Hey readers. Yes this is a Jace fic, and yes, it's a song-fic to the song Yellow by Coldplay. This was thought of when I was listening to it on YouTube on constant repeat. But unlike my other ones, this will have the lyrics.
This is going to be a mixture of everything. Or at least that's what I wanted it to be; A little humor there, a bit of drama here; a bit AU, with some mentions of Kick and Millie.
And the lovely cover you see for this one-shot was made by inhale-horan. She's seriously amazing! Love her stories and cover work!
Look at the stars
Look how they shine for you
And everything you do
Yeah they were all yellow
Everything started in the fifth grade. With a lazy substitute teacher that didn't care what they did to entertain themselves as long as they didn't bug him, that Science class had been pretty dull. No one else seemed to think so, sitting on desk and chattering along with their friends, pointing and whispering to substitute as he snored away, his bald head hanging over the chair and his body just barely in it.
Jerry was lost, just staring down at his desk, taking in several pencil marks—with nothing to do. This was his real chance to become the elementary school legend, the person to change the year before everyone packed up and prepared for Middle School.
That was his plan anyway.
His task proven difficult with his best friend Jack off with the new girl—Kim something, no doubt the most violent girl in the entire grade—and his other friends sick for the day. With no one else around, he yanked out his iPod, ear buds already in and blasting one of his many playlists as he continued to stare down at the desk. The only bright side with a horrible substitute teacher: today's work became tomorrow's problem.
"Excuse me?"
A tug of annoyance ripped his ear buds out, dark eyes staring down at him.
Jerry's only just really started paying attention to girls' appearances. He never had a reason to before—until now. Seeing this girl was marvelous. Alerted (but, he noticed, still shining) pretty eyes that went perfectly with her pale skin and long brown hair that fell down her shoulders. Her beauty battled with her bitter expression, reminding Jerry much of an incident that involved too much lemon juice.
With her hand on her hip, and eyebrow raised in just the right way, she retorted sharply, "Just because the teacher isn't going to do his job, doesn't mean I have to fail. And since Kim's over there with what's-his-face, I'm stuck with you."
Her finger pointed to the other side of the room; Jack and that same blonde girl sitting on desks, talking and laughing like they knew each other forever. Turning away, the brunette sat, dumping the contents of her other arm on the desk.
Jerry didn't know what to do—what the lesson was and why this girl assumed that he actually cared about his grade. But then again, she never said she did. Instead of even trying, he sat back and watched her hand move from one spot of the paper to the next. He adopted the job of passing her certain materials, seeing she didn't need his help anyway.
"Jerry."
She looked up, startled frozen with a yellow marker in hand and a yellow crayon in the other. "What?" she asked uncertainly, tilting her head to match her question unsurely.
"My name—Jerry," he repeated, watching as she just nodded slowly, unsure if she needed to respond or just let him keep talking. "If we're going to work on this, then you should know my name."
She raised an eyebrow, the yellow crayon meeting with the paper. "Grace," she remarked. Her hair covered her face, hiding the shoulders of her purple top. "And if I'm going to work on this, then you should know I'm not giving you credit for watching."
Jerry later learned that the project Grace made him watch her do was on stars, rattling off facts about the burning things that he couldn't care less about.
Unknowingly, she helped him figure out that's what her eyes shined like: stars.
Jerry didn't get another chance to peek and check again, but something that pulled fiercely at his gut told that he didn't need to check, because he knew he was right.
I came along
I wrote a song for you
And all the things you do
And it was called yellow
They didn't see each other again. Not that either would admit they were looking. A new system had started, bumping away from elementary school to Middle school, flying through the sixth grade and straight into seventh.
Or at least pit stopping in the summer of between.
Jerry sat next to an African-American kid with braces snacking on an ice cream. He said his name was Eddie when Milton had introduced him earlier that day. He seemed nice enough, but Jerry didn't think he talked enough.
Bored, Jerry sat back in the lawn chair, counting. He found it sad that he was resorting to something remotely close to math for entertainment…in the summer. Maybe he would've been winning the ginormous water fight that took over the Anderson backyard, grabbing one of the many water guns and blasting his enemies in the face.
But no, he did nothing, just lounging in the sun with sweat turning his skin slick and shiny. Jerry propped his feet up and groaned—wanting to do something but too lazy to get up and do so.
"What's up with you?" A sassy, flat tone asked, coming from his left.
Jerry instantly got a fast flash of the same alerted eyes he saw two years ago. "What are you doing here?" He gawked, scrambling to sit up.
"I came here with Kim, Martinez," Grace retorted with a dripping of attitude that was hard to miss. She did her famous pose—standing in front of him with her hands on her hips and staring him down, like it was a challenge she had to beat him at. "What are you doing sitting around like a couch potato?"
Good thing Jerry loved challenges—especially ones that involved the perfect chance of snagging a girl.
He stared, confused and bewildered as he looked down at the lawn chair he was sprawled out on. "I think its chair potato," Jerry said, smug as if he said something so witty, even Grace would have had to be impressed. "So, there." He then stood, towering a good three or four inches over her.
"Whatever," Grace scoffed—she didn't bother to correct him, knowing that it would turn into something that she simply couldn't be bothered with. She didn't have anything else to do, but she held up the act to look like she did so he would drop it. "Jack said he has a concert starting."
Jerry blinked. "What concert?" he asked. He would've heard if there was a concert. He would've heard if anything music related was going to happen. But then again, maybe he did. He had moments like that. One minute they're talking about a dreaded upcoming test and the next, which food they'd be having for dinner that night. He'll need to look into that later.
"The surprise he's doing for Kim," Grace said, going slowly as if not to confuse Jerry more than he already was. She peered at him from the safe shield of her sunglasses that had slid down to cover her eyes. "He told everyone hear about it. Apparently he needed to 'woo' her or something like that. Ring a bell, much?"
Jerry nodded, though her words didn't resurface a single memory about some surprise. He didn't tell her that, instead following her to the patio that had transformed into a stage—a shockingly real one with an amp and everything. Jack stood nervously into front of the microphone stand, tuning his guitar that plugged into aforementioned amp.
