Paint Splatter Freckles and Godly Go Fish
Summary:Â "When Jean was younger, much younger, he would sit in his motherâs lap while she traced the sun on his left shoulder blade and sang love songs in soft French. He would stare at the black heart on her wrist, the one that perfectly matched his fatherâs, and imagine the little girl that shared his sun.
When Jeremy was very little his mom and dad would corral him and his older sister into the living room after dinner. With a child in each lap, they would recount the history of soulmates; how Zeus, in fear of their power, had split the people of earth in half, and they were destined to spend the rest of their lives in search for their other half. How, in a moment of kindness, Zeus had marked the pairs, so that they could follow their symbol to their other half.â
A/N:Â This is my fic for @quensty for the @aftgexchange ! You said soul mate aus were always good, and I could not agree more, so here is a small Jerejean soul mate au. Hope you enjoy!
When Jean was younger, much younger, he would sit in his motherâs lap while she traced the sun on his left shoulder blade and sang love songs in soft French. He would stare at the black heart on her wrist, the one that perfectly matched his fatherâs, and imagine the little girl that shared his sun.
He liked to think that she was bright and bubbly; the perfect amount of unfiltered sunshine to counteract his more cloudy version. He imagined her with big toothy grins and freckles all over her face, laughter that sounded like bubbles and eyes that shined with excitement.
When Jeremy was very little his mom and dad would corral him and his older sister into the living room after dinner. With a child in each lap, they would recount the history of soulmates; how Zeus, in fear of their power, had split the people of earth in half, and they were destined to spend the rest of their lives in search for their other half. How, in a moment of kindness, Zeus had marked the pairs, so that they could follow their symbol to their other half.
Jeremy would compare it to a godly game of Go-Fish, and they would all burst into laughter. His sister would ask to see their parentsâ matching apple trees and then would swoon over how romantic it all was.
Heâd then spend the rest of the night thinking about how there was a little girl somewhere out there who had a matching sun to his own. He hoped that she was less loud than him, more like the sunshine peaking through clouds; sure, that would mean that she was less bright, but that also meant that she would be less likely to cause sunburn, and thatâs still good.
When Jean was older he realized that the she he always imagined sharing his sun might be a he. Kevin had kissed him when Riko wasnât around, and even though there was an unspoken agreement not to mention it, the thought was still there.
Not that it mattered much anyway; his sunshine couldnât possibly exist in a place as dark as the nest. He had resigned himself to never meeting his soulmate the moment he was shipped off to the states.
When Jeremy was in high school he started dating a girl who didnât have a mark at all.
He knew that there was someone out there with a sun that matched his, but it was just a casual thing; he just wanted to be a little less alone.
She wasnât his cloudy sunshine, but she was willing to put on sunscreen so she wouldnât get burned, and that was enough for the time being.
When Jean met Renee he was shocked at just how sunny she seemed to be; she wasnât his sun, she was too muted for that, too much of a sunrise, but it was nice to be around some warmth.
He had grown cold in the nest, but Renee had reminded him that there was warmth out there in the world. Somewhere there was his sun with paint splattered freckles and champagne laughter, and he might actually get to find him one day.
When Jeremyâs sister found her soulmate he stopped going on dates with other people.
The small, energetic, English major with the matching quill tattoo was so perfect for his sister that he couldnât imagine being with anyone but his soulmate.
And since he had started playing exy he was a lot less alone; he had a whole team behind him, and a scholarship for USC setup for the fall.
He could wait for his sun to come; he could make it through the dark.
When Jean met Jeremy he was speechless.
Partly because he had been on the verge of dying, and thereâs only so much that Abby could do without access to a hospital; partly because Jeremy being here meant that he was free from the nest and the Moriyamas forever; partly because he had found his sun.
He had heard about soul mates who just knew the first time they met, without having to compare marks or anything, but he had never imagined he could be one of them.
There was no mistaking it, though. Jeremy Knox, captain of the USC Trojans exy team, was the sun Jean had been desperate for since he was first locked in the dark.
And he was offering him a way out.
When Jeremy met Jean he was speechless.
Of course, they had met during exy matches before, but it was always brief and with a touch of competition to every word they said.
This time was different; there was no exy match, no game to be won. There was just a broken and confused Jean warring between hope and skepticism as Jeremy offered him a new life. A new life he was willing to take.
And there he was, his sun shining through the clouds. Jeremy had always been too loud, too happy, too energetic, too much, but Jean was just perfect. He was hardened, dulled, like someone had tried to rip the brightness out of him, but he still shined.
When Jean had been a USC for a few months, when he had been able to see Jeremy in his natural habitat, when he was no longer overwhelmed by every little thing, he noticed something.
They were watching some animated movie with a mermaid and a crab and a prince Jeremy had required he see, and at some point, Jeremyâs head had ended up in his lap. He was counting the freckles on his nose when he let out a small chuckle.
âYou know, when I was little I always imagined my soul mate would have freckles and a big toothy grin, and it looks like I was right,â he explained at Jeremyâs confused look.
A laugh bubbled out of Jeremy, his nose crinkling and his eyes squinting shut.
âOh, I forgot about the laugh, too. I always thought it would be bubbly.â
When Jeremy had been around Jean for a few months and was less like a shy little kid he had a revelation.
They were having Trojan game night, and for some reason Alvarez suggested Go Fish; the first time Jean looked at Jeremy and said go fish he lost it.
Through his giggles he explained how he used to think of finding your soul mate as a game of Go Fish, and Jean telling him to go fish is like rejecting him as his soul mate.
Later that night, when Jean was tucked into his side, Jeremy leaned in and whispered âI guess I won Go Fish.â
