"Chug! Chug! Chug!"

My throat starts to hurt as I swallow.

"Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug!"

Each breath gets shorter and shorter when more and more of the frothy stuff pours itself down my throat for me to swallow. The chants of encouragement from the people around me speed up.

"Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug!"

I tilt my head upwards to where the funnel tube comes from and suck on it a little harder to try and keep going as long as I can.

"Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug!"

In the middle of swallowing, I take a breath at the wrong time and my throat closes up real badly. The soreness in my throat turns to burning and I cough up what's in my throat, pushing away the guy holding the funnel over me so I can lean forward to cough some more. Everyone cheers around me while I struggle to breath properly again and my head feels like it's being squeezed in a vice for a few seconds before I get my lungs under control.

God I feel like I'm gonna die.

Slowly, I start to feel semi-normal again with the exception of the light-headed thing that makes me feel like I'm swimming.

But at least it's better than the stuff I normally feel, and that's good enough for me.

Some idiot invades my personal space by leaning over and getting within eye level of me.

"You had enough? Or would you like some more?"

Ugh... I don't think I could take anymore right now. I think I'm done for tonight.

"No, I think I'll stop now."

He smiles with this stupid grin.

"Are you sure? People always say that the third time's a charm."

My stomach lurches as I straighten up in the chair I was sitting in.

"Uh, no... I'm done for the night. Let someone else be a brain dead beer guzzler for a while."

Trying to get my feet under me, I feel the room swerve for a second and things get a little blurry. I close my eyes to make it stop.

"That's too bad. You've got quite the set of lungs on you. I bet you could give most of the guys a run for their money if you put a bet on it."

Well, at least I know I'm improving. That's something I guess.

"Goodie for me. But I think I'd rather go home and wait for the throbbing headache in the morning."

The room stops moving finally and I manage to get my feet under me so I can walk. He turns to the crowd that apparently formed around me.

"Looks like she's quitting boys..."

They complain with a collective 'Aww'.

"I know, but hey, maybe she'll come back next week or something and entertain us again. Who's next?"

Looking around, I try and find some sign of the way I came in but things get a little blurry again.

This can't be a good thing.

Another guy comes up to me.

"Hey babe, you don't have to wait till morning for something throbbing if you don't want to. I could give you a ride home and show you something really cool."

My eyes roll back at the guy.

Ugh, there's always at least one of them at every party. Makes me wanna puke in a way that doesn't have anything to do with my stomach sloshing the way it is.

"I'd rather wait for my skull to split open. Thanks..."

His smile turns into a frown and he steps forward into my personal space.

"Hey come on, don't be like that. I promise it'll be worth your while."

I raise my hand and use it to push him away.

"Thanks but no thanks..."

With him out of the way, I just start walking past him, not really sure I'm going in the right direction.

At least it's away from him.

"I'm not a bad guy when you get to know me."

Somehow, I kinda doubt that.

"Don't take it personally, you're not my type."

He starts following me to wherever I'm going.

"How do you know that unless you try my type?"

I stop, giving the brown haired sports jock the courtesy of a once over before I roll my eyes again.

Yeah, right...

"Trust me. You've got nothing I want."

As I start to try and get away from him again, he grabs me by the shoulder and forces me to look at him.

"Hey, that was..."

It makes the room sway again and I trip over my own feet, crashing to the floor.

Ow... fuck...

The dumb jock is about to say something when some other guy steps in.

"All right, that's enough of that. It's probably time for this young lady to get on her way home. And since I'm the one with the 'Safe Ride' keys tonight, I elect me to be her driver."

He gets in between me and the loser.

Gee, my hero.

Dumb jock guy scoffs angrily at 'Safe Ride' guy.

"You're always the one with the 'Safe Ride' keys. It makes you a real dick Carter."

'Safe Ride' guy chuckles.

"Yeah, well that's cause I'm not into drunk girls who don't know which way is up Trevor. I prefer women who can actually think and have intelligent conversation."

I think part of that insult was directed at me. Guess it's a good thing I don't really feel enough of it to care.

"Go find yourself some girl who is sober enough to take you home under her own power why don't you?"

I'm not really sure I like this guy anymore.

