[right][sub][color=lightgray]TIMESTAMP: After [url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/posts/5410790]Dream Girl[/url]
FT: [color=fccb8e]Avery Kaine[/color], [color=a8d16a]Jericho[/color] & [color=28e0af]Gavriel[/color] Phillips-Shomer[/color][/sub][/right]
[center][url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/users/aces-away][img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/220626/fe2d9304a6eaff80a4d45d6ff074a27f.png[/img][/url]  [img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/220626/20e4a27e1adc68a5da4e5e803a955a8e.png[/img]  [url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/users/lovelycomplex][img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/220626/22d3f6d4b12b79b1c1bf810756ff3845.png[/img][/url]

[img]https://i.imgur.com/qRIvSfy.png[/img]
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[img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/230129/cb948dee6a675e6215351513505da982.png[/img]

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[color=lightgray][indent][indent]Once outside was cleaned from the coffee disaster, JP taking multiple trips with a cup of water to wash the liquid away from the front of Main Street Music, and Gavriel getting Ave’s water to drink, the three were sitting on a sofa by the instrument corner. They were surrounded by mostly guitars. JP sat on the arm, leaving the couch for his lover and his friend, and absentmindedly strummed his own guitar to [i]Twin Flame[/i] by the Gallows, which was part of their unfinished album. Only five phantom tapes existed and he had one. He was a lucky boy. 

The song was on the slower side, an acoustic-ballad, similar to the song Bushido from their first album. The story followed two people finding one another through happenstance, and because of that, their wicks ignite. Despite the darkness inside of them, the overwhelming loneliness, they replenish each other’s illumination, unafraid of the creeping shadow that follows them wherever they go. All thanks to the fact that they have one another. 

JP believed this song was about Esther and Aponi, though one could easily see the platonic side of each chord, each note and each lyric. He let Aves drink her water in silence as he gently sang the words, hoping this helped her spirit, soul and mind. [color=a8d16a]“You look familiar, have we met before? After many lives forevermore, connecting from under the skin, one light out of a magical twin. I found my dreams but the moon took me away… away from her, my soul flame…”[/color]  

Holding the cup in between both hands, Avery watched JP play a song she had never heard before. [color=fccb8e]“Did you write this?”[/color] She inquisitively asked. Listening to the chords made her think of a rainy day, meeting someone you were fated to deeply love. The person that was a true and honest reflection of who you were. Through space and time, one moment with this person makes anything and everything else pale in comparison. Every rule you’ve ever had before this one person, you knew deep down you’d break it because that was the feeling of inevitability. The feeling that without this person you would not exist. Together, you were home in a cosmic dance, bodies made of celestial light. Every cell in your body, on fire. A beautiful collision. [color=fccb8e]“It’s really good.”[/color]

[color=a8d16a]“Ha,”[/color] JP continued to strum his guitar, no longer singing the lyrics. He gave a handsome smile, the one his lover adored the most. The smile that told Rye he was at peace and that nothing mattered but this moment, an ever present smile. [color=a8d16a]“I wish,”[/color] he chuckled to himself. [color=a8d16a]“Nah, this is a Gallows song. They never got to record it in the studio, and I only got a rough sound bit from a jam session. I hope it does sound good because this is my best translation of what I heard.”[/color]

His attention, along with the song he was playing, was pulled away when he noticed Lamb. When did she come into the building? She stood out like a sore thumb. As much as she hated the Scott Street vibe, she always dressed like the Scott Street vibe. He wondered… would his cousin be able to handle herself? 

Returning his gaze to the two on the sofa, he pushed his thoughts to the back burner and gave his guitar a pat. [color=a8d16a]“Music aside, do you feel better?”[/color] Jericho inquired. His eyes went from Avery’s to Rye’s. His stare softened in clear adoration and then went back to strumming to his heart’s content. The only other people here right now were his cousin and Lamb. He knew his cousin wasn’t going to leave anytime soon so he didn’t have to worry and be an outstanding employee in this instant. With no immediate customers to assist, he chose to stay in his element, doing what he loved and did best. Playing music and making someone feel better. If Lamb needed him he was sure she’d get him, she wasn’t one to hesitate when she needed something especially when it came to buying music for her father.  

