The After-Party
Abby led you into her bedroom, her pale arm wrapped around your waist with a surprising strength. You looked at her bedroom walls, admiring the sea-like wallpaper. It was dark blue, with pictures of little fish swimming around. You saw some of the fish move, and jumped back.
“You okay?” Abby asked.
“I must not be seeing clearly. Some of the fish on your wall just moved.” You said.
Abby chuckled lightly. “I have a fishtank, y/n. You must be pretty drunk.” She led you to her bed, and helped you sit down. You immediately felt a wave of nausea spread over you, but swallowed it as deep as it could go. Abby sat beside you, and tucked your hair behind your ear. “Breath, y/n.” She coached. “You’ll be alright, you just need some water. Wait here.”
Abby disappeared out of her bedroom door, leaving you to stare at the TV facing her bed. It had a nintendo switch, a wii, an xbox, and a play station 4. “ She must really like her games…” You thought.
She appeared a moment later again, carrying a tall glass of water with spheres of ice floating in it. She handed it to you, the ice jangling, and you sipped it gratefully. It quelled the burning in the back of your throat.
“Thanks. Sorry, I’m kind of a lightweight. I haven’t gotten drunk in a while.” You confessed, pressing the sides of the glass into your feverish hands.
“Hey, no judgment here.” Abby giggled. “I figured you might not want everyone to see you like that.”
“You figured right. Thanks.”
“Did no one warn you that Pam almost always spikes the punch?” Abby asked.
You groaned. “No.”
Abby shook her head. “Brutal. I guess I didn’t mention it either. We all just accept that as normal, I guess.” She smiled, her sparkling blue eyes crinkling, and tucked a strand of deep purple hair behind her ear. “Want to play a game while the alcohol wears off?”
You agreed, and the two of you played MarioKart for a little while. With each passing round, you could feel yourself sobering up quickly, and you decided you must not have been that drunk in the first place. It had just been a while, so it hit you quickly.
You looked at Abby as she won yet another match, and she smiled hugely at you. Her hair fell around her face, and your eyes drifted down to her plush pink lips. “ Stop it, y/n, you’re probably still drunk…” You urged yourself. But, it was hopeless. Abigail was truly gorgeous. You didn’t know why you hadn’t appreciated that before this, but as you watched her gaze back at you, you wondered if she thought you were gorgeous, too. “ Her face… looks so soft” You thought, looking at her round cheeks.
Before you could say anything, Abby leaned in, grabbing your face, and kissed you. It was a gentle kiss that sent your chest fluttering out of control. It only lasted a few seconds, and as she pulled away, more than anything you wanted to grab her and pull her back. But, you relinquished, and she sat back down, gazing at you. She looked surprised at herself, and was waiting for your reaction.
“Woah… What was that for?” You asked. Abby’s cheeks grew even pinker than they already were, and she looked at the ground.
“I don’t know, I’m sorry. You were just looking at me, and…” Abigail groaned. “Don’t tell anyone about this, please. I’ve never kissed a girl before.”
“No, I… I liked it.” You said.
“You did?” She asked, her eyes widening, and her hands flew up to either side of her face.
“I did. But, don’t worry. Clearly, you’ve got some stuff to work out.” You smiled. “Your secret is safe with me, Abby.”
She gazed at you gratefully, and picked up her controller again. You kept playing MarioKart with her, and wondered if she was sitting a little closer to you than she was before.
After winning your first round (out of 30), Abby suggested you go back out to join the festival. You felt sober enough to go back to the festivities, even if you were a bit shaken by Abby’s sudden kiss.
Even so, you and Abby walked back out to the festival together.
The sun had already set over the hills of the valley, and the kids had all disappeared with their caregivers. You turned your head and discovered that all the married couples had also returned home. Now, it was just the single adults.
The streetlights were glowing brightly, allowing for the residents of the valley to stay up as late as they pleased.
Sam, Sebastian, Shane, and Alex had cleared off one of Gus’s tables so they could play beer pong. You giggled as Sam got a ping pong ball into a red cup, and was forced to chug the whole cup while the other boys cheered him on.
