Dear Mr. Gaskarth (12+13/?)
Titled: Dear Mr. Gaskarth (12+13/?)
Author: chasingxrabbits
Pairing: Jalex, Slight Merrikat and Olex (Alex and Oli)
Rating: NC-17
Dedications: sausajizz , she requested this of me a while ago.
Disclaimer: I don't own the boys at all, but the plot belongs to sausajizz and myself
Dear god, it's been a while.
Tumblr here
Masterpost
"Hey," Jack said quietly, adverting his eyes as soon as the bright green ones met his. Rian was quiet and quick to excuse himself to go home, leaving the two to talk and Jack leaned against Zack's Toyota casually.
"Hi, Jack," Zack said quietly, stuffing his back pack into the back seat of his car, trying his best to ignore the other boy but failing when Jack reached forward to stroke his fingers down Zack's arm.
"I'm sorry about ignoring you before," he said quietly, but Zack shook him off, opening the driver's side door and climbing in. Jack caught the door just before the younger Senior could shut it.
"Look, Zack, I wanna make it up to you," he tried and Zack's eyebrows furrowed.
"Jack, if you didn't enjoy our 'date' then it's okay. Just stop trying," Zack answered and pulled the door shut, leaving Jack to stand there, dumb founded, in the parking lot of the school.
-
When he finally made it home - he had to walk because Rian had given him a ride to school that day - he litterally crashed ove the side of the couch with a thud. His backpack spilled onto the floor, papers and books falling out all over as he shut his eyes and laid, face down in the silence.
Before he knew it, he was begining to doze off and he pulled the quilt off the back of the sofa and draped it over his lower half, scooching up until his head was laying over the arm rest. It wasn't particualrly comfortable but he wasn't about to get up and go to his bed - he just wanted to relax.
He reached for the TV remote and flipped it on, turning it right away to some cartoons for back ground noise before he shut his eyes and blindly kicked off his shoes.
Spongebob was saying something about jellyfishing when Jack began to doze off and he tugged the blanket closer to his face when he barely heard a knock at the front door.
He mumbled something like a "go away" but the noise didn't stop and another knock came then.
"Jack," a voice called behind it and Jack opened one of his tired eyes to peek out the window by the door. Zack was peeking in at him with a sheepish smile and Jack stood then, throwing off his blanket and bolting over to unlock it for him.
"Hey," he greeted, hopeful to get a good reaction from the younger. The smile he got was, instead, nervous and worrying.
"Can I come in?" Zack asked after a second and it was then that Jack realized he'd just been standing, staring at him for that time. The boy's green eyes gestured into the house as Jack let him past, shutting the door behind him.
He let Zack situate himself on the couch before he folded the blanket and laid it on the floor next to them before sitting down next to the boy, far enough away for it to be just comfortable.
"So," Jack started, hoping that would get the boy to talk, say something but it took him a moment to open his lips to speak.
"I just wanted to say that I was sorry for being so mean earlier," Zack said quietly and Jack shook his head, silencing him by placing his forefinger to the boy's pink lips.
"It's not you, I swear," Jack explained, smiling a little at how the younger's eyes crossed, staring at Jack's digit as his cheeks pinkened. He pulled away from it after a second with an embarased smile, reaching up to occupy himself with playing with his hair.
"It's not you," Jack repeated, putting his hand down on the sofa awkwardly. "It was totally me. I understand why you were upset; I would be too."
Zack's top teeth reached out and bit down on his plump bottom lip, eyes moving from Jack to something suddenly interesting on the wall.
"I just felt weird about it after our...date, you know," Jack finished.
Zack let out a little sigh, crumpling a bit in on himself before he reached forward, pulling Jack into a half hug. "I kind of thought you would honestly. I was just hoping that it would be perfect and it wasn't so I got pretty upset, I guess."
Jack gave him a little, awkward laugh as he gently hugged the boy back, ignoring the little flip his stomach did.
"So, what now?" Zack asked, brow furrowing a little as if he were worried what Jack would say.
"I dunno, you wanna stay for dinner?" Jack offered, standing and stretching from his light nap and Zack seemed to consider. "Mom's gone tonight."
"I suppose I could," the younger answered and trotting behind Jack into the kitchen and watching him dig through the cupboards.
"Not sure what to make."
Zack bit back a grin and he perched himself cutely on the counter next to Jack as he rummaged through the fridge.
"You gunna cook for me?"
