Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Jayce Clements’ life has just come to a crashing halt for the second time in a month.

If you had told him that the summer after his high school graduation was going to be life-changing, he would have laughed and shrugged it off. He would’ve said that it would just be like every summer up until that point. He would have been content to relax into the routine he, Cove, Miranda, and Terri had had since middle school.

But then one monochrome tourist had come around, and thrown everything to the wayside.

Baxter Ward had been an unexpected, but not unwelcome, addition to the neighborhood that season. He had come in and swept Jayce into an elaborate dance, taking him in his arms and leading the way down a fling that quickly bloomed to something more. Or- for Jayce, it had. He couldn’t pinpoint exactly when this feeling in his chest blossomed into more than a bit of fun, but it had, and he had thought Baxter felt it, too. He was wrong. Baxter had squashed that shred of hope three weeks ago, when summer came to a close and he left Jayce collapsed on his front porch. Liz had wanted to strangle Baxter, when she came outside to check on him and saw him curled in on himself, sobbing on the empty street.

He was crying now, too, for significantly different reasons. In the white lighting of the Holden’s bathroom, he could clearly see two lines staring up at him from the plastic stick on the counter. Positive . The thought ran through him like a knife.

He hadn’t thought this would happen, in the moment at the mountain lodge. They had been careful . But when the vomiting started, and he told Cove, Miranda, and Terri about the night, and then he was late -.

He choked back a sob as Cove rubbed his back gently, and tucked himself into his brother’s body. He didn’t know what he was going to do. How would he tell his moms? He knew they loved him, but how would they react to something like this? What about his college plans? 

How would he tell Baxter? He hadn’t been answering calls or texts since he left, and Jayce didn’t know if Baxter even kept his number. It was all too much, too fast.

Cove, for his part, was helping. The pressure of his embrace was grounding, and the soft noises made into his ear were giving him something to focus on. He kept drawing in shaky breaths as the tears began to dry up, and he pulled away slowly.

“Are you okay?” was the first thing out of Cove’s mouth, which made Jayce snort. 

“Very much not so, actually.”

Jayce sighed after the reply left his lips, glancing back towards the counter. The plastic gleamed, unyielding. Taunting, almost. 

“Whatever you do, we’re all gonna be here for you.” Cove took his hand, squeezing it softly. Jayce gave him a soft smile, and returned the gesture.

“We probably shouldn’t keep Randy and Terri waiting. I’m pretty sure T’s worn a hole in your floor by now.”

“Probably.” Cove said with a sigh, pulling open the door and holding it so Jayce could slide past him into the hallway.

The previous claim about Terri may have been slightly exaggerated, but she was pacing back in forth in the hallway while gesturing frantically as Miranda watched on, sipping on a glass of water and making noises of assent when appropriate. Both girls stopped when they noticed Jayce padding down the hall. Terri held her breath as Miranda cocked her head to the side in a silent question. He nodded, and they both sighed. Terri wrapped him up in a hug (slightly more cautious than usual, given the situation) as Miranda stood, moving to join them.

“Oh, buddy.” Terri’s voice was muffled from where she had her face in his shoulder, and Randy tightened her hold on them both.

“We’ll be with you every step, okay? Whatever happens.”

Miranda’s voice was somehow much more comforting of a cadence than Terri and Cove’s in that moment, and he appreciated it immensely. When they let go of him, the group moved to their various unconsciously assigned seats in the Holden’s living room. Miranda on the chair in the corner, Jayce and Terri in various positions on the couch, and Cove perched on a bar stool he pulled up. The four teens sat in silence for a long stretch of time, Jayce thinking while the silence stretched. It was clear that none of them fully knew what to say, woefully unprepared for a situation of this sort so soon into their adulthood. It didn’t help matters that Jayce was typically the one who had the answers and comforting words for the rest of the gang. Not even Cove had ever seen Jayce this wrapped up in his own head, in the whole decade the two had known each other, seeing each other practically every day on top of that.

There were no words shared between the friends for that long time, the only contact being Terri tucking herself into Jayce’s space and Miranda taking his hand. He had given them both small smiles once he registered their closeness, thankful that they were making an attempt to keep him tethered. When the sun peeked through the windows, Terri’s phone buzzed with a text notification. She sat up, withdrawing from their shared space and looking at the screen. As she read, she let out a soft noise.

“Randy, we gotta run. My dad’s here.”

Miranda squeezed Jayce’s hand before pulling away too, standing as she did so.

“Text if you need anything, okay?” That was directed at Jayce, and he nodded in response.

The two girls said a few things to Cove after that, but Jayce didn’t register any of the words that were exchanged before they left. The silence continued to stretch for a bit longer, before Cove spoke up.

“You should probably go home, too.”

“Yeah, moms’re home by now.” Jayce said, voice quiet. 

Cove took his hand to help him up, bringing him into another hug when he was upright.

“You know where I am if anything happens.”

Another squeeze, and then he was walking Jayce to the door. Some more light goodbyes, and then Jayce was on the street.

Why did walking back to his house seem like a Herculean task? Maybe it was what was waiting for him behind his front door, having to tell his moms about everything that had happened. It felt like there were weights in his shoes as he took each step, dragging him down with each movement he made. He barely registered turning the doorknob and stepping inside, shuffling down the hall into the living room, where his Ma was reading a book on the couch.

She glanced up at him when he entered, giving him a warm smile before she noticed something was off.

“Jayce?” Her tone was concerned, and she set the book pages down on the coffee table as she spoke. He had her undivided attention.

“Where’s Mom?”

He was fidgeting with the bracelet around his wrist as she looked him up and down before answering.

“She’s on her way home, why?”

“I need to talk to both of you.”

She patted the cushion next to her, an invitation to sit with her. He took it. 

“What’s wrong, honey? Did something happen?”

Her eyebrows furrowed, and she was clearly awash with worry for her son. He felt kind of bad, about making her worry so much. He continued to twist his bracelet.

“I need you both here first.”

She nodded, opening her arms in another silent invitation that he took readily, falling into her embrace as they waited for the third family member to get home. It didn’t take long, just about five minutes before they heard the sharp beep of the car locking and the door open and close. When Mom walked into the living room, she looked over at her wife and son on the couch and her eyebrows went up.

“Jayce? Everything alright?”

She moved further into the room, toward the two on the couch and placing a hand soothingly on her son’s back. He laughed, a short, stifled sound, before answering her.

“No. No, everything’s not alright. You might want to sit down.” 

He pulled back from Ma, and Mom sat down on the other side of her son, taking his hand in her’s.

“What happened?” Her voice was soft, cautious, not wanting to prod more than absolutely necessary.

“So, uh. I’m… God, this is hard,” he laughed, short and nervous, “I’m pregnant, and I don’t know how , I’ve haven’t been late for the shots and we were careful , and I’m scared and I don’t know what to do and it’s all a lot and he’s just fucking gone-.”

The tears start coming quicker than he can try to hold them back, and his Ma makes a soft sound before pulling him back into her. He tucks his head into her chest, letting out sobs as he hears his mothers talking over him. He feels the weight of Mom lift off the couch and her footsteps walking off, cabinets opening and closing as Ma makes soothing sounds into his hair. She’s rocking him, too, gentle movements that aren’t very noticeable but that he does appreciate.

After a few minutes of this, Mom sits back down and sets two ceramic mugs on the coffee table, nudging them vaguely in the direction of her wife and son.

“Chamomile, splash of milk and some honey.” She says when Jayce sits back up to take the mug. He smiles, a wry thing that doesn’t fully reach his eyes, before taking a sip. He lets the warmth of the tea wash through him, relaxing his shoulders and permeating into his bones.

When his parents see that he’s calmed down, Ma takes it upon herself to discuss what options he has.

“There’s the option to give the baby up for adoption or keep them, if you choose to go through with this. Or, there’s your right to an abortion. If you decide you’d want to have one, me or your mom could make the call for you if you’d like.”

Jayce feels unease, a sense of dread looming in his stomach as he thinks it over.

“I… I don’t think I could.”

Mom squeezes his shoulder reassuringly, glancing at her wife as she purses her lips thoughtfully. There’s a sense of something else in her wife’s features, as well. A sadness, empathy towards what their son is going through. She always hated seeing her children in pain like this.

“Okay, and you know you don’t have to decide right now. Me and Ma will be here for you every step of the way, sweetheart. We’ll help you however we can.”

He looks so relieved when she says that, noticeably dropping tension from his body the moment he hears her words. It makes her heart ache.

“Are you going to tell him?” They all know who she means.

“If he’d answer his phone.”

Jayce lets out a bitter sound, and both women share another look. Ma takes his hand, urging him silently to look at her. He obliges.

“Jayce, you don’t need to keep trying. You can do this without him. You’re a strong kid.”

No other words are exchanged for a few minutes, as Jayce sips his tea and his mothers let him take his time. As he sets the mug down onto the coffee table, he squeezes Ma’s hand back.

“Can we talk about it more tomorrow? I think I hit my emotional limit today.”

His moms laugh, and Mom nods.

“Go get some sleep kiddo.”

He stands, walking up the stairs and falling into his bed. He doesn’t bother to go through his routine before falling asleep.

Chapter Text

Jayce is 19 when his daughter is born. He had practically crushed Cove’s hand in the process (he had cried when Jayce said he wanted him there with him- he’d call this the most important moment of their friendship), and hadn’t even realized it was done until she had let out a wail, and the nurse who placed her on his chest made a joke about how she had quite the set of lungs. When he looked at her for the first time, he had started sobbing.

Everything after that had been a blur- she’d been taken from him at some point, for some testing and what have you, he was too exhausted to take in all the information. Mom had practically jumped at the chance to show Cliff and Kyra the photos she had been taking directly after Melody was born, of him, Cove, and his daughter. Cliff had started crying when he was looking at them, and started crying even harder after Jayce called him Melody’s grandpa. Ma ribbed him for a while after that, and Melody was passed around to everyone in the room at least once. 

