i’m so sad that community appreciation week is over. i miss the show so much, but it’s nice to know that the fandom is just as committed to the story and the characters as i am.
thank you so much to everyone who participated!! you guys rock.
summary: Now that they've both graduated, Annie convinces Jeff to join her on a cross-country road trip.
Word Count: ~4,500
Author’s Note: Shout out to @bethanyactually for being the best beta any writer could ask for, always helping me create better, more IC scenes.
I was hoping to post this all at once for the classic trope day, but the idea has already gotten away from me. I hope the story carries you away, too.
(ao3)
~~~
“I’m not going to take no for an answer.”
Apparently, in their time apart, Annie’s lost her ability to hold a conversation because Jeff doesn’t understand what the hell she’s talking about.
“First of all, yes, please come in. So glad you could stop by.” She’s not fazed by his sarcasm even a little, too busy unfolding a map across his kitchen counter. “Secondly, no for an answer to what?”
She waves him closer with a grin, and despite the warning signals going off in his head—it’s a trap and giving the inch it’ll take to hear her out will have her snagging a whole damn mile out from under your feet—he takes a seat on the barstool next to her.
“We’re going on a road trip.”
Jeff raises his eyebrows, waiting for further explanation.
Annie lets out an exasperated sigh, like she can’t believe he isn’t caught up yet, and fixes her bright, manic-with-the-promise-of-a-big-project eyes on him. “You know! A cross-country road trip to celebrate the fact that we’re both college grads now. A final adventure before we have to put our whimsy aside in the face of adulthood and corporate America!”
“Okay, Britta. You know I’m thirty-five, right? I’ve pretty much already faced adulthood.”
“That doesn’t mean you’ve outgrown the need for an adventure! Come on, I’ve already planned the route and booked the first couple hotels. All you have to do is pack, show up, and drive some of the way.”
His eyes drift to the map. Annie has circled several cities in red pen, and he wouldn’t be surprised if she had a twenty-page itinerary all typed up and ready.
He has to admit, it’s an appealing proposal. But…
“We’re both broke. How would we afford this?”
When she doesn’t jump at the chance to talk away all his worries, he looks back up at her curiously.
The expression on her face is a complicated mix of guilt, determination, and some other emotion that he can’t discern.
“What?” he asks. “What is it?”
She hesitates for a second, then says, “My mother sent me a check. A gift for graduation.” She pauses, swallowing hard before squaring her shoulders. “But I don’t need or want her money.”
“So? You’re…what? Trying to burn it all up as fast as you can? I can think of more productive ways to do that.”
She frowns at him. “I already made my choice. And I’m going with or without you. I’d just happen to prefer having a travel companion.”
At the same time a new set of warning bells go off in Jeff’s head, he feels a delighted tug in his heart.
“What about the rest of the group?” he asks.
She ticks them off on her fingers. “I could never ask Shirley to leave her kids for that long, Troy and Abed have already decided their summer is going to be dedicated to developing some app, Britta already has travel plans, and can you even imagine what Pierce would be like on a road trip? I love him, but…he can barely sit through a single Star Wars movie.”
“So you asked everyone else already?” Jeff checks, feeling ridiculous for the way his stomach flops over at the thought.
Annie picks at the curling edge of her map, diverting her gaze. “Well they were actually around to ask.”
“I’ve been busy,” Jeff says evasively.
“Well then you’re probably ready for a bit of a break, huh?” She fixes a smile back on her face and raises her eyebrows expectantly. When he hesitates, she says, “Not gonna take a no, remember?”
Jeff glances around his apartment. It’s not like he’s got anything going on that he can’t walk away from for a couple weeks. And he’s never been out of the state before….
Annie’s smile brightens when she sees that she’s winning him over.
“Fine,” he says, rolling his eyes when she squeals.
“Great! We leave on Saturday at eight in the morning. I’ll pick you up here.”
~~~
The sound of the car door banging shut startles Jeff awake. It takes him several disoriented moments to remember where he is and what he’s doing, but as soon as he does, he glances around in worry, looking for Annie.
He catches sight of the messy bun sitting lopsided on the top of her head through the back window, realizes she’s pumping gas, and lets out a relieved breath. He can’t even begin to imagine what the group would do to him if he brought Annie home in less than pristine condition.
She must feel his eyes on her because she looks up, then waves and flashes him a dazzling smile.
Heat pools in Jeff’s cheeks for some reason and he salutes her before ducking his head. They’ve only been on the road for—Jeff checks his watch—four hours, and he’s already coming face-to-face with all the reasons this trip is a bad idea.
