𝐰𝐡𝐲 𝐝𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐰𝐞 𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬 [✓]

4. Missing In Your Eyes

Yes, this is a Jack imagine, barely. Just be patient.

I shifted in my seat at the coffee shop, relaxing further into the armchair. I was alone for now but that didn't surprise me. I had a crippling fear of being late and that usually ended up with me being ridiculously early. Jonah wasn't set to arrive for another five minutes. We'd met through a dating app and bonded over our mutual love of coffee and Harry Potter.

My gaze caught on the plush armchair across from me. I sighed and glanced around yet again. The shop was small, the baristas friendly, the music tasteful and unobnoxious. The air was heavy with the scent of coffee and baked goods, something that always put me at ease. I swirled the ice in my latte and sipped at my reusable metal straw. I always loved places that had reusable cups, they made everything seem much more comfortable and friendly for some reason.

I glanced up as the shop bell jingled, telling me someone had come through the door. A tall boy with messy dark hair walked through the door and a smile caught my lips as I recognized him. I took a moment to drink him in. His cheeks were slightly flushed from the air outside which swirled in before the door clunked shut. A black hoodie swathed his slender frame and black jeans clung to his long, slim legs. He was handsome, obviously, but I felt no tug at my heartstrings, no flutter in my stomach other than nervousness for meeting a stranger.

I stood and Jonah's eyes met mine. A smile curved his full lips, that same smile I remembered from our facetime call. "Hey." Jonah's voice was soft and warm and he approached me, smile still ever present. "I'm Jonah. It'saaq so nice to meet you for real."

"I'm y/n." My smile widened. "I'm happy to meet you too."

"How's the coffee here?" Jonah asked.

"Fantastic. You'll like it, no matter how snooty you are. It'd be impossible not to," I teased, remembering his rants about bad coffee.

Jonah's laugh was absolutely beautiful but I was missing something. A flutter, a nervousness, a blush, anything.

I pondered this as I sat down and Jonah got his coffee. We got along so well and I really liked him but... maybe just platonically.

Jonah plopped into the seat across from me. "You're right, the coffee is great."

The longer we sat together, the more we connected, the more I felt that lack of flirting, of romance, of anything other than a simple friendship.

***

We continued seeing each other for a couple of weeks, not putting a name to what we were doing or what we were.

A while later, Jonah asked me to quote, 'hang out with my friends'. I was scared of what he would introduce me as but I shouldn't have been.

"Guys, this is y/n." I breathed a sigh of relief. "Y/n, this is Corbyn, Daniel, Zach, and Jack."

I shook each of their hands. When I got to the last boy, Jack, my mouth almost dropped open. There was something in his gorgeous brown eyes that was missing from Jonah's. Something with the ability to stop me in my tracks and cause my heart to accelerate. A hot flush crept over my cheeks and burned my ears. His hand was warm when it clasped around mine. I fumbled on my words and just barely managed to squeak out a meek, "hi".

"So you're the girl our Jonah has been ditching us for," Zach started, a teasing smile on his lips.

Daniel smacked the back of Zach's head. "Don't be rude, Zachary."

Zach stuck out his tongue.

"So how was Jonah on these excursions? Completely chivalrous I hope?" Corbyn nudged Jonah in the ribs.

"But of course," I looked up at him with a teasing grin. "A true gentleman."

***

Jonah pulled me aside after a while of eating pizza and watching the boys practically beat each other senseless over who should've won a round of Mario Kart.

"Hey, y/n, I think we should... I dont know, just stay friends. Look, I really like you but I've never felt any..." He trailed off as he fumbled for a word.

"Spark?" I suggested.

"Exactly. And I'm sorry if you-"

I shushed him. "Jo, I know. I feel the exact same way. Our 'dates' always felt so platonic."

Jonah's tight face melted into a smile. "Thank god. I really want to be your friend, though. Is that a possibility?"

"Absolutely."

"I thought I saw the way you were looking at Jack," Jonah teased, poking my shoulder.

I flushed harshly. "I- it's not- that's-"

Jonah laughed. "It's good, y/n. If it helps, he feels the exact same way. Go for it."

"It wouldn't be, I don't know, weird for you if I was interested in one of your best friends, considering how we met?" I blushed heavily, shifting from foot to foot.

Hands descended on my shoulders. I looked up and locked eyes with Jonah. "Y/n, we both feel the same. Jack's gonna be good for you. Take this chance." He dropped a kiss on my forehead before turning me around and steering me back into the living room where it was obvious that every single boy had been listening to our conversation.

He ducked down and whispered in my ear, "Look at that boy's red face. Get your man, y/n."'

***

So I know that doesn't actually have a lot of Jack in it but I thought it was cute anyway.