After all of the night before's mess had been cleaned up, Adam and Ross decided to go home. Matty and George were in the kitchen talking while I sat in the living room on my phone. There was nothing exciting on it, I had no social media in fear of my father finding me. Even if he didn't have it himself, I didn't want to take that risk.
There was no real reason for me to have a phone, really. I don't go on any social media, which seems to be most of the internet, and I don't have any friends to talk to, so there really isn't much point. It's just nice to have, I guess.
I sat on the floor playing candy crush, despite the couch being available to sit on. I didn't know that the game was now only played by elder people and seemingly 'uncool' parents. If I had social media, I would have known that the app was so outdated.
"Hey Hayley, we're going to go get food, you wanna come?" George asked as he walked into the room.
I stood from the floor and stuffed my phone into my pocket, stretching my arms above my head.
"Sure," I responded. "Just let me change first."
I was wearing the same clothes as I had last night, when I spilled countless cups of alcohol on myself and probably smelled of sweat.
I grabbed my bag and went into the bathroom, picking out more plain clothes to wear for the day. There was no variety, the most being a few different colors but nothing too out of the ordinary. Jeans and plain t-shirts was all my closet consisted of.
Slipping my shoes on my feet, I went back into the living room to see Matty and George had changed too, looking much less like they had both woken up from a night full of alcohol and partying and more normal. They nodded at me and we left into the streets of London.
We ended up in a McDonald's, sitting in a booth near the back. George promised me it was fine and he would pay for me, but I still felt bad for him spending money on someone he barely knew. I ended up with one of those fancy blended coffees with caramel and some fries, nothing too much. We ate in silence, watching out the windows as people of all kinds walked by.
I pulled out my phone to check the time.
2:13pm.
"What kind of phone is that?" Matty asked, looking at the device in my hand.
"Oh, I don't know. It wasn't expensive, I bought it a few years ago." I replied, setting it on the table.
He picked it up and examined it in his hands, pressing the power button and staring in awe.
"I haven't seen a phone like this in ages!" George said, leaning so he could see my brick of a phone too.
"Can I look around on it?" Matty asked, glancing at me for permission.
I nodded and watched as the screen lit up their faces, coated in shock. It was quite cute, actually. Watching their faces as they scrolled through the few games I had on my phone.
"No social media?" Matty asked, raising an eyebrow. "Not even Facebook?"
I shrugged.
"It never seemed important to me."
He slid the phone back over the table and I put it back into my pocket, feeling slightly self conscious about it. I knew it wasn't the best and a few years old, but I didn't think it was that much of a shock to see something they described as "ancient".
"You should really get a new phone. And social media. Do you even know how to text?" Matty asked, taking a sip of his drink.
"Of course," I said. "I would be seriously lame if I didn't know how to text."
To tell the truth, I didn't actually know how.
We ended up walking Matty back to his flat, then going back to George's. We were sat in the living room, watching a show that I had never heard of. It was about a sponge that lives underwater with weird fish friends. I had to say, the yellow one's voice was more than a bit annoying.
When I asked George what the show was called, his expression was more than surprised.
"You've never seen SpongeBob SquarePants?"
His mouth hung open and he looked genuinely offended.
To be completely honest, I didn't like it much.
"Have you lived under a rock your entire life? First, you still play Candy Crush, and now you've never seen Spongebob?! I cannot believe you're sitting on my couch right now. I should banish you." He said in a huff.
"What's wrong with Candy Crush?" I asked, pouting.
"What's wrong with it? The game is nearly as ancient as that cellphone of yours."
"Is it really that bad?" I asked.
"Yes, it is. You should seriously get a new one."
I turned back to the TV, watching the poorly drawn sponge and his starfish friend at a "bubble stand". The fact that this was an actual television show amazed me. I couldn't believe anyone watched it.
After another hours worth of Spongebob Squarepants, George finally decided he was bored with the all too excited sponge, and turned the TV off. I watched as he played "cool" games on his phone. Supposedly, a game about finding Pokemon was better than Candy Crush.
George's phone rang and he excused himself into the kitchen, leaving me alone in the lounge. I grabbed my notebook and went upstairs to the balcony, trying to find inspiration to write. I didn't get the chance to last night, it would have been weird for me to pull out a notebook and starting scribbling down words while Matty was right next to me.
I sat in one of the two metal chairs and let myself just think. The reality around me started to fade, and I got lost in my own world of thought.
My mind wandered over hundreds of different things, searching for something that stuck out and inspired me. The colors of the sunrise usually set my brain into immediate creativity, but the sky was a light, cool blue that only made me bored. I stared up at the blue abyss of the sky and all sounds and sights became blurry and unimportant. I became so unfocused on the world around me that I didn't hear the door open behind me.
"There you are." George said, startling me, making me jump and drop my notebook.
"Jesus, you scared me." I said, picking the notebook back up and setting it in my lap.
