Valerie lid on the couch, trying to get to sleep but felt too restless. Everyone else had already gone to bed ages ago. Even Sofi and Angel, who had been upstairs doing a lot of making up, had seemed to have gone to sleep.

Footsteps padded down the stairs and a lamp was flicked on. Valerie glanced up to see the light flickering on Jack's face.

"Come upstairs with me for a sec."

Valerie shook her head. "Jack, I'm trying to sleep."

"Okay, you can," Jack nodded. "Just after this."

Valerie huffed and rolled her eyes but despite that, she still followed Jack up the stairs.

They went inside his room, Valerie took her usual place on the floor and Jack sat on the bed, pulling his acoustic guitar into his lap.

"You said you like our slow stuff right?"

Valerie raised an eyebrow. "That's true, yes, but I never told you that."

Jack shrugged. "I figured you did. I found that mix with our song on it."

"I knew you were a secret fan."

Valerie's cheeks heated up. She had thought she hid that mix well. "Jack, that was in my room!"

His lips twitched. "Oops?"

She shook her head. Of course Jack would snoop around in her room.

"The point I was going to make was I wrote a new song and I wanted you to hear it. It's called Ashtrays."

Jack started strumming and humming to the beat and Valerie was instantly captivated by it all. Jack's raspy voice wasn't much above a whisper.

...It's been awhile since I've come around, it's nobodies fault but yours

I sit in your living room, just as I had many times before but now I know we're no more

You didn't say a word but I know the score: you don't love me anymore

Now I sit alone, filling up ashtrays and writing songs, all for a girl who did me wrong...

Slow songs were Jack's forte. He made you feel something. He loved his punk rock, though. So Valerie knew she wouldn't hear much of his slower tempo stuff.

"I really liked it," Valerie said honestly. "Maybe you can record it and I'll put it on another mix you'll find when you snoop around my room."

Jack rolled his eyes.

"I should go thank whoever did you wrong because that's a beautiful song," she joked and Jack cracked a small grin. "Play me another before I go."

Jack began strumming again, another soft tune. It only took Valerie a few lyrics to spot the song: Clapton, Tears in Heaven.

Would you know my name if I saw you in heaven? Would it be the same if I saw you in heaven?

Valerie watched how concentrated Jack became on the chords. The lyrics hit her hard. She heard the song a million times, she loved Clapton, but before now there was no emotional tie to the song. Watching Jack's passion and emotion broke her heart.

Would you hold my hand if I saw you in heaven? Would you help me stand if I saw you in heaven?

When Valerie glanced up at Jack again silent tears had begun to stream down his face. Valerie uncrossed her legs and crawled on the bed next to him.

I'll find my way, through night and day, because I know I just can't stay here in heaven.

Jack's words had now become strangled and rough. Valerie couldn't take it anymore. She grabbed the guitar from his hands and laid it on the floor, pulling the boy in front of her into her arms. She could feel his hot tears soak into her sweater and on to her skin. Valerie tried to fight back her own tears but she couldn't stop them from falling.

Valerie leaned back after awhile. Jack still had a few tears rolling down his face but he never made a sound. He probably didn't want either of his brothers to hear. She wondered how often he had gotten like this after Evelyn's death and she wished she could have been there to comfort him through it every single one of them.

Their eyes met and Valerie couldn't handle the absolute look of loss in them.

Valerie wiped the last of Jack's tears away with the wool of her sleeve, smiling at him the best she could. Jack ran and hand through her hair before leaving it still on the base of her neck. She peered up at him but his expression was no longer sad - it was unreadable.

In an instant, and before she had time to react, Jack was pulling her into his lap and tipping his head down to hers.

Somewhere in Valerie's conscious she knew she should pull back but it was buried too deep at this point. Instead, she caved into his touch as if she had been craving it this entire time. Maybe she had.

Jack's eyes fluttered over her, as if he was searching for something.

"Bobby was right about you." He said suddenly.

"What's that supposed to mean?" She rasped out.

"You do have those bedroom eyes."

Valerie had been going to laugh at what he said but too suddenly his grip on the back of her neck and tightened and he had crushed his lips on to hers and her laugh was instantly muffled. It was the opposite of any kiss she had ever had; it started off feverish, hot, and needy but then everything began to move in slow motion.

"We should stop." Valerie said so quiet it almost fell mute on her own ears.

"Then tell me to stop." He replied in between feather-light kisses on her neck. Valerie moaned but couldn't form the words stop. She wasn't even sure it was in her vocabulary anymore.

Thoughts of stopping whatever they were doing dissipated as fast as they had appeared. Suddenly her only thoughts were Jack. His tattoos, his hair that has dampened from sweat, his rosary hanging on his bare chest and the heat that seemed to flow out of her body and into his.

Jack fiddled with the hem of her sweater and Valerie pulled it over her head and flung it somewhere in the room. It felt good to be pressed against him - skin to skin.

The clasp of her bra was unhooked and it followed her sweater across the room. Those were just the first layers to go, all others followed in suit.

Jack's gaze flickered over her and he gave her a toothy grin. She was happy to see it replace the previous tears. "Do you want to stop?"

"No," she said breathily. "No. Not at all."

Valerie awoke to sun beaming into her eyes and Jack's arm pulling her in closer. In her grogginess, she had forgotten what happened and how she ended up here. But once she felt his body heat, it all came back in flashes.

Valerie traced his tattoos lightly with her fingernail, just as mesmerized with them as she had been the night before. She stopped at the Evelyn tattoo, rubbing a thumb across the ink and then pecking it softly.

Jack mumbled something incoherent and soon after his eyes opened. He scanned over her for a moment, taking her all in, it was as if he was trying to decide if she was really there.

"Good morning," Jack greeted her groggily. His voice still full of sleep. He ran a hand down her bare back. "I had fun last night."

"Me too." She said, biting her lip.

Jack peppered hot kisses down her neck and Valerie groaned, knowing she had to get up.

"I have to leave." She told him. "I have to go to work. I'm probably already late."

Jack's grip on her got stronger. "Just lay here a while. Relax."

Valerie wasn't sure if what happened was just a pick-me-up screw or not but it didn't feel like it. Not at all.

"I'd love to," she sighed. "But work calls."

She stood up, flinging the duvet off her body and picking up her clothes that were scrambled all over Jack's bedroom floor.

"I'll be back." Valerie told him.

"I'll hold you to that." He said.

"Ah, the walk of shame," Bobby said, still smug. "It's been awhile since I've had one of those. Tell me, Valerie, how does it feel?"

She groaned. "Shut up, Bobby."

"Alright, alright, I can tell when I've said too much," Bobby laughed but Valerie didn't find anything funny. "But I'm gonna warn you: if you lead my little brother on, I'll kill you."