Stress (And Tension) Relief {Zack}

[Jayden "Jay" Hersch]

Jay needed a night out. Badly.

Between taking on some extra students (some more troubled than others), work in general, and the strange tensions between him and Zack, Jay was feeling very stressed and emotionally exhausted by the time Friday rolled around. Therefore, he decided he wanted to get drunk off his ass and try to have a good time. And of course, he was dragging Zack along with him, because who else would he trust to get them both home even if they were both stumbling by the end of the night?

Not to mention, well, he really didn't want to spend time with too many other people these days. His feelings felt like they were growing by the day, and Jay didn't know how much longer he could try to ignore them.

And so, dressed quite uniquely in a white button-up shirt and destroyed jeans, with newly dyed blonde hair (he felt like changing things up), as well as his blue contacts in place, he felt ready to do something he might regret in the morning. "C'mon, Zack!" he called up, running a hand through his shorter, tidier hair, still trying to get used to the feeling. "Let's get druuuunk."

[Zachary Mae]

Zack was in his room, looking at himself in his full-length mirror. Making sure he looked good; he was wearing a plain black T, with a demi vest, and skinny jeans. He always made sure to look good when going out with Jay; even if it was to a bar, and they were only friends. He ran his hands over the side of his head, where his hair was freshly shaven. He went over to his dresser and picked out a nice smelling cologne, and sprayed it on him, not too much of course, just enough to tingle some senses.

Like Jay, Zack really did need this night at the bar to get drunk. This wouldn’t be the first time he had gone out to do this, granted when he was alone he went to a club. He never brought anyone home though, not to sleep with anyways. Since he came back from Hawaii, everything just stressed him out full force. He had gotten new students, new troubled students, committing himself to only Jay; finding out Jay might have the same feelings for him thanks to a student but it still going nowhere, and just life in general. It seemed like life wanted to shove so much stuff into Zack’s face it was unbelievable.

He walked down the stairs after he was satisfied with himself. “I’m coming, I’m coming. Don’t get your panties in a bunch.” He got down stairs and smirked at Jay’s new hair style, and the eye contacts. “Nice look.” It really was, those contacts made his eyes even more electrifying, and the hair really suited him.

[Jayden "Jay" Hersch]

Jay looked up as he heard Zack come down the stairs, and had to hide a shiver of delight. How did his roommate always manage to look so incredibly sexy no matter what? But no, he couldn't think about that, at least not so early in the night. Maybe later, after they had had a few drinks... No. He couldn't think that way either. So he swallowed his lust and grinned at his friend, catching a whiff of his cologne as he got closer. Yeah, like that would help matters... Anyway. "Hey, you know I don't wear my panties when we go out," he snickered, giving Zack a light punch on the shoulder. He wanted to hit something else, but well... He was trying to resist temptation as much as possible. "Ah, is it?" he asked, running his hand through his newly blonde hair again. "It's so... Light." He wasn't sure how long he would keep it, but it was fun for now.

"So, let's go, yeah?" he asked, opening the door and waving for Zack to go out. He stuck his hands in his pockets as they walked; the bar wasn't too far from their apartment, fortunately, and it was a nice warm night. The stars were already out, and Jay looked up, hoping he could find a shooting star to make a wish that this night would go well. "Feeling stressed too, huh?" he asked quietly, looking over to Zack. "I'm pretty sure I'm going to down enough alcohol tonight so I won't remember anything, so please make sure I don't end up doing anything too stupid."

[Zachary Mae]

Zack wasn’t the only one that was sexy tonight, Jay was looking fiiine. Once he got down the stairs he had a strange or not so strange urge to kiss him right there. But he held himself back. He was kind of afraid of this night, he really hoped he didn’t have to watch Jay making out, or flirting, or leave with someone. That totally would not help the stress factor. What Jay said turned him on a little, and he had to push the dirty image aside. He just shook his head at Jay with a smirk; he really didn’t know what to say to that. “Now you know how my head feels.” Because they had the same kind of hair style now.

Zack walked out the door, and headed to the bar. He had been so looking forward to this night; just so he could let his hair down and relax a bit. Maybe even forget a few things; like his feelings for Jay. “Hell yeah…” He smirked; did that mean he had to be the responsible one tonight and not drink as much? He hoped not, because he really wanted to get wasted, probably just as much as Jay wanted to. “I can’t make any promises.” Why did he always have to be the responsible one anyway?

