thinking about baby Matt and Jay without having really rewatched the episode, I think, like...
Matt is CLEARLY acting out out of neglect. he likes being as big and bold and abrasive as he can be because THAT is what gets a reaction and that's about the only attention he can ever get. the problem is, his parents now just see him as a nuisance, and most of the kids in his class are either scared of him, or have parents who think he's a bad influence. so, he's lonely, but he doesn't really know how to Be a Normal Kid at this point. he knows how to be an annoying ass
Jay... Jay's fascinating. I think he's at once sheltered and emotionally neglected. controlled, I think. his mom has VERY specific ideas for him. how he should act who he should be. he's got this talent on the piano, but he's weird, and he's used to just doing whatever his mom wants so that she'll love him, while also feeling like he's NEVER living up to her desires, so he's always just... missing something. striving for an outcome she’s not going to give him. he's a good piano player, but she's unimpressed, and I think he gets shy about his skill because no one but his piano teacher has ever seemed to think it's even anything special. he's just a quiet, strange boy at school
so, here are two kids who just… don’t really have ANYONE in their lives who run into each other while one is throwing bikes in the river and just… both want to be seen and loved. and Matt’s his usual self, but Jay doesn’t really shy away. he seems interested?
Jay has never been a rebel in his life, and this kid is loud and crass and a bit scary, but… maybe he’s what Jay needs to open him up. maybe he’s a guiding light, a North Star for Jay
he’s intrigued and he follows, and Matt keeps expecting Jay might run off so he has to keep up his act, but Jay… stays. and he teaches Jay to relax, to live for himself and not his mom. and it seems like maybe they are both what the other needs
Matt realizes he’ll spend the rest of his life showing Jay what life can be. Jay realizes he’ll spend the rest of his life discovering the world through Matt. he learns how to steal slushies and bikes and watches Matt craft elaborate worlds for them and finds a wealth of bravery at Matt’s side, feeling his unending love
they’re inseparable almost immediately. Jay’s mom hates Matt from the second she lays eyes on him, but Matt loves Jay so fully and unconditionally and doesn’t make him feel wrong for just being himself… so Jay doesn’t care what she thinks anymore
I think it leads to a boiling point in Jay’s relationship with his mother. Matt’s parents, again, barely care. Jay’s mom does. she hates that the perfect son she was supposed to have is hanging out with that filth. I think Jay moving out is the final straw that means she doesn’t really talk to him anymore. but that’s okay. Jay doesn’t need her. he’s found his person. the one to keep him safe
eventually, Jay doesn’t know how to function without Matt, but he doesn’t need to. and meanwhile, Matt’s found someone he loves fully and who loves him back, and he’d kill to protect it. which, ya know….. explains everything that’s wrong with them, too, but it’s special ❤️🩷 two lonely boys who needed each other so acutely, they slot together like perfect puzzle pieces
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