Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

13:34

I miss you

Wanna kiss your pretty face

13:34

is that so

"Next Sunday, Pow, I'm begging you,"

"Yeah, yeah. Got it," Jinx muttered, barely glancing up from her phone. She was stretched out on the opposite couch from her sister, back sinking into the cushions, one leg dangling lazily off the side.

"I was thinking that maybe we could—" Vi kept going anyway, her voice not quite reaching her ears.

13:35

Oh you don't believe me?

13:35

send a dick pic and i will

13:35

Bet

"Powder! Are you even listening to me?" Vi finally snapped, leaning across the coffee table in a useless attempt to see the screen.

Jinx yanked her phone back instantly, scowling. "Shit, Violet, ever heard of personal space and privacy?"

"No, I don’t think so," she shot back, crossing her arms with an annoying smug smirk plastered on her face. "Who the hell are you texting?"

"Why do you care?" Jinx replied without missing a beat, her thumbs still hovering across the screen.

"Because it’s clearly more important than anything I’m saying," Vi muttered, leaning back against her girlfriend's side.

"Even a fly has more important shit to say than you do," she answered dryly.

But when she finally looked back at Vi, she saw her awfully sad face and actually felt maybe she was being a bit bitchy, so she tried to remember the last thing she actually heard.

"Next Sunday at eight, I got it. Happy?"

Yet she didn't respond, only nodded with a tiny smile appearing. Instead, that annoying lady next to her felt she had the right to speak.

"Jinx, may I suggest you wear one of the dresses we bought last time?" Caitlyn asked, her voice polite but with an edge of disapproval.

"Why? You hate how I dress that badly?"

“I only meant that the dinner will be rather formal. One of the dresses we bought might suit it better.” Caitlyn replied quickly. "Maybe something that covers your tattoos a little more…"

"Have you seen your girlfriend’s back?" Jinx smirked, tilting her head toward Vi.

"Oh, plenty," Vi said with a low chuckle.

"Ugh, don't even know why I asked." she muttered, trying to get back to her phone.

Caitlyn didn’t let it drop, though.

"Don’t you think you’re still quite young for all that ink? You should have waited until you were older before making such a permanent decision."

"Geez, I got tattooed, not pregnant," Jinx rolled her eyes hard, sitting up a little straighter as annoyance prickled under her skin. "I got them earlier this year. Wanted something that actually felt nice."

"They are nice," Caitlyn conceded carefully. "They’re just in… very uncommon places." she said as she looked at her up and down.

"Huh?" Jinx blinked, then let out a sharp laugh. "Oh yeah, totally. I stripped naked in front of some random old guy and let his greasy fingers go wherever they wanted."

The room went quiet. These dumb idiots apparently didn't know how to take a joke.

"I’m kidding," she added, waving a hand lazily, though her voice still carried a bite. "I was covered where it mattered and my dad was right there the whole time. Did you give Vi the same lecture?"

"So your dad actually agreed to it?" Caitlyn asked instead of replying, genuine surprise slipping into her tone.

"Yeah, so what?"

"I just think it’s a little inappropriate to be covered in tattoos at eighteen," Caitlyn said evenly, though she shifted uncomfortably on the couch.

"Sorry, princess," Jinx snapped, her eyes narrowing. "Want me to peel my skin off so you don’t have to look at them?"

"I’m only saying—" she started again.

"Not that I have to explain shit to you," Jinx cut in, her words coming faster now, "but it was my graduation gift. Why don’t you ask Vi why her back looks like a damn public wall, huh?"

"Because Vi got hers under different circumstances,"

"Oh, really?" Jinx raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

"Okay, can we please stop talking about tattoos?" Vi jumped in, rubbing the back of her neck. "Who even cares at this point? She can wear whatever she wants."

"Hear that?" Jinx grinned, waving a hand at Caitlyn. "Chop chop, go drink some tea or something." she immediately dropped back into her phone.

She had far more important… matters to attend to. Namely: Ekko.

Jinx was in agony—real, unbearable agony, she would have you know, yes. It had been, what, four hours? Maybe less. A cruel, unreasonable amount of time that no one should ever be expected to endure.

She slumped against the couch, phone clutched in both hands, eyes glued to the screen as she unlocked it the moment she saw his reply on screen.

He’d been right there that morning. Warm and within arm’s reach—and now? Gone. Reduced to little text bubbles and one photo she was embarrassingly excited to open.

Yeah, agony.

13:40

[Photo]

Then she opened the photo and, actually, she might not miss him that much.

13:43

you an ass

13:44

Like I'd send you that while youre with your family

13:44

not like i was showing them

fuck you

13:44

Come fuck me yourself

The words sent a warm spark racing through her belly, making her bite the inside of her cheek to keep from grinning like an idiot.

God, he was such an asshole. She could already picture his smirk, that cocky little tilt of his head, and it made her want to bolt right now just to see him.

"Jinx, Silco's here!" Claggor suddenly called from the living room. Music to her ears, really.

13:45

omw

She swung her legs off the couch in one swift motion and shot to her feet, the cushions bouncing behind her. Vi and Caitlyn both turned to stare, but Jinx barely noticed.

It was like her body had already made the decision for her. Her feet moved before her brain could catch up, carrying her forward too fast, too sudden—enough to make the room tilt just slightly.

She didn’t stop. Not until—

"Wait, wait, wait," Mylo said, catching her by the arm mid-stride. He leaned toward the window, eyes narrowing as he looked outside.

"What's wrong with you?" Jinx asked, already trying to sidestep him.

He didn’t let her.

"Are they… talking?" he asked instead, glancing toward the doorway where Silco and Vander stood.

Jinx followed his gaze for half a second, then scoffed. "What else would they be doing?"

The giddy buzz in her chest hadn’t faded—if anything, it made standing here worse. Ekko was waiting, and he was stalling her with this?

Behind her, the couch creaked as Vi pushed herself up, craning slightly before stepping away from it. She crossed the room in a few quick strides, stopping near Jinx and the others so she could actually see past them toward the doorway.

“They’re way too comfortable with each other for this to be the first time they’ve talked since—what, twelve years?” she said, squinting a little. “Look at him! He’s smiling.”

Jinx huffed out a quiet laugh, already turning back toward the door. “’Cause it isn’t,” she said casually, unable to keep the smug tone out of her voice.

“What!?” Claggor blinked, caught off guard.

“They’ve been talking for months now,” Jinx added with a shrug, slipping a step closer to the door.

“Months!?” Vi echoed, following close behind. “You knew about it?”

Jinx shot her a look over her shoulder, eyebrows raised. “You didn’t?”

Vi scoffed immediately. “Yeah, I did. I just like asking,” she said, rolling her eyes.

“They’re fucking. I just can’t prove it,” Mylo muttered under his breath.

“Ew! Why would you say that?” Claggor gagged, recoiling. “I don’t wanna think about my dad doing it!”

“When? How? Why?” he added quickly, turning back to Jinx, still trying to piece it together.

“I don’t know,” Jinx said, a little too fast, her hand already drifting toward the door handle. “Silco just said they met back in… May? Dunno the exact date.”

“No way,” Vi said, disbelief thick in her voice.

“Way.” Jinx grinned. “He kept coming home late, all smiley.”

“Told ya,” Mylo chimed in, smug. “They’re doing it.”

“Who reached out first?” Vi pressed.

Jinx paused just long enough to glance back at her, one eyebrow lifting in hopes her sister would understand.

Fortunately, she did.

“No,” Vi said flatly.

“Yeah,”

“You’re lying.”

“’M not,” she said, already turning the handle.

“No fucking way,” Claggor muttered, jaw slack.

Jinx snorted. "Pick up your jaw from the floor, toots. Bye!" she called over her shoulder, giving a quick, cheeky wave before pushing the door open.

Cool air hit her face as she stepped outside, the noise of the house dulling behind her like it had been shut in a box.

Silco stood near the front steps, one hand still loosely gesturing. Vander faced him, arms no longer tightly crossed, his posture eased.

“—and you expect me to believe that?” Vander was saying as she reached closer.

Silco let out the faintest breath of something that almost resembled a quiet chuckle, shaking his head once. “I don’t expect anything of you.”

Vander’s mouth twitched—just barely, like he was fighting off a smile he hadn’t quite decided he was allowed to have.

Jinx barely spared it a thought.

"Hi, can we go now?" she asked, already jogging the rest of the way down, flashing him a quick and impatient smile.

"Yes, dear. Let’s go," Silco replied smoothly, turning to walk beside her.

"Bye, Vander!" she called, tossing a hand up without slowing.

"Take care, Pow," he answered warmly, though his gaze lingered just a second longer than necessary.

As they moved down the sidewalk, the house quiet now behind them, Jinx let out a small breath. Her dad held the passenger door open for her to slide inside, the leather seat cool against her back as she pulled her phone back out.

"How was your reunion? Did you enjoy yourself?" Silco asked, glancing sideways at her.

"Oh yeah," Jinx said lightly, already half elsewhere.

13:58

why dont u invent a machine so u can teleport to me

13:58

That's a great idea blue, maybe I will

13:59

ofc its a great idea

13:59

Yeah everything about you is great

13:59

u are such a cutie it pisses me off

i miss you

my old ass dad drives so slow

14:00

I miss you way more

"Jinx?" Silco said quietly, glancing over from the driver’s seat.

"Hm—what?" she answered, not looking up, thumbs still moving across her screen.

"I asked if you want to eat something, dear," Silco repeated, voice as calm and patient as ever.

"Wait a sec," Jinx muttered, brow furrowing slightly as she finished typing,

14:01

hey pretty boy

do u want me to bring u something to eat

??

14:01

Yeah bring yourself

14:03

And maybe lunch as well if you can

"Can we go get Jericho's?" she asked.

"Sure," Silco replied, starting the engine.

The car eased into the street, the low hum of it filling the space between them. Jinx angled toward the window, one knee pulled up slightly, thumbs moving quickly over her screen. Every few seconds, a faint smile slipped through.

Silco noticed but he didn’t comment on it. Just drove, one hand steady on the wheel, the other resting loosely as his gaze flicked toward her now and then.

“Long day?” he asked at one point, tone casual.

“Mhm,” Jinx hummed, not really looking up. “Kinda.”

Then, a beat later, softer, “It was good.”

Silco’s expression shifted just slightly at that, but he let it pass without pushing.

They stopped to pick up the food, Jinx quick to hop out and back in. The smell of it filled the car, warm and delicious, but her attention stayed elsewhere.

By the time they pulled up in front of her apartment, Jinx was still smiling faintly at something on her screen, shoulders just a little more relaxed than before.

It was so weird.

Not the talking, they’d always talked when they weren’t near. That part wasn't the problem. She could recall endless sleepless nights of facetiming and texting until the sun came up, conversations that went nowhere and everywhere. Tons of messages, dumb jokes, lots of nonsense…

Back then, she could put her phone down. Forget it for a while, get distracted, come back to it hours later. Now, though? She stared at her screen, thumb hovering, then tapping, then hovering again like it didn’t know what to do with itself.

