Chapter Text
Oscar had been to Europe only a handful of times, and of those times, all of them were in the summer and autumn. Though he lived in Australia, he had the basic geography knowledge to imagine what winter would be like in Europe and the UK, and Google maps coverage also gave an insight. Nothing could have prepared him for this though…
The first impression when emerging from Heathrow airport was:
“Hmm.”
Oscar furrowed his eyebrows at the naked trees and gray ground, the cloudy and misty skies. It was not the winter he was promised. He sighed and began looking around the parking lot, where he was promised a lift by Jack. A beep caught his attention. A sleek dark green car stopped by him, and a familiar face peeked at him through the window.
“Jack! Hello!” Oscar called out as he jumped in the car, in the passenger seat. Jack greeted him.
“Oscar! How was the flight?” he asked, and Oscar exhaled in thought.
“Very long. And I’m not sure it was worth it.” He said in an over exaggerated dismissive tone. Jack gasped, acting as if he was offended at his friend’s words.
“Not worth it? Do I really mean that little for you, Oscar?” he cried, keeping a watchful eye on the road. Oscar giggled a bit, then quickly began to apologize.
“Jacky, you are not at fault here. If anything, you are the best thing in this godforsaken land. The cause of my woefulness is the barren land my feet shall walk across from now on. I was promised a ground full of snow and pureness, but, alas, I see no such thing.” Oscar pretended to faint, putting his hand on his forehead and leaning back in his seat. Jack tried his hardest to stifle his laughter but failed miserably. Loud laughing filled the car.
“OK, Mr. Shakespeare.” Jack commented, then gasped as an idea came to him suddenly. “Mr. Shakespearce! Oh my god, I’m a genius!”
Oscar grimaced at his new last name and chuckled.
“You do have an imagination, I won’t lie. How long until we’re home?” he asked, and Jack glanced at the car screen.
“Just about two hours. If you want to, you can sleep until we get there. I won’t mind.” Jack said, his head replaying the way Oscar called his house “home”. Oscar hummed.
“I don’t feel particularly sleepy right now. Maybe later.” Oscar said and Jack nodded. They sat in silence a bit; the only noise was the wheels making contact with the highway. Oscar piped up after a while. “Maybe you can put on some music? Only if it doesn’t distract you.”
Jack smiled and put on his playlist. “Sure. You can fiddle with it if it’s not to your liking.” But Oscar only shuffled in his seat and smiled in a silent “Thank you”.
The rolling landscape passed them as a blurry wasteland. The winter without snow really showed the worst of it – instead of the whiteness he was hoping to see, the ground was brownish, grayish and deserted. The grass, though still green, lacked the usual life, tone and warmth Oscar was used to. The music in the background shut off his brain, and without realising how tired he was, Oscar fell asleep after 10 minutes. Jack noticed some time later, when Oscar had been quiet for an awfully long time. He brought the music down a notch.
It was already dusk, when Jack parked his car in the driveway. He quietly got out of the car to open the door to the garage. When he returned to the car, Oscar was awake, still some sleep in his eyes.
“I’ll park the car in the garage.” Jack whispered, because saying it normally felt weird and inappropriate for the moment. Oscar nodded his head, glancing at the time on the screen. Jack toggled the reverse gear, then put his arm behind Oscar’s chair to drive in the garage.
The Welsh/Taylor household hugged Oscar as soon as he stepped inside. It smelled of candles and happy memories. Jack and Oscar were greeted by Becky, who gave the newcomer a smile and welcomed him further into their house.
“You can leave your bags in there for the time being. Jack, you’ll show him where he’s sleeping, right?” She asked, pointing at the couch in the living room. Oscar obediently put down his bags next to it. “There is food in the fridge if you want some. I’ll be in my room editing.”
“Thank you, Becky.” Jack replied, kissing her on the cheek. Oscar decided to examine the pictures on the walls meanwhile, to give the couple some privacy.
“I was about to ask you if you wanted the house tour first or some dinner, but I guess you’ve chosen already.” Jack smiled as he neared the pictures Oscar was looking at. Oscar chuckled nervously. “This is Kong, and this is Flossy. Great dogs. I miss them very much. Oh, this is the time we went to a Halloween party, and I dressed up as that guy from Shrek. And this photo is from-”
The house tour was quite extensive, but, finally, they made it to Jack’s office.
“And this is where the magic happens.” Jack said as he opened the door and stepped into the room. Oscar stood outside for a bit, taking in the room from the unfamiliar angle. Then he ventured further.
“It’s…homey.” He finally said, taking in the small bits and bobs on the shelves and the play buttons, posters on the walls, that he couldn’t usually see on camera. It was not spacious, but otherwise, it was lovely.
“And we will be here, bright and early.” Jack gestured to the computer set. “Getting absolutely drunk for Drunk Christmas. More like midday. No need to upset the stomach that early.”
Oscar smiled fondly at Jack’s words. Drunk Christmas was a yearly tradition for Becky and Jack, but after it didn’t gain any traction in the past years, they were forced to stop. This year the tradition would arise again, like a phoenix from ashes, now with a new guest.
“OK, maybe we can explore more tomorrow, I can feel you actively falling asleep the more we walk around.” Jack put a hand on his shoulder. Oscar drifter out of his thoughts of tomorrow. “Let’s go eat, alright?”
They had a dinner and then Jack took it upon himself to get Oscar’s stuff upstairs. The gesture was nice, but he did need some help from Oscar.
“Welcome to your humble abode.” Jack spoke as he put one of Oscars bags near the bed. Oscar walked in a second later, carrying his suitcase.
“Hmm, nice view.” He commented as he looked outside. While the town wasn’t hilly, the second story did give a nice view of the street, where a lonely man was striding down the road.
“Will you need extra blankets?” Jack asked as he gathered them from the closet. Oscar hummed, taking in the new room.
“It is quite warm here. Might be good to have them though.” He sat down on the bed, trying to plug his phone on the socket. Oscar grimaced when the cable didn’t fit. “Wait, of course, you brits have different sockets. Can I borrow a cable?”
Jack gave him a sly smile as he silently motioned him to wait for a second. He disappeared from the room, his footsteps echoing in the hallway, stopping in his office, then returning. Jack reappeared, now with a cable in one of his hands.
“Here, you can take mine.” He said, and Oscar took it, thanking him. “Is there anything else? The bathroom is downstairs, the light switch is both on the top and bottom of the stairs. If you’re hungry, the fridge is available-”
“Thank you, Jack.” Oscar interrupted him. “I’ll manage.”
Jack smiled awkwardly. “Alright then. Goodnight!”
“Goodnight…”
Jack gave Oscar a small wave and closed the door as he left. Oscar could hear him walking down the corridor, undoubtedly going to see Becky.