Swag idea, Jerry approved in his head, making a mental note to tell Jack after this concert thing was over, and then proceeding to making a long, questioning list on where all the band stuff even came from first. Jerry had only been in certain places of the Anderson household on special occasions, knowing that there were things (like the family's love for music) that needed to stay hidden from guests' sights.
"This is for Kim," the brunet said nervously, but remaining enough of his posture to point and wink at said blonde.
Kim blushed, her face turning an unflattering cherry red as Jack started.
Jerry tapped his foot along to the beat, not recognizing it. Must've wrote it himself—impressive.
That's what everyone else must have thought of too. The guys had grabbed partners, dancing and twirling the girls' around as the sky dimmed to dark orange with a rosy pink mingling with it. Milton had stepped up and asked a shy (and slightly nerdy, Jerry must admit) girl named Julie to dance—an awkward tribute to the waltz. Eddie gathered enough courage to ask none other than Snooty Stacy to dance—the surprising outcome them both dancing quietly side by side. Even Randy had a girl on his arm. How? Jerry had no idea.
"Wanna dance?" He twisted to the brunette at his side, getting a perfectly plucked eyebrow raised in return. "I think we look like the losers of the party," he added bluntly, pointing out all their friends, laughing and twirling.
Grace rubbed her lips, but uncrossed her arms, her expression melting into something unreadable, but good at the same time. "I guess," She caved hesitantly, taking his outstretched hand with her own pale one. Laughing, just a little, she's swung out to the middle of the backyard, Jerry smirking down at her as he twirled and spun her around with a confidence so smooth and beaming, it was unreal.
Her sundress spiraled out, spinning around her beautifully as they laughed and dance, unaware that the sun had ended only mere minutes ago. Jerry was unaware at least, but Grace felt several pair of eyes watching the two, the song's melody gone. With a simple, "The music's gone," and a simple, confusing glance exchanged between the two, the brunette was gone, already sauntering over to the blonde's side.
Jerry darted to Jack, clumsily climbing the patio steps. "Nice set, man," he congratulated breathlessly, "Total swag."
"Thanks." The two did their handshake, a guy hug following after. "You need to know how to impress them to win them," the brunet added with a smirk and he waved to Kim on the other side of the yard. "And I think I did well."
Jerry nodded in agreement, staring at the laughing brunette. "Now all you have to do is teach me how to write songs like that for her, and we'll be good for now."
So then I took my turn
Oh what a thing to have done
And it was all yellow
Grace was sassy and spoke her mind. About everything, whether she was supposed to or not. It was kind of her thing. But she couldn't do it about that dancer.
Jerry was never her favorite thing, and didn't know where all the sudden thoughts about him and his stunning naive behavior came from, but they didn't stop swirling in her head until Grace admitted the truth: she thought about him for a reason the universe—her friends, old sister, and even her own mother—the universe won't let her in on.
It was lying there, staring blankly up at her bedroom ceiling with her phone in hand, that Grace really started thinking about him. Not just him, but his thoughts.
Grace laughed to herself without any humor. There was nothing to think about. Jerry had never been one to focus on thinking. To dwell on him considering her the way she was at this moment rang useless in her head. Every sentence that came out of his mouth bore no little to no sense, much less his thoughts would. Jerry was too random, too oblivious, and too childishly immature.
Then again, Grace mused, that was how everything started: When they were childish.
"Knock knock," a cheery voice called from the doorway of her bedroom.
Out of instinct, Grace screamed, flailing as she tried to save herself from toppling off her bed by making a mad grab for the bed post. "Oh dear God," she gasped, righting herself with a hand over her heart. "Never do that again, Martinez!"
"Oh please, Mamacita," Jerry entered the room and rolled his eyes. "You girls and your—"
"Don't even think about finishing that sentence," Grace warned, her finger poking his chest.
Jerry groaned as she dropped her hand back to her side. "Mind trying not to maul me with your claws?"
Grace mocked a face of impression. "I'm surprised you even know how to use the word maul in a sentence."
Jerry simply winked, doing a dance move that was made to impress her. "There are a lot of things you don't know about me, Gracie."
The brunette yanked on his arm, bringing their faces close. "Call me that again, and one of things people won't know about you is how you died so fast." She hissed, "Got it?" with her nail digging into his arm.
Jerry just nodded in agreement quickly, his other hand trying to pry her nails off his arm, their sharp tips puncturing his skin. She finally did, her hand going up to smooth her hair behind her ear, untangling some of the long strands from one of her dazzling earrings.
"Lesson learned," he muttered, examining his arm, amazed at how it was bleeding rivers from the smiley cuts. Jerry went off to mutter a bunch of phrases in Spanish before switching his attention back to Grace. "Are you going to spend all of your weekend in here? Doing nothing? Gross..."
Grace tore her eyes away from him for a second, focusing on his yellow scarf that hung around his neck and drooped down to his chest. "There better be a point to this, or I'll be glad to show you out the window."
"Relax, yo. God, if I knew any better, I'd think you were getting annoyed with me." Jerry winked and messed with his scarf. "Everyone is meeting down at the beach for a while. No swimming involved. That water's messed up, man."
The brunette scowled, looking around her room in boredom, but was completely desperate for something to distract her from her constant thought vortex. "Fine," she said sourly, grabbing a jacket from her desk chair and casually throwing it on. "Right this way," she added sarcastically, waving for Jerry to follow her.
Jerry just smiled in that stupidly annoying way that made sure everyone knew he thought he was the best of the best.
Grace really hated that smile.
The walk down to the beach wasn't long, but stretched forever due to the awkward silence that rested between the two. They were nearly a block away—the salt ocean air already filling Grace's lungs and the grainy hot sand littering the sidewalk from people trailing it back and forth—when something soft and feathery came down on her shoulders.
She looked up, instantly taking notice of Jerry's lack of accessories. "What are you doing?" she cautioned carefully, her tone accusing but lighter than Grace wanted at the same time.
Jerry easily shrugged, brushing her question aside as if it didn't matter. He chose at that moment to run, seeing his friends gathered in a clump near a vender. Grace continued walking, mildly interested in kicking a pebble until her shoes met with the sandy border.