Jack paused then, hand on the ice cream bucket before looking over at the boy with a cautious smile. He quirked a brow at the smirk that seeped onto Zack's lips. "That was the plan."
"Isn't that a little romantic for a 'straight' boy?"
Jack offered a little laugh, shutting the fridge before stepping over to Zack, parting his legs before settling in between them, face-to-face. They locked eyes, just sitting there for a second before Zack reached out to run his fingers through the other's raven and skunk bangs, pulling him forward.
Jack's stomach did a flip inside him, bile rising in his throat until all he could hear was Kyle's earlier warning. He put a hand on the boy's chest, stopping him instantly from connecting their lips as he turned his head down to stare at the floor.
Zack stared at him with wide, green eyes as he waited for Jack to talk.
"I would kiss you, Zack," he started, still not meeting his eyes. "But I'm afraid it's going to ruin something."
The younger just nodded, putting on a face to cover the disappointment he felt as Jack looked up at him again.
"When you're ready."
--
Jack ended up making maccaroni and cheese for them for dinner with a maximum teasing from Zack before they sat down at the dining table to eat.
"This is actually pretty nice, huh?" Jack asked, taking the pepper and grinding some over his food and Zack agreed on the other side with a wide smile.
"I think it's pretty cute that you still buy Pokemon mac and cheese, Jack," he teased as he took a bite.
"It just tastes better," he said in defense and Zack nodded in agreement.
"So, how is school going for you?"
Jack shook his head with a defeated smile. "I'm not gunna lie, math is damn hard this year."
"Oh, no. And you're like...the math wiz," Zack said in mock horror. "Thank god I won't ever have to take Geometry. I'd fail."
"Yeah, well, it does suck."
"What about English? How's that for you?" Zack asked then as he picked up the glass of juice that he'd poured himself. Jack paused with the fork half way to his mouth and he put it down, back onto his plate.
"Uh," he started and Zack was suddenly interested in what he was going to say. He was expected some simple answer like "fine" but since Jack was hesitating he figured it must have been pretty good.
Mean while, Jack was considering whether he should say something like ' I have one of the hottest teachers ever' but he decided against that. After all, Alex wasn't anything special.
"It's fine, I guess. Interesting teacher," he said and it wasn't a lie. Defintely not. Zack seemed intrigued by that, sitting up better in his chair to get a good look at Jack.
"Miss Mae?"
"Naw, she got a new guy," Jack answered simply, wishing more than anything that the boy would just drop the subject completely but he didn't.
"A new...guy that you're interested in?" Zack said with a teasing tone but he was really waiting intently for Jack to answer, interest having been completely peaked by the new information.
"I, uh, I guess. He's just an interesting guy, you know," Jack bluffed, though he knew it wasn't totally a lie, or a lie at all for that manner, it just wasn't the whole truth.
"Hmm," Zack hummed when he didn't get anything super interesting from him and they continued on through dinner then.
Thirteen
One week later
"Jack," Alex called, tapping his fingers against his desk with a quirked eyebrow and Jack peered over at him with questioning eyes. "Come here."
Kyle gave him a questioning look from beside him and Jack stood, walking over to the teacher and standing in front of his desk expectantly.
"What is this?" Alex asked, pursed lips as he lifted an few sheets of paper to the teen. Jack bit down on his bottom lip as he looked at it.
"My essay?"
"Yeah, that's right." He set the papers down before looking back up at Jack through a caramel fringe. "And it sucks. Bad."
Jack sneered, hanging his head as he stared down at the dark wooded desk.
"I can't accept this work, Jack. It's like you're not even trying," he complained and Jack looked up at him then.
"I am! I'm just not a good writer," Jack admitted.
"You are, Jack, okay? Just, try it again tonight. Pick a different topic or something; maybe something that interests you more than this," Alex suggested, holding up the sheets for Jack to see.
Jack scowled, putting his hands down hard on the desk in front of him. "I don't want to re-do that, Alex. I did it once and I won't do it again."
Alex pursed his lips, biting back harsh words and instead did the opposite, resting back in his chair and offering a forced smile.
"Okay, here. How about I meet you tonight somewhere and I can maybe help you with it," he tried and Jack crossed his arms over his chest, half-turning away from him in favor of pretending to be interested in something else.
"I don't want your help, Alex," he refused, half-heartedly and Alex smirked then.
"I think you do. I'll be stopping over at your house tonight for dinner."
