present

BILLY.

"I'm going over there," I announced to no one in particular. My thumb was pointing at the people dancing behind me in the other section of the bar, and honestly, I don't know exactly why I wanted to go over there.

Oliver turned to face me with a saddened eyebrow raised. "But I was just getting to the good part of my story," he whined while pouting at me.

I take it back. I know why I want to leave.

"Sorry," I replied unemotionally before turning around and heading towards the waves of people. Sweaty bodies greeted me as I moved through the crowd, desperately wanting to find a place where my body wasn't being groped by strangers. I pushed past a couple that had their tongues down each other's throats as I turned to my right, catching sight of another bar- except this bar was crowded with people- whereas the bar in the other room was not.

Pushing past a few more dozen people, I successfully made my way to the bar and sat down in an empty seat. The lights above the bar shone neon pink lights down on its occupants; the bar itself was constructed of a crystalline glass that reflected one's own image. Jesus Christ, I thought as I gazed down at my own reflection. I already look like I'm hungover.

The bartender, who was wearing very different attire from what Hannah had on, walked up to me with a cheerful smile as he nodded his head to the music. The man looked like Magic Mike in the flesh, except with less Channing Tatum and more fake bronzer. "What can I get for ya?" he asked, practically screaming over the bass blasting through the speakers.

I leaned over the bar so he could hear me as I yelled, "Just three shots of vodka!"

"What kind?" he yelled back while dipping his head closer to me while raising an eyebrow.

"The strongest you got," I replied.

The man smirked at me before turning around. He grabbed a bottle of vodka from the assortment of bottles and spun around to face me while waving the bottle. "This good?"

I nodded my head in response, prompting him to reach under the bar and grab three shot glasses. He set the glasses in front of me and poured the liquor into them, and I had to wave him on so he would fill the glasses to the top. "Someone's feelin' frisky tonight," he yelled while winking at me.

"Sure," I replied quietly while he screwed the cap onto the bottle and put it in its original spot. I raised the first shot to my mouth and swallowed it in one gulp. The liquor didn't have as much of a bite to it as Grey Goose did, and that's saying something because Grey Goose doesn't even sting. This tasted like I was drinking straight raspberry juice.

"Paying now, or want me to start a tab?" the bartender yelled while mixing a margarita for someone else.

I thought for a moment before pulling my wallet out while silently cursing myself. "I'll just pay now," I called while handing him my credit card.

The bartender shrugged before swiping my card through the machine. "I guess you're not feeling as frisky as I thought you were," he replied while handing me my receipt along with my card.

I raised an eyebrow jokingly while raising the second shot to my lips and swallowing. "I guess I'm not an easily readable person," I murmured while setting the glass down.

The bartender smirked while leaning over the bar. "I think you're a very readable person, Mr. Redford," he murmured. He winked before walking down the bar, presumably to take care of someone else's drinks. My mind raced for a moment before I silently calmed myself down. Of course he knows who I fucking am; everyone does. Hell, everyone knows that I'm in Atlanta and have been partying with Oliver Blackheart these past few days, and let's not forget about who else I've been partying with: the girl in my sex tape, Captain America, the Winter Soldier, and the guy who may or may not hate me. Honestly, people are very hard to read nowadays.

I stared into open space for a while as I tapped my fingers against the third and final glass of vodka in front of me. Time seemed to slip by as I let the buzz settle in. What felt like hours was only a matter of minutes; the seats beside me repeatedly filled and emptied as people chugged shots. Some people even tried talking to me, however, I barely even acknowledged them. I continued to stare at the bottles upon the shelf in front of me as girls slurred drunken desires in my ears; while men whispered how they wished I'd go to their bed with them. Said people would always give up after a few moments, realizing that today wasn't the day they were going to sleep with a billionaire. Oliver's in the other fucking room, people. He'd probably be more than willing to fuck you.

