cigsandbeer | IC INBOX

"We're writing Edwin's name and mine in Xie Lian's family book, now that I've married in."

To Hakkai, who is Xie Lian's.

"Me and Edwin...we both never expected to have any kind of family at all. So it'd be nice if his uncle was there. Plus, good food."

"What the-- I'm expected to--

"You're expecteding me to accept to be someone's uncle just like that??

"I don't know you well enough to guess how quick you'd accept it," Jedao admits mildly. "But I think you'd be a good one."

Edited 2024-08-07 20:44 (UTC)

"Fuck off."

Gojyo would make for a shit any family member.

"Does the kid want some random guy he's never met at this thing?"

"He has been shyly delighted almost to the point of overwhelmed happy tears at the idea of anyone wanting to be family with him, every single time," Jedao tells him, dryly and yet warmly, too. "Even Yunlan, whom he did have...not dislike, but some wariness of, before."

He idly trails his fingers through the water, scares away some of the minnows, watches them flicker and dart away.

"I think it would mean almost as much to him as it would to Hakkai. But you can meet him first, if you'd rather, and make sure."

...Oh. It's... that kind of situation, for that kid, is it. Gojyo's eyes widen, and you can practically see how that immediately makes him fold.

"I--"

He runs a hand through his hair, awkward.

"Fucking troublesome... Sure, fine. It'd be weird not to meet at least once beforehand.

Hakkai knows you're inviting me?"

He's not showing up if doing so will be a surprise to Hakkai, sad lonely kid or no.

"I promise he'll be informed," Jedao swears, beaming at him a little.

He suspects he's going to get very well-laid about it when he brings home the good news, in fact.

"This his idea or yours?

The invitation."

Not the party itself. He kind of hates the idea that this was all Jedao's initiative.

"It was a joint discussion. He wants you there real bad. But he was scared of shoving his foot in his mouth again, I think, plus this one is more my thing to organize, so."

Jedao's the one who asked.

Gojyo groans like the most put-upon person in the world. It's not like he's thrilled to be counting Jedao as family, but then it's not like he can just pretend like he doesn't exist if he wants to stay friends with Hakkai. It's just fucking annoying how Jedao's turning into the sane mediator between Hakkai and Gojyo.

"Fine, fine, I'll be there as long as the kid okays it."

--Oh, actually. Speaking of not needing a sane mediator:

"I won't be ruining any surprises if I just go up to him like 'yo, about the upcoming family book party'?"

Jedao grins some more, ducking his head a little.

And yes, that is the solution to him playing go-between.

"No, that'd be just fine."

"'Kay."

Gojyo looks out over the water again, taking long drags of his cigarette. Part of him maybe feels slightly... embarrassed? bad? over Jedao having to run interference between two supposed best friends like they're five year olds, but he also doesn't quite have it in him to apologise for it.

Jedao is quiet for a little while, taking Gojyo's advice. After a short lull, he whoops softly, a little frog caught gently between his cupped hands. He turns to Gojyo excitedly.

"Got one!"

Gojyo snorts.

"Fucking congrats. What, don't kids go frog-catching where you're from?"

His tone isn't mocking; more amused at the sheer excitement.

He shakes his head, answering in earnest.

"The Citadel only had cats. And before that, on my ship, there weren't any animals at all. I've seen some different kinds in ports now, but...they're so small."

He opens his hands and the frog ribbits tentatively a few times, then hop-flops out of his hands to splash back into the water, an ungainly lurching movement that makes Jedao laugh in delight.

"How the fuck does that work, not even seen like, birds and stuff even on a--"

Nevermind that it'd be bonkers to raise a child from infancy out at sea. ...No, wait. He points a finger up at the sky.

"You like that Abel guy? Living on a space ship?"

Jedao nods. "Yeah. The Citadel is a station, but still in space."

He looks away, although it's pensive more than anything else, not exactly sad. Wistful maybe.

"I was also never really a child. I woke up feeling 17 with almost no memories and got tossed into a war days later. There weren't any children there. I think there are some in the Citadel, if their parents are living and working there, but I wasn't allowed to meet any of them."

"...Shit."

Waking up with no memories, already a teenager... that sounds like someone Gojyo knows.

"Sorry, man. Forget I asked."

No need to talk about it if it's painful.

"If I didn't want to tell you, I wouldn't have," Jedao says with a shrug, glancing back over to him. "I didn't even need to lie, I could've left it at the spaceship thing."

But he wants Gojyo to know him. He is trying to allow Gojyo to know him. He looks back out at the river.

"Anyway. It's been a short, weird life so far. Gotten a lot better since I came here. But it means I really appreciate you sharing things like this place."

He waves at the sheer lazy shining expance of it.

"It's really beautiful."

"Yeah, well. This place isn't anything special: there are places back home with gardeners who--" he makes a little wave with a hand, "cut the trees and brushes in fancy shapes, arrange the flowers so the colours look good together, that kinda stuff.

This is just a random river close to where I used to live. I'd come here as a kid."

"Ah, gardeners. Edwin likes gardening, although I don't know if he's up to anything that fancy yet. And it doesn't need to be special to be lovely."

He tips his face up, regarding the shockingly blue sky, so bright compared to the usual black he knows.

"No, it doesn't have to be."

Gojyo knows that. What's wrong with ordinary? and all that. Lovely is... not the word he'd use, but he does like this place in all its ordinarity. It was soothing. It was somewhere to get away to for a while, when it wasn't safe to be at home.

"He working in the Greenhouse, then?"

"He's got his own pots in his cabin, mostly. I think he's working in the chapel now, for some reason."

It's not like he's religious.

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