Ryder's POV (continued)

After the concert, Jess was so hyped up that she suggested we go to a bar. I agreed quickly, needing a drink after an hour of straight up Cher. We got a ride to the closest bar, which was only about 10 minutes away. For once, though, Jess wasn't talking it up with our driver, she just smiled to herself and stared out the window. When he stopped outside the pub, I ran to the other side of the car and helped her out. "You good?" I asked, chuckling as she walked dreamily to the front steps. "She was amazing! I think this might have been the best day of my life." I smiled to myself, holding the door for her and following her to the bar. "One Miller Lite and one…" I trailed off, gesturing for Jess to order. "Vodka shot!" she cheered, lifting her arms up. I chuckled, looking back at the bartender, "You heard the lady." She chuckled, grabbing my beer and then pouring Jess's shot. I paid and then handing Jess the shot, "Cheers?" She nodded energetically, clinking out glasses and then swallowing her shot in one go. "Dang, are you trying to make this an after party or something?" I chuckled, taking a sip of my beer. She shrugged, smiling, "Why not? The day can only get better, right?" I shrugged, "I guess you're right, Sullivan." She chuckled, shaking her head, "Sully to you, mister." I nodded, lifting my hands up in surrender, "Ok, babe." She nodded smugly, pushing past me and asking the bartender for another shot. "Don't you want to take it slow?" I asked, "I mean you could at least have something that tastes good like a Long Island Iced Tea…" She shrugged, downing her second shot, "I'll have that next." I smiled, shaking my head, "I'm gonna have to take care of you tonight, aren't I?" She kissed my cheek before shrugging, "Lynn, I'm a heavy-weight. I need to get a few stronger drinks in me before I even feel a buzz." "Ok, but if you puke on me, I will never forgive you," I joked. She winked at me, leaning over the bar and waiting to get the bartender's attention again. I chuckled, taking another swig of my beer and looking around. I saw a jukebox in the back corner and immediately knew what I had to do to continue her fun. I excused myself, telling her to stay at the bar, before walking over to it. I grabbed some change from my pocket and threw two quarters into the slot, playing a random Cher song. I'm not shocked that they had it in there- I'm pretty sure this was a gay bar. I mean there were drag queens on the mini stage to my left…

Once the music started playing, there was a loud roar from the crowd. Apparently, Jess wasn't the only Cher fan here. Shocker. I walked back to the bar and noticed Jess singing as she cradled a glass, which I'm guessing was her tea. I smiled, pulling her out of the bar crowd and over to the dance floor. "Lynn, do you hear that? They're playing Cher!" I chuckled, "Crazy, huh?" She giggled, taking another drink of her tea and then starting to dance. I just swayed a bit, careful not to spill my beer. Meanwhile, Jess was twirling and spilling little bits of her tea every which way. Thankfully, the people around us were far enough not to get splashed. "Jess, maybe I should hold that for a second…" I said, grabbing the glass from her cautiously. Reluctantly, she went along with it and just did another twirl, singing louder. I chuckled, holding both drink and trying to dance. "Lynn, come on! Put the drinks down and dance with me!" I shook my head, gesturing to the full glasses in my hands and she sighed, taking hers back and chugging it. I stared at her for second and then followed her lead, chugging the rest of my beer. When we were done, we both stared at each other before bursting into a fit of laughter. "Here," she said, grabbing my glass and then taking our empties to the bar. I waited there patiently, looking around. I felt a little awkward when I saw a drag queen wink at me, but I thought back to how ignorant I was about the whole Unique thing and I just waved in return. However, I think he took it as a 'come here' thing because he started coming closer. I freaked out and ran over to Jess. "Why do you look so worried?" she asked, half giggling, half serious. "I think I may have accidentally flirted with a drag queen." She laughed- and I mean, she laughed loud. I rolled my eyes, looking around, "Jess, come on. I'm trying to be cool here." I felt a hand on my chin and suddenly, she turned my head to face her: "Ryder Lynn, you do not have to flirt with drag queens just to fit in at a gay bar… though it helps." I groaned, "Stop joking around and kiss me." She looked caught off guard but soon smiled and stood on her tip toes. I smiled, immediately calming down at her cuteness and leaning in to kiss her. It only lasted a few seconds, but it was much needed. "Now, are you all better, Mr. Worrywart?" she asked jokingly. I chuckled, scratching the back of my neck awkwardly, "Ya, sorry about that. He just looked so… strong." She chuckled, pulling me back to the dancefloor and looking around at the different drag queens: "Any of them would be lucky to have you." I shook my head, giving her a fake-annoyed look before pulling her closer and dancing.

