Fandom Writer @writingwithciara - Tumblr Blog

paper rings -jack hughes-

summary: y/n's brother used to give her paper rings all the time. he did it for as long as she can remember. so after he suddenly passes away, y/n figures she won't see any new rings. but she is shocked to find a new ring in her mailbox every day following her brother's death.

word count: 6.8k

pairing: jack hughes x reader

notes: grieving reader, mentions of death. i loved this at first then i started hating it towards the end. not my favorite thing i've written, that's for sure. but you guys might like it :)

tropes: brother's best friend, childhood friends, friends to lovers, shared grief, happy ending

marcus was a good person. not a single bad bone in the guys body. wherever he went, he made friends with everyone. his favorite friendships were with the ones who resisted him briefly at first, who he eventually wore down.

his smile was infectious and he went out of his way to make sure nobody was ever left out. everybody loved him for it.

but nobody loved him more than his sister, y/n. and the love was the same for him. no one mattered more to him than his sister.

he loved his sister from the moment she was born. he had only been 2 but he remembered everything about the day their parents brought her home. she was perfect to him and he vowed right then and there that he would always protect her.

when she was 9, she was a witness to her parents constant fighting. marcus made sure she had everything possible to drown it out. he saved his money and bought her the best headphones in the store.

luckily, the fighting never lasted long. and just a few months later, their parents got divorced and their dad walked out of their lives. and that was okay because their mother was everything to both of them. she sacrificed so much to make sure her children were happy. their family was closer than ever and the 3 of them were happy together.

and then, out of nowhere, their mom got sick. she was admitted to the hospital when y/n was only 11 and she never left. it was where they had their final moments as a family. it killed y/n to see the family fall apart.

but thankfully, y/n still had marcus to hold on to. he kept his promise to protect her. he fought to keep them together and found a safe place for them in the home of his best friends family.

the hughes family immediately took them in once they learned about their situation and ellen made sure y/n and marcus knew they had a home for as long as they needed it.

everything was changing and although y/n didn't know how to feel, she knew she would grow to accept it eventually.

the only thing that remained the same throughout her life were the paper rings she received on a near-daily basis from her brother. marcus had learned how to make paper rings from a girl in his 4th grade class and he used the skills to make something for y/n to show how much he loved her. she was grateful.

jack once asked marcus about it and he informed his friend "from the moment i met my sister, i vowed to protect and love her for the rest of our lives. and she loves these so i'm happy to keep it up for her. i do it for her."

when she was 16, y/n watched as marcus and jack were both drafted to the nhl right out of high school. jack was going to new jersey and marcus was going to san jose. she wanted to go with her brother but she knew she couldn't. there was still the matter of her schooling. luke was still with her, luckily. and he made a promise to marcus to protect her.

at 19, y/n was in the middle of her freshman year at umich when her brother called ellen and informed them that he was being traded to new jersey. she remembered the conversation she had with ellen when they got off the phone.

"is there any possible way i could transfer to school in jersey?"

"i can check with your professors and see what's possible. any school you have in mind?"

"no. i just know that jersey is where i need to be."

and ellen knew what she meant. she understood that y/n and marcus couldn't be apart much longer and that their bond was never going to be destroyed.

so she talked to the right people and found a work-around for y/n to transfer to princeton.

y/n was happy again, being with the 2 people she loved the most. jack and marcus. they were her rocks and with them, she felt the safest she had ever been.

a year later, however, that happiness was ripped from her hands.

y/n had been stood up for a date by a guy she thought had really liked her. he had her wait outside the restaurant for almost an hour before he had the nerve to call her and tell her he was not gonna show up. he didn't even give a reason.

she didn't have enough money for an uber so she was going to have to call marcus to come pick her up.

as she she pulled out her phone, the screen was being covered in drops of water. when she looked up, she was just now noticing the rain was just starting to pour down. it was too late to cancel the call to her brother, as his voice filled her ear 2 seconds after she hit the dial button.

"y/n, are you okay? aren't you supposed to be on a date?"

"he stood me up, marcus. made me wait and hour before calling to cancel. and with no explanation."

"where are you? i'm on my way."

"no don't. i know you have plans. i don't know why i called. i'm just gonna call jack and see if he'll come get me."

