Disclaimer: Young Americans does not belong to me, and I am not making any money out of this. It's for my own fun (and hopefully yours, too). Jake and Ham aren't mine either: I just borrow them to play with (and torture a lot, in Ham's case, because it's just so fun to see him squirm)
Summary: The sixth Young Americans episode "Gone", written from Jake and Hamilton's point of view. This is the first (and hopefully last) episode that strays completely from the script. I thought it was necessary, and I'll explain more about it after the chapter. Enjoy!
A/N: This is my first time writing YA fanfiction, and as such, I'm rather nervous. So please read and review! It would mean a lot to me. Also, I'm so sorry this took me so long- Ham was giving me a lot of trouble.
Keirah: thank you for reviewing! I'm glad you think I'm doing a good job, I'm not so sure of it half the time, especially with this chapter. It's more than a little tweaked, unfortunately… but I still hope you'll enjoy it.
Jakeline: thank you so much for your review! Always nice to hear from a fellow Jahammer. About Bella and Jake being friends form the beginning – I thought Kate and Kate had great chemistry, and it's a shame we didn't see more of that, because it seemed to me that Jake and Bella could be really good friends, and it was an angle I really wanted to explore more. Also, I think they could really make use of each other – they seem to be able to fix the other's life, but not their own.
Jaya137: Thanks! That means a lot to me. About the lack of American phrasing – well, if you have anything to offer, I'll gladly use it. I'm really not up to date on American slang. I love Hamilton too – he's so smitten, it's so cute.
Avella: Thank you very much for reading my story, and for commenting. I hope you'll enjoy this chapter as well!
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"Jeez, it's hot," Jake said, pressing two fingertips to her forehead to check for sweat. It was at times like this, when the temperature was steadily climbing, that she regretted her stupid idea the most. She figured it wouldn't be that bad come winter – hell, during winter everyone will wear at least as many layers as she had on now, if not more – but now, during the summer… It was becoming pure torture.
Hamilton gave her a puzzled look from where he was sprawled next to her, barely raising his head from the grass. "Why don't you just take off your sweater?" he asked, gesturing half-heartedly at her layers before dropping his hand. "You're wearing, like, your entire closet".
Jake shot him an annoyed look back; of course she couldn't take off her sweater, not unless she wanted to come out to the entire Rawley student body as female. And of course she couldn't say that. Hamilton himself was wearing only his shorts, having long ago discarded his shirt.
"You'll get burned," she told him, a little gleefully. She wasn't feeling all that nice right now; the heat was getting to her. She contemplated going inside, but couldn't muster the energy to actually move.
"We're in the shade," Hamilton pointed out. They were, indeed, lying under their usual tree, which provided shade but did not, actually, lower the temperature. Hamilton slanted another look at her direction, this one contemplating. "Is that why you always wear long clothes?" he asked.
"What?" Jake tried fanning herself with a book; it was better than nothing. "Is what why?"
"Are you worried you'll get burned?" Hamilton clarified. "Because there's sunscreen for that, you know."
"I know," she said in annoyance. "I just – I like long clothes. They're comfortable". She knew she didn't sound very convincing – it was hard to be convincing when you were actually reaching boiling point inside your clothing. She gazed speculatively at the lake. Maybe she should just go jump in, clothes and all. That should cool her down.
Hamilton pushed himself up to his elbows, causing all sorts of interesting things to happen, like the sun catching on sweaty muscles. "Okay, is this like a weird lack of confidence thing?" he squinted at her "because I thought only chicks did that".
"Excuse me?" Jake demanded, indignant.
"I mean, do you have issues with your body? Because, Jake, I think you have enough issues as it is without adding that to the list –"
"Shut up," she said, standing up and certainly not taking advantage of the view it gave her of the sweat drops sliding down Hamilton's chest. "I have no issues with my body – and even if I did it would be none of your damn business – and frankly, I'm not really in the mood to be insulted right now –"
Hamilton caught her sleeve and pulled her down, almost sending her sprawling over him. "I'm sorry," he said, not letting go of her sleeve "I didn't mean to insult you, I was just curious. Don't leave. It's not like there's air-conditioning in your room, anyway."
"Fine," she muttered, slightly mollified, even though she knew that in her room she could actually take off a few layers "but you'd better play nice for the rest of the day, you're not off the hook yet".
Hamilton gave her a lazy smirk that made her breath catch in her throat, and said, his voice low and playful "play nice, ha? How about we'll go down to the diner and I'll buy you an ice-cream and we'll call it even?"
Jake gave him a suspicious look, thinking it over. On one hand, an ice-cream sure sounded tempting; on the other hand, she wasn't sure she could actually move again, now that irritation wasn't giving her energy anymore.
Hamilton met her gaze, his eyes shockingly blue in the hot, humid air, and she suddenly felt a heat of a completely different kind. She could really use something cool, like right now.
"Okay," she agreed, getting up, and winced once she stepped out of the shade; the sun was merciless. "But put on your shirt first, you can't go into town like that". And she certainly didn't need the temptation for the next few hours.
She opted for the bike because it meant the shortest time from now until air-conditioning, and also because of the wind it provided, but as soon as the both of them climbed on she wondered if it was the smart thing to do. The heat was making her over-sensitive, and hungry in a way that had nothing to do with food and everything to do with Hamilton, which was surely a recipe for disaster. It didn't help that he kept shifting and sighing behind her, moving his hands from place to place as through trying to find the least sweaty spot to hold.
It was a relief when they finally arrived, and an even greater relief when they stepped into the blessed, cold air of the diner. Scout smiled in greeting, and chuckled when she collapsed on a chair near the counter, pressing her forehead to the cool counter. "I love air- conditioning," she said "I love technology, it's such a wonderful thing. I love ice, too. Get me a glass of ice-cubes, Calhoun. No, make that a bucket".
Scout laughed, Hamilton joining in. "Hot, much?" Scout asked "then why are you still wearing a sweater?"
Jake shifted only enough to look at him, narrowing her eyes. "Less talk, more ice," she ordered.
"Okay, okay," Scout answered "don't mind me, I'm just trying to be reasonable here."
"He's a lost cause," Hamilton told him, shaking his head. "We'll have two ice-creams, too. I want a chocolate-mocha-mint sundae, with extra whipped cream. Jake?"
"Strawberry-coffee-chocolate chip, with strawberry syrup, whipped cream and nuts, please," Jake said, then sat up quickly as Scout brought her a bowl full of ice. "Thank you Scout," she said, grabbing a few cubes and pressing them to her face "oh, this is good. This is heaven. I think I love you". She moved the ice to her neck, then looked up, noticing the strange looks they were both giving her.
"What?" she asked sharply, still moving the ice about "it's an expression. Don't worry," she added "I promise, you're not my type".
"Not blonde?" Hamilton asked, smiling.
"Male," Jake answered pointedly, then let out a decidedly unmanly yelp as she dropped a cube inside her collar. "Damn, that's cold," she complained, trying to fish it out.
Hamilton was giving her strange looks again. "You need help with that?" he asked, raising an eyebrow, as Scout gave them both their orders, then made one for himself.
"No, I'm good," Jake assured him. Like she needed Hamilton pushing hands into her shirt. It had already melted, anyway.
"Speaking of types," Scout said, digging into his ice-cream "Drew or Pamela?"
Jake rolled her eyes, but she knew she had to participate in this game, or they would find it odd. "Drew, hands down," she said.
"Really?" both the guys turned to stare at her. "But Pamela's so…" Scout started. Hamilton frowned "blonde?" Scout smirked "that too, but I was speaking of other… assets".
Jake rolled her eyes again "I take it you both choose Pamela".
Scout shrugged "of course."
"Okay, Cameron or Julia?" Hamilton asked, spooning half of his sundae in one go.
"Cameron kills Julia," Scout said.
Hamilton nodded "oh, totally".
Jake resisted the urge to roll her eyes a third time. "Okay. Here's one. Chloe Sevigny or Hilary Swank?" she was really curious to hear what Hamilton would say.
Scout looked thoughtful "I think, Chloe."
Hamilton shook his head "nah. Hillary, definitely Hillary".
Jake smiled to herself. Of course it didn't actually mean he was into cross-dressing females as a rule, but it was still nice to hear.
"Clinton?" a new voice piped up, and they all turned to see Will. He came and sat with them, stealing a bite from Scout's almost finished sundae.
