Waking up with the worst fucking headache ever was definitely not the best way to start the day.
But then again, waking up was never a good way to start a day.
I groaned and rolled around, peeking at my alarm clock. 10:37am. That was a normal time for me. I could either try to sleep for another hour or get up and take something for my headache.
Weighting my options, I settled for the second one. There was no way I could sleep with this pounding pain anyway.
I didn't even bother wearing a bra or brushing my teeth. I just stumbled into the kitchen, walked over to the cabinet my mom hid the painkillers in and took them out. I filled a glass with water and downed both the painkiller and the glass water within seconds. Satisfied – yet of course still in pain – I turned around to find my sister staring at me.
"What are you doing here?" she asked.
"I'm living here?" It came out as a question due to my headache.
"I thought you'd sleep over at Lisa's. Or Louis'. Or Harry's. Or wherever," she replied.
"Surprise! I didn't," I exclaimed annoyed.
"Where's the car?"
Shit. "Left it at Lisa's."
"Why?" Why was Phoebe so pesky?
"We drank something and Lisa threw up and I walked home before I'd crash the car into a bridge," I told her after a few seconds, hoping my delay could be led back to my headache.
"Uh-huh," Zoey mustered up, clearly not believing me but deciding to not annoy me any further either. Finally, thank you.
"Adrian here?" I asked.
"Nope, drove home last night. Mom and dad came back really, really late so they're gonna be passed out till noon at least," Phoebe told me with a smug grin.
Good, that bought me enough time to get the car back without any questions being asked.
"We're meeting up at the go-kart track at 5," Phoebe informed me before exiting the kitchen, leaving me to pity myself.
I followed suit, grabbing a banana on my way out.
I showered, applied make-up and got dressed within an hour. Hoping Phoebe was proven right, I stepped out of the bathroom and indeed found an empty kitchen. My parents really were still sleeping which was odd. They were morning people. Ew.
Now down to the funny business, I had to take the bus to Louis'. I let out a deep sigh and mentally cursed Harry. Again.
5 friendly good mornings, 8 pop songs and 10 bus stops later, I finally reached my destination. What a nonsense.
I walked over to my mom's car and remembered I parked in front of Starbucks yesterday. Should I get some coffee for my parents?
My headache lessened and I was in a better mood so yes, I bought coffee for my parents and two vanilla Frappuccino for both Phoebe and me.
I shall not start liking Starbucks though, I swore to myself.
I stopped to refuel on my way back home. The prices were insane and I would definitely never do that again. I really should look into getting a job.
It was around 1pm when I stepped through the doorway and walked into the kitchen, finding two fully dressed and good-humored birth giver in the kitchen. Could my father be considered a birth giver? He didn't give birth, he just helped creating me. Birth creater? No, that didn't sound right.
My parents looked at me like I was some kind of animal that escaped from the zoo.
"Well, good morning to you too, Zoey," my father remarked, rolling his eyes. Jeesh.
"Thank you for bringing us coffee, my dear," I mimicked my father's voice and put on a fake smile. He let out an exasperated breath before returning his attention to the tablet in his hands.
I placed the coffee cups on the counter and left to find my dear sister.
Loud music blasted through her door and she didn't respond to my knocks. After three desperate attempts, I just walked in – and found her dancing along in red underwear and a hairbrush in her hand to 'Barbie Girl'.
See, this was the reason why I always locked my door when I did the same thing.
"Undress me everywheeeere," her high-pitched voice hurt my ears.
I tried to put both my hands up to cover my ears while holding our two cups of vanilla Frappuccino – which turned out to not work so well.
My clumsy show went by unnoticed but Phoebe soon opened her eyes to find me laughing at her. A piercing shriek escaped her glossy lips and her eyes grew bigger with embarrassment. This only made me laugh harder.
Phoebe glared at me before she grabbed a big dark green t-shirt that hung over her desk chair. The shirt fell down halfway her thighs, implying that it was Adrian's shirt.
"Locks are not only meant to be used when you make out with your boyfriend," I reminded her, still laughing. I patted over to her unmade bed and let myself fall down, placing her cup on her desk.
Phoebe nodded her thanks but otherwise continued to glare at me. Whatever.
The part with the locks had an untold story behind it. I once wanted to take Phoebe to the mall with me and intended to walk right into her room. The door was locked and just when I was about to yell her name, I heard her moan Adrian's.
That wasn't an experience I wanted to relive and I was more than glad that they had locked the door. I, on the other hand, didn't get so lucky when Phoebe actually walked in when I was making out with him. Back then, when everything was alright. When we were happy.
