Chapter Fifteen - Drunken Conversations

He was tired and his whole body ached. Spying Tom in the corner of the hotel bar he sauntered over, a headache brewing in his temples. Feeling foolish and regretful he sat beside his friend and ordered a beer. There was something odd about the way he felt now Seren had gone. There was some part of him which knew he'd been too impulsive. And a part of him which wondered why.

"She gone?" Tom inquired.

Rob nodded and took a swig of his beer.

"Sorry man." He added, smacking his beer against Rob's. "Here's to dumb friends spoiling the moment."

But Rob wasn't mad at him. He was mad at himself. Everything had been so perfect. And now she was gone he wondered if her cold feet were more than icy. It bothered him that he cared so much if she would answer his call in the morning. It bothered him that when she left he didn't want her to go so badly there was a tangible ache in his chest. Who was she? How had she reduced him to this in such short a space of time?

"We're even now." Rob sighed. "I forgive you for Groucho girl, officially."

Tom almost choked on his beer in laughter. "That was five years ago, and you just forgave me?!"

"It's taken me five years to actually get myself into a situation where I could get even."

Nodding in agreement, Tom pulled his cell from his pocket and laid it on the bar. Above the screen was a huge crack, from corner to corner shattering the whole thing.

"That's why I couldn't give you warning I was coming. I can't see my numbers, make calls or anything stupid thing! Dropped it in the airport like a mug."

But it didn't matter anymore. Downing the entire bottle, Rob patted his friend on the back and urged him to drink up.

"I've got lines to learn. Come on, You can have the couch bed."

As she crossed the city, Seren barely noticed when her cab pulled up outside her destination. She made her way up to the apartment slowly, still bewildered from her day. What was she doing? What the hell was happening? When finally she made it to the front door there was little else to explain her actions. Other than fear. Fear of him, fear of what was happening between them. Fear of getting hurt. She turned her key in the lock, but before she could push the door it swung open from the inside. India stood there with a towel wrapped around her head and bath robe tied around her waist. In her free hand was a glass of red wine and cigarette. She looked surprised to see her.

" Well?" She asked expectantly. "I take it this prolonged absence has something to do with Robert Pattinson?"

Seren kicked her shoes off and sighed as she felt the heat of the day fall off her shoulders.

"Perhaps." She replied, heading for the bathroom. The room was still hot with the steam from India's shower and she welcomed the warmth as she stripped to her underwear. She knew India was lingering by the door, so she deliberately left it ajar. Staring at herself in the mirror, it was hard to distinguish between the girl staring back at her and the girl she had been three days ago.

"Shit!" She suddenly exclaimed. "I forgot to call Mom back..."

She heard India move closer outside the door. "It's ok, I spoke to her."

"She called you too?" Seren sounded surprised.

"She said you had an important meeting. I'll say it was." She teased. "I didn't tell her any different. You'll just have to figure out something to tell her when you do call her back."

"It's ok. I'll just have to tell her about the awesome opportunity Rob offered me to be an extra in his movie."

The bathroom door swung open.

"Are you for real?!"

"I can't explain it...one minute were just talking the next he was offering me this amazing thing! I did nothing to deserve it, I feel like I should maybe not do it..."

India put her glass down, her hands waving in protest. "No! Absolutely not...no way! Are you crazy? These things don't happen everyday, shit, these things just don't happen! Listen to me, he obviously likes you. Don't throw this away because of how you feel. I know you're scared."

Suddenly she didn't feel like having a shower anymore and backed away from her cousin. "Why are you saying that?"

India offered her the glass of wine and gestured her to come to the living room. Pulling on her own bath robe, she knew this conversation was inevitable. Fighting it would have been foolish. But now?

"I'm not saying it to hurt you, I just know what you're like when it comes to people doing you favours. If you haven't earnt it, you don't feel worthy. I know you."

Taking the glass of wine, Seren began to feel like it would be a lecture, less of a discussion. She poured herself a large glass and as it mixed with the beer already inside her she knew she was almost drunk.

"Perhaps. But that doesn't mean I'm not going to do it. I'm undecided."

"It's not that which is stopping you though, is it? I can tell you want to do it, more than anything. It's Robert, isn't it?"

Seren sighed thoughtfully and sipped her wine slowly, feeling it already inside her head.

"He's unlike anyone else I've ever met." She lamented.

India was excited, but Seren couldn't share it. He wasn't that person to her. It almost seemed as if that part of him didn't exist when they were alone.

"You know, sooner or later, when he's done with this movie and has to move on that you'll have to start looking for a job while you get auditions. But doing this might open doors for you. And one of them might even lead to being with him too. If he makes you feel that way, then you should do this. Totally."

In the inconspicuous hotel room, Rob scanned over his script briefly before putting it down and reciting the words out loud. Tom stood by the TV, listening to his friend and reading from a copy to check his accuracy.

"Of anything...." He corrected.

