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I will bring food

Yes, for Roxie too

?

Chapter Twenty-Three

Liz

My head is killing me. I can barely lift it to check the time. It looks like the middle of the day now. Saturday, I think?

My brain is pulsating ... it hurts my skull. Maybe my head will explode today. Brain matter will be all over. I will lose my security deposit.

Someone is downstairs, hitting the buzzer. Then someone’s phone rings. It’s not mine, because it’s not my ringer.

“What the hell is going on?” Roxie’s voice, muffled by a pillow, comes from the side of the bed where Joe usually sleeps. She’s lying on her stomach on top of the covers, still in yesterday’s clothes.

“I think someone’s at the door,” I say, moving my feet off the bed and onto the floor with great difficulty. When I get up, the room is spinning. I have to sit back down so I don’t fall.

“God, I’ve never felt this crappy before in my life.” I rub the back of my head. All of me hurts.

Whoever’s downstairs is hitting the buzzer again.

“I think it’s Joe,” Roxie says, waving her phone. “He just texted me to see if we’re up.”

“Why would he text you and not me?”

“Maybe he did. Do you even know where your phone is?”

Honestly, I have no idea. This propels me to get up, which turns out to be a huge mistake. I’m nauseated and hopelessly dizzy.

“Gee, Liz, you really can’t hold your liquor,” Roxie says, moving across the bed on her knees so she can gently push me to lie down. “Let me get you some ibuprofen and water, and let Joe in, because he’s just gonna keep buzzing.”

I groan and pull the cover over my head.

Roxie soon comes back with some water and pills, forces them down my throat, pulls the curtains closed, and leaves. I fall asleep with my head still throbbing.

The buzzing stops.

****

When I get up next, I feel much better. The headache is mostly gone, but I really need to pee and my mouth feels disgusting. I do have an easier time getting up than I did before, so I call it a win.

I head straight for the shower. Roxie might still be around, but I’ve got no processing power for conversation yet.

****

After the shower, I feel human again. I’m ready for some coffee, even though it’s probably afternoon.

I go to the kitchen–dining–living room area in my bathrobe, and I find Roxie and Joe, watching TV.

“You’re up,” she says and jumps off the sofa. “My work here is done. It’s all on you now, Joseph.” She pats him on the shoulder as she moves past.

Then she grabs her bag, walks over to me, and gives me a brief hug. “You got this, Liz. Call me when you come up for air,” she says, and then she’s off.

It’s just Joe and me, and suddenly I feel overwhelmed.

“How are you feeling?” he asks, still sitting on the sofa, looking backward at me over his elbow that’s slung over the backrest. “Roxie says you two got pretty hammered last night.”