CHAPTER 4
ooiv.
I'LL SEE YOU LATER

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LIZ WATCHED FROM afar by the bar, a cup of beer in her hand as she practically only bought the drink to hide her staring. She tentatively watched Elle, then back to the man she had been speaking to for an hour or even more. Liz didn't bother to catch the time, too indulged on what their conversation spoke of. About an hour ago, Elle had finished her performance that came right after Smile's, the crowd a bit more rowdy as she sang her upbeat tune. However, as soon as she stepped off stage, the man in the formal suit instantly stood by her and loaded her with a bunch of questions. And by the looks of it, he was intrigued.

And now, for who knows how long, Liz had been watching for some time. She saw how Elle's smile beamed throughout the conversation, a flirtatious look on her face now and then. The man himself looked flattered as well.

Liz took a sip of the hard, and gross drink, nearly puking due to its taste. She wondered how someone could be so attracted to its taste, regretting even buying it. She would have much rather drank a Pink Lady than this. She looked around the crowd, trying to see if she was able to find Roger. Of course, he was too busy with a girl under his arm, the two whispering seductively at one another. Liz honestly felt appalled, but scolded herself in doing so. What more was she able to expect?

Liz grabbed her beer, trying to make her ways over towards Elle to listen a bit closer. But on her way there, she instantly felt a hand reach under her dress, whipping around quickly to smack her hand on whoever thought it was a good idea. However, the man who did so quickly dodged her attack by running away as fast as he could, snickering to himself while at it.

"Watch where you keep your hands!" She yelled at him, her beer pouring out a bit as it splattered on those near. She felt guilty as soon as a huge splatter of beer stained onto Freddie's blouse.

"My apologies," she managed to say through her anger, calming herself down. "One too many drinks," she joked, the same line she always used whenever she made a mistake while drinking.

"Don't be silly, darling. I saw the whole thing," he commented, raising his drink up a bit as he nodded his head. He looked down at his shirt, humming to himself. "How will I tell my mum that I've ruined her favorite blouse?"

Liz's guilt grew more as she felt terrible for him. At first she thought why his mother would think differently about his blouse, but she didn't want to question it further, though it was quite unusual to her.

"Here, let me help you with that," she offered, walking over towards the bar as she grabbed a few napkins from the bartender. "They're small, but it's better than nothing." She handed the flimsy paper napkins over to Freddie, the man dabbing them onto his blouse.

"You're Freddie, right?" Liz knew who he was, of course. Just an hour ago he performed on stage with an eccentric show. That's what she liked about him, however. But she didn't want to seem unordinary already.

"The one and only," he smiled, shrugging his shoulders a bit.

"Well, Freddie, will a drink win over the minor inconvenience we just had?" Liz felt terrible for ruining his shirt, though her anger still didn't subside from earlier. She didn't recognize who the strange man was, considering how fast he ran, but it was probably better off if she didn't.

"Now that you offered, how did we start speaking again?" He playfully joked, hinting that he'd take a drink. The two strolled over towards the bar, Liz taking a quick peak at Elle, noticing that she was still talking to the other man. She's okay, she'll be fine.

Liz ordered two tequila shots, her drinks now starting to reach her limit. Though it wasn't on her mind at the moment, the same downhill path she always seemed to go with. "I'm Elizabeth by the way, or Liz, is what people call me by."

Freddie took the shot in his hand, raising the glass a bit. "To you, Lizzy darling, for putting up with a drag like him," he mentioned back to the guy from before. Liz followed his actions, putting her cup of tequila in the air as well.

"And to you, Freddie, for.. an outstanding and.. interesting performance," she followed, the two looking each other in the eyes while clicking their drinks together, before downing the drink. Liz shut her eyes tightly for a few seconds, before placing her small cup on the table. "I do have to say this Freddie, if you don't mind. I really enjoyed your performance." Liz did after all, but was sure others did as well.

"Thank you, though others may think differently," he mentioned, his voice slowly fading away after. Liz noticed how his facial expressions changed. She wondered if she hit a personal spot, a topic that was lowly talked about. She even wanted to say "How so?", but thought differently against it. She didn't want to press further in something that wasn't her business, or even ask something that he was sensitive over.

"Well whoever thought, or even thinks so, obviously doesn't know talent when shown right in front of their face," Liz commented, trying to lighten up the mood, though also trying to stray away from it. "You come here alone?"

