Don't You Ever Forget About Me
Chapter 4
Hot Mess
"Oh my gosh!" Rapunzel sputtered, hopping up out of her chair. She grabbed Jack by his icy hands and pulled him to his feet, a slight protest sounding from the winter spirit, "You have to hide! My mother is outside. She cannot know that you're here!"
"Uh, Rapunzel, I don't think-" Jack was unable to finish his sentence, as he was cut off by Rapunzel yanking him towards a wardrobe on the other side of the room.
She pulled open the doors and pointed at the wooden interior, "Get inside! Now. If my mother sees you, she'll-"
This time Jack cut her off, holding up one of his fingers to her face, quieting her. The blonde let out an exasperated sigh, "Rapunzel, it doesn't matter! She won't be able to see me anyway-"
"Rapunzel! I'm not getting any younger down here!" Again, the earsplitting sing-song voice pierced the air. It vaguely reminded Jack of nails on a chalkboard.
"Please?" Rapunzel pleaded, her voice getting squeaky. She squeezed Jack's hand, and her warmth seized him.
Sighing, Jack finally gave in, "fine," he rolled his eyes at the girl, who wore a triumphant smile. Even though he was certain that her mother wouldn't be able to see him, he decided to humor her. That little bit of warmth she had passed on to him had been enough to change his mind.
First moving aside a few hanging garments, Jack stepped inside the wardrobe and crossed his arms. He looked (and felt) like an unruly child sentenced to a time out. Rapunzel offered him a small, apologetic smile, "sorry."
Jack opened his mouth to assure her that things were fine (despite how annoyed he was), but for the second time he was cut off by that same grating voice.
"Rapunzel!" This time the voice cut through the air with an even sharper edge.
"Coming, mother!" Rapunzel called, feigning normalcy. She shot Jack another apologetic glance before closing the doors, leaving them cracked open just wide enough for Jack to see what was going on.
Practically sprinting, Rapunzel rushed over to the window, nearly tripping over her own hair. Jack watched as she tossed a length of it out the window and hooked it on to something. After a few moments Rapunzel began to tug on the hair that she had let down, and Jack was completely speechless when he realized what exactly she was doing. She was using her own hair to carry her mother up to the window, almost like someone drawing a bucket of water out of a well. He'd never seen anything like it before, and it astounded him.
A woman stepped into the tower, her face shrouded by a hood that was the color of wine. She was tall, and her figure followed the elegant curve of an hourglass.
"Hello, mother!" Rapunzel greeted the woman blissfully, throwing her arms around her in a loving hug. The woman pulled her hood down and wrapped her arms around the blonde-headed girl at her hip. She chuckled softly.
"Ah, Rapunzel..." the woman stroked her hair, a gesture that most would see as loving, but there was something... off about it. As if that love was directed more at the cascade of golden silk rather than the girl who owned it, "I'm glad to be home. But I would have been up here sooner if you had been faster with letting your hair down," even though she was smiling, her tone was tinged with just enough displeasure for it to be noticeable.
Rapunzel pulled away from the hug and began to twiddle her thumbs nervously, "I'm sorry, mother..." she paused, "I, um, got distracted."
The woman rolled her eyes and a small smirk graced her features, "that doesn't surprise me," she paused and sniffed at the air, "is something burning?"
"Oh no, the cookies!" Rapunzel exclaimed, rushing towards the kitchen and out of Jack's limited view. With the blonde out of the picture, he took a moment to study her mother, noting her mass of curly dark hair and striking features. She couldn't have been more than thirty years old, and she looked nothing at all like her daughter. Something about her made Jack feel uneasy. Rapunzel had to have been at least seventeen years old, so how could a woman so young have a daughter that age? Seeing her mother made the odd circumstances he had stumbled upon seem even stranger.
Jack watched as she looked over her reflection in the mirror, smiling proudly at what she saw, "baking again, my dear?" she questioned indifferently.
"Yup!" Rapunzel called from the kitchen enthusiastically, "but I ruined this batch," her voice fell.
"Now how on earth did you manage to do that?" the woman chuckled, running her fingers through her raven-colored hair.
"I...I guess I forgot!" Rapunzel replied, tone hardly convincing.
Her mother stepped away from mirror and started towards the kitchen, also leaving Jack's vision. He let out an irritated grunt. Like he was just gonna hang out in some closet all night. He wanted to be a part of the action. Or, well, at least see the action.
