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Because of Audradon, Jay became a better person.
It took him some time to balance his Isle attitude and Audradn attitude but he thought he had done a pretty good job. Instead of running through the streets to steal, he’d run across the turney field in order to try and score the winning goal. As much as he didn’t want to go to Audradon in the beginning, he was really glad he did. Yeah, he was originally forced to go there by his father but that’s not what he wanted to focus on. Why focus on his strained relationship with his father when he could focus on the world in front of him?
Even though he’s been in Audradon for a while, there was still a lot Jay wanted to see. That’s why when Gil had suggested the idea of exploring, he was over the moon. Sure, the two would have to wait a little bit before they could go through with it but the promise to go together was good enough for him. Jay had gotten pretty close to Gaston’s son over the few months they had spent together and while everyone had been surprised at first, people had gotten used to it.
Some people have gotten a little too used to it in Jay’s opinion. Evie was the one who started the whole thing. She noticed the two spending time together and started asking him a lot of questions. Jay usually didn’t mind Evie’s curious nature but when it came to this, it felt like a whole new territory. He knew Mal would’ve noticed it too if she weren’t so focused on all her queen stuff. She had a lot on her plate, especially since the barrier had been brought down. Things got worse when Carlos started noticing it. The two have had a close bond for a while now and it was pretty easy for them to read each other. While Evie took his vague answers, Carlos was a bit harder to steer away. To be fair, this might have been Jay’s karama for teasing Carlos about Jane. Jay really regretted that decision now.
“Are you ever gonna take your own advice or?” Carlos prodded as they walked through the field. They had just finished tourney practice and the area had cleared out pretty quickly except for a few rogue players and cheerleaders.
“My own advice about what?”
“About Gil. About just going for it.”
“Look man, I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Jay knew what Carlos was talking about but he really didn't want to talk about this right now. He hoped Carlos would drop the whole thing.
“You like Gil and you’re doing nothing about it.” Apparently not.
Jay shushed the smaller boy. “What if someone hears you!” He whisper-shouted.
He wanted to smack the smirk off of his friend’s face. “So you are finally admitting it?”
Jay didn’t answer, he just rolled his eyes and started to pack his equipment into his bag.
“You know I wouldn’t care right?” Carlos said slowly, yet sincerely. Jay looked up at him with his eyebrows raised. He knew Carlos wouldn’t care. None of his friends would but the whole thing still felt weird to him. It was certainly new and he wasn’t sure how to deal with it. “You wouldn’t?” Jay asked hesitantly.
Carlos put a hand onto Jay’s shoulder. “Of course I wouldn’t. You’re my best friend.”
“What about dude?” Jay asked, trying to lighten up the situation.
“Stop avoiding the topic.” Carlos complained, though Jay knew he wasn’t actually annoyed. “The first step is acceptance.” Carlos added.
“Right…”
“I'm serious man! Look, I know I’m a little uneducated in the whole romance department but I really think you should just go for it. I see the way he looks at you.”
Just as Jay was about to respond, he heard a very loud scoff coming from the bleachers. He looked over and noticed that Audrey was standing there with one of his teammates. He couldn't tell who it was from where he was currently standing. Jay looked over at Carlos, who just shrugged at him. The two continued to watch as Audrey and the guy in front of her interacted. Jay could clearly tell something was off based on the way Audrey’s face was morphed into an annoyed frown. He never really got to know the girl but he knew that normally, she wore a bubbly smile and the face she currently had on was out of the ordinary.
Then the guy reached up to touch her shoulder, which she pulled herself away from. Jay didn’t hear what she said but it was probably along the lines of “don’t touch me.”
Without letting another second go by, Jay quickly made his way over to the two. He gave Audrey a look before wrapping his arm around her shoulder. “Hey babe, sorry it took so long. I was just talking to Carlos.” He looked up at the guy, who he now recognized as Hunter. Hunter has a reputation of being weird and borderline creepy. “Is there a problem here?” Jay asked, directing the question to his team mate.
He knew Audrey’s eyes were on him but he didn’t care. He just wanted Hunter to leave the poor girl alone. One thing Jay knew was that Hunter was scared of him. Whether it was because he was a villain kid or because he had seen Jay’s violent tendencies on the field was beyond him. Hunter looked between the two before wordlessy leaving the conversation. Jay felt his chest swell with pride as the boy walked away from them. He then turned his attention over to Audrey, who gave him a shocked look. He immediately removed his arm from around her shoulders, believing that it had made her uncomfortable.