[Jayden "Jay" Hersch]

Jay had no intentions with leaving, or really even flirting, with anyone else tonight. Granted, he couldn't make promises when he got drunk, but considering nearly everyone he knew seemed dull and unattractive compared to Zack, he knew if he ended up hitting on someone, well... Let's just say they would hopefully both forget about it the next day to keep things from getting awkward. "Yeah, I guess so," he chuckled, reaching out and lightly patting Zack's hair, knowing how touchy he was about it. "Fuzzy."

Jay knew he probably couldn't actually rely on Zack to keep him from doing anything, so he scrapped that idea quickly. "Well, let's just get wasted together and hope for the best," he chuckled. "And we're not acting as wingmen tonight, right?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. Maybe Zack was hoping to get lucky (Jay desperately hoped not), but Jay would rather just drown out his emotions rather than talk to anyone. They turned the corner and reached the bar; Jay paused before going inside. It seemed pretty low-key for now, but he knew it would probably get busier and rowdier as the night went on. "I'm gonna get a couple shots in me really fast," Jay announced, making a beeline for the bar. His fingers automatically reached for Zack's to make sure they didn't get lost in the crowd, but after a moment of contact he felt self-conscious and dropped them, flushing slightly. Yup. He needed alcohol, fast.

[Zachary Mae]

Zack didn’t have any intentions of doing any of that either. Really there was only one person he wanted to flirt with, and one person he wanted to leave the bar with tonight. He was pretty sure even when he was drunk of his ass he would still feel the same way. Though, if he saw Jay leaving with someone else, he was really going to get wasted… Zack smirked at Jay as he played with his hair; slowly he was getting over Jay messing with his hair. Really, Jay was going to be the only one who he let touch his hair, and the only one he wanted to touch his hair. “Soft like eyebrow hair, right?”

Zack smirked, now that was more like it. “Sounds like a plan.” Because he really needed to get wasted and not be the responsible one tonight. He shook his head and shrugged, “You don’t need to. Do I need to?” He raised an eyebrow at his friend, wondering the same thing about him. He wanted to get lucky, but with the person who would have been his wingman.

Zack looked around the bar once they stepped in. He had been to this bar once or twice, the name of it kind of threw him off so he never bothered making this his main bar. “Same.” Really that’s all he wanted to do was drown shots. For the first time ever Zack blushed at the feel of their hands touching, he didn’t know if it was on accident or not, it most likely was but still, Jay’s touch never got this reaction from him. He was always pretty good about it. However, by the time they got to the bar he had regained himself. He stepped to the bar and sat down on one of the stools. “Straight vodka shot. Please.” He told the bartender, and then waited to see what Jay ordered.

[Jayden "Jay" Hersch]

Jay wasn't sure why Zack seemed to be getting less strict about playing with his hair, but he enjoyed the fact, and couldn't help but grin and laugh at his comment. "Did someone tell you that?" he asked, unconsciously feeling his own eyebrow for comparison. ".... Huh. It kinda is." Weird. But cute. Very cute.

He felt an internal sense of relief at not having to act as a wingman; that would kill him, but he'd do it for Zack if he really wanted. "Nah, I'm not looking for anything tonight," he replied with a shrug. "Or ever, really..." he added quietly, not really meaning for Zack to hear. Oh, how he wished they were going out on an actual date; but he knew this was just a casual outing between two 'bros', with no better intentions than to get drunk enough to not remember anything that happened tonight.

Jay didn't notice Zack's blush, as he was too busy looking away so his roommate wouldn't notice his own. He settled next to Zack at the bar, looking at him when he ordered. A slow smirk crawled up his face. "I'll get one of those too," he told the bartender. He was going to keep up with Zack, he determined. He didn't know who was the stronger drinker, but he had to admit, he was kind of a lightweight. It wasn't going to actually take him long to get drunk. He glanced around the room as they waited, catching the eye of a curvy dark-haired girl a few seats away. She winked at him, biting the straw of whatever fruity drink she was sipping. Jay quickly looked away, and reached for the shot as it was handed to him; he downed it quickly, and ordered another. "So, we're still going to Lincoln City and Hawaii in a couple weeks, right?" he asked Zack, trying to think of something to talk about. He knew they weren't going to cancel their plans at this point, but he was very excited about the upcoming trip. More than he wanted to admit.

