You could hear the music from outside. We were at our last stop of the night. We spent the day doing a wine tasting and took a dinner break, but we were switching up the vibe for the rest of the night.
When I'd talked to Kimmy about her bachelorette party, she said she wanted classy, but cliché. Minus strippers. She was very clear about that. So the bridal party and I worked together to give her that. The wine tasting and dinner were the classy part. Getting absolutely hammered at a club was the cliché part.
We'd all gotten ready at my apartment, which looking back was a mistake. One bathroom for nine people was a lot. I was just glad Harry was gone for the day with Dustin at his bachelor party. When we were ready to leave, I surprised her with a gaudy sash and crown, making it obvious to everyone who saw that she was getting married. She went absolutely crazy over it.
He didn't tell me what they were doing but definitely tried to ask what we were doing. I didn't tell him shit. The only thing I knew was that Colton had planned an all day thing just like I had. I honestly didn't want to know what they were doing.
We'd blindfolded Kimmy, just to add a little mystery. She could obviously tell by now where we were, but a blindfold made it a little more fun.
I walked us straight to the door. We all pitched in to rent a small portion of the VIP section specifically for us. I gave my name at the door, feeling very special while I did, and the bouncer moved to let us in. I could hear a small chorus of groans, jealousy that we were let in without waiting.
"Can I see yet? I already know where we are." She was whining, which wasn't a shock. We'd been drinking virtually all day and that's how she got when she wasn't completely sober. I complied with her request though and removed the bandana I'd stolen from Harry from her eyes.
Her eyes went wild, like it was setting in what this was. This was a bachelorette party and we were treating it as such.
"You've outdone yourself, Charlie."
"Don't thank me just yet. There's more." I grabbed her hand, the rest of the party behind us and I led us to the VIP area. I'd made a special request with the person working the VIP area and asked that when they see a tacky sash and crown that they just let us in. This was the only bachelorette party she was going to get and I wanted it to be as special as possible. If that meant bribing greasy men, I was able and very willing.
Her eyes widened as we walked carelessly through the ropes, but she didn't question it. We got to the booth meant for us. Kira and I had come before wine tasting and set up a booth with decorations. A woman came over within a few minutes with the starter drinks I'd preordered. They'd been very accommodating. She started to ask if we wanted anything else, but Kira spoke up before I could say anything.
"As many shots as you can psychically carry." Our waitress smiled, completely understanding, and walked away.
I got up from the booth and stood in front of everyone, drink in hand.
"You asked for classy and cliché. We've done the classy, so it's time to be as cliché as possible. It wouldn't be a bachelorette party without games. So I've got a little game for us all while we wait for shots. Drinks in hands please!" I waited until everyone was holding their drinks, grins all around the booth. "Are we ready for a game of Never Have I Ever?" There were cheers around the table.
"Since we're here to celebrate Kimmy getting married, all bets are off. Nothing is off limits and our beautiful bride starts. Five fingers up!" Everyone lifted their free hand.
We all looked to Kimmy who took a small sip from her drink as she thought about what to say first.
"Oh, I've got one. Never have I ever slept with a coworker." Kimmy officially set the mood of the game. Everyone looked around, looking for someone to drink. A couple girls she worked with and Kira all drank. Kira's eyes darted to me as my mouth fell open at her admission.
The game went around in a circle, passing everyone until it came to Kira. Half the party was out, but she and I were the only ones left with one finger up. She looked at me with an evil grin.
"Never have I ever had sex or anything of the like in a public place." She leaned back against the booth and crossed her arms.
I hadn't expected her to publicly call me out.
The smirk didn't leave her face as everyone looked back and forth between us. This bitch had targeted me to win and she did it shamelessly. If she was going to target me shamelessly, I was going to drink shamelessly.
I brought my drink to my lips, keeping her eye contact, and finished it. I slammed it on the table when it was just ice left and I watched Kimmy's jaw drop so quick.
"Who are you and what have you done with Charlie?"
"She's got a hot boyfriend, that's what she's done." Kira raised her eyebrows, not expecting me to openly admit what we'd done.
"Literally when?" I started to blush, not wanting to tell her.
"Your rehearsal dinner. When they disappeared for fifteen minutes and she came back red in the face." I refused to look at Kimmy.
