AN:
I am so sorry it took so long to update this! I had to do a lot of work and I'm also working on other stories, so this had to be paused for a second. However, I just want you guys to know that I might halt this story for a while to get my multi-chaptered fic out. Writing two stories is a little stressful, and I never know how to manage my time well, so...yeah. This might be the last chapter for a while, until I get my multi-chaptered fic sorted out. Sorry.
Also, this chapter features ships you might not agree with, which is always okay, since we're all different. Just try not to let it bother you, since this is just one chapter, and send me some requests! And some constructive criticism!
Anyway, enjoy! You guys are in for a tiny surprise again.
Review Responses
optimistic girl94 - Thank you for understanding about the slow updates and for your amazing, generous comments! You're so kind and I love how you take the time to dissect my story, it's just so thoughtful. I hope you like this one, it might have a surprise you'll enjoy. I made it to give you guys some understanding on how and why KimJack ended, because this is a separate universe from the one on TV so...yeah.
Allison Diamond - Firstly, I'm so happy I make you want to write KimJerry. Secondly, your reviews are always so thorough and awesome and generous. Third, I love how you had to review the first chapter, it literally made me so happy for a second. You are too sweet with your reviews, I hope you never feel inclined to review though, but anyway, I just wanted to let you know that. You're so kind and awesome, you rock.
Maddyliza1234 - Haha, yeah! I love writing a silly Jerry! He's too funny. Also, they would be so adorable with kids, this literally makes me want to write a quick drabble for that, because I can just imagine them perfectly. Jerry would be such a pushover, but also such a scolder, haha. You're awesome and I love your idea!
I. reuniting
"Kim! Jerry!"
The blonde's heart stops.
She hasn't heard that voice, hasn't seen that voice, that specific person who owns it and charms with it, since a year ago. Kim's attention moves from the boy across from her towards the person standing before the door, and her heart jumps inside her chest—Eddie!
She jumps from the red bench seated beside the window and bolts towards the door. She hasn't been this excited since returning from the Academy, and her heart thumps so harshly in her chest. The sleeves of her red leather jacket scrape against the younger boy's skin softly and she relishes in the feeling of her friend against her. She misses him so much. He's been in and out of Seaford since the last couple of years, and one can only be lucky to catch him in town. However, they had arranged to meet since the last three months, so Eddie booked some time in—between the shambles of business trips and wedding arrangements. Because of this, the occasional visits and dormant plans, Kim doesn't really think before bolting out of the chair and grabbing her friend between her arms. He's not escaping this time.
"Oh my god, Eddie," she gasps, taking a step back to gaze at him from his black leather shoes to his blue dress shirt, "where have you been?"
"Uh, pretty much everywhere, but recently Texas," he jokingly retorts, his smile carving into his round cheeks; Kim can't contain the happiness she feels, "they have great milk."
"Oh, shut up." She smiles so cheerfully, her cheeks stinging. "I missed you so much."
"I missed you too, Kim."
There's a quiet moment when Kim removes her arm from his neck and takes a look at him fully, after finally releasing him from her grasp. He hasn't changed a bit—aside from the slight increase in weight and height, however, that never matters—and she smiles from this. He's still Eddie as much as she's still Kim. Despite the years that quickly flashed forward, they're still very much the same. Something about that makes her insides warm. She could stare at his fancy wear—those black pants and dress shirt and leather shoes—all day long, and know, and safely hold dear, that he's still the same boy she went to high school with. There are not a lot of friends she could say that about; hardly any of her old cheer friends or Academy friends…only the gang, only Milton, Eddie…Jerry…Jack.
"Hey! Hey! What about me?"
Kim turns and faces the Latino standing behind her, dressed in jeans and a tie-dye shirt. His pout is almost near adorable, and she steps aside to let him into the group hug. He's been as excited as her about this reunion and he wouldn't stop talking about it last night—"hey, Kim, do you think Milton's a scientist already?" "I don't know, Jerry. I mean, it's only been three weeks." "Oh,"—so she hardly slept in all his ridiculous chatter. However, she understands where he's coming from and it's not anywhere near bothersome for her.
