* per aspera / 𝓪𝓭 𝓪𝓼𝓽𝓻𝓪 .

         “ YOU RECKON ? BECAUSE i think, if she’d want to go outside, she would go outside. she takes after her mama like that. “, jack chuckled, shaking his head as he ran his fingers through his locks. anna was very stubborn and she would do whatever she wanted – silver was like that. “ right – and these harnesses… they sell those in pet stores ? “, clearly, this was not jack’s thing at all. he thought that cats just laid around all day. nice and easy. “ i heard they’re playing christmas movies already. “, jack stated matter-of-factly, remembering he had read something of the sorts earlier.

           WHEN SANDY WAS lecturing him, danny was not sure how to react or even what to do with himself. the big man he usually was in front of the cameras was now nothing but a teeny tiny boy who had just royally fucked up… before even realising it. “ i’m sorry, sandy. i didn’t mean to humiliate you… i mean, it wasn’t that bad ? if anything, you will get some publicity out of it. ‘ who is danny zuko’s mystery girl ? ‘ – “, the man spoke, lifting his hands as if he were reading the headline up in the air. “ sounds pretty good, no ? “, he tried to spin it around, eyebrows raising as he offered her a smile. if it were him, he would be thrilled about the extra attention ! but as he noticed tears beginning to spill, the man groaned and he knew he was done for – he had screwed up completely. “ please, sandy… don’t cry. “, the man spoke, panic beginning to settle within him. how could he fix this ? “ that is because you are a way better person than i am ! and i am not used to all of this… “, he continued, moving his hand between the two of them. “ but i really didn’t mean to hurt you, sandy. you have to believe me. please ? “. 

            WHEN SANDY EXPLAINED why cats should be allowed to go on walks as well, jack nodded slowly, his eyes narrowing the smallest bit. “ right – i mean, i guess so ? i haven’t seen sylverster beg to go outside, though. she likes to just… lay out in front of the window and just stare outside. “, he replied, chuckling as he gave the kitten a rub on her head. “ i mean, we should try and find out. “, jack spoke, shrugging as he looked down at sylvester in his arms. “ so – shall we ? “.

              “ MAKING FUN OF you ? “, danny repeated, frowning as he rubbed his hand across his chin. had he made fun of her, really ? not consciously, at least. “ no – i didn’t make fun of you, sandy. at least… i didn’t mean to. i cannot be held accountable the things i say when there’s camera’s pointing at me, sandy. “, he tried to save his ass, a bit of an awkward chuckle falling from his lips has he brought his hand to scratch the back of his neck. clearly, danny was not very good at this – how he had survived an entire summer without making an ass of himself was a mystery. when she said he did not need to waste any more breath and energy on her, danny groaned, head rolling back as he covered his face with his hand for a second. great job, zuko. “ no – i’m not wasting any breath or energy on you, sandy. i mean, you know that isn’t true. you just caught me off guard. “.

           JACK CHUCKLED AT her assumption. “ don’t you work at a cat cafe ? i reckon you see people walking their cats on a daily basis. “, the man reasoned, laugh now tumblr from his lips as he crossed his arms and shook his head. when sandy wondered how they’d get the kitten to the car safely, jack reached for her, holding her firmly in his arms. “ just like this ? “, he asked, lifting his brows.

           “ YOU SHOULDN’T WANT to be like me – you should want to be like yourself. but just… the best version of yourself that you could possibly be. “, the brunette spoke matter-of-factly, lifting her shoulders as she closed her laptop. she should be giving sandy her undivided attention – after all, the girl had stopped by to bring her food and check in on her. that was more than anyone she knew ever did. “ i might be good at looking after myself, because i always had to, but you excell in many other things, sandy. “, evie reassured her friend, offering her a small smile. after all, this stuff ( giving advice on personal things and such ) was not exactly evelyn’s strong suit. “ i sure will. i do like being surrounded by animals. “.

            WHEN SANDY ASKED what was the matter with him, danny frowned. clearly, he was not used to be critiqued. “ what do you mean, what is the matter with me ? “, he asked, shaking his head a bit. but he knew what was going on, wasn’t he ? he was not exactly the soft boy sandy remembered him to be. “ this is my life, sandy. the press, the people wanting to talk to me… it is all part of the job. “, the man explained, opening his arms as a deep sigh fell from his lips. “ look – i’m sorry about… what happened, back there. you caught me off guard ! “, which was a pretty weak defense, wasn’t it ? 

