Unlike Henry, Jasper didn't reside in a big fancy house in a safe neighborhood. He lives on the other side of the tracks, in the last remaining space the city hadn't gentrified.
They renamed it, though. Instead of South Swellview, it's now called Stank Street, which feels like a slap in the face to him and all the other poverty-stricken misfits that call this place home… despite how fitting the name is.
He lives right across from the Bilsky family's big trailer park of a property. There's like six or seven motorhomes, among at least a dozen rusted cars. It is like living next to a frat house junkyard.
The younger Bilski's always throw loud rangers and fill the street with trash. Leaving the older Bilskis (except for Jeff, who never quite lived up to their legacy) to do whatever damage they want partially unnoticed.
They're responsible for the majority of muggings, carjackings, and drug distribution in this city- and Jasper has them as neighbors. If he could afford to live anywhere else, he would, but he can't, so he's never invited Henry or Charlotte to his house. Not only is it dangerous, it's embarrassing.
His dingy one-bedroom screams poverty and filth. It's unkempt, and he's too busy and broke to spend his time or money fixing the peeling paint and cracked concrete steps.
They don't even own a lawn mower, but even if he had one, it would spend more time churning out scattered cigarette buds, beer cans, and whatever other leftover garbage blows in from the Bilski bashes than the actual overgrown grass.
Jasper's face screws up as he spots the newest late rent warning taped on his front door. He rips it off and crumbles the paper in his fist as he digs his Captain Man keychain out of his pocket to unlock the door.
He turns the knob, peering inside at his mother's unmoving frame once he enters, wondering how long she's been sitting there on the couch. Her clothes look dirty, like they haven't been washed in a long time. Her hair, too, is greasy, and her curls are matted. Jasper doubts she even knows where a hairbrush is.
She's skinnier than he is, sickeningly so. She's been pumping her body full of crap so long he wouldn't even know what she looks like sober. They might look more alike, then.
He knows they have the same freckled skin under those blotches, drug sores, and track marks. Jasper got his eyes from hers; it's their most noticeably shared feature. His are a bit brighter, though, whereas hers are usually unfocused and bloodshot red because she's high.
He has her same hue of hair, though it's not naturally as curly as hers. He doesn't know much about his dad, but he knows his hair is straight, which is probably why Jasper's hair type falls somewhere in the middle with loose waves.
Jasper only has one memory of his dad and probably wouldn't even remember what he looked like if it wasn't for his mugshots being public record. It was an unsettling relaxation for Jasper when he realized that despite his features being more like his mother's, his physique is nearly identical to his father's.
The older he got, the more he resembled his father, and his mother's resentment grew. The only person his mom hates more than him is his dad, and he can't help but remind her of him.
"I'm home," Jasper announces, shutting the door behind him, "There's another one. Steve raised the rent again."
"Asshole, he's a shit landlord anyway." His mom responds, her eyes barely shifting from the TV, "You're still gonna pay it, right?"
"Someone has to." Jasper shrugs, muttering, "I'm the only one here with a job."
"Don't be a dick." She huffs, shifting her gaze to glare at him, "I wouldn't be this way if it weren't for you."
"Yeah, I know." Jasper nods. He's heard this before, "Have you eaten? I haven't gone grocery shopping yet, but we could share the last can of soup or something."
"Wow," She grumbles bitterly, crossing her arms, "Big boy with a job can't afford two cans of soup?"
"Wow," Jasper mocks back, "Unemployed drug addict can't afford one can of soup? I'm shocked."
"I'm not a fucking junkie." She argues, gesturing to the coffee table in front of her, filled with over a dozen different unlabeled pills and beer bottles, "I take all this shit for my health, they are meds."
"Prescribed from who?" Jasper scoffs, quotating in the air, "'Doctor' Bilski?"
"Oh, fuck off." She huffs, rising from the couch, "My body broke the day I shat you out."
"You're right, everything is my fault. It's always my fault." Jasper states, tone shifting to sarcastic sincerity, "I can't imagine how hard not raising me must have been."
"Maybe if you weren't such a shitty kid," She starts, rising from the couch, "I'd actually like you."