[color=fccb8e]“Oh wow, that’s neat,”[/color] Avery admitted, while subconsciously texting Clayton an update: [color=fccb8e][i]Holyfuckingshit. I might be dead because Jamie, me, us… we kissed. I’m def ded.[/i][/color] Glancing from her phone to the musical prodigy, she raised an eyebrow in intrigue. She didn’t realize there were secret remnants of gold from a timeless band. Short lived but not forgotten. Remnants that true die-hards would love to get their hands on. [color=fccb8e]“And I’m getting there, I think. I still can’t believe [i]that[/i] just happened honestly. She told me not to overthink it and how badly she wanted it, she wanted me. I can’t lie and say I didn’t want it. God, I still want it. I want her. But fuck guys, she’s [i]married[/i].”[/color] Avery internally scolded herself as she anxiously tapped her fingers on the plastic cup she was holding. [color=fccb8e]“Avery Kaine, the woman that broke up a goddamn marriage.”[/color]

[color=28e0af]“Because as we all know: in Edenridge, adultery is the worst and most scandalous thing that can happen,”[/color] Rye replied with a raised eyebrow for the blonde, shifting to face her fully and putting his feet up between them as he rested his head on JP’s thigh. The vibrations from the guitar thrummed pleasantly in his skull and he closed his eyes for a short moment to just enjoy his lover’s talent before returning his attention to the blonde. [color=28e0af]“Sweet summer child, you’re talking to the legal step brothers that never stopped being lovers when their moms got married. And how do you know there wasn’t something that was breaking the marriage up already?”[/color] The younger man watched Avery’s face for her response, content to read her lips and expression while keeping his head where it was against JP behind his guitar.  

[color=fccb8e]“That doesn’t make what I did [i]right[/i],”[/color] Avery retorted, dreading the consequences of her actions. Her gaydar did think it was weird that Jamie married Russ of all people but she had no choice but to accept that’s what her dream girl wanted. It was also a marriage the Gossip moms would never look too deep into. A perfect cover up. Even with that being said, the Queen of Freaks & Geeks didn’t do anything crazy. She was a girl that worked at a comic book store and the most interesting thing about her life was the comics she read, sold, and exchanged, as well as all the people that found comfort and safety in her dad’s business. [color=fccb8e]“Like I’ve never done something so irrational, so motivated by emotion before. All I could think of was: this could be my only chance to kiss Jamie and now that it’s over, I’m sitting in the aftermath and wondering where it’s going to go wrong.”[/color] 

This was Edenridge, after all. 

[color=28e0af]“You’re sounding a bit like me right now, and I’m a fan of having a monopoly on myself,”[/color] The curly haired man bantered while also giving her a concerned glance. [color=28e0af]“You weren’t exactly the aggressor, for lack of a better word, like she totally initiated that little session y’all had that fogged up MSM’s windows,”[/color] he feigned a slight swoon and fanned at his face. [color=28e0af]“Honestly I think somehow that caused some good karma ‘cause it sure lit up my day.”[/color]

As his lover and friend talked to one another, Jericho did look over his shoulder to search for Lamb, only to find Sadie at a distance mad dogging him. He rolled his eyes and told her non-verbally to just go up to her and be cool. It was clear his cousin needed approval to take this leap of faith. When she finally started making her way to Laura, he breathed out in relief and wished her good luck internally. Sadie was such a silly goose sometimes. 

Smirking at Rye’s comments, Avery took a small sip of water. He was right. Jamie was the initiator which was great because that meant her feelings were reciprocated. It was also not great because it gave her hope when there might not be any. [color=fccb8e]“You know what’s wild? I used to have game and be able to sleep with whatever girl I wanted. Bron basically threw herself on me last night and—”[/color]

[color=a8d16a]“She did what?”[/color] JP stopped strumming his guitar, bringing himself back to the conversation happening around him. He was getting more and more invested by Avery’s life by the minute. Who knew Aves would get caught up with such scandalous drama. Certainly not him. [color=a8d16a]“It’s on brand for Bron but I don’t remember you two being in the same circle. She was at Swerve?”[/color]

[color=fccb8e]“Eeyupp,”[/color] Avery laughed to herself, the rim of the cup against her lips. She took a gulp this time. [color=fccb8e]“Last night was weird, but basically we were playing games, she gave me a lap dance, and she had Katie recording it.”[/color] 

[color=a8d16a]“Yeah, and then what?”[/color] JP probed.