Dumb jock guy stares 'Safe Ride' guy down for a second before walking away. When dumb jock is far enough away, 'Safe Ride' turns to me and holds out his hand to help me up.

"Come on, let's get you home."

Well, at least he's giving me a ride. That puts him almost on the plus side.

I take his hand and try not to fall over as he helps me up. When I get about almost upright, things get a little blurry and I fall into him. He catches me, holding me up with an arm around my shoulders until he can take one of my arms and put it over his shoulders. I lean on him and he starts to walk us out.

"Coming through, out of the way..."

* * *

The stupid golf cart hums along as it glides along the campus walkways.

Gugh! I really don't feel good.

Raising my hand up to my head, I shift a little in the very small seat I'm sitting in as I run my fingers through my hair to get it out of my face.

But I'm pretty sure that it's my fault for drinking so much. Things are always my fault, whether I did anything wrong or not. So I'm sure that this nauseous feeling in my stomach is my fault too, especially after doing all that drinking tonight.

That need to throw up dies down a little bit when I take a few long deep breaths.

It's the only thing that makes it go away though. The only thing that takes away that deep gnawing emptiness inside me that just won't go away until I wanna cry my eyes out of me. And that's not going to happen.

I start to feel uncomfortable sitting this way, so I shift to try and sit another way.

I won't let it happen. She doesn't deserve it. The bitch may be 100 miles away, but I still wouldn't give her the satisfaction. I'll never cry over a bitch like her. Not after what she did to me, not even if I lived to be a million. So it's better that I feel this nauseous, uncomfortable, almost numb feeling instead. At least it feels something close to almost good like I'm feeling now instead. Even the splitting headache that I'll have tomorrow feels better then wanting to cry.

"So..."

His voice makes me shift a little to look at him from my slightly hunched over kinda limp position in my seat.

"You look like you had some fun tonight."

Trying to focus my eyes makes my head hurt so I squeeze my eyes shut to make it stop.

"Yeah well, looks can be deceiving."

He takes a second to answer.

"I was trying to be sarcastic."

Oh, great...

"You failed."

"Apparently..."

'Safe Ride' guy doesn't say anything for a second while he drives.

"Look, are you sure you're gonna be all right if I just drop you off at your dorm? You seem kinda trashed."

I do my best to pull myself up to a halfway decent sitting position to see where we are.

"Like I said, looks can be deceiving."

"And sometimes they aren't. Maybe it's better if I drop you off with a friend or something."

If he actually knew me, he might know how stupid that sounds.

"I don't have any friends to be dropped with. Just take me home."

"You're sure there's no one I can drop you off with who could take care of you?"

I used to have people like that, but they aren't around anymore.

"No..."

"No friends? Maybe family?"

I don't like this guy anymore.

"No, just take me the fuck home already. And you don't have to worry. I have a roommate. If I swallow my tongue and choke to death on it when I pass out, I'm sure she'll find me sooner or later."

He doesn't say anything right away.

"Okay, fine. I was just trying to help."

Everyone's always trying to help.

"How about you stop? Make things easier on both of us."

"Fine... just tell me your name so we can get this over with."

"Why? So we can make small talk?"

"No, so I can input it into the computer and the campus GPS can tell me where your dorm room is and I can drop you the hell off."

Thank god he finally gets it.

"It's Dawn... Dawn Summers."

"Great..."

He starts to punch my name into the dashboard computer. Eventually the computer speaks.

"Dawn Summers, currently residing at Toyon Hall. Be sure to make your next right."

He sighs.

"Thank god... just try not to die on me all right? It would look really bad on me if you went and died after I took you home."

This guy isn't as nice as he pretends to be.

"Screw you..."

"No thanks, I'm partial to girls who can tell where the sky is."

That was definitely directed at me. Son of a bitch...

"Hey, I know which way is up..."

Pointing my middle finger upward, I show it to him.

"It's THAT way."

He looks at my finger and glowers back at me for a second before going back to driving.

"Whatever..."

The dashboard talks again.

"Make a right turn here."

'Asshole' guy turns the steering wheel and the car turns, my stomach turning with it.

Whoa, okay... try not to throw up.

Everything in my stomach starts to come up, and I know that's not gonna happen. I lean over the side of the cart and almost fall off as he stops fast and I empty my stomach onto the walkway.

Too late...