"Is this seat taken?" a male voice asked from beside me, causing me to finally snap out of my daydream and shift my eyes to the left. He looked about my age with light brown hair that stood up and flipped to the right side of his head as he ran a hand through it; his skin was lightly tanned- a natural tan- while his green eyes sparkled in the pink light. God, those shots are really kicking in right now, aren't they? Perfect timing to chug the third.

"No," I murmured while keeping my gaze in front of me while raising the final shot to my lips and swallowing.

"Perfect," he replied while awkwardly laughing. It was then that I noticed that his pronunciation of words wasn't quite the same as everyone else that I had spoken to in the last, well, years of my life. "I was looking to get away from the chaos happening behind us."

I raised an eyebrow at him in amusement before turning my head to fully face him. "Finally," I murmured while smiling lazily at him. "Someone who understands me."

He chuckled before flagging down the bartender and ordering himself a glass of whiskey. "I'm Jack," he responded while offering me a dopey smile.

"I'm Billy," I replied with a small smile. The two of us sat in silence for a few moments as he sipped at his whiskey while glancing behind him.

"Jesus," he murmured while shaking his head. "It's like a bloody orgy out there."

I chuckled while following his gaze. "I know," I murmured while feeling the buzz increase, slightly blurring my vision before I blinked it away. I turned to him while asking, "Why'd you even come here if you don't like this kind of scene?"

Jack raised an eyebrow at me while a quirky smile spread across his face. "I could ask you the same thing, Billy," he joked. I rolled my eyes while lightly chuckling. "I was, unfortunately, dragged here by a friend because he wanted to get laid and he didn't want to show up alone."

I nodded my head in understanding. "I'm here because my friends and I had to leave the bar we were at before this one."

Jack raised an eyebrow in confusion while raising the glass to his lips. "Bar fight?"

I shrugged my shoulders while closing my eyes momentarily. "Kinda."

Jack's look of confusion became more prominent as he studied me. "Well, now I'm intrigued," he replied while wearing a small smile.

I chuckled while flagging down the bartender and ordering myself a glass of whiskey. "My kinda-not really-friend apparently fucked some guy's wife who was there while he was in high school," I replied truthfully while offering Jack a goofy smile.

Jack's eyebrows raised in bewilderment for a moment while he cautiously raised the glass to his lips. "Bloody hell," he murmured while setting the glass down on the bar. "Is your, erm, friend okay?"

I rolled my eyes while laughing halfheartedly. "Of course he's okay," I replied. "He's a fucking rainbow of happiness."

Jack chuckled while shaking his head. "He sounds like a delight."

I raised an eyebrow while smirking at him. "Would you like to meet him?"

Jack remained silent for a moment while smiling casually at me. "I think I'm more comfortable here," he murmured with an honest glint in his eyes.

I smiled softly in response before taking a swig from my glass. Deciding to veer the subject away from wherever it was going for the moment, I wondered aloud, "You don't sound like you're from here."

Jack giggled while shifting his gaze to the bar for a moment. His eyes snapped back to mine as a playful grin spread across his face. "You're a lot smarter than you look," he replied jokingly.

I scoffed and flipped him off playfully before rolling my eyes. "How stupid do I look, then?"

Jack shook his head while closing his eyes before his eyes met mine once again. "I was just bullshitting you, Billy," he replied honestly while a lively glint shone in his eyes. "But no, I'm not from around here." I raised an eyebrow in response for him to continue, causing him to chuckle before continuing on. "I'm from England, in case you haven't picked up on that yet, but I moved here when I was fourteen."

I hummed in approval while taking a swig of my whiskey. "What made you move here?"

Jack raised an eyebrow at me playfully while a smirk plastered across his face. "Is this twenty questions or something?" he laughed.

I shook my head while mentally cursing myself. "Sorry," I murmured while shifting my gaze to the glass resting in my lap. "I'm being a dick."

Jack tilted his head back and laughed while almost spilling his whiskey, causing me to raise an eyebrow in confusion. "Billy," he laughed before calming himself down. "I'm just bullshitting you again. Liven up a little!"