"y/n, that is not an option. i'm already in the car and i'm tracking your location. be there in 5 minutes." he didn't give her time to protest again before he hung up.

y/n waited the 5 minutes. but her brother's car hadn't pulled up to the curb she stood on. she waited. and waited. and waited. for nearly another hour before another familiar car pulled up beside her. jack got out and ran to her.

"y/n, let's go."

"where's marcus?"

"we'll talk on the way."

"on the way where?"

but jack couldn't tell her. so when he pulled up to the hospital, he had to physically lift her out of his passenger seat and help her into the waiting room.

everything from that point on had happened in a slow motion blur. the doctor informed her of the accident but she couldn't believe it until she saw it. and she didn't want to see it. because to her, if she didn't see it, it never happened.

but she knew it had to happen sooner than later. so jack held her hand as she slowly walked into the room to say goodbye to her brother. her one constant in her life.

for 4 months following the funeral, she was lost. she stopped going to school and hid herself in her bedroom. her roommate, lydia, tried everything and even jack had tried to help coax her out of her room. but nothing seemed possible anymore.

all y/n did was stare at photos and videos she had created with marcus. it killed her to see his smile on the screen when she could no longer see it in person.

angrily, she tossed her phone across the room, knocking the shoebox off the top of her bookshelf. it tumbled to the floor, spilling its contents onto her rug.

"shit!" she muttered to herself before dragging her body out of bed and making her way to the mess on the floor. she had to stop for a second and prepare herself for what she was about to see.

the tiny paper rings had scattered across her carpet, and as she bent down to pick them up, she burst into tears. something she thought she was done with 2 days ago.

hearing the noise from the other side of the wall, lydia came rushing in to check on her. when she found y/n on her knees with her head in her hands, she approached slowly.

"y/n, are you okay?" she knelt beside her friend and rubbed her back gently. lydia was aware of how much the paper rings had meant to y/n and the meaning behind them. so she knew as soon as the question left her mouth, that y/n was not okay. it was confirmed when y/n shook her head and collapsed into lydia's arms. the two of them sat together for a few minutes before y/n stopped crying.

"i'm sorry you had to see me this way."

"y/n, you're my best friend. you don't have to apologize for being emotional. especially for something this valid. it's okay." lydia rubbed her back and helped her stand up. "i think you should get some rest. in my room."

"i'm fine, lyds. i promise."

"you need to be away from the reminders of him. and yes, i am aware that memories exist but that's a good thing. just, please go get some real sleep. i'll be here for as long as you need." she gently lead her roommate to her room and as soon as she made sure y/n was actually asleep, she called jack.

a few hours later, y/n woke up with a pounding headache. the room was dark but she could vaguely make out a figure sitting in the chair across the room. she thought she was seeing things at first so she tossed one of lydia's pillows into the darkness.

"ow." responded a familiar voice. the pillow came flying back towards y/n but she dodged it and it hit the wall. y/n turned on the lamp as jack sat next to her.

"what are you doing here?"

"lydia called me after she put you to sleep. figured you'd need me here." he gently rested his hand on top of hers and ran his fingers over her knuckles.

"you didn't have to come all the way here. i'm sorry."

"i promised marcus i would always be here for you when he couldn't be." he felt y/n stiffen at the mention of her brother. it was the first time anyone had said his name in her presence since the week following the funeral.

"i don't know why i got so emotional. it's been months, jack."

"i know. but it's okay. you miss him. we all do." he sighed and linked his fingers with hers. "he was all you had and i get it. it's okay to lose it every once in a while."

"i don't want to keep living this way. i want to be able to move on from his death." y/n looked at their connected hands. "i want to see a photo and not immediately burst into tears."

"lydia filled me in on what happened and i get it. those rings meant a lot to you and it's okay. i promise it's okay." he held her as she rested her head on his shoulder. "if you ever feel like you're in the midst of a breakdown, call me and i'll be there to help you through it."

"okay." she whispered, afraid to let her voice get any louder. "how long have i been wallowing by myself?"

"4 months. but that's alright. nobody's holding it against you."

"i didn't mean to shut you out, jack. i should've let you in." she could feel the tears pricking her eyes. jack noticed and he held her cheek, ready to wipe away anything that escaped.

"i'm here now. and i will be here. always."