“You...you helped me?” Audrey asked softly.
Jay furrowed his eyebrows. “Uh...yeah?”
“But why?”
He shrugged. “Well, you looked like you needed it. Sorry I wrapped my arm around you, just thought it would make him leave quicker.” Jay explained.
“He just wouldn't leave me alone. I told him I wasn’t interested but he kept insisting that I was just playing hard to get.” The princess rambled. She then looked up at him and smiled. “Thank you.”
“No need to thank me. I was just trying to help out.”
Audrey hesitated before speaking again. “I really judged you villain kids. I thought you were all bad or whatever but you guys aren’t as bad as I thought.”
A smile grew onto Jay’s face. “Yeah, we aren't.” Jay said confidently. He then felt arms wrap around him. He looked down at Audrey before slowly reciprocating the hug. It was weird to get a hug from someone he barely knew but it wasn’t a bad thing. The princess had given pretty good hugs. It wasn’t long before she released him from the hug, only to press a kiss to his cheek. She quickly pulled back. “I hope I’m not giving you the wrong idea.” She said quickly.
Jay tilted his head. “Huh?”
“I’m not trying to flirt with you or whatever.” She clarified.
He chuckled. “Well, that’s a good thing. I’m kinda interested in someone else so…
Jay immediately realized what he said and he felt his stomach drop. He didn’t know how the girl in front of him would react.
“Is it that one guy you’ve been hanging out with?” She questioned.
Jay glanced back at Carlos before looking back at the girl in front of him. “Carlos?”
She rolled her eyes before shaking her head. “Not Carlos. The other one. The blonde pirate boy.”
“Gil?” Jay ignored the way his voice went up a pitch as he said his name.
“Yeah, him.”
Jay didn’t say anything, he just gawked at her. What was he supposed to say? Should he lie? Should he just tell her? He hasn’t even admitted it to his friends so why would he admit it to someone he never talked to. Apparently, his silence was enough of an answer because he heard Audrey chuckle. “You know, I kinda thought you two were together.”
Jay’s eyes widened. “What?”
“Yeah, I mean I’ve seen you two around school. You always have your arm wrapped around him and you carry his books to class and all that. That’s a very coupley thing to do around here.” The princess explained.
If Audrey had thought that, then everyone else must have too. Jay wanted nothing more than to slam his head against a locker. Had he really been so obvious with how he felt about the pirate?
Audrey must’ve been able to tell Jay’s inner turmoil because she added, “But it’s not that obvious. I only noticed because I see those types of things. But if you guys aren’t together, I think maybe you should ask him out. He seems like he likes you.”
“I don’t know…” Jay started but was quickly cut off by Audrey. “Look Jay, you either believe me or you don’t. I’m just telling you what I see and what I see is that boy has a big crush on you. I hear him talking about you all the time in chemistry to his friends. It’s always “Jay this” and “Jay that” What happened to the Jay who is a massive flirt who just jumps in and takes what he wants?”
He was rather surprised by Audrey’s reaction to all this. He wasn’t expecting her to help him whatsoever but here she was, giving him advice as if they had been friends for years. “It’s just different.” He explained. “I don’t want to mess up what we have.”
“Well, I can’t tell you what to do but I can tell you that if you did want to go for it, I think it would turn out well.” That was the last thing Audrey said before walking away. Jay just stood there, looking in the direction she just walked away in. He stood there for a few seconds before he felt a hand on his shoulder. “You ok?” Carlos asked as he handed Jay his bag.
“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine.” Jay responded truthfully, taking the bag from his friend. He really was doing fine.
The same couldn’t be said about the blond pirate.
------
Gil loved Audradon way more than he expected to. From the flowers to the fresh fruit, everything just seemed so magical to him. While the shift to a new lifestyle was something he had to get used to, he was definitely doing it a lot better than a lot of the other Isle kids. Gil was never really into the whole villain thing like his friends had been so adjusting was pretty simple. He also gained a few friends since his transfer. Even though people were still wary of the villain kids, they didn’t see Gil was a threat. He never wanted them to see him as one. Sure he wanted to be seen as strong and tough like Uma and Harry, he had no intent to scare anyone. So, friends came pretty easily to him. Well, that was until he introduced them to Uma and Harry. They instantly scared them off.
