Author's Note: Hello everyone! I don't know why but I have been overly cheery this entire afternoon even though I am completely exhausted and mentally strained since my classes started on wednesday but oh well. I wrote this chapter a couple weeks ago and I like some parts of it but there are some parts where it's kind of awkward and I tried my best to fix it. Well that's just a warning to ya since I am not totally proud of this chapter but at least I like the idea of it... Anyways, I kind of want to tell you guys about a dream I had the other night, it's kind of funny. I dreamt that my entire family found my story off of facebook and they all started to leave reviews about how cheezy this story (as well as Net-Buddies) and I was DEVASTATED! They were making fun of me and stuff and when I woke up I felt like it actually happened and when I went to the computer I actually sighed in relief when I didn't find any embarrassing reviews and stuff. lol. After thinking about it, it is actually not that funny... oops. But that's what happened.
And thanks HikariHotaru, Hollis2020, Sophieandblah, and Cullenluver7 for reviewing!!!
When I woke up, only god knows when, my head throbbed painfully and I found myself awkwardly positioned between on the floor and on the sofa with my limbs carelessly sprawled everywhere. I slowly opened my eyes, blinking back the tears due to the sudden exposure of the sunlight streaming in through the windows. When my eyes finally adjusted, I finally noticed that everyone was still here, passed out from all the alcohol that they had consumed the night before.
I slowly moved to a standing position to observe my surroundings. Dougie was sprawled out on the couch with his arm dangling off the edge of the couch in front of the face of a sleeping Tom Fletcher. That's when I realized that Tom was clad in only a pair of purple boxers with Giovanna at his side. I shivered in disgust at the mere thought of him stripping down or being forced to strip in my very own living room. Danny on the other hand was still in the very same spot that I saw him last, passed out on the floor, snoring away and sleeping in his own beer. And then there was Harry, fast asleep against the wall, cupping his bottle of beer loosely in his hands.
I looked over the rest of the room to see several bags of crisps and beer bottles strewn across the floor along with Tom's clothing. I had a lot of cleaning to do. Then something hit me, a wave of nausea and a painful headache… I have a hangover! Who slipped me the beer? I was furious, everyone knew that I didn't drink yet they secretly snuck alcohol into my drink. That's when I came to the logical conclusion that it was Dougie.
"Dougie you arse!" I exclaimed, slapping him in the arm and startling everyone awake. "You slipped booze into my drink!"
"Ugh… not now Cara, I'm trying to sleep!" he groaned loudly into the seat cushion.
"Doug I could have died from alcohol poison! I might need a new liver and-" Suddenly the phone started to ring, making me squeak in surprise. The loud ring from the phone definitely did not help my throbbing head. I groaned loudly in frustration before clumsily walking towards the kitchen to answer the phone.
"Hello?" I answered, my voice tired and somewhat strained.
"Cara…? Is that you?" the voice on the other end seemed unfamiliar and I was almost afraid to reply.
"Yes it is. Who is this?"
"Dougie's mum, how are ya dear? You sound ill," she replied, sounding worried. My eyes widened in surprise. Why was she calling me?
"Oh I'm fine," I lied, trying to ignore my throbbing headache. "How are you?" I asked politely.
"I'm great, thanks for asking, but I do have a question. Jazzie and I were wondering if we could have dinner tonight at your place around six? We haven't seen you or Dougie in a while and we would love to see your new place…" she replied as my eyes travelled around the messy living room.
"Sure you can come over," I said, trying to sound happy and excited, "and it'll be great for Dougie to see his mum." I walked over to Dougie and hit him on the shoulder, whispering, "Dougie… it's your mum!"
He looked up at me and groaned in annoyance before turning away and grumbling into the pillow.
"I would let you talk to him but he's being a butt and won't get out of bed," I said into the phone. I heard her laugh softly, similar to my own mothers.
"Oh it's okay. I'll talk to him tonight at dinner and hopefully encourage him to get up earlier," she said, chuckling lightly. "Well Cara, we'll see you tonight at six, see you."
"Bye Mrs. Poynter," I said before hanging up and putting the phone back on the jack.
"Dougie!" I exclaimed, smacking him on the back. "Your mum and sister are coming over tonight at six!"
He groaned loudly into the pillow before finally sitting up. "Why?" he asked, rubbing his eyes, attempting to rid them of sleep. "What's the occasion?"
"Dougie, she's your mum! She and Jazzie can see you whenever they want to and they are coming over tonight to see our new flat and to see you! Now, get up, it's almost noon and we have a lot to do," I said quickly as I walked over to Gio who was still fast asleep on the floor. I gently nudged her on the arm as Dougie walked past me, heading to the bathroom.
"Gio… wake up…" I said, nudging her on the shoulder. After a few seconds of poking her in the shoulder, her eyes slowly fluttered open.
"Whahh?" she asked sleepily, rubbing her eyes. "Ugh my head… how much did I drink?" She slowly sat up and looked over her surroundings, "I guess we had more than we thought…" She held out her hand and I helped her up onto her feet. "Do you have any Advil or something?"