"A free drink, and the one-million dollar question. I'm starting to think you're quite interested in me," he joked, Liz laughing a bit as she pursed her lips. Freddie looked around for a few seconds, looking right back at his empty cup again. "I'm actually looking for someone," he softly replied, thinking back to a face he found unbelievably gorgeous.

Liz nodded her head, looking around too, as she noticed Elle had moved places from her original spot. She wondered where she could've gone, but thought how she probably was back stage with Luke. Liz couldn't help but look around to where Roger was originally as well, but noticed that he too, was no longer there. She didn't think much of it though, tapping her finger along her empty shot cup.

"And what about you? Who's the lucky lad?" Freddie noticed how she looked around as well, thinking either she was looking for someone or waiting for them. This earned him a small smile from her, Liz letting out a small sigh.

"I actually came for my friend, Elle, or- Poppy. She was just talking to someone, I'm not sure where she went," Liz admitted while looking around again, shrugging her shoulders.

"Mm-hmm, and what about Roger?" Freddie mentioned him cooly, looking at Liz with a look that said "Yes, I've seen you two together." Liz furrowed her brows, a snicker leaving her lips.

"Who?" She tried questioning, though she wasn't fooling anyone.

"Oh please, you know who. The blonde with the drum sticks." Freddie had seen the two with each other for some time. Though he has seen Roger with a few others, he hasn't seen them with him for a second or third time. So obviously, there was something about Liz that Roger wanted. But what he did want, was something Freddie was quiet unsure of.

"Nothing is going on between us, you can believe that. Care for another drink?" She asked for two more shots, the bartender fixing her order once more.

"If I knew free drinks were given out, I would've come sooner," a voice trailed from behind the two, both Freddie and Liz looking at Roger, who walked towards them. Liz rolled her eyes, taking the shot that was just given to her and Fred.

"Where's John and Brian?"

"Out back, loading the van with a speaker left," he answered Freddie's question, standing on the left side of Liz so that she was now in the middle. Roger looked down at Liz, smiling the slightest. "You stayed."

"Not for long, I should get going anyway," Liz replied, looking around once more for Elle.

"Nonsense, the party has just begun." Freddie ordered a couple more drinks, though Liz didn't bother to listen. She didn't know what she was putting herself through with the amount of alcohol she was drinking that night, and she knew she wasn't going to be able to handle it, but she decided to drink whatever was given to her. And that was a big mistake she already made.

"Already having a drink without us?" Another voice was heard from behind the three, Brian and John making their way through a few people before catching up to them. They ordered drinks as well for them, the whole band and including Liz by the bar.

"The whole gang is here," Freddie mentioned, taking another shot. Although, what the others didn't know, was that he'd been awaiting for a certain someone for an amount of time. Mary had watched him during Smile's song, and he couldn't keep his eyes of her, as well as her for him. But after, he tried finding the blonde in the crowd, but he wasn't able to. Short after, he met Liz. Still, he had some hope inside him that later on he would find the face of hers in the pub soon. He wanted to see her.

Liz took her third shot, the taste of the alcohol becoming even more bitter to her than before. Nonetheless, she continued to do so anyway. She definitely was starting to feel it's effects, her vision drowsy and her words starting to slur. But it didn't stop her further on in the night. The five of them all enjoyed themselves with a drink in their hand, somehow moving from near the bar to the side of the room. The majority of people still stuck around throughout the night, those left being people who continuously drank.

Freddie soon found Mary with her friend, deciding to talk to her for the rest of his time there, leaving Liz, Roger, Brian and John talking about various topics. Liz stood close to Roger, his arm draped around her shoulders. Subconsciously, she knew it was wrong. But her drunken self allowed him in doing so.

"If you guys don't mind me asking," Liz started off, trying to pick her words carefully. "What happened to your original lead singer? Tim, I believe his name is?" She wanted to make up an excuse of Elle wanting to know why, but she decided to be quiet about it. She was curious herself, anyway.

"Decided to up-and-run with a band called Humpy Bong," Brian spoke, a hint of irritation in his voice. He took another drink from his beer bottle, shaking his head at the slightest.

"Thought we weren't going anywhere with our college gigs, and pubs," Roger added, a little annoyed as well.

"Well I can tell you, you're gonna go somewhere with someone like that," Liz mentioned over to Freddie, all four of them looking over at him. He smiled at Mary, the two in the midst of talking. Liz smiled at the two, though she didn't know who the woman was. However, she didn't judge the smallest bit. She found it cute.