One person it didn’t scare off though was Jay. He never really interacted with Jay on the Isle. He just knew he was supposed to hate the guy but in reality, he never really hated him. Gil didn’t really see a reason to hate anyone. But, he went along with what Uma and Harry said because they were his friends and they knew better. They were never wrong, until they were. Jay was nothing like they had claimed. Sure, he was pretty cold to them at first but when Gil actually got to know him, his softer side came out. He offered to show Gil around when he was still getting used to his surroundings, he carried Gil’ stuff to class, he got his friend’s to help him out with work he didn’t understand. Gil found out very quickly that Jay’s friends were also like nothing Uma had claimed they were. Uma said that Evie was a stuck up snob but all Gil saw was a smart girl with big dreams. She said that Carlos was just a scared boy who did anything to get people to like him but he was nothing like that. Sure the boy was scared and liked to please people, but he was able to stand his ground when he needed to. Gil hadn’t had much of an opportunity to hang out with Mal but she was also different than Uma had described. She wasn’t selfish and cruel but actually quite the opposite.
Gil wished the two groups didn’t hate each other so much on the Isle because honestly, they seemed like they would’ve been a good group of friends. But he was glad things were different now. His mind once again drifted back to Jay, as it commonly did. It usually drifted to thoughts of their future adventures but lately, they had some sort of difference to them. At first, Gil couldn’t pinpoint exactly what was different but after a while, he slowly started to realize the difference. On the Isle, the idea of dating was a weird one. People dated, but it was nothing like dating in Audradon. Dating in the Isle was basically two people getting into as much trouble as possible together. There really was no public displays of affection or anything. Dating in Audradon on the other hand? It was full of picnics and buying each other flowers and constant hand holding. When Gil envisioned Jay and himself hanging out, all he could think of was them on a picnic or Jay surprising him with flowers. He thought about going to Jay’s journey games and being the loudest person to cheer him on. He thought about wearing Jay’s letterman jacket and parading down the hallway hand in hand with the athlete.
The idea of liking Jay was terrifying to him at first. The only other person Gil had liked was Harry and that was a few years back. He cringed at the thought of his crush on his best friend. It was a weird time of self discovery and he regretted it a lot. The only person who knew about it was Uma. He had told her on accident and he expected her to be mad but he was relieved when she laughed and said “join the club.” Gil had no idea what the two were but it wasn’t really his business to ask. But liking Jay was a completely different thing.
He had heard stories about Jay being a massive flirt from other people at school which was not that different from Harry but Jay was a different kind of flirt. While Harry flirted around for fun, Jay seemed like her genuinely wanted something to come from it. The thing was, Jay didn’t really flirt around as much as people said he did. Maybe he used to but ever since he and Gil became friends, that didn’t seem to be the case. His friends pointed it out once and all Jay said was that he was “trying something new.” He had no clue what Jay had meant by that but he never questioned it.
One weird thing though was the glances Gil had received from Jay’s friends, specifically Evie and Carlos. Gil was usually pretty good at looking into emotions, but he couldn’t read Evie and Carlos’ whenever they looked at him. It was almost like they knew something he didn’t. Not that this was new or anything but it confused Gil more than anything, especially since the glances were focused onto him. Whatever it was, it didn’t seem like Mal knew. Or maybe she did and she was just better at hiding it.
Gil was walking around campus when he glanced at the clock. He remembered that Jay’s tourney practice would be ending soon. Maybe he could go there and see if Jay wanted to hang out. He really hoped that he would say yes because he really wanted to hang out with Jay. It’s been a few days since the two had hung out outside of school. Jay, being a part of multiple sports teams, had a super busy schedule. The one day Jay had free, Uma needed Gil and he wouldn’t leave Uma alone like that. Not that she’d be alone because Harry would’ve been there but that was besides the point. He made his way over to the tourney field, which was pretty empty. Since practice had been over, that made a lot of sense. Gil realized that since practice was over, Jay might not have still been at the field, which made him frown. Then, Gil noticed Carlos, who was still on the field and that made GIl smile again. Jay never left Carlos on the field alone after practice. It was sort of like a routine thing and Gil thought it was really sweet of him.
