Hello Brooklyn

Jack was pacing the front room when she entered the house, her jacket zipped up as high as it could go and her hat pulled down. If people had seen her, they would have thought she was insecure or maybe secretive. Brooklyn was neither of those though. She honestly didn’t know who she was anymore.

He was dressed in his wrinkled pajama bottoms and a tattered band tee shirt that could have dated back to the eighties by its appearance. Jack stopped when she stepped inside, his arms folded across his chest, a sober expression on his face composed of concern and disappointment.

She stopped and stared at him, no words coming to mind. Did she want to tell him about seeing Alex? No. He would only look down on her with those dark eyes of worry more and then she would suffocate surely so she didn’t say anything about him. Instead she spoke of the weather. “It’s cold out.”

Jack’s expression turned to confusion but he allowed the conversation to continue. “Yeah. It looks like it.”

She smiled softly and kicked off her oversized boots before shedding off her outside apparel. “I – I, uh, applied for a job today.”

Jack looked like he had been slapped. His eyes went wide for a moment before it relaxed into one of nonchalance. “You did?”

Brookie nodded. “I need to get out of the house, you know? It’s driving me insane.” At the sound of her own words, she locked up. She was insane already; there was no way she couldn’t lose more sanity.

Jack visibly tensed too but he forced himself to relax. “I understand.”

“You do?”

“Yeah, I think it’s a good idea.”

She smiled brightly then, for once feeling like someone was on her side rather than trying to make decisions for her.

There was a moment of silence before Jack cleared his throat and ran his fingers through his hair. “I, uh, want to apologize for last night.”

Brooklyn looked down to her toes to hide her curious eyes. She remembered kissing Alex but maybe she’d been kissing him instead. As of late, she wouldn’t doubt such an absurd idea. “It’s okay Jack. Let’s just forget about it, okay?”

He nodded, a feeling of disappointment filling his stomach because of her words.

&&&

Rian shuffled inside Zack’s house, his arms heaped with grocery bags. He stopped abruptly though when his eyes fell over the mess. Dishes were scattered over the tiled flooring, picture frames were cracked and tilted on the walls and the cupboards were completely emptied and hanging open, their contents spread all over the place.

Rian dropped the groceries in shock and on instinct he began searching the house for the boy that had created the disaster zone.

“Zack!?” His voice echoed throughout the house as he hurried through it.

The boy found Zack upstairs, rummaging angrily through a first aid kit. His knuckles were pouring out crimson liquid. It was obvious that he had hit his breaking point.

“Zack-“ Rian started but he was cut off.

“I don’t know what happened between us.”

Rian hesitated, searching his brain for possible people that Zack was referring to. “Who?” he asked softly, his eyes gentle as he leaned in the bathroom doorway.

Zack began wrapping his knuckles in gauze, a deep frown nestling over his features. “Alex and I. I just don’t know how we were friends one day and enemies the next.” He focused his eyes on bandaging though it was obvious that he was deep in thought. “He knew I loved her, Rian! He fucking knew and he still screwed me over. And-And Brooklyn… She just keeps bringing up memories I’ve been burying since he died!” he was exasperated, he was tired; he was a bigger mess than the one he had created.

He tossed everything aside, the first aid kit went flying toward the wall and scattered everywhere, his minor injuries forgotten about. Sobs shook his body as he collapsed into his emotions.

Rian stood, helpless to the situation and really unsure of what to do. He did what his stomach was telling him to do and that was to let his friend cry and when Zack had gotten everything out of his system, Rian helped him bandage his knuckles like a good friend would do.