"thank you." she whispered again and cuddled closer to her best friend. she was asleep within seconds and jack stayed with her for the rest of the night.

the next morning, y/n woke up in lydia's bed alone. she decided it was time to get out so she finally made her way to the kitchen. lydia and jack both looked up as they heard her enter the room.

"good morning." jack slid a plate of food over to her while lydia handed her a cup of coffee.

"how are you feeling today?"

"not great. but a little better than i have been." she sipped the coffee before taking a bite of the muffin in front of her. "i should thank you guys for being here for me, even if i was being difficult."

"you were most certainly not being difficult, y/n." jack took the seat next to her and tossed his arm around her shoulder. "i told you last night your feelings were valid. everyone processes differently. there's no set timeline for grieving. it's different for everyone."

"yeah. you took the time you needed and that's perfectly fine." lydia sat on the other side of the table and reached for y/n's hand. "we love you so much and we would never leave you alone."

"i love you too. and i'm for grateful you guys are in my life." she looked between them. "oh shit. i should go clean up my room."

"already taken care of, darling." lydia squeezed her hand. "cleaned it up while you were sleeping."

"yeah. i tried to help when i got here but she told me to be there for you when you woke up."

"what did you do with the rings?"

"i put them back on your shelf. but i put them lower so you could easily reach them if you ever wanted to look through them."

"thank you, lydia. that was thoughtful of you."

"he made you a lot of those rings, didn't he?"

"almost daily from 2nd grade until the week before he passed." y/n let out a shaky breath. "i'm never gonna get another paper ring again and i know it sucks, but at least i have the current ones."

"exactly." jack rubbed her shoulder. "he loved making them for you."

"i know. said it made him happy."

"it made him happy to see how happy you were when he gave them to you." jack wiped a stray tear off her cheek.

"what are your plans for the day?" y/n looked at jack, then at lydia.

"well, i was thinking i could stay here tonight again. if you wanted me to."

"okay. but that's later. what about now?"

"i have to get to work in about 20 minutes." lydia finished her coffee and brought the mug to the sink. "i'll see you later, y/n. bye jack." she waved and walked out the door.

"but i'm free." jack smiled. "well, i'll be free after practice. wanna come with me?"

"is that even allowed?"

"no idea. but i don't want to leave you."

"it's alright. i can be left alone for a bit."

"no. i can't do that. not when i made a promise."

"i don't want you to get in trouble, jack."

"i won't. will you please come with me?"

"fine. but if you get in trouble, i'm going home."

"fair enough." jack smiled and y/n stood from the table. "go get dressed and i'll grab your stuff."

y/n nodded and headed into her room. her eyes went immediately to the shoebox of rings and she walked over to it. instead of ignoring it, she opened the lid and pulled one out. it happened to be the green one she adored. marcus bought a special kind of paper meant for paper rings after the ones i first gave her got destroyed.

she slid the green ring on her finger and stared at it. she must've zoned out because jack was by her side when she turned her head.

"oh. sorry. i'll be ready in a second."

"no worries." jack's thumb instinctively swiped the tear off her cheek and he walked to her door to wait.

30 minutes later, they were pulling up to the practice arena. jack got out and went to y/n's side of the car.

"while you were getting dressed, i called coach. he said it was fine for you to sit in on the practice today."

"okay good. i'm glad." she took jack's hand and they walked into the arena. y/n sat in a seat behind the glass and watched the guys skate around. nico waved to her whenever he skated by. jack kept his eye on her the entire time and while one might think it would've messed up his concentration, it did not. he was capable of putting focus on more than one thing.

nico skated over to him while they were working on their final drill. "it's nice to see y/n out of her apartment. she seems to be doing better."

"yeah. she had a breakdown last night and her roommate called me over to help. guess it was what she needed."

"what did she breakdown over?"

"it took awhile for me to get it out of her but i guess she was going through her old photo album on her phone and got angry so she threw her phone. it hit her bookshelf and knocked down her shoebox filled with paper rings. one look at the pile of paper on her rug and she burst into tears."

"they meant a lot to her, didn't they?"

"yeah. marcus learned how to make them in 4th grade and he gave her a new one nearly every day since then. she loved them. they made her happy and he lived for making her smile."

"that's sweet." nico tapped his stick. "do you know how to make them?"

"i tried a couple times but none of them ever turned out as good as the ones marcus made her."

"i'm sure with a little bit of practice, you could make some and give them to her. she might appreciate it."

