My Step Father's Son

Chapter 9 - Get Drunk

Rhys River

I just got home from dropping Alicia off at her apartment. She has an early photo shoot tomorrow; that's why she chose to go back to her apartment.

It's 1 a.m. when my phone is ringing. It's Ava.

Why is she calling me? It's late already. Is she okay? She said she didn't feel well at the restaurant, and Joe took her home.

"Ava?" I picked up the phone with concern.

"Hi bro, this is from the pub; your sisters are here, and they are too drunk to go home. Can you pick them up? We're about to close," a man's voice says.

Sisters? A pub? Ava in a pub?

"Which Pub?" I ask for more specific information, and he gives me the address.

Without wasting more time, I drive to the pub. I'm wondering why Ava is in the pub at this hour. Isn't she supposed to get some rest at home?

When I get there, I find Ava and her best friend, Emily. Both of them are wasted.

"Ava, Emily, come on, let's go home," I say as I reach for Ava's arm, about to pick her up.

"Rhyyyys... my broooother! I misssss youuu..." Ava blurts once she sees me. She staggers before leaning-in to hug me.

"Ava, I'll take you home, okay?" I repeat it, holding her in my arms and carrying her.

"Noooooo, I don't want toooo. We're having fuuuunnn." Ava broke loose from my arm, refusing to go.

"Well, the fun is over, ladies," I reply as I try to hold her again.

"Emmm where are yoooouuuu?" She shouts, calling her friend.

"I'm.... Here bestie..." Emily answers her from behind.

"Emmmm!" Ava turns around and tries to reach for her.

"Screeww yoouuuu Wiiiillll" Emily raises a glass of liquor in her hand as she curses loudly.

"Screeew Wiiilll!!" Ava also curses before she laughs, and Emily follows suit. They both laugh drunkenly.

I shake my head, staring at both of the nutty professors in front of me.

"Come on, let's go home." I pick her up, trying to persuade Ava to go with me.

"I don't want toooo..." she refuses, but I hold her tight, not letting her break free again.

She's really something when she's drunk. I can't believe how Joe can let her drink like this.

Seeing that they're difficult to handle, a waiter came and helped me carry Emily and their stuff to my car.

After giving the waiters some tips, I drive the car to Emily's house. Along the way, both of them are singing and cursing at how jerky Will is. I'm guessing Will is Emily's boyfriend, and they had just broken up. That's why they're drunk in the first place.

After sending Emily over to her brother, Mark, I get back to my car.

"Em? Where are you?" Ava looks around for Emily, her eyes unfocused.

"Don't worry, she's with Mark. Now, it's time for you to go home," I reply, about to continue to drive the car.

"Noooo Nooo! I don't wanna goooo hooome. Em? Em! Wait for meee..." Ava opens the door, about to get out. Fortunately, the seat belt prevents her from doing so.

"Ava, no!" I push the break abruptly, and close the door right away.

"Let me out! I don't want to go home!" She yells and struggles to get out. She even took off her heels and threw them away.

Gosh Ava! She almost hit me with her heels if I didn't dodge in time. I shake my head at her drunken behavior.

"Okay, okay!" I comply to calm her down a little bit. "I won't take you home, okay?"

"Rhyyss take me somewhere else; I don't wanna go ommmm..." She circles my neck, afraid I'll take her home if I let go.

"Okay, we won't go home." only after saying that she let go of me.

I put her back in her seat and fixed her seat belt to make her comfortable. She leans in and closes her eyes.

Where should I take you? I thought as I gazed at her drunken expression.

I decide to bring her to my apartment. Mostly because it's already late, and it's not a good idea to let Sarah know if she is drunk.

"Where-- are we?" She asks when we're in the elevator at my apartment building.

"My place," I answer, still holding her in my arm.

"Yoouur place?" she blurts out in between her drunken laughter.

I chuckle slightly, looking at her drunken state. I think she's quite funny, cute, and adorable.

She circles her arms around my neck all of a sudden, surprising me a little bit.

And then she looks up and stares at me deeply. For a second, I thought she'd become sober.

"Whyyy... Youuuu have to be my brotheeerrr?" She asks in a low voice while her fingertip traces from my forehead to the tip of my nose.

"Because our parents married?" I answer. I know it's useless to talk to her in her drunken state. But I can't help it. She is so adorable to be ignored.

She chuckles and then says, "Do yooou like mee?"

I stare at her delicate face and gulp when I realize how beautiful she is, even when she is wasted like this.

"Sure, Ava. I like you." I answer without batting an eye, staring closely at everything she has on her face. Her starling blue eyes with her long, curly, beautiful eyelashes, her celestial nose, her smooth jawline, and then the most alluring one, her lips. I gulped, staring at those plump pink lips in front of me.

