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Against All Odds | Jake Pearson x Reader

Pairing: jake pearson x f!reader

Word Count: 14.6k

Summary: while on vacation with her best friends’ family, y/n gets a lot more than she bargained for when she encounters both love and…aliens!? (requested)

Warnings: descriptions of violence

Masterlist/Request Form | Ask/Tell/Request

A/N: dude someone tell me why this fic is SO LONG??? I knew it would be a little lengthy since I basically copied and then rewrote the whole aliens in the attic movie but ohmygod lmao?! anyways, even though this is apparently my longest fic to date, it was also one of the most fun ones I've written! although cheesy and mildly unrealistic, I love this movie so much and appreciate getting a request for austin's character, jake. I hope you all (especially the person who requested this) enjoy! as always lmk what you think! :)

The sunlight shines brightly on your face as you step out of the car. Your hand goes up instinctively to shield your eyes, and with what little shade it provides for you you’re able to take in the house before you.

It’s gorgeous to say the least. The Pearsons’ rented holiday house is unlike anything you’ve seen before, especially in person. There seems to be about a million different rooms from what you can tell, and if the house looks this good on the outside, you can’t wait to see what it’s like inside.

Bethany told you what the house would be like, but actually seeing it for yourself totally puts it into perspective. The lake looks like it’s sparkling and all you can see for miles is green trees upon green trees. The air smells crisp, fresh. This place is everything and more that you could want for a week long getaway.

Wow.

“Quite the place, huh?” Tom steps besides you and mirrors you in looking up at the house. “Too bad it’s in the middle of nowhere.”

You can see the agitation taking over the brunette’s face. It’s no secret he’d rather be anywhere else but here. Things have been tense with Tom and his parents lately, what with everything going on at school. It hurts you to see him like this, but you also wish he would just let loose and stop being so lost in his head for once.

“C’mon, Tommy, it’s not that bad. There are worse places you could be than at a beautiful lake house with your family and best friend.” You grin at him and feel a tiny sense of relief when you see his own smile start to crack through his facade.

The boy rolls his eyes before shaking his head and adjusting the strap of the bag on his shoulder. “Sure, whatever you say. Let’s go inside so I can pick the best room before my cousins get here.”

Laughing, you nod before going to get your own bags from the car. Mr. and Mrs. Pearson smile warmly at you as they hand you your stuff. They’ve always been the sweetest to you and you’re so grateful to them for letting you come on their little family vacation. The Pearsons are like your second family and you wouldn’t trade them for the world.

“Bethany, are you coming with me to go pick out our room?” You turn around to try and locate your best friend, and when you do it seems she’s already set her mind on heading straight to the pool.

“You go on ahead, I’ll be up in a bit! Just wanna get started on my…summer tan.” She winks at you before hurrying off towards the pool. You wish she was actually that excited about kickstarting her sun bath, but in reality she just wants to be out here when her new boyfriend, Ricky, shows up.

Bethany told you all about her plan to essentially sneak Ricky in on the family vacation. The guy gives you the total creeps and he isn’t worth half the trouble he and Bethany get up to, but if he makes your best friend happy then so be it.

You thought about telling Tom what Bethany was up to, but you figured it wasn’t worth the trouble. Mr. and Mrs. Pearson love Ricky and clearly can’t see how much of a tool he really is, so they wouldn’t believe anything Tom would say anyways. And besides, you don’t feel like it’s your place to convince them otherwise even if you are like family to them.

Whatever’s gonna happen will happen, and you just hope it won’t cause too much drama. You’re all here to relax, have fun, eat some good food, and make lifelong memories—so that’s all you plan on doing. Hopefully.

Catching up with Tom, you both make your way inside and take in the expansive foyer. The place is definitely dated and fitting for a house in the middle of Nowhere, Michigan, but it’s still nice nonetheless.

“Ugh, so lame,” Tom winces from beside you, and you turn to see him pointing at one (of countless) fish hung up on the wall. It’s huge and definitely does not do anything to tie the room together, but what else could you expect from a place like this?

Laughing, you steer your brunette companion towards the staircase. “Forget the fish, let’s go find our rooms!”

“Alright, alright! Y’know I don’t know why you’re so excited about this. All we get to do out here is go fishing or bake ourselves outside by the pool.”

“I don’t know why you’re not so excited about this. I know things have been tense with your parents lately, but maybe this vacation can be a good thing! Maybe you and your parents will find some common ground?”

Tom glances at you briefly out of the corners of his eyes as you make your way up the stairs, trying to decide if you’re being serious. You of all people know there’s a minuscule chance of that happening. He grumbles out, “Not likely.”

Not wanting to press him any further, you let it go. For now. Leaving Tom at the top of the stairs, you go off to find a good room for you and Bethany to share. You know she isn’t picky and most likely won’t even be sleeping there if her plan with Ricky works out. The thought makes you shudder so you pick a random room, throw your bags down, and quickly find Tom before your brain can make up any more assumptions.

Once you do find him, you can tell just by the look on his face that him being able to pick his room first didn’t help much. You’re not sure how Mr. and Mrs. Pearson found this place, but it’s extremely obvious it’s supposed to be for families with younger kids, much younger.

There are toys and little sports knickknacks all around the room, perfect for a boy, but definitely not one Tom’s age or even Tom in general. You fight your smile as he turns to you and groans weakly.

The pity party doesn’t last long though as suddenly loud music can be heard along with tires screeching. You and Tom make your way to the window to see who’s acting as if the roundabout driveway is a racetrack. Tom already knows, but you’re completely clueless. Even though you’ve been Tom and Bethany’s best friend for as long as you can remember, you’ve somehow never met any of their extended family. The only time Bethany and Tom ever really see them is during family vacations, and so since you’ve never tagged along before this will be your first encounter with them.

“Who is that?” You question as you watch a guy around Mr. Pearson’s age hop out of the front seat. There’s someone else that was in the passenger seat, but he moves too quickly to the trunk so you can’t make him out.

“That would be my Uncle Nate,” he says and then continues when an older woman gets out of the back seat. “And my Nana. The twins are probably still in the car glued to their Nintendos and my cousin Jake, well, he’s right there.”

You tear your eyes away from Nana as you watch her give Hannah some sort of candy. The sight makes you smile. Moving towards Tom more you notice instantly who he’s talking about. Jake, as Tom said, is tall and from what you can tell, decently tan. His hair looks like a mop of honey sand (if that’s even a thing) and the energy he gives off is palpable.

Something inside of you pulls towards him, interests you. But before Tom can catch on you pull away from the window, making yourself busy with helping him unpack.

The distraction only works for so long before suddenly you hear multiple sets of footsteps coming up the stairs. Your eyes jolt to the door and are instantly met with the blonde boy you were staring at just a few moments ago.

He’s saying something to the twins but instantly stops in his tracks as he takes in your presence. The way his blue, incredibly blue, eyes quickly trail up and down your body leave your cheeks feeling warm.

“Hi, I’m Jake,” he says, flashing you a smile as he rocks back and forth on his heels, hands nestled deep in his shorts pockets.