"yeah, maybe. but i don't know." jack looked over to where y/n was sitting. she was leaning forward, talking to sheldon through the glass. she had a smile on her face. it was small, but it was a start. when she lifted her head to catch jack's gaze, she waved. "she is so strong. i don't know how she does it."

"she's got you, jack." nico nudged his friend. "and you don't have to worry about replacing marcus. nobody could ever. but you're a good substitute for the love she lost when she lost him. but it could be different if you let it."

"what are you talking about?"

"you're smart. you'll figure it out." and with that, he skated in the opposite direction. jack headed over to y/n.

"hey. ready to go?"

"yeah." y/n met him at the entrance to the tunnel. "sheldon was telling me how glad he was glad to see me doing better."

"everyone was glad to see you, y/n. you might not know it but we were all worried about you. you're like the unofficial little sister of the team."

"that's how you see me?"

"yeah. we all love you. not as much as he did. but we've got the same intentions."

"okay. that makes me feel alright." y/n took his hand and they walked to the locker room. "i'll wait for you out here." she waited for 25 minutes before she saw his face again and she was instantly calmed down when he emerged. y/n found that he has been doing that to her for years and she suddenly always wanted to be near him.

on the way back to the apartment, y/n fidgeted with the ring she put on earlier. jack took notice and nico's words played in his head. maybe he really should make some rings for her.

a few days later, y/n was sitting in her room when lydia came in. she handed y/n a small package.

"what's this?"

"i don't know. but it was in the mailbox." lydia shrugged and sat down on the bed beside y/n as she opened the package. "so, what is it?"

"it's a," she ripped the tape off and opened the box. "oh my god. it's a paper ring." she pulled it out and held it in the palm of her hand. it was a decently made one, nowhere near the quality of the green one she was still wearing. "who sent me this?"

"is there a return address on it?"

"not that i recall." y/n flipped the package around but didn't see an address on it. "i think it was jack."

"why do you say that?"

"well, other than you, he's the only one who knows how much the rings mean to me. at least i think he is."

"okay. that makes a lot of sense i guess."

"oh, there's a note." y/n unfolded a piece of paper and read the words.

you deserve so much more but these rings meant a lot to you so from this day forward, i will make and deliver a new ring every single day.

she knew immediately, just by the handwriting, that jack had made this ring. and it touched her heart in ways she didn't think were possible.

"lyds, what am i going to do?"

"what do you mean?"

"this is the sweetest thing anybody has ever done for me. and i love it a lot. it's making me feel things. but it's jack. i can't be feeling these things for him. he's my best friend."

"but maybe that's exactly why you should feel these things."

"what?"

"think about it. nobody knows the pain you're going through more than jack does. you lost a brother and he lost a best friend. and sometimes, people connect in so many ways while they grieve."

"but....it's jack." y/n looked at the ring again. "it would be weird, wouldn't it? i mean, i've never even thought about him in that way before."

"okay so you're telling me you've known this really hot guy for years and you've never thought once about him in a way that wasn't friendly?"

"have you?" y/n raised an eyebrow.

"of course i have. like i said, he's really hot." lydia smiled. "but he's never going to be into me. not the way he's into you, at least."

"are you high? jack is not into me."

"dude, are you blind? you can't be serious right now." lydia chuckled and shook her head. "he drops everything when you call. or just to be here for you. he's been your best friend for years and constantly, he's shown up for you. even on days when you didn't ask. he's intune to your feelings. it's like he knows how you'll be feeling and he's prepared for anything when it comes to you." lydia looked at her friend. "if he's not in love with you, then my radar is way off."

"it's off. just watch. i'll show you."

every day for the next 2 weeks, y/n received a paper ring in the mail. each one better than the one before it. she hardly saw jack but when she did, he would only be around briefly. so she didn't have the opportunity to ask him about what she and lydia had discussed.

but even then, with each passing day, y/n was beginning to doubt her own words. jack was going above and beyond in her friendship but it didn't feel like things a friend would do.

she really needed to talk to him.

and she got her chance one saturday.

jack was packing for a road trip with the team while y/n watched him run around his room. she enjoyed the moments like this when it was just them.

"i know you're the one who keeps sending me paper rings, jack."

"it wasn't really a secret, y/n." jack stopped folding a shirt and faced her.

"but why?"