Rob looked up from his reverie. "Of anything?"

Tom rolled his eyes. "Yeah, you said 'I don't want to be bailed out', the line is 'I don't want to be bailed out of anything'."

He flicked through the pages further. "And what's this about riding off into the night with a panda you only just met?"

Rob snatched the script and slipped it back into his bag. "Nevermind. I'm done for tonight."

But Tom was disillusioned by his friend's unpredictable mood. It had been a long time since he'd seem him so preoccupied, and the last time it hadn't been pretty. Breaking up with Nina hadn't been something easy to watch. He had liked Nina, and was sorry to see them part. It had been almost two years ago, and still he remembered vividly the day it ended. Rob was going to America, there was too much keeping them apart, they tried to stay friends, but in time there was nothing else left to say. But this was something different. Years of friendship had formed the basis of what he'd had with Nina. This was entirely something else. He'd never seen his friend like this before, and it bothered him.

"What is it about her that's got you like this, man?" He asked, "You're meant to be happy when you meet someone new."

There was a flicker of a smile. "I am happy when I'm with her. I'm not unhappy anyway! You make it sound so...complicated!"

Perhaps it was. Tom launched himself into one of the chairs and put his feet up on the other.

"You need to chill the fuck out, or you'll end up like that fucking vampire."

Rob laughed sarcastically and kicked Tom's feet off before sliding into the chair himself. "I'm just disappointed things didn't go to plan."

Tom snickered. "You mean you're disappointed you didn't get to shag her before I turned up?"

Yeah, he was. But he was never going to admit that. And he wasn't going to admit it was more than that, too.

Tilting her head back, Seren downed the last of the wine and waited for the room to stop spinning.

"The thing about....Rob is..." She slurred, "He is so hot and he doesn't even know it. Like, if he had the smallest idea of how hot he is then he would be dangerous."

She was drunk. India sat laughing at her trying to string a sentence together, but it was no use. She was drunk too, and as they both fell into fits of laughter Seren forgot how much she had wished the day had gone differently.

"I could have had sex with him, so easily...today." She hiccuped. "We were this close..."

India stumbled towards the fridge and moaned about the lack of wine. "We've got gin! You like gin, right? No?"

But Seren didn't protest as India proceeded to pour the clear liquid into her empty glass.

"I think you should go back there and finish what you started." India quipped, sipping her gin and grimacing at the taste. "This needs something...." She said, going back to the kitchen.

"Oh sure because that's not going to look totally weird, me turning up drunk asking for sex."

India was more philosophical. "Actually, I'm pretty sure that's most men's idea of the perfect woman."

Seren's head was pounding. Wine had never agreed with her, and Gin was never a good idea.

"Obviously all the guys you've been with have had high expectations." Seren said sarcastically, laughing for no reason and then steadying herself against the side of the sofa.

"I haven't met Prince Charming yet, that's true. But you could guarantee if it was Robert Pattinson I'd keeping that man satisfied!"

Seren shrugged off the comment and rolled her eyes. "You like him?" She asked.

"Sure! I mean....not like that. I mean...he's good looking, obviously and if we were like....sat here talking about him and you hadn't completely met him for real, and we were just being subjective about him in movies then sure....but not really."

Seren burst into hysterical fits of laughter. "You're so dumb." She giggled, before downing more Gin.

It was clear that Tom was in the mood for getting drunk when Rob realised he was almost there himself. Watching his friend try to piss into a cup was fundamentally entertaining, but once he realised the time he knew he had to sober up.

"Dude, you're pissing on the carpet." He said, pointing to a wet patch at Tom's feet.

"Have you ever tried to piss in a cup? It's bloody difficult."

Somehow it had never occured to him to piss in a cup. "I like to take my pisses the conventional way."

"Fuck it. This cup is too small." Tom said finally, zipping up his fly and pouring the evidence down the toilet.

"You better wash that I don't want yellow milk in my morning coffee." Rob quipped, throwing a hand towel in Tom's face.

"Ironic that your sex towel has ended up around my cock." Tom joked, wiping the cup and then stuffing it down his pants.

Rob almost choked on his beer in laughter. "Sex towel? You still do that?"

Staring at his friend in mock bemusement, Tom threw it back in his face. "Still? Dude, it's a requirement!"

Rob ducked out of the way and spilled his beer. "Great. The cleaners are going to wonder what the fuck went on in here with the yellow wet patches and two blokes in a hotel room."

Tom shrugged. "It's fairly obvious I was pissing in a cup and you were spilling beer, isn't it?"

Rob looked around the room and felt a sudden pang of tiredness. He was too tired to clean up, and too tired to move to the bed.

When the sun came up Seren found herself curled up on the sofa, India's leg sprawled behind her head. Rob awoke to the sun streaking through the curtains and into his face as he sat upright in the chair by the window. And even though they were racked with hangovers, their first thoughts were of each other.