“Hi, I’m Y/N. I’m one of Tom and Bethany’s best friends. It’s nice to meet you!” You give a little wave and then instantly curse yourself for doing so. What was that Tom said earlier? So lame.

“You as well,” Jake says as his eyes flick from you to Tom and then back again. He can’t wrap his mind around how his cousins have kept you from him all this time. He’d definitely need to get more intel once you left.

“Don’t be modest, Y/N. You’re our only best friend,” Tom teases as he wraps an arm around your shoulder. You roll your eyes and nudge him lightly in the side with your elbow.

Your phone buzzes in your pocket, a message from Bethany popping up on the screen asking you to meet her by the pool. Thank God for that girl, even without knowing it she has impeccable timing. Now you don’t have to worry about being any more awkward around Jake. You’re sure there will be other opportunities later, but for now you have an out.

“Speaking of, Bethany’s waiting for me by the pool. I’ll catch up with you in a bit,” you say to Tom before walking towards and around his cousins. You smile at the twins and glance at Jake before quickly saying, “See you guys later.”

Once you’re out of earshot, Jake jumps into action, picking up right where he left off when he came in and more importantly getting information on you.

“Twins, get these out of here,” he says as he points towards Tom’s luggage.

“Woah woah woah, wait a minute. Why do you get the best room? I was here first!” Tom protests.

“Never mind that!” Jake urges, waving his hand as if Tom getting kicked out is nothing. “Dude, why have I never met Y/N before, and why have you never thought to tell me about her?!” The blonde races to the window, trying to get a glimpse of you as you walk out the front door.

Tom rears his head back in confusion, not understanding his cousin’s sudden interest in his best friend. The two of you spoke for a minute, not even. It’s not exactly a match made in heaven.

Meeting up with Jake by the window, Tom decides to answer his burning questions anyways. “Well, she’s never come with us on family vacation before. Every time we invited her she had other commitments or didn’t want to overstep. My mom and dad finally convinced her to come this year since she’s practically family, so here she is.” Tom spots you as you walk over to Bethany by the pool. Just from the looks of it his sister is losing her mind over something. He’s had a feeling she’s been planning some scheme but Tom still can’t figure out what it is. He shakes it off and continues. “And besides, why would I tell you about her? It’s not like you go to school with us or anything.”

“Unfortunately,” Jake mumbles as he locks his eyes on you. Tom looks from his cousin to you and catches on to what he’s so intent on watching. You’re pulling your shirt off to soak up the sun with Bethany by the pool, and the way Jake is ogling you is definitely something he didn’t need to witness. “Hey is she single by chance?”

“Ok first of all, ew, and second of all, never gonna happen! Nice try, though.”

“Oh, c’mon, Tom! What’s the big deal! She’s insanely gorgeous and she’s got this cute awkward thing about her,” Jake grins, peeling his eyes away from the window to give his cousin his full attention.

“The big deal is she’s my and Bethany’s best friend! She’s not some random girl you can just try to get with. Sorry, Jake, but it’s not gonna happen.”

Before the blonde gets a chance to reply, Tom’s dad calls from the foyer for him to come down and help unload. Tom shoots Jake a knowing look before heading out of the room.

“We’ll see about that,” Jake whispers to himself, intent on at least getting to know you better.

*****

To say you’re less than thrilled when Ricky pulls up in the driveway would be an understatement. What makes it even worse is the way Bethany quite literally throws herself at him. When Ricky tells her to “give papa some sugar” that’s what really throws you over the edge. You’re glad Tom says something before you ultimately had to.

Why, oh why couldn’t she have just gone out with the nice guy from calculus class you recommended!?

Witnessing his interaction between Bethany and Tom’s parents was unnerving and when Ricky brought up having car trouble, you knew it was all just part of the plan. You caught Tom’s eye for a second and the look he had on his face just further confirmed it. You knew immediately he’d caught on to what Bethany’s been up to.

When Mr. Pearson leads you all outside so he can try and fix Ricky’s car, your heart swells at his kindness even though you know the man has no clue what he’s doing, but on the other hand your brain starts sounding off alarms that make you wanna shake your best friends’ father until he snaps out of his usual parent obliviousness.

The only good thing that comes out of standing outside by Ricky’s precious car is that you’ve somehow ended up next to Jake. The close proximity of the blonde and you sends goosebumps shooting up your arm. It’s like tiny zaps of electricity are bouncing between the minimal space between your arms and for some reason you’d do anything to know what it’d feel like to actually be touching him.

You can feel Jake sneaking little glances at you while everyone else watches Mr. Pearson fiddle with things under the car hood. In a moment of boldness, you meet his eyes and smile at the redness that blooms on the apples of his cheeks.

Time goes too fast because in a flash Mr. Pearson is done being dumbfounded by the car and you’re being whisked away with Bethany and her boyfriend while Jake trails after Tom back into the house. You both look back at precisely the same time to spot each other and the moment leaves you feeling giddy all the way back to the pool.

While Bethany and Ricky settle into two of the lounge chairs, you decide instantly to move yours over as far as possible while still being by the pool. When Bethany questions it you assure her it’s just to give the two of them space so they can connect and she calls you sweet for it. In reality you don’t want to be anywhere near that infuriating man and would rather not have to listen in on their inevitable cutesy talk. Gag.

After a while you begin to contemplate just going back inside to meet up with Tom or maybe play a game with Hannah, but out of nowhere you catch movement in the grass not far off to the side of you.

You sit up and squint to get a better look, and when you finally realize what and who it is, you’re too late to do any questioning. Pops start to go off and you do your best to try and figure out what’s being shot, but you don’t have to wonder long because Bethany and Ricky both begin screaming. When you spot the orange splatters covering the both of them, the dots begin to connect themselves.

Bethany gets up and you don’t even think about interfering with her. When she’s pissed, she’s pissed. You watch as she goes over and rips the paintball gun out of Tom’s grasp and rips him a new one. Wincing at the sight of it all, you grab your stuff as well as Bethany’s and follow her and Ricky inside where you’re sure a spectacle is about to occur.

*****

To say Tom’s dad is livid would be selling it short. The lecture started practically as soon as he and Jake walked through the front door. You had to restrain yourself from laughing as you took in the sight of Jake. He looked like a literal shrub! Tom’s dad gave them both a few minutes to clean up before forcing them to sit at the dining room table. He played it off as giving them time to think about what they did before being reprimanded, but you know it’s because he wouldn’t be able to be in full lecture mode with Jake looking like that. You know you wouldn’t either.

As you stand off to the side, not wanting to insert yourself too much, you watch as Mr. Pearson goes in on them. He has some points, but if he knew what Ricky’s really like, he probably wouldn’t be as upset. It takes all you’ve got to not point out the fact Ricky is mocking him behind his back. Once again, that guy is such a tool.

All of a sudden, Nana is banging her cane against the TV and complaining about it being broken. She’s the sweetest but obviously you don’t mess with her and her TV.

