"Are you okay?"

"Greg? Are you okay?" A familiar voice asked. "Where the hell have you been?! And what happened to you?" Hands grabbed my shoulder, and I groaned in an absent state of mind. "You look like shit, man." Her voice sounded very worried. She pinched my cheek and shook my face. "Greg?" She sighed and released me. "One failed dissertation is no reason to drink yourself into a hole... Well, maybe it is. I really have no clue."

I groaned in response as my head began to spin.

"Well, we can't leave you here next to the door." She reached down and picked me up. An easy feat considering our size difference. "Ugh, you fuckin' reek." She complained, taking me to the bathroom. She sat me down next to the shower door and began to undress me. First, she removed my tie and shoes; then, she labored to remove my shirt and pants. Throwing all the clothes into the corner of the bathroom. "For being sick of getting treated like a child, you still act like a fucking child, Greg." She complained. But there wasn't hatred or annoyance in her voice. Even through my haze, I could recognize that there was only worry. Eventually, she got me naked and hoisted my body into the shower.

Realizing there was no way to wash me, but not get wet herself, she undressed and joined me in the tiny tiled room. I heard her swipe on the screen above, setting the water pressure and temperature before it sprayed down onto us. It jolted me awake, and I looked over to see her next to me. Her soft eyes gently smiled at me as her bright red hair grew darker as it soaked. It framed her perfect face briefly before the water **** it down. "Thank you, Ashley." I managed to squeak out.

"No problem, buddy. It's what besties are for." The warm water washed over me, and I faded from consciousness.