#jkkyks

Jaafar sighed. “Don’t.”

“You’ve been getting those every five minutes.”

“I know.”

The phone started vibrating again, his friend lifted both hands. “I’m not saying anything.”

“Good.”

“She’s gonna kill you though.”

Jaafar grabbed the phone before it could ring a fourth time and answered.

“Hey.”

“Where are you?”

He pinched the bridge of his nose.

“I’m with my friends.”

“You said you’d be home a while ago.”

“I know.”

“So why aren’t you?”

His jaw tightened slightly. “Maddie, I’m twenty minutes late.”

“Twenty-five.”

He stared at the ceiling. “Seriously?”

“I’m asking a question.”

“No, you’re not.”

Silence filled the call, the kind that made him instantly regret answering.

“I’ll be home soon.”

“Fine.”

The line went dead, Jaafar stared at the phone which made his friend raised an eyebrow.

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah.”

It came out automatically, the same answer he’d been giving everyone for months.

Twenty-five minutes later he walked through the front door and immediately knew things weren’t fine.

Maddie was sitting on the couch staring at the television which wasn’t on, the second the door clicked shut behind him she looked up.

“There he is.”

Jaafar dropped his keys onto the table. “Maddie.”

“You know what?”

She laughed once with a bitter tone. “Fame really changed you.”

“There it is.”

“There what is?”

“That thing you do.”

“What thing?”

He shrugged off his jacket. “The thing where everything becomes a bigger deal than it needs to be.”

Her expression hardened immediately. “Jaafar?.”

“No seriously.”

“No. Seriously. what?”

“You’ve been acting like my manager since the biopic came out.”

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me.”

Maddie stood. “Making sure my fiancé gets home safely is being a manager now?”

“Tracking where I am every hour isn’t normal.”

“I worry about you.”

“You don’t trust me.”

The words landed harder than he expected, because part of him knew they were true.

Maddie stared at him, hurt flashing across her face. “After ten years together you think I don’t trust you?”

Jaafar dragged a hand through his hair. “I think you’ve forgotten I’m still my own person.”

“Oh, that’s rich.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means ever since the movie happened you’ve been acting weird.”

His chest tightened, because she wasn’t entirely wrong either.

“YOU are the one acting as if am slipping away and trapping me.”

Maddie’s face fell, “You don’t really mean that.”

The room went quiet and Jaafar looked away first.

Because he did mean it, trapped by everything.

The wedding plans. The expectations. The future everyone else seemed excited about. The feeling that he was walking down a road he no longer wanted but didn’t know how to leave.

“I’m tired, Maddie.” Her expression softened slightly.

“What does that mean?” The question should’ve been easy.

Instead it felt impossible. How do you explain something you’ve spent years trying not to think about? How do you tell somebody that the love never disappeared…

But the eagerness, the spark and the excitement that made two people more than a habit, more than a routine….no longer exist.

“It means I’m tired.”

Her eyes watered. “THEN GO.”

The words came out sharper than she intended, he saw the regret immediately but something inside him snapped anyway.

“Fine.”

“Fine.”

He grabbed his keys and turned around walking out before either of them could say something worse.

The drive felt endless, every red light, every thought irritated him.

His hands tightened around the steering wheel, chest feeling heavy like something was sitting on it.

By the time he reached the beach the sky was still dark, the parking lot nearly empty.

Good. Exactly what he wanted. Nobody.

The ocean stretched endlessly in front of him.

Black water. White waves. Cold wind. Silence.

He sat down in the sand and stared at the horizon, for a while he didn’t think about anything.

Then unfortunately he started thinking about everything.

Maddie. The wedding. The fight. The fact that he couldn’t remember the last time he’d genuinely looked forward to going home.

Hours passed and he lost track deeply in his thoughts.

The sky slowly began turning shades of gold and pink, the world waking up around him and for the first time all night his chest didn’t feel quite as tight.

Then something golden sprinted past him at alarming speed which made Jaafar blink, the golden retriever nearly knocked over a beach chair before launching itself toward the water.

“Oh no.”

A voice echoed across the shore.

“MOON!”

Jaafar turned.

A woman was running after the dog and failing miserably. “MOON, GET BACK HERE!”

The golden retriever completely ignored her, Jaafar watched as she pointed dramatically at the dog.

