Exhausting

It's hard to describe the feeling of waking up next to someone who you find simultaneously sexy and terrifying. It's sort of like bungie jumping, there's a good chance you'll die, but the thrill is intense.

It almost hadn't occurred to me that it's the weekend, hard to believe we've been here almost a week already, it feels way longer. I get out of bed and head downstairs to grab some water, Echo's body must be a billion degrees or something because my room is scorching. I begin heading back upstairs when I hear a sudden yelp... I forgot to shut the door when I left my room, didn't I?

I hurry upstairs to see Poppy hurriedly walking away, she gives me an awkward smile as she returns to her own room. Well, that's going to require an explanation later. I return to my room to find Echo sat up, stretching her arms out.

"You just gonna stand there and stare?" She groans, before relaxing. "I think Poppy noticed me."

"Yeah, no shit." I reply sarcastically. "You gonna tell me why you needed to keep me up all night rather than going home?" I ask, placing my glass of water on my dresser and looking through the drawers for some casualwear.

I hear Echo tut from behind me. "I didn't say you couldn't relax, just not to poke me in the back with your dick, it's uncomfortable." She replies with a disapproving tone.

"You're dodging the question." I retort, finding an oversized football jersey I never ended up wearing and tossing it to her, who pulls it on over her head.

"Come on, don't act like you actually give a fuck, you got a hot girl in your bed for a night, figured you'd be over the moon." She moans, rolling her eyes.

She really doesn't want to talk about it, I guess. "If you were just some hot girl, yeah, but you're also a friend, so... I guess I give a fuck." I decide, sitting on the end of my bed.

"Pshh, friend my ass, you've known me less than a week." She scoffs, before realising I'm not taking the bait. "Fine. Our Mum's getting out of hospital soon. Ty wants to let her move back in, I told him to fuck off, if she's living there then I'm not. Happy now?"

For once I see a hint of vulnerability in those red eyes, I remember her mentioning something about her mother having issues, but I didn't know it was that bad.

"You... Really hate her, huh?" I ask rhetorically. Echo shrugs in response, taking a deep breath.

"When I was born... She took one look at me and decided I was a monster, turns out if you're as messed up as she is then seeing a baby with red eyes and white hair is enough to convince you she's the devil." She explains, doing a good job of hiding how painful it must be to talk about.

"White hair, huh... Albinism?" I ask. I guess it would explain her eyes, and I assume she dyes her hair. "It makes sense, can't say I've met anyone like you before."

Echo snorts at my flattery. "There aren't any like me, my condition's incredibly rare, especially in girls. It's fine. I'm over it. I just don't want to see her." She sighs, getting out of the bed. "You got anything to eat around here?"

I guess she's staying for breakfast.

*

"So... You just slept here?" Marie asks as we sit at the table. Turns out Poppy did not keep her discovery to herself, and breakfast consists of Me, her, Echo, Marie, and Rosie, who seems oddly happy considering how tough yesterday was on her.

Echo takes a bite of toast before replying. "Please, you think I'd fuck this loser? He's not even slightly in my league." She smirks derisively, before noticing my annoyance. "What? If you wanna bang me you've gotta try harder than that." Well, it's not a never...

"So, are you gonna talk to Ty?" Poppy asks, turning the conversation back to the cause of Echo's appearance.

"I guess... Maybe I'll bribe him, you mind if I use a date with you as a bargaining chip?" She replies, her grin still stretched across her face.

Poppy turns bright red, unable to formulate a proper response. "You could do what you're best at and just threaten people." Rosie interjects, unimpressed with Echo's barbs.

"Shit, that's actually a good plan, Ty's terrified of me..." She considers, either not realising Rosie was insulting her or just not caring. "If you are trying to fuck me you're about three steps behind her at this point." She adds towards me. Rosie joining Poppy in blushing bright red.

"Great." I answer. "I don't know why we haven't had you over before, you're such a good guest." I continue, overloading my sentence with sarcasm.

"I'm a fuckin' delight." Echo states matter-of-factly. "But I've got too much shit to do, so I'd better go." She decides, standing and exiting the room, presumably to go and retrieve her clothes.

I'm left with a group of irritated faces, all disapproving of my sleeping companion, I elect to ignore them and finish my breakfast until I hear footsteps coming down the stairs and decide to go and see her out.

"Let me know how it goes, yeah?" I request, receiving a sharp smile from Echo in response, at which point a knock on the door attracts our attention. Instinctively, I open it to see Andi's smiling face. "Oh, hey Andi, you're up early." I observe, at which point her face drops.

I turn to realise she's looking at Echo, who also looks equally uncomfortable seeing the football captain. I look between them, neither able to say a word. Do they know each other? Neither looks angry, just... Awkward.

What in the Hell did I miss?