Hello! I hope youāre doing well!
First of all, I want to, once again, send you so much love and appreciation for all your wonderful creations. I know that Iām not the only one who now regularly checks the sentryagent tags hoping to see some of your writing, itās such a joy! (But I also hope that it never becomes a pressure or a burden for you, as long as you enjoy cooking we are happy to feast, but it must absolutely be a joy for you as well).
But I also wanted to share something with you. A few months ago, you wrote a texting conversation between John and Bob, where John was in a life threatening situation, and was writing to Bob to tell him that if anything ever happened to him, there was a box for him under his bed. And Iām obsessed with this.
It was a little while ago, so I donāt know if you remember. But I havenāt stopped thinking about it since you shared it. This is such a sweet and sad idea, and it feels very in character for John. Since he has a family and a dangerous job, he probably started thinking about this years ago, way before he even met Bob. Iām sure he has something prepared for Olivia and his son, and yeah, he would absolutely have something for Bob.
Even though itās not technically canon, sometimes Iāll be going about my day and randomly thinking about this, like "I canāt believe that John has this box under his bed prepared for Bob in case something happens to him during a job" this really stuck with me.
What do you think is in that box? Did you have an idea of what would be inside when you wrote about it? In a way, I think thereās a beauty in not knowing whatās in that box (and I donāt think Bob would want to know since he wouldnāt even want to CONSIDER John dying) but Iād be interested to hear your thoughts about this, if you have any.
I personally imagine a mix of very practical things (maybe codes for a bank account with money that John saved for Bob, contact of people like doctors and lawyers to help him) as well as very sentimental things like pictures, trinkets tgey got together, and maybe even a goodbye letter.
Much love to you, and thanks again for sharing all these stories with us! :D
hii i am doing good today thank you!! and thank you so much, it means more than i can say that you (and others) look forward to seeing my writing. as the fandom has slowed down i have gotten self-conscious about clogging up the sentryagent tag so it's good to know you don't mind hahaha. (and i am still loving cooking!! it brings me so much joy that other people still love these characters too.)
i know which one you're talking about! i saw it while i was working on my masterlist (6th slide here). i love that the idea stuck with you, i feel like it's really something john might do. i can see him making the first box for olivia before his very first deployment in the army, just in case. then when their son was born he made one for him too (maybe to be opened when he's older). a few years later, john and bob got serious and john made the third box and hid it under his bed.
as for what's in the box... i had a vague idea but i didn't think in detail. but now i have! first i think you pretty much hit the nail on the head with what you imagined. firstly, john would have some very practical things. a bank account or safe deposit box key with funds for bob; maybe the location of olivia and his son's boxes (if not with bob's) + olivia's address; detailed information about all the medical things that john helps bob with just to make sure he can do it on his own; contact info for a lawyer and possibly a grief counselor he vetted.
and john definitely added a bunch of sentimental things too. my biggest thought with this whole concept is that john did not prepare the box and then just leave it under his bed. this is something that he updates regularly. while bob wants to pretend he doesn't know the box exists, john always keeps it in the back of his mind. he saves things like ticket stubs, polaroids, maybe even the receipt for bob's engagement ring if they made it that far. and something silly like a voice recorder with john saying southern phrases that make bob laugh or a little stuffed animal that means something to them.
then building off the idea that john adds to the box over time, i think he absolutely wrote bob a goodbye letter but i think there are more than one. every six months or a year he'll write a new one but he doesn't take the old ones out. he just adds another page. i also like the idea that aside from a serious goodbye note, john also has a mini notebook of things he wanted to tell bob and he didn't. anything from little compliments he was too embarrassed to say in the moment to grand feelings of love and gratefulness and how proud he is of bob.
so yeah. a solid mix of practical things to support bob in life after john and sentimental/personal items to make him smile and reminisce and remember john when he's gone. all i can imagine now is bob being an utter wreck opening this. please nobody ever take john away from him oh my god my heart would never survive that angst
