𝟐𝟏𝐂 | 𝐉𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐇𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐨𝐰.

Chapter Nineteen.

[Short/Filler.]

It was around 4:30 in the morning when Jack heard shuffling around the kitchen area of Ava's apartment. His eyes opened, the light beside him still on and Ava's side of the bed cold from her absence. The hair stood up on the back of his neck as he sat up, listening to the movement continue. Urban was soundly sleeping on the couch, which made Jack turn him on his side so he could stop snoring. He walked to the bathroom, and didn't see anything. "Ava?" He called out to her, but didn't receive an answer. He tried not to worry just yet; he hadn't checked the entire apartment, so there was still a chance she was here.

"Ava?" He made sure his voice was quiet, knowing her timid nature and not wanting to scare her. His socked feet crept through the hallway when he saw her standing at the door, looking through the peephole that led to the hallway. "Hey A, what's up?" He asked, relieved to finally have eyes on her. She didn't answer him, she just continued to look out the peephole. "Ava, what is it?" He placed his hand on her shoulder gently, but she was still startled; she wasn't handling the unannounced physical contact very well. "I thought I heard someone in the hallway. It sounded like it could've been him, and I—" "hey, he is not stupid enough to come back here. Not while me and Urb are around. Ava, you're safe," he told her, everything in him wanting to hug her, but knowing she wasn't ready for that yet.

Jack would be lying if he said it didn't feel odd going from such an intimate and physical relationship to absolutely nothing at all; his fingertips craved the feeling of her soft skin. "You're right.." she sighed, carrying herself back to bed where she'd already previously received very little sleep. Jack followed, a slight frown on his face. "Where'd y'all go? I was sleep and next thing I know, y'all are out here playing hide the eggplant in the kitchen," he joked, and when Ava didn't respond, he looked to Jack but only received a shake of his head. It was very rare that Urban's jokes ever went ignored in the trio, so it was followed by an awkward silence that stretched through the rest of the night..