Jelly Prower

A few months had gone by since you all escaped. Though everyone thought it wouldn't turn out well, living with Jax was actually great. Almost every night when you both came home from work you'd take turns cooking and watch a TV show together, laughing and joking. When nights were stressful and neither of you felt like cooking, you'd either go down to a crappy little Chinese place in town or order some takeout.

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The door clicked and you stepped inside your shared home after a long day at work and you were so relieved to be home. Your original dread from remembering it was your turn to cook tonight turned into delight when the smell of your favorite dish wafted through the air. You took off your shoes and walked into the kitchen to find Jax already preparing two plates. "Jeez, took ya long enough. I thought my stomach was gonna eat itself so I went ahead and did your job for ya, you lazy bastard." he said in a playful tone. "Sit down and eat already before it gets cold." You smiled and sat down at the table.

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Now the sink was filled with dishes, bellies were filled with warm food and two tipsy weirdos were crying and laughing at the table just talking about their day. Jax had all the crazy stories from work and the way he told them made you burst with laughter every time. Jax took a drink from his beer and started laughing again. "Oh yeah! And there was this one guy at the register today who was so drunk he kept trying to pay with a gym card! And then-" Silence. His playful demeanor left in the blink of an eye. Your heart dropped in concern for your best friend. "Jax? Hey- What's wrong?" he blinked a few times. "Uh- ..Nothin' just..I think I drank too much. I'm going to bed." You stopped him before he could stand up. "Hey. No, tell me what's wrong. Did something happen?" He kept his gaze anywhere but on you. "..I.." His grip tightened on the bottle before he finally spoke. "..I saw someone today.. Someone from my life before the circus. I don't think they recognized me, but.. It brought back memories I really didn't want to remember." Your heart ached for your friend. You knew all too well the painful memories of life before the circus... Maybe bottling them up wasn't the way to go anymore.

"Do you wanna talk about it? Life before the circus?" Jax was a little taken aback by the softness in your voice. He quickly covered up with his stupid smirk. "Oh come on. Don't get like that. It was just an old buddy, nothing more!" He crossed his arms behind his head. "Come on, there's a new episode out tonight and I need to find out what happens-" "Don't do this again, Jax." He froze. You spoke again in a calm voice. "Don't shut me out... Please."

Jax's arms dropped to his sides and he stared at you...But he sat down. "Listen. I wasn't the most charming guy before, alright? I'm not losing anyone else because of my shit." He sounded worried but tried his best to cover it up. "I'm not going anywhere, Jax. We're friends. We stick together." Though he would never admit it, that meant the world to him. "Tch, fine. I'll 'share my feewings' or whatever." His stupid baby voice made you laugh. "But hey, don't think you're off the hook. If I'm gonna trauma dump then I need your lore, too, alright? I'm gonna get two more beers. Something tells me this is gonna be a long night." Before he left the room, he looked over his shoulder at you. "..Thanks for bein' willing to listen." You gave him a soft smile, a smile that Jax could trust. "Anytime, my friend."

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