[Zachary Mae]

Zack shrugged “Nah, it was just something I came up with on the spot.” He wasn’t really sure where he had gotten it from, or why he even said it.

He nodded, “It looks like we’re on the same page then.” He just wanted to get wasted, if he found himself in bed with someone, then it would have been just another meaningless night; and he had grown tired of those.

Zack chuckled, and then smirked; neither of them were being pansy tonight. The bartender looked like he knew that they were probably stressed out. Bars mostly likely got people like them coming in all the time. “Are you really going to try to keep up with me?” He had no doubts that he could down more shots than Jay, it took a bit more for him to get drunk, he wasn’t a lightweight like Jay. Zack looked at Jay, then looked at the girl who he was looking at. He groaned in his head; Zack might have to watch Jay leave with someone else.. He downed the shot, and then downed the next one. They were going to have one hell of a tab at the end of the night. “Yep, that’s still the plan, right? Unless you want to back out…” And if he did that there was no point in Zack going… He downed his third shot.

[Jayden "Jay" Hersch]

Jay nodded, his face determined even though he knew he was probably going to get wasted way faster than his roommate; he wasn't much of a drinker, usually, so he hadn't built up any sort of resistance since he had turned 21 (because he had been a good boy for the most part, and hadn't drank all that much before he was legal). "I'm going to take you shot for shot," he promised, taking his second one as Zack did. He had no intentions of even talking to the girl, and didn't know that Zack had even noticed his unintentional look. He glanced at Zack as he drank a third one, eyes widening; but, he followed suit. Three was surely enough to get him drunk very quickly, and he wasn't sure how many more he should dare take. Still, he was going to keep his word. "Pff, back out on what's sure to be a great, stress-free vacation? Yeah, right," he grinned at Zack. At least, he hoped it would be stress-free, but with the odd tensions between them lately, he wasn't so sure.

Suddenly he felt a tap on his shoulder, and he looked over to see the girl smiling at him, drink in hand. His eyes widened, and he looked anxiously at Zack before glancing back to her. "Can... I help you?" he asked uncertainly.

"Maybe. I'm looking for someone to have fun with tonight, and you caught my eye, cutie." She gave a very cat-like grin, running a long, dark fingernail over Jay's arm. He felt goosebumps rise on his skin, and he coughed, lost for words. "What do you say? Have a couple drinks, get to know each other..." She obviously didn't know, or didn't care, that he was there with Zack.

"Er, sorry miss, I'm very flattered, but... I'm not interested." He gave Zack another nervous look, and the girl's heavy-lidded eyes flitted to his roommate, expression darkening as she made some sort of connection.

"Oh. Sorry, I didn't realize you two were together. I'll find someone else, but believe me, you're missing out on a good time." With a roll of her eyes, she strutted off. Jay, feeling a bit queasy (either from the girl or the alcohol, or both), leaned against the counter, only a moment later realizing the girl thought that he and Zack were together together.

"Um... Heh. That was, ah... Huh." He mumbled under his breath as he waved down another shot, taking it quickly. "That was weird." He didn't quite know what to think.

[Zachary Mae]

Zack did drink more than Jay did… A lot more than Jay did, he was a good boy, he hadn’t drank under age. But once he turned 20 (because he was in Korea then), it was all beer, and going to clubs. He never got wasted though, he usually only got tipsy than went home, nothing too bad. “I would like to see you try.” He smirked at his roommate, the fact that he was up for the challenge was kind of a turn on… But he tried not to think about it. Zack was starting to feel the buzz now from the third shot. “Good! Because I really want to go.” Because he needed stress-free, though with Jay there he wasn’t sure how stress free it was going to be.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw the woman now at Jay’s shoulder and looked at her. She was damn fine, damn it… He looked away and downed another shot as Jay asked what she wanted, or something like that. Again Zack downed yet another shot when the girl answered; fuck her. More like fuck him… He was the one that had to watch Jay leave; that thought alone made him down another shot.

