Publicity Stunt

There was a jostling.

“Ryella...” a muffled voice called out, her consciousness stirring awake with each call of her name that followed.

Soon blue eyes fluttered open, her muscles stretching themselves out in the bit of space they had. First class may have been more spacious than coach, but they were still in a cramped plane with limited room and Ryella didn't want to accidentally hit another person's chair. With her senses and wits beginning to return, she turned to face Hilary who was patiently waiting for her to come to.

“Mornin',” Ryella mumbled.

“Good morning,” Hilary replied. “How was your nap?”

“Pretty good, actually.”

“Glad to hear it. Why don't you look out the window?”

The blonde's head turned and she stuck her face into the small cubby-hole of a window, her eyes darting about the scene around them. “When did we land?” She inquired once noticing the few other planes going round the runways and the building that they were now parked beside.

“Just a few minutes ago, so we'll get off and head through customs and whatnot in a bit.”

Hilary's 'a bit' managed to stretch out into a boring thirty minute wait on the plane, with many of its weary passengers becoming more irritable by the second. Ryella, though, not being one of them. Sure, her bottom half was screaming to get out of the chair she had been resting in for more than the eleven hour flight, but she had that gut feeling that once she got out of the airport she would be swamped.

Before getting on the plane back in Los Angeles, she had seen it in her newsfeed online – a new gossip article from Hollywood's Eye about her and her new relationship with none other than Harry Styles. It was weird, in a way. Usually, whenever gossip articles were written about her that were false – though there weren't many to begin with as she was only starting out, she and her publicist were eager to clear things up right away, however, not this time.

And the fact that she was supposedly “dating” Harry Styles? It blew her mind. She had never even expected to be paired up with the likes of him. One Direction was a band that took the world by storm, and while she was neither a fan or a hater of their music, she knew that this was going to bring more than just “a bit” of publicity to her – it would bring a whirlwind of it. And to be honest, there was a part of her that just wanted to back out of it all completely for fear of being hounded by paparazzi.

The thought of being yelled at by crowds of people trying to get her picture and information out of her just put her completely on edge. Then again, she guessed it was part of the territory.

The restless passengers of the plane began to shuffle upwards and it was then that Ryella realized that they were finally being released. Grabbing her bag from between her feet, she threw it over her shoulder and was soon ushered out along with the rest of first class by the flight attendants.

Customs was a process that went by remarkably fast, and once that was old news, they headed over to baggage claim before heading towards the outside world.

As the exits grew nearer, Ryella could already see a swarm of people by the doors with cameras held tightly within her grasp, her stomach sinking to the soles of her feet as she zipped up her jacket all the way and slipped on a pair of dark Ray Ban Aviators to shield her eyes from the flashes that were soon to blind her. Here goes nothing, she thought.

Ryella wasn't even to the doors before chaos ensued. “There she is!” One cameraman shouted eagerly, his camera already snapping away before he even held the viewfinder to his eye. One flash set off two, then three, then four, and so on and so forth till they could no longer be differentiated and there was only a continuous glow of white surrounding them.

Hilary, having been prepared, had Ryella's bodyguard Marty already positioning himself at the front of their party to hide the young girl from the press, as well as a few extra men from airport security to help keep them in check.

Nonetheless, the paparazzi hounded them.

“Ryella, is your relationship with Harry true?” One yelled.

“Why haven't people seen you together before? Is it all a lie?”

“Are you really pregnant with his child?!”

Marty pushed through the sea of reporters with a firm stride, Ryella hanging onto the back of his shirt like he had instructed previously and keeping her eyes cast downwards as to not be blinded by the camera flashes. When they reached the black van that had been waiting for them, Marty opened up the backseat door, helped Ryella inside, and did the same for Hilary. Once the belongings were in the back of the van, Marty sat down in the front passenger seat with an exasperated sigh. The reporters then swarmed the car, keeping it there for as long as possible before more security had to be brought in to force them out of its way.

“Well, that was more hellish than what I had anticipated.” Hilary sighed out.

“That was so freaky,” Ryella added, slumping down into her seat. “We've never had to deal with so many of them like that.”

Hilary's phone began to vibrate inside her purse, and she retrieved it just as soon as it began, reading a newly received text. “Great news, Ry,” she looked to the young start who was staring back at her curiously, “a nightly talk show here had a problem and someone who was booked had to cancel. Management got in touch and they've set you up to go on and perform a song and give a small interview.”

