Hey guys! I'm back and I have a something I little different this time. It's my first Jaylos fic and I hope I did ok. There's not really a summary to it so... here it is! OH! but first, I have to tell you that the writing in italics is them talking to themselves, like having inner dialogue. Ok I'll See y'all at the bottom!
It's been a week since the four descendants chose good and defeated Maleficent but to the people in Auradon it could have happened just the other day with all the celebrations they were having. Knock knock. "Come in!" Carlos yelled from his spot by the window. He was trying to stay away from the celebrations, he was having much more fun petting Dude and people watching.
"Hey Carlos." Prince, no sorry King Ben said walking over to Carlos.
"What's up?" He replied, pulling Dude into his lap to make space for Ben.
"I have invitations for a ball tonight."
"Ughhh." Carlos said, rubbing his face with his hands. "Another one?" He asked. Ben chuckled.
"Sorry man. I promise it's winding down now."
"That's what you said last time. Do I have to go?" Carlos asked, running a hand through his hair. It was getting long, he would have to ask Evie to cut it for him.
"Well, no. But my parents are holding this one at the palace and I'm sure they would like you to be there." Ben said. "Here, take the invite anyway and think about it." Ben said, handing him an invitation. Ben got up and also placed one on the table presumably for Jay.
"See ya." Ben said, gave a small wave and left, closing the door shut behind him, only to have it opened again.
"What did he want?" Jay asked, smiling as he walked into the room. Without their parents breathing down their backs anymore, Jay tended to do that a lot more. Smile. Even though Carlos would never admit it, it was easily one of his favorite things.
"He was giving me an invitation for tonight's ball." Carlos said.
"Another one?" Jay asked picking up his on the table. The invitation was elaborate, just like everything else in Auradon. A crisp yellow piece of paper, sealed inside of a blue envelope with the royal families crest, embellished on the outside.
"That's what I said." Carlos laughed.
"Here ye, here ye!" Jay said, putting on a fake voice, reading from the letter. "Come on and all residents of Auradon to celebrate the defeat of the Mistress of Evil, Maleficent and honor the four heroes who worked together to outsmart her. This Saturday, today, at eight o'clock at Beast Castle in the royal ballroom. Dress snazzy and don't forget a date!" Jay snorted and plopped down on his bed.
"How cheesey. But I guess we have to go huh? Have a date in mind?" Jay asked.
"Umm, no. Not really. I didn't even really think about it." Carlos said, he was blushing now, why he had no idea.
"Oh come on! There's gotta be someone you've had your eyes on since we've gotten here." Jay said, sitting up.
"No. I wish I could give you a better answer than that." Carlos said chuckling. "What about you?" He asked slowly.
"I do have someone I want to ask out tonight but sadly, she has a dwarf to dance with." Jay said.
"Wait, do you mean Evie?" Carlos said. Jay chuckled.
"Yeah, but it's not like that. I once made her a promise that I would take her to a dance and this was it but she went and found herself a boyfriend." Jay said. Carlos laughed again.
"Makes since. Well speaking of Evie, I'll need to go borrow her sewing machine to make Dude and I outfits for tonight." Carlos said.
"Well I'm taking a nap so I'll see you later."
(Line break)
When Carlos walked into the girls room, Mal wasn't there and Evie was hunched over her sewing machine. She looked up when she heard the door close.
"Hey Carlos." She said looking up from her work.
"Working on stuff for tonight?" Carlos asked. Evie nodded.
"I've made more clothes this week than I ever thought I would in my whole entire life." She said. Carlos said down beside her. He pulled her backup machine out from under the table.
"I'll help you." Carlos said.
"Thanks!" Evie replied and the two got to work.
"So...How are you and Jay?" Evie asked.
"What do you mean?"
"You know exactly what I'm asking. Did you tell him yet?"
"No and I don't think I will, thank you. I've known him for too long and I also know his interests and I am not one of them." Carlos said, letting it out like a sigh.
"Well you don't really know that." Evie said, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"No I don't and I'm not going to ask, so you can forget about it." Carlos replied, shrugging her hand off. Evie sighed and went back to her work.
(Line break)
Knock, knock? "Come in." Jay called. He had just woken up from his nap and was going to get ready for the ball that starts in two hour. Sure it was a lot of time still left but he knew Evie would kill him if he missed final fittings.
"Oh, hi Jay. I just wanted to come talk to Carlos about Dude, he sadly isn't allowed to come tonight. Do you know where he is?" Ben asked leaning against Carlos' bedpost.
"He's with Evie right now. They're working on clothes for tonight so it probably isn't best to bother them." Jay said.
