ALICE Ch 245

“Course she’s not,” Lora snaps. “Put her on her side.”

“Wait!” Kylie grabs Lora’s arm as she tries to leave. “You can’t leave me with her.”

“Why not?” This cannot be the first time that Kylie has had to watch a drunken idiot for a night.

“You just can’t. Stay.”

Lora understands, even if she doesn’t want to.

“You owe me,” she says through gritted teeth. Kylie grabs her and squeezes her tight, then kisses her on both cheeks.

“My dearest friend,” she says, affecting a Russian accent so bad that it’s a war crime.

Lora, overstimulated, stressed, annoyed, and very tired, appears to bear it stoically. In the bathroom with the door shut, she grips the edge of the sink so tightly that her knuckles are white. She undresses and cleans up, then forces her brain to accept the things that she doesn’t like, such as not having her pajamas and sleeping in the same underwear that she wore all day.

Kylie barges in before she can put her clothes on, waving a T-shirt with Aubrey Plaza on it.

“Do you need something to sleep in?” she asks considerately before freezing with wide eyes.

The lights are on, and there is nothing to hide Lora’s body. Not the sensitive bits, and not the burns that cover nearly one side of her. Those aren’t news, of course, but Kylie—indeed, nobody except doctors—has ever seen all of it.

“Sorry. Right. If you wanted to wear this.” Kylie’s already dressed for bed. She puts the shirt down and backs out, embarrassed.

Lora gazes at the door, internally fighting back a meltdown. This would all be quite bearable if she could drink, but there’s a race tomorrow. That only makes her think about how late it is and how she should’ve been in bed an hour ago. Stiffly, as though her body is not her own, she covers herself and emerges.

Kylie has put Katya on her side in the middle of the bed. Even drunk, Kylie can sense that for her to open her mouth would be a mistake. Lora slips into bed, and Kylie turns off the lamp.

Lora pulls the covers up and turns on her side with her back to the drunken stranger. She lies in the dark with her eyes closed, picturing a cloudy sky and imagining that she’s listening to guided meditation. She wants to think about nothing.

As she’s starting to drift off, the mattress moves. Someone’s doing something.

Suddenly, Katya is behind her. Lora tenses, and her fight or flight reflex is ready to blow, but she realizes the girl is still asleep. Lora twitches as a warm arm slides over her. Katya’s face is in her hair; she can feel her breath. And smell it. Katya was drinking Mojitos.

Lora waits a moment, then tries to pull away. Katya’s arm tightens, and she snuggles closer, still snoring.