“Great, when do we head over?”

“It's set to start recording at around six in the afternoon, so we'll get there around five, which means we have about four hours or so to head to the hotel and rest and get ready.”

“Sounds good,” Ryella smiled, beginning to forget about the paparazzi problem in seconds after hearing what her manager had to say. Today was going to be a good day, she could just feel it, and to share the excitement, she whipped out her phone and sent off a tweet.

Ashlyn Ryella Reed @ReallyRyella
I'm ready for you, London! Let's make some memories.



Ryella talked a big game, but when it came down to it, she was always a restless ball of nerves. Her stomach was in knots, unsettled and feeling like it was ready to burst in the most unpleasant of ways. And the current distress she was feeling was only multiplied when she and Hilary had come to find out who else would be on the show that night – One Direction themselves.

She knew what was next. The host was going to ask about them – her and Harry. She was going to bring it up, she was going to pry, and they were both going to be left there fumbling with their words in front of cameras that would broadcast it to millions. This was a disaster waiting to happen and there was nothing that Ryella could really do about that.

However, another thing that left her dreading her upcoming appearance on the show was that now her album was going to be taking a backseat to her fake relationship. Most of the questions were bound to be related to her fake couple status with Harry, meaning she might not get to properly promote herself as an artist and her album. She had been so ready to share it when finding out about being added to the talk show, but now... she was genuinely disappointed and partly wishing she had never had the opportunity.

“Ms. Reed, you'll be called onto stage in a moment,” a stagehand whispered to her, making final preparations as she set up a mic onto Ryella's collar. “You'll walk through the doors and then you can take a seat on the sofa besides One Direction.”

“Oh, yes, thank you,” Ryella nodded back.

Taking a deep breath, she tried to find some sort of peace with herself. However, there was none. Her mind was a chaotic storm of worry, doubts, and sheer panic for what was in store for her. And knowing that the time had finally come, well... she wouldn't have blamed herself if she had just ran like hell back towards London Heathrow.

And then it happened.

The host of the show, Mia, announced Ryella's being there, the audience graciously clapping and welcoming the foreigner to the studio's stage. Shaking her head, she took another deep breath and strode out through the doors the stagehand had pointed to before, sporting an infectious grin that she hoped would leave a good impression on the viewers.

As she came into view of the cameras and the quaint stage came into her own, she could see each individual member of One Direction clapping her arrival as well. For a second, she wasn't sure if she was put a little at ease at the sight of them being so welcoming of her, or if this was their way of welcoming the amusing conversation that would happen. And she really hoped that it wasn't the latter.

Her eyes came across her supposed boyfriend and the two locked gazes for a minute as she continued on her way over, his pair of mint green eyes taking her in while she was sure that she was doing the same.

When she finally made it to where Mia stood to greet her, they exchanged a hug and a brief kiss upon the cheek before Ryella turned to the couch she was supposed to sit upon. It was then that everyone realized the five boys took up a large amount of space, so much that there really wasn't any room for her to plop down onto.

“Oh dear,” Mia mused with a chuckle, “looks like we have a bit of a seating arrangement dilemma.” The crowd giggled lightheartedly and the guys fidgeted upon the couch, trying to somehow make more room when none really could be. “Would one of you gentlemen care to be chivalrous and give up your seat for Ryella here?”

Louis, who was closest to the end of the couch and Mia – and coincidentally the one sitting next to Harry, jumped up and bowed. “I think I'm the most gentlemanly here, Mia.” He joked, soon gesturing to the now empty seat for the blonde to take. Everyone gave a laugh with Louis and Ryella sharing a brief hug before she graciously accepted his generous offer, the boy deciding to sit upon the floor in front of the rest of his mates.

“I'm pretty sure you just made all the girls watching swoon, Louis.” Ryella joked, trying to get comfortable in both her seat and the environment she was in, and she let out a silent sigh of relief when the crowd laughed in amusement at her playful quip. She had to be doing something right, right?

“Well, first off, thank you so much for joining us today, Ryella.” Mia began. “I'm very excited to have you here on the show with us, and I can't wait to hear you perform one of your songs.”

“No, thank you for having me, Mia. Being able to be a part of your show right when I arrived from LA really made today worthwhile for me and I'm really looking forward to singing for everyone.”

