Hearts & Spades

"You took your medicine?"

"Yes, mom."

"You've got your phone?"

"Of course, it's f-"

"You better have me on speed dial..."

"Mom!"

Alex's mother had been on his case from the moment he told her that Jack and his friends had invited him to tag along to the state fair. She made countless attempts to try and convince him to stay home, but his it only comes once a year argument won over in the end. Mrs. Gaskarth had always been a tad overprotective when it came to her only son, especially since he was diagnosed. But he was better now, that was something that seemed to never get through to her. He wasn't a kid anymore, and honestly, it embarrassed him to be nagged with questions in front of his boyfriend.
​​​
"Don't worry, Mrs. Gaskarth, I'll look after him - as always." Jack promised, reaching over and taking the smaller boy's hand in his own and giving it a tight squeeze. The brunette's face flushed as he tilted his head in the other direction bashfully.
​​​
That seemed to be enough to cause the older woman to crack, she let out a loud sigh before nodding her head. "Fine, just please be careful. And you better have him home before midnight this time." she insisted, pointing at the skunk haired boy. He loved Alex's mother, but he had gotten in trouble with her a handful of times. Mostly because he never brought him back in time and covered his skin in darkening bruises. However, deep down they were growing on one another and the younger boy could see that.
​​​
Before she had time to give any more orders a loud honk came from outside, causing Alex's head to whip around as he stumbled closer to his boyfriend in surprise.
​​​
"Looks like Rian is growing impatient, we better get going." he announced, thankful that his friend was offering him an excuse to get out from under the gaze of one angry momma bear. Jack turned towards the door with the other in tow before he felt the hand in his own being tugged away.

​​​Alex glanced back at his mother, the lines in her forehead were even more obvious now as she looked upon the two of them with nothing but pure concern. He was quick to pull away from the elder and wrap his arms around his mother's neck. The woman was shocked at first, but eventually wrapped her arms around her son. It was time she let him go, she couldn't keep him locked up in that house for his entire life - she was just so accustomed to thinking that she was bound to outlive him.
​​​
When he returned to Jack's side the taller of the two rolled his eyes playfully, "You're such a momma's boy."

"Shut up."

The sun was already chasing the horizon, leaving the sky a beautiful mix of oranges and purples. The weather outside was finally beginning to become forgiving, soon enough the leaves on the trees would return and Alex would no longer have an excuse to steal all of Jack's hoodies. Despite the boy's mother's best interest, the gang had decided to leave for the fair just as the sun was setting - apparently Alex wouldn't be getting the full experience otherwise.
​​​
"Took you long enough." Rian commented, turning towards the back seats to see the brunette buckling up next to his girlfriend. Jack always got shotgun, not even Cassedee bothered to fight him on that.
​​​
"Sorry, Alex's mom is..." the elder paused mid rant to shift his eyes towards his boyfriend - who appeared rather unamused. Right. Don't say anything even slightly bad about his mother unless you want the silent treatment for the rest of eternity. "Just really worried is all."

The boy behind the wheel chuckled under his breath before shifting the car back into drive. "Geez, she sounds worse than Cass's dad."

Alex was playing with the sleeves of his jacket in the backseat awkwardly as the others carried on a conversation around him, he had only met the pair they were accompanying officially once before - at Jack's prom, however, he'd already learned the hard way that you couldn't always put faith in first impressions.
​​​
The small boy had settled for leaning against the door and staring at the city, passing by in a flash as the teens rushed down the highway. Cassedee must have noticed him growing uncomfortable and was quick to take over her role as mother goose. "So, Alex, are you excited?"

Her voice was soft and sweet, as always. When he turned to look towards the source of the question he was greeted by a grinning face framed by cascading brunette locks. "Oh... uh, yeah..." Alex was obviously not very good with small talk, or social interaction as a whole. And Jack knew that, he had to literally pin the boy down and beg him to tag along for this so called 'double date'.
​​​
Silence fell between the two once more, more than likely because holding a conversation with Alex was just as difficult as trying to have one with a lifeless tree branch. However, it wasn't long before something seemed to grab the girl's attention. "Hey, what happened to your ne- ... is that a hickie?!" she suddenly burst out, her question followed by loud laughter as the boy in question's face turned pink.
​​​
"Damn, Barakat, what have you two been up to?" Rian questioned, turning his eyes away from the road for a split second to send his friend a devious smile.
​​​
Jack simply shrugged his shoulders, a smirk spreading across his lips as he did so. "Let's just say Lex likes it when I mark my territory."

