1 - 1
Spring was pretty, Summer had its moments but it was too hot, and while fall could be lovely, it was winter that held his heart. It always had since he was a kid. Jamie Bennett sighed as he glanced out the window, was it really only a few weeks ago he'd had to bid farewell to Jack Frost until next winter? He missed the frost spirit dearly. It seemed like only yesterday that they'd been holding each other, confessing their love for one another, and the day before that Jamie had been a troubled teen... and before that he'd been a bright-eyed school boy who'd just had his beliefs in the Guardians confirmed and had taken on the scariest thing to ever walk this planet. Ten years ago, Jamie had started believing in Jack Frost and had helped him and the other Guardians take down Pitch Black, saving the world from being plunged into a world that was dark and nothing but nightmares awaited those who slept. It was surprising that the shade hadn't appeared, or at least to Jamie, but when he'd voiced this to Jack he'd pointed out that Pitch had spent over 300 years having to recuperate from the first time the Guardians drove him back and so Jamie likely wasn't going to have to worry about Pitch ever again in his lifetime. Jack thought that Jamie didn't notice, but there had been a bit of quiver in his tone near the end. Jamie's mortality was a touchy subject for them both. Neither of them had brought it up, neither wanted to really face the fact that they couldn't be together forever. Jamie was the one who was the most bothered by this; while he knew that Jack knew it was impossible that they would always be together, it was Jamie who thought the most about it. As much as he had worked to be able to protect Jack, he knew that it was only a short time that he could truly be able to live up to his promise to do so. It was an inevitability that all mortals faced, that he would grow old and die or that one would meet with an accident of some sort or... Man this is depressing... I can't concentrate. Jamie sighed and set down his pencil, his homework forgotten for the moment; he set it down and shoved away from the desk. He got up to pace the room, there had to be a solution to this; he wondered, if not for the first time, if perhaps North might have the answer somewhere in that vast library of his. He was so lost in thought that he almost didn't notice the soft tap at his window, he turned suddenly and smiled, opening the window for Jack.
"Hey Jack."
"Hey Jamie."
"A little early for you to be back isn't it? I thought you'd be gone until September. It's only March."
"I fly all this way from Greenland and this is the greeting I get?" Jack asked, mock indignation in his face, but he couldn't keep the smile from his face; especially as he was pulled into the room as Jamie gave a mock growl.
"Come here you." Jack let out a false cry of alarm, which was cut off when Jamie wrapped his arms around him, his warm mouth capturing Jack's cool one. Jack wound his arms around Jamie, his staff clattering to the floor. It felt like forever since he'd been with Jamie, since he'd felt the tingling sensation that always zinged through him when Jamie kissed him. It had actually only been a couple of weeks, but Jack had sorely missed his best friend and lover. He wrapped his legs around Jamie, who had pulled back from the kiss and sat down on the bed now, sighing a little. Jamie rested his head against Jack's hoodie, the feel of the coolness was more than simply welcome. Ten years ago, when Jamie had first met Jack and helped him and the other Guardians take down Pitch, he had no idea that he would find more than just a best friend in the winter spirit. That he would be worrying over the immortal as if Jack was mortal like he was. Truth be known, while Jack had all of the physical strength to endure whatever they faced, Jamie had the strength of spirit to carry them both. Jack chuckled softly, until he realized that Jamie felt a little warmer than usual. He frowned thoughtfully.
"Jamie?" Jamie didn't respond, the coolness of Jack's hoodie against his forehead felt wonderful. Jack shifted a little to press one side of his hand to Jamie's face, shock flitting over his features, Jamie was burning up! Jack shifted to tuck Jamie into the bed, Jamie uttered a sound of protest.
"Hold on a moment, I'll be back." He said softly, when he came back he had a glass of water and a capsule medicine he'd found in the bathroom.
"Jamie? Come on now, you need to take this." Jamie opened one eye to look at Jack then closed it again. Jack sighed inwardly and set the glass down so he could use his free hand to prop Jamie up so he could take the medicine. Jamie didn't fight him and Jack realized that it was a sudden onset, Jamie hadn't acted or seemed sick until just a few moments ago. It brought home quickly the reality that Jamie wasn't immune to being sick and could easily die from illness as much as anything else. Jack did what he could to shove those thoughts out of his mind before shifting beneath the covers to lay on top of his love. Jamie let out a sigh of pure relief as Jack's body cooled his temperature and soon he was asleep. Only once he was sure the boy didn't feel as hot as he had previously did Jack shift to lay beside him. Jack had actually never seen Jamie get sick before. Then again there were those years I missed... Jack thought with a pang of regret. He had been foolish, trying to stay away from Jamie, thinking that the boy would move on and leave his belief of Jack behind like his friends had. That Jamie wouldn't see him anymore, okay so Jamie's friends could still hear him, but their belief had flagged as they'd gotten older so it was a wonder they could.