Jay’s kindness was one of the biggest reasons why Gil had started to like him. The Isle didn’t offer much kindness so any bit of kindness he had gotten, he really appreciated it. Auradon really changed him for the better in that sense. Another reason Gil liked Jay was because of his sense of adventure. The Isle definitely gave him that. He was always down to basically do anything which Gil saw as super cool. The way his mix of Auradon and Isle personality really shined through made Gil feel giddy. Gil also couldn’t deny Jay’s beauty. His long hair complimented his tan skin nicely. His dark eyes were warm and full of life and you couldn’t help but stare into them. Gil had lost himself in them way more often then he’d like to admit.
Gil looked around the field to see if he could find the long haired boy. His eyes slowly landed upon the bleachers. He instantly saw Jay and his heart fluttered. He then noticed that there was a girl standing in front of him. He vaguely remembered her. She was the girl who tried to destroy Auradon. He couldn’t remember her name but he knew it started with an A. Was it Amber? Or Aurora? Wait, no that was her mom’s name. But it could’ve been like the situation like in his family but he didn’t think Aurora was as conceited as his father. Audrey? That sounded right to him so even if that wasn’t her name, that was the name Gil decided to go with.
He was about to walk over to the pair when he saw Audrey lean in and pull Jay into a hug. Gil instantly stopped in his tracks. Ok, that wasn’t that weird. People in Auradon were extremely friendly so hugs didn’t seem too outlandish. Gil shrugged and just as he was going to take another step, Audrey leaned in and pressed a kiss onto Jay’s cheek. Gil instantly felt his heart pound on his chest. He didn’t know much about dating but he knew kissing was something that couples did. Jay was dating Audrey? Why didn’t Jay tell him? All he knew was he didn’t feel like hanging out with Jay anymore. He quickly retreated to where he had come from. Gil’s heard of having a broken heart and he’s pretty sure this is what this was. People were right, it did hurt. It hurt way more than he thought it would. Of course Jay had a girlfriend. Why wouldn’t he? He was an amazing guy and he deserved to be happy. Gil knew he was being selfish by being upset but he couldn’t help it. He had grown really attached to Jay and the thought of him having a girlfriend made him feel sick.
Instead of going to his dorm room that they had assigned to him, he went to his comfort area, the pirate ship. He was super grateful that he was able to go between the Isle and Auradon because he had no clue what he’d do if he couldn’t go back to the ship. He only really went back when he was upset, which he definitely was now. As he walked over the bridge, his mind kept replaying Audrey kissing Jay on the cheek. He wanted to erase that memory from his brain but he couldn’t. The more and more it replayed, the more upset Gil got. He wasn’t going to cry. Gil could count the amount of times he cried on one hand. Sure, he was emotional but he wasn’t one to cry.
The walk to the ship felt like the longest walk in the world. When he got onboard, he wasn’t expecting anyone to be there. Everyone was probably enjoying their time in Auradon, especially during the day time. During the evening, people would come back to sleep but when the sun was high in the sky, everyone spent their time on the other side of the bridge. Gil made his way to the area underneath the deck. It was where the kitchen and rooms were.
“Gil?” A voice asked from behind him. He knew that voice like he knew the back of his hand. He turned around and was now face to face with his captain. “Whatcha doing here?”
“Yeah, shouldn’t you be over with all the princes and princesses?” Another voice cut in. Harry appeared behind Uma, his natural smirk upon his face.
“I’m just...hanging out.” Gil supplied weakly. Uma and Harry looked at each other and Gil knew why. The two knew Gil better than he knew himself most of the time. It wasn’t hard for them to see when he was upset.
“What’s going on Gil?” There was a genuine concern in Uma’s voice that Gil rarely heard.
Gil just shrugged. He was embarrassed about this whole situation.
“Come on Gil, just tell us what’s wrong.” Harry sighed. It was rare for Harry to care about anyone’s problems so the fact that he was asking Gil about this really showed something.
“It’s Jay.” Gil mumbled. Uma and Harry had very different expressions on their faces. Uma had a look of confusion while Harry looked angered.
