Chapter 5

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NORA

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My phone has been ringing since morning and each time l allow it to move straight to voicemail. After that heavy dose of sleeping pills, I woke up around noon with a splitting headache and an odd appetite for Brandy. I know my mom threw every alcohol I stored in this house away and I can only have access to some at a bar so I head there after wearing the most decent clothes I can find.

It is three pm by the time I reach the bar and I walk straight to the counter. I order to glasses of brandy and down it at a goal, the hot liquid burning my throat as it makes contact with it. I wince and go for the next glass.

Ten glasses into my drinking and a tall man comes to the counter to buy himself a drink. He looks over at me and from the corner of my eyes, I see him checking me out. ‘What?’ I ask him harshly, my voice slurry from the alcohol. ‘Wow, you look really wasted.’ He tells me and laughs, I can’t help the smile that keeps onto the corners of my lips. ‘Yeah-yeahh….so what?’ I slur, picking up my glass and throwing it down my throat again.

I look over at him, and I see that he is on his fifth glass of whiskey. ‘My life is shit anyways’ I continue, waving my hands in the air like I’m some madwoman and I see him raise a brow in confusion. I pick up my next glass, tilt it upwards, gulp and continue ‘I’m bad luck.’ I whine and he asks ‘how so?’ equally slurring and I can’t help but notice the concentrated frown on his face. It squeezes at my heart, but maybe it’s just the alcohol taking effect, so ignore it and answer him ‘How so?’ I scoff and point at myself ‘Is this a good life?... drinking at a fucking bar at –‘ I pause forgetting what time it is and glance at his gold watch ‘hey, buddy what time is it?’ he pauses for a while before registering what I was talking about.

He mouths an ‘o’ and tells me its nine pm. I realise how long I’ve stayed out and Maya is probably shitting her pants right now, which by the way, would be funny sight. I pout at him when he asks me why I look so sad and for some strange reason I feel like telling this drunk stranger everything but I decide against it and instead I give him a shrug.

I don’t know how long I stay at the bar, but I know it was long enough for the drunk stranger and I to fight about which is better, Brandy or Whiskey. Well after the most annoying back and forth filled with careless laughter, I won by pretending to cry.

He chuckles at me and goes back to drinking his liquor. ‘I should call my mom’ I announce after a while, trying to look for my phone through by blurry vision. I find it eventually, but her number is disconnected ‘Great’ I mutter to myself and groan in frustration. I wasn’t in the best state to drive and I didn’t want to call Leleti, after I had outright refused her the other day. I sigh and look over at him.

I’m very sure it’s the liquor that is messing with my brain but notice his pink and plump full lips, his hard jaw that outlines his face perfectly and he had a robust physique with a broad chest, his muscular frame stretching the fabric of his well-fitted shirt.

Fuck, this alcohol.

‘I have an abusive mother’ this stranger tells me after a while, interrupting my thoughts of him and giving way to a little embarrassment. I try to pay attention as he mumbles on and on barely able to make out any words that he speaks. We joke about his mother losing a foot as she walks a runway but I forget why we mention the runway in the first place. By this time, it is midnight, and the server starts to get irritated with us and I don’t know how I will get home.

‘Do you need a ride?’ he asks as he stands on his feet but sway a little as he tries to balance himself and I laugh at him. A full blown laugh that has my head throwing back and my hands clenching my stomach. After a while we find ourselves in his car, and I give haphazard directions to my house until we somehow gets there.

Honestly, I have no idea how I get into my room and fall my bed, ignoring my mom’s endless questions about where I was for thirteen hours. Am I right? I don’t know, but I don’t bother to remember as sleep comes to take my pain away.

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