Chapter 13: The Hangover
Flashing red and blue lights illuminated the street outside Chum as a handful of ambulances and police cruisers sat outside the club. A cordone had been set up around the entrance, with a number of the people who had been in the club idling on the far side of the police barrier, craning their necks to get a better look at what was happening. At that moment, one of the police officers was leading the young man who had accosted Honey and Susan out of the club in handcuffs, his face looking like one large, angry bruise.
"Miss?" the heavyset officer questioned, bringing Go Go's attention back to him.
"Sorry, what?" Go Go replied, blinking her thoughts clear and shifting her position as she leaned against the back of one of the ambulances.
"I asked if you really felt it was necessary to confront the suspect?" the police officer repeated, pen and notepad at the ready.
"He and his friends assaulted my cousin," Go Go replied, her tone growing indignant as she gestured at Geon, who was currently seated on the rear step of the ambulance, pressing an ice pack to the side of his head, "And who knows what that bastard wanted to do to my friends. I couldn't just sit there and do nothing."
"So you drop kicked him in the head?" the officer questioned, quirking an eyebrow at Go Go as he did.
"Well, when you put it that way," Go Go replied with a note of embarrassment as she crossed her arms, "Maybe I overreacted a little."
The police officer snorted at this and smirked at Go Go.
"Maybe," the officer agreed as she put away his notepad, "But if I had been in your shoes, I probably would have tazed the guy into next week."
"So, are we in trouble?" Go Go questioned hopefully.
"Everything we're hearing from the other witnesses seem to corroborate what you're saying, and I'm willing to bet the club's security cameras will as well," the officer replied with a shake of his head, "So no, I imagine we won't be dragging you and your friends downtown tonight."
"Thank you, officer," Go Go said with a smirk.
"Have a good night, miss," the officer replied to her with a nod before turning and walking away.
"How's your face?" Go Go questioned as she turned her attention to Geon.
"Could be worse," he replied as he lowered the ice pack and gave Go Go a sour look.
"What?" Go Go asked in confusion, "What did I do?"
"You said you wouldn't get in any fights," Geon answered.
"Hey, I tried to let you take care of it," Go Go argued, "Not my fault you couldn't handle it."
"I got jumped by like twelve guys!" Geon retorted indignantly.
"My friends and I handled them alright," Go Go replied with a smug smirk.
Geon replied by glaring at her, causing Go Go to sigh and roll her eyes.
"Fine, fine, sorry," Go Go relented, "I'll admit, things got kind of out of hand."
"It's fine," Geon replied with a shrug, "Those guys were bad news. Don't think management will hold it against any of us. You're lucky you know."
"Why's that?" Go Go questioned.
"The cops didn't card your friend," Geon explained as he gestured towards Violet, who was standing by another ambulance, talking to Honey, "Then we'd actually be in trouble."
"Guess you're right," Go Go confirmed with a sigh as she straightened up, "Anyway, I should probably be getting everyone home now. See you around, sachon."
"Hey, don't think I forgot about our deal!" Geon called after Go Go as she began walking away, "You still owe my some time working on my car!"
"Ugh, fine," Go Go groaned as her shoulders slumped, "You know how to find me."
Walking over to where Violet and Honey were, Go Go noticed the compression wrap on the taller woman's wrist.
"How's the hand?" Go Go questioned as she stopped next to the two.
"It's sore," Honey replied as she rubbed the wrap with her good hand, giving Go Go an annoyed look, "You could have warned me."
"Well, hey, you really needed to punch that guy in the face and I wasn't about to stop you," Go Go replied with a smirk, "If you want, I can train you a little so it doesn't, you know, hurt as much next time."
"Maybe," Honey replied as she looked away from Go Go. Letting out a small sigh, the shorter woman turned her attention towards Violet.
"What about you, Freshman?" Go Go inquired, "You come out okay?"
"For the most part," Violet replied, grimacing as she rubbed one of her arms, "I don't think this is what Dr. Leiber meant when she told me to take it easy though."
