Work Text:
THREE MONTHS IN
“This is cute, right?” Jandel holds up a child’s onesie, coloured a light blue with small animal features on it. A koala's, maybe. Jake tilts his head, squinting slightly, before he shrugs.
“It’s alright.” His eyes drift toward another article of clothing, and a wicked smile spreads across his face. He reaches for a black infant-sized T-shirt and shoves it in Jandel’s face. “This is cuter. Look at it.” The younger man pushes him back slightly, eyebrow raised at the fabric. He can only muster a laugh and an amused glance at Jake.
“Triple T Sahur, call me the big A Alpha— seriously?”
The older man's eyes crinkle at the edges, and he twirls the brainrot-themed shirt around his finger. Jandel tosses the onesie on a table, shaking his head. Today, they stand in an H&M Baby section for God knows what reason. Jake had dragged him into the store, mumbling about how he needed new boxers because “My dick broke through my last fifty pairs. The doctor called it TBD.” And when Jandel asked about it? “Too big dick.” Was his response.
Then, they wandered into the kids' section to make fun of their little overalls. Because who wouldn’t want to poke fun at Mickey Mouse covering an entire kid from head to toe? Their blissful mocking of parents had soon grown stale, however, when Jandel stumbled upon a crib, and a little smirk tugged at the corner of his lips. Jake, on the other hand, remained unaware as he wandered around the store. He was holding a small monkey stuffed animal when Jandel called him over, ushering him like a dog.
“Cute, ain't it?” Jandel had gestured toward the crib. It was painted a beautiful cream— which Jake said was kinda coloured like a different milky substance —and had the most adorable polka dots decorating it. Jake tilted his head, stared at the thing, and dropped the monkey plushie in.
“Yeah,” he had said cheerfully, a grin on his face. “See, now you even have a kid in there.”
Jandel wasn’t sure if he wanted to kiss him and whisper in his ear, “I’m gonna knock yer damn jaw in. Can we adopt a child?” or beat the obvious implications into that thick skull of his while screaming, “I want to have a child with you.” Instead, he simply chuckled, crossing his arms in amusement as he stared at the sight.
“I think it really looks like you, Janny.” Jake had poked his shoulder, a gesture they’d both grown to know as “look at me,” and Jandel had turned to press a small kiss against his lips. “Got your ears and everything,” he mumbled, a teasing lilt to his voice. The younger man had snorted, shaking his head.
“Yeah, alright. Unless ‘yer banging a monkey behind my back, think you’ve got the wrong guy ‘ere.”
—
SIX MONTHS IN
Jake is standing in the kitchen with burnt cup ramen today.
He smiles awkwardly at Jandel, who practically runs down the stairs in a panicked frenzy. His hair is a mess, strewn across his face as he frantically blinks the sleep out of his eyes. The house smells like somebody thought that burning an entire mansion would be an excellent heat source, but forgot to burn it from the outside in. Wide blue eyes relax, replaced with a look of disbelief as he sighs.
“Cup noodles? At 10 in the morning?” Jake puts the styrofoam container on the table, scratching the back of his neck. Jandel walks toward him— he loops around the kitchen island, and almost trips on the food bowl for Jake’s cat. —and wraps his arms around the older man’s waist. He rests his chin comfortably on his shoulder, eyeing the abomination before him. “Couldn’t’ve just woken me up if ya were hungry, huh?”
“You didn’t even wake up when I fought my way out of your— weird ass spooning position.” He thumbs at the charred lid of his prison meal. Jandel chuckles. “I’m still a growing boy. Gotta feed myself when the times call.”
“30-year-old minor, huh? What am I, the 27-year-old adult harassing ya?”
“Yeah.” Jake doesn’t hesitate. Says it without missing a beat. Jandel groans.
“Alright, I’m not cooking breakfast for you.” Jake whips his head around. “Kidding, I’m kidding ya.” He raises his hands in defence. The older man is quick to push his hands against his stomach again, though. Jandel tilts his head slightly, eyebrow raised.
“Better be.” There’s a beat of silence, and he eyes the younger brunet. “Your hands are warm. Don’t say a damn thing.” Jandel will say a damn thing. He will say many things.
“Should I get you a pregnancy test or something? Got a lil’ gremlin kicking ya from the inside?” Jandel says it as a joke. But then he starts rubbing circles on the older man's stomach. He's teasing him; the grin on his face ever so prominent with how he has his mouth pressed against Jake's neck. “I think I can hear it calling me already— daddy, daddy! Or was that just you last night?” Jake immediately whacks him away.
