#jack:event06

[ambercast]

where: art festival who: jäger drake (@backmaskcd )

There was one person Jack cared about more than anything in the world: Jäger. It had been difficult, loosing his grip as his little brother grew older and more independent. If it was up to him, he'd keep Jäger wrapped in blankets with him under a pillow fort for the rest of time. But he knew he had to let his brother grow up and live his own life.

It didn't stop the anxiety, though, and Jack was on constant stand-by to make sure he was ready whenever Jäger might need him. "Hey," he said as he approached the other. "I got you this." He held out a leather-bound journal. "I hear it's good to write down your feelings and shit. Or like, draw them or whatever. If you need to." He knew they both tended to keep their emotions on the down low, and he also knew that keeping things inside all the time with no healthy outlet wasn't good for Jäger.

[ambercast]

"I still can't quite believe that. I mean, you were definitely one of the hottest girl in school," Jack said with a small, crooked smile. "I totally believe you were able to get Declan." He remembered how popular that guy had been back in high school, and genuinely nice about it so you couldn't even hate him for it. "But yeah, we can go check out the art. I'll have to find Jäg at some point, but I would never turn down a walk with you." He held his arm out to her.

"two. i had two friends, and one of them was you. so really if you think about it, we had the same amount of friends. and don't you dare try to count declan, because we were sleeping together after lui and i broke up, so the friendship didn't really start until we were adults." but fern let out a sigh, her own smile matching jack's as she shook her head. "how about we get out mind off of this conversation and go enjoy some art or something? i think we're depressing ourselves by discussing this."

[ambercast]

where: art festival who: lizzie velnias (@lizzievelnias)

Jack should've been looking where he was going, but in his defense the young woman was quite small and currently covered in an armload of crocheted stuffed animals. When he did stumble into her, he quickly stepped back, shaking his hair out of his face with a frown as he noticed a few stuffies had fallen.

"Shit, sorry," he muttered, bending to pick them up and brush the dirt off them.

[ambercast]

Jack wasn’t sure how to take that, but he smile faintly anyway. “I didn’t learn much in school, so I can relate, I think. I’m still not very observant though. I mostly slept through all my classes.” He was kind of embarrassed about it, honestly, but he literally could not keep his eyes open in school.

She shrugged, relieved to actually be able to do that now that half the weight was off her arms. "Eh, I notice lots of things. I'm kinda dumb but I'm super duper observant. Nothing gets past me," she flashed Jack a grin. "So you better watch out," Lizzie teased.

[ambercast]

Jack released Jäger as the other let go as well, giving his brother a small half-smile. “Yeah, of course. Have fun at the dance. Don’t get caught doing anything stupid. And . . . be careful,” he finished lamely, knowing they’d already talked about the whole being careful thing, but he felt he still had to say it again. Jäger didn’t always look out for himself the way Jack wished he would. Not that he minded coming in to save the day, but it didn’t help his anxiety.

"If I'm not that broken, it's because you've glued me together enough times." Jäger insisted, gripping Jack's elbows. "Don't start thinking that you're gonna see less of me though. Just cuz I have a girl I like doesn't mean I'm going anywhere. Okay?" He let his hands fall to his sides, finally releasing his grip. "I'll probably head back with her after the dance, but we should hang out tomorrow. I can show you all the cool shit I pocketed."

[ambercast]

"Oh, yeah, hi," Jack said, surprised that she had noticed him there. He was used to blending in into the background. He was careful not to drop any of the animals she handed over to him, re-situating a few in his arms so they were laying better. "Sorry, I'm not really used to people recognizing me."

Glancing around the animals as best she could, she saw that Jack had his arms out. Without warning she dropped about half the pile into his arms, letting out a sigh of relief. They got really heavy after a while. "Lizzie," she replied, before recognition lit up on her face. "Oh hey, you live at the big house like we do! That makes things super easy. Now I don't have to worry about bringing some weirdo over."

[ambercast]

“You’re not . . . that broken,” Jack said with a weak half-smile. He rubbed his brother’s back a moment longer before pulling back, resting his hands on Jäger’s shoulders. “I really hope this works out for you.” It was hard to keep smiling, but he knew he had to do it for Jäger. If Jack pretended like he could give Jäger away, maybe his brother would end up happier than he’d ever been with just the two of them. Maybe this girl could give Jäger things Jack couldn’t.

As soon as Jack wrapped his arms around Jäger, he relaxed into his brother's embrace, letting out a soft sigh into his shoulder. "I know. And I can be careful. Of course I'm being careful." He tilted his head slightly so his voice wasn't so muffled. "I love you. You're the only person I know how to love. People don't really react well once they realize how broken I am. So I'm just enjoying what I can get for now. I know it's not gonna be forever. She's a really good person. Maybe after this, I can introduce you two, and you can see how sweet she is."

[ambercast]

Jack's lips twisted in a tiny smile. "I pretty much ignored everyone in high school. There was you but even you had more friends than me." He shrugged. "I still don't really have any interest in what's going on. I don't know if I have a commitment thing, I mean I'm pretty committed to Jäg. I think I could be committed to someone. But nobody is gonna ask someone like me out so." He shrugged again.

fern felt her cheeks grow hot with a blush, but she just shook her head, flashing jack a sweet smile. "thank god for that, though. too many people around here like to be in other people's business, and it's annoying. i, personally, do not have a love life and i'm scared of commitment. you're kinda doing yourself a favor by not asking me out."