“Hey, sleepyhead,” Annie says, sliding back into her seat. “I hope you got enough rest because we’ve got a big day ahead of us.”
He groans and rubs at his stiff neck. “Yeah, it was great. Your decrepit hatchback is basically a five-star hotel.”
She shoots him a dirty look and then pats the dashboard of her car. “Don’t make her angry. She’s all we’ve got for the next couple weeks.”
Ignoring that comment, Jeff says, “If you wanna trade seats, you too could experience the resort-style lumpy upholstery.”
“Nuh-uh, I’m not letting you behind the wheel until you’re ready to be nice.”
“You might wanna rethink your punishment. That lacks punch.”
Instead of answering him, Annie tilts her chin up and puts the car in gear. As soon as they’re merging back onto the highway, she hits the power on the stereo and hums along to a Barenaked Ladies song.
Jeff narrows his eyes at her profile. “Seriously?”
Without taking her eyes off the road, she swats his arm. “You were asleep. Consider it part of your punishment. The driver gets to pick the music.”
“Oh, you are so going to eat those words later.”
Annie shrugs, clearly unthreatened.
They ride in quiet for a couple songs, till Jeff, antsy with nap energy, pulls out the map. “Albuquerque’s our first stop, right?”
“Mm-hmm.”
“And what fun activities do you have planned for us there?”
“I have a list in one of my bags of places I’d like to visit,” she says.
“Of course you do,” Jeff replies.
“It’s mostly the usual kinds of touristy things. A couple parks. The natural history museum.”
“Why am I not surprised that a road trip with you is basically an extended high-school field trip?”
She scoffs. “Well, excuse me for wanting to complete this trip as a more cultured person than when I began.”
“All I’m saying is we’d better have some fun, too.”
“You’re welcome to pick some of our activities,” she says haughtily.
“I’m glad that you’re acknowledging I’m the only one here who knows how to have fun.”
In response, Annie turns up the music and sings along.
~~~
They make it to Albuquerque around 4:00. So far, Annie hasn’t relinquished the wheel, so Jeff suggests they stop at the hotel before sightseeing. She insists that they stop by the Albuquerque Museum first, since they only have an hour before it closes.
Visiting a museum with Annie, Jeff quickly realizes, is boring. She spends her time carefully reading every plaque and taking occasional notes in a five-subject notebook she apparently bought specifically for their trip.
Jeff’s approach is much quicker—get in, spend a few seconds looking at whatever catches his eye, get out. He spends most of his time trailing behind Annie and playing Tetris on his phone.
Still, even though they’ve barely done anything, he feels the fatigue of travel weighing him down as they finally exit the museum.
“Should we grab dinner before or after we check in?” Annie asks as they cut through the crowded parking lot toward the car.
“After,” Jeff answers, already craving a hot shower.
Their reservation is at a Comfort Inn. They arrive after a short fifteen-minute drive, and take their time stretching when they step out of the car.
After grabbing their suitcases from the trunk, they make their way inside. The wave of air conditioning that hits them as soon as they step through the sliding doors is very much welcome.
“Can I help you two?” the front desk attendant asks.
“Yes, I have a reservation under Edison,” Annie says. While the attendant looks it up, Annie turns to grin at Jeff.
Though he shakes his head at her nerdy excitement, he can’t help but grin back.
After Annie hands the clerk her ID and a credit card, and signs some paperwork, he slides a small paper envelope across the counter. “Here are your keys. You’re in room 236. Please enjoy your stay.”
Jeff doesn’t think much of the exchange until they get to the second floor and Annie’s unlocking the door.
“We’re sharing a room?” he asks, and suddenly his palms feel kind of itchy.
“Well, yeah,” she says. “It’s the most economic use of our money.”
“I’ll bet you double-checked the math,” he teases, mustering a tight smile.
She continues as if he hadn’t spoken, pulling her big suitcase through the doorway. “As it is, I think we’ll have to stay at more basic motels in a couple cities to come in under budget. Don’t worry, though. We don’t have to share everything.” She nods at the two full beds on the far side of the room.
“Right,” is the only response Jeff can come up with.
The space isn’t cramped, exactly. But Jeff does feel a little too warm, like the room is too crowded.
In addition to the two beds, there’s a modest desk, a television, a large window overlooking the stretch of patchy grass behind the building, and a bathroom.
