Bob and Alicia knew he was autistic from a very young age but don’t tell him out of a misplaced thought that he’ll be better off not knowing and that he could be “more normal” that way

They esp don’t want the press to find out bc god knows what headlines they’d write

so Jack grows up knowing he’s “different” bc of how other people treat him but not knowing why

He gets officially diagnosed right after his OD when he really starts going to therapy regularly but he feels like it’s just another thing that makes him “fucked up” so he tries to mask even harder

Jack is esp sensitive to noise and he can get overstimulated easily. This makes hockey games hard sometimes. Usually he’s so focused on the hockey he doesn’t even notice how loud the arena is, but sometimes his head buzzes and he gets so overwhelmed that afterwards he has to just lay in the dark not speaking or moving for hours after the game

When he’s home, Bitty lays on top of Jack like a weighted blanket which is one of jacks favorite things. Bitty will feed him finger food and have him drink water to make sure he’s physically fine while Jack is nonverbal

When it’s an away game Bitty gifts Jack Monsieur Bun and Jack runs his fingers over the little stuffed animal and it calms him down

he was diagnosed as a kid but didn't have a good grasp on what it really meant/that there were other people like him until adulthood

most people that know he's autistic have only really guessed but he's outright told bitty, lardo and shitty

he has so many stim toys! his fave is a spinner ring but he loves those silicone bubble popper things for meetings when he needs something quiet

he grinds his teeth from stress so the hockey mouthguard is actually great for him lol & he gets one to use while he's sleeping too. bitty also gets him stim toys for chewing which helps

he used to repress stims like rocking & verbal stims to appear more "normal" but as he gets older he learns to mask less and just stim when he needs/wants to

he has a huuuge issue with masking leading to burnout so he needs a lot of decompression time after socializing or press events

he is Constantly drinking water & gatorade bc feeling dehydrated/dry mouth is a big sensory no-no for him

he has safe foods (chicken tenders & pbj) and has a hard time trying new adventurous foods but always trusts bitty & likes eating what bitty makes bc he knows if it's a bad sensory time for him, bitty won't be offended & will even work to make it better

he loves hockey in part because of all the rituals & it feels like a subsection of social rules he can understand

another part of hockey he loves? it attracts weird fucking people who get his weird fucking brain

he LOVES strategy board games & will read the whole rulebook & annoy others (holster) by reciting from it at any given opportunity

he's Really focused on some things (hockey, bitty, school) and not so much on other things (remembering to clean, remembering people's birthdays, etc) so he sets a lot of phone reminders and uses habitica for habits, tasks & to-do lists

he only has a few outfits bc he's particular about clothes textures and likes old, soft shirts and jeans (same with his shoes. they're comfy! they're predictable! who cares if they're not Fashion)

he can get lost in a youtube documentary hole for Hours. if he finds something interesting enough he'll go on wikipedia and click around and read about it too

he has scripts for interviews & press conferences and rarely strays from them unless he's asked an unexpected question (see: "hockey is a fun sport. don't be afraid to get out there on the ice. i guess.")