Mia smiled appreciatively of the young girl's kind words. “Yes, how was your flight from the States, Ryella?”

“Well, I'm afraid I can't really tell you. I was kind of asleep for most of it.” Everyone in the studio laughed and Ryella was glad that she was entertaining them at the very least.

“I do hope that you'll enjoy being here, though. I trust you won't sleep through it,” Mia joked.

“Not at all! I'm actually very pleased to be here and I can't wait to sneak away from my manager to go off and be a tourist.” She laughed out loud, soon adding, “Sorry, Hilary.”

“I'm sure your manager wouldn't hold it against you.” Liam piped up from the couch with a good-natured smile.

“When it comes to her, I really think one can only hope.” Ryella grinned when her joke was well received by the audience.

Maybe this interview wouldn't be so bad after all. Maybe she could get through this without the topic of a relationship with Harry after all.

“So, I just have to ask, Ryella. How did you and Harry get together?”

...Or maybe it wouldn't go to plan after all and she would be stuck between a rock and a hard place and a question that she really didn't have an answer to.

She could already feel her cheeks begin to flush with color as everyone stared – even Harry and the boys, waiting for some kind of syllable to be uttered from her lips to give a hint as to how the pair came to be a couple. “Aw, are you blushing, Ryella?” Mia teased lightheartedly, causing for Ryella to subconsciously put the backs of her hands to her cheeks in an attempt to cool them down.

A throat cleared beside her, and Ryella's head snapped towards it to get her mind off the impossible question. Harry stared at her, his eyes that were an eternal calming green seeming to soothe her being completely, to the point where her cheeks held no more color and her heart no longer raced and her mind becoming peaceful and clear once more.

Harry's hand reached for one of her own and took it gently in his grasp, guiding it towards her leg to rest there. His touch, while not being too protective or excessive, was supportive and comforting enough to make her feel like she had no reason to worry. “Sorry, Mia,” his smooth voice apologized. “We tend to keep our love life to ourselves, and since our seeing each other has just come about this way, we're both trying to adjust to dating in the public eye at our own pace.”

Even though she hadn't received an answer, Mia grinned nonetheless. While she hadn't gotten an official statement, she had gotten something much more priceless – a small, caring moment between the two 'lovers' that would certainly draw the public's eye to this airing. “Well, I can certainly respect that, but if I may say so, you both are so well together. You must be quite chuffed to have gotten such a young lady, Harry.”

He smiled a boyish grin that bewitched the audience into forgetting the previous question completely. “Yes, I'd say that I'm quite the lucky guy.”

“This one's a keeper, Ryella. Don't let him go for anything, okay?”

Nodding her head and trying to shake off the uneasy feeling she had before, she replied, “I'll try not to, Mia.”

“So, Ryella, your self-titled album is doing well so far back home. Are all the songs off it written by you?”

“Yes, I've been very fortunate enough to have been able to share my lyrics through the album. Nearly each song has been pretty much ripped out of my diary so they're all very personal pieces to me, and I hope that people might be able to listen to them and relate to or just enjoy them. It's an experience that makes me feel quite vulnerable, but it's also something that I don't think I would trade for the world.”

“Now, I've actually done my research on you, Ryella, and my goodness, you have quite a set of pipes on you.” Mia laughed. “You're such an innocent, quiet looking girl, but when you sing, it catches you off-guard. You have a voice that's beyond your years, if you don't mind me saying.”

“Thank you. I actually get that quite a lot if I'm being honest. Most people have the same reaction and are just kind of gobsmacked when I sing. It's kind of rather amusing to see certain reactions.”

“Oh, I bet. Speaking of you singing, I believe that you'll be performing your first single of the album, right?”

“Yes, Ghost is the first single and I hope that everyone will like it. My manager swears the first time she heard it she got goosebumps.”

“Well, then we're in the same boat.” Mia admitted with a laugh, soon turning towards the audience and cameras. “As we're nearing the end of the show, I believe it's time that all get ready to hear her perform her first single off her debut album, Ryella.”

Soon all seven rose from their respective seats with Mia and the boys heading off towards the audience to join them for the performance while Ryella headed towards the mic stand that was positioned in front of a small band of musicians. When she was good and ready, the band began to play and her voice boomed throughout the studio with a powerful tone.