"Yeah… it's in the kitchen cupboard by the stove and can you get me some too?" I replied, picking up the pillows and placing them back on the couch. A moment later, Giovanna returned with some Advil and a glass of water. I grabbed the glass and I took the two pills and quickly downed them in own gulp. "Thanks."
"Sure… no problem," She said as she wandered back into the kitchen. "Do you need some help cleaning?" she offered as she returned to the living room once again. "It looks like the boys trashed the place…"
I chuckled lightly. "Yeah I do, Doug's mum and sister are coming over at six and I need to at least get the boys out of here."
I walked over to Danny who laid there, still and quiet, but awake. "Danny… you okay?" I asked, kneeling down beside him.
"I am gonna blow chunks!" he exclaimed suddenly, quickly scurrying off to the bathroom and moments later, I heard him ridding the contents of his stomach.
"Eww Danny! I'm in the shower!" Dougie exclaimed, sounding completely disgusted.
I stood up and walked over to Harry who was just sitting there tiredly, just watching us girls.
"C'mon Harry, you gotta get to your own apartment and then you can sleep it off or do whatever, 'kay?" I said, taking the bottle of beer out of his hand and placing it on the nearby end table. "Here, give me your hand and I'll help you to your apartment." I grabbed his hand and pulled him up into an upright position. I wrapped an arm around his waist, making sure he would not fall over. Thank god his apartment was just across the hallway…
I ended up walking him over to his apartment and placing him in his bed. I walked into the kitchen and grabbed him some medicine and a glass of cold water, placing them on his nightstand for whenever he decides to wake up and act more lively.
"Bye Harry," I said quickly before returning to my own apartment to see that Danny and Tom were gone, and Giovanna picking up the empty beer bottles.
"Thanks for helping Gio," I said, picking up the bag of crisps and throwing them away.
"You're welcome and I know that you would help me too if this happened," she replied casually, placing the bottles underneath the sink for later. I gave her a friendly smile before wandering back into the living room and doing some more cleaning. After two hours of scrubbing every nick and cranny, the flat was clean enough to my standards and thankfully my head was feeling almost normal except for the slight buzz feeling. .
"Thank you so much Gio, I wouldn't know what to do without ya, I think the guys would end up killing me," I laughed as I gave her a quick hug.
"You're welcome and call me later, I want to know how it goes," she said, giving me a cheeky grin. I smiled back before closing the door behind her. I glanced up at the clock that hung on the wall beside the door. It was close to four in the afternoon.
"Dougie!" he called out, wandering into the kitchen.
"What?" he asked, wandering into the kitchen, clad in his usual attire which consisted of baggy jeans and a brown plaid shirt.
"Will your mum and sister like pasta? Or would they prefer something different?" I asked, pulling out a couple of pots and pans.
"Uhh pasta is fine and I don't know," he replied leaning up against the counter.
"Dougie, they're your family! You should know what their favorite food is by now…" I scolded, filling the pot with water and letting it come to a boil on the stove.
He laughed. "I don't even know what your favorite food is."
I glared at him in response before returning to my cooking. "Just make sure you don't make a mess between now and when your mum and sister leave tonight, okay? Giovanna and I worked hard trying to get this place spotless."
"Yeah sure, I'll be in my 'man room'," he replied, using air quotations before walking off. I continued to prepare the dinner for tonight which consisted of pasta with sauce, homemade white bread, and salad with several different kinds of dressings. By the time I was finished and with the table set for the evening, it was a half hour to six.
I scurried off to my room and quickly changed into my black, boot leg dress pants; a white button up shirt with short sleeves, and a black vest that matched my pants. I quickly slipped on my heels before heading to the bathroom. I brushed my wavy brown hair and put on some light make up. I know I was never a fan of makeup but I was forced to get used to it ever since I decided to live with Dougie, makeup just comes with the part of dating a celebrity.
As soon as I was finished I heard the doorbell ring and I rushed to his 'man room'.
"Dougie, they're here!" I said, poking my head into the room to see him playing on the computer.
"Oh Okay." He got off the computer and followed me to the front door. I was feeling nervous, almost uneasy. I have met his mother and sister before but we still don't know each other all that well. I sighed, trying to calm my nerves, and then I opened the door.
Mrs. Poynter still looked the same from when I saw her last, almost four months ago. Her short, wavy blonde hair was graying slightly with age, but her bluish gray eyes were still lively and happy as well as her smile. Even to this day, it still surprises me how much Dougie and Jazzie look like their mother; they all share the infamous Poynter nose and bluish gray eyes. After a few years of knowing Jazzie, she tends to die her hair more frequently than anyone I have ever known and today it seemed to be close to a reddish brown that were in soft curls.
"Hi Jazzie, hi Mrs. Poynter," I greeted, giving them both a welcoming hug as they entered our apartment. "It's so nice to see you both." I watched as Dougie greeted his mum and sister, with a smile on his face that couldn't possibly get any wider.
