The front door swung open with a soft creak, letting in the faint scent of night air and french fries. Laughter trickled in—low, easy, and real.
Jackson and Aura stepped inside, the porch light catching on the steam rising from the takeaway drinks in their hands. Aura kicked her sneakers off by the wall and pulled her hoodie tighter around her. She glanced toward the kitchen and spotted Harper, hunched over her phone at the dining table, the glow of the screen lighting her face.
Aura lingered a second. "You want anything Harp?"
Harper didn't look up. "I'm okay, thanks."
Aura hesitated, like she wanted to say more, but let it go. "Well, I'm gonna shower before dinner."
Jackson gave her a brief nod as she padded up the stairs. Once her footsteps faded, he stayed rooted in the hallway a beat longer, eyes drifting to Harper. Her body was stiff. Tense. Something was almost off.
He wandered into the kitchen and pulled out the chair opposite her, collapsing into it with his usual sprawl. His eyes didn't leave her.
"You serious right now?" he said finally, his voice low.
Harper's thumbs paused mid-scroll. "What?"
Jackson raised his brows, staring at her with that unreadable look only a younger brother could perfect.
"You ghosted for a whole day. Came back the next morning like nothing happened. Didn't answer a single one of my texts. Harper, I've been worried about you."
Harper didn't meet his eyes. "I'm not arguing with you about this."
Jackson stared at her, still and unreadable. He'd figured as much. When she slipped out that night, he knew she was going to meet Sam Y — But he hadn't heard anything since. No texts. No signal that she was okay. Not until she slunk back through the door the next morning, ghost-like and silent.
Harper leaned back in her chair, arms crossed to mirror him.
"I went to the camp." she said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I went looking for Riley."
"I had to try, Jacks." she added more quietly, gaze dropping to her lap. "I couldn't just sit here and pretend like it didn't matter that she thought I just disappeared. If I didn't at least try to find her, then what was the point of everything we went through?"
Jackson leaned forward, elbows on the table. "Well, did you find her?"
"She's not there anymore." She admitted, voice quieter. "I found a file in the main office. It said she was discharged. Months ago. Sent to a behavioural unit outside of town."
Jackson's jaw twitched. "So you risked getting arrested, breaking your probation, just to confirm something they could've told you in a phone call?"
"They aren't going to talk to me. Are you serious?" Her eyes flashed.
"And I couldn't just wait around hoping. I needed to know. If Riley was still in that place... after what they did to us..."
She trailed off. Her hands curled into fists on the table, knuckles pale.
Jackson's stomach twisted. He remembered the look on her face the day she came home—exhausted, hollowed out, still shaking. It hadn't even been 24 hours since that night, and she was already back in fight mode.
He swallowed the lump rising in his throat. "And now what? You gonna go looking for her again?"
Harper didn't answer. She just stared at the wood grain of the table like it held a map no one else could see.
"Harper..." he said more gently this time. "You're not responsible for Riley."
"Yes, I am."
"No, you're not."
"She didn't deserve that place, Jacks."
"You didn't either." He snapped, voice thick.
They both fell quiet.
Harper glanced down at her phone again. Her thumb hovered over the search bar she'd left open. She hadn't typed anything new in the last ten minutes.
Jackson finally leaned back and ran a hand through his hair, exhaling.
"You gonna tell Mom?"
Harper laughed once—sharp and humorless. "Tell her I broke into a facility and broke my probation and curfew rules? Sure. I'll draft the group chat now. I'll get the handcuffs ready."
Jackson didn't press. He knew better.
He watched her a little longer. She hadn't cried, but her body looked drained, like it wanted to. Like it would crumble if she let it.
He opened the fridge, grabbed two sodas, and passed her one. She took it wordlessly.
Upstairs, the water pipes groaned. Aura was finishing her shower.
Jackson leaned forward, elbows resting on the table, a half-finished burger forgotten beside him. The kitchen was quiet except for the ticking clock and the hum of the refrigerator. Across from him, Harper sat at the head of the table with her phone in hand, its screen casting a soft glow on her face as she tapped and scrolled. She hadn't said much since they came in, and now her brows were pinched in focus, her shoulders stiff.
He watched her for a moment, then cleared his throat. "So... what's your plan now?"
Harper's eyes flicked up, distracted. "What?"
"Now that you know Riley's not at the camp." He hesitated. "What happens next?"
Her fingers stilled against the phone screen. For a second, her face was blank—like the question didn't register. Then she sighed, setting the phone face-down on the table.
"I don't know. Maybe... write to the behavioral unit. The one she was sent to."
Jackson raised an eyebrow. "You think that'll actually work?"
"I don't know." She repeated, voice flat.
"But it's something. I doubt they'd let me visit, so yeah. A letter's all I've got."
There was silence. Jackson stared at her, studying the tired slump in her shoulders and the way her fingers kept tapping against the table—like her body needed motion even when her mind was exhausted.
Just then, the sound of soft footsteps came down the stairs. Aura appeared in the doorway, hair damp from her shower, a clean hoodie hanging loose on her frame. She paused when she saw the two of them, immediately sensing the heaviness in the air.
"What's going on?" she asked, eyes bouncing between Harper's stiff stance and Jackson's worried expression.
Harper turned quickly, pasting on a tired smile that didn't fool either of them.
"Nothing. Just tired."
Aura's gaze lingered, unconvinced. "You sure?"
"Yeah." Harper said, brushing past her. "I'm heading to bed."
"Wait—are you having dinner?" Aura asked, turning as Harper disappeared down the hallway.
"No." came Harper's voice, muffled by distance. "I'm good."
The sound of her bedroom door closing a moment later felt louder than it should've.
Aura looked at Jackson, arms crossed loosely and letting out an awkward laugh. "Okay... that didn't seem like nothing."
Jackson didn't answer right away. He stared at the empty space where Harper had been, fingers still wrapped around his soda.
"No." he said eventually, voice quiet. "It wasn't."