Her eyes darted across the faces of all those she could see in the audience, and was somewhat relieved to find that they seemed to be enjoying it, some going as far as clapping to the beat. As she continued on, her eyes met Harry's, and he seemed to smile at her encouragingly. When the song came to a finish, her ears were greeted with a resounding applause from the crowd and her nerves that had lasted throughout the entire ordeal finally wavered and vanished.

“Thank you,” Ryella smiled gratefully to the crowd and Mia for having her.

As the show wrapped up and the audience was ushered out of the studio, Ryella thanked Mia once more for having her there before being whisked away by One Direction and towards their dressing room. When the group entered the small living space that was sparsely furnished with enough seating for all of them, she noticed Hilary in a discussion with a man, the two quickly wrapping up their conversation to greet the young celebrities.

“Congratulations on your performance, Ryella,” the man began, extending out his hand for her to shake, “you were brilliant.”

“Thank you,” she answered, shaking his hand gently, “I'm glad you enjoyed it.”

“Oh, excuse me, my name is Paul Higgins. I'm the manager for the boys.”

“Oh! Nice to meet you. I see you've met my own manager, Hilary.”

“Yes, that we have.” He nodded. “Boys, have you properly introduced yourselves?” Paul looked to the five guys expectantly.

“I'm Louis,” he grinned.

“Niall,” the blonde held up a hand in greeting.

“Nice to meet you, I'm Liam,” he smiled.

“Zayn,” he chuckled.

Ryella's eyes fell to the last remaining member of the group, and he smiled when eye contact had been made for what felt like the millionth time that night. “Styles; Harry Edward Styles.”

The female smiled in amusement at his interesting choice of an introduction. “Reed; Ashlyn Ryella Reed,” she retorted, returning the gesture.

“Your first name's not Ryella?” Niall piped up.

“Nope, my middle,” she answered. “It's the name that everyone calls me by so I just go by it instead.”

“Well, it's certainly unique,” Liam complimented.

“Thanks, I like it too.”

“I'd hope so,” Louis joked.

Turning to Harry, Ryella sighed out, “So... I guess we're dating, huh?”

“Yeah, I suppose we are, aren't we?” He replied, nodding his head slowly as if to take in what she had just said – it really was still hard to believe to him. “I have to say, it's nice to finally be able to meet my other half.”

“Likewise, though for a moment there I thought I might be dating James Bond.”

“Wouldn't that make you Mrs. Bond?”

“Naturally,” she laughed.

“Looks like you guys are getting on,” Zayn commented with a sly grin, “maybe you two won't have to fake anything soon if you keep chatting each other up.” The statement then riled up the other boys who proceeded to tease Harry till he shut 'em up.

As the conversation seemed to die down, Ryella's stomach decided to speak up – rather loudly too, about how it had gone unfed for the past few hours. The loud rumble caused for her to hug her stomach tightly in an attempt to muffle it, but it was quite clear by the looks of everyone's entertained and humored expressions that they had heard it nonetheless, Ryella's face soon resembling that of a cherry as her cheeks took on the same deep tone.

“Hungry, Ry?” Hilary asked.

“I haven't eaten since the in-flight meal...” she groaned. “My stomach is going to start eating itself if I don't eat something soon.”

“Why don't you and Harry go on and eat? It'll give you both some time to get to know each other better. You brought your car, right Harry?” Paul suggested.

“Yeah, it's down in the car park.”

“Oi! What about us then?” Niall yelled, rubbing his stomach to show how starved he was as well.

“I'll take you lot out to eat, don't you worry. Care to join us, Hilary?”

“Sure.”

“Alright then,” Harry sighed, looking to Ryella with a small, charming smile. “Let's get going then, shall we? I shouldn't let the Missus starve.”

“At least you know your manners,” Ryella smiled back, following Harry towards his car and, hopefully, to a filling meal.

When they reached the parking lot, Harry smoothly walked towards a black Range Rover, unlocking the vehicle with his remote and allowing them both to slide inside with ease. As the car warmed up, soft tunes escaped the radio from a local station and both of them buckled themselves in before Harry drove off.

Pulling out of the lot, they both noticed a few scattered paparazzi that were lurking about in hopes they might find a celebrity leaving the studio, and when Harry's vehicle pulled out, they eagerly snapped away pics. It annoyed Ryella to see them – especially after how they had surrounded her earlier in the airport terminals, and when they were finally leaving them in the dust, she sighed tiredly and shook her head.

