Drenched | ✓

trece

"How was last night?" I asked my grandma as she stirred some food in a pan.

"Not too bad," she said, turning towards me before hearing a bang upstairs. "What are they doing up there?"

"Sounds like they just woke up," I said, smiling into my cup of tea. And pretty much as soon as I'd said it, the groaning started.

"Rough night?" Grandma asked Brenda and Clara as they came down the stairs, make up all over the place.

Elise and I had seen them sneak back into the house, having fallen asleep on the sofa.

"Honestly," Elise said, pulling a strand of confetti from Brenda's hair. "You both look a right state."

They both slumped into the chairs at the dining room table.

I picked up my stuff and went out into the pool area.

Sofia was wiping down the bar, whilst her son was nowhere to be seen.

"Julie," Sofia said when I approached. "Can you do me a favour?"

"Of course," I said, squinting in the sun. "What do you need?"

"Would you mind waking Nico up?"

I nodded, painting on a smile even though I wasn't really sure he'd be all that pleased to see me.

I eased the door to the restaurant fully open and went inside, shivering at the biting cold. Further I went, reaching the door I'd been through not that long ago. The memories of that night were fresh in my mind, and I felt my fingers tingle as they touched the handle— as if my body was hoping to repeat the events of the last time I was here.

I pushed on it. "Nicolás, your mum—"

I halted, swallowing my words.

Before me, Nicolás lay in bed, sheets around his lower half, dangerously low. It was quite obvious he had nothing on underneath. That wasn't what made me pause, though. The girl beside him did. She, like him, was naked beside the covers.

"God," I said, turning round to preserve their dignity. "I should have knocked, I'm sorry." I turned on my heel and speed walked all the way out of there.

I felt a strange empty feeling in my chest, but I suppressed it as soon as I saw Sofia.

"He's up," I told her.

She nodded, and motioned to someone behind me to come over. I didn't look, already knowing who it was.

"Nico," she said, as he came to stand behind me. "Take over this please." She handed him the cloth. To reach it, whether on purpose or not, his arm brushed mine. I stepped away. "I'll be back in two seconds."

He went to take her place behind the bar but as soon as she'd gone, he stood in front of me.

His eyes looked desperate. "Back there, that wasn't wh—"

I touched his arm, but took my hand away quickly. "You don't have to explain yourself to me, Nicolás. You don't owe me anything."