"Are you immune to colds?" Jamie asked after a moment, concern flashing over his features. Jack chuckled softly.
"Jamie, if I was going to get sick I would have a long time ago. Don't worry." He shifted then so that he was sitting with Jamie leaning up against his chest. He slipped his hand to Jamie's forehead, Jamie sighed as Jack's cool hand began to cool his fever.
"You should get some rest."
"But school-" Jamie protested.
"Can wait. I don't think you'll miss much by taking it easy one day. It's a Thursday Jamie, take it easy."
"I have an exam I need to study for." Jamie murmured.
"I can quiz you on it later when you're feeling better, for now you need rest." Jamie sighed, there was just no arguing with Jack and though he wasn't really that sick he had to admit he could use a break and Jack was giving him good reason. Instead of fighting further, Jamie closed his eyes and gave in. Jack smiled a little, pleased to have been able to win the argument. He had to admit that he sometimes forgot just how fragile humans were when it came to the world. Jack moved to place a second pillow behind his head, after that he closed his eyes. Not that he was tired, but to occupy his time he let his thoughts drift to the past. He wasn't thinking of the 300 years he'd spent alone, but rather the first time he'd seen Jamie. The little boy, at two years old, had been toddling around the house getting into all sorts of mischief and his parents had to run after him constantly. He'd found a lot of amusement, watching the toddler as he'd taken his first steps. A smile played along his features, he'd only seen the toddler a moment before his mother had scooped him up to take him into the kitchen for lunch. The next time he'd seen the boy when he was passing through was years later when the boy was enjoying his first snowfall outdoors. Jack had enjoyed watching the five year old dance about, excited and eating a few snowflakes as his mother sat on the porch watching, a smile on her face that didn't quite reach her eyes as she was still suffering from the loss of her husband from the previous year. Jack remembered that he'd been around to see the officer who had knocked on the door to deliver the news. Jack tried not to think too much on it, only on the young man who was sleeping soundly against him now. The next time he recalled seeing the boy had been the year when he'd stopped by before Easter, the boy had a sister then, Sophie. Jack couldn't remember when the girl had been born, but he had seen her with Jamie and their mother a couple of times before that year that he'd finally gotten an answer to his questions to the moon. It had been a long 300 years, but the Guardians had informed him that he was to join them.
He'd resisted, at first, not just because he was repulsed by the idea of having a deadline and work to do, but he wanted to be free. He didn't want to be tied down in one place, as he'd imagined was part of what it meant to be a Guardian. Tooth had understood that he had the wrong idea of what it meant to be a Guardian and only after they'd defeated Pitch had he begun to understand what it really meant; it had been Jamie who'd inspired him to take the oath, who had supported his decision when the time for him to accept the oath had come. He didn't regret it for one moment, though he did regret the years he had missed because of his own foolishness. Well, not all of it was that, some of it had been because of the rules of being a Guardian that he'd tried to abide by. Not having a favorite child, not purposely showing himself to the children he guarded, not getting too attached to any one child. Those were only three of those that he'd tried and failed to abide by because of Jamie. A quiet chuckle rose in his throat before he could stop it, thankfully it didn't disturb Jamie. He didn't regret it one bit. His mind then went back to when he'd seen the results of teaching Jamie to defend himself, he'd been defending a couple of girls. Jack hadn't known then that he was important to Jamie despite what Jamie had told him the year before about having one he wanted to protect more than his sister and his friends. It never would have occurred to him that Jamie wanted to protect him. Jack was, after all, an immoral and a Guardian to boot. It should be the other way around, but then again as he considered it he realized that it wasn't entirely that because the Guardians protected children and Jamie was no longer a child. Jack's heart squeezed a little in painful regret, remembering that the time after that in which he had been away for a couple of years; how long he couldn't remember, but in that short amount of time Jamie had become different. So different that it had scared Jack, Jamie had ignored him until Jack had screamed at him in pure desperation; fearing that he had lost him, that Jamie had stopped believing. Had he been human, Jack was pretty sure he would have had a heart attack.
