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Title: Canary Burden
Pairing: Lake (Jake / Lilly)

Author: DramaticStarlet / Katie Lynn
A/N: Weird Lake oneshot.

Yeah. I don't even know, I was just sitting in my computer room and I started thinking about a story I read once, and it had a coffee mug in it, and I wanted to have a story where the plot revolves around something so incredibly simple, yet very complicated. You know, like where something small has a bigger meaning.

I don't know if I achieved that, though...

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A big yellow coffee mug sits on Jake Ryan's kitchen table.

It's smooth, perfect porcelain and has a fading letter L emblazoned on the front.

Jake hates the stupid thing – it's an annoying eyesore. He honestly just wants to just smash the thing into a million tiny little fragments.

But he can't.

And do you know why?

A girl. The prettiest, funniest, sweetest girl he's ever met.

The ghost of the girl's lips is on the edge of the mug, marked by glaringly obvious red lip gloss.

God he hates that thing.

--

"Morning, Lils," Jake said, dropping a kiss on his girlfriend's cheek.

"Hi," Lilly yawned, paging through a magazine.

"Big day?" he raised a curious eyebrow at her attire.

Lilly Truscott wore a blinding, white-blond wig, false eyelashes, a white and black striped dress, black leggings, and cherry-red leather boots.

In short, Jake thought that she looked absolutely hilarious.

"Laugh if you want, but Lola Lufnagle is going to a Donna Kabbana fashion show today, and I was told to wear this outfit so that I wouldn't clash with...uh, someone! But I'm not supposed to clash with some celebrity, I know that much!" Lilly stuck out her tongue.

"Okay, you can't clash. I know I hate when I clash with people. Throws me off majorly," he choked out, trying (and failing miserably) to sound serious.

Lilly just glared and took a sip from her coffee cup, leaving behind a trail of bright red lipgloss.

"Babe, that coffee mug is the biggest eyesore in the world. Why don't you let me get you a new one, you always use that old thing," Jake sighed.

"I like my coffee mug. Besides, I've had it since I was seven. It's like a security blanket," the wigged girl said indifferently.

"I'd do anything if you'd let me get you a new mug."

"Tell you what, Jakers. I'll let you get me a new mug..." Lilly began, her blue eyes sparkling mischievously.

"Thank you," Jake said, a superior smirk gracing his features/

"But..." she tapped a finger to her chin.

"Oh God, not this," he groaned.

Compromises with Lilly usually involved pain, suffering, and an elaborate wager. The last time Jake made a deal with Lilly, he had to turn down co-starring with Demi Lovato in the hottest movie of winter 2012; "Rock On! High School."

The role went to Nick Jonas, and became the highest grossing movie of the year.

Jake almost killed Lilly.

So Jake was hesitant to hear Lilly's latest proposal, which was sure to be completely corrupt and void of any actual purpose, other than to make Jake completely miserable. Rarely did he ever benefit.

"You can buy me a new coffee mug if this one sits in this exact spot for the next four years," Lilly smiled devilishly.

"That's stupid," Jake rolled his eyes.

"Well, if you're not up for it..." she shrugged, sipping at the coffee.

Jake's demeanor immediately changed. Hey, Jake Ryan will not be undermined. He squinted at her. "I never said I wasn't up for it, Lillian."

"You win, I'll give you fifty bucks and...uhh, I don't know. What do you want?"

"I want you."

Lilly blushed furiously before replying, "You're on then, Jakers. You win, you get fifty bucks and me."

"What if you win?" he crossed his arms, raising a curious eyebrow. Lilly never got the short end of the stick with these deals. Ever. In fact, Lilly always got the longer end, because she always won (and Jake was then forced to re-evaluate why exactly he loved her).

"If I win, then you give me fifty bucks, and I get you," Lilly broke out into a huge grin.

"Babe, you already have me. Every part of me," Jake smiled, and inclined his head downwards so that their lips were just millimeters from touching.

"Then I guess you have nothing to lose, except for your dignity and fifty bucks," Lilly blushed, trying to cover it up with a clever comeback.

"Do you want me to kiss you or not, Truscott, because I can stay here all day," Jake said, raising a quizzical brow.

"Two can play that game," Lilly pursed her lips together, though Jake could see her little mask crumbling. She wasn't a very good actress.

"Just leave the acting to me, Lils, and let me kiss you, okay?" he whispered.

"Sounds like a plan," Lilly giggled a little before their lips crashed together.

Their wager was sealed with a kiss. And though Lilly seemed distracted by the kiss, Jake knew that she wouldn't be forgetting about their bet anytime soon.

--

He absolutely hates that mug.

For two years, it's been sitting on that worn kitchen table, and there isn't a thing he can do about it.

Nothing has changed at his house, now that he thinks about it.

Save for the fact that Lilly is gone.

But Jake isn't about to lose a bet he's already invested two years of his life in (though he knows that he isn't going to win anything at all).

So even though Lilly Truscott is long gone...

Her ugly yellow mug still sits in his kitchen.

Oh, and Jake's everything still belongs to her.

But focus on the real burden here, won't you?

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o.O" I have no idea what that was, so don't ask, because my explanation will be very poor. Trust me.

Please review with more than "so cute!" or "i loved it," thanks! (: