Title: Unknown Flavour
Author: veiledndarkness
Rating: PG
Summary: Bobby wants to help Jack adjust, to learn.
Warnings: usual disclaimer. not mine, never will be, more's the pity.
Final Warning: implied Bobby/Jack pairing
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It had been several weeks since Jack had been brought to the Mercer home. Evelyn had seen to it that all the boys were not overly rough with Jack, sparing him at least a little bit of time to get used to the other family members. Jack never stood, sat, or walked too close to anyone. He spoke only when it was absolutely necessary. Evelyn watched him with sad eyes. She knew he would come around, but she feared never being able to reach him, of not helping him understand that he was a welcome member of the family, that he was wanted, and would be loved.
Bobby was aware of the way Jack kept to himself. He could understand the need to be alone, and the fear that drove him to shy away from the rest of the family. He remembered the first few days that he had spent in Evelyn's care. He could still recall deliberately causing problems as a way to test her, to see if she had what it took to love a degenerate like him. He watched Jack over the course of a few days and debated over whether or not he should do something, anything to help Jack understand.
A few nights later, Bobby let himself into the house long after midnight. He closed the door as quietly as he could manage. Halfway through his sandwich, Bobby paused mid-swallow and listened carefully. He could have sworn that he heard the third stair from the top squeak. He swallowed his bite quickly and stepped back into the mud room, standing next to the washer, his body out of sight.
Jack tiptoed cautiously into the kitchen, his big eyes glancing around nervously. Bobby smirked to himself as he watched Jack take slow, but large steps into the room, his too-long hair flopping over his face. Jack pushed the hair back behind his ear impatiently as he crept closer to the fridge. The smirk on Bobby's face slipped a little as he watched Jack ease the fridge door open. His stomach gave a phantom sympathy pain at the memory of being so hungry that he would steal to get what he needed.
Jack opened the fridge door, throwing quick glances over his shoulder every couple of seconds. He stared at the food in the fridge, his face lit up in wonder. He'd never seen so many colors in a fridge before. Bright green lettuce, cherry-red tomatoes, cool white milk, yellow butter, and so many more. Jack stared solemnly at the display, his face serious as he studied each item.
His eyes roved over the various foods in front of him, his eyes moving restlessly until they landed on a box of Clementine oranges. He glanced around the room again, having the unnerving feeling that someone was watching him. He looked around slowly this time. Nothing. He breathed out a silent sigh of relief as he grabbed a few of the oranges and brought them over to the table. He set them down before pulling out his own chair.
Bobby watched Jack roll the oranges across the table, feeling the textures of the fruit, and even sniffing them occasionally. The uneasy feeling in his stomach grew as he observed Jack whisper to himself, a quiet conversation with only the oranges as an audience. Bobby took several small steps forward, wanting to hear what Jack was mumbling.
Jack whipped his head up at the sound of a small creak in the floorboard near the kitchen door. Bobby swore silently as he eased his foot off the offending piece of wood. Jack waited for a minute before lowering his head and whispering to the oranges. He rolled them back and forth across the table, humming while he moved his hands. Bobby's eyebrows rose in confusion.
'If he wanted the orange so bad that he snuck out to get it, then why the hell isn't he eating it?' Bobby thought quickly. He wondered how long Jack had been doing this.
He took several more small steps forward until he was in the doorway. Jack caught the movement and froze; his mouth open in surprise. Bobby took one careful step into the kitchen.
"Hey Jack...what're you doing out of bed?" he asked.
Jack's lips moved slowly as if he didn't know what to say. He dropped the orange that he had been holding in his hands like it was burning him. He gasped out a 'sorry' before shutting his eyes tight and flinching.
Bobby frowned. 'He thinks I'm gonna hit him,' he realized with a start.
Bobby walked over to the table and pulled his chair out, his half-eaten sandwich still on the plate in front of him. Jack cracked one eye open, his body still stiff as he waited for the slap that was surely to follow.
He watched with genuine surprise as Bobby merely took a bite out of his sandwich, chewing slowly as he watched Jack watching him.
Jack breathed out quietly, his fingers twitching as he fought with the urge to run. He had been so sure that even if Bobby hadn't hurt him before tonight, that he would definitely hit him now.
He looked down at the oranges in front of him. He'd just wanted to see them. He'd never been allowed to touch much of the food in the houses that he'd lived in. And Evelyn had said that he could take whatever he wanted. Jack let one hand fall on the first orange again.
Bobby finished the last few bites of sandwich as he saw Jack line the oranges up in a row.
Finally he spoke. "What are you doing with the oranges?"
Jack flinched. "Uh, nothing," he mumbled into his chest.
Bobby nodded. "Right. So nothin' is rolling your fruit around and playing with it. You gonna eat your food or not?"
Jack shook his head no. Bobby sighed. "Any reason why?"
Jack stared down at his fingers. Bobby reached over and grabbed one of the oranges. He peeled it quickly and separated the sections, before placing the sections back in front of Jack.
"There ya go, all ready for you," Bobby said, a half smile on his face.
Jack looked at the orange slices in wonder. He poked one with his finger and grinned when a bit of juice leaked from the ripe fruit. He brought the tip of his finger to his mouth and licked tentatively at the juice. His face brightened as he caught the strong flavor on his tongue.
Bobby groaned under his breath. "You've never had an orange before have you?" he asked.
"No," Jack whispered. He picked up the orange wedge and brought it to his mouth. He crammed too much of the piece in his mouth at once and began to choke. Bobby was over to him in a second, slapping one hand down on Jack's hunched back. Jack coughed hard and spit the chunk of fruit into his hand. Bobby reached over him to the nearby tissue box and wordlessly handed him a tissue.
Jack stared up at Bobby with watery eyes. He felt a pull, an urge to reach up, grab a hold on Bobby and never let go. Bobby looked down at him; his eyes softer than Jack could recall seeing before. The moment between them dragged on, both staring at each other, their eyes locked in a wordless exchange.
Jack blinked and the moment was gone. He felt a keen sense of loss, an aching feeling that both warmed and chilled him. He nervously brushed back some hair that had fallen loose behind his ear and glanced down at his fruit.
"Thanks," he muttered.
Bobby tilted his head. He could have sworn he saw something in Jack's eye...he shook his head to clear his thoughts.
"No problem. What's an older brother for?" he said, immediately wincing as he saw the light in Jack's eyes dim a little.
Bobby backed up abruptly. "Right, well, you should ah, finish up and get to bed."
He dropped his plate off in the sink and tried his best not to notice the sad look on Jack's face. He left the room quickly, feeling nervous and somehow guilty at the same time. As he left the kitchen, he heard Jack wish him a good night. He frowned again as he stretched out on the couch.
Jack passed by him a few minutes later while Bobby pretended to be asleep. He held his breath when he just barely felt the lightest touch of Jack's fingers trail across his face. A second later the hand was gone, and Bobby could hear the sound of Jack walking up the stairs. He let the breath out and wondered to himself if he was making a mistake by getting close to Jack.
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