"The label wants to release the EP Ettinnette" Joey said as soon as Ettinnette sighed picking up her phone. "Then release I don't care" Ettinnette replied shortly not looking up from where she scrolled through her email aimlessly. "They want you to do promo for it" Joey said tapping the desk so Ettinnette could look up at her.

"Tell them to just surprise release it" Ettinnette asked playing with the bracelets all on her arms as Joey let out a sigh at her absent minded behavior. "Fine, They'll be pushback though" She said as Ettinnette nodded standing up as her phone went off in her pocket . "Whatever, I got that studio thing with Roddy today and my doctor's apartment so I'll text you later" Nette said quietly getting up and checking her phone. "Okay, you gonna be okay?" she asked her friend who turned back with watery eyes.

"I'll text you later"

"Okay so I have this one track with this bomb ass sample from Kelly Clarkson" she says pulling up the track and playing it for him. Roddy nodded along as a little smile played against his lips. "Who knew America's sweetheart could produce?" he said leaning closer into her as she tenses up from where she was sitting at the soundboard. "Yeah, I can even add this orchestra thing that I think would be cool to it" She said, moving away from him. "Bet,Is the sample cleared?" he asked not noticing how uncomfortable she had gotten.

She played them and then went into the piano verse until she felt someone's presence over her. Her throat started to close up on her out of pure fear as she shifted from him. "Umm, can you back up?" she said quietly as he looked at her confused. "Of course, Sorry I ain't mean to make you uncomfortable" he said quickly as she nodded. "No you're good, Imma go to the restroom real quick" she said quickly getting up as sobs started to shake through her chest. She silently cried as she locked herself in a stall wishing she was anywhere but there.

"What you doing here?" Ettinnette asked opening her door to be met with her ex-boyfriend with a target bag in his hands. "I can't check up on you now?" Jack asked with a smile on his face as Ettinnette shook her head immediately. "No! It's not that it's...Nothing. Come in" She says moving aside so he could walk into the house. "I got you something" he says holding up the bag they walked into her kitchen. "Chocolate?" she says looking in the bag and smiling up at him.

"Yeah they're your favorite" he says shrugging as she studies the cookies and cream hershey bars in the bag. "Thank you" she says smiling up at him as her doorbell rings. She mutters a 'give me a sec' answering her door to be met with...her manager??

"Hey can we talk?" She asked immediately as Ettinnette opened the door. "Sure?" she said leading Joey into her room. "How'd it go?" Joey asked as soon as Ettinnette closed the room door. "Fine. Doctor said my arm should be healed before second leg of the tour" Ettinnette said shooting Joey a small smile as Joey sighed. "Girl I don't care about that. What matters is your health, we'll postpone the tour if we have too" Joey says as her eyes dart from Ettinnette's cheek that held the large scar from where he had cut her and her broken arm. Ettinnette immediately noticed this and sighed.

"What're you doing here Joey? I know you didn't just come here to ask about that dumb ass appointment" Ettinnette said looking down at her nails. "Fine. I'm worried about you. Ever since it happened you've been cooped up in your house unless you got work and it's not healthy" Joey confessed making Ettinnette sigh. "Don't be, i'm fine" she replied shortly trying to leave the room but to no avail.

"It's obviously you're not fine Nette. You can't let what he did control the rest of your life" Joey said blocking Ettinnette from the door. "I don't wanna talk about this shit right now" Ettinnette said trying to get through so she could leave the conversation behind. "Are you even gonna think about it?" Joey asked grabbing Ettinnette arm to pull her back as Ettinnette smacked her teeth. "What's going to court finna do? So everybody can say i'm lying or worse blame me for that shit? So it can damage my career!?" Ettinnette asked honestly tired of the whole situation.

"It could give you closure! What if you win!?" Joey asked still keeping Ettinnette in place so she wouldn't leave. "Joey i'm not doing it. Give up" Nette said tearing her arms away from her friend. "What like you? Why can't you understand that people are there for you! Me ,Kaviana, Tiana, Jackman, Cench, Amara! Just let us in!" Joey pleaded desperately trying to convince Ettinnette of her point of view. "You don't know what it's like. So don't act like you do" Ettinnette argued quickly trying to exit the conversation still.

"What so you're going to mope around while everyone's outside your door worried that you're hurting yourself!?" Joey said and as soon as she said it her mouth quickly shut in regret. Tears started to sting her eyes because even though she had been being a bitch lately that hurt. "Nette-Get Out" Ettinnette said interrupting her manager before she could finish as tears threatened to pour down her cheeks. "I didn't mean-Josephine just leave me alone" Ettinnette said sounding more tired than before which made Joey shut up and comply because Ettinnette NEVER used her actual name, which means she had crossed the line.

All Ettinnette heard was Joey leaving her house quietly before she let her tears fall down.

