The Coffee Shop (Hamilton Lams Modern AU) **IN EDITING**

Chapter 22

John's POV

6 ½ Hours Later

"Are *hic* we home *hic* yet?" Alex asked me for what felt like the hundredth time. "Almost, Alex." I sighed and turned my focus back on the road, noticing the streets were less crowded. After he'd taken me window shopping (everywhere I'd wanted to go was too expensive to buy anything from), Alex had taken me out to dinner. It was a small surprise that he said was meant to cheer me up. It definitely worked, and after dinner, Alex had insisted that we go grab a drink. So, I'd watched him get completely wasted while drinking a Pepsi for about two hours. Now, he was mumbling stuff to himself, hiccuping, and sometimes laughing to himself. He'd only acknowledge me to ask if we were home yet. "Jackie..? Can I *hic* ask you something?" His tone sounded more serious, instead of his usual (or what had been his usual for the past half hour) childlike voice. "Sure, Alex. What is it?" I heard him take a deep breath, probably trying to stop hiccuping. "Are your arms still sore? I remember *hic* bandaging them because you *hic* cut them. I don't remember *hic* why, but I know you were *hic* upset," he explained. "Aw, Alex, that's sweet of you to ask, and no, they don't hurt anymore. I'm fine now," I told him. "Okay, I just *hic* wanted to make sure you were *hic* okay.." he mumbled. His voice trailed off and he went quiet. I quickly glanced over at him, only to find that he'd passed out. Aww, he's too cute, I thought. About five minutes after he'd fallen asleep, we reached my apartment. I went around to the passenger side to wake him, but he was out cold. I carefully picked him up, letting him rest his head on my shoulder, and stepped into the building. The lobby was empty, which was something I'd never seen (but what do you really expect when you get home at 11:45 at night?). The elevator was too, and there were no stops on the way up. I took my keys out and unlocked the apartment door, opening it to find Laf and Herc watching TV. "Guys, we're home," I whispered, trying my best not to wake Alex (even though if I'd blasted music from my phone he would've slept through it). I took off my shoes before walking into my room and setting Alex down on my bed. He was snoring, and it was nice to see him so relaxed for once (he always seems so hyper). I changed into my pajamas and felt like doing nothing more than just lying down next to Alex and sleeping. However, I knew the guys were gonna want to know everything, so I left my room, quietly closing the door on the way out. "So, how'd it go?" "Where'd you guys go?" "Did he buy you anything?" "Why is he asleep?" I pushed them both away, as they'd crowded me as soon as I'd left my room. "I can only answer one question at a time, guys," I told them. "First question, it was great! He took me window shopping because everything from everywhere we went was too expensive to buy. Second question, I don't remember the names of the places he took me, but I know for a fact that we had dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. Third question, no he didn't, because neither of us have that much money. And finally, last question, he passed out in the car because he got completely wasted. I took him out to a bar for a drink because he insisted on going, and he had way too much to drink. I had a Pepsi, but if I hadn't had to drive, I would be as wasted as he is." That's a long explanation. "Sounds like you had fun, non?" Laf asked. "Definitely. And I can't help but get the feeling you two helped, but tell me in the morning, 'cause it's too late for me to stay up any longer. 'Night, guys," I mumbled, reentering my room and closing the door behind me before lying down next to Alex. I hugged him close to me, as if he were my own personal stuffed animal, and fell asleep to the sound of his soft snoring.