Chapter Eight

[J's Lullaby.]

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. Jerry sits at the dining table with the family, Beth's glare piercing into him. "Beth, it's an old thing we used to do," He tries justifying, his voice soft and smile forced. "My parents would love to see Kurtis again, and I'm sure they would want to speak to his aunt again, maybe clear things up after all these years." He clears his throat, Summer and Morty on their phones as Rick tinkers with his portal gun, repairing it from his last adventure with Morty. "Plus, he doesn't celebrate Christmas in December, he has a big family, so they all get together in January, sometimes even February. I don't want him to be alone on Christmas!"

"He'll have his aunt." Beth rolls her eyes with a huff, Jerry sighing softly in defeat.

"Beth, please," He pleads, tilting his head slightly, "My parents haven't seen him in years, and I'm sure my dad would be excited - Kurtis was like a son to him."

"Plus, he told me he'd bring his special wines if he came over." Rick chimes in, sipping from his cup of black coffee.

"He said you asked," Jerry says with slight confusion in his voice, shaking his head and looking at Beth again. "Please? He's my best friend!"

"Might be the only friend he could pull, Beth, let the man have this." Richard mumbles to his daughter, pausing for a moment, "That and his wines haven't been opened in years, they'll be rich."

"Dad." Beth turns to him, frown on her features. "You said you wouldn't drink as much, remember the speech?"

"Beth, I drink a bottle or two a day, sometimes I even skip days. I like the idea of having a supply for a month, so that I can monitor my drinking. I don't drink that often anymore, but you know I'm going to want that wine." He eats a spoon of his cereal, turning his attention back to his machine. Beth sighs and faces Jerry again, begging eyes. She sighs once again, eyes on her certain bowl.

"Fine." Beth gives in, Jerry's face lightening. He grins widely, grateful.

"Thank you, Beth! It means a lot!"

"Okay." Beth hums, standing with her bowl and leaving to the kitchen. Morty watches his mother before turning to Jerry, curiosity lingering in his eyes.

"Dad, I'm- I'm sorry, but why do you want him to come over for Christmas?" He questions, continuing to hide his phone under the table.

"When we were younger, Kurtis, me and my dad would go on a trip to the mountains. We'd usually be the only ones there, because everyone else would be with their families, so we'd do whatever we wanted." He explains, joy in his eyes, "My dad and Kurtis were just really close, Kurt used to call him 'pops' sometimes."

"Where was his actual dad?" Summer asks, not considering how insulting it may be to ask such a question. Her brother shoots her an unpleased look, mouth agape.

"You can't just say that!"

"It's fine, Morty, Kurt's a really open person when it comes to family," Jerry assures, moving to take the empty bowls to the kitchen. "Kurt's dad was always working, and his mom just had triplets when he turned..." He pauses, calculating in his head. "We were ten when... He was around three," He nods to himself, returning to the dining room. "Kurt moved here when his parents got a new job and all, his twin stayed with them until she was around eight, then she moved in with Kurt and Aunt Quinn."

"Why do you still remember it?" Richard peers at him, Jerry hums.

"I don't know, I remember he explained it a lot to other people, I was usually around when he did."

"Or maybe he's some government agent who was sent here to try and get to Rick, and you're his one-way ticket to portal shooter." Summer eyes her father, Rick scoffs at this.

"Portal gun." He corrects, only to get a 'whatever' in response. Jerry frowns, laughing half-heartedly.

"Of course not."

"Maybe it's like that whole parasite thing," His daughter adds onto her theory, "Ever had a bad memory of him? Do you even have proof of knowing him for as long as you say you do? I smell government spy."

"Sum-Sum, you're being ridiculous." Rick tells her, wanting to sound sweet, but the lash in his tone only showed signs of annoyance.

"Why're you on his side? Don't tell me you've been brainwashed."

"Y-yeah, that is pretty weird, Rick." Morty scratches his head.

"Summer, he's real! I have photos of us and I think I still have a few of the things he'd gotten me years ago." Jerry frowns, folding his arms. Summer and Morty share a look, the girl clearing her throat.

"I'll believe it if I see it."

"Summer-" Rick starts, cutting himself short as he bites his lip. Wait, why am I defending this idiot? He asks himself, facing Jerry. I believe him, obviously, I saw their memory together - and it wasn't a pleasant one, so definitely scratching out parasite. Plus, can't be a government spy trying to get to me, like using Jerry to get to me, 'cause he's so attached to him. All he thought of was protecting Jerry, and he doesn't have any sort of vendetta against me... Rick turns his attention back down to his device, allowing the three to continue speaking. I shouldn't get involved, it's their thing. That, and I don't want them knowing I took their idiot of a father on an adventure.