“If you go into that water—”

The dog immediately jumped into the water which made her sigh with a small smile throwing both hands into the air.

“Oh, you little—”

The dog resurfaced looking incredibly pleased with himself.

Jaafar laughed, the sound escaped before he could stop it.

The woman whipped around, immediately pointing at him. “You.”

He blinked. “Me?”

“Did you encourage him?”

“I don’t even know him.”

“He’s very influenced by strangers laughing.”

“That sounds made up.”

“It’s not.”

The dog suddenly came charging back toward shore straight at her, she took one look at him and screamed.

“Moon don’t you dare—”

Too late.

Moon shook seawater absolutely everywhere making her yelp and jump backward.

The dog looked thrilled which made Jaafar laugh harder and to his surprise she started laughing too, like she physically couldn’t help it.

For some reason he couldn’t stop smiling, the whole thing was ridiculous.

A few minutes later the dog wandered over and dropped himself beside Jaafar like they’d been friends for years.

The woman stopped in front of them, looked at the dog then looked at Jaafar.

Then sighed dramatically. “Traitor.”

Jaafar scratched behind Moon’s ears and the dog’s tail immediately started thumping.

“What’s his name?”

“Moon.”

“Moon?”

“He was named by a five-year-old.”

“That explains a lot.”

She laughed and took a seat nearby. Moon immediately curled up beside Jaafar too completely at ease. If his mom was sitting down, then surely everything was safe.

The dog practically melted into the sand, completely relaxed, a clear sign that he felt safe around a man he had only just met, something that had never happened before.

“Unbelievable.” She sighed with a small smile.

Jaafar scratched behind the dog’s ears. “What?”

“He never likes anybody.”

Moon rolled onto his back, Jaafar looked down.

“That seems unlikely.”

“I’m serious.”

“He looks pretty committed.”

“Traitor.”

The dog thumped his tail.

She pointed at him.

“Don’t encourage him.”

“I haven’t done anything.”

“Existing apparently counts.”

For a moment they just watched the ocean and the sunrise , the wind blowing across the shore.

and……Moon trying to eat a stick?

“You should stop him.” Jaafar mumbled with a smile.

“Hm?”

“The stick.”

Jaafar frowned because…Moon was infact absolutely trying to swallow a stick.

“Moon.”

The dog ignored him.

“Moon.”

She smiled.

“See?”

“He’s stubborn.”

“Yes, an idiot.”

Moon continued chewing proudly which made them both laughed.

“So.”

She turned slightly toward him. “What do you do?”

Jaafar hesitated. “I act.”

She nodded immediately. “Ah.”

“What does that mean?”

“Nothing.”

“No, it definitely means something.”

She looked out at the water. “It means you’re one of those people.”

“What people?”

“ ‘I’m an actor.’ ” She made dramatic air quotes.

“ ‘Currently attached to a very exciting project.’ ” Another air quote. “ ‘Can’t talk about it yet.’ ”

Jaafar stared at her.

She continued. “ ‘Festival circuit.’ ”

He laughed, “You’ve met somebody like this?”

“Oh pfftt, too many.”

“That’s very specific.”

“It comes from experience.”

“What if I’m actually an actor tho?”

She squinted suspiciously.

“Then prove it.”

“How?”

“Act.”

Jaafar laughed again. “That’s not how acting works.”

“Sounds fake.”

“You’re impossible.” he said stopping his smile.

“Thank you.”

The conversation should’ve ended there, instead it kept going.

Effortlessly…One topic becoming another, stories becoming jokes and jokes becoming stories.

At some point she asked where he grew up, then somehow they ended up arguing about whether cereal comes first or milk…

For the first time all week, Jaafar forgot to check the time, forgot about his phone, Maddie, everything.

Eventually she looked at him, really looked at him and her smile faded slightly. “Okay.”

“What?”

“Serious question.”

His stomach sank..

“Why did you look like somebody just informed you the world is ending?”

The laugh escaped him before he could stop it. “That’s dramatic.”

“Is it wrong?”

He opened his mouth, then closed it. Because she wasn’t wrong not even a little.

The wind picked up around them, Moon dropped his head onto Jaafar’s leg and for some reason that made it easier to answer.

“I had a bad night...”