Of course Ricky’s the first to jump in and offer to help which leads to Tom being hassled into joining him on the roof. It doesn’t seem like a good combination, especially after everything that just happened, but off he goes. As he passes you, you reach out and squeeze his arm lightly, whispering a “good luck”. He smiles at you halfheartedly, clearly already feeling defeated and it hasn’t even been a full day. It’s not long before Jake rushes after him (but not before catching your eye and nearly running into you as he passes, which leaves you feeling lightheaded in the best way possible). Hopefully with the both of them Ricky won’t be too much of a problem.

With nothing else to do while Bethany complains to her dad about Tom, you wander over to where Tom and Bethany’s younger cousins and sister are. The twins, Art and Lee, are playing some sort of video game that seems cool so you watch them play for a bit while also keeping an eye on Hannah. She’s playing with her toys and it astounds you how immersed she can become in her own little world. Oh how you wish you could go back to that time.

The twins’ game starts getting intense and you find yourself locked in on their skills. You know being addicted to video games isn’t the best for them in the grand scheme of things, but at least it looks cool.

When you turn towards Hannah you’re startled to see she’s disappeared. She was right there just a second ago, but now she’s gone. Her toys being the only things left behind.

Loud banging starts to come from upstairs and you watch as even the twins seem interested as to what’s going on up there. They pause their game and look at you before it’s all silently agreed upon that the three of you should check it out.

By the time you get up to the attic you can hear screaming and even more banging around. You’re the last to reach the top, and you become confused as you notice Hannah seems frozen in place by the window and that Art and Lee are looking at each other as if they’re bickering about something.

You rush over to them and your heart rate picks up rapidly as you notice Jake banging on the window, begging for someone to open it. Reaching out, you unclasp the lock and step back as both Jake and Tom stumble inside.

You’re completely lost on what’s going on, confused as to why Tom is yelling at everyone to get downstairs when suddenly something is crashing its way through the window, shattered glass flying everywhere.

The room is dead silent as four small things stand before you all. The air seems to completely leave your lungs as you gasp at the sight. What are those things?

“Creepy crawlies,” Hannah squeaks out, obviously terrified over these newfound intruders. You reach for her, guiding her back towards you and away from whatever those creatures are. One of them starts to mimic Hannah and once they begin to advance, you all fly down the attic steps.

You get the twins and Hannah out first, you following closely behind. Tom and Jake are right behind you and as you go to help the twins bring up the ladder to try and stop the invaders from following you, you’re eyes go wide as you watch both the brunette and the blonde tumble down the steps, the two of them falling flat on their faces.

“Are you guys ok?” You rush out as you go to kneel by them, wanting to make sure they didn’t get knocked out. They turn around and seem okay but for some reason Jake grasps Tom by his collar and pins him down, demanding him to prove he’s not a zombie, whatever that means.

“You wet the bed until you were ten! A zombie wouldn’t know that!” Jake goes rigid and looks sheepishly at you before turning back towards Tom.

“Thanks a lot, man.” You giggle before your head snaps back towards the entrance to the attic, the door flying open again as the little gremlins try to make their way out.

Instantly, you, Tom, and Jake are up on your feet doing all you can to stop them from coming down. The twins and Hannah are freaking out and you feel bad for Art as he screams that he's been scratched.

With Jake’s help you’re able to slam the door shut, chopping off the nails of one of the martians in the process. Tom latches the rope tightly and for now it works, but something tells you it won’t last long.

Your best friend yells out that you all have to call the police and that’s exactly what you have in mind as you go racing to the boys’ shared room.

As soon as you get there you’re all checking your phones, but none of them work. The signal’s dead and the thought of not being able to call for help makes your heart sink.

You look to Tom in hopes he has something in mind, but the uncertainty doesn’t last long thankfully as Hannah finds a phone on the desk and says it’s working. Art hurries over to it but complains there’s no buttons.

“That’s a rotary phone, there are no buttons, you have to spin it,” you explain as you go over there to dial it for him. The phone begins to ring and you hand it over to Tom so he can explain exactly what’s going on to the police.

The call seems to be going okay from what you can tell, but then Tom starts saying “Hello?” over and over again into the phone and with that you know the line’s gone dead.

“We have to tell our parents,” he says as he hangs up the now useless phone. Everybody nods and heads towards the door when out of nowhere there’s banging on one of the windows.

Slowly, everyone advances towards the window. You watch as Jake reaches out and snatches open the curtain. You all jump back as Ricky’s face appears. He’s upside down and swinging side to side. As Jake opens the window and pokes him with one of Hannah’s toys, Ricky begins saying something, but it becomes clear he’s not talking to you guys. It’s the aliens and they’re arguing with each other and it’s all being relayed to you through him. Weird.

Tom explains to everyone that what’s happening with Ricky is like a bluetooth device. The guy’s a human speaker at this point. The aliens go on and on until Ricky’s body becomes too heavy for the rope he’s attached to to hold him up anymore. He goes flying down the side of the house and it does not sound pretty when he hits the ground.

Per usual Tom starts piecing things together. You’ve always loved how his brain could work like that, God knows it always helped you, him, and Bethany when you needed a good plan to get out of trouble. It seems he hasn’t lost his touch unlike how he’s been pretending he has.

Good news is apparently the mind control device the aliens are using won’t work on any of you since you’re all still considered kids. Bad news is, Tom’s parents, his uncle, and Nana are all at risk of being controlled. Also apparently Ricky’s a senior in college which is why the chip worked on him. Wonderful.

The twins want to go tell the adults what’s going on, and part of you agrees but also realizes it won’t help the situation at all. If anything it’ll make it worse because as soon as those aliens lock eyes on them, they’re done for.

Jake starts going on about practically bringing in the national guard which blows your mind on how someone can come up with an even worse plan. Imagine having armed alien zombies. At least he’s pretty, you think.

Tom takes command and starts telling everyone that you can’t tell any adults about what’s going on. It’s up to you guys to fix this and send these aliens back to where they came from. Everyone seems to understand but when you all look towards Hannah to make sure she’s got it, she’s gone.

Crap.

*****

After finding Hannah and narrowly convincing Mr. and Mrs. Pearson, as well as Nate, that everything was okay, you all regrouped and started to brainstorm. Jake took charge and essentially turned on his commander mode which was a little funny but also pretty impressive.

You’ll definitely decide on which one it is after you see the outcome of this plan he’s enacted. Jake’s brought you all outside to the side of the house and it’s apparent that he plans on climbing the vines and seeing what’s going on with the aliens in the attic.

You’re honestly just hoping he makes it there and back in one piece at this point.

Once Jake starts climbing, Tom decides he’s going up there with him. It’s hard watching Jake climb up there, but now watching the both of them? You squeak out to Hannah to tell you when it’s over, and she nods while calling after Tom to be careful.

They seem to be doing alright. The rickety wooden structure they’re clinging to is making you nervous but it should be fine, right?

Wrong, Jake loses his balance and both boys come plummeting to the ground. You swear you can hear a bone snap as they hit the grass. The three younger kids “ooo” and “ahh” over the harsh landing, while you fly over to them to make sure they’re alive.

“I knew this was a bad idea! Are you guys okay!?” You once again find yourself kneeling beside both boys. Tom shoots up from the ground but Jake seems to be taking his time so you lean into him, placing your hand lightly on his shoulder. “Jake, are you hurt?”