“I’m gonna hook him.” Harry threatened and started to walk off but was stopped when Uma pulled him back to where he was previously standing. “Harry, chill.” Uma warned. Harry didn’t like being told to chill but since it was Uma saying it, he didn’t argue.
“What about Jay?” Gil was scared Uma was gonna ask that. He never told anyone about his crush on Jay and he really didn’t want to tell these two about it. Yeah, Mal and Uma made up so the two groups sometimes hung you but there was still a tension between Harry and Jay. The two just didn’t get along, no matter how hard Gil had tried to help them. When Gil didn’t answer, Uma continued, “Gil, come on. Just tell us. Ain’t nobody gonna get mad at you.” Uma shot a glare at Harry that made him throw up his hands in surrender.
Gil sighed. He knew that if he said he didn’t want to talk about it, Uma would’ve left it alone but she was really good at helping him when he needed it. “He has a girlfriend.”
“Ok? And?” Uma asked.
He didn’t want to say the words, so he just looked at Uma, hoping she’d understand. After a few seconds, she seemed to get it. She let out a soft “oh.” Harry looked between the two with pure confusion. “Gil likes Jay, Harry.” Uma explained.
Harry’s face instantly lit up as he looked over at Gil. “You like tourney boy?” He laughed, causing Uma to elbow him hard in the ribs. Harry winced in pain and held the spot where she just had hit him.
“He’s an idiot Gil and you deserve so much better than that.” She told him gently.
“He’s not an idiot.” Gil murmured, though he knew his friends both had heard him.
“I beg to differ.” Harry butt in.
“He’s not.” Gil declared. “He deserves to be happy and if that girl makes him happy then I guess I’ll just have to live with that.”
“Who’s his girlfriend anyway?” Umas asked out of genuine curiosity.
“That one girl who tried to destroy Auradon.”
“AUDREY?” Uma exclaimed.
“I knew that was her name!”
“Let me get this straight, Jay is dating Audrey?”
“I guess so.” Gil sighed.
Uma crossed her arms across her chest. “He seriously prefers that prissy pink princess who tried to destroy his precious land over you?”
Gil didn’t have an answer because what was he supposed to say to that?
“Harry, I might let you hook him after all.” Uma hasn’t been this mad since the time Mal had lied to her about the barrier and Uma has gotten plenty mad. He hated when she was this way since she had a tendency to think irrationally when she was angry. Hence why Ben was kidnapped a while back. Uma was better now but who knows what she would still do.
“Please don’t do that. I still care about him.” When Gil said that, Uma’s face softened slightly. Hopeful that meant she wasn’t going to send Harry to go hunt down Jay. He really didn’t want to have to explain to Jay’s friends that Harry killed him and that it was all his fault.
“I know you do Gil. I know it might be hard but I think you should distance yourself from him.”
“But I still wanna be friends with him.” Gil argued.
Uma held up her hand. “I never said you had to stop being friends with him. Just distance yourself until you get over your crush on him. Then, it won’t matter if he has a girlfriend or not.” She elaborated.
In theory, her plan sounded great. If he no longer liked Jay then he had nothing to worry about. The problem was, how long was he actually going to have to avoid Jay? He hoped it wouldn’t be too long. It shouldn’t be, right?
Well, there was only one way to find out.
------
Jay was practically going insane.
He strolled into school thinking everything was fine. He went to his locker and grabbed his books for English. He then casually made his way over to Gil’s locker, as he commonly did. He waited and waited to the point where he had only a minute more to get to class. Where was Gil? Was he feeling ok? Jay realized he couldn’t stand by any longer and booked it to class. He barely had made it on time but he entered the class just as the bell rung. Students had given him weird glances since he was breathing slightly heavier than normal. He ignored them and made his way to his seat in the back row.
At first, Jay was just starting to think that maybe Gil had overslept and that he was just running late but that theory was shot down when it became time for lunch and there was still no Gil. Jay glanced around the tables outside to see if he could even catch a glimpse of the pirate but to no avail. He sighed before making his way to his normal table.
“What’s up with you?” Mal asked as she took a bite from her apple.
“I can’t find Gil.”