"O.k. then. I'll just be on my way. See ya later." Ben said and turned to leave.
"Wait! Before you leave can I ask you a question?" Jay said.
"Yeah sure. Ask away." Ben said and turned back around to face him.
"Oh god. Well…" Jay said, scratching the back of his neck.
"Hey, don't worry about what you're asking too much. You can ask me anything." Ben said. Jay nodded and clapped his hands together.
"When...did you know you were in love?" Jay asked, not looking Ben in the eye.
"Oh man, this is going to sound really cheesy but, I didn't really. It all happened at one time. You find yourself wanting to be around the person more and always listening to what they have to say. Having their back no matter what. The little things that they do make you smile and you can't get them out of your head." Ben said. Jay knew he was thinking of Mal. Ever since the coronation they've been practically inseparable.
"You were right. That was cheesy." Jay said with a chuckle.
"Good luck." Ben laughed and closed the door behind him.
Jay sat down in one of the chairs surrounding the little table. He sighed and put his head in his hands. He thought about what Ben had said. All of the things he said applied and he hated to admit it, even if it was only to himself.
(Line break)
"Oh my god guys we look great." Evie said high fiving Carlos.
"Carriages are here." Mal said, looking out the window. They always kept them open now. Evie straightened Mal's bow on the back of her dress. Mal was done up in a purple dress that ended at the middle of her knees, it had thin straps covered in flowers and the back was out. The boy was tied in the middle of her back where her shoulder bones curved outwards. Her hair was made into an up do with it braided and pinned so that it looked like a crown on the top of her head.
"I've gotta go. I'll see you guys there ok." She said. Being the girlfriend of the King, she had to ride with him at the front of the carriage line, not that she had any problem with that. Evie checked herself one more time in the mirror. Some old habits never die, she told herself. She was dressed in a light blue dress that was cut in asymmetrical layers. It was high necked with sleeves that reached the middle of her arm, near her elbow. Her hair was in its usual curls and her favorite crown was placed on her head.
"I've got to go too. Doug asked me to ride with him, so I'll see you there too." Evie said and left. Carlos watched as their respective dates helped them into their carriages.
"You know she was right." Jay spoke up making Carlos jump slightly.
"What do you mean?" Carlos asked.
"You do look really good." Jay said with a smirk. Was that a wink? Carlos asked himself. He turned slightly to look at himself in the mirror. He wore a white dress shirt with a red and black vest and black shorts. He guessed he looked ok.
"You don't look so bad yourself." Carlos said with a smirk. Whoa, where did that come from, he asked himself. "Well almost. It's just," Carlos said laughing, "your hair is always a mess."
"Ok then, fix it." Jay said, taking a seat at the table and handing him a brush. Carlos started to brush out the long locks. This wasn't the first time he had done Jay's hair. He liked to experiment with styles his mother would sometimes do. But this time, this time it was different. He wasn't doing this for his mother. That's what made all the difference. He decided to do something simple. Not wanting to embarrass Jay. When he finished the braid he tied a simple ribbon to the end of it that matched Jay's outfit. He wore a dark yellow button up shirt with dark red cuffs and collar. He also wore a pair of plain black pants.
"There you go." Carlos said and patted Jay's shoulder. "We should get going." Together, they walked out to where a carriage was waiting for them. Jay, walked up in front of Carlos and instead of sitting down like Carlos thought he was, Jay held a hand out to Carlos to help him into the carriage. The son of Cruella felt his face flush and took the hand that was offered to him. Just like the girls, he thought sitting down. He was also expecting Jay to sit across from him but instead Jay plopped himself right next to Carlos. They were so close to each other that their thighs and shoulders were touched. Carlos coughed a bit and moved himself over. It was a quick ride over to the castle and Carlos was thankful for that. It wasn't that he was uncomfortable it was just that he was nervous for some reason. He was extremely aware of how close Jay was to him. They came to a stop outside of the main door of the castle, which was open. The two walked inside and Jay immediately went to look around. Not to steal anything but just to simply look. Once he had given up stealing (except for other people's food of course), he had really taken to old artifacts. He had spent more time than he would like to being dragged by Jay in the museum. He laughed at his friend and entered the ballroom but quickly made his way to the back wall, in a corner where a table thankfully sat. He made sure to be extra sneaky around the royal announcers. It's not like he didn't want everyone to know he was was there, it's just that he didn't need everyone to know he was there. He sat down at the table.