“Yeah.” She nodded for him to continue, “I figured.”

The thing was…She didn’t immediately ask for details, she didn’t pry or push either.

She just waited and somehow that made him want to tell her.

“I got into a fight.”

“With who?”

“My fiancée.”

Her eyebrows lifted. “Oh.”

“Yeah.”

“That kind of bad night.”

Jaafar laughed quietly, “That kind.”

She nodded then waited again, no advice or judgment, just space.

And before he realized what he was doing…He started talking about the wedding, the pressure, about how everyone kept telling him how lucky he was and how guilty that made him feel.

Because he was lucky, Maddie was a good person, they been together for 10 whole years and somehow that made everything harder.

“She’s not a bad person.”

“I didn’t think she was.”

“I mean it.”

“I know.”

Jaafar looked down at the sand.

“She’s been with me through everything.” She listened quietly.

“The worst years.”

A nod.

“The lonely years.”

Another nod.

“The years nobody cared who I was.” And she was still listening.

“And now I feel…” He stopped, the words catching somewhere in his throat.

“Feel what?”

He stared at the ocean, “Exhausted.”

The answer sounded pathetic out loud but it was true.

“I wake up tired.”

“I go to sleep tired.”

“I’m planning a wedding I’m supposed to be excited about.”

“And every time somebody asks me if I’m happy…”

He laughed bitterly, “I don’t even know how to answer.”

For a long moment she didn’t say anything, the waves rolled in then back out was the only soundtrack around them.

Moon snored softly beside them asleep.

Finally she spoke. “That sounds lonely.”

Just that. Three words.

Not:

“You should leave.”

Or:

“You should stay.”

“Maybe you’re wrong.”

And somehow… It hit harder than anything anyone had said to him in months because for the first time in a very long time, he felt like somebody is actually hearing him.

When Jaafar finally got home, the house was quiet, the living room light was still on.

Maddie had fallen asleep on the couch.

A blanket half covering her while the television playing softly in the background.

For a moment he just stood there looking at her.

Ten years.

Ten years of memories sitting right there in front of him, the first apartment, the first vacations, the first “I love you.” , the proposal. the life they’d built together.

And yet…Looking at her now felt different.

Because he didn’t know if he loved her the same anymore and the thought made him sick.

So he pushed it away and went upstairs, telling himself things would feel better in the morning.

They didn’t.

The next day felt wrong, everything was wrong…At breakfast Maddie asked if he wanted coffee.

He said yes.

She handed him a mug.

He thanked her.

She nodded.

And suddenly it hit him, that this was the entire conversation.

At one point she sat beside him on the couch, her shoulder touched his.

A year ago he would’ve wrapped an arm around her automatically. Now he just…Sat there aware of the distance.

Even though there wasn’t any, the realization scared him because he wasn’t forcing himself not to touch her…He simply didn’t think about it.

Five days passed.

They tried talking alot and nothing hanged.

One night Maddie showed him wedding venues on her laptop, she looked excited..or maybe she was trying to be.

“What do you think about this one?”

Jaafar looked.

A beautiful venue. Flowers. Lights. Everything perfect.

“It’s nice.”

Maddie stared at him.

“That’s all?”

“What?”

“‘It’s nice’?”

He rubbed his face.

“I’m tired.”

“You keep saying that.”

The words hung in the room. “You’ve been saying that for months.”

Jaafar looked down because she wasn’t wrong.

Maddie’s voice softened, painfully soft. “Do you even want this anymore?”

His chest tightened and the question sat between them.

But he couldn’t answer, not because he didn’t know.

Because he did.

And saying it out loud would make it real.

Then he watched the understanding settle over her face, the heartbreak, and somehow that hurt more than any fight they’d ever had.

That night he barely slept, at 4:30 A.M. he gave up trying to sleep.

Got dressed, grabbed his keys and left.

By 5:00 A.M. he was sitting on the same stretch of beach. The exact same spot.

The sunrise painted the water gold as Jaafar stared at the waves, trying not to think about why he came.

Trying not to think about her.

Or Moon.

Or how light he’d felt sitting there talking to a complete stranger.

5:15 A.M.

Nothing.

5:30 A.M.

Nothing.

5:45 A.M.

Nothing.

