A/N - Hi! Sorry I haven't been active lately, and I just changed my name. Just in case you don't remember, I used to be ColdAndDarkJackFrost. Aaaanyway, yeah. I was playing around on a different site and someone asked me to write this fic. It made me cry just thinking about it, and it was so hard to explain why. At first, I was like "He's gonna grow up and die and Jack will be just left behind all sad and heartbroken..." But my Pitch was like "Oh, sweetie... it's so much worse than that..." So I wrote it, and here it is. ~ Sam
It started the same way most things do, I suppose. I'd come back to check on Jamie after what happened with Pitch. I thought I was protecting him, but he didn't really need it. He was always a strong kid, but he didn't stay a kid for very long. When he turned thirteen I thought for sure he'd forget about us- North, Bunny, Sandy, Tooth and me.
I went down to see him for what I thought would be the last time. The window was open, even though it was February. At first, I didn't know what to think. I just stood there peaking in until he invited me to sit with him. "Jack... " he said softly, "It's okay. I know you've been checking on me."
"O-oh yeah?" I asked, a bit nervous. I had no idea Jamie had seen me. It made me feel like a creep, though I guess it looks bad either way. We talked for hours until he fell asleep in my lap. Three years passed and every year on his birthday the window would be open when I came to check on him. At 16, Jamie Bennett had grown into quite a man, at least I thought so. That night, I stepped into the room and he called me over to his bed.
"Jack..." he smiled. There was something different about his voice. It was deeper then, more seductive than it used to be. I sat down next to him and gave a smile. He must have been planning and scheming for a while, because as soon as I did, he pinned me and pressed his lips to mine. ". . . you're so cold, Jack," he whispered into my neck, "Let's see if I can warm you up."
I had no idea what he meant, but when he asked me to be his later that night, I said yes. After that, I came by almost every night. It must have been tough for Jamie, only seeing me at night, but there wasn't much either of us could do about that; not at first anyway.
"I've got an idea..." he told me one night, running his fingers through my hair. He smiled and shook the ice crystals from is fingertips and pulled me back into his lap. He'd gotten so much bigger than me.
"What is it?" I asked, looking over my shoulder. He stole a kiss and ran his finger under my chin.
"We'll go ice skating. Just us... " Jamie must have seen how apprehensive I was because he smirked and kissed the tip of my nose. "C'mon! It'll be fun! We'll go somewhere no one can see us and we won't have to worry."
"Jamie... when you talk to me, it looks like you're crazy... talking to yourself. No one else can see me," I reminded him. Pippa, Claude, Caleb and Monty had long since stopped believing. Cupcake had moved away, so I never did know about her.
"I don't care. We won't tell them. It'll be just us." He seemed determined, so I agreed. Jamie smiled, saying he knew I'd come around and his hands began to wander. I shivered and closed my eyes, letting him do as he pleased.
My eyes snapped open when I felt his breath, warm on the back of my ear. "Can we...?"
"J-jamie! I... I..." I'm not sure why, but I guess I'd imagined he'd stay innocent forever. He kissed me to shut me up and pinned me, holding my wrists as he trailed kisses down my neck before asking again. Breathless, I gave in.
I stayed with him that night, curled up in his arms. I didn't have to rush to get dressed or leave because no one but Jamie could see me anyway. It was perfect. That day, we went into the forest and found a frozen pond for Jamie to skate on. I made sure it was solid. I wasn't going to let Jamie go... especially not that way.
We danced on the ice for hours, just the two of us. Jamie held me by the waist and we spun, gliding across the ice; it was like Jamie was supposed to be there. "Jamie? What are you doing all the way out here by yourself?" came a familiar voice. He stopped and let me go before turning to face his friend.
"Pippa! Hi!" he chuckled nervously. I smiled and waved, even knowing it was pointless. She was a good kid. "Um... I'm just sorta... I'm practicing."
"For what?" she asked with a laugh. I had to fight back my own laugh. Jamie wasn't very good at making stuff up under pressure.
"Maybe I just like ice skating, okay? You ever think of that?" Jamie replied, though it must have come out more harshly than he'd meant it to, because he winced.
"Okay... okay... Can I join you?" Pippa asked.
I told Jamie to go ahead and let her stay, though I was sure he wanted her to leave us alone. He nodded to her and shortly after that, the twins found them. It was nice to see how Caleb and Claude had grown. They were both so tall and built; I added an extra layer of ice just in case. With the others there, it didn't seem smart to hang around.
"I'll see you tonight, okay? I promise I'll be there. Have fun with your friends," I told him, perched in a tree. He nodded and shot lustful look. As I left, I looked back, smiled at the sight of those four playing on the ice (they'd started throwing snowballs too), and went off to do my job.
Lost in my work, spreading frost on the bare branches of the trees, I didn't even notice that I was being followed. "Hello, Jack... Did you miss me?" His cold, unforgettable voice seemed to curl around my heart like a hand made of smoke.
"Pitch..."
"I told you I'd be back... There will always be fear." I turned to face him, half a mind to tell him off, but he'd vanished. I felt his hand on my shoulder; he was standing behind me. "I know what you're doing, Jack... and I have to say... you're a bigger fool than I thought you were."