Time in the hospital passed quickly. He was given assistance when he needed it for the first few days, a nurse had explained the healing process to him (and Cove, who had looked only mildly uncomfortable the whole time. Jayce made fun of him affectionately after she had left the room, much to his chagrin). That same nurse, on the day he was discharged, had shoved a bag of supplies from the postnatal room into Cove’s arms as they were leaving, laughing it off when he stammered something about stealing from the hospital. Melody, to Jayce’s relief, slept the whole way home.

His and Cove’s apartment was a sparse thing, in a building just outside Prism Vista City. There was minimal furniture, moving boxes still scattered throughout in stacks. Knicknacks and belongings still packed away, awaiting their owners to have more time on their hands to unpack in the coming months. There were still distinct identifiers of who lived there, however. Cove’s surfboard rested in the corner of their living room, a stray sewing kit of Jayce’s sat on the coffee table, pictures of the two throughout the years hung in frames in the hallway (they had been at the top of one of the boxes, and Cove had taken it upon himself to hang them up early one morning. He said they made it feel like home. Jayce was inclined to agree.), and the refrigerator door was scattered with magnets and more photographs.

Jayce set the car seat holding his daughter down gently before slowly lowering himself onto the couch. Cove followed shortly after he set bags down on the floor and tossed his keys into the bowl by the door. Both boys let out a sigh of relief at being home, with Jayce shifting forward to watch his daughter. She was still asleep, but stirring gently. He briefly thought she was going to wake up soon, before resting his head in his hands. 

“Cove, do we actually know how to take care of a baby?” His voice was muffled, and he felt Cove sitting up and scooting next to him.

“I mean, the basics? We did take the classes.”

“I don’t think they helped me feel very prepared.” Cove’s nervous laugh was cut off by a little coo from the car seat, immediately followed by a piercing wail. It seemed their doubts would have to wait.

….

Jayce had always thought his moms exaggerated how quickly years passed when a child was young. After all, when he’d heard them say it he was young himself, and it had always felt like an eternity. But with Melody? She grew so quickly he almost couldn’t believe it was happening before his eyes.

Through the years, the photos on the apartment wall started to include less of the boys and more of Melody. The floor was always riddled with toys and children’s books Jayce and Cove would step over, and Mel’s babbling and laughter filled the apartment with a joyous noise. In a way, Jayce felt complete. But in another way, he always felt like something was missing.

Him and Cove juggled life with as much grace as they could muster (which wasn’t a lot. They’d be lying if they said that it wasn’t difficult to have to navigate new adulthood while also having a whole other human to take care of. Truthfully, they were just relieved they weren’t alone.). Cove had settled into a more permanent position at ORCA with relative ease, while Jayce’s portfolio had managed to impress an independent fashion designer in the city. Their families had always been willing to help with Mel any chance they got, with Jayce’s moms taking her for a month in the summer. Their friends were just as much of a help, Miranda and Terry were always happy to see their “niece”, and the Eckert clan had all but fully taken over planning her birthday parties the minute Miranda had told them about her.

Melody was a sweet kid, a bit hyperactive, but nothing that Jayce and Cove couldn’t handle. She was the light of Jayce’s life, but he would feel a pang when he looked at her sometimes. She looked so much like Baxter, down to the identical mole on the right side of her neck, and it made it impossible for Jayce to not miss him. He tried reaching out in those years, but never received an answer. He’d convinced himself that Baxter had simply blocked his number. He wasn’t sure how that thought made him feel, but he’d often swing between unbridled rage and unyielding sadness when he thought too deeply about it.

At some point, he had stopped thinking about it too deeply. Baxter was firmly in his past now, he had an excellent family who adored his daughter and helped whenever they could, everything had been alright in the end.

Then, one day, he’d gotten a panicked call from Scott, Jude, and Miranda, asking him to help them pull off a wedding. And, well, who was Jayce to refuse the people he loved, after everything they had done for him?

Chapter Text

Fate had to be playing the cruelest joke on Jayce. His thoughts moved far too fast as he caught a glimpse of Scott and Jude’s wedding planner, memories he had long suppressed coming to the forefront of his mind. He took in the brown eyes he used to get lost in, the hands he vividly remembered feeling in his own, and the beauty mark on his neck he shared with their daughter, and his breath quickened exponentially. He couldn’t believe it. Baxter Ward, the father of his child, who had claimed they would never see each other again, was sitting before his eyes. He barely registered Scott’s voice as he spoke and gestured to the table.

“Here we are!”

“This is everybody we’ve got; my sister, her boyfriend, and her friend.” Jude spoke to get introductions started, and when the man’s eyes shifted away from the window to the group, his smile pinched just slightly.

“ Of course , you were related to the other Eckert I’ve met. Why wouldn’t you be?”

Hearing Baxter’s voice was like ice being poured down Jayce's spine, and he tensed up immediately. The vague comment hadn’t passed Jude by, and he was looking between Baxter and Miranda incredulously.

“What? You know Miranda?”

Baxter made a noncommittal sound and didn’t elaborate further, brushing it off with a physical brush of his hair, but Terry caught on to the implication quickly and chimed in.

“Randy? You recognize this guy?”

Miranda stammered, unable to commit to denying but not being able to confirm anything either. As the three men all huddled closer to Miranda to question her further, Jayce’s sightline on Baxter widened and allowed him a clearer view. The man was scrutinizing their reactions, as if trying to gauge what his next actions should be. Jayce felt like he couldn’t breathe.

Between the rest of the group, the reaction was simply confusion, and they continued to shift to one side. Jayce watched as Baxter finally saw him, and brown eyes that were widened in surprise finally met blue. Baxter’s palms cracked against the tabletop as he stood, chair nearly tipping over behind him. It was entirely out of character for the man, who Jayce had only ever known to be poised, and in any other circumstance he would have laughed. As Baxter took him in his breathing was shaky before coming disconcertingly quiet following his initial reaction to seeing Jayce. The sounds of the restaurant faded to silence as Jayce continued on his internal spiral, and he honestly didn’t know if anyone else was there anymore. All he could see was Baxter.

Then the moment faded, and Baxter grinned wide, smoothing down the silky edges of his jacket. Something twinged through Jayce at the familiar mannerism, and he stomped it down as quickly as the feeling came up. He noticed that the smile didn’t reach Baxter’s eyes.

“Life is full of unexpected coincidences, hm? I don’t suppose you’d remember me, but my name is Baxter Ward.”

With a casual flip of his wrist, Baxter gave a brief recount of their shared history.

“Five years ago, I stayed in Sunset Bird for a summer vacation during a semester off in college. We spent a bit of time together then. By ‘we’ I mean the three of you and one other. Cove was his name, I believe.”

Miranda gasped as she recognized him.

“ You were the B-man?” Terry was shocked by the revelation, and Baxter chuckled. Miranda also clearly didn't recognize him without the ridiculous black and white motif, and her jaw had dropped near to the floor.

“Yes, I was. Now, in the hopes of starting off on a better foot, let me apologize for the actions of my younger self. I was embarrassingly immature in how I handled our acquaintanceships, and I understand entirely if this is awkward. Just know that I’m open to any ideas on how to accommodate working together. I am fully committed to assuring that Mr. Eckert and Mr. Adam have a wonderful wedding. That is the only reason I’m here.”

Jayce clocked Baxter establishing an impersonal distance immediately. The apology held no sincere warmth or affection, purely being given as a professional courtesy, and it hurt. Jayce felt like an old wound had just burst open. 

Jude and Scott looked like they had no idea how to deal with the revelation that every person they’d enlisted to help had been part of the same social group in the past, and Jayce couldn’t blame them. He didn’t know how to react either, and he looked toward Miranda and Terry for help. Both looked just as dumbfounded as the other couple.

“Is there a problem with this?”

Scott further attempted to prompt a response, and Terry and Miranda had morphed from confusion to looking at Baxter with scrutiny and slight disdain. He expected nothing different from his best friends, they were two people who were with him throughout the entire aftermath of Baxter leaving Sunset Bird, and they both knew the hell he’d gone through intimately. Miranda made a soft hum, and Terry made a sound of reluctance as they shared uneasy glances with each other. Scott and Jude needed the help of a professional for this, they all knew that, but Baxter ? With the history there, and the elephant in the room that was Jayce and his daughter? Terry spoke up next, his voice cautious.

“It’s not like Baxter did anything to me, but-.”

“It’s nice of you to say it, though.” 

The two’s former friendship with the man had been tentative, barely there at all, and they were clearly waiting to pass their judgement on him and keeping his help until Jayce said something. Jayce, who had vouched for him the most when they’d first met. Jayce, who was now struggling to even be in his presence. 

Jayce exhaled slowly, trying to gather his thoughts. On one hand, he wanted to run out of the restaurant. He wanted to yell at Baxter, wanted to scream and cry and break. Wanted to tell him about his daughter, how Jayce had desperately tried to tell him for months after he found out, only to be met with radio silence. But on the other hand, he knew Jude and Scott were running out of options. The chances of the grooms being able to find anyone willing to take the job at the last minute was slim, and Jayce was willing to stomp down his feelings and suck it up for them. God knows he owed them that much. It seemed like an eternity before he managed to speak.

“All that matters is that the wedding goes well.”

“I appreciate that.” Baxter gave him a soft smile, and it took everything Jayce had to not turn on his heel and walk out at that exact second.

He bit his cheek and stared at Baxter, noting how the smile still didn’t quite reach his eyes. He could tell that he appreciated the willingness to cooperate with him despite everything all the same. Terry and Miranda brightened up again, though they were still slightly resigned, and Scott and Jude traded relieved smiles. Just like that, the mood for the other four of Jayce’s friends had been salvaged. If only he could’ve been so lucky. The conversation slid back to wedding planning, and Baxter was clearly relieved to move past personal topics.

“I have business cards for all of you. It has ways to contact me; phone, email, the usual.”

