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fandomweekly2023-08-10 05:01 pm
dandelionblizzard) wrote in fandomweekly2023-08-10 05:01 pm
Entry tags:
[#0189] Soulmates (Jake and Amir)
Theme Prompt: Anniversary
Title: Soulmates
Fandom: Jake and Amir
Rating/Warnings: Deals with feeling guilty over someone's death
Bonus: Yes
Word Count: 1000
Summary: Jake visits Lerona's grave one year after her death, but Amir's there too.
Today marks one year since Lerona got hit by a bus. Since Jake didn't reach out and pull her back to the sidewalk. Amir's been saying Jake pushed her into the road enough that Jake almost believes it himself. It was all a blur, after all.
It'd fit, if he did do it. He always sabotages whatever good thing he has going for him – like when he moved to LA, got a job in a real office for a company that could afford a whole building, not just half a floor. His cute coworker was flirting with him, but all he could do was complain how bad his life was before. He didn't like complaining either, not to those plastic LA people with their porcelain teeth and apartments that could swallow his whole. So, back to New York, working with his friends for almost no money, across from a man who stuck GI Joes up his nose. That was his chance to escape, and he blew it. Jake pushed her because he ruins everything he touches.
Or maybe he felt bad for stealing Lerona, and on some level knew she'd get bored of him. He was the new guy, slightly taller, with a mysterious layer of strawberry-blond stubble. He didn't need glasses to see. But once she got to know him, she'd realize how deep her connection with Amir really was, and run back into his arms. Jake pushed her so Amir couldn't have her.
Maybe both of those are true, and he didn't push her. He's just depressed and guilty enough to buy flowers to lay on her grave, with money he'd rather be spending on beer, or something to eat other than ramen. But he is technically still her boyfriend (probably). He heads to the florist, and picks up the cheapest thing he can get. It's a small bunch, blue and red and yellow because he never learned her favorite color.
Amir's there, when he arrives. He's holding a giant bouquet, mostly pink frilly flowers with a few accents of yellow, all wrapped in lighter pink paper. Pink was her favorite, then.
"What are you doing here?" Jake asks, instead of shouting 'I'm her boyfriend – she dumped you, remember?'. Amir's never been one for subtlety, though.
"I come here everyday," he replies, smiling with just the thought of visiting her. "Soulmates, right?"
"I'm her soulmate." She chose to be with Jake. Why wouldn't she choose to be with her soulmate?
Amir scoffs. "Never seen you here."
"There's a difference between being a soulmate, and being pathetic."
"Is there a difference between being a murderer–"
"Wow."
"Sorry, but it had to be said."
"It didn't have to be said," Jake hisses. His eyes welling with tears, he tosses the flowers at the closest grey blob.
"That's not even her grave." Amir moves the flowers to her headstone, and adds his own. He sighs. "Why'd you come if you were just gonna be... like this?"
"I don't know." Jake should just go; never should have come in the first place. He was her boyfriend for less than twenty minutes.
Amir pulls something from his backpack on the ground. "I brought her dog food," he says.
Jake snorts. "What?"
"Her breath always smelled like dog food. I figured she eats it."
"No, dude– dude! I swear I saw her eating kibbles and bits once. She told me it was a Snickers, but I smelled her breath after – it was not peanuts."
"She tried that on me too!"
Amir sits the bag of kibble next to the flowers, giggling. Jake covers his smile with his hand, because it's kind of weird to be laughing in a graveyard, even if there aren't any burials happening nearby. The air turns still for a moment, as they both stare at the lettering on her grave.
"I'm glad you showed up," Amir says quietly.
"You don't have to visit every day."
"But we're soulmates. She told me it felt like she was waiting her whole life to meet me."
"And then she left you for me. She's gone, Amir, and she wasn't that great of a girlfriend."
"Shh!" Amir covers the headstone with his hands, where ears might be.
"You need to let her go, dude."
"Why'd you come, then?"
"I miss her."
Amir looks at him for a long moment, then reaches for his backpack again. "I have one more surprise."
"Not chicken nuggets." If he puts them on her grave birds'll eat them and crap all over her headstone.
Amir holds up two pink metallic party hats, and hands one to Jake. "She liked parties," he explains. "One was supposed to be for her."
"I don't think the elastic would stretch around the headstone, anyway." Jake dons the hat.
Amir puts his on too. "Yeah. She'll just have to party on down in the underworld without a hat."
"You think she's in the underworld?"
Amir takes on a Southern twang. "After what we did in bed, she sure as shit ain't in Heaven."
"Dude."
"Sorry," Amir says, but he doesn't mean it.
Lerona would be pissed at them right now if she could see her grave. But her grave is for them, not her. For them to feel guilty over, or put kibble on, or party next to. Jake's flowers are a wonderful part of the cacophony piled on top of her.
"Wanna get out of here?" Amir asks. "As friends."
"You didn't need to clarify. The fact that you did makes me worried."
"I'm sorry for worrying you. In a friend way."
"Stop it."
"I don't want you to think we're in a relationship now because we said the words 'boyfriend' and 'girlfriend'."
"I don't think that."
"Good. 'Cause if you wanna be my boyfriend, you gotta buy me dinner first."
Jake laughs politely.
