The moment my eyes open, the thumping begins. Just the sight of the sun peeking through the wooden blinds stings as I dive under the mound of blankets for cover.

I feel like a vampire right now – afraid of the sun, dehydrated, and starving. Why do I keep doing this to myself, and two nights in a row! I assume I had a good night, though, I don't remember most of it.

Stretching across the bed, I curl into a ball and snuggle in. My body is telling me to sleep but the sand papery feel in my mouth doesn't help my situation. As I sit up, the blanket falls into my lap and I see the room for the first time.

"What the actual fuck is going on?" I hiss.

Ripping the blanket away from my body, I note that I'm still dressed in my clubbing outfit. I slide out of the raised plush bed and scramble to my feet. As I stand on the ground, I trip over something and end up slamming my face into the cold hard wooden flooring. The loud thwack of my body hitting the ground raises the alarm.

I hear the thumping of oncoming footsteps before the bedroom door springs open and the man from last night, Axel, come rushing through. His eyes are wide with concern as he has to sidestep around the shoes, bags, clothing, and other random objects scattered everywhere. It's a surprise I didn't trip over his crap.

"Are you okay, Ava?" he asks.

    He immediately hooks his hands under my arms and hauls me to my feet. I take a step away and quickly fix my dress. I catch my reflection in the mirror hanging on his wardrobe door and frown.

Ugh, I look and feel gross, I need a shower and quickly! Axel laughs at my situation while I pout. This is so embarrassing. I need to leave before it gets worse.

"Yeah." I nod. "Just a bruised ego."

Axel laughs at my comment, then uses his foot to shove some of the mess under his bed for later.

    "Sorry about all this," he says. A bright pink flush develops on his cheek, which makes me giggle.

"Don't worry, it's fine." I shrug my shoulders. "What happened last night, though?"

My brain feels like mashed potatoes! I keep trying to remember what happened. Between blurred images of random faces, alcoholic drinks, and weird dancing, it's hard to decipher how the heck I got here. My memory seems to have disappeared for that part of the night.

"You were so pissed, I was worried about leaving you alone. We tried to take you home, but you refused to get in the taxi and kept running away. So, I brought you here instead. I hope that was okay? You saw the bed and passed out," explains Axel.

"Oh, sorry." I blush. "I sound like a handful. Thank you for taking care of me."

"Can't leave a man, or well, woman, behind." He grins.

"Thank you again." I grab my shoes off the ground and walk towards the bedroom door. Axel quickly follows and then looks around awkwardly.

"Um, did you want some water?" he offers.

I'm tempted to knock the drink back so that I can leave quicker, but I nod my head instead. I'm a dessert that needs to rehydrate before I die.

The bedroom opens up to a small lounge room that's built onto the kitchen. He rushes into the kitchen and grabs out two glasses and begins filling them with refrigerated water. I walk into the kitchen and grab the cup from the bench and lean against the cold stone.

When I'm about halfway through the drink, the sound of their front door opening makes me nervous. The heavy footfall almost matches the speed my heart is thumping.

A taller man, about Axel's age, appears in the room, a frown cast crosses his face. He's dressed in a pair of black skinny jeans and the buttons on his green printed shirt are in the wrong place. There's a big loop in the material and one side is shorter than the other.

"Rough night?" Axel bursts into laughter.

"Ay, shut up," he groans. "You got someone here yourself." The man's brown eyes fall on me. I look at the cup to avoid his lingering gaze. I don't feel comfortable with the way he's gazing at me – it's almost as if he's ready to pounce on me.

"At least I don't look like you," Axels shoots back, annoyance ringing in his tone.

"Yeah, cause I'd hate to look like you," he scowls.

Axel throws a tea towel at his face before the man gets the hint. He takes his pouty mood into a room that's next door to Axel's. The door slams shut and then the room is filled with an awkward silence. This is why I shouldn't be here!

"Um, I should really get going. Thanks for everything." I place the glass down and walk in the direction the roommate had come from. Axel follows behind and then opens the front door for me. I step outside of the unit and then look at him awkwardly.

"Goodbye." I smile.

"Hey, this might sound crazy, but can I have your number?"

His comment shocks me. Some guy actually wants my number? I consider turning it down, but instead, I nod my head. I can't explore the world if I don't take a risk once in awhile. Then it's not exploring, it's observing life passing you by.

"Sure," I agree.

Axel grabs his phone from his pocket and hands it to me. I open the contact app and put my name and number in there.

"I hope to see you around," says Axel as I hand his phone back.

"I'm sure you will. The awesome kebab master must show me his ways," I tease.

"Hm, then I have lots to teach you, young one."

"I look forward to it." I grin.

I awkwardly wave and then walk down the passageway to get out of the building. Once I'm outside, I order an Uber which promptly arrives. When I'm in the car, I check all the messages Kyle and Tori have sent me before opening a fresh message to text the both of them that I'm fine and still very much alive and not murdered or laying in a ditch.

Kyle messages straight away but I ignore it. I'm way too hungover to deal with his shit. He's going to flip when I tell him I spent the night at a stranger's house – in a stranger's bed. In fact, I'm sure he's preparing a speech on how irresponsible it is.

When I get home, I thank the drive and then trek inside. My mother springs out from nowhere and hugs me tightly – so tight, I feel like my ribs might crack under the pressure.

"Where did you get to last night? Kyle's been freaking out."

"Long story." I huff.

"Tell me about it." She frowns.

"I met someone," I answer.

"Really?" she gasps. "What about Blake?"

    "He's just a friend," I dismiss. "Besides, all paths lead back to Blake. I'm just curious about other things . . ."

    "Okay," she worriedly replies.

"Does that make me a bad person?" I question. "To want Blake, but try dating other people, even if it's just a fling?"

"No, you could never be a bad person." She squeezes me tightly and then kisses my forehead. "If you date this person and find yourself going back to Blake, then he's really the one for you."

"Then why does everyone make me feel like I'm a bad person for not getting back with Blake?" I ask.

"Honey, I don't know. People just need time too?" offers Mum.

I ponder on her words before nodding my head, "Maybe you are right." I can't think of another reason why.

"Now tell me about this new guy. I'm intrigued." Her face lights up with happiness which in return gets me excited to tell her about my night – what I remember of it.

"His name is Axel Anders, and he also loves food."

"Oh boy." She laughs. "That's a start."

Mum and I walk into the kitchen and she begins fixing me something to eat. I take a seat on the kitchen bench and being explaining my night. Dancing, Blake, food, and then Axel.

I still feel like a bad person for wanting a spontaneous fling. Is that how you're supposed to feel, like something isn't right? My head is hurting from how complicated things are. Although, today, I can happily say that I'm beginning to enjoy life and the direction. Is it up or is it down? Only time will tell!