"Don't worry, you'll feel worse once the alcohol wears off," Go Go joked, earning a chuckle from Violet. Glancing away from the others, Violet spotted Susan standing nearby, an anxious look on her face.
"Hey Sue," Violet greeted, her expression turning perplexed, "Everything alright?"
"Y-Yeah!" Susan replied with a start as she stepped closer to them, "Everything is fine."
"You handled yourself pretty well in there," Go Go observed, "You said you were in the military?"
"Yeah, you know, good old combat training and all that," Susan answered with a clearly uncomfortable laugh before her gaze drifted towards Honey, "H-Hey."
"...Hey," Honey replied, gripping her elbow with her good hand and looking away from Susan.
Noticing this, Violet and Go Go shared a look before Go Go awkwardly coughed into her fist.
"So, yeah, I, uh, I think Violet and I are….are gonna just stand over there," Go Go said as she gestured behind her with her thumb before she and Violet slunk away, Susan and Honey never sparing them a glance.
"Soooooo," Susan began awkwardly as she stuck her sweaty hands into her pockets, "Tonight got pretty crazy, huh?"
"Yeah, I suppose it did," Honey answered quietly, still not looking at Susan as she spoke.
"Look….about what happened…." Susan mumbled, her cheeks turning red as she rubbed the back of her neck, "Before all the fighting…."
"I-It's fine," Honey quickly answered, finally raising her gaze to look at Susan.
"...It is?" Susan questioned, a look of confusion on her face.
"Of course," Honey replied with a smirk and a shrug, "We were just….caught up in the moment, you know?"
"...Caught up in the moment?" Susan repeated, clearly not understanding.
"Yeah," Honey confirmed with a nod, "We had a few drinks, we were dancing, we were trying to get rid of that jerk. We just got so caught up in everything and….accidents happen, you know?"
"Y-Yeah," Susan replied, looking somewhat shaken by the explanation, "I guess they do."
"Good," Honey said as she walked over and laid a hand on Susan's shoulder, "It was….It was nice to meet you, Susan."
"Yeah," Susan agreed as she hesitantly reached her hand up towards Honey's, "Same."
Before Susan could touch her though, Honey quickly pulled her hand away. Then, giving Susan one last, small, awkward smile, Honey turned and walked away, causing Susan to ball her hand up into a fist and place it against the side of her head before running a hand through her hair, not noticing as Honey's smile quickly fell away.
"Alright, I'm no relationship expert," Violet whispered to Go Go as they stood a short distance away, watching Honey approach them, "But I don't think that went well."
"Yeah, me either," Go Go sighed, "You think you can get Sue home alright?"
"She's crashing in my dorm room tonight, so yeah," Violet confirmed with a nod.
"Alright, well, you do that, I'll take care of Honey," Go Go explained, "I'll talk to you later, Freshman."
"Talk to you later," Violet confirmed as she made her way towards Susan.
As she made her way over to Susan, Violet gave Honey a small wave as they passed, earning only a small nod from the older woman in return.
"So," Go Go said as Honey reached her, "Enjoy your night out?"
"No," Honey replied coldly, not pausing as she walked right past Go Go, "I want to go home. This was a mistake."
"Yeah," Go Go muttered to herself as she rolled her head back and looked up at the night sky, "I was afraid you'd say something like that."
With that, Go Go turned and jogged to catch up with Honey, joining the taller woman as she made her way past the police barricade and down the street.
"Hey," Violet greeted as she stopped next to Susan.
"Hi," Susan replied with a sigh as she looked up at the younger woman.
"You ready to head back to my place?" Violet asked as she pointed her thumb behind her.
"Yeah, I'm exhausted," Susan confirmed with a nod, following along as Violet turned around and began walking away from the club.
"So," Violet said with an awkward expression, "How did your talk with Honey go?"
"Oh, it went fine, great even!" Susan answered with a nervous titter, "Absolutely great! Can't think of how it could have gone better."
Later,
"Ugh, how could I be such an idiot!?" Susan groaned from her position on the floor of Violet's dorm room, "I'm twenty-six years old, I should be past the point where I'm drunkenly laying on a dorm room floor thinking about how much of a loser I am, shouldn't I?"
