A Night To Remember: Chapter 4

A Night To Remember

Chapter 4:


Wolf shrugged a shoulder and retreated back into the bathroom with a blunt, "Fine."
She flopped back onto the bed, arms crossed over her bare chest, and stared stoically up at the ceiling as she tried to shake the thick fog from her brain.

15 minutes later he re-emerged, smelling fresh and clean, his hair still a little wet and his t-shirt flung over his shoulder. He clutched a fluffy white towel in his hands which he rubbed vigorously over his head.
"All free," he said lightly.
"Great," Ramona said enthusiastically, and hopped out of bed to retrieve her clothes, completely forgetting that she was wearing next to nothing... Just a thin little negligee that certainly didn't provide enough cover. She gathered her garments quickly and ran into the bathroom, shutting the door a little too forcefully behind her, cheeks a touch flushed.
She bit her bottom lip as a bashful smile crept up onto her lips... She needed a shower, not just because she smelt, but because the steady flow of hot water would calm her down and help her keep her composure. What a situation she had gotten herself into this time...
Wolf sighed as he perched himself at the end of the bed, tossing the damp towel aside- his hair was more or less dry now. He reached over to his discarded t-shirt and gave it a quick sniff. It stank of booze and ash. His face scrunched into a disgusted expression and he tossed it aside with a grumble. Now, where had he left his bag last night? He hoped he hadn't lost it in all the mayhem.

Luckily, after searching throughout the entire room and the little kitchen next to it, he stumbled across his belongings that had been crammed into a small cabinet above the cooker. He'd no idea how it had gotten there, but he shrugged off the idea of investigating.
After wiping off the toothpaste that had seeped into his bag, Wolf pulled out a fresh white t-shirt and a clean pair of boxers and hastily got changed in the kitchen just before Ramona re-entered the room.
Ramona had taken her sweet time in the bathroom, slipping off her negligee and letting the hot water wash the scent of stale fags and alcohol from her skin and hair. She slipped back into yesterday's red dress, leaving her stockinged feet bare and her damp hair wrapped up in a large, fluffy towel. She stepped through the door into the bathroom clutching her shoes and gloves, and immediately winced at the transition from the sweet smell of shampoo to the foul stench of sweat and other things...
She walked over to the window, dumping her garments onto the unmade bed as she went, and cracked it open as wide as she could. The fresh air felt great against her skin, and she inhaled several deep, greedy lungfuls of it before turning back to Wolf. Only now could she fully appreciate his appearance; floppy blond hair the colour of sunshine framing ice blue eyes, slim yet well-built figure... Oh yes. Even under the influence of whatever that had been last night, Ramona definitely knew how to pick them.
"So..." she asked lightly, straightening the bedcovers and picking up a lamp which had fallen on the floor and placing it back on the nightstand. "Hungry?"
"Mmm," Wolf hummed, placing a hand to his stomach. "Kinda, yeah..."
Although the thought of a big fry up sickened him; after the mad night he had just had, oil and grease wasn't going to settle well. "I think I'll grab a bottle of water and an apple or something," he mused, getting to his feet and snatching up his jacket.
"Mmm, well I'm starving," Ramona said, stretching openly. After quickly towel-drying her hair and running it through with a brush, she slipped into her high-heels and followed Wolf out of the door, the enticing smells of freshly-cooked breakfast wafting up the stairs.
Wolf staggered down the stairs just behind Ramona- he was still a little groggy from the night before. He yawned and ruffled the hair at the back of his neck just as they entered the large dining area, where they were greeted with a bemusing scene. Masses of people were gathered around the bar and the entire room was buzzing with chitter chatter.
"What's going on here, then?" Wolf mumbled with a frown.
Ramona frowned quizzically, unable to see over the heads of the crowd. It quickly became apparent what was happening when a loud torrent of curses sounded over the chatter of the crowd.
"Come on..." Ramona muttered, grabbing Wolf's wrist and pulling him through the crowd, which parted obligingly.
Through the thick wall of bodies, a second voice was speaking calmly to the first.
"Sir, you have the right to remain sile- Ow!"
Just as Ramona arrived at the bar, Wolf in tow, several police officers tackled the man, pinning him to the counter as they slapped a pair of handcuffs on him. One officer stood apart from the rest, rubbing his shin indignantly. Ramona exchanged glances with the boy behind her.
"Is that... the bar-tender?" he asked, furrowing his brow and craning his neck for a better look.
"No! Well, he's not the real one!" hissed a round-faced woman at his side.
Wolf cocked an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
"Well," she began, lowering her voice considerably as if she were about to share important information, a look of utter scandal on her face, "the real bartender was found tied up in the cellar! This man here had been spiking people's drinks all night in order to steal their money!"
This immediately caught Ramona's attention, and her hazel eyes widened.
"S-spiking people's drinks?" She couldn't help but let her gaze slip to Wolf's face, gauging his reaction.
Wolf just groaned and shut his eyes, sliding his hands through his hair- how humiliating! He'd been drugged! Then again... nothing of his had been stolen and he could hardly complain about waking up next to Ramona this morning.
"Well," he mumbled, his eyes still closed. "Proves it wasn't me, at least."
An almost nervous smile flitted across Ramona's lips for a fraction of a second, disappearing as quickly as it came.
"Come on, let's get a better view..."
She edged along the bar, trying not to shove too many people, until finally they were standing in the empty space of the large lobby, where the police were now attempting to subdue the 'bartender' as he thrashed in their grip.
A part of Wolf wanted to run over and punch the guy in the face; however, the other half wanted to go over and cockily thank him for a hectic night. He refrained from doing either and continued to stare as a couple of stocky police officers began to drag him away towards the exit.
Ramona watched as the guy kicked, thrashed, spat and howled, attempting to break the cop's grip... To no avail. The guy must really be keen to stay out of jail, as he was putting up quite a fight.
Ramona was just about to turn to Wolf and suggest they head straight to the dining room when she stopped. A pair of green eyes had just met hers, locking their gazes, and for a moment all the struggle ceased. Then, in the same instant, his gaze flickered up to Wolf's face, and the thrashing restarted tenfold- he was practically foaming at the mouth as the police finally shoved him into a car and drove away.