1 - 2
The moment sent his heart throbbing and he tried to push the thoughts aside as much for his own sake as for Jamie's as he realized that his breath had hitched in his throat and tears were threatening to fall from his eyes. Get ahold of yourself Jack, that was the past and Jamie didn't stop believing in you. It's why he's right here with you now. He scolded himself. Jack had irritated Jamie that year by meddling, but in the end Jamie had been grateful. It had been for the best and he'd snapped back from the teen he'd been, he'd tossed his contacts and washed the dye from his hair for Jack. He'd also started calling Jack "snowflake" as well. Jack's lips twitched slightly at the memory of that evening.
"You know, these lenses will last another two weeks, which would be about when winter will be over; if you stay with me until then I won't wear them."
"No smoking or cursing either."
"Geez... give you an inch you take a yard?" Jamie considered it for only a moment before he gathered up the items and tossed them into the trash. He turned to Jack with a small smile.
"Anything for you Snowflake."
The memory made him smile, it wasn't just because of the nickname though, but because he'd begun to see a change in Jamie that night. That night had also been the night that Jamie had first kissed him. He'd said it was a token of his thanks after having all but tossed himself off a cliff, but now Jack reasoned that he had meant more at the time. Even at 16 Jamie had felt something more for him than a friend, more than a brother. Something he'd only come to realize later, but now that he thought about it, it seemed that Jamie's feelings for him had started when the boy was 14. He'd blushed when Jack had kissed the bandage on his face to take away the pain. At the time he had thought it had to do with his embarrassment over the fact that he hadn't been able to defend himself or his sister from the bullies but now... now Jack had to wonder if perhaps it wasn't just Jack's gesture. Jack hadn't meant for it to be anything more than to take away the boy's pain, at least not then. Jack bit his lip in thought, when had he began to feel something more for Jamie than just being a big brother? It was hard to pin it down, was it when he saw the boy fight after the training he'd given? Was it before that when he'd sent the bullies scurrying? No, that didn't seem right either. He closed his eyes, it was... ah! That was it... it was after the training. When Jamie had seemed to be so upset when Jack had talked about his death. He wasn't entirely sure that was right, but it seemed to be around that time so it fit. He might never be completely sure, but it didn't matter. The next memory that flashed into his mind was of the time he'd taken Jamie to see the Northern Lights, sure Jamie had wandered into trouble but that had also been the first time he'd kissed Jack. I know he did that on purpose... scared me half to death even though he told me that he knew I'd catch him but to test me like that... I still don't know what he could have been thinking then. The only thing Jack knew for certain about that moment was that his heart had leapt out of his chest and into his throat as Jamie had plunged off the cliff, and when Jamie had revealed it to be something he'd done on purpose... Jack had been furious. He shook the thoughts of that moment away, his mind wandering to a couple days later to the "practice" Jamie had talked him into; Jack had felt it wasn't such an odd request really, even though Jack had more knowledge about kissing through seeing others do it than actual practice. He hadn't thought too much about it, but he knew better now. That had just been an excuse to kiss him without Jack realizing anything and Jamie was definitely a good kisser. As he considered it a moment, he had to smile as he realized that really they both had been using that as an excuse because Jack had wanted to kiss Jamie but there would never be a good excuse for him to. Jamie had provided a very valid reason for them both.
Of course Jack still didn't know how Jamie had felt and had left for another two years after that night. Not because he wanted to, but because he couldn't stand the thought of seeing Jamie happy in the arms of someone else. Jack had never figured himself to be the jealous type, but it hurt too much for him to want to be there. He had never felt this way about anyone in his life and it had hurt something fierce. More so than when Pitch had snapped his staff in half. He'd had nightmares about that moment in the pole, except that sometimes it wasn't Pitch who was standing before him, taunting him, it was Jamie. It wasn't until later that such nightmares would come to a halt. North had forced him into a box and shipped him to Jamie when he'd started hearing Jamie's wishes again. He still hadn't gotten the Guardian of Wonder back for that little stunt. Jack's musings were interrupted when Jamie's mother came in, shivering as Jack stood up.
"It's so cold in here..." She went over to Jamie, pressing a hand to his forehead and nearly jolted back.