There's a beat of silence before the older man declares:
“We’re using protection next time.” His face is flushed, and he walks away from the kitchen counter. Jandel laughs— his cheeks are tinted a pale shade of red.
“Any pregnancy cravings?”
“Fuck off!”
—
NINE MONTHS IN
Jandel thinks he looks pretty in the sunlight.
Jake had decided to visit him in New Zealand this week. So, what other way to honour your boyfriend’s arrival than taking him on a wonderful, magnificent hike? Which also involves you cursing and yelling profanities about the air, causing you to practically tear your shirt off in a sweat-dazed rage? Thankfully, it’d all been done in his favour, as the view they’d stumbled across was beautiful.
They’re standing on one of those big, fancy bridges that are considered tourist attractions by those shoddy websites about where to visit on your next grand trip to New Zealand. Jandel wipes a bead of sweat from his forehead, huffing as they rest by the railing. Jake, who’s practically fully draped over it, looks half-dead. He does, however, maintain a prideful little smile on his face.
Jandel snickers, shrugging off his backpack and listening to the way it thumps against the ground. He kneels down— almost like a proposal, he thinks distantly. —and unzips the bag. Jake runs his fingers through his hair, breathing a sigh of relief, before meeting Jandel’s eyes. The younger man simply grins at him.
“Water?”
“War-dah,” Jake mocks, though he extends a hand, smiling. A groan of annoyance, an eye roll, and Jandel is begrudgingly pulling a plastic bottle out from his backpack. Their fingers brush when he hands it to the older man, and if he hears the way Jake’s breath hitches, he doesn’t comment on it. Nine months, and he still reacts like this, is what he thinks to himself instead. “Thanks.” Jake uncaps it quickly, downing half the bottle in one swift gulp. The younger man snorts.
“Jesus, I don’t want you pissing yourself in the middle of the hike, man.” Jandel stands upright, crossing his arms as he leans against the bridge’s railing. He raises an eyebrow, a sliver of teeth showing through his lips. “Seriously, do I need to feed you it from a damn baby bottle?” Jake chokes on his water; it spills onto the ground, painting its surface with wet splatters. “Oy, oy, alright! I was just joking with ya, God.”
Jandel watches with furrowed eyebrows as Jake wipes his mouth, coughing.
“You— you and your damn baby references, dude. Jesus Christ, what is with you recently?” The older man squints, his glasses slipping to rest on the bridge of his nose. “I could go through all of—” he coughs. “All of our Discord DMs and the recent messages would all be of you talking about babies.” Jandel scratches the back of his neck, a sheepish little grin on his face.
“Listen, they’re cute, alright?” That was a terrible excuse. He recognizes it. Might as well play into it. “I just— Kaden’s been big on watching babies recently, I dunno. He keeps sending them to me for some reason. Figured I’d annoy you with ‘em too, yeah?” Jake stares. He doesn’t buy it at all. But he sips his water, keeps the rim of the bottle pressed to his lips.
“Yeah, okay.”
And Jandel might be a tiny bit fucked. Time to change the subject.
“...Can I take a picture of you?”
Jake pauses, his look of disbelief replaced with surprise.
“Huh?”
“You look, uhm. You look pretty.” That might be the cheesiest bullshit that’s ever left his mouth. “Sunlight looks good on ya. Wanna capture it, ya’know?” Jake fucking giggles at him, shaking his head.
“You just wanna get in my pants, don’t you, Janny?” Jandel debates running away. “Fine, go for it.”
…
He takes 2 photos of Jake and spends the rest of the time kissing him.
—
ONE YEAR IN
jayingee: hop on rblx
jayingee: playing games tonight
jayingee: r u free
jandelrblx: Yeah
jandelrblx: Sorry just made breakgfast
jandelrblx: Breakfast
jandelrblx: What are we playing
jayingee: scamming kids on adopt me
jayingee: i want a fly and ride dragon
jandelrblx: I can just buy you that
jayingee: ok but do i need you to
jandelrblx: ?
jandelrblx: You ask albert for robux every second ay
jayingee: thats different tho
jayingee: jalbert4life
jandelrblx: Youre impossible
jayingee: sybau
jayingee: r u getting on
jandelrblx: Just logged on
jandelrblx: I;m gonna adopt a kid that looks like you and me
jandelrblx: And then im gonna burn it
jayingee: ??????
jayingee: ok janny whatever u say
jayingee: call
jandelrblx: Ok
jandelrblx: If you yell in my ears im killing your ass
jayingee: shutup
jayingee: you lov e my voice
jayingee: and my ass
jandelrblx has started a voice call
jandelrblx: Join
—
ONE ½ YEARS IN
“Janny,” he mumbles, fingers running through Jandel's now-knotted hair. Their eyes meet, and the light reflects in Jake's— it highlights the tiniest shine. Jandel wonders if he'll actually cry. “I love you.” The younger man presses a small kiss to his throat.