He looks up at you with clear blue eyes and a smile on his face that lets you know him being hurt is definitely not the reason he’s still laying on the ground. “I’m fine now that you’re here.”

You find yourself at a loss for words as a smile breaks out on your face. He’s so cheesy but man is it endearing. Tom scoffs from the side of you and you look up at him timidly.

“I’m fine, Y/N, thanks for asking!” He huffs while brushing off bits of leaves from his shirt.

“Hey I asked if you were alright! You shot up so fast I figured you must be happy and healthy considering you had all that speed! Besides, Jake was still laying on the ground, there could’ve been something wrong with him.”

Tom chuckles and nods his head. “Oh there’s something wrong with him alright!” Jake glares at him and you can tell there’s something between them you don’t know about, but before you can question it and before Jake can retaliate Tom is ushering everyone to get a move on. “We’ve got to get to the basement!”

Before any more bickering can ensue, you’re all rushing back to the house but get stopped short as Bethany rounds the corner asking if you’ve seen Ricky.

Your eyes dart quickly to his body that’s still laying on the side of the house from when he fell earlier, and you rack your brain trying to come up with a good excuse.

“I think he said he was gonna go sit by the lake to work on his tan!” You rush out as Bethany starts to turn towards Ricky’s body. “He told us he wanted you to meet him there so I’d definitely head on over, it looked like he wanted to talk!”

Bethany looks at everyone skeptically, finding it odd you’ve seemed to create this group when she never would’ve guessed for all her siblings and cousins to find common ground, especially with her best friend. But she appears to accept it as she shrugs and thanks you before marching off towards the lake. You all let out a collective breath before dashing into the house and heading down to the basement.

*****

Looking through all of these random items in the basement has you feeling a little squeamish. You swear some of the laundry that’s in these baskets has been down here for half a decade.

Moving a few tarnished boxes aside, you jump a little when you feel someone come up next to you. You turn and realize it’s just Jake and let out a small laugh, trying to settle your nerves.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” he says, smiling sheepishly. You shake your head to let him know it’s ok and you watch as he starts to mindlessly look through boxes around you. “So, how long have you known Tom and Bethany?”

“Oh practically my whole life! I met Tom in Kindergarten and I met Bethany after he invited me over to hang out.” You smile as you think back on the memory. “I’ve been inseparable from them ever since.”

“That’s really nice, they seem to care a lot about you,” Jake replies. The blonde seems to lose his usual cocky attitude for a moment as he continues, “I’m glad you came along with them.”

Your eyes meet and even in the shadowy darkness of the basement, you can still see all the sea blue hues his contain. “Me too,” you whisper.

Jake moves one of his hands at the same time you do to search through more of the boxes and it causes them to collide. Somehow neither of you jump back from the contact, instead you bask in it. Jake practically has his pinky wrapped around yours, warmth traveling every which way in your guys’ hands.

The feeling is incredibly comforting. You don’t know what it is that draws you to Jake, or why you feel it in the first place, you just know it feels good, right.

For a minute you feel like you could stay like this forever, but then Tom’s voice rings out through the basement.

“I’m telling you, their map led down here.”

You and Jake break apart, he grins at you before turning towards his cousin. “You sure about that?”

“Ssh,” Hannah says. “You hear that? Rice Krispies.”

Everyone moves towards the center of the basement and is dead quiet. You strain your ears to try and see what Hannah’s talking about and after a second you can hear it. Some sort of static.

Art pulls out his Nintendo DS and hands it to Tom. You peak over his shoulder and notice the screen is completely messed up. It’s like some other-worldly message has taken over both screens. Tom immediately confirms it’s the aliens.

The group disperses and you start to search again with Tom as Jake hurries towards a bucket of gardening tools. “Well whatever it is, we can’t let them get to it! Everyone, gear up. We move on my command.”

You and Tom exchange a glance before moving back towards Jake. Tom starts to talk about needing a plan, that just going after them with random junk will do nothing good. You hate to say it considering your feelings for Jake, but you agree with him. It’s too dangerous to go up there with nothing but a whim.

Jake argues with the brunette, set on heading straight for the aliens with what they’ve got. He motions for the twins and you notice they’re immediately on board with their brother.

“Y/N, are you coming?” Jake looks to you in solidarity, but you unfortunately can’t give it to him.

“I’m sorry, Jake. I’m with Tom on this one.” The look that flashes in the boy’s eyes, disappointment, makes you frown. But you won’t change your mind, having a plan is the best option in this case. Jake nods at you before racing up the stairs with the twins, leaving you with Tom and Hannah.

“Guess it’s up to us, guys,” you say, grinning softly at Hannah and Tom. Your best friend smirks at the two of you, a plan no doubt already forming.

“Hannah,” Tom says. “Hand me that tape.”

*****

It’s impressive how quickly Tom was able to come up with a…weapon? You wouldn’t necessarily call it a weapon considering what it is, but at least it’s something and you’re sure it’ll help in some capacity.

As you rush up the stairs to get to the attic, you already begin to hear yelling coming from the other boys. Tom looks at you and Hannah before suggesting you stay behind him.

Tom goes to open the door and as soon as he does the yelling intensifies. You can’t make out what the others are saying but the moment you step foot in the room, you get the idea.

Immediately you’re lifted off the floor, a weightless feeling settling over your body. In an instant you find yourself practically attached to the ceiling along with everyone else. You’ve never felt anything like this before and under any other circumstances you’d think it was cool.

Looking towards the attic you notice two of the aliens hop down easily to the floor. One of the twins yells out something about anti-gravity boots and in this moment you wish with everything you’ve got that you had a pair of those boots right about now.

Jake calls for Tom to use his weapon but before he even sets it off you know it’ll be useless in this situation. As soon as Tom pushes the trigger, the potato slowly flies through the air like everything else in the room and does nothing to stop the aliens. Yikes.

“Hurry, Tommy!” Hannah yells and you look around the room to find anything that might help.

You find your answer right next to your best friend. “Tom! Use the fire extinguisher, it’s right there!”

The brunette looks to his side and finds exactly what he needs. As quick as he can he unlatches it and sets it off, sending him flying across the room. Tom reaches the door, closes and locks it, before spraying the aliens with what’s left in the container. You cheer at the small victory.

“Jake, get the grenade!” Tom calls out and in no time his cousin is doing exactly that. In an impressive set of moves Jake is able to use the lack of gravity to his advantage and dive to the floor to get the device causing everyone to float. He throws it towards Tom and as if it was a baseball bat Tom uses the extinguisher to smash the anti-gravity device to pieces.

Immediately you find yourself falling to the ground, meeting a not so soft landing. You groan and turn to the side, finding Jake lying next to you. He sits up quickly and reaches his hand out towards you. Graciously accepting it he pulls you up and you stumble into him, finding yourself mere inches from his face.

“Thanks for the help,” you let out airily, suddenly finding it hard to breathe as you look in his eyes and feel his cool breath on your lips.

“Anytime.”

