“Cate, Mandy, I have a cab. We should go now.” Daniel sounds way too sober. Mandy and I turn to face him.
“Don’t be such a Clark Kent,” I say to him over my shoulder.
When I glance to Andy, his back is turned to me. I can’t hear what he’s saying. When he turns around, I’m struck by just how goddamn good looking he is.
I hear Mandy introduce herself and the guys speak but my gaze is locked with Andy’s.
“Cate.” I blink a few times, only now putting it together that Andy was talking to me.
The two good looking guys wave a quick goodbye and walk away.
I chance speaking. “You didn’t have to let them go. Superman man here,” I hook a thumb in Daniel’s direction, “is going to save the day and take us home.”
As Andy blurs into one instead of two, I see his brows arch. “Superman, huh?”
A glance at Daniel confirms that three of him agree as their smiles beam like the girl in the toothpaste commercials.
I pat Andy’s chest and when I feel the solid muscle under my palm I pat it a few more times. “No need to be jealous. You’re totally Batman and everyone knows Batman is the sexiest of them all.”
“Not everyone,” Mandy declares. She’s sounds drunk and I’m almost embarrassed for her. “No offense Batman, but I’m really into Thor. So if you are truly the Dark Knight, will you hook me up with that Chris Hemsworth look alike that just left? What was his name?” Her words sputter but somehow it all comes out coherently.
“Guys, the cab is waiting.”
“Daniel, hold your horses,” Mandy drawls as she shifts her focus to our coworker. “Wait…you do look like Clark Kent.”
We high five it but miss. That’s weird. We try again, and totally fail. I start to crack up because it’s so damn funny. She shakes her head and decides to take a step in Daniel’s direction. I try to follow because his face is so sour, you’d think he’s swallowed a lime. However, Andy doesn’t let me go.
“I’ll make sure she ends up home safe,” Andy declares.
Daniel straightens, his super power allowing him to morph from three into five. I can’t help but comment. “You are so outnumbered,” I say to Andy or no one. I’m not sure.
Andy glances down at me but there isn’t humor in his eyes. When his face does that horror movie blur deal, I murmur, “You aren’t Batman are you? You’re something else?”
“I am something,” he mumbles back. Then his voice takes on bass and strengthens. “I’ve got her. You can take her friend home.”
The ocean starts to roll again and I lean on Andy, pressing my cheek on his chest. His wool coat is rough on my frozen cheek but I move in closer wanting to hear his heartbeat. I need to know he’s alive and I’m not in some crazy dream.
“I’m not sure that’s a good idea. We’re coworkers and I don’t know who you are,” Daniel says.
Andy’s voice sounds muffled though one ear and clear out the other. “Cate and I…, we have history. I guarantee she’s safe with me. I’ll get her home.”
Information I need to share gives me the strength to stand on my own once again. “Yeah, we’re going to have dinner and catch up on old times. I mean new times. And we’re planning to have breakfast.” I laugh before I become thoughtful. “I haven’t had breakfast in a while,” I say absently. And in an even softer voice because I have to share this secret only with Mandy, I add, “You know what breakfast is code word for.” I giggle and I can’t stop it even though I hate to giggle.
“Breakfast,” Mandy gives a thumbs up. Something must be in her eye because she has one closed with a weird look on her face. “Call and tell me all about it in the morning. I haven’t had breakfast either and I love sausage.”
She giggles the whole time as Daniel hustles her into the cab and I feel the world tilt. Andy steadies me. Then Daniel calls out, “Are you sure you’re going to be alright, Cate?”
I want to nod but I’m starting to feel nauseous. “You’re leaving me in good hands. He’s a doctor, you know.”
Daniel has lost his clones and gives me a curt nod before getting in the cab next to Mandy. When they drive off, I wonder why I feel bad about what I said. I’ve only been honest. But that thought leaves as another wave of seasickness fills me.
“My car is this way.”
“They have cars on oceans now? I think I need some Dramamine. I don’t feel so good.”
We stop and Andy faces me. “How much did you drink tonight?”
I try to shrug, but my shoulders feel like lead weights.
“Did you eat anything tonight?”
Fries enter my mind first. An unpleasant gurgle in my stomach forces the images of food to back off. I shake my head and speak through pressed lips. “I can’t talk about it.”
“Okay, fine, let’s get you home.”
Andy steers me along and my feet start to ache. I stop and attempt to take off my heels, but Andy’s hands stop me.
“Cate, sweetheart, it’s too cold for you to walk barefoot.”
“My feet hurt,” I complain, but he has me standing upright again.
“It’s not far, I promise.”
“I don’t think I can make it. Save yourself. I’ll just stay here to die.” I brush off his hands while trying to let gravity pull me to the ground.
Andy chuckles, then he sweeps me off my feet.
“Whoa there, cowboy. You’ve turned the world upside down.”
He speaks so faintly, I’m not sure I actually heard him say it. “You’ve turned my world upside down.”
In a normal voice, I’m so sure I dreamed those other words, he says, “We’re almost there.”
He makes me feel like Cinderella and I’m waiting for the magic to wear off. He shouldn’t be so nice to me.
“Why are you always trying to take care of me?”
He stares at me. And when he stops moving, his words are out of sync with the opening and closing of his mouth. “Because I—” Whatever direction he was going with that thought changes. “We aren’t going to talk about the past, right?”
I don’t answer because somewhere through the cloud of inebriation, I know that’s the plan. I try to focus on making it to his car without puking on him. When we arrive at the public garage, the only thing I will remember later about his car is that it’s sleek and shiny. He helps me sink into the buttery leather seat and I close my eyes, grateful I didn’t vomit the whole way here.
When my lashes flutter open, I realize I’m home. It’s dark and I have no memory of how I got here. What I do notice is that I’m still fully dressed and my clothes reek of alcohol. The stench makes me gag, yet I manage to stand. The fact that I sway on my feet tells me that alcohol still courses through my veins. I must not have been home very long. I have to steady myself on the wall after taking a few steps. The zing of pain in my feet alerts me that I still have my heels on. I kick them off before I walk out the room in search of the bathroom. I don’t bother to turn on any lights for fear of causing a blinding headache. The first door I open turns out to be a closet. I shake my head and turn in circles as my world continues to revolve around me. I walk down the halls until finally I make into my bath.
Fumbling with my sweater, I remember the thin belt at my waist. I have a doozy of a time getting it undone along with pulling the sweater over my head. That task done, I move next to undo my skirt. I end up chasing the back zipper like a dog does its tail. Finally, I give up and yank it off. My thong is a breeze but the bra gives me hell. When I’m finally naked, I grope for the shower knob and wait for the warm water. I pull open the door and pause because something’s not right. Then I remember the night with Andy and Daniel. I blink but step in the shower, hoping to clear out the confusion with the steam.
Standing there for a second, I recall Daniel’s deflated look. I wonder how I’ll face him at work on Monday and how I’ll survive Mandy’s wrath. She did warn me.
After a good scrub, I practically tumble out of the shower and I’m sure I’m forgetting something. My teeth. I snag the toothbrush and paste and get to work. Minty fresh breath doesn’t annoy my stomach. I fumble my way into the bedroom and leave the towel on the floor as I crawl into bed. With as much trouble as I had taking off my clothes, I don’t intend to waste time trying to put pajamas on.