MIO FIORE

THE AFTERMATH

"Hey wake up,"

I jolted away as something kicked me, and not so kind either and I sat up confused, why the hell was I on the kitchen floor.

I had to admit, the tiles were cool against my face and it did calm me, but that throbbing in my head wouldn't go away. My ankle felt like it was snapped off.

My eyes adjusted before I saw what the source of ruining my sleep was, Aiden. "What?" I asked confused as he passed me a glass of water.

“I was sleeping" I eyed the water, I was so thirsty, but my stomach didn't want to take it, just the thought of something going down made it tighten. “You can't sleep for more than two hours, you have a concussion."

I blinked not understanding anything and he sighed leaning down and placing the glass next

to me as he turned around and I looked around confused, "Why am I in the kitchen?" never less on the ground.

"Because I need to keep an eye on you and I have s**t to do."

“What s**t?" I asked.

“Shut up Krystal." He muttered going back to whatever he was doing that needed a laptop and a whole bottle of scotch it seemed like next to him. I looked around realizing the sound of the party was gone and everyone had left.

I tried sitting up but gave up when I didn't get more than a meter up and swore, "I need to call the cops." I said trying to look for a phone.

“I already did it, just sleep. I'll wake you up in another two hours."

I frowned, leaning my head on the cabinet, he called the cops already? But my over-exhausted brain and body didn't think twice before my eyes shut on me again.

*****

Something smelled good.

I turned around letting the warm blanket envelop me as I snuggled in closer to the smell, but it seemed like it was always a distance away no matter how much I switched positions.

But there was also something very wrong with this picture, why did it feel like the mattress was engulfing me, it was soft, too soft, almost like slipping into a marshmallow.

My mattress wasn't like this, mine was firm. practical, and never smelt like a cologne bottle spilled all over it. That would be a waste of cologne and that wasn't cheap.

My eyes flickered open only to meet white, lots and lots of white, only to realize I was tangled in the blankets somewhere in the middle of the massive bed, blinded by all the fabric. After some effort, I managed to get all the material off me and I sat up frowning as I tried to remember where I was.

My blankets were never white, it was too risky to sleep on white especially when you were a female, and not to also mention how easily they got stained with pen and coffee or whatever, even if you aren't meant to eat in bed.

Why was this bed so warm, yes comfortably warm but way too heated, it was almost like it-.. I paused blinking as I took the room in and leaned over searching for the wire, of course, the bed heater was on full, what a waste of electricity.

I turned it off as I sat up wincing, something hurt, somewhere. I blinked staring at the window the sun was up and I momentarily panicked thinking it was a workday, but then I realized it was a Saturday, yet I had a lot of things to do.

I better get st-I paused, oh s**t. I hurried out of bed nearly tripping over what seemed like my shoes, I needed to find my laptop. The throbbing in my head only became more persistent as I rushed down the stairs, I had to call the cops, file a report, find my missing car, and oh god the laptop.

I couldn't even begin to comprehend how much work I had on it, not to mention I had to call all the banks and every card I had in that wallet to issue them to cancel it and send me a new one.

Just thinking about it made my stomach churn and my heart pound stressfully.

"Whoa, should you be out of bed?"

I paused on the last stair looking up, surprised to see Aiden home on a Saturday.

"Yeah I think you need to go back to sleep," he said munching on what seemed like an apple, was he always eating something? He leaned against the staircase railing, and I noticed he was dressed in a suit, where was he going?

Wait, I don't care, as long as that wasn't a new suit purchased with my card, oh, then I cared, very much.

“I have to report-,"

“I already did it," he said shrugging nonchalantly as he took another large bite of the apple.

“Reported what?" I asked

“What do you want to report?"

"How do you know what I want to report?"

He looked up just before he took a bite, "I’m not as stupid as you think I am," and I was about to argue back that he doesn't show it often but I realized he just actually helped me for once and I should be thankful.

