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JAXON COULDN'T SLEEP. the night had settled in, but his thoughts were still racing, refusing to give him a moment of peace. he sat on the edge of his bed, staring at the wall, the events of the day playing on a loop in his mind.
it wasn't just barry. yeah, seeing sabrina with him had been a punch to the gut, but this was about more than just barry showing up out of nowhere. this was about everything—about the pressure, the rumors, the way everything in his life had been spinning out of control ever since the collab with sabrina started.
he'd been keeping it all bottled up, trying to push through the frustration, the headlines, the constant noise surrounding him and sabrina. but now? now it felt like it was all too much. like something inside him was going to snap.
and then there was her.
sabrina.
jaxon dragged a hand through his hair, letting out a frustrated breath. he didn't know how to deal with the way he felt about her—didn't even know if he understood it. all he knew was that she had gotten under his skin in a way no one else had, and now, with barry back in the picture, it felt like the walls were closing in on him.
without thinking, he grabbed his phone and opened his messages. his thumb hovered over sabrina's name, hesitating.
don't do it, he thought. just leave it alone.
but before he could stop himself, he typed out a quick message.
he stared at the screen for a moment, his heart pounding in his chest. he didn't know what he wanted to say—he just knew he needed to say something.
the seconds ticked by, and jaxon was about to give up, when his phone buzzed with a response.
jaxon let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. it wasn't much, but it was something. and right now, that was all he needed.
_______________
sabrina was already waiting when jaxon arrived at the small, tucked-away café she had suggested. it was late, nearly midnight, and the place was nearly empty, the low hum of soft music filling the quiet space.
she looked tired. her eyes were a little puffy, her shoulders slumped as she sat at a corner table, nursing a cup of tea. jaxon felt a pang of guilt as he approached—he knew he wasn't the only one who was struggling with everything that had been happening between them.
"hey," sabrina said softly as jaxon slid into the seat across from her.
"hey," he replied, his voice low.
they sat in silence for a moment, the tension between them palpable. neither of them seemed to know where to start, the weight of their last argument still hanging in the air.
finally, sabrina broke the silence.
"i'm sorry about earlier," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "with barry, i mean. i didn't know he was going to show up, and... i didn't mean for things to get weird."