He wasn't able to to stay smug for long because the younger boy behind him was quick to kick the back of his seat in disbelief. "Jack!"

The situation seemed to just open a whole new door for teasing and questioning, which caused Alex to wish he could simply disappear.
​​​
"So... have you guys... you know?"

"Fucked? Nah, not yet. But it's only a matter of time." the skunk haired boy replied, glancing up at the rear view mirror between the two front seats in order to see Alex's reflection and wink slyly.
​​​
Another swift kick to the back of his seat made the rest of the passengers burst out into laughter, even though he was embarrassed as hell, the petite teen couldn't say he wasn't enjoying himself.


​​​
​​​ A mixture of lights, intermingling chatter and waves of new and strange smells washed over Alex the moment the group stepped foot into the fair grounds. He was far too busy taking in all the sights, depending on his tight grip on Jack's hand to prevent him from colliding into anything. The other's were busy talking amongst themselves, but he let their voices fade into the background.

​​​He only snapped back into reality when he could feel a pair of eyes burning into him. The small boy blinked quickly before turning his head to look at his boyfriend, who was staring down at him with a large goofy grin. "What?!" he questioned, his face heating up as he shifted his gaze to the ground.
​​​
"Nothing, you're just really cute when you get all spaced out like that." he commented, causing a girlish giggle to escape the lean girl on the other side of him. If there was one person who loved their relationship as much as they did, it was Cassadee.
​​​
You could basically hear Rian rolling his eyes as he slowed his pace and turned towards the others. "So what's first?"

Obviously they all knew he wanted the answer to come from his girlfriend because in the end, she was going to have the final say. "I think we should let Alex decide, it is his first time after all."

The four of them probably took a good three laps around the fair before Alex picked one of the dozens of rides to start off their night. Of course, his eyes lit up when he spotted the bumper cars and he ended up tugging on Jack's arm until they were in line. The brunette bounced up and down, doing his best to ignore the way his boyfriend whispered in is ear how hard he was going to bang him. The elder was becoming shameless when it came to teasing the other, however, it seemed to be working out in his favor considering every time Alex would simply blush and press himself closer to him.
​​​
Next came the haunted house ride, which Alex tried to speed walk past before he felt himself being tugged backwards. Jack insisted they rode this one, even though the younger refused. The moment he claimed that he was just being a wuss, his stubbornness got the best of him and the four of them settled into the front car - just his luck really. The entirety of the short ride was spent with Alex having a death grip on his partner's arm and shoving his face into his shoulder whenever a robotic monster popped out from around a dark corner.
​​​
Now they were standing in a seemingly endless line for a ride called Zero Gravity, the moment they passed it Rian nearly had a heart attack, begging for the others to give his favorite attraction a chance. It must have been worth all the hype considering the amount of people standing around to get a chance to get inside the UFO looking contraption.
​​​
"Ri, I swear if this ends up being as shitty as I think it is..." Jack began, his arms crossed tightly across his chest.
​​​
Rian cut him off, throwing one of his skinny arms across Alex's shoulders. "Stop being such a buzzkill. It's gonna be awesome, right Alex?"

The boy in question had yet to become a custom of having his existence recognized so he simply shook his head up and down in agreement, resulting in a loud childish groan escaping his boyfriend. However, that attitude of his took a complete three sixty after what happened next.
​​​
"Jack? Jack? Is that you!?" a female's voice called out, causing him to spin around in a circle in search of the source of the sound. Soon enough a girl with dark curls and a nose ring made her way up to the metal barricade that separated the ride's line from the rest of the fair.
​​​
The sixteen year old felt the grip on his hand be swiftly pulled away the moment the stranger approached, causing him to whimper helplessly and turn towards the raven haired boy for some sort of explanation. But his attention was turned elsewhere, causing his chest to burn unpleasantly as an aggravated expression spread across his features.
​​​
"Tay! Holy shit, it's been forever!" Jack exclaimed, reaching over to pull the girl into a bone crushing hug. "How the hell have you been?"

