A Different Kind of Us

Chapter 6

Sutton was jolted awake by a slamming noise. She sprung up in bed, disoriented, trying to make sense of the loud noises in her bedroom.

Within three seconds, she remembered she was in her cabin at the retreat lodge, but her heart rate took a while to decelerate.

"What the fuck," came Ada's voice, scraping through the darkness to Sutton's right.

Debbie was giggling, the sound bubbling out of her throat. "Sorry," she said, laughing hysterically in the doorway, "everything's been really fun tonight!"

"Go to bed, Debbie," Sutton said wearily.

"I'm trying to," Debbie laughed, stumbling through the darkness, "but I wanted to go to bed with Wyatt. But you two are in here!"

Neither Sutton nor Ada responded. Sutton heard Debbie's mattress creak, heard her shoes drop to the floor. "I wanted to have sex with Wyatt," Debbie giggled.

"Shut--up--" Ada said.

Debbie made a strangled cat noise to mock Ada's annoyance. Then she broke into more laughter.

Sutton turned her head in the direction of Ada's bed. Ada had rolled over and was glaring across Sutton at Debbie, her dark eyes like pits.

"Just let her be," Sutton mouthed, the words escaping in the faintest whisper.

Ada shook her head in the darkness.

For a moment, Sutton was tense, wishing in frustration that Debbie would just shut up and pass out. But then the bathroom light flicked on behind her, and she heard the bathroom door click shut, and now it was quiet in the main room again.

It seemed to satisfy Ada, who had rolled back over. Sutton did the same.

She was falling asleep to the sound of the bathroom plumbing when there was another jarring noise--this time, a dead thud, followed by a half-curse, half-cry from Debbie.

"Are--you--kidding--me," Ada growled.

"Wait," Sutton said, sitting up again, "that sounded bad. Debbie?"

There was no response from the other side of the bathroom.

"Oh, Jesus, Lord," Ada huffed, throwing her quilt off and dragging herself out of bed. Sutton did the same, following Ada's path to the bathroom.

"Debbie?" Ada knocked.

Again, nothing.

"Just go in," Sutton said, pushing on the door.

"Okay, calm down."

They found Debbie passed out in a sitting position, her back against the wall and her head in her hands. There was a small bloodstain on the bottom of her tank top, near her hips.

"Debbie," Ada said, squatting down next to her. "Wake up."

Debbie grunted.

"Shake yourself awake, Debbie, we need to look at your cut."

"It's fine!"

"It's bleeding."

Debbie dropped her hands from her face and looked blearily at Ada. Her eyes indicated she'd had way more to drink than she should have.

"Let me look at your hip," Ada said. "Sutton, can you grab my glasses?"

"Yeah," Sutton said, hurrying away.

Debbie continued to grunt and groan while Sutton crossed through the cabin and back again. When she returned, Debbie had shifted her body so Ada could see her hip better.