"Summer, Morty," Jerry sighs in defeat, "Most of my stuff are with my parents I think, but I'll look in the attic." He tells them before walking out, Summer still in denial whilst Morty remains uncertain, both believing his father and feeling as if it were only in his head. Jerry makes his way up the ladder to the attic, turning on the light as he walks on the creaking wooden planks. He navigates between the piles of boxes, until he finds a dusty box labeled 'childhood - Jerry' in black marker; another box beside it labeled 'attic - Jerry' in Beth's handwriting. He sighs softly, moving the boxes on top of them to reach the two. He drags the one to the entrance and goes back to the other, when he comes back to the entrance, he pauses - watching as Rick climbs up the ladder and stands in front of him.

They remain silent for a moment before the older man takes one of the boxes, climbing back down the ladder. A little smile on his face and switching off the light, Jerry carries the second box and after closing up the attic, they move to the living room, where Summer and Morty sit - Morty flipping through channels on the tv, and Summer laying with her eyes glued to her phone. The scientist drops the box onto the coffee table as Jerry sets his down gently, the teenagers glancing between the two and the boxes.

"What's this?" The woman groans, sitting up straight with Morty moving to the edge of his spot.

"Evidence." Richard rolls his eyes, pulls out a dagger from his lab coat, dried green stains on the blade, and glides it along the tape. He does the same with the second box and Jerry opens them both, Morty turning off the television. Jerry scavenges through the boxes, pulling out a photo album, a jar of dirt with a smudged label, and he leaves a few of his gifts in the boxes.

"I'll first show you the photos, then the gifts - it'll make sense later." Jerry smiles and sits himself between his children, Rick sitting on the table in front of Jerry. The man blows the thin layer of dust before turning the cover, a few baby pictures of Jerry. "Ah!" He calls out, having flipped through a few sleeves, before falling apon a sleeve of ten year old Jerry and Kurtis standing with their arms over one another - Jerry with short hair and Kurt with a buzzcut, the two in overalls. Morty smiles softly at this, accepting this alone, though Summer does not, rolling her eyes. He continues flipping through the pictures, stopping at a photograph of Jerry at his thirteenth birthday, blowing out the candles as Kurt smiles beside him. Another picture beside it with Jerry holding up a polaroid camera and Kurtis with his mouth open, speaking to him. "I got a camera for my birthday, Kurtis' aunt got it for me."

He smiles and reaches over to pull out the almost broken camera from the box. He hands it to Morty, who continues to hold up a smile. "That's sweet." He gives it to Summer.

"Yeah, we took a ton of pictures, you can tell, because of all the polaroid pictures." Jerry laughs softly, flipping through the various images with little notes written underneath, the cursive handwriting belonging to Kurtis, whereas Jerry's more untidy. The older they got in the photographs, the more Summer and Morty could tell it's Kurtis and Jerry together. A few at the park, others them just relaxing together. They stumble across an unfocused polaroid picture, where Kurt's face stays halfway in the photo, Jerry laying on a beanbag chair, his one leg stretched out on the wall and a beer bottle raised in the air. A woman who looks identical to Kurtis, with a blue highlight in her hair and a bottle on her lips, her hands in the air, sits next to Jerry in the untidy bedroom.

"Drink responsibly, Summer and Aurora? Squiggly lines?" Morty reads the blue and red writings on the blank part, turning to his father beside him. Jerry rereads it, laughing gently. He nods.

"Yes, Kurtis wrote down 'Must be 21, don't be like us, girls'." Jerry reads, able to read his somewhat untidy writing. "Kurtis and I always wanted to name our future kids, Summer and Aurora." He glances at his daughter with a smile before turning to Rick and Morty, "The girl there is Jessica, Kurt's sister. They're twins." He nods to himself and flips the sleeve.

"Wait, so how many siblings does he have?" Summer asks.

"He has eight now. The oldest is in her forties adn the youngest is nine I think."

"Damn, their parents are busy." Rick jokingly says, clearing his throat when gaining no laughter. "How is that possible anyway? Women stop menstruating around forty-fifty."

"Different moms, same dad." He explains, stopping at a photograph of Jerry and Kurtis, Jerry in the corner and Kurt by the steering wheel, the view of the beach and sea in front of them. The two smile, Kurt tipping his hat as Jerry has a hand on his friend's shoulder, the writing 'Found this in my bag, we should do this again, bub :)'. He stares it longer, stirring a memory he had almost suppressed completely.