The girl in question, Tay he assumed, glanced around for a split second before shrugging her shoulders. "I was actually about to find some place to sit down and rest my damn legs, maybe you could come with so we can catch up?" she suggested, before her eyes scanned over the other three looking in her direction silently. "Or... you can stay in line and ride your ride. That's fine, j-"

She wasn't even able to finish her sentence before the lanky boy was climbing over the barricade. "Guys, I'm going to go with Taylor, I'll catch up with you after you're done here, alright?"

Rian and Cass, standing with their arms interlocked, simply nodded their heads. Alex on the other hand, only pouted and dropped his eyes to the ground. His disappointment must have gone unnoticed because without another word his boyfriend was turning on his heels and disappearing into the crowd.
​​​
The couple in front of him continued to talk, flirt, and exchange short sicking sweet kisses to pass the time while the young boy stood awkwardly with his head down. It seemed like years passed before they were finally at the front of the line, that was when his existence suddenly became relevant once more.
​​​
"Hey, you alright?" the other boy asked, his voice laced with concern. He was more than certain that he knew the cause of Alex's distress, but before he could pry it out of him he was already working on an escape plan.
​​​
"Yeah... yeah, just not feeling too well. I'm going to head to the bathroom..." he muttered before dashing off before the other two could even protest, he pushed through the strangers that were standing behind them until he finally popped out on the other side. He could already feel the tears welling up in his eyes as he desperately scanned his surroundings for his destination. Eventually his gaze fell on a brick building not too far away that read Restrooms.
​​​
In his blurred rush he ran flat into another man who was stepping out the door. "Hey, watch where you're going would you?!" he snapped, standing to the side so Alex could make it to his destination without knocking him out of the way.
​​​
The stranger's hostile voice was the last thing it took to cause him to crack, a muffled whimper escaped his lips before the tears began to run freely down his red cheeks. He could have sworn that he heard the man from earlier call out to him, but he was far too busy locking himself into one of the few stalls. Alex used his foot to put down the seat of the toilet before sitting on top of it and pulling his knees to his chest. It wasn't a very good hiding spot, but it would buy him time. Besides, it wasn't like Jack would realize he was even missing.
​

​
​​​​​​​"So, whoa, whoa slow down... you're trying to tell me you have a boyfriend now?" Tay questioned, sipping on the large lemonade that she forced the two to wait in a never ending line to acquire.
​​​
The boy next to her let out a breathless chuckle and nodded his head. "For the millionth time - yes." he explained before taking the drink out of her hand and taking a few sips himself - that is until she snatched it out of his hands and gave him a frustrated glare.
​​​
"I guess it's just kinda hard to believe. After you and Beth ya' know?" she commented hesitantly, looking up through her lashes to see what reaction Jack may have.
​​​
The elder felt as if two iron hands had clasped around his throat before he shrug his shoulders helplessly. "I mean, I thought I'd be miserable forever too. But I can't keep dwelling in the past. She'd hate it if she knew I wallowed in self pity for years after she... you know." he began, not really wanting to go into details of his former girlfriend's passing when he was suppose to be on a date. "But, Alex makes me happy - unbelievably so. I think I'm actually starting to lo-"

His sentence ended abruptly when the girl next to him stood to her feet - her hands quickly falling to her hips while her friendly aura turned into something much colder. "Jack, I swear to god you better not fucking say love."

The boy joined her on her feet and glanced over her stiff stance before attempting to defend himself from her sudden outburst. "And... what if I was?" he argued weakly.
​​​
"You're telling me Bethany was the love of your life, then not even a year later you're dating someone completely different and now suddenly they're the light of your life?!"

Jack could understand why she was getting so upset, she and Bethany use to be incredibly close. Tay was probably torn apart to find out the one person who loved her best friend as much as she did had already gotten his life back on track while she was still nearly crying at the mention of her name. But all the pent up confusion towards the feelings his was experiencing mixed with the undeniable need to defend him and Alex's relationship caused him to snap.
​​​
"You know what Tay? Maybe I was confused then and not now. Maybe Bethany was the one filling the gap in my chest and Alex is the one who actually belongs there. I finally found something that makes me fucking happy - I wish everyone would stop trying to shit all over it!" he yelled, the sound of him raising his voice getting them a few stares, but the girl in front of him was just standing there with her mouth open in disbelief.
​​​
"I-I can't believe you just said that." she murmured, however Jack wasn't in the mood to take any of it back and he wasn't even sure if he wanted to so without another word he stormed back towards the direction he had left his friends in.
​​​
He spent the next few minutes have war in his mind, his long arms crossed firmly across his chest. The others must have finally gotten to the front of the line so he was just going to try and keep calm while he waited for them to come back out. Jack knew the look of a large dimpled grin on his boyfriend's face would ease the pounding of his head.
​​​
However, when the next batch of people unloaded from the ride he only spotted two out of the three people he had been looking for. He jogged in order to close the gap between himself and the other two before blurting out the question that was on all of their minds. "Where's Alex?!"