“Maybe he’s sick or something.” Carlos reasoned. Jay didn't think of that possibility. Yeah, that was probably it. He was sure he’d see Gil within the next few days. Jay internally prayed that Gil would show up tomorrow but he doubted that would happen. Oh well, one could dream. He was sure that everything would be ok.
That was until it had been a week since he had seen Gil. He was starting to get really worried and it showed. He really hoped that Gil was ok. The possibility that he was sick was still there but it seemed a lot less likely at this point. Was something else going on with Gil that he wasn’t aware of? No, Gil would’ve told him. The two had created a strong bond of trust ever since they started becoming friends. Considering the fact that Gil had been gone for multiple days, theoretically the situation was a pretty big one and Gil wouldn’t hide that from him. At least, he hoped he wouldn’t.
This whole problem started to take a toll on him in multiple ways. His focus in class was way off, causing his teachers to show concern for him. He’d snap randomly at his friends out of frustration. Coach even made him sit out during practice because he wasn’t “being himself.” It’s not like he could ask Uma or Harry what had happened because they both avoided Jay like the plague. He understood Harry but Uma? Jay thought they were on pretty good terms but apparently not. The two have also been avoiding any of Jay’s friends too, which made matters a lot worse. Something was going on and Jay didn’t like it at all. Him not knowing what it was, made him on edge. People noticed and they noticed fast. No one got in his way in fear of what he would do if he snapped. Isle Jay would’ve loved that but Auradon Jay? He tried to push down his anxiety about the situation but he couldn’t. He cared a lot about Gil and he just disappeared without a trace. Was he in danger? No, if he was, Uma and Harry would’ve been there to help him instead of giving Jay and his friend’s death glares. All Jay wanted was an explanation.
When Jay made it to his locker at the end of the school day, he was met by Audrey. She looked concerned. Just as he was about to ask her what was wrong, she started to speak. “What is going on with you?”
“Gil’s gone missing and I have no clue where he is.” Jay explained. He didn’t feel the need to lie right now, especially not to Audrey.
“Huh? No he’s not. I just saw him in my last class.” Jay’s heart stopped. What? So, Gil was there. Then why hasn’t he seen the pirate all day? Was…..was Gil avoiding him? He saw no reason for Gil to be avoiding him. They were perfectly fine before he went MIA. If Jay had accidentally done something, he wanted to make it right, even if he didn’t know what it was. The problem was, it’s not like he could find Gil. The blond was doing a really good job at hiding from him.
“So, he’s ok?” Jay asked.
“Well, ok isn’t the word I’d use.” The princess grimaced, causing Jay to furrow his eyebrows. “He’s been in this weird mood. He’s there physically but the moment you try to talk to him, it’s like radio static.”
“What?”
“Yeah, like he has this look to him. It’s like this.” Audrey said before she contorted her face into an exaggerated pout. While Jay knew she was being a little dramatic with it, he didn’t think the face was too far off. “Anyway, I gotta go. I’m meeting Rachel and Tara.” Audrey said quickly before walking off.
Jay thought about Audrey’s words for a while. He laid on his bed and let his mind try to make some sense of what was going on. He tried to piece together every wrong thing he could’ve done in the past few days to make Gil upset yet he couldn’t think of a single thing. He tried his absolute best to be nothing but nice to Gil. He didn’t want to mess up what they had. His stomach dropped the moment he thought about that. What if Gil found out about Jay’s minor (maybe not so minor) crush on him? It was the only reason he could think of that would make Jay upset. Maybe he was weirded out about it and didn’t want to be around Jay anymore. If Gil thought Jay was creepy because of it, then Uma and Harry’s reaction made sense. Great. The one time he genuinely liked someone and of course it had to end in disaster. Just his luck.
Ever since Jay had laid on his bed, he had felt Carlos staring at him. His friend wasn’t very subtle. He hated the feeling of everyone looking at him as if he were some rabid animal who was going to hurt someone. He wouldn’t actually hurt anyone. Old Jay maybe but him now? He wouldn't even dream of it. Jay knew Carlos wasn’t trying to make him upset by looking at him. He knew the shorter boy was genuinely worried about him but he couldn’t take the staring any longer. He wordlessy got off his bed and walked out of the room. Carlos didn’t call after him. Jay was glad that he didn’t. He just needed to clear his head.