Now it was different, annoyingly so. Everything else felt secondary.

Her attention kept snapping back to her phone, to his face, to his voice, to the sound of his laugh like there was something there she was going to miss if she looked away for even a second.

It was ridiculous, she knew it was. Unbelievable. Maybe she needed to go back to therapy and find out what was wrong with her.

Jinx finally tucked her phone away, glancing over at him. “Okay, I’m gonna go up.”

He gave a small nod. “Alright.” then, more gently, “I made you an appointment with a doctor. Just to check on—”

"Yeah, I know. Thanks," Jinx cut in, already nodding. Not wanting to touch on that any further.

Silco held her gaze, then inclined his head once. “Of course.”

Jinx hesitated only a second before leaning across the center console, wrapping her arms around him. Silco returned it just as easily, one arm coming around her shoulders.

She pulled back with a small smile, pushing the door open. "I’ll text you when I’m inside," she said, stepping out.

"I’ll be here," Silco replied.

Jinx shut the door and headed toward her building, already fishing for her keys. Silco watched until she disappeared inside, only then did he look away.

It wasn’t even a walk, really. Just a few steps to the entrance, the door pushed open a little too quickly, the stairs taken two at a time without thinking.

There was a restless kind of buzz under her skin, something that wouldn’t quite settle, tugging her forward. By the time she reached her door, she barely paused—keys slipping into the lock, turning too fast, the door swinging open before the thought could catch up.

“Hi,” she called as she stepped in, the smell of food trailing in with her.

“Hi,” Ekko answered immediately.

He was already there like he'd been waiting for her, and her chest tightened at it cause, oh, how much she adored him.

“I missed you,” he added, crossing the room in a few quick steps before she could even set the bag down, and then he was there.

His arms wrapped around her, pulling her in without hesitation. The hug made her shoulders drop instantly, Jinx let out a quiet breath against him, her grip tightening for just a second in return.

Then he tilted his head down, brushing a soft kiss against her lips.

“I know,” Jinx murmured, her voice low, a teasing smile tugging at the corner of her mouth as she pulled back just enough to look at him. “You told me plenty.”

“Because I missed you plenty,” Ekko replied, just as quiet, still holding onto her.

She huffed a small laugh back. “I brought the food. Wanna eat?”

“You ate already?” he asked, glancing toward the bag as she lifted it slightly.

“No,” she said simply, softer now. “I wanted to eat with you.”

Her words were small, but they went all the way to his chest before he knew it. He didn’t say anything, just kissed her cheek before nodding.

He watched her move around the room, setting the bag down. The smell of the food filled the space around them. Ekko sat first, more out of habit than thought, and reached for her without looking—already knowing she’d come to him.

He guided her down easily, settling her against him, her back fitting against his chest, and his arm came around her without hesitation, hand resting at her side.

It felt right. Too right, maybe.

For a while, he didn’t say anything. He reached for the container with his free hand, popping it open and nudging it closer. He picked up a bite and held it near her mouth. She leaned forward just enough to take it, only then did he take one for himself.

She looked way too cute for him to handle it. Her little nose scrunching as she chewed, her beautiful side profile right there for him to admire, her scent engulfing him.

“You look so pretty,” he said after a moment, the words slipping out before he could overthink them, his chin resting lightly against her shoulder. “Have I told you that?”

She giggled lightly. “Doesn’t hurt hearing it.”

He let out the smallest breath of a laugh, picking up another bite and offering it to her again without thinking. When she took it, he followed with one of his own.

After a pause, she spoke again. “Vi’s having some dinner next Sunday, by the way.”

“Vi?” he said, reaching for another container, though he didn’t move away from her. He opened it with one hand, balancing it against his knee, then scooped up a bite and held it up for her first.

“Yeah,” she said around the food. “The rich life’s getting to her.”

“Why?” he asked, watching her before finally taking a bite himself.

“Dunno. She didn’t really say, just some boring dinner at Caitlyn’s manor. Probably fancy stuff that tastes like cardboard.”

He huffed quietly. “Sounds delightful.”

“I know.” she laughed softly. “Anyway, we’re going.”

He raised an eyebrow slightly. “Why am I getting dragged into this?”

“If she’s ruining my Sunday night, she’s ruining yours too,” she said, settling further into him like that settled it. “We’re a package deal.”

That pulled a little smile from him. “We sure are,” he murmured as he nuzzled her cheek with his nose.

He let it sit for a second, absently tracing along her side with his thumb while he picked at the food again, offering her more bites every now and then.

“It’s weird, you know,” she said eventually.

“What is?”

“Having… plans like this with them. Sometimes I still feel like stupid little Powder when I’m around them.”

His hand moved along her back without thinking, slow and steady. “You were never stupid,” he said. “We were kids back then.”

“Sometimes I can still smell the ashes,” she admitted quietly. “When I get mad at Vi… or when Mylo says something dumb and Claggor stays silent… it’s like I’m just waiting for the slap again.”

That hit harder than he expected. The food sat forgotten in his hand before he set it down somewhere on the table without looking. Then his arm tightened around her, just enough for her to feel it.

“Have you ever told them that?” he asked carefully. “Vi, at least?”

She shook her head. “Of course not. I don’t want them thinking they were right about me when they called me crazy.”

“You’re not crazy,” he said, more firmly now. “And I am so proud of you.”

“Proud?” she echoed, turning slightly to look at him.

“Yeah,” he said quietly. “Because you’re still here, and you’re still you.” his hand found its place on her thigh, caressing it. “If you could see yourself the way I do… you wouldn’t feel any of that anymore.”

Those annoying fuzzy feelings bubbled up again. She tried to keep them down as she stared deep into his brown eyes, tried to remind herself he'd always said stuff like that so she shouldn't feel any different now. It didn't work, though.

So she moved instead.

Turned in his lap, closing the distance, kissing him like she was trying to say something she couldn’t put into words. He met her halfway, one hand coming up to steady her, to keep her close. When they finally pulled apart, he let out a quiet breath, his forehead hovering near hers.

“You taste like Jericho’s bowl,” he murmured.

She blinked, then smirked. “Is that a problem?”

A grin tugged at his mouth. “Not at all. Might be into food play.”

She snorted then, carefully slipping off his lap. “You’re such an idiot,”

He caught her hand before she could get far. “Where are you going?”

“I’m tired,” she said, glancing back at him. “Gonna sleep before Lux gets here. You can finish the food.”

He leaned back slightly, feigning offense. “Wow, leaving me all alone? You just came back!”

“You can come.” she tilted her head, that look in her eyes already giving her away. “But your shirt has to go.”

That got a real laugh out of him. He was amazed by how easy it was for her to make him feel so good only by being herself.

“Yeah?” he said, standing, still holding her hand. “That negotiable?”

“Not even a little.”

“Alright, then.”

The food was left half-forgotten on the table as they moved down the hallway together.

Getting to his room never felt like a choice. It was quieter than that, something that happened naturally, like gravity pulling things where they were already meant to go.

He had this feeling she just liked his bed more than her own.

Jinx leaned into him first, not thinking about it, just moving. Ekko caught her easily, like he’d been expecting it, like there was no version of this where he wouldn’t.

He guided her down gently, and she followed just as easily, settling into the bed and then back into him like it was the same thing. The sheets were warm, but it was him that anchored her—his arm around her, firm enough to be real, soft enough to feel comfy.

His hand moved along her back in patterns. She held onto him just as tightly, fingers curling against his skin, her shoulders loosening little by little until all the tension slipped out of her.

It didn’t take long, sleep came quickly after that.

Her breathing evened out first, then her grip eased, not fully letting go. He let his hand keep moving, slower now, until even that faded, his palm resting warm and still against her back.

For a while, he simply listened—to her breathing, to the quiet hum of the city beyond the windows—until, at some point, his eyes drifted shut.

Sleeping beside her always felt so peaceful, like they were two pieces clicking into place exactly as they were meant to. Time moved differently with her. Hours felt like minutes, slipping past before he could notice them. It was as though his body could focus on only one thing: Jinx beside him.

And knowing she would be the first thing his eyes landed on when he woke made everything feel impossibly good.

Better than good, actually, though he highly doubted there was a word capable of describing it.

His eyes snapped open when a sound cut through the haze of sleep. Another knock followed, quicker this time.

He exhaled slowly and blinked himself awake before carefully shifting out from under Jinx. She stirred at the movement, making a soft sound of protest as she curled closer to his pillow, still asleep.

That almost made him stay.

The thought vanished when another knock echoed through the apartment.

“Shit,” he muttered, dragging a hand down his face before pushing himself up and pulling on a shirt.

The apartment was dim as he stepped into the hallway, quiet except for the muffled noise of the city and the increasingly impatient knocking at the door.

“Yeah, yeah. Hold on,” he called.

He unlocked the door and pulled it open.

Lux stood on the other side, her phone in one hand and the other still raised to knock. Thin gold jewelry rested delicately against her neck and wrists. Her makeup was soft and precise, all luminous skin and sharp lashes, and her blonde hair had been pinned neatly back.

Her gaze swept over him in return, taking in the messy hair, bare feet, and sleepy expression.

“Hey, Lux,” Ekko said, leaning against the doorframe.

“Hi,” she replied slowly. “Did I wake you?”

“Nah,” he answered dryly. “I always look like this.”

That earned him a small snort.

“Can you tell Jinx I’m here?” Lux asked, trying to peer past him and into the apartment. “I’ve been calling her, but she isn’t picking up.”

Ekko glanced over his shoulder at the clock.

“You might wanna come in and tell her yourself.”

Lux frowned. “Is she not ready?”

“No,” he said, drawing the word out just enough to make her expression flatten.

“I’m going to kill her.”

Ekko stepped aside to let her in. “Try not to mess up my sheets while you’re at it.”

Lux stopped.

“Mess up your… what?”

He closed the door behind her, completely unfazed. “She’s in my room.”

Lux blinked once.

“…Huh.”

Then she brushed past him, her heels clicking sharply against the floor as she headed down the hallway.

For one glorious second, there was silence.

“Wake up, you! I told you to be ready!”

The sound of something hitting the bed followed immediately after.

“Oh, my fucking— What are you doing here?” Jinx’s voice came out rough with sleep and irritation.

“You’re kidding,” Lux snapped.

“Is it five already?” Jinx groaned.

“Yeah.”

“Fuck.” There was a rustle of sheets, followed by something clattering to the floor. “I’ll be quick, Blondie! I’ll be ready in the blink of an eye!”

Ekko let out a quiet laugh, resting the back of his head against the wall.

He loved how she looked just after waking up—hair tangled, eyes heavy—before she had time to put herself back together.

What followed was considerably less peaceful.

Jinx rushed out of his room with an armful of clothes, disappeared into her own, then came stumbling back seconds later looking for the makeup bag she had left on his desk. After that came her phone, then her earrings.