Instead of individually passing them out, he simply set the stack of them on the table. The cards were a stark enough white that they made the pristine tablecloth look dingy, and were lettered in formal black cursive. Baxter then pulled a sleek black phone from his jacket pocket, and part of Jayce thought that some things never changed before deciding it was likely just a generic color scheme. Black and white was famously devoid of personality in business settings, after all. 

“If possible, I could use your numbers. That will be useful for keeping everyone informed. There’s a group chat for wedding planning. I won’t text you privately.”

“You got it, boss.” Terry was already pulling out his phone before Baxter had finished his sentence, and for the second time, him and Baxter exchanged numbers. Miranda followed, exchanging numbers with him for the first time. He thanked them both before moving onto Jayce.

“You should already have it, it hasn’t changed.” 

Jayce’s tone was bitter, and somewhat accusing. He couldn’t help it, with all of his emotions weighing heavily on his mind at that moment. It caught Baxter by surprise and subverted his usual avoidance tactic neatly. He’d be lying if he wasn’t curious; had Baxter deleted his number? He wouldn’t find out, as Baxter’s professional air returned as quickly as it had left him.

“Would you mind saying it anyway? That would be best.”

Reluctantly, he did, and reminded himself he was doing this for Jude and Scott. Baxter put his phone back into his pocket when he was finished, before pulling out his wallet and placing a ten dollar bill on the table next to the stack of business cards. 

“Please use that for my coffee. I’ll be taking my leave.”

“Sorry you can’t stay, it’s cool.” Jude closed his eyes and ran a hand through his hair. Nobody seemed to want to mention the elephant in the room, and Baxter seemed thankful for the discretion.

“We've met,” he tugged at his collar, seemingly acknowledging the understatement, “exchanged numbers, and the first official meeting was already arranged. I’ll leave you to catch up and discuss next steps on your own terms. I’ll see some or perhaps all of you soon. Have a nice evening.”

He politely inclined his head, and he slipped into a gap in the crowd. Within seconds, he was gone once again. Jayce was nearly convinced he’d hallucinated the whole encounter. The lingering smell of Baxter’s cologne was a figment of his imagination, and the bill on the table could’ve come from anywhere. Perhaps Cliff was somewhere nearby and had left it for him. It wasn’t imaginary, though, as he had physical proof of the encounter in the form of the business cards. They spelled it out clearly in dark ink; Baxter Ward - Wedding Planner.

Miranda and Terry each took a card, for later reference or idle curiosity, Jayce couldn’t be entirely sure. He took the card quickly and stuffed it into his pocket, not glancing at the writing on them past the name, gaze fixed pointedly out the window. His best friends, thankfully, didn’t say anything about the cards. They knew he had a lot on his mind at the moment.

Scott, however, had his own, louder way of helping. 

“Y’know, I knew it would be too good to be true when we find someone on short notice. It was just odd, in my opinion. Did he bully you as a teenager, Jayce? It’s okay to say so.”

Of all conclusions, that was not at all the one Jayce had been prepared for. Neither had Terry and Miranda. Terry snorted first, hand clapping over his mouth when he realized it was still serious and he shouldn’t be laughing. Jayce let out his own, vaguely dry laugh. Jude and Scott didn’t know all of the details due to Randy being able to keep a secret. Jayce hadn’t wanted anyone knowing other than those who needed to. Hell, Kyra hadn’t even known Baxter’s name, much less his appearance, and she was practically Jayce’s third mother. The men sitting across from them didn’t understand the way he and Miranda did.

Jayce took a deep breath, leaning forward in his chair. He needed to tell them the whole story, it would be better for them to have everything out in the open. He trusted Jude and Scott, they were family.

“Baxter is… well, he’s the one who got away. The ‘suitor for the season’, as he put it,” he took another breath to steel himself, “He’s Melody’s other father. He doesn’t even know she exists.”

“That’s what he meant by ‘being incredibly rude’? Him dropping you?” Jude’s eyes flared with something Jayce had only ever seen in Liz's as Scott leaned forward and took his hand.

“Jayce, I’m so sorry. You shouldn’t have been treated like that.”

Jude and Scott were truly great guys. Jayce really was happy he could count on them, and he was determined to help them in any way he could. They deserved a great wedding. They deserved everything, even as Jayce's thoughts were going a mile a minute. 

“What happened in the past shouldn’t be the focus right now, what matters is the wedding. Don’t put your plans aside because of it, let’s pull this thing off.”

“You’re sure?” Scott's hand, still on top of Jayce's, squeezed.

“Yeah. Just tell me how to help.”

Scott didn’t seem convinced, but Jayce just nodded, that and Jude’s hand on his shoulder was enough for him to back down.

Terry whooped, which drew the ire of several other restaurant-goers. 

“Alright, and tell you how to help we will. Before you got here, we made plans to meet at his office tomorrow morning, all official and penciled in. We’d like you three to join if you can.”

“Wait, tomorrow morning? ”

“Yeah, Mr. Ward recommended it. That way there’s enough time to make the plans happen in the afternoon. Sorry to spring that on you.” Jude shrugged.

“ It was his idea?” Jayce’s shock was palpable. He’d seen firsthand how Morning Baxter was, and he was honestly intrigued to see how that would go. Had he gotten better with mornings?

“He has a point, we don’t have enough time to lose.” Jude added, and everyone agreed to be there bright and early.

The rest of their time in the restaurant was spent using it for its intended purpose once Miranda pointed out that they should, and the conversation lapsed into comfortable topics. Terry was amazed to see Baxter in color, and voiced his thoughts. Miranda ribbed Jude about the upcoming wedding. Scott asked Jayce about his daughter, who regaled the table with the most recent occasion he was called by the daycare center after Melody somehow managed to ruin the two sets of clothes he'd sent with her. Being surrounded by friends was exactly what Jayce needed, and he could feel the tension of the meeting ease out of his shoulders with every passing second.

Goodbyes were exchanged once they were finished eating, and Jayce rode with Jude and Scott back to the house. They gave him space to finish getting settled, but they all knew the real reason was because Jayce had a lot of feelings to work through. It honestly frustrated him. He was supposed to be over this. He had thought he moved past Baxter years ago, but then the man came back into his life and hit him with a metaphorical steel chair. As he was pulling clothes out of his suitcase halfheartedly, he saw his phone light up with notifications from the wedding planning group chat. 

The messages were just as detached as he had expected them to be. He couldn’t help but feel upset at that, as it wasn’t the relationship Baxter and Jayce had and all of them knew it. That could be ignored, yes, but it couldn’t be erased. It was evident as he clicked on the contact next to the message. The same exact one he’d been given in 2016, complete with the eye and heart emoji he had placed next to his name. He pulled up the old logs, scrolling through them with jaded nostalgia. The last message he had received from Baxter had been from their trip to the mountains, the night that had given him Melody. A simple ‘I’m downstairs.’. He’d felt like they were the only two people in the world that night. That was the night he knew for sure he was in love.

The stab he felt through his heart made apparent what he already knew. Despite everything, he still wanted Baxter Ward. It hurt badly, and he set his phone face down on the dresser as it buzzed as new notifications came in. He didn’t know if he could do this. He’d try, for Jude and Scott, but it might destroy him. He didn’t know if he could come back from Baxter Ward destroying him a second time. 

Jayce abandoned the clothes and laid on the bed, placing his head into the pillows and let out a frustrated scream. He needed to call Cove and tell him about the absolutely batshit day he’d just had, but that would mean needing the flip over the phone and possibly see if Baxter had sent more texts. He resolved to call his brother in the morning when he deemed the group chat not worth it at that moment, rolling over in the bed to stare at the ceiling. It was going to be a long week.

Chapter Text

Jayce did call Cove the next morning, and if he wasn’t awake before Cove screeched in his ear at seven in the morning, he sure was after. Despite the volume of Cove’s initial reaction to Baxter’s presence, the call was comforting, and immediately afterward the planning committee was in the car on the way to Baxter’s office for their 8:45 meeting.

It had become very apparent that the office didn’t have anywhere near enough seating options for a crew like them, with Jude, Scott, and Miranda squished onto the small sofa and Terry perching himself on the ottoman when Miranda pulled her feet up for him. Jayce chose to lean against a bookshelf next to the sofa while they waited for the titular wedding planner to show, scrolling through his phone idly. He smiled at the screen when a message from Ma popped up, containing a picture of Melody and Cliff on the beach she’d taken the day before, and held the phone out to Terry and Miranda to let them coo over their niece. 

As the clock ticked closer to nine, Scott’s knee started bouncing as his anxiety ramped up. Jude comforted him as best he could given how cramped the sofa was, and Jayce winced in sympathy. The two men had been so accommodating last night with everything that had happened the day before, but they were all painfully aware of how tight this deadline was and how close they were going to be cutting it. A soft knock on the door caused all five of them to startle, and they all traded slightly confused glances, as if making sure the rest heard the same thing. 

“Who’s there?” Jude questioned, and the door swung open with far more pep than Jayce had expected.

“Good morning, everyone.” And there was Baxter.

He looked perfectly poised, even more so than he had at the restaurant the night before, and his grin was sharp enough to rival a knife. It turned out Baxter Ward could be fully operational in the mornings. Distantly, Jayce recalled the Baxter he had seen the morning they went for coffee when they were eighteen and nineteen, trying to compare him to the Baxter he saw now. The man was practically unrecognizable. Jayce didn’t know how he should feel about that.

The group all said their greetings as Baxter took his seat in the chair across from the couch, Scott scrambling to put his phone away while also trying to keep his glasses from slipping while thanking Baxter for coming to his own office.. Something shifted on Baxter’s face, and for a moment, Jayce saw the old Baxter. His smile curved the way it had back then, his eyes were narrowed, and he halfway expected the old white streaks to suddenly appear in his hair.

“This is my office, there’s few other places I could go.” Jayce laughed a little at that. He certainly recognized that bit of attitude. Some things didn’t change, after all. He watched Baxter adjust the direction of the chair to directly face the couch, angling himself more to match as Baxter leaned forward.

“Now, we know why we’re here. I believe we should begin.”

Begin they did. Baxter started with some basic information- surnames, what had already been done, extra things Scott and Jude would want done, etc. Jayce let out an affronted gasp on Cove’s behalf when Jude made an offhand comment about nobody starving without sweets, but for the most part, him, Terry, and Miranda just watched as Jude and Scott went back and forth. The two filled in parts the other forgot, added additional comments here and there, and all the while Baxter jotted down notes. They watched both men glow when Baxter praised them for what they’d managed to get done, telling them that his job would be a lot easier and that they had done well. The next step was delegating major tasks, acquiring desserts and decorations for the venue, and Scott and Jude getting new suits if desired, so Baxter informed them. The three friends perked up once the initial questioning was done, listening more intently and awaiting instructions. 

Jayce had to say, watching Baxter work was slightly surreal. Miranda’s birthday five years prior had only been a small sample of his potential, and he could tell Baxter had grown to be extremely good at what he did. As Jude and Scott talked about not knowing where they’d get a cake, Baxter perked up just slightly more than he already was.

“If you’re willing to take recommendations, I’m acquainted with a baker. Xavier comes highly recommended by my previous clients, and I can vouch for them personally.”

“Did you get your wedding cake from them?” Scott’s question was enthusiastic, and Jude leaned slightly into his fiance’s space.

“He has no ring.”

“Oh! So?” 

“I’m unmarried at the moment. Entirely single in fact. But I would hire them for my own if I did have the occasion.”

Well. If that didn’t make Jayce’s heart do a flip. He stomped his emotions toward Baxter down once again, trying to bring his train of thought back into focus on the wedding. The conversation trucked on towards cake logistics, chocolate and vanilla being settled on as flavor choices given the tight time frame. Design ideas were discussed, and Baxter tried to pry out what the two would want to little success from Jude’s side. Scott gave a few ideas, and the modern, simple, yet elegant cake was go. Jayce could tell that Scott wanted more, but that Jude was satisfied with what they had and Scott wouldn’t push the issue. He could only hope the man would open up more about what he wanted as the process went on.

“I believe I have everything I need at the moment. I can put the order in for you today.”

“Thank you for so much help, but someone should still probably go with you. I can go. Would the rest of you be good with making favors?” 

“Probably.” Jude shrugged yet again.

Scott’s thanks was sincere as ever, but he wasn’t convinced by his fiance’s shrug.

“Maybe someone else should go to the bakery, then. Jude?”

“He can handle it. We got a planner so he can do his things and we can do our things.”

Miranda shifted in her seat at the first hint of disagreement, but Baxter didn’t seem frazzled by it. He interjected smoothly, helping dissolve the tension between the couple.

“If the two of you are the most informed about the guest favors, perhaps you could send someone unfamiliar with the process to the bakery? Jude is right, you have others here to assist, and it isn’t me alone. We can share the responsibilities.”

It took Jayce a moment to realize that person was most likely him, and evidently, Baxter didn’t know that either as Jude had to inform him of that fact. The cordial look Baxter had been maintaining dropped in an instant, and his gaze flicked towards Jayce. Brown eyes met blue once again, and Jayce realized that this was the first time Baxter had acknowledged his existence in the room the whole morning. 

“Oh.” Was all Baxter said before he blinked and the smile came back onto his face as he faced his clients again as if nothing had happened at all. He left the choice up to the group, in the end. Jayce couldn’t say this was how he wanted the day to end up going, but he was the best choice to go to the bakery. He’d made a commitment in his mind to sucking it up for Jude and Scott, so it seemed like he was bakery bound. He agreed before Terry or Miranda could speak up, internally cursing whatever higher power thought this was funny. The two men thanked him profusely, while Miranda gave him a tight smile and Terry saluted him for his commitment to the cause. Baxter’s smile was clearly artificial and felt like it passed right through him.

The meeting finally called, the group made their way out of the building, and Baxter guided him once they broke off from the rest of Jayce’s friends. The car Jayce was brought to  was very quintessential Baxter, a sleek white thing with a black interior. Jayce couldn’t tell if more black and white was just coincidence or not. 

“Welcome to my vehicle. Please, change the temperature and air direction to your liking. The radio works. I’ll leave it off, but you can put on some music if you want.”

Oh, the way he talked once they were alone was deeply uncomfortable. Once he was unable to maintain the professional distance, he defaulted to speaking like he was just an employee. Jayce hated that. He glanced at Baxter, but the other man kept his eyes forward. He hadn’t started driving yet. At this distance, he could watch Baxter as much as he wanted. And watch he did. He was close enough to touch, every single detail of his person visible.

It was Baxter, in a car with him, close enough to touch after five years of distance mixed with a promise that they would never see each other again, and he wouldn’t acknowledge a damn second of it.Jayce didn’t know what to say, but he didn’t want to let this particular subject lie. 

“Am I allowed to speak to you, or is that forbidden?” His voice came out quiet, and he saw Baxter’s shoulders tense up more than they were.

“It depends on what you would like to discuss. I can endeavor to help with any part of the planning, but unfortunately my base knowledge is limited to specific areas .”

Jayce supposed that was a polite way to outright reject any attempt to talk about anything that was actually important between the two though that didn’t mean he had to like the answer he got. He didn’t have the energy to fight Baxter at that point, however, so he decided to just ask a harmless question.

“So, when do people normally order wedding cake?” To his shock, Baxter actually laughed at that. Softballs were a good call, then. Maybe Baxter didn’t have enough in him to fight either.

“Normally? Months in advance, Jayce. Usually six months to a year.” 

“Oh. Shit.”

“Mhm. Now the barest of minimums under the worst of situations is… two weeks.”

“Oh. Shit.”

“Oh, indeed. Our timeline of a matter of days is going to be an obstacle. We’ll simply make it work.”

Any attempt of a follow up or conversation starter was answered as succinctly as he could and dodged the rest of the ride. It wasn’t a cheerful ride, but not horrible, either. It honestly could’ve been a lot worse. They pulled into a parking lot deep in the city, and when Jayce looked at the storefront he was greeted with the words “Xake Bakery” in bold pink lettering. He recognized the name from a couple events he had attended in the city for work, and he was relieved he wasn’t going in as blind as he thought he would be.

Baxter had approached the door immediately upon exiting the car, but held the door open for Jayce. Heaven forbid he be seen as rude, Jayce thought as he stepped inside. He honestly wasn’t sure what he was expecting the bakery to look like, but he found it was very pleasant on the eyes. As he looked at the pastries lined up neatly in the display cases, he could distantly remember how several tasted, and he was absolutely certain that this wedding cake would be in good hands.

A worker came out from the back of the shop, and Jayce could only assume this was Xavier. They greeted Baxter like an old friend, which piqued his interest. How long had Baxter been living here?

“Baxter, welcome! Always a pleasure, is this a new client?”

“Not quite, but I do have a job for you. This is Jayce, a friend of my latest couple. He’s here to assist in the preparation of my next event. The lovebirds are busy with tasks of equal importance, you see. Jayce, this is Xavier, they are the head baker and cake artist of this fine establishment.”

He held up a hand in a small wave, and noted the familiarity in Baxter’s tone. It was a far cry from how he had spoken to Jayce not even five minutes prior, but he supposed this being work related put Baxter closer to his element. Xavier set a sweet smile on him before speaking.

“Thanks for coming in, it’s good to meet you.”

Their eyes sparkled, and Jayce could pick out multiple colors in them. He returned the smile, and their gaze returned to Baxter.

“So, what exactly can I do for you? Or, your clients, rather. To be honest, it’s a pinch unusual to not have even one person who’s getting married come to commission their wedding cake.”

“Ah, these are unusual circumstances,’ That was confessed with his eyes closed, and when he opened them, he poured every ounce of charm he had onto Xavier, “Could you possibly make a three-tiered modern cake that is simple yet elegant in say, mmm… three days?”

Xaviers mouth popped open, but no sound came out. They weren’t given a chance to object as Baxter thundered forward.

“And that schedule includes today. The wedding is Saturday afternoon. For flavors, they would like chocolate and vanilla. Separate for two tiers, and a combination for one.” They cut him off, folding their arms in a displeased manner.

“Flavors are not the concern right now, monsieur.”

“Really? I would say that it’s fairly important.”

“Not if I can’t do the order!”

“Oh Xavier, no need to worry, I trust in your abilities immensely.” They scoffed. Baxter ignored it.

“Besides, there are worse arrangements.”

“Are there? And an example of that would be?”

“Well, entirely theoretically, you could have to prepare desserts for a full-scale party the night before the event.”

Jayce blinked before staring at Baxter. Did he just reference the party they had thrown for Miranda? Sure, the memories had been bouncing around in his head for nearly a day at that point, but Baxter’s desire to reminisce was none as far as he knew. And yet. He chuckled, running a hand through his hair.

“I am sympathetic to this being a difficult task. With Jayce as my witness, I did swear to never take for granted the effort it takes to provide decorated and delicious treats under pressure. We were only able to start baking three dozen cupcakes at a time most people would be going to bed.”

Baxter glanced at his face, and his eyes were sparkling with affection. All Jayce could think in that moment was ‘what the fuck?’ . He hadn’t been mistaken or dreaming. Baxter was referencing when they were dating five years prior. And he’d acknowledged him directly.

“You did what with who? I thought he was here because of your clients!”

Their disbelief mirrored Jayce’s, but for very different reasons. They batted their hand for more details from Baxter, and Jayce’s head continued to spin. 

“Ah, I-” Baxter schooled his expression, and Jayce suddenly understood what he was doing.He’d forgotten himself in the company of two familiar people. Baxter’s default wasn’t icing him out; no, that was an effort. One that went against preferences. His first instinct was to be amicable . God, why did that feel like the knife being forced back into the bleeding wound? 

Well, Xavier had wanted details, so Jayce leaned against the counter and was fully willing to give them away.

“Mhm, I’ve known him since the black and white phase.” He winked for good measure, and Xavier’s eyes widened in pure mirth, along with their smile.