"Swank," Hamilton corrected.
Will smiled "of course".
Hamilton suddenly smirked "now - debutante or down home girl?"
She saw Scout's face cloud, but Hamilton cut him off as he was about to answer. "Debutante, right?" he was obviously thinking of Paige.
Scout didn't reply, instead looking out, towards the garage. She didn't need to look to know he was looking at Bella. Beside her, Hamilton's smile disappeared. "Or maybe not," he muttered to himself.
Will smiled at Hamilton "I think he's on the fence." He turned to Scout "why don't you go ask her to join us?"
Scout shrugged "I'm working".
Will seemed exasperated "I'll cover you". He nudged Scout in the direction of the door, and Scout went, albeit reluctantly.
"So, what are you doing here?" Will asked, finishing Scout's ice-cream and giving Jake's a speculative look.
She pulled it closer to her "touch it and die, Krudski," she told him.
Hamilton smiled "Jake here needed to cool down, so we thought an ice-cream sounded like a good idea."
"I see he hasn't cooled down yet," Will teased, but Jake wasn't listening; instead, she was looking at the garage, frowning, as Bella stormed out, obviously upset.
"Oh-oh," she said, standing up "I'm going over to do some damage control," she told them. "Don't you dare eat my ice-cream, Will" she added, before leaving.
She found Bella at the servicing station, fuelling a car; she had an angry expression on her face and was muttering to herself.
"Hey," Jake said, coming to a stop near her; Bella looked up, before returning a "hi" softly. She finished, and the driver paid her and drove away.
"So," Jake continued, leaning on a wall "what did Scout say this time?"
"It's nothing," Bella said. She motioned Jake to follow and entered the house again; Scout had already left.
"Well, it's clearly not nothing if it upsets you" Jake said. She lowered her voice "does it have anything to do with, you know, Scout's dad? Did it not go well?"
"No, I didn't –" She stopped as Grace thundered down the stairs. Grace passed a look between them, before giving Jake a flirty smile. "Hi, Jake," she said "aren't you hot in that sweater?"
"Go away, Grace," Bella said impatiently. Grace gave her a nasty look "whatever. I'm going out, can I borrow your jacket?" she pointed at a jacket on a chair near them.
"No, I need that," Bella answered, and Grace made a face before leaving, slamming the door behind her.
"God, sometimes I just want to…"
"Slap her?" Jake suggested, earning a small smile from Bella. "Forget about her, what were you about to say?"
Bella sighed, sitting in one of the chairs, and Jake did the same. "I didn't even meet him. After the regatta Scout just started saying that it wasn't a good time, and his dad was busy – and then I just left".
"Let me get this straight," Jake frowned "he bugged you to meet his dad until you agreed, and then when you came he bailed out?"
Bella nodded "yes".
"He can be such an idiot sometimes," Jake said carefully "but he usually means good. There's probably a reason why he suddenly decided it wasn't a good idea."
The blonde bit her lip "I know. Do you think, maybe – he talked to his dad and he didn't want to meet me?"
"Maybe," Jake answered "but you won't know until you ask him".
Bella looked down. "I'm not sure I want to ask him. What if – what if he – Scout's dad, I mean – thinks I'm this crazy girl that's just after his money? Or if he'll want to do DNA tests, and then I'll have to tell dad, and I can't. I won't, I won't hurt him."
Jake looked at her thoughtfully. "Bella, does it bother you that much? I mean, does it really matter, now? You're with Sean. You're happy, or so it seems. Do you really want to be with Scout that much?"
Bella blushed, seeming uncomfortable "I like Sean. He's – sweet, and considerate, and he makes me happy, he does, but," she bit her lip "I can't help what I feel. I love Scout. And I need to put this behind me".
"And if you're not related?"
Bella looked up quickly "what?"
Jake shrugged "it's a possibility. Maybe your mother was wrong, or maybe what she told your father wasn't the truth –"
"Why would she lie?" Bella snapped, standing up.
"Relax," Jake said "I'm just saying, if you're sure, why all this anguish?"
Bella sat down again, deflated "I'm not sure" she admitted. "And I don't know. If we're not related – then we'll deal with it when it comes".
Jake leaned back, looking at her out of the corner of her eye "you're lucky, you know. You already have a dad, and now maybe you'll get another one. And if not – maybe you still won't know who your biological father is, but at least… I don't know. I wish I knew who my father was".
Bella seemed surprised "you don't know? You've only talked about your mother, but I've just assumed…"
"That he died?" Jake completed her sentence. She shrugged again "never met him. Mom says she doesn't know who he was – how unflattering is that? But I suspect she's lying. Some things she let slip… I have this notion, that she had an affair with a married man – or at least someone off limits – and he wouldn't acknowledge me after mom got pregnant." She laughed at Bella's sympathetic look "it's okay, I swear. You don't have to feel sorry for me. I'm just saying that you don't have it that bad after all. No matter what happens, you still have Charlie, right?"
"Right," Bella nodded, and then her face turned determent. She got up and rummaged in the pocket of the jacket that was hanging on a chair near by, pulling out an envelope.
"What's that?" Jake asked curiously.
"I wrote a letter to Senator Calhoun," Bella said. "About me".
Jake frowned "I don't know, Bella, I really think you should run that past Scout before you send it. It's his father, after all".
"I wasn't going to send it," Bella said. "At least, not right away. If not for the Scout thing, I wouldn't dwell on this more than a minute. I'm happy here, and I'm happy with my family. I just – wrote it to put things in order".
"Like a diary entry, I got it," Jake said. "Well, I can't tell you what to do, that's something you've got to decide for yourself, but I suggest you stash that letter away until you decide what to do with it".
"Good idea," Bella smiled "I'll just go up and put this away. Do you want to come up?"
Jake stood up, stretching "I really should get back to the dinner. Will probably ate all my ice-cream by now, even though I threatened him".
"Ice-cream, ha? So I guess you are a little hot underneath all," she gestured at Jake's clothes.
"A little? Are you kidding?" Jake groaned "I'm dying here. I swear, I'm this close to just stripping and everyone can go to hell".
"Poor you," Bella laughed "you know, you could just lock yourself in your room and then strip".
"I though about it," Jake admitted "but I'm kind of in the mood for company right now. If only there was a skating rink close by…"
"There's one in Carson, actually," Bella said slowly "my dad used to take me and Grace there until a few years ago".
"Really?" Jake perked up "Bella, would you go with me? Please? I haven't skated in ages".
"Go skating?" Bella seemed thoughtful "it does sound tempting, especially if you think of the temperature outside. But I'll have to check with dad, because someone needs to cover for me here".
"Okay," Jake said excitedly "so you'll go and ask Charlie, and I'll go and see if there's anything left of my sundae, and we'll meet here in a few minutes?"
"I'll come to the diner," Bella said. She smiled "this is going to be fun, but painful. I was never really good at ice-skating".
"I'll help you," Jake promised. "I'm not bad".
"Deal. Now go and I'll be along shortly. I don't think dad will object".
"See ya in a bit," Jake said, waving and heading back to the diner.
She saw Will push away her ice-cream as she entered, a guilty expression on his face.
"I warned you, Krudski," She snapped, coming over to sit; sure enough, her cup was empty.
"Oh, come on," Will protested. "It was all melted and mushy anyway".
"Is she still annoyed?" Scout joined the conversation, coming out of the kitchen with three cokes.
"You two need to sit down and have a long, nice talk," Jake told him, grabbing Hamilton's coke and taking a large sip. "Hey," he protested jokingly, but she ignored him, still looking at Scout. "You can be an insensitive idiot sometimes, but then, so can she. She's okay now, but please have that talk sometime soon, and please, listen to each other, okay? No snapping or storming out in the middle."
"Yes sir," Scout said, saluting, but the other two looked at her in surprise. "What?" she asked defensively.
"That was… surprisingly good," Will said suspiciously. "You do this a lot?"
"To Scout? Yes," Jake laughed.
"Hey!" Scout protested, "that was only the second time!" but he smiled. He turned to Will and Hamilton "Jake took psychology at his last school. I guess he doesn't want to get rusty".
"Psychology?" Hamilton gave her an amused look "so you're a hacker, an unbeatable gamer, a shrink, a straight-A student, and a damn good coxswain. Is there anything else you want to add?"
A girl, Jake thought, but it was Bella who answered, entering the diner "apparently, he's not half-bad at ice-skating, either".
