Hangman & Reader Short Stories

Whiskey For Your Thoughts

Today was one of those days where it seemed like the world was against you. To say you had been working hard towards your degree would be severely understating it. Years have been put in for all of it to come crashing down on you. The control you once felt was no more, and you felt everything slipping from your hands too quickly to stop it. And just like any normal person put in this position, you found yourself sitting on the kitchen floor with a bottle of whiskey in your hands.

That's how your boyfriend found you. Head back, bottle up, with no regard for the world around you. His footsteps getting louder told you your fun was probably coming to an end. And sure enough, the bottle was gently taken from your hands.

You looked up with a pout to see Jake kneeling down in front of you, a look of concern on his face. "That was uncalled for." You heard the slight slur in your words and mentally slapped yourself for it. He wouldn't give it back now.

"Want to tell me what happened?" His tone seemed light, but you knew he was trying not to upset you further.

"Why do you assume something happened?" You watched him bite back a smile and tilt his head a bit.

"Darlin', the only time you drink whiskey is when you want to forget something, or you're tryin' to get me in bed. And last I checked, I wasn't home when you started drinking so it must be the first option." Damn this man for knowing you too well.

You let out a small huff and crossed your arms. "Rough day at school, that's all." Jake knew it was something more, he always did. So, his next question shouldn't have gotten to you as bad as it did.

"You finish in what, one week? You know your stuff and you are by far the smartest person I know, so what's getting to you?" Your eyes fixated on the worn-out tile underneath you as you tried to keep your emotions in check. But man, this day was beating you up.

"I spent three years leading up to this moment and I have one test that is in my way. If I fail it, then all of this was for nothing. A complete waste of time. Today we took this pretest thing that basically showed us how we do on our final. I failed it by three points. How is it that I can study all damn day and put my heart into something just to fail?" You looked up at your boyfriend and saw his face drop at your admission.

He dragged a thumb over your cheek to wipe the tears you didn't know escaped. It was an involuntary motion, but you leaned into his touch, needing it more that you initially thought. Jake saw this and moved to sit next to you on the ground, pulling you into his side.

"This is only one bump in the road. Don't let this test knock you down because you have earned this degree. I know I'm just a dump pilot, but I do know how hard you have worked for this." You couldn't help but chuckle at what he said. You both knew he was one of the best pilots in the country, but right now it didn't matter. Your world seemed to be falling apart and he was the glue you needed to keep it together.

"What if I fail?" He pulled back some and turned your face so he could look you in the eyes.

"You can't think like that, sweetheart. If I went out there every time I had a rough mission and thought that, I would get hurt and my team hurt. If this was supposed to be easy, everyone would be doing it. I have all the faith that you are going to kill this test and then we are going to have the biggest celebration after." He gave you one of his rare, genuine smiles and kissed the top of your head.

"Let's get you showered and into bed. You're going to be feeling the whiskey in the morning." He got off the floor and effortlessly picked you up.

"I can walk, Jake. I didn't have that much to drink." You saw a smirk appear on his face and knew he was up to no good.

"Maybe I just want to carry my girl to bed. Is that such a crime?" You tipped your head back and laughed, slowly forgetting about your previous pity party.

"To say you weren't here when I had the whiskey out, you sure do seem like you have something on your mind." It was his turn to laugh, and you couldn't help but smile at the happiness on his face. He caught you staring and asked what you were thinking of.

"I love you, Jake." He stopped walking and looked down at you in his arms, "Darlin', there is no one else in the world that I will ever love more than you." He gave you a soft kiss on the tip of your nose and in that single moment, everything was perfect.