Always There || Greta Van Fleet

Chapter 195: New Year's Eve - Part 2

Before Jake could get far, I quickly looked around, finding Josh back over at the pool table with Danny and Sam, having ordered another round of drinks.

"Hey.." I said softly, leaning in close. "I.. I think we should head home."
"Already?" He asked, looking over at the clock. "But it's almost time."
"I know, I just.. I'd feel better back home." I said, not wanting to get into just yet. He held his stare on me for a moment, eventually nodding.

"Yeah, okay. Sure. Um.. we'll finish up here then. Is.. everything okay? What happened outside?" I shook my head, looking around for Jake again to find him back at the bar.
"I'll.. tell you about it when we get home." I muttered. He nodded, his face dropping.

While the three of them finished up their game, I went back over to the bar.
"We're gonna head out." I said, sitting down next to him. He nodded, staying quiet and keeping his eyes forward.
"Jake.."
"What." He said, finally peeking over at me. I hated when he got like this.

But at least he was here.

"Thank you for not-"
"We don't have to talk about it." He sighed. I nodded, taking his drink from him as he placed it back down onto the bar. He looked back over at me, smirking as I took a sip, trying my best not to wince as it burned all the way down.
"Okay, but.. I'm happy you're here."
"Sure, Jaime."

He had every right to be upset.
But I'd rather he be upset with me and alive to tell me.

"I'd just really appreciate it if-"
"I'm not gonna tell anyone." He said, turning away again. "Don't worry. I know it didn't mean anything." My heart dropped. It's not that it didn't mean anything, but.. it didn't mean what he wanted it to mean.

I didn't fight him on it.

"Thank you." I took another sip if his drink, regretting it immediately before placing it back down in front of him. He gave me another gentle smile before I got up, making my way back over to Josh who was clearing off our table, bringing their empty glasses back up to the bar.

"He ready to go?" He asked. I nodded, peeking back at him.
"Y-yeah, I told him."
"Are you.. sure everything is okay?"
"Yeah, I just.. we'll talk when we get home." I said, knowing that it would be better if it was the two of us.

All I had wanted was for tonight to just be about the two of us, but maybe I was meant to be here. Who knows what could've happened if I wasn't.

Thankfully we didn't have to wait long for a car, everyone piling into the back as gracefully as they could manage considering how much they drank. I slid into the middle, Josh following behind me as Sam quickly made his way around to the other side, flashing me a smile before hopping in, moving in close, his leg brushing up against mine.

I couldn't help but smile at how easy it was for him to lighten to the tension, thankful that I never had to worry about anything like that with him.

The drive was quiet as I suspected it would be, aside from Sam occasionally humming along to the radio, reaching over and gently tapping along to the beat against the back of my hand. It was nice, to have some sense of calm before everything inevitably hit the fan again once we got home.

Thankfully, Jake had been quiet, which was weird for him, especially considering how angry he had been. I was always worried when he drank too much for that reason. I hope he had just fallen asleep, and then I could just finish the night the way I wanted to from the beginning. We could drop them off at their house and then Josh and I could come back and celebrate with my mom, and-

"You guys are staying, right?" Sam asked as we pulled into the driveway. I bit down on my lip, peeking over at Josh who was already nodding.
"Sure, yeah." He said, opening the door and hopping out, holding his hand out for me. I hesitated for a moment before taking it, climbing out behind him.