Cassadee frowned and simply shrugged her shoulders - she must have known more than she was telling him, but Jack knew he'd end up snapping at her too if he tried to get it out of her. Rian let out a deep sigh and rubbed his neck with the hand that wasn't intertwined with his girlfriend's. "He said he wasn't feeling well, he said something about going to the bathroom."

"And neither of you thought to follow him!?" he questioned in shock, watching as his two friend's expression shifted into one of guilt. He'd have to apologize for being a colossal dick later - right now he needed to find Alex.
​​​
Thankfully, there were only a few bathrooms on the fair grounds and it was rational to think that he would find his boyfriend in the one closest to where he last saw him. However, when he stepped into the brick building, there was no sign of anyone. That was until he stopped and listened, hearing the sound of soft sniffling coming from inside one of the stalls.
​​​
"Alex..." Jack called, hearing a deep intake of breath before complete silence. He let out a sad chuckle and stopped in front of the first stall, peeking through the crack between the door and wall to spot the outline of a small shivering boy. "You can't hold your breath forever, you know?"

"Go away!" a familiar voice demanded - catching the skunk haired boy off guard. "Go hang out with Tyra!"

"It's... it's Taylor." Jack corrected playfully, obviously only digging himself a deeper grave.
​​​
"I don't care!" Alex yelped, from the other side of the door, clearly not planning on letting his boyfriend in any time soon.
​​​
The elder let out a sigh, running his hands through his hair "Right, wait. Are... are you jealous Gaskarth?"

There was a moment of complete silence before the other boy spoke up once again. "No! Now leave me alone."

"Awe, yes you are. Don't worry, kitten - you know you're the only one for me." there was no response to the pet name or his sickeningly sweet tone of voice. He could practically picture the brunette burying his face in his hands in embarrassment.
​​​
Looked like Jack was going to have to find his own way in or else Alex's stubbornness would leave them standing there all night. So he headed into the stall next to the one his boyfriend had locked himself away in. He placed one foot on the toilet seat, then the other, using the sides of the stall to keep his balance. Once he assured himself that a fall from distance wouldn't kill him, he hitched one of his legs over the way that separated himself and Alex.
​​​
"Jack! What are you doing? Get down!" he exclaimed, looking up at the lanky idiot hunched over between the two stalls because the ceiling was far too low for him to do this comfortably. "What if someone walks in here and sees you!"

The elder could only laugh in response, at least it seemed like Alex's mood had taken a turn for the better even if he was risking breaking a bone or two. Eventually he maneuvered his long limbs and found himself in the same stall as the other boy. His boyfriend stood up, however, he didn't look amused. His thick brows came together as he put his hands on his hips just like Tay had done earlier.
​​​
Jack's smile faded when he saw the tear trails on Alex's face. "Have you been crying?" he asked softly, reaching out to cup the other boy's face, but only getting his hand pushed away as a result.
​​​
"What do you care?" Alex questioned childishly, backing up so he was pressed against the wall, yeah, this wasn't going to turn out well for him.
​​​
Of course, this was when Jack saw his opportunity to swoop in and attack. He placed both of his hands on either side of the shorter boy's head - a confident smirk taking over his features. "You must be a lot dumber than you look if you think I don't care about you."

The boy in question didn't reply, he only glanced up at Jack attempting to will away the redness in his cheeks. There was no point in staying mad at him - even if he wanted to it would be absolutely impossible. Just as he opened his mouth to offer a response - his boyfriend slapped their lips together. Their sweet, gentle pecks had been becoming rarer and rarer recently. Of course they always shared a few, but whenever he got the chance Jack seemed to be forcing his tongue past Alex's lips.
​​​
When their lungs began to burn for air they finally pulled apart, panting and raising an eyebrow Alex asked "What has gotten into you lately?"

"I dunno, maybe I'm in heat or something." he teased, shrugging his shoulders before trying to lean in to steal another kiss - but Alex held out his arms and stopped him.
​​​
"You know only bitches go into heat, right?"


