Chapter dedication: -sxniya

Song of recommendation for the chapter: Florence + The Machine - What kind of Man. 🎧🎶🎶

*

"Fuck!" Chris groaned as he staggered out of his car, his knees knocking together in his bid not to plant his face on the floor. "Fuck 'em all."

He pushed away from the body of the passenger door, managed to shut his car door and pressed the lock button on the key fob, before staggering his way into elevator. His nose smarted and dried blood caked the lower part of his face, but it was all nothing compared to the pain in his heart.

Lee made her sister and that brute husband of hers throw him out because she didn't want to tell him to get lost to his face.

The fucking pussy.

When the elevator arrived at his floor, Chris stumbled out of it, almost knocked his head into the wall, but soft hands closed around him and pulled him back in time. He leaned into the soft embrace with a satisfied sigh.

"Lee, I knew you loved me," he said as he was led to his door. Chris squinted in the bright but he could only make out the outline of a woman with long, colorful hair. "Beautiful."

"Yeah and you're drunk." The woman laughed as she slotted the key into the hole and unlocked the door, then she reached for him again.

Chris let himself be led into the room, humming a tune he couldn't remember, but it sounded good in his mind. He shouldn't have drank so much before going to see Lee, but he figured he needed liquid courage for when she finally rejected him for the second time; at least he could leave knowing that he tried his best.

Nothing prepared him for meeting Sutton and her hostility towards him. How dare she blame him for not visiting her sister when she was the one who pushed him away in the first place?

But that didn't matter, since Lee was here herself and was helping him into his house. Sutton couldn't separate them if she tried. That girl needed to learn about boundaries, but that would come later when he could count the numbers of his fingers without seeing twenty of them.

Chris wiggled his fingers in front of his face. "Lee, why are there so many fun. . .fingers?"

Lee laughed. "How many do you see, Chris?"

"Twenish of them. Couldn't not count count." He murmured. "I. . .count—"

"Shh, baby, you're quiet the talker when you're drunk."

Chris stumbled over the threshold of his bedroom with a giggle. "When we fuck too."

"Yeah, that." She groaned. "You're one heavy fucker. Come on, into bed you go."

Chris fell on the bed with a happy sigh. "I thought I lost you, Ledia. I hurt in my heart after you left."

"Technically you left her," Lee's image grinned down at him. "But finders keepers and all that shit. You're mine now, and you will be for a very long time."

"Kiss me, Lee."

"Gladly." Lee's image fell on him and took his mouth in a kiss that made his toes curl and cock hard as nails. She pulled back with a satisfied sigh. "Baby, we're going to have fun all night."

"Why do you taste different?"

"Must be your blood," she gasped. "I can get it cleaned up, but I so much like blood."

"That's weird." Chris started to get up, but grunted when he was pushed down and straddled around the  middle. "I don't want to do this."

"Tell you what, if we get naked together and you don't feel like doing it anymore, I'll stop. How about that?"

"Okay."

Chris felt his clothes leaving his body, the brief absence of weight on his middle, then something wonderful was happening to his cock.

He groaned and fisted the sheets as pleasure heightened in him.  Then he registered the feeling of the mouth on his shaft which felt nothing like Lee's mouth. His erection flagged immediately.

Lee's image lifted of him with a curse. "You fucking bastard. Only that bitch can make you get it up, huh? You're going to be so sorry that you did this to me, you limp dick motherfucker!"

Nothing made sense to Chris anymore because he couldn't for the life of him understand why Lee was cursing and calling him names. Darkness began to swirl in his vision as that weight came back on him in full force. He could barely breath. He registered sharp stings all over his neck and upper torso. Then he heard a scream.

"Lee, wha—"

His vision darkness until there was nothing he could register again. His lips trembled and his body shook from the assault unleashed on his body.

When it finally stopped, Lee's image grinned down at him and said, "Let's see how you get out of this one, honey."

Chris let himself be sucked into the  vortex of darkness with a niggling in the back of his mind that something wasn't right.

*

The first sound that greeted her ears as she regained consciousness was the soft beeping of machines. Then the murmur of voices. The room was so bright that she shut her eyes immediately.

The faint smell of disinfectant and antibiotics flooded her senses. It made her stomach growl in disapproval.

Lee's throat felt dry. She wondered where she was and why she was laying on a bed in an unfamiliar room, which she assumed to be a hospital; if the white walls and constant beep of the monitor was anything to go by.

Her limbs felt ladened when she tried to see if she could move them. She even tried to lift her head, but wished instantly that she hadn't. Pain sliced through her head, making her dizzy. Bile rose in her throat.

She dropped her head on the pillow with a silent groan. It took sometime before her vision became clear again, and when it did, she saw Rainy sitting on a steel chair beside the bed.

"Glad to see those eyes of yours open, Lee." Rainy's voice broke through the rhythmic beeping of some infernal monitoring device or other. "How do you feel?" 