"Bella!" Scout said, looking flustered.
"Hi," she answered. She looked around at everyone "say, Scout, could we talk later?"
"Sure, of course," Scout said, giving Jake an anxious look. "We can talk now, if you want. Or I could stop by the garage in half an hour, when my shift's over".
"Actually, I meant later, as in the evening," she said, then turned to Jake. "My dad said it was okay, but I have to be back by five. So I suggest we get going."
"You're going somewhere?" Hamilton and Scout asked together, than exchanged looks.
"Yeah, we're going ice-skating," Jake answered, grinning. "Apparently, there's a place in Carson".
"Oh," the three boys said. Hamilton frowned at the two of them, then asked "so, is this like a - I dunno, just the two of you, or are you up for company?"
"You like ice-skating?" Jake asked, surprised.
"Sure, what's not to like?" Hamilton answered. "So?"
Jake turned to Bella. The blonde shrugged "I don't mind. Remember that you promised to help me, though." She turned to Hamilton "I hope you're good, 'cause I think Jake will be too busy to help someone else; I'm very bad".
"I'm okay," Scout piped up "I'd like to come, too, if that's all right. I could help Jake with keeping you two on your feet" he nodded at Bella and Hamilton.
"I think it would be great," Hamilton said quickly. "Will, what about you?"
Will laughed "I dunno, I've only ice-skated a few times, when the lake was frozen. Usually it doesn't get cold enough in the winter for the lake to freeze completely, so I don't really have any experience".
Jake and Bella exchanged looks. This was quickly becoming a group outing. "Fine," Bella said at last, "but we want to leave soon, so…"
"Our shift's over in twenty-five minutes," Scout said hastily, as though afraid she'll change her mind.
"I'll head up and get some warmer clothes; I need to ask my mom for permission anyway". He turned to Jake "you're coming?"
"Neh, I'll stay here with Bella, I don't need any more clothes," Jake said, and Hamilton nodded, turning to go.
"Ham, wait," Scout called "could you stop at my room and get me a change of clothes, too?" at Hamilton's nod he threw him a key. "For the room".
"You know what?" Will said suddenly "can you get me clothes, too?" he shrugged when they turned to look at him, surprised, as Hamilton left "what? Think I can't stand a little public humiliation?"
"I guess this means we're taking the truck," Bella said.
Hamilton then came back in, looking sheepish "Jake, could you maybe give me a ride back? Because I won't get home, get my clothes, get the clothes from the dorms and come back in twenty minutes".
She sighed "yeah, sure. Give me the key, if I'm going I might as well help".
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Hamilton headed over to Jake's right after breakfast. As soon as he stepped outside the heat hit him in a wave, and he seriously contemplated just giving up and heading back in. In the end, though, his eagerness to see Jake won, and he walked as fast as he could towards the dorms, trying to stay in the shade. It was a lucky thing they didn't have crew today, or they would've all come out of it looking like tomatoes.
Except Jake, maybe. That got Hamilton thinking. He knew Jake had some unnatural aversion to anything short-sleeved, but surely he would lighten up on the sweaters, at least. Just thinking about wearing a sweater made Hamilton want to turn back home and go stick his head inside the fridge. He slowed his steps as he contemplated this, a little excited. Maybe he would finally get to see how Jake actually looked under all his oversized, baggy clothes. Not everything, of course, but…
He'd bet Jake had really nice legs.
Somewhat anxious, he knocked on Jake's door. After a few seconds a gruff voice called from within "yeah?" Hamilton tried the door, but it was locked. "Just a minute," Jake continued. Hamilton heard some shuffling from inside the room, and then the key clicked in the lock, and Jake opened the door, letting Hamilton in.
He was wearing his usual large jeans and a sweater; his hair was standing up, still free of gel, making it obvious that he'd just pulled the sweater on. He squinted at Hamilton, looking only half-awake, and rubbed his eye with the heel of his hand. "Hi," he said, and smiled; there was a little dot of toothpaste at the corner of his mouth.
"Hi," Hamilton answered, frowning. He didn't understand why Jake was wearing the sweater; he'd obviously only put it on now, which meant he was human and probably too hot. But he still put it on when he had company. It made Hamilton suspicious; was Jake hiding something? Plus, that toothpaste spot was awfully distracting.
"Ham!" Jake said loudly, and Hamilton realized he was staring. "Have I got something on my face?"
"Yeah," Hamilton blinked, then touched his own mouth. "You've got toothpaste here".
"Oh, thanks," Jake said, and licked it away, making Hamilton stare again, swallowing. He wanted to follow that tongue with his own. He looked away before he could embarrass himself, trying to find something else to focus on, then looked away again; Jake's unmade bed was obviously a big no-no. He cleared his throat "so, have any plans for today?"
Jake shrugged, passing a hand through his hair and making it stand up even more. Hamilton thought it looked adorable; it seemed to make Jake look even younger and more vulnerable than he normally looked. "Not really, just some reading I need to get done" the other boy said. "Why, do you have any ideas?"
"I just thought maybe you'd want to hang out," Hamilton answered. "We could go to the lawn, sit under a tree. You could bring your books, I've got some reading I need to catch up to as well".
"Cool," Jake said, looking around the room "just let me grab my books – do you see my hat anywhere?"
Hamilton shook his head. He was rather glad Jake couldn't find his cap; he preferred him without it.
"Damn. Well, I guess I'm set than." They left the room, Jake locking the door behind him as usual, and made their way in a comfortable silence to what Hamilton was already (rather cheesily) beginning to call "their tree".
They flopped down in the meager shade it provided, Jake picking up a literature book and opening it somewhere near the middle. Hamilton watched him; he could already see sweat beginning to gather on his brow, but he was still wearing that damn sweater as if it was the most comfortable thing in the world. Jake looked up at him, as though feeling his eyes, and Hamilton blushed. But Jake only smiled and asked "didn't you say you have some reading of your own to do?"
"Oh, yeah," Hamilton answered unenthusiastically; he wasn't really in the mood for school work right now. He looked at the few books next to Jake and picked one at random. "Can I borrow your history book?"
"Sure," the other boy said, not even looking at him, and passed over the book.
Hamilton was miffed. Thinking quickly, he sighed loudly and pulled of his shirt. "It's so hot today," he said, checking Jake's reaction out of the corner of his eye. Jake looked at him, and then looked back down at his book quickly; Hamilton thought he was a little red, but he couldn't be sure. Not with this heat.
He thumbed through his own book, not actually reading it; Jake seemed engrossed in his. With another sigh, this one quiet, Hamilton laid back. Maybe he should just take a nap until Jake finished whatever he was doing and decided that Hamilton was worth his attention again.
They stayed like that for some time, Hamilton enjoying the muted sunlight, the smell of Jake beside him, the soothing rustle of pages every once in a while; sneaking coveting glances at the dark haired boy, studying his sharp, serious profile as he contemplated the text. He was definitely sweating; his hair was sticking to his forehead. As if on cue, Jake pressed two fingers to it and muttered "jeez, it's hot".
Hamilton gave him a longer look. "Why don't you just take off your sweater?" he asked, gesturing at Jake's clothes. "You're wearing, like, your entire closet".
Jake returned the look with an annoyed one of his own, as though it was Hamilton's fault that he was stupid enough to go out in this heat dressed like an Amish boy. Jake smirked at him and said snidely "you'll get burned". Hamilton snorted and answered "we're in the shade". This got him thinking, though, and he raised himself on one elbow, looking at Jake, contemplating. "Is that why you always wear long clothes?"
"What?" Jake asked, concentrated on fanning himself with a book and not really paying attention "is what why?"
"Are you worried you'll get burned?" Hamilton continued. "Because there's sunscreen for that, you know."
Jake gave him one of his special looks. "I know," he said tersely. "I just – I like long clothes. They're comfortable". Hamilton personally didn't think Jake seemed all that comfortable. As if to further illustrate his point, Jake cast a longing look at the lake.
Hamilton really didn't know what to think anymore. It was clear that Jake wanted to take off his long clothes; it was also just as clear that he was refusing even to think about it. Hamilton recalled their first crew practice, when Finn made them all jump in the lake; Jake was the only one who didn't take off his wet clothes after, too. Was he deformed, or something? Was he scarred? It seemed the only explanation, and yet, looking at Jake, at his beautiful face and slender body, at the grace he moved with, Hamilton was sure it wasn't the right one. Another explanation occurred to him, though it seemed as unlikely as the previous one.
