feel him beaming at me through the phone and, in turn, it made me smile even harder. 

"Lets meet with the guys again today shall we? Maybe in a quieter place this time. I want to get to know you.", He spoke in a hushed voice. "I'll pick you up at 1." He said, hanging up the phone before I could argue. 

How was I going to talk to him like a normal, put-together human being when the thought of him made my stomach churn and my knees feel weak? Was I actually falling in love with this guy? 

"Come on Stas," I thought to myself. "Anyone but him."