*
It hadn’t been the easiest task getting her up to her hotel room. By the time the coach had dropped them off, Eleanor was pretty much fast asleep. In the end he’d picked her up and carried her in; not the most dignified way for her perhaps, but definitely the simplest and most efficient way for him.
‘Come on, Elles, I need you to help me for a second.’ He lowered her on to the bed and lifted her head up. ‘You need to drink all of this, OK?’ He handed her a bottle of waterfrom the minibar. ‘I’m going to get a flannel to wash your face.’
‘Fine,’ she mumbled, opening the bottle and sipping it slowly.
Fin kept an eye on her in the bathroom mirror as he dampened a flannel and found some make-up wipes on the side. ‘How we doing in there?’ he called. ‘I hope you’re still drinking?’
‘I’m tired. Can you hurry up, please?’ she whined.
‘Oi, I’m not the one who appears to have consumed half the bar and couldn’t handle their liquor,’ he teased, grabbing a dressing gown from the back of the door and returning to join Eleanor on the edge of the bed.
‘Sorry we can’t all be sober as a judge like you,’ she replied haughtily. ‘Andsomeone,’ she shouted, pointing her finger at him, ‘was supposed to not let me drink said alcohol.’ She grabbed a face wipe from his hand and rubbed her cheek aggressively.
‘Excuse me? Since when was I your babysitter?’
She laughed loudly in his face. ‘Wasn’t I yours for about sixteen years?’
Fin didn’t say anything but took the wipe gently from her hand and stroked it lightly over her eyes.
They sat in silence while he cleaned her face.
‘Hey,’ she whispered, as he removed the last traces of make-up. ‘I was only joking, you know? I didn’t mind looking after you.’ She sighed, the alcohol still strong on her breath.
‘It’s fine.’
‘Can I go to sleep now,please?’ Eleanor whimpered.
‘Soon, but I do think we need to clean your teeth or you’ll never forgive me.’ He wrapped the dressing gown aroundher shoulders and hurried back to the bathroom, returning with toothpaste in hand. ‘Now, squeeze a bit of this into your mouth with some water and swill it around.’
‘You’re so gross.’ She grinned.
‘Trust me.’ Fin handed her the tube. ‘If anyone is gross right now, it’s you, my friend.’
She shot him a deadly look.
‘Hurry up, and when you’re done, shuffle back and lie down.’
Despite the deep scowl on her face, Eleanor did as she was told and crawled towards the top of the bed. ‘But where will you sleep?’ she muttered, curling up on her side.
‘I’ll sit with you for a bit and then grab a cab to my hotel.’ He threw the dirty wipes in the bin, and took another bottle of water and placed it on the bedside table next to her head.
‘Don’t be silly,’ she grumbled. ‘Stay here.’ Her voice was thick with sleep.
‘I can’t do that.’
‘It’s fine. I don’t snore.’ She chuckled to herself.
‘Yes, you do.’ He pulled the blanket up over her and smoothed the hair from her face.
‘No, I absolutely do not.’ She opened one eye lazily. ‘Yousnore.’
Fin couldn’t help but laugh. She sounded so like the young Eleanor of his past, stubborn and righteous. ‘I know I do. That’s why you always left me to sleep by myself when we went camping. I’d wake up freezing and on my own! Terrible friend, you were.’
A small hand darted out from the covers and smacked him on the arm. ‘I was the best.’
He tried to manoeuvre her hand back under the duvet.
