Broken - A Ryden fanfic

Chapter eight- I never said I'd leave the city

"—Happy Birthday to you!"

Ryan was officially twenty-one years old. To commemorate this special occasion, Pete Wentz himself had invited him and his girlfriend to his brand new nightclub called "Angels and Kings."

The club was luxurious, he had to admit. Him and a small group of people gathered at one of the leather couches in the corner in a lounge of sorts; the "lounge" had several benches that sat across from the leather couch, with wooden tables in between with a candle or two sat atop. The entire room had a gold and red theme to it, with golden colored carpets and a red glow coming from the bar.

Ryan's girlfriend Keltie, along with a small group of people- who he assumed were friends of Pete, were gathered around him and sang to him to celebrate him finally turning twenty-one.

A blue cake sat in front of him on one of the tables. It had a picture of himself in the middle, and the words "Happy 21st Birthday Ryan!!!" written across it underneath. When it came down to dividing pieces, Ryan had gotten the piece with his photo on it.

"Here you are! The perfect slice for the perfect guy." Keltie purred as she set the slice in front of him. She took a seat next to him on the bench and put an arm around his shoulder.

"Thanks." Ryan mumbled sheepishly, taking the cake and quickly taking a few bites. "Thanks for the invite, Pete. This place is really cool." He said a little louder, looking up to his friend who sat across the way.

Pete beamed, "Don't mention it! I figured this would be a nice break from all the shows."

"You didn't have to though. I get breaks from the band." Ryan replied.

The older male raised an eyebrow. "Then why are you wearing clothes that are themed around your album?"

Ryan glanced down at his clothes he had on. He wore a red flannel with a brown vest over top. The rest of his outfit was casual, well- besides the bandana around his head. He smiled shyly.

"Besides," Pete continued, "now you're old enough to drink! So I figured a bar would be a fitting place for your party."

"Legally drink anyway." Ryan chuckled. "But uh, I dunno if I'm gonna be doing much drinking."

"Oh come on, Ry!" Keltie chimed in, "the rest of us will be drinking! At least sip on a tequila with me." Before Ryan could reply she made a pouty face.

Ryan let out a small sigh, leaning back into the couch. "Fine. I'll have a few sips, but I'm gonna be the one driving."

It was a smart thing for him to say, because that seemed to make her happy. He reluctantly followed after Keltie to the bar after finishing up his slice of cake.

He didn't quite understand why people enjoyed drinking so much. The tequila was /alright/, but it didn't settle very well in his stomach. So he would sip on it every now and then when Keltie would look in his direction. He followed her around the lounge a bit and did minimal interaction with other people along the way until he eventually gave up trying to talk to people he didn't know and hid in the corner with his drink.

At least Keltie was having fun. She was partying around the place with a group of her friends. Were there this many people here at the start of the party? It feels a little more crowded now. And louder...

Once it came down to opening gifts, he was pretty sure that Keltie was drunk. She became very giggly all of a sudden, and he would find her more often than not hanging off of someone- if not him, with a wide smile on her face.