“Ekko, have you seen my other shoe?” she called, squinting down to see the mess of her closet.

“Under my bed, I think,” Ekko replied from the other room. “And your rings are on my nightstand, next to my watch,”

Jinx groaned and turned straight back into his room. Lux remained by the bed, watching her leave the room for the fourth time in the last ten minutes.

She gathered everything against her chest and hurried toward her own bedroom. The second Jinx stepped inside, she tossed her shoes down and dumped her makeup bag onto the bed.

Lux paused, her gaze shifting from the clothes scattered around Jinx’s room to the collection of belongings she had just carried in from Ekko’s.

“May I ask why half your bedroom is in Ekko’s room?”

Jinx grabbed a dress from her chair and held it against herself, checking her reflection in the mirror. “Uh—the lighting’s better in there. I get ready there all the time.”

Lux sat up slightly and picked up one of Jinx’s earrings from the pile on the bed. “And his bed is comfier, I’m guessing.”

“What?”

“He was clearly just waking up when I arrived.” she handed her the earring, watching her carefully. “Were you two sleeping together?”

“I just fell asleep in there. That’s it.” Jinx turned toward the mirror and started fastening the earring, hoping the curtain of blue hair beside her face hid more than it actually did. “It’s not that big of a deal. We do it all the time.”

Lux’s eyebrows rose. “Oh, so sleeping together is a regular thing?”

Her fingers slipped, nearly sending the earring to the floor. “Stop saying ‘sleeping together.’ You’re making it sound like we’re fucking.”

“Well, are you?”

Jinx whipped around so quickly that her hair struck her across the cheek. “What?”

Lux stared at her for half a second before breaking into laughter. “Oh my God, I’m kidding! You should’ve seen your face!”

She narrowed her eyes and turned back toward the mirror, concentrating much too hard on securing the damn earring. “We aren’t doing that.”

Lux took the dress Jinx had abandoned and held it out to her. “Alright, liar. Now, are you getting dressed or…?”

“I’m not lying,” Jinx muttered, snatching the dress from her.

She obviously lied.

She disappeared into the bathroom to change, shutting the door before Lux could see the heat crawling up her neck. She pulled the dress over her head and smoothed it over her hips before opening the door again.

Lux looked up from her phone with the smallest smile on her face. “Finally.”

“I’ve been in there for, like, thirty seconds.”

“Thirty seconds too long.” Lux stepped closer and straightened one of the straps on Jinx’s shoulder. “Do your makeup in the car. We’re already late.”

Jinx rolled her eyes but shoved the makeup bag into her purse anyway. “Fine. I just need my jacket.”

She found it beneath a pile of clothes near the foot of the bed and slipped it over her arms. Lux was already walking toward the door by the time Jinx finished checking herself in the mirror.

“I’ll meet you in the lobby, okay?” Lux called.

“Sure.”

She followed her into the hallway, still adjusting the sleeve of her jacket. Lux stopped near the front door, where Ekko had settled against the kitchen counter, his hair still messy from sleep.

“See you, Ekko!” Lux said, giving him a small wave.

“Later, Lux.”

She slipped out, leaving the apartment door open behind her.

Jinx turned toward Ekko—and nearly forgot she was late at all.

He was watching her with that soft, sleepy look still lingering in his eyes, his gaze traveling over her slowly enough to make warmth gather beneath her skin.

“You look so damn hot,” he said.

A pleased grin tugged at her mouth before she could stop it. She stepped closer and hooked her fingers loosely into the front of his shirt.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” his hands settled at her waist, warm and sweet. “You clean up pretty well for someone who woke up five minutes ago.”

Jinx looked down, smoothing an imaginary wrinkle from his shirt. Leaving suddenly felt much less appealing than it had a second ago.

“Call me if you need anything, yeah?” he murmured.

“Mhm, I—” her fingers tightened slightly in the fabric. The words slipped out before she had time to decide whether they were too much. “I’ll miss you.”

His expression softened immediately. “I’ll miss you more.”

He leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead, lingering there for one quiet second before pulling away.

“Have fun,” he said.

Jinx backed toward the door, watching him as she went. “We’ll see.”

She stepped into the hallway and pulled the door shut behind her, already missing the warmth of his hands at her waist.

By the time she and Lux made it downstairs, Jinx still wasn’t entirely sure how she had ended up agreeing to any of this.

Apparently, at some point, Lux had asked if she wanted to go out with her and Seraphine, and apparently Jinx had said yes. She had no memory of the conversation whatsoever. Maybe she’d been half asleep. Maybe distracted. Maybe Lux had caught her during one of those rare moments when her brain decided to betray her by being agreeable.

Whatever the reason, here she was.

In a car, wearing a dress she had thrown on in under five minutes, applying eyeliner in the reflection of Lux’s sun visor while Lux complained every time she moved her head.

“Can you stop driving like that?” Jinx muttered, steadying her wrist as the car turned.

“I’m driving normally.”

“Your normally sucks.”

Lux glanced at her briefly. “You’re the one who decided to sleep until five.”

Jinx capped the eyeliner and dropped it back into her bag. Outside the window, the city slipped past in streaks of gold and neon settling over the streets. She rested her head against the glass and wondered, not for the first time, why she hadn’t simply stayed curled up in Ekko’s bed.

Probably because Lux would have dragged her out by the ankles.

And because she had, technically, said yes.

Still, as they pulled up outside the place and Seraphine was already waiting, Jinx couldn’t help feeling like she had been tricked into participating in her own plans.

“Oh, there you are!” Seraphine said brightly, already stepping forward, arms wrapping easily around Lux.

“Sorry, it got a little late,” Lux replied, hugging her back with a soft laugh.

“Hi, Jinx!” Seraphine added, turning to her.

“Hey, nice place,” Jinx said, letting herself get pulled into the hug, but her arms lagged behind, loose, barely returning it.

“I know right!” Seraphine beamed. “You wanna drink something?”

“Whatever’s got alcohol is fine,” she said, sliding into the booth.

“Alright,” Seraphine laughed, watching Jinx for just a second longer before sitting. “Anyway, what took y’all so long?”

“It’s her fault,” Lux said, nudging Jinx lightly.

Jinx waved a hand lazily, already half somewhere else.

The first drink went down too easily. Cold, sweet, gone before it really registered. She let the empty glass sit between her fingers.

The second came faster. She didn’t think about ordering it, just did. Seraphine talked, Lux laughed, the table filled with small plates Jinx barely touched. She nodded where she should, chimed in just enough.

By the third drink, her thoughts didn’t quite line up anymore. They overlapped, drifted, slipped out of reach when she tried to hold them. She didn’t try that hard.

The soft glow of string lights danced across the table as Seraphine tilted her head, pink hair falling over one shoulder. She scrolled through her phone before turning the screen toward the other two girls, showing a cute photo of a fitted pastel dress.

“Do you think Ekko’d like it?” Seraphine asked, a hopeful little smile on her lips.

Jinx choked hard on her glittery blue cocktail, the liquid going down the wrong way. She coughed violently, one hand slamming against her chest while the other gripped the edge of the table.

“Oh my god, are you okay?” Lux gasped, leaning over instantly to pat Jinx’s back.

“Yeah— I’m fine,” Jinx wheezed, waving her off with watery eyes. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, trying to play it cool even as her heart hammered. “Why you care whether he likes it?”

Seraphine blinked, a little surprised by the sharp tone. “My singing presentation is next Sunday. I got one extra ticket so I was thinking… maybe I could invite him?”

“Really?” Lux raised her eyebrows, genuinely excited for her friend.

“Yeah! You don’t think he’d want to?” Seraphine asked, looking between them with those big eyes.

“Gotta ask him, Pinkie, not me,” Jinx muttered, slumping back against the booth and downing whatever was left of her glass.

Though she was pretty sure he had a thousand better things to do than sit through some stupid singing presentation.

Spending time with her, for starters.

“It’s just, since you two are very close I—“ Seraphine began again.

“Super close,” Jinx cut in, her voice a little too loud and a little too bitter. She grinned, but it didn’t reach her eyes, while she lifted two crossed fingers up. “The closest of them all.”

“Right…” Seraphine said softly, her smile faltering for just a second.

Jinx’s gaze dropped to the photo on Seraphine’s phone again. She pointed lazily with her straw. “So you wanna wear that little tight dress?”

“Sure, isn’t it cute?” she replied, tilting the screen so Jinx could see better.

“He sure likes tight,” Jinx said under her breath, the words slipping out before she could stop them.

“Alright…” she murmured, clearly a bit thrown off.

Jinx leaned forward on her elbows, the alcohol making her movements looser. “What bout you, huh?”

“Sorry?”

“You like him?” she asked, blue eyes narrowing.

“Well, obviously. He’s—“ Seraphine began.

“Like like him?” Jinx pressed again.

“Well… It’s kinda complicated, I guess,” Seraphine admitted, fiddling with the edge of her napkin.

“Oh you don’t know complicated, trust me,” Jinx snorted, swirling the now empty glass of her cocktail.

“Why is it complicated?” Lux asked Seraphine curiously instead, glancing sideways at Jinx with a faint frown.

“I don’t know… sometimes I feel like he might like me back. Others I feel like he’s just like that with everyone,” she explained, her tone soft and a little uncertain.

“You think he might like you?” Jinx asked, the question coming out sharper than she intended.

“Yeah. He listens to me, helps me practice my songs, he’s gentle. And when we are together I feel like he’s got eyes only for me,” Seraphine said, a dreamy little smile creeping onto her face.

“Sounds like Ekko, he's so sweet,” Lux added with a tiny nod. She looked at Jinx, who was now ordering another drink while trying really hard to stop herself from walking out.

Cause, really, why the fuck would they be talking about her Ekko?

Not that he was hers, not technically. Not in any way that mattered outside the pathetic little corner of her head where she kept all the things she wanted and couldn’t have.

Her fingers tightened around the glass the second the bartender slid it toward her. She didn’t even know what she’d ordered. Something sweet, probably. Something with enough alcohol to burn the image of Seraphine’s dreamy little smile out of her skull.

“Jinx?” Lux called carefully.

She turned back with a grin that felt too wide on her face. “What?”

Lux’s eyes flickered over her, soft with concern in that way Jinx hated. Like she could see the ugly little twist in her chest and wanted to fix it.

“You okay?”

“Peachy,” Jinx said, lifting the glass. “Just thirsty.”

Seraphine, either too caught up in her own nerves or too kind to notice the way Jinx’s smile had sharpened, tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “I mean, I don’t want to get my hopes up. He’s just… nice. Maybe I’m reading too much into it.”

“You probably are,” Jinx said.

The table went quiet.

Lux blinked. Seraphine’s smile faltered just a little, and for one horrible second, Jinx felt the impact of her own words land in the middle of them, ugly and mean and completely impossible to take back.