I sighed, trying to clear my mind once again of any thoughts of him.
"Earth to Zoey!" My sister's voice snapped me out of my own mind.
"Hm?"
"Are you looking forward for tonight?" she asked, wiggling her eyebrows.
"Nope, not at all," I honestly told her. I would see Lisa, sure, but I could meet her anytime.
"Oh c'mon, it'll be fun!" Phoebe cheered.
No, thank you. Note to self: get Phoebe to play flappy bird so she will stop annoying me.
"I will dress you up," Phoebe said, not dropping the topic.
"What? Why?" Somehow, that idea sent chills down my spine. Her dressing me up surely couldn't mean anything good. At all.
"You'll see," she mysteriously answered.
"I'm leaving," I told her, taking myself up on my words. I quickly made the few steps to her door and walked out without another glance back. Just before I closed her door, I heard her soft laugh ring through her room.
Once I stepped into the hallway, I ran into my mom.
"Hi honey, thanks for the coffee," she said, smiling warmly at me. I returned her smile and nodded before finally making my way down to my room.
I just didn't feel like talking to anyone right now and prayed not to run into my father. I sometimes really despised him. I knew I shouldn't, he was my father after all and blah blah blah. Easier said than done when he annoyed you all the time and told you what do to even though you're 19.
I entered my room and headed straight for the tv. A re-run of Friends. Better than Teen Mom.
I changed back into my pajamas, grabbed my phone and plumped down on my bed. There was no better feeling in the world than laziness.
I zoned out and stared at the ceiling, thinking about college and seriously dropping out. I knew I shouldn't. They probably didn't accept anyone without a decent college record. Maybe I should at least change majors.
Thinking about the future always scared me. It was the uncertainty that made me hide underneath my blanket. When you were born, you had a specific plan for the next, at least, 18 years. First of all, you would grow up at home until you were able to walk and talk. Then your parents would send you off to prep school, scaffolding you for the worst. Elementary school, Middle School, High School. Afterwards, usually, you would go to college. But then what? What would happen if the daily routine you've become so used to just disappeared like a soap bubble you blew as a little kid on a sunny day? Spontaneity and creativity, those were needed skills. You could plan your future and fight for it. Or you could just jump in and go on a wild adventure, not knowing where it would lead you.
The past was a different matter. The past is the past, no point in reliving it. "Just remember your mistake so you can learn from them," my mom once told me. Wise words.
And the present?
The present told me I really had to wee.
I sprinted to the bathroom as if Chewbacca was breathing down my neck.
I just wiped myself clean when I noticed the blood on the toilet paper.
No Teen Mom for me.
Women all across the world really should unite and complain to the universe for this bullshit. We weren't pregnant, thank you, we got that.
I flushed the toilet and closed the lid, eliminating any further thoughts.
Making myself a bowl of cereals, I went back to bed and made myself comfortable.
Phoebe used to complain about being bored all the time years ago, before she found Adrian. Now she was always busy. Me, on the other hand, I never got bored so easily. I enjoyed venturing but I knew to appreciate my alone time in bed. In the worst possible scenario, I would scroll through funny tumblr posts and forget the time.
My door shrieked open, revealing Lisa.
"Lissssss," I yelled, hissing her nickname.
"Zzzzzz," she yelled back, doing just the same with mine.
"What are you doing here?" I stood up and hugged her.
"Felt kind of lonely," she admitted, shrugging her shoulders. She was dressed casually in grey jogging pants and a black t-shirt. I went back under the blanket and patted the bed next to me, motioning for her to join me.
"One moment," she said, holding up a finger before leaving my room. She came back after a minute with a bag of chips in her hands. I smiled at her. No words needed.
She finally joined me and opened the bag, instantly dropping a chip in her mouth.
"I so do not want to go to the go-kart track tonight," she whimpered.
I nudged her. "Be honest, you're looking forward to seeing Mason again."
"Love is complicated," she said, her mind drifting off to somewhere else.
"Love? You barely know him for a few weeks now. What are you, Theresa 2.0?" I teased her.
"I wasn't talking about loving Mason, dipshit. I meant love in general. Nothing good ever comes out of it, does it?" There was a serious note to her question that I didn't like.
"Well, yes, of course there does," I corrected her.
She raised an eyebrow, clearly not believing me. I would prove her wrong.
