Jack & Lucy

Jack

It's almost three in the morning by the time we trudge through my front door. I think Lucy was still in shock since she was silent as we grabbed her few items to take with us back to my place. 

I watch as she drops her hamper next to the couch and I pass her to carry the insanely heavy mixer into the kitchen. 

"Thank goodness Ruby weighs like fifty pounds, otherwise I think I would have lost her tonight too," Lucy says as I drop her cherished possession onto the counter. "I can't believe they took my baking shit. Who wants muffin tins and piping bags? I get the laptop and camera but...why my clothes?" 

"I'm sorry Lucy. I still think Steve needs to give you your rent back and help cover what you lost. You told him about the lock multiple times." She slowly drags her palms down her face and she looks defeated. She has red rings around her puffy eyes and the color still hasn't returned to her face. I don't want to bring up what happened at work today since I think she's completely drained. 

"That fucker," Lucy mutters and I let her anger linger in the air. I point toward the guest room that sits on the right side of my house. The living room and kitchen sit between the bedrooms, so she'll have half the house to herself. 

"You can take that room. Let me just make sure there are sheets on the bed and all that." 

I walk toward the guest room and Lucy follows behind me. I flip the light on and am startled to find Fisher passed out on the queen-sized bed. I see his suitcase flopped open beside him and I remember him telling me he was going to stay here tonight because he had an early flight and I live near the airport. Fischer doesn't even stir, so I shut the light off and Lucy and I shuffle out of the room. 

"I forgot Fish is going to Boston tomorrow. Take my room, I'll have the couch." 

She shakes her head, "No, I am not kicking you onto the couch. I'm smaller and will fit much better, I'll take the couch." 

"I'll be up early to run, no reason for you to hear both me and Fischer rifling around in the morning. It's fine. End of discussion." She eyes me, wanting to argue but I don't let her. "Lemme just go brush my teeth and change and all that jazz and then my room is yours." She nods and then says, "I only have what I am wearing and what's in my dirty hamper. Can I borrow a shirt or shorts or something?" 

"Yeah come on," I tell her and we stride to the left of the house and down the short hallway to get to my room. I definitely wasn't prepared to have company, so I am a bit embarrassed by the state of my room. I've basically only been home to sleep and change this week so I have shit everywhere. 

"Ignore the mess," I tell her and since she's been to my house several times before, I hope she remembers that I am usually a tidy person. 

"You helped me through a traumatic experience, I think I can ignore a few cold brew cans." I slide the bottom drawer of my dresser open to pull out a Cardinals tee and my smallest pair of sweats. I toss them over to her and she glances toward my bed.

"Should I strip the sheets? What am I sleeping on here?" She jokingly asks. 

"Even after you've been traumatized, you're still able to crack jokes," I tell her and she finally gives me the smallest smile.

"Well I am about to sleep in Jack Dalton's bed, I didn't know if I needed to be worried about getting pregnant." She snipes back and there is just enough bite for me to know she is serious. I didn't want to bring up the Maggie stuff while she was upset but her tone is making me think I need to clear the air. 

"Lucy, my sheets are clean. I haven't had a woman in my bed for a while now. I know you think I sleep with a different woman every night, but that is not the case." I reply but then quickly add, "I sleep with a different woman every other night...and in her bed." She rolls her eyes at my joke. 

"Well I just wasn't sure if Maggie had been in here recently." She's finally dropped Maggie's name.  She's clutching my clothes to her chest, standing as far away from me as my room allows. I am surprised she's awake enough to use her sarcasm to coax me into telling her about Maggie. I drop my hands onto my hips and look at her as I say, "I did not sleep with Maggie. There is nothing going on between us, it was a stupid mistake on my part and Maggie is fully aware there are no feelings there." 

She narrows her eyes at me for a moment, her eyes darting between mine.

"Okay," she finally says and I wait for her to say more but she doesn't. She has that determined look in her eye, so I know her wheels are turning but she might just be too tired to want to elaborate. I nod to her and then say, "I am going to grab a few things and then the room is all yours." I walk into my bathroom and swipe my toothbrush off the counter. I then realize I don't know if Lucy has any toiletries so I ask, "Do you need a toothbrush?" She wanders into the bathroom and shakes her head, "No, luckily I still have that but I do need facewash." 

"Lemme grab you that and towels from the guest bathroom. One sec," I tell her before sliding around her to go grab what I think a girl needs to go to bed. I am so glad I had my cleaner, Mari come on Monday. I have fresh towels and my kitchen and all of the bathrooms are clean. I swipe a washcloth, a towel, the girly soap my sister Bre always buys me, and a bottle of water from the fridge. 

When I round the corner into my bedroom, I see Lucy already in my clothes, sitting on the edge of the bed. Something about her wearing my shirt made me completely forget what I was doing. I stand in the doorway and she reaches out to me to take the towels from my hands. 

"Thank you, Jack. I mean it. For everything." she says softly and she holds the items against her chest. "You're being so nice to me and I am being a turd. I'm sorry for the sass earlier. I am so glad you came when I called." She looks small, like she's shrunk into herself. I think everything she keeps in her head weighs her down, and it's starting to physically show.

"I'm glad you knew that you could call me. I'd do anything for you, Lucy. I hope you know that." I tell her and I watch her eyes slowly well up with tears. She nods and then bites her lip, refraining from saying something. I take a step forward so I can tilt her chin up with my knuckle and ask, "What is it Goose? I know you well enough to know that something is on the tip of your tongue right now." She blinks back her tears before saying, "I promise I'll let you go to bed, I just gotta know- because it will literally drive me crazy if I don't ask- but...why Maggie? Of all the girls that throw themself at you, why did you have to kiss my friend? I get that you didn't know how I felt about you, but you also said you'd never date anyone from Mag's so I am just trying to understand how that happened? Why?" 

I can feel my heart break as she asks me. The wobble in her voice almost makes me want to cry. I know it's now or never. I can give her a shit answer about how Maggie was just there and I was drunk or I can finally tell her what I have wanted to tell her for the past year. Before some other Blake comes into her life and takes her away from me, or I do something else to royally fuck this up. I didn't think Lucy was even into me until she confessed that she's wanted me to kiss her earlier tonight, so I might as well just take the leap and put myself out there with her. If she isn't feeling it, it's best I know now before I make an ass out of myself trying to pursue her. 

"Lucy, I don't even know where to start," I say to her and her wide glassy eyes clearly convey her vulnerability. Maybe this is her putting herself out there too. So I take a deep breath and add, "I kissed Maggie because you left. And I was so mad at you for leaving that I did the one thing I thought might hurt you. I was also so angry at myself for how that conversation in the parking lot went down, that I just kinda spiraled. I was drunk at a party and I was thinking about you and Maggie shockingly just went for it and I let her."

"We both said a lot of shit that night, but I don't get why you were so mad at me for leaving. You knew I was trying to get back to New York for months." 

"I know, I just didn't want you to leave me. My timing sucked and I wanted to tell you something, but then it just came across as so selfish so I didn't and then I tried to make it about how I hated Blake and everything got so fucked up." 

"What did you want to tell me?" She asks and I think I am so deliriously tired that the filter in my brain is gone. I've never said this to anyone outside of my family before and I feel butterflies flying into my throat. I look right into her wide hazel eyes as I say, "I wanted to tell you that I love you. And I wanted you to stay in Phoenix with me."