"You're drunk," he stated the obvious as his tall cousin teetered toward him on shoes that looked dangerous.
"You're god
zamn
right I'm drunk," she slurred, giggling as she stumbled around the bar to the mini-fridge. She struggled to keep her balance as she bent down to assess her drink options.
"You think you might want to slow down there, Chief?" he called over his shoulder as he rose from the couch to help her. He'd had a decent buzz earlier in the night, but the majority had worn off since he sat down to watch the game.
She spun around, way too fast for her intoxicated equilibrium, and wagged a wobbly finger in his face. "Don't call me
shhhamp
, ok? I'm not your champ. You sound like Aunt Linda."
"No, Linda is a bitter old hag who doesn't want anyone to have fun," he explained, "I want you to slow down because you're going to puke if you don't, and you'll hate your life in the morning." He slapped her round ass playfully and added, "And you
are
my champ."
He helped her to a barstool, and bent to take her wedge sandals off. "What are you doing?" she demanded. She normally wasn't this cranky, he thought, so she was probably already feeling sick and didn't want to admit it.
"I'm removing your shoes before you fall off of them and hurt yourself," He grabbed a bottle of water and sat on the stool next to her. "Want to tell me why you're this drunk? I have seen you drink maybe twice in our lifetime."
She scowled, dropping her head down as she picked at her nails. "Fucking Bob."
He groaned. What had that worthless piece of shit done now?
"Bob's a dick, but how does that equal you getting plastered?"
"Jenna, Ally and Grace were doing shots," she explained, which was not particularly shocking of itself. Those three were the party cousins, while Sean and Michelle were the studious ones. The party girls usually weren't peer pressure-y though, so Sean still didn't get it.
"They asked me if I wanted to join them, and I said no. Bob overheard and started giving me shit, telling me I needed to 'loosen up and live a little'. He wouldn't let it go so I did a lemon drop or five. They were delishhh-ious." She hiccupped mid-giggle.
What a bastard. There was sweet Michelle, minding her own business at a family party and good old Uncle Bob had to go and ruin her night. "Where were Aunt Charlotte and Uncle Dan?"
Michelle waved him off. "They were having a good time in the pool with everyone else. I didn't want to make a big deal out of it. I shouldn't have let him get to me."
"No, you shouldn't have but he shouldn't be such a blowfart either." Sean stood and poured some of his water into a bar glass for her. "Drink this," he commanded, "
Slowly
."
"Is he right though," she looked up at him through reddened eyes, "Do I need to loosen up and have more fun?"
Sean sighed and took her hands, "Let's just assume from here on forward that everything Bob says is going to be wrong. Automatically. Just by virtue of whose mouth it came out of."
She ignored his logic. "I mean, I study a
lot
. And I hardly ever drink. And I've only had sex a few times."
Woah. Wait a fucking minute. His demure, conservative cousin Michelle was having sex... and he was still a virgin! On what planet??
"Wait a secβhow many times is a few?" He couldn't help asking.
"I don't know, maybe half a dozen or so." She didn't seem to notice his concern.
"With who?" He racked his brain to think of a time he had ever seen her someone. "I didn't think you had a boyfriend."
"I don't," she confirmed, matter-of-factly. "It was some doofus from my dorm."
"What the hell, Shelly!" he rose from his chair, running his hand through his hair. "Getting wasted, fucking random guys... This isn't like you. I'm worried..."
"Worried about which part exactly?" Michelle scrunched her brow indignantly. "That your twenty-year-old baby cousin took some shots, or that she likes a hard cock from time to time?"
What. The. Fuck. The only logical explanation for the scene unfolding before him is that the apocalypse had obliterated the earth, and their bodies had been transported to an alternate universe where he was still a virgin, but his pure-as-the-untouched-snow cousin said words like "cock" and enjoyed a little strange on the side.
"Well both, actually!" he laughed nervously, "You just surprised me, that's all."
Without warning, Michelle stood abruptly from her barstool. "Excuse me for a minute."
"Are you going to be sick?" He searched around for a trashcan, preparing for a disaster. Instead she laughed, "No, Mr. Jumpy, I have to pee! Is that ok?"
He rolled his eyes and smiled, "You think you can make it to the bathroom without falling and breaking something?" Before she could give him a smartass answer, she stumbled over her own uncooperative feet and landed in a pile on the floor. Sean rushed over and knelt beside her. "You ok?"
"Oh, yeah," she waved him off, "There's plenty of padding on this ass."
So he'd noticed. Plush, round and firm. But that was extra fucked-up so he pushed it from his mind immediately.
"Here," he looped her arm around his neck and pulled her to stand. "I'll walk with you." She mostly held her own as he guided her away from sharp corners and supported her wobbly gait. They made their way down the hall to the bathroom. He opened the door and turned the light on, reluctantly letting go of her arm. "You gonna be ok in there?"