Jasper lets out a singular chuckle, shaking his head in disbelief, "Well, maybe if you weren't such a bad mom-"
She chucks an empty beer bottle in his direction, making him sway to the side, dodging the bottle as it flies by and shatters against the wall behind him.
"Don't call that." She snaps, "You know I hate it when you call me that."
Jasper glances to the ground, then back at her, meeting her unblinking gaze with a look of hollowed pain. He seems to be always seeking her attention until he actually has it. She looks at him like he's the embodiment of all her hatred- but, hey, at least she's looking.
He blurts in shock, "Woah, psycho much?"
His mother starts towards him, and Jasper knows before her hand even rises that she is going to hit him- or try to. He instantly catches her wrist, preventing her swing.
"Stop." He instructs, stumbling back, "There's glass all over the floor, and you're barefoot. Go sit back down before you cut yourself."
"Don't tell me what to do," she mocks, ripping her arm away. "I'm the 'parent' here."
"Then act like it."
She tries to hit him another time, but her fists only make contact with his chest again before he catches her other wrist. She begins to squirm, desperately trying to pry her hands free, but there's not an ounce of budging from her son.
Her expression gets more enraged by the minute, but something else washes over her gaze. It's a sudden fear so deep that it scares Jasper too.
She thrashes as she shrieks, "Let me go!"
It makes Jasper feel guilty enough to release his hold, "I'm sorry, Jannet." He apologizes with a sigh, "I'll make it up to you, okay? After I clean this up, I'll make your soup and-"
Jasper doesn't get to finish his speaking because the second her hands are free, she uses them to push him back, shoving him as hard as she can.
He's caught off guard and doesn't have time to gain the stability to keep him from crashing into the wall.
There's a loud crack when the impact of his body falling back breaks through the thin layer of sheetrock, ribs bruising as he feels himself collide into the support beam underneath.
He can't breathe-
Jasper's mouth falls open, half stuck between shock and desperation as the wind is knocked out of him, making him gasp for air, reeling from the lack of air in his lungs, hand clutching his chest as he slowly regains his breath.
He finches as she gets in his face, yelling close enough for him to smell the lingering liquor on her lips, "Don't ever grab me again!"
"O- okay..." Jasper wheezes, trying his hardest not to react. He keeps his head up, ignoring the tears that slip down his cheek before he can stop his eyes from watering "...Sorry."
"Damn it, Jasper." She curses, a faint regret washing over her face as she retreats, "You know better."
Jasper lets his eyes fall closed as he nods.
She's right; he knows better.
Jasper steadies his still-shaking breath before heaving himself out of the crumbling drywall. He winces in pain, powdery pieces breaking off at his sides as he leaves its indent behind him.
When he opens his eyes, she's staring at him from the corner of hers.
She raises her eyebrow at him, the same way he does when he's confused, as if to say, 'What are you looking at?'
To which he'd respond, 'My mom.'
If he did that, she'd probably get mad again, perhaps throw another bottle, maybe actually hit him with it this time.
He could earn another bruise, another lie he'd have to craft into an excuse. He'd want to cry more. He might beg her to love him like he did when he was little…
Or- or he could show her just how much alike they are and get loud back. He could scream in her face, too, and unleash all eighteen years of pent-up anger. It really could be so easy for Jasper to make his mother hurt the way she hurts him.
It should be to resist the urge… but it isn't. He's not a violent person. He's better than that. He's better than her.
They stay silent, staring at each other until he curls his face away. Jasper lifts his head up high and discreetly wipes his tears, glass crunching under his shoes as he walks away.
She shuffles back to her corner of the living room and seeks out the closest bag of pills. Jasper slams the door shut behind him, jaw clenching. He hears her throw a handful of 'meds' down her throat and chases them with the swig of a bottle.
He's so tired of this.
Bianca grips the front of Henry's flannel and pushes him onto the couch. He sucks in a sharp gasp as she straddles his lap, not giving him a chance to grasp what's happening before she pulls his face forward, capturing his lips.
Fuck, that was hot.
Henry's eager hands grab for her waist, fingers glide past the sheer fabric to touch her skin to feel the warmth of her flesh.