I breathe in and grasp her usual strawberry and peach scent in between the liquor's.

"Kiss me, Rhyyss," she says almost like a whisper as she pouts her lips forward.

I gulp and feel something building up inside me. My heartbeat is raising, and the air around me feels like it's getting hotter.

"You are drunk, Ava." I try to hold myself in, but unwittingly, my fingertip touches those soft and smooth lips of hers.

"I'm not drunk," she whispers as she moves closer. Accidentally, her nose nudges mine because of our proximity.

I am stiff, unable to move. Just a slight movement, and our lips will meet.

"You don't want to kiss me?" she asks, furrowing her brows and giving me a pathetic look.

My breath is getting heavier as I stare at her tempting lips. Should I kiss her? She asked me to kiss her, so it's okay if I kiss her, right?

I'm struggling inwardly when she suddenly chuckles and puts her forehead against mine. "I-think about you-- a lot."

Wait, did she just say that she thought of me a lot? I wonder what goes through her mind when she thinks of me.

"How do you think about me? In what way, Ava?" I'm curious. What kind of imagination does she have for me?

"What wayyy?" she asks, furrowing her brows and pouting childishly.

She is so cute when she does that. But I'm more curious about what kind of thoughts she has for me. "Yes, how do you think about me?"

She looks around and puts her index finger in front of her lips. She acts as if afraid someone will hear us. "Sssstttt.... Don't tell anyone. It's a secret."

"I won't," I reply. I can't wait to hear the secret.

She moves closer to my ear and whispers, "I imagine you when I'm with Joe..."

You what? Wait, what did she say?

I push her slightly and stare at her, dumbstruck. Did I hear it wrong? Is she admitting that she imagines me when she's having s*x with her boyfriend?

"A-Ava did you--" I'm about to ask her again when she suddenly rushes to the corner of the elevator and throws up there.

I stare at her in a daze, still shocked by her confession. I never thought that this was what I'd hear from her.

What the hell is going on? Is she actually imagining having s*x with me?

I know she's drunk, but wouldn't people speak the truth when they were drunk?

Only when the bell dings and the door opens do I regain my awareness and get to my senses.

I hold her arms and guide her out of the elevator to my apartment. Putting her down on the couch, I keep thinking about Ava's confession just now.

"Red moommen is hereee?" She blurts out something, and I can't catch what she's trying to say.

"What?" I ask as I walk to my closet, about to grab a shirt for her to change into. Her puke is all over her dress.

"Your fiancee," she replies weakly.

"She's not here," I answer while bringing her one of my t-shirts.

"I... Want..." She's holding her mouth and gagging.

Shit! She's going to puke again!

I grab her and bring her to the toilet as fast as I can, but it's too late. She throws up on the bathroom floor and stains our clothes.

"Sorry," she says weakly as she sits on the bathroom floor.

I sigh before taking off my stained shirt.

"Come, let's get you clean." I don't have any choice but to take off her dress. I can't let her sleep with dirty clothes, can I?

I cleaned her body with a warm towel as fast as I could. I try so hard not to stare at her amazing figure, especially when she's only wearing underwear.

"This..." she blurts out, raising her hand to touch my chest and tracing her fingers along my muscle.

"Ava, don't!" She doesn't know what she did. I try so hard to suppress the wild beast inside me that wants to devour her. And her touching me isn't going to help.

She looks at me with a slight tear in her eyes. "I cannot like you. You are my brotheeerr."

"Ava--" She waves her hand when I try to say something.

Proping on the toilet seat, she's about to stand up. I try to help, but she refuses. I can only watch and guard her silently from behind.

She finally stands on her foot and is about to walk when she stumbles forward.

Fortunately, I caught her in time before she fell.

"Nooo... let me walk!" Once again, she refuses me, but I carry her anyway. She's too drunk to walk by herself.

I put her down on the bed. Initially, I wanted to dress her, but she had already closed her eyes. I decide to let her sleep and cover her with the duvet.

I'm about to leave when she holds my hand all at once. "Don't leave; don't leave me again..." she says with her eyes closed.

She's probably dreaming. But I recall what happened four years ago. She must have been disappointed that I had left her without saying anything. "No, I won't leave you."

Since she won't let go of my hand, I decide to sleep with her. I climb the bed and give her a kiss on the temple before closing my eyes.

****

Ava Summer

I feel warm as someone embraces me. A strong, firm hand circles my waist, and his nose brushes over my shoulder. I can feel warm air blowing on the base of my neck, giving me a shiver, and I let out a moan.

Hm, is it Joe?

I open my eyes slightly to see the sun breaking through the window. It took me awhile to get my eyes used to it.