[color=fccb8e]“Then they sent the video to Jamie and I DIED.”[/color] Aves exclaimed, the embarrassment no longer inside her from yesterday. She could tell these two were great at distracting. She should talk to them more often. 

JP grinned from ear to ear. Sounds like Swerve Arcana had a party and he wasn’t invited. [color=a8d16a]“That was enough to inspire Jamie, huh?”[/color] He teased, placing his guitar to the side, leaning it up against the table. Running his fingers through Rye’s hair, he observed the older woman (his senior when he was a sophomore) eagerly waiting for the tea. 

After placing her cup back down, she ran her hand through her own hair and squinted her face, [color=fccb8e]“Not necessarily.”[/color] This was getting good. She knew, because it happened to her. [color=fccb8e]“Jamie came by randomly that day. Scared the shit out of me. So I’m being cool, right? Showing her around since she’s literally never been inside of Swerve, ever. She asks me to show her a story and I,”[/color] Avery paused momentarily. Leaning toward the two boys, like she was going in to tell them a secret, the suave geek continued, [color=fccb8e]“I told her [i]‘Why don’t we make a story together?[/i]”[/color] To emphasize her pick up line, Aves jokingly wiggled her eyebrows. 

[color=28e0af]“Oh man, I should’ve had you as my wingman during the game with my best friend in highschool,”[/color] Rye laughed, pushing into the pressure of his love’s fingers on his head. His curls were going to look ridiculous once JP was done playing with it, but it was always a habit of the older man’s and Rye never much cared when his curls frizzed out from being played with. He always longed for physical contact from those he loved, so some curls becoming uncoupled was a small price to pay for the attention he craved. [color=28e0af]“I feel like corny lines are the way to go, honestly. There’s something much more pure about that,”[/color] He said supportively. [color=28e0af]“Everyone says they hate cheesy jokes until they’re laughing at a pun you made right before you go down on them.”[/color]

[color=fccb8e]“Hey it’s just how I be,”[/color] Avery commented, surveying JP as he played with his lover’s hair. [color=fccb8e]“I must’ve did something right if it inspired Jamie to make a move.”[/color] Finally, she was able to leave the heated embrace with her dream girl as it was and not overthink the consequences that could occur because of it. It happened, she couldn’t take it back nor would she want to. Jamie kissed her and Jamie kissed her back. She’d take the moment for what it was, which was just that: a moment. [color=fccb8e]“I hope this doesn’t mean things are going to be weird between us, but if it is, it is what it is. Now!”[/color] Aves clasped her hands together and changed the subject. She jested and asked, [color=fccb8e]“Enough about me. How are you two? Things good in Loversville? Not staying up all night fucking are you? Sleep is important.”[/color]

Rye laughed and turned his face into JP’s thigh, enjoying Avery’s candor and abrupt turning of the tables. [color=28e0af]“I flipped my shit on him last night only to pass out wrapped around him like a koala. Didn’t get too much sleep,”[/color] He smirked at her, giving her the silent answer to the second part of her question. [color=28e0af]“I’m still crazy and anxious and no doubt there are more talks on the horizon, but ultimately I’m glad my dumb ass decided to schlep through a storm on the high of a panic attack.”[/color] He reached up and grabbed JP’s hand now that the man had stopped playing the guitar, gently running his thumb over the other’s knuckles and smiling up at him.

Jericho gazed down at his boyfriend. He looked deeply into the other man’s pretty and big brown eyes, warm and polished, like amber when the sun seeps into their window. JP knew Rye’s fears, what made him sad, what made him smile, what made him laugh. He’d like to think his Sprinkles knew the details about him, even through the silence, but he also knew there were some things he would never know unless he told him. Spoke it outloud. 

