Forty-one ~ Evelyn
Is that really me?
It can't be. The last thing I remember is searching for Heidi in one of the booming rooms.
Screwing my eyes tightly shut, I wade through the darkness for even a slither of an answer. I persist until my headache spirals into dizziness and Ade steadies me from behind.
I turn, pushing past him. Underneath the rainbow of blues, browns and purples are my eyes, albeit aggravated, my nose and even my freckles are tucked away.
Throwing on the tap, cold water slices a shiver down my spine. Apart from dulling for reperfusion, the marks are unyielding to my scrubbing. Sh*t.
"What happened last night?" I force through gritted teeth as my knuckles pale around the counter.
"You went looking for Heidi and at some point crossed paths with four men." Ade mutters, studying the floor.
Studying his evasive reflection, I push to fill the void neither my brain nor Ade is bridging.
"Then what? These don't appear magically." I manically circle my new markings with a hyperextended finger.
"Isn't it for the best you don't remember? Evidently something bad happened, don't you want to let it fade with the bruises?"
"No! Someone touched my body. I have a right to know." If I don't even know what has happened, I lose even more control over the situation. How do I move on from something when I don't know what it is I'm moving on from?
His balled knuckles mimmic mine, but his right is bruised and the skin has split slightly over the joints. From the way he was moving earlier, it doesn't seem to be fractured. "Not yet, not until we're home."
"Adrian!" If someone did this, spiked me and drove Ade to punch them, it's pretty significant.
His jaw clenches further shut until a muscle ticks and thunderous clouds storm his crystal blues.
Sighing I release my grip, willing Ade to follow suit. I will uncover each mark's story, but not at the cost of greater damage.
"You better get back to Anthony, today seemed important." I let the counter support my growing weight.
"He's got it covered."
"I'm sure he'd appreciate a hand. Besides I know I'm short, but I won't drown in a bath."
"He'll live, I took the day off to pamper you." Ade reaffirms, trailing his hands up my arms, he attempts to work some of the tension out of my shoulders, "I can give you a massage whilst you soak?"
I shake away his cheeky lopsided grin, I need some space to make room for the clutter in my head. "Thank you. Maybe later, go relax." I squeeze one of his hands until it relinquishes its grip on my shoulder.
"Okay." Ade visibly deflates with a deep exhale and drags his feet on the tiles as he backs away, "Call if you need anything."
Once Ade remembers how to use a door, I'm left alone in the forrest of steam.
I meet my gaze in the mirror, shooting us a stern look, "We can do this!"
Piece by piece, I slowly reveal my battered body. I take a step back to enable the mirror to capture as much of me as possible.
Parallel bruises track up from my knees. I run a finger over the scattered claw marks, noting their depth. I'm relieved to see an absence of wounds and contusions in between my legs along with no aching. 'At least that's something.'
More purples tint my hips and a splattered area of my torso, however my face certainly looks the most colourful. My jaw is scratched and my left eye is swollen just to add to my inability to go out in public.
With one last look and a long exhale, I force myself away from the mirror and into the warm embrace of the water. I rest my head back against the cool ledge and close my eyes, willing even a glimmer of last night to come back to me.
The invasive beat reverberates inside my ribcage, using my lungs as a springboard. Scarlet beams lacerate the darkness, highlighting glimpses of shadowed faces. I amble slowly as the sweltering heat incinerates my nerves until a relentless drum begins pounding in my head. I reach for the watery respite, but it's relief is fleeting. My lungs and throat burn and swell. I gasp for air as the room sways. My hands clasp around my neck searching for a release to prevent my descent.
Water swims up my nose, forcing my eyes open at the relieving reminder that I'm in the safe confines of the bathtub. My lungs slowly fill with measured intakes. Everything fades away leaving only a headache and a nagging gap in my memories.
I clamber out of the bath, dragging my heavy limbs into the shower instead. I turn the temperature dial to cold before submerging my face under the cool pelting. Each icy prick filled me with another grain on life.
After a meticulous scrub, I grab the largest towel I can find and head to the bedroom to change into my go-to high waisted jeans and a strappy vest top.
Letting my hair fall around my face, I venture out to find Heidi. Only my footsteps can be heard in the seemingly dormant suite.
Having passed through the kitchen, I'm now holding a glass of water. It's my second after accidentally downing the first.
The boom of a door swinging closed slices through the silence making me jump. Whilst glancing down to assess how much water I've spilt, the water jolts again as a large hand touches my shoulder.
"I could've gotten that for you." His rich voice releases the tension from my shoulders.
"It's okay. I was on my way to find Heidi anyway." A confused grimace from Ade spurs me on to explain further, "Relax. I didn't pack any oversized hoodies, so I'm hoping to borrow one of Heidi's." She's a couple of sizes up from me, so her jumpers should be nice and cozy.
"Just take one of mine." The statement leaves little room for discussion, so I let Ade take the glass from my hands before slipping his free hand into one of mine.
A tense silence smothers us as I trail behind Ade into his walk-in closet. He pulls a slate grey hoodie from a stack of jumpers and hands it to me.
I slip it on, parting my hair into two halves and pulling them round to the front to enable me to pull the hood up. It's the softest thing I've ever worn and I can't resist hugging myself to bask in the sensation.
"It looks good on you." Ade tucks my hair behind my ear below the hood, causing me to turn away in a feeble attempt to hide my colourful face.
"You make that hoodie look good." He reaffirms and I dare to meet his attentive gaze. "Evie, will you stay with me when we get back?"
"Huh?" Is the only sound my brain manages to push out, "I need to go home, I have to get my life back in order."
"What do you need to do?"
"I have to finish my uni work. Besides we have only been together for like a week!" And we've already spent almost the whole time together, we both need some time and space to breathe.
"Why don't you bring your laptop to mine? You can even sleep in the spare room if you want?" Ade persists without flinching.
"I don't know…", It's too much, but I'd have to order takeaway for a week until the bruises faded enough for me to go shopping if I went home.
Ade takes a cautious step towards me, taking my hands in his. "Please, I'd feel a lot better knowing you had everything that you needed. Otherwise, I'll have to come round and annoy you every now and again."
"Okay." I nod once, giving into the madness. "Thank you."
Ade's body appears to droop slightly as his muscles relax. "No, thank you." He pulls me tightly against him, enveloping me in the comforting lemon and oak.
Once I convince Ade that it's okay for him to return to work, I take two paracetamol tablets and climb into the luxurious bed. It doesn't take long for my heavy limbs to melt into it as I drift off into the abyss.