#anyway... resuming!

[emersonfreepress]

Jack's shoulders slump and he sends Vi a pleading look. All he can do is hope this won't be embarrassing.

Vi shrugs brusquely, arms crossed. "I don't know why you're looking at me like that."

"Oh, I'm..." Jack looks up. "Not..."

"I don't dislike anything about living with Jack. It's not him I have a problem with."

"Oh! Seriously?"

"Except for how annoying he can be." Vi's arms cross tighter. "Your turn."

"...So is the problem—"

"No. Just answer the question!"

"Fine..." Jack sighs, put out. "Um, I don’t really dwell on the negative too much, though. My mom and Gavin—uh, that's Vi's dad—say adjusting isn't really supposed to be easy and I think that makes sense." Then Jack smiles. "But Vi is a really good cook! And they’re kind of a fact machine. It feels like you always learn something new just from being around them."

Jack looks to Vi, still smiling, and they just blink back, having totally forgotten that they were supposed to state a thing that they liked too. It's an awkward silence as they wrack their brain for something... well... nice.

"Jack's, um." Their arms cross even tighter. "A pretty good baker. So. That’s been pretty cool."

Jack's smile grows and Vi hunches into themself, looking anywhere else but at their future stepbrother.