“Something the matter, Ryella?”

“I'm just sorry.”

Harry chuckled and looked to her briefly in amusement. “For what?—The paps? You shouldn't be. It's part of the job, I suppose. You get used to it.”

“I just feel like this whole situation is pointless and aggravating. I mean, I never wanted to do it in the first place – I wanted my album to be enjoyed for what it was, but then they told me it was too late and they couldn't really do anything else about it. The entire thing honestly makes me feel like my music isn't good enough to be received well on its own. It makes me feel like I can't be someone in the industry without my name being in some gossip mag for something that has nothing to do with the music I make. Ugh, I don't know even know what I'm saying right now.” She confessed, spilling her heart out to Harry like he were an old friend, and once she realized she had rambled like an idiot, she lightly smacked her forehead as if to bring some sense back to her.

“I'm sorry – again,” she sighed. “I didn't mean to blab and all that. I've just been keeping that in for the past few days. I hope you don't mind.”

Harry had found himself agreeing with the young woman, and he seemed to also find that he was truly coming to respect her. When he had first found out about their little stunt, he had assumed she was only in it for the sales, but after hearing what she had to say about her music, he was finding her to be a genuine girl who really was in the industry to create something worthwhile – not another sellout who was simply in it for the money, perks, and status. Her heartfelt desire to want to share her music was something he found to be quite admirable about her.

“I don't mind at all, love. And as your boyfriend, real or not – even when this whole mess is behind us, feel free to use me as an ear.” He encouraged, sending her a reassuring smile that let her know that it really was okay.

“And now I have a confession, and apology, of my own if you wouldn't mind,” Harry cleared his throat, preparing himself for whatever reaction Ryella might have for him. “When I found out that we would be part of this, I thought you were someone who just wanted to boost her sales to earn more money and I didn't have the best opinion of you at that moment. So, for that, I want to say I'm sorry. It was wrong of me to just assume that. To be honest, now that I've met you, I can see what kind of a person you are.”

“And what kind of person is that?” She quietly inquired.

“You're really true to yourself – that much I can tell just by seeing how much you want your album to succeed on its own. I don't mean to say I know you completely, but... I know that you're a good person, Ryella. I think anyone can see that, really. And this is me being completely unbiased, but... after hearing you perform, your album really does deserve to make it big. You put yourself into your songs, and if I'm being honest,” he gave small laugh and looked over to the girl who was staring right back at him, “your voice gave me goosebumps, and I'm pretty sure I felt some on Zayn's arms too since he was sitting right next to me.”

It was probably a mix of jet lag, immense hunger, happiness, and pride, but at that moment Ryella felt like she could have a bit of an emotional breakdown from hearing something so sincere from Harry. Even though they hadn't known each other for more than two hours, she was finding that he was becoming a close friend. “That means a lot to me,” she replied softly. “Really, thank you.”

When they reached a traffic light, the two of them had a moment. They exchanged a long hug that Ryella made use of – nearly squeezing life out of the poor boy, and then smiled at each other like they had come to understand each other better. “You know Styles,” Ryella began pleasantly, “I think this may just be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”

“I agree with you on that one, Reed.” He answered, soon resuming the drive towards the restaurant. “But seeing as we're supposed to be more than that, I think maybe we should make up a story as to how we fell madly in love with one another.”

“Yes, please. I'd love to know.”

“Hm... well, a few months ago I did travel to LA for some business. We could say that was when we first met, I got your number and just kept in touch till we both felt a spark.” He joked. “If people decide to look into it, it would seem to check out so I don't think it would be too much of a problem.”

“Sounds great.”

“You make up our first date, then.”

“I don't know,” she laughed. “I think it would be best to say that we just Skyped. This is my first time to London and since you haven't been to LA recently, I think they'd get suspicious over when it was.”

“Fair enough. We'll go out on a fun date soon then to make it our first official one.”

“This is really strange,” Ryella laughed. “I never knew making fake date plans and lying about this sort of stuff could be so much fun.”

Harry joined in on Ryella's laughter, adding, “I think it's hilarious since the paparazzi will be going round like complete nutters just to take a picture of us.” In the middle of their laughter, another muffled gurgle from Ryella's stomach could be heard over them and even the radio, the twosome growing silent at staring at her belly that was now quiet before busting up again.