An ongoing struggle was sharing the little things that made it seem like JP was not as put together as he liked to be. Briefly, the musician went into a daze, getting lost in the deep gaze of his lover, as they gently touched each other with their hands. He snapped out of it. It seemed like he didn’t realize he was staring for a moment too long. Continuing the conversation, like he wasn’t just lost in thought, JP sighed and earnestly expressed, [color=a8d16a]“That was my fault.”[/color] Bringing his attention back to Aves, he continued while keeping his touch in contact with his soul flame, [color=a8d16a]“I wasn’t clear with some things.”[/color] 

Rye did his best not to frown as he noticed his lover’s loss of focus before he spoke up. He changed their grasp from him holding JP’s hand to twining their fingers together, tightening his grip both lovingly and to let the man know that he could see him. He knew that he’d been wrapped up in his own crazy since returning from taking care of his savta, and he knew that JP was his rock. He just wanted the older man to know that Rye could be [i]his[/i] rock too, if he’d let him. This wasn’t his complex of picking up broken beings and trying to stave off their complete shattering by befriending them, this was a matter of the man he’d loved before he ever understood it not feeling like he could ‘add on’ to Rye’s emotional load. He had room for everybody. He had to.

[color=28e0af]“I mean I was definitely also to blame,”[/color] He countered, having managed to keep any tells off of his face when he returned his gaze to Avery. [color=28e0af]“I’m great at reading lips and faces, horrible at reading changes happening around me. Plus I overreacted like crazy and didn’t stop to… smell the flowers,”[/color] He grinned brightly up at JP, as proud of his little joke as he was sure it would make most lovers groan in dismay. His inability to see or smell his favorite flower as he entered the apartment was something that still left him a bit ashamed, given that it would have at least given him enough pause to not start hurling accusations and insecurities at the man who was just trying to do something sweet. [color=28e0af]“My Apollo was doing his best, and I wasn’t slowing down enough to see it.”[/color]

[color=a8d16a]“You didn’t overreact. Your emotions are valid,”[/color] JP grumbled, furrowing his eyebrows. He stared at Rye, not really caring if Avery was about to witness a lovers’ quarrel. Main Street Music was a place he was more himself than his home. It was the place he spent the most time at. Aves would know because she had her own in Swerve Arcana. [color=a8d16a]“I intentionally withheld information from you and it led to you thinking I abandoned you. All because I couldn’t say what was on my mind? That was a jackass thing for me to do.”[/color] JP couldn’t even enjoy Rye’s joke and the fact that he was trying to lighten the mood because deep down, he still wasn’t over last night. They put brakes on it and went straight to sex but there was still information that JP withheld. He wasn’t being completely honest and it irritated him that Rye was so forgiving when he was not in the wrong. JP was. [color=a8d16a]“I wasn’t doing my best, and I think you know that.”[/color]

Rye shifted uncomfortably under his lover’s gaze, which had become a different shade of intense than they had been when looking down at him earlier. He avoided Avery’s eyes as his own found their way to his feet. He didn’t like being told what he knew, but JP also wasn’t wrong; he was hurt that the older man couldn’t have just said something, and finding his stuff gone or boxed up had been extremely triggering for the anxious man. It had reminded him of when Decky left and he got no closure. More crushingly, it had reminded him of the day he woke up in his house back in Cleveland, where he’d come out of his room and his mother was in the kitchen drinking a glass of wine and staring out at their family portrait on the living room wall by the front door. He had come out to his parents the night before and it had ended in his mother declaring to Yosef that they would be getting a divorce. He had never imagined that his father would spend all night packing just to leave before his son awoke while Gavriel himself had had to take his medication to get to sleep. It was the only reason he had slept through everything and missed the chance to see his father one last time. To think he had left so quickly just to avoid having to interact with Gavriel again. It hurt. 