"As someone who's just entering that stage of her life, I wouldn't really know," Violet replied sardonically as she lay on her bed, looking at the ceiling, "Also, your only on the floor so you don't break my roommate's bed while she's out for the night."
"I'm sorry," Susan, now dressed in an oversized, olive green t-shirt with the words "Area 51" elmbalzoned across the front in black letters, sighed as she sat up, "I know it was kind of a rough night for you too. You probably just want to go to bed."
"No, it's fine," Violet, dressed in a black tank top and orange and grey checkered short shorts, replied as she rolled over to face Susan, propping her head up with her arm as she did, "Honestly, I think you'll probably be up all night thinking about it otherwise."
"Probably," Susan agreed as she sat up and adjusted the towel she had wrapped around her freshly washed hair.
"So, I guess we should start by addressing the elephant in the room," Violet stated, looking clearly unsure about how to broach the topic, "Are you….bisexual? Because I saw what happened tonight and I know you're into guys so…."
"What? No, no way," Susan answered quickly, shaking her head so violently that it dislodged the towel on her head.
At this, Violet quirked her eyebrow at Susan while making a face that made it clear she didn't believe the older woman. At this, an expression mixing confusion and panic set in on Susan's face.
"...Maybe?" Susan amended, before groaning, placing her face in her hands and laying back on the floor, her head hitting the pillow beneath her with a dull thump, "I don't know!"
"Have you ever been attracted to a girl before?" Violet inquired as she sat up on her bed.
"I don't think so," came Susan's muffled reply before she threw her hands up in exasperation, her voice quickly edging into panic, "But maybe I have! Maybe there's been a bunch of girls I've been into over my life and I just didn't realize it! I don't know what to think anymore!"
"Alright, maybe you need to take a deep breath and calm down a little," Violet said as she made what she hoped was a calming gesture.
"I am calm!" Susan snapped as she turned to glare at Violet while smacking the carpeted floor hard enough to that they both heard the floor underneath it crack a little. Susan looked at her hand with wide eyes for a moment before she gave Violet a sheepish smile.
"Sorry," Susan apologized, "Maybe I am getting a little bit worked up about this."
"I'm not surprised," Violet commented with a sigh, "It's not often you have to question firmly held beliefs about yourself."
"I guess," Susan concurred, though to Violet she looked helpless and lost.
"Look, maybe we can talk you through this?" Violet suggested, "What made you think of Honey in that way?"
"Well," Susan began thoughtfully, "I've always had a thing for tall guys and she's, you know…."
"She's pretty tall, yeah," Violet agreed with a laugh, "Which is hilarious to hear from you, by the way. What else?"
"I mean, she's like, super warm and bubbly," Susan went on as she ran a hand through her wet hair, a smile tugging at her lips, "Talking to her made me feel like I was wrapped in a warm blanket."
"Alright, I can see that," Violet said with a grin.
"Plus she's pretty," Susan continued as she sat up and leaned back against her hands, "Like, really pretty. I honestly get catching myself looking at her legs because she's got-"
"Okay, let's not make this weird," Violet interrupted as she narrowed her eyes at Susan.
"Sorry," Susan apologized, her face flushing with embarrassment, "I think the thing that really caught my attention was that I kept getting this….I don't know, this vibe from her that she was into it too."
"Really?" Violet questioned with a quirked eyebrow.
"Yeah," Susan confirmed with a nod, "I thought I saw her checking me out a couple of times, and then she held my hand at the table, and then when we were dancing…."
"Yeah, I saw you two dancing," Violet said, "She definitely seemed into it."
"She seemed pretty into the kiss too," Susan added before sighing, "I don't know, maybe I was just reading the whole thing wrong."
"What makes you say that?" Violet inquired.
"Well, after we stopped making out, but before that dude broke a bottle over my head, she seemed like she was, I don't know, starting to panic," Susan explained, her expression pensive, "And then when we talked afterwards, she blamed the whole thing on the alcohol and stuff. She basically denied it happened."