He intrusively wonders if this would turn on Jasper, too. Sure, he isn't into women, but is he into this? How often did Jasper picture doing these things with him? Where would he imagine Henry, under him or over him?
Only when their kiss breaks apart does Henry realize he isn't thinking about Bianca. He looks at her, shocked as if he forgot who he was with and whose lips he had licked.
She smiles as she pulls her mouth away, breathing heavily against him, but all he feels is this sudden, sickening dread.
"Bianca," Henry pants, pushing her back, "I can't do this right now."
"What?" She frowns, soft confusion flashing over her features, "Why? I thought you wanted this?"
"Oh, I do. Trust me, Bianca, I really, really do." He assures, "Just not today. There was just this incident at work and-"
"Your job has a surprising amount of incidents for a junk store. What was the issue this time?" Bianca sighs, crossing her arms, "Was the store vacuum haunted, or did another raccoon break in and steal the register, or perhaps a group of grandmas came in and started break dancing again?"
Henry froze for a moment, "Well- you see- um," He stammers, trying to formulate a lie before snapping his fingers, "Ja-Jasper."
Her face scrunches up, "Jasper?"
"Yup," Henry says, popping the p, "Jasper and I- we got into a fight." He decides, puffing out his cheeks, "Yeah, we got into a fight, a- a bad one. I really messed up."
"Oh no," Bianca frowns, "What happened?"
"Um," Me and Ray almost killed him with the truthblaster, "I ate his potato chip. It was bucket-shaped." Henry says, cracking his voice dramatically, "He got mad at me and everything. He even called me a chip thief. I'm not sure if he'll ever forgive me."
"But- but you guys are so close?" She questions, standing up, "Would he really end your friendship over a potato chip."
"He's a very sensitive gay- guy-" Henry blurts out, eyes widening, "I meant guy! He's a very sensitive guy. Ya know, he cries at every sad dog movie, acts like he's dying when he stubs his toe, and- and, now, he apparently ends friendships over potato chips too." Henry insists nervously, rising to his feet, "So, I can't do this," He gestures between them, "Today."
"That's okay." She assures, reluctantly tying her robe shut, "We don't have to do anything. We can just watch a movie or something."
"Actually," Henry starts as he grasps her shoulders and guides her towards the door, "I really need to be alone right now. So I can... cry?"
"Are you sure you don't want me to stay?" She asks, barely getting the words out before she's gently forced onto the front porch, "For emotional support?"
"Bianca, you know how guys work- we can't cry in front of girls. Henryway, thanks for coming, but now I need to go morn thirteen years of friendship," He insists, slamming and locking the door, "Byeeeee!"
Jasper's been walking, spinning, walking- both- for a while.
For whatever reason, Jasper feels like he needs to move when he's upset. It's the closest thing to control he has when he's spiraling out of it.
He likes watching the lights from cars on the road blur by him as he circles around. It feels almost as calming as the cool rain that starts to wash over him.
The sudden downpour begins to soak through his every article of clothes, making his curls uncoil and fall flat against his skin.
Jasper stops and tilts his jaw up to the night sky, welcoming the water pelts over his face. The droplets mask his tears among them, allowing him to feel safe enough to cry.
Jasper hates the person he is around his mother. He has a nasty habit of picking fights despite knowing how it always ends.
He usually has to leave for a little while until things cool off. Sometimes, he'll crash at Henry's house for a few days with some random excuse or sneak into one of the man-cave storage facilities.
Jasper always comes back home eventually, and then they both pretend nothing happened until the next time the cycle repeats.
His sobs echo with every new spin as he tries to block out the sounds of the already silent street. He prefers to hear the blood rush in his brain over the thoughts in his mind.
Jasper freezes abruptly, shocked as a hand reaches out and grasps his shoulders. He instantly squints his eyes at the person.
His vision is still swirling, making it hard for him to identify her until she speaks and he can recognize her voice.
"Jasper?" Bianca calls, "Are you okay?"
Bianca? Isn't she supposed to be boinking Henry right now?
"Uh, yeah?" Jasper murmurs, discreetly wiping his tears, "I'm fine."
She looks at him as if she knows he's lying, "What are you doing here?"