Annie claims the bed closest to the door, flopping her luggage down on the bed. He watches for a moment as she methodically checks the mattress for signs of bed bugs. (He can tell that’s what she’s doing because she sent him an email about conducting inspections that morning before they left.) When he starts to feel a tingling under his skin, he clears his throat. “I’m, uh, gonna shower…unless you need the bathroom?”
“It’s all yours,” she says, not even looking at him.
He lingers a second longer before grabbing his kit and retreating.
It’s not until after he’s finished showering that he realizes he never picked any clothes to change into. Shaking his head at his foggy reflection, Jeff ties the towel—which is probably a normal size for an average person, but which seems way too small to him—as securely as he can around his waist and steps out into the room.
The cool air outside the bathroom feels nice, but it’s also a shock to his skin, raising goosebumps along his arms and bare torso.
Annie’s sprawled out on the bed—which must be bed bug-free—with two notebooks in front of her. She’s already in pajamas and she’s let her hair down.
Jeff gulps.
“Even more notes?” he asks, using one hand to hold his towel in place while unzipping his suitcase with the other.
“Mm-hmm. I thought it would be worthwhile to journal about this experience,” she replies, way too chipper about this self-imposed assignment, and then glances up. Her eyes widen as she takes in the sight of him, gaze crawling slowly from his shower-messy hair to the sliver of his thigh that’s peeking out from the towel. Jeff smirks inwardly at how long it takes her to recover. “I…um, I ordered a pizza.”
Jeff tugs on a blue t-shirt and awkwardly tries to put on pajama pants without flashing Annie. “What kind?”
“One half without cheese, just for you,” she says, turning her attention back to her notebooks as Jeff settles down on his own bed.
He grins at her before turning on the television. “You know what I like.”
Annie goes downstairs to retrieve the food when it arrives, and she climbs right onto Jeff’s bed when she gets back, setting the pizza box down in front of them and leaning against the headboard.
They watch a rerun of Friends in contented silence, her knee resting on his thigh. He’s hyperaware of the contact, his brain full of nothing else but that gentle pressure. Too full, in fact, to come up with the appropriate reaction. Does he put his arm around her? That seems too forward. Maybe something more casual, like a palm resting on her thigh?
By the time the first episode is over, they’ve eaten most of the pizza and Jeff’s still waffling over what to do. So he doesn’t completely freak her out and do something unacceptable, like kiss the top of her head in his panic, he stands up, grabs the pizza box, and walks it over to the desk.
He ends up settling in a little closer to her when he sits back down, chance making the decision for him, and then waits to see how she’ll shift to get comfortable.
When she snuggles in, letting her head droop against his shoulder, Jeff sighs in relief and, in turn, lets one of his hands casually fall onto the her cool skin of her knee.
“I think it’s finally starting to sink in,” she says during a commercial break, startling him.
“What is?” he asks, taking and deep breath and watching as she idly traces the curve of his wrist with her pointer finger.
“That we’re really doing this. Traveling the country. Going through with this adventure.”
He nods. “I don’t know that I’m there yet. It still all feels a little strange, like I’m only imagining myself here.”
Annie hums in understanding and then sits up. “Well, imaginary Jeff is good company.”
“Even when he sleeps through the first leg of the trip and makes fun of your car?”
She grins, and her eyes have this sleepy droop to them that makes her look extra cute. “Even then. It feels…I mean, I’m glad that you could be here. Thanks.”
Jeff forces himself not to look away from her as he says, “I’m glad I could be here, too.”
She sucks on her lower lip as if to keep a wide smile from blooming on her face, but she doesn’t quite stop it.
“Okay, good.”
Guilt twists in Jeff’s stomach when he realizes she really needed the reassurance that he wanted to do this.
“I’m gonna…” she says after a moment of prolonged silence and gestures to her own bed.
“Of course. Good night.”
She gets up to move to her bed. “Sweet dreams.”
“Don’t let the bed bugs bite,” he says as he turns off the lamp on his nightstand.
“That’s not funny.” Annie’s reproving voice comes from across the darkened room.
He falls asleep with a grin on his face.
~~~
He’s woken up the next morning by the sound of Annie bustling about the room.
“Oh, good, you’re up,” she says when she notices him stirring. “They’re going to clean up the complimentary breakfast any minute, and you really should eat something before we head out for the day.”
He sits up, rubbing at his bleary eyes, and watches as she folds her pajamas neatly and packs them back into her suitcase. Since they’re staying in the city for another night, she’s wearing a much nicer outfit than her tank top and worn capris from their day of travel. Her hair is damp from an early morning shower and falls in waves around her shoulders.