[ambercast]

“Uh, yeah I can help,” Jack said with a nod. “Sure. Uh . . . what do you want me to carry?” He stood awkwardly for a moment, arms outstretched to take whatever she wanted to give him. “I’m Jack, by the way,” he said after a moment, realizing he should probably introduce himself.

"Oh yeah, that'd be a good idea huh?" Lizzie bit her lip in thought. "Or maybe you can help me carry them? I really just need to get them set up at our new place. Winnie wouldn't be happy if I brought them all to the party later. Might make her laugh though."

[ambercast]

Jack sighed softly, wrapping his arms around his brother in return. “You don’t gotta apologize,” he said softly. “I want you to be happy, okay? I just . . . also want you to be careful. I’m glad she seems different.” He rubbed Jäger’s back in circles. “Just don’t rush into things too much. But if she’s a good person and treats you good then I’m happy for you.” It didn’t really assuage his anxiety, but at least Jäger knew that he would be there if things did break bad with this new girl.

The grin that had been on Jäger's face twisted for a moment, turning to one of concern himself. "Um. Yeah." He kicked at the dirt a little, suddenly feeling a rush of confusion and shame. "She puts up with my bullshit, that's usually a first good sign." He hated feeling like he did something wrong - while he never got disciplined as a kid, Jack's reactions could cause his mood to shift drastically. "She's um. New. To town, I mean. I just thought, you know, it might be nice to play domestic for a while before she finds out about..." He gestured vaguely at himself. "And doesn't want to deal with it anymore."

He peered up at Jack, finally willing to at least try to meet his eye before wrapping his arms around him again, burying his face in the crook of his neck. "I'm sorry. I know I need to be more careful, but... I don't know. She just feels different. I like when she's around."

[ambercast]

“Wow, you should be a model,” Jack said, though it wasn’t really a surprise. Fern always looked amazing, even back in high school. “Honestly, I don’t really notice what other people are doing. Like, love life wise. I just assume they have one of some kind.” He shrugged. “I’d ask you out but who has the time, honestly.” He sighed softly.

fern winced as jack startled, a guilty expression on her features. "sorry, i'm sorry. sometimes i forget that i can't just come up behind you and announce my presence like that." she cocked her head to the side, smiling now. "no, i'm not on a date. in fact, this is me dressed casually. you should know by now that i don't date."

[ambercast]

“Um, I think so,” Jack said with a nod, patting the ones he’d picked up before setting them carefully on the pile in her arms. “Uh . . . do you need a bag or something?” He didn’t think it was very safe for her to be hidden behind all the toys. She’d run into him. She might run into others.

Okay, so maybe she went a little overboard on the stuffed animals. But they were so fucking cuuuuuute! And soft. And squishy. It did make it hard to see over her bundle of crocheted stuffies though. "It's fine," she called out over the mass, moving her head this way and that to try and see who it even was she walked into. "Did anyone fall? Are they okay?" Lizzie's voice was laced with hope.

[ambercast]

“You hooked up and . . . now you’re together?” Jack repeated with obvious confusion. That wasn’t at all like Jäger. “That’s . . . really fast. How do you know she’s a good person?” That was Jack’s main concern. He wanted Jäger to find love and be happy, but jumping into a relationship with someone he just met seemed ill-advised. What if their personalities didn’t mesh or their worldviews? What if one wanted kids and the other didn’t? A whole host of problems and worries came to the front of Jack’s mind.

“I mean, shouldn’t you get to know a person before deciding you wanna be with them? Good sex shouldn’t be the only reason you pick your partner . . .” Not that Jack had experience in any of this, but that sounded right. He didn't want to discourage his brother from having a girlfriend, it was just all so unexpected, and his usual response to sudden change was fear and anxiety.

To most people, Jäger was prickly; he hated being touched or getting close to people, even the people he considered his closest friends. When it came to Jack, however, he was someone else. He was affectionate, and sweet even, and extremely possessive. Not that it was every much of a problem; Jäger had always been Jack's top priority, so he rarely felt threatened by anyone else trying to take his brother's attention.

"Hi," Jäger chirped, face lighting up as he wrapped both arms around Jack in a quick, tight hug. "Oh - um, thanks?" He was puzzled, but accepted the journal. "I don't really think I need to write down my feelings, though." He paused before giving Jack a sheepish look. "Oh but um. I um. I hooked up with this girl the other night. She's different, though. Than anyone else. So now we're like.... together."

[ambercast]

Jack twitched as he felt someone touch his back, but once he saw it was Fern he relaxed. Crowds weren't his thing, but it was good for networking and Jäger was here. "I've been . . . around. Just working." Since the earthquake there'd been a lot of people in need of repairs. He looked over at her, glancing her over briefly. "You're dressed up. Are you on a date?"

location: the art festival

closed starter for: @ambercast (jack)

"just when i think you've gone into hiding for good, i get to see you in public and suddenly everything feels better." fern's smile was soft as she walked up to jack, a hand lifting to gently rub his back for a brief moment. fern's friend group wasn't anything anyone had expected out of her, but considering it meant she had people like esther and jack in her life, she couldn't be bothered to care about how other people perceived her life. "how're you doing? you're so elusive i haven't been able to check on you."