Again, I turned, ready to tell him what for, and again he vanished, reappearing behind me. "All children grow up. It may take him longer than the others, but this boy is human... Just like all the others... He'll out grow you. He'll leave."
"Pitch-" I turned, one last time, and he was gone. The only thing I could do was mumble to myself, "-you're wrong... not Jamie... He's different... He's not like that... you'll see." I spent the night with Jamie again, but I was a bit distracted. What Pitch said had hit me pretty hard. I tried and tried to push it out of my mind, and after a movie I'd forgotten all about it.
Jamie had school the next morning, so I left early, but I was so confused. The way Jamie had looked at me at the pond, I'd thought he'd be all over me when we met back up at his place, but he seemed more interested in the movie. He went to bed without saying much to me, but he fell asleep with his arm around my waist.
Soon after that, I had to go away for a while. Winter had come to another part of the world and it was still my job. I couldn't exactly call in sick, so I went to find Jamie at school, which was dangerous... and stupid. From my perch on a fence I could see him, holding Pippa's hand and laughing with her. He looked so happy with her, I couldn't help but smile. My smile soon shattered along with my heart. Just before they went inside, I watched him press his lips to hers, the way he had done with me.
I had no choice but to leave things as they were. No matter how much it hurt, I still had a job to do and Winter wasn't going to wait for me to deal with it, so I left without a word. I was afraid Jamie would never know I was even there that day. He never did. I spread the frost, made it snow, and froze over ponds, lakes, rivers and streams as fast as I could, eager to get back to Jamie, but when I returned, his window was closed.
Slowly, I pushed it open and stepped inside. My heart stopped and twisted inside me. Jamie was asleep, arm around the girl in his bed. "Jamie... " I called his name, but he didn't even twitch. "Jamie!"
"It's no good... "Pitch's voice engulfed me, making me feel more and more worthless. "He can't hear you, Jack. It's just like I told you."
"No! No, you're wrong! This c-can't be right. I... Jamie! Wake up!" a sob gripped my throat and hot tears threatened to push their way out. "Jamie!"
Pitch used the darkened corners of Jamie's room as a doorway and stood next to me, looming over me like preditor waiting for the perfect moment to deliver the killing blow. "The proof is right in front of you! He's out grown you!"
"No! This isn't right! Jamie!" I screamed and reached for him. My heart stopped when my hand went right through him. I pulled back, frozen, and sank to my knees. No longer able to hold my tears back, I hugged my knees to my chest and wept.
"You're a fool, Frost. I tried to warn you, but you refused to listen. Now, here you are, broken and desolate... Mourning the loss of a love, and he's not even dead. You, however, might as well be. Though, even the dead are remembered for their deeds. You won't ever be remembered by them for long... Children always grow. Perhaps this will be your lesson. Don't grow too attached."
His words stung like venom, but they were true. Jamie was lost to me and there was nothing I could do about it. Pitch scoffed, shook his head and took my hand, pulling me to my feet. "Come along, Jack... you don't belong here anymore."
Time passed much more slowly for me after that. Pitch stayed around, pulling me to my feet again and again, rough as ever, but somehow it seemed as though he were trying his best to make the pain in my chest go away. I was a mess and I could only imagine how much that grated on Pitch's nerves. After a few months, he'd had enough. He took me back to Jamie's house and forced me to look through the window.
That girl that had been in his bed was sitting at the dinner table with them. She wore Jamie's shirt and an old white hat and I knew who she was. That didn't take the pain away. Every few months, Pitch would drag me back and force me to look. Years passed this way and Jamie grew into a man, got his own home, and a job.
"This is the last time..." Pitch said coldly, looking down his nose at me. This time, he ran his finger along my jawline before taking my hand; not as roughly as he usually did. If I didn't know any better, I'd say there was even a bit of warmth in his touch this time around. He took me to where Jamie lived now and asked me to look in the window.
Surprised that he had asked instead of demanded, I nodded and peaked through the glass to see an empty room. I looked over my shoulder at Pitch, eyebrow raised in question, but he simply noddedd and I went back to looking through the window. Shortly after that, the door opened and Pippa stepped through, cradling a bundle of blankets in her arms and a ring glittering on her finger.
Jamie entered the room shortly after that, carrying something much larger. I couldn't tell what it was at first, until he set it down in one of the plush chairs decorating the living room. It was a car seat for a new born baby. Pippa cooed softly and lovingly placed the bundle into the car seat. She left the room after kissing Jamie's cheek -probably to get more things out of the car- and I watched Jamie kneel next to the tiny little baby, snuggled in the blankets. "Welcome home, Jack..." He smiled.
I closed my eyes and leaned back into Pitch's arms. He'd been waiting to catch me, knowing what I'd just seen would floor me. Pippa came back inside, holding a few bags of food and baby formula and dusted the snowflakes from her shoulders. "Jamie... you've gotta see this..." she says, "Snow in the middle of July!"
Jamie came over to the window and placed his hand on the glass. One last time, I pressed my hand on the glass, matching his. Frost crept across the window as snow fluttered to the ground. "C'mon, Jack... It's time to go," Pitch told me. I nodded and took the hand he offered to me.