“Please, please elaborate on this black and white phase.” Jayce opened his mouth to continue before he was interrupted by Baxter clearing his throat. 

“Let’s not get too distracted. While three days is more than a single night, it is still a tight deadline regardless. It would be rude to take up more of your time than necessary.”

Baxter continued despite Xavier having never accepted the commission. Xavier frowned at Jayce, as he was the only one who might be able to explain what this was, but he just shrugged. He couldn’t explain Baxter Ward, regardless of how much he would like to try. They pressed their palms to their lower back in a stretch, and Jayce went back to standing straight. 

“I’ll do it for you.”

That sounded right. He couldn’t imagine them doing this for two random people who wandered in. He recalled the nervous laugh Baxter had when he explained this usual process in the car. A win's a win, though, Mr. Planner himself had pulled this one off.

“Thank you! Thank you so much. You are a lifesaver.”

The two industry professionals started filling out an order sheet and going over specifics while Jayce stood to the side, contributing occasionally with opinions as someone close to the grooms. He made it extra clear that Scott didn’t want a frilly cake under any circumstances. They were done a lot faster than Jayce had expected them to be, but then again, professionals. He stifled a giggle when Baxter got defensive after Xavier said they should all hang out after the wedding was over.

“Regrettably, there won’t be a next time the three of us come together like this. Once the wedding has concluded, Jayce and I will have no further reason to interact with one another.”

“You said we wouldn’t see each other again last time, but here I am again.” Jayce deadpanned, and Xavier started cackling behind the counter. Baxter shot daggers at him through the customer service smile, and it was only a little unsettling to him.

“Oh, wonderful. Clearly, the two of you will be marvelous friends.”

“And that doesn’t extend to you?” Jayce already knew what the answer would be before Baxter opened his mouth to answer Xavier.

“Exactly.”

It didn’t make it sting any less.

Baxter said goodbye to Xavier before exiting the shop swiftly, and Xavier wished Jayce luck as they made their goodbyes as well. He had a sneaking suspicion they meant with more than just the wedding, and he was thankful for it. He needed all the help he could get.

He was waiting outside the car when Jayce exited the store, getting in before he got within talking distance. When he climbed into the passenger seat, the air was tense. Somehow, being in a car with his ex had managed to become even more uncomfortable. Whatever higher power existed was laughing at him even harder than before. He sat back and waited for Baxter to make the first move in their convoluted game of chess. That first move ended up being a very simple question.

“Could you enter the address of where you’re staying? I can drive you there.”

He didn’t remember it off the top of his head, so he had to pull out his phone and pull up his and Jude’s text log. The picture of Melody he had set as his home screen smiled up at him when he unlocked it, and Baxter’s eyebrows pinched together when he saw it. He could tell Baxter wanted to ask, so he spoke up as he typed the numbers into Baxter’s phone.

“She’s my daughter. Melody.” 

He handed Baxter back the phone, and there was something Jayce couldn’t recognize clouding his features. He noticed Baxter’s eyes flick to his hands as he thanked him and started to drive, as if he was looking for a ring, but he chose not to comment on it. They both stayed  silent for a while longer after that before Baxter made a comment about Jude and Scott being happy about having a wedding cake. Jayce had assumed Baxter would dance around the pressing topics again. The bakery, five years ago, it had all become a dance of false ignorance that Jayce didn’t have the patience for. He decided that he was going to stop ignoring it.

“Baxter. You have to talk to me.” His knuckles flexed on the wheel and his fake smile flattened instantly.

“It’s almost over, Jayce. I’m merely an employee of your friends. Feel free to ignore me entirely.” The second sentence trailed off into a whisper. 

“No, you’re not. You’re Baxter Ward. I know you even if you pretend I don’t.”

“This isn’t a social call.”

“You can’t be working 24/7. I’m not letting this go.”

Baxter sighed. Loudly. Indignantly. The exact opposite of the cordial persona he had been wearing for hours.

“There’s no other way; let’s use rock-paper-scissors to decide.”

“What?” Jayce couldn’t question how they were going to do that while he was driving before he was already plowing forward.

“It’s going to be rock. I only choose rock. And you?”

“P-Paper?”

Jayce…. honestly didn’t know how to respond to this. This was a form of Baxter he had only seen once before, spiralling in his moms’ kitchen after the show at the bar. He held out his hand flat because he didn’t know what else to do, and while Baxter didn’t make the sign for rock back, he accepted the answer.

“You win. Would you mind if I pulled over for a minute? It’s about time I took a break.”

“That’s fine.”

He shut off the GPS, took an exit, and found somewhere for them to park. The car was too suffocating to talk inside of, and they both exited wordlessly. He’d chosen the spot where the both of them, Cove, Terry, and Miranda had watched fireworks. Jayce remembered it like it was yesterday. He remembered being happy back then. He thought Baxter had been happy, too. But this wasn’t five years ago. The tension now was thick enough to cut, and they were different. They stayed firmly out of arm’s reach with each other.

“Ah, Jayce, what a stunning coincidence to run into you here, when I happen to be taking some time off of work. How are you this fine afternoon?”

He couldn’t believe he’d finally gotten him to talk, and it was purely sarcasm. It made his blood boil, and he let himself feel the things he’d been suppressing since the restaurant. He decided to stop trying to be nice.

“Fuck you, Baxter. I’m not doing well and you know why. Seriously, you left and went silent on me. I finally made my peace with the fact that you were right, and that you weren’t going to come back, but now, here you are! And you’re treating me like I don’t fucking exist, and that there’s no history here at all, and you’re clearly uncomfortable around me, but then you talk about it in the bakery all fond and shit, and I don’t know how to deal with that. Tell me, how the hell am I supposed to react to something like this?”

He didn’t expect to get an apology.

“I’m… sorry, Jayce,” Baxter broke eye contact, “I’m not any less immature than I was five years ago, it seems. I’ve been incredibly rude to you, and that is inexcusable. You’re not unwelcome near me. Of course not. However, I’m here to plan Jude and Scott’s wedding. My priority is only that, and I don’t want to be caught up in anything else. There’s no need to reminisce. I hope that’s not insulting, it’s not meant to be a strike against your character. You are a lovely person and have many wonderful friends. You don’t need me to be a part of your life. As I said, it’s best if you view me as another stranger.” Jayce didn’t know when he started to cry, but he feels the tears roll down his cheeks and he looks away from Baxter.

“I did need you. More than Cove or Randy or Terry. I found out about the consequences of our actions a month after you were gone, and you didn’t answer your phone, and I couldn’t just send a bunch of information about our kid into the ether with no idea if you’d even see it . Like it or not, you’re so much more than a stranger to me, so I’m not accepting the ‘it’s not you, it’s me’ bullshit, Baxter. We both deserve a better answer than that.” He seemed stunned, for a minute, so Jayce kept talking.

“I don’t blame you, for what it’s worth. She was- that was all a legitimate accident, we couldn’t have done anything differently, and you didn’t even know, but- God, it still fucking hurts.”

More silence. Jayce realized that in his emotional mess, he told Baxter about Melody. He just threw the biggest curveball he had at Baxter, who currently had several emotions written across his face, and Jayce’s stomach dropped as he thought he may have just ruined everything. He’d never seen the man truly stunned to silence before, and he let them both lapse into it, the quiet only broken up by his own soft sniffling. 

A flash of white fabric caught his eye after a few moments, and he looked over at Baxter to see him holding out a handkerchief. Of course Baxter Ward was a man who would carry around a cloth handkerchief, he almost laughed at the notion as he took it and wiped at his eyes. By then, both men’s walls had dropped away, and they remained leaning against the hood of the car. Neither made a move to leave. Neither knew how to broach the topic Jayce had dropped.  The waves crashed softly in the background, and they collected their thoughts.

“How old is she now?” Baxter spoke softly, and Jayce matched his volume when he responded.

“She turned four in May.” He nodded, pushing a hand through his hair as he processed. 

“I think it would be smart to talk about this after the wedding. There’s… My full focus should be on this. I hope you understand.”

“But we will talk about it?” There was a warmness to Jayce’s tone, and Baxter seemed to let it wash over him.

“Yes, Jayce, we will talk about it. For now, it would be best to get you home.”

Jayce agreed with a small hum, and the two reentered the car. Most of the tension between them had dissipated during their talk, and by then, Jayce had slightly more of a picture of Baxter’s motivation and a benched conversation about their daughter to think on, so most of the drive passed by in silence. In truth, he did understand Baxter slightly more now, but there was still so much that had been left unsaid. Things felt like they’d been set in motion, sure, but they were still getting nowhere fast. 

They reached the suburbs soon, and Baxter pulled alongside the curb instead of into the driveway. He idled there, eyes still not leaving the road ahead of them.

“Thank you for your assistance today, Jayce. Have a good afternoon with your friends.”

“See you soon,” Jayce murmured as the door unlocked, allowing him to step onto the sidewalk.

He walked to the future Adam’s front door and rang the bell, waiting for someone inside to pause working on favors and let him inside. He noticed Baxter’s car still idling in his periphery. Could he be waiting for him to enter the house, or something else? He wasn’t sure, and his train of thought was interrupted when Scott opened the door.

“Hey Jayce, you made it back in one piece!”

“Hi, Scott.”

Scott’s enthusiasm was always contagious, and he could feel a grin grow on his face just by being around the man. He followed his host into the house, stealing a glance back at the road as he went. He was sad to see it was now clear.

It looked like a supply store had dumped its entire stock in the living room. Most of the bags were candy, he saw when he looked closer. They’d probably went to the grocery store and picked up a bag of every single one in the aisle by the looks of it. Jude was practically buried in the pile of stuff, and he lifted a hand in greeting. Terry and Miranda called out from the kitchen, where a spread of stew ingredients were sitting on the counter. Jayce didn’t realize how hungry he was until then. 