She swallowed, then forced a laugh. “I mean—he’s nice to everyone! That’s his whole thing, right? Boy savior with good hair. Fixes stuff, waters plants, helps girls practice their songs… Just Ekko being Ekko.”

Lux’s brows pulled together. “Jinx.”

“What?” she said, too quickly. “Am I wrong?”

Seraphine looked down at her drink, tracing the rim with one finger. “No, you’re not. I guess that’s what I’m scared of.”

And fuck.

That made it worse somehow.

Jinx wanted Seraphine to be smug, shallow, some easy thing to hate. But she wasn’t. She was just sitting there with pink cheeks and a soft voice and hope tucked carefully between her hands, like something she was afraid of dropping.

Jinx took a long sip of whatever the hell was in her glass. It was awful. Too sweet, too strong, too good.

Lux leaned closer to Seraphine, voice gentle. “I don’t think you’re stupid for wondering. Ekko is… attentive. When he cares, you can feel it.”

Yeah, you could feel it.

You could feel it when he remembered how you took your coffee even though you had only told him once. When he walked on the side closest to the street without making a big deal of it. When he crossed the damn city just to get you the cookies you liked. When he took care of you, touched you gently, and held you like you were the only thing that mattered. When he looked at you like you weren’t a disaster someone had left behind.

When he made you feel, for one stupid second, like being loved by him was something that could happen to a girl like you.

Lux glanced at Jinx before turning back to Seraphine. “Maybe you should tell him.”

Jinx’s stomach dropped, and she was sure it wasn't the alcohol this time.

Seraphine’s eyes widened. “No! God, no. What if I ruin things?”

“Then don’t,” Jinx said, before she could stop herself again.

Lux turned to her fully this time. “Jinx, please.”

Her name sounded like a warning.

“What? She asked!" Jinx shrugged, staring into her drink. "I’m just saying, if she doesn’t wanna ruin things, then don’t ruin things. Simple as that.”

Seraphine went quiet. And that's when she knew… she was acting like a bitch.

Jinx dragged a hand over her face, smearing at the corner of her eyeliner. “Sorry. I’m not—” she huffed out a breath. “I’m not trying to be mean about it.”

Seraphine gave her a small smile anyway. “It’s okay.”

No, it wasn’t. That was the worst part.

Jinx hated the softness in her voice. Hated that she couldn’t even be angry at her properly. Hated that Ekko had somehow become the kind of person other girls talked about with stars in their eyes, like he hadn’t already been living under Jinx’s ribs for years.

She tipped the rest of the drink back and set the glass down too hard.

“I need air,” she said.

Lux reached for her wrist. “Do you want me to—”

“I’m good.” she pulled away before Lux’s fingers could close around her.

She planted one hand against the table, ready to push herself up, but the room shifted beneath her. Only slightly, a slow tilt that made the lights smear at the edges and forced her to tighten her grip.

Seraphine watched her carefully from across the table, her earlier excitement replaced by something else. Guilty, almost, even though she hadn’t done anything wrong.

A new song began, something that made her glance toward the dance floor before turning back.

“Do you wanna dance, Jinx?”

Jinx finally looked up.

She gave her a small, hopeful smile. “We can just go be stupid for a while. It might make you feel better.”

There was no mockery in it. No smugness, no secret little victory over having gotten beneath Jinx’s skin without knowing. Or maybe she did know and that was why she was trying to be gentle.

Somehow, that made it worse.

Jinx leaned back against the booth and folded her arms over her chest. “I don’t dance.”

“That’s okay.” Seraphine’s smile didn’t disappear, though it softened. “We could still move around badly together.”

“I said no.”

The words came out sharper than they needed to.

Lux’s gaze lingered on Jinx before shifting toward her. “I think I’m gonna order you water and something to eat to tone you down.”

Jinx scoffed under her breath. “Don’t need a babysitter.”

“I didn’t say you did.” she turned to Sera and gave her a reassuring smile. “Go have fun, yeah? I’ll make sure she’s fine and then I’ll be with you.”

At first it looked like Seraphine might refuse. Like she might sit back down and keep trying to fix something that wasn’t hers to fix.

Then Jinx waved a hand toward the dance floor.

“Go on, Pinkie. Before the song ends.”

Seraphine gave her one last uncertain look before sliding out of the booth.

“I’ll be right over there,” she said, pointing toward the crowd as though Jinx might need to know exactly where to find her.

Then she disappeared beneath the lights.

She moved through the crowd easily, slipping between people as if there were always space waiting for her. When she reached the dance floor, someone caught her hand and pulled her into the rhythm. She laughed, startled at first, then let herself be spun beneath the lights.

Jinx’s eyes followed every movement. Her body moved without hesitation, the pale fabric of her dress catching against her skin whenever she turned. Her hair flashed pink beneath the lights. Her smile came easily.

Everything about her did.

Jinx picked up her empty glass and rolled the straw between her fingers.

It would have been easy to look away.

Lux was sitting right beside her. There were dozens of other people in the room, lights crawling across the walls, music loud enough to occupy every corner of her mind.

Still, she stared. Like she wanted to find every reason Ekko might choose Seraphine and memorize them.

Like she wanted to hurt herself with the evidence.

She was so fucking pretty.

Not the kind of prettiness people had to squint at or justify it. Not the kind that came with warnings or explanations or a list of things to ignore.

Her gaze dragged slowly over her.

Soft face, beautiful body, sweet voice and bright eyes.

She imagined Ekko seeing her like this. His attention catching, that little smile appearing before he even realized he was doing it. His eyes following Seraphine through the room the way Jinx’s were now.

Of course he would look. Anyone would.

“She’s good,” Jinx murmured.

Lux looked toward the dance floor and replied right back. “She loves dancing.”

She was so into her little bubble that she almost forgot she wasn’t alone.

“That’s not what I meant.”

Lux glanced at her, but Jinx kept watching her anyway.

The song changed yet Seraphine stayed.

She adjusted immediately to the new rhythm, laughing when someone nearly collided with her, one hand coming up to steady them.

Jinx pressed her tongue against the inside of her cheek. “You think Ekko would like the dress?”

Lux was quiet for half a second too long. “I don’t know.”

“Sure you do.”

“No, I really don’t.”

Jinx hummed as though she didn’t believe her.

“I don’t think we need to discuss what Ekko likes women to wear.”

“Why not?”

“Because it’s strange.”

Jinx snorted. “You asked me twenty questions about sleeping in his bed, but this is strange?”

“I was teasing you.”

“Right.”

She turned back toward the dance floor.

Jinx tapped the straw against the inside of her glass. “You think they’d look good together?”

This time, Lux’s head turned fully toward her. “Seraphine and Ekko?”

“Who else?”

Lux studied her face. “Why are you asking me that?”

“Forget it.”

She could feel Lux still watching her. That careful attention made her skin crawl.

Jinx tried to imagine her in their apartment. Sitting at their table, laughing at one of Ekko’s stupid jokes. Wearing one of his shirts and finding her rings on his nightstand after having spent the night together.

The image formed far too easily, it made her stomach turn.

“She’s so damn nice, and he’s nice. They’d be cute.”

Lux’s brows drew together. “You don’t sound like you think it’s cute.”

“I do.”

“No, you don’t.”

Jinx laughed, but nothing about it felt amused. “What, you can read minds now?”

“No. You’re simply being obvious.”

She didn’t answer to that. Nothing she could say would help her case. So she just shut her mouth and kept looking forward.

When Lux’s voice came out again, it was way softer than it had been. “Jinx, I’m not judging you.” she took a slow breath. “I’m worried about you.”

“What?” her voice rose slightly. “You wanna ask if I’m jealous? Go ahead, seems like you’ve already decided.”

“I haven’t decided anything.”

“Bullshit.”

Her thoughts were moving too quickly now, tripping over one another before she could decide which ones were safe to say.

“You’ve been staring at me all night with that face,” she continued. “Like you know something. Like- like you’ve got me all figured out.”

“I’m trying to understand what’s wrong so I can help you,” Lux said calmly.

“Nothing’s wrong! What do you want me to say?”

“You’re drunk, upset, and taking it out on Seraphine when she has been nothing but kind to you.”

That landed too close, it did cause she knew it was the truth. Jinx’s smile sharpened.

“Aw, poor Seraphine.”

Lux’s eyes narrowed slightly. “That isn’t what I said.”

“No, but it’s what you meant.” Jinx leaned forward, lowering her voice. “She’s so sweet, right? So perfect. Wouldn’t want anyone hurting her feelings.”

“I’m asking you not to be cruel.”

“I haven’t done anything to her.”

“You’ve made several weird comments every time she said something so—“

“She’ll survive.”

Lux went still. She knew she should stop, she wanted to stop. She didn’t.

“Maybe go dance with her,” she said. “Since you’re so worried. You can both talk about how unstable I am.”

“I have never called you unstable.”

“You don’t have to. I know what you think.”

“No,” Lux said, her voice firmer now. “You know what you’re afraid I think. That isn’t the same thing.”

Jinx let out a short, ugly laugh. “God, there it is.”

“What?”

“That annoying little therapist shit. Did they teach you that at princess school?”

Jinx kept going, the hurt pushing every word out sharper than the last.

“You think because you talk all quiet and polite, it doesn’t count as looking down on people. But it does.”

“I’m not looking down on you.”

“Sure.”

“I’m sitting here because I care about you.”

“No, you’re sitting here because you feel sorry for me.”

“Enough, Jinx.”

Jinx’s mouth snapped shut.

For one second, neither of them moved. The music kept pounding around them, people laughing and talking only a few feet away, completely unaware of the sudden mess she had caused.

Lux held Jinx’s gaze. There was no pity in her expression, no careful softness for Jinx to twist into something ugly.

Only hurt.

“Whatever,” she muttered, folding her arms across her chest.

Lux exhaled slowly through her nose, then reached for her purse.

Jinx glanced back at her. “What are you doing?”

“I’m taking you home.”

“I don’t need you to take me anywhere!”

She didn’t even look up, Lux slid out of the booth without answering.

That somehow annoyed Jinx more than if she had argued.

“Blondie!” she called after her, but Lux was already moving toward the dance floor.

Jinx watched her weave through the crowd until she reached Seraphine. It didn’t take long for Seraphine to notice her. Jinx couldn’t hear the words, but Lux gestured subtly toward the booth. Seraphine followed the movement, her gaze finding Jinx almost immediately.

A few moments later, the two of them returned together.

Seraphine stopped beside the booth, a thin sheen of warmth still glowing across her cheeks from dancing. Concern had replaced the easy smile she’d worn beneath the lights.

“Hey,” she said gently.

Jinx picked at a damp corner of the napkin in front of her. “Hey.”

“Lux said you’re not feeling well.”

“I’m fine.”

Lux gave her a look.

Jinx rolled her eyes. “Apparently I’m not fine.”

Seraphine didn’t challenge her. She only nodded, adjusting the strap of her dress over her shoulder.