"Well, maybe she's going through the same thing you are right now?" Violet suggested, "I've never heard her or Go Go say that she's into girls. As far as I know, she's only ever dated guys. Maybe it was the realization that freaked her out, not anything you did."
"Maybe, I don't know," Susan replied with a shrug, sounding unconvinced, "Part of me wonders if it has something to do with her old boyfriend. You know about that, right?"
"Tadashi, the one who died in the fire?" Violet inquired, her expression turning sad, "Yeah, they told me about that."
"Maybe she wasn't ready to move on yet," Susan said before groaning, "In which case, I'm a gigantic asshole for pushing her like that."
"Oh, don't say that Susan," Violet lightly admonished, "I don't think you forced Honey to do anything she didn't at least somewhat want to do."
"I don't know," Susan replied, sighing as she lay back down on the floor, "I feel like I just made a royal mess out of this whole situation. You guys were bringing her out to cheer her up, and I just inserted myself into it and ruined everything."
"Sue, that's not true," Violet argued, her expression sad.
"If you say so," Susan replied as she rolled over so her back was facing Violet, "At least I won't have to face her ever again after tonight. Think I might die of shame if I ever laid eyes on her again."
"Right," Violet muttered as she lay down as well, an anxious expression on her face, "There's no way you'd ever see her again."
Meanwhile,
Wasabi, dressed in a black t-shirt, and blue boxer shorts and laying on his bed, grumbled as noise from in his apartment woke him up. Raising his head, he watched through bleary eyes as Go Go stumbled through the door into the bed room, an exhausted and miserable expression on her face.
"Hey," Wasabi greeted sleepily as he rolled over so he could face Go Go better, "How'd girl's night go?"
"Terrible," Go Go grumbled as she kicked off her sneakers.
"Terrible?" Wasabi repeated in confusion, "What happened? What time is it anyway?"
"Late," Go Go answered with a sigh as she stripped off her pants and crawled into bed with Wasabi before she flopped face first onto a pillow, turning her head just enough so that she could keep talking to her boyfriend, "I needed to make sure Honey got home alright. She was pretty upset. Sorry for waking you up, by the way."
"It's fine," Wasabi answered with a shake of his head, "Why was Honey upset? What happened?"
"Well," Go Go began, pausing briefly to blow some of her hair out of her face, "We made it into Chum alright and everything was going great until Honey got harassed by some douchebag, made out with Violet's friend Sue and then we ended up brawling with a bunch of drunk frat boys in the middle of the club."
"Wow, Geon must have loved that," Wasabi stated with an amused chuckle, "I remember the last time we…."
Wasabi trailed off as his sleep addled brain finally managed to latch onto one of the statements Go Go had just made.
"Wait, did you just say that Honey made out with some girl named Sue?" Wasabi questioned in confusion as he propped himself up on his elbow.
"That I did," Go Go confirmed, her eyes fluttering closed as she spoke.
"Wait what?" Wasabi asked, rising further upright as he spoke, "Since when does-"
"Please be quiet," Go Go interrupted as she reached up and pulled Wasabi back down onto the bed before draping herself across his chest, "I don't really want to go into the details right now, and you're going to need your rest anyway."
"Why am I going to need my rest?" Wasabi questioned as he instinctively wrapped his arm around Go Go's shoulder.
"Because I'm going to be hungover tomorrow and you're going to need to take care of me," Go Go mumbled into his chest.
"I mean, you woke me up and dropped this bombshell on me and now you expect me to just go back to sleep?" Wasabi inquired as he looked down at Go Go.
Go Go's only response was to snore lightly, having already fallen asleep.
Looking down at Go Go, Wasabi could only sigh and roll his eyes before laying his head back down on the pillow. At the end of the day, he supposed this was something that could wait until tomorrow.
A/N: I'm definitely on a roll this week! A quick chapter but it was nice getting to put a cap on the crazy events of the last few chapters. Now, on to even crazier events! As always, feedback and critiques are always welcome, so please review! Later!