Scott and Jude asked about how things had gone at the bakery, and Jayce told them that he also had full confidence in Xavier’s ability to pull it off. After lunch, he was conscripted into helping with favors, and made a joke about them being lucky Cove wasn’t helping, or their candy stocks would be severely depleted. The work was tedious, but many hands made for lightwork, he’d remembered Baxter saying that years ago. Jude brought up just throwing a couple of every type into the favors and calling it a day multiple times, but Scott was adamant about personalizing the selection to the ones each person would enjoy instead. Jayce had found it funny that the four had deliberately left Cove’s bag empty until he’d gotten back from his bakery detour, Miranda shoving it into his hands and assigning it to him immediately the second he took his spot on the floor. 

Later that evening, Baxter sent another, exceedingly professional update into the planning group chat detailing their meeting time the next morning and some points to hit during said meeting, as well as a summary of the day’s accomplishments. Further favor-making devolved into allies turning on each other, and which treat was the best was hotly debated. Jayce had needed to break out his dad voice to mediate between Miranda and Jude when things got slightly too heated, which Terry found absolutely hysterical, and the favors were completed by the time night fell.

Take out was ordered and eaten in the kitchen, Miranda and Terry departed, and all that was left in the house was the couple, Jayce, and a veritable mountain of trash. Jude dropped a wrapper into a trashcan, Scott sighed, and any lighthearted atmosphere there had been earlier had shattered, and in its place stood exhaustion. Jude very clearly wanted the planning to be over after months and months of it, small victories not appeasing him, and Scott only got more and more wound up as the day drew closer. Jayce didn’t think he could help diffuse the tension at that point, either, but Scott perked up when Jude suggested putting off cleaning to play a game. The offer was extended to Jayce, who refused, saying he was tired before retreating to his room. He didn’t want to intrude on what time together they could get after they’d been surrounded by people all day. 

He took the time that night to call his older sister and talk about the conversation he had with Baxter that day, and namely, how he now knew about Melody. Liz was far more grounded in her reaction than Cove had been earlier that day, and they talked everything over well into the night. He kept thinking about it even after they’d both said their goodbyes, staring up at the dark ceiling for the second night in a row. He didn’t rest well that night, his thoughts racing, and it felt as if he blinked and it was suddenly the next morning.

Chapter Text

The second day was certainly turning out to be an eventful one. Jude and Scott were currently arguing over the wedding as Miranda, Jayce, and Terry stared on uncomfortably, and Baxter tried to intercede and diffuse tension. 

It had started out normally enough, if the two men had looked just slightly more anxious than usual. Miranda, Jayce, and Terry had been pointing things out to each other that reminded them of Baxter-of-the-Past, and Jayce had scooted the chair out from behind the desk and sat in it, as Baxter hadn’t sat in it the day previously. When Present Baxter entered the office, they recapped the previous day’s activities, and had discussed cake smashing with the couple. 

What had set them off was Scott wanting centerpieces for the reception, and Jude not bothering to hide his irritation at needing to go get them, and had spiraled into a discussion of Scott “caring too much”, and of Jude “not caring enough”. The discussion had then lapsed into disconcerting silence.

Baxter, of course, had filled that silence after a few beats, leaning back in his chair as the lack of sound became suffocating.

“Let’s take a breathe to pause and assess what’s happening here. There’s nothing wrong with caring about your wedding. However, it is a truly draining experience to create a massive and important event from the ground up. That’s why we have planners. So, there should be an understanding for that as well. Now, as the ‘expert’ here, I must ask an important question.”

The couple were hanging onto his words, and Jayce was honestly impressed with how Baxter was talking them down. His approach was incredibly gentle, and it reminded him of how Cove spoke to his daughter sometimes. Baxter leaned forward far enough that he nearly lifted off the seat.

“What are your opinions on bowling?”

The group’s reactions were varied. Miranda and Terry were confused, Jude and Scott seemed intrigued by where Baxter was going to go with this, and Jayce let out a bark of laughter that caused Baxter to glance in his direction briefly.

“What… the hell?”

“Bowling, it’s a casual sport, popular with almost all ages.”

Jayce continued to laugh as Jude looked at Baxter, his eyebrows creasing.

“Dude, he knows what bowling is. He’s asking why that was your important question. You can’t be telling me people have bowling at their weddings.”

 “Not for any I’ve planned, but I have no doubt somebody has set up lawn bowling for their guests before, or even held their reception at a bowling alley. Interesting, but not what I had in mind. I’d like to invite the five of you to go bowling with me. Preferably right now. My treat.”

Scott was still confused, but Jude agreed quickly, prompting Scott to just become more confused. 

“I love bowling.” Miranda swept in to her brother’s rescue.

Jayce started a chant of “Bowling Time!” with Terry and Miranda, complete with fists pumping in the air before Scott agreed to go. The three let out a whoop, and everyone filtered out of the office to follow Baxter.

When Baxter said that he knew a place on the way out, Jayce didn’t think he meant the bowling alley they’d gone to on their first date. He was running out of gods to curse at an alarmingly fast rate, and he decided to keep the information close to his chest for now. The place was practically identical to how it had been years prior, and it felt surreal to be back again. Even more so, to be back with Baxter. They got a lane before anyone could further question Baxter, and were also split into teams by Scott and Jude even faster. Jude had grabbed Miranda and Terry followed his girlfriend, leaving Jayce and Baxter to be on Scott’s team.

The teaming up had also let Baxter figure out Randy and Terry were dating. Jayce giggled with Miranda while Terry looked at Baxter, shocked. 

“We’ve been together this whole time, don’t tell me you didn’t know?” He jabbed at Baxter with his elbow, who took it good-naturedly.

“Well, I didn’t want to presume anything, but, still, hallelujah. I’d hoped it had worked out for you.”

… And that led to Terry realizing his crush on Randy when they were eighteen was not a secret whatsoever to anybody with eyes. Even Cove , Mr. Oblivious himself, had known, and Jayce told him as much. Terry buried his face in his hands and groaned, Miranda rubbing his back soothingly as the topic shifted back to bowling, and cementing the teams.

“Our team is perfect.” Jayce brushed Miranda’s concern about him teaming with Baxter off, looping an arm into Scott’s in a show of unity. The man laughed before agreeing with the younger.

“We’ll let the scores speak for themselves.” Terry smirked, and Jayce’s grin was unsettlingly large as he fired back his own trash talk.

“You’re gonna lose so fucking hard, watch.”

Everyone traded their own jabs as it was decided Scott’s team would go first, and the man stepped up to the lane. He opened their turn with a spare, before passing onto Jayce, who hit a strike. He jumped and faced his friends, letting out a whoop and pumping his fist into the air. Passing Baxter on his way up to the lane, he looked at Jayce.

“I think this team is perfect, too.”

That left Jayce dumbstruck, and he stopped in his tracks just before the carpeted area. He looked back and saw that Baxter hadn’t stopped, and he shook his head to clear it before taking his seat next to Scott to watch what their wild card would do.

Baxter had picked the heaviest ball and secured a spare, shrugging and simply saying that it’d do before handing off the round to Jude’s team. 

Jude had matched his fiance with a spare, Terry matched Jayce with another strike, and Miranda revealed herself as a double agent, throwing a gutter ball before announcing her allegiance to their dear Grant-Grant.

“I love you, Randy!” Jayce cackled, grabbing the girl in a side hug as she laughed right back.

“Love you too, Jayce”

Terry said he would carry the team to victory, which sent Miranda and Jayce doubling over in giggles. The game carried on, with Miranda finding worse and worse ways to send her ball down the lane. Honestly, it took skill to throw that bad, and Jayce was impressed. Jude and Terry tried their best, but they were truly no match for the four man team. Scott was thrilled to claim victory, and Jayce unconsciously turned to hug Baxter in his excitement. The man closed his eyes and leaned into Jayce’s touch, but didn’t return it. Jayce wished he had. Baxter’s laughter filled his head, and it felt like listening to a favorite song for the first time in a while.

“Splendid, that was the best game I’ve had in a while.”

Jayce sighed happily, and he felt Baxter stiffen. Oh. Right, they were being physically affectionate. Jayce let him go, whispering out a quick apology as Baxter stepped back to a respectful distance. That was probably for the best, but Jayce still lamented the loss of contact. For a split second, Jayce had let their past bleed into the present.

“I told you you were going to lose!”

Nobody else looked like they’d noticed the two of them, as Scott punctuated his statement with a breathy laugh and put his hands on his knees. Jude, to his credit, tried to frown, but as Scott’s face grew redder and redder while he laughed, a grin broke onto his face.

“Yeah, yeah, tough guy. You win. Don’t pass out.” Jude’s voice was laced with affection as he watched his fiance, all the tension from earlier in the gone from the both of them.

Baxter looked pleased to see that, a genuine smile playing at his lips as he suggested getting lunch at the alley while they were there, to the surprise of Scott and Terry. To them both, Baxter seemed more like a fancy restaurant type, and Jayce recalling Baxter wanting to eat at the Cypress on their first date after their stop at the bowling alley had made Terry and Miranda both laugh as Baxter shook his head and explained his nineteen year old self. The group ordered and sat down, and Terry spoke up first, fingers idly drumming on the table.

“We’ve got a good set here. Jude and Grant-Grant are engaged, me and Randy are dating, Jayce and Baxter are- uh.” Terry’s voice trailed off as he looked between the two, and Jayce sighed. He should have expected Terry to talk before fully processing a train of thought.

“Awkward exes?” Jude supplied, somewhat unhelpfully, and Jayce shot him a tired look.

“ Oh. So you’ve heard about that.” Baxter had begun fidgeting with a napkin, and Jayce’s eyes flitted to his hands at the movement, tracking the paper as Baxter lifted it to motion between the two couples. “Well, I think this is wonderful for Jayce and I. We’re being unique in this land of romantic adventures.

“Are you serious right now?” Scott’s brow furrowed slightly, and Baxter smirked.

“No, I am not. I’m being facetious.”

“Ah… that makes more sense.” In contrast, Scott’s smile was sheepish.

The conversation grew quiet until their food came, which had everyone in various states of bewilderment as they watched Baxter eat a veggie burger with a knife and a fork. Terry and Miranda were in stitches over it, abandoning their own food in their fit of giggles, and Jayce himself chuckled as he leaned back in his chair.