“You should probably get some rest.”

“Yeah. Maybe.”

There was an awkward beat. Then Seraphine stepped a little closer.

“I’m sorry tonight got weird,” she said quietly. “I really did want us to have fun.”

The sincerity in her voice made guilt crawl unpleasantly beneath Jinx’s skin.

She could add yet another thing she’d ruin to her list.

“You didn’t make it weird,” Jinx admitted, though the words nearly caught in her throat.

Seraphine’s expression softened. “Neither did you.”

That was generous. Far more generous than Jinx deserved at the moment.

Seraphine leaned down and wrapped her arms around her carefully, giving Jinx plenty of time to pull away.

For a second, Jinx sat stiffly beneath the embrace. Then one hand lifted and rested loosely against Seraphine’s back.

“Text me when you get home, okay?” Seraphine murmured.

“Sure.”

She pulled away and looked toward Lux. “Are you coming back?”

Lux nodded. “I’ll drop her off and come straight back. It shouldn’t take long.”

“You don’t have to,” Seraphine said. “I can head home too.”

“No, stay. You were having fun.”

Seraphine hesitated, glancing at Jinx again.

“I’m not dying, Pinkie,” Jinx muttered.

A small smile tugged at Seraphine’s mouth. “I know.”

“Go dance.”

“Okay.” she reached out and squeezed Jinx’s hand once. “Good night.”

“Night.”

Lux guided her away from the booth, one hand remaining steady at her arm. Jinx resisted for the first few steps purely on principle, but the room felt weirder than it had before, the lights bleeding into one another whenever she turned her head too quickly.

Before they reached the exit, Jinx looked back. She was still standing near the booth, watching them leave.

And it made her feel awfully and dangerously close to throwing up. Cause it wasn’t the first time she had left Seraphine alone in a bar when it hadn’t been her fault she couldn’t be bothered to behave.

It wasn’t the first time she had ruined something for her. And if she kept her around, it’d for sure happen again.

That’s what she did best, wasn't it? She jinxed everyone.

-

Ekko had tried going to bed. Twice, actually.

The first time, he had lasted all of ten minutes before reaching for his phone to check whether Jinx had texted. The second time, he had stared at the ceiling until the apartment felt too quiet, then given up and wandered back into the living room.

Now he sat at the edge of the couch, elbows resting on his knees, phone loose between his hands. She had been gone far longer than he had expected. He wasn’t worried, nor anxious. He simply couldn’t sleep without her.

Which was weird, honestly.

Nothing was stopping him from lying down and closing his eyes, the bed was right there and he was tired enough. And yet every time he tried, the empty space beside him felt too noticeable. Apparently, at some point, falling asleep had become something his body only knew how to do when she was there.

Then came a knock.

For half a second, he wondered whether he had imagined it, maybe he was already too far gone and hallucinating.

By the time he reached the door, he could hear muffled voices outside. Lux stood in the hallway with both hands buried deep in Jinx’s purse, and next to her Jinx stood beside her.

Her hair was messier than when she had left. Her eyeliner had smudged beneath her eyes, and one hand remained hooked through Lux’s arm.

But the moment she saw him, her face changed. Her mouth curved into a small smile.

“Hi,” she said.

“Hey.”

He barely got the word out before she stepped into him.

Ekko caught her automatically, one arm circling her waist as her weight tipped fully against him. She tucked her face into his neck and exhaled, her whole body softening as though she had been holding herself together until that exact moment.

The smell of alcohol reached him, so did her perfume.

She pressed a lazy kiss beneath his jaw, then another against his cheek. The third landed near the corner of his mouth when he turned his head toward Lux.

"Jinx—"

“Missed you,” she mumbled.

Ekko tightened his hold without thinking and chuckled into her hair. “You're so drunk.”

“'M not.” her fingers curled into the back of his shirt.

He looked at Lux over her shoulder, she finally pulled her hands free from the purse, her expression exhausted. She held the bag out to him.

“She drank too much.”

“I didn’t,” Jinx protested against his neck.

Ekko took the purse with his free hand. “How much?”

Lux just stared at him. “She hasn’t been sick. She’s just unsteady and somewhat impossible.”

“Look who's talking,” Jinx muttered.

Ekko felt his mouth twitch but kept his attention on Lux. “What happened?”

“Nothing happened,” Jinx answered immediately.

So quickly that it made Lux look toward her.

There was something in that small movement that made him decide not to ask again. Not in front of Lux, at least.

“She didn’t feel well,” Lux said after a moment. “So I brought her back.”

Then Jinx shifted closer and pressed another absent kiss against his neck, like she needed to reassure herself he was still there.

Something was not okay.

He could feel it in the way she clung to him. Jinx was this affectionate even sober, but usually there was mischief in it—a grin, a teasing comment, fingers slipping beneath his shirt just to distract him.

This was different.

But Lux seemed too tired to explain. “Make sure she drinks water,” she said.

“I will.”

“And don’t let her sleep on her back.”

“I know.”

Lux exhaled. “Right. Of course you do.”

Jinx lifted her head again, her eyes struggling to focus properly on Lux. “You’re leaving?”

“Yes.”

“You’re mad.”

She hesitated slightly. “I’m tired.”

“That’s not a no.”

Ekko felt Jinx tense against him.

Lux looked at her for a long moment, then adjusted the strap of her own purse. “We’ll talk later.”

Jinx’s expression tightened, but she nodded once. “Okay.”

The word came out smaller than everything else she had said. Ekko resumed rubbing her back, slow to steady her.

"Do you want me to walk with you to your car?"

"Nope, thanks. Keep an eye on her." Lux stepped toward the hallway, then paused beside him. “Good night.”

“Night, Lux.”

“Bye, Blondie,” Jinx called, still not letting go of him.

Lux raised one hand without turning around and continued toward the stairs. Ekko waited until she disappeared around the corner before closing the door.

She pressed one last kiss against his skin. Then murmured, “Knew you were awake.”

Ekko rested his cheek against the top of her head. “Yeah,” he said quietly. “I was waiting for you.”

He kept one arm around her as he guided them toward the couch.

Jinx went willingly, which was how he knew she was more tired than she wanted to admit. Usually, she would have complained about being managed or insisted she could walk perfectly fine while proving the opposite.

This time, she only stayed close.

He sat first, then helped her down beside him.

“Want something to eat?” he asked. “There’s still food left.”

“No.”

“Water?”

“No.” she repeated, already shifting.

Before he could argue, she stretched out across the couch and lowered her head onto his lap as if that had been her plan all along.

Ekko looked down at her. Her eyes were half closed, one cheek pressed against his thigh, blue hair spilling across him in a tangled mess.

“Comfortable?” he asked.

“Mhm.”

“That wasn’t one of the options.”

“Should’ve made it one.”

He sighed, but there was no real frustration in it. His fingers found her hair automatically, separating a few strands that had caught against one another before combing through them slowly. Her shoulders loosened, melting into him.

Ekko brushed his knuckles lightly over her temple, then down along her cheek. Her skin was warm beneath his hand.

“You sure you don’t feel sick?” he asked.

“The room’s a little stupid.”

He smiled faintly. “That’s not an answer.”

“It’s the one you’re getting.”

He let the questions go.

For a while, the apartment stayed quiet. Ekko continued running his fingers through her hair, smoothing it away from her face whenever it fell across her eyes. Jinx didn’t speak, that, more than anything, kept him alert.

She was rarely silent for this long unless she was asleep or trapped somewhere inside her own head. And when she disappeared into her thoughts, there was no telling what she would find there. He traced his thumb carefully beneath her eye, wiping away a dark smudge of eyeliner. Her gaze followed the movement, then drifted up to him.

“Do you like Seraphine?”

The question came so suddenly that his hand paused.

“What?”

“Seraphine,” Jinx repeated. “Do you like her?”

He frowned slightly, trying to work out where this had come from. “Of course. She’s nice.”

Something in Jinx’s expression changed. A tiny pull at the corner of her mouth, a flicker behind her eyes.

She looked away from him, focusing instead on the seam of his shirt near his waist.

“Do you like me?”

His brows drew together, it seemed like such an obvious question. Of course he liked her. They'd been friends since they were kids, she was his favorite person, he chose her every time without even thinking about it. Why would she suddenly need reassurance about something that had always been true?

“Blue, where’s this coming from?”

“You didn’t answer.”

“I want to know why you’re asking…”

“That’s not an answer either.”

Ekko stared at her. She was still lying with her head in his lap, his fingers tangled loosely in her hair, but something about her had gone rigid again.

Like she already knew the answer and was trying to survive hearing it.

“Of course I like you,” he said gently.

Her eyes lifted back to his. “How deep?”

Ekko blinked. “What?”

“How deep?” she repeated.

The words were quieter this time, but no less direct.

He searched her face, waiting for a grin, a joke, some sign that she was messing with him. Nothing came. “You mean how much?”

“No." Jinx frowned as though he were avoiding it. "How deep.”

Ekko’s hand went still against her cheek.

For the first time since she had come through the door, she looked completely sober. Not in her eyes—they were still heavy, unfocused around the edges—but in the question. There was nothing careless about that.

“How deep do you like me?”

Her voice cracked slightly on the last word as she looked away immediately, but it was too late.

His thumb moved gently along her cheek again, slower now. “Blue…”

She shut her eyes, the motion looked almost pained. Like she couldn't bear to watch him think about it, like every second of silence was hurting her.

“Just answer.”

He took a moment to look down at her.

At the tension gathered around her mouth. At the way she refused to meet his eyes now, like asking had already cost her more than she wanted him to know.

How deep did he like her?

The question should have been easy.

She was Jinx.

His best friend. The person whose voice could pull him out of his own head, whose laughter stayed with him long after it stopped.

She was in every part of his life.

In his room, in his clothes, in his mornings, and late nights, and every stupid little thought he saved because he knew she would understand it.

He knew how she took her showers, which side she slept on. The exact sound she made when she was trying not to laugh, how she was when she got sad, angry, or got trapped inside herself. He knew she liked flowers but never admitted it out loud cause 'flowers are cheesy'

He knew what it felt like to kiss her, to hug her, to hold her, to touch her. He knew how to make her feel good, what she liked and loved, what got a rise out of her and what made her see stars.

He knew what it was to want her, to taste her, to miss her before she had even left.

But how deep?

He had never measured it before, never needed to.

Whatever existed between them had grown so naturally that he had never stopped to separate it into pieces. Friendship, want, need, ache, habit… something else.

Something bigger.

Jinx shifted beneath his hand, the tiny movement pulled him from his thoughts.

“Well, I—”

Before he could say anything, she pushed herself upright.

She turned and climbed into his lap in one quick, unsteady motion, knees settling on either side of him. Ekko’s hands moved automatically to her waist to keep her from tipping backward.

Jinx caught the front of his shirt and leaned in. He realized what she was doing a second before her mouth reached his.