Jasper pushes his hair back, "By here, do you mean like, on earth or..?"
"It doesn't really matter." She admits, patting his arm before pulling away, "I get that I'm a girl and everything, but it's okay to cry in front of me."
"I wasn't crying." Jasper lies, shifting his feet nervously, "My eyes were just sweating."
"Jasper, honestly. It's okay." She assures, "I know why you're sad."
Jasper's eyes narrow doubtfully, "Really?"
"Yeah," She answers, "Henry told me about how you guys got in a fight."
Jasper's face twists in confusion, finger pointing out, "Uh, what?"
Since when were they fighting?
Jasper knew something felt off with them earlier. Henry had unusually been snappy at him today, but he assumed he was stressed or something.
Is that why Henry was acting weird? How long had Henry been having this one-sided fight with him?
Jasper literally doesn't even know what the issue is because his best friend would rather be a passive-aggressive pissy-pants.
As if Jasper doesn't already have a hard time knowing when he does something wrong, it is so much harder when Henry does stuff like this.
"Henry seemed pretty upset." Bianca sighs, "He even canceled our date because you guys aren't friends anymore."
"Scoff," Jasper scoffs, hand clutching his chest, "Excuse me?"
Bianca frowns, "That's just what Henry said."
Jasper wasn't fighting Henry before, but he sure as shit is about to be now.
"No, nuh-uh, nope! Our friendship has a no-return policy." Jasper huffs, waving his finger in her face, "Who does he think he is? I'm a give him a pizza my mind!"
Bianca pushes his hand back, "Did you just say a pizza my mind?"
"Yeah, it's an expression," Jasper explains, rolling his eyes as if it was obvious, "Like if my mind was a pizza, I'd take a slice and give it to him."
She shakes her head, "I don't think that's how the saying goes."
"Don't care," Jasper says, waving her off, "I gotta go."
Bianca calls out as he races off, "I hope you guys work things out!"
Jasper bids her a brief goodbye before booking it towards Henry's house as fast as he can, water splashing around him as he races through the puddles pooling in the road.
Henry picks at his nail, leg jumping up and down as he tries to calm himself down. This thing with Jasper had ruined his whole day.
He doesn't want to think about it at all, much less when he's trying to get it on with his girlfriend.
This is all Jasper's fault. Henry wouldn't have been cock blocked by his own thoughts if it wasn't for his confession.
Yeah, Henry's gonna blame him. It's easier to do that than acknowledge his feelings about it, mostly because he's still not sure what those are.
He barely gets any time to really process this before pounding suddenly comes from the other side of his front door, the handle jiggling dramatically.
Henry feels his heart jump, followed by the familiar rush of adrenaline within him as he rises to his feet, hoping it's some fool trying to rob him so he can fight out his frustration.
Jasper hollars, "Henry, let me in!"
"Damn it." Henry curses under his breath. This is just some cruel irony. What cosmic crime did he do to deserve this punishment?
Henry immediately ducks behind his couch so Jasper can't see him, hoping he'll give up. He hears him retreat a little too easily, only to hear him shuffle around to the back door, straining to slide that door open, too.
Henry groans, knowing the next place he will try is his window. He contemplates rushing upstairs and locking it before Jasper can climb onto his roof, but he hears a crashing sound too concerning to ignore.
Jasper starts pulling himself onto Henry's roof, but the rain makes it slicker than he realizes. His converse doesn't have enough traction to save him from slipping off. He yells as he falls to the ground. The shrubs below soften his landing before he rolls off into the yard.
His back slams down on the wet, muddy terrain, murky water splashing around him, immediately coating his clothes and saturating his hair. Bad idea, this hurt so bad.
Jasper clenches his teeth, swallowing back the pain when Henry's door slides open. He turns his head to meet Henry's concerned and confused gaze, peering at him from the doorway.
Henry sighs, "Are you okay?"
Jasper raises his hand in response, signaling he needs a minute to recover before burying his face into his elbow and screaming.
He strains a smile in his best friend's direction, "Hiya, Henry."
"Hi." Henry greets dully, repeating, "Are you okay?"
"No," Jasper answers, rising to his feet and marching in front of Henry, "I came here to give you a pizza my mind!"