“Lady and gentlemen, the father of my child, who eats a burger like a goddamn aristocrat.” Jayce snarked, which sent Terry into another peal of laughter. Jude raised his eyebrows at Jayce  and was waved off with a mouthed ‘later’. To his credit, Baxter's eyes had merely flitted up to Jayce, and he seemed unbothered by it. 

As they ate, Baxter took the reigns of conversation and directed them all back to wedding planning, where it was agreed that Baxter, Terry, Jayce, and Miranda would go to the craft store to pick up centerpiece supplies and give the couple a break, as well as a few extra details that Baxter would sort out. The group split enthusiastically, their mood having improved tenfold since the beginning of the day.

Miranda guided them around the store, shopping cart wheels squeaking along as Jayce followed her with his own cart. The conversation was light as they hunted for the items on the list Scott had sent, with Jayce being informed that he would be taking Terry’s place in the crafting circle, and a debate about whether scent or color mattered more for candles after Terry could only find coconut scented ones (which had quickly been dropped when Jayce had silently pointed to the sign labeling the beach themed aisle that was over Terry's head) being the highlights, before Baxter departed to take care of other aspects of the wedding, taking up a spot on a bench at the front of the store, phone up to his ear.

As soon as the man was out of earshot, Jayce’s friends rounded on him, slight concern coloring their faces.

“Jayce, are you sure you’ve been okay with all of this?” Miranda asked, and Jayce slumped against his cart.

“I’m not sure… I think he’s changed. It feels like it.”

Terry and Miranda looked like they were having a silent conversation with one another. To be fair to them, they didn’t know about the conversation Baxter and Jayce had the day prior. They hadn’t seen how he’d interacted with him and Xavier at the bakery, nor how utterly shocked he had looked when Jayce hit him with the curveball of a child. Truthfully, Jayce could say that the Baxter Ward of today was not the same Baxter Ward they had known five years prior. 

He told them as much, and Miranda stated that she hadn’t known him enough back then to really pass judgement, and neither had Terry. They were with him no matter what, however, which Jayce was glad for, and with that hurdle cleared, the three went back to the shopping. They were burning time, and Terry only had so much before he had to leave them for work. 

They shot up and down aisles rapidly, carts filling as they went along with even more supplies. Baxter would flutter his fingers in greeting as they passed his bench, and Jayce took to holding up two fingers in a mock salute in response before Terry would drag the cart down another aisle in search of more flowers, candles, or other supplies. Jayce approached Baxter when the carts were filled to the brim, every box on the list checked off, and noted that he was no longer on a call. His phone was still in his hand, but he was simply tapping on the screen rapidly. 

“Hello. Were you able to find everything?” He took in the sheer volume of objects in the carts, attempting to sort through the chaotic collection visually. 

“Everything except a chocolate fountain.” Jayce quipped in response, gesturing to the carts.. Both were, in fact, bereft of a fountain, and Baxter’s mouth twisted into a wry smile at the reference.

“What an unfortunate loss.”

“Very unfortunate.” Was how he chose to answer the incredibly sincere, not at all sarcastic response he received. He grinned back at Baxter, putting his hands back on the handle of one of the carts.

“My task is done, too. I found a car that is to the couple’s tastes and got their approval to rent it for the day.”

“Cool.” Terry leaned back against the cart Miranda had been pushing.

“I was even able to do so legally this time.” Baxter added, and Jayce snorted. How could he have forgotten the shenanigans Baxter had to get into to acquire his car that summer? Terry and Miranda simply stared at Baxter in concern, who brushed it off by stating it was an inside joke. That made Jayce laugh, and he tried to ignore Baxter blurring the lines between them once again. After all, he’d made his own inside joke not even a minute before.

The group paid for their haul, and Jayce tried not to balk when Miranda told them the time. It was just like when they had gone to get supplies for Miranda’s party. The craft store was a dangerous place. Miranda questioned whether or not Terry would have time to drop them off before he had to be at work, and even though Terry’s van was large, the sheer mass of bags they had was quickly becoming a problem. Baxter, who saw the amalgamation of craft supplies creeping into the front seats of the car, offered to take the more delicate bits and transport them in his car, which he was swiftly taken up on. Once they were on the road, Jayce settled in and was content to listen to Miranda and Terry’s conversation as they drove back to the house.

Carrying bags in the house turned into a competition after Terry and Miranda kept hooking bags onto their hands. Jayce hoped Jude got a kick out of how they looked when they answered the door, at least eight bags on each arm, petals spilling out of the tops as they walked past him to drop off their goods. God knows he did when Terry got caught on the doorknob.

He was relieved to be rid of the bags after Scott directed them to where they should go, flexing his hands to try and restore his circulation to normal. Terry left to go to work after Jude brought in the rest of the bags, and Miranda flopped down onto the couch, visibly upset by something. She explained that she felt bad that Terry did so much for her and her family and how she felt like she didn’t do nearly enough at Jude’s prompting.

“But what if I want to do something bold for a change?” She’d said in response to Scott’s reassurance that subtle acts she did were meaningful, too, and Jude snapped his fingers as an idea came to his mind.

“You could propose.”

Jayce’s mind blanked, and he gawked at Jude. This was definitely not the direction he’d thought this would go in, and from the look on her face, it wasn’t how Miranda thought it would either.

“That’s what Scott did. My bold move was asking him to move in with me, but Terry already beat you to that one.”

“ What? ” Miranda exclaimed, and Scott nodded along with Jude before adding his own comment.

“What if it happened at our wedding? That would be the perfect place for a daring engagement!”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, that could work.”

“Wedding proposals are traditionally frowned upon. You two are very gracious for suggesting it.”

Jayce turned to stare at Baxter. Honestly, in the sudden confusion, he’d forgotten Baxter had come with them. The man’s tone was light and casual, and both Miranda and Jude turned to gape at him.

“I forgot you were here, dude.” Jude voiced everyone’s thoughts, and Baxter chuckled.

“Oh, forgive me for the surprise interruption.”

“Jude, you’re six years older than me and getting married right now. I am not proposing to Terry.” Miranda deadpanned to her brother, and Baxter cut in again.

“If I’m not overstepping, why not plan a trip to get away together? A nice vacation for myself and a special someone after spending so much time focused on others would be an incredible gift. It doesn’t have to be the equivalent of the honeymoon Jude and Scott are having for it to be worthwhile. Simple does the job just as well. I’m no travel agent, but you could think of a day trip or staying somewhere overnight. There are some perfectly lovely possibilities.”

Miranda considered it, her eyes lighting up.

“That is a perfect idea. I can remember a few places Terry’s wanted to visit for ages, and a lot of them aren’t that far. I’ll do it! I’ll take Terry on a mini-vacation!”

Her grin grew as she spoke, and stayed on her face even as she made sure Jayce knew it would be after he went back home. It made him laugh, the thought of them leaving before he did hadn’t even crossed his mind. The thoughtfulness was sweet. She apologized for distracting the group, which Scott waved off, claiming the party wasn’t as important as the people attending it. Baxter watched the scene in contentment before he cleared his throat. He wished Miranda luck before he moved on to discuss the events that would happen the next day before he left. Scott and Jude wanted to go clothes shopping and attempt slow dancing, giving the other three the day off before their final, official meeting at night. Plans were made to have the last meeting at the couple’s house instead of the office, and Baxter started moving to take his leave. 

“Wait, let me walk you out.” Jayce jumped up from his spot on the couch, and Baxter quirked an eyebrow.

“Quite the gentleman, Mr. Clements.”

“Yes, I am.” Jayce opened the door for him, like the gentleman he was. Baxter wasn’t expecting Jayce to follow him through the door, but Jayce shut the door behind them both, leading the other man down the driveway and across the street to where he had parked. Slowly, the polite smile began to crack

Baxter kept glancing towards Jayce, trying to figure out when Jayce would head back to the house. Every time he did, Jayce felt compelled to continue, not stopping until they were stood at the front of the car.

“Thank you for escorting me the whole way.” Baxter seemed amused by the whole thing.

“It was no problem at all.” Jayce answered, standing there as Baxter slowly took his keys out of his pocket, unlocking the door but not entering the car. His mouth twisted awkwardly as Jayce continued to silently stand where he was.

“Alright, be safe.”

Jayce hummed, remaining rooted to the ground. Baxter’s gaze flicked between him and the car.

“Could you please move off the street? I wouldn’t want to hit you when I pull out.”

“Fine, I can do that.” Instead of going back to the house, Jayce hopped onto the curb and smiled at him. Baxter looked at him in disbelief. 

“Are you certain you don’t need to go back to your friends? I can wait to leave until you’re back inside. I don’t mind.”

“Nah, I’m fine right here. You can leave first,” Baxter’s posture straightened, and his arms folded in a defensive way, “What’s wrong?”

“Everything’s fine, Jayce!”

Baxter had given up on pretending he was going to leave with Jayce still watching him, and the two stood at an impasse. 

“Alright, spill. There’s no reason to keep hanging around.” Knowing the jig was up, Baxter smiled again. 

“Honestly, it wasn’t my intention to leave in the first place. I wanted to get some ice cream. From an ice cream truck, is what I mean.” 

The added context flowed out easily, and it dawned on Jayce that the neighborhood was the same one they had driven to for the truck years ago. He couldn’t help the small sound of disbelief that escaped him, and he felt his own grin grow wider.

“I’m sure that you’re eager to rejoin the others. Please don’t let me hold you up.”

“... I wouldn’t mind some ice cream.” Jayce rubbed the side of his neck, suddenly sheepish, and broke eye contact. 

“I see how it is.”

“Yeah. I’ll text Randy and let her know I’ll be back soon.” 

“At this point it’s out of my hands. You know what I’m up to, it’s a public activity, who am I to say you aren’t also allowed to visit the neighborhood ice cream truck?” Baxter carded his fingers through his hair, smiling at Jayce. It was a softer grin, this time, without the cutting edge Jayce had gotten used to over the past two days. Jayce nodded along, acknowledging the slight awkwardness that seemed to follow them when they were alone.

