Sue entered the room with the items and walked over to the bed. She placed the glass of water and bread on his nightstand and sat facing him. She reached over with the damp cloth and dabbed off the perspiration which had settled on his brow and brushed his hair aside once more -- this time it wasn't in the way, she just wanted to run her fingers through his hair again. Jack shut his eyes, enjoying the sensation of her touch. Sue slowly moved the cloth around his face to sooth him and finally wiped his mouth to remove any evidence of his drinks. When she was finished she reached beside her and grabbed the bread and water, giving the cloth their spot. As she watched Jack eat his bread and sip the water she scooted around to sit beside him on the bed, in the same sitting position as him, leaning against the head board. When he had finished his bread and appeared done with his drink Sue reached over and took the glass from his hand and placed it beside the cloth. "You're good at this," he faintly smiled and tilted his head back against the headboard. She looked over at him. He lolled his head to the side to look at her. "I am not drunk," he said indignantly. "I wasn't talking about you," she was amused at his offence. "Oh. But for the record, I am not drunk."
"Oh no?" she chuckled softly. "No. I am…" Jack looked thoughtful, "tipsy."
"You're smashed."
"Buzzed."
"Tanked."
"I'm… out of terms." Jack conceded unhappily.
"Good. I win. Just for the record I can think of four more terms," she smirked over at him, "But I'm proud of you, most inebriated people couldn't have thought up any synonyms. Oh! Oh! Five! I have five!"
"I'm not drunk," Jack pouted.
"You admitted you were earlier," Sue openly laughed at him. "When?"
"At the bar. I asked why you were there and you said, and I quote, 'to get drunk'."
"That was my goal."
"So you still say you're not drunk?" Jack nodded slowly. If he moved too quickly he got dizzy, but he hoped she wouldn't notice. "I took you home, Jack. You couldn't even stand up on your own."
"Okay, maybe I'm a little bit… un-sober." Jack held his index finger an inch above his thumb for emphasis. He slumped down in his bed and rested his head on a pillow, closing his eyes. "So, why were you at that bar?" She was still curious why he went to one that was almost an hour away. "I had a date," he replied quietly.
"At a bar? That's where you meet people, not where you take them for dates," Sue's voice took on an authoritative tone as she attempted to lecture Jack. "At a restaurant down the street."
"Oh. So I guess it didn't go well?" she laughed nervously. "Guess not," he replied glumly. "Did she leave early?" Sue was careful with her wording. "No -- I did." Jack said it softly enough, but there was some bitterness in his voice. "Oh." Sue chewed on that for a minute, trying to think up an appropriate response. When Sue didn't say anything else, Jack continued some more. "She was smart and funny and successful…" his brows furrowed as he tried to remember the woman from dinner, "And beautiful! My God was she ever pretty." His voice was wistful and full of regret. "Did she not seem interested in you? Because, Jack, if she can't see how great you are--" Sue started but Jack cut her off quickly. "She liked me fine!" Jack snapped angrily as his eyes sprung open. He looked pointedly at Sue, "Most women find me charming…" and he softened his voice, "that's not why I left." He lowered his gaze to study the bed sheets beneath his body. Sue hesitated for a moment before her curiosity took over, "Then why did you?"
"Because… Stephanie -- that's her name -- as great as she was… she wasn't what I wanted… I didn't want to be there with her… she wasn't…" Jack glanced up at Sue and spoke in a barely audible whisper, "she wasn't you." Sue didn't know what to say, and Jack didn't think there was anything left to say on his part so they both remained silent carefully watching each other and considering the words just spoken aloud.