"You disappeared." He said, sitting on the opposite chair.
I nodded, staring at the ice blue sky. It became silent as we both thought of what to say.
"Ross wanted to know if you'd drink with us again tonight." He said.
I laughed.
"More alcohol? After how stupid I was and how bad the hangovers were?"
George shrugged.
"We like to party."
It didn't take much for George to convince me. I vowed that I wouldn't drink, or at least get drunk. I don't think I couldn't deal with a hangover again. Now I see why my father was always drunk. Hangovers suck.
We weren't having a house party or staying home like someone responsible would do, we were going out to a club.
See, I've never been to a club. I mean, how could I have? I was locked up my whole life. I had no idea what to expect.
I wasn't too keen on the idea of going to a bar filled with sweaty, intoxicated people, but after realizing that I really didn't have much choice, I agreed to go.
George, Adam, Matty, Ross and I were stood outside of a fancy looking nightclub, waiting for the bouncer to let us in. The line consisted of mostly trash and unapproachable people. making the club seem very intimidating. All of the boys assured me that they wouldn't let anything happen to me, and if someone wouldn't leave me alone to find one of them. I would never come here alone, or even with another female friend. Not that females aren't strong, I just feel safer with a group of guys by my side.
We were finally let in after showing the bouncer our ID's, and as soon as I walked in, I was overwhelmed. The music was so loud I couldn't hear myself think, much less what the boys were saying, and it smelled of alcohol and sweat. It wasn't exactly pleasant.
I followed George and Matty, Ross and Adam behind me, almost like I had a barrier between me and the rest of the people in the bar. We walked over to the bartender and the boys ordered their drinks. I had no idea of what was what, so I let them choose one for me.
"Are you allergic to any fruit? Or anything at all?" Ross asked, turning away from the guy bartending.
I shook my head.
"I don't think I have any allergies."
He gave me a thumbs up and turned back to the bar, leaving me to wonder what they had planned for me.
I know I said I wouldn't drink, but just one wouldn't hurt, right? Usually when people say that, they end up blackout drunk by the end of the night and wake up the next morning not remembering anything, but that won't be me. I said I wouldn't get drunk, so I won't. I won't let myself end up like my father.
Matty handed me a glass with pink, fruity looking liquid in it. I took it from him and inspected it, raising my eyebrow at him.
"It's a strawberry lemonade vodka. One of those girly drinks that all females like."
I chuckle at him and take a small drink. It was surprisingly good.
"I like it." I say, taking another sip.
He smiles and takes a drink of his own, Adam, Ross and George walking towards us with their drinks.
"I don't know about you," Matty says "but I'm getting hammered."
Many drinks later, Matty was, in fact, hammered. He downed countless drinks, looking more and more out of it by the glass. I was still slowly sipping on my drink, the only thing left being melted ice from the increasing temperature of the room. I was sat in a booth away from the massive crowd of people dancing and grinding on each other with Matty, watching him down his 5th drink.
"I'm so drunk." He laughed, looking like he'd pass out at any minute.
I set my empty cup on the table and watched as his glossy eyes stared at me.
"You're pretty." He giggled, hugging me awkwardly.
I laughed nervously and took his arms off of me, setting them back in his lap. He wasn't nearly this drunk when I first met him. Maybe a little buzzed, but I doubt he'll remember any of this tomorrow morning.
"Come on, let's get another drink." He said, scooting me out of the booth and pulling me towards the bar.
"No, Matty I said I wasn't going to get drunk." I said, trying to pull my arm back.
"Why not?" He stopped and turned around to face me.
I started to explain, but stopped myself. He can't know about my father. They all think I came here by choice to live my dream, not be a runaway. They'd probably tell me to get lost if they knew I was a runaway. Trying to come up with an excuse, I bit the inside of my cheek.
"I..."
He probably won't remember anything in the morning anyway, I might as well tell him while he's intoxicated and too lost from the alcohol to actually process what I'm saying.
"I don't want to end up like my father. He was a drunk, and wasn't exactly always kind."
His eyes scanned over my face for a moment; he seemed to be searching for something.
"I don't know you that well, but I know you would never be unkind to someone unless they deserved it. You're better than that, I know you are."
I was surprised by his sudden kindness and let the thought of him being highly intoxicated slip my mind.
"Have fun, get drunk, enjoy yourself. Don't let that dickbag ruin your fun."
Thinking for a moment, I let him persuade me.
"Alright. I guess another drink wouldn't hurt."
Those might as well have been my last words.
After Matty had convinced me to have another drink, I downed them by the minute. At that point, I would drink anything. It gave me a fuzzy feeling and kept my mouth formed into a goofy smile.
Tipping the glass above my mouth, trying to get every last drop of the sickly liquid, I set it back down on the table, a stupid grin etched onto my face.
"Damn Hayley, that's your 6th one. I'm proud." Matty said, throwing his arm around me in a half hug.
