Chapter Thirty Six: Tongue Tied by Grouplove

A/N: I'm posting this now because I meant to post it last night, but I fell asleep. Anyway, here it is! Enjoy!

Jack and Rose went to school the next day. They sat in English, and Rose just couldn't pay attention. All she could think about is why her mother would try to adopt her. She just didn't understand her thought process. Especially after she specifically said she didn't want a relationship.

Finally, class ended. "Rose, can I see you for a second?"

Rose turned to Jack. "I'll wait for you outside," he said.

"Okay," said Rose. She walked up to the front desk. "Yes?"

"Why did I get a letter from your lawyer asking me to rescind my request for custody?" Ruth asked.

"Why did I get home and find out you were requesting custody?" Rose asked.

"A Dewitt girl should not be in a group home!" Ruth exclaimed.

"And whose fault is that?" Rose yelled back. "I don't want to live with you. I don't want a relationship with you! What is so hard to understand?"

"This is just because your boyfriend is in that home," said Ruth. "It won't last. It's just… puppy love."

"I'm done," said Rose. "If you don't withdraw your request, we'll see you in court."

She left, and Jack was waiting outside. "Are you okay?"

"I just… I don't know," said Rose. "She told me a Dewitt girl shouldn't be in a group home and I told her that it's her fault."

"Which it is," said Jack.

"And…" Rose looked down and sighed. "I can't say it."

They left the building, and Jack wrapped his arms around her. "I heard the last part," said Jack.

Rose looked up at him. "You did?"

Jack nodded. "You both have quite the vocal cords," he said, and Rose laughed. "It's okay."

"I'm tired, Jack," said Rose. "I'm tired of fighting."

"I know," said Jack. He held her hand and stroked it. "It'll pay off."

Rose smiled. "It already has."

•••

Jack and Rose were sitting on the bed kissing. Her legs were on his, their arms were around each other, and their lips were together.

Rose pulled away. "Have you finished your Pratt application?"

"Yes," said Jack, and he claimed her lips again.

"You finished your personal statement?" Rose asked.

"Yes," said Jack, and he kissed her again. Rose pulled away. "What is it now?" Jack complained. All he wanted to do was kiss her.

"I want to read it," said Rose.

"You're a crazy person, you know that?" Jack said with a chuckle.

"Can I read it?" Rose asked with a smile.

Jack sighed. "Fine." He took it out of his backpack and handed it to her. "Here you go. As requested."

Rose read the title. "You wrote this about me?" She asked, and Jack nodded. Rose read slowly, soaking in each word. She finally finished reading, and she looked up at him.

"I…" she began, but she couldn't speak. "It's beautiful."

"I'm glad you like it," said Jack. He wrapped his arms tightly around her from behind, putting his head on her shoulder. "And I meant every word."

Rose turned her head and kissed him. "I love you."

"What about you?" Jack asked.

"What about me?" Rose asked.

"Have you finished your application for Barnard?" Jack asked.

"Oh, I submitted that weeks ago," said Rose. She tapped her finger on his arm. "I want to talk about your application. What did you put in your portfolio?"

"Stuff…" said Jack.

"How specific," said Rose.

Jack smiled and kissed her. "I'll show you when I find out."

"What did you put in?" Rose asked.

Jack groaned. "You're relentless. You know that?" He took Rose's computer and pulled up his application, showing her the pictures.

"Jack," Rose whispered. She looked at the drawings. There were eight pieces, six of which were of her.

"This is why I wrote about you in my personal statement," said Jack, looking at her while she looked at the computer. "I needed to explain why my art took such a drastic turn when I was fifteen. I found my muse."

Rose turned to look at him, and she kissed him lovingly. "How the hell did I get so lucky?" She put her hands on his cheeks. "How did a snobby pain in the ass get someone so wonderful?"

"Oh please, I'm a pain in the ass," said Jack. "You're the wonderful one."

Jack put his hand against her cheek. "I'm in love with you," he whispered. "I'm so insanely head over heels in love with you. I think that I'm as in love with you as I ever could be, and then I become more in love with you the next minute."

Rose smiled, clearly touched by his words. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, hugging him tightly. "You're the love of my life," Rose whispered.

She kissed him lovingly, pulling him on top of her. Jack pulled her shirt over her head and kissed her neck, her collarbone, the space in between her breasts, her stomach, her navel, and her hipbone. He moved back up to her lips and stopped. "Why did you stop?" Rose asked.

"Because this isn't right," said Jack.

Rose looked at him, her hands on his biceps. "I want you," she said. "All of you."

"And we will," said Jack. "We've discussed this, and we decided that we were going to wait until we could do it right."

"Waiting isn't all it's cracked up to be," Rose whined.

Jack smiled. "I want this too," he said. "Believe me. And we will do it, I promise. We'll figure out a way to make it special."

"Yeah," said Rose. She looked up at him. "Maybe we can wait until we're out of here?"

"Sure," said Jack.

"I'm sure you think I'm bipolar," said Rose. "Asking for something and then taking it away-"

"I don't," said Jack.

"I just… if anything were to happen, it would be a lot easier to do once we're adults," said Rose. "You know? STDs, accidental pregnancies… I'm just not sure I'm ready."

"I understand," said Jack. "I want to do whatever you're comfortable with."

"I know," said Rose. She kissed him again.