Then the unthinkable happened, and Zack sluggishly looked at Jay with a raised eyebrow, complete surprise written on his face. But before he could find the words to tell Jay to just go that woman was already gone. Wait… It took him a moment to realize what the girl had said. She thought they were together… It made him grin, but frowned as he remembered that, that meant Jay wasn’t going to get laid because of him. “You didn’t have to do that… You could have went.” It wasn’t weird, “It wasn’t weird.. You’re fucking hot.” Yeah, he was slowly starting to get drunk, and he could feel it.

[Jayden "Jay" Hersch]

The woman had been gorgeous, no doubt. All curves and dark hair and smokey eyes; Jay would have been all over her a year or two ago. But he just had no desire for that sort of thing anymore. Not that he wasn't still attracted to women - he absolutely was - but he just couldn't imagine himself... Being with them anymore. He didn't realize how much Zack was downing while he was distracted, and therefore was no longer caught up with his roommate; that was fine, he would be feeling the shots he had taken very soon, and another one or two and he would be completely wasted for the night.

Had she really thought he and Zack were together? Did it look like that? Jay didn't know, but it gave him flutters in his stomach and he grinned a little, or maybe it was just the alcohol taking effect. When Zack spoke, Jay looked at his roommate, turning a bit serious once again. "Nah... I really wasn't interested," he told him, shrugging and swirling another shot in his hand. He studied it, then drank it, deciding he had better stop for the time being. "Honestly? I'm just... I'm not really interested in girls anymore, Zack." Granted, he wasn't really interested in any guys besides the one he was sitting next to, but he wouldn't say that. At his roommate's comment, his eyes widened, and he shot Zack an incredulous look. "Yeah?" he laughed. "You think so?" He could feel the familiar buzz start to ease into his head, and he giggled a bit, his cheeks flushed with a mixture of embarrassment and just side effects from the shots. "You're pretty fucking hot yourself. But I know you already know that."

He leaned his head on his hand, gazing at his roommate. "Anything you wanna talk about?" he asked, voice just beginning to slur. After all, what else did people do in bars? Other than play pool, smoke, and make out or have sex in the bathrooms, that was...

[Zachary Mae]

If only Zack had none Jay really wasn’t interested in the woman, he wouldn’t have downed all those shots just then. If Zack had any more shots he would be wasted, but he won against Jay. If only they had made a bet…

Zack looked at Jay with a raised eyebrow, “Dude, are you sick or something?” Then he thought about the time he had told Jay he hadn’t been interested and how he felt. It made his stomach turn. “Huh, that’s dope.” He nodded, it made his heart ache though. If Jay had turned gay, than the boy really, really wasn’t interested in him, right? Or did that mean River really was right, and that Jay did have feelings for him? This was so aggravating… “When did you turn gay?” Because he just had to ask… “I did know. But it means even more to me hearing you say it.” The alcohol was making him say that, because now he was obviously flirting with him, and the smirk on his face confirmed it.

He looked at the shot glass that the bartender had filled up once again for what the seventh time, as he thought about Jay’s question. The more the alcohol settled inside him the more he could feel the buzz of getting drunk; and it was just the feeling he wanted. He downed the seventh shot, then looked at Jay with a wide smirk. He placed his hand on Jay’s thigh and leaned toward the boy a bit. “I got an idea…” Now he was smiling as he rubbed Jay’s thigh a little. “That woman thought we were together right? So why don’t we give her a real reason to think we’re together?”

[Jayden "Jay" Hersch]

"No..." Jay mumbled, feeling embarrassed. Why had he admitted that to Zack? Was he really hoping that it was going to give him any chance of helping Zack realize Jay was into him? He didn't know, and now he kind of wished he hadn't said anything. He stared at his hands on the counter, twiddling his thumbs for a minute before Zack spoke again. He was about to reply that he wasn't completely gay, he just... Well, he wasn't interested in anyone except Zack. He wasn't homosexual, he was... Zacksexual. Oh, God help him. He couldn't say that, though, so he shrugged helplessly. "I don't know, I... I guess I'm just not the player I used to be..." He mumbled. Maybe he did need another shot. He took one last one and swallowed it, feeling the buzz in his head beginning to get stronger as Zack spoke. Wait.... Was his roommate flirting with him? What the hell? If that smirk meant anything, Jay was absolutely bewildered, and didn't know what to think. Was Zack just messing with him? Or was the alcohol kicking in for him, too? A slow, wide smile spread across Jay's face, and he laughed again, feeling very fuzzy. "I'm glad, 'cause I need to tell you that more often," he replied giddily. Yeah, like Zack's ego really needed any sort of boost...

