I woke up to the sound of the rock wall sliding, and a cold breeze assaulted my body. My head was pounding, and I felt like if I moved I would throw everything up. I took a couple deep breaths to try and quell my nausea and raised my hands to rub circles on my temples. I couldn't feel Jake next to me anymore so I assumed he was one who left the cave, but I couldn't bring myself to open my eyes to check.
"You okay Cassie?" Derek whispered to me.
"Ugh... no. I'm never drinking again," I groaned. A wave of nausea passed through me at the thought of drinking.
"Sorry we let you get so drunk," Derek said.
"It's fine. From what I remember, you all cut me off. I would have kept going, so thanks for that." I knew my limits usually, but it had been a while since I drank like that. Also, I didn't usually drink for leisure. As soon as I have my first drink, I get excited and feel inclined to continue.
I heard some shuffling around but still didn't open my eyes. "Here, put this over your eyes. It may help with your head," Derek said from right beside me.
"What is it?" I cracked an eye open to look at him. Even seeing the small sliver of light streaming into the cave felt like a dagger to my brain.
"Wet t-shirt. It's cold from the rain." He sat down and gently placed the t-shirt over my eyes. The coldness helped as he pressed it over my face. He moved my head into his lap and began rubbing my temples.
"Is this helping?"
"With my headache yes it is. Absolutely. Thank you."
I heard someone chuckle. "Little hungover are we?" Nathan asked.
"I don't think Jack Daniels agreed with me," I said as I tried not to gag.
"Jack agrees with everyone! You just can't handle your liquor. Whiskey's my favorite kind of alcohol. I feel fantastic today," Nathan rattled on.
At all the mentioning of alcohol, my stomach churned. I sat up quickly. "Oh no. I'm gonna be sick."
Nathan's eyes widened in shock, "What? Now?"
I gave a quick nod and looked at Derek to help me. He was quick to jump up and scoop me up in his arms. He ran out of the cave and we made it just in time. The second Derek set me down outside, I dropped down to all 4's and began throwing up all the alcohol from last night.
Derek pulled my hair back for me as I puked. "Derek," I coughed, "go away; I don't want you to see this."
"I'm a doctor remember? I've seen worse."
I stopped questioning him as I continued to throw up until there was nothing left in my stomach. My head was pounding. I wiped my mouth and turned over onto my back, not caring about the wet muddy grass or the cold sprinkle of rain hitting my bare skin.
"Are you okay? Want to go back inside?" Derek asked.
I squinted up at him, "Not yet. Honestly, I may throw up again. Plus, the cold and rain is helping me feel better."
"Cassie?" Jake appeared beside Derek, looking down at me with one of his eyebrows cocked.
"Hmmm," I replied. I didn't want him to see me like this, nor did I have the energy to do anything about it.
"Little hungover? Here drink some water," Jake crouched down beside me and held a bottle to my face.
"I don't know if I can," I groaned.
"It'll help you feel better," Jake insisted, "Come on; sit up." He wrapped a strong arm underneath my back and pulled me up into a sitting position.
"I'm going back into the cave if you guys are good. It's chilly out today," Derek said.
"Yeah I got her. Go ahead," Jake replied while presenting the water to me again.
"Thanks Derek," I muttered.
"No problem," he said with a wave and ran back into the cave.
"Come on Cassie, please drink it. If you throw it up so be it, but you need to at least try to get some water into your system," Jake pleaded with me.
I groaned but grabbed the water from him anyway and took a couple swigs.
"We should get you back inside. Think you're done puking?"
I forced another sip of water. "I think so for now. I don't want to go in yet though... the cold is making me feel a little bit better."
"But you're covered in goosebumps. I don't want you getting sick."
"I'll be okay; just a few more minutes. You can go in if you're cold though."
"I'm not cold. I'll wait with you if that's what you'd like," he sat down beside me and allowed me to lean into him while I continued to force water down my throat.
"Aside from my serious hangover, last night was pretty fun wouldn't you say?" I asked, looking up at him. Damn, I never got used to looking at those green eyes of his.
"Yeah it was. Sorry we asked you about 'he who shall not be named'," Jake said, using one of his hands to make air quotes in front of my face.
"It's really okay. I trust you guys, and it feels good that you know now incase I get my nightmares again. Now you know it's nothing for you guys to worry about," I sipped the water again.
Jake locked his intimidating green eyes on mine as he spoke. "It's not nothing Cassie. We don't like to see you scared like that."
My heart fluttered at his concern. "I just meant that dreams are dreams. There's nothing anyone can do about them," I hesitated for a moment trying to think of how to change the topic. "Can I ask you somethin'?"
"Always."
"Why were you hesitant to drink yesterday? Do you not usually drink?"
"No..." he took a hand and ran it through his dark hair before continuing. "Remember when I told you that I'd tell you the rest of my story one day? I guess now's as good a time as any."
"Oh shoot sorry. My questions always end up being too personal. I'd like to hear your story if you want to share, but you don't have to," I encouraged.
"No it's fine." Jake took a deep breath and rested his arm around my shoulders to keep me warm as he spoke. "Basically, after my parents died, I told you I was into some shit; well, let's just say drugs and alcohol were a huge part. I struggled for a few years to control it, but alcohol was controlling my life. I was failing out of school, getting into fights, partying almost every night. It was all I could do to move on from what had happened, but it made me numb to the world." He paused and looked out at the water before continuing. "My aunt and uncle were amazing, ARE amazing, for taking us in when we needed them, and I was a huge burden to them and my siblings. I just didn't care about anything or anyone, and I'm ashamed to admit that to you."
