FicWad

Title: "This Ruined Puzzle" - Dashboard Confessional

Pete woke up in the middle of the night hearing his phone vibrate on his nightstand. He had fallen asleep upset and was having a bad dream. He glanced at his clock which read 2:45 and he groaned.

"Hello?" he said groggily...

*****

Corbin's roommate Denise got home from a night out around 2:30 am. She normally wouldn't have stayed out so late, but she lost track of time.

"Corbin! Where are you girl? I've got to tell you I had the best night! Come here! Is Pete home yet?" she said, dropping her purse on the kitchen table and continuing towards the bedrooms. "Core?" she said, beginning to wonder why she didn't hear her usual, 'tell me about it, bitch!' Denise rounded the corner of Corbin's bedroom and stopped short. She was sprawled out on the floor by her bed, a bottle of vodka tipped over on the floor, spilling out over the carpet. "Holy shit!" Denise yelled running to Corbin's side. She picked up her shoulders and placed her head in her lap. She shook her a little saying her name.

"Wake up! Oh, shit. Corbin! Come on!" Denise began to panic; she had no clue what to do. She grabbed Corbin's phone and dialed the first number on the list of recent calls, which she noticed happened to be Pete.

"Hello?" he said groggily.

"Oh my god! Pete, something's wrong with Corbin. Oh shit. Help me please! This is her roommate by the way." Pete sat straight up in bed and began rushing to the front door of his house, keys in hand.

"Why? What happened? Is she okay?" he asked, getting frantic. He probably shouldn't have left her alone.

"She won't wake up! She's still breathing I can see that, but she won't wake up. Oh my god! I don't know what to do!" Denise said crying, still cradling Corbin in her arms.

"Okay, okay. I'm leaving now. Try anything you can to wake her up. I'll be there in a few," Pete replied hanging up and zooming down the street. Denise laid Corbin carefully on the floor and walked to the bathroom and wet a washcloth. She laid the cloth on Corbin's forehead, and then tried to wipe her face to see if the water would wake her up. Corbin suddenly felt a jolt go through her body and she opened her eyes. That light was too bright! She groaned as she felt her head begin pounding.

"Corbin! Oh my god, thank fucking god your okay! Core, talk to me," Denise was saying over her. Corbin looked at her carefully, not sure if she was imagining Denise or not. She held on for a few seconds, but felt herself slip out and she shut her eyes. "No! No! Corbin, wake up! Pete is on his way, just be here for him when he gets here. Core!" Denise yelled. Corbin heard her voice and tried her hardest to get back to it, she felt her eyes flutter open and mustered up enough of her voice to say,

"Pete? Oh shit," she mumbled, her own voice making her head throb more, "Where's Pete?" she whispered.

"He's on his way over here. What are you doing drinking straight vodka? You drank last night too, what is going on with you?" Denise asked. She stood up and helped Corbin sit up and lean against her bed. There was knocking on the door and Denise stood up to answer it.

"Don't move and stay awake!" Corbin nodded, but began feeling groggy and she passed out again.

Pete couldn't believe how long the drive felt. He was speeding the whole way to Corbin's dorm. He ran inside without bothering to check in at the front desk and sprinted up the stairs. He knocked on the door and moments later Denise answered.

"Did you get her to wake up?" Pete asked walking past her towards the bedroom.

"Yes, she's sitting up now," she said, trying hard to push past the fact that Pete Wentz was actually speaking to her. She still felt amazed that her roommate was dating him.

Pete walked into Corbin's bedroom and saw her sitting up. "Core, baby, are you okay?" he asked walking toward her carefully. He was unaware that she had passed out again, he couldn't see her face. Denise stood in the doorway, not sure if Pete wanted to be left alone or if he wanted help.

"Shit," he muttered as he saw her face. Her eyes were closed tightly, like she was having a bad dream. He was about to reach out to her when she ungracefully collapsed on the floor. Pete reached out for her, dragging her a little bit so he could lay her head was in his lap. He brushed her hair out of her face and gently rubbed her cheek. He wasn't really sure what to do either. It had been a long time since she had done this and it scared him. She was breathing lightly and Pete wondered what was going on with her lately. He thought she had beat this disease and was half angry, half frightened at what brought her back. He glanced up at Denise who was just standing in the doorway.

"Has she been doing this a lot lately?" he asked her, returning his gaze to Corbin.

"Yeah, honestly. Like, never this bad before, but she's been drinking almost every night. Mostly by herself but sometimes we'll go out or she'll go out with friends and come home drunk or even if we have a party, she'll always end up hugging to toilet," she said. Pete nodded sullenly.

"Denise? Did you know Corbin is an alcoholic? She's been to rehab and everything, more than once," Pete told her. Denise's eyes widened. She had no idea.

"It would be a good thing for her if you get rid of all that alcohol in your cabinets or at least hide it from her." Denise nodded and talked out to the kitchen. Pete sat still, staring at Corbin and feeling pretty helpless.