[color=28e0af]“You weren’t trying to hurt me,”[/color] He finally replied, dragging his eyes up to watch JP’s face. This is the man that holds Rye together when he thinks he's falling apart, how can he hold one misjudgement against him? [color=28e0af]“You weren’t trying to scare me or be cruel, a-at least I don’t think you were, and I can work through some of my own shit about why I reacted how I did. I’m not going to hold a grudge against you for not communicating fully or-or correctly or whatever, especially when I wasn’t either,”[/color] He doesn’t talk about his father. JP may know that Rye has abandonment issues, he may know that Rye doesn’t talk to his father, but the younger man had never actually told the story or circumstances behind it. How it was his fault. JP couldn’t have understood the level of pain he’d caused with his actions because Rye had never opened up on that particular matter. 

And no matter what JP said, he knew he overreacted, and he knew he was a wreck, and that he could let his anxieties take over and rule his rational thought. He also knew that when he [i]was[/i] adrift, getting tossed to and fro in the raging ocean of his anxieties, JP was the lighthouse he steered towards. When JP is the cause, rare as the circumstance may be, Rye feels like he’s drowning and can’t find shore until things are resolved. In times like these where the worst of it is over but things still aren’t fully resolved, it’s like he’s just keeping his head above water, searching for his lighthouse before the next wave crashes down and sends him back under. He swallowed back all of these feelings and thoughts as he declared, [color=28e0af]“You’re allowed to be human and fuck up sometimes too, you know.”[/color]

He was right. As much as JP wanted to argue Rye’s point, he knew his worst enemy was himself. It was hard to dismantle this part of him. There was a reason Rye didn’t talk about his father and there was a reason JP didn’t either. Their paternal figures were a sore spot for the both of them. The main difference was JP had hints and enough information from Gavriel to know why he had as many insecurities as he did, likely rooting back to his father. It didn’t take a brain surgeon to see Rye’s daddy issues. It impacted his love life and Decky suddenly leaving without a word set him back ten fold. He would know because JP had to pick up the pieces. Rye didn’t even have to say much for JP to understand what he wanted and needed. Communication was something Rye was always good at, even if sometimes he communicated too much. It was Rye who made the first move. As abrasive and impulsive as he can be, the younger man knew how to speak his mess into existence and let people know he was doing his best. And that’s all he could do. His best. 

Jericho didn’t care that he didn’t know every little detail about his boyfriend. He sure as hell hadn’t told Rye everything. All he wanted was the man he saw a future with to be okay. That goal wasn’t the most unattainable when there were only things that Rye could resolve. Jericho didn’t like feeling useless but Rye was caught in a vicious cycle and he had no idea how to pull him out. Like Rye, he was doing his best but it sucked that he was the cause for his lover’s pain last night. He should’ve just opened up and told him. Sadly, JP was caught in his own vicious cycle. One that prevented him from speaking his mess into existence because he didn’t want to be seen as unreliable and weak. [color=a8d16a]“You’re right,”[/color] JP forfeited the battle, trying to force a smile. He clearly had more on his mind than he’d ever like to admit. He opened his mouth to say something more. 

[color=6ac48f]“JP, yo! Register,”[/color] Sadie called out from the other side of MSM, distracting him from his thought process.  

Leisurely, he tapped Rye to sit up and hopped up to his feet from the arm rest. [color=a8d16a]“I’ll be back. Work calls me,”[/color] Jericho saluted Avery and Rye, walking backwards, away from the instrument corner. Turning on his heel, the prodigal music boy strolled away, his thumbs hooked in his pant’s pockets.

Avery observed the lovers’ quarrel unfold and then proceeded to see JP’s back get further and further away. She gazed into Rye’s brown eyes, seeking connection if that’s what he wanted and needed. [color=fccb8e]“You okay?”[/color] She asked with a kind heart, a worried mind, and an empathetic soul. She didn’t expect the turn of events but if Rye needed her guidance, she would happily provide it. It was the least she could do for him, especially for his actions the past few minutes. Providing her a much needed distraction from Jamie. 

