Jack collapses.
And not like sitting down because you're tired.
He full-on drops into the floor and starts to sob.
How could he have even thought of killing himself and being that selfish?
What would have happened if he hadn't even come in and seen that test?
He knew the answer, and he didn't like thinking about it.
Ally would have been left alone in the world, having to care for a baby all by herself.
She would have been the only one in this house, trying to watch after a newborn while also trying to keep her career on track.
Ally was a superstar, but he wasn't sure how she could have handled it all.
A sharp knock on the door snaps Jack out of his meltdown.
He looks up and sees no other than Ramon, Ally's best friend, standing at the door.
Of course. Perfect timing.
Jack curses under his breath and hauls himself out of the floor, making sure to hide the test in a drawer and throwing the trash back in the can before running to answer it.
"What the hell are you doing?" Ramon exclaims, barely waiting for Jack to swing the door all the way open before he barges in.
"Come on in," Jack mutters under his breath as he slams the door behind him.
When Jack gets to the living room, Ramon is already there, stalking around like an angry tiger.
Charlie is at his feet, begging for a pat, but Ramon isn't paying attention.
He's too caught up in his rage, and to be honest, Jack doesn't blame him.
He had promised Ally to be there and perform with her.
That's all she had wanted.
And again, like the ass he was, he failed to show.
Jack could just imagine how frantic Ally probably was when he didn't arrive in time, and just the thought of her still worrying about him makes the man feel guilty as hell.
She didn't deserve this.
She deserved a husband who actually kept his word instead of forgetting his promises in a glass of whiskey and a handful of pills.
"What got into you, man?" Ramon questions, calming down for a second.
Slowly, he sits down on the couch and Jack follows suit.
The musician runs his fingers through his hair, noticing just how shaky he is.
The drugs were wearing off, and his mind was getting less and less foggy.
He suddenly felt so tired.
Jack sighs. "Well, Rez told me-"
At the mention of Rez, Ramon's eyes widen and he leaps up from his perch.
"Rez?! That useless piece of-"
"No, he was right," Jack stops him. "What he said...he said that I'm an embarrassment to Ally and I'm practically a ball and chain to her...plus a bunch of other stuff..." Jack pauses and sees Ramon is visibly fuming, which makes him feel better. It's good to know he's not the only one that can't stand the man.
"Jackson-" Ramon whispers, sadness evident in his voice. He glances behind Jack to the counter, and his breath catches when he sees the belt and the prescription bottle sitting right in plain sight. "You weren't..."
"I was," Jack confirms, looking down at the floor, taking a sudden interest in the floor rug. "Didn't get to it though. I came in to write Ally a note, because God knows she would want one. But then I just..."
"You what?" Ally's best friend asks plainly, settling back down on the couch. "What stopped you?"
Jack freezes then. He wasn't expecting to tell someone what he had found only minutes earlier. But he guessed that he was in too deep now and he might as well admit what saved his life.
He gets up slowly, expecting his head to start spinning. And it does, for a moment.
But he manages to make it to the kitchen and opens the drawer where he had stashed the pregnancy test.
Of course, the man can't help but stare at it.
One little piece of plastic had really stopped him from taking his own life, and all he could think about was how he was eternally grateful for Ally's lack of hiding skills.
With trembling hands, Jack finally picks it up and stumbles back over to the couch to sit down next to the other man.
He passes the stick to Ramon, and Ramon takes it carefully, acting as if he so much as breathes on it, that it'll turn to negative.
"She-"
"She's pregnant," Jack confirms, and just saying those two words makes him break down into tears.
Just the thought of his Ally carrying a child, his child, and giving birth to it and watching it grow...it was too much.
He didn't deserve that life.
He deserved so much worse; after all, he had done nothing, nothing at all, to earn it.
Jack looks over and sees that the man beside him is crying, too.
Ramon and Ally had been the best of friends and inseparable since seventh grade.
Ally told Jack that he had even lived with the Campanas for a year when his dad kicked him out.
There was no doubt in Jack's mind when he had first met Ramon that he meant the world to Ally, and because of that, that meant Ramon meant the world to him, too.
And to be honest, he didn't know a better person (besides Ally, of course) to share this moment with.
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hi hello i know y'all are probably waiting on some jack and ally scenes, and i promise there's gonna be plenty in the next chapter :) also sorry, this chapter was lowkey sucky, but hopefully (???) the next one will make up for it <3 don't forget to vote and to tell me what you think, bc i love hearing your ideas and opinions!
~ grace