But at the same time, my pride was getting in the way, and there was no way I was going to apologize, thank you maybe, but not an apology, and not with the way he was staring at me. What was with that look, those intense grey eyes were almost as suffocating as his stupid cologne-filled bed. I wouldn't be surprised if he bought a bottle to just sprinkle it all over the covers.

That was very much like him.

"I have to cancel my bank cards."

"That part I didn't do," He said pointing out raising a finger, "Right, you should do that, someone might take all my money" and with a last bite of the apple he placed it on the railing, balancing it, before he walked up by me on the stairs.

I scoffed, his money?

And suddenly I wasn't grateful at all, hell to the no way I was picking up that apple core, he can come back and clean it. Rather than wasting my breath, I walked past to the phone and to do the very long checklist and see when I would finish.

Not to mention it was Saturday as well, which meant half the people I needed to call were going to be closed today.

Just Perfect.

*****

“What the hell happened?" Clarice frowned as she dabbed my forehead. As a nurse, she had taken one look at me and declared for me to have a warm shower before she could patch me up, and it wasn't till I looked in the mirror I realized how bad my face looked.

Apart from the deep wound on the side of my forehead above my temple, which I hoped wouldn't scar.

I sat on my bed in a woolen robe as she kept telling me how dangerous it was and giving me her mother likes speech, as much as I loved her, I didn't at this moment. It wasn't my fault some arsehole decided to steal my things.

It shouldn't matter that I was leaving work by myself.

My car, my poor laptop. God, I can't be sitting here getting patched up, I had s**t to do.

Work to catch up on. Where the hell was my USB?

"Are you even listening to me?" she asked.

"Yeah,"

"Oh really, what did I say then?" Clarice questioned.

The silence was the answer for her as she tsk'-ed me as she continued to speak, this time I paid more attention to what she was saying. Because I knew there was a pop-quiz by the end of it. I waited till she cleaned everything up before heading downstairs with her and she wrinkled her nose distastefully as she spotted my lovely husband, cough, sitting on the couch eating a bag of Cheetos staring at the TV.

"He's still here?" She asked loud enough for him to hear.

"I’ll always be here for you ginger face."

I grabbed her arm before she started an abusive fight with Aiden which was normal and steered her into the kitchen, usually, I would let them go at it, but right now with a throbbing headache and hunger for food, I couldn't make sure no one died.

“I would think you would have divorced him by now, isn't it one year now," she whispered.

I paused my head halfway in the fridge, she was right, we had passed the one-year rule already, now I just had to check with my lawyer about the will...the stupid will.

"I didn't think about that," I said as I pulled the groceries out, I hope they weren't rotten.

Clarice raised an eyebrow as she sat on the barstool, "Do you think about anything apart from work."

"No, now I need to re-do everything, do you know how much data I have lost?"

“Right, of course," she waved an arm as I got out the chopping board and knife, "What are you going to make?"

I shrugged, "I have no idea," I said as I stared at the mismatched vegetables, what can I make? Anything edible.

Maybe I'll Just eat toast.

Giving up I grabbed slices of bread popping them into the toaster and sitting down waiting for it to toast. God was my head still meant to hurt like this. It felt like there was a wall on either side of my head and they were pressing against my temples trying to get closer to each other. Squashing my head in between.

It almost made it hurt to even think.

Clarice's phone went off making me wince the same time the toasts popped up ready. All that noise-making my head spin and my stomach churn.

I got out of my seat grabbing my slices of toast, not bothering to have any jam or butter, the last thing I wanted was to throw it all up.

Dry toasted bread should calm my stomach that felt like a sea in a storm.

"Hey, I have to go, work called, but I'll be back tonight alright."

“Yeah, sure" I shrugged. That was normal for Clarice, rushing off to work at the weirdest times, one moment was during her sister's wedding, of course, her sister stopped speaking to her for a whole month for walking off. At least it was at the end, during the reception and not during the ceremony.