Road Trip

6-Uncle Ned's Diner

"What happened last night? Why did you hang up on me so quickly? Why didn't you return my calls?" Ryan asked, barely taking a breath between each sentence.

"I'm sorry, it got pretty hectic last night. There was a bar fight-" Jessica began.

"WHAT?! BETWEEN WHO? ARE YOU AND TJ ALRIGHT?" Ryan boomed through the phone.

"Yeah, babe, we're fine, I wasn't in the fight, I was talking to you and then TJ called me and that's why I hung up so quickly." Jessica said soothingly.

"Well who started the bar fight? Wait, didn't TJ go with those two guys y'all picked up from the side of the rode?"

"Yeah, she did. Some biker guy in the bar hit on her and one of the boys, Niall intervened and the biker guy threw a punch and it all went downhill from there." Jessica replied.

"As long as you and TJ are okay, I don't care what happens to those two. Did y'all ditch those two yet?" Ryan asked.

"Noo, they're uh, they're actually coming along with us..." Jessica said in a small voice.

"What the fuck Jessica! You don't even know these guys and you're sharing the same motel room, driving them around! What's fucking next? You hook up with them too?" Ryan exploded.

"What the hell Ryan, where did that come from? Are you fucking serious right now?" Jessica yelled back in disgust. "They're nice guys and they've protected me and TJ from disgusting pervs more than once, so back the fuck off!"

"Wow, so now you're defending them too? This is fucking unbelievable!" Ryan scoffed.

"No Ryan, you're acting unbelievable right now. Could you please calm down and talk about this like a civilized person?" Jessica reasoned.

"Actually, I've gotta go, my break is over." Ryan said emotionlessly and hung up. Jessica stared at the phone blankly. Tears pricked the corner of her eyes as she screamed in frustration.

"Suck it up, Jessica. You will not cry over this. You. Will. Not. Cry." Jessica said to herself, before wiping her eyes and walking back into the diner.

"I'm gonna go grab Niall and see what's taking our waitress so long." TJ said, sliding out of the booth. Harry nodded his head in acknowledgment. Harry glanced just as jessica walked over and took a seat opposite to him.

"Where's TJ and Niall?" She asked.

"Looking for our waiter." He answered. Upon closer inspection, he noticed her reddened nose and slightly puffy eyes. "Hey," he called softly. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," Jessica sniffled a bit. "I'm okay."

"Is everything okay with, ya know, you and Richard?" Harry asked, feeling slightly uncomfortable.

"Yes, me and RYAN are fine. Thanks." Jessica said curtly. She looked away from his stare.

"Sorry," Harry immediately apologized. "I didn't mean to seem rude, I just-"

"Just drop it okay?" Jessica held a hand up, stopping him. "I really don't wan to talk about it."

"Okay...but you should know, I'm hear if you ever want to talk." Harry said quietly. Jessica's eyes softened. She gave him a small smile.

"Thanks Harry." Just then, Niall and TJ came walking back to their booth.

"The waitress said that she'll be out in a minute with our menus." Niall stated, sliding in beside Harry.

"I think one of their cooks is running late or something." TJ said, further explaining the delay. She turned and looked closer at Jessica. "Hey, are you okay?" TJ asked, worriedly.