"Alright ladies, shots incoming!" Saved by the bartender. Our waitress came back with two trays full of shots and a second person with a single tray in their hands. They started to set the shots on the table so they could take the trays and leave us to our antics. There had to be at least 50 shots in front of us.
"Alright, next on our agenda. With the help of Kira, I've put together a little scavenger hunt for us. You can search everywhere within the club walls and nothing is off limits." I typed on my phone as I spoke, getting the game ready. "I've just sent out the list of items or activities to be found or done, as well as team members. When you've done or gotten something, take a picture with the team and send it to the group then come back here and each member takes a shot for every item they completed. The team with the most items and shots done wins a prize!"
Everyone pulled out their phones and slid from the booth to gather their team members.
"You have 90 minutes to get as many as you can!" Everyone took off as steadily as possible, staying with their team members. I'd conveniently placed myself with Kira and Kimmy.
We walked arm and arm down the few steps to the main part of the club and toward the dance floor. Kimmy looked at her phone as we huddled together to figure out what was best to tick off the list first.
The first, and arguably easiest, item on the list was to get a condom from a stranger, so that's where we decided to start. We looked around, trying to find the best chances we had.
We spotted a small group of men near the bar. They were chanting each other as they drank, clearly obliterated. We looked at each other quickly and started walking toward them. Kira, being the hopeless flirt she is, took the lead and slid right in the middle of them and leaned with her back against the bar. Kimmy and I stuck to the outside of their little circle and watched her work her magic.
It only took her a couple of minutes, but we were suddenly being offered five condoms. They were so ready and willing, so we decided to milk them of everything they were worth. We stayed a while longer, borrowing an ugly fedora from one of them. Kimmy replaced her crown with in draped slightly down her face, checking off our something borrowed.
I started talking up one man, who was rather large. He'd noticed that we were clearly on a mission and questioned me about it. I told him we were doing a scavenger hunt, which he announced to the group. They were eager to see our list and helped us with as many as they could. The large man that I had been speaking to offered to let me get on his back for one of our items, a piggy back ride from a stranger. I'd thanked myself for wearing pants and jumped on his back, waiting for Kira to take my picture.
We had five pictures from this group, including a picture of all of us, and we headed back to our table to do our allotted shots. There were fifteen just between us. Our waitress was putting small glasses and a pitcher of what looked like coke and another with water on the table. We thanked her as she walked away.
The other groups had sent a few pictures, but none had reached as many as we had. We did our shots and drank some water before heading back. Kimmy dragged us to the bathroom for the one task that didn't require talking to someone else. We each had to make a veil out of toilet paper and send it to the group. We stole roles from three of the stalls and got to work at the counter.
It didn't take very long. Kimmy had gotten crafty and weaved hers into her crown. Kira and I took a little longer and Kimmy even made a small toilet paper bouquet too. The second it they were done, I sent the picture to the group with the caption "number six, fuckers" sent right after.
We left the bathroom and Kimmy was in the middle of leaving a lipstick mark on a bald man's head when I got a text.
1 New Message
Harry: I'm not sure this was meant for me, but Dustin and I are enjoying it nonetheless. You look like you're having fun. Drink some water for me?
I quickly sent the picture where it was supposed to go and went back to his text, feeling how drunk I was now that I was trying to focus on spelling.
Me: Definitely wasn't four you, but we're winning so I don't care. But now that you've gotten a hing about what we're doing, I require one from you.
I slipped my phone back in my pocket as Kira was taking a picture of Kimmy's drunk smile next to the kiss mark she'd made on this stranger's head. She thanked him and came back, looking at the picture together and sending it. I felt my phone buzz in my pocket and took it out to get rid of their notification, but found another one in addition to their picture.
Harry: Only if you'll drink some water. We've got a long day ahead of us tomorrow.
Me: I JUST drank some. Not even that drunk. Hint please!!
I waited a few more minutes for my request and was met with a picture. He was sitting at a table with a red bottom, cards thrown all over it and a half filled glass plus three empty ones in front of him.
Me: Are you guys playing poker?
Harry: It's no Egyptian Rat Screw, but I might be a master at poker as well.
I had no clue that Harry gambled, let alone that he was actually good at poker. Kira and I tried to learn how to play once and we failed miserably.
