Okay so my favourite couples definitely need more love and I need to get things started for my One Ship Boot Camp in my own forum too, so here's a small one-shot/drabble that I hope everyone enjoys as there will be more where those came from. Romance is not a strong forte for me so I'm glad I had WhiteEevee to betaread for me. Thank you so much girl! Love all your support!
Even though Motherboard was cured of the virus now, as it had been four years since they had been fighting in Cyberspace, the Cybersquad's bond with Cyberspace and Motherboard would never end. Right now, Jackie was enjoying a peaceful time in Solaria where Matt, Inez, and Digit were going to join her after helping Slider with something, but they were sure taking their time. The past few months had been quite peaceful in Cyberspace, and the dark-skinned girl was glad about that.
A small smile flitted across her face as a Cyberportal appeared and Matt stumbled out. But her smile turned into a yelp when he landed on top of her. Usually she'd complain that he was too heavy, but right now, her heart skipped a strange kind of beat as her eyes met Matt's. This was an odd feeling…maybe because they were no longer kids, it felt odd for Matt to be so close to her. However, she tried to push that thought aside.
"Hey there, Matt," Jackie said, laughing a little.
Matt turned a little pink himself and got up. "Sorry, Jacks." He dusted himself off.
Jackie shook her head. "It's fine. Where are Inez and Digit?"
"Motherboard needed Digit to do some sort of checkup on her," Matt explained. "And Slider wanted to talk to Inez about something so I left them to it. I decided I'd just come join you myself."
Jackie stretched out. "I'm glad you did, Matt. This breeze is amazing and the day is just perfect."
"Perfect, huh? I guess, then, I can't give you an academy award for being a drama queen today," Matt joked.
Jackie glowered at him, putting her hands on her hips. "I am not a drama queen, Matt," Jackie said, pouting. "I just tended to panic when Hacker came close to winning." She frowned. "I really don't like it when you make fun of me."
Matt waved his hands in sign of surrender. "Chill, Jacks. I was just kidding. I think it's amazing how much you care for Motherboard and Cyberspace. I mean, you're one of the nicest girls I've ever met. I just tease you 'cause you're my friend." He was starting to get tongue-tied, and huffed. What was that about? This was Jackie he was talking to, after all. They always butted heads before. Why was he getting tongue-tied now?
Jackie had to giggle a little at Matt becoming so flustered. It made him kind of cute. Wait… cute? When had she begun to think that way about her best friend? It was true, though. Even though it wasn't something she said out loud, Matt was cute, and the Crab Prince had told her once that people only teased girls that they liked.
Jackie couldn't help herself, so she said, "You mean you tease me 'cause you like me?"
Matt flushed now and looked away. "Cut that out, Jacks. You know what I mean."
"Oh, so you don't like me?" Jackie pretended to pout.
"No, of course I like you!" Matt was quick to say, turning to look at her. His face was red, but he forced himself to look into her eyes. Never before had he realized how special Jackie was to him as he was recognizing it now. Over the years, Jackie had not only become more beautiful, but she had grown special to him. . "I like you a lot, Jacks. I have for awhile." He exhaled through his nose, quickly averting his gaze.
"Matt," Jackie breathed. She had never heard him speak like this before. "You…" Her heart had begun thudding fast once more and she tried to say something but felt as if the words would not come.
Matt liked her? As in more than a friend? She didn't know how to feel about that. She did like him but how would it affect their friendship if they ever dated? How would it change things with Inez and Digit? What if this didn't work out? She wasn't sure how to answer all these questions that were in her mind, and pulled away from Matt.
"We should check with Inez and Slider in Radapolis. See what they're up to and all." She knew she was avoiding the topic but she didn't know how to respond to Matt's honest confession. Her mind was blank and had too many questions while her heart was pushing her to respond another way entirely.
Matt's face fell and he averted his gaze from Jackie's, his heart sinking. He should have known he would blow it. He didn't want to make things any worse…for all he knew he might have already ruined their friendship, possibly forever. Maybe he should have asked Inez about this before saying what he had or something but now was too late to think of that. "Sure, I guess we can." He grabbed his Squack-Pad. "Digit, we need a portal to Radapolis."
"One Cyberportal coming up," came Digit's voice, and sure enough, the Cyberportal appeared. Matt held out his hand to Jackie and the girl took it, albeit a little hesitantly, and the two landed in Radapolis right outside Slider's garage.
"Hey, you two," Inez said softly. "I thought you were hanging out in Solaria."
Jackie shifted a little. "Hey, Inez, why don't we go for some girl talk?" She knew she wasn't being fair to Matt, but if she didn't talk about this with another woman and let it out, she would burst. She hated the disheartened look on Matt's face, but she also had no idea what to do, so maybe Inez could help.