"I wish dude was here." He sighed looking at all of the dancing people. He quickly spotted Ben and Mal dancing together, both wearing blazing smiles on their face. He kept people watching until he found Evie and Doug, also dancing, but not being quite as flashy as Ben and Mal. He sighed again. "I should have stayed with Jay." He said. He thought about going to find the boy but decided against it. Carlos instead decided to get some food.
(Line break)
The night was halfway over and Jay still hadn't returned. Carlos thought about going to look for him but again decided against it. So far only a few people had come over to talk to him and Ben and Mal had sat with him for a while.
"Mind if I sit back down for a while? Mal took Evie to the bathroom." Ben said, plopping down across from Carlos.
"Yeah no problem." Carlos replied, he knew he was sounding a bit more lack luster than usual, but he was tired and not having a lot of fun.
"What's the matter man?" Ben asked. Carlos shrugged.
"I guess I'm missing dude and I'm not really having the best time." He replied.
"I'm sorry man. Hey where's Jay?" Ben asked, looking around.
"I have no idea. Last I left him was two hours ago and he was looking at the artifacts in the castle and I haven't gone to look for him." Carlos said.
"That's weird." Ben said.
"what's weird?" Jay asked, walking up behind Carlos, who jumped in return.
"We were just talking about you. Nice to see you've joined the party." Ben chuckled.
"It's not my fault you've got some pretty cool stuff in your house man." Jay replied.
"I think I see Mal, so I'll see you guys later, yeah?" Ben said and with Jay's nod, he left to find the purple haired girl.
"What are you doing sitting out, you wallflower?" Jay asked, as he sat beside Carlos.
"You just said it yourself, wallflower." He replied. With a chuckle from Jay he was being pulled out of his seat and onto the dance floor.
"Wait, Jay! I don't want too." Carlos said as he was trying to get away from the others grasp.
"What are you worrying about? Come on and dance with me." Jay said. There was a gleam in his eye that Carlos wasn't quite sure he liked. He watched as Jay started to move to the music and soon joined him. They danced for two songs until the mood changed when a slow song was put on.
"Grab that special guy or gal and please be our quest out here on the dance floor." the DJ, Lumiere and Babette's son Auguste, says over the loudspeaker. Carlos turned to go sit down but stopped when he was grabbed by the crook of his elbow. He turned back around to find Jay looking directly at him. "Dance with me." He said.
"What? No. I don't know how." Carlos said. It was true, he had never learned how to ballroom dance. He had never had a reason to learn how.
"I'll teach you how. Just come on." Jay said and pulled Carlos over to him. "It's easy. You take my hand and put the other on my shoulder and I'll grab you by the waist and I'll take your hand. Then we just move in a box. Back, left, forwards, right. One, two, three, four." Jay said, leading Carlos. Now that he wasn't talking he got a chance to actually hear the music and recognized the words to be Tale as old as Time. He smiled a bit and looked over to where he had last seen Mal and Ben dancing. He caught Ben's eye who in return just winked at him and went back to beaming at Mal. Once he had gotten the hang of it Carlos smiled up at Jay.
"So where did you learn how to dance like this?" He asked.
"I told you about the promise I made to Evie, this was also apart of the agreement. Learning how to dance anyway." Jay replied. They continued to dance, even when the song changed to something a bit more up tempo. Still a slow song but something that wasn't fit for ballroom dancing. Carlos took a deep breath and made a daring move. He moved his hand that was holding Jay's and wrapped it around his neck. Jay raised an eyebrow but moved his hand to the other side of the shorter boys waist, pulling Carlos closer. Carlos knew his face was as red as the glove on his right hand. He had absolutely no idea why. Well he had an idea, but he didn't want to admit it. They had only be dancing like that for a while and Carlos could feel the eyes starting to trail after them. He was getting uncomfortable even though he was immensely enjoying himself.
"People are staring." He whispered to Jay.
"Let them stare." Jay whispered back, pulling Carlos closer. Somewhere behind them Carlos heard a snort.
"I can't." He said, squeezing his eyes shut and pushing away from Jay. He quickly made his way out of the ballroom, not caring if anyone was following behind him. He found himself outside, in the queen's garden.
He sat on one of the stone benches underneath a pavilion made of the same stone. He put his head in his hands. He wasn't used to attention, of any kind. His mother never gave him a second thought unless it was for some chore he forgot to do. The other Islanders seemed to walk over him as well. Never really caring about his feelings or what he had to say. He let out a sigh.
"I don't belong here." He said. He had said that so many times since he had been off of the island. He felt dispositioned, always the odd one out. The others seemed to find where they fit in so quickly, so easily. But here he was, sitting outside in the chilly late September weather. Alone.
