Following Jacki’s Plan Winning Her Back chapter 9 by Hero_For_Hire

Zoe had to admit, it was a good idea; she knew Lydia would eventually come calling, possibly with demands to speak to Jack, but this way she gets closure on her friend’s fate, whilst Zoe gets to keep her pocket-sized boy toy! Obviously, Lydia will have to overcome a significant mourning period and maybe blame herself for Jack‘s untimely demise - the kind of guilt she may never recover from for as long as she lives - but, other than that it’s win-win! 

Zoe relinquished Jack to the care of Jacki, the separation being hard on both of them.

”Zoe, please don’t do this.” Jack’s voice was stern and somber. 

“Oh, I know it’s hard to be apart, Jack, but it’s just for one night!” 

“No, that’s not what I mean! Flushing the antidote, letting Lydia think I’m gone, all of it! You can’t do this!” Jack continued to plead as Jacki’s fingers wrapped around him, suddenly hoisting him off the table and cutting his protests short.

“That’s enough out of you, little guy!” Jacki teased as she dangled Jack over the opening of her bag. “Let the big people talk.” 

She dropped him into the depths of her bag, which is where he spent the rest of the day. 

Jack wouldn’t be released until many hours later. He had spent the day fading in and out of consciousness; his sanity peeking away with each realisation that he was still in Jacki’s bag. Finally, he was awoken by the sounds of Jacki’s hand rummaging around for him. 

She pulled him out in the open, the light momentarily blinding him. He winced as he looked around at his surroundings - it was an apartment, presumably Jacki’s. She continued to hold him in the air, a bored expression etched on her face.

“So… I guess I’m looking after you for the night, huh?” 

Jack looked back at her, his eyes wide with fear. 

Jacki sighed. “You want some food or something?”

Jack’s stomach answered for him. All he had eaten was the mashed up french fry and his stomach growled loudly, demanding sustenance. 

“Damn, even I heard that!” Jacki laughed, carrying him to the kitchen. She set him down on the counter and after a minimal amount of searching her pantry, she retrieved a single slice of bread and tossed it down in front of him. 

It landed with a dull slap and sent a gust of air billowing over Jack, which made him flinch. He looked at his ‘dinner.’ A slice of plain bread the size of a football field. 

“Um, Jacki? Is there… something I can have with this..? Maybe some butter?” He asked meekly. 

Jacki was busy browsing the fridge for her own meal, but turned around sharply at his request. “Seriously? You’ve got enough there to feed you for a month!”

“It’s… it’s not the amount, it’s the… quality. I mean, Jacki, come on - this is just bread…” Jack tried to sound more jovial in order to soften the criticism, but he could sense Jacki growing impatient with each word that shakily escaped his mouth.

Jacki closed the fridge and approached Jack silently. He knew this wasn’t good. 

“Let’s try that again, shall we?” Her voice was terrifyingly calm. “When someone takes us into their home, provides them with a warm place to sleep, and offers them a meal, we say ‘thank you.’ This is just good manners, Jack. And I hate bad manners.” She smacked her hand on the counter to punctuate the word ‘hate’. 

Jack’s chest was pounding so hard it physically hurt. For a moment, he thought he was having a heart attack. He knew there was only one way out of this; 

“Yes, of course! You’re right, Jacki! Thank you!” He bowed to her before tearing off a hunk bread and tried to look grateful as he forced it into his mouth. 

Satisfied, Jacki went back to prepping her food.