Rye gave a hollow laugh and grabbed a pillow from the couch to wrap his arms around, meeting Avery’s eyes briefly before his gaze found his feet once more, this time planted firmly on the ground. [color=28e0af]“Am I ever?”[/color] He joked before clearing his throat and looking over to JP. [color=28e0af]“Sorry. No, not really. I’m not- not good, I mean. I want him to talk to me. I know I talk too much but I need him to talk [i]more[/i]. I don’t think I’m like him…I can’t just look at someone and know what they want, I mean I’ve spent my whole life feeling like I’m playing a board game that everyone but myself has the rules for,”[/color] His gaze diverted to Avery once more before returning to the floor. [color=28e0af]“He always knows how to help me, but I don’t know how to help him. I think most of my ability to comfort people is just dumb luck, and it doesn’t apply with him at all,”[/color] the pillow was collapsing under his tight grasp, and he took a moment to just breathe and relax his white knuckled grip on the rough woven fabric. [color=28e0af]“Sorry. He’s just the best thing that ever happened to me and I can see him hurting, I’ve always seen him hurting but I’ve never been able to help, like he doesn’t open up and it leads to stupid misunderstandings like the one that fucked me up last night.”[/color]

Leaning forward, clasping her hands together, she glanced over to Gavriel who was seeking comfort and direction. He was hard on himself, just like JP was. He had daddy issues, just like JP did. He cared deeply, just like JP always has. Those two boys had more common threads than either probably knew. One simply showed his demons more openly and coped by speaking. The chaos that was in Rye’s mind likely wasn’t too different from the chaos in his soulmate’s mind but they grew up in different environments. Rye, an only child, only had to worry about himself and now is trying to be a change in people’s lives because of the loneliness he suffered as a kid. JP, the only boy out of four, had no choice but to worry about everyone but himself and now is stuck in a mentality that if he breaks, everything around him will fall apart. Two sides of the same coin, that complimented each other beautifully. They both simply needed to change their perspective. 

[color=fccb8e]“I’m going to give you a piece of advice, warranted or not,”[/color] Avery started, reflective and not shifting her position where her elbows rested on her thighs. [color=fccb8e]“My parents are stupid for each other but they taught me a thing or two about having a strong, lasting marriage. Maybe that’s why I can’t get over Jamie,”[/color] the geek smiled, getting back to her true self, which wasn’t anxiety ridden. She was level headed, most of the time, with a goofy personality. Aves wasn’t known for letting the unknowns eat at her. She knew, even alone, she was content and happy. Having Jamie would make her life ten times better but she didn’t need Jamie. She desired her, she wanted to compliment her, she wanted to make her smile, but without Jamie? She would always be Avery Kaine, the token geek of Class of 2017. 

[color=fccb8e]“When you look at Jericho, I imagine you just know. He is your person. Whether he’s talked about his past or not, there’s more things that weave your souls together than you know. I won’t go too deep into his life, since I’m sure you want to hear it from his lips, and no, he didn’t tell me the details. Sable did. JP’s hand was forced and all he’s ever known is: I have to stand and carry. I have to soak your tears. If I don’t, what happens to me? Will I be okay? Will they leave me? Will I fail them so bad that they want nothing to do with me? I wish I could take their pain away. I wish I could carry it all. If they’re not okay, I’m not okay.”[/color] Unclasping her hands, she leaned back and locked her eyes with Rye and gave a kind smile, [color=fccb8e]“Sound familiar?”[/color] She let the silence between them speak for itself. 

In hopes that Rye would process all her words, she stayed quiet for a little bit longer before urging, [color=fccb8e]“I want you to try your best to break the notion that you are his rock and he is yours. Or lighthouse or whatever cliche you probably got your mind wrapped around. A rock never moves. Neither does a lighthouse. We are organic beings, we’re [i]always[/i] moving.”[/color]

Rye allowed himself a moment of open embarrassment as the usually fun and geeky girl gave him the gift of words and showed him that she could read in between his own. If he wasn’t aware of how golden what she was presenting to him was- JP’s anxieties he hides, his daily mental fights he keeps hidden from even those he loves most- he’d have joked about her being psychic or breaking the fourth wall as if they’re in a book or a show. But the truth was that it was just Avery, and she was fantastic at watching, listening, and absorbing. This town was damn lucky that she wasn’t an unbearable gossip. 

