| |
ONCE CIARA GOT HOME to Jesse’s place from the Rosslers’ house, she ran to her room, threw on another set of clothes and added eyeliner. She had agreed to go see a film and have drinks with Jesse.
It wasn’t a date. Not a romantic kind, at least. It was just two friends hanging out. It had been Jesse’s idea. He claimed Ciara needed a fun night out after the funeral. But even more so, he seemed to think she needed to get wasted so she could forget everything for one moment.
The film was an action movie with horror elements. Both Ciara and Jesse liked it. Neither one was the type to watch sappy comedies.
When the film finished, Jesse took Ciara to a small pub. It wasn’t too crowded, but there were customers scattered around. It was perfect for the occasion—getting wasted.
Jesse and Ciara had just stepped in and hadn’t even walked up to the bar when Jesse spotted a familiar face. “Isn’t that William Rossler?”
Ciara turned her head, and her eyes landed on Liam. He was alone at the bar with a whiskey in his hands. His eyes were fixed on the glass. In fact, he was staring at it rather intensely.
Ciara furrowed her eyebrows. “Uh, yeah. That’s Liam.”
“Should we go check on him?” Jesse asked, eyeing the lonely man. “It looks like he’s drinking his sorrows away.”
Jesse was right. Liam didn’t seem to be expecting company. It looked as if he was there to get drunk and drown his sorrows.
Ciara forgot to answer Jesse, walking up to where Liam was sitting. Jesse followed her. She sat down on a stool beside Liam, and Jesse stayed standing right next to her.
“Hi,” Ciara said, making Liam look up. He hadn’t noticed her until then.
His eyes were red, and his movements were slow. It was obvious he was wasted.
“Hi.”
Ciara barely made out what Liam said as he slurred the word.
“How much have you been drinking?” Ciara asked and took the whiskey glass from his hands. She set it down on the table further away from him.
She had never seen Liam so drunk.
“A lot,” he mumbled.
“We should probably get him home,” Jesse said.
Liam turned to look at Jesse, to whom he had paid no attention until then. He muttered something that neither Ciara nor Jesse could understand, then turned to stare at the glass on the table.
Liam was about to pick it up, but Ciara was faster. She grabbed his hand to stop the movement. Liam’s gaze settled on her, and he stared at her in silence. Then he intertwined their fingers, making Ciara’s eyes go wide.
And like that, the glass was forgotten.
“Look, we’re going to take you home, okay?” Ciara said. “Can you walk on your own?”
Liam nodded.
But it turned out to be a struggle. Even with both Jesse and Ciara helping him stay upright, it was hard to get him out of the pub. Once they were out, they used magic to teleport to the front of the block of flats. It was a pain in the arse to get Liam up the stairs and to his and Iris’s flat door.
Ciara went through Liam’s pockets, while he swayed drunkenly, and eventually found his keys. She twisted the key in the lock and opened the flat door. They walked in, and Liam threw up on the floor.
The disgusting stench filled the room. Ciara scrunched up her nose and made sure not to step in the mess. There were no lights on, so Ciara flicked her fingers to turn them on.
“Iris?” Ciara called out, but she got no answer.
“She—” Liam threw up again, adding onto the mess.
“I’ll help him to the bathroom,” Jesse said and walked Liam towards the bathroom after Ciara pointed the right way.
“I’ll clean this up,” Ciara said, cringing at the orange mush on the floor. Even the smell made her gag.
***
ONCE CIARA HAD CLEANED all the vomit off the floor and the furniture, she grabbed her phone and dialled Henry. He didn’t pick up.
Sighing, Ciara shoved her phone in her pocket. She went to check on Liam and Jesse. Liam was hovering over the toilet, retching and vomiting.
“This might go on for a while.” Jesse grimaced and glanced at Liam.
“Yeah.” Ciara sighed, looking at Liam. She had never seen him in that state.
“Iris doesn’t seem to be home,” Jesse said, lowering his voice.
Ciara nodded. She had noticed, too. “I wonder where she is.”
“Should you try to call her?”
Ciara bit her lip, thinking. “I don’t know. She didn’t show up for the dinner today. Something’s going on.”
“Maybe they had a fight. That would explain everything,” Jesse said, gesturing to Liam.
“So I won’t call her.”
“Perhaps a good idea.”
“I tried to call Henry, but he didn’t pick up.”
“Well, Liam seems to be in terrible shape.”
Ciara could only imagine Iris’s face, coming home and finding Ciara there. It didn’t sound ideal, but it seemed like the only option.
“I’ll stay with him. You don’t have to.”
“Are you sure?” Jesse asked. “You might need help. Like, with carrying him or something.”
“I can handle this.”
“If you say so.”
“Go get some sleep or go have a drink,” Ciara said.
“We will have drinks some other time.”
Ciara smiled and nodded. “That’s a plan.”
Jesse grinned. “Good luck with him.”
“Thanks.”
***
ONCE LIAM STOPPED VOMITING, Ciara helped clean his face and hair from the puke. She helped remove his shoes, jacket, and shirt, which were all covered in vomit.
Helping Liam to the bedroom was a struggle, considering Liam was taller and weighed more than Ciara. With a little effort, she got him to the bedroom and made him sit on the bed. He didn’t stay sitting, though. He fell back, lying down with his legs dangling off the edge.
Ciara sighed.
“Thanks,” Liam mumbled out, about to pass out. And he did.
Ciara didn’t think it was okay for her to undress Liam any more than she had, so she tucked him in and turned off the bedroom lights.
Even though Liam was in bed and asleep, Ciara didn’t feel like she could leave him. She went to the living room and looked around.
She had cleaned up the vomit, but there was still a mess. A broken photo frame lay on the floor, shards of glass scattered around it. Ciara cleared the glass away before she lay down on the sofa.