"There you are! We thought you'd never get here!" Grace looked up to see Julie dragging Kim along to where she stood by some palm trees, both with smiles plastered on their faces with sunglasses perched on their heads. The brunette realized her friends must have been there a while, the sky already darkening to slightest dark blue and slipping out of it's perfect, sunny day blue.
"Where'd you get that awesome scarf?" Kim questioned, picking up the end and studying its bright yellow color with squinted eyes. "It looks kind familiar..."
Grace shrugged neither denying of confirming anything as Julie and Kim pulled her away from the shaded cocoon of the palm trees, her gazing never tearing away from Jerry as he messed with an ice cream cone.
Thinking about him was bad, but maybe just not for her...
Your skin
Oh yeah your skin and bones
Turn into something beautiful
You know you know I love you so
You know I love you so
"Why couldn't someone else come with you?" Jerry whined his attempts pitiful and weak as the determined brunette carelessly dragged him along behind her.
Graced sighed in annoyance, on the edge of snapping. "It's simple logic," she explained in a rush, glancing around the mall. "If I bring Kim or Julie along, they'll lie because they think they have to protect my feelings—they totally don't and you better not either, Martinez! And Kelsey will just turn around to make it so it's all about her; I've never liked her snobby attitude anyway. Plus I need it from a guy's eye. Milton was busy...now I'm stuck with you."
"I still don't get why you need a guy to help anyway," Jerry protested meekly. "What's the difference between a girl and a guy's look on a dress?"
The brunette jerked him into a near dress shop, immediately flipping through rack after rack. "Because with guys, they'll know what looks good on you and they can judge your hotness level. And you're the girlish guy I know, so it works out."
Jerry didn't have any time to be offended as Grace loaded his arms with dozens of dresses then shoving him toward the dressing rooms. "How can you already have so many picked out?" Jerry muttered as Grace snatched them away and headed toward the nearest empty one. "We've only been in here for like thirty seconds..."
The brunette didn't reply, instead closing the door with a echoing slam as Jerry flinched, mumbling to himself in Spanish as he sat in one of the over cushioned seats. The dancer had prepared himself—iPod, phone, the works so he could have at least some fun on this torturous shopping spree—even though Jerry had been warned that Grace will do the unbelievable for attention on her.
"What do you think?" Grace appeared from the stall, donning a strapless purple dress with beads scattering across the skirt. She did a turn, stepping on to a platform of sorts to view herself in the long mirrors.
Jerry shrugged, looking up from his phone briefly to take it in. "Not your color, that's for sure," he declared bluntly. He didn't take notice of how Grace's face darkened in the slightest as she stomped back to her stall, Jerry narrowly missing her heels as they tried to dagger his foot.
It was five minutes later when Grace emerged again, grumbling as she lifted the long ruffle skirts to hop back on the platform. It was blinding fuchsia, ruffles making up the puffy skirt as it drooped down and around her legs; a complicated thing to walk in.
"That's just plain ugly," Jerry dismissed in disgust, shaking his head it in dismay.
Grace didn't argue, instead choosing to stick her middle finger in his face as she trudged past.
Jerry shrugged off her obvious anger and turned his focus back to his phone, tapping away at it with fever as he inserted a plug into his ear, music blasting his eardrum loudly as he drummed along to the beat on the armrest.
"Put it away," Grace demanded sharply, clicking and clacking her way back to the platform yet again.
Jerry dropped his phone. It fumbled noisily in his hands before clattering to the ground with a few beeps as it landed face first, the covering staring up as he gawked at Grace wide eyes and a gaping mouth.
She was stunning. The brunette had released her hair from its rushed ponytail, the dark waves, flowing down her back, donning the sweetheart electric blue dress. The netting fabric clung to her body, showing off her lovely figure.
Grace smirked, "That bad, huh?" Sauntering over and shutting his mouth for him. "And the floor isn't the best place to keep your jaw."
Jerry scrambled from his seat, his beanie nearly sliding off his hand if it wasn't for his hands to right it again. "No, no, no. I like it! Get that one!" He scuttled to a stop beside her, the pair now standing side by side.
Graces pressed her lips together, hip cocked in a way that showed she teeter tottering on believing him or going with her own judgment. "So you really like this one?" She looked at the mirrors skeptically, running her hands along the fabric as turned side to side a both look. "Or are you just saying that to get out of this?"
He fixed the collar of his leather jacket and straightened out his beanie again. "Both," he decided.
Grace frowned, thumping his forehead as she made her way back to her stall to change. When she came out again, she loaded Jerry down with the other dresses in her own skirt and blouse with the same electric blue dress swinging by it hanger in her hand. "Come on, keep up."
Not knowing what to do as Grace walked up to the check-out, Jerry scanned the area quickly to see if anyone was looking before strewing them across the seat he once occupied then raced to catch up to the feisty brunette.
"65.98," the lady rung up, her nasally voice sounding rough and gravelly than it should have.
Grace shrugged, the price not nearly as bad as the last time she was here (a last time she suppressed the memory of) and handed over her mother's credit card with easy movements. She was handed back the card only minutes later, taking her bag as politely as she could muster and dragged Jerry out of the door.
"I should be good for the dance that's in April," she commented, peering into the bag and looking down at the beautiful dress fondly.
"But's that three months away," Jerry said in confusion. "At least, either two or three. How many months away is April from February?"
"Simple dance Science," the brunette explained. "When it comes to preparing for a dance, it easily follows the case of early bird gets the worm." Seeing that Jerry still didn't understand, she sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "
Grace rolled her eyes, ignoring his question, latched onto his wrist and started yanking him away again. "Hurry up. Now we have to get shoes..."
I swam across
I jumped across for you
Oh what a thing to do
"Spring break isn't going to last forever," Jerry coaxed, giving his friends a pleading look, but knew he was going to get his way, anyhow. "And you can only have one seventh grade spring break. So why not live a little?"
Julie and Milton looked to each other, doing some telepathy work between them that Jerry didn't understand. They were going to be the hardest to convince for this special trip—the name it was given for extra convincing. The two honor roll students were commonly known for thinking on the pessimistic side of new things, hence their worry of even getting together in the first place.