"Jamie?!" Jamie opened his eyes slowly, Jack was hovering next to his mother now.
"Hrmm?" He asked softly.
"You're... so cold. Do you want some more blankets? Why do you keep it so cold in here?"
" 'Mmm not. Had a fever 'n Jack helped." He murmured, barely awake. His mother sighed.
"This again. Really Jamie." Jamie began to sit up, one hand going to his head as it began to throb painfully.
"I'm telling the truth." He muttered.
"You're delirious honey, I'll get you something for your cold." Jamie flopped back, not feeling up to arguing. Jack floated behind her, it was time, he figured, that he put this argument to rest once and for all. Jamie's mother started when she saw the bathroom mirror fog up and realized that the temperature had suddenly dropped. Her eyes wide suddenly as letters began to appear on the mirror:
I am real. You just need to believe again, like you did when you were a little girl. Don't you remember? We had so much fun... I took you on sled rides across my lake despite the warnings from your parents.
"I... I must be losing it..." She thought as she stared at the message, as if staring at it long enough would make it go away, but it didn't. After a moment though she watched it fog over again:
I've always been here. Watching over your family. Didn't you once say you felt me protecting you when your father lost control of the car? You were on your way to see your aunt who had injured her arm and was at the hospital.
"H-h-how... how could you know about that? I... I never told anyone outside of family about..." She stuttered, pure shock going through her. Could... could it really be? She held one hand over her heart, watching as the message fogged over again and a new message appeared slowly, letter by letter:
Because I was there. I made sure that your father didn't hit that other car by sending it spinning the opposite direction with my ice. I am Jack Frost. All you have to do is believe.
She stared at the message, it didn't disappear this time and she closed her eyes. This wasn't happening, this was impossible... wasn't it? A part of her, somewhere deep inside of her wanted so badly to believe. To believe that her son wasn't crazy. That the doctor she'd sent him to hadn't suddenly gone mad himself when he'd released Jamie and told her that she was lucky to have a Guardian protecting her son. That ... she took a deep breath, she needed to calm down, suddenly she felt what she thought was a cold hand on her shoulder. Not just a cold spot, no; an actual hand. Slowly she opened her eyes and turned to look at her shoulder. There was a hand, as pale as the moon itself resting there, as if to offer comfort. Her eyes quickly ran up along the arm to rest on the brilliant blue eyes of the white haired teen who stood looking at her silently. She blinked. He was... cute. His snowy white hair seemed to fit him perfectly and his blue hoodie was frosted with... well, frost.
"I-It is you..." One hand flew up to her mouth as she stared, her eyes going even wider in her surprise as she took a step back from the youth who cocked his head to one side, a soft smile on his features.
"It's been a long time. I wish I could have made you believe more when you were a kid, then maybe you could have seen me then instead of just heard me." There was no backing out, no other excuse because she knew then that there was NO way he could have known that the imaginary friend she'd had when she was younger had talked back. That her friend had told her that if she truly believed in him that she would be able to see what he looked like. Right in front of her was the same boy she remembered dreaming of being her imaginary friend as a girl.
"Jack Frost... You're... you're real... I..." He gave a soft chuckle.
"If you truly didn't believe it you wouldn't be able to see me."
"You... you said you've always been here..." Jack nodded.
"Well, since about eight years ago. I mean, I guess I've been around a lot longer... but after you grew up you couldn't hear my voice anymore... I did the only thing I could do... I tried to find another friend. It wasn't until that Easter that I found one, Jamie."
"He... he and Sophie... they were... all this time..." Jack nodded.
"Yes. They've told you the truth." Jack shifted uncomfortably when he saw the tears glistening in her eyes.
"T-thank you... Jack."
"For what?"
"For protecting my son." Jack rubbed the back of his neck.
"Well, he's a pretty special kid... and he's very special to me too. I guess you should know, I'm in love with him." There was a long moment of awkward silence between them, only broken by Jamie's faint voice.
"Mom?"
"Don't tell him I said anything... he... is kind of touchy about it. Although, he might feel a little better if you tell him you can see me." She nodded a little, her shock was starting to wear off and she called back.
"I'll be there in a moment." She opened the medicine cabinet and grabbed the pills and went downstairs to grab a cup of water before coming back up again. When she did she went straight to Jamie's room. She saw that Jack was sitting in the air, cross-legged next to Jamie.
