Chapter 76

Deja Vu

Rhi POV

We're all sitting on the couch once again and I'm just smiling like a lunatic. "This could be fun. You know, if we embraced this, we might actually be able to do something to change the negativity in the world. You know, like the movie Pay it Forward? I don't want anything staged though. I mean, what's the point of that? It takes away from the genuine feeling." Still smiling, I add, "I mean, I'm going to try to not get angry at the stuff on the internet. I would like to have some anonymity still but a little privacy would be appreciated though."

"You know, that's not a bad idea but you should be careful. You might attract the wrong attention. People do all kinds of things to ruin a good thing. Just be careful." Ana says.

"Ana's right. You need to be careful with things. I love the idea though!" Kate adds.

"How are you guys feeling? Can you function normal or do you want to hang out here a while longer to sober up?" I ask. "We can always stay in and order room service." I offer.

Ana smiles, "Eh, I think I can handle my alcohol better than Kate. I'm not drunk at all." She laughs, "Kate's such a light weight." Kate pushes her off the couch and laughs.

"You're such a liar. You're just as bad a me. That's a good thing though because, surprisingly enough, I don't feel as drunk as I was before that little nap." Kate answers.

I laugh, "Kate, that wasn't a nap. You guys flat out passed the hell out. But sometimes that helps. You guys are still slurring a bit too much and are probably wobbly. Let's take our time going out and you can have a little more recovery time." I wink. I feel kind of bad making them drink that much. I promise myself that I'll pull it back a little. I'll try anyway. "We need to get a little food in you right now though so let me see if there's anything in the fridge to snack on. Otherwise we're going to have to make do with the pastries from this morning."

I stand up and walk into the kitchen to check things out but find nothing of substance that will help. Damn. Heading back to the couch, "Looks like it's pastries for now. You guys need to eat a couple of muffins because they're on the small side." Handing them each a napkin they nod and select what they want. "Don't worry, I'm going to have one too."

I inhale mine. I must be hungrier than I thought. Kate and Ana take a little longer because they have two. I can't eat more than one. Especially if they plan on me actually consuming food at dinner.

We sit and eat quietly, and I'm lost in my thoughts. I'm feeling pretty OK right now. I still don't feel anything in my arm, so that's a good thing. I'd be lying if I wasn't worried about the block wearing off. I'm no fool, broken bones hurt like a bitch once the pain meds wear off. Especially when it's right after a procedure and it's the nerve block that's wearing off. That's the worst. I remember one time I had surgery on my leg and the nerve block wore off. I got up to go to the bathroom and couldn't even move without screaming. It was horrible. I hope my arm isn't that bad. No matter how much I've dealt with in the past pain still hurts.

I put up a good front covering it up but there are times when I want to break down and cry because it hurts so bad. I'm not about to admit that to anyone. I'm too stubborn to admit that weakness. I'd never hear the end of it from anyone and they would force pain meds and resting all the time. I hate taking meds of any kind. I don't like the way they make me feel. They make me feel out of control and vulnerable so I'd rather use alcohol. I'm used to the effects. Back home people would never let me go out like I do. They know I'm not weak but they also know I'm going to do what I want when I want. That's why I'm happy that I live alone. Freedom.

From all this shit that's happened I know dad would be extremely upset with my actions and lack of my self-care but it's all I've known for the past few years. However, since Dad died, Brad has become more involved. Especially since the situation with my mother when it was revealed he was my biological father. We've gotten close over time and all the shit that happened has brought us closer. He still doesn't know me as well as anyone else who helped raise me. I still can't call him dad, because there's no way I'll ever be able to call anyone that ever again, but our relationship is pretty close. My dad can't ever be replaced.

Joe has taken over as a surrogate dad and stays active in my life. Actually, they all do. Joe, dad's attorney, and I have always been close, maybe closer than most people would think. He's my attorney now but he's also my friend. Someone I look up to and can confide in. He knows almost everything about me and can usually read me like a book. I hope he never hears what happened here. He'll be extremely unhappy with me. Hopefully, he won't see the treasure hunt stuff. He typically doesn't pay much attention to that kind of thing so maybe luck will be on my side and he won't find out.

I'm not sure how long we've been sitting here but I'm brought out thoughts by an elbow to the side. Shaking my head I look at Kate who's sitting next to me. "What was that for?" I give her a push back on her shoulder.

Kate smirks, "You know, if you weren't hurt I'd take you down." Ana watches as we have a standoff.

"I'd like to see you try. Bring it on." I smile, waiting and preparing to see what she does next.

Ana rolls her eyes, "You two are like a couple of children." Shaking her head, she looks at me. "Guys, knock it off. I'm hungry and don't feel like I'm that drunk, though I still have a good buzz. Rhi, go see if Alex is awake yet. If he's not, let him sleep and we'll figure out something to eat."

Kate gives me a push and I'm caught off guard and fall over, sliding off the couch, landing on my ass. Sliding down, I'm now laying on the floor flat on my back and start laughing. So far Ana and I are the only ones on the floor and Kate is the only one on the couch.

"WOO HOO! I'm the last one sitting on furniture! I win!" She cheers, pumping her fists in the air in victory.

Ana and I look at each other and while Kate is distracted in her celebration, we grab her feet and pull her off the couch so she's on the floor just like us. The three of us are in a pile on the floor in front of the couch laughing hysterically.

"No winners today Kate!" Ana shouts laughing.