"How does your family even use a lake house?" Kim quipped from her seat across from him. "Wouldn't they need three in total just to fit them and you're siblings?"
Nods and sounds of agreement rose from the tables. They had pushed together two tables for this meeting, the group helping themselves to four falafel baskets dripping with grease.
"Normally, yes," Jerry agreed, admitting to his family large number and the abnormal amount of siblings he has. "But this year, the older ones are being shipped to my dads' and the ankle biters are staying back with my abuela. The middle kid—the swag master himself— gets to party at the lake house with my homies."
Kelsey wrinkled up her nose, picking at her food. "I don't think I can handle being stuck in a minivan with the likes of Jerry for three hours."
Grace snorted, food nearly catching in her throat as she gave her friend a high-five, laughing as she struggled to swallow the greasy bits in her mouth. When receiving a look from Jerry, the brunette just raised her shoulders innocently.
Kim looked between her two friends curiously, eyes narrowed slightly as she observed their behavior. Something was going on with those two, she mused excitedly, finding this new information great.
"So what exactly would we be doing up there?" The blonde asked as she drummed her fingers on the table. "A little more information on where the cabin was exactly would be great."
Jerry snorted, leaning back in his chair. "It's a house on the lake; how clearer could've been?" Stuffing his face with some falafel balls, he added a brisk, "You're really livin' up to the blonde name, dudette."
Kim barked out a growl with a hard slam of her foot to the dancer's knee, smiling in satisfaction as he let out a girly yelp of pain. "Don't push your luck, Martinez," she warned with a smirk, "I can—and gladly will—do worse than that."
"And I won't hesitate to join in," Grace added with a wink.
Jack looked to the brunette at the end of the table. "What'd he do to you?" he asked curiously. Jerry's been known to anger the girls of the group before, and there attacks of revenge fierce depending on what stupid scheme he'd done. "I thought he'd been on a decent strike this week."
Grace dismissed the brunet's words with a quick wave of her hand. "I never said he had to do anything; it's just fun to beat him up sometimes."
-:-
The rusty old minivan bumped to a rickety stop on the trail, hardly being able to squeeze between the paths of trees.
"Oh, thank the sweet Lord and Jesus we are alive!" Kelsey cried out dramatically as she busted the door open and toppled out of her seat and into the fresh air, taking large gulps of it. "If I had to sit next to Jerry for even a second longer, I would've lost it."
"I think you did around the third hour point," Kim muttered as she dusted her pants off, jumping out as well after Eddie did so. "And I don't think China heard you yet; why not scream a little louder and bust their eardrums too?"
As the two continued to bicker, the guys helped with the unloading, the rest of the girls just standing back to watch. The job wasn't a hard task in general, but with Milton nearly dropping every suitcase he tried to lift, it became a double shift.
"I should be good with exercise until the huge swim tomorrow," Eddie panted with a whip of his forehead.
Jerry shrugged, "Why not now?"
Nearly the whole group turned to him (Milton and Julie excluded—"I think I pulled a muscle! What is in those things, rocks?") The sun was just barely in the sky, the lovely baby blue sunken into a deeper blue as orange and pink mingled above the tree tops.
"You're kidding me." Jack pointed up at the sky, waving his hand back and forth to prove his point. "Almost seven thrity and you want to go swimming? The water's probably freezing. And besides, some of us didn't sleep all the way here." He ended his reason with a pointed look to his Spanish friend.
The dancer just shrugged off his worry. "I've done it a million times," Jerry explained as he gestured to the lake a minor distance away from where the cabin was. "Nights up here are so hot—sticky and gross, yo; believe me—that you'd like how cold it is." He turned and faced his crew, challenging them. "So you chickens in or not?"
-:-
"Oh mi god, this feels so good," Kelsey moaned out as she climbed into the water. The big, flat rocks leading into the lake felt slippery and slimy under the soles of their feet.
Jerry smirked, popping up from under water. "And you guys doubted me," he whistled in triumph.
Julie looked out on the dark, swirling water from where she was seated on the surface, watching in amusement as she dug her toes into the sand. "I have to admit, Jerry," she sighed with a peaceful smile, "this was a pretty good idea."
"I'm just glad we proceeded with this plan at night," Milton piped up from next to her, looking at the sky, "I burn like a marshmallow in daylight."
Eddie skipped a stone, watching the ripples fade. "You said that in the science room yesterday," he teased, shaking his head at his nerdy friend.
"No talking about school!" Jerry cried, rising from the water. "This is a school-free zone."
"Then why do you keep talking about it?" Grace mocked, sunglasses perched on her head. No one knew why but didn't dare question it; Grace had her reasons for doing everything.
Jerry grumbled, sinking into the water until only the very top of his head was shown. Grace smirked, leaning back on her arms as she closed her eyes, facing the sky. It was rare she ever had moments like this—enjoying a slight breeze in the night, no pressures or worries on her mind. Everything else so far away that it was nonexistent.
"What'ca doin'?"
Grace screamed, falling back onto the grainy sand with a hand slapped over her heart "Oh my god," she cried out, still breathing heavily. "What the hell is wrong with that twisted head of yours?"
Jerry shook his head, water droplets flying as he did so. "You're supposed to be having fun." His nose wrinkled. "Thinking is school related."
"I'm surprised that someone who doesn't do it knows that," Grace remarked bluntly.
"Doesn't know what?"
Grace sighed. "Never mind."
Jerry got out, shorts wrinkled and dripping as he hovered over he. "I'm a man who's not afraid of using force, you know."
"Who said you could be classified as a man?"
"Oh, burn!" Kim and Kelsey called out, Julie snickering as the three girls put in their two cents of the conversation.
Jerry was either ignoring them or trying to think of a better comeback—Grace wasn't sure. He just stood there, looking down at her as she drew tiny lines into the sand.
"Get in the water." Grace snapped her head up, sunglasses nearly sliding off in her hurry to stand. She stood on her tip toes, the very top of her toes digging into the sand as she tried to equal their height. No such luck.