Relaxing on a boat, Jerry and Kurtis float on the coast, admiring the lovely sunset on the horizon. Shirtless, Jerry worr his light jeans and Kurt with his muddy overalls hanging on his hips. Jerry inhaled deeply, taking in the strong, beach air, as Kurtis sat beside him after fixing the sail. He handed him a bottle of water and opened a bottle for himself, a smile on his lips.

"They're filming that new Star Wars movie down the coast," Kurtis started, sipping from his bottle whilst Jerry struggles opening his water. His hair short with bleached tips and a few spots of acne on his features, Jerry having a groomed mustache. "Should we check it out?" He asked, taking the bottle and opening it for him with ease, smirking to himself.

"Sure. Why not?" The teen chuckled and accepted the bottle again, watching his friend drink the water eagerly. Not looking, Jerry missed when reaching for it and dropped the bottle, gasping softly. Both him and Kurtis reached for it, their hands interlocking as they caught it. Jerry a nervous wreck and Kurt calm as a millpond. They looked into each other's eyes, gazing longingly at one another.

"Maybe we'll see Chewbacca." Kurtis laughed nervously, a blush across his cheeks. Jerry grinned softly, showing off his braces and rosy cheeks. He watched Kurt lean forward, the two hovering around each other - he didn't hesitate, nor moved in any way, comfortable with the space between them. They were always on each other, in one another's personal space, and they loved it - finding comfort in this.

"I'd like that," Jerry whispered and glanced down at Kurt's lips, in the heat of the moment, he placed a hand on the back of Kurt's neck, the feeling of his [Kurt's] lips brushing against his again brings life to him. Kurtis' arm wrapped around the teen's waist, he leaned into his companion, the two yelping out softly when falling to the deck of the boat. They shared a chuckle, the farmer rolling onto his back next to Jerry. "What are we doing?" He asked in a laugh, watching Kurt as he rised from the floor and to the sail again, preparing to head to the coast.

He shrugged, smiling to himself. "I don't know, just... Just havin' fun, Jer." Kurt responded, gesturing for Jerry to join him whilst walking towards the steering wheel. "Now, c'mon, dude, let me show ya how to steer." Jerry smiled wider, following him into the separate room - Him moving to stand in front of the wheel with Kurt's hands atop of his, Jerry's back pressed to the guy's chest. "Just relax, you're doing great," He said softly, Jerry blushing brighter at the contact, though he's quite used to Kurtis being affectionate.

"Thanks for coming, bro," Jerry leaned into Kurt, his face a shade of crimson. The sky full of hues of orange and pink, slight sights of yellow, they steered the ship to the beach once again, enjoying each other's company.

"Thanks for inviting me, bub, I needed this." He responded softly, turning Jerry's head to look at to the side. He kissed his forehead and stroked his jawline, the two smiling wider at one another. He grabbed the hat off from a hook and set it upon his head. "We should take a picture to capture this."

"I'll get the camera," Jerry chuckled, the two looked longingly at one another before Jerry ran out of the little room.

Jerry stares at the photo with a blank face, blush on his feature. He cleared his throat, flipping through again. "Bubs?" Rick questions, smirking.

"Yeah, he called me that, and 'muffin' too. It's a long story." He smiles, the memory of him and Kurt sharing a blueberry muffin in his mind. He stops on a picture of Kurtis holding a baby wrapped in a pink blanket, hair ear length and and a baby bottle being held for her. Jerry holding the camera as if it were a phone, taking a picture of the two of them. He wears a basil green sweater with a faint yellow shirt underneath, hair short and a beard growing. Kurt in black overalls and a sea blue hoodie underneath. He smiles softly at this, 'You look so good in green, I hope you're well :)' Kurt had written for him. He remembers this day, the last picture he had taken of Kurtis. His smile drops slightly, but he keeps it steady for his family - though Rick notices it, choosing to not mention it.

"Woah, is that me?" Summer asks, her red hair noticeable near the top of the blanket. Jerry nods, sighing softly as he looks at her.

"I invited Kurt over one night, I wanted him to meet you officially." He shrugs, flipping the sleeve. "Beth was out with her friends, so I thought it was only fair I had a friend over."

"So, that's why you wear that God awful shirt all the time." Rick comments, Morty shooting him a glare. "What? It says he looks good in green, what I get from it is, Jerry took it as 'wear green everyday now'."

"I always loved green, Rick, people just hated me wearing it." Jerry rubs the back of his neck. "Kurtis telling me I look good in it made me happy, okay?"

"That's okay, dad," Morty smiles. "Green suits you."

"Take care of my shirt, bitch," Summer reads, focusing on the picture of Jerry in a peach t-shirt and his underwear, sitting at his desk with a pair of reading glasses on, face down in a book and the desk lamp emitting light. "You still have it?"

