Wow, my first ever song fic! I've seen so many fics like this where Jack is caught singing something a bit depressing and he actually feels like the song shows how he feels, so I decided to do my own take on it. I don't own ROTG and I don't own Never Going Back to Ok. That's by The Afters, not Bionic Egypt. Thanks and enjoy Misunderstood.
Misunderstood
The Guardians were hanging out at the pole one day close to the middle of fall. North had invited them over for a meeting, but the original intent was soon forgotten as they started talking and having a good time. Sandy was trying to keep his eggnog away from the elves, Bunny and North were discussing their holidays, and Tooth was zipping around giving orders to her mini-fairies. All in all, it was a pretty normal get-together. Well, except for the fact that Jack was missing.
"Hey," Tooth said suddenly, grabbing the other three's attention. "Have any of you guys seen Jack?"
"Haven't seen 'im for an hour or so," Bunny recalled. "Where do ya think he went?"
"Let us look!" North decided, walking toward the door.
They looked everywhere they could think of. Tooth checked the kitchen, Sandy and Bunny looked in the workshop, and North looked in his office. But Jack was nowhere to be found. Where could he be?
Finally Bunny heard something. It was a bit hard to hear over the noise of the elves playing with the string of lights one of the yetis had given them, but he could definitely hear it. Maybe it was Jack?
"Sandy, get North," Bunny instructed. "I'll fetch Tooth. Meet back here in five?"
Sandy shot him a thumbs-up before floating over to North's office. Bunny found Tooth in the kitchen, scolding a group of elves about the harsh effects of sugar on their teeth. Bunny had to physically shove her to get the fairy out of the kitchen. He heard the little elves cheer as soon as they were gone. Once they met up with Sandy and North, Bunny explained what he had heard before.
"I heard music coming from one of yer spare rooms North," Bunny told them. "Just a hunch, but it might be Jack."
"Might as well go check," North decided.
The four Guardians made their way to where they heard the music. It took them a few tries, but they eventually found the room where it was coming from. Sandy quietly opened the door to see Jack sitting on the table, an iPod playing in front of him.
The current song ended and the next one started up. Wait, no, it was the same song, just on repeat. The four Guardians liked the beat, and Tooth even started bobbing her head to the music before Bunny stopped her with a shake of his head. No, just no. But it really surprised them when Jack started singing.
It's not the end
But it feels like it is
I'm waking up
Like I'm back from the dead
I'm stepping out
And I feel so afraid
But as long as I'm moving it's all right
The Guardians were speechless. Did Jack feel like being a Guardian meant the end of his freedom? They had thought he said it as a joke! And if it was true, then the part about being afraid but being alright as long as he was moving meant that he thought if he was a Guardian then he would be afraid.
I feel alive
And it hurts for a change
And looking back and it's hard to believe
That I was cool
With the days that I wasted complacent and tasteless and bored but
That was yesterday
Tooth was obviously the most concerned out of all three of them. She was fluttering really close to the ground as she considered the lines. It hurt Jack to feel alive? Then his memories must've been painful to look at, seeing how happy he had been when he was human. But did Jack honestly feel like the days he spent as a spirit were wasted?
We're never going back to OK
We're never going back to easy
We're never going back to the way it was
We're never going back to OK
The Guardians felt really guilty about that. How long had they ignored Jack? Three hundred years? A lot of damage to someone's joy and wellbeing could happen in that amount of time. Jack was basically telling them that he couldn't go back to how he was before that.
This discontent
Like a slap in the face
Of mediocre
I've had enough of this place
This party's over
And I'm moving away from the frills of the Beverly Hills but that was yesterday
North felt a bit surprised at that. Was Jack really that sick of being surrounded by them? They weren't the worst of company.
We're never going back to OK
We're never going back to easy
We're never going back to the way it was
We're never going back to OK
The guilt was back tenfold. How could they have left him alone for so long?
We're here to stay
This is our time
Our only life
Our chance to live
Those few lines made the four Guardians feel a bit hopeful. Maybe Jack wasn't so damaged after all? Or maybe it meant that he wanted to change things around so he didn't feel so lonely anymore.
We're never going back to OK
We're never going back to easy
We're never going back to the way it was
We're never going back to OK
That verse repeated once more before the song ended. As the song's final note rang out, Tooth zipped inside the room and smothered Jack in a tight hug. She was quickly followed by North, Sandy, and Bunny.
"Wha?" Jack choked out, unprepared for the sudden hug.
"We're so sorry!" Tooth apologized. "We didn't mean to leave you along for so long. We promise we'll make it up to you!"
"Yeah, sorry Frostbite," Bunny said. "If we'd known how ya felt, we'd a' talked ta ya more before now."
"I am sorry as well," North boomed apologetically. "I did not mean to leave you along for so long, boy."
Sandy bowed his head shamefully, apologizing to Jack in his own way.
Jack was confused. What were they talking about? Yeah, three hundred years of being unseen and ignored was a bit lonely, but he wasn't that upset about it. Why did they think that he was so upset? Wait a minute . . . they heard him singing! Jack tried to hold back a laugh, but he just couldn't.
Jack's sudden explosion of laughter confused his fellow Guardians. They let him go, backing up a few feet. Why was Jack laughing? They were trying to apologize! It took Jack a few minutes to calm down enough to explain himself.
"You guys," he chuckled "I'm not upset! Jamie wanted me to listen to a song he found, so he lent me his iPod. This is the first chance I've had to listen to it and I had it on repeat so I could learn the words. It was catchy and I started singing along. I don't actually feel that way!"
Massive confusion spread throughout the group. Jack wasn't upset? He didn't feel the way the song sounded like he did? But why . . . How come . . . Huh? Yep, they were idiots.
"So . . . yer not upset?" Bunny tried.
Jack shook his head. "No, I'm not upset," he laughed. "Seriously, it was just a song."
"But then why were you singing it?" Tooth demanded.
Jack signed. He had already explained this! "Jamie wanted me to listen to the song," Jack explained slowly. "And it was catchy, so I started singing it. I do not in any way think that it reflects how I feel. You guys don't have to worry about me."
"Ohhh," North said. "Alright then, how about we go into globe room and have fruitcake and cookies, da?"
Everyone agreed and followed the Russian out the door, the song now forgotten. Well, not forgotten, really just pushed into an empty corner in the back of their minds. Later they'd all laugh about it, but for now, they were just glad Jack didn't actually feel like that.
And that's that! I thought it would be interesting for there to be a oneshot where they thought the song was how Jack felt, but really he just listened to it because it was interesting. Tada! Thanks for reading!
~C