AN: Hi everyone! I have been attempting to write this story for a while now, but I decided it had to be done today because, as of the time this is being published, there are three Alvinette stories on the front page, but only one Simonette story which, in my opinion, is poorly written anyway.
So I figured we needed a dose of Simonette. Because we all know who Jeanette truly belongs with. ;)
The idea for this story was given to be my my sister, Bratette. Despite Simonette being my OTP, I sometimes have a very hard time thinking up plots for Simonette stories...so she came up with this one for me! :) Thank you, Brittany!
Disclaimer: Simon Seville and Jeanette Miller, along with any other mentioned characters, are property of Bagdasarian Productions. I own nothing!
EDIT: CartoonBoyfriends on deviantART has drawn fanart for this story, and there's a link in my profile! Check it out!
Enjoy!
Jeanette Miller stared out her bedroom window, watching as plump droplets of rain splashed against the glass.
It was nearly 4:30 P.M.
The library was going to close in half an hour.
She had several books due today.
Miss Miller wasn't home.
She didn't have an umbrella.
The Chipette sighed and bit her lip, weighing her options. She could wait until tomorrow to return the books, but that wouldn't be fair to the library or to anyone who may want to check them out the next day before she got the chance to return them! She could return them today, and risk getting the books, and herself, soaking wet in the rain.
Jeanette realized, at that moment, that the latter option was her best option. She should have prepared for a change in the weather beforehand.
So without giving the matter any further thought, she grabbed the four thick, hardcover books, carefully placed them in her school backpack, which she put on backwards so that she could use her body to further shield the precious articles from the rain, pulled on her dark purple raincoat, and set out on her mission.
Needless to say, the short trip to the library was more difficult than she had anticipated. She felt as if the pouring rain was attempting to push her down toward the ground as she walked. Every step was labored. The lenses of her thick pink glasses quite resembled how her bedroom windowed had appeared minutes before; that is, covered in thick beads of rain.
Still, Jeanette paid little mind to the effect the heavy precipitation had on herself. Her main focus was keeping her cherished library books from getting damaged. Any damage to them would be permanent, while if she became sick, her body could heal.
The absent-minded Chipette was so lost in her thoughts, that she failed to realize just how slippery the rainfall had made the sidewalk below her. She also failed to realize that, as usual, the lace on her left shoe was very much untied.
The frayed lace, its aglet long since lost, had become soaking wet while dragging through the puddles that had formed on the pavement. It was as if it was just waiting for her to take a misstep.
And she did.
Jeanette didn't even have a chance to react. One moment she was trudging on through the showers, the next she was laying in a puddle. Her backpack and books protected her from smashing her face against the concrete below, but at the same time knocked the breath right out of her.
The tiny girl let out an exasperated sigh before pushing off of the wet ground with her hands in an attempt to force her body to stand against the heavy downpour.
She didn't even hear the hurried stepping of heavy rubber galoshes rushing towards her until she felt their wearer tug her to her feet.
Jeanette looked behind her to find her very best friend, Simon Seville, clad entirely in rain gear, with a navy blue umbrella perched between his shoulder and head, as his arms were currently holding her up.
"Are you okay, Jeanette?" Simon spoke softly, and she could barely hear his voice over the pounding of the rain, but she nodded slowly in response anyway.
Neither of them spoke a word as they walked. Simon led Jeanette in the direction of the library without even asking if that's where she was going. He simply knew. There were very few reasons she would be out in the rain like this on such a dreadful, bleary day.
The slippery ground, Jeanette's dripping clothing, and the pattering on the umbrella slowed the pair down significantly, but Simon was still confident that they would make it to the library before closing time.
The young chipmunk instinctively wrapped his free arm around his best friend, hoping the action would both comfort her and provide her with even a little warmth despite the saturated clothing clinging to her shivering frame.
By the time they got nearer to the library, it was apparent that there was no longer a single car in the small parking lot.