I glared at him for a moment before I began chuckling once again. "Fuck you," I replied while raising my glass to my lips.

Jack chuckled for a few more moments before his expression became slightly more serious. "I moved here because my mother was given the opportunity to teach at university level," he responded coolly.

"Good money?" I questioned while raising an eyebrow.

Jack nodded his head halfheartedly. "Well, as much as a college professor can make at a state university." He paused for a few moments while studying me. "Your turn, Billy. Tell me a little about yourself."

I shook my head before taking a long swig from my glass. "I'm surprised you haven't heard of my recent drama," I responded, slightly surprised.

Jack motioned his hand at me as he waved my comment away. "Of course I have, Billy," he replied, causing me to quickly change my expression to one of worry. "But I don't care about that bullshit; I wanna get to know the real you, not the Billy the media is trying to portray."

I hummed while glancing him over. He was skinny- very skinny- but had some muscle to him. He was wearing a simple white t-shirt with a pair of navy blue jeans to match, and somehow the look fitted him- meaning that it made him appear like he actually tried when he got dressed today. He looked good. Wait, what? Wait- I already came out to the whole world, kinda. "Bullshit, huh?" I asked while feigning a look of resentment.

Jack's facial expression quickly changed from the quirky, slightly innocent countenance to a look of panic and worry. "I didn't mean it like that," he quickly replied, clearly in a frantic state. "I just meant-"

I interrupted him with my laughter, causing him to gaze at me confusedly. "I'm just bullshitting you," I replied wittily. "Liven up a little."

Jack narrowed his eyes for a moment before shaking his head. He raised his glass to his lips before murmuring, "You're cruel, Billy Redford. Absolutely, unfathomably cruel."

I shrugged my shoulders lightly while smirking at him. "I guess the media doesn't have my persona exactly wrong then."

Jack looked at me through the corners of his eyes while a smirk played across his lips before raising his glass to his mouth. "Bloody Christ," he murmured. "You had me practically shitting myself. I thought I was gonna lose all of my life savings for a moment."

I busted out laughing as I doubled over, causing him to turn fully towards me once again as he laughed along with me. "Me?" I asked while raising an eyebrow. "You'd have to seriously fuck with me in order for me to do that, and you'd really have to piss my dad off, too."

Jack chuckled for a few moments longer before taking a few deep breaths. "Remind me to never piss you or your dad off, then," he joked.

I raised an eyebrow at him while a smirk spread across my face. "If you're keeping up with the media, I'm pretty sure you've already figured that one out."

Jack raised his hands up in surrender while leaning back in his seat. "You've caught me," he replied, causing me to let out a bubbly giggle.

I shook my head while murmuring lightly, "Fuck." I then watched him for a few moments as he reciprocated the action, causing me giggle awkwardly. "What do you want to know exactly?" I questioned.

Jack thought for a moment as he gazed at the air above my head. "Well," he began slowly. His eyes snapped to mine as a look of foolish seriousness spread across his face. "What is your favorite color, band, book, and movie?"

I offered him a quirky smile as I replied, "Gettin' into the deep shit, now, are we?"

Jack flipped me off while murmuring, "Just shut up and answer the bloody questions."

"I can't exactly answer them if I'm being told to shut up," I responded.

Jack groaned while slumping his shoulders. "What does it take to just know your favorite fucking color, Billy?"

I chuckled before studying him for a moment, lost in thought. "My favorite color's black," I replied lightly.

"I could've guessed that," Jack replied almost immediately.

"And, as of the moment," I began before biting my lip, diving into my own thoughts once again. "My favorite band's either Metallica or My Chemical Romance."

Jack hummed as he glanced me over. "Another thing I could've guessed," he responded lightly. "Both are contrasting music styles, kinda, however."

I shrugged my shoulders in response. "Anything to do with rock, I'm in." I took a pause before answering his last two questions. "My favorite book is probably Desperation by Stephen King."

Jack raised an eyebrow while taking a swig from his glass. "What's that about? Never heard of it."