"So what are you guys majoring in?" John tried starting a conversation, breaking the small quietness before them.

"Physics and Mathematics," Brian replied, finishing off his drink.

"Drawing and painting, just the history of art," Liz told, nothing really special to her about what she chose to do with college. It was one of the only things she was able to do, everything else for her wasn't as strong. She looked up at Roger, waiting for him to answer Johns question. But he only continued to drink more from his bottle, trying to distract himself from doing so.

"What about you, Rog?" Brian raised his eyebrows at him, the three of them waiting for him to answer. Roger continued to drink, making straight eye-contact with Brian. "Or am I gonna have to tell them?"

Liz nudged Roger's side. "Oh, come on, I bet it's not even that bad."

Roger finished his drink, taking a couple seconds to spare before clearing his throat. "Dentistry," he softly spoke, the group unable to hear him due to the amount of noise in the room.

"What?" The three spoke in unison, Brian finding it a little more amusement than the two others.

"Dentistry," Roger spoke louder and slower, Brian smiling as John nodded his head.

"I wouldn't think that coming from you," Liz admitted, looking up at him as she laughed a little. "But it isn't unusual. That's quite interesting." Roger only looked at her, Liz looking away instantly as she felt the blush creep on her cheeks. "I'm going out for a cigarette, if anyone cares to join."

Liz gave them a parting smile, Rogers arm falling to his side as Liz walked forward. She tried controlling her balance, though it was very hard in her doing so. She somehow made it out through the people though, heading out the door as she grabbed her cigarette pack out of her jacket, along with a lighter. It was nasty habit of hers, and she knew it of course. But she rarely smoked, or at least, that's what she tried justifying it with.

Lighting it while taking a puff of smoke, she thought of how Elle could still be in the pub, or even at her dorm room. She wondered where the girl went, and why she hasn't greeted her since after her performance, but she also thought of Elle as someone who was able to handle herself. Taking another puff of smoke, and exhaling it after, she heard the door open.

Stepping out of course, was Roger, with a cigarette already in his mouth. His hand held the lighter, lighting his cigarette up before doing the same as Liz. The two smoked in silence for a minute or so, Liz finally being the one to break the silence.

"You have really great friends," she spoke softly, looking at the ground as she continued smoking. However, Roger didn't respond back. Instead, continuing to smoke as well, staring straightforward. Liz sighed, nearly finishing her cigarette before dropping it on the ground, using her foot to distinguish the little flame.

"I should really get going," she sighed, pushing her hands inside her jackets pockets. She wanted to wait for Roger to say something, she wanted him to stop her from leaving. But he continued to smoke his cigarette. Biting the inside of her cheek, she started forward.

"Liz, wait," Roger interrupted, dropping his cigarette on the ground as well. Taking a few steps ahead, he stopped just a few feet away. Liz noticed how confused and even conflicted he looked, his hand running through the mess of his hair. Liz waited for him to say something, or even anything. She thought back to when they were just hanging out with Freddie, John and Brian. How much of a good time she had with all of them. Even when Roger had his arm around her shoulders. It was something she already missed.

Roger looked annoyed, mad at himself that he wasn't able to spit out the words he wanted to. But he was also confused on what he wanted to say. Instead, sighing heavily, he gave her a small smile. "I'll see you later."

Liz wanted to give him a genuine smile, but she felt disheartened, and even upset. She knew nothing could become more for them. She felt the space between, and it saddened her. He would show interest, but just subside her as for someone else when another girl caught his attention. And it hurt even more because she still felt the same for him.

Sighing a bit, she gave him one more smile, a hint of sadness in her eyes. "I'll see you later."

another update for you guys cause y'all are freaking amazing.

tbh, i don't know how i feel about this chapter?? the beginning with Liz and Freddie is probably my favorite part throughout this whole thing. also if you guys didn't know, when Freddie is at the pub with boys singing "Keep Yourself Alive" he's wearing his moms blouse like it's so CUTE UWU-

but anyway, the ending is alright for me i guess, it could be better. ALSO THE ENDING of the chapter is supposed to be Rogers and Liz's "last" time talking before a big time period. so haha, yeah, im excited cause i got GOOD, good stuff coming up (;

how did you guys like the chapter though? make sure to leave a comment about what you thought and don't forget to vote!! thanks guys (: