The Reason (Westlife) //Completed

Chapter 22. Forgotten

Chapter 22. Forgotten

"D'ya have headache pill, Mark?"

"Uh, sorry. Kian already took the last pill." Mark gives Nicky an apologetic look and pats his back gently.

"You okay, buddy?" Shane asks, sounding worried.

Grimacing, Nicky shakes his head and grunts, "Nah, better off dead."

We are all sat at one table in the dining room, listening to Nicky as he gives out about having nasty hangover after his birthday, rather than debating what food to eat for breakfast. Kian and Bryan don't look as wretched as Nicky, neither are they completely fine. Just a little bit ill. Mark and Shane are the least problematic of them all, claiming that they didn't plan on getting too wasted.

Bright rays of sun flood in from the big open windows, illuminating the entire room. I'm sat between Kian and Shane whilst Bryan, Nicky and Mark are sat opposite us. My lips have been kept pursed since I woke up this morning, refusing to join in on any of their conversation. And Bryan seems to be in the same mood as me because he hasn't uttered even a single word despite the boys' attempt of chatting with him. He just keeps his eyes fixed on the table like they were having some private heart-to-heart talk. His blond hair doesn't look as striking as usual, more like disheveled and as though a hurricane had literally whipped it.

But who am I to care? He's acting so weird lately that he even shouted a few offensive words at me last night. I'm not going to just let that go. It takes a lot of self-control not to glower at Bryan and to keep my hands from strangling him. His sudden misbehavior and grumpiness is beyond me. He seems to be bothered about something I have no idea of, and there's like no chance that he would tell me. So why give a damn?

"Hey, Lauren! Are you OK? You look like you've woken up on the wrong side of the bed." Snapping his fingers in front of my face, Kian catches my attention.

My eyes flicker in surprise. "Uh, I... I'm fine, just feeling a little tired and sleepy is all."

Well, that's half-true. Last night felt like the longest night of my life to date. I couldn't fathom for the life of me how the hell I ended up pacing around my room for hours until I went tired and decided to stare up at the ceiling for the rest of the night. Still, it didn't quite help on pushing all the swimming thoughts in my head away. I really regret of not getting myself drunk so that I wouldn't remember a thing. Now I have to deal with this shitload of problems.

"Are you sure?" Shane doesn't seem fully convinced with my reasoning. With his fantastic hazel green eyes, he tries to not-too-conspicuously read my expression as if I were a maths equation.

"There's nothing to worry about me." I rub my hands together under the table to calm my bloody nerves down. Their eyes are suddenly on me now. Even Bryan's. But when I directly return his stare, he tears his eyes away from me rather quickly. The air suddenly feels thick and heavy at the moment so out of the blue, I say, "Would you guys like some coffee? It can ease off the hangover."

They look at me oddly. I bite my lower lip to keep it from quivering like crazy and mentally wish of disappearing into thin air.

"Yes, please," Nicky responds out of desperation. Through my peripheral vision I can see him looking at me with pleading eyes.

My heart almost leaps out of my chest upon hearing his husky voice. I ignore the alien feeling that it gives me and wring my hands together to reduce my excessive jumpiness. I'm suddenly reminded of what happened last night inside Nicky's bedroom. How much he was drunk that I had to tug at him, how funny and childish he looked like, how disgusting it was when he threw up on my dress and how...