​​​​
​​​Both Cassedee and Rian seemed to breathe a sigh of relief when they were approached by their other two friends - their smiles large and arms intertwined.
​​​
"Everything okay?" she asked, her prize winning grinning flashing hopefully.
​​​
"Yep." Jack answered, popping the p. "Nothing a little making out couldn't solve."

Once again, his cheeky answer didn't sit well with Alex and he tightened his grip on his arm and shot him an aggravated glance. The couple standing before them only burst out in a short fit of laughter - causing Jack to grin smugly.
​​​
Rian, as always, was the one to speak out first about getting a move on. He could have sworn his best friend didn't have a single patient bone in his body. "We only have a few tickets left - we might as well pick out what will be the best ending to our night."

Cassadee seemed to bounce in place in excitement and Jack was somewhat thankful that the night was almost over because his feet were fucking killing him. "I guess we better take another lap around the fair and see what catches our fancy."

Just as the group began to take a few steps forward the skunk haired boy was stopped in his tracks. His confusion came to an end when he realized Alex was locked in place - staring off at something in front of him.
​​​
"Hey... Lex, whatcha doing?"

"That stuffed puppy - it's... it's kinda cute." he admitted hesitantly, raising his hand to point at the game booth a few feet away.
​​​
"Want me to win it for you, princess?" Jack asked, straightening his shoulders as if he had just offered to go into battle for his boyfriend.

"Well... I mean, you can bu-" Alex couldn't even protest before the other slipped out of his grasp and dug through his back pocket for some spare change. He should have known better than to think he could change the elder's mind about anything.
​​​
The stocky boy on his opposite side seemed to get an idea after watching his friend dash off towards the childish game and offered his partner a smile. "I'll win you an even bigger puppy, Cass."

The girl in question simply rolled her eyes and joined Alex, watching as Rian took his leave. "We have the stupidest boyfriends in history."

"Yeah, but they're pretty damn cute too." the smaller boy replied, not taking his eyes off his companion who was now starting his second round of the game after losing the first time.
​​​
Cass couldn't help but giggle at the sight before her. "You've got it bad, don't you?"

​​​​

"Can we please hurry up and pick something." Jack groaned, his hand wrapped tightly around his date's hip. Alex was cuddling a large stuffed dog closely to his chest - a content smile still painted on his face. Rian's aim was god awful so Jack leveled with him and won him a tiny panda bear to give to his girlfriend - those football lessons must have helped him out in the long run. Still, Jack seemed to be much more excited about the stuffed pup than anyone else.
​​​
Rian rolled his eyes and stopped in his tracks, "Maybe when you stop complaining." he taunted, earning a laugh from even Alex.
​​​
"What about the ferris wheel?" the girl suggested - gesturing to the large ride with glowing and flashing lights. To the young boy it was gorgeous, so of course he nodded his head enthusiastically.
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"No!" someone protested, causing everyone to turn their attention to the source of the sound. The skunk haired boy's face was pale as he frantically shook his head.
​​​
"Dude, why not? Even Lex wants to give it a try."

"Yeah, please Jacky." Alex pleaded, leaning in closer to him and offering those large puppy dog eyes that caused his heart to melt. That fucking nickname wasn't helping either - it was just physically impossible to keep something from that boy, he had him wrapped around his little finger.

​​​"I'mafraidofheightsokay." he muttered quickly, turning his head as if he was avoiding some kind of reticule.
​​​
"What?" the three other's seemed to spew in unison.
​​​
Jack sighed loudly before straightening out his posture. "I'm afraid of heights, okay?!" this was something he didn't want anyone to know - especially not his boyfriend. His job was to protect him and how was he going to do that if he was such a fucking baby?
​​​
"How the hell are you afraid of heights, Barakat? You're like 6'2." Rian commented with a chuckle that got him an elbow in the ribs from the girl next to him.
​​​
"I for one, adore how tall you are, Jack." Alex began, wiggling out of his grip so he could bury his face in his chest instead. "It makes me feel safe, like you'll always be there to protect me."

Cassadee squealed like an excited child after that confession while her boyfriend made an over dramatic gagging sound.
​​​
The brunette paid no mind to their audience, right now it was just him and his boy "Maybe it's my turn to protect you. I promise I won't let you fall."