The beach slowly became busier, Joggers, Dog walkers and Surfers, no Moon and ridiculous owner chasing after him.

Jaafar laughed quietly at himself, of course they weren’t coming.

He’d convinced himself this was normal, coming back to a beach because maybe there was a chance he’d see somebody he’d met once.

By 6:00 A.M. he finally gave up.

He leaned back on his hands and looked toward the ocean.

Then—

BARK.

His head snapped up, another bark..and suddenly the familiar golden retriever was racing across the sand at full speed straight toward him.

“No way.”

Moon launched himself into Jaafar’s chest, nearly knocking him over and Jaafar bursted out laughing.

Somewhere down the beach he heard a voice.

“MOON!”

His stomach immediately flipped.

“Moon, where are you going?!”

He looked up and there she was, running after the dog, and his stomach flipped again.

Just like the first day.

Then she spotted him, and her steps slowed as realization hit her on why Moon was running that way.

“Oh.”

A grin spread across her face. “It’s you.”

Moon barked proudly, like he’d personally arranged the reunion.

And for the first time all week…Jaafar felt that weight lift from his chest again

“It’s Jaafar”

“Y/N.”

A/N : delivered as promised 😝

For a moment neither of them spoke, Moon immediately solved that problem by throwing himself at Jaafar.

The force nearly knocked him backward. “Okay—okay, buddy.”

A tired laugh escaped him as he scratched behind Moon’s ears.

The laugh disappeared almost instantly.

Y/N’s chest tightened because he looked exhausted physically and mentally.

The kind of exhaustion that settled deep behind someone’s eyes. “What happened?”

Jaafar looked at her, for a second she thought he might not answer.

Then he swallowed. “It’s over.”

Y/N felt something twist painfully inside her, “Oh.”

That was all she managed, because she didn’t know what else to say.

Ten years. An engagement. A future. Gone.

The silence stretched then she stepped aside.

“Come in.”

The evening settled around them slowly like neither of them wanted to disturb it.

Y/N made coffee, Moon refused to leave Jaafar’s side.

The television played softly in the background, and as usual they started talking about stupid & safe things.

The neighbor who sang at two in the morning, Moon getting kicked out of a dog park for stealing somebody’s sandwich, a movie trailer they both hated.

Anything except the giant thing sitting between them and just like that the conversation eventually faded.

Neither seemed in a hurry to replace it, the living room filled with comfortable silence.

Jaafar sat staring into his coffee, the mug that had gone cold twenty minutes ago.

Suddenly he laughed, a small humorless sound.

“You know what’s stupid?”

Y/N glanced up. “What?”

His eyes never left the mug. “I don’t know what I’m supposed to do now.”

She frowned slightly. “What do you mean?”

Jaafar leaned back, his head resting against the couch, and he looked up at the ceiling for a moment, then he sighed.

“For ten years there was always a plan.” The words hung between them.

“The engagement.” A pause. “The wedding.”

“The house.” His jaw tightened. “The next five years.”

Y/N’s chest ached because he wasn’t talking just about Maddie, he was talking about certainty, about waking up every day knowing what came next since he was 19.

About a future he’d spent years building, a future that no longer existed.

Jaafar rubbed a hand over his face. “I thought ending it would feel different.”

Y/N stayed quiet.

“I thought I’d feel relieved.”

His laugh came again. “ Instead I just feel empty.”

The confession settled heavily between them like neither of them knew what to do with it.

For a while only the television filled the room then Jaafar spoke again. “You know what’s even worse?”

“What?”

He looked down at his hands. “I don’t even know what food I like anymore.”

Y/N blinked. “What?”

“I’m serious.”

A humorless smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. “I spent so long making decisions as part of a couple that eventually I stopped making them for myself.”

His voice lowered, quiet enough that she almost missed it.

“I don’t remember when it happened.” Her chest tightened.

“When what happened?”

For a moment he didn’t answer.

“When I stopped being me.” The words landed like a punch.

Y/N looked at him, at the man everyone assumed had it together.

The man who always made people laugh, the man who carried things quietly.

The man who somehow spent all his energy making everyone else comfortable.

And suddenly he looked lost.

Not heartbroken…Lost.

Like someone had handed him his freedom and he had no idea what to do with it.