           AS THEY WERE heading away from the press, danny noticed the girl’s reluctance to follow after him. and as soon as they were safely out of sight, her jerking her hand back was another piece of evidence that the girl was not set up with his actions. “ sandy ! “, he spoke, letting go of her wrist before opening his eyes in a questioning manner. his emerald optics were firmly fixed on the petite brunette – god how he had missed her beautiful face, especially the first few weeks after summer was over. but he had made peace with the thought that he would never see her again. and now, there she was. beautiful as ever ( and clearly upset or mad ). “ i cannot believe you moved here. why didn’t you tell me ? why didn’t you stay in touch ? “, danny wondered, as if he was the one wronged here – he was a damn fool, that is for sure. but in truth, he was simply taken aback. did not know what to say… and that didn’t happen very often to danny zuko. all of this was pretty uncharted territory for him.

The brunette was absolutely adorable, Claude had to admit, and her fascination with his cartooning brought a wide smile to the artist’s face, “Only if you’ll read me your lovely poems, ma’am,” He sat down right there on the pavement before pulling out his sketchpad, patting the stair next to him so the young lady could sit down, “I think you can do whatever you put your mind to. I mean, I’m just a nobody from America and they’ll put my doodles on page 3. Why not poems too?”

                  ❛    that sounds like a great deal to me.    ❜    alessandra took a seat next to him, curiously looking at his sketchpad, while her hands searched for the papers she had in her bag. she took them out and placed them in her lap, a hint of excitement shining in her eyes.    ❛    you really think so ? thanks, claude. this means a lot to me ! i will try to get in contact with them.    ❜

          EVELYN SMILED AND nodded once when sandy said she was a born worrier. “ i’m a big girl, though, sandy. i have been looking after myself all of my life – i will be fine. i will always be fine. “, she reassured her youngn friend, a sister of sorts, even. much like nessarose. “ but i appreciate your concern, sandy, i do. “, and that was a fact. evie was not used to being looked after, so she did not quite know how to deal with it, but it was appreciated never the less. the prospect of being introduced to a feline caused a genuine smile to grow on evelyn’s lips. she loved animals. “ that is good to hear. i cannot wait to meet him, then. “.

          “ I HAVE A cat, sandy – that doesn’t make me a walking cat encyclopedia. “, he said, chuckling whilst rolling his eyes. maybe he didn’t want to know there was such thing for cats because it seemed a bit… weird ? “ i mean, i am sure she will. not sure how much she’ll love a harness, though. she’s got serious spunk, you know. “, jack laughed as he reached over to stroke her ginger little head. “ sure – but i cannot promise it’ll be a success ! “, he smiled with his hands raised.

             OH, THIS WAS bad, wasn’t it ? he was royally screwing this up – but even though he realised that, danny seemed unable to keep the idiotic words from tumbling from his lips. as if his ego took over now that there was press around. he usually loved the cameras and microphones all directed at him, but right now he felt put on the spot – caught between a rock and a hard place, and he had no idea what to choose. so instead, his instincts took over. “ you moved here ? when did that happen ? did you call me - i must have missed that. i have been so busy lately. “, dear god it got only worse – and he even smiled at a camera and winked. and in the meantime, he was front row to watch sandy’s face drop. of course, the press began to ask questions – who was she ? where did he meet her ? was she an ex ? a girlfriend ? a fling ? without answering any of them, danny lifted his hands as he laughed and shook his head. “ my dear friends of the press, you know i love to leave a bit of mystery. what’s the fun if you knew all the nitty-gritty – you’d have nothing to write about anymore. “, he winked as he began to back away from them, hand reaching for sandy’s wrist in order to pull her with him. “ if you’ll excuse me now, my friend and i have some catching up to do. “, the man spoke, smug grin still on his lips. “ but i will catch you later, right ? okay. bye. “, and with that, he turned around and rushed ( as cool and nonchalant as possible ) to the chicago building. 