"I'm gonna go get us more drinks." He said, getting out of the booth and going back to the bar.
I sat in the booth by myself, watching the different colored lights flash around the walls. I tried to follow a purple stream of light dancing around the ceiling, but it moved too fast for my eyes to be able to keep up.
I stood from my seat and stumbled towards the bathrooms, beginning to push open the door when someone gently grabbed my shoulder and pulled me back.
"That's the mens room."
I turned around to see George, drink in hand.
"Oops." I giggled, facing him.
"How drunk are you? I thought you said you weren't drinking."
I shrugged.
"I only had a few drinks. Matty's making sure I don't drink the whole bar." I said, leaning on his tall frame for support.
"Mhm. He's great at that." He stepped out of the way of the ladies toilets. "Your destiny awaits."
I walked past him and laughed, patting his chest lightly.
"Thanks, Georgey Boy. You saved my life."
Leaving George outside, I went into the toilets.
After I was done doing my business, I washed my hands and looked at myself in the mirror. I definitely looked drunk. Smiling and patting my hand against the mirror, I turned around and left the bathroom.
As I was going to find Matty, a voice from behind stopped me.
"Where are you goin', pretty lady?"
I turned around, half expecting to see George waiting for me, but as I turned I realized that it wasn't him. He had similar features to George, blonde hair, tall, but not George.
"Um, to find Matty. What are you doing pretty sir?" I asked, laughing.
"Who's Matty? Your boyfriend? I'm trying to pick up a girl." He smirked.
I shook my head.
"No, he's just my friend."
"In that case, what do you say about coming back to my place?" He crossed his arms across his chest in a confident kind of way, a permanent smirk plastered to his face.
"I would, but I promised I'd stay safe, so I can't. I'm sure you'll find a girl though!" I said, turning around and starting my way back towards the booth.
"Oh no you don't." He said, grabbing me by my shirt and dragging me back into the hallway with him.
"Hey! Let me go!"
I tried to pull away from his grasp, but he was much stronger than me, especially since I had no experience in self defence.
"But I'm trying to pick up a girl, and you're the perfect one." He said lowly, sending shivers down my spine.
"I'm sorry, but I'm not the girl for you, let me go!"
He began dragging me into the men's toilets, and reality started to kick in. This was real. He was going to rape me right here, and there was nothing I could do about it.
Trying to grab onto anything I could to get away from him, I was pulled farther into the bathroom by the second.
"Hey! Let her go!"
I looked up to see a girl with lilac hair running towards me.
"Piss off, kid. She asked for it. And you can't be in here, this is the men's toilets."
"Obviously she doesn't want it when she's trying to get away from you. And she shouldn't be in here either. Let her go or I'm calling the police."
He grumbled and let go of me, storming out of the room.
"Are you alright?" She asked, helping me off of the floor.
"I think so." I said, brushing myself off.
She led me out of the bathroom and into the hallway, where not-George attacked me.
"Are you here with anyone?"
I nodded. "Yeah, Matty went to get drinks and I had to use the bathroom and he attacked me."
"Let's go find Matty."
She took my hand and pulled me into the crowd of people.
"What does Matty look like?" She asked, turning to me.
"He's pretty" I giggled.
She looked at me, concerned. Whispering something under her breath that I didn't hear, she continued pulling me through the crowd, towards the bar.
Once we got to the bar, the lilac hair girl asked if he knew anyone here named Matty.
"Is your name Hayley?" He asked, pointing to me.
I nodded.
"Your friend is looking for you. He's over there."
The bartender pointed towards the booth, where Matty was sat, looking frantic.
The girl with a grip on my hand pulled me towards him, squeezing through the crowd of people.
"Are you Matty?" She asked once we reached him.
He looked up from his phone, looking confused.
"Uh, yeah."
The girl pulled me from behind her and into Matty's view.
As soon as he saw me he jumped from his seat and hugged me tightly.
"Hayley! Where have you been? I was so worried! I looked everywhere for you!"
"Some creep dragged her into the men's toilets, but I stopped him. I'm pretty sure he left."
Matty pulled back from our hug and looked at me with concern.
"Are you okay?"
I nodded and he pulled me into another hug.
"Thank you so much."Matty said, turning to the purple girl.
"Of course. I couldn't let him take her and not do anything about it. I'm not an awful human being."
Matty sat down with me at the table, making sure I wouldn't wander off again.
"Here, if you ever need me, you can just call." The purple haired girl wrote her number on a napkin and gave it to me, smiling.
"Thank you again." Matty said to her.
She nodded.
"Of course." With that, she disappeared into the sea of people.
Matty reached under the table and grabbed my hand from my lap.
"I really thought someone had taken you. I was so worried." He said, squeezing my hand.
"Well, it's a good thing she saved me then." I giggled, leaning on Matty's shoulder.
"Yeah," He said."It really is."