Normal //Ryan Metzger

02: to the top of the ladder

   Before my mind could tell me what I was about to do was probably not the right thing, I was letting Ryan guide me through the crowd towards the front door. Before we could make it though, Jess pulled at my free arm.
"Where are you going?" She said. She looked Ryan up and down. "And who is this?"
"Ryan," He said with a smile and sticking out the hand that was holding mine. "Ryan Metzger."
Jess didn't shake his hand but nodded a hello.
"Can you give us a minute, Ryan? Thanks." She said and dragged me to the corner. When we were out of earshot of Ryan, she yelled at me. "What the hell?"
"What?" I said, giggling at how slurred the word was. I couldn't hold in my giggle as she grew impatient with my drunk ass.
"You're running off with a stranger? What about our no one night stand rule?"
"I didn't say I was gonna fuck him!" I yelled over the music to her face, a little louder than it needed to be. I looked over and saw Ryan's face grow red.
Jess let out a sigh of frustration and looked me dead in the eye.
"You will keep me updated, okay? This is a big city and I'm worried."
"Okay MOM," I said with a giggle, the alcohol taking over my senses. "Go take a shot and relax."
"Lauren, I'm serious."
"Fine, fine," I said taking a deep breath in to get my vision straight. "I will text you every hour on the hour and when I get home. Now can I go please because our Uber is here?"
She looked at Ryan one more time and let go of my forearm, it loosening up without her grip.
"Be safe," She said.
"I will, I love you, bye!" I said,yelling to her as I ran backwards to Ryan. I saw Ryan mouth 'thank you' towards Jess' direction as he interlocked my hand in his and we stumbled to the front door through the crowd.
"Ryan," I yelped with a laugh as he darted through the door. "Slow down!"
"Keep up, short legs," he laughed. I was immensely shorter than him. He towered probably half foot above me without my heels.
We laughed and made it to the sidewalk with enough time.
"See," I said. "No need to run, plus I have pumps on."
"My bad," he laughed and looked around for the white Honda Civic that was supposed to be here.
We awkwardly waited, me shivering a little from the autumn breeze. I thought to myself, where the fuck is this Uber?
"Here," Ryan said, slipping off his navy blue blazer that matched his pants. He draped the blazer around my little shoulders. "Since it's close to 50 degrees."
"Awh," I said, pulling the article clothing closer to me. The smell of his cologne and spilled alcohol lingered off of the jacket, making me surprisingly even more happy.
Before I could thank him, the Uber car pulled up to our position on the sidewalk and Ryan opened the backseat door for me to climb in.
"Hi!" I said to the driver, drawing out the word. This caused both Ryan and the driver to crack a smile.
"Where to?"
"Central Park," Ryan said, typing something on his phone and closing it before I could question.
"Central Park?" I whispered as the car bolted down the street. "Isn't it closed after 1?"
"That's the thrill," he said smiling and my heart warmed at the sight of it.
I smirked at him and turned my attention towards the car window, pressing my hot skin against the cold of the glass.
The trees and street lamps were all in slow motion to my intoxicated eyes. I watched every light, every apartment window, every shop with the neon 'open' signed turned off. It all fascinated me.
The car stopped again and was put into park. Ryan paid the Uber and we climbed out, me following Ryan out his door.
"So, Metzger. Why Central Park?" I asked, crossing my arms across my chest.
"Cmon, the best time to have fun is when you're drunk. And where is the best place to have fun at? No other place than the park!" He sang, spinning around a lamp post with his hand touching the metal.
"Really?" I asked laughing.
"Race you to the playground over there?" He asked, raising his eyebrow.
"Wait give me a minu-" but before I could finish my sentence, he was blasting off towards the nearest playground set,leaving me behind. "Hey, asshole!" I yelled in his direction.
I fumbled with my pumps, throwing them off by the lamp post and darted in the direction he ran. I finally caught up with him as he bent over breathing heavily from the run and laughing so hard.
"I win," he gloated in my face.
"Because you cheated," I said.
"Gotta move to the top of the ladder somehow," he said laughing. I pouted and turned around. "Oh cmon!" He said.
His arms reached around me and he picked me up. I let of a shriek as he did this, mixing it with laughter.
"Ryan Metzger, what are you doing?" I yelled into the darkness of the sky as he spun us around. "Trying to make me puke?"
"No but that would be hilarious," he laughed, setting me down on the mulch.
   We looked at each other and Ryan started to smile.
  "Care to dance," he said in a fake British accent,holding out his hand.
   "Why of course," I said in my own accent, taking his hand in mine.
  We spun around for a little,laughing with the wind until I noticed two twin slides at the corner of the playground.
"First one down the slide wins?" I asked and before he could respond, I played his game and darted up the metal stairs to the double slide.
"Should've seen that one coming," he laughed and double timed it up the stairs.
We slid down the slides,going in opposite directions but with the same tone of laughter. We were a giggly drunk mess and didn't care who heard us.
We got up from the slide and met each other in the middle. Ryan stared into my eyes and I did the same to him.
His eyes were like a sea; so vast and deep yet inviting and calm in this moment. I kept getting lost in them but never wanting to find my way out.
Our faces slowly inched towards each other, noses almost touching.
    "I think I won," I whispered, moving my hand to his arm.
     "I think we need to replay the tapes for that close call," he smiled, leaning in closer. Our lips were only an inch apart until a man's voice carried throughout the section of the part, making us both jump.
"Might I ask you two what are you doing this late at night at the park?" A police officer said, walking around the playground to see us. He held my pumps in one hand and a flashlight in the other.
"Sorry sir, I-" Ryan said, moving away from me. He started to defend us but the cop stopped him.
"You two reek of alcohol. May I see your ID's?"
We complied and pulled out of licenses, both showing our age of 24.
"Are you aware that the park closes at 1 AM?" He asked us, looping his thumbs in his belt loops.
Neither of us answered, just standing there like two third graders who got busted kissing on the playground by a teacher. Wait..
"I'm going to have to ask you guys to leave," he said. "Oh and m'am, here you are."
He handed me my pumps and I quickly slid them on, with a bit of fumbling, before being escorted out of the park with Ryan by the officer.
The officer hailed us a taxi and made sure we were in it securely.
"Where to?" The taxi driver asked, looking back at us in the rear view mirror.
Ryan and I looked at each other with no clue until I blurted something out.
"West street apartments please," I said.
"Your place?" Ryan asked, raising his eyebrow.
"My place," I responded and went back to staring out the window.
We payed and climbed out of the taxi in a matter of minutes and joked the whole way up to the main entrance of the apartment complex.
I laughed at my own joke I couldn't finish as we both stumbled up the flight of stairs to Jess and I's apartment. Ryan tried his best to support the both of us, but the stairs were fighting back, both of us tripping every two steps.
I fumbled with the keys, them falling to the ground with a jingle. Once I was finally successful, the door swung open to reveal our apartment.
"Mi casa es su casa," I said, throwing my cross body purse on the couch and stumbling around. I looked at the clock on the wall and it read 3:30 AM.
I walked towards Ryan, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt and pulled him close to my face. Our lips crashes together and a sweet taste, with a hint of beer, filled our mouths as we collided.
"You're drunk," Ryan said in between battling kisses.
"So are you," I said, reaching for the back of my own dress for the zipper.
As the zipper slip down the length of my spine, causing tingles as it did, my mind swarmed and I crashed onto the couch, passing out cold in a slumber.
That's all I remembered.

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-I'm sorry this chapter picture is so creepy? It's the only one useable so I apologize.
-this chapter's song is 3AM by AJR (the majority/all of these chapter songs will be AJR but hey who is complaining)