Oh, Calamity!

After sitting in my parking spot and taking a good chunk of time to calm myself down, before finally picking my phone up off of the floor of my car and checking my missed calls, eyes stinging from all the crying. 5 missed calls from Jack, and 1 from Will. With a sigh, I called my boyfriend back, trying not to fly off the handle again.
“Hey babe,” he greeted cheerily. “I was just thinking about stopping by your place. Is that alright?”
“I’m not home right now actually. I got a little bit of cabin fever and went out for a drive. I’m not sure when I’ll get back, but I’ll let you know when I am, okay?” I said, my voice cracking slightly.
“Are you okay? You sound like you’ve been crying.” he mentioned.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Don’t worry about it. Listen, I really gotta go, but we’ll hang out later,” I replied.
“Sure. I’ll see you soon. Love you,” he said sincerely.
A small smile crept across my lips. “I love you too, Will.”
We finished our goodbyes and I hung up, deliberating where I should go next. I adored Will, but I wasn’t really prepared to see him yet. I needed someplace to go and think, to be alone with my thoughts. I put my car into drive and got back onto to the road with one destination. A place I hadn’t been to in over 7 years.
In 15 minutes or so, I arrived at the park on Thames and South Broadway where Jack and I used to go all the time. I didn’t know why I wanted to go here, but there I was. My heart ached slightly when I saw the hill, so I avoided it and and instead sat on a swing, kicking at the wood chips on the ground and twisting the chain. For a moment, I wasn’t troubled with my memories of being a teenager, but enjoying my childhood a little, back before my life was a total mess, even before I knew Luna. I smiled to myself, content.
“I thought I’d find you here,” a voice said.
I swear my heart stopped when I looked up and saw Jack. I clenched my jaw before speaking. “What do you want?”
He sat down on the swing beside me, looking at me intently. “You and I seriously need to talk.”
“Don’t you think we’ve done enough of that?” I mentioned.
He let out a small chuckle. “Honestly, no. As much as I hate being serious, we have a bunch of shit to sort through.”
“How did you know you’d find me here?” I asked, changing the subject.
He shrugged. “It was the last place I thought you’d go, so I looked here first.”
I shook my head. “I thought you would’ve figured out not to go looking for me when I didn’t answer your calls.”
“I didn’t want to leave it on such bad terms. After all, we’re supposed to be working together.” he said.
“We are the last people on this planet that should be working together. You and I can’t be in the same room together without hurting someone.” I commented.
His eyebrows furrowed in concern. “What do you mean?”
I sighed. “Let’s see, I’ve been reunited with my old high school group for what? Maybe 2, 3 weeks? I feel like every time I’ve been around you, we either fight, or talk so much that we leave Will and Robin out. It’s so ridiculous.”
“So? We can stop fighting and make more of an effort to-” he began.
“That’s not what I’m saying, Jack,” I replied.
“Then what are you saying?” he questioned.
“Maybe this whole ‘let’s be friends’ thing is going to work out. There’s too much history between us to go back to the way it was before,” I explained.
He was speechless for a moment. “Nora, we can’t just act like we hate each other for the rest of our lives.”
“We can be civil, just not friends. I mean, obviously, we can’t even be alone together,” I replied.
“Then that’s exactly what we should do,” he declared, like he had an epiphany.
I stared at him blankly for a moment before scoffing and standing up from my seat, beginning to walk away. “You’re an idiot.”
He caught me by the wrist, forcing me to look into his eyes. “Hear me out, okay? You and I, when we first met, we didn’t become best friends in a moment. We got together because of the others, We need them to keep us from hurting each other until we can figure out how to get over all the bullshit of the past.”
He was right. I couldn’t just expect things to be all dandy when we haven’t really tried. “So you want us to retrace our steps? Start from the beginning again?”
“Exactly. I mean, it couldn’t hurt to try, right?” he said.
I paused. “I don’t know, Jack.”
“Don’t do it for me. Do it for Luna and Alex, since they need us to work together,” he stated.
“That’s not fair. You know I would do anything in my power for Luna,” I mentioned.
“That’s kinda the point,” he replied, trying not to smile.
I paused. “Fine, whatever. We’ll try to buddies again. Though I guess I don’t have much choice.”
He grinned from ear to ear like an excited child. “Thank you, Nora! I’ll make it up to you somehow.”
I glanced at my phone, checking the time briefly. “I should go. I promised Will I would hang out with him tonight.”
I thought I saw Jack’s smile falter a little. “Right,” he said, clearing his throat. “But you have to make our treaty official first.”
For a half a second, I thought he was going to make me seal our promise with a kiss, but then he extended his arms toward me. Hesitantly, I moved forward to hug him, surprised to feel his warm embrace again. I could’ve stayed there forever, breathing him in, but then I remember he wasn’t mine.
With that, we bid goodbye and I headed back to my apartment. I unlocked the door and got out my cell phone to call Will, only to find he was standing in the middle of my living room with a bouquet of roses. He smiled sweetly at me. “Surprise.”
I couldn’t help but grin back. “What’s this for?”
“You sounded upset, so I thought I’d try and cheer you up,” he replied. “I hope you aren’t mad I borrowed your spare key for this.”
I shook my head. “No, it’s perfect.”
I moved forward to kiss him, but was interrupted by my cell phone ringing. “You should get that,” he said.
I nodded, unlocking my phone and answering it. “Hello?”
I was greeted by Alex’s frantic voice, mumbling and making what sounded like sobs so much that I could only make out one word. “Luna.”
“Alex, slow down a little, alright? What’s going on?” I questioned, fear rising in my gut.
I heard a sniffle on the other line. “We need you, Nora. Luna, she...I just need your help. How fast can you get here?”
“Where are you?” I wondered, already beginning to fish for my car keys.
“John Hopkins Hospital,” he replied.
My eyes widened, and I nearly dropped my phone. I knew exactly what was happening, but that didn’t stop me from dreading what was to come. “I’ll be right there, just hang tight okay? Keep her safe.”
I hung up, shouting an apology to Will as I ran out the door. This had happened before, but I never thought I’d have to experience anything like it again. I tried to ignore the feeling of worry gnawing at me and instead focused on driving. I would do anything in my power for Luna, and right now, that involved breaking traffic laws. I couldn’t get there fast enough.

Notes

CLIFFHANGER!!!! Sorry about that, but I've already started the next chapter, so you shouldn't have to wait long. :D LOVE YOU GUYS!!!