"Could you actually buy me dinner though? The IT guys stole my wallet again and I haven't eaten in three days."
Jake sighs.
"Sure."
Title: Soulmates
Fandom: Jake and Amir
Rating/Warnings: Deals with feeling guilty over someone's death
Bonus: Yes
Word Count: 1000
Summary: Jake visits Lerona's grave one year after her death, but Amir's there too.
Today marks one year since Lerona got hit by a bus. Since Jake didn't reach out and pull her back to the sidewalk. Amir's been saying Jake pushed her into the road enough that Jake almost believes it himself. It was all a blur, after all.
It'd fit, if he did do it. He always sabotages whatever good thing he has going for him – like when he moved to LA, got a job in a real office for a company that could afford a whole building, not just half a floor. His cute coworker was flirting with him, but all he could do was complain how bad his life was before. He didn't like complaining either, not to those plastic LA people with their porcelain teeth and apartments that could swallow his whole. So, back to New York, working with his friends for almost no money, across from a man who stuck GI Joes up his nose. That was his chance to escape, and he blew it. Jake pushed her because he ruins everything he touches.
Or maybe he felt bad for stealing Lerona, and on some level knew she'd get bored of him. He was the new guy, slightly taller, with a mysterious layer of strawberry-blond stubble. He didn't need glasses to see. But once she got to know him, she'd realize how deep her connection with Amir really was, and run back into his arms. Jake pushed her so Amir couldn't have her.
Maybe both of those are true, and he didn't push her. He's just depressed and guilty enough to buy flowers to lay on her grave, with money he'd rather be spending on beer, or something to eat other than ramen. But he is technically still her boyfriend (probably). He heads to the florist, and picks up the cheapest thing he can get. It's a small bunch, blue and red and yellow because he never learned her favorite color.
Amir's there, when he arrives. He's holding a giant bouquet, mostly pink frilly flowers with a few accents of yellow, all wrapped in lighter pink paper. Pink was her favorite, then.
"What are you doing here?" Jake asks, instead of shouting 'I'm her boyfriend – she dumped you, remember?'. Amir's never been one for subtlety, though.
"I come here everyday," he replies, smiling with just the thought of visiting her. "Soulmates, right?"
"I'm her soulmate." She chose to be with Jake. Why wouldn't she choose to be with her soulmate?
Amir scoffs. "Never seen you here."
"There's a difference between being a soulmate, and being pathetic."
"Is there a difference between being a murderer–"
"Wow."
"Sorry, but it had to be said."
"It didn't have to be said," Jake hisses. His eyes welling with tears, he tosses the flowers at the closest grey blob.
"That's not even her grave." Amir moves the flowers to her headstone, and adds his own. He sighs. "Why'd you come if you were just gonna be... like this?"
"I don't know." Jake should just go; never should have come in the first place. He was her boyfriend for less than twenty minutes.
Amir pulls something from his backpack on the ground. "I brought her dog food," he says.
Jake snorts. "What?"
"Her breath always smelled like dog food. I figured she eats it."
"No, dude– dude! I swear I saw her eating kibbles and bits once. She told me it was a Snickers, but I smelled her breath after – it was not peanuts."
"She tried that on me too!"
Amir sits the bag of kibble next to the flowers, giggling. Jake covers his smile with his hand, because it's kind of weird to be laughing in a graveyard, even if there aren't any burials happening nearby. The air turns still for a moment, as they both stare at the lettering on her grave.
"I'm glad you showed up," Amir says quietly.
"You don't have to visit every day."
"But we're soulmates. She told me it felt like she was waiting her whole life to meet me."
"And then she left you for me. She's gone, Amir, and she wasn't that great of a girlfriend."
"Shh!" Amir covers the headstone with his hands, where ears might be.
"You need to let her go, dude."
"Why'd you come, then?"
"I miss her."
Amir looks at him for a long moment, then reaches for his backpack again. "I have one more surprise."
"Not chicken nuggets." If he puts them on her grave birds'll eat them and crap all over her headstone.
Amir holds up two pink metallic party hats, and hands one to Jake. "She liked parties," he explains. "One was supposed to be for her."
"I don't think the elastic would stretch around the headstone, anyway." Jake dons the hat.
Amir puts his on too. "Yeah. She'll just have to party on down in the underworld without a hat."
"You think she's in the underworld?"
Amir takes on a Southern twang. "After what we did in bed, she sure as shit ain't in Heaven."
"Dude."
"Sorry," Amir says, but he doesn't mean it.
Lerona would be pissed at them right now if she could see her grave. But her grave is for them, not her. For them to feel guilty over, or put kibble on, or party next to. Jake's flowers are a wonderful part of the cacophony piled on top of her.
"Wanna get out of here?" Amir asks. "As friends."
"You didn't need to clarify. The fact that you did makes me worried."
"I'm sorry for worrying you. In a friend way."
"Stop it."
"I don't want you to think we're in a relationship now because we said the words 'boyfriend' and 'girlfriend'."
"I don't think that."
"Good. 'Cause if you wanna be my boyfriend, you gotta buy me dinner first."
Jake laughs politely.
"Could you actually buy me dinner though? The IT guys stole my wallet again and I haven't eaten in three days."
Jake sighs.
"Sure."