"I mean, look at my parents. They love each other – don't ask me why – and do you know what good came out of their love?" I didn't wait for her response. "Me," I shouted, throwing my fists up in the air.
That earned me an outright laugh. "You're nuts."
I nodded in agreement, there was no point in denying it. "But that's why you love me," I grinned.
"Shut up," Lisa told me, shoving me slightly.
"Make me," I shot back, wiggling my eyebrows.
"You know, if we were a couple, I would do it. But since your my best friend, that's all you'll get," she said, placing a kiss on my cheek. I laughed out loud.
So much about me being nuts.
"Did you bring clothes with you?" I asked out of nowhere.
Lisa shook her head. "I'm just gonna borrow my ripped skinny jeans. And some top."
I laughed again, that was just the effect Lisa had on me. We could cry together but most of the times we just had fun. We always shared clothes so half of the items in my closet were probably hers, like the ripped skinny jeans she just pointed out. I borrowed them once but didn't really fit into them, they were just too tight.
"When do we need to leave?"
I actually had no clue. "I don't know, Phoebe will tell us, I guess."
After that we turned our focus back on the screen in front of us. Friends was over but now there was an episode of Grey's Anatomy on. I couldn't tell which season it was. Basically it was all the same: surgery, surgery, surgery. But I liked to watch it on occasion.
Two surgeries and one death later, the episode was over.
"McSexy is ... sexy," Lisa remarked. I nodded in agreement.
"I also like Dr. Avery," I smiled.
A knock on the door interrupted our dreaming of men in white coats.
Phoebe stuck her head in. "We're leaving at 4:30, be ready and don't be late," she sternly told us before closing the door again behind her.
My eyes flickered to Lisa's watch. We still had enough time.
"Did you already write the essay for Law and History?" Lisa asked me.
"I started but didn't quite finish yet. You?"
"Same here."
We kept watching tv shows for nearly two hours before we got ready.
Lisa wore, as she had already said, her ripped skinny jeans. She covered her upper half with a cute blue top that had daisies printed on it. To match her top, she wore blue chucks. We thought it would be safer to not wear flats.
I wore dark jeans that were not skin-tight and a black top with a small white ribbon underneath the chest. To complete my outfit, I wore black chucks.
We were ready to go at 4:21pm, high fiving each other.
Even Adrian looked impressed.
We drove to the go-kart track, arriving before everyone else.
Theresa joined us after a few minutes. Niall's car pulled into the parking lot just after we said hello to Theresa. Niall stepped out and - so help me – Harry joined him. Mason was last but still arrived in time.
I suppressed a laugh when Mason tried to hug Lisa but she awkwardly turned away. She should definitely give him some time to get over his ex-girlfriend. They were kind of cute together.
But I was one to talk. Harry seemed to be just as unsure as I was about what to do so we just ignored each other. Very mature, yes.
After a quick round of hello's and how have you been's we got down to business.
Theresa was obviously nervous, shaking slightly. Niall sweetly comforted her and kissed her to ease her anxiety. I had to look away.
Lisa slapped me on the ass. "We're gonna rock this shit!" She yelled before putting her helmet on. I let out a laugh and agreed with her.
Adrian and Harry were already in their karts driving around, having a little race.
Once everyone was ready to go, they drove back over to us. The instructor told us some information about how to drive the kart and what to be aware of before we were allowed to get in.
"Race?" Adrian asked, grinning as if he had already won.
Phoebe, Harry, Lisa and I were in for it, Mason considered it for a moment before agreeing as well. Only Theresa firmly said no and Niall promised to stay behind with her.
Bleh, couples and love and all this shit.
Before the instructor left, he told us that we were the only ones on the track for now. That was a slight relief because it meant we could pull nearly all of the shit we wanted.
The six of us got ready at the starting line, waiting for Niall's signal to go.
Adrian was on the left side, followed by Phoebe, Mason, Lisa, Harry and me. Lisa caught my eye and rolled hers. I smiled sympathetically at her, feeling the same.
"Ready?" Niall began.
Just as he was about to open his mouth again to continue, Phoebe gasped. "Zoey!" She was half-screaming my name as if she had seen a ghost.
"What is it?" I asked, confusion and anxiety washing over me.
"Look!" Her voice held a note of panic and I was afraid to follow her gaze.
But I did and what I saw knocked the breath right out of me.
All the memories I had tried to hold back, all the thoughts I have spared, all the tears that I have cried and all the pain I have felt – everything came back at once when I saw him standing at the entrance of the go-kart track, still oblivious to my little group.
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