Still, the two chipmunks trudged on until they came to a stop under the library's large awning.
Jeanette sighed softly and took a seat on the steps.
"They're closed..."
Simon glanced through the window of the unlit building, scratching the back of his head awkwardly before closing his umbrella and taking a seat beside his counterpart.
"Indeed it is." He glanced over at Jeanette, his expression unreadable. "Perhaps we should remain here until the rain passes."
The Chipette bit her lip, resting her chin in her palm.
"I-I suppose so."
Simon removed Jeanette's water-spotted glasses from her face, unzipping his raincoat and cleaning the spectacles on his shirt before placing them back on her face with an awkward smile.
"I'm sure Mrs. Smith will understand, Jeanette." The boy placed a soothing hand on her shoulder. "You have never had an overdue book before."
"It's...i-it's not that..." Jeanette bit down on her lip harder. "W-what if someone wants to..to check one of these books out tomorrow? They w-won't be able to because I didn't return them on time."
Simon let out a light chuckle. Of course Jeanette would be more worried about some stranger who may or may not want to check out the same books she had than herself.
"I'm quite certain that won't be a problem." The chipmunk smirked. "The library installed a drop box just last week, remember?"
Jeanette's eyes lit up as she lifted her head from her hands. "Y-you're right!" It must have slipped her mind. "O-oh..I hope my books are okay!" She reached down to unzip her backpack, but another hand on hers stopped her.
"Jeanette, your backpack is insusceptible to water. The books are perfectly fine. I'm more worried about you."
It was then that the young girl noticed for herself that she was shivering. She was soaking wet, after all. Her shoes and socks were drenched, along with her skirt and hair, and her shirt underneath her raincoat was fairly damp in most places.
It was undeniable that she would wake up with a cold in the morning.
She watched as Simon took off his raincoat to reveal a fairly thick jacket underneath. He smiled sweetly at her before slowly removing her dripping raincoat and placing his jacket on her shoulders in it's place.
"It won't help very much, but it's better than nothing, I suppose." He stated simply before pulling his arms back through his raincoat.
"T-thank you, Simon..."
"Hopefully the rain will stop shortly." Simon looked out at the clouds beyond their little safe haven, attempting to hypothesize when it might be that the downpour would come to a halt. Unfortunately, he had absolutely no way of knowing.
The clouds in the sky were quite dark, and if he did not know the time of day he would have assumed it was much later in the evening than it actually was.
The duo sat wordlessly for what seemed like hours. Neither of them were quite sure of what to say next. Should they attempt to pursue a conversation? Bask in one another's company?
Both bespectacled chipmunks stayed nearly motionless, as if the rain was putting them in a trance.
That is, until Simon noticed that Jeanette was still shivering.
He slowly scooted closer to his counterpart, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her as close to him as he possibly could. Jeanette's eyes widened and a slight blush formed on her cheeks.
"S-Simon, w-what are you doing?"
"I am transferring my body heat to you." He words were stated matter-of-factly, but Jeanette could swear she detected a slight nervousness in his tone.
"O-oh."
It wasn't long after that that the pitter-patter of the rain became merely a slight drizzle, and the two children decided it was time they prepare for their trip back home.
Jeanette looked forward to getting home, getting into some dry clothes, and sitting in front of the fireplace with a cup of hot cocoa, which she would politely ask Simon to prepare for her, as she had never been able to do that particular task on her own.
Simon unzipped Jeanette's backpack, pulling out her four perfectly undamaged library books before standing and placing them into drop box beside the building's large wooden doors.
By the time he was done the rainstorm had completely moved on, and the sky, while still cloudy, had begun to brighten with the sunshine of a warm California afternoon.
Simon extended his hand to Jeanette's still seated form, and she took it. The pair grabbed their things and began the journey home, which would undoubtedly be much easier than the journey here.
Hopefully.
Yikes. Hopefully that wasn't too bad. xD Thank you for reading!