Harvey was sitting with Elliot, Leah, Emily, Clint, Pam, and Gus. They looked like they had started a game of poker at another table. Gus swiped a handful of chips in his direction while the others groaned.
Penny was chatting with Maru and Haley by the cupcakes. They giggled as Maru got icing on her nose.
“Y/n, Abby, join us!” Sam called, red cup in his hand.
Abby and you walked over to the beer pong table. Shane expertly landed a shot, and seemed more than happy to chug the next beer.
“God, my game is so off tonight.” Alex said. He put his hand behind his shoulder to stretch his arm, which made Abby roll her eyes.
“Done.” Shane said, throwing the empty cup on the pavement.
It was Alex’s turn. He landed his next shot, forcing him to also chug a cup full of beer. It looked like Alex and Sebastian were winning, but Sam and Shane were catching up.
Sam stepped up to the table to throw the next ping pong ball. He wound up, but then looked at you and dropped his arm. “Hey, y/n, want to shoot for me? You know, for good luck?” He asked sheepishly. You felt your cheeks burning as he spoke to you so warmly in front of other people.
“Y/n, don’t tell me you’re with this chump.” Alex scoffed from the other side of the table.
“She’s not with him,” Sebastian countered defensively.
Sam looked at the ground nervously.
“Leave them alone.” Shane said, rolling his eyes. “Just take the fucking shot, y/n.”
Sam’s eyes lit up as he handed you the ball, and you swung your arm a few times to warm up. You took a deep breath, threw the ball, and it splashed into one of the cups.
Shane grinned, and lifted up the cup. “Now, the lady must drink .” He mocked, handing you the cup ceremoniously.
“She doesn’t have to if she doesn’t want to.” Sebastian warned, putting his arm in front of Shane.
“Yeah. I can drink it for her.” Sam offered quickly.
“Maybe let her decide, hey?” Shane looked directly at you, his arm outstretched, offering you the cup. “Your choice, y/n. Won’t hold either choice against you.”
“Maybe not.” Abby whispered to you, nudging your arm.
You looked at Sam, who raised his eyebrows at you, as if to offer once again to drink instead of you. You looked at Sebastian, who shook his head at you, tilting his head towards Sam, as if to tell you to take his offer. You looked at Abby, who looked uncomfortable.
Then, you looked to Shane, who was holding the cup towards you. He gazed at you evenly, in a way that made you feel safe, and comforted, and like there was no pressure coming from him.
You reached out to Shane, taking the cup and slamming it back.
You knew at that moment that it was going to be a long night.
~
The next morning, you awoke with a pounding headache, and you weren’t sure where you were. All you saw was your own body covered with a blue comforter, and sterile white walls around you.
You turned on your side, your headache panging with every movement. You came face to face with a blue room divider, and slowly pieced together where you were while you woke up.
The small TV attached to the wall confirmed your suspicions. You were in the clinic. You groaned as you covered your face with the blanket, trying to think about what had happened last night.
“Dr. Harvey, perhaps it’s time to check on y/n?” You heard a friendly and familiar voice come from the other room.
“I can hear you!” You called through the curtain.
You heard a deep chuckle, and the curtain swung open.
Standing there, as professional and dignified as ever, was Harvey. He was wearing his white lab coat, and holding a chart that he read over carefully. “Hi there, farmer y/n. You’re fine, don’t worry, just had a little too much to drink. I just decided to let you stay the night here. There’s water on the nightstand.”
You groaned, pulling the blanket over your head. “There is something wrong with me. I’m dying of embarrassment.” You mumbled.
“It’s not your fault.” Harvey said quickly. “Peer pressure works quite effectively.” You screwed your eyes shut, even under the dark blanket.
“I wasn’t pressured.” You said, some memory of last night coming back to you. Sam, Sebastian, and Abby had all told you not to drink. But, you did. “I’m just dumb.”
Harvey chuckled lightly. He seemed to be quite amused by all this. You pulled the covers off your head to gaze at him.