"Here dear, take this." Jamie opened his eyes and sat up to take the pills. She sat on his bed, watching him, she glanced over to Jack before taking the empty glass.
"I think you and I should talk, dear, when you're better."
"About what?" Jamie asked groggily.
"About your friend."
"Which one?"
"The one next to you." She said as she tucked him in, placing a kiss on his forehead and leaving before Jamie's sleep muddled brain began to clear and he glanced over at Jack who was now twirling his staff in one hand. He glanced over when he realized Jamie was watching him.
"What?"
"She... she can see you?"
"Yeah." Jamie wanted to ask more questions, but the pills made him drowsy and he could do nothing more than lay back down and drift to sleep. He was going to have a talk with Jack when he woke up.
1 - 3
For the next few days, Jamie didn't have time to talk to Jack alone because the winter spirit was either pressing him to rest, cooling him down or he just couldn't talk to him because people kept coming in constantly. First it was his mom, then Sophie, followed by the twins - Caleb and Calude, and Cupcake who insisted on visiting him. Various other classmates also came by with homework from his classes so that he didn't miss anything, other than one test - which the teacher said he could make up when he came back. They were also helpful in getting the work done and handed the work he did in to the teachers themselves. While he was grateful that he had so many friends to help him out while he was sick, he also really wanted to discuss with Jack what had taken place the day he'd gotten sick. He'd been shocked to realize his mother could now see Jack, Sophie - being the kid she still was - had been excited to learn that their mother could see their winter friend. Jamie wasn't sure what was more surprising, that his mother COULD see Jack or that the two seemed to be on very friendly terms with each other; like he was an old family friend and he began to wonder what his mother would think if she ever knew how Jamie really felt about this "friend" of theirs. Finally, after several days of being cooped up in his bed, he decided he needed to get out of the room.
"You can't go outside yet." Jack insisted.
"I'm not going out, I just need to stretch my legs." Jamie said, covering his mouth when he began to cough. It was barely even a cough, he was mostly over his cold now.
"I'm going stir crazy in here Jack. It's been four days and I just need to move around."
"Well, alright." Jack waited to see if Jamie would fall over as the teen carefully swung his legs to the side of the bed, he slowly stood up but to his relief his legs were steady and he walked out of his room slowly; no dizziness, no fever, it was a good sign. He went downstairs. Where he found his mom.
"Jack, if you don't mind can I talk to my son. Alone?" Jamie's mother said when she saw them on the stairs, well more accurately Jack was hovering behind to make sure that Jamie was okay.
"Yeah, sure. I'll be back in a few hours." Jack flew over to a window, opened it, stepped out and closed it - mostly - behind him. Jamie's mother closed it the rest of the way as Jamie followed her into the living room and both took a seat on the couch.
"What's this all about mom?" He asked, his usual calm back in place despite not feeling fully well again. He knew something was up.
"I just thought we should talk. About Jack."
"What about him?"
"He said he's been here for eight years."
"More or less, there's been some years he hasn't been around mom."
"So then... he hasn't visited every day?" Jamie shook his head.
"Jack can't stand the heat for long. So he'd always disappear at the end of winter and... well... there were four years he hasn't shown up... even when I called for him..." Jamie almost mumbled the last part.
"I thought you were friends."
"Ah... well... it's complicated mom."
"Something about him being a Guardian I suppose?" Jamie had to admit his mother was taking this a LOT better than he had expected she would be.
"Yeah, actually. He brings snow and fun all over the world... so of course he can't be here all of the time and... well... some things have gotten in the way too."
"What do you mean? Like fighting monsters?" Jamie stared then chuckled a little, shaking his head.
"Nothing like that, there hasn't been anything like Pitch around for a while."
"And Pitch is...?"
"The Boogeyman... the reason for the mess of the town Easter night eight years ago."
"I see."
"Remind me some time and I'll tell you about it again." She nodded a little, thinking that it might be a story that Jack might help in telling later.
"So if it's not this... Pitch person... what then?" Jamie sighed.
"Well... partially me, in a way. Do you remember my last girlfriend?"
"You mean that nice girl who wanted to be a veterinarian? What was her name again?"
"Erin."
"Right. She seemed kind of nice."