--
Jack found himself racing home after school to tell his mom to make something good because they were expecting important company.
"You invited him over, Jack? That was thoughtful," she complimented as she dragged a wooden spoon through the sauce that she was making for dinner. She reached into the cupboard and shook a few dashes of some spice into it before turning to Jack then who was digging through his book-bag on the table.
"I guess," Jack said as he rolled his eyes. He wasn't about to tell her that Alex had just invited himself over, completely last minute in an attempt to embarrass Jack over not re-doing his essay.
"It'll be fine," Joyce assured with a warm smile and Jack had to applaud that woman; how the hell could she be so calm letting someone like Alex into their house? He'd find something on Jack for sure.
"Why don't you go shower and make yourself look nice?" she suggested and Jack scoffed, looking down at his math homework, completely finished from study hall. "He said around six, right?"
Jack just nodded as he stood from his spot before making his way up the stairs to shower like his mother had said.
It was exactly 5:59 when the door bell rang and Jack was still running his fingers through his hair, waiting for the mouse to dry through the raven and skunk locks.
"I'll get it," he assured as he bolted down the stairs. His mother called an approval from the kitchen just as she was setting out plates on the table and Jack brushed a piece of fuzz from his deep green t-shirt.
He stepped to the door, flicking the lock undone and opening it. Alex was standing there with his hands folded in front of his bright purple button down shirt. He'd paired it with black skinny jeans, a long thin tie that hung from his neck and a black beanie over his shaggy caramel hair.
"Hey," Jack greeted half-heartedly and Alex gave him a little nod. The younger stepped aside, letting him in the house before shutting the door behind him.
"Nice," Alex complimented, glancing around the living room full of expensive furnishings and decor.
"Yeah." Jack nodded, understanding completely that he didn't seem like the upper-middle class type. Joyce was entering the living room then with a warm smile that nearly fell when she saw their guest. She paused, about two feet from Alex and took his hand in a gentle shake.
"You're Jack's teacher then?" she asked like maybe he'd gotten the wrong house. It was only then that Jack realized he'd forgotten to tell her that his English teacher was a twenty-something year old bombshell. But he was nothing special.
"Alex Gaskarth," he clarified and extended a hand for her to shake. She took it with slightly widened eyes and Jack just tried not to look like the tension between the older two was painfully awkward.
"Well then," she said simply and went back to her place in the kitchen. "Dinner's ready."
Jack couldn't stop the little laugh that escaped his lips and Alex shot him a look as they followed her into the kitchen.
"You're going to have to forgive me, Alex," she spoke again as she set down the bowl of butterfly pastas in the middle of the table. "Is it alright if I call you Alex?"
The teacher nodded assuringly, sitting himself across the table from Jack, leaving the only two open seats in between them.
"You're just not exactly what I was expecting," she finished with an apologetic smile as he sat herself between them.
"I, uh," Alex started, taking the bowl of orange sauce that went over the noddles from Jack as he handed it over. He took a decent spoonful and dressed his dinner with it before speaking again. "I get that a lot actually."
"I bet," she said with a breathy laugh. "You're so young to be a teacher."
"Well, I was pretty lucky to have built a relationship with the previous English teacher."
"Miss Mae," Joyce agreed with a smile toward her son. "I remember her well from the last time we had a teacher over for dinner."`
Jack let out a little sigh, staring at his plate of food before digging into it lifelessly.
"Only this far in the last time, Jack was basically hiding under the table," she finished and Alex offered a laugh, looking over at Jack with an accusing smirk.
"He's a handful, I won't deny," the teacher agreed and Mrs. Barakat nodded. The rest of the dinner was finished with light talking, a little joking and a lot of reddened cheeks on Jack's part. It was then that Alex announced that he was actually there to help out Jack with his essay and Mrs. Barakat agreed that it was a perfect idea before she collected the dinner dishes and began to wash them up. It was when Jack had lead Alex into the living room and sat him on the couch that they began working.
"I have your shitty essay right here," Alex said, pulling it from his back pocket and crumpling it in front of the student's face.
"Hey," Jack whined, reaching for the wad of paper, smoothing it out and holding it close to his chest dramatically.
"Jack, listen," he demanded, rolling his eyes and stealing the essay back. He discarded it to the side table and looked to Jack then. "You need to learn how to write an essay and that's not going to happen until you-"
"I listen to you in class when you rant about the steps to a perfect essay and proper sentence structure and shit but I just don't really care," Jack admitted and Alex's face fell then, eyebrows knitting together in the middle.