He swallows down the comment about how pretty her dress looks and slips out of bed. “I knew you’d be way too perky in the mornings,” he says instead.
“It’s barely morning anymore,” she says, nodding pointedly at the clock on his nightstand that displays a bright green 10:12. “You’re burning daylight, Winger.”
As he grabs his toiletries and heads for the bathroom, he grumbles under his breath about how they’re supposed to be having fun. He just manages to close the door before the paperback book she’s thrown slaps him in the face.
After grabbing a banana and a cereal bar for breakfast, they head to—surprise, surprise—another museum. Or cultural center or whatever.
Jeff complains the entire walkthrough, pestering Annie to promise him that their next stop is cooler. She purses her lips and pointedly ignores his comments, but he can’t decide if it’s because he’s offended her and her love of museums or because she knows he’ll hate the next item on her itinerary.
“Come on, Annie,” he says as they make their way through the last room. “You can’t keep me in the dark forever.”
With a sigh, she finishes making a note and looks up at him sheepishly. “I’m pretty sure you’re going to think it’s lame.”
“If the plan is to spend another three hours doing nothing but reading, then you’re right. This is only marginally cooler than school because of the visual aids.”
She turns her attention back to her notebook with a frown. When she speaks again, it’s so quiet that Jeff has to lean in to catch it. “We’re going to a zoo.”
“Huh,” he says, raising his eyebrows.
“Go ahead, judge me,” she says, already pushing past him and moving for a large tapestry hanging on the wall. “But I’m really excited, and I promise I don’t have anything scheduled after that.”
“A zoo would be agreeable,” he says, shoving his hands into his pockets and leaning next to the informational plaque Annie’s reading.
Her eyes immediately shift to his face, her brow furrowed with suspicion. “You wanna go to the zoo?”
“I’m not heartless, Annie, and looking at cute animals is way more fun than reading about the history of some random pot.”
“Pottery is an essential part of the—”
Jeff shakes his head. “You’re not going to convince me it was interesting. You’re just not.”
She harrumphs and turns her attention back to the art. He watches her face as she takes it in, her eyes sliding carefully over the details, alert and engrossed. She’s clearly getting something out of it, but her concentration is baffling to him, and makes him feel kind of jittery in response.
“The only time I’ve ever been, my dad ended up leaving me there,” he blurts out without making the conscious decision to speak.
She gives him a questioning yet patient look.
“At the zoo,” he clarifies.
“Oh.” A beat. “That’s horrible”
He nods his head. “If I remember correctly, he was following around some poor woman, trying to get her to go home with him, and forgot all about me.”
She processes that, making a soft, almost pitying noise in the back of her throat. “I can’t believe…we have to go.”
“Good thing we were already planning on it,” Jeff says, cocking his head at her.
“No, now. We have to go now.”
“But what if you miss learning something totally interesting about local whittling or something?”
“That’s not as important,” she says, earnest despite his sarcasm. “C’mon.”
~~~
“So?” Annie asks as they sit down at a patio table at the Cottonwood Café. To their left is a stunning view of the Rio Grande, but the lingering stench of animals helps balance out what would otherwise feel like a too-romantic setting. “What did you think?”
“It was…probably something I would have enjoyed more as a kid.”
She nods, accepting this. “Admit it, though, you still had fun.”
He narrows his eyes at her, but when her smile doesn’t waver, he says, “The polar bears were cool.”
Her smile widens. “What about getting to see them feed the seals?”
Jeff tries, and immediately fails, not to grin back. “Fine, it was all disgustingly adorable and good, wholesome fun. But I’m not gonna write about it in my diary.”
She clucks her tongue. “I guess this means I shouldn’t save a spot for you in today’s journal entry as I’d planned. Darn.”
He picks a slice of pickle off his bun-less burger and tosses it at her. She dodges it, but lets out a squeak loud enough that they attract a couple of judgmental stares from the people at surrounding tables.
“Gross, Jeff!”
He only shrugs in response.
After lunch, they make their way over to the botanic gardens, and Annie chooses the Japanese trail for them, which apparently features a waterfall-inspired fountain and plenty of pretty foliage. They’ve only just started out when Jeff realizes that most of the other people walking the path are holding hands or pausing by blooming trees to nuzzle up to each other for pictures.
Judging by her ramrod straight posture and sudden stiffness, Annie’s noticed all the couples, too.