"Charlie will you get off your phone! We're having a man free night!" Kimmy slung her arm around my shoulder and looked at Harry's picture. "Are they playing poker?"
"They are. Harry is apparently a master at it." She looked at the picture again, raising her eyebrows and bringing up the exact memory I had just been thinking about.
"Remember when you and Kira tried to learn how to play? Neither of you understood the rules and tried to get me to help. God forbid if you actually thought you were good and tried to pull that shit in an actual casino. You would have been arrested during the first round or something."
"Hey, it's not our fault we didn't understand it!" She walked up to us with a brand new drink in her hands. We hadn't even noticed she was gone. "Also, I got item number seven." She showed us her phone. There was a picture with her lips pressed to the cheek of the male bartender that was working.
We went back to the table and took the three shots we'd racked up. There were only ten minutes left in our time limit, so we grabbed actual drinks from the bar and waited for the other two groups to come back.
There were only a few more shots left on the table, one for each of us. We threw them back together and one of the other bridesmaids suggested dancing. Our group had become the group of girls that screeches at every suggestion, but we didn't really care.
We walked to the dance floor together, talking and laughing as we went. I stopped at the edge of the dance floor and watched my friends blend into the mob. They danced so carelessly and I was envious of it. I thought maybe I would loosen up enough to dance but I might have been wrong.
We'd done this exact thing on New Year's. Harry was the one to get me to actually move. So I pulled out my phone again.
Me: They want me to dance. Harry, I can't dance. At least not without you. I wish you were here to dance with me.
I stared at my screen, waiting for him to respond. That's what I'd dissolved to. I saw him start to type and
Harry: I wish I was dancing with you too, but you're the only one in the room, darling. That's all that matters. No one is watching like you think they are. It's a brunch with Kira in the kitchen. You can do it, you can let yourself go.
I looked back up to my friends dancing in the crowd. Harry's words had helped a lot, probably more than he realized. Brunch in the kitchen with Kira. I could do that. The music choice was a little different than I was used to, but I could work with it.
I slipped my phone back into my pocket, took a deep breath, and walked into the sweaty crowd. I could feel the heat radiating off the bodies that bumped off mine.
I know, I know. Dancing isn't that big of a deal. But it's something that made me feel anxious. There was always going to be someone better or prettier than me and that was enough to make me steer clear whenever dancing was an option. but not this time.
I could hear heavy breathing that mixed with the beat of the music. I closed my eyes like I had when I danced with Harry, ignoring the horde of people that bumped me as they danced. I started slowly and worked my way up to something more.
I moved my hips with the music and let my hands run through my hair. I felt a hand on my hip and opened my eyes to find Kira in front of me, looking shocked but so happy. We danced around together, bringing Kimmy into our small little group. We danced in our own world and for the first time ever, I didn't care who saw. Let them watch.
I lost track of time as we let the music take over. Kira had disappeared to get a drink and Kimmy had gone to the bathroom with a few from our group. I found myself alone on the dancefloor, silently making friends with all the strange drunk women I was dancing with.
I felt a chest press against my back and the faint smell of vanilla and whiskey overtook my sense. I turned around to see my favorite green eyes. I may have screamed a bit as well, but we won't talk about that.
I couldn't help but throw my arms around his neck, having missed him today.
"Hello, tiny dancer. You're looking rather free tonight." Now that I had stopped moving, I felt my head start to spin on its own.
"This tiny dancer might have to go home. Whole room is spinning." He slowly started to pull me from the dancefloor, keeping me close so he didn't lose me.
"And that's exactly why I'm here. Kira texted me when I was almost home and asked me to come get you. She said something about a scavenger hunt, eight shots, and five condoms? I lost her after that, to be honest. Dustin asked me to pick Kimmy up while I was here. They're waiting by the bar."
We stopped at the bar to grab Kimmy and Kira. They looked about as well as I did. Harry closed out the tab for me and got my card and ID back from the bartender. He still had Kira's lipstick mark on his cheek and waved as we walked out.
We piled into Harry's car. Kimmy quickly laid her head on Kira's lap. I watched Harry watch Kimmy in the rearview. When we got back to Kimmy's she started rambling about not being able to see Dustin because they were getting married tomorrow and that's tradition. Harry assured her that Dustin was with Colton for the night and wouldn't be back until after the wedding.