"Okay, is this like a weird lack of confidence thing?" he decided to ask anyway "because I thought only chicks did that".
Jake gave him a scandalized look. "Excuse me?" he demanded.
"I mean, do you have issues with your body? Because, Jake, I think you have enough issues as it is without adding that to the list –" and that certainly didn't come out wrong at all. It seemed he wasn't over his whole foot in the mouth thing yet. Jake obviously agreed, because he jumped to his feet, book dropping to the grass unheeded, glaring at Hamilton.
"Shut up," he snapped, instantly furious, and it seemed Hamilton had touched a nerve there. "I have no issues with my body – and even if I did it would be none of your damn business – and frankly, I'm not really in the mood to be insulted right now –"
Hamilton winced; so much for having one day he didn't screw up in. He grabbed Jake's sleeve, pulling him down forcefully and almost into his lap. "I'm sorry," he said, not letting go "I didn't mean to insult you, I was just curious. Don't leave." He gave him the puppy-eyes face, since it seemed to work on him before, and added "it's not like there's air-conditioning in your room, anyway."
The face seemed to work on Jake this time, too, because he rolled his eyes and said "fine". His expression turned petulant, bottom lip sticking out in a pout; he looked like a spoiled five year old, and Hamilton had to use every ounce of self control he ever had not to grab him and kiss that pout off his mouth. Then Jake gave him a sly look from underneath his lashes, mouth curling in a hint of a smirk, sending Hamilton's blood boiling, and added "but you'd better play nice for the rest of the day, you're not off the hook yet".
Hamilton raised an eyebrow. Play nice? It sounded almost flirty. Struck by a sudden whim, he smirked himself, leveling a sly look of his own at Jake; it was a stare he spent ages perfecting on girls, and it usually got him at least a blush. "Play nice, ha?" he asked "how about we'll go down to the diner and I'll buy you an ice-cream and we'll call it even?"
Jake gave him an unreadable look, and Hamilton held his breath; this was almost like a date, if Jake agreed. He wondered if Jake thought the same, and that was the reason he was hesitating. Then Jake shrugged and said "okay. But put on your shirt first, you can't go into town like that".
Hamilton complied, scrambling to his feet and following Jake as they dropped the books at his room and then headed to his bike. The ride wasn't any less wonderful than last time, nor was it less torturous; on one hand, Jake wasn't angry now. On the other, the heat was making Hamilton's hormones even more active than usual. He kept staring at the back of Jake's neck, wondering what he would do if Hamilton just leaned forward and kissed it; he managed to control himself, mainly due to the fact that he knew Jake would probably crash the bike had Hamilton actually tried that.
All in all, he was more happy than not when they arrived.
Jake hurried into the diner, dropping in a stool next to the counter and pressing his cheek against the surface. Scout cast an amused look in his direction. "I love air- conditioning," Jake said, voice muffled "I love technology, it's such a wonderful thing. I love ice, too. Get me a glass of ice-cubes, Calhoun. No, make that a bucket".
Hamilton and Scout laughed; Jake sounded like a spoiled kid. "Hot, much?" Scout asked, raising an eyebrow at Jake's attire "then why are you still wearing a sweater?"
Jake gave Scout a brief glare before one again pressing his face to the counter. "Less talk, more ice," he ordered.
"Okay, okay," Scout raised his hands in mock surrender "don't mind me, I'm just trying to be reasonable here."
Hamilton shook his head, coming to sit next to Jake "he's a lost cause. We'll have two ice-creams, too. I want a chocolate-mocha-mint sundae, with extra whipped cream. Jake?"
"Strawberry-coffee-chocolate chip, with strawberry syrup, whipped cream and nuts, please," Jake promptly answered, and Hamilton took the opportunity to look him up and down; where exactly was it all going? Meanwhile, Scout had come back out with a bowl full of ice, placing it next to Jake's elbow. "Thank you Scout," Jake said gratefully, before grabbing a few cubes and pressing them to his face. He let out a small moan which made Hamilton very uncomfortable indeed, and said "oh, this is good. This is heaven. I think I love you".
Hamilton apparently wasn't the only one feeling awkward right now, though; Scout was staring at Jake, unblinking, and Hamilton didn't think it was because of the "love" comment. His suspicions deepened as Jake pressed the ice to his neck, exposing the white length of it as he titled his head backwards, eyes closed in pleasure, and Scout actually blushed.
Not that Hamilton wasn't blushing himself at this point. Jake could make even "Amish boy" look sexy, without actually meaning to.
Jake must have noticed their stares because he lowered the ice and asked "what? sharply before adding ""it's an expression. Don't worry, I promise you're not my type". He obviously thought it was because of the "I love you" comment.
Totally oblivious, that boy was.
Still, Hamilton decided to play along and ease the awkward tension. "Not blonde?" he asked, smiling.
Jake gave him a very pointed look. "Male," he answered, and Hamilton's smile dropped. He turned back to face the counter, still watching the other boy out of the corner of his eye as he resumed playing with the half melted ice. Suddenly Jake gave a yelp, hissing "damn, that's cold," before sticking a hand inside the back of his shirt, trying to fish out the ice he dropped.
"You need help with that?" Hamilton asked in amusement, knowing Jake would refuse and thus not really worried. Jake wasn't big on touching, whether he was touching others or others were touching him. Hamilton's amusement faded as he remembered Bella, and the way the two of them were so comfortable with each other. There was always an exception.
"No, I'm good," Jake answered, abandoning his futile efforts for the sundaes Scout brought them. He dug into his cup, before turning and stealing a spoon of Hamilton's mocha. Hamilton smiled into his ice-cream.
Scout returned with a Sunday of his own, plopping down opposite from them. "Speaking of types," he said, through a mouthful of ice-cream "Drew or Pamela?"
Hamilton saw Jake roll his eyes, and for a minute he thought the other boy would refuse to answer, but then Jake said "Drew, hands down". They both turned to look at him, surprised "really? But Pamela's so…" Scout started. Hamilton frowned "blonde?" he was starting to suspect Jake had only said blonde that time to get out of the discussion.
Scout smirked, pointing his spoon at them "that too, but I was speaking of other… assets". He leered, just in case they didn't understand what he was talking about.
Jake rolled his eyes again, before saying flatly "I take it you both choose Pamela".
Scout shrugged, before answering "of course" matter-of-factly. Hamilton could see that Jake was annoyed for some reason, even though he didn't understand why, so he hurriedly asked "okay, Cameron or Julia?"
"Cameron kills Julia," Scout announced without hesitating, and Hamilton nodded "oh, totally". They both turned to Jake, but the other boy shrugged, refusing to answer, and licked his spoon thoughtfully, making Hamilton (and Scout, by the looks of it) choke a little. "Okay. Here's one. Chloe Sevigny or Hilary Swank?" Jake abandoned the spoon to stare at them, very intent on this question.
Both of them thought about it, before Scout said hesitatingly "I think, Chloe." Hamilton fought a smile; now he definitely had a thing for blondes.
Hamilton shook his head "nah. Hillary, definitely Hillary". Jake gave him a bright, surprised smile; this was obviously the answer he wanted to hear, and as always, Hamilton couldn't help but smile back. Their mutual smiling time was cut short by the opening of the diner door, and Will's confused voice asking "Clinton?" as he came and crossed the counter, sitting next to Scout.
"Swank," Hamilton corrected, and Will nodded, amused "of course". He picked up a clean spoon and started eating Scout's ice-cream. Scout didn't seem to notice.
Hamilton smirked "now - debutante or down home girl?" he turned to Scout, as he was the only one of them actually in a relationship right now. "Debutante, right?" he asked playfully, before registering the sudden drop in the temperature. He glanced at Jake for an explanation, but the other boy avoided his eyes. Obviously, there was something he didn't know. He looked at Scout, only to see him stare out of the window at the garage. "Or maybe not," Hamilton muttered.
Will and Scout exchanged a few quiet words, then Will turned to Hamilton with a small smile "I think he's on the fence." He looked back at Scout "why don't you go ask her to join us?"
Scout's face clouded even more "I'm working". Will rolled his eyes and almost pushed Scout out "I'll cover you". Scout didn't look pleased, but he went all the same.
"So, what are you doing here?" Will asked them. He scraped Scout's glass for the last drops of ice-cream, before turning a contemplating look in the direction of Jake's.
