The dog, Petry, heaved its heavy body to one side and Tom had to accommodate the extra weight on the left side of the bed by attempting to roll uphill toward the right, but it wasn’t worth the effort, and so he fell asleep again nuzzled into the St Bernard’s collar. When he woke hours later a funky smell of something like a mushroom gone off assailed his nostrils and pushed his already reeling head into a dizzying spin from which he could see no escape. Rising would make it worse, and continuing to lie there made him think he was ready to die.
Yesterday’s visit to the winery was definitely a mistake he had realized going into, but spiraling downward as he had been doing for the last few weeks, he tagged along with Vespa in spite of his better judgment. She was only seeking accompaniment, not considering his problems. He knew his weakness, but gave into base desires just to be with her, and of course, he had drunk far too much.
He was out of practice, reeling on auto-pilot, and if truth be told had been playing a bit of pocket pool all the while she was looking clear-eyed and stain free. She must have been sewn into that dress, what there was of it.
Round about three, the two of them having been tasting numerous vintages for longer than any sensible person would have done, he claimed a sudden illness, left her the keys to his Bentley, and took a taxi home.
He fell into bed without disrobing, and shortly thereafter Petry lumbered into the room and plopped down beside him. He was still awake when he felt the bed incline to what felt a perilous forty-five degree angle, but not for long.
He thought the situation was something he would write about if he ever came to. Hair of the dog, indeed. He only hoped his car had made it to Vespa’s place in better shape than he felt himself.



On Location: A winery
Take It Away: The ______ heaved and he/she had to...
Words, Inc.:  practice, pilot, pocket
Plot Thickens: a sudden illness
One Word/Sentence Two: In the second sentence include the following word: mushroom