What This Could Be- Joe Jonas Fanfic

Chapter 1: Flat White and a Buttered Croissant

*Joe's POV*

The sunshine peaked through the side of the curtain to blind the living shit out of me as my body woke up distinctively, as usual. I clutched the extra pillow closest to me with a moan and smeared it against my face. I hated mornings. I groggily dragged myself out of bed and took the daily routine of heading straight to the kitchen. Passing by the head-to-toe mirror that hung on the living room wall, I ran my fingers through my disheveled hair, a few curls hitting my forehead as my hand lowered back down to my side.

I was tempted to pause and point out every flaw. It started to become a common habit. Okay, maybe more like an obsession. What happened to that overly-confident, carefree guy I remembered being? I missed him. But more importantly, I missed her. I missed us before I found out she had been cheating on me. Ignorance really was bliss.

Sighing, I beelined to the fridge and grabbed the jug of juice after getting a glass down from the middle shelf in the cabinet to the left of the stove. Staring at the almost empty glass, I watched the last drop hit the liquid. Grocery shopping wasn't necessarily on my list of things to do today, but it was more productive than what I was planning to do, which included me in bed playing Fortnite and Call of Duty one too many times.

Bzzz-Bzzz-Bzzz-Bzzz!

My phone could be heard vibrating heavily against the bedside table, distracting me from the numbness I was feeling.

I walked back to my bedroom, picking my phone up just as the last buzz came to a stop. Missed call from Nick, one of my youngest brothers. Clicking the missed call notification, I glanced at all the other missed calls I had from my friends and family. My thumb hit Nick's recent missed call knowing I couldn't let him worry and put it on speaker. It didn't take him long to pick up.

"What's up?" I mumbled, walking back to the kitchen to grab the glass I had left on the counter.

"Good morning to you too," he sarcastically remarked as I gulped down the small amount of juice, "You're still coming in a little, right?"

"Um," I paused trying to think of a satisfactory excuse, "I won't be able to. I completely forgot I already made plans, and there's no way I can cancel. I'm sorry—"

"Plans for what?" I closed my eyes hearing the disappointment in his voice, "To drink the day away like you have been?"

"No," I answered honestly, although that didn't sound too bad of an idea, "I have to go to the store."

"Joe," he breathed out, "That takes what, half an hour tops? You need to actually get out, with other people."

After putting the glass in the sink that was already full of dirty dishes, I grabbed my phone and slumped my body onto my off-white sectional couch, "There's other people at the store."

The silence on his end spoke for itself. I was picturing him rubbing his forehead in frustration with my stubborn ass.

"What time?" I gave in. I probably would regret it.

"Meet me in an hour?" He replied.

I nodded before realizing he couldn't see me, "Yeah, sounds good."

"I'll text you the address," he informed me, "Oh, and Joe?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm proud of you," these supportive words were said before, but this time it felt different, "I know life's been shit right now. I get it, but this is a good step."

A hint of a smile formed on the corner of my lips, "Thanks."

We said our short goodbyes before I hung the call up, placing the phone on my chest as I laid there. It buzzed almost immediately. Tilting it slightly up for my eyes to glance at the screen, a text from Nick had popped up with an address. When I clicked it, I saw it was for a local café that I had talked to him about wanting to check out, but hadn't gotten the chance to yet.