DIE ➳ JACK JOHNSON

XXVIII. TOUCH MY SOUL

chapter twenty eight - july 30

"Wake up, love," Jack whispered into her ear softly, while shaking her gently as well. He pressed a tender kiss to her eyelids before she fluttered them open slowly from the contact. He smiled, taking in the image of her beautiful face in the morning. "C'mon sleeping beauty. I have another surprise for you."

She groggily sat up, and rubbed her eyes. "What?" she questioned softly. 

He held out his hand out for her to grab onto. He helped her stand up. "We need to get going."

"We're leaving already?" she asked shocked.

"Yes. I think it's time that we actually spent some time together," he grinned at her. He guided her to his car and led her in before closing the door. "Just wait here, and I'll go grab the rest of our stuff really quickly."

She nodded with pursed lips, then watched him go fetch their stuff. She sat quietly in the car, a bit upset by this news. She liked it here in this peaceful environment. Something about this place made her feel safe with herself and their relationship. She didn't think she even thought about the complications of their relationship while she was here. 

She also liked the friends she met here. Aqua and Gray were really interesting people that she was looking forward to connecting to more. Somehow, she knew she fit with them. It was a feeling she never experienced, even with Jack. Chad was the closest thing she ever had to a best friend, but the connection they had didn't exactly feel right. He was a good friend, but she knew he had other friends he could relate to more. They were close, but nothing as close as to what she felt with Aqua and Gray, especially Aqua. They accepted her so freely, and their whole group was so carefree and happy all the time. She liked that.

She let out a huge sigh just as Jack jumped into the drivers seat. He immediately acknowledged her sad state, and grew a but sad himself. He quickly put on a small smile, and squeezed her hand. "I got you their numbers," he informed her, waving a piece of paper in the air.

She stared at the paper in confusion, before grabbing it. She then figured out it was Aqua's and Gray's number he was talking about. She looked up at Jack with a huge smile. 

He felt better seeing how happy she was, and reminded himself that this was all for her. "I know that they make you happy. It sucks knowing I'm not the only one, but I can't just dismiss how comfortable you looked with them," he told her softly, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear.  "Whatever makes you happy, I'm happy. They're coming to town as a detour on their vacation, as a break, and to spend more time with you. They also see the potential you guys have off becoming great friends. Turns out, they value friendship to another level," he chuckled lightly, removing his hand from her ear, and glancing away from her quickly to look ahead. "Let's get going. I'm sure you'll like this surprise."

He started the engine before taking off.

-

"You aren't planning on murdering me, and getting rid of my body, are you?" Alaska questioned jokingly as she as lead blindfolded by Jack.

"Of course not," he scoffed. "At least that's what you hope," he jokingly muttered under his breath.

"Not funny," she muttered back.

Jack laughed loudly before telling her, "Step up or you'll fall, love."

"This is ridiculous," she murmured under her breath. She held tightly onto his forearm, scared of actually falling. "Do I really need to be blindfolded?"

"Yes. I don't want to spoil the surprise so early."

"Is it really that special?"

He smiled. "Of course it is. If it's going to special to you, then of course it is." He stopped in front of their first destination, and smiled, knowing that her reaction will be a bonus. "Okay, we're here," he informed her, untying the blindfold from her eyes.