"Jerry! Kim!"
Milton!
II. reuniting
"Holy Christmas nuts," the redhead gasps, grinning widely, "Eddie?"
The raw umber textured boy turns his head to catch Milton standing behind him, before the door. He holds a brown jacket above a plaid sweater, as always, and his hair is swiveled back with gel. Jerry smiles at the arrival of his best friends. He's never seen them in the same room, let alone the same city. Eddie is always on business trips, visiting for small days between weeks, and Milton is in his sixth year of college—he doesn't know how they do it, but hey, at least they're here. It's already hard to contact with them, with such busy schedules they have. He's lucky he doesn't have to do more than forty hours a week, because Kim is usually more than busy during the week, so he's extremely thankful for the lack of work he has to do—of course, he doesn't get paid much, but still…he's lucky.
"Yeah, it's me." Eddie cracks a grin, opening his arms for a hug. Milton jumps at the chance.
Jerry just watches as his best friends reconcile, they haven't seen each other for longer than he's last seen Eddie. Literally a year has passed since they—Milton and Eddie—got to hang out with each other, and it makes him think about how ridiculous all the distance is. It's great to have them all here, and he's happy enough to have them in the same room, but when this is all done, when it becomes time for them to go…when will they see each other again? In two years? When the distance makes it easier for them to stop talking? When they grow tired of struggling to make plans? When life gets too hectic to send an email?
"Jer, you okay?" Milton suddenly faces him, his eyes full of concern. He steps forward, releasing gradually from the hug.
Eddie mirrors the same expression, but Kim sends a warm sympathetic smile his way. She knows what he's thinking about. She always does. "He's just disappointed, because we can't get a dog. They're not allowed in our, uh, apartment," she lies, surprisingly well.
"Oh." The smaller boy nods, crossing his arms. "You guys still live in an apartment?"
"Yeah," Kim cheerfully says, while a distracted Jerry nods. He doesn't really take time to notice the happiness in her voice, nor the clear pride in it, but he can catch the smile on her face. Something about it sends ridiculous butterflies in his stomach, makes him feel so weird and extraño, as he looks up at her, and takes in the twinkle sparkling in her eyes. He's so lucky. "It's a little self-deprecating and disgusting, but yeah, we're still together—I mean—living in an apartment."
Milton shakes his head amused. "I still can't believe you guys aren't married. It's been five years—,"
"—and I have a boat already," Eddie adds, scrunching his nose lightly, "it's awesome."
Kim and Jerry take amusement in this conversation and chuckle at the brutal honesty. They really don't know why they haven't married, Kim's kind of a coward when it comes to those things, and Jerry's just a sloth. If anything, he's surprised he's managed to remember their anniversary, or Valentine's Day, at all. It takes time and planning to do most relationship things, and he finds it hard just to wake up in the morning to brush his teeth. It's usually why she's so mad when he speaks to her on early mornings, and stomps out of bed with a ridiculous grimace on her face, but that's how he is. He's incredibly slack and lazy. Kim doesn't want to tell him either, and he knows, she wants him to take responsibility and to just do it. She's always waiting for him to do stuff. She's super independent, Jerry knows that and so does everyone, but sometimes, she finds that she likes it when he plays out the stereotypical roles—that she actively hates—and wants him to be the one to propose. He's just trying to plan out when…or how.
"Okay," the redhead chuckles, "so you have a boat, Jerry and Kim still aren't married, I'm going out with Grace, where's Jack?"
"You're going out with Grace?" Eddie turns surprised.
"Yeah." Kim nonchalantly nods.
"It's weird, but you get used to it," says Jerry.
"Milton's going out with Grace?" Jack suddenly interrupts.
Kim's heart races from then on. Jerry stills beside her.
III. reuniting
"Jack!" She turns on her high heeled sneakers, standing on her toes to wrap her arms around his neck. "I missed you so much!"
