tongue tied - jake kiszka

25.

I was...very drunk.

The bar was loud with music and conversation and the neon lights coated us in red and blue color. Josh had ordered us a few more rounds before calling it quits. He said his bank account didn't cover all us heathens.

Or something like that.

I had danced with Posy and Dawn for a while, feeling Lee's eyes on me as I did. It didn't seem to bother me the way it normally would. But then again, I was just drunk and typically not a great judge of character while intoxicated.

I motioned for Lee to come join me and he grinned, making his way over towards me. His dark hair was still damp and I felt a little taken back by the fact that I found the look cute on him. Wrapping my arms around his neck and pulling him closer to me, we began to move to the music.

   His body was warm and sweaty, pushed up against me. "Glad I met you Charlie." He said loudly in my ear, trying to be heard over all the noise. "Glad to be met." I assured him, trying to match the volume of his voice but just ended up yelling instead.

   Lee seemed to find this funny though, chuckling softly as he moved the side of his face closer to mine. Our cheeks were now pressed close together and his hands travelled up and down my back tentatively.

   "You're so beautiful, you know that?" He spoke again, one of his hands dipping lower along the backside of my dress. "And you're funny." His other hand followed. "And I know that we're technically strangers..."

   "Hey I thought we were long lost friends." I said, looking at him with a drunken pout. I felt a little ridiculous, but his hands were all over me and he was so warm and so close.

   "Let's get out of here."

   I looked up at him, suddenly feeling a little dizzy. He wanted to get out of here. Together. I knew what that meant- everyone knew what that meant.

   He was still looking at me, waiting for an answer. I should want to. I mean, why wouldn't I? Lee was cute and funny and his hands were still lingering on my hips.

   "Okay." I finally said, letting out a girlish giggle. I was definitely drunk.

   Lee smiled back at me, removing his hands from my waist to reach for my own hand instead. I let him take it, clutching onto him tightly as we walked towards the group. The room felt like it was spinning.

   "Hey, we're gonna head out. It's been a great night man." Lee grinned, dapping up Josh and moving on to offer Jake his fist. Jake stilled, a funny look on his face that I couldn't quite place.

   "She's drunk."

   Lee's hand seemed to loosen in mine and I looked up at him and then back to Jake. "I'm not a kid, I can make my own decisions." I said coldly towards Jake.

   He ran his fingers through his hair and I caught myself staring at my hair tie on his wrist again. "You're drunk Charlie." He spoke, his tired eyes meeting mine. "How many shots have you had Lee?"

   "Two."

   "And how many has Charlie had?"

   I could see Lee practically counting the shots in his head before dropping my hand, unable to recall the answer.

   "Exactly."

   I wanted to scream. Why was he doing this to me? Just when I was about to ask him, Posy and Dawn walked up, drinks in hand. Posy passed off the one in her hand to Josh, who shot her a look. Why was everyone acting so weird?

   Except for Dawn. She seemed pretty much clueless, sipping at her margarita she had ordered. Dawn would be on my side. I slipped from Lee's side over to where she was standing. "What's going on?" She asked and everyone got quiet.

   "Me and Lee were leaving and Jake is trying to get in the way." I explained and even I could hear the slur in all my words. Dawn looked confused. "How is Jake getting in the way?" She asked, before turning towards him, "And why does it matter?"

   "It's fine, Char. Some other time." Lee said quickly, coming over to give me a quick side hug. Jake looked away from us quickly and I watched as Dawn noticed, her eyebrows furrowed close together.

Lee slipped past everyone and just like that he was gone, leaving the rest of us standing there awkwardly. "You're drunk Charlie. A lot more drunk than him. It was for the best." Jake explained quickly, desperate to fill the silence.

"That kid was trying to take advantage of you." He continued, throwing his hands up in the air in sudden frustration. "Why does it matter to you? Why are you so intent on ruining my night?" I spat back drunkenly, feeling very angry with him.

Dawn was still watching him and I noticed her eyes grow wide. "Holy shit." She murmured and I went still. "Holy shit." She repeated, her voice growing louder. Everyone else turned at the sound of her rising tone.

"Have I been this blind? The whole fucking time?"

"Dawn." I said, my voice steady in an attempt to calm her down. "Holy shit." She said again, setting her drink down on the nearest table as she took a few steps back. Jake opened his mouth to speak and I could see the apology already sitting on the tip of his tongue.

"Save it." Dawn spoke sharply. I'd never heard her talk like that before. "That's why you never kissed me, right? Tell me I'm right. That's why you're so distant even when I'm sitting right there next to you, right?"

"Goddamnit, tell me I'm right."

Jake slowly nodded, unable to meet her eyes. "You were never interested in me." She said, her voice was no longer harsh. She sounded defeated.

"Dawn," Jake began, "You're a sweet woman, I promise. I wasn't planning on any of this."

"What do you mean?"

"Charlie wanted you and me together so I tried. I really did."

   Fuck.

   Dawn looked over at me suddenly. "You tried to like me." She was still talking to Jake, but her eyes were trained on me as she spoke again, "But I wasn't the one you actually liked."

   "Dawn-" I started to say.

   "Let's just go home Charlie. I'm tired." She muttered and I nodded quickly. Posy and Josh were still standing there, watching the shit show play out. As Dawn and I turned to go, Posy threw me an apologetic look and mouthed that she would text me later.

   I nodded back, feeling sobered up suddenly. Dawn and I walked outside the bar, both of us silent as we stood next to each other. "I'll pay for an Uber?" I suggested but she still didn't say anything.

   I took her silence as a yes all the same and pulled out my phone.

   "I'm not mad at you." She said suddenly, staring down at her pink platforms. "I just wanted him to like me. I wished he did."

   I wrapped my arm around her as we waited for an Uber and I wished for the thousandth time since I met Jake that he did too.