His Tangled Web

"Ow! My head!" Cried Angela. It was around twelve noon, Ash Wednesday. She had just woken up after celebrating Mardi Gras most of the night. She, and some of her friends had traveled to New Orleans for the annual celebration.

What the hell did I have to drink last night? She wondered. I think it was green, or purple, whatever it was. Oh wait! Those were the colors of the actual Mardi Gras celebration. I have no idea what I was drinking last night.

She was never much of a drinker, but all of her friends were like, "Hey! It's Fat Tuesday! Live it up a little!" Unfortunately she listened to them. Well, at least she didn't end up in bed with a stranger. That was not the way she wanted to finally lose her virginity.

Although her friends kept telling her how twenty-four was way too old to be a virgin, Angela decided to wait until she found the right guy. It didn't have to be her wedding night, but it would at least have to be with someone she truly loved. She wanted it to be special, and wanted it to be with someone who also reciprocated her feelings. True, it was an old cliche that sex is better with someone you love. But sometimes old cliches are actually true.

It took all of her energy to throw the covers off of her. That is when she got an unexpected surprise. Her top half was completely naked, and she had on six strands of green, gold, and purple beads.

Oh dear Lord! She thought. Please tell me I didn't! Does this mean I exposed my breasts in public at least six times? I'm gonna kill Scott! Her friend Scott, being one of her five friends, that had made their way down to Louisiana. He had been one of her dearest friends for years, and promised that he would help keep her out of trouble. Well apparently he didn't. But then again, she didn't have all of the facts. Maybe he stopped her before she got into some real trouble.

Angela forced herself to get out of bed, and grabbed a t-shirt that was in her overnight bag. She tossed the beads in the garbage, they weren't exactly trophies she wanted to proudly display. With that, she quickly threw on her old comfy t-shirt that she usually wears to bed.

With a flick of the light switch, she had turned on every lamp in the room. The sudden brightness, made her brain feel as though a nuclear bomb, had just exploded inside her head. Her cranium felt like it was on fire. Well, that was perfect, since it matched her hair color.

She looked around the crappy hotel room and sighed. It looked as terrible as her head felt. The tv itself was still analog, and the carpet was an odd shade of lime green. Well, at least it was clean, that was probably all that mattered, right?

What was she doing with her life? She was in her mid twenties now, not some adolescent college girl. Perhaps if she had gotten a degree other than Zoology she'd have a better job by now. Cold reality hit when she had graduated from college a couple of years ago; there were no such things as high paying Zoology firms.

As she made her way into the bathroom, she had stepped into something cold and wet. Gross! As she looked down, she saw some vomit on the floor.

Oh man, she thought. I must have really gotten sick last night. I didn't even make to the toilet. Oh, I guess whatever I drank was blue.

Not wanting to ruin the motel maid's day, she quickly wiped up the mess with a towel. At least the bathroom floor was linoleum. She then rinsed the towel in the toilet. Well it wasn't like the water had been used, it was clean. She didn't want to clog the sink with her vomit. Angela then threw the wet towel in the shower, and gave her hands a good thorough thirty seconds of washing.

As she finished washing her hands, she looked at her bloodshot eyes in the mirror. That was it, she was never drinking again. She then looked at her hair. What was she thinking? This was a decision she actually made sober, as she had it done the night before they left on their trip.

Her friend, and roommate, Zoe had just graduated for cosmetology school, and wanted to try a radical new color style. But she said she needed a redhead. Angela, always wanting to help others, had agreed to be her Guinea pig. Plus it sounded pretty cool, and looked interesting in the photo.

It didn't even look that bad on her. It was just a little too radical. Her hair had been dyed candy apple red, and had yellow, and orange streaks through it. Basically her hair looked to be on fire. Hopefully her boss, Max wouldn't have a fit, when she returned to work at the coffee shop on Monday. Oh well, if she had to, she could always wash most of it out.

Angela took a few Ibuprofen tablets, and then hopped in to the shower. Maybe both would help with her hangover. As she stood under the hot water, she noticed some of the dye washing out. Well that's normal when you get your hair dyed, especially a red color.

She was tempted, to try an get most of it washed out as she could. But she didn't want to hurt Zoe's feelings, plus it might end up looking awful. So she decided to just let the color fade over time. Red hair dye apparently fades rather quickly.

The only reason she knew this, was because her one cousin always complained about it every month. Angela couldn't help but laugh. She had always hated her red hair, yet her cousin was willing to shell out money every month for it. Although over time, she did learn to appreciate her titan locks. Well, especially after what Zoe had done to it. Plus any other hair color would probably not be that flattering on her. Although maybe it would have been nice to live life as a carefree blonde.

As she finished up in the bathroom, she quickly got dressed, and threw on some make-up. She then headed down to the coffee shop for lunch. Scott, Zoe, and her other friends Cara, Bobby, and Alan were already waiting for her.

"Where's your new fine jewelry?", asked Scott with a wicked grin. Angela just smirked back at him, and flipped him the bird. Everyone started to laugh, probably because it was so unlike her.

"I thought you were supposed to keep an eye on me last night." She said.

"I did," he replied. "I kept you from going off with a couple of losers last night. They even threatened to beat me up, for interfering. Fortunately I had my posse here to back me up last night."

"Well, in that case I need to thank you." She replied. "And I'm sorry for my behavior last night, even though I don't remember any of it."

"You're welcome!", he said with a smile. "We'll forgive you, this time. Come on, let's eat. I want to head over to Lafayette, and check out the Bayou."

"Yuck," said Cara. "Do we really have to check out a swamp?"

"Don't worry, babe.", said Alan as he put his arm around her. "I'll protect you. I won't let any alligators, snakes, spiders, or voodoo witchcraft get to you."

"I'm not worried about any of that.", replied Cara. "I just don't want to get any of my clothes dirty. Besides, the only dangerous animal I'm worried about is you."

Cara then playfully shoved him off of her, and the entire group began to laugh. Although she was smiling, Angela could not help but feel a little jealous. She looked at Cara and Alan, and then at Zoe and Bobby. They seemed to be so much in love. That was something she longed to have. Scott was her best friend, but their relationship was purely platonic. They just didn't have those kinds of feelings for one another.

Angela just sighed. Oh well, her Prince Charming had to be out there somewhere. She just had a feeling that she would meet him soon. Who knows? Maybe even this trip.

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