The boy doesn't really know what happened, besides what's implied of the relationship of Kim and Jerry, but they spent a few months together after she finished the Academy. Things weren't the same. Kim had developed a new character, one much different than the best friend he used to know, and maybe even a bit more progressive than the last. She was focused, centered, still as stubborn as ever, but she was far from competitive like she used to be. Her skill had been refined, sharpened, and she was possibly as good as Jack—something about that bothered him extremely, and it disappoints him that it did. It started off simple in the beginning; she sparred with him and she was good. She knew all the secrets he knew and she was amazing at her techniques, he could see the improvement. However, it grew worse, she knew more material than he did, and she was incredibly fast at learning things now. Jack was at equals with her…and it was like an itch he couldn't scratch. They fought for everything and of anything, and he couldn't—she deserved better anyway—be with her anymore. It was over before they both knew it.
"I missed you too, Kim," he mockingly replies, making faces at her tight grip. Jerry laughs.
The blonde lets go of him, and steps beside her boyfriend. Jack can't help but smile at how wildly cute they are—it's weird, embarrassing, and gross—but they make so much strange sense. Jerry is docile, loud, easygoing, and lazy, while Kim is just a rigid prune sometimes—don't tell her he said that—and she needs someone like him. He can't count the amount of times he's seen her smile around him, but it seems like it's all the time, and it seems like she's doing it more than when she did it with him. It's kind of why he stopped caring about it years ago—well that and the fact that he has a fiance he should be more concerned about—and just let her be happy. He could see the difference so quickly when she was with Jerry than when she was with him, and he still loves her, he always will, but they're friends and that's all.
"You never answer my calls," Kim suddenly tells him, crossing her arms. She holds a tiny pout on her face, but he can see it's a fake one, and he laughs at how silly she's being. He doesn't really have time for calls, when he's in the middle of making wedding arrangements and schooling students in his class. It's more than a busy life for him. "I called like fifteen times last week to see if you were still coming."
"Well, I'm here, aren't I?" he tries to poke at her, making small puppy pouts at her, "besides, Jules has me picking flowers from exotic rain forests that I don't even have time to shave." He points at his tiny beard and slight mustache growing across his jaw and below his nose. "I look like a caveman."
"No," Jerry shakes his head, an innocent expression being painted across it, "I think you look more like a viking."
"Yeah!" Eddie nods vigorously, his eyes lighting up. "You do look a viking."
"Not helping," Jack curtly responds, his eyes rolling in annoyance. There's a brief moment in which he looks like he's about to say something in response, but his words are stolen by the blonde girl below him. It's exactly the reason he'll always love her. She seems to be his only defendant in any of the cases that are held before him.
"Alright, alright, guys, stop—"
"Yeah," Milton interrupts, as he walks forward, his jacket slinging from left to right, "besides, he looks more like a werewolf."
Immediately, the whole group—even Kim—starts laughing, their cheeks growing red. Jack shakes his head in offense and surprise. He seriously hadn't expected that comment and he knows that that's probably why he should attend more reunions. Milton's got even more snarkier and wittier through the years, probably because of this Grace thing, and he never knows how to respond. Even as they all stare at him with slightly wet eyes and fingers extended in his direction, he doesn't feel like saying anything in response. In actuality, there might be a small twinge of nostalgia pouring out of him in the midst of their laughter. Of course, he won't admit it, even as the smile threatens to mask the offense he's taken in the hurtful—seeing as he is very insecure about his beard anyway, even with his wife's adoration for it—quip.
"Very funny," he lastly says, before they all take a seat at the red bench and try to act like civilized adults.
And when he notices Kim holding Jerry's hand underneath the table, hers above his, he thinks it might have been good on his part to let her go. It's a weird thought and one he takes in during the ramblings of Eddie's traveling stories, but he finds that he's really happy and maybe even a little proud to see his friends together, and in love, for so long. Now, he just has to do the same with his partner. Wish him luck.