Tapping her pointer finger on her right leg, she thought of her own personal journey and why she was so deeply and madly in love with Jamie after all these years. Why she couldn’t look away no matter how many times she tried. [color=fccb8e]“To expect he will never move and follow that wanderlust you know he has is unfair, don’t you think? That’s forcing his hand and showing him that you, Gavriel, cannot be your own light. Your own rock. The thing about relationships is, we’re not rocks. We’re not inanimate objects. We’re films. We’re stories. We all have our own strengths, quirks, flaws, the whole nine yards. We start off as black and white, which back in the day was a phenomenon. The fact that we could even film? Amazing. But then you met him, you saw him for the first time, and things were never the same. JP brightened your life, brought a smile to your face, loved you for you and never asked for you to change. JP made your world better, but at the end of the day, that’s [i]your[/i] world and he wants to make home in your heart, like you’ve made a home in his.”[/color]

Turning herself fully toward the sweet, younger boy, she gave a playful grin, [color=fccb8e]“Gavriel, be his technicolor. Enhance and brighten. Color makes a movie so engaging, so rich, but he is still his own film. You don’t have personal power over him and he doesn’t over you. Bring him joy, intensity, and light. His movie will still be rolling but it’s ten times better with you in it. Be whole, be happy, and the rest will fall into place. Does this make sense?”[/color] 

Removing his gaze now that he knew she was done talking, Rye looked over to his love at the register. His Apollo. The irony of that being the nickname Rye had adorned him with while carrying a love for the Hyacinth flower was not lost on him, especially in this moment. Hyacinthus had been a human who had caught the eye of the god Apollo, and the two had fallen rather hard for each other. A lover of sports, as many in his culture were, Hyacinthus had gone with Apollo to an open area to practice some discus. His lover and god had thrown the disc high into the sky with the intention of scattering the clouds and giving them more light to play under. The story tends to split here, falling into the two most popular iterations where either Hyacinthus dies trying to catch the returning disc and misses it, only for it to hit his head, or that the god of the west wind, Zephyrus, was also in love with Hyacinthus and in a fit of pettiness he changed the course of the disc to hit the mortal in the head, killing him. Apollo’s powers as a god of medicine could not heal him. The blood from his head sprouted a beautiful flower, which Apollo deemed the Hyacinth in memory of the mortal who had the sun chasing him. 

Rye always felt like a mortal chasing a god because JP was so beyond him, so far out of reach yet willing to come down to earth and find mortal muses and love, to find him. He always knew that it wasn’t as drastic as his mind made it to be, and Avery blowing through his internal metaphors like the tornado from Wizard of Oz finally helped him settle away from that thought process. He’d told JP that the man was human and he was allowed to make mistakes, so it was time to stop seeing him as everything but human in his mind’s eye.

[color=28e0af]“Bring color to him, huh?”[/color] Rye asked quietly as he met her gaze once more and gave her a nervous smile. [color=28e0af]“Ok. Ok, no more rocks, no more lighthouses- and that’s freaky as shit that you knew what I was thinking by the way, but we’ll get to that another time- but instead brighter color, turn this shit into the infomercials of old where they talk about remastering the black and white into technicolor and shit. I gotchu. I can do that, right? I mean I could try at least and if I’m gonna be my own light then you need light to make colors in the first place-”[/color] he rambled quickly, losing focus as he took Avery’s words in and worked on convincing himself the rest of the way. He dropped the pillow as his hands began flying along with his words. [color=28e0af]“-I totally got this, just get me a glass prism ‘cause I’ll shine rainbow light all over this bitch!”[/color]

