Work Text:
Neville barely got one foot in the house before her voice rang out.
“Where were you?”
Jackie stood in the middle of the living room, trembling. Her phone was clutched in one hand so tightly her knuckles had gone white. Her eyes were wide, glassy, darting across his face like she was searching for proof of something terrible.
“Work ran late,” Neville said cautiously, setting his keys down. “My phone died. I didn’t—”
“You didn’t text me back,” Jackie snapped. Her voice cracked halfway through—sharp and shaking. “For three hours, Neville. I thought—” She swallowed hard. “I thought something happened. Or you were hurt. Or—” She stopped herself, her breath coming fast and shallow.
“I know. I know. I’m sorry.” Neville took a slow step toward her.
Jackie jerked back like he’d struck her. Her eyes were burning now.
“No. No, you don’t get to just say sorry and expect me to not feel crazy! You always say you’re sorry, and then I sit here not knowing if you’re ever coming back!”
“Jackie…” he reached a hand out.
“I called you,” she shouted, now pacing in tight, frantic circles. “I called you, and I texted you like ten times, and you didn’t even check in! You didn’t even think about me—did you?! You just went about your day while I sat here thinking maybe you were dead or—or done with me! That maybe you finally realized I’m too much!”
She stopped pacing and stared at him, lip trembling. “Am I too much for you?”
Neville’s heart clenched. “No. God, no, you’re not too much. You’re not.”
“I could feel it,” she whispered, barely audible now. “Like this sick, sinking feeling… like you were gone, like I was alone again. I thought maybe you were leaving. Maybe you found someone else. Someone easier. Someone who doesn’t fall apart every damn time something feels off.”
Jackie turned her back to him, arms folded tightly over her chest like she was physically holding herself together. “I even told myself not to freak out this time. I tried. I tried, Neville.”
He crossed the room slowly, like one wrong move might shatter her. He placed a hand gently on her shoulder.
She shuddered under his touch.
“I didn’t mean to make you feel abandoned,” he said softly. “You are not alone, and I’m not going anywhere.”
Jackie's shoulders began to shake.
“You say that now. They all say that...”
“No. I mean it. Look at me.”
Jackie turned, tears streaking her cheeks, her face twisted with pain and disbelief.
“I love you, Jackie. Even when things feel chaotic. Even when you're overwhelmed. Even when it’s hard. Especially then. I love all of you. I’m here. I’m not leaving.”
She stared at him for a beat, lips parted like she didn’t know whether to scream or collapse. Then, all at once, she threw herself into his arms, gripping the fabric of his shirt like it was the only thing anchoring her to the earth.
“I hate how much I need you,” she whispered into his chest. “I hate how scared I get.”
“I know,” Neville murmured into her hair. “And I’m still here.”
She clung tighter, as if daring him to vanish.
He didn’t move. He just held her, steady and warm, letting her tremble in his arms. Letting her feel, over and over, that she wasn’t going to be left behind.
Because she wouldn’t be.
Not now.
Not ever.