There was something almost desperate in the way she came toward him, like the kiss wasn’t only a kiss but an answer she needed from him.

If she was gonna be drunk, might as well be drunk in love.

But Ekko turned his head, her lips brushed the edge of his cheek instead.

The change in her face was immediate. The softness disappeared, replaced by something wounded and disbelieving that made his stomach churn.

“What the fuck was that?”

"Blue," Ekko kept his hands steady at her waist, moving his thumbs up and down. “You’re drunk.”

“So?”

“So I’m not kissing you when you’re like this.”

“Why not?” her expression twisted. “We kiss all the time, even when wasted.”

“I know that, but it doesn't feel okay if you are and I'm not.”

“No.” her grip tightened in his shirt. “Don’t do that.”

“Do what?”

"Don't give me that— that goodie-two-shoes talk!”

“That’s not what I’m doing.”

“It sounds like it.”

Each answer only seemed to push her further away, even though she was still sitting right there in his lap.

Ekko exhaled slowly. Her eyes had started shining, he noticed too late. “Hey,” he said, his voice softening immediately. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” she looked away.

The word came out brittle, barely holding together. He lifted one hand from her waist, reaching carefully toward her face.

“Talk to me, bunny.”

Jinx flinched back before he could touch her. The movement hit him harder than it should have.

She had never pulled away from him like that before.

Her mouth trembled once, barely. Then she pressed her lips together as if she could force it away.

“You don’t want me…”

The words came out so quietly he almost didn’t hear them.

Ekko’s chest felt like she had shot him just now. “What?”

She only shook her head.

“That’s not what this is.”

“Sure.”

“Jinx, look at me.”

She didn’t, a tear slipped free before she could stop it. Jinx wiped it away angrily with the heel of her hand before letting out a sound that almost sounded like a chuckle. “Could’ve fooled me.”

“Blue, I’m trying to—”

“I know what you're trying to do," she climbed off his lap so quickly that his hands fell away before he could steady her.

The sudden absence of her weight left his lap cold.

Her feet hit the floor unevenly, but she caught herself against the edge of the couch.

Ekko stood immediately. “Powder, can you please listen to me?”

She was already moving toward the hallway.

He stood and followed her a few steps. “Just talk to me—”

“There’s nothing to talk about!”

“Yes, there is. Could you—”

“No, there isn’t!” her voice cracked. That made her walk faster.

Every instinct told him to catch up, to turn her around and make her understand, but the way she had flinched from his hand stopped him.

He froze before reaching for her. The last thing he wanted was to make her feel trapped.

“Pow,” he called softly.

She reached her bedroom and shoved the door open. “Just leave me alone, Ekko.” then she disappeared inside.

The door slammed. A second later, he heard the lock click into place.

He stood in the hallway, staring at it. He didn’t move for a while, his mind replayed the question.

How deep?

Only minutes ago, she had been curled against him, asking for an answer he still didn’t know how to give. Now there was a locked door between them.

He lifted one hand and pressed it against the door. “Jinx?”

Silence. Not a single sound to be heard from the inside. He rested his forehead against the wood. “I do want you,” he said quietly.

No answer came from the other side.

And for the first time, Ekko wondered whether wanting her had ever been the problem.

Maybe the problem was that he had never stopped to ask himself what exactly that wanting meant.

His hand remained against the door, forehead resting lightly against it as he listened for anything that might tell him what to do.

At first, there was only breathing.

Heavy, uneven, broken every now and then by a small hitch that she was clearly trying to swallow before it became a sound.

He wanted to knock again. To tell her he hadn’t meant it like that, that turning away from the kiss had nothing to do with not wanting her. That if anything, wanting her had become so natural he had stopped questioning it altogether.

But every explanation he formed sounded wrong.

Too little, too late.

Too complicated.

Too much like something he should have understood before she had to ask. So he stayed quiet.

The floor beneath him grew uncomfortable, but he didn’t move. He listened to the uneven rhythm on the other side of the door and waited for it to soften.

Eventually, it did.

The breaths grew slower, farther apart. Then there was nothing but silence.

Ekko waited a little longer anyway, telling himself he was making sure she had fallen asleep and not merely gone still because she knew he was there.

When the silence didn’t change, he finally pushed himself away from the door.

The hallway felt colder without her in it, so he walked back to his room alone. Her side of the bed was still rumpled from earlier, the pillow carrying the faintest trace of her perfume.

He sat at the edge of the mattress and stared at it.

Her question followed him into the dark.

Sleep hadn't come easily. He had spent a long time staring at the ceiling, replaying the night over and over until exhaustion finally dragged him under.

Morning arrived slowly.

A thin strip of light crept through the curtains first, stretching across the floor until it reached the side of the bed Jinx had left empty.

Ekko woke facing it.

For a few seconds, he didn’t remember why she wasn’t there. Then everything returned at once. He pushed himself upright and rubbed both hands over his face.

He crossed the hallway and stopped outside her room. The door looked exactly as it had the night before—closed, unmoving.

He tried the handle carefully, it was still locked.

“Blue?” he called softly.

He considered knocking, then decided against it. She had asked him to leave her alone. Besides, he didn’t expect her to be awake at eight thirty in the morning, especially not hungover.

So he went to the kitchen.

He cooked more breakfast than he needed, partly out of habit and partly because doing something with his hands kept him from checking the hallway every thirty seconds. He served his own plate and set hers aside beneath a cover to keep it warm.

By nine, his breakfast had gone cold before he finished half of it. At ten, he reheated Jinx’s plate even though there was no sign she intended to come out. At eleven, he sat outside her door long enough to feel ridiculous.

She was probably sleeping. She had been drunk, exhausted, and upset. Sleep was good.

A locked door after crying herself quiet was considerably less normal, but Ekko tried not to let his mind follow that thought too far.

At twelve, the lock finally clicked.

He was sitting at the edge of his bed, pretending to work on something he had reread several times without understanding a word of it.

Footsteps moved through the hallway.

Slow, barely there. Then Jinx appeared in his doorway.

She was still wearing the dress from the night before, wrinkled now from sleeping in it. Her makeup had smudged farther beneath her eyes, and her hair fell loose and tangled around her shoulders.

She didn’t say anything, just stood outside his door for what felt like hours. Eventually she crossed the room and sat on the edge of his bed beside him, leaving only a few inches between them.

Ekko looked at her hands folded in her lap, at the faint swelling around her eyes. He reached for her carefully.

Jinx let him.

He hooked an arm around her waist and pulled her down with him, shifting back against the pillows until she was lying beside him. She turned into him almost immediately, her forehead settling near his collarbone.

Ekko wrapped both arms around her. He held her, she stayed. The tension that had lived in his body since the door locked finally began to loosen.

His hand traveled slowly along her back, smoothing over the wrinkled fabric of her dress.

“You slept in this?”

“Mhm.”

“You didn’t even take your shoes off?”

“No.”

“And you were comfy enough to sleep? Impressive.”

She made a small sound that might have been a laugh.

Ekko leaned back enough to see her face. “You feel sick?”

“My head hurts,” she admitted. “But it’s faint.”

“I saved you breakfast.”

“Later.”

He nodded.

Jinx looked down at his shirt, her fingers tracing absently over it. She seemed calmer than the night before, but not quite okay. Like she had come to him because staying away hurt more, not because the hurt itself had disappeared.

Ekko brushed a loose strand of hair away from her face.

Her eyes lifted to his.

“Can I have a kiss now?” she asked quietly. Then, before he could answer, something strange slipped into her expression. “Or are you gonna pull away again?”

The words struck exactly where she intended them to.

Ekko didn’t explain. Didn’t remind her that she had been drunk or tell her he had only been trying to do the right thing.

Instead, he slid one hand gently behind her neck and leaned in.

The kiss was soft.

Careful at first, like both of them were waiting to see whether the other might change their mind. Then Jinx’s fingers tightened in his shirt, and Ekko pulled her closer, his thumb brushing slowly beneath her ear.

When they parted, Jinx stayed close enough that their noses touched.

Ekko rested his forehead against hers. His thumb moved gently along the side of her neck.

“I’m sorry I made you feel like I didn't wanna kiss you.”

She didn’t tell him it was okay, he didn’t expect her to. Jinx only nodded and closed her eyes. Cause he didn't say he wanted her, not last night, not right now. 

Instead, she leaned forward and kissed him again.

After that, neither of them said much. They didn’t need to.

Jinx shifted closer until there was barely any space left between them, one leg tangling with his beneath the blankets. Ekko adjusted around her automatically, making room where there wasn’t any and pulling her against his chest like that was where she had been meant to settle all along.

They were good at this part.

At fitting together without asking. At knowing when to hold tighter and when to loosen. At letting silence stretch without turning it into something uncomfortable.

Jinx traced lazy shapes over his shirt, following seams and folds with the tips of her fingers. Every now and then, she would tilt her face up and press a small kiss somewhere within reach.

His chin, his jaw, the corner of his mouth.

Ekko returned every one. Sometimes before she had even pulled away. 

The room stayed still around them. Sunlight had climbed higher across the floor, warming the edge of the bed.

He bent and kissed the top of her hair when the sun made the blue shine so bright.

She shifted up again almost immediately, chasing his mouth this time. Ekko met her halfway, one hand settling at her waist as she curled closer.

It was a ridiculous amount of kissing.

Small ones between breaths. Sleepy ones with barely any movement. Ones that ended in quiet smiles and then started again because neither of them had gone very far.

But for now, Jinx was in his arms again. Her breathing was soft against his skin, her fingers curled loosely into his clothes, and every few minutes she lifted her head for another kiss as though she couldn’t quite help herself.

Ekko never made her ask twice.

-

The next few days passed easily after that.

Neither of them brought up the question again. Not the way Jinx had asked it, not the way Ekko had failed to answer, and not the locked door between them afterward.

Instead, they slipped back into the rhythm they already knew.

They went to class together most mornings, Jinx stealing sips from his coffee despite insisting hers tasted better. Ekko carried whatever she got tired of holding halfway through the day, and she sat through his lectures only to draw increasingly stupid things across the margins of his notes.

At home, things were even simpler.

Most nights ended with them tangled together beneath the blankets, exchanging sleepy kisses until one of them drifted off.

It felt normal again. Better than normal, maybe.

By the end of the week, even Ekko had almost stopped thinking about it. Almost.

They were all crowded around the same table at lunch when Seraphine brought it up again.

Ez had spent the last five minutes arguing with Kayn over meaningless shit. Lux sat between them, attempting to finish her food while occasionally telling both of them to stop acting twelve.

Jinx barely followed any of it.

She sat close enough to Ekko that their thighs pressed together beneath the table, one hand loosely wrapped around his wrist while he ate with the other. Every so often, he nudged something from his tray toward her. She accepted each offering without acknowledgment.

Seraphine looked up from her phone. “My presentation is this Sunday,” she said.

Lux immediately smiled. “Are you nervous?”

