'Hugo, I could kill you, right now.'

Fenne had locked herself around Joost's middle with her face buried in his chest. With a murderous glare, Joost looked over the top of Fenne at his intoxicated brother.

'Your lady sure can take a drink,' Hugo toasted his beer and Joost gritted his teeth. If he wasn't acting as a physical support for the girl against him, Joost would have thrown his brother out of the house.

'I'm assuming she drank all of this?' Hanna held up the empty bottle of vodka. Hugo gave a proud affirmative.

'You convinced my 5ft3 girlfriend to drink a whole bottle-'

'Half a bottle!'

'Half a bottle of vodka, fuck, and you're proud of it?!'

At his raised voice, Fenne looked up from his football jersey and cried,

'Hey! He didn't do anything! I wanted to drink that much!'

Joost looked down and visibly softened at Fenne's red-rimmed eyes. Her attempt to look angry was comedic and Joost had to stop himself from cooing in adoration. But in front of everyone, he couldn't publically condone the state she was in.

Joost was infuriated that his brother had been the one to get Fenne drunk. He knew Hugo's personality was so easy going that Fenne wouldn't have realised how much alcohol she was actually consuming. While he would open another beer and be almost tipsy, Fenne would have poured another hefty drink. Joost should have realised what was happening when he hadn't seen the two for a good portion of the night.

'You're done for the night,' Joost announced and peeled Fenne away from his front. 'I'm taking you upstairs.'

'I'm going to head out. Great party, Joost,' Hugo pushed himself off the counter. He went to slip by his brother, only to have Joost reach out to shove him.

Hugo dodged his attempt and slipped down the hallway, leaving Joost with an intoxicated girlfriend and no beer.

With a sigh, Joost prompted Fenne to say goodnight to everyone as he took her hand. Fenne was giddy at the contact, letting the man lead her towards the staircase without struggle. At the sight of the two, people parted to let them ascend to the top floor, where the crowd thinned. Doors remained shut and it seemed everyone had stayed away from the bedrooms.

'Sit there. I'm getting your makeup wipes.'

Fenne sat on the edge of their shared bed and watched Joost head into the bathroom. He returned with the pink package and peeled the tab, pulling out a fresh wipe.

'Do you want me to do it?' he asked and she hummed in an uncertain reply. Deciding on his own, Joost bent down to start removing the black mascara and eyeliner from Fenne's eyes.

'Mmm thank you, liefje.'

'Liefje? That's supposed to be your nickname,' Joost chuckled.

'It's gender neutral.'

Their bedroom was lit by a singular lamp on the bedside table. Noise from the lower floor was dulled by the door, but the music could still be heard through the floorboards. Judging by Fenne's change in demeanour, Joost was reassured she would have no problem getting to sleep despite the ongoing party.

Fenne's face was clean after Joost's best efforts and it wasn't long until she was in her pajamas. The duvet was pulled back for her, letting her lazily swing her legs to slip beneath the covers. Joost waited until she was lying down before covering her and kneeled beside the bed.

Her drunken antics had ceased once he handed over her toothbrush. Joost stood by as Fenne brushed her teeth, bemused at how she stared at the corner while brushing in slow circles.

'I'm going to start packing up downstairs. I won't be long, okay?' he said in a quiet voice. Fenne was fighting her eyelids with the covers tucked under her chin.

Planting a kiss against her cheek, Joost turned off the lamp and headed for the door. Seeing Fenne against his pillows on his side of the bed made him yearn to call it a night. But if he didn't intiate the party's finale, it could go on until the morning.

'Joost?' he had already turned the doorknob when his name was called in a mumble, letting a stream of the hallway light in.

'Hm?'

'I love you.'

Joost was back in the school cafeteria. Fenne had just had her haircut and the red tinge to her brown locks was even more noticable. She passed the table where Joost sat with Apson and Stuntje, the duo deep in conversation about the new FIFA game release. He angled his face down to his tray but let his eyes peer up to where Fenne took a seat. His fork picked aimlessly at his food, while his chest weighed with the possibility that she had noticed him today.

Then, he was in the courtyard, where a fight had broken out between two girls. Teenagers gathered around and hooted at the hair-pulling and lethal scratches. Joost had made it to the front line, somehow lucky enough to be directly behind Fenne. Already tall at sixteen, Joost had the prime position to watch over the top of her head, but was distracted by how close Fenne was.

When the fight steered in their direction, Joost unconsciously put a hand to Fenne's side. The crowd parted and Fenne was too distracted by the brawl to notice the faint touch. A teacher came and seperated the fight, and in turn, dispersed the crowd. Joost had a great day after that.

Every glance and smile was rooted in Joost's memory. In their shared bedroom, all the moments that kept Joost hopeful combined into one. The light from the hallway let Joost see Fenne's beautiful face and his clench on the doorknob loosened. He crossed the space and retook his place by the bed in a crouch.