"Like I need a long shower and change of clothes." She paused, assessing her condition. "Is that a catheter?" 

"You've been more or less asleep for almost two days, girl. What did you think they were going to do, leave you in your own waste?" She snorted. "Yeah, it's a catheter. Once they know you can stand on your own, they'll probably take it out." She reached out and took Lee's hand. "My God, it's good to hear your real voice." 

Lee forced herself to smile. It was good to see her friend and nice to know that she cared. Plenty of people didn't even have that from their friends. Still, her friend wasn't the one she wanted to see right now.

Where was Chris? Had Chris abandoned her when she needed him most? Where was Sutton, too?

Rainy frowned at her. "What are you looking for? Chris, right? He came around yesterday and—" She broke off and covered her mouth with one hand. "—my God, Lee. You were passed out on your bathroom floor when Rachel found you." 

Lee knew she should be afraid of that. She just couldn't understand, for the life of her, why. Everything after the time she finished that conversation with Rachel was a blank. "That sounds terrifying." 

Rainy stared at her, eyes narrowed. Then she pressed the call button. A nurse entered the room. Lee rolled her eyes and thumped her head back against the mattress. 

"Ms. Arden, it's good to see you awake! How are you doing?" 

"Well, the catheter is kind of unpleasant." 

Rainy swatted her on the arm, but otherwise saved her attention for the nurse. "She can't remember hitting the mirror and fainting on the floor!"   
The nurse's pretty face softened. "Well, that's not exactly unusual. She was stressed and high strung for days. It's the aftermath of the crash." She sat down on the edge of Lee's bed. "I'm sure it's scary to not be able to remember, but think of it like any other brain injury. Those memories might return, or they might not."

Lee bit her lower lip as she nodded. The nurse smiled at her, then nodded at Rainy before leaving. Rainy looked relaxed, but the crease of her brows gave her away. Lee felt bad for putting her already stressed family through this. They still haven't finalized the burial of their father, and the culprit hasn't been caught yet. Lee was stressing everyone.

"I'm sorry," she murmured.

Rainy shook her head. "It's fine. All that matters is that you're alive. But you're getting help this time either you like it or not."

Sutton appeared ten minutes later. She didn't waste time on pleasantries. She just wrapped his arms around Lee and held on tight, with her face buried at the juncture between her neck and her shoulder. "Oh my God, Lee, you scared us so much. Thank God you're awake."

Lee held onto her for dear life. "For me, it's only been a few minutes." She huffed out a little laugh. "Last thing I remember is talking with Rachel. I was so rude to her."

Sutton sat down on the bed beside Lee. Only now did she acknowledge Rainy, but Rainy didn't seem to mind. She just smiled over at her. "Hi, Su-Su. You didn't sleep well last night, did you?" 

Sutton blushed. She took Lee's hand and didn't let go. "I was so scared that I might get a call during the night about Lee and I would be so deep in sleep that I would miss vital information. Carson couldn't sleep either." She ducked her head. "Lee, I was so worried. I can't rest knowing you're not safe at home in your bed, Lee. I've been so scared this whole time." She cleared her throat and looked over at the monitors. "So it looks like you are stable now, which is good. How's your pain level?" 

"It's there, I guess. I've got a headache. I'd rather not look too closely at the light, but I don't know. It could be worse, I guess." She swallowed. "Any chance of some water?" 

"Sure." Sutton reached out, dropping Lee's hand and grabbing a small plastic cup and a pitcher of water. "Take little sips. Let's see how well you're swallowing." 

Lee took the small sips her sister requested, feeling absurd but doing what she was asked anyway. She might not remember it, but she knew she'd had a brush with death. 

Then she pulled Sutton back in for another hug. Just as she relaxed into the embrace, she whispered. "Catheter. Out. Now."  

Sutton stood up, smiling with watery eyes. "I'll grab some nurses. They're gentle souls." She stuck her head out the door, while Lee made an unsuccessful attempt not to blush. 

It was not the only indignity Lee was to suffer in the hospital. She was not permitted, she found, to wear her own clothes. She got to wear a hospital johnny, so her doctors and nurses could have better "access." She wasn't sure what kind of access they needed, but she was pretty sure she didn't want any part of it.

Nevertheless, they needed it, so they were going to get it.

*

Chris squinted against the bright light streaming in through the open curtains. His head was pounding and his mouth tasted of liquor and. . .something funny.

It was hard to breathe.

The panic was the same as when Lee broke off their relationship, but this time felt different. More final. And he still couldn't breathe. This couldn't be happening. This couldn't be happening. The mantra played on a loop in his head.

"If it can't be happening, it's not. So could you shut up?" mumbled the heavy weight against Chris' chest.

Chris looked down. Lying there, drooling onto his pecs, was a woman  with long purple hair that curled. A woman with long wiry body, and slim shoulders and waist.

A woman he definitely knew.

And she was naked.

They were both naked.

Together.

Chris jerked up, dislodging her. "What the hell. . .?"