“A little.” Seraphine tucked a strand of her pink hair behind her ear. “Rehearsal went well yesterday, but I keep thinking I’m going to forget every word the second I get onstage.”

“You won’t,” Ez said. “And even if you do, just make something up. Nobody knows your songs better than you.”

“That might be the first useful thing you’ve ever said,” Kayn remarked.

“I say useful things constantly.”

“No,” Lux said while laughing.

Ekko laughed beneath his breath, and Jinx felt it where her shoulder rested against his arm.

Seraphine smiled. “I’m serious. I’ve performed before, but this one feels different. There are going to be professors there, and people from the music department, and my parents—”

“You’ll be great,” Ekko said simply.

Seraphine’s eyes shifted toward him. “You think so?”

“I know so.”

She giggled back. “Thanks.”

Jinx’s fingers tightened almost imperceptibly around his wrist.

The bell rang before Seraphine could--thankfully--say anything else.

Lux and Ez disappeared into the crowd together, Kayn said something in her ear Jinx didn't really hear before leaving with them. She rose with Ekko, still holding his hand. She slung her bag over one shoulder while he picked up her phone she had left on the table.

They had made it only a few steps when Seraphine called after them.

“Ekko, wait!” she hurried closer, clutching her phone against her chest. Her gaze flickered briefly toward Jinx before settling on Ekko.

“So, about Sunday…” she began.

Jinx felt Ekko’s thumb brush absentmindedly across the back of her hand.

“I have an extra ticket,” Seraphine continued. “And I was wondering if maybe you’d want to come?”

There it was, the same invitation Jinx had spent half the previous weekend drinking herself stupid over.

Except this time, she was standing right there.

Sober, holding his hand.

Ekko looked mildly surprised. “Me?”

“Yeah.” Seraphine smiled, a little nervous now. “You said you like my songs so... thought it might be nice if you actually got to see the finished thing.”

Jinx watched his face. Watched the answer form before he said it.

“Sure,” Ekko replied. “If that's what you want.”

Seraphine’s entire face brightened. “Really?”

“Yeah. Just send me the time and address.”

“Sure, thank you!”

Before he could respond, Seraphine stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him.

Ekko released Jinx’s hand to return the hug.

Only for a second, barely anything. Still, the sudden emptiness in Jinx’s palm felt colder than it should have.

Seraphine pulled away, smiling widely, then turned toward Jinx as though including her was the most natural thing in the world.

“Bye, Jinx!” she hugged her before Jinx could answer.

Jinx remained stiff for half a sec, then lifted one arm and rested it lightly against Seraphine’s back.

“I’ll see you both later!”

Then she hurried off toward her next class, pink hair disappearing into the stream of students.

Ekko reached for Jinx’s hand again. She let him take it. Her face remained calm as they started walking.

Serious, perhaps.

Nothing more.

She shouldn’t have felt like anything had changed. Shouldn't have felt like her heart was breaking bit by bit uncontrollably.

Their fingers falling back together as naturally as they always did. He walked her to class, kissed her temple before heading to his own, and texted her barely twenty minutes later to complain about his professor.

Everything was normal. As normal as they could be.

They were stretched across the couch later that afternoon, Jinx’s legs resting over his lap while he worked on his laptop and she pretended to watch something on her phone, when a message appeared in the group chat she clearly didn't want to be in.

Seraphine 16:44
Do you guys think Ekko would wanna come to my final rehearsal tomorrow?
It might help me feel less nervous lol

Jinx stared at it. A second later, the typing bubble appeared beneath the message.

Blondie 16:44

If he’s free, he might

You should ask him 

Her thumb hovered over the keyboard.

She could have said he was busy. Could have reminded Seraphine that he was already attending the actual presentation. Could have said anything that made asking him twice sound unnecessary without admitting why it bothered her.

Instead, she typed,

16:46
ask him

Seraphine 16:47
Okayyy I will

Jinx locked her phone and dropped it against her chest.

Beside her, Ekko kept studying, completely unaware that she had just invited another girl to invite him somewhere.

That was fine. If Seraphine wanted him there, she should ask. If Ekko wanted to go, he should go. And if he didn’t, then he would say no.

Simple as that.

His phone buzzed against the cushion a moment later. She tried not to watch his face as he read the message. Tried and failed.

His brows lifted slightly. “Sera wants me to come to her final rehearsal tomorrow.”

Jinx looked back at her own phone. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.” he glanced toward her. “You think I should go?”

Jinx shrugged, keeping her eyes on the blank screen in front of her. “Looks like she wants you there.”

“I know, but do you think I should?”

There were a hundred answers she wanted to give.

'No' 'Stay here' 'You’re already going Sunday' 'Why does she need you there twice?'

But none of them were safe. Every one of them sounded too much like what they were. Jealous, possessive...

In love.

So she turned the question back on him. “Do you wanna be there?”

Ekko looked down at the message again.

He didn’t particularly care about attending a rehearsal. He had already agreed to the real presentation, and spending another afternoon in an auditorium hadn’t exactly been part of his plans.

But Seraphine sounded thrilled to have him there.

“She seems excited,” he said.

“Then go,” she said, her voice light enough to almost pass. “Wouldn’t wanna let her down.”

Ekko studied her briefly. “You sure?”

He was giving her every opportunity to tell him the truth, and Jinx hated him a little for making it her responsibility.

She forced a small smile. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“Alright,” he said.

Jinx watched his thumbs move across the screen. She leaned in a bit forward to catch a glimpse of the exchange. Only that stupid little pink heart she always seemed to use. 

Ekko set his phone aside and rested one hand on her ankle, his thumb moving absently over her skin as he returned to his work.

She lay there beneath his touch, staring at her phone without seeing it, and tried not to think about how easily she had helped arrange the very thing she didn’t want to happen.

What happened next wasn’t something she was proud of. Not that she ever felt proud of her actions.

Her legs remained across his lap, but the rest of her seemed to retreat somewhere he couldn’t follow. When his hand settled on her ankle again, she shifted under the excuse of getting comfortable. When he leaned over to kiss her temple, she accepted it without turning to catch his mouth.

Jinx looked away before he could see the corner of her mouth twitch. It should have worked. Usually, it did.

But then she got up under the excuse of “needing to do an assignment.”

That was when he knew something wasn’t okay.

She never willingly chose schoolwork over lying all over him.

Ekko watched her cross the room and drop into the chair at the kitchen table, putting as much furniture between them as the apartment allowed. She pulled a roll of blueprints toward herself and flattened them with unnecessary force.

He stared at the back of her head for a moment. At least she was still near and not gone. 

Ekko closed his laptop, Jinx heard it but didn’t turn around.

“What’re you working on?”

“Stuff.”

“Yeah, no shit.”

She made no response.

Usually, that would have earned him an insult. At the very least, she would have told him to fuck off with enough affection in her voice to make it meaningless.

This time, there was only the quiet scratch of her pencil.

Ekko leaned back against the couch, watching her shoulders remain rigid beneath her shirt. He trusted her, he had learned long ago that pressing too hard when she insisted she was fine could make her feel cornered.

But leaving her alone when she wasn’t fine felt worse.

He rose from the couch and walked toward the stove.

Jinx followed him with her eyes only after his back was turned. A few minutes later, he returned carrying two mugs. The right amount of sugar, more milk than coffee, warm enough to drink immediately because she never had the patience to wait.

He held it out without looking, and she reached for it automatically.

Their fingers brushed.

The touch was so warm, gentle, thoughtless. And it hurt.

Because he would hold her hand, kiss her, sleep wrapped around her, then look genuinely confused when she wanted any of it to mean something.

The moment they touched, she let go.

The mug slipped from her hand before she even realized her grip had loosened and struck the edge of the table. Coffee spilled across the surface, running over the blueprints she had been hunched over for the last hour.

Ekko reacted instantly, reaching for the cup before it could roll onto the floor.

“Shit. Hold on, I’ll get—”

Jinx shot to her feet so fast the chair scraped hard against the floor. “This is your fucking fault to begin with!”

Ekko froze with the overturned mug in his hand. The easy concern on his face disappeared, replaced by complete bewilderment.

“What?”

“You heard me.” her heart was already beating too hard. The accusation had escaped before she could stop it, dragging everything else toward the surface with it. An accusation not even aimed at him, but at herself. 

Ekko slowly set the mug upright. “How is any of this my fault?”

The blueprints were ruined. Coffee spread through the thin paper, blurring ink into shapeless stains.

Jinx barely saw them, yet she really couldn't care less about them.

“I hate when you act like you don’t know shit,” she muttered. 

His brows pulled together.

He had spent the past hour trying to make her smile. He had asked whether she was okay, given her space when she dismissed him, brought her coffee exactly how she liked it.

Now she was looking at him as though he had knowingly done something cruel.

“And I hate when you act like I’m supposed to guess what’s up with you.”

“You used to always know what was up with me.” her voice sharpened, but pain slipped through beneath it. “When did you stop?”

Ekko’s confusion faltered, replaced for one brief moment by hurt. He had never stopped trying to understand her. He had built half his life around it.

“Maybe when you started acting so weird.”

Jinx laughed, but there was nothing amused in the sound. “Am I, Ekko?” she spread her arms slightly. “Am I acting weird?”

“Yes!” the word came out louder than he intended. “God, Jinx, I don’t even know how to fight with you. We never used to fight like this!”

“We never used to do a lot of stuff.” she said between teeth while shaking her head. Hands uselessly patting coffee away.

His mind supplied flashes he hadn’t asked for. Her mouth, her body tucked into his bed. The way she reached for him in her sleep. The way everything between them had changed while somehow staying the same.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Jinx saw the uncertainty cross his face and hated him for it.

Hated that he knew exactly what she meant but still needed her to say it. Hated that he could live inside the answer without ever asking the question.

“You are the stupidest person I’ve ever met. D’you know that?”

“I don’t even know why you’re mad!”

“See?” her eyes burned. She threw one hand up before he could notice. “Stupid.”

She turned away. She needed to leave before anger gave way to something more humiliating. Before she cried or confessed or asked him to stay with her instead.

She had barely taken two steps when his voice stopped her.

“No.” there was enough force behind it to make her glance back.

Ekko stood between her and the hallway now, jaw tense, his hands hanging uselessly at his sides. “You’re not going to do that.”

“Do what?”

“Walk away.” he gestured between them. “We’re talking.”

“I’m tired of talking.”

“You haven’t talked at all, Jinx! That's the damn problem!”

She stepped to one side, he moved with her.

He didn’t touch her. He only stood there, eyes fixed on hers, looking more wounded every time she refused to meet them.

“Could you just use your fucking words and tell me what’s wrong?”

“Could you use your fucking brain?”

“I am trying!”

“Well, you’re not trying good enough!”

The words tore out of her, they echoed through the apartment, followed by the sound of both of them breathing.

Ekko dragged a hand over his face.

He felt as if he were solving an equation while Jinx kept erasing half the information. Every answer he offered seemed to make her angrier, and every question sounded like proof that he didn’t know her anymore.