“We're almost to the restaurant, so hang on, stomach.” Harry soothed.

“My stomach and I thank you,” she patted her belly affectionately.

True to his word, they ended up pulling onto a side street and parking a few blocks down. The pavement was scarce with other pedestrians, allowing Ryella to sigh with relief at the thought of being able to walk in without there being some sort of commotion. Nevertheless, Harry opted to slip on a pair of sunglasses while Ryella decided it was fine for her to be without anything to try and hide who she was. She was still new here and there wasn't any real reason for her to worry about being recognized.

As they entered the hidden away Italian restaurant named Petrillo's, they were placed into a secluded booth in the back at Harry's request. As the waitress took their drink orders, she left them with menus and let them know she'd check back up on them soon.

“How did you find this place? It's very private here.”

“Just went driving round one day. I ended up getting hungry and passed this place so I figured I'd give it a shot.” He explained, handing Ryella a menu. “Haven't looked back since. It's a good place that makes a mean lasagna dish.”

“Then I guess I know what I'm getting,” she concluded, putting down her menu.

“That makes two of us.”

The waitress returned with their beverages and a side basket of toasted bread sticks, placing them down onto the table and then leaving with their order after taking it. Ryella greedily grabbed two sticks – one for each hand, and began to devour them with little care for Harry who watched her in amusement. “You weren't kidding about being hungry, were you?”

“If there's one thing I don't kid about, it's food. I love food way too much to joke about it.”

“So you love food,” he mused, “what else is there to know about you?”

“Um, well, Italian's my favorite food, so you secretly scored major brownie points for bringing me here.”

Harry laughed, quite pleased with her reply. “Did my suggestion of lasagna get me in good with you, too?”

“Not exactly, but it was a nice try. My favorite dish is fettuccine alfredo, and I love it when there are heaps of seafood in it.”

“And besides seafood, what do you like?”

“A lot of stuff.” She shrugged. “You're gonna have to be more specific with me or else everything just kinda jumbles together in my mind. I'm horrible at choosing and making decisions.”

“Okay then... hobbies – what are they?”

“Well, I write my own songs and play piano. I like watching documentaries on nearly everything, especially Through the Wormhole because when Morgan Freeman is the narrator it's like it's own movie.” They both seemed laugh at her logic before she continued on. “I'm an amateur, wannabe photographer and I feel like a hipster whenever I have my DSLR hung around my neck. I also love to bowl, but I haven't had the chance in forever. When I was a kid, my parents put me into a little league of sorts at our local alley and the rest is history.”

“What's your highest game in bowling?”

“Um, if I'm being completely honest, I pretty much suck at bowling most days, but sometimes I was lucky and I think it was around a score of one-eighty. Either that or two hundred – although, that's probably just wishful thinking on my part.”

“That's not that bad,” he smiled. “What about your family? My mum and dad got divorced when I was just a kid, but my mom got remarried recently so that's good. I've also got an older sister named Gemma.”

“I'm the youngest in my family thanks to my parents. I've got an older brother named Trevor and an older sister named Harper. We also have a Saint Bernard that we've had since he was a puppy, I got to name him Dopey since he was always running into stuff when he was a pup.”

“You named a dog that big Dopey?” He snorted.

“Hey, Dopey loves his name.”

“Yeah, because he doesn't speak human!” Harry laughed.

“Yeah, probably,” Ryella covered her mouth to not show her widening smile.

Minutes passed and soon plates of hot food were brought on a tray. Ryella ended up getting a sweet martini to go with her lasagna after the waitress highly recommended it, and then another after she had finished it. Unwinding with a drink, the conversation between her and Harry seemed to flow and never got dull, the laughs they shared only growing with everything they talked about.

When dessert rolled around, Harry went for vanilla ice cream on a hot fudge brownie while Ryella went for a marshmallow topped Kahlua Hot Chocolate drink from their bar menu. “Are you sure you're alright to drink that, Ryella? The two martinis you had before were pretty well off with liquor,” Harry inquired as he looked at her flushing cheeks, leaning across the table slightly to see if she was alright.

The blonde smiled and nodded her head a little too enthusiastically. “Yeah, I can handle it. I'm totally fine!”

Ironically enough, that was the last thing that Ryella could remember from that night.