"Yeah... well I broke up with her because she didn't believe in Jack. She said some pretty nasty things about him and, well... Jack heard. I think he was coming to visit and instead heard what she said about him and... it hurt him so bad that he disappeared for two years. I... ah... ended up with him being shipped to me..." Jamie knew that part would surprise his mother, and he was right though she seemed more confused.
"Well... since I was ten my Christmas wish has always been to see Jack and so... ah... North sent him to me as an early Christmas gift." His mother stared a moment then, to his surprise she began to giggle.
"Oh my... I don't mean to laugh... but Jack ... in a ... box..." She managed between her laughter and he could only smile at the fact that she found North's humor as ridiculous as he had. It really was funny to think about, though he would never tell Jack that; he was pretty sure the winter spirit wouldn't find it quite so funny as he and his mother did.
"Yeah... don't mention that to Jack. I'm sure he probably put up quite the fight. He... ah... can be stubborn sometimes." Once her laughter had subsided, she spoke again.
"Who exactly is North?"
"Santa Claus, but North is his real name. He's one of the other Guardians, there's also Toothiana, but everyone calls her Tooth; she's the Tooth Fairy. E. Aster Bunnymund, but everyone calls him Bunny, he's the Easter Bunny, and the Sandman who everyone calls Sandy for short."
"So, then... they're all real?" Jamie nodded.
"Alright, I guess we can talk about them later, but back to Jack. He told me... about the two of you." Jamie became a little uneasy.
"What exactly did he say?"
"Just that he was in love with you." Jamie flushed a little, rubbing the back of his neck in the same gesture she remembered seeing Jack do when he was flustered. She'd questioned Jack a couple of times about things while Jamie had been asleep and Sophie had been at school. She'd gotten out of work for three days to take care of Jamie, her bosses had been very understanding about it. She'd taken advantage of it and Jack had answered most of her questions, though there were a few subjects he'd been too flustered to give her any clear answer on.
"Um... did he say anything else?"
"Not until later. Jamie, I have his side of this. I want to know the truth. Do you love him back?" Jamie nodded without hesitation.
"I've loved him since I was fourteen... though I didn't say anything then... I.. I wasn't sure of myself for quite some time. That's why I went out with those girls; Amber and Erin. I was confused about what I felt every time I saw him and I wasn't sure if it was real or if... if it was just because he'd been my hero since I was eight. I wanted to make sure it was real, Amber helped me see clearly that what I felt wasn't just some admiration for Jack." He couldn't meet her gaze, he wasn't sure how she would take this sort of news. He knew it wasn't a common thing. Boys were supposed to like girls in this manner, not other boys... He couldn't help it though. Jack had been there for him when he needed him the most, maybe not all of the time, but he'd been there when it had counted. Had never given up on him, even when everyone else around him seemed to misunderstand him and try to change him; of course Jack had wanted to change him too... but Jack had also been more understanding and had accepted him for who he'd been. Jack had wanted to change things back to the way they'd been, not just simply change Jamie because he didn't like who he'd become... although he'd made a point of saying more than once that he didn't like Jamie swearing. Jack had helped him right a few wrongs in his life and while maybe he hadn't done all that much, it had been one simple act really... okay two... but it had snowballed from there and Jamie had turned his life around.
"I was pretty bad off when I was sixteen... I know. I made a lot of bad choices then, but that was also when Jack came back into my life. It's because of him I was able to get over everything and stop doing all those things you kept telling me that I shouldn't do. He... means the world to me. You remember that bombing incident right?" After what seemed like a long moment of silence he glanced up to see what his mother's reaction was. She seemed thoughtful, well, at least she didn't seem mad or anything.
"Honey, I love you. If this is what you want, I will support you." She smiled and Jamie sighed in relief.
"I do remember that incident... oh honey don't tell me that..."
"Yeah... I was protecting Jack from the flames mom. I know it was stupid... Jack wasn't happy about it either and gave me an earful about it... but yeah." She shook her head, but she didn't seem mad like Jack had been.
"I'm just glad you lived through it hun." Jamie nodded.
"I do have one question for you though that Jack didn't answer. He seemed to not be able to, I think he was too embarrassed to." Jamie sat up straight, wondering ... no dreading suddenly what it was his mother was about to ask.
"I was just wondering if the two of you have done anything... beyond kissing." Jamie felt his face flush darkly and he stared as he found his throat tightening, making it hard to speak. He knew what his mom was asking and he understood suddenly why Jack hadn't been able to answer.
