I blinked slowly, trying to asses just how bad my hangover was going to be. I was still half asleep, but a cursory glance at my body told me everything at least *seemed* normal. I frowned, rolling over onto my side in bed as I tried to remember what exactly had happened the night before.
I remembered being *wasted*, and Cooper being there... Cooper pointing at someone, and me...
I groaned. My limbs felt like overcooked noodles, and my head ached. I couldn't even remember what Coop had been pointing at, just his finger and his grinning face.
Groaning, I heaved myself out of bed and over to the window, wincing at the feeling of my bare feet against the cold wood floor. At least whoever took me home had helped me change into some pajamas... my bar clothes probably reeked of alcohol. Squinting against the sun, I poked open a slit between my blinds. My eyes scanned the sidewalk for a moment before settling on my target: a young businessman on his way to work. Not that who he was mattered, really, just that he looked caffeinated and I could see his face. I tried not to make a habit of doing things like this — it felt rude, even without the added risk of a secondary swap — but my head was too muddled to care.
"I'm not hung over," I said quietly, eyes fixed on the man across the street. I'd figured out this trick about half way through college, when I had an 8am final and not very much self control. It usually took a few seconds to kick in, but...
"I'm not hung over," I said again, frowning, "I'm fucking full of energy, come on!"
Ouch. Raising my voice just made me feel nauseous. Steadying my spinning head with one hand, I quickly sat down on the bed. I still felt groggy. I didn't even realize what was going on until more memories of last night rose, foggily, in my head:
"Hey dude," Cooper said from where he stood next to my chair, "what if you swapped with them?"
I tried to turn, but I'd had too much to drink too fast. I hadn't had a night out for a while, and the shots were going down like water. I stared at Cooper's finger, trying to focus my eyes.
"I don't-" I managed, but Coop was too excited to care. He always got like this when he wanted me to use my power, like a puppy dog whining for a treat.
"Come onnnn, just do it!" he cajoled, and I groaned. I forgot Cooper was like this, sometimes.
Either out of laziness, drunkenness, or petty spite, I decided I didn't even feel up to turning my head.
"I can see the person Cooper wants me to swap with," I said grouchily, and- pop.
For a moment, I felt nothing at all, just an odd sense of weightlessness as the world rearranged. Then gravity set in. My lazy words had swapped our positions, Cooper now sitting down and me standing next to him. The only problem was that, with my head swimming and one of my legs half asleep from sitting down too long, I was in no position to be suddenly standing up. The last thing I remembered, now, was falling forward and my head hitting the edge of the bar.
As the scene finished playing out in my mind, I felt a tightness in my chest. I'd swapped with Cooper, I'd fallen asleep, and now I couldn't get rid of my hangover with my powers. There was only one answer, really. My powers had gone to Cooper in the swap.
As I sat there motionless, still processing what I'd just realized, my phone vibrated from the nightstand next to me. I glanced down, and read the notification.
Cooper: hey man! hope you're feeling okay. idk how much you remember from last night, but you hit you're head near the end. nothing serious, but I ended up driving you home and getting you in bed. text me if anything feels wrong! I'll feel like shit if it turns out you have a concussion or something and I didn't take you to the hospital
"Fuck," I muttered under my breath, "Cooper hasn't even realized..."