They walk in tense silence for a while, and he can’t help but sneak regular glances at her profile. Her skin somehow looks extra soft in the dappled light, and a gentle breeze keeps sending tendrils of her hair fluttering around her face.
Jeff clenches his fists by his sides, and takes a deep breath.
The pleasant smell of flowers is thick in the air, but it does little to calm his spiking heart rate.
When the atmosphere between them becomes too thick to breathe, Jeff says, “So.”
At the same moment, Annie offers a forced-cheerful, “Well!” and they both laugh at the ridiculousness of it all.
The next second, a butterfly lands on Jeff’s temple, tickling him with its fluttering wings.
“Oh my god,” Annie whispers excitedly. “Jeff, don’t move.”
His brows pull together, wrinkling his forehead as he gives her a disbelieving look, and the butterfly shifts. She purses her lips in warning and pulls out her phone.
“Smile!” She instructs, but Jeff rolls his eyes as she takes the picture. The butterfly’s gone a second later. She frowns at him, but says, “I guess that’s a more authentic way to remember the moment.”
He snatches her phone from her. “Your turn. For every goofy picture of me, there’d better be one of you, too.”
“That picture’s not goofy!”
“Whatever. We’re still taking one of you.”
Annie acquiesces easily and steps in front of the picturesque pond before flashing a bright grin at the camera.
He lines up the shot but doesn’t take it.
“What’s wrong?” she asks.
“There’s something missing,” he says, glancing around. “Ah-ha!”
He plucks a cluster of pink cherry blossoms from a nearby tree.
“Jeff! I don’t think you’re supposed to do that,” she protests, but he hears the way her breath catches in her throat when he steps into her personal space and tucks it into her hair.
“What? It matches your dress,” he says, smiling down at her as warmth starts to pool in his chest.
She licks her lips and nods ever-so-slightly.
“Right, um, I think that’s better,” he says, hurriedly turning away and lining up the shot again.
There’s a soft, pleased smile on her face when he finally takes the picture.
They continue along the trail without a word—the silence is still tense, but it’s a familiar tension that Jeff has come to associate with being alone with Annie, so it’s nothing he can’t handle—and seconds later, Jeff feels his phone buzz in his pocket.
Annie sent the photos to their friends’ group message, and the responses are already rolling in.
Shirley: Oh, that’s nice!
Abed sends a thumbs-up emoji.
Pierce: Gay butterfly, man.
Britta: where r u guys?? u better not be wasting this trip at tourist traps. in my experience, it’s better to converse with locals to really get a feel for the town and find out what places are worth visiting.
Troy: aw, annie, you look pretty.
Troy: so does jeff
Jeff ignores the twist of his stomach when he reads Troy’s message, and types out: thanks, britta, we’ll be sure to take your advice the next time we want to get arrested in a strange place.
After hitting send, he saves the picture of Annie.
~~~
They get up before sunrise the next morning. Since their next stop is San Antonio, they’ll spend most of the day driving, but Annie insisted they get an early start anyway.
After checking out, they load their luggage into the car.
The parking lot is quiet, the world still all around them. Jeff takes a deep breath of crisp, early morning air and laughs.
“What?” Annie asks, slamming her trunk closed to make sure it sticks.
“It’s finally hitting me,” he says.
“Your morning coffee?” she guesses.
“No,” Jeff says. “That we’re doing this. A real road trip.”
A slow smile spreads across her face, and they both take a second to appreciate the periwinkle-colored dawn sky.
“Let’s get a move on, then,” she says, clapping her hands together. “We’ve got more adventure ahead of us.”
caw17 day 7 - free choice
Wait hold on, I get to decide. Nice.
caw17 day 7 - favourite music used on the show
The show has fantastic original music and honestly it is hard to decide which is the best. I chose to talk about this though because I found myself listening to what I (now) think is probably the show’s best music. Community Medley. It might seem like a bit of a simplistic choice, but I think that the use of the music is what set the earlier seasons apart tonally from the later ones. Along with ‘Greendale is where I belong’, ‘Community Medley’ makes the entire show seem more light-hearted and fun. Also it just sounds really nice - Ludwig Göransson is a genius with music (I think, I don’t really know much about music).
Overall, I can’t think of any music used on the show that was as good as Göransson‘s own.
(And as a side note, the use of Good Old Fashioned Nightmare and Daylight by Matt and Kim in episodes 1 and 2 of the first season respectively was great. Felt perfect with the vibe that had been created. Actually, Season 1 as a whole was pretty good with using music to create atmosphere.)