"Oh good I found you." Jay said coming up behind Carlos and sitting next to him. Carlos quickly wiped at a tear that he didn't know had fallen.
"I was looking for you Cinderella...hey what's the matter?" Jay asked, catching sight of Carlos wiping his face. He sat next to him.
"I want to go home." Carlos said, leaning his head against Jay's shoulder. There was no one to watch him now.
"You don't really mean that. Just, don't think about it. That's what I do. I just don't care what other people think of me." Jay replied.
"That's easy for you to say. You've had to deal with all of the attention before. This is all so new to me. Everything! I'm thinking things I've never thought before, I'm feeling things I've never felt before. I can't help but to think that it will all be taken away from me." Carlos said wringing his hands.
"Well then don't think about it. Really. Shut it off. Whatever happened back on the island doesn't matter because you're here now, with me." Jay said, realizing how that sounded he quickly added, "and Mal and Evie and you should know by now that we would almost anything to help you." Carlos chuckled at the almost bit.
"Thanks Jay."
"No problem." He replied. They sat in comfortable silence until Carlos started humming. Jay listened, trying to figure out where he had heard it before.
"Cruella De Vil, Cruella De Vil, if she doesn't scare you, no evil thing will." Carlos sung. Jay chuckled and began to hum along. He suddenly stood up causing Carlos to lose his balance. Jay bowed like he had seen the princes do earlier and held out a hand, asking the other to dance.
"But there's no music." Carlos said.
"Well, then start singing again." Jay laughed. The other obliged and took Jay's hand. They spent the rest of the night laughing, not really singing and dancing. Carlos had never felt so happy in his whole entire life. They ended up slow dancing again, even though there wasn't any music playing. Carlos had his arms tightly wrapped around Jay's neck, standing closer to the other than he ever had before. Jay's hands were placed firmly on the others waist. They swayed slowly side to side and back and forth.
"What are we doing?" Carlos laughed.
"I don't know but whatever it is, is making me fall harder." Jay mumbled.
"What did you say?" Carlos asked, raising his head from where it was resting on Jay's shoulders.
"Nothing. I have no idea what we are doing." Jay laughed. Once the laughter died down, they found themselves looking into the others eyes.
"Well I guess Mal was really right about one thing." Carlos whispered.
"What?" Jay asked.
"We most definitely are not our parents." Carlos said, pulling closer to Jay.
"No we are not." Jay said. Jay leaned his head down and moved closer to Carlos. For a moment the white and black haired boy was going to let him kiss him, but turned his head at the last possible second. He moved away from Jay and coughed.
"It's pretty late. We should head back in so we don't miss the dismissal." Carlos said, facing the opposite direction of Jay so he wouldn't have to look at the others face. And also so that Jay couldn't see how apple red his face had become.
"Um yeah. I'm right behind you." Jay answered. He lied. He watched him leave and let out a loud huff. Goddamn! Did he mess that one up! Way to be smooth Jay. He yelled at himself. He calmed down and stalked back inside of
the palace. He stood near the entrance and waited for them to announce the official end of the party so they could all leave. Across the room he could see Carlos and Doug talking. He caught Carlos' eye for a moment but the other quickly looked away.
How the hell am I going to fix this?
(Line break)
Turns out there was no real reason to worry about the ordeal that happened yesterday. Carlos acted like nothing had happened and while Jay tried his absolute best, he couldn't get it out of the back of his mind. A another week has passed since the coronation and Ben was right, the celebrations did die down but that didn't help the surprise he felt when he came back to his room after Tourney practice to see a note and a pair of keys sitting on the table in the middle of the room.
He picked up the note first.
"Outside near the gardens is a present from us to you. Ben told us you wanted one. Signed Queen Belle." Jay read outloud. "What!" Jay exclaimed looking out the window to see his own black painted bike. He grabbed the keys off the table and ran down to the gardens. It was absolutely everything he could have hoped for. He picked up the sleek black helmet and hopped onto the bike, putting the key into the ignition. He revved the motor and laughed like a mad man. He spent the rest of the day riding through Auradon. Riding through a lot of the countryside as well. He eventually rounded his way back to the enchanted forest outside of school grounds by a bit. He found a path and decided to follow it, leaving the bike by the clearing. He ended up by a lake, with the most clear water he has ever seen. Then he got the best idea.
(Line break)
Carlos never wanted to wake up. He was having the best nap of his life. He had found that sweet spot on his bed and Dude was laying on his head.
"Carlos!" Jay called barging into the room. Carlos groaned.
"What?" Carlos asked.
