Chapter Text
The rain felt hard, plummeting onto him. He ambled down the pavement with his hands in his pockets in a failing attempt to keep them warm. The mist glowed in the city's lights, surrounding the busy roads filled with traffic, hazing his glasses. Cursing, he regretted the idea of not bringing an umbrella like his roommate had suggested. Felix was always right and he should have listened. He had come out to clear his mind, the thoughts becoming a thick dense fog threatening to mask everything else.
The rain continued to bore down on him, soaking through his clothes. He felt like the storm would flush him away, down the drain and out of sight. He wished it would. The sky had become a wall of water, another inescapable barrier for him to face. His heart fell heavy at the thought.
"W-What do you mean y-you want time apart?"
"Please listen to me Jack; I love you. I know that right now it doesn't seem like it but I do. I'm asking for you to wait for me because I'm so scared. I'm scared because we aren't what we used to be, and I need for it to be so desperately. So I need time apart just to fall in love aga-"
"Fall in love again? Really Mark? Stop being such a fucking cliché. If you want to break up with me do it properly for fuck's sake. I-"
"I don't want to break up! I just need time, please! All I want it just to learn how to feel again, appreciate you. You deserve better than what I am right now and I need to change and-"
Jack put his hand up, unwilling to listen anymore. Mark was asking for space. Again.
"I've had enough. We're over. Come find me when you're 'ready'," Jack spat and walked away leaving Mark behind him. Mark just hoped that he wouldn't regret losing what he just had.
He felt his breathing change, the deep slow breaths becoming faster, becoming shallower. He had loved Mark, really had but he really didn't need someone that faded in and out of his life non-stop. It had left him damaged and broken, searching for some kind of security. He needed someone who would stay and be reliable, not someone who just left when he wasn't interesting enough. Therefore, Jack had cut if off. Ended the relationship, blocked numbers, ignored messages and letters. He couldn't take being put away for later, a third time.
Turning off the road, Jack walked down a small backstreet which housed a small café that had a small place in his heart. The place was always clean yet cheap, warm but not hot. For Jack it was a cosy hideaway whilst he dealt with the world. He had shown it to Mark on their first date and he couldn't help but remember how warm he felt when he saw Mark absorb his ramblings about the small diner. He would never interrupt, just listen. It was one of his many good qualities.
"Hey Mark, I'm just popping down to the caf', do you want anything?" Jack asked.
"Hmm, how about a iced caffé mocha? Need something sugary to keep me going at this point," Mark said.
"Don't work yourself too hard love. I'll be back in a minute," Jack said, before rushing out the door into the cold snow. He wished that Mark would come with him sometimes but he respected that Mark was working.
He could always come later.
Walking up towards the shop, Jack couldn't wait to get out of the vexed rain and into the warmth that practically radiated from it. Only when Jack saw a dishevelled mop of red hair did he stop.
He was sat right in Jack's seat, next to the window. Jack loved the spot personally since the view helped to distract his busy mind when he needed it most. He ended up coming so often that the baristas would save the seat just for him. He didn't know why they were allowing for Mark to sit there.
Stood in the downpour, Jack watched as Jenny, who was one of the familiar staff, came and sat next to Mark with a hand on his back. He seemed to have his head in his hands, and his body was shaking much like Jack's.
Was Mark there for him?
Of course he was. After cutting off all contact, this would be the one place he could rely on Jack to come to. Taking his clumsy hands out of his pockets, he pulled down his hood allowing for the cold water to drench his short green hair and dribble down his neck. Compared to the darkness of the sky, he knew his hair would stand out. It was only a matter of seconds when Jenny looked out of the window to see Jack stood just 20 metres away. Quickly, his hand outstretched as a signal, saying Please not yet. Don't tell him yet.
He could see Jenny hesitate. In front of her was a mess of a man searching for someone that she knew how to find. Yet she listened, knowing that Jack always had a certain way around things, just like how he ordered his coffee. He saw as she excused herself and grabbed her coat and made her way towards him as he pulled up his hood.
"Look Jack, before you start going against Mark I understand how you feel. So does he. Right now, all he's begging for is you. He's desperate for you to just talk to him, for him to take you in again. He's-"
"It's the same as last time, Jen. Nothing's changed. If I make him so happy, why does he keep dropping me like a rock? I can't take it anymore. It just hurts so damn much."
"I know but to be honest, I think he's a changed man. He won't stop talking about you. I try to change the topic and talk about the weather and he starts going on about how much you always loved the rain. How much it reminds you that you are alive and that you can feel. I talk about video games and he talks about how he can't stop playing Dark Souls 3 because it's all you used to talk about. He's so in love and all you have to do is give him a second chance."
"I've already given him a second chance and he blew it. I don't care how much he loves me! All that matters is that sooner or later, he's going to leave again and I'm going to be all on my own again!" Jack shouted, his hands clenched.
"Now you listen here Jack. You need to stop being so fucking selfish. He is broken. You obviously still love him and all he needs right now is to talk to you. I might not be able to persuade you to try again, but he might. And really, that's all that matters."
Jack's hands relaxed. Should he really give him one more chance? What was the point? But maybe Jenny was right. Jack still felt, still loved Mark.
"I can't believe I'm doing this," Jack muttered as he put his hands back in his pockets and followed Jenny into the store. He saw as Jenny walked back to the till with a wink at Mark. Slowly, Jack entered the door, making sure not to attract any attention to himself. He didn't want to be noticed, not yet.
Strolling up to Jenny, he whispered his order and paid before turning to Mark who had his head in his arms once more. Holding his breath, Jack clutched a iced caffé mocha and opposite Mark in the window booth.
"Excuse me sir, but I think you've taken my seat."