Their new place outside of Olivine City is a moderate sized home for only two people, and it doesn't take long to unpack most of their things.
Having to pry Jace from Roger's grip was probably the hardest part of the whole moving process. Still, his eyebrows only got a little bit singed, and his pokemon had the time of their lives.
He's never had a place to call home, it's rather…nice.
He's never had a permanent house-mate either. Which is normally nice, but today Jace seems to be doing his evil face.
Whenever Jace does his evil face, it usually means there's a lot of fast-talking to be done in his future.
He doesn't realize how much trouble he's in until the moment he sees the package sitting on the table. A glance tells him it's from his parents, and he feels the sudden urge to run as far away as possible.
His parents don't believe in the value of items; they send only cash. The fact that there is a giant box with a sealed envelope taped to it is setting off all kinds of warning bells.
"There's a note with it. You should probably read it," Jace stands at his elbow with a grin.
Giving Jace a dirty look, he tears the envelope off and rips it open.
"To our son that doesn't seem to trust his parents," he reads aloud.
"Well, we're off to a great start," he deadpans.
"We are hurt to hear about your breakup not from you, but from your lovely girlfriend. It hurts even more to know that you didn't seem to trust us enough to come forward with your real feelings."
"Jace," he drags the name out, "what are they talking about?"
"You'll find out," the man says, still grinning wide.
"We realize that we may have been pressuring you into a "normal" type of relationship, and that you tend to rebel against our wishes.
But it's not fair to your lady companion at all. Leaving her and pressuring your friend into a lifelong commitment just to get back at us is far more than a mere rebellion.
It's in your best interest to be yourself with the one you love. Take it from us. That being said, we have enclosed the smartest and manliest dress—"
"Dress?" He asks incomprehensively.
"Dress?" Jace asks delighted.
He reads the last sentence again before nodding his head.
"Dress," he confirms.
"—enclosed the smartest and manliest dress we could find to show your true self and win back your girlfriend.
Let her know that it's just a part of you, and show her your charming side! NO BLACKMAILING HER.
Love,
Mom and Dad
P.S. Ask her if she wants to wear a black or a white tux. It'll go well with the dress we found in Kalos."
He has to reread the letter almost twice before it sinks in. Once it does, the first two thoughts come almost at the same time.
I'm glad they're so accepting, and Jace must have made quite an impression.
Then he has time to really think about it.
The fact that Jace must have said something to his parents about a dress fetish is not lost on him. Unable to come up with anything to say, he concentrates on shooting the man his best glare; Jace only smiles back winningly.
"You," he begins, "are infuriating."
Then he laughs because it's actually kind of funny too.
"My parents aren't going to listen to me about any of it until I drag your crossdressing hide into the conversation," he says, hanging his head.
His parents may be open-minded, but they certainly weren't good listeners.
"And what will you give me to show up as your girlfriend?" Jace has the gall to ask.
"Man, I got you a house!"
"You got us a house. Not me specifically. So what are you getting me?" Jace smirks.
He has to take the moment to shake his head.
Done in by my own running joke, he thinks.
"Are you sure we're not actually married?" He pouts.
"If we were, I would have already gotten every penny out of you," Jace informs him.
"Not like you're not trying," he mutters.
"So?" The other man prods.
"How about," he thinks wildly, "a cruise?"
"Done it, like twice," Jace refuses.
"Hot springs?" He offers.
"Not after you convinced the staff I was a girl that one time."
He bites his lip to keep from giggling. That had been a blast.
"Roundtrip to Alola?" He tries.
"Sorry, no," Jace crosses his arms as if waiting for something.
He's got an idea how this all got started, but he's got news for the other guy. It's not happening.
"Look, if you want me to apologize to your brother—"
"Getting warmer," Jace interjects.
"—most of Johto will burn down," he finishes.
"That's probably true," Jace admits, face twisting in thought.
"Tell you what," the other man says after a moment, "you get me a date with a nice, normal girl, no blackmail, no threats, no turns-out-she's-your-cousin, and I'll clear things up with your parents."
He doesn't even have to think about it.
"Deal." He adds, "I'll try not to ruin your date either."
"I'd appreciate it," Jace says dryly.
He sets the letter down and eyes the box with interest.
"You know what? Let's open this bad boy up and see what a manly dress looks like!" He rubs his hands together in anticipation.
"If you ask me to wear it, the deal's off," Jace says preemptively.
"I wouldn't dare!" He exclaims mockingly. "It wouldn't look good on you. There's nothing manly about you, after all."
He dodges the pokeball aimed towards his head, but not the box.
He only has time to think—how could a dress be so heavy?—before a familiar squealing pink thing puts him in a chokehold.
(Turns out a manly dress is a weird cross between a tuxedo and an evening gown. It also turns out his parents have good taste. He does look rather dashing in it.)
Note:
To the Anon to whom I can't reply to, you are 100 percent correct. This isn't a journey about being the best; it's simply a journey about acceptance.
When I first started this, it was solely to practice writing from a 12 year's old perspective, a rather whiny and overdramatic 12 year old. I found it too fun though, and kept coming back to write more for it. It wasn't my best effort; it was never really meant to be read by other people.
I slightly regret the jumpy writing, but I don't think a long drawn out journey would have worked. Thanks to everyone who takes the time to say something!