"You can sleep later. I have something to show you." Jay said. "Come on! Meet me in the gardens in 5." Carlos groaned and rolled out of bed. When Jay saw Carlos coming, something inside of him lit up and he couldn't stop the huge grin from forming on his face.
"What is that thing?" Carlos asked once he was close enough.
"It was a gift from Ben's parents. Its great isn't it." Jay said sitting down on the machine. "Hop on."
"No way am I getting on that death trap." Carlos said shaking his head.
"Oh come on, do you trust me?" Jay asked smiling.
"What?" Carlos asked, really paying attention this time.
"Do you trust me?" Jay asked more seriously than before, holding out his hand.
"Of...of course I do." Carlos said, grabbing the hand.
"Then come on!" Jay said pulling him towards the bike. Carlos laughed and still holding on to Jay's hand, he climbed on the bike behind Jay, who started the machine. Carlos wrapped his arms so tightly around Jay's waist, he couldn't breathe.
"Calm down puppy. Relax a bit. We'll be there in a while." Jay laughed. Carlos flicked his ear in return for the nickname.
(Line break)
They made it to the path entrance in what felt like seconds.
"You brought me to the woods?" Carlos asked.
"It's what's in the woods that I want to show you stupid. Come on." Jay said grabbing his hand and dragging Carlos into the woods. They had been walking the path for a while and came across a rope bridge.
"This one won't talk to us, I promise." Jay said, thinking back to their first quest together with the gargoyles.
"Good." Carlos answered. "I don't think I can take that all over again." Carlos said. Jay laughed. He ruffled Carlos' hair with the arm wrapped over his shoulders. In return, Carlos jabbed him lightly in the side with his arm that was hooked around Jay's waist.
(Line break)
"Here we are." Jay said, moving a tree branch to reveal the lake. Carlos let out a small gasp.
"It's so pretty. The water is so clear." He said, breaking away from Jay and walking underneath the ruins of what was a stone pavilion.
"I thought you would appreciate it." Jay said. He started to strip which made Carlos' face flush.
"Gonna join me for a swim?" Jay asked.
"No, no. It's a bit too cold out to go swimming isn't it?" Carlos said, sitting down on the stone, taking off his shoes and putting his feet in the water.
"Ok then." Jay said and jumped into the water. Carlos laughed at him as he came up from the water and had to move all the hair from his eyes.
"You should just come in." Jay said, stepping out of the water after swimming around by himself for a while.
"No way. That's ok." Carlos answered.
"Ok then." Jay said moving behind him.
"Hey! Wait…" Carlos cried.
"You brought this upon yourself." Jay said and pushed Carlos into the water.
"Oh my god!" Carlos said, spitting water out of his mouth. Jay laughed and got back into the water with Carlos.
"Sorry, not sorry." Jay said. They splashed around for a while longer until they found themselves underneath a waterfall. And oh, was it beautiful. The walls shimmered with crystals and jewels that were inlaid in the wall. It seemed to open up to a big cave with a ledge hanging slightly above the water. Jay hopped up on the ledge and Carlos followed suit.
"Did you know this was under here?" Carlos asked as he traced his fingers over the walls.
"Nope. Lucky guess I suppose." Jay replied. They sat in silence, looking around the cave, not wanting to really say anything. Carlos leaned his head on Jay's shoulder which was something he had taken to doing a lot. Jay reached down and grabbed Carlos' hand.
"I really enjoy spending time with you," the long haired boy said.
"Me too." Carlos said back. He was completely aware of what was happening and what was going to happen but didn't want to do anything about it just yet.
"I don't know why we didn't spend our own time together on the island." Jay said. Carlos didn't know why either. He had a lot of things going on at the island. He couldn't think about anything else while he was still there. Only himself.
"You're special, you know that?" Jay said. Carlos moved his head to give a confused glance at Jay.
"Yeah. You're one of the most special people I know. Back on the island, before we left, when you stood up to your mom, that was brave. I know how scared you are of her. We all do. It makes you totally amazing that you were able to do that. And then you did it again here on the island." Jay said. Carlos couldn't do anything but blink.
"I was scared too ya know. Back on the island, I used to sleep underneath a rack of old TV's. I was always scared they would fall and crush me." Jay said, laughing at himself. Carlos had never heard this before. He had always thought of the other as invincible, unable to be frightened.
"No reason to be scared here huh?" Carlos asked, squeezing Jay's hand.
"Yep no reason at all." Jay replied, with his other hand he gently used his fingers to lift Carlos' chin to meet his eye. Jay leaned down to him, moving in for a kiss. But Carlos pushed him away.