"'Ow many of those have you drank?" he asked as Zack downed another shot, wondering if he had been able to keep up. He had lost track of how many he had had. Five? Six? It didn't matter, he was obviously feeling the effects. He was staring at an empty shot glass on the counter when he felt Zack's hand on his thigh, and he looked up, wide-eyed, at his roommate. "What?" he replied. He shivered as his roommate began to rub him, feeling goosebumps raise all up and down his arms as he gaped at Zack's suggestion. "Wha... What do you have in mind?" he stammered, gaze automatically dropping down to Zack's perfect lips, so incredibly tempting, especially now with the alcohol buzzing through his system. He was not against the idea at all whatsoever. He was just shocked Zack would suggest something like that. What did it mean? He slowly dropped his hand to rest on his roommate's, brushing the back of his knuckles with his thumb as he waited for an answer.

[Zachary Mae]

“That makes two of us.. We should drink to that!” Zack said with a smirk, even though Jay already knew he wasn’t a player anymore. He had told the boy that when he had came home from Hawaii. He raised his now eighth shot glass, and moved it toward Jay so they can cling their glasses. Zack was Jaysexual, he had came to terms with that in Hawaii. “You should. Because damn, I don’t hear it from you enough.” It wouldn’t be an ego boost hearing it from Jay, it would be security.

“Seven or eight, why? How many have you drank?” He said sluggishly, yeah, he was feeling it. Zack licked his bottom lip as Jay seemed to be bewildered by his actions. Yet none of these signs went through his mind to tell him to stop. He was too drunk to stop. He bite his bottom lip as Jay asked what he had in mind, and then smiled, “You are so cute.” He leaned closer to Jay and whispered “This is what I have in mind.” He leaned in all the way to press his lips firmly to his roommate’s lips. He could defiantly feel the buzz now, then again, who wouldn’t? Zack felt Jay’s hand on top of his and he moved to grasp it gently.

[Jayden "Jay" Hersch]

Jay chuckled drily. "Yeah, no kidding..." He had been shocked to hear that Zack hadn't hooked up with anyone in Hawaii, considering he knew quite a bit about his roommate's past love life. Then again... He was changing too, so he supposed Zack might have been thinking about getting more serious with relationships as well. He wasn't quite sure what to think about it all; he really didn't want to think about it period. It was too frustrating and heart-wrenching for him. "Is that so?" he chuckled, still flushed. "I didn't realize it was that important for me to tell you." Was Zack hinting at what Jay thought he was hinting about...?

"Oh... Jeeze. You outdrank me," he chuckled, shaking his head. "Not that many. I think six. But I better stop unless I want to spend all night puking my guts up..." Granted, he probably would anyway. Because he could feel it in his system, making him loopier and all that more wanting to do something stupid. "Am I?" he practically squeaked, blinking several times as Zack moved close to him. Jay was trembling slightly, about to ask what Zack was talking about when suddenly his roommate's lips were upon him, and all thoughts vanished from his head. He was dreaming, right? This couldn't be happening. But realization dawned on him through his sluggish, drunken mind that this was in fact real, and he needed to take advantage of his roommate's drunkenness, because when else would this happen? He gripped Zack's hand more tightly and kissed him back, forgetting where they were until a voice broke through:

"Oi, get a room, boys. This ain't a gay bar."

Jay pulled back abruptly, nearly toppling out of his seat as he gave the unamused bartender an apologetic look. "S-s-sorry," he stammered, clinging onto Zack's hand for dear life. "W-we'll, ah, we'll find somewhere else." Because if Zack was in this sort of mood, and Jay could have him at least for just the night, well.... He wouldn't pass that up. "C'mon, Zacky," he murmured, nudging his roommate towards the back of the bar, where it was darker and maybe they could find somewhere to get some privacy.