"Maybe that's the problem then," he said, sounding rather disappointed as he chewed on his bottom lip. His chocolate eyes moved from Jack's landing on something else just for the sake of not looking at his student. "I guess I can't help you if you don't want it."
Jack scowled then, opening his mouth to speak but Alex stood before he could get a word out.
"No, wait," he spoke, grabbing the teacher's hand and pulling him back down roughly. Alex shot him a look, pulling his arm away and putting on a little pout that hung his pink bottom lip out.
"I'm sorry," Jack tried again, resting back on the arm of the couch so he could face the elder better. "I'll listen."
Alex turned his head to hide a smirk that assured that Jack had fallen for his little act but he kept it up, wiping the smile off of his face and turning back to Jack then.
"I don't know, Jack; you'd actually have to listen. We both know how well you do that," Alex teased but Jack rolled his eyes.
"Yeah, yeah. I can listen, I just don't," the younger explained as Alex crossed his arms over his chest. Mrs. Barakat joined them then as she pulled the broom from the hall closet.
"How do you both feel about tutoring lessons then?" Alex asked and looked over at her with expectant but innocent eyes. "Jack's having a lot of trouble with basic sentence and essay structure."
Mrs. Barakat nodded despite the confused scowl on Jack's features. "I think that's a good idea. You guys can set them up for after school somewhere."
"I think Jack would feel a lot more comfortable if we had the appointments here. The easiest place to learn is the place you feel most comfortable," Alex said with an assuring smile, trying his best to look like a convincing smile.
She nodded and returned the smile before heading back to the kitchen. "Sounds fine."
Alex stood then from his spot on the couch, walking over to the front door to excuse himself.
"Dinner was delicious, Mrs. Barakat. Thanks for having me over," he said genuinely and popped out of the kitchen for a second.
"You're so welcome. It was our pleasure," she assured and was gone again then.
Jack was confused to say the least. In one damn night he'd let the enemy into his house, fed him dinner, let him swoon his mother and invited him over again...any time he wanted. What was happening?
Alex lifted his hand, popping Jack a little peace sign with a smirk before he let hismelf out.
Author: chasingxrabbits
Pairing: Jalex, Slight Merrikat and Olex (Alex and Oli)
Rating: NC-17
Dedications: sausajizz , she requested this of me a while ago.
Disclaimer: I don't own the boys at all, but the plot belongs to sausajizz and myself
Dear god, it's been a while.
Tumblr here
Masterpost
"Hey," Jack said quietly, adverting his eyes as soon as the bright green ones met his. Rian was quiet and quick to excuse himself to go home, leaving the two to talk and Jack leaned against Zack's Toyota casually.
"Hi, Jack," Zack said quietly, stuffing his back pack into the back seat of his car, trying his best to ignore the other boy but failing when Jack reached forward to stroke his fingers down Zack's arm.
"I'm sorry about ignoring you before," he said quietly, but Zack shook him off, opening the driver's side door and climbing in. Jack caught the door just before the younger Senior could shut it.
"Look, Zack, I wanna make it up to you," he tried and Zack's eyebrows furrowed.
"Jack, if you didn't enjoy our 'date' then it's okay. Just stop trying," Zack answered and pulled the door shut, leaving Jack to stand there, dumb founded, in the parking lot of the school.
-
When he finally made it home - he had to walk because Rian had given him a ride to school that day - he litterally crashed ove the side of the couch with a thud. His backpack spilled onto the floor, papers and books falling out all over as he shut his eyes and laid, face down in the silence.
Before he knew it, he was begining to doze off and he pulled the quilt off the back of the sofa and draped it over his lower half, scooching up until his head was laying over the arm rest. It wasn't particualrly comfortable but he wasn't about to get up and go to his bed - he just wanted to relax.
He reached for the TV remote and flipped it on, turning it right away to some cartoons for back ground noise before he shut his eyes and blindly kicked off his shoes.
Spongebob was saying something about jellyfishing when Jack began to doze off and he tugged the blanket closer to his face when he barely heard a knock at the front door.
He mumbled something like a "go away" but the noise didn't stop and another knock came then.
"Jack," a voice called behind it and Jack opened one of his tired eyes to peek out the window by the door. Zack was peeking in at him with a sheepish smile and Jack stood then, throwing off his blanket and bolting over to unlock it for him.