Henry crosses his arms, leaning in the door frame, "What's your deal?"
"I don't know!" Jasper shakes his head, purposely flinging the water from his hair onto Henry's face, "What's your deal?"
Henry's eyes flutter in annoyance, "Look, I don't know what this is all about, but I'm too busy to deal with it right now." He claims, running the sleeve of his flannel over his face, wiping off the water, "Are you trying to ruin my date or something? You know I have Bianca over right now."
Jasper's expression shifts unsettlingly, and he runs his tongue over his teeth in disbelief, "So Bianca's inside right now?"
Henry forces a nod, gesturing back inside the house, "Yup, she's fo'sho' inside."
Jeez, he's such a terrible liar.
"Hmm, 'Fo'sho,'" Jasper repeats, taking a step closer, "You're using outdated slang." He points out, finger pressing into Henry's chest, "Which means you are lying."
"Psh, What?" Henry denies it, his voice stammering, "T-that's a bogus accusation!"
Jasper crosses his arms, voice lowering dully, "I ran into Bianca before coming here."
Fuck. Henry cringes, clicking his tongue, "Oh."
"Why are you lying to me?" Jasper pouts, "Bianca said you didn't want to be my friend anymore," He explains, his shoulders sinking, "If you really wanna end this friendship, I deserve to be told to my face."
"Oh." Henry's eyes soften, realizing Bianca must have repeated his excuse to him, "Jasp-"
"If that's what you really want, fine." Jasper cuts him off, "But I just wanna remind you that we," He says, voice shaking as he rambles, "As in you and me, made a sacred pen-key promise to grow old together; we are supposed to be besties until death do us part, bound together in homie matrimony-"
Henry steps into the rain and slaps his hand over Jasper's mouth. Henry intends to reassure him right then, but his words are lost the second he feels how cold Jasper's lips are. The heat of his breath against Henry's palm sends a wave of goosebumps over his skin.
Jasper's bangs curtain over his face as he glances down at Henry's hand, water dripping from his hair and onto Henry's knuckles before his gaze slowly rises to meet his eyes.
Henry finds himself just entranced by Jasper's impossibly blue pupils, looking into him as if he's searching for an answer to a question he has yet to ask himself.
The moment ends when Jasper licks his palm, making him reel back to reality.
"Gah- Dude!" Henry curses, wiping his hands on his pants, "Why do you always have to do that?!"
Jasper pants, "Why do you always have to suffocate me?"
"I wasn't suffocating you. I was just... silencing you!" Henry argues over the sound of thunder, face red from the cold, "If anything, this is your fault for yelling at me!"
"You deserved to be yelled at!" Jasper yells, then averts his gaze, voice softer, "Why did you tell Bianca you don't want to be my friend anymore? You could've told me if I did something to upset you, I would've fixed it. I would've- I dunno, changed. I can be a better friend if you need me to be."
"You shouldn't be so willing to change yourself." Henry points out, "It's kinda pathetic."
"Yeah, and?" Jasper counters, throwing his arms in the air, "I am pathetic. So, there."
"Look," Henry sighs, "You don't have to worry. I just needed an excuse for Bianca because I wanted her to leave."
Harsh.
"Dude..." Jasper mutters in disappointment, "You just can't kick someone out after," he lowers his voice, wiggling his fingers suggestively as he whispers, "The horizontal hula. Ladies don't like that. You need to cuddle and stuff afterward."
Henry rolls his eyes, "We never got to the 'horizontal hula.' She left before that."
"You?" Jasper asks, perplexed, "The second horniest person in Swellview-"
"Second?"
"Ray's first."
"Yeah, okay," Henry shrugs, "That's fair."
"You," Jasper starts again, "The second horniest person I've ever met didn't want to do the do?"
"That's right." Henry mutters, rubbing his shoulder awkwardly, "It's not that big of a deal. I just wasn't in the mood, so I lied to make her leave."
"Hey, I'm not judging, Hen." Jasper assures, water trailing down his skin, "It's just a little surprising since you were gloating about it all week."
Henry glances down to avoid Jasper's gaze, shifting his feet in the rain-soaked grass.
