[flashback]

This party sucked... and seeing Shawn had not helped at all. It brought back all of those thoughts of how he was better and happier without Rissa’s drama in his life, but at the same time, it made them lonelier because... well, the only person they wanted to have around, was in fact, happier without them. And opening up wasn’t easy, so Rissa just shut themself out and dove deeper and deeper into that pool of superficial bliss that had them surrounded ever since their ex had gotten them into drugs. It was easier than voicing their concerns, right? Yes, because whenever they wanted to speak, no one was there to listen.

After their date Jackson ended up having some emergency, so he couldn’t text Shawn right away to set up a second date like he’d wanted to, but as soon as he had a break from work, life and everything that had been holding him back, he texted the other man and asked if they could meet again. He knew Shawn would probably be nervous due to the opening of the restaurant, so he figured he could take him out, help him relax, have a good time, etc etc. He picked a seafood restaurant by the pier, so they could walk by the beach afterwards and that seemed nice. Since it was a bit far from where they both lived, Jackson offered to pick Shawn up, so upon the time scheduled, he parked in front of Shawn’s building and texted him to let him know he’d arrived.