"Why do you keep doing that?" Carlos asked with a distressed tone in his voice. He turned away from the other and jumped down from the ledge.
"Why do you keep pushing me away! I want you Carlos." Jay said.
"NO! No you don't!" Carlos said, wrapping his arms around himself. "So just stop. I can't keep doing this with you." He leaned against one of the walls.
"Then stop fighting it and let me…"
"NO! Because it's fake! Love isn't real. I've already tried." Carlos said, thinking back to his time on the island.
"What happened Carlos?" Jay asked. He hopped down off of the ledge to stand behind Carlos. He put a hand on his shoulder but it was quickly shaken off.
"I don't wanna talk about it." Carlos said. He knew he was acting like a child. He was the one who brought it up but, it was a weirdly touchy subject for him. He swam out of the cave, making his way back to the pavilion.
"Carlos! Wait!" Jay said, following him back out of the cave.
"We're not leaving until you give me some kind of explanation." Jay said softly. They were sitting next to each other, not looking or talking until now.
"I said I didn't want too." Carlos said. A gust of wind blew past. He was right from the start, the chilly late september weather was too cold to swim in. He shivered. Jay saw out of the corner of his eye and draped the jacket over the others shoulders.
"Thanks." Carlos mumbled. He sighed. "You know as much as I how rough it is on the island. It was a few months or so before the whole proclamation thing, I went through a really bad breakup. I wouldn't even call it a breakup. God it was so bad. I really thought Anthony Tremaine loved me. Of course I never knew what love was before that, my mother never showed me. I don't know what a healthy relationship is but it wasn't what we had. It wasn't abusive. He never hit me, it was just...I don't even know." Carlos said, starting to tear up. That bastard had really hurt him at the time, ruined his life, or so he thought.
"When we broke up, I didn't even see it coming. He just...dropped me like a poison apple. Told me he was using me, just for his own pleasure. I cried the whole day and it didn't make it any better that my mother decided to come home early from her weekly spa trip. All she did was yell at me for being so weak and letting him take advantage of me like that. I was so mad I slammed the door in her face. She locked me in the room and I wasn't allowed to leave until all of the chores were done. When I woke up the next morning, Anthony was outside my window. He helped me pry the bars off and then he took me to the market place and lets just say I was publicly humiliated but in the best way possible." Carlos rubbed his eyes, trying to make sure Jay didn't see any tears fall.
"Don't cry." Jay said using his thumb to wipe away the tear that fell down the other's face.
"I'm sorry." Carlos sniffed.
"Don't be, it's human." Jay replied.
"I'm sorry for always pushing you away but I'm just not ready for another relationship," Carlos said leaning on Jay.
"I understand. I just want you to know that I'm not Anthony and if I ever see the bastard again, I'll make him pay." Jay said.
"Thanks." Carlos replied and gave the former thief a kiss on the cheek.
"Let's get back. We have to be back before curfew." Jay replied getting up. He offered a hand to Carlos who took it and stood up. Together they gathered their things and walked out of the forest.
(Line break)
They didn't spend much time together after that. Carlos spent more time focused on his school work and Jay spent his spare time practicing Tourney. The only time the two would see each other was during lunch, at their remedial goodness class (that they looked forward to going to now), and before they went to sleep. Sure Carlos was still on the tourney team but he talked to the coach and now he's the team manager instead of a player. The coach was nice enough to let him keep his jersey though. October was really pretty in Auradon. The leaves on the trees turned nice colors of amber and rust and they fell off the trees almost gracefully.
"Did you find a date for the dance yet?" Auguste asked, falling in step beside of Carlos. They had become pretty good friends, ever since they were paired up as lab partners they had gotten to the chance to know each other.
"What dance?" Carlos asked.
"Oh you know! The big Halloween Bash! It's this saturday and I get to help DJ." Auguste said excitedly. Oh yeah, Halloween. It was Carlos' favorite holiday, because it was the only one they were allowed to celebrate on the island.
"I didn't even know. Have you asked anyone?" Carlos questioned and watched as the others face flushed.
"I want to ask Ivory, you know Mrs. Potts other daughter, but I don't think her sisters, China and Porcelain would be ok with that." Auguste mumbled. Carlos laughed at him. He had seen how those girls walked around in a pack.
"Well you should give it a chance anyway."
"I hear Jay wants to ask you out." Auguste said, nudging him with his elbow. Carlos groaned. Evie had said the same thing to him earlier when they were working on homework together.
"He better not." Carlos said, sitting at one of the lunch tables in the courtyard.