She let us walk her inside and get her food and water. I stumbled around their bathroom and snooped through their cabinet to find Tylenol to leave next to her bed.
We dropped of Kira next and I was trying my best to stay awake, but I could feel my body catching up with my mind. I was exhausted.
I didn't remember pulling up to Harry's, but I heard my door open and faintly saw him crouched next to me.
"Do you need help walking?" I couldn't muster words so I settled for a sloppy head nod instead. He pulled my legs out of the car and pulled me out, keeping a firm hold on my waist. It felt nice to have him so close again. He was my favorite thing.
We got in the house and he sat me down on the couch so he could lock the door behind us. I tried to stand up, and managed to do so, but I got a second wave of the spins and an upset stomach came with it this time. Harry walked back into the room just as I was running out to try and get to the bathroom in time.
I kept my hand pressed firmly to my mouth as I tried not to fall and risk vomiting all over the floor. I made it to the toilet just in time, hitting the floor on my knees and letting everything I'd consumed that night reappear.
I felt myself losing oxygen too, making me feel light headed, which just added to the nausea. I felt my hair move from away from my face and a hand gently rub my back. God I loved this man.
I caught a break and rested my hand against my arm. "Remind me to never drink again. I forgot how much this sucks." My voice didn't sound like my voice, but sounded like it belonged to a two year old who hadn't quite mastered the art of speaking. I heard him try to cover up a laugh but he mostly failed.
"Are you going to be okay if I leave you for a minute. Water should definitely be in your near future." It felt like I nodded and I'm assuming I actually did because I heard him walk away right after. I kept my eyes closed though, scared to open them and see a spinning room.
Time felt like it was passing fast and it seemed like he was gone for hours. He came back to sit next to me though and set a bottle of water with a straw and a sleeve of crackers next to me. I felt his hand move over my back again.
"Do you think we can get some kind of food into your stomach too?" I nodded my head again. "Can you sit up a bit?" I shook it, still fearing the spins. "C'mon Charlie. You gotta work with me just a little bit, darling. I'll help if you need."
I slowly peeled my eyes opened to see a still room and only one of Harry. A good sign. I let my hand fall to his and he pulled it slightly so I was sitting up a bit more. He helped me turn so I was leaning back against the toilet and didn't have to work as hard to stay upright. He handed me the water bottle and I took small sips as he opened the crackers. He put one in his mouth while he waited for me to stop drinking.
He took the water from my hands and replaced it with a cracker. I stared at it, feeling so much joy over having a cracker. Eating it was like tasting a small piece of heaven. I fucking love crackers.
We stayed on the floor for a while drinking water and eating crackers together. I managed to keep it all in my stomach. When Harry decided that I'd eaten enough, he left me again to put the crackers back and grab me more water before coming back.
"Alright, tiny dancer. Bedtime." Hearing the word bed was beautiful and I wanted nothing more. But bed meant standing. And I just wasn't up for it.
"I dunno, Harry. It's pretty comfy here. I think I might just-" I stopped talking and let my hands slide against the floor, letting my body go with them. Harry stopped me though.
"As nice as the bathroom floor is, I'm not letting you sleep on it. I know you're tired, but we're so close to my comfy bed. I really think we should try getting up so we can get in bed where it's warm." He looked at me, trying to barter with me. He was winning.
He grabbed both hands and stood, pulling me enough to help my body get on my knees and eventually on my feet.
"See? That wasn't so bad, was it?" He held onto my waist for the millionth time tonight and we walked slowly to the bedroom. He helped me sit on the edge of the bed so I could change my clothes for bed. He took the shirt I was wearing off, unhooked my bra, and replaced it with a shirt he'd taken from the dresser. He unbuttoned my pants and pushed my shoulder so I'd fall back on the mattress. He peeled my jeans from my legs and took my socks off with them.
"Go get comfy. I'm going to grab you Tylenol for the morning." He disappeared from in front of me. I rolled onto my stomach and pulled myself to my spot on the bed and burrowed myself under the comforter. I heard him moving around the room next to me, but my eyes wouldn't open to see what he was doing. I felt him kiss my clammy forehead.
There was rustling around the room for a minute before the bed dipped next to me. I felt him get closer to me, but keeping a bit of distance between us. He kissed the back of my head and whispered just like he always did.
"I love you, Charlie." And then I was out.