Izzy took a deep shuddering breath and closed the door. He put his seatbelt back on and switched his four ways for his left turn signal so he could pull back onto the road. Every other breath was a sniffle, but he needed to get the food and get home. He wanted to go to bed.

-- "IM HERE BITCHES! ITS TIME TO FUCKING PARTY!!" Jack billowed as he burst through the front door. The house erupted in a half drunken cheer, half drunken groan. Jack paused, smile wavering slightly on his face. He was almost 100% positive that Izzy said it would be a relatively dry party, maybe

some wine with dinner. The people in front of him were doing shots and trying to open a wrapped gift with oven mitts while a timer ticked down. It was loud, it was roudy, it was nothing like Izzy told him it would be like. He almost wanted to turn right back around and hop back into his truck.

"Jack! Close the fuckin' door! You're letting out all the bought air!" Someone shouted over the chaos of the party game. Jack gingerly shut the door behind him, shoving his hand in his pocket where his six month chip sat heavy and hot. "Where's Izzy? Kitchen?" He didn't wait for the reply, pushing

Through the crowd to the empty kitchen. Jack let out a breath he didn't know he was holding, running the hand that wasn't holding the chip like a lifeline through his hair. He had washed it and tied it back earlier, but strands were breaking loose of their confinement and falling into his face.

Jack looked around at the mess of the kitchen, more than just normal party mess, the dishes and clean up from earlier preparations never got finished. A tray full of broken glass sat forgotten on a counter where it was hastily thrown. On closer inspection, Jack recognized a pattern.

The pit that had been forming in his stomach deepened. Izzy loved those stupid dishes. Any time Jack invited him to fuck around and scrounge thrift stores, they were the reason he actually came, had been for years.

It took a moment to steel himself enough to reenter the party, but he needed to find Izzy. Something wasn't right. Hell, something was very wrong. "OLU YOU WHORE!" Lucius drunkenly shouted across the living room as OLU managed to finally rip the last bits of paper off the game gift.

The man tossed off his oven mitts and excitedly pulled the top off the box to reveal the $100 Amazon gift card Izzy had placed inside for this very game. The man had planned every moment of this party with militant attention, the game was supposed to be after dinner.

Jack knew he wasn't THAT late to have missed a multi course Izzy Hands holiday meal, and looking around the room at flushed, rowdy faces he couldn't find Izzy's (hopefully sober) smug expression as he watched everyone enjoy the "stupid bullshit game" , as Edward put it, that Izzy discovered on

Facebook and planned to play months ago. "Where's Izzy?" Jack asked as casually as he could manage. He wasn't sure how he would handle it if someone responded that he was drunk and passed out in his bedroom or something of the likes. Izzy had been Jacks number one supporter when it came to his

Sobriety journey. While I didn't come along to AA with him, he took a vow to stand beside Jack and work on his own drinking once Jack finally admitted a case of beer a day was a problem. Izzy always made sure to never set Jack up for failure while also never treating him like glass.

And Izzy was doing so well on his own side of things. He had stopped drinking himself stupid every night as he struggled to cope with life. He stopped bringing a flask to share when they went thrifting. He stopped pulling out a case of beer for a football game he didn't care about just so he had a

loose where he sat alone in his chair, eyes half lidded and lips curled in a soft smile. He was beyond the bitchy but pretty fun drunk he normally got. Jack wondered if he'd remember any of Christmas come boxing day. There was no way he was making it to a soup kitchen or wherever he volunteered to

make himself feel like a better person. "What do you mean picking up the food?" Jack couldn't make it make sense. He knew Izzy, he knew how he hosted. He would have spent hours in the kitchen. He would have made everything down to the fucking butter from scratch in his

Incessant need for everyone to like him and appreciate the work he does. It never worked and no one usually so much as thanked him, Jack knows he definitely hasn't been the best in the past either, especially if they were drinking (which they were).

"It was dreadful, everything ended up on the ground." Steede hiccuped through another long slurp of brandy. Jack felt disgust from watching it. He couldn't believe that was once him. Nightly. "Izzy sure doesn't know how to load a tray" Steede giggled, taking another slurp, his lips smacking

Perversely against the glass like a sloppy kiss. "Not an hors d'oeuvre was sparred. He almost broke my toureen. From beside them, someone's stomach growled loudly. "I hope he's back soon. I'm STARVED." Pete whined. "Yes. He's been gone a while." Zheng offered thoughtfully.

"Awwww, we'll be fiiiiiine!" Ed slurred, walking back into the room. "What'd I miss while I took a piss?" He singsonged, obviously proud of his rhyme. He was unsteady on his feet, leaning heavily on the wall to keep himself upright.

"I won!" Olu cheered from behind Jack. "Won what?" Ed asked dumbly, stopping in his tracks. "JACK! You-hic-came!" Jack had to quickly uncross his arms to catch his drunken beat friend as he threw himself vaguely in Jack's direction. He smelled like vomit and vodka. Jack gave him a slight squeeze

"course I did, Ed. Let sit down." Jack started to drag Ed towrds the couch but Ed had other ideas, grabbing two handfuls of Jacks ass and pulling his earlobe into his mouth. "Wanna have some fun now you're here? Everyone else can watch" he stage whispered. Their friends all jeered around them,

Someone throwing the cover of the prize box at Ed. "Nope, Ed. We are gonna sit you down and make you drink some water and wait for your husband to get home!" Jack marched him over to the couch, depositing him roughly in between Jackie, who immediately took him under her arm

And Frenchie who immediately scooted over to avoid touching him. "Noooooo, my husband is right there!" Ed giggled, pointing over to an overly proud Stede. "Guilty!" "You know what I mean, Ed." Jack grumbled. "Can someone get him some water? This is just sloppy-"