"Of course," Jerry hums, closing the book. A bit surprised there weren't any kissing photos, nor them being touchy, he was grateful they weren't shown to his family. He places it down on the table and moves to the boxes, digging around in them. "I got a few gifts from him, this for example," He pulls out various items, eventually pulling up a sage tea pot, with small, olive-green leaves on the handle and spout. "This is my favorite gift. Kurtis made this by hand a week after my old one broke when-..." He pauses, flashbacks to that night - His parents little arguing turning violent in the nick of time. He clears his throat, shaking his head slightly. "Tea is my favorite drink, and my teapot broke, so I couldn't make a lot at once, my mom was keen on not wasting teabags, all of that." He waves a hand in dismissal, sighing softly as he places it gently in the box, wrapping it in cloth again. "It was really sweet of him. We used to drink tea and eat Aunt Quinn's apple pie."

Morty hums, "Why don't you u-use it anymore?" He questions, Summer examining a cracked walkie-talkie, Rick watching Jerry silently, and Morty with the photo album on his lap. He raises his eyebrows at his father, who sighs sadly.

"Beth said she didn't like it, it doesn't really go with the kitchen's aesthetic in her opinion." He nods to himself, taking the rest of the items and setting them in the boxes, closing them again. Rick stands, giving Jerry a somewhat sorry expression that he doesn't notice. A tiny part of him feels bad for Jerry in a way, losing his friend - lover for all these years, just to wind up in almost the same situation. "But that's that, this is my evidence." He smiles at his family, picking up one of the boxes; his arms shaking slightly. "Morty, Summer, can one of you carry the other-" Before he could finish, Rick picks up the second box and walks upstairs. "Oh- uh, thanks, Rick."

"Mhm, tell Kurtis to bring expensive wine." He grumbles, Jerry following as he rolls his eyes.

As the day goes on, and the night comes around, Jerry awakens in his bed, sitting up with a gasp. Panting softly, he looks around himself, calming slowly. Just a dream. He assures himself and takes a few deep breath with his hand on his chest, trying to simulate what Kurtis had done to him a few days ago. Calmer, he swings his legs off of the bed and rise once his feet meet the cold floor. He adjusts his peach t-shirt and makes his way out of the room, wanting a drink of water.

As he quietly moves to the kitchen, he turns on the light and moves to the fridge, Rick's soft tinkering in the garage filling the silence. Rolling his eyes at this, Jerry takes a glass from the dishwasher and a bottle of water from the fridge, pouring the contents into it. He moves to place the glass by the sink once he's finished and packed ttge bottle back into the fridge, he freezes in his spot. He glides to the kettle, stopping before it. His eyes resting on his green teapot placed beside it, a note stuck on it. Taking it off, he raises it to his face, reading it in his head. Enjoy your tea, don't tell anyone about this, or you're dead. Rick. He smiles gently and nods to himself, accepting his kind gesture.

Throwing the paper away, he moves to the garage door, knocking on it softly. Rick's tinkering stops, silence falling upon them again. Jerry creaks the door open and stands by the doorway, Rick facing him with his arms folded. "So, there's the shirt." Rick comments, Jerry rubbing the back of his neck with a nod.

"Thanks for the teapot thing." Jerry leans against the door, Rick shrugging.

"You owe me." Jerry nods, a gentle laugh escaping his lips as he closes the door. He moves to the living room, accidentally knocking his foot against the leg of the coffee table. Covering his mouth, he muffles a yelp and looks down at his paining foot, before his attention falls onto a polaroid picture, himself and his love sitting on a sofa. Jerry staring at the farmer with a blush, guitar in hand as he keeps his mouth opened, serenading the man. The two seated in Jerry's neat room, Jerry's eyes almost closed and the lighting dim. As if he hadn't stubbed his toes, he takes the photograph and stares at it, smiling. J's lullaby... He vaguely remembers the song, but he remembers Kurtis singing it to him first on a date at the lake in the beginning of Spring - having taken a picture of this, he had given it to the guitarist. He sighs softly, his smile returning as his eyes tear up slightly.

He brings the photo with himself upstairs and sets it on his desk, as a reminder to frame and hang it up. Satisfied, he moves back to his bedroom, Beth rolled up with the blanket and her mouth agape as she snores softly. He smiles at her, placing a kiss to her forehead; she furrows her brows for a brief moment as she opens her eyes to look at her husband, mumbling something he couldn't make out, before rolling onto her side. Humming softly, he makes his way to his side of the bed and lies down, taking a bit of the duvet from his lover before curling into a ball on his side, and closing his eyes as he tries drifting off back to sleep.

[10 June 2022.]