Alice

2

"Hey guys! Beer's in the kitchen." Kayla waves at us.

We smile and wave back and begin to weave through the throng of people. We go into the kitchen and Parker grins when she sees the 6-pack on the counter top.

"Shit it's about to be a good night," she murmurs, pulling me towards it.

     **********

"Drink?" Another drunken guy stumbles over to me, his eyes glassy and bloodshot and his body rocking side to side. He hold a red cup out toward me, gesturing for me to take it.

"No, thank you," I smile politely, turning him down and moving away a little.

"Oh come on,"  he murmurs, his words slurred. "You look thirsty."

I shook my head. "I am fine. Thanks."

He frowns and shrugs, taking a sip from the cup and staggering back into the crowd of sweaty, gyrating bodies. I glance around, looking for Parker. She went off to get a drink not too long ago, but still hasn't returned. Frowning when I don't see her, I begin pushing through people. It reeked of alcohol and vomit and the occasional burp here and there. I ignored the smell and pushed forward, finally reaching the kitchen. I stop and sigh when I see my best friend upside down, doing a keg stand. Two guys held her up by each angle and her hands gripped either side of the keg and she chugged.

"Parker," I call, loud enough for her to hear me.

She looks up and when her eyes meet mine, she grins. "Wooo!"

The crowd surrounding her cheers and two boys set her down. She high fives a few people, the grin never leaving her face and then stumbles over to where I'm standing.

"I didn't think you'd get this drunk," I hissed, taking her arm to keep her from falling on her face.

She grins and gently touches my face. "What? Beer is drunk, not me."

"What?" I shook my head. "Never mind. How much have you had to drink?"

"Four?" She closes her eyes and hiccups. "Teen. I think."

Sighing, I wrap my arm around her waist and begin to lead her to the door.

"Where we goin'?" She hiccups. "I didn't even...throw up yet."

"Hey!" A familiar voice called out. "Alice?"

I turned my head to look back, grunting when Parker shifted all her weight onto me. Gabe chuckled and quickly helped me support her.

"Thanks," I smile.

Parker narrowed her eyes, her head falling to the side. "Noah? I thought you weren't coming."

I sighed. "Sorry about her. Could you just help me get her to her car? She's too drunk to walk on her own."

"Sure," Gabe grins, picking her up into his arms and making his was to the front door.

"I'm not too drunk," she frowns. Her hands move up and takes the strap of her dress and pushes it down her shoulder. "See? I can still take my clothes off."

She goes to reach for the other strap when suddenly, her eyes went wide and her hand flew to her mouth. "Mother fuck—" She turned her head and proceeded to empty out her stomach's contents onto the floor. I wince and Gabe looks mildly disturbed at the fact that the girl he's holding is vomiting everywhere. She inhales deeply before relaxing. "Shit, I think my mouth just exploded."

I let out a sigh. "I'm so so sorry. I'll understand if you just drop her and walk away."

His grimace turned into an amused smile. "You're funny." He looked at the grainy pile and scrunched up his face before stepping over it and walking out the house. I lead him to her car and he gently places her in the back. He sits her up, making sure she's comfortable before strapping her in with the seatbelt. "All good."

"Thank you, Gabriel." I smile and pull the keys from my pocket. "I appreciate it."

He shrugs. "Not a problem. See you around."

I glance back at Parker who was now groaning. "Yes. See you."

I climb into the drivers seat and put the keys in the ignition. The car starts up and I pull the door closed. With one last wave, I pull away from the party and begin driving to my house.

"Parker," I hiss, keeping my eyes ahead.

She moans.

"I'm taking you to mine. You know the drill. Don't make noise."

She moans again. "I taste like vomit and tequila."

I grit my teeth, slightly disturbed by her revelation. "Okay."

"Shh, you're supposed to be quiet," she whispers, tapping me and grinning.

I roll my eyes and continue driving. Within twenty minutes, we were back at my place. I park out front and climb out, going to the back to help Parker out. Her brown hair falls over her face as her head slumps forward and she's muttering incoherent bull under her breath. I get her free from the seatbelt and I pull her out the seat. She stumbles out, taking a look around. I slam the doors shut and I wrap my arm over her waist and lead her the front door.

"We home? Home?" She leans onto me for support. And by that, I mean she puts all her weight on me so that I'm struggling to get her up the front steps.

"Shh," I whisper, putting a finger to my lips. I even contemplate covering her mouth with my hand but decide against it. She'd just lick my palm anyway.

She grins at me. "I'm shushing now. See? Shh."

I sigh and take my keys out my pocket. Opening the door as quietly as I could, I bite down on my lip and pray that Parker would just stay silent. She lets out a soft giggle but quickly clamps her hand over her mouth when I shoot a wide-eyed look her way. I close the front door and help her up the stairs, struggling more than a recovering alcoholic in a bar. Finally, we reach my bedroom. I peel the dress off of her and toss it to the side. I grab an old shirt from out my closet and pull it over her head before pushing her into the bathroom to make her brush her teeth. She does – rigorously, might I add – and then follows me back into my room.

I grab the blow up bed from under my bed and blow it up. It made noise, but not loud enough to wake my parents. Once it was blown up, I threw a blanket over it and a pillow. I push her onto it, and the second she makes bed with the air-filled mattress, she's asleep. I grab another blanket from out my closet and cover her with it before getting into my own bed and getting some sleep for myself.