19

I get there about an hour late and find the tallest, hottest guy standing by the front door - who I just happen to be very good friends with - and engulf him in a very tight "happy new year/christmas/I've missed you" hug. He's on the phone with his mom. Aw.

Crazy emerges from the bar and walks right past Tall and I. "Hey?!" I call, and he turns, wide-eyed and nearly spilling his beer, and hugs me. "Happy birthday, birthday girl!" he smiles ecstatically.

In we go for what will eventually be one of the craziest - if not THE craziest - birthday of my life. No, my Best Friend wasn't there for it (she was in Rome with her BF) and yas, my Party Friend/ JD-buddy passed out before she could make it there, but oh well.

Music gets there soon after and presents me with my favorite birthday gift of the evening, I'm afraid to say. He proceeds to insist on paying for both my drinks (yes, I do order doubles so I'll never find myself drink-less) and I reluctantly swoon. He's supposed to be my friend. We're supposed to be just friends.

Two of my friends get there as Music and I are sliding over to the bar. The three of us girlishly laugh and shriek and jump and hug while Music watches with a patiently amused grin, and off the two go to get their drinks. Crazy stumbles over and announces with a rather triumphant smile that he got us all a table, despite how crowded the place was that night. Perfect.

After one of those fruity red drinks, three beers, and a shot of JD - on just my side of the table - off we go in Tall's car to my favorite club ever. It's MY birthday, so I'm allowed to be selfish and to ignore people's complaints about it being a rock club. We manouver ourselves to the front of the cue and skip all the waiting after Tall charmed the gay bouncer. People behind us rant and protest, but oh well.

Once inside, my two friends and I down a Jager, another girly red something that tastes like cranberry juice, and a conspicuously-named mushy brown substance called "Orgasm". Forget the final exam I was supposed to take at 8am on the next morning to pass the course I'd flunked. I was staying here till the sun came up.

Fast-forward the night until about 6:30am. Bartender with an accent (and a sexy Clash shirt) has been giving me drinks on the house all night (while his boss wasn't looking) and managed to steal my number from Tall, so something interesting awaits. Crazy and I made plans for every single day of the week. I faintly remember agreeing to go to the beach with Music and Tall and my two friends, but of course we all forget about it on the (infamous) morning after.

So I get home, still glittery from last night, at about 7am. I decide I have no time to waste and eat a banana (ew), then change into slightly less nighty clothes and off I go to my car. Yes, I'm still quite drunk and laughy from last night - but I'm already such a great driver that I don't care. I don't want to get there too early, so I decide to take a short 20min nap in the car and set my phone's alarm.

Of course I slept right through it.

To my utter mortification, DAD finds me in a semi-coma in the fogged-up car and scares me to death as he incessantly taps the passenger's window. "Don't you have a test?" he asks, a knowing grin on his face. Oh, shit. "Yeah!" I jolt back to life as I see it's already ten to nine and start the car. Both of us drive away from the house, side by side, him laughing at me and my post-birthday drunkenness, and for the lack of a better excuse I stick my tongue out at him and accelerate. He agrees to stay behind and off I go to class.

I practically fling my keys at the valet guy (no, I cannot for the life of me parallel-park so I do pay a ridiculous amount of money for someone else to do it for me - every single day, cringe) and run across my uni's gates with flushed cheeks and crazy hair. "The professor was looking for you," a faceless girl from my class tells me as I'm bolting up the stairs. "Awesome!" I call back breathlessly, "thanks!" What for, exactly, I'm not so sure.

"There you are," the professor smiles at me as I walk in to find two people still taking the test - thank god - "I was about to call your home," she's super nice about it. Yes, that's one of the benefits of taking a class only six people managed to flunk - the teacher gives a shit.

"What happened?" StonerGirl asks me with a... stoned grin. "Yeah, what happened?" the professor asks curiously.

"Yesterday was my birrrthday," I have a hard time not slurring, "I came straight from the party and accidentally fell asleep in my car," I'm - cringe - totally honest about it.

"You're kidding me!" StonerGirl and the professor laugh simultaneously.

"Unfortunately, no," I smile back with droopy eyelids.

Bottom line: this sort of thing only happens to those of us who were born during the holidays. Or not. Who cares? Best birthday ever and even if I hadn't passed that course with a super-satisfying B+, I wouldn't have changed a thing.