"Yeah, I know." He murmurs, fidgeting with the sleeve of his now sopping wet flannel, "I'm sorry for using you as an excuse."
"Nah," Jasper shrugs, waving his hand in dismissal, "You know I'll always cover for you. Just let me know next time."
"I was going to tell you later," Henry states, "But I assumed you were at home sleeping. What were you doing outside during a flash flood anyway?"
Jasper tenses slightly, eyes distant expression completely unreadable for a split second before he blinks it away, replacing it with a playful glinting gaze.
"I was dancing in the rain," Jasper states, stepping back before spreading his arms and spinning, "We used to do this all the time when we were kids, remember?"
"Yeah." Henry recalls, smiling at the memories replaying in his mind, "We used to be little cuties."
"Used to?" Jasper questions, raising his brow, "I think we still are."
Well, he's not wrong.
Henry has spent more hours than he'll ever admit staring in the mirror, criticizing and complementing his every feature. But… he never really devoted a single thought to how Jasper looked…
Stuff like that kinda goes over his head; he sees Jasper every day, and it's hard to notice him growing when Henry did it with him.
Jasper's always kinda been a cute kid, but he's much different now. He's probably considered hotter now after puberty snatched all his childhood chunkiness.
That alone took all the roundness out of his face, giving him a strong, sharp, distinctive jawline. The rest of his body shifted, too. His shoulders got broader, his height got taller, and his muscle mass spread out, giving him thicker legs, arms, chest, ass, everything.
It's obvious to anyone with eyes and common sense that Jasper is attractive. Henry's not blind to it. He just doesn't have an opinion on the matter.
Henry is attracted to him in the most platonic sense. He likes that Jasper's always the happiest person in a room.
He envies that Jasper can shine like the sun even in a storm. Henry just happens to prefer to orbit around that light.
Henry bites his lip to stop himself from smiling, "You're being ridiculous."
Jasper jumps around the yard, head thrown back as his mouth spreads open, tongue dangling in the air to catch the falling droplets from the sky.
He spins to stop in front of Henry, hand extending out, "Maybe you're not being ridiculous enough?"
Henry shakes his head, "I'm not gonna dance with you."
"C'mon, it'll be fun~" Jasper sings, looking into Henry's eyes with a playful glance, "I know you want to."
Henry never has any problem telling anyone else no, but it was so much harder to say to Jasper for whatever reason.
Perhaps it's that impossibly blue gaze that always persuades, or maybe it's that Jasper only encourages Henry to do things he already secretly wants to do.
"Fine," Henry says reluctantly, sliding his palm into Jasper's hand, "but I'm doing this begrudgingly."
Henry nearly killed the dude; he can let him have one stupid dance. He'd do anything for Jasper if it meant he never had to see those sad eyes again.
Jasper skips backward, dragging Henry to the center of the yard, face lighting up with a glowing grin like he's won something.
Henry stumbles into Jasper as he pulls him forward, static awakening under his skin when Jasper's palm finds his waist.
Henry twirls out of Jasper's arms but doesn't release his hand; instead, he lifts it and spins Jasper in front of him.
Jasper's hair rises over his head, beads of water flying out as he twirls, laughing with every movement like it's their own private melody.
They shimmy their shoulders, jumping as they get closer to the other, muddy puddles splashing over their feet, neither caring about how it soaks through their jeans.
The unspoken tension washes away when their arms wrap around each other again, enveloping them in the warmth of the other's touch.
Henry's gaze falls over Jasper's soft-focused features as he carefully watches their feet slide over the wet grass, leading Henry in the most horrendous interpretation of a waltz.
They circle around each other as rain falls harder, dripping over their faces when Jasper looks up, and they meet his eye.
"See," Jasper shouts over the downpour, "I told you it'd be fun!"
Henry pants, water rolling off his eyelashes, "I still think you're ridiculous."
Jasper gives him a soaked smirk," I still think you're not being ridiculous enough."
The next thing Henry knows, Jasper's dipping him back. His arms cling to Jasper in a panic, letting out an uncontrollable sound of surprise, a cross between a scream and a squeak, "Oh my god-"
Henry's words get lost in the fall when Jasper suddenly loses his footing, and they tumble to the ground.