"Girl talk…" Inez said, frowning, noticing the awkwardness between her two best friends. "I guess that's okay…"
"Great! Let's go!" Jackie grabbed Inez's hand, practically dragging her away, causing the two boys to look befuddled. Once they were far enough from the boys, Jackie let go of Inez's hand.
"Jackie, what's going on?" Inez said, puzzled. "This isn't like you… Did you and Matt get into another fight?"
"No…" Jackie said quietly. Honestly, a fight might have left her less confused than she was feeling right now. But now that she had Inez alone, she had no idea where to even begin.
"Jackie…" Inez said, placing a hand on her best friend's shoulder. "Talk to me… What's this all about?"
Jackie exhaled through her nose. "Okay…Matt confessed he liked me."
Inez looked confused. "So? You're best friends, of course he likes you."
Jackie shook her head. "Not like that…as in likes me more than a friend."
Inez's eyes dawned in understanding and she put a hand to her chin. "So…you don't like him that way?"
"No!" Jackie cried. "I mean, I don't know. I do like him, but Inez, it was so sudden! What if we don't work out and we end up breaking up? Will it ruin our friendship? Will things ever be the same again? And what will happen to our friendship with you and Digit? I mean, it's always been the four of us… Going into a new type of relationship…what if it…"
"Jackie, breathe," Inez cut in, squeezing the other's shoulder. "You're overthinking this. The four of us have been through too much for this to change anything. No matter what happens between you and Matt, the four of us and Slider will always be friends. We're the Cybersquad and we always will be."
Inez said all of this so calmly and confidently that Jackie felt as if she had to believe her. Maybe she had been overthinking things, considering it was a big change and she was nervous about embracing it.
"Jackie," Inez said snapping the dark-haired girl out of her thoughts. "What did you say to Matt when he confessed?"
Jackie blushed, shifting from one foot to another. "Well, I sort of changed the subject and said we should join you and Slider in Radapolis. He looked disappointed..."
"Of course he was," Inez murmured. "Come on, Jacks. You need to fix this and tell Matt you like him."
"I do?" Jackie said, before sighing. "You're right, I do. I do like Matt. I like him a lot, Inez. We've gotten so close in all our adventures…I just hope I haven't screwed everything up already."
The Latino girl simply smiled in response to that. "If Slider and I can work things out, this should be a walk in the park for you and Matt." Her cheeks turned slightly pink as she thought about it. "He confessed to me, too."
Jackie gaped at Inez. "You and Slider?" She had not seen that coming. She knew Inez had a crush on Slider—she had once as well—but she had never thought the feelings were mutual, no matter how close she had noticed the two becoming. However, it was nice to hear that her best friend seemed so happy. She reached out, pulling Inez into a hug. "I'm happy for you, Inez." The girl returned the embrace, and the two friends stayed like that for a moment before Inez pulled away.
"Thanks, Jacks," Inez replied, then tugged at Jackie's hand. "Now, come on, you need to work things out with Matt."
Jackie sighed again before smiling and following her best friend back to Slider's garage where the boys were arranging some things. They both looked up as they arrived.
"Is everything ok?" Slider asked .
Inez smiled. "Sure, Sly, everything's fine. Isn't it, Jacks?" Inez said to her best friend, and Jackie flushed again.
How do I even begin this? Jackie thought. Matt wasn't even looking at her… This wasn't going to be easy. She almost wished they were kids again and things could be more simple, but she knew that wasn't possible.
"Yeah," she finally managed. "Matt, can we talk outside? Please?"
Matt looked up at her in surprise, and despite being nervous, Jackie forced herself to meet her best friend's gaze. After a few seconds of looking at each other, Matt moved to her side and gestured towards outside. The two of them headed out, walking a few paces in silence.
"If we don't work out," Jackie began, "will we still be friends?"
Matt looked up at her, stunned. "Jackie…"
"I like you too, Matt," Jackie admitted looking down again, her cheeks turning a rosy pink colour and her heart fluttering. "I was overthinking things…I was scared Matt, I was scared that if our relationship changed then we might end up losing each other. I think I care about you so much that the thought of losing you…"
Matt took Jackie's hands into his own. "No matter what happens, Jacks, we'll always be friends. I don't know what'll happen tomorrow…whether we'll work out as a couple or not. But in our adventures, we've always followed our hearts and they've led us right, so I want to follow my heart in this as well." He placed a hand to Jackie's cheek, caressing it gently, and the girl could not help but lean into the touch. "Jackie…will you go out with me?" He found himself staring into her brown eyes and losing himself in them.
As soon as Matt said those words, all of Jackie's worries seemed to disappear. Just him saying it was enough for her. Matt would never make promises he didn't mean, and while he was impulsive, he did always follow his heart.
"I'd love to go out with you, Matt." There was no hesitation in her this time as she leaned close, resting her head against Matt's chest. She could hear his heartbeat thumping in her ears in a slow and steady rhythm.
Matt kissed Jackie's forehead, and ran his fingers gently through her black hair.