"the rings meant a lot to you. i wasn't gonna let you continue on with your life without those rings." he looked down at his feet. "i hate seeing you upset, y/n."

"i don't deserve you." y/n smiled before lydia's words came tumbling through her mind. they fell out of y/n's mouth before she could stop them. "oh, um, interesting story. lydia told me she thought you were hot."

"oh. really?" jack's face began turning red and y/n suddenly wished she hadn't told him that.

"yeah." she took the opportunity to gauge his reaction carefully. "so, what do you think of that?"

"well, honestly i'm flattered. and she's gorgeous."

y/n's heart constricted a little. "oh."

"but she's not my type."

"are you crazy? lydia is 100% your type, jack. she's blonde, gorgeous, smart and funny. how is she not your type?"

"she just isn't, okay? yeah she's all those things, but she's just not-"

"ready to go, jack?" luke interrupted his brother thenn turned to y/n. "oh hey, y/n. didn't know you were here."

"i come here before you guys leave for every away trip. how are you so surprised every single time, luke?" y/n walked over to the tallest hughes brother and hugged him.

"i know. just like to tease you." luke chuckled. "you gonna miss your boy for a week?"

"what boy?"

"forget about him and come back here for a second. i have something for you."

y/n walked over to jack and smiled when he placed a paper ring on her pinky finger. "what's this for?"

"it's my favorite one i've ever made and i was gonna have it sent to you from the road but since you're here, i figured i'd give it to you now." jack's smile was infectious. "do you like it?"

"i love it." y/n couldn't help but wrap her arms around jack. he immediately pulled her tighter while luke smiled to himself.

"okay, lovebirds. let's go." he grabbed jack's bag and headed out. while they were alone, jacks cheeks turned pink.

"uh, ignore him."

"i always do." y/n smiled and headed out to the living room. "i'm gonna miss you guys. make sure you win for me."

"we always try our best for you." jack put his arm around y/n as the 3 of them headed to the parking lot.

luke got in jack's car and waited for his brother. he watched as jack and y/n embraced for what felt like the millionth time in the last hour. and he couldn't, for the life of him, figure out why they were still dancing around their feelings.

by the time jack drove away, he had shed his sweater. y/n held it in her arms and smiled before climbing into her car and heading back to her apartment.

lydia was sitting on the couch when y/n walked in. her eyebrow raised when she noticed the sweater. "jack's?"

"jack's" y/n confirmed as she collapsed next to her best friend.

"so does that mean you guys finally had the talk?"

"no. we didn't. but i did tell him you thought he was hot."

"you did not!" lydia slapped y/n's arm and laughed. "what did he say?"

"he said you were gorgeous, but that you weren't his type."

"right. because you're his type."

"When will you let that go?"

"when you and jack finally have a talk."

"okay. so never?"

"it's like you love to piss me off."

"you love me."

"i do." lydia smiled and turned her attention back to the tv. "i can't believe THE jack hughes called me gorgeous."

"that just made your day, didn't it?"

"honey, it made my entire life."

a week later, y/n and lydia were watching the devils play the golden knights. when jack collided with eichel and they both went down, y/n jumped up from the couch.

"oh no."

"that looked painful."

"he's not getting up, lydia." y/n covered her mouth and watched as eichel slowly slowly got up. he leaned down to check on jack but he was still not getting up. "that looked terrible."

"it really did. i can feel the pain." she rubbed her shoulder. "oh. and it's the same shoulder from last season, isn't it?"

"i don't know." y/n grabbed her phone and sent luke a text. "i hope he's okay." she was surprised when her phone vibrated in her hand. she looked at the screen. "jack's requesting a facetime."

"answer it!" lydia jumped to her feet and joined y/n.

"hey. what happened?" y/n looked at the screen, only to see luke's face instead of jack's. "is he okay?"

"he's stubborn. doesn't want to believe it's as bad as it could be." luke turned the camera towards jack.

"stubborn, or stupid?" lydia shook her head.

"little bit of both." y/n and luke answered at the same time.

"who are you talking to? is it y/n?" jack called from behind the camera. luke leaned to get his brother in the frame. he smiled when he saw y/n on the screen. "i promsie it's not bad."

"jack, the doctor said you might need surgery again."

"i don't need to surgery."