He lands on his back, mud coating his flannel and saturating his hair instantly. Jasper is pulled down on top of him, wincing as his head hits Henry's chest, and his knees collide with the sopping dirt on either side of Henry's waist.
Henry inhales a sharp breath, pulse racing at the heat of Jasper's body pressed against his, water rolling off him as their noses touch.
Jasper's wet bangs curtains around them, falling over Henry's forehead as they both pant softly.
Jasper tries to prop himself up, hands pushing into the mud as he rises slightly before slipping back down into Henry's face, their lips dangerously close to touching, but neither moves for the moment.
The rain falling around them keeps them in a perfect stasis of stillness with each other, and Henry finds his gaze flickering down to Jasper's mouth.
Henry lifts his hand without a second thought, making Jasper's features freeze in confusion when Henry caresses his face, his thumb dragging over his bottom lip.
"...Henry?" Jasper calls hoarsely, "Are you okay?"
"Hmm?" Henry blinks, eyes widening as the modification settles in his mind, "Get off me." He snaps, not giving Jasper a chance to collect himself before he shoves him off, "You're too close!"
"Ow!" Jasper curses, picking himself up off the ground, "What the heck!!"
Fuck.
Henry scrambles up to his feet and slides across the wet grass as he races back inside the house. Trying to put some space between them, Jasper follows right behind him, tracking mud across the floor as they enter the living room.
"Hey, what was that?" Jasper calls out, "Why are you running away from me?"
"I'm not running." Henry lies as he moves towards the stairs, "I just- I want to go to my room."
"I'll go with you-"
"No!" Henry loudly cuts him off, pushing his hands into Jasper's chest, "You can't!"
"What?" Jasper frowns, eyebrows knitting together, "Why not?"
"Um- um- because you're filthy," Henry points out, backing up onto the steps, "I can't have you in my room when you're all covered in mud. Sorry!"
Jasper throws his arms in the air, "But you're also covered in mud?!"
"So what!? Henry yells back, bolting up the stairs, "Just stay down here and get cleaned up!"
Henry rushes to his room and leans back against his closing door, chest heavy with panicked breaths as he slides down to the floor, trying desperately to calm the hammering of his heart.
He starts throwing his head back lightly, thumping it over and over again against the wood, letting out a long, frustrated groan.
Why does this suddenly have to be a thing? This was much easier back when they had tiny hands and big hearts. As kids, they played in the rain all the time, and it didn't feel like leading anyone on.
Henry doesn't even know why he did that. It was just an intrusive thought he was too impulsive to stop.
He runs a hand down his face, reeling over the fact he- he nearly put his lips on Jasper's lips? It's' a little weird, but it's' nothing he hasn't done before.
Wait… They've kissed before… Kinda.
In the summer before Junior High, Henry had been so worried about being a lame kisser since he hadn't been kissed before, and Jasper had so convincingly offered to help him 'practice.'
Like, the sneaky, smooth motherfucker he is.
It was only a couple of pecks, nothing real, yet also real enough for Henry to make them both swear never to talk about it again.
Henry had burned the phrase no-homo into his memories and then forced it out of his mind, but now that he knows Jasper's gay, game recognizes game.
Henry had been trying to help him find a girlfriend for years. Jasper even insisted they roleplay 'dates' because he 'couldn't' understand how he was scaring off potential romances.
He must've gone on a dozen 'dates' in an attempt to teach him the ways of wooing women and would get continuously frustrated on Jasper's behalf because he should've been a catch after all his training.
Henry just believed he had bad luck or something, but nope.
Jasper's just been strategically self-sabotaging his every relationship. He didn't get girlfriends because he didn't want to, not because of his unique personality like everyone thought.
He'd 'fall' for girls to have the littlest amount of physical contact with, and then he'd be so overbearingly awkward that they'd eventually ghost him.
This pisses Henry off, and impresses him at the same time, like, fuck, the commitment and the conning is top-tier.
It's so baffling that Jasper was actually smart enough to pull this off. It seems like Henry is the oblivious one in their relationship, which really hurts.
He thought he knew Jasper better than anyone, but it seems like he barely knows him at all.