Hearing a commotion by the door, you notice Tom has started using the fire extinguisher for something else, this time to beat the aliens back. In no time they come to realize there’s no where else for them to go so they’re scurrying back into the attic. Before the attic door closes something falls from one of the aliens’ grip and clatters to the floor. You help Jake secure the door before going to investigate whatever it is.

The twins have a hold of it and are going back and forth on who gets to see it first. Something tells you that their tug of war with the device is doing more harm than good, but who knows?

Jake marches over and halts their bickering instantly, warning them it’s not a toy and that what’s happening is very much real. You look over and see Tom’s discovered something outside the window, so you walk over to see what’s caught his attention.

“Ricky?” You question, taking in the fact that controller must but what they were using to control him earlier. Tom smirks and nods his head. “Well this should be fun.”

“Get him before somebody finds him. I’ll stand on alien watch,” Jake says before handing the controller back to his brothers.

Tom and the twins make their way out the door, but you stay behind with Jake and Hannah. “Need a helping hand?”

Jake looks at you and smiles, lightly shrugging one of his shoulders before saying, “From you? Always.”

You try to hide the way he so easily makes you smile by busying yourself. “Let’s move this couch over, we can use it as cover incase the aliens try anything.”

The blonde moves to help you push the couch and as you set it into place he says, “I like the way you think.”

Softly biting the inside of your cheek, you look away so you don’t melt right here on the floor. When you turn, you’re met with Hannah’s mischievous grin. She holds her sock monkey close and gives you a look that lets you know she’s so onto you and her cousin.

The little girl doesn’t even have to say anything because she knows, as do you, that you’re falling for a certain lanky blonde and there’s nothing you can do to stop it.

*****

As you stand guard with Hannah and Jake, you take in the fact it’s been really quiet for a while. You guess it’s better than the aliens actively trying to attack, but it’s definitely suspicious.

You and Jake haven’t spoken since you moved the couch, wanting to be on high alert, but even without talking he’s still distracting you. There have been countless moments since the three of you took cover behind the couch where Jake would accidentally bump into you or brush his shoulder against yours. Each time it sent a strike of electricity through you, and each time he wouldn’t make a move to scoot over. Neither would you.

It’s like a game of cat and mouse and even though there are clearly bigger things to deal with and stay focused on, it excites you and makes you feel giddy. Although the circumstances are less than ideal, you’re so happy to be sharing this time with Jake. He’s chaotic and a little unhinged at times, but you can tell he’s a softie underneath it all and is just trying to look after his family.

Turning to look at the boy on your mind, he feels your stare and moves to make contact, but before he gets the chance Tom and the twins are making their way up the stairs and into the room with you guys. You move over some and instantly feel the lack of Jake’s presence.

The blonde starts filling in his cousin and brothers and gets info on Ricky when all of a sudden you hear movement in the vents. Jake questions it and Tom rushes out that the aliens are using their map to try and get to the basement. All they need is the vents and they’ll end up right where they want to be. Oh God.

*****

“So you’re sure this is gonna work?” You question as Tom turns up the heat on the thermostat. It seems like a solid plan, but from what you’ve seen so far these aliens can handle pretty much anything.

“Let’s find out shall we?”

Hustling back up the stairs the twins inform you all that the aliens seem pretty mad. As you head back into the room with the attic door you can hear the intruders rushing back to where they were hiding out. It worked!

Everyone celebrates the victory but it doesn’t last long as Mr. Pearson calls for everyone to go downstairs.

He questions why the heat is on and you all try to convince him it’s freezing in the house but he doesn’t seem to believe it. Tom fights him on it and tries to come up with more excuses, but you can tell things are starting to get escalated.

Mr. Pearson starts bringing up Tom’s misbehaviors that have happened since you all arrived, but what really snaps the chord is when he brings up Tom’s failing grades. What Tom says next shocks you.

“I failed them on purpose! Yeah I tanked my grades, okay? I’m tired of getting picked on because I’m a brainiac!” The comment makes your heart ache. You knew Tom had been struggling lately, you saw what went on at school but never knew he would resort to this. Everyone around you is silent, their own thoughts on this confession coursing through their heads.

Tom’s dad speaks up first. “I was a brainiac. It worked for me.”

“I don’t wanna be like you. I wanna be cool!” If you thought the room was quiet before, it’s nothing compared to now. Even Mr. Pearson’s gone silent and you can see the hurt on his face clear as day.

“Don’t touch the thermostat,” he says before turning to walk away. The younger kids start to go back upstairs and you, Jake, and Tom go to do the same.

“Is that true?” Jake asks. “You really fail on purpose?”

“Nobody likes a mathlete,” Tom sighs, and before he can get any farther up the stairs you stop him in his tracks, wrapping your arms around his neck and holding him close to you.

“Your intelligence is one of the most special and unique parts of you. Never let anyone make you feel less just because they don’t understand that, okay?” You say into his ear, and the way he squeezes you in return lets you know he appreciates the sentiment. Letting go of him you continue up the stairs and say, “Now, what do we do? We can’t fight these things with your guys’ parents around.”

“We can’t just make them leave,” Jake replies, a stumped look on his face. This whole situation is hard to deal with and with only you guys to figure out a plan, it makes it even more challenging.

“Maybe we can,” Tom says looking between the both of you. “Here’s what I want you to do.”

*****

It blows your mind, even to this day, how Tom’s able to come up with the craziest and yet most genius plans. He takes Art to go track down Ricky because he’s going to somehow use him to get all the parents to leave the house. Meanwhile you, Jake, Hannah, and Lee create a type of spy camera out of some old Barbie toys. You connect everything and are able to see exactly what the car sees on a laptop, it’s perfect.

As you watch the screen, so far there’s nothing around. There’s a small part of you that hopes the aliens retreated and are giving up but there’s another part of you that knows there’s a slim chance of that happening.

Your thoughts are further confirmed as the camera gets flipped over and a squashed looking face pops up on the screen. Before you know it the lavender Barbie car is flying out of the open vent and smashing into pieces on the floor. Well, so much for that.

“C’mon, I have an idea,” Jake says as he rushes out of the room. You look at Hannah and Lee and you all shrug your shoulders before heading after the blonde. You and Hannah go straight for her cousin while Lee goes off to continue his part of the plan.

When you get to the hallway, you find Jake kneeling in front of the vent on the stairs, he has it open and appears to be throwing something inside of it. You get closer and realize he has some firecrackers. Must be more reinforcements he brought with him on vacation. You know, to go along with the paintball gun.

“Hey, not to question your plan or anything, but you’re not gonna set the house on fire, right?” You’re mostly joking…mostly. You kneel next to him and he laughs before throwing in another.

“Of course not! I just wanna wish those little space maggots a happy Fourth of July!” Jake smirks before taking out another firecracker from his pocket, this one looking a bit bigger than the last.

You just sit and hope Mr. and Mrs. Pearson have insurance…

Next thing you know Tom comes up the stairs with the twins and lets everyone know the coast is clear, the parents are gone. Jake revels in this and tosses in the larger firecracker he took out. The sound is loud and from the screams and fast footsteps you hear in the vents, you can tell it works to draw away the aliens.

Tom urges you and Hannah to go hide and although you can handle yourself, you agree to go along with the girl so she won’t be alone. Who knows what else these invaders have up their sleeves.

As soon as you and Hannah reach the room she’s staying in, you usher her under the bed, you sliding in after her. It’s not the best hiding spot but at least it’s something.

You can hear the aliens running through the vents and more firecrackers going off. It goes quiet for a second but then you hear some sort of clatter and feel something drop on the bed above you.

Both you and Hannah slowly slide out from under the bed a bit to try and see what it is. You’re met with a green face popping up from the top of the bed and it leads you and Hannah to start screaming. What’s weird though is that the alien starts screaming back!

He falls off the bed and lands right in a slinky that’s laying on the ground, he gets wrapped up in it and if you’re being honest the way he struggles with it and is mumbling to himself is kind of adorable.

The two of you feel bad for the little guy so you and Hannah each take an end of the slinky and begin to untangle him. The way he cowers and whispers that he comes in peace lets you know he’s completely harmless. As you remove the last ring of slinky, Hannah notices he has a cut and bandages him up.

It’s adorable in a crazy, weird type of way. So be it, though!

Once he’s all fixed up, the alien takes in his surroundings. He notices the toy instruments scattered on the floor and begins to play around with them a bit. Before you know it he’s a complete one man band and has a whole show going! It amazes you and Hannah and ends up with the two of you laughing and dancing around.

After he’s done Hannah begins to show him a bunch of her toys and even tells him about her bubble gun that’s been broken for a while. What stumped Hannah’s dad on what to fix is no problem for the alien and he has it fixed in practically seconds. It’s incredible.

While Hannah and the alien begin to talk about it, you see the boys rush into the room, immediately going into attack mode.

“Enemy armed! Enemy armed!” Jake starts to yell as he looks around for something to defend himself with.

“Hannah! Y/N! Step away from the alien!” Tom approaches the two of you while Jake grabs a bat, and Hannah instantly goes into defense mode at the sight of it.

“No! Leave him alone! He’s our friend!” She demands as she holds her arms out, doing what she can to stop the guys from advancing.

“He was just holding a ray gun to your head!” Art calls out and to prove him wrong Hannah picks up her bubble blower.

“It’s my bubble blower. He fixed it for me.” She holds up the gun for them to see and continues. “He’s not like the others.”

The four boys look to you for confirmation and you nod your head. “She’s telling the truth. He’s harmless and actually pretty sweet. Look!”

You motion for everyone to look under the bed where the little guy has retreated in fear. The moment you all lay on the ground, you can tell he’s unsure what to do. The alien cowers back towards the wall and looks more stressed than you during exams and that’s saying something.

“First sign of aggression I’m taking him out. With extreme prejudice,” Jake says, holding the bat he picked up close to him.

“Jake! I’m telling you, it’s fine, he’s fine! He’s not gonna hurt us. I know it sounds crazy, but it’s true.” The boy looks at you and it’s obvious he trusts what you’re saying. He gives you a tightlipped smile and a nod but you can tell he’s still on guard. That’s fair, at least he’s backed off a little.

“It’s okay, Mr. Snuggle Lump,” Hannah coos from beside you. The name isn’t the best and you advised her not to name him considering he is an alien and definitely not a pet, but she insisted.

The boys question the name and Tom reiterates the fact she shouldn’t name him. The alien introduces himself amidst all his anxiety (his name is Sparks) and Hannah waves at him. Sparks returns her wave but immediately pulls his hand back, still unsure of his safety.

“Awh,” Jake smiles and you nudge him in a “See?” manner. He blushes and nudges you back, trying to recover by saying “I mean, ugh!” You just roll your eyes in response, smirking.

Tom asses Sparks’ tools and demeanor and suggests that you guys are right. He definitely doesn’t seem or appear like the others. He and Hannah coerce him out from under the bed and Sparks humors everyone by using some sort of static device to make Hannah’s hair stand up. It sends you all into a laughing fit.

Before long Tom and Jake want to jump into interrogation mode. They pull up a chair and a bright light and shine it on Sparks as if they’re in an episode of Law & Order. It’s a bit much but considering you’re all trying to save the world, you let it slide.

Tom and Jake shoot a million different questions at Sparks and he gets a little overwhelmed, but after a while he figures out the best way to explain it to everyone is by showing it. Tom gives him some paper and crayons and in no time Sparks has drawn a full diagram of the house and the objective they’re looking for.

What they’re after isn’t in the basement, it’s under it!

As Sparks continues to build diagrams out of Legos of what they’re after, Jake continues with quips about him. He goes on about how they can’t trust him and that Sparks is a freak. Hannah’s getting pretty upset about it all and honestly so are you.

Tom tries to convince Jake that Sparks is different from the others, but he’s still not having any of it. Tired of the back and forth, you pull Jake aside while Sparks continues to talk to everyone else.

“Look, blondie, you’re cute when you’re sarcastic but the straight up mean jabs towards Sparks is getting to be a little much! Hannah’s clearly upset about it and even though I know it’s insane to think we should trust this alien, I’m telling you we should! I mean even Tom, the brains, thinks we can trust him so I’m gonna need you to as well at least just a little bit!”

Jake peers down at you and that smirk you saw earlier returns to his pretty pink lips. “So you think I’m cute?”

You scoff as heat rises to your cheeks, the confidence you had a few seconds ago faltering a little as you look into the boy’s sparkling eyes. “That’s seriously all you got out of that?!”

The blonde shrugs and leans in a little closer to you. “Yeah, pretty much.”

Taking a daring step closer to Jake, you place your pointer finger on his chest, poking at it to annunciate your words. “All I’m saying is, if you’re not gonna trust Sparks at least trust me and your cousins. And stop throwing out insults to the alien! You’re hurting Hannah’s feelings.”

“Alright, I will.” Jake’s comedic tone disappears, a look of genuine understanding and trust passing through his eyes. The next second he’s back to his usual self. “You know, it’s kinda cute when you’re snappy.”

Humming, you tilt you head up towards the boy, finding yourself closer to him than you’ve ever been before. “You’re something else, Jake Pearson, you know that?”

“I get that a lot,” he cheekily replies. You roll your eyes and laugh before pushing him away from you lightly and walking back towards the rest of the group.

*****

“Woah!” You awe at Sparks’ work as Tom holds up his new and improved potato gun. You don’t know how he did it, the little guy works so fast, but he took something so simple and turned it into something amazing! You’d definitely want him as your electronic repairman—er, repairalien?

Everyone’s heads shoot up as beeping can be heard from outside. You and Jake hurry to the window and the first thing you see is a brown squad car. Great.

“It’s the po-po, be cool,” Jake urges and you stifle your laugh at his weird sayings. As if it couldn’t get any worse, though, someone starts banging on the bedroom door.

You listen in and realize it’s their grandma. You guess they weren’t able to get rid of everyone.

“Crap! We forgot about Nana!” Jake moves away from the window and goes to stand by Tom. From the look on your best friend’s face, you can tell he’s not convinced it’s his beloved grandmother. From the way she’s talking, you aren’t either.

“I may not know her extremely well, but I’d bet money that isn’t your Nana,” you say, jumping back a little when she knocks particularly loudly.

“Are you sure?” Jake questions. Not a second later and the door is flying forward, completely off it’s hinges. Nana growls at you all and if you weren’t one hundred percent sure before, you are now!

“Yeah, I’m sure!” You cry out. All of you start to take several steps back as Nana makes her way forward. She heads straight for Hannah and Sparks, so you, Tom, and Jake do all you can to prevent her from reaching them.

Nana throws Tom off to the side and then once she gets to Jake she’s sinking her teeth into his arm, leaving her dentures hanging on his arm as she pulls away. Gross! The horrified look on Jake’s face says it all.

Before Nana can reach Hannah, you plant yourself in front of her, doing your best to try and guide her away without hurting her, but it’s no use as she easily tosses you aside just like with Tom. You land on the floor with a thud.

“Do something, Tom!” Jake calls out as he tries to recover from the Nana-sized bite on his arm.

Thinking fast, Tom pushes a skateboard out in front of Nana and it sends her flying back. One of the aliens pops out from under her and lands on her chest. It’s doesn’t take him long to recover though and in a second he’s got Nana back up on her feet.

You try to think of something to stop him, but you don’t even need to as Hannah’s way ahead of you. She blasts the alien with her bubble gun and it sends him in a frenzy. Art gets ahold of Nana’s controller and in the chaos Tom’s able to trap the little thing in a fishing net.

Jumping to open a chest near the bed, you urge Tom to put him in there. You leave Jake to lock it and head over towards Hannah and her suitcase where she’s hidden Sparks. It’s obvious the aliens know he’s in there, so you have to do something to throw them off.

You help Hannah unzip the pink suitcase quickly, and lead Sparks to a mountain of pillows on the bed where he blends in perfectly. You do it not a moment too soon because when you turn around, the other aliens are running into the room looking to retrieve Sparks.

One of them gets their hands on Jake’s paintball gun and suddenly you’re all being shot at. You hit the deck along with everyone else and just like you thought they would, the aliens get away with the suitcase.

Tom turns towards you and Hannah, feeling disappointed in the loss of Sparks. “I’m sorry, guys. I’m sorry they got him.”

You and Hannah glance at each other, smiling, before you step forward and take the top pillows off the mountain you hid Sparks under. The two of you high five in excitement at outsmarting the aliens.

Per usual, every victory is met with a new challenge. The “po-po” as Jake likes to call them, starts speaking into his megaphone demanding for someone to open the door. It’s pretty doomed from what you can tell but you’re sure Tom will come up with something.

“You guys get rid of the cop. I’m going after the aliens,” Jake says as he starts to back out of the room. Immediately you’re not having any of it. No way he’s going alone.

“Wait!” You call after Jake and he stops in the doorway. You turn towards Tom before following the blonde. “You got this? He shouldn’t go alone.”

He nods his head. In the back of his mind he takes in the worried look on your face, the obvious signs his best friend is starting to care for his rambunctious cousin. He doesn’t fully love it, more-so because of Jake and his antics, but he accepts it. “Yeah, you go, I’ll handle it, don’t worry.” With that, you trail after Jake, stepping out into the hallway with him.

“Did you really think I was just gonna let you go after them on your own?” You look up at the boy and tilt you head, giving him a look of coy disbelief.

“I should’ve known better. My apologies,” he grins.

“I’ll accept it just this once. As long as you know we’re in this together. It’s you and me.”

“I wouldn’t want it any other way.” Surprising you, Jake intertwines one of his hands with yours, a flurry of butterflies erupting in your stomach instantly. “Let’s do this.”

And with that, the two of you race up the stairs, heading straight into whatever comes next.

*****

“Jake! He’s over there! He’s about to shoot someone!” Carefully stepping higher on the roof, you point off to the right, showing Jake exactly where the alien is.

“Not on my watch!” In a flash Jake throws a rake he found up on the roof. It successfully knocks the alien on his side, making him miss his shot.

The martian’s back on his feet in no time and you and Jake rush after him. He begins to repeat everything the boy says and it irritates the crap out of you. You really need to get these things out of here, now!

Leading you both back to the window to get inside, Jake’s the first to reach it and as he leans in, his body is instantly thrown back.

“Jake!” You race towards him and take in the paint splatters all over his face and chest. He’s almost completely knocked out. The boy reaches a hand out and tries to hold on to you, but it’s too late. As you turn back towards the window, you’re met with the male and female aliens, who strike you with the paintball gun, knocking you out cold.

*****

When you come to you almost get knocked out yet again. For some reason your head keeps getting thumped against something over and over and it feels as if you’re heading down a hill.

Opening your eyes fully and trying to get your bearings you realize you’re being dragged down the stairs. Each time you get pulled forward your head flies back onto the steps, causing an unbearable ache to start to bloom there.

You go to open your mouth to say something, but panic fills you as you realize you can’t. Your mouth has been stuffed with cloth and taped over, and the panic only intensifies when you go to move your arms and legs and note you can’t move them either. It’s as if your whole body has been bound together, leaving you no room to try and escape.

Heartbeat pounding in your ears, you find yourself unable to concentrate on anything, feeling as if you’re underwater and everything is being drowned out.

Your head lolls to the side and in doing so you come face to face with Jake’s head. You take in the fact he looks like he’s trying to say something to you, but you can’t make out any of it as he’s in the same situation you’re in. Tears fill your eyes as the feeling of being trapped sinks in. The ropes around your body start to rub as you become more awake and the feeling makes you feel like you’re on fire.

For such small aliens it takes them practically no time to drag you and Jake down to the basement. The trip down there is no easier than the one down the main stairs and you’re sure you’ll have splinters all over if and when you get out of here.

The thought of maybe not even surviving this whole thing only heightens your current emotions. Your breath becomes more ragged and you find it hard to even keep your eyes open as the aliens begin to dig in the ground and throw dirt towards you and Jake.

Noticing your obvious stress and wanting to do anything he can to try and help, Jake inches himself closer to you. He takes in your tear stained cheeks and rapid rise and fall of your chest as he turns his body and immediately feels an ache in his chest at the sight of it. He’s terrified, but the fact you have to go through this too makes it even worse. Part of him wishes he would’ve urged you to stay with the others so you wouldn’t be in this mess.

“Hey, Y/N, look at me!” Jake tries to grab your attention, but his voice comes out muffled due to the tape and cloth. The boy tries again, doing his best to try and talk to you.

Amidst your racing heartbeat and choke-backed sobs, you notice the movement beside you and can hear Jake’s muffled voice. You tilt your head and are met with his dirt-caked face. Even with all the mud, paint, and dim lighting coming from the alien’s tools, his eyes shine bright. The familiarity of them soothes you a bit but not enough as more dirt gets thrown your way and the aliens’ delighted voices reach your ears. It’s clear they’re getting closer to what they’re looking for.

You drop your head back to the ground, feeling defeated and so tired. The ache at the back of your head is starting to dull but it’s still throbbing, making you miserable and feeling like you can’t concentrate on Jake.