The dark haired boy gave him a dirty look and pulled it closer, nestling it protectively in the crook of his arm, and snapped "touch it and die, Krudski,"
Hamilton grinned, laughing softly to himself, watching Jake eat the ice-cream slowly as though specifically trying to taunt Will. He turned to Will "Jake here needed to cool down, so we thought an ice-cream sounded like a good idea."
Will grinned himself, answering loudly "I see he hasn't cooled down yet". They both turned to Jake to see his respond, but he didn't even hear them; he was looking outside, eyes narrowed and mouth in a tight line. They followed his gaze just in time to see Bella storming out of the garage's office.
"Oh-oh," Jake muttered, standing up, before saying "I'm going over to do some damage control". He started out, then turned and gave Will a warning look "don't you dare eat my ice-cream, Will". They watched him walk over to where Bella was fueling a car, and the two of them exchanged a few words; meanwhile Scout left the office and came back, shooting Will an angry look.
"Thanks a lot, Will" he said coldly, before sitting in his former place "that went just swell". He then looked around, frowning "where's Jake?"
Will nodded towards the office; if they squinted, they could just make out Bella and Jake inside. "He went to talk to Bella," Will said soothingly "he'll probably calm her down, so don't worry".
Scout looked down at the scratched surface of the counter, his face unhappy "I don't even know why she was angry. I just came to say hello and she accused me of barging in and sneaking on her, and then when I asked if she's okay she just stormed out".
Will shrugged "girls. We're not supposed to understand them. The sooner you'll accept that, the better".
Scout raised his head, his frown deepening "except Jake. He understands them just fine".
Hamilton shrugged, too "Jake's special". It wasn't the first time they strayed to this topic.
Will looked thoughtful "I don't know if special is the word, exactly," he pulled Jake's melting sundae to him and started eating it "I'd say… odd, maybe".
"Hey," Hamilton said warningly, and Will waved to spoon in a calming gesture "I didn't mean it in an insulting way. I know you two are close. It's just – I don't know, I can't put my finger on it".
"He's a great guy, but he makes me uneasy sometimes," Scout said, and Will nodded, brandishing the spoon "that's it. There's something about him that makes you really uncomfortable".
The three of them exchanged looks. Hamilton suspected they were all talking about the same thing, but of course none of them was going to admit it. Ever. Scout got up and walked into the kitchen, probably embarrassed to even be thinking this, and then they were save from further dwelling by Jake's return. Will pushed the empty cup away as he came over and sat, but of course Jake saw. "I warned you, Krudski," Jake said grimly, glaring at him, and Will quelled.
"Oh, come on," Will protested weakly. "It was all melted and mushy anyway".
Just in time to rescue him, Scout came out of the kitchen with three cokes. When he saw Jake he asked "is she still annoyed?"
"You two need to sit down and have a long, nice talk," Jake said, giving him a pointed look, then grabbed Hamilton's bottle out of his hand and proceeded to drink half of it. "Hey," Hamilton protested, even though he really didn't mind, but Jake wasn't done talking. "You can be an insensitive idiot sometimes, but then, so can she. She's okay now, but please have that talk sometime soon, and please, listen to each other, okay? No snapping or storming out in the middle."
"Yes, sir!" Scout saluted, obviously more at ease, but Hamilton and Will both stared at Jake. It was strange to hear him give advice like that. No wonder he had no problem understanding girls. Jake must have noticed their stares, because he looked around and asked defensively "what?"
"That was… surprisingly good," Will answered suspiciously. "You do this a lot?"
Jake's face broke out into an amused grin, and he let out a short laugh "to Scout?" he asked teasingly "yes."
"Hey! That was only the second time!" Scout mock-complained, smiling. He turned to Will and Hamilton "Jake took psychology at his last school. I guess he doesn't want to get rusty".
"Psychology?" Hamilton turned to look at Jake, eyebrows raised, as Jake shrugged modestly "so you're a hacker, an unbeatable gamer, a shrink, a straight-A student, and a damn good coxswain. Is there anything else you want to add?" he shouldn't have been surprised. Jake was a mystery, even after the time they spent together, and he always kept surprising him. It was only expected that he was a man of many talents.
A new voice answered instead of Jake "apparently, he's not half-bad at ice-skating, either". All of them turned to look at the girl that entered, Scout letting out a surprised "Bella!"
"Hi," she answered, looking around, lingering momentarily on Jake before turning to Scout "say, Scout, could we talk later?" Hamilton stifled a grin. Obviously, Jake had that talk with her, too.
"Sure, of course," Scout answered, clearly nervous. "We can talk now, if you want. Or I could stop by the garage in half an hour, when my shift's over".
"Actually, I meant later, as in the evening," Bella answered. She then turned to Jake "my dad said it was okay, but I have to be back by five. So I suggest we get going." Hamilton, Scout and Will frowned as Jake nodded and hopped off the stool.
"You're going somewhere?" Hamilton asked, hearing Scout echo the question beside him. They exchanged looks; neither of them liked the idea.
"Yeah, we're going ice-skating," Jake said, giving them one of his blinding grins. He looked excited. "Apparently, there's a place in Carson". Well, that explained the ice-skating comment.
"Oh," the others answered. Hamilton glanced between the two of them, thinking. "So," he asked "is this like a - I dunno, just the two of you, or are you up for company?"
Jake gave him a surprised, but pleased look. "You like ice-skating?" he asked brightly.
"Sure, what's not to like?" Hamilton answered. The truth was he had only gone skating a few times in his life, but he wasn't going to admit that now, with Jake looking at him like that. "So?" he asked anxiously.
Jake looked at him a moment longer, before turning questioningly to Bella. The blond girl shrugged "I don't mind. Remember that you promised to help me, though." She leveled a look at Hamilton "I hope you're good, 'cause I think Jake will be too busy to help someone else; I'm very bad".
Hamilton didn't know why the statement irked him so much; it was almost as if Bella was staking a claim, but of course that was ridicules. Perhaps she really was that bad. Not that he was that good himself, but how hard could it be? You just… skated, didn't you?
"I'm okay," Scout said suddenly "I'd like to come, too, if that's all right. I could help Jake with keeping you two on your feet" he looked at Bella than at Hamilton.
"I think it would be great," Hamilton said quickly. With Scout there he wouldn't feel like the third wheel, and perhaps he could convince Scout to help Bella, leaving Jake to help him. "Will, what about you?"
"I dunno, I've only ice-skated a few times, when the lake was frozen" Will answered, laughing. "Usually it doesn't get cold enough in the winter for the lake to freeze completely, so I don't really have any experience".
Hamilton saw Jake and Bella exchange looks. They didn't look too happy. "Fine," Bella said eventually, "but we want to leave soon, so…"
"Our shift's over in twenty-five minutes," Scout assured her quickly. The boy had it bad.
"I'll head up and get some warmer clothes; I need to ask my mom for permission anyway" Hamilton said, before looking at Jake "you're coming?"
"Neh, I'll stay here with Bella, I don't need any more clothes," Jake answered. Hamilton turned to go, but Scout's voice stopped him "Ham, wait. Could you stop at my room and get me a change of clothes, too?" Hamilton nodded and caught the keys thrown to him. "For the room," Scout said.
"You know what?" Will said abruptly "can you get me clothes, too?" Hamilton agreed and left. When he stepped outside he saw Jake's bike, and a thought occurred to him; it was way to hot to walk all the way back to school and then back here, and it would take too long. He poked his head back inside "Jake, could you maybe give me a ride back? Because I won't get home, get my clothes, get the clothes from the dorms and come back in twenty minutes".
Jake sighed, then nodded, getting up "yeah, sure. Give me the key, if I'm going I might as well help".
-------
After they stashed her bike, Jake turned to Hamilton "I'll go to Scout and Will's room, you go home, and we'll meet here in a few minutes".
Hamilton frowned "why don't you just come with me, and then we'll go to the dorms?"
"Too long" Jake said. "I'll see you soon. Don't dawdle".
"Yeah, okay," Hamilton answered, and they each turned to go in a different direction.
Jake unlocked the guys' room, making a face at the mess of clothes and underwear all over the floor and the beds; dirty boxers were all kinds of gross. She crossed the room to the closet, careful not to step on anything, and opened it. It was not hard to guess what was Scout's and what was Will's; Scout's side had a lot more clothes, and all obviously more expensive. She quickly grabbed a sweater and a pair of long trousers from each pile, stuffed them into an empty bag she found on the floor, added two pairs of socks and left.