"Oh my god I have to pee so bad! Stop making me laugh!" I say, trying to catch my breath.

I'm struggling to get up and let me just say doing it one-handed is quite difficult, especially while laughing. Rolling over onto my stomach, I rise up on my left forearm and pull knees up to give myself balance. That's the theory anyway. In essence, I've basically got my ass sticking up in the air and my head is down on my good forearm. I think I'm doing OK when I lose balance and fall over again, landing on my left shoulder, laughing hysterically.

I seriously need help otherwise I'm going to pee right here. "Guys! Stop! I have to pee! Help me up. PLEASE!" My pleas fall on deaf ears because the three of us are totally out of control laughing. Taking A deep breath I'm able to slow down my laughing and ask, "Hey guys, you know what?" I'm hoping to catch their attention.

Ana and Kate look at me, their laughing calming a little. "What Rhi?" Ana asks.

Smiling, I reply, "It feels good to laugh. We haven't laughed like this in a long time! It's been too long. Whew!" I take a deep breath. "Seriously though, I've got to pee. Can someone help me up?" We've all got tears in our eyes and running down our faces from laughing so hard. Kate and Ana get up and help me get up. "Thank you guys, I'll be right back."

I walk into the bedroom quietly because I'm not sure if he's awake or not. I don't stop to check and head straight into the bathroom. As soon as I get inside, realization hits me like a brick. How am I going to do this? I have to pee so bad and I can only use my left hand.

"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god! FUCK!" I'm struggling to get my pants off, which I do just in time before I pee myself. "Oh my god that was close!" I say out loud. Finishing up, I flush the toilet and stand up. "Now, how in the fuck am I going to do this?" Bending over I grab my shorts and start pulling them up. First the left side, then the right side, alternating back and forth. "Mother fucker!" I say loudly when my hand slips and the shorts fall back around my feet.

I'm leaning against the wall and lose balance and start to fall over but I twist quickly so I land on my ass instead of my arm. I'm exhausted by this time so I roll back and lay down, facing the ceiling. Closing my eyes, I lay there, trying to catch my breath with my shorts around my knees.

I growl, "Fuck! This isn't going to work. I can't even dress myself! I guess I'll just run around naked from the waist down." I sigh, frustrated.

A deep voice asks, "Would you like some help?"

I jump and shriek, "What the fuck!" Opening my eyes, I look up and see Alex's smiling face looking down at me. He looks confused and amused.

"I wouldn't mind you naked from the waist down but I certainly don't want anyone else to see." He chuckles but his eyes are a little darker than usual.

I start laughing once again at the image that pops into my head. I imagine I look ridiculous, laying on my back on the floor of the bathroom, shorts around my knees, arm in a sling and laughing.

"Hi." I say with a wave, smiling up at him.

He looks down at me, "Hi." Smiling, he shakes his head. "Do you want some help getting up or do you want to stay on the floor half naked?"

I laugh again, "Is that a trick question?" I grin.

He smiles, shakes his head and laughs. "Come on, let's get you up and get your pants on." Bending down, he picks me up and once I'm upright he pulls my pants up and buttons them. Before he stands up he looks at me. "I can't put my finger on it but it feels like I've been in this same situation before. Kind of like Deja Vu." He winks and laughs then stands up and looks down at me.

Rolling my eyes I squint at him. "Oh ha ha." I laugh. "Thank you. Did I wake you? If I did, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to."

Reaching out, he caresses my cheek, leans down and kisses me gently. "No, you didn't wake me. I've been awake for a few minutes." Glancing at my arm he asks, "Are you OK? How is your arm? Did you hurt it when you fell?"

Smiling, I look up at him. "I'm OK. My arm is still numb so I can't feel anything. Did you sleep well? Did you get enough sleep?"

He's silent as he looks down at me with a slight melancholic glint in his eyes.

"Alex? What's wrong?" I ask, concerned, searching his face.

He sighs, "Nothing is wrong. Everything is fine. I just missed you while I was sleeping." He pauses, "I fall asleep with you in my arms and wake with you gone. I just hope I can help you get to the point that we can wake up together." He whispers, "I want to be the one to wake you up."

I look down briefly and when I look back I say, "Alex, it wasn't like I didn't want to sleep with you, I did, I just wasn't tired. I was hanging out with Ana and Kate and we had a really good time. It was nice to laugh like we used to. It felt really good and normal. Besides, I wanted you to sleep. You were so tired and needed your rest. Did you get enough sleep? Do you feel better?"

Smiling, he replies, "I feel a lot better. Thank you for letting me sleep. I really needed it. Now I have energy."

Placing his hands on my face, he pulls my face up, leans down and kisses me deeply. Wrapping my left arm around his neck, he suddenly puts his hands under my bottom and picks me up. Wrapping my legs around his waist, he carries me back to the bed where he sits down with me on his lap.

Pulling away from him, I look into his eyes. "I really love being in your arms. When I'm sleeping AND awake. Reaching up, I start to play with his beard but stop when I hear his stomach growl. I laugh, "You're hungry."

With a sly smile, he says, "Yes, I am. For more than just food." He wiggles his eyebrows and chuckles.

Leaning up, I give him a quick kiss and say, "Later. We need to get you, Kate and Ana fed. They sent me in here to come get you so we can decide what to do for dinner."

He nods and lifts me up to set me on my feet. Standing up, we walk out to find the girls.