The courtyard was shockingly empty for the current time. Then it hit Jay that there was a water polo tournament against their rivaling school being held right now. Jay was planning on going to it but with how he was feeling right now, it probably wasn’t the best idea. It made sense why Carlos was in their dorm instead of the game. He never went to those types of things unless Jay went. Carlos, while he was athletic, wasn’t the best when it came to sports. He wasn’t bad by any means but it took him a lot longer than it did a lot of other people when it came to learning a new sport. Once he learned it though, he destroyed it. The two of them were going to join the water polo team together but it clashed with their current schedules too much and between tourney and water polo, the choice was pretty clear.
Jay noticed someone sitting on a nearby bench. They were looking at the beautiful flowers that laid on the bushes. Jay was about to pay no mind to whoever it was when he noticed familiar blonde hair. Jay stopped and studied the person without getting too close. It was definitely Gil. He had the same exact look of wonder he first did when he came to Auradon as he looked at the newly blossomed flowers. He was in awe and Jay’s heart sped up looking at him. He almost forgot the fact that said boy was ignoring him. Jay could’ve just left him alone, but Jay wanted answers and he wanted them now. He made his way over to the boy on the bench. “What’s your problem?” He asked.
When he saw fear spill onto Gil’s face, he realized he may have been a bit too harsh. “I mean, where have you been?” He questioned, softer this time.
Gil didn’t answer him at first, which made Jay nervous and Jay rarely got nervous. After what felt like forever, Gil finally responded. “Just….hanging around.”
The answer didn’t sit right with Jay. It felt disconnected from the boy in front of him. Jay sighed before taking a seat next to Gil. He tried to ignore how the boy tensed. The air around them was filled with tension. This was a bad idea but Jay needed to know the truth. “Are you avoiding me?”
“Yeah.” Gil answered simply, causing Jay’s heart to ache.
“Well, that hurts.” Jay said as he turned away from Gil. “Look, whatever I did, I’m sorry.”
When Gil didn’t answer, Jay decided this was pointless. He went to stand up but stopped when Gil started to speak. “You didn’t do anything. I just thought you wanted some time with your girlfriend.”
Jay laughed because he honestly thought Gil was joking. He kept on laughing until he saw the look on Gil’s face. “Girlfriend? I don’t have a girlfriend.”
“Yeah you do. That Audrey girl.”
Jay laughed once more. “Audrey? Why would you think I’m dating Audrey?”
“Because I saw her kiss your cheek.”
Jay immediately stopped laughing. Gil seemed upset and his laughing wasn’t making anything better. In fact, it was making matters a lot worse.
“Well, I’m not dating her.” Jay confirmed, which made Gil look up at him. Jay couldn't exactly read Gil’s face but this news seemed to interest him. “I’m not dating anyone actually.”
“Well that’s good.” Gil beamed. That was definitely not the reaction he had expected coming from Gil.
“Why’s that?”
“Because I like you.” Gil said casually. The way he said something so important so casually was so fitting for him but it didn’t make Jay any less shocked.
“What?” He choked out.
“I think it’s good that you aren’t dating anyone because I like you.” The pirate confessed.
“Why...why are you telling me this?”
GIl shrugged. “I’m tired of avoiding you.”
“You were avoiding me because you like me?”
“No, I was avoiding you because I thought you got a girlfriend. Uma said I should distance myself from you until I stopped liking you.” He explained.
Jay looked over at Gil. “Did it work?”
“No, not really. It kinda just made me sad.” Gil refused to look Jay in the eyes. He instead kept his eyes focused on the bush flowers. He started to pick at the skin around his nails. Jay noticed he did that whenever he was feeling scared or anxious. He slowly reached his hand out and put it on Gil’s. This caused the pirate to stop picking at his skin and look up at Jay. Jay gave him a small smile.
“If it makes you feel any better….I like you too.” He admitted.
“Really?”
“Yeah.” Jay chuckled nervously. “I have for a little bit now. Evie and Carlos wouldn’t leave me alone about it.”
“The weird looks make sense now.” When Jay gave Gil a confused look, he continued, “They kept giving me these looks like they knew something I didn’t which isn’t like new but it’s nice to know now.”
The two sat there in silence for a few minutes but unlike before, the tension was gone. There was a sense of happiness flowing through Jay and based on the look on Gil’s face, he was feeling it too. “Hey.” Jay said, breaking the silence.