The sight broke something inside her .. before she could think better of it, before she could overanalyze, her mouth spoke.

She stood. “Come here...”

Jaafar looked up and for a moment he didn’t move.

Then he got up.

Y/N barely had time to open her arms before he stepped into them.

His forehead found her shoulder immediately, like he’d done it a hundred times before.

Like he didn’t have the energy to be embarrassed by how much he needed it.

His arms wrapped around her waist.

Tight.

Not because he was trying to comfort her, because he needed comforting.

Y/N hugged him back instinctively, one hand sliding into his hair.

And slowly, she felt him relax. The tension slowly leaving his shoulders, his breathing evening out.

Y/N swallowed hard, because feeling him vulnerable and trusting her like this..

Did something dangerous to her heart.

Something she wasn’t ready to examine, so she didn’t.

She pushed the feeling away, held him a little tighter.

Later, they moved back to the couch.

A different movie was playing now or maybe the same one.

Neither of them knew. Moon was sprawled across the floor, snoring loudly.

Every so often one of them would make a comment about something happening on screen.

Most of the time neither was actually watching, the emotional heaviness had eased slightly.

Jaafar looked exhausted, his eyes kept drifting shut.

“You should sleep.”

“I’m awake.”

“You literally just fell asleep.”

“I blinked.”

“You were unconscious.”

A real laugh escaped him.

The sound made something warm bloom inside her chest.

“There he is.”

Jaafar rolled his eyes. “Tough crowd.”

Y/N smiled, and the silence that followed felt easier.

And for the first time all evening she thought maybe he’d be okay.

Not today or tomorrow but eventually.

After a while, Y/N stood. “I’m getting water.”

Jaafar barely looked up.

“Hm.”

“You want anything?”

He shook his head. “No.”

“You sure?”

He gave her a tired nod.

“Okay.”

She disappeared into the kitchen.

Truthfully she didn’t need water, she needed a minute.

A moment to breathe away from everything she’d been feeling.

She leaned against the counter, closed her eyes and exhaled.

Then grabbed a bottle anyway, when she returned to the living room,

She stopped.

The television cast a soft glow across the room. Moon had somehow climbed onto the couch, half of his body draped across Jaafar’s legs.

The dog looked outrageously comfortable but Y/N barely noticed him.

Because Jaafar was asleep on the couch, head tilted awkwardly against the cushion.

Breathing slow. Even. Peaceful.

The sadness was gone from his face, altho the exhaustion remained on his eyebrows.

But the sadness was gone and the sight hit her harder than anything else had all evening.

She stood frozen in the doorway watching him.

Y/N’s throat tightened.

God.

She wanted to protect him, the realization arrived suddenly.

She wanted to protect him from everything, heartbreak, disappointment, every cruel thing anyone had ever said to him, every burden, every lonely night spent wondering if he was enough.

Her eyes teared because realization hit her that friends shouldn’t feel like this.

Friendship didn’t make your chest ache when somebody else was hurting, didn’t make you wish you could carry their pain for them, didn’t make their happiness feel more important than your own.

The truth settled quietly and patiently, like it had been waiting for her all along.

Every piece clicked into place, the relief every time he smiled, the panic every time he looked sad, the reason she’d stayed away.

Not because she didn’t care but because she cared far too much.

Y/N stared at him and at Moon sprawled across his legs.

At the peaceful expression she’d missed more than she’d ever admit.

She was truly, madly, deeply, in love with Jaafar Jackson.

Carefully, she grabbed the blanket from the back of the couch and draped it over both of them anyway.

Then she stood there for a moment longer than necessary, looking at him and wishing that alone was enough.

Her gaze lingered on his face and for a brief, reckless moment, she wanted to reach for him.

To brush the hair from his forehead, hold his hand, peck his lips, tell him he wasn’t alone.

The urge was so strong it almost hurt, but she couldn’t, not when his heart was still breaking over someone else.

Her eyes burned, Y/N quickly looked away, wiping at a tear before it could fall.

Because suddenly the distance between them felt impossible.

He was only a few feet away and he had never felt further, so she took a step back then another.

Leaving him with Moon, the blanket, and the first peaceful sleep he’d probably had in weeks.

While she carried the weight of her new realization upstairs alone.

A/N : damn we are in deep sh’t fr! *sigh*