A/N: I was always curious about Zaf & Jo vs. Ben & Jo – I might end up expanding this idea as I like Jo and don't think she got the attention she deserved. In the meantime, apologies for sporadic updates on this story - I do intend to finish it soon.
It was just before three in the morning (he'd forgotten to take off his watch after crawling into bed at an unforgivable hour) when Ben was woken up. It wasn't the usual car alarm or drunken passerby – there was a soft, sniffling sound coming from the lounge.
Jo was crying.
It was still so dark outside and the radiators were on full blast so it was very tempting to close his eyes and ears and just see how she was in the morning, but Jo didn't cry much and Ben wanted to try and help if he could. He pulled a hoodie over his head and padded out of his room to locate her.
She was sitting on the floor, back against the sofa, face covered by her hands. When she looked up at him, her mascara was streaked down her face and her cheeks were flushed.
"Did I wake you?" she croaked.
"It's okay," Ben replied, kneeling down next to her and wiping a tear that had just escaped from her eye.
"It's silly, really. I'm sorry. It's... it would have been, my friend's birthday today."
"Whose?" he asked softly.
"It doesn't matter, Ben."
"Zaf?" Ben knew that he was Jo's previous roommate and that they had been close, but not much more.
She nodded, biting hard on her lip as more tears spilled silently.
Ben took one of her hands in his and squeezed gently. He wasn't very good at dealing with this world and what it could do to you, not yet. He and Jo were both young but she'd probably seen things and done things that she couldn't say and that he would never know. But at the end of the day, they were still all human with hopes and fears and people they cared about.
He really cared about Jo, but had never stopped to think about who else she might have been with. She and this Zaf might have been friends or more, Ben wasn't sure, but either way they had obviously been close and suddenly he felt horribly intrusive.
"I'm not him, Jo," he murmured. "And I won't try to be."
He wasn't entirely sure what had made him say it but it felt appropriate. He didn't want to leave her crying but didn't want to crowd her.
Ben didn't know how to fix Jo or if she wanted to be fixed, but either way he was powerless to undo her pain.