While at the bar, Jess had 3 more shots and eventually wound up wanting pictures with all of the drag queens- even the one that winked at me. Then, she ended up grabbing a mic when they started karaoke and serenaded me with, of course, another ABBA song. I thought it was cute, until she started hiccupping throughout the whole thing. Honestly, it was just full-on hilarity at that point. Now, we are back at the hotel. Jess is in the bathroom, puking her guts out. I offered to hold her hair, but she kept drunkenly yelling that she didn't want me to see her like this. I chuckled to myself though, knowing that I have seen her in much worse conditions… even though that is a dark thought. Still, I stood by the door, waiting for her to finish so I could give her a hug. After a few more minutes, I opened the door. "You ok in there, Sully?" I asked gently. She groaned, sitting next to the toilet and looking up at me. She looked miserable. I frowned, grabbing a towel and wetting it before handing it to her. She took it tiredly, wiping her mouth off and then looking down at the residue in disgust. I chuckled lightly, grabbing it back from her and putting it aside, "How about we go to bed? You can lay down and I can get you some water." She nodded and I helped her up, walking her out of the bathroom and to the bed. I sat her down on the corner before grabbing the small garbage from under the desk and putting it by her feet. "Thanks, Lynn," she mumbled, looking down at the trash. "No problem, babe. I'm going to get you a water, ok?" She nodded and I hurried to the bathroom, grabbing a plastic cup and filling it with cold water. I came back to find Jess still staring at the trash. I smiled to myself at how adorable she was, but quickly snapped myself out of it, handing her the cup: "Here you go." She looked up at me and then down at the cup before taking a small sip. "There you go. Once you finish the cup, we can go to bed, but take your time." She nodded gently, taking another sip and then looking around in a haze. "I have to change…" I nodded, going over to her bag and grabbing one of her sleep shirts. "Is this good?" I asked, holding it in front of her. "Ya, that's good." She looked at me and then handed me the cup, "Turn around, I've got this." I chuckled, turning around. "Don't laugh at me!" she whined, but I couldn't hold it in. I kept chuckling and I heard a groan. "Sorry, Jess." She mumbled something to herself and I heard her fidgeting on the bed. I stood there for a few minutes until I heard her stop. I turned around, figuring she was done, but when I looked at her, I saw a very tired Jess with a shirt stuck around her head. "Uh- do you need help?" I asked nervously, averting my eyes and looking up to the ceiling. I heard another mumble and I figured it was a 'yes' so I moved my hands forward, trying to feel the shirt. Unfortunately, I felt something else and I froze: "Sorry!" I heard a reassuring mumble so I continued, raising my hands higher until I felt the shirt. When I did, I let out a sigh, pulling it over her head. I felt my fingers poke her eye and I quickly apologized again. After a few more sorry's, I managed to get her arms through the shirt and hopefully have it on the right way. I opened one eye to peek and I smiled to myself, seeing her smiling at me. "We did it!" she cheered drowsily. I chuckled, pulling the covers up and helping her into the bed. "Two more sips and you can sleep." She pouted, but reached her hands out for the cup. I handed it to her and waited for her to drink. Once she was done, I threw the empty cup out in the trash that I had given her, before getting into bed. Tomorrow is going to be a relaxation day… the poor girl is going to be so hungover.