"jack, what's going to be worse? continuing your season without fixing what could become a potential problem down the road? or getting it fixed quickly so you can heal faster and come back stronger?" y/n stared at her best friend.

"ugh. stupid logic."

"i do it because i care."

"i know. and i love you for it." jack chuckled. the doctor came back into the room to inform them of the extent of his injury. he wrapped the shoulder as tightly as he needed and left the room again.

"i'm sorry this happened, bro." luke sighed. "you're the star of our team. without you, we're basically screwed."

"don't say that, luke. you guys are still strong without jack. you proved that last season."

"y/n, babe, i love you. but last season, we sucked." luke chuckled. "i strongly believe it was because we didn't have jack."

"you're feeding his ego, luke." lydia shook her head and smiled. "hope you heal fast, jack. the team needs you."

"who's the one feeding his ego now?" luke playfully raised his eyebrow. jack laughed in the background.

"i miss you guys." y/n sighed.

"well i won't be home for a while. gotta fly to colorado and get some surgery."

"oh. that sucks." y/n looked at her best friend. "this isn't fair. you should be healthy. you deserve it for at least one full season."

"i know. but it's like i'm cursed or something."

"all of you guys have been injured this season and i think it's bullshit."

"it is." y/n looked away for a moment. long enough for her to miss the longing look in jack's eyes. but lydia noticed.

"hey, if you miss jack so much, why don't you fly to denver and keep him company before and after the surgery?"

luke, who easily caught on, nodded. "oh, that's a great idea. i'll book the ticket now and send it to your email." he was already typing on his phone before she could protest.

"this will be good for him, i promise." lydia whispered. "you'll have time to talk to him about you know what."

"you're never gonna give up, are you?"

"you know me so well. i'm gonna go pack for you while you're on the phone." lydia kissed her cheek and headed down the hallway. y/n turned her attention back to the screen just as luke was putting his phone away.

"done. flight leaves tomorrow evening. you'll be in denver in less than 48 hours."

"can't wait. kiss jack on the cheek for me and tell him i'll see him soon." y/n smiled and hung up the phone. part of her wanted to be upset with luke and lydia's meddling but the other part of her knew jack would enjoy the company.

so, when the plane landed in denver 30 hours later, y/n rushed to be the first one off the plane. luke had sent her a text with the hospital information on it so she got in a cab and gave the driver the directions.

when he pulled up to the hospital, she gave him a generous tip and headed inside. it only took a few minutes before she had arrived in jack's room. when he looked up, his eyes met hers and he smiled widely.

"hey. you actually came. i thought the discussion was all a dream."

"of course i came. you needed someone here with you." y/n set her bag down and sat in the chair next to his bed. "how do you feel?"

"better now that you're here." he smiled genuinely. "but still in a little pain. surgery is scheduled for tomorrow morning and even though it's happened before, i'm a little scared."

"there's nothing to be scared of, jack. your doctor is one of the best in the country. he's had tons of successful surgeries, yours included." y/n grabbed his hand. "you're tough, jack. you can do this."

"wow. i didn't know how much i needed you here until just now. thank you." he squeezed her hand 2 times harder. "you take the pain away. for real."

"i try my best." y/n looked down at her feet, the blush inevitable. "jack, there's something i want to talk about and if i wait any longer, i'll probably chicken out." she took a deep breath before speaking again. "i think i may love you. a lot. and i never realized it until i lost marcus. you helped me out of my depression and you brightened my life up, even though i didn't make it easy. you are my best friend and i think that you making me these rings may be a sign that you like me too. and i might be wrong about it so if you don't feel the same, please tell me now." she waited for a few seconds. the silence was enough of a confirmation that she was wrong. taking a breath, she looked up, only to find that jack had fallen asleep. she let out a sigh of relief and leaned back in her chair, never letting his hand go.

the next morning, y/n woke up to the soft sound of voices whispering to each other. she opened her eyes and the doctor was standing by the bed, talking to jack. his hand was still holding onto y/n's so when he felt her move, his head turned immediately.

"good morning."

"good morning." she sat up straighter. "what's going on?"

"the doctor was just coming in to get me ready for surgery."

"oh. okay. well, i'm gonna go get some coffee." y/n stood up and stretched. jack reached for her hand.

"wait. please?"

"okay." she sat back down and watched the doctor do his thing. when it was finally time for the surgery, the doctor began wheeling jack out. he looked at y/n.