His light brown hair was shining in the fluorescents. He was taller than you had thought, but you’d never seen him this up-close. He was wearing a button up shirt that was well fitted to his athletic build. “We’ve all been there, y/n.” He smiled kindly. “Do you want an IV? You’re probably pretty dehydrated. It would help a lot, if you don’t mind having a bruise on your hand.”
“What’s that going to cost?” You asked.
“Nothing. Consider it a welcome-gift?” Harvey laughed.
“Fine.” You said.
Harvey got out a small swiveling stool from the corner, and rummaged around in a cart by your bed. He pulled out the necessary equipment, and set up your IV bag. He sat down on the stool, and moved close to you.
You could feel your heart starting to pound as you offered him your hand. He took it gently, in his own giant hands, and massaged it gently, looking for a vein.
“Your pulse is elevated.” Harvey noted.
“Oh, crap. He has to know I think he’s cute.” You thought. “Um, yeah. Hospitals make me nervous.” You lied.
“No shame in that.” Harvey smiled at you kindly.
“ Hot and nice.” You shuddered, goosebumps raising on your arms.
He prodded at your skin and took out a needle. “Okay, deep breath in….” He coached. You took a breath in, and he pricked your skin, the needle being shoved deep into your vein. It felt like a mosquito bite that didn’t quite end. “And out…” He coached. You did as he said. He beamed at you. “Good job, y/n! For someone who doesn’t like hospitals, you did amazing.”
It felt weird to be praised for literally doing nothing but laying there, but you gratefully accepted the praise.
“I’ll come back in a bit to check on you. It only takes about 45 minutes and you’ll be done.” Harvey smiled.
“Thanks.” You smiled, and Harvey disappeared back behind the curtain.
The IV worked quickly, and you started to perk up. Your mind became less fuzzy, and you felt like a functioning human-being again.
Harvey came back after a while and took the IV out. He carefully placed a hello-kitty bandaid on top of the small needle cut.
“Hello-kitty?” You smirked.
“Yeah.” He said. “I made an educated guess. I thought you’d like Hello-kitty.” He explained simply, shrugging his shoulders slightly. Even though he was older, maybe mid-30s, his brown eyes were so wide and innocent, and you could tell he was a young soul.
“ He’s so adorable, I could scream.” You thought. “How young do you think I am, Harvey?” You giggled.
“Much younger than me, that’s for sure.” He said, throwing out the garbage from your bandaid. His answer made your stomach sink a little, as you realized he might think of you as too young for him. You caught yourself, thinking “ Y/n, remember, you aren’t supposed to date anyone. Especially not when you’re confused about your feelings for a few people now.” You thought. The list of attractive people in this town was growing, and it made your already foggier-than-normal head spin.
“Not much younger.” You said.
“Young enough to still be partying like that.” Harvey said.
“You’re not old , Harvey.” I said. “I mean, I don’t know you well, but just from today it seems like you have this young energy about you. Why do you even have Hello-kitty bandaids?”
“Well… When Jas comes… She hates needles. And Emily likes them, and so does Haley, and… I don’t know, Hello-kitty is kind of cute.” Harvey said, his cheeks growing a little pink beneath his mustache.
“Yeah, gotcha. Young-at-heart.” You smirked.
“But not young biologically. I feel like I’m ancient compared to most of you young-adults in this town.” He smiled, but you could sense a hint of loneliness in his voice.
“Yeah, there’s a lot of 20-somethings, isn’t there?” You agreed. “But man, thank God you’re the doctor, and not Alex or Haley.” You giggled.
Harvey smiled kindly. “Well, y/n, you’re good to go whenever.” He said.
“Oh, alright. Thanks for keeping me safe all night. Hypothetically, if a patient was super grateful to their doctor, what would be a good gift to thank him?” You probed.
He smiled wide. “Coffee is always good. And, oh, I don’t know if you make them but your grandfather used to make these pickles…”
~
You thanked Harvey again profusely, and took a walk home. You groaned as you thought about the work you had to do today, but were grateful for the IV making you feel less like a zombie. You walked back to your farm, and weren't prepared for the sight that was awaiting you...