Then he remembered when it had started.

His eyes narrowed slightly. “Is it about Sera?”

Jinx’s entire body felt like it was breaking, like it was falling into the ground piece by piece. Her reaction was small, but Ekko caught it.

“Sera, Sera, Sera,” she repeated bitterly. “Everything is about freaking Seraphine lately.”

His confusion shifted into disbelief. “You were the one who told me to go in the first place!”

“You’re an idiot.”

“Really, Jinx?”

“You don’t get it, do you?”

“No!” his restraint finally broke. “That’s why I’m fucking asking, but you won’t tell me!”

“Because you don’t understand anything!” her voice cracked around the words. “Even if I did, you wouldn’t get it!”

“Then help me get it!”

The anger fell out of his voice on the final word. It wasn’t a demand anymore, it was a plea.

Jinx stared at him. For one dangerous second, the truth pressed against the back of her teeth. But she swallowed the words down, cause every single explanation she could give felt like holding a gun to her own head. 

I told you to go because I wanted you to choose me anyway. I wanted you to know without making me ask, because if I ask and you still choose her, I don’t know what I’ll do.

Her mouth opened. “I—”

The hope in his expression made fear close around her throat. “I’m tired,” she said instead. Her gaze dropped to the floor. “I didn’t take my meds. That’s all.”

Silence.

Ekko stared at her, his chest rising and falling too quickly. He knew what she looked like when she had missed them. He knew that exhaustion could sharpen everything and make feelings harder to contain.

But he also knew when she was using it to make him stop asking. He knew when she lied cause those beautiful, sore eyes told the truth. 

“Bullshit.”

Jinx flinched as if the word had struck her.

“Just forget it, Ekko.”

“No.” he stepped closer, lowering his voice even while frustration still shook through it. “I want to understand how you feel.”

The sincerity was unbearable.

“And I want you to shut the fuck up!”

She turned toward the hallway, he followed anyway.

“I’m trying to make things right!”

Every step behind her made the pressure inside her build. He was trying now.

Trying after agreeing to go. Trying after smiling at Seraphine’s message. Trying only because Jinx had become impossible to ignore, not because he had understood why she was hurting.

She reached her bedroom door and wrapped her hand around the knob.

“Why don’t you go and see if Sera can help you get it right, huh?”

Ekko stopped behind her.

“What does she have to do with any of this?”

Jinx closed her eyes. That question nearly hurt more than anything else. “You don’t know shit.”

“You told me to go!”

She spun around, her back striking the door. “And why would you listen to me?”

“Because that’s just what I do,” he said.

Her fingers tightened around the doorknob behind her as he stepped closer.

“Everything I do is because of you!”

Her breath caught so sharply it hurt.

He heard it this time. His own words seemed to surprise him, but once they were out, more followed before he could understand what they meant.

“And you know what? I don’t mind it in the slightest.” his voice lowered, roughened by everything he had spent the entire day holding back. “I like you being the one who makes me want to do things."

He was too close now, close enough for her to see the frustration still burning in his eyes. Close enough to see the hurt underneath it.

“I like everything about you,” he continued. “And I’ve already told you that before.”

She wanted to scream that it wasn’t the same.

Liking her wasn’t loving her. Wanting her wasn’t choosing her.

But the conviction in his voice kept stealing the anger from her, leaving nowhere for it to go except inward.

Her back pressed more firmly against the door as Ekko moved closer. He placed one hand beside her head.

“Shit, I even like you screaming at me and cussing me out.” he said as he shook his head and chuckled a bit.

His other hand settled against the door near her shoulder. He had trapped her between his body and the wood without quite realizing it, but Jinx didn’t feel trapped, she felt surrounded.

By his warmth, his anger, his attention, his voice...

By the unbearable fact that even now, he was looking at her as if nothing else mattered until he understood.

“You know what I don’t like, though?”

Jinx swallowed.

“You refusing to tell me how you feel.”

Jinx could hear every breath he took. Could feel the faint warmth of it against her face. His arms boxed her in, but there was still space between their bodies, a thin and trembling distance neither of them seemed willing to cross first.

She was still furious. But he was standing there saying everything he knew how to say.

Everything except the right thing.

Her gaze moved over his face. The crease between his brows, the tension in his jaw, his lips, parted slightly as he waited for her to finally trust him with something true.

His stupid, earnest, beautiful face.

Jinx’s heart slammed violently against her ribs. She was so angry, so jealous, so painfully in love with him it felt like she was suffocating. His closeness made everything worse—the warmth of his body, the familiar scent, the way he looked at her like she mattered even when they were screaming.

It hurt too much. She wanted to stop hurting.

“And I don’t like your fucking beautiful face,” she spat, voice low, trembling with everything she couldn’t say. Then, she grabbed his shirt and pulled him down. Her mouth met his before he could ask again.

The kiss wasn’t gentle.

It carried every word she had swallowed. Every accusation she couldn’t explain without confessing too much. Every frightened, selfish part of her that needed him close even while she wanted to punish him for not knowing why.

His hand left the door and closed around her waist, pulling her against him with enough force to steal her breath. The anger hadn’t left him either, she could feel it in the way his fingers tightened, in the way he kissed her like he was still trying to drag an answer from her.

Jinx only clutched his shirt harder.

This was easier, they knew how to do this. No guessing, or explaining, and definitely no words twisted into weapons before either of them could take them back.

Only him, only the familiar shape of his mouth and the certainty of his hands.

She reached blindly behind herself until her fingers found the handle. The door opened beneath her weight. Jinx stumbled backward, dragging Ekko with her.

He caught the door before it slammed into the wall, then barely had time to turn back before she pulled him in again.

Jinx kept walking backward until the backs of Ekko’s knees struck the bed. He fell onto the mattress with a startled breath, looking up at her with flushed cheeks and an expression caught somewhere between frustration and disbelief.

“Funny,” he said, slightly breathless, “how you just said you hate my fucking face.”

Jinx climbed over him, one knee pressing into the mattress beside his hip. “I said I hate your fucking beautiful face.”

Despite everything, the corner of his mouth lifted. “Your words don’t match your actions, baby.”

The teasing softness in his voice nearly undid her. Because it was him being affectionate again.

Enough to let her know he didn't resent her at least.

The one who would let her scream until she ran out of anger, then still find a way to make her smile.

“Shut up and kiss me.”

He searched her face. She knew what he was looking for: a sign that this wasn’t another way of running. A reason to stop. Some indication that she didn’t truly want him there.

She gave him none. So he lifted one hand to her cheek and kissed her and she closed her eyes.

She didn’t want to think anymore, to explain that seeing him wanted by someone else made terror claw through her chest.

She needed him to make the ache quiet.

Needed his hands to remind her that he knew her body even when he couldn’t understand her heart, and his mouth against hers until she could forget there was still a question between them.

More than anything, she wanted to feel chosen. Even temporarily, even without the word.

So she kissed him harder and let the rest disappear.

It was hard at first, almost desperate and angry, hands gripping too tight, mouths crashing together as if they could solve everything with heat and friction. Then it slowed, turning deeper, more intense, until they were both gasping and trembling, lost in each other.

Clothes were torn off and tossed across the floor. Now, nothing else existed.

Ekko lay beside her, their limbs so tightly intertwined she could barely tell where she ended and he began. The sheets were warm and messy around them. His face was buried in her chest, warm breath fanning softly across her bare skin with every slow exhale.

One of his arms circled her waist, the other hand loosely tangled in her hair. His legs were knotted with hers, skin against skin, his weight a comforting pressure that made her feel both safe and terribly fragile.

After a long stretch of silence, he finally spoke, voice low and muffled against her skin.

“Are you awake?”

“Mhm,” Jinx hummed softly.

“Are we… good?” he asked, still not lifting his head.

“Yeah. Yes,” she answered quickly, maybe too quickly as she had been doing recently. “You feel like we aren’t?”

“I don’t know…” Ekko murmured, his fingers tightening slightly in her hair. “But… you do know you can tell me anything, right?”

“I do.” she swallowed hard. “You’re my best friend, after all.”

"Yeah…" he nodded slowly against her chest, the movement small and heavy at once. "Best friend," then he went quiet again, didn't say anything for long enough for her to believe he fell asleep.

If he woke up tomorrow, picked his clothes off the floor—the same ones she had torn off him earlier in a haze of anger and need—and went with Seraphine then fine.

She wouldn’t say anything. She never did.

He could help Seraphine with her songs, he could look at her like she was the only one in the room. He could fall in love with her if he wanted to, and Jinx would have no right to do anything except stand there and watch it happen with her hands shoved in her pockets and her mouth full of blood from biting her tongue.

Ekko wasn’t hers.

And maybe the bitter truth was that he had never been hers. She could say he was, but he had never said it. And what's a word without ever being spoken? Nothing.

But right now he was here—naked and warm. He had moaned her name, whimpered against her neck, kissed every inch of her body like he couldn’t get enough.

She had him in the morning, at night, when she studied, when she slept, when she woke up, when she showered, when she didn't want to be alone, when she wanted to kiss him, when she needed to just be held.

She told herself she didn’t care, trying desperately to believe it.

If they were going to keep pretending without ever naming it then fine. She wasn’t going to be the one to ruin everything by asking stupid questions she didn't want answers for.

She had already tried once and it went like shit. Ended up with her curled up on her bedroom floor crying herself to sleep. Drunk, cold, alone.

She refused to let her doubts and jealousy scare him away. Because deep down, she was terrified that the moment she said anything, he would realize this was a mistake—that she was a mistake—and he would leave.

She wasn’t ready to lose him. Not now, not ever.

Even if tomorrow he'd wake up and leave her all alone. Wasn't that what she had wanted? What she had asked for? Even when she didn't mean it, that's what she asked.

It didn't make sense at all.

It would be easier to hate her if only she were mean or spiteful toward Jinx, but she wasn’t. Seraphine was so fucking nice. She didn’t even seem to see Jinx as a threat, and that stung worse than anything. Did their connection really look that casual from the outside?

Or was Jinx the only one who thought it meant something more?

What if Ekko was only waiting for something better, killing time? The thought alone made her want to throw up.

No, Ekko would never do something as twisted as that, no. He was sweet, and caring, and if you looked up the definition of gentle, she was sure his face would show up.

Refusing to let the ache in her chest grow any bigger, Jinx closed her eyes and pressed a soft, lingering kiss to the crown of his head.

Her hand slid slowly up his bare back, savoring the warmth of his skin and the firm lines of muscle beneath her fingertips. When she reached his hair, she threaded her fingers through the soft strands, gently stroking as her heart clenched with too many feelings she couldn’t name.

This was enough. It had to be enough.

With one last quiet breath against his hair, she let her eyes drift shut, clinging to the illusion of peace while she still could.

Jinx loved Ekko, a bit too much. She was aware of it.

She loved him, it was ruining her life.