That was all the reassurance he needed, one more glance into those caramel eyes and Jack could no longer deny the boy what he wanted. So they waited in the line, his hands were shaking and his palms were sweaty, but Alex kept their fingers intertwined the whole time. Rian and Cassadee were first, they stepped into one of the cars and it lifted slightly into the air so the next free car could be boarded. The raven haired boy swallowed the lump in his throat and followed the petite teen into the unstable contraption before sitting down carefully - one hand holding onto the side while the other nearly cut off Alex's circulation.
​​​
"Shit! Why is it rocking?! Alex make it stop!!" he yelped as the car was lifted off the ground - swaying gently back and forth in the breeze.
​​​
He had to hold back his laughter - biting his bottom lip in order to stifle the giggle attempting to escape. "It's okay, I promise."

Jack did his best to focus on his breathing. In, out, in, ou- holy shit Alex was so fucking adorable clinging to that stuffed animal while his wide eyed gaze wandered around the world beneath them. It was as if they were the only two people there, despite the other visitors appearing like ants on the ground below. He finally got the courage to look over the edge - the other's were right when they said it was beautiful and as time passed he could feel his heart rate slowly returning to normal.
​​​
"Hey, Jack?"

"Hmm?"

"Are you still afraid of falling?"

He glanced back to the boy across from him - his dimpled grin illuminated by the flickering light of the fair grounds. He was speechless, in all honesty he couldn't believe that anyone could walk past Alex and not see the work of art he truly was. How was he even near worthy? "Yeah..." he confessed softly. "But in a different way entirely."


​​​​
During the drive home Alex fell into a much needed slumber, his soft breathing being the only sound to fill the silence besides the whispering of the others.
​​​
"I really don't want to wake him." Jack said, turning his head slightly to glance at the boy in the back seat - he looked so peaceful it could be considered a crime to disturb him.
​​​
The boy behind the wheel only offered a roll of the eyes. "Well, you don't have a choice we're here." as he put the car in park he reached over to search through the glove box - throwing a rectangular shaped container into his friend's lap. "And don't forget this."

The nerves from earlier seemed to resurface at the sight of the object, but he only nodded his head, tucking the box under his arm before stepping out of the car.
​​​
"Hey... baby, wake up. You're home." he announced in a hushed voice, prodding at the sleeping boy's shoulders whose arms were wrapped tightly around the toy dog he hadn't let go of since he got his hands on it.
​​​
The sixteen year old sat up and let out a loud yawn, rubbing his eyes before glancing over his surroundings. "Already?" when his boyfriend nodded, he groaned and slipped out of the back of the car, grabbing onto the taller boy as he almost lost his balance.
​​​
When the two were safely on Alex's porch - Jack handed him the box he had been carrying. "Here."

"Whats... what's this?" he slurred, opening the lid to see a small note and hear a tiny familiar melody. "The music box?!" he questioned - his voice suddenly becoming much more chipper.
​​​
"Yep." Jack concluded proudly, watching as the other's eyes scanned over the note he had left him - it read 'To my only sunshine'

Alex's hand clamped over his mouth - even though his arms were currently full of all the sudden gifts he forced himself into the elder's grasp regardless. "The music box from the antique store! You remembered. Oh my god, Jack."
​​​
This time when he leaned away the lighting from inside the house made it obvious that the boy was in absolute awe. But nothing could prepare him for what came next.
​​​
"Jack... holy shit. I love you." maybe it was just the moment or the fact that he was still half asleep, but the words automatically registered with Jack while it took Alex some time to realize what he had just said.
​​​
"Alex..." he said uncertainly, taking a step back. The retreat seemed to make something click in his boyfriend's head however.
​​​
"Fuck, Jack... I'm sorry I di-" he stumbled over his words, but the elder was just simply shaking his head back and forth.
​​​
"I've... I've gotta go." without another word or embrace, he jogged down the porch steps and found himself in the safety of Rian's care once more.
​​​
His best friend seemed beyond confused by the look on his face. "Is everything okay, Jack?"
"Just drive." he didn't say a word after that. His head was too busy racing with thoughts of what Tay had said to him. Maybe things were moving far too fast, maybe he was being disloyal to the girl he thought he'd fallen in love with. Was Alex really just a band-aid? As they backed out of the driveway he could see the small boy standing star struck with his mouth agape - tears running down his face for the second time that day. ​​