The woman groaned and flopped over onto her back, shielding her eyes with her hand. Chris looked around frantically. Dark sheets, curtains, his own room.

He remembered drinking heavily from the mini bar in his house, then receiving the call from Rachel about Lee in the hospital. Then he recalled fighting at the hospital with Lee's brother-in-law.

This could not be happening.

The woman lifted up on her elbows, raked her eyes over Chris' nakedness appreciatively, and smirked. "Are you going to remain silent all day, Chris?"

Chris yanked the sheet up to his neck. His face smarted and his body hurt in few places; he knew that his face would be a bloody mess when he finally got to a mirror, but first, he had to find out what the hell happened.

The woman rolled her eyes, and when she spoke, her voice was a low-pitched purr that sent shivers up Chris' spine; the type of shiver that wasn't good. "Let me spell this out for you, Christopher Ross. I am April Hale, which I am sure you know already, what with that look you're giving me. We spent the night together."

"I—I don't— I don't remember," Chris said, swallowing hard. He scooted as far away from the woman as possible. His ass twinged, making him catch his breath.

He stared at woman— he refused to put a name to her face just yet— next to him. The woman stared right back without shame or any apparent concern to find herself here post-coitus with Chris.

No, he couldn't have done this. He would never.

"Did you. . .did you roofie me?" He asked.

"Are you asking if I raped you?" The woman looked as violated as Chris felt. "Uh, no. I don't need to chemically incapacitate someone to get laid. I can assure you, Mr-I-am-so-fucked-that-denial-is-the-safest-route, that this was completely consensual." She frowned and added, "Drunkenly consensual. On both sides. We were both plenty blasted."

Chris wasn't sure if he believed her, but he was too woozy to think about it properly. He needed to take care of his bruised face, wash away everything that happened, get a decent cup of coffee before sorting out this mess.

God, did they even use condoms?

Given how his body ached this morning, he'd obviously had a lot of sex with April, and he didn't even know if they'd been safe. Panic and nausea swell inside until he was sure he was going to puke.

"Could you see if there's any water?" Chris asked, nodding toward the mini fridge. "And could you find your clothes?"

The woman snapped, "I think I serviced you enough last night, you prick. Get them yourself."

A memory flashed through Chris' throbbing head. A memory of being sucked on as he clawed at the sheets. His neck and cheeks heat, and he rubbed his hand over his face, trying to wipe it all away.

"I'm sort of naked under here, and my pants are on the other side of the room. Yours are right there." Chris pointed at them, and the movement made the room spin. He was definitely going to be sick.

Just how much did he drink last night to be this wiped out?

The woman stared at him intently. Chris heard the unspoken thought radiating loud and clear: A little late for modesty, isn't it?

But after a moment, the woman shrugged, threw off the sheet off and walked naked to the fridge. Chris flushed, looking away, but glanced back when the woman bended over.

Blue-black dots swirl in his vision.

The lady tossed a bottle of water at Chris before cracking open one of her own to take a long drink. And then she just stood there. Completely naked.

Chris opened his bottle and let the cold water soothe his parched throat. He averted his gaze, focusing on the  dark bedclothes.

Oh God, this cannot be happening.

More dots crowded his vision.

"Not that I really care, but I'm trying to remember what the hell happened last night. How did we even get here?"

Chris stared at her dumbly. He couldn't shake the idea that something was wrong here. How did he end up sleeping with April, for godsake?

"Seriously. Chris, do you remember anything from the night before?" The woman asked with so much impatience that Chris' flicked her an angry glance, but then looked away fast because she was still standing there naked with absolutely no shame.

Chris focused on the water bottle and took another drink. "I don't." Blood rushing in his ears, he asked, "What about you?"

She shook her head.

"Oh my God." Chris scrubbed his face with his hand.

"Hey, that sounds familiar."  April sat on the edge of the bed with one leg tucked underneath her. "I remember you chanting that last night."

"Could you put some clothes on?" Chris begged. "Please, April. We need to talk."

April smirked, shifting on the bed so her body was even more prominently displayed in Chris' line of sight. "It's starting to come back to me. We had sex. Lots and lots of sex."

Chris took a deep breath. "It was a mistake. All of it. I don't do things like this!"

"Yeah? Have you seen your body?"

Chris, forgetting about his nakedness, jumped out of bed, raced into the bathroom and stopped in front of his mirror. His upper torso was littered with hickeys. What looked like dried cum was splattered all over his chest and around his mouth. His hair was badly mussed. Chris saw a pair of earring dangling from a strand of his hair. He looked truly and utterly fucked.

"Do you still have a doubt about what we did?" April said from the bathroom entrance, watching him warily as if he was a dangerous animal.

Chris' answer was burying his face in his toilet seat and barfing up his guts.

A/N:

Aww shit. Not again, Jasmine, not again. Are you trying to give this readers a coronary?

I know. I know. 😥🤧

QOTC: Who are you angry with the most, Lee or Chris?

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