I get high off your memory.

P I L L S A N D P O T I O N S
-Nicki Minaj

saturday | september 20 | 11:12 am

"I'M so fucking stupid."

Victoria groaned and stuffed her face further into her plush blue pillow. To say she woke up to a normal hangover was an understatement. The pounding she felt in her head was worse than the pain she had after banging her head into a stop sign this past summer. How she banged her head, she didn't know herself. But, Vic still had the battle scar to prove that the force of that impact was great.

Light from her worn out lilac curtains cast a hue of colors into her apartment. A cold burst of wind from the open windows cooled the apartment and Victoria curled her toes at the sudden draft. The sun glowed a vibrant yellow, giving the illusion of a beautiful morning. Usually the aesthetics would put her into a energized mood but instead it made her dread the idea of it being daytime.

"What the hell... what did we do after b-buying those extra shots?" An unknown voice drawled softly. Vic opened one eye lid before closing it at the stinging she felt from the harsh sun rays.

"I've no...clue!" Victoria grunted, rubbing her fore fingers against her temple. She felt like throwing up all over herself and almost entertained the idea. She'd surely feel better afterwards.

She lifted her head slightly and squinted her eyes, scanning the room for other company. Expecting to see the heads of her friends with various hair styles passed out across her living room, Victoria was surprised to only see Amelia, who laid sprawled out on her kitchen island.

"How... the hell did you g-get up there," Victoria hissed into her palms, coughing into them shortly after. "And...where's everyone else? Didn't we... oh it hurts too much to t-talk!"

"They...went home separately. I stayed...with you be-because you were hammered out of your mind."

"I can see that now!" Victoria retorted and placed her head back on her couch pillow. Her eyes fluttered shut as she tried to rest herself. She felt queasy and the movements of her head amplified her discomfort. How she wished she was still drunk.

"I want some Nu-nutella," Amelia mumbled, shakily lifting herself from off the kitchen island. "Please tell me you have some in this f-fucking apartment!"

Victoria, without moving an inch, groaned, "Top l-left cabinet over the sick... I mean sink."

"Thank goodness," Amelia breathed in relief, patting down her matted strawberry blond hair. She swiped the drool that collected on her cheek away and strolled towards her destination. Victoria sighed happily when the room fell quiet, appreciating her solitude for the moment.

Victoria was surprised that she was able to sleep as long as she did. She must have been really drunk to not have woken up in the middle of the night. Vic had trouble sleeping sometimes and even self diagnosed herself with insomnia when she was 18. She knows she doesn't have that now, but her sleeping habits made her believe that there was something extremely wrong with her.

"Wow! It's 11:00 AM already! Aw man t-that means I missed... my favorite m-morning show," Amelia stammers, and Victoria could imagine her pouting all the way across the room.

She curled herself into a tighter ball against the comfortable couch, loving the feeling of the soft cushion rubbing against her body, "It's not that late...only...wait did you say 11:00 AM?!"

"Yeah, a-actually it's 11:17 AM now."

"Shit!"

Victoria sat up and scrambled off the couch as quickly as her body could in the state she was in. Whiplash hit her and the pounding in her head became overbearing. She cursed and grimaced to herself for not rationing her alcohol intake at the club. Vic would've took time off if she knew she was going to be drinking so heavily. How could she have possibly forgotten about work? Her shift started at 9:00 AM. Victoria slapped her forehead continuously in her mind.

She threw the blanket that once provided her warmth onto her black wooden floors, careful not to damage her mother's Italian center table in the process. Her mother had it for years, and took great care of the table as if it was a diamond ring. It was one of the only objects of her's that Victoria kept after she left home.

Victoria dashed down the foyer, planning on going straight into her bedroom. Unfortunately, her plan failed as she tripped over an object that was left lying in front of her room door.

"Oww, f-fucking mother of baby ants, Amelia! Why the hell are your shoes... in the middle of the hallway?!"

Light footsteps from the kitchen followed Victoria. Amelia, faced stuffed with bread, timidly picked up her heel and smiled with chocolate smeared teeth.

"Sorry, I uh lost it last night actually. I didn't know it was here."

"Uh whatever it's alright," Victoria moaned, tempted to stomp her smily face and unicorn socked feet onto the ground.

Feeling flustered beyond belief, she implored, "Can you please give me a ride? I know it's sudden and... you're probably not feeling well b-but I'm not sure I'll make it on time if I take the bus even t-though I'm already late."

"Yeah, of course...if," Amelia held up her finger, pointing it at Victoria, "I get to use your hairdryer."

"Deal-"

"For three months."