"Hey," he greeted, hopeful to get a good reaction from the younger. The smile he got was, instead, nervous and worrying.
"Can I come in?" Zack asked after a second and it was then that Jack realized he'd just been standing, staring at him for that time. The boy's green eyes gestured into the house as Jack let him past, shutting the door behind him.
He let Zack situate himself on the couch before he folded the blanket and laid it on the floor next to them before sitting down next to the boy, far enough away for it to be just comfortable.
"So," Jack started, hoping that would get the boy to talk, say something but it took him a moment to open his lips to speak.
"I just wanted to say that I was sorry for being so mean earlier," Zack said quietly and Jack shook his head, silencing him by placing his forefinger to the boy's pink lips.
"It's not you, I swear," Jack explained, smiling a little at how the younger's eyes crossed, staring at Jack's digit as his cheeks pinkened. He pulled away from it after a second with an embarased smile, reaching up to occupy himself with playing with his hair.
"It's not you," Jack repeated, putting his hand down on the sofa awkwardly. "It was totally me. I understand why you were upset; I would be too."
Zack's top teeth reached out and bit down on his plump bottom lip, eyes moving from Jack to something suddenly interesting on the wall.
"I just felt weird about it after our...date, you know," Jack finished.
Zack let out a little sigh, crumpling a bit in on himself before he reached forward, pulling Jack into a half hug. "I kind of thought you would honestly. I was just hoping that it would be perfect and it wasn't so I got pretty upset, I guess."
Jack gave him a little, awkward laugh as he gently hugged the boy back, ignoring the little flip his stomach did.
"So, what now?" Zack asked, brow furrowing a little as if he were worried what Jack would say.
"I dunno, you wanna stay for dinner?" Jack offered, standing and stretching from his light nap and Zack seemed to consider. "Mom's gone tonight."
"I suppose I could," the younger answered and trotting behind Jack into the kitchen and watching him dig through the cupboards.
"Not sure what to make."
Zack bit back a grin and he perched himself cutely on the counter next to Jack as he rummaged through the fridge.
"You gunna cook for me?"
Jack paused then, hand on the ice cream bucket before looking over at the boy with a cautious smile. He quirked a brow at the smirk that seeped onto Zack's lips. "That was the plan."
"Isn't that a little romantic for a 'straight' boy?"
Jack offered a little laugh, shutting the fridge before stepping over to Zack, parting his legs before settling in between them, face-to-face. They locked eyes, just sitting there for a second before Zack reached out to run his fingers through the other's raven and skunk bangs, pulling him forward.
Jack's stomach did a flip inside him, bile rising in his throat until all he could hear was Kyle's earlier warning. He put a hand on the boy's chest, stopping him instantly from connecting their lips as he turned his head down to stare at the floor.
Zack stared at him with wide, green eyes as he waited for Jack to talk.
"I would kiss you, Zack," he started, still not meeting his eyes. "But I'm afraid it's going to ruin something."
The younger just nodded, putting on a face to cover the disappointment he felt as Jack looked up at him again.
"When you're ready."
--
Jack ended up making maccaroni and cheese for them for dinner with a maximum teasing from Zack before they sat down at the dining table to eat.
"This is actually pretty nice, huh?" Jack asked, taking the pepper and grinding some over his food and Zack agreed on the other side with a wide smile.
"I think it's pretty cute that you still buy Pokemon mac and cheese, Jack," he teased as he took a bite.
"It just tastes better," he said in defense and Zack nodded in agreement.
"So, how is school going for you?"
Jack shook his head with a defeated smile. "I'm not gunna lie, math is damn hard this year."
"Oh, no. And you're like...the math wiz," Zack said in mock horror. "Thank god I won't ever have to take Geometry. I'd fail."
"Yeah, well, it does suck."
"What about English? How's that for you?" Zack asked then as he picked up the glass of juice that he'd poured himself. Jack paused with the fork half way to his mouth and he put it down, back onto his plate.
"Uh," he started and Zack was suddenly interested in what he was going to say. He was expected some simple answer like "fine" but since Jack was hesitating he figured it must have been pretty good.
Mean while, Jack was considering whether he should say something like ' I have one of the hottest teachers ever' but he decided against that. After all, Alex wasn't anything special.