“No, c’mon, Y/N, keep your head up! Look at me, it’s okay!” Jake wishes with everything he’s got that he could somehow rip off the tape and cloth wrapped around his mouth. He’d give anything to just be able to talk to you clearly and try to ground you during this crazy experience.

Moving your head up and struggling to get closer to Jake, you do your best to try and stay focused on him. You can see the desperation on his face, his concern and empathy. It makes your heart swell that he cares so much about you and your well being when he’s going through the same exact thing.

The blonde tilts his head down and leans his forehead gently against yours. The warmth and light pressure of it allows you to focus on him and him alone. “It’s okay, I’m right here. I’m right here.” Jake’s muffled encouragement is hard to understand, but the intention is clear. You push back softly against his forehead, doing what you can to let him know that he’s helping you more than he could ever realize, that you’re here for him just as much as he’s here for you.

A bright light begins shinning from the ground and excited cheers follow. The aliens found what they were looking for. It’s actually happening, more aliens are going to invade planet earth.

As the aliens start grabbing what they need, it becomes clear they have no use for you and Jake. Before they leave to begin their invasion, they shove the two of you into the hole they created in the ground and that’s the last thing you see before everything goes dark.

*****

When you wake up it’s to the feeling of a decent sized weight being dropped on you. Dirt and rubble fly everywhere and you push yourself backwards, wanting to distance yourself from whatever it is.

A light flashes across your face and you’re sure it’s the aliens before suddenly everything comes into focus and your met with your best friends, Hannah, and the twins. Relief floods your body and you nearly burst into happy tears at the sight.

The group lifts you and Jake out of the rubble and you’ve never felt more grateful than you do in this moment, especially once Bethany and Hannah get the tape and ropes off of you. As soon as you’re able to move freely, you wrap your arms around them both, holding them close and thanking all your stars that you made it out of that situation alive. There’s still much to do, but in this moment you’re safe.

After getting intel from Jake, Tom comes over and hugs you as well, telling you he’s glad you’re okay. Once letting go of him, it’s no brainer that you lunge towards Jake, wrapping your arms around him and holding him as close as possible, taking in his warmth and tight grasp.

The blonde nuzzles his face into your neck, trying to get his brain to understand you’re both safe, you both made it, that it’s okay now. He rubs his hands up and down your back soothingly, almost using it as a technique to convince himself you’re here and in his arms.

“Thank you,” you whisper into the side of his head. Those two words holding a meaning so much more than anyone could ever understand.

“-your stupid brother and your dumb little cousins!” The snarky tone and comment has you shocked and causes you to turn out of Jake’s arms. It’s no question who the voice belongs to and when you see it’s being directed at your best friend, anger bubbles under the surface of your skin.

“Don’t talk about my family like that,” Bethany retorts

“Well you don’t have to worry about it anymore cause we’re done. I knew I should’ve stayed home and hooked up with Annie Filkins, she’s smokin’ hot and she doesn’t like talking about feelings all the time! I’m going straight to Annie’s.” Ricky starts to retreat back upstairs but you’re done with his crap. No one gets to talk to one of your best friends like that and get away with it. Especially not after the day you’re having.

“Hey, dirt bag!” You call out, stopping Ricky in his tracks. He turns towards you, a bored look on his face, and it takes everything in you not to smack it right off of him. Walking over to him you continue, “I don’t know what your problems is—actually I can think of about a million, but no one treats my best friend and her family like that and gets to walk away!”

Ricky scoffs at you and rolls his eyes, clearly not caring for anything you have to say. This only makes you more defensive of your friends. “Bethany is the greatest girl you ever had and ever will have! There’s absolutely no one out there who will ever put up with you the way she has, and I know for a fact she deserves a thousand times better than a guy like you! You’ve got some nerve acting all high and mighty when you’re nothing but a selfish jerk that likes to pick up girls half a decade younger than him. And honestly, Ricky, that’s all you ever will be.”

Ricky’s face heats up at this, not feeling as cocky as he was a second ago. “You know what? I don’t have to take this from you! I’m out of here!”

The guy turns around, starting to head back upstairs, but not before you can get one final jab in. “Have a nice trip!” Leaning forward, you kick your foot against the old wooden steps, causing Ricky to trip over his own feet. Unfortunately it doesn’t trip him up too bad, but the stumble you get out of him is enough to satisfy you for now.

When you turn away from the stairs, you’re met with Bethany’s tear-rimmed eyes and bright smile. Before you can even get a word out she has you wrapped in her arms. “You’re my best friend in the whole world, you know that?”

“Forever and always,” you say as you squeeze her in return. “I’m sorry things turned out like this between you.”

“I’m also really sorry,” Tom says as he comes up to the both of you.

“Don’t be, you guys were right all along,” Bethany says, a defeated tone evident in her voice. The sound breaks your heart.

“If it’s any consolation,” Tom says pulling something out of his pocket. “He’s not going straight to Annie’s or anywhere for a while.”

Looking closer at what the brunette has in his hand, you smirk as you realize what it is. A piece from Ricky’s car. It won’t start without it. Good job, Tom!

“Wow!” Bethany exclaims, clearly impressed with her brothers skills, for once.

“Guys, enough with the bonding, we’re at DEFCON one here!” Jake says as he comes over and ushers you all towards the back window.

Once you get a look outside, you know things are only going to get harder from here. The aliens have their whole set up going and you can tell it’s only a matter of time before their whole fleet of other aliens arrive.

“This is so bad,” you mutter, backing up from the window along with everyone else.

Bethany starts questioning things and Tom seems at a loss for answers, as are the rest of you. The boy urges everyone that you all have to stop them before it gets any worse and Hannah demands that Snuggle Lump (Sparks) be rescued. You honestly can’t blame the girl, from what you could see from the window, Sparks is getting treated even worse after his “alliance” with the humans. You worry about what they might do to him.

Lee helps Bethany understand what in the world a Snuggle Lump is and how he’s actually a good guy and once that’s settled, Tom insists everyone gets outside. Before anyone can get far, Jake’s calling out for you all to wait.

“Not so fast, I have a plan.” The look everyone gives him makes it obvious they’re already not so sure about this, Jake picks up on it immediately. “Work with me here! Did Nana give anyone mentos?”

Confused glances travel around the group and you catch Jake’s eye for a second, raising an eyebrow, before Tom asks, “Why?”

“Hand ‘em over!” The blonde rushes out, holding open his hands for everyone to drop their mints into. Without questioning it you all begin to empty your pockets, having enough pieces each to last all week. Nana sure does love to give out her mentos.

“What? We’re gonna throw candy at them?” Bethany questions, not understanding what kind of plan her cousin could possibly have in mind.

“No,” Jake says before looking over at you and from the look on his face you can tell he’s got something good up his sleeve. “My own little science project.”

The blonde moves fast, getting all of his supplies and setting them up in record time. At first you don’t understand what he’s up to, but once you get a good look at everything he’s grabbed, you get the idea, and you’d be lying if you were to say it isn’t incredible.

“Mentos bombs,” you whisper beside him, excitement starting to course through your veins over how this plan might actually work. “You’re a genius!”

It’s like an instinct the way you so easily jump into Jake’s arms. He spