‘You look sick,’ she said, as the doors closed behind us. ‘Is your head still sore?’

I nodded, not wanting to acknowledge that I felt nauseous from the alcohol and lack of food.

‘Here.’ She wet her hand under the cold water tap and patted the back of my neck. Waves of nausea overtook me as I leaned over the basin, my body ridding itself of the toxicity I had spent the last five days pumping into it. The bathroom door opened, and laughter and music filled the room.

‘Is she puking?’ An unfamiliar voice broke the sounds of me emptying my stomach.

‘Get lost,’ Latika shouted. A flash from what I was sure was a camera broke the dimly lit bathroom.

‘Hey!’ Latika seemed to be shouting at the girl. I couldn’t move. Glued to the cold basin, I couldn’t let go. The room spun too viciously, and I wasn’t sure that I was done throwing up. Back at my side, Latika moved my hair out of my face.

‘We need to go, have you got your bag?’ I shook my head; it was still on the couch in the VIP area.

‘I’ll get it, stay here,’ I nodded my head, unable to speak.

It felt like an eternity, but when she got back, I was standing against the basin. I washed all of the mess away and made sure to straighten myself up. We left the club quickly, without telling the hosts, which I knew would negatively affect my relationship with them, but Latika was right. I needed to get out, and quickly.

Back home, Latika helped me into my bed and insisted she would stay the night. I resisted, telling her it was just something I ate. I was fine. When she closed the door behind her, I opened my phone. There was a message from Kavya, which I decided to deal with the next day, when I was sober. I posted a photo from the club to my timeline, hashtagged it as best I could, and sent a message to the promoter explaining that I was sick, and I thought it best to leave. And that they shouldn’t listen to rumours floating around about my behaviour.

I was exhausted, but the energy drinks were still flowing through my body. Standing up, I went to my closet and began planning the following week’s outfits.