"Dougie, I can't believe I'm seeing you! It's been way too long. You should visit your mum more often," his mum scolded, giving him a warm smile. "How've you been sweetheart?"
"I'm great mum, I've been busy but you get used to it after a while," he answered, giving her a smile. "Hey, do you want to see the rest of the flat?"
"Of course I do, sweetheart! I want to make sure your home comfortable and livable," she replied as we headed into the living room.
I poked Dougie in the side and looked down at me. "See? Our new home needs to be homey and comfortable," I said, referring to the comment he made yesterday.
"What did Dougie say now?" Jazzie asked curiously, a small smile appearing on her face.
"I said that a man needs food, shelter, beer and…" he glanced over at his mother before finishing his statement, "Intimacy?"
Jazzie burst out laughing and smacked Dougie in the shoulder, "When will you learn that women will always control the household, Dougs? It's just the way things are." I looked up at Dougie and gave him a cheeky grin and just stuck out his tongue.
We continued to show them the rest of the flat and let's just say that his mum and sister were very happy with everything, except his 'man room'. Let's just say that his mum and sister, who was laughing the entire time, didn't really approve of his overly sexual, female posters.
"I hope you don't mind but I made pasta for dinner. I asked Dougie what you two usually eat but he was absolutely no help to me," I said as we all sat down for dinner.
"I don't mind at all sweetheart," Mrs. Poynter replied, giving me a friendly smile.
"And Cara, I love this kind of pasta," Jazzie added, taking a spoonful of lasagna on her plate.
"Well that's great," I said, giving them both a happy smile. We continued to eat and chat about nothing in particular, that is, until Mrs. Poynter decided to be all serious and motherly.
"So, what are you two planning on doing?" she asked curiously as she finished up the last of her pasta.
"About what?" Dougie asked, raising an eyebrow in confusion.
"About the future in general I suppose. You two have been together for a long time and I just wanted to know your thoughts," she elaborated. I don't know if I like where this is going…
"Well, I guess we'll just keep doin' what we've been doin'," Dougie replied, staring at his pasta as he poked it with his fork.
"Okay, I guess I just have to ask Cara this," she muttered as she turned to face me. Oh jeez… what's she gonna ask me?
I watched as Dougie as he grabbed his glass of water. Wow… he is zoning out and not even paying attention to his mother.
"When are you two going to have babies?" she asked, completely serious. Suddenly, water sprayed out of Dougie's mouth in complete and utter shock.
"Whahh?!" He was looking at his mum in complete surprise. "What did you just say?" I couldn't believe I was hearing this…
"I want grandbabies!" she repeated, throwing her hands in the air. "I want to see and hold and love my own grandchild and it seems that I am only getting that through you two since Jazzie and her boyfriend just started to date and are nowhere near close to being a serious relationship."
"Oh umm… I-I don't know what to say," I stuttered, trying to make the conversation less awkward.
"Uhh… mum… we haven't talked about that…" Dougie commented, staring at his plate, attempting to avoid all eye contact.
"Oh… I guess I understand, but what about marriage? You two have been dating for two and a half years now. I just assumed that you two had a general idea of what you two want…"
"I guess we don't…" Dougie said, looking up at his mother. Then the room was engulfed in an awkward silence.
"So… uhh… Jazzie? You have a new boyfriend?" I asked, trying to make the awkwardness go away.
"Uhh… yes I do. His name is Brent. He is really sweet and he is on the football team for one of the local colleges. I can never remember the name, it always escapes me…" he replied, giving me a small smile.
"Aww that's really nice. I'm glad you found someone."
"So… when am I gonna meet this bloke? You have to get my approval before you start dating someone…" Dougie said, giving her a small smile.
"Well mum already gave me her decision and that's all that matters," she replied, sticking out her tongue.
"I met him Dougie and he is a gentleman," Mrs. Poynter reassured. Eventually the conversation changed and became less awkward as time went on. The rest of the night went by smoothly and it was close to half past nine by the time Mrs. Poynter and Jazzie left. And let's just say that I was quite relieved.
"Oh jeez… I really wasn't expecting that," I muttered as I cleared away the dining table. "When she started to get serious I thought about the marriage part but I was not expecting her to practically yell out that she wants grandchildren."
"Oh I know…" he said quietly, leaning up against the wall.
"But I think she's partly right. We haven't really given to much thought about the future Doug, we're currently living in the present and we're not even thinking about our future." Once the table was cleaned and free from clutter, I sat down in one of the chairs, silently watching Dougie.
"I think that maybe we should talk about this…" I said quietly, after a moment of silence.
"Well… I don't," he replied, his voice barely above a whisper. "I'll be in my room." He walked towards me and gave me a soft kiss on the cheek before making his way to his 'man room'.
I admit, I want children and to get married, but do I really want to get married when our relationship is still young? Would it even last if we actually did? I sighed and stared down at my hands that lay in my lap. "I guess we did survive dinner Doug, but will we survive long enough to have a future?" I asked quietly into the silence. Nothing answered back.