"Don't be. I'm glad you're telling me this. I can't relate to what you've been through so trust me, I won't make any judgements," I encouraged. I was happy he was opening up to me and didn't want him to stop.
"Yeah, but I just wasn't a good person. I would go out with a bad group who would get high, do drugs, use and abuse women, and truthfully, I was one of the worst of them."
His comment about women made me a little upset, especially after what happened with Trent, but I tried not to let that show. I knew in my heart he wasn't that kind of person anymore. "So what happened to help change you? I mean, was it just because of military school?"
"Yes and no. One night, I was out with my usual crowd and we had a lot to drink amongst other drugs we took that night. We were walking to a bar when one of my buddies picked a fight with a guy twice his size and who happened to be associated with a gang. They started beating on him and I tried to help, but I was too fucked up to stop it. He was beat to death right in front of me, and I wasn't able to help him because of my state of mind," he said with a shakey breath. He looked distant as he was talking, almost like he was reliving the moment. "That's why I'm hesitant to drink now adays. I'll do it every so often, but had I been in the right state of mind that night, I probably could have saved my friend."
I looked up and him through my lashes and grabbed his hand to try and provide comfort. "Jake I'm so sorry. You've been through so much."
He gave my hand a squeeze before continuing. "Yeah it was terrible, but it woke me up," he shook his head, "like I said, I would have tried to stop drinking on my own after that anyway, but my family had heard about my friend and they freaked out. They were worried if I continued down the same path it would happen to me too, so they shipped me off. When I returned, I was much better; a little resentful, still had trouble getting close to people, but better."
"Is your friend the reason you got into self-defense training with Derek?"
He raised his eyebrows, seemingly surprised that I already knew about that. "Yeah, kind of. I couldn't protect him, but I want to be able to help protect others. Especially women; just remembering how my friends, and even myself sometimes, could treat them. Don't get me wrong, I never laid a hand on a women if it was unwanted, but some of my friends had. I think that's why I'm so angry about your Trent situation..." he trailed off and shook his head again, "but women should know how to defend themselves, and I wanted to help teach them."
"Jake you've been through a lot, and I think it's amazing that no matter what you went through, you were able to come out the other side stronger, and a genuinely good man. Thank you for telling me."
"Thank you for listening. I don't know why I was so nervous to tell you all of this."
"Don't ever hesitate to talk to me. I wouldn't judge you," I reassured him. The rain had picked up slightly, and I shivered against his chest.
"I know that," he smiled down at me, "I'm sorry but bonding time is over. I'm taking you inside now; you're shivering."
"Okay," I replied. I wasn't going to argue. I felt a bit better now anyway and it was pretty cold out.
He stood up, pulling me up with him. I wrapped my arm around his neck as he lifted me, carrying me effortlessly back into the cave.
"There she is! Heard you were blowing chunks out there," Adam teased.
"Ew Adam. Why'd you have to say it like that?" I giggled.
"No matter how I say it, the facts don't change. Sorry you're such a lightweight," he grinned.
Jake chuckled along with Adam and set me down in our usual spot. I shot him a grateful smile as I continued to defend myself, "Am not! You guys kept picking me for questions. I probably drank more than all of you."
"She makes a point there," Wes said with a yawn.
"True. Okay, so what's our plan for today? We probably shouldn't be drinking again?" Adam said as if it was an option he wanted to pursue.
"Yeah, no way. We should save the rest for another time," Nathan chimed in, "I'm sure there will be more rainy days where we're gonna want it."
"Do we have enough food to get us through today?" Luke asked.
"We do, but we should probably go check our traps anyway incase they need to be reset," Cam answered.
My head was still pounding, so I laid back down as the guys spoke. A few of them looked over to check on me when I moved, but quickly went back to their conversation. They were all always on alert. It was over the top I admit, but it was also oddly flattering.
"I'll go check," Jake volunteered.
"Yeah I'll come with," Nathan agreed. "Anyone else wanna come?"
Luke and Adam raised their hands.
"Okay great! Let's wait a bit to see if the rain lightens up," Jake said.
"Cassie?" Derek asked.
"Hm?" I sleepily replied from my makeshift bed.
"I think you should nap a little to help yourself feel better, but after since there isn't much else to do today we could try some rehab techniques on your ankle," Derek offered, "only if you want to."
"Really? You think she's healed enough for that?" Nathan asked.
"I'll check it again before we do anything, but it's been a little over two weeks, so I don't see why it wouldn't be if I was right about the bad sprain."
This was great news. I was tired of feeling like dead weight around here, and was eager to start the process. "That would be great! Thank you," I said as a smile crept it's way onto my face.
"No problem. Try and get some rest right now. I don't want you feeling sick when we do this."
"Aye Aye doc." I rolled over and closed my eyes. Although I was excited and still a bit nauseous, listening to the sound of the rain and the casual conversation of the guys made it easy for me to doze off.
The best cure for a hangover, is to sleep it off.
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Hello!
Fun fact, I was actually currently hungover while editing this chapter so I hope I really encompassed what a bad one may feel like! What does everyone think of Jake's past?
Thanks for your reads, comments, and votes! I cannot stress enough how much I appreciate your time and feedback. The next couple chapters are kind of for entertainment, but then we will get into some real good stuff! Stay tuned.
-Haley