"Who the hell do you think you—Oh my god! Put me down!" She cut herself off, yelping in surprise as Jerry threw her body over his shoulder effortlessly. "Jerry!"
"Chillax, West," he chuckled good-naturally, walking into the water. "It wouldn't kill you to have fun for once."
"Dammit, Jerry! I'm not kidding—put me down!" Grace shrieked, thumping her fists onto his back wildly. They were knee-deep in water now, Jerry sloshing even further into the water. Something swam over his feet, nearly ankle deep in the murky sand that felt a bit too squishy under his feet for his comfort.
Grace was still flinging and wiggling her body around wildly, desperate to get out of his grasp. Jerry had never seen the brunette try so hard to get out of something, but shrugged it off thinking that it had to do with not wanting to mess up her hair.
"Just put her down, man!" Jack hollered from somewhere behind him. "Let it go."
Jerry ignored him, moving forward. Jack spent too much time worrying over other people, anyway.
They were stomach deep. Grace was screaming her head off by now as she down at the water. Her ankles were getting splashed; sunglasses nearly plummeting into the darkness.
Finally, he stopped. Grace paused a second too late, and was dropped.
It felt cold as salty water stung her eyes and an unnatural coldness numbed her body. Then it all froze over, cracking and sizzling away from her anger.
Briefly Grace flailed, limbs flying and water splashing as she squirmed. Water stung her eyes and swelled up her lungs. Different emotions buzz through her veins: anger, fear, embarrassment, slight regret for even coming near the water; Slight regret for the non-fading tingles from Jerry's touch.
"JERRY!" Grace roared, finally managing to burst from the water's grasp. Hair hung annoyingly in her line of vision, tiny drops clinging as she struggled to make out a hysterical Jerry.
He was nearly on his knees, arms holding his stomach and trying not to fall in the water. "That-t-t had to be the…funniest… thing ever." Jerry continued to laugh with actual tears of laughter pricking his eyes. He's too unstable to reach up and wipe them away.
Oh god. Grace felt the humiliation sweeping through her. This was ridiculous for Christ's sakes! She needed to get grip; Grace wasn't dead—she could feel the murky, mud-like sand trapping her hands in it.
Loud voices were shouting at Jerry. Grace squinted, eyes already disappearing as she struggled to keep them closed. After trying and failing to sift through the voices and separate them, the brunette got one goal: get above water.
Grace pushed her head up, gasping and choking a bit more dramatically than needed. Her ears were plugged and the night sky blurred with everything else, an odd painting, slimed and watery.
"Thank the lord," Kim cried out, hand on chest as if she just had a heart attack. Knowing the blonde, Grace was sure she probably did. It's a wonder how she was still conscious. Suffice to say, Kim couldn't handle big scares—not easily.
Something clicked and Grace's head snapped to Jerry. He was still laughing, not as hard but still laughing. A ginormous burst of anger travelled through her chest and suddenly she's jumping up and tackling him to the water. They hit the bottom and wrestled, her hands locked tightly on his shoulders with his on her wrists, trying to break free. He opened his mouth to shriek in pain—oh god, her claws of fingernails were painful beyond belief. The dirty, green-slash-brown muck felt too thick and sluggish in his throat.
Grace finally retreated her claws, popping above water again and standing. Her sundress clung to her like glue—her bikini showing under the flimsy white material. Jerry stood too, pausing a moment before screaming and ran back through the water. Grace was right at his heels.
"Get back here!"
"AHH!"
It was when Jerry was a few feet away from the sandy shore that the brunette attacked again; her legs wrapped around his torso. Her small fists smacked against his chest. "You are such an idiot!"
Grace gasped, unstably rising to her feet as she gawked at her wrist. "It's gone!" she exclaimed, hysteria creeping into her voice. She turned to Jerry again, eyes flaming. "Look what you did."
Julie gasped. The rest of the gang was surrounding them, looking at Grace's bare wrist. "Where'd it go? Weren't you wearing it on the way here?"
All the brunette could do was nod and stare at her wrist as if the bracelet would suddenly appear. "I must've lost it when this ape tried to freaking drown me."
Jerry crossed his arms muttering, "You're well enough to whine about it."
Ignoring him, Grace turned to Jack, pleading. "Can you please go look for my bracelet? I think it still might be there."
Something in him snapped. Maybe it was because it was tiring to see Jack always be the hero. Or maybe, he just needed to prove himself of something—to someone. But he dived, under water and swimming fast before Jack could retort.
Water stung his eyes, but he tolerated it anyhow, digging through the water. Several clouds appear in the water, but something shined, glinting in the green-brown water eerily.
Jackpot.
Jerry snatched the bracelet up and held it tightly in his fist, popping his head above water and holding his fist up in triumph. Whoops of celebration rang out from the shore and he dived back under again, swimming just as fast. Maybe, Jerry thought, even faster.
Grace gasped, eyes gleaming as the cool sleek bracelet was at home again on her wrist. "Thanks...Idiot. I guess you aren't a completely useless ape after all," she thanked stiffly, twisting the bracelet around and around as the chimes tinkled.
Suddenly he was grinning like an idiot, despite her comment he'd get a bit later—
"Hey! That's no way to treat your favorite superhero!"
"More ape, less hero."
Cause you were all yellow
I drew a line
I drew a line for you
Oh what a thing to do
And it was all yellow
Seaford was never a town to have many windy days—nor rainy or dreary. Everyone was used to cloudy and sunny weather. So, in retrospect, it was only natural for Jerry to spend such cloudy and sunny days outside exploring.
Maybe he should've been doing something else with his week end instead of daydreaming; Rudy might rip his hair out if he didn't perfect his bow staff routine by Wednesday's practice. Then again, Jerry did have a lot of things on his sensei—height and speed included.
But instead he was walking. The park was peaceful; White and purple and blue seas of flowers lining the pathways; rusty park benches resting in the shade of tall trees.
"Timmy, John, that chalk is meant for the sidewalk—not your body parts!"