"It's fine, I guess. Interesting teacher," he said and it wasn't a lie. Defintely not. Zack seemed intrigued by that, sitting up better in his chair to get a good look at Jack.
"Miss Mae?"
"Naw, she got a new guy," Jack answered simply, wishing more than anything that the boy would just drop the subject completely but he didn't.
"A new...guy that you're interested in?" Zack said with a teasing tone but he was really waiting intently for Jack to answer, interest having been completely peaked by the new information.
"I, uh, I guess. He's just an interesting guy, you know," Jack bluffed, though he knew it wasn't totally a lie, or a lie at all for that manner, it just wasn't the whole truth.
"Hmm," Zack hummed when he didn't get anything super interesting from him and they continued on through dinner then.
Thirteen
One week later
"Jack," Alex called, tapping his fingers against his desk with a quirked eyebrow and Jack peered over at him with questioning eyes. "Come here."
Kyle gave him a questioning look from beside him and Jack stood, walking over to the teacher and standing in front of his desk expectantly.
"What is this?" Alex asked, pursed lips as he lifted an few sheets of paper to the teen. Jack bit down on his bottom lip as he looked at it.
"My essay?"
"Yeah, that's right." He set the papers down before looking back up at Jack through a caramel fringe. "And it sucks. Bad."
Jack sneered, hanging his head as he stared down at the dark wooded desk.
"I can't accept this work, Jack. It's like you're not even trying," he complained and Jack looked up at him then.
"I am! I'm just not a good writer," Jack admitted.
"You are, Jack, okay? Just, try it again tonight. Pick a different topic or something; maybe something that interests you more than this," Alex suggested, holding up the sheets for Jack to see.
Jack scowled, putting his hands down hard on the desk in front of him. "I don't want to re-do that, Alex. I did it once and I won't do it again."
Alex pursed his lips, biting back harsh words and instead did the opposite, resting back in his chair and offering a forced smile.
"Okay, here. How about I meet you tonight somewhere and I can maybe help you with it," he tried and Jack crossed his arms over his chest, half-turning away from him in favor of pretending to be interested in something else.
"I don't want your help, Alex," he refused, half-heartedly and Alex smirked then.
"I think you do. I'll be stopping over at your house tonight for dinner."
--
Jack found himself racing home after school to tell his mom to make something good because they were expecting important company.
"You invited him over, Jack? That was thoughtful," she complimented as she dragged a wooden spoon through the sauce that she was making for dinner. She reached into the cupboard and shook a few dashes of some spice into it before turning to Jack then who was digging through his book-bag on the table.
"I guess," Jack said as he rolled his eyes. He wasn't about to tell her that Alex had just invited himself over, completely last minute in an attempt to embarrass Jack over not re-doing his essay.
"It'll be fine," Joyce assured with a warm smile and Jack had to applaud that woman; how the hell could she be so calm letting someone like Alex into their house? He'd find something on Jack for sure.
"Why don't you go shower and make yourself look nice?" she suggested and Jack scoffed, looking down at his math homework, completely finished from study hall. "He said around six, right?"
Jack just nodded as he stood from his spot before making his way up the stairs to shower like his mother had said.
It was exactly 5:59 when the door bell rang and Jack was still running his fingers through his hair, waiting for the mouse to dry through the raven and skunk locks.
"I'll get it," he assured as he bolted down the stairs. His mother called an approval from the kitchen just as she was setting out plates on the table and Jack brushed a piece of fuzz from his deep green t-shirt.
He stepped to the door, flicking the lock undone and opening it. Alex was standing there with his hands folded in front of his bright purple button down shirt. He'd paired it with black skinny jeans, a long thin tie that hung from his neck and a black beanie over his shaggy caramel hair.
"Hey," Jack greeted half-heartedly and Alex gave him a little nod. The younger stepped aside, letting him in the house before shutting the door behind him.
"Nice," Alex complimented, glancing around the living room full of expensive furnishings and decor.
"Yeah." Jack nodded, understanding completely that he didn't seem like the upper-middle class type. Joyce was entering the living room then with a warm smile that nearly fell when she saw their guest. She paused, about two feet from Alex and took his hand in a gentle shake.
"You're Jack's teacher then?" she asked like maybe he'd gotten the wrong house. It was only then that Jack realized he'd forgotten to tell her that his English teacher was a twenty-something year old bombshell. But he was nothing special.
"Alex Gaskarth," he clarified and extended a hand for her to shake. She took it with slightly widened eyes and Jack just tried not to look like the tension between the older two was painfully awkward.
