Kylie & Jack 1: Humble Beginnings

23. Collison Course

All day, Kylie reminded herself to breathe. From the moment Jack left her room, Kylie was a bundle of nerves. Her brain was scrambling to process the perfectly innocent fact that while upset, a friend kept her company - but he's not just a friend - oh shit, is he? Fuck!

Kylie buried her face in her hands before the bathroom mirror, wedging her eyes shut, begging to pull herself together, but all she could see was Jack walking out of this very bathroom shirtless; and the way he smiled at her when she woke up; all she could smell was his Lynx deodorant; she could feel his arms wrapped around her as if he had just walked back into the bathroom.

Oh god ...

Her eyes snapped wide open, suddenly wondering if he was indeed here, but as her startled reflection stared back at her, she was very much alone in the bathroom.

Alright, Kylie - breathe - it's gonna be ok. We're gonna walk out of this room and get on with the day as normal. As normal. Normal. Normal. Normal ... no - stop it. No wondering - or wandering for that matter! You are staying focused today.

Taking a deep breath, Kylie ran her fingers through her brushed hair one last time, gave her reflection a resolute nod and left the bathroom, to scoop up her bag and phone when another phone started to ring.

Turning around, she found Jack's phone on the nightstand, the screen lit up with a single word: 'Lunatic'.

Frowning, Kylie edged towards the phone. Clearly it was a nickname - must be one of his housemates ... or someone he doesn't like - but why - oh ... Nicole. Kylie thought ruefully, picking up the phone and hesitating to answer it.

In a moment of curiosity and perhaps even hurt, Kylie answered the call, placing the phone to her ear but hesitating to say anything. She had her back turned to the door and missed the passing shadow stop at her room.

"Jack Brookes' phone -" Kylie said as plainly as she could, to be met with a shrill screech at the other end.

"Who is this?! Hello? Who are you? You know I'm Jack's girlfriend?"

Kylie rolled her eyes. It was his ex, Nicole. Just then, her hotel room door opened, making her spin around in alarm to find Jack standing there.

"Hey, Kylz have you seen my -" Jack asked, freezing when he saw Kylie standing on the other side of the bed, her phone in her left hand and his pressed to her ear in her right hand. Jack gave her a stern look and put his hands on his hips.

Kylie gulped, staring at Jack with Nicole in her ear like an angry, twittering bird. She lowered Jack's phone and handed it to him.

"It's - ah - Nicole ..."

Jack folded his arms and never once took his eyes off Kylie's face.

"I have nothing to say to her. Unlike you."

Kylie swallowed rather hard yet again, unable to take her eyes off Jack. It certainly didn't help matters that Jack's eyes seemed to be clouded with - Kylie hesitated to put an emotion to his gaze, worried she may have just ruined everything.

Jack remained motionless, not reaching for the phone, so Kylie slowly pressed her thumb to the red button, cutting Nicole off.

As soon as the call was disconnected, Jack unfolded his arms and sighed quite heavily. He looked as if he was going to speak, so Kylie jumped in ahead of him.

"Ok - look, Jack I'm -"

"- can I have my phone back?" while his voice seemed flat, the air between them still felt as charged as ever. When Kylie placed his phone in his hand, the slightest amount of skin touched for the briefest of seconds, setting a vibrant spark between them.