"Oh come on Carlos. Give the guy a chance." Auguste said, sitting across from him.
"I am!"
"Let him take you to the dance then!" Auguste laughed.
"I'm not ready!" Carlos said
"I never said anything about a relationship. Just go have fun with him."
"Okay! O.K. fine! I'll go if he asks me." Carlos said.
(Line break)
"Need any help?" Carlos asked Evie, sitting his book down.
"That would be great actually. It's nice that it's a costume party and all but it puts a lot of stress on me." Evie said.
"You know, you could just have everyone buy their outfits."
"But what's the fun in that?" Evie asked, switching her thread. Carlos sighed.
"What's the matter?" Evie asked, pausing I what she was doing to look at her friend.
"Auguste told me Jay was going to ask me to the dance on Saturday."
"I told you he was going to ask you out." Evie said.
"I know, it's just...I don't really want him too."
"Why not? You say this every time we talk about him."
"It's because I'm scared Evie. He's already told me he's not Anthony but it doesn't mean I can't be cautious. Relationships aren't really my thing." Carlos said looking at the blue haired girl.
"Well make it your thing! That's what Mal did with Ben. She gave him an honest chance and fell in love with him even though she didn't know what love was at the time. That's the beauty of it all. It's kind of the same for me and Doug too." Evie said going back to her costume. Carlos nodded.
"Ok. Okay. I'll try. I promise." Carlos said.
"So what are you going as on Saturday?" Evie asked. "Doug and I are going as a king and a queen."
"Real classic Blue but to be honest, I don't even know. I didn't know about the dance til earlier. I think I'll just wear a suit and put on a mask." Carlos shrugged.
"That's fine I guess. For you." Evie laughed.
(Line break)
"Hey Carlos, can I ask you something?" Jay asked the other walking into their shared room.
"Yeah sure." The other replied, he took a deep breath, bracing himself for what Jay was about to ask him.
"What did you get for number 2 on the algebra homework?" Jay asked. Carlos tried hard not to let his face fall.
"Oh um, it's x equals 7 squared times 6." He answered.
"Thanks! And now I have an actual question." Jay said, he watched as Carlos nodded slowly.
"Will you go with me to the dance on Saturday?"
"Okay." Carlos said.
"Really?" Jay asked surprised. He was ready to be turned down, but the simple word made his heart beat a little faster.
"Yeah. I'll go with you." Carlos smiled.
"Ok. Great! I'll meet you in the gardens at 7:00." Jay exclaimed and left the room. He could not believe that just worked!
(Line break)
"Ok you guys are taking way too long. I'm leaving." Carlos said looking at the watch on his wrist.
"See you there. Don't take many detours." Evie said with a wink, glancing at him from the mirror.
"Bye." Carlos said and left with a chuckle. He made his way out to the garden where he knew Jay was waiting. He let out a sigh when he saw what was waiting for him.
"Not this again." He said, letting out a playful groan.
"Sorry, but I like the way it rides." Jay replied, laughing at Carlos' reaction. He was already sitting on the bike and extended a hand for Carlos. Once the boy had sat down, he handed him a helmet and started the bike. The dance was being held in the other side of campus so it was easier to ride their than walk. They parked a few feet away from the entrance. Jay "helped" Carlos off of the bike and took him by the crook of his arm to the entrance.
"Auguste!" Carlos said, seeing his friend by the door. He had a familiar looking girl standing next to him. "And Ivory! You did it, good job mate." Carlos continued, clapping Auguste on the shoulder.
"It took a bit more convincing of her sisters than I had planned but yeah, I made it happen." He replied, smiling at Carlos and then his date. Ivory was what some may call "preciously plump", like her mother, but that didn't matter. She had a beauty beyond her years and was probably one of the smartest kids in the whole school.
"Hi Carlos." She said with a wave. Carlos smiled in return.
"So what are you guys dressed as?" He asked.
"Our parents." Was Ivory's short reply. He gave the couple a closer look and saw what she meant. On Auguste's jacket were feathers like on his mother when she was a feather duster and he wore gold accents to represent his father. On Ivory's dress were her mother's tea pot colors and the bottom of said dress seemed to curve under so it looked like a pot. Around her neck she had a chef's hat pendant and on her head she also wore a chef's hat.
"That is so cool." Carlos said. If he had dressed like his mother, he would have been put out of the party for sure.
"I was waiting for you. Let's go in." Auguste said.
(Line break)
Inside of the party, the room was lit dark and there was smoke everywhere. There were tables filled with candies and other junk and people were already on the dance floor. They each made a dinner plate and sat down to eat.