            AS SOON AS the question left his lips, curled up into a smug grin he for once wanted to rather wipe off but knew he couldn’t, danny felt… weird. uneasy ? he was not sure, he had not felt this way before very often… especially not when there were cameras around. because he was in his element, whenever there was press. surrounded by press or surrounded by fast cars – that is when he is in his element. when he is happy. but right now, he did not feel happy at all. he felt confused and uneasy. especially once he noticed how her face dropped. it… crushed his heart ? was that what this was ? but he snapped out of it real quick – he had to. there were cameras directed on his face. when sandy answered his question, danny frowned a bit but the smile never fell from his features. “ you live here ? i thought you lived in italy. “, he stated, chuckle falling from his lips as if he wasn’t just made the fool here. “ me ? darling, i live here. “, danny said as he opened his arms and laughed shortly and amusedly. 

Jo felt a little better now that their struggle was shared with a neighbor - perhaps it wasn’t as hard as they thought to meet people! “Oh, absolutely! Well, I pretty much moved here all because I wanted to become a great writer. Things haven’t been going, eh, great, exactly,” Jo admitted, a hand rising to the back of their neck, “But I know I’m on my way to getting published, I already work for a newspaper. I’m Jo March.” In an effort not to seem sheepish, Jo extended a hand to shake finally.

                  ❛     really ? so did i !    ❜    sandy was surprised to meet someone who had the same dreams and aspirations as she did, this was actually exciting for her.    ❛    don’t get discouraged ! we’re both going to get there at the right time. it’s lovely to meet you, jo march !    ❜    the girl took her hand and gave it a firm shake, an enthusiastic smile growing on her lips.

“i think it’s a big deal,” he confirmed, giving her an encouraging nod.  not everyone grew up on their own, like him. it’s always scary to try something new.   “yeah, i know.  i am too.  i guess we all are.?  though pedro feared growing old, he knew he was still young with many opportunities ahead.  at one time it didn’t seem like he had many but he was growing to see that he had more than he thought.  “not sad at all.  if you’re gonna know one person, i’m the one to know.”  as he playfully boasted, he took a few steps ahead, walking backwards to face her, wearing a confident grin.  “i’m happy you found me too,” he replied, stepping back into place beside the girl.

               ❛     thanks, pete. i think so too.    ❜    this was the biggest change the girl ever made in her life and so far, everything seemed to be going fine. even better than she actually expected. it only added up to her belief that she was meant to come to london at some point and that this was the right time.    ❛    there’s a lot of catching up we have to do. i can’t wait to hear about everything that has been going on in your life since the last time we saw each other.    ❜    she had some stories to tell as well, but for now, alessandra was to excited to be reunited with her old friend and lover, she wanted to hear everything he has to say and spend as much time with him as she can.

         WHEN SANDY SAID sylvester was her favorite cat, jack smiled broughtly – as if a compliment for sandy meant a compliment for him. “ i cannot blame you, this little rascal steals your heart in no time. “, he replied with a chuckle, eyes fixed on the ginger kitten. “ a harness ? they make those for cats ? “, the man asked in disblief, chuckle falling from his lips. “ i mean, we can. as long as she doesn’t sneak away – she would. “.

             DANNY ABSOLUTELY LOVED the attention. ever since he was a young boy, he had always wanted to be in the spotlight, something which only got encouraged during his high school years. and anyone he hoped the young man would become a bit more grounded once his high school days were long over, well, their hopes were idle. when danny quickly climbed up the ranks as a f1 racer, he found himself the center of attention more so than he ever had before. and the thrived off it. so, of course, as he stepped out of his porshe ( by far the most expensive and fast car in all of the parking lot near his new residence ) and a group of paps had found their way towards him, danny was all too eager to answer their questions and pose for some pictures. he was so caught up in his own little world… until he heard a familiar, soft voice speak out his name. within seconds last summer came to mind – the beautiful italian beach, the burning sun, the peacefulness of vacation and… sandy. he had no idea she was coming here – had wondered whether he would ever see her again, but never deemed it possible. turning around on his heels, however, she was suddenly standing there. right in front of him. “ sandy. “, he replied, genuine smile growing on his features. but then some reporter asked who the girl was, and the young man was brought back to reality – danny zuko, the heartthrob who breaks hearts left and right, could not found at the mercy of a woman. “ what are you doing here ? “, he continued, a more mocking tone taking over.