I sighed while running a hand through my hair. "It's basically about a town that's being taken over by some other entity, and it's possessing the residents and killing people," I said with a nervous smile.

Jack hummed in approval as he nodded his head. "I'll have to read it now," he said. "Given that it's a Stephen King book, and that it was personally recommended to me by Billy Redford in the flesh, I'll definitely have to read it."

I offered him a quirky smile as I replied, "It's a pretty long book."

Jack smirked at me as he murmured, "The bigger, the better." The two of us raised our glasses to our mouths at the same time, causing Jack to wink at me while I laughed.

"And for my favorite movie," I murmured. "Definitely The Talented Mr. Ripley."

"Oou!" Jack exclaimed as he motioned his hand towards me. "I've seen that one!"

"Isn't it fucking amazing?" I asked while leaning over in excitement.

"It's bloody fantastic," he exclaimed. "Matt Damon is fucking brilliant!"

"That movie's based off the first novel of a series," I responded while leaning back into my seat, regaining my composure.

"I know," Jack murmured while a smirk played across his face. "I actually read the series."

"Lucky ass," I murmured. "I've been meaning to but haven't had the time."

"I'll lend it to you, if you like," Jack replied instantly. "That is, if you'll make time for me."

I raised an eyebrow as a cocky grin spread across my face. "You mean, make time for the series?"

Jack shrugged his shoulders while his smirk darkened sinfully. "That, too." He glanced me over while I did the same to him, causing my lungs to practically give out for a moment. Was he flirting with me? Do I flirt back? I'VE NEVER DATED ANYONE BEFORE. I'VE ONLY HAD SEX.

I raised an eyebrow at him playfully while asking, "Is this you asking me out on a date?"

Jack shrugged his shoulders dramatically as he waved his arms and hands around. "I don't know," he replied. "Theoretically," he began while leaning closer to me, "would the Billy Redford say yes to going on a date with me?"

I shrugged my shoulders in response. "I'll have to ask him."

Jack chuckled while his cheeks reddened slightly. "Fuck off," he joked while flipping me off.

I feigned shock while gasping as I placed my hand over my heart. "Oh, no," I began. "Now you've pissed me and my father off."

Jack rolled his eyes before replying, "How can I make it up to you, Billy and Billy's father?"

I shrugged my shoulders while a casual smirk played across my face. "Go out with me," I responded.

Jack glared at me before taking a long swig from his glass. "I bloody hate you," he mumbled, causing me to burst out laughing. "Here I am, trying to be all sexy and mysterious, only to get tortured and humiliated by the guy I'm trying to ask out," he said, causing me to laugh even harder. "You damn rich Americans and your fucking torturous ways."

"I'm sorry," I laughed, causing him to roll his eyes and turn to face the bar. "Hey," I sighed while placing my hand on his shoulder, prompting him to glance down at my hand and glare at it. "My answer's yes, Jack, I'd be happy to."

"Too late," he replied instantly. "I'm retracting my offer; the date's cancelled."

I chuckled in response while shaking my head. Jack continued to sip at his whiskey while facing the bar, causing me to feel a slight ping of worry. "Jack," I murmured, slightly nudging his shoulder. Jack shook his head while keeping his gaze trained on the bottles in front of him. Shit. What would Oliver do? "Jack," I cooed while leaning slightly closer to him. He still didn't budge. Deep breaths, Billy. I know you aren't Oliver's biggest fan, but it's time to become the guy for ten seconds. "Jack," I whined while nudging my face into the side of his neck. Jack still didn't say anything, so I began slowly and lightly peppering his neck with kisses. I mean, I guess being around Oliver Blackheart for a few days can surely help you learn how to "get the guy." I whined softly into his neck while murmuring, "Please, talk to me. I'm sorry."

Jack tilted his neck to the side, giving me more access to layer his neck with slower, more passionate kisses. "That's definitely helping," he lowly sighed, causing my confidence to boost ever so slightly. "Oh, and Billy," he murmured, causing me to halt my trail of kisses and pull away from his neck. I hummed questioningly while I licked my lips as he turned to face me. He smirked as he murmured, "I was just bullshitting you."