She met Hamilton crossing the lawn, and stopped, waiting until he arrived. He had a small backpack on his shoulder. "All ready?" she asked, but he shook his head "my mom's not home, so I'm heading to the art room. Come with me, it'll only take a few minutes".
Jake grabbed his wrist, looking at his watch, and pursed her lips "fine. But you gotta make it quick".
"I promise," Hamilton smiled, and they headed to the main building of the Academy.
Sure enough, Kate Flemming was in the art room, organizing supplies on the shelves. There were a few empty boxes on the table. She looked up as they entered, her face breaking into a smile "hi Munchy," she said "hi Jake".
"Hi, Mrs. Flemming," Jake answered, uncomfortable. She saw Kate Flemming before, of course, but they've never actually met, face to face. She wondered how she knew her name.
"Mom, stop that," Hamilton whined, and Jake suppressed a laugh. "Can I go ice-skating? Jake and some of the guys are going".
Kate frowned "where would you go ice-skating? Do you even know how to skate?"
Hamilton shot Jake an embarrassed look "yes mom, I know how to skate. We're going to Carson, there's an arena there. We'll be back by five".
Kate still looked unsure "how are you getting there? Are you taking a cab?"
Hamilton seemed to hesitated but Jake said "we're going with a friend from town, she has a car". When Kate opened her mouth to ask something, she quickly added "and a driving license".
Kate smiled, looking at Hamilton, and then nodded "okay. Have fun, and be careful".
"Really? Thanks mom!" Hamilton grinned and grabbed Jake's wrist, pulling her after him and out of the room. She tried to tug her hand free as he hurried along the corridors "jeez, Flemming, where's the fire? And let go of my hand, will you?" he seemed to be doing that an awful lot lately. Not that she didn't like it; it was just… strange.
Hamilton immediately released her wrist, turning red. "Sorry," he said "I just didn't want to give her a chance to change her mind".
Jake smiled "good thing you don't have a cell phone".
Hamilton rolled his eyes "yeah, but it sucks when you actually need it".
The ride to Rawley was over quickly, and the parked near the garage, seeing the other three already waiting in the shade. Bella was holding a bag, which Jake assumed was her change of clothes. She smiled when she saw them "right on time".
Jake handed the boys their clothes and their key, and they all headed to the truck, Scout calling gunshot.
"Dream on," Jake smirked "this was my idea to begin with; you're just tagging along".
"No way," Scout said, but at Bella's shrug and nod he pouted, and got into the back, sending Jake a dark look. "This isn't fair," he said loudly, as the other two got in as well "you're the smallest, it's only reasonable that you should sit in the back. We're all squashed here". Jake glanced back and laughed; they were indeed looking a little uncomfortable.
"Hey, that's your problem, not mine," she said, sprawling in her seat; she saw Bella give her an amused look, but the others didn't seem so entertained. She gave them a bright grin and strapped herself in as Bella ignited the car and they left.
They were all quiet for a while, Bella concentrating on driving, Jake humming loudly with the music and Scout still grumbling in the back. Jake crossed her hands behind her head, slouching forward in her seat, and dozed off; if she wasn't driving, cars tended to made her drowsy. Bella touched her gently on the shoulder after a while, and she opened her eyes; Bella smiled "we're here".
Jake nodded, yawning, and unbuckled herself, getting out and stretching. "Right," she said "where now?" Bella pointed to the large building they parked next to "that's the mall. The ice-skating rink is on the ground floor".
They all followed her inside; Jake couldn't help but cast a few longing glances at shop windows; it wasn't that she really liked shopping, she just missed being a girl. When the entered the skating arena it was like suddenly stepping inside winter, and everyone except Jake shivered.
"Well, I'm going to change," Bella said, motioning to a public bathroom near by; the others nodded "me too".
Jake smiled "I'll just put my stuff here, then" she pointed to a few benches nearby "and get my skates, okay?"
They all separated, Jake putting her backpack on a bench before heading over to the counter and paying for a pair of ice-skates. The others were coming out, all in sweaters and jeans, just as she finished strapping on the skates. She stood up, a little awkward, as they came to sit around her.
"You all know how to put those on?" at their nods, she smiled "great, then I'll meet you inside. Be careful not to twist your ankles when you're walking to the entrance, it's not very easy walking with skates on a surface other than ice".
She trudged over to the gap in the fence that surrounded the ice, and stepped inside carefully. It had been a few months since she last skated. Still, she shouldn't have worried. As soon as she stood on the ice, she could feel it all coming back, and she launched into a glide, easy and confident as ever. She weaved between people, completing a full loop before coming to the gap again to meet the others.
They seemed impressed. "You make that look so easy," Will said, laughing, as they all stepped uneasily onto the ice.
"Grab the banister," Jake told them, and they all did except Scout, who glided gracefully to stand beside her.
"Man, it's been ages since I did this," he said, grinning, and they exchanged smiles.
"Okay," Jake said "I promised Bella I'd help her, so you'll take Will, and we'll switch later?" Jake asked. Scout nodded, then frowned "what about Hamilton?"
Jake shrugged and called "hey, Ham, you said you know how to skate, right?"
Hamilton gave her an embarrassed look from where he was holding the fence "maybe I exaggerated a little".
Jake rolled her eyes "Scout, can you help him, too?"
"Sure," Scout nodded "but remember, we're switching afterwards".
"Deal," Jake smiled, then skated over to Bella, who had meanwhile advanced a little while holding the banister. "You all right?" she asked.
Bella gave her a nervous look "not really".
Jake smiled reassuringly. "Okay, this is how you do it," she swerved to stand before Bella. "Look at my feet. You position one leg like this, and push the other behind you, like this," she demonstrated "and then you just switch. Got that?"
Bella nodded, still looking anxious "yes, but…"
Jake moved to stand beside her. "Give me your hand," she said, and when Bella complied "now leave the banister, and hold your arm horizontal to your body, it'll help you keep your balance. Good. Now, try moving your legs like I showed you. I'm holding you, so don't worry, you won't fall".
Bella did as she said, moving her legs with small, uneven pushes; once or twice they almost over balanced, but eventually she seemed to get it and moved with more confidence.
"That's great, you're doing great," Jake said happily. "Do you want to try on your own now?" Bella tightened her grip "no!"
Jake smiled "don't worry, I won't leave until you're ready". She glanced over to where Scout was tutoring Hamilton and Will, barely managing to keep them upright. As she was looking, Will's skates locked and he lost his balance, pulling Hamilton down with him. Scout almost fell, too, but managed to save himself in the last second by executing a complicated half-bend, half-turn.
Bella giggled beside her "Scout's not half-bad". Jake snorted "you think that's good? Staying upright is just the basics".
"Oh, really?" Bella gave her an amused look "then why don't you show me how good you are?"
"I said I wouldn't leave you until you're ready," Jake reminded her. She longed to leave Bella's side and skate freely, but she promised.
"I think I could survive without you for a few minutes," Bella said dryly. "I'll just stand right here and hold the railing. You go out there and skate".
"If you say so…" Jake said, "but call me as soon as you need me, okay?"
"Okay," Bella said, and Jake threw her a smile and skated to the center of the ice, which was empty from skaters. She did a few quick, small loops just to get in mindset, and then did the same backwards, ending in the figure of an eight. Next came a series of spins, that evolved into small jumps; she hadn't felt this good, this free in a long time.
She leaned forward easily, one leg on the ice and the other high in the air, her hands stretched backwards, nose almost touching the ground, the smell of ice sharp in her nostrils. She smiled, closing her eyes, and jumped, exchanging legs in the air, landing into a spin. She made a double pirouette, and then a triple; jumped again, then spun on one leg, grabbing her free ankle with both hands – she forgot how skating made her feel, until now.
She suddenly remembered Bella and the others, and looked over to see if they needed her; awed stares met her eyes, and she blushed darkly, skating over slowly. "Sorry, got a bit carried away," she mumbled, "do any of you need help?"
No one answered her; they all just stared, mouths open, and then Scout burst out "that was crazy! Where did you learn to do that?"
Jake shrugged, looking down "I've been skating ever since I was little. My mom loves ice-skating, so it was something she always came to see, at least for a while. I got good very quickly". She tugged on her hair "never mind that. Does anyone need help?"
