As Lola left the room I peered at the other occupants surrounding me. Grace was nervously smiling at me. Lyndsey continued to make polite conversation with her. "So how long have you and Tom been together?" grace asked inquisitively yet amiably. "Oh it must only be about five months but to be honest in kind of feels like we have been together for ages,, doesn't it hun?" said lyndsey. Tom lifted his head slightly and grunted in response his hangover obviously beginning to take further affect on his body. "What about Danny and Lola I know they said they are best friends but they look so cute together surely something else must be going on?" asked Grace. Usually Lyndsey would go off on a tangent agreeing completely but to my surprise she disagreed and protested that they were merely very close friends. We heard them come trampling down the stairs, "we're heading to Lolly's see you jerks later." Danny quickly shouted before they ran out the door slamming it behind them. After a few minutes Danny's car could be heard zooming out the drive and a silence overcame the room.
Tom was lazily looking towards the empty TV Screen, trying to deal with the consequences of copious amounts of alcohol from the previous night. Lyndsey was looking at me expectantly. I felt like her gaze was asking me a million questions, but she couldn't decide which question to articulate first, she looked a little sad and confused. I yearned for her to help me, Grace's arrival had sent my head into turmoil and I couldn't seem to function let alone think of a solution to this mess.
"hey Tom why don't you go and get some food for lunch this place has been cleared out and get some carpet cleaner from tesco while you're at it, this carpet is wrecked from all the drinks spilt on it last night." lyndsey said still looking at me inquisitively yet accusingly. Tom took a while to realise someone was talking to him and then had to use his, by the looks of it severely hung over brain to try and figure out what was being said to him.
"Eeuggh can we not just order in? my body still feels like its half dead from all that bloody tequila last night." he groaned while resting his head against the arm of the couch in an attempt to look helpless. " no come on we have to try and clean this carpet before its beyond repair and I can't go as I'm not dressed yet, plus the air will do you good and remember your pain is completely self inflicted therefore don't look for sympathy from me mister." she said with a chuckle while ruffling his hair. Tom groaned, slowly and reluctantly rising from his place on the couch." hang on how the hell am I supposed to know what cleaning products to get? lyndsey you have seen this place after a weekend when the cleaners haven't come in, I don't think we have ever bought anything even resembling cleaning stuff." said tom loudly and with a hint of joy, thinking this was his ticket back to his seat on the couch.
" I'll help you Tom! Harry here is obviously still in a sleepy daze so is no use to me yet so how about I go with you and help you pick up lunch and stuff and we can all sit down later and I can get to know you guys even more." said Grace sweetly. Grace was a genuinely lovely sweet girl so it sent a strong jolt of guilt run through me seeing her make such an effort with my friends when I knew I was most likely going to hurt her later on that day.
Tom smiled weakly and moved towards the door, "come on then my cleaning mentor, off we go." Grace jumped up from her seat. "See you later babe, drink some water it will help the hang over." she said planting a gentle kiss on my lips. "Eh yeah see ya." I said just before the door closed. I was still standing in the middle of the room I hadn't moved an inch since the moment my eyes rested on Lola's.
As we heard the car drive away and we both knew it was safe to speak candidly Lyndsey let out a loud and strenuous sigh.
" Harry what are you playing at, seriously I thought you were crazy about Lola, and I probably shouldn't say this but she is most definitely interested, but she is never going to go near you if you have a girlfriend, did you talk to her last night like you said you were going to ?" I silently moved over to the couch and pondered the questions she asked me. "I know Lola is interested, Lyndsey. We didn't really get to talk that much last night but stuff happened and now after meeting Grace she is probably never going to want to talk to me again." I said while resting my head in my hands and running my fingers roughly through my hair in frustration.
"What do you mean stuff happened?" said Lyndsey tentatively nearly sounding afraid of what I was going to tell her. I looked up into her face and found her eyes looking back at me with a strong need for information. I didn't really know how to describe what had happened, we had just spent the night kissing on the floor of the utility room which sounds very innocent and insignificant, but it was so much more. Each kiss was filled with such raw lust, passion and even love that they were anything but innocent and inconsequential. Each kiss had a million consequences and possibilities attached to it.
"Look we didn't sleep together or anything but we ended up spending the night kissing. Lyndsey, I know this is going to sound so stupid and cliché but it wasn't just a quick fumble in the utility room it was so much more, this is going to sound so ridiculous and you probably won't believe me but I actually forgot Grace even existed. Lola just has the weird affect on me that makes me forget the rest of the world. I can't lose her; I was so close to have it wrenched away from me is just too cruel. What the hell am I going to do?" my body now felt like it had been drained of all energy. Everything seemed to be crashing down around me and all those possibilities I had considered in the park seemed to have built themselves into reality.
Lyndsey sat in silence for a few moments, I could nearly hear her brain examining all the information it had just attained. I could sense Lyndsey wanted to scream at me for treating Lola so badly but as I felt her move off her seat and sit beside me I understood that she realised that her screaming at me would have no benefit, I was already berating myself enough. I think she knew that I had not meant to hurt her but I had hurt her and there was no changing that.
She placed an arm around my shoulders and rested her head on my shoulder. The world's best matchmaker was as clueless about the situation as I was. We sat there in silence waiting for the answer to my problems to make itself clear.
