❝ S E P E R A T I O N  A N X I E T Y ❞

"Catch me!" Addilyn declares, jumping into a startled Zach's lap.

Upon entering the surprisingly quiet house moments prior, the girl had spotted Jonah, Corbyn, Zach, and Daniel sitting around the living room - but they had yet to notice her and Mr. Quackington. Which led her to tackling the youngest boy.

"How did you get in here?" He shrieks, dropping his phone.

"Aurora gave me a house key," Addilyn shrugs her shoulders nonchalantly. She glances around, expecting the wild teen to be summoned at the mention of her name. "Where is she, anyway?"

"She went to photograph a wedding," Daniel explains. "And Zach lost an arm wrestling match, so she was able to take Carmen with her."

Mr. Quackington perks up at the sound of Daniel's voice and he waddles towards the boy, quacking animatedly with a beak full of Cheez-its until he picks him up. Other than Addilyn, the duckling had grown most attached to the brunette, the two having apparently bonded after the initial argument.

"Only because she cheated," Zach grumbles. "And can you please get off of me?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," she hums, instantly sprawling out and becoming dead weight in his arms.

"You're almost as bad as Aurora," he groans, letting his head drop against the cushions.

"Hey," Jonah protests, defending his girlfriend. "Aurora isn't that bad."

"Yeah," Corbyn agrees, flopping on top of both, Addilyn and Zach. "You're just salty because she makes you share Carmen."

"Why are you on me?" Zach raises an eyebrow, staring unamused down at the blond.

"I have separation anxiety."

"Me too," Daniel pipes up, leaping into Jonah's arms.

Addilyn can't help but giggle as Jonah's gummies fall to the floor so he can catch the boy. Her laughter comes to an abrupt stop as Zach stands up, allowing her and Corbyn to hit the floor as well.

"Okay, Corbs," she gasps, the wind having been knocked out of her. "You can get off of me now."

She nudges his shoulder as Mr. Quackington quacks angrily, warning the blond to get off of his owner.

The only answer that emits from him is a soft snore as he nuzzles closer to her, somehow having fallen asleep despite the harsh fall he just took.

"In their defense," Jonah muses, glancing down at Daniel, who had fallen asleep in his lap. "It is nap time."

Zach opens his mouth to say something, but is cut off as Jonah's phone rings loudly. The older boy answers it, putting the caller on speaker so everyone else could hear.

"Hey, Carmen," he answers with a laugh just as Zach groans loudly, both of them bracing themselves for whatever crazy stunt Aurora had pulled this time. "What's Aurora doing now?"

"Well, as of right now," the girl begins, attempting to think of a way to downplay their situation. "She's sitting in a jail cell and comparing tattoos with the woman in the cell across from her's."

Jonah pinches the bridge of his nose, torn between wanting to laugh at the ludicrousness of her statement and wanting to groan out of fear of what his girlfriend had done to land herself in a jail cell.

"I didn't know Aurora had a tattoo," Addilyn muses, running her fingers through Corbyn's hair.

"It's a picture of a sunrise on her shoulder," Zach explains. "I'm still surprised it's the only one she has."

"Then, if she's been arrested," Jonah pauses, almost afraid of the answer. "Who was her one phone call?"

"She used it to order Chinese food."

"I'll be there in a few minutes," Jonah decides, pushing himself up off of the couch - and allowing Daniel to fall to the floor - as he ends the phone call. "Who's coming with me?"

Addilyn sits up from her spot on the floor and catches Callie's eye, who motions for the girl to remain quiet about their arrival. She and Jack had just returned from a meeting with her lawyer, Charlie Daniels, Aurora's father, and the couple looked utterly exhausted.

When Addilyn nods discreetly and turns her attention back to Jonah, they scurry up the stairs to their shared bedroom, in need of a long nap.

****

"She certainly looks like she's made herself at home," Addilyn chuckles, entwining her hand with Corbyn's as their group enters the jail.

Aurora is sitting cross legged in the middle of one of the cells, eating Chinese takeout while carrying on a conversation with Carmen - who stood outside of it, failing to hide her amusement - as if it were the most normal thing in the world.

"Carson and I once spent the night in that cell," Addilyn comments offhandedly, pointing to the empty cell next to them. "Apparently, spray painting the side of Target is frowned upon in this society."

Corbyn gives his girlfriend a bewildered look, not sure if she's joking or not. "You're just full of surprises."

"I vote we let Aurora spend the night here," Daniel states, grumpy over his nap being interrupted.

"I second that!" Zach raises his hand but immediately lowers it as Aurora throws a chopstick at him.

"We can't do that to her," Carmen argues, swatting at the boy's arm. "They'll corrupt her."

"I want another tattoo," Aurora says, not paying attention to the conversation but proving Carmen's point.

"Alright, let's get you out of here," Jonah decides as one of the officers open the cell door. "The officer said we don't have to pay bail as long as you promise to stay out of here for at least two months."

"What did she even do to end up here in the first place?" Addilyn questions as Aurora begins to argue with Jonah about how she 'can't make that promise'.

"We pulled her over for speeding and she gave us a fake ID," Officer John explains. "That would've just gotten her a ticket, but, then she tackled Steve because he didn't have any Cheez-its."

"JONAH MARAIS," Aurora screeches as Jonah walks past them with her slung over his shoulder. "PUT ME DOWN!"

"I call dibs on whatever is left of her Chinese food!"