“Hey.”
“Do you maybe wanna go out for lunch on Saturday? There’s this restaurant I really like and I’d love to show you it.”
“Yeah, I’d love to do that.” Gil smiled, causing Jay to smile. As Jay stared into Gil’s eyes, a flutter blossomed in his chest. He’s liked and been with people before but Gil gave him a whole different feeling. He’s never really understood the idea of getting butterflies until he started hanging out with Gil. He thought Carlos was insane when he was explaining the whole experience. When Jay first had felt them, he genuinely thought he was sick or something. He didn’t mention it at first but then they would keep coming back so he went to Evie. She was the most nurturing person he knew so it made sense. He explained everything and Evie just giggled. She hadn’t told him what it meant, just that he wasn’t sick. He didn’t question the blue haired girl anymore.
Jay’s eye subconsciously flickered down to Gil’s lips. He wondered if they’d be as soft as he would’ve expected. “Can I kiss you?” Jay whispered.
He wasn’t even sure if Gil had heard him but Gil’s visibly shocked expression showed that he had. He didn’t even speak, he just gave a quick but firm nod. Jay had never felt more nervous to kiss someone but he realized either he did it now or he chickened out. A slowly leaned in, tilting his head as he did. After a few seconds, Gil’s lips collided with his.
While Gil’s lips weren’t as soft as Jay had expected, they still felt nice against his. People talked about fireworks yet there weren’t any when he kissed Gil. Instead time felt as if it had been frozen. It seemed like all that mattered in that moment was the two of them. Jay's heart pounded hard in his chest. While the kiss didn’t last long, he had put all of his current emotions into it.
When he finally pulled away, he looked Gil in the eyes and smiled. Gil reflected that smile back at him. “Wow.” Gil said, seeming to be in some sort of daze. “That was my first kiss.”
Jay chuckled. “Did I live up to your first kiss expectations?” He teased. Gil reached up and slowly tucked a strand of Jay’s hair behind his ear. Jay was never one to blush but the action caused his face to heat up slightly. “Yeah, you did.”
Jay’s smile caused Gil to giggle. The noise was something that Jay never wanted to stop hearing. “Do you maybe wanna do it again?” Gil asked, a giggle still present in his voice. Instead of answering, Jay leaned in and pressed another kiss onto Gil’s lips.
----
Mal, Evie and Carlos were all taking a walk around campus. Mal was stressed out from all her queen stuff so Evie decided she needed a break. They picked up Carlos from his dorm room and invited him along with them. They were also going to invite Jay but since he wasn’t there, they decided maybe it was best that they didn’t. Jay seemed to be going through a lot at that time and even though they wanted to invite him, giving him the chance to cool off was probably best. Evie was going on some random tangent when Mal stopped in her tracks and gasped.
“What? What’s wrong?” Carlos asked, obvious concern filled his voice.
Mal didn’t say anything, she just guestered wildly.
“Mal, sweetie, we can’t understand you when you don’t use your words.” Evie said softly.
“That!” Mal expressed as pointed over at a bench that was a decent distance away from where they currently standing. Evie and Carlos followed her finger and their eyes fell upon two people on a bench. At first, they were confused on why Mal was so interested in two random people sitting on a bench but once they got a better look, they realized who it was. Jay was occupying the bench with Gil and currently, they were both engaged in a kiss.
“Wow….” Carlos remarked in shock.
“Yeah, I can’t believe he finally did it.” Evie chimed in.
“Right? I thought they were going to dance around each other for another two weeks.”
Mal took her eyes off the two on the bench in favor of looking at her other two friends. “What?”
“You didn’t know? Jay has liked Gil for like a few weeks now. Guess he finally did something about it.” Carlos explained, his eyes still focused on the bench. The two were no longer kissing. Gil had his head laid on Jay’s shoulder while Jay had his arm wrapped around Gil. The pirate was absentmindedly playing with Jay’s hair as he talked. Jay seemed interested in whatever he had to say.
“What? Why did I not know about this?” Mal exclaimed.
“Well you were busy with all your queen stuff so….”
“If I missed out on that, what else have I missed out on?” Mal asked.
Evie sighed. “I have a list.”