It's 3 AM. Jandel’s flight back to New Zealand is in 3 hours. Jake is expected to drive him to the airport well-rested, drop him off without acting like a wife sending her husband off to the military, and return home unscathed.
Instead, both men lie in Jake’s guest bed, their bodies intertwined, with Jandel cradling him from the front. It’s a yearly ritual, something they do every time the younger man comes to visit him.
“I love you too,” Jandel mumbles. His hands run up and down Jake’s waist, then pauses at his hips. They rest atop the waistband of his pyjama pants, and Jandel toys with it. Tugs on the drawstring, twirls it around his finger. “You’re so pretty.”
Because he really does think the older man is pretty.
The moonlight casts a magnificent glow on him, highlighting every feature that Jandel loves oh-so dearly.
Jake laughs in response. Quiet.
“Shut up.” He doesn’t mean it. Jandel kisses his jawline, smiling. “You’re the worst.”
“Yeah,” he whispers. “Sure I am.”
Jake wraps his arms around the younger man’s torso now, pulling him impossibly closer. He grabs a fistful of his T-shirt, crumpling the pristinely white fabric in his fingers.
“I’m gonna miss you.”
“I know.” Jandel pauses. “I will, too.”
“You’re gonna call me when you get home. And you’re gonna complain about how you can’t sleep.”
“Mmhm.”
“You’re gonna send me those stupid fucking baby videos like you always do.”
Jandel snorts.
“Yeah. And I’m gonna ask you why we can’t have children.”
Jake groans.
“If we have a kid, are you gonna stay in America?”
“...Maybe I’ll bring you two to New Zealand.”
“So they can have your stupid accent? I’m gonna knock ‘yer fockin’ jaw eenn… no fucking way, buddy.”
Jandel kisses him again. It’s a light peck on the lips. Jake reciprocates.
“You seem fond of it.”
—
TWO ½ YEARS IN
“Okay.”
…What a way to start a conversation! Jandel looks up from his laptop, eyebrow raising in mild curiosity. Jake is lying on the couch across from him, a throw pillow between his legs, and his head is propped up on one hand.
“Okay?” He prods. The older man huffs.
“Okay. We can have a kid.” Jandel blinks.
“What?” Because he can’t quite believe it. Not with the way Jake is saying it like its the daily news. His eyebrows furrow now, definitely doubting that he’d heard it correctly in the first place.
“You always talk about wanting a baby— what? You don’t want one anymore?” Jake sits upright now, keeping the pillow between his legs. He shifts. “I mean, it’s been like… almost three years. You’re just.” He clears his throat. “Jake, man, we should git a kid, yeah? Or, Ohhh boy, look at this baby onesie, eh. Ain’t it just the cutest?”
Jandel flushes. Scratches the back of his neck, and bows his head.
“Sorry,” is all he can muster. Jake laughs.
“No, it’s cool. I thought it was weird at first, but like,” Jake purses his lips. A brief pause before he continues speaking. “I dunno, I thought about it a little more. You’d make a good dad.” Now Jake is the one looking at his lap. He picks at a loose thread on his pillow.
“We’d have to get married first, though,” Jandel sputters. He says it without thinking, and almost physically recoils at his own words. Jake’s eyes meet his. “Or. Not. We can have a bastard.”
“Pets.”
Jandel blinks.
“Huh?”
Jake smiles.
“I mean, y’know. I wanna see if you have the committment.” A small shrug of his shoulders. “It’s like having a kid, right? Start easy.”
Jandel squints.
“You’re uncharacteristically brilliant today.”
His smile drops.
“How’s our kid gonna feel about you calling me stupid on a daily?”
“Janzen Jr. is not gonna care.”
“We are not naming him after you.”
“Oh, he’s gonna love it. And he’s gonna have my accent.”
“I fucking hate you.”
“I love you too.”