Maybe his little exploring day can wait…a month or two. Instead, Jerry steered a few feet away from where a petite brunette was spotted taking a fat stub of blue chalk. Her scolding finger and amused eyes landed on two chubby little boys with blue chalk smeared across their faces and rubbed onto their arms. The redheaded freckled one hung his head in shame, looking sorry as the dirty blonde to his right just crossed his arms and glared at Grace as if she ruined everything. Dirty Blonde kicked at the valentine colored flowers ranging from the lightest pinks to the richest magenta.
Grace sighed, raising to her full height and waving the two boys off. Freckles and Dirty Blonde both perk up noticeably, running off to the monkey bars. (A disaster waiting to happen, Jerry thought with a mental laugh.)
"What're you doing here, Martinez?"
Jerry stopped his mental laugh fest to see the brunette looking over at him, dark eyes looking him over, slender arms crossed over her chest. "Daycare much?" he called back, smirked as he ran through the flowers and stopping front of her.
She looked back at his trampled trail, not even bothering to point it out to him. "My friend Mika and I are watching her mom's friend's kids while they have a shopping day." Grace shook her head and nudged a newer looking stick of chalk on the ground. "I swear saints to Satan in the blink of an eye."
Jerry looked past her, seeing a tall, Phil-ish (except way hotter) looking girl in shorts and wedges, sitting in the grass surround by a ring of pigtails and bows as she colored with the little girls. "Hot."
Grace ignored his comment—a tiny ping of something she didn't want in her chest going ignored as well. "You're staying."
"Says who?"
"Says the girl who has evidence to what you did with Mr. Ryan's golf cart—"
"Hey!" Jerry raised his arms in defense. "If he didn't want anyone messing with it, then he should've hid the keys better."
Grace gave him a disbelieving look. "They were in his desk—his locked desk."
"Details," Jerry waved away her facts.
"Just make sure Ethan and Mike don't kill each other," Grace commanded, pointing over to Freckles and Dirty Blonde, who were both hanging upside down a little too loosely for their not to be an incident soon.
Jerry grunted, stalking off. "Fine."
-:-
"Okay kids, snack time!" Mika called out, whistling and clapping her hands as she stood from the grass.
Grace couldn't help but feel a little jealous—Mika had the easier part of the group: the girls. Even with two people—one of them being Jerry, the biggest kid she knew—the boys were nearly unbearable. "Yeah, follow Mika's orders, little brats," Grace muttered to her herself so only she could her, pushing the kids into a pathetic, unformed line.
Jerry leaned against the tree; he might've been an annoying ankle biter before, but that didn't mean he was going to deal with them.
Five minutes pass, and the squealing kids are getting irritating since three minute mark. "That's it!" Jerry cried out, stomping over and grabbing two snotty nosed, obnoxiously laughing boys by the back of their shirts. "Into the line, you little germ cubes."
Grace watched, amazed, impressed, and oddly respectful, as all the little boys and girls—Ethan and Mike especially—mush together into a colorful, miniature line, perfectly quiet and still.
"How'd you do it?" the brunette asked from the rear, Mika leading in front.
Jerry stuffed his hand into his pockets. "I got my ways."
"Did you just help me out?" Grace kept asking.
"You talk too much," Jerry said. "Questions are boring—like homework except not on paper."
Grace sighed, defeated as the dancer sped up and walked a little faster than normal. She wasn't going to get an answer out of him, so why try?
Your skin
Oh yeah your skin and bones
Turn into something beautiful
And you know
For you I'd bleed myself dry
For you I'd bleed myself dry
"It can't be as bad you made it out to be," Jack argued, messing with his constricting tie as he uncomfortable stood in his tux.
Jerry looked at him with wide eyes. "Right, because it's worse! I'm telling you, man, my brother, Carlito, told me all about his first dance. And even that one was jacked up! And he promised that this one would be worse..." He started rambling off different disastrous predicaments, bringing up the rear as Milton and Eddie fell in behind Jack.
Flimsy streamers crossing paths on the ceiling and glitter caked on the floor, sticking to everyone shoes and the hem of dresses. The cheesiest thing about it was art projects the sixth and seventh graders had been asked (or forced, as Jerry liked to put it) to make for such occasion. They would have worked, except for ironic fact the dance was a masquerade yet there well festive mask with strings of ribbon and clumps of glitter glue hanging on the walls.
It seemed an imaginary line had been drawn between the different genders. The boys hung back on the left side as they leaned against the wall, the girls sitting at set-up tables. The only time they ever came close was to get to the snack table pushed against the far wall. Eddie stood behind it, monitoring while shoveling a bunch of little sugar cookies into his mouth.
Jerry glanced at the door in longing, wishing he could leave. But true to his word, Jack was eyeing like a hawk, making sure he stayed until the dance over while he juggled that job with gawking at Kim's dress. It was gorgeous, even Jerry had to admits—strapless purple dress with a basic gold belt; cute, but not as glorious as the brunette next to her.
Grace was always pretty, even Jerry caught on to that. But that night, he couldn't describe her in words. Or maybe he could, Jerry had never tried. Much less put so much that in the brunette's beauty.
She was wearing the dress she'd chosen out on that horrific shopping spree, it still hugging her in all the right ways and all the right places. The black heels she donned raised her height three beneficial inches, still giving him an inch over her head. "Dude, either go over there or mop up the drool from your face," a voice said. Jerry jumped—when had Eddie gotten there and how did he do it so fast?
Jerry looked up, focusing on the chipping walls behind the cheesy decorations. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"For a person of your grade average, even playing dumb is accustomed to being a challenge for you," quipped Milton as he walked up, Julie right by his side in a fitting peach dress.
The dancer blinked slowly. "Once I learn what 'accustomed' means," he said slowly, "I'll get back to you."
Julie pressed her glossed lips together, eyes going from Grace to Jerry and back again from behind her glasses. "Even Milton got over his fear of coming up to me." Upon saying this, she leaned over and pecked his cheek, making the scrawny ginger light up a pale red. "So if he can do, then technically speaking you should too."
"Why does everything have to 'technical' with you two?" Jerry whined childishly, slumping over.
"Just go!" His three friends snapped in unison, making the dancer jump back a bit.
He stalked off, mumbling under his breath in Spanish as he did so.