His enthusiasm was rewarded with laughter from the older woman. [color=fccb8e]“Thank you, dude. This actually helped me too, believe it or not.”[/color] Avery nudged the side of him and looked at him with appreciation while he returned the gesture. Standing up, she grabbed her cup of water and turned to the younger man. She was his senior when he was a freshman. It was nice to feel of use by someone not of her usual anxiety ridden clientele (damn Midnighters). [color=fccb8e]“Sometimes you have to speak out loud to understand what’s on your mind. Maybe that’s exactly what your boyfriend needs.”[/color] She winked at him, before glancing up and noticing the man of the hour. [color=fccb8e]“Speaking of the devil,”[/color] she nodded at JP who had watched his cousin and Lamb take their leave, together. [color=fccb8e]“Lamb made a new friend?”[/color]

[color=a8d16a]“Something like that,”[/color] Jericho mused, knowing Lamb’s life was about to turn upside down. 

[color=fccb8e]“Okay cool. Well. As much as I’d love to stay, I have a job to do but this was awesome. We should totally do this more often. Maybe less bickering though,”[/color] she teased, sticking out her tongue. [color=fccb8e]“Thanks, you two. Really. I do hope what happened today is a beginning, not an end. But I guess we’ll just have to wait and see! Until then, you know where to find me.”[/color] Aves took a dramatic bow, like a jester would for a royal court. Once she said her goodbyes, she dismissed herself.

As the geek queen walked away, JP reached for Rye’s hand and pulled his boyfriend to his feet. [color=a8d16a]“We should do a trial interview before you see Beau tomorrow.”[/color] He briefly paused, searching in Rye’s big, brown eyes to find the emotions that were troubling him. [color=a8d16a]“I need to go through our donation pile and see what’s sellable, we can go over some questions while I work? Would that be okay with you?”[/color] Oh and before he went too hard in planner boyfriend mode. He wrapped his arms around his boyfriend and gently bent back Rye’s head across his arm. Softly and with tenderness only meant for his lover, JP kissed him. There was a leisure progression in intensity, his insistent mouth parting Rye’s lips sensually. This was Jericho’s way of apologizing. He felt bad for the way he acted and the best way he could show how he felt was through a kiss. Pulling his head away from Rye, he whispered, [color=a8d16a]“I’m sorry. Be patient with me please.”[/color]

[color=28e0af]“How could I ever be anything less,”[/color] Rye replied in a breathy whisper as he stared up into the dark eyes that reminded him of moonlight forest paths and polished gemstones. Rarity and beauty all found in the gaze of a man he’d never have found had he not started his journey by being true to himself. He’d followed that long path right into his forever’s arms and he never wanted to leave. [color=28e0af]“We can definitely do a mock interview, but if you’re tired and want to focus on the donations I’ve got no problem just working on the possible questions myself, homework style. I know you didn’t sleep much, and I [i]can[/i] do some things on my own,”[/color] He kissed his love once more to show he was being light-hearted before returning to the couch to grab the journal he’d brought with him from the apartment. He opened it for JP to see the small list he’d started earlier this morning of possible questions that could come up in the interview, a few of them even having answers written below. [color=28e0af]“I know it’s not much, but I already started.”[/color]

[color=a8d16a]“If that’s what you want,”[/color] JP ruffled his boyfriend’s hair. [color=a8d16a]“I still want to do a mock trial before the day is over. I think it’ll be fun to act like Mr. Beau. Throw in some literature quote and it turns into a therapy session.”[/color] Jericho chuckled, thinking of his one of a kind English professor, always down to listen and provide wisdom when needed. A good man in a town full of darkness.  [color=a8d16a]“But for now, I’ll let you do your thing.”[/color] JP leaned down and gave another quick peck on Rye’s lips. [color=a8d16a]“I won’t be too far if you need me,”[/color] he muttered before stepping back and putting distance between them. 

[color=28e0af]“You never are,”[/color] Rye replied to the empty space that Jericho had previously inhabited, journal held tight to his chest. JP was still focused on what Rye wanted instead of what he wanted himself, but Rye had to admit that the idea of JP sounding like Mr. Beau put another smile on his face as he watched JP head to the donations, taking his own seat back on the couch and grabbing a pen off the table so he could return to the lined page before him. [color=28e0af]“And I think I always will.”[/color][/indent][/indent][/color]