"you're gonnabe here after, right?"

"of course, jack. i wouldn't leave you."

"okay good. i have to tell you something when this is all over."

"i'll be here." she watched the doctor take jack to the operating room. as she waited, she thought back to her confession last night. she had no idea if she would have the courage to say it all to him again.

a few hours later, jack was out of surgery and asleep in his room. y/n kept her eye on him while the nurses came in and out to check on him.

around 9 pm, jack finally woke up. y/n had fallen asleep with her head on the edge of jack's bed. he gently tapped the top of her head and she stirred. when she opened her eyes, she smiled at jack.

"hey. how are you feeling now?"

"better. a lot better." he smiled as y/n moved her chair closer to the bed.

"that's good." y/n held his hand for what felt like the millionth time in the past 2 days. but neither of them cared. it felt right.

jack's eyes travelled to their hands. "you're still wearing the ring."

"of course i am. you gave it to me. i love it."

"i love you." jack closed his eyes. "this was not the way i wanted to tell you though. you deserve better than a damn hospital room."

"it's okay, jack. i could be anywhere with you and it would be enough." y/n squeezed his hand and smiled. "i love you too, by the way."

"i thought that's what i heard last night but i figured i was dreaming." jack chuckled. "i heard your whole speech and i'm sorry i didn't reply."

"you were tired. i don't blame you." y/n looked at his shoulder. "i'm glad you got the surgery instead of being stubborn, like usual."

"well a really wise person i know made a really good point." jack smiled. "i'm gonna come back even stronger than before and it's all thanks to you."

"i'm sure your doctor would be very happy to hear that." y/n couldn't help but laugh. "i guess i'm gonna be the one to take care of you while you heal."

"hopefully you'll be a better caregiver than luke was last season when i was hurt."

"i'll be the best caregiver ever. but only for you. and sometimes lydia."

"does lydia still think i'm hot?"

"she does." y/n grinned. "but i think that she thinks luke is hotter. and even if she doesn't, there's still some vibes between them, right?"

"you noticed that too, huh?"

"yeah. i've noticed it before but that facetime call was like the icing on the cake."

"they'd be cute together though, don't you think?" jack grinned.

"oh for sure." y/n looked at the ring on her finger. "thank you for learning how to make these for me."

"they mean a lot to you, y/n. i like seeing you happy. it's gotta be the best sight for me."

"you must really like me then, huh?"

"i do. i definitely do. and i have for a while." jack looked away from y/n before speaking. "i know this might make me sound like an asshole, but the night you had that date with that one guy, i was hoping the entire night that it would be a terrible date. i wanted you to come home and complain about him. i had planned to tell you how i felt that night. but after everything, the timing just never felt right. i'm sorry about him, by the way. he didn't deserve you."

"i know. i was way out of his league. but i spent so long thinking the opposite. so when he finally asked me on the date, i was happy." y/n sighed. "it was supposed to be a good day. but it was the worst day of my life."

"i know. i remember picking you up at the restaurant. you were broken before i even brought you to the hospital. i felt terrible having to do it."

"it's okay, jack." y/n climbed onto the bed next to jack when he scooted over. "sometimes things have to happen. and it's not like marcus won't live on in our memories. he's always gonna be in here. and in here." y/n pointed to her head first, then her heart. "especially in here."

"good. never let him fade away." jack kissed the top of her head and sighed. "so, i love you."

"i know. and i love you too, doofus. we've established that." y/n turned to look at him. "maybe we can finally go on a date when you get out of this hospital."

"or we can have the first date here." jack raised an eyebrow. "the food isn't too bad."

"okay. you're definitely still on the drugs." y/n smirked.

"i wish. the pain is a little terrible."

"want me to get the nurse?"

"no. i have a better idea." jack dropped her hand and used his own to grab her chin gently. he leaned in and slanted his lips over hers. their first kiss may have only been a short one. but it packed a lot of emotions in it. jack rested his forehead against hers and chuckled.

"how's the pain now?"

"still hurts. but only a little now. the kiss definitely helped."

"good. i'm glad to hear that." y/n grinned and leaned on his good shoulder. "i'm proud of you."

"thank you for being proud of me." jack stroked her hair and closed his eyes. the two of them drifted off to sleep, content to finally be in each others arms.

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