Both men began to loop through the neighborhood streets, keeping an eye out for the ice cream truck, and it didn’t take long for them to find it. The familiar tune drew them in before it rounded the corner, and Jayce bounced slightly as it pulled to the curb for them. It looked like it had been plucked straight out of his memory, with the same faded decals and options listed on the side of it. 

“We found it.” There was a sparkle in Baxter’s eye and a thrill in his voice that threw Jayce off guard, and sent yet another arrow through his heart. 

“That we did.” Jayce’s reply was breathy, and they both walked up to the window to buy their ice cream. The conversation with the woman working was pleasant, and Jayce listened to Baxter ordering an ice cream sandwich as he looked at the options. So, he still preferred those. Something panged deep in his chest, and he tried to ignore it as Baxter slid to the side, allowing Jayce to order his own frozen lemonade cup. They started walking back to the house after they received their treats, and Jayce opened his and started to eat it as they went along. The corner of Baxter’s mouth tugged into the familiar smirk as he watched Jayce.

“I see your preferences have remained the same.”

“Yours, too.” Jayce pointed his spoon at Baxter, smiling as he spoke.

“Yes, some tastes remain longer than others. Are you enjoying it this time?”

“It’s still good. Definitely better than not having it.”

“I’m glad.” Baxter had visibly brightened after Jayce answered him, and the two lapsed back into gentle silence.

Jayce, in his infinite refusal to leave some things alone, took the chance to actually talk to Baxter while the man was placated with his sandwich.

“So, do you still dance? Outside of the wedding business?” He gestured with the spoon again as he spoke.

“Not competitively. Actually, I haven’t even kept it up as a hobby, either. These days it only ever comes up with my clientele,” his gaze trailed off into the distance, “I love dancing, but unfortunately there isn’t room for everything. Surely, you’ve come across such things in your own adult life.” Jayce found it hard to separate Baxter and dance in his mind, but agreed with not having room for everything.

“God, yeah. I don’t read as much as I’d like to anymore. Between my pet tornado and the studio there just isn’t enough time in the day.” Jayce laughed, and Baxter raised an eyebrow.

“‘Pet tornado’?” He echoed, and Jayce realized that Baxter, of course, wouldn’t know he meant Melody.

“Melody. She’s in the stage where she’s just in constant motion. Gets destructive, hard to keep up with. Hence, pet tornado. Liz prefers to call her my ‘hurricane spawn’, but both are pretty accurate.” Baxter seemed amused by Jayce’s explanation.

“I see. Back to what I was saying earlier, I can’t complain. There was a rather low chance my love of dance would be utilized in my profession, yet here we are. Silver linings, and all that.”

“You’ve changed a lot. Sometimes, I think you’re practically unrecognizable.” Was all Jayce could think to say, and Baxter tilted his head as if waiting for Jayce to say something more. Nothing came.

“How unexpected. I was convinced I hadn’t changed in the slightest. I’m an actual resident of California now, and I haven’t so much as dipped my toes in the ocean. I’m far too nervous for that. Embarrassingly, I’m not a beach man like Terry. I’m not even the B-man anymore. He calls me Baxter…” His voice grew quieter as he went, but that level of transparency didn’t last between him and Jayce for long. While the subject changed, the sadness lingered on Baxter after “My taste in ice cream hasn’t evolved, and neither has my ideas for outings. I can say that I’ve improved some talents and found a less eye-catching sense of style, but for anything meaningful, there’s been no growth.”

Jayce thought on that, and he couldn’t help but disagree. To Jayce, Baxter had grown. Baxter waved the topic off, shaking his head.

“Don’t mind me and my ramblings.” Jayce decided to change the subject and ask another question.

“Why do you only choose rock?”

“Oh, that’s an unexpected query.”

“Is it? It’s not really a normal thing to take a stance on, Baxter. I’ve honestly been wondering about it since yesterday.”

“Truthfully, it’s my favorite out of the bunch. A nice fist. Simple, effective,” Baxter held up a fist, as if to demonstrate his point, before dropping it again, “But rather than why I choose rock out of the three, I imagine you’re more intrigued by why I only use one in general.”

“I’m good with hearing both.”

“How nice. Well, I’ve done it about as long as I can remember. It made the game more enjoyable in my youth. The petty types of decisions that were best suited to be solved with randomness mattered little to me. It was far more amusing to see who would take the advantage and win, and who lost willingly and why they seemed to do so,” Baxter glanced at the distant sky, “At the bare minimum, I’m not that much of a brat any longer. As an adult, I mainly use it to get away with not making decisions on my own. Whoever is playing with me has the responsibility to win or lose because what they’re up against is preordained. I don’t even need to choose what symbol my hand makes. It’s easier that way.”

“Oh.” That… was something that could be discussed later. For now, Jayce was nearing the end of his cup, and his eyes went soft as he took the opportunity to talk about their daughter.

“Y’know, Mel’s obsessed with ice cream sandwiches? She refuses to touch any other kind of ice cream.”

“Not even your lemonade cups?” Baxter grins, and Jayce laughs.

“God, no, she hates them. Hates every single popsicle we’ve tried to give her, too. The sandwiches are all she ever wants, I’m pretty sure they’re her favorite food, like, ever.”

That earns a laugh from Baxter, and they fall into silence again. After a few seconds, Jayce speaks again without thinking.

“Why did you have to stop talking to me? Even right now, you’re still keeping your distance.”

“I know,” Baxter was frowning, now, and it hurt Jayce to see. The other man’s steps dragged, as if he had a need to physically be away when Jayce tried to close the emotional gap, “Believe it or not, I’ve asked myself similar questions. Jayce, I do want to be entirely clear; you are wonderful. Never doubt that. What happened, I do exactly… that to everyone who unfortunately crosses my path. The acquaintances I made at college, my dance partners, the friends I had since childhood; my parents, though that is an entirely different story. The point of the matter is, excluding those I interact with regularly due to work, I have no relations whatsoever. That’s simply the way it goes.”

To Jayce, nothing about what he had just explained was simple. It was honestly heartbreaking to Jayce. Baxter chose to cut it off there, not willing to deal with that part of himself at that moment, and to Jayce’s surprise, Baxter didn’t take it out on him like he had the other times Jayce had tried to get personal before their conversation yesterday. He took that as a good sign, and simply let the topic drift. It felt like there was a truce between him and Baxter in that moment, and he was at peace with it. 

They’d get back to Jude and Scott’s house fairly soon, and Jayce was surprised that Baxter hadn’t finished the child sized ice cream sandwich yet. He wondered what was going on inside his head. If it was anything like how Jayce’s had been, there was probably a lot of fog he had to trudge through. He found it kind of funny that the day before, Baxter wanted to be anywhere other than next to Jayce, and now, they were getting ice cream and catching up, and Baxter seemed to be trying to stretch their walk for as long as he could. And the man said he hadn’t changed at all.

Jayce understood. Being with Baxter, despite the baggage that hadn’t been opened yet and the conversation they had benched until after the wedding, was becoming comfortable again. The pain Jayce felt at the beginning had dulled enough that he thought the wound was closing itself once more. He couldn’t tell if it was him, Baxter, or some combination of the both of them doing something to make that happen, and he didn’t know if it would last after the wedding, but there was a part of him that yearned for it to. It was a selfish part, one that Jayce had tried to forget as he had grown and had to place so many others before himself, but it had reared its head often in the past two days when he thought of Baxter.

Their time for that day ran out as Baxter took his last bite, and the house came into their view. He cleaned his hands as best he could with the napkins, offering some to Jayce, who took them and put them in his pocket.

“Thank you for accompanying me, Jayce. As we can both see, my car is right over there. I won’t keep you any longer. Good luck with the centerpieces. I’m sure they’ll turn out lovely.”

“I hope so.” Jayce murmured, “I’ll see you around, right?”

“Yes, you will.” Baxter got into the car for real, and then he was gone again.

After the exceedingly long break, Jayce went back inside. The door still being unlocked was a small mercy, and he sighed as he went to rejoin his friends without any additionally weirdness. So he thought, but all three of the people inside had looked up when they heard the door close. While Jude and Miranda didn’t ask him anything, Scott pressed slightly, still in awe of the fact that the two of them were exes, and that led to Jude finding out that Baxter was the ‘edgy kid who kept messing with the chocolate fountain’ at Miranda’s nineteenth birthday party.

“And now that random edgy kid is planning your wedding! Ta-da!” Jayce put up jazz hands for emphasis, and Miranda laughed.

“WHAT? That was Baxter? With the eyeballs?” Jude seemed to have a hard time processing that, and Jayce waited a second before responding.

“Yes. That was Baxter. With the eyeballs.”

Jude dropped like a broken folding chair, and Jayce was honestly slightly concerned. He’d never heard the man laugh that hard, and he got to the point where he was shaking and wheezing. Scott’s eyebrows got higher and higher every second Jude kept laughing.

“What do you mean, ‘with the eyeballs’? What’s wrong with his eyeballs?”

Both Eckerts were collapsed in fits of laughter at that point, and Jayce really, really hoped Baxter was far enough away to not hear them. Scott just got more confused, as he was the only one in the room who hadn’t seen the black and white phase in person. 

“Scott, you had to be there. He looked like a damn fool. Let’s not hold it against him.” Jude leaned back on the couch, palm pressed to his heart. 

After that, Jayce got integrated into the crafting circle, and the rest of the afternoon passed in a flurry of fake flowers and scented candles. At one point, the group chat got another message from Baxter to confirm with Jude and Scott, and Jayce was pleasantly surprised to find the message was phrased far friendlier than the previous ones had been. There was even an emoji! From Baxter Ward! He shared those thoughts with Miranda, who just laughed at him. 

That night, Jayce’s head was quieter than it had been. He thought the day had been a success overall. He slept easy knowing that things were finally coming together.