"Looking good, West," Jerry whistled, his eyes roaming over her whether he liked it or not.
Grace smirked, hands positioned on her hips. "Playing the last name game, are we Martinez?" Her slim shoulders rise in a shrug, "Very well then."
They continued to stand there, daring the other to look away. A upbeat song travelled through-out the gym, dancing students laughing and talking on the floor.
"Wanna dance?"
Grace turned her attention away from Jerry, hands placed on her hips sassily. "Why would I want to do that with you, Randy?" she sniffed, head high in the air as she turned away from him.
"Com'n, babe," Randy coaxed, stepping closer than Jerry liked him being. "It's just one dance. It's not like it's a slow dance or anything."
The brunette sighed in disdain, looking at Jerry, conflicted. "I'll be right back," she promised, calling over her shoulder "Save a dance for me?" as Randy pulled her to the dance floor.
"Sure thing, mamcita!" yelled Jerry after her half-heartedly, not even sure she heard him over the loud volume of everything else. The last thing he saw of her was a flash of long hair and a shocking electric blue.
Minutes passed. The songs changed. Jerry stood guard by the DJ booth, rotating from there to the food table and back again. Once or twice he spotted a tomato faced Kim awkwardly dancing with an equally red faced Jack. Other times he caught sight of Julie and Milton laughing and talking quietly in different corners. Eddie even managed to talk a bit to Stacey again.
Why hadn't he seen that electric blue yet?
A pull at his gut warned him something was off altogether. With nothing else to do, Jerry stalked of the gym, half a stale sugar cookie shoved in his mouth with crumbs littering his chin and lips.
"Let me go, you freaking bastard!"
A kick and grunt, another shriek of the same words followed shortly after; And then a lovely track of, "You stupid little bitch!"
"Exactly, now let me go!"
Jerry recognized that voice—both of the voices familiar. He stormed outside, feeling anger and confusion and worries all pile and set into his stomach uncomfortably; he had to get rid of that feeling.
Grace was struggling, both her heels tossed aside meters from where she and Randy stood—best guess was that she attempted to throw them for self-defense; Her hair, wild and sticking to her face, covered most of her face.
In a way, the sight held a comical aura with a girl so tiny and pale fighting a guy twice her size. But Jerry found nothing funny about it.
"She said let her go." The pair stopped, startled, as Jerry walked closer with his hands balled at his sides.
Randy snorted, chuckling darkly. "Back off man; you'll get your turn when I'm done."
"Seriously, dude, lay off." His voice is darker now, approaching a dangerous level of calm. Calm before the storm, Jerry thought, wasn't that it?
Grace was forgotten, off to the side as she tended to her sore wrists and tried to straighten her hair out. The two men face off, both with fists at their sides and equally fierce glares.
Jerry didn't remember how, but he lunged, tackling the skater to the ground and pulling his fist back. Randy shoved him off and rolled to the side, missing his fist by a narrow inch. The dancer swore loudly as his hand made contact with the cement. Funny, he couldn't remember any karate moves, couldn't remember anything except that this guy was a threat.
Back and forth, dodging left and right with kicks to the gut and knees to groins.
"Knock it off!" Grace trilled, her hand snatching Jerry back right when he was about to lunge again. His left eye was swelling up, a sickening blue-ish purple, yet Grace couldn't look away from it and the thick trail of blood streaming from his lip.
Randy had stalked off by now, screaming and cursing the entire way to God-knows-where.
"You're such an idiot," Grace muttered in dismay with a careful finger stroking a cut slicing through his brow. Affection shone in her eyes.
Jerry coughed, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly, shifting from foot to foot. He didn't have any comebacks for this and needed some badly. "I guess," he decided on, knowing that now it wasn't time to ask for that dance he'd been hoping for in the first place.
Maybe someday he would, more fly and swagger-like with a lot less blood and tension.
It's true
Look how they shine for you
Look how they shine for you
Look how they shine for
Look how they shine for you
Look how they shine for you
Look how they shine
"This has to be the cheesiest thing ever," Grace laughed.
Newer flowers (these were a more refreshing assortment of reds and oranges and yellows) outlined their path, hands bumping against one another every so often. Cautious fingers wrapping around one another every few minutes.
"Are you sure you came up with this?" Grace asked again, head tilted in a curious way as she looked up to Jerry. The idea of a simple stroll through the park on a night seemed too cute and classy…the complete opposite of Jerry.
Jerry snorted, mocking offended. "I got skills to pay the bills, West."
"Whatever, Martinez."
The benches are still chipping and old, neither daring to sit in the closest one due to the high risk of getting several very unwanted splinters.
"Loving the date, yet? Swagger than any other, ain't it?" Grace rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.
"Can you ever speak proper English for five minutes?"
"If I can say it, it's a word."
"That's the reason why you're still in seventh grade English."
Jerry popped his collar, shuffling a little. "Please, Ms. Grad is just afraid to let go of her favorite student."
Grace shook her head. "I'm sure that's true in a world where favorite means most unimproved." Sighing, she stuffed her hands in her jacket pockets (too stubborn to admit she could tolerate the more-than-accidental hand bumping). "Why did you drag me out here anyway? My German homework isn't going to finish itself. Not that you would know how to finish homework, let alone actually use the word homework."
A part of her was insisting that was a petty excuse, but the brunette shooed it away as quickly as it appeared. "You going to tell me or what?"
Jerry stopped abruptly, a mentally debating Grace nearly stumbling into his back. She glared at the back of his leather vest. Just when she can't stand how unanswered the silence was, he spoke up, asking, "Do you know all the constellations?"
Grace gaped, off guard as she asked, "And you do?"
The dancer laughed, shaking his head. "Did you forget who you're with when you tried to run me over, West?" Grace huffed—clearly that little run-in was entirely his fault. "Knowing things means listening to the teachers. Listening to teachers' means showing power to the man." He spun, his beanie nearly falling off his head and into the flowers. "And the swag master shows no power to the man."
The brunette just blinked in response. "Avoiding the question, dude."
Jerry let out a high, "pfft," and waved his hands at her before pulling her down the path again. "You need a fun bone. Or at least all your mean ones removed."