Even though he knew that his new friend wouldn't be too happy about it, Jack opened the wardrobe, careful not to make too much noise as he stepped out of it. He had a very strong gut feeling that the woman wouldn't be able to see him, and he felt no fear as he approached the kitchen. Rapunzel sat at a small table, idly running her fingers through her hair as her mother chopped vegetables, humming to herself. Jack propped himself up against a wall and crossed one foot over the other. He had no intention of interfering; he just wanted to watch.
"So...what did you do today, Rapunzel?" her mother asked as she cut into a carrot, tone mildly curious.
"Me?" she replied, trying her best to sound casual, "well, I..." her fingers got tangled in her hair, and she tried her best to unknot them without drawing attention to herself, "I painted, I read, I baked, I sewed, I cleaned..." she paused, "same thing I do every day."
Her mother dumped the chopped vegetables into a pot on the stove, "that's nice, dear," she replied, obvious that she hadn't really been listening in the first place.
Rapunzel let out a sigh of relief and finally managed to untangle her fingers from her hair, resting her head on her now free hands. She had almost started finally let herself relax when she noticed Jack, who offered her his trademark half-smile and waved a hand at her upon noticing her gaze on him.
Green eyes wide and nostrils flared, Rapunzel unintentionally smacked her hands down on the table. Her eyes darted back and forth between Jack and her mother, who thankfully was preoccupied with whatever boiled in the pot in front of her, unaware of the teenage boy standing in the room with them.
"Jack!" she whispered with force, "what are you doing out here?"
Shrugging, Jack replied, "I couldn't see you guys from the closet, so I left," He made no attempt at quieting his voice, and Rapunzel looked like she wanted to jump at him.
"Shhhhhh!" she chided, unintentionally attracting the attention of her mother.
"Did you say something, love?" the woman eyed the blonde headed girl from over her shoulder.
"N-nothing, mother," Rapunzel replied just a little too quickly and snappily. The woman raised an eyebrow at her, but still returned her attention to her cooking. After making sure that the coast was (somewhat) clear, Rapunzel turned back to Jack, who still stood against the wall with a bemused look on his face.
"So what's for dinner?" he questioned, tone even with just a hint of slight sarcasm.
"Please whisper," Rapunzel scolded him, keeping her voice low, "I don't want her to hear you!"
Jack rolled his eyes, "whatever, Blondie," the girl narrowed her eyes at the nickname. Jack knew for sure that the woman wouldn't be able to hear or see him, but it was obvious that Rapunzel still wasn't convinced. Despite his immature wanting to prove her wrong, he complied with her request to quiet down.
Throughout dinner, Jack remained at his place against the wall, staying silent as he had agreed. Rapunzel continued to look back and forth from him to her mother, who sat with her back facing him, completely oblivious to his presence. He quietly listened to their idle chit chat about the weather he'd created, and he reveled in how Rapunzel would suddenly light up at the mention of the snow.
"Well, then," Rapunzel's mother dropped her spoon next to the now empty bowl in front of her, "that was a very nice meal. I'm glad that I got to spend a bit of time with you, Rapunzel."
"Me too, mother. I missed you today," Jack could tell from the look in her eyes and the tone of her voice that Rapunzel loved the woman dearly, though he wasn't sure if her mother returned those same feelings, even if she tried to pass it off like she did. But at the same time, what right did he have to think that?
"I missed you more," her mother chuckled, reaching for Rapunzel's hand.
When their hands met, a smile pulled up on Rapunzel's lips, "I missed you most."
Jack shuddered. He could practically taste the sugary, syrupy mush of the moment in his mouth.
Her mother suddenly stood up, and Rapunzel's eyes widened with panic. She shot a fleeting glance at Jack, who didn't move so as an inch, "I'm very tired from today," she started, a yawn interrupting her sentence, proving her point, "I'm going to head off to bed after we clean up."
"O-okay!" Rapunzel agreed, sounding just a little too enthusiastic.
Her mother nodded and began to clear the table, and when she walked away Rapunzel took the opportunity to run over to Jack and shove him towards the living area without so much as a warning.
"What the hell are you doing?" he protested, not bothering to lower his voice. He stood his ground the best he could, refusing to move from his spot at the wall.
