Never Have I Ever (One Last Time # 1) (Wattys2017)

Mini-Bucket List Thing

I had never been a fan of alarm clocks. Through the years, an internal clock had secured it self safely somewhere in my head. My internal clock tended to jolt me awake at a quarter to seven, a little more than fifteen minutes before my alarm clock was set for.

Waking up the next morning, I was stirred awake by something far more frustrating than a loud and ear piercing alarm clock; an obnoxious and irritable eighteen year old boy.

Any other time of day, I'd be satisfied with knowing I had been right about Abel showing up first thing the next morning with a terrible hangover. Because I was still half-asleep when I pried my eyes open to find him sitting at the end of my bed, the feel I had was the opposite of satisfied.

"What are you doing here?" I managed to get out, my throat scratchy and dry. His index fingers were pressed into his temples, slowly massaging them as he tried to steady his heavy breathing.

"Do you have any Advil?" he cursed under his breath, his fingers curling around and grasping his head in his hands.

"You don't have any at home?" I said, genuinely surprised.

The Hendricks were one of the wealthiest families in California, and possibly the United States, to hear they didn't have any Advil was a little odd.

"Yeah, Liv. I drove all the way here with my head seconds from splitting open because I had full supply of Advil at home." He muttered sarcastically. I slid out of my bed and into my little brothers old red Elmo slippers, brushing my fingertips along Abel's shoulder to steady me.

"Oliver's room is across the hall. You could have disturbed his beaty sleep asked him for some." I gestured toward my bed, "You look like a pervert sitting here and watching me sleep. What if my parents or Adri-"

I saw a hint of an annoyed smirk tug at his lips, "I wasn't watching you. I was about to leave, but my head decided it didn't want that."

I opened my mouth in response, but he shook his head, "And don't worry, Princess, Adrian isn't here yet." he stared silently at me as warmth slowly crept to my cheeks.

Adrian Parker and Abel Hendricks were polar opposites. Abel loved to hit on girls, sleep with them, treat them like they were nothing more than toys, Adrian did the opposite. He comforted them, helped them, he was just a good guy.

Abel didn't exactly keep it a secret that he knew about the crush I had on Adrian. More times than not, he had almost revealed it to the entire school at his infamous weekend parties.

"Whatever." I grabbed the silky sleeve of his washed out band shirt and led him down the hall to the kitchen. I racked my brain for where Dad had hid the painkillers. He had done it to prevent Oliver from drinking, to have him feel the pain of a hangover the next day without any sort of solution to it. It had only made Oliver want to drink more and he had been crashing at Abel's house after parties or dances.

"Here!" I yelped as I slid from the counter and slammed my head into the cupboard behind me. Somehow I still managed to keep the bottole of Advil in my balled fist through all my pain.

"You're a life saver." Abel planted a sloppy kiss on my forehead before ripping the pills from my grip and pouring a couple into the palm of his hand.

I carefully dropped off the counter, observing Abel. He caught my curious gaze and tore himself away from the refrigerator and repositioned himself with his back to the stove.

"So, Liv. Have you thought through my proposition at all?" He asked, sneaking a quick look in my direction. I shrugged, touching the salt shaker beside me as a distraction.