She was so sick and tired of crying.

For herself.

From the memories.

For her innocence.

For how she pushed the people she loved away.

It was like she couldn't live after what he did to her. Everything was tainted. Everything hurt. She swallowed the large sobs that pained at her chest as she wiped her tears suddenly remembering Jackman still in the kitchen. She left the room quickly to see Jack looking down on his phone as if she knew he hadn't been eavesdropping. She quietly poured him something to drink and something for herself and passed it to him. He raised an eyebrow at her and she did the same gesturing for him to drink it. He did amid his skepticism and smiled tinily. "You know what this reminds me of?" he said as she continued to drink her apple juice. "Thanksgiving" she finished smiling at him. "The first time we met" he said quietly as she nodded, recalling.

"Guess what" he said after a few rounds of random conversation making her raise her eyebrow up in question. "Y'know that one Apple TV movie I auditioned for?" he asked, making her sprint up. "Shut the fuck up!" She hugged him, feeling so immensely proud of him. "I told you, you we're gonna get it" she said grinning as he gave her a look but nonetheless hummed to appease her. "So you're gonna be working on the album at the same time?" she said as he nodded making her furrow her brows. "Won't that be a lot of stress?" she said giving him a look making him side eye her. "Says the workaholic" he retorts making her hit him on the shoulder.

"Not my fault I love my job!" she said rolling her eyes as they both laughed.

"Yeah, but seriously," Jack said, his tone becoming more serious as he looked into her eyes, "Are you doing okay, Nette?"

She paused for a moment, contemplating her response. She had been pushing everyone away lately, burying herself in work to avoid facing the trauma that still haunted her. But Jack's concern was genuine, and she knew she couldn't dismiss it.

"I'm trying," she admitted softly, her gaze dropping to her hands fidgeting in her lap. "It's just hard sometimes." Jack reached out and gently took her hand in his, squeezing it reassuringly. "You don't have to go through this alone, you know," he said quietly. "Joey was right, we're here you just gotta let us in" he said keeping his eyes on her to detect any stray tears he had to wipe away

"I know" she whispered as her eyes started to water for what seemed like the hundredth time that day as she hugged Jack so in case she did cry he wouldn't see. She had so many things she wanted to tell him right now but it felt like her mouth was tightly closed shut. She wanted to tell him she was sorry, for everything she had put him through and that she loved him so much that it physically hurt when he was away from her. She wanted to be able to kiss the lips she had kissed seemingly a thousand times over and she wanted to be able to stare into his pacific ocean blue eyes that held all her secrets.

She wanted him back.

But was she ready?

A/N

this chapter was supposed to end way differently but i was trying to stand on buissness and finish the first chap of my 8 Mile book which i didn't (ofc) and then i was trying to remember what I envisioned when I was interning today and i was only getting bits and peices but we got the main subject across even though at the end i was js freestyling shit.

but lemme give y'all a little recap from nigeria bc if i told my friends they're gonna feel bad and don't nb got the time for pity.

so y'all know the reason i went to nigeria right? (for my grandpa's funeral) so we got there everything was cool until the actual funeral tell me why these older ladies i didn't even know pushed me to go see my dead grandfather's body?? The feeling I got was like someone was actually choking me bro, ts was scary asfff. Like my older cousin (favorite one) had to get me out and he was trying to calm me down because atp im in my house and im banging on my room door for someone to let me in and my hands are bleeding (ik this is some shit out of a literal movie) so he has to calm me down and allat yada yada yada. and then we go to church where they were doing the service so tell me why we go up to the alter and keep in mind its so horridly hot in nigeria, im wearing this tight ass dress that i hated, and im overwhelmed so i have a whole panic attack at the alter and one of the camera guys who was recording me crying earlier (fucking dickhead) got everything on recording so somewhere in the world there is a dude laughing at me not being able to breathe. like c'mon now. so then AFTER I changed into my change of clothes cus i hated that dress so BADD i was told to pick up money cus my mom was dancing cus nigerian funerals have certain traditions and stuff so im doing so and they must not realize im the daughter or smth but they start shouting at me like they have no sense and im just like 'but if i punch y'all niggas in the mouths it's gon be sum shit won't it??" and then a fight breaks out as my mother is dancing (the literal ghetto) and the security guard accidently knocks me down on the ground and i hit my head and passed out for a good 3 hours🎀 (before I got knocked out all I heard was my dad saying 'WHAT THE FUCK?! WHAT THE FUCK MAN?!'😭.

and then ontop of that central cee was in nigeria at the same time as me and we didn't even meet up😔 (even though we are husband and wife🤗) like im telling you guys nigeria sucked SHIT.

anyways lemme get off my little rant cus its 2:00am and i gotta intern tmr🤗

HRUUU???

Any comments or suggestions??

I love you guysss❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