Grace rolled her eyes, wanting to jerk her arm back as he continued to drag her along. There were plenty of other productive things she could've been doing—her French homework, hanging out with her little cousin. Maybe even having her brother beat her at video games again.
She was so lost in thought; the brunette didn't even notice Jerry stopped until it was just too late. Grace stumbled, toppling onto Jerry as he brought her to the ground with him.
"Don't ruin the merchandise," Jerry cried, pushing her off of him (quite rudely, Grace must add). "Other girls are in the game."
She grunted, smacking his chest and sitting up, busying herself by straightening her clothes and brushing nonexistent dirt off her arms. "Nice to know chivalry isn't dead," she muttered sarcastically.
"I'd answer if I knew what that meant."
Crossing her arms, Grace leaned back and let her back sink into the ground—the blades of grass prodded at her neck but she ignored them, staring up at the stars. "I have a curfew and plans this weekend," she said curtly, "let's hurry this along before my parents kill me."
Jerry mimicked her position, staring up at the stars as well. "This is what I do sometimes."
"What?"
"Just playing connect the dots."
Grace furrowed her eyebrows. "I thought you did that with clouds."
Jerry whistled lowly, sounding amazed as he said, "wow, West. You really are a boring square. They are completely different."
"Oh, really?" she shifted slightly so she was looking at his profile, "How so?"
"Simple—one if for daytime, the other night."
"Only you, Martinez, only you."
-:-
For the first time in her life, Grace let go. She had fun and pointed at the sky and laughed and talked and created. Toilet with a tongue; Corn on the cob taking showers; on and on until Grace wasn't sure she could imagine anymore.
For the moron he appeared to be, Jerry still managed to have his moments.
"I can't believe I'm saying this," Grace stated an hour later, hands tucked behind her head as she star gazed, "but this was actually kind of fun. For you coming up with it, anyway."
"The swag has its ways," Jerry agreed with a nod to prove his point.
She shook her head, but was smiling. She's just about to retort when her phone let out a bleat. "Crap!"
Grace jumped up, looking at the time with wide eyes. "It's past my curfew; I really gotta go." Shooting a brief smile and wave combo over her shoulder, the brunette ran off, letting it follow with a rushed, "Bye!"
Look at the stars
Look how they shine for you
And all the things that you do
Champagne, a towering five-layered white cake standing taller than the rest, a proud little cliché bride and groom posed on top. The beach was lit up with swinging lanterns, soft candle light, and sparklers kids ran around with. Low waves lapped at the sand, glasses clinking in several different toasts.
It's all so cheesy and perfect that Grace couldn't complain. She looked especially pleased with her hair done in an elegant bun resting lowly on her head, silky white wedding dress hugging her curves.
Jerry looked especially nice in his creased classic suit and tie.
Tilted her head back, feet buried into the sand with her heels next to her. The girls had picked such a pretty night and strip of beach—palm trees hiding the road, a soft breeze floating through the scene. Everything she ever pictured her ideal wedding to be.
"Penny for your thoughts?" Grace jumped, hand flying to her chest as she looked up to a penny holding Milton. He chuckled, putting the coin back into his pocket. "Shouldn't the bride be spending time with her hubby at a wedding?"
"Shouldn't you be spending time with yours?" Grace retorted. She glanced back at the dance floor to see the scene in full swing with laughing and talking and dancing guests.
Milton shrugged, digging to the tip of his show into the sand. "I would, but your groom is sweeping her off her feet as we speak."
"Should we feel jealous?"
"We can always get them back with a slow song later."
Grace sighed, looking out to the water again. "I just feel like something's missing, you know? Don't get me wrong—everything is perfect and just what we wanted—there's just a puzzle piece missing from the picture.
The ginger shrugged again. "Maybe you need to be drunk."
Grace shook her head, laughing slightly as she said, "You're not funny."
"I thought so."
Then she squinted when she looked back to him again. "Why aren't you dancing?" she asked, curious. "Shouldn't you be mingling?"
Milton grinned, holding his hand out. "May I have this dance?" he asked, bowing a bit too low and sounding a little too posh.
Grace rolled her eyes but took his offered hand nonetheless. "It'd be my honor," she replied, just as posh and over the top as he. She rose to her feet and used her free hand to brush off her dress of any lingering sand grains.
They started dancing, instantly laughing as well. Spinning playfully and dancing along to a silly song that didn't exist. It's fun for a while—just talking nonsense and swaying immaturely. The song switched to an upbeat pop song they don't know a dance to.
The two friends were discussing whether or not it was Cher Lloyd or Carly Rae Jepson that would be the next Katy Perry when a suave voice interrupt, asking, "Mind if I steal her away?"
Milton pulled away, walking up to Jerry and clapping him on the shoulder. "Congrats," he said smiling, "just try not to get her too champagne induced before the honeymoon."
Jerry rolled his eyes and the ginger walked off. Grace smiled and took his hand. Just standing there and looking out the waves watching as purple and orange lit the sky. The dancer had shed of his jacket and tie, just in his white dress shirt.
"Do you feel like something's…out of place?" Grace asked, still feeling not exactly right.
Jerry patted his stomach. "Yeah, Mika didn't bring enough creampuffs."
Grace rolled her eyes and swatted at his arm. "Not the food and your irregular eating habits. I'm talking about the sky. Something's just off."
Suddenly he was smiling. Grace was wary—it was never taken lightly when Jerry smiled because it usually meant something bad was going to happen.
"I think that's it," Jerry stated, pointing up. Grace followed his finger, seeing bright twinkling stars blinking down on them like the lights strung up around their guests. Something clicked and now she was smiling, too.
"They're back."
No had to say anything because they both knew she was right.
Longest one-shot I've ever written in my entire life. Not even the longest one-shot—the longest story I've written in my life. Admittedly, some of the moments don't exactly go along with the lyrics quite as well as I wanted them to but once I started this I couldn't stop.
Please review and tell me what you think, darlings!
P.S. I'm coming out with two new one-shots: Mr. Young and Pair of Kings. So you can be on the lookout for those.