I woke up in Dave’s house, feeling sore all over, very thirsty, very dirty… My eyes were all dry, and as I tried to lift up my head, a dizzying headache stopped me from doing so. It felt like the one that made me faint that time. I was in Dave’s bed. I was alone, but the covers next to me were rumpled as if I hadn’t been for long. Crap! What had I done?!
There were voices in the next room, although I couldn’t make out who they belonged to. I finally managed to sit up, and I saw that it was dark outside. I still felt a little… polluted… but definitely not as drunk as I had before. I couldn’t believe I had gotten drunk… what if I’d lost my virginity? For all I knew, I did. I couldn’t remember anything, and I hurt all over…
I managed to get out of the bed and walk gently into the other room. D.C. and Dave were sitting on the couch drinking coffee or something, both looking as if they were recovering.
“Good morning,” Dave smiled.
“How do you feel?” D.C. asked.
“Like… like… like a train wreck,” I said. I stopped short. Something felt weird when I talked. My tongue was all puffy and dry and gross. I excused myself to go to the bathroom. I had to pee like a race horse. After doing so, I looked at myself in the mirror. My hair was all messy, and I had circles under my eyes. My mouth tasted so gross… I fixed my hair and borrowed some mouthwash. My mouth was still all nasty. I stuck my tongue out in the mirror.
“What the f*ck!” I yelled. I went out into the living room and pointed. I repeated my vulgar exclamation.
“What?” D.C. laughed.
“Who the f*ck pierced my tongue?!”
“I did,” she laughed.
“Why?!”
“You asked me to.”
I didn’t doubt it. I couldn’t remember anything, and judging by the clock, the party was ten hours ago.
“I wasn’t gonna do it, but you begged me,” she explained. “I knew you were drunk, but I didn’t know you weren’t going to remember.”
“It’s okay,” I sighed as Dave handed me a cup of liquid. “I don’t drink coffee,” I pushed it away.
“It helps,” D.C. smiled.
“I’m not thirsty,” I frowned. I had a lisp now because my tongue was all swollen. “I should call Heidi.”
“Heidi was here,” Dave said, “You were sleeping. She didn’t want to wake you.”
“Oh.”
I wanted to blurt out, “Did we have sex?” but I didn’t. Not with D.C. there. She seemed to think this was all kind of funny. It was scary to me. How could I not remember getting my tongue pierced? Why was my tongue pierced? D.C. had been drunk, too. Who let her near me with a needle when we were all that drunk? I was pissed. At all of us.
“I have to go,” I said, standing up, still a little bit wobbly. I grabbed the kitchen phone and called Heidi. My mother had left her car here for us to use since the company was going to give her one. Heidi asked if I was okay, and I tried to sound normal. She was coming to get me.
Dave looked at me a little sadly. It’s not like I knew why. “What?” I yelled angrily.
“Nothing,” he looked into his coffee.
I didn’t talk to them anymore until Heidi came when I said a brief goodbye and ran out the door.
“What the hell?” I yelled into the phone. Dave had just explained that D.C. had pierced my tongue with a needle she always kept with her (she works at a piercing place) and the bar in my tongue was one of her own spares she brought to coordinate with her outfit.
“I wasn’t there,” Dave insisted. “If I had been, I would not have let her do it.”
“Where were you?”
“Downstairs, finding someone sober to take us home.”
“You’re lying.”
“No, I’m not!”
“Since when do you care about designated drivers?”
“Since you were with me!"
“Huh?”
“Tayler, I know you don’t remember…”
“Did we have sex?” I blurted out.
He didn’t say anything for a few seconds. I hung up the phone, shocked. I was not a virgin. The though sickened me. I ran upstairs into the bathroom and threw up, hot tears running down my cheeks. I lay down on the cold floor and stared at the ceiling. I didn’t even remember. I wasn’t a virgin anymore, and I didn’t even remember. chapter 9