"Three months!" Victoria gasped, immediately stretching her hands to comb through her hair. She couldn't survive that long without her prized possession. Words of refusal sat on her tongue, but the notion that time was ticking and never waited for anyone made her sigh in defeat.

"Fine!" She exclaimed, and trudged into her bedroom, making sure to slam the white door behind her for added special effect.

Victoria opened her closet door and sorted through the mess of clothes for her uniform. She worked at Eat It Till' You Weep It, a catering company in the city that she's had for three years now. She absolutely hated it. Well, the people she worked with at least. Victoria loved working at a catering company as it exposed her to one of her true love: food. Food was always there when she needed it. Other than alcohol, it helped to distract her from her racing thoughts.

She remembered the day she was offered the job as if it was yesterday. Alone and without money in a big city, she stumbled across an advertisement for an enthusiastic worker willing to wash dishes for minimum wage. She found the ad amusing at first, because who was ever enthusiastic about washing dishes? Still, she called the number and landed an interview that same day.

Apparently, Victoria was the first person to call for that position and if she was willing to work five days a week with a smile on her face, the job was hers. How ironic.

It was a dream come true; a stepping stone for what she really wanted to be; a world renowned chef. When she was a young girl, she'd marvel at all the chefs on TV shows, awed by their skills and determination. From then, she always loved the prospect of cooking and feeding other people from the heart. Before the chaos known as her life came knocking on her door with a jackhammer, she actually went to university to study culinary. That period was the greatest time of her life.

Now, Victoria wished that her circumstances weren't the way they were and that she could've finished culinary school. With the overwhelming medical bills that her mother had to pay for her father's illness, Victoria's life had spun off its axis and was thrown into the trash.

Her boss was a harassing pig that salivated at anyone with two legs and breasts and her co-workers were living nightmares who were snotty and bigoted. She tolerated her job solely for the paycheck, which contributed to the high rent of her one story apartment and her weekly container of Haylee's Bakery triple Oreo Cheesecake.

She snatched the uniform from off the top rack, double checking that it was clean and there weren't any food stains on her black slacks. Declaring it clean enough, Victoria threw the clothes onto the bed and scurried into the bathroom.

She turned on the main lights that sat above the sink, and nearly jumped out of her skin at the sight in front of her. Her beautiful chestnut colored American shorthair cat sat perched on her sink, his creepy toy settled in between his claws. Victoria hated the toy, since it looked like a real mouse. Her father bought it for him when he was a little kitten, and the cat stuck with it through the years.

Victoria swatted at him, "damn it, Cosmo! What did I tell you about sitting on the sink! Shoo, shoo! Go play somewhere else."

The cat meowed, giving Victoria the side eye. He lazily stretched his limbs before jumping off the sink with his toy in his mouth. Victoria watched him strut away towards his small bed that was conveniently placed next to hers.

"Thank you," she mumbled, her lips tilting up happily as the cat bowed his head and strolled away. Victoria loved him so much. Cosmo brought a smile to her face on the worst days; he was family. She didn't know what she'd do if she didn't have him with her. She shut the door and sighed, walking back towards the sink. Grabbing her toothbrush, Victoria brushed her teeth. She hummed a short tune and swayed in front of her floor length mirror.

Once she finished, Victoria hopped in the shower for a brief wash off, enjoying the feeling of the hot water cascading on her sore body. Disappointed that she couldn't wash her hair at the moment, Victoria gave one last rinse to her back and relaxed slightly. It was as if her hangover suddenly dialed down.

Victoria turned the water off and exited the shower, wrapping her fluffy dark purple towel around her goose-bumped ridden body. She swiftly wobbled into her room, throwing on her uniform in record time and applying a good amount of lip gloss. She tied her wavy hair into a high ponytail and coated her naturally thick eyelashes with mascara. A few spritz of perfume and a final glance in the mirror, Victoria hurriedly left her room.

"Amelia, let's go please!" She shouted into the air, running to the end table near the front door. She grabbed her keys and phone, grateful that she left them home last night and not in the club. That would've been a disaster, since she could've lost them somewhere in a ditch with the state she was in this morning.

"I'm here, I'm here," Amelia answered, appearing from the kitchen. Both girls slipped into their respective shoes and crawled out of the apartment. Victoria, too frazzled to realize, neglected to close the window in her living room.

Cosmo purred, eyes turning into slits as he gazed at the open window.

•••••

Hello! :) Any mistakes please tell me!

You know, oddly enough I am a dog person, but I like to write my characters in stories with cats. Does that make me a fake dog person for not liking them in books? Maybe I'm just reading too much into it...

Q: Do you have any pets?