"Be quiet!" Rapunzel hissed as she pushed his shoulders, "Please get back into the closet! Please."
"But-"
"Jack, I can't risk her seeing you! Please, just please get back into the closet. You can come out after she goes to bed. I promise."
Jack started to throw a snarky remark back at her until he noticed something in Rapunzel's voice, and drew the words back in. Fear. She was genuinely scared. He turned to look at her, and her green eyes were full of that fear you'd expect to find in the eyes of a too-young doe looking down the barrel of a hunter's musket.
"Fine. Okay," Jack sighed, finally giving in. He didn't like the look on her face, and he sought to change it, even if it meant doing something he detested.
Rapunzel started to gift him with a grateful smile and began to say thank you, but she was cut off by her mother, "You can't possibly expect me to clean this mess up by myself, Rapunzel," though her tone was light, there was still just a hint of acid in her words.
"Oh, coming, mother!" she scurried away from Jack, managing to give him the smile he had earned before meeting her mother at the wash basin. He smiled back at her before finally retreating back into the closet, carefully closing the doors behind him without making any noise.
Yeah, he definitely didn't like Rapunzel's mother. Even if the blonde-headed girl herself didn't sense anything, Jack could tell that there was something way off about her. It felt almost as if she was just playing the part of a loving mother, rather than actually being one. He'd seen enough mothers with their children to know what was normal and what wasn't, and what was going on here definitely wasn't normal.
Jack was lost in his own thoughts when Rapunzel and her mother were finished with their cleaning, but he was abruptly brought back to reality by Rapunzel's frantic words.
"Mother, I can put your cloak away for you," she was trying her best to sound nonchalant, but there was obvious panic in her voice.
"Honestly, Rapunzel," a frustrated sigh sounded from her mother, "I can put it away myself."
"No, no, no," she insisted with a nervous laugh, "You're tired. I can-"
"Rapunzel!" her mother snapped, raising her voice. Even though Jack couldn't see what was going on, he could tell that the sudden outburst had made Rapunzel shrink back do to the tense silence that fell after the mini explosion.
"You act as if you're hiding something in there," her mother finally spoke, tone dry with just a hint of suspicion.
"Wha...what, no!" Rapunzel fumbled with her response, "Of-of course not. What would make you think that?"
"Well, then. If you don't mind, I'll be hanging up my cloak and turning in for the evening."
The closet doors suddenly opened and light poured into the small wooden space. Rapunzel and her mother stood about a foot away from Jack, their shadows falling over his face. Rather than hanging up her cloak, her mother just stood there, staring into the small enclosure, and for a second Jack thought that maybe, just maybe, she could see him.
"Mother, I can explain-" Rapunzel started, voice trembling with fear.
"Explain what? Ah-" she reached right through Jack's head in order to grab a hanger, and Rapunzel's mouth fell open in shock. Jack let out a sigh of relief. For once in his life, he was glad that someone couldn't see him.
Her mother removed her cloak and draped it over the hanger, hanging it right next to Jack, who remained perfectly still. Rapunzel looked back and forth between the two of them, trying desperately to understand what was going on.
"Well, then," her mother started, reaching for Rapunzel and pulling her into her arms. The blonde was still in shock, and didn't bother to return the gesture, "I'm heading off to bed, my dear. Good night."
"Good night," Rapunzel replied, mind somewhere else. Her mother didn't seem to notice, heading off after tossing a quick I love you into the air.
When both teens were sure that the woman was gone, they turned to look at each other, Rapunzel wearing a look of utter confusion on her face. Jack smirked proudly and waltzed out of the closet, staff over his shoulder, "Told you so."
((I am sooooooo sorry about this being late, you guys. Really I am. I had some really bad writer's block while writing this chapter, and I'm well aware that it's not my best. Oh well.
Anyway, I've decided to again change my update schedule. Instead of posting a new chapter on Thursdays, I'll be posting on Sundays, as it fits my schedule better.
Thank you all so much for all of your lovely reviews, favorites, and follows :3 you're all amazing!
Song that I got the title from is Hot Mess by Cobra Starship. Just so you guys know, a lot of these chapters titles are going to be random. I have a Jackunzel playlist that I listen to while I'm writing, so a lot of them come from what I'm listening to at the moment.
~Brandy))