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“Welcome to my private gallery, the museum-above-the-museum!” Jerry excitedly opens the door, inviting you in. “Feast your eyes upon wonders unknown to men and women alike downstairs, gaze at trinkets hidden from grabby children’s hands, and behold the most exclusive collection of human tchotchkes only to be seen by a chosen few!” He laughs a bit awkwardly at the last bit. “Uhm, ‘chosen few’ meaning just me and you, of course.”
And behold you do. The room you have entered is large, approximately half the size of Jerry’s model-train display room downstairs. To your right, there’s a twin-sized bed shoved into the corner, with a nightstand next to it and a wardrobe residing at the foot. But everywhere else is open-season for what seems to be a much more organized (and clean) version of your junk drawer: pedestals showcasing buttons and fabrics, tables displaying stickers and notepaper, shelves on the wall presenting rubber bands and yarn scraps. And that’s just to name the objects that immediately catch your eye!
As opposed to his first museum, every object has ample room around it so as not to be mixed up with other objects. You can see that in front of each exhibit is a sticky-note — though what is written on them is unknown, Jerry’s handwriting incredibly small so as to fit in such limited space, but you’re sure it’s filled with details about the object that sits nearby.
Everything is incredibly neat and tidy, a far cry from the old days when his collection was jumbled together and on top of each other (though you’re sure he had a system for it, of course).
You smile at all the objects around you that Jerry has clearly put a lot of effort into sorting. “Oh my gosh. Jerry, this is incredible!”
Jerry’s eyes sparkle at your praise. “Thank you, my dear. Would you… like a tour?”
Grinning, you ask, “I dunno, is the tour guide as cute as the curator?”
Yahtzee. You successfully get him to blush the right shade of pink, the one that looks absolutely adorable on him. “Oh, golly! Heh, uhm, well, gee…” Jerry composes himself, straightening his posture and clearing his throat. “Alrighty then! On to the first exhibit.”
Jerry guides you to the first pedestal, which is two feet away from the door. Inside is a small arrangement of wrappers, all of them smoothed out to better present the different logos. “Here is where I keep my prized collection of wax candy wrappers!” He picks up a wrapper labelled ‘Bit-O-Honey’. “This was my very first candy as a human. I found it underneath a bench at the park! It was next to a pinecone and one of those… uh, things, real fluffy, and skittery and twitchy. I had to battle it for this priceless sweet!”
“You mean… a squirrel?” You reflexively correct him.
Jerry shakes his head. “No no, that’s that colorful stuff growing in the ocean. I saw a book about it.”
“Colorful… you mean coral?”
“Nope! That’s a type of music. But it’s okay, it’s easy to get them confused with each other.”
You sigh, knowing this could go on forever, and decide to change the subject. “What else is there?”
“I thought you’d never ask!”
Slowly, Jerry guides you through his maze of a museum with practiced ease. He delightfully shows you every single piece in his collection, stopping to tell you about how he’d acquired it and why it was important to him.
Your attention is pulled away when something familiar grabs your eyes. Taking a few steps towards it and away from Jerry, you see what exactly has captivated you: a small carousel made of wood, plastic ponies, and Christmas lights that no longer work. The same one the two of you had made on your first meeting by upcycling objects from his original collection, back when Jerry was just a junk drawer and you were a lonely hermit looking for someone (or, thanks to Skylar, multiple someones) to talk to. It looks exactly how it had when you first made it, not a single piece out of place.
Carefully, you pick it up, mindful of any loose or slack parts. “You kept this?” Your voice comes out small and incredulous.
Jerry whips around from the exhibit he’s moved on to, and positively lights up when he sees what you’re holding. “Well, of course, how could I not? It’s one of the most remarkable, most valuable pieces in this room!”
“Really?” You make your way over to him, eyes still transfixed on the art in your hands.
“Yes!” Jerry’s hands enter your vision as he places them under yours, so now both of you are holding the carousel. “It’s not just another souvenir, it’s a memory. It symbolizes the day we truly met, the day someone finally showed an interest in my collection — in me — after years of being avoided by the other objects. Then you not only stayed, but you even helped make my collection just a bit brighter with this!” He raised the carousel (and your hands) higher. “In my opinion, that makes it worth much more than its weight in gold. That is why this is the most important piece.”
Oh. Oh, wow. That was… so incredibly sweet, and so incredibly Jerry. You’re nearly overwhelmed, feeling so much at once, that your face just goes blank, unsure of what expression could show all your emotions at the same time.
Jerry, noticing your silence, breaks from his trance and looks at you. Immediately, he blushes. “Ah, look at me, getting all sappy. That’s Ol’ Jerry for you. Give me a rope and I’ll just keep on pulling, huh?” His hands fall from under yours and he begins fiddling with the hem of his shirt. “But, uhm— anyways, we should— there’s—”
Jerry is cut off from his rambling when, without warning, you snatch his bowtie, pull him forward, and crash your lips against his. It takes him a moment, but once he gets over his initial shock you feel him lean into the kiss.
It’s tender, soft, and full of love. You try your best to put all of your emotions you couldn’t show into this kiss. The smell of cedar and cardamom pleasantly fill your nose, so you take a deep breath, relishing in the scent.
When you finally pull back, you see that Jerry is (once again) flushed red all over, and his glasses sit crooked on his nose. He pants, taking a moment to catch his breath, and then he giggles. “Cheese and Crackers… uhm, what— what was that for?” Jerry’s face falls the moment he says that. “Oh no… not— not to sound like— I— that came out wrong, I didn’t mean it like— oh geez, I’m sorry—”
You interrupt his rambling again with another kiss, this one deeper and more intense than the last. And this time, you don’t stop until you’re absolutely certain Jerry has completely run out of breath when you pull apart again.
Jerry goes to open his mouth, but you place a finger to his lips, smushing them shut before he can get a single word out. “Nope. Me first.”
Dutifully, Jerry quiets, allowing you to speak.
You take your finger away and, when he remains silent, you say, “To answer your question: I kissed you because that was the single-most thoughtful and romantic thing anyone could ever do. And to think, that all that affection, that pure poetry, was for me? Well, it means the world to me, Jerry.”
Jerry stutters, words failing him. Eventually, he’s able to mumble out, “Bedknobs and broomsticks… I…” If possible, he blushes even harder than before.
You smile fondly at his awkwardness. “So…? What do you think about that?” You ask, referring to what you’d told him just two seconds ago.
Jerry finally finds his voice again, and says, “I think… I want you to kiss me like that again.”
“For you? Of course.”