'I love you so much, Joost,' she said it again and his lips parted in disbelief. 'I want you to know that.'

'I love you, too, Fenne. God, I've loved you for so long.'

His rush to reply was desperate. He had to pry himself from his shock and his admission couldn't be said fast enough. Joost's hand moved on its own to cup Fenne's cheek, which balled from her smile at his touch.

'Really? You're not just saying that?' Fenne said in a whine, doing her best to stay awake. Joost straightened up and sat on the edge of the bed, his thumb caressing her soft skin.

'Fenne, I can't begin to tell you how much I love you. Please, don't ever question it. I've loved you ever since I've known you.'

The foolish grin on Fenne's face made Joost melt. He couldn't get enough of the feeling in his chest. It was like Fenne had taken his heart from where it had been waiting and finally put it next to her's. If Joost wasn't already infatuated with the woman bundled in the duvet, then he was beyond it now.

'I'll be back, okay? I'm throwing everyone out,' Joost planted another kiss, this time, on her lips, before hurrying out the room. As he went downstairs, Joost threw his hands up and cried,

'Party's over! Everyone get the fuck out!'

—-

When Fenne peeled her eyes open that morning, the splitting headache and her churning stomach rendered her bed-ridden. She never heard Joost come back last night but his movement at 10 o'clock made her jump from a heavy sleep.

'Sorry. You don't have to get up,' he had said, pulling a t-shirt over his head.

'No, I'll... I'll come and help.'

Joost didn't bet on it, but said nothing.

She made it down the stairs and into the kitchen. Teun, Hanna and Nathan had started cleaning up, each of them doing different tasks. Nathan swept up the dirt and sand that had been tracked in from the garden and Teun was doing the dishes in a fully loaded sink. Hanna looked up from the bin that she was changing and took note of Fenne's deep frown and sickly complexion.

'Here she comes! The life of the party,' she cheered, snickering at the glare she received.

Fenne grabbed a plastic cup and went to stack it in another. Joost picked up some bowls from the dining table, watching the woman shuffle around stiffly. He exchanged a look with Nathan that consisted of surpressed smiles and snickers.

'Appie and Stunts are out getting breakfast,' Teun informed. 'Daan and Enzo went home earlier.'

'Daan and Enzo stayed over? We didn't set up any beds for them.'

'No, they never slept. I found them outside kicking the ball around outside.'

Joost wasn't surprised and threw out the stale crisps. He added the bowl to the pile of Teun's washing up as Fenne held out a single fork that had been used by someone unknown. Teun took it, thanked her, and received a hum in return. But even in her fraile state, Joost still watched her with the giddiness that had come from last night's confessions.

Joost was dying to tell everyone, but at the absence of Stuntje and Apson, he resisted the urge. But what he couldn't resist, was retiring Fenne from her pathetic attempt to lower the cup stack into the recycling bin.

'Come on, liefje. You're killing me, here.'

Fenne was back in bed and groaning before she knew it. The curtains stayed closed and a glass of water sat next to her. With a hand to her sweating forehead, Fenne mumbled a 'thank you' as Joost put her phone on charge on her behalf.

Joost leaned down to kiss her temple while pushing some limp hair out of her face. He thought about taking a leap of faith all while fearing that the night had slipped Fenne's intoxicated memory.

'I love you,' he said, hesitaing in straightening up. Joost hovered over the sickly Meer and met her green eyes that peeled open with great effort.

'I love you, too.'

He broke out into a grin. Even though it was in a mumble, Fenne was sober, and with a tired smile, she looked up at Joost with sincerity.

Fenne remembered what she had said before passing out. The night was clear in her mind, even the embarrassing moments. The full extent of what she had done in the kitchen was yet to settle in, but her confession hadn't been tainted by the amount of vodka she had consumed.

The only thing that the alcohol did was make her admit she was in love with Joost Klein. She had been waiting for the moment to be right, but with her own insecurities, it was never going to be right. Fenne could wait years and find holes in every situation, or be interupted when she was feeling unusually bold.

Last night, there were no interuptions and her nerves were masked, so Fenne let her heart take control. As Joost leaned over her with an adorable grin and sparkles in his eyes, her hangover was dulled. Hearing him say it was glorious and Fenne tensed her middle to sit up and kiss his grinning lips.

'Don't, or I'll never leave,' Joost hummed, his lips following Fenne back down to the mattress.

'Then don't leave.'

He almost didn't but remembered how much of a mess the house was in. Joost had to pry himself away from Fenne, standing up from the bed half-heartedly.

With a glance over his shoulder, Joost headed for the door as Fenne tucked herself in. He hoped the clean up would be swift and that Fenne would sleep off her hangover. That way, they could at least spend the afternoon awake together.