I flipped him off as I leaned farther back into my seat, causing him to laugh as I crossed my arms over my chest. "Fuck you," I cursed.

"I can see that you clearly want to," Jack immediately replied, causing my eyes to bug while my cheeks reddened in embarrassment.

"I'm not usually like that," I said awkwardly while rubbing my hand against the back of my neck.

Jack raised an eyebrow at me while taking a swig from his glass. "That's too bad," he murmured. "That actually felt quite nice."

My cheeks heated up even more from embarrassment as I awkwardly took a sip from my glass. "Maybe we could do it again sometime?" I nervously asked, my voice cracking as I did so, causing me to silently curse myself.

Jack tilted his head back as a wide grin spread across his face. "Oh my god!" he exclaimed as his eyes snapped back to mine. "You're adorable!"

I playfully rolled my eyes at him while a small smile plastered on to my face. "Stop," I murmured.

Jack raised a playful eyebrow at me as he asked, "Why stop now?" He leaned closer to me, causing me to slightly start panicking. "Why stop now when I have Billy Redford all hot and bothered over me?" Jack stayed there for a moment as I stopped breathing altogether. Jesus fucking Christ, Redford. Get your shit together and make me proud. Jack playfully winked at me as he leaned back into his seat. My breathing became more normal as I regained my composure, and I could practically hear Johnny scolding me from somewhere far, far away that I needed to "make him proud" or whatever. "So," Jack began, causing me to snap back into reality. "I'm guessing that it's a yes on the date, then?"

"Yes," I responded breathlessly. "Most definitely." There's my fucking man! Get that dick, Redford! It's not everyday some hot British guy fucking walks into your life and wants to dick you down!

Shut up already.

No.

"Perfect," Jack murmured with a smirk. "Do you have an ideal date, or do you want me to surprise you?"

A museum full of pictures! Lots of pi-

Shut. Up.

Fuck you, Billy. I'm here and ready to be queer.

What?

You heard me, Redford. Fuck him so I can finally be happy that you fucked a guy for me.

I'm not... I'm not fucking him solely for you, Johnny.

Ugh. Fine. Just don't ever act like you're Oliver, or me, ever again. Okay? It was disgusting to watch.

Leave me alone. You're giving me a fucking migraine.

IT'S GONNA TAKE A LOT TO DRAG ME AWAY FROM YOU. THERE'S NOTHING THAT A HUNDRED MEN OR MORE COULD EVER DO. I BLESS THE RAINS DOWN IN AFRICA. GONNA TAKE SOME TIME TO DO THE THINGS WE NEVER HAD.

STOP.

"Billy?" Jack asked, causing me to snap out of my mental war with Johnny. I silently thanked Jack for dragging me away from Johnny's voice screaming the lyrics to "Africa" by Toto in my head.

"Yeah?" I asked while raising an eyebrow.

Jack studied me cautiously. "Are you alright? You seem a little, erm, withdrawn, or maybe even angered..."

I shook my head while taking a swig from my whiskey- a very long swig, I might add. "I'm fine," I partially lied. "Sometimes I just get lost in thought."

Jack nodded his head hesitantly. "So," he trailed off. "Do you want me to surprise you, or is there somewhere you would like to go, or something you would like to do?"

I smirked casually at him as I responded, "Surprise me."

Jack smiled while holding his glass up, prompting me to clink my glass against his. "Cheers to the hopefully perfect date," he said.

I smiled softly at him as I murmured, "Cheers."

hello! this entire bar scene isn't quite over yet- there's still much more to add to this whole bar/club scene. trust me, shit's gonna get g o o d. but anyway, i honestly just loved the mental thing between billy and johnny. i genuinely just wanted to portray that johnny's still in billy's head :)

also- i updated the cast list! Jack Wickens is being portrayed by Joe Sugg, a British YouTuber! (check him out- he's adorable)