"I have to go DJ in a minute." Auguste yelled over the music. "I'll be done in about an hour or so." He pushed out from the table and grabbed Ivory's hand who was already up and walking towards the DJ booth.
finally, Jay thought. He had been waiting for the candlestick to get up and stop talking to Carlos for about 30 minutes.
"Do you want to dance?" Jay asked.
"Not yet," Carlos said with a smile. "We have to wait until Auguste starts to DJ." Jay looked over at the DJ booth to see Auguste talking to the booth manager. He watched as Auguste took his eyes off of the person in front of him to look at his date with the most adoration in his eyes.
"They're such a cute couple aren't they." Carlos said. Jay looked down at him and saw that Carlos was looking right back at him.
"Do you want to get out of here?" Jay asked.
"But we just got here," Carlos replied with a chuckle.
"So?"
"O.k fine, but we can't miss Auguste DJ-ing or he'll kill me."
"I wouldn't let him lay a finger on you." Jay smiled.
(Line break)
It was chilly outside but this time Carlos was prepared. He had his only gift from his mother ever, a fur coat that had gotten a little damaged in the wash that she had wanted to throw away but gave it to Carlos instead, wrapped around his person to protect him from the wind.
"How have you been?" Jay asked. He really hadn't seen Carlos since their trip to the forest because he was trying to give the other his space.
"I've been good. Made a couple new friends as you can tell. What about you?" Carlos asked. He was trying not to think too hard or his brain would totally sike him out.
"I've been ok. Trying to push through life without you." Jay replied. Carlos took a deep breath.
"You don't really mean that."
"Of course I do! I miss having my partner in crime around." Jay replied with a nudge to Carlos' shoulder. He had totally meant it.
It was weird not having the other boy around as much as he used to be.
"Well I guess I have to start spending more time with you again."
"I guess so." They continued to walk around the dance hall until they ended up back near the front.
"I can here Auguste talking. We should go back in." Carlos said. He was starting to get nervous. He knew there was something Jay wanted to ask him. That was the whole reason why he brought him outside of the hall.
"Wait Carlos." Jay said, grabbing his arm. Here it comes, Carlos thought.
"Yeah Jay?" He whispered in response.
"I...I miss you. It's only been a few weeks and... god I'm so pathetic." Carlos frowned. He knew that wasn't what Jay wanted to say to him.
"No you're not pathetic just...nervous. Just as nervous as I am." Carlos replied, in a bold moves he grabbed Jay's hand for reassurance. "You can tell me anything." Jay looked into Carlos' eyes. He knew the other was sincere. He took a deep breath and pushed his words out.
"I love you Carlos De Vil. And I don't care how cheesy it sounds but I don't know what I would do without you." Jay said. Carlos squeezed his eyes shut, he pulled Jay into a hug.
"It doesn't sound cheesy. It just sounds...right." He opened his eyes. "I...I love you to Jay." Carlos could then hear a tiny hiccup from Jay. It was the most innocent sound that he knew he would never forget.
"Can I...can I kiss you know?" Jay asked. Carlos felt his cheeks redden but he nodded anyway.
Jay closed the small gap between them, pressing their lips together. Carlos eye's squeezed even tighter together but he leaned into the kiss. He brought his hands up to tangle them into Jay's hair, stroking and lightly pulling. Jay on the other hand was being extremely gently, knowing how fragile the whole love thing was for Carlos. He doesn't remember throwing caution to the wind but at some point it was gone. He pulled Carlos even closer to him which made the other gasp. They went on until Carlos broke away with a grin.
"We should go or we'll miss Auguste DJ-ing." He said in a whisper.
"Yeah, ok." Jay said, trying to fix his hair. Carlos grabbed his hand and pulled him inside.
"Did I mention I'm in love with you?" Jay sang to him, right before they entered the doorway.
Carlos laughed softly and flicked his hand.
"Well did I mention I love you too." And with that they were inside. Carlos made a pact with himself that night. He wouldn't care about what would happen tomorrow. He would only focus on the now and the people around him, the people who loved him. And if things didn't work out between him and Jay well, he had some pretty bad ass friends who could take care of that for him.
aaannnd... it's done. The monstrosity is over! The ending was sucky but I could never write good endings I suppose. I am a little bit to proud of this one though. Especially the first motorcycle scene. It's meant to be a parallel to the Aladdin scene where he's asking Jasmine to jump out of a window, so romantic *bats eyelashes*. Can you guys do me a favor? If you see any mistakes leave me a comment or message me so I can fix it. Thank you! Alrighty everybody, thanks for reading and I'll see you next time!