"Well then," she said simply and went back to her place in the kitchen. "Dinner's ready."
Jack couldn't stop the little laugh that escaped his lips and Alex shot him a look as they followed her into the kitchen.
"You're going to have to forgive me, Alex," she spoke again as she set down the bowl of butterfly pastas in the middle of the table. "Is it alright if I call you Alex?"
The teacher nodded assuringly, sitting himself across the table from Jack, leaving the only two open seats in between them.
"You're just not exactly what I was expecting," she finished with an apologetic smile as he sat herself between them.
"I, uh," Alex started, taking the bowl of orange sauce that went over the noddles from Jack as he handed it over. He took a decent spoonful and dressed his dinner with it before speaking again. "I get that a lot actually."
"I bet," she said with a breathy laugh. "You're so young to be a teacher."
"Well, I was pretty lucky to have built a relationship with the previous English teacher."
"Miss Mae," Joyce agreed with a smile toward her son. "I remember her well from the last time we had a teacher over for dinner."`
Jack let out a little sigh, staring at his plate of food before digging into it lifelessly.
"Only this far in the last time, Jack was basically hiding under the table," she finished and Alex offered a laugh, looking over at Jack with an accusing smirk.
"He's a handful, I won't deny," the teacher agreed and Mrs. Barakat nodded. The rest of the dinner was finished with light talking, a little joking and a lot of reddened cheeks on Jack's part. It was then that Alex announced that he was actually there to help out Jack with his essay and Mrs. Barakat agreed that it was a perfect idea before she collected the dinner dishes and began to wash them up. It was when Jack had lead Alex into the living room and sat him on the couch that they began working.
"I have your shitty essay right here," Alex said, pulling it from his back pocket and crumpling it in front of the student's face.
"Hey," Jack whined, reaching for the wad of paper, smoothing it out and holding it close to his chest dramatically.
"Jack, listen," he demanded, rolling his eyes and stealing the essay back. He discarded it to the side table and looked to Jack then. "You need to learn how to write an essay and that's not going to happen until you-"
"I listen to you in class when you rant about the steps to a perfect essay and proper sentence structure and shit but I just don't really care," Jack admitted and Alex's face fell then, eyebrows knitting together in the middle.
"Maybe that's the problem then," he said, sounding rather disappointed as he chewed on his bottom lip. His chocolate eyes moved from Jack's landing on something else just for the sake of not looking at his student. "I guess I can't help you if you don't want it."
Jack scowled then, opening his mouth to speak but Alex stood before he could get a word out.
"No, wait," he spoke, grabbing the teacher's hand and pulling him back down roughly. Alex shot him a look, pulling his arm away and putting on a little pout that hung his pink bottom lip out.
"I'm sorry," Jack tried again, resting back on the arm of the couch so he could face the elder better. "I'll listen."
Alex turned his head to hide a smirk that assured that Jack had fallen for his little act but he kept it up, wiping the smile off of his face and turning back to Jack then.
"I don't know, Jack; you'd actually have to listen. We both know how well you do that," Alex teased but Jack rolled his eyes.
"Yeah, yeah. I can listen, I just don't," the younger explained as Alex crossed his arms over his chest. Mrs. Barakat joined them then as she pulled the broom from the hall closet.
"How do you both feel about tutoring lessons then?" Alex asked and looked over at her with expectant but innocent eyes. "Jack's having a lot of trouble with basic sentence and essay structure."
Mrs. Barakat nodded despite the confused scowl on Jack's features. "I think that's a good idea. You guys can set them up for after school somewhere."
"I think Jack would feel a lot more comfortable if we had the appointments here. The easiest place to learn is the place you feel most comfortable," Alex said with an assuring smile, trying his best to look like a convincing smile.
She nodded and returned the smile before heading back to the kitchen. "Sounds fine."
Alex stood then from his spot on the couch, walking over to the front door to excuse himself.
"Dinner was delicious, Mrs. Barakat. Thanks for having me over," he said genuinely and popped out of the kitchen for a second.
"You're so welcome. It was our pleasure," she assured and was gone again then.
Jack was confused to say the least. In one damn night he'd let the enemy into his house, fed him dinner, let him swoon his mother and invited him over again...any time he wanted. What was happening?
Alex lifted his hand, popping Jack a little peace sign with a smirk before he let hismelf out.