Suddenly he moves slightly, and his nose brushes my skin, giving me a tingling sensation, and I groan.

His hand held me tighter, and his warm chest touched my back. Is he awake?

I stiffen and wait for his next moves. But he's not doing anything, and his breaths are steady, which means he's still asleep. I look around and pay attention to my surroundings.

Wait, this is not Joe's apartment! Where am I? And who's the f**k the man is?

My eyes widen in shock.

What did I do last night? Why do I end up in a stranger's bed?

I can't see the man's face, so I have no idea who he is. He was probably some random guy I met at the pub last night. I don't know. I don't remember.

But one thing that I know is that I need to get out of here as soon as possible.

I try to break free from his embrace. I move his hands slowly from my waist, instead of escaping, he holds me tighter and groans in annoyance. Not only that, I feel his lips pressing on my skin as he drops a kiss on my shoulder.

I just realized that I didn't wear my dress from last night. Where is it? And why do I only wear my underwear? Did we...?

Damn it! I curse inwardly, feeling anxious and panicked. I never had s*x with anyone else except Joe, let alone a random guy!

"You're awake." Suddenly, a hoarse man's voice rang in my ears. He lifts his hands from me and moves slightly backwards, giving some space between us.

I feel a little bit relieved, but why does his voice sound familiar?

I sit up and turn around, and I'm totally in shock.

Rhys? But how? Why him? From all the men I met at the pub, why did I end up sleeping with him?

I'm too shocked to utter a single word as I stare at him dumbfoundedly. Plus, the headache I get from the hangover makes it even worse.

Rhys lays his back on the headboard, bare chest, only wearing his boxer. He looks at me with his sleepy gaze.

"Good morning," he says before chuckling and giving me a grin on his face.

"Wh-what are you doing here? W-why are you here?" I ask him in panic as I pull the duvet over my chest. I'm so embarrassed knowing I sleep with him wearing only my underwear.

The fact is, we both slept together in our nethermost clothes.

I massage my temple, feeling confused. I don't remember what happened last night, but our unusual state at the moment led to an absurd prejudice.

Rhys smiles. He's still calm and doesn't look surprised or panicky, either.

"Last night, the bartender called me to pick up you and Emily. Both of you were wasted." He explains as if he know what I've been thinking.

I remember Emily and I drinking a lot last night, but how did I end up sleeping with him like this?

"You said you didn't want to go home, so I took you here, to my place," he adds, raising his palm to show his apartment.

"What happened to my dress? Wh-where is it?" I am still a little bit confused and panicked as well.

"There's nothing that happened last night," he reassures. "You threw up on your dress, and you passed out before I had a chance to put clean clothes on you," he explains before standing up to grab a shirt and put it on.

I still try to calm myself down when he goes to the bathroom to do his morning things.

I look around. Even though I haven't been to his apartment, I can tell that this is definitely his room. It has his style and his preference.

Not long after, he came out of the bathroom. "You can use my clothes if you want. Choose anything comfortable for you. I'll make us breakfast, okay?" He points to his closet while walking to the door.

"Okay," I reply lowly.

I don't know how Rhys can be so calm about what happened just now.

I mean, isn't he aware of the way he hugged me in his sleep or when he kissed my shoulder so intimately just now? How can he act like it was nothing? Because honestly, I can't.

Wait.

He didn't do that on purpose, did he? I mean, he is sober. So he was aware that it was me, right? But why did he keep doing it?

I sigh helplessly. I don't know the answer.

I massage my temple and close my eyes. feeling anxious and nervous at the same time.

In the bathroom, I find my dress in his laundry basket, which is dirty and smells like puke. So he's not lying.

After taking a shower, I pick up one of his sweat pants and a t-shirt from the closet and wear them. They're too big for me, but I don't have any other choice. It's better than nothing.

The smell of freshly made toast whipped in the air when I stepped my foot outside his bedroom.

Rhys is in the kitchen, wearing an apron which is the first time I've seen him like this. He's kind of cute, actually.

He lifts his gaze to look in my direction and smiles.

"Have a seat; it will be done soon," he says, pointing a stool at the island table.

I stop by the island table. But I don't take the seat. Instead, I pay attention to him.

"Here. Drink this. It will make you feel better." Rhys gives me a glass of water and a bottle of pills.

It's an aspirin for my hangover.

"Thanks," I say before taking two pills and drinking them. After that, I walk to him and help him prepare our meals.

I bring two plates, and he fills them with toast, sausages, and eggs.

"Let's eat," he says while bringing two cups of coffee and putting them on the table.

We sit next to each other, but none of us say anything. Both of us are occupied with our own thoughts.