"Yeah, I do," Hamilton said, and she saw Bella send him an annoyed look; but the blonde didn't say anything, so Jake nodded and asked "well, how good are you? Do you know the basics, or –"
"I'm pretty much in the holding-the-banister level," Hamilton admitted. Jake laughed, and proceeded to run him through the same explanation she gave Bella. It gave her an excuse to hold his hand, at least, although when he fell down, he took her with him.
Later, after they all returned their shoes and were walking back to the truck (some of them limping a little), Bella said "that was actually fun, even though I fell a few times".
The others nodded. "We should do this again sometime," Will said, rubbing his elbow which he banged on the ice at some point "though maybe next time I'll bring knee and elbow pads". "It's all a matter of practice," Jake said. Hamilton let out a short laugh "easy for you to say. You're like Sasha Cohen," he blinked than added "only male, of course". This made Bella burst out laughing; they all turned to look at her questioningly, Jake shooting her a warning look, and Bella stopped abruptly.
"Sorry," she said "it just made me think of you in one of those dresses they wear".
Jake made a face, while the others made varying sounds of choking. "Please don't say things like that," She told Bella.
"Sorry," the blonde said again.
They got to the truck, Jake getting into the front seat (Scout didn't even try to protest this time) and she napped all the way back to Rawley.
-------
"I'll go to Scout and Will's room, you go home, and we'll meet here in a few minutes" Jake told him as they stashed his bike in the bushes.
"Why don't you just come with me, and then we'll go to the dorms?" Hamilton asked, frowning. He barely got any private time with the other boy today, and in a few minutes he would have to share him again with Bella – he had looked forward to those few stolen minutes when they would be just the two of them.
"Too long" Jake answered, shaking his head and already half-turned in the dorms' direction. "I'll see you soon. Don't dawdle".
"Yeah, okay," Hamilton muttered, disappointed, and watched him as he walked away before turning and walking home himself. He called out "mom!" as soon as he entered, but when no answer came he realized she was probably at the art room. He made for his room, grabbing a sweater, a pair of socks and jeans and throwing them into an empty backpack he dragged from underneath the bed. He picked up his wallet from his desk, looking inside to make sure he had enough money, before dropping it inside the bag as well and leaving the house.
He met Jake at the lawn, holding a bag of his own. Jake smiled at him and asked "all ready?" but Hamilton answered "my mom's not home, so I'm heading to the art room. Come with me, it'll only take a few minutes". He wasn't sure his mom had met Jake, though she heard Hamilton talk about him more than once. It was about time he'd remedy that.
Jake grabbed his wrist to peek at Hamilton's watch, making his breath quicken as the other boy leaned close. Then Jake nodded, stepping away "fine. But you gotta make it quick".
Hamilton smiled "I promise". He led the way to the art room, Jake close behind him, and sure enough, his mom was there, organizing new supplies, and Hamilton felt a pang of anxiousness. He hoped she wouldn't want him to help her; they were operating on a tight schedule, and he knew the others wouldn't wait until he was done. His mom looked up, smiling when she saw him; her eyes flickered to the boy next to Hamilton. "Hi Munchy," she said "hi Jake". Hamilton wasn't surprised she recognized the other boy; he described him, in general detail, the day they met.
"Hi, Mrs. Flemming," Jake answered. He seemed uneasy, and Hamilton stifled a smile; surely Jake Pratt wasn't afraid of authority figures? He was probably uncomfortable because it was Hamilton's mom, not because she was a teacher.
"Mom, stop that," Hamilton protested out of habit, and this time it was Jake's turn to hide a grin; Hamilton saw it none the less. "Can I go ice-skating? Jake and some of the guys are going".
She frowned, and Hamilton's heart sank; she was a little over protective, sometimes. "Where would you go ice-skating? Do you even know how to skate?"
Hamilton shot Jake an quick look; trust his mom to embarrass him in front of his friends, even if she wasn't doing it intentionally. "Yes mom, I know how to skate. We're going to Carson, there's an arena there. We'll be back by five".
She still didn't look satisfied "how are you getting there? Are you taking a cab?"
Hamilton wasn't sure how to answer; it was obvious they couldn't all take Jake's bike, but he hadn't really thought beyond that. Jake answered calmly instead "we're going with a friend from town, she has a car". When his mom opened her mouth to protest, he added "and a driving license".
His mom smiled, a trifle uneasily, gave Hamilton an unreadable look, and then said "okay. Have fun, and be careful". She stressed the last two words.
"Really? Thanks mom!" Hamilton grinned, relieved and grabbed Jake's wrist, pulling him quickly out of the door. He felt Jake pull at his hand behind him, and when he turned to look at him questioningly, the other boy raised an eyebrow and said pointedly "jeez, Flemming, where's the fire? And let go of my hand, will you?"
Hamilton immediately released his wrist, blushing. "Sorry," he muttered "I just didn't want to give her a chance to change her mind". He didn't even realize he did that.
Jake gave him a sly smile "good thing you don't have a cell phone".
Hamilton made a face "yeah, but it sucks when you actually need it". His mother actually wanted him to have a cell phone, exactly for that reason, but his father objected, saying there wasn't any need for that as long as Hamilton was still living at home.
They drove to Rawley in silence, and were soon parking near the garage, in the shade. The others were waiting, talking between them, and they turned to look at the two of them as they headed over. Jake handed the bag he held to Will, who thanked him, and then they all approached Bella's truck. It looked a little old, but relatively safe.
Scout immediately went to the front passenger's seat, calling loudly "gunshot!" but Jake smirked and pushed him lightly out of the way. "Dream on," he said, before opening the door and getting inside "this was my idea to begin with; you're just tagging along".
"No way," Scout objected, glancing at Bella, but she pulled at her shoulders and motioned for him to get in the back. Scout's shoulders dropped, and he got into the back of the truck, complaining loudly "this isn't fair". He gave Jake a dirty look "you're the smallest, it's only reasonable that you should sit in the back. We're all squashed here". He had a point, Hamilton had to admit; the back seat wasn't meant for three grown men. Jake glanced at them, turning easily in his seat, and started laughing, obviously finding their situation amusing; the three of them looked back at him with dark expressions, but didn't say anything.
"Hey, that's your problem, not mine," Jake quipped with a wide grin, turning forward again and sprawling in his seat with an easy, careless grace that made Hamilton itch to touch him, and they left. Hamilton watched Jake for the entire ride, barely hearing Scout grumbling next to him; he was sitting behind Bella and diagonally from Jake, which gave him a good view. At first Jake crossed his hands behind his head, titling it backwards, while he hummed loudly and off-key with the music; but after a while he seemed to drift off, head lolling to the side, one hand dropping to the seat.
Hamilton smiled to himself; it looked like cars tended to put Jake to sleep. He recalled Jake slept during the car ride to the drive-in and back, too.
The drive was smooth (Hamilton grudgingly admitted to himself that Bella was a good driver) and before long they had parked next to the Carson mall. He saw Bella shake Jake awake gently, smiling, and he knew she was getting that gorgeous, half-awake and completely unguarded look from Jake in return. The dark-haired boy got out, stretching, and Hamilton stared hungrily at the slender lines of his body before catching himself, and looked away quickly. To his surprise, he noticed Will and Scout do the same. In fact, oddly enough, Bella seemed the only one not affected at all.
Jake said something in a low voice to Bella, and the blonde pointed to the mall "that's the mall. The ice-skating rink is on the ground floor". They entered, led by Bella, and in a few minutes found themselves inside the skating arena; it was freezing, and all of them shivered. Except Jake, of course, who for the first time in days was actually dressed according to the temperature.
"Well, I'm going to change," Bella said, pointing to a door that bore the sign of a public toilet. Hamilton, Will and Scout quickly echoed that statement. Jake nodded "I'll just put my stuff here, then" he pointed to a few benches nearby "and get my skates, okay?"
Hamilton stepped into the men's bathroom, followed by the others, and entered a cubicle; he felt better as soon as he pulled on his sweater and changed into his jeans and shoes. The others finished when he did, and they returned to where Jake was just finishing putting on his skates. He stood up, suddenly alarmingly tall. "You all know how to put those on?" he asked. All of them nodded, even Will. It didn't take a genius to figure it out. The skating itself, on the other hand… was probably going to be a little harder to figure out. Hamilton didn't really remember his last time, but he remembered enough to know that it involved a lot of painful falls.
Jake beamed at them; he looked more excited than Hamilton had ever seen him, almost child-like in his delight. "Great," Jake said "then I'll meet you inside. Be careful not to twist your ankles when you're walking to the entrance, it's not very easy walking with skates on a surface other than ice".
He turned and walked awkwardly to the closest gap in the rink, and Hamilton began to question his actual ability on the ice; he didn't seem to get along with the skates all too well. His doubts disappeared when Jake entered the rink; immediately he became even more graceful than ever, launching into a fast, effortless glide around the rink, weaving between the flailing skaters without ever touching them.
Scout followed his gaze, letting out a low whistle "he's not bad," he admitted, as they all stood up and made their shaking way to the gap. Hamilton's feet were heavy, and he felt too tall and wobbly; unfortunately, that feeling did not change as he stepped onto the ice. He grabbed the banister to support himself.
Jake ended his loop and came to stand before them, completely stable. Will gave him a nervous smile and laughed "You make that look so easy". Jake smiled back at him and advised "grab the banister". Will and Bella did as he said, but Scout slid to stand next to Jake, as every bit confident one the ice as he was off it. "Man, it's been ages since I did this," he grinned, and he and Jake traded happy smiles. Jake turned to face him, saying something quietly, and they exchanged a few words; then Jake called "hey, Ham, you said you know how to skate, right?"
Hamilton gave him a sheepish from where he was standing with Will; Bella had meanwhile advanced a little, clutching the banister for dear life. "Maybe I exaggerated a little" he admitted.
Jake rolled his eyes, but didn't say anything except "Scout, can you help him, too?"
"Sure," Scout nodded, and Hamilton fought a pang of disappointment, but then Scout added "but remember, we're switching afterwards". Jake agreed, and went off to help Bella.
Hamilton kept glancing at them out of the corner of his eye, only half-listening to Scout's explanation; they seemed to be having a good time. Bella was holding Jake's hand as she nervously skated, letting go of the railing. Once or twice she lost her balance, but Jake caught her, keeping them both upright. Scout, of course, wasn't about to hold their hand; instead he explained over and over again how to position the skates, and how to move them, demonstrating himself.
At one point it seemed to become a bit too much for Will, as his skates locked and he toppled, grabbing at Hamilton for support and bringing him down with him. Scout, the lucky bastard, managed to avoid the same fate, even though it was a close call for a moment or too. "Will, you idiot," Hamilton grumbled as he picked himself up painfully "next time grab the fence, not me!"
Some distance away, he could see Jake and Bella laughing; Scout was looking at them in amusement as well. Hamilton shot him a dark look, and then looked back at Jake and Bella; but only Bella was standing there. "Where's Jake?" he said, frowning, before following the blonde's gaze; she was looking at the center of the rink where, sure enough, Jake was making small circles as he skated backwards.
"Hey, can you do that?" Hamilton asked Scout, nodding towards the boy in the center. Scout and Will looked over, then Scout nodded "yeah, I –" he stopped abruptly as Jake turned his glide into a elegant spin, then jumped; they watched him as he landed into another spin, this one more complicated then the first, before Jumping again, exchanging his legs high in the air. "Okay, that I can't do," Scout said at last; he sounded impressed. "He's a lot more than 'not half-bad', isn't he?"
Hamilton and Will nodded, silent; Hamilton was focused entirely on the spinning boy at the center of the rink, as was almost everyone else; most of the skaters in the rink had stopped to watch. But something bothered Hamilton, and after a few seconds he realized exactly what it was.
Jake looked like a girl.
He wasn't the most masculine guy around, that was a known fact; but now, if Hamilton hadn't known, he would've been sure Jake was, well, female. He looked just like a young, flat-chested, short-haired young girl. Even the way he moved was suddenly disturbingly feminine. He cast a quick look over the skaters in the rink; judging by the appreciative looks the male skaters were giving Jake, they clearly thought the same.
He turned to look back at Jake as the dark-haired boy skated back towards them, flushed in embarrassment; he obviously forgot people were looking. Hamilton quickly banished his previous thoughts from his mind; it was ridicules. So what if Jake was a little feminine looking and almost disturbingly, well, pretty. He was enrolled in a boys' school, and that in itself provided all the evidence. Those were no longer the times when all a girl had to do was cut off her hair and hide her chest; this was the digital age, you simply couldn't hide something like this.
Even if Jake was a hell of a hacker.
"Sorry, got a bit carried away," Jake said quietly, not really meeting their eyes "do any of you need help?"
No one answered him at first, and then Scout – always the first one to recover - burst out "that was crazy! Where did you learn to do that?"
Jake shrugged, uncomfortable "I've been skating ever since I was little. My mom loves ice-skating, so it was something she always came to see, at least for a while. I got good very quickly". He tugged on his hair, an obvious sign of unease "never mind that. Does anyone need help?"
"Yeah, I do," Hamilton said quickly; he saw Bella shoot him a quick look, but she didn't object. Jake nodded "well, how good are you? Do you know the basics, or –"
"I'm pretty much in the holding-the-banister level," Hamilton admitted sheepishly. Jake only laughed, though, motioning him away from the others before coming to stand before him. "look at my feet," he said, and Hamilton looked down as Jake explained how to position his legs and how to move. Then, to his surprise, Jake offered him his hand as though it was the most obvious thing in the world, just like he did with Bella. Hamilton took it.
He was definitely enjoying Jake's explanation a lot more.
He fell a few times, and even though it was only to be expected, he still felt bad for dragging Jake down with him; "Sorry," he apologized every time, but Jake only shook his head good-naturally, getting to his feet, and offered Hamilton a hand again.
It was over before Hamilton was ready for it, but he reluctantly followed the others out of the rink. They all changed clothes as Jake returned their shoes, and were halfway out the mall when Bella said "that was actually fun, even though I fell a few times".
Everyone nodded. "We should do this again sometime," Will said, touching his bruised elbow "though maybe next time I'll bring knee and elbow pads".
"It's all a matter of practice," Jake said, smiling, and Hamilton let out a short laugh "easy for you to say. You're like Sasha Cohen". He quickly added "only male, of course." It seemed not all those thoughts were out of his head yet. His words made Bella burst out laughing, and they all turned to look at her; She stopped abruptly as Jake shot her a look.
"Sorry," she said "it just made me think of you in one of those dresses they wear".
Jake made a face, groaning, while the others made varying sounds of choking. Hamilton really didn't need those kind of images in his head; he was confused enough as it was. "Please don't say things like that," Jake continued. He clearly found the idea insulting, or at least embarrassing.
"Sorry," Bella repeated, giving him an apologetic look. No one said anything as they entered the truck, but the atmosphere was unpleasant; they were all just tired. Jake wasn't the only one who slept the way back to Rawley.
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So, what do you think? It really strayed from the script, I know, but their whole "date" posed a real problem for me. I mean, they could just go out together somewhere, I guess, but the whole point of the "date" is the fight and the making up, and that really couldn't happen here. Plus I write just the two of them so much; I wanted to explore the group dynamics.
Ice-skating: I wanted something they could do as a group, and also something which would work with the whole "Jake is wearing sweaters in the summer and everyone finds it ridicules" but also give her a way out of it. About why she skates so well – Kate Moennig is a trained fencer and an excellent surfer, so I thought, why not make Jake a trained ice-skater? I could picture her being into the whole dancing and sparkly dresses thing when she was young, but I think she's too wild for ballet, hence the ice-skating. Also, she seems to me like a perfectionist, and if being good meant more attention from her mother, I think she would be very good, very quickly.
The reason this chapter took me so long is because Hamilton was giving me a lot of trouble, insisting on being more perspective than I wanted him to be and figuring out that Jake was a girl way before I wanted him to. So I sorta found a way around that in the end, even though I'm not really pleased with it, but, well, you can't have everything. We'll see how it goes, and maybe in the end I'll have to change my plans a little.
One last thing – I think I've said this before, but I'll say it one more time – I think Hamilton isn't the only guy to find Jake attractive. I mean, being female is about a lot more than just how long your hair is or how big your chest is. It's something a lot deeper and a lot more primal and instinctive. So even if Jake kinda looks like a guy, she doesn't send "guy signals". And let's face it, Kate's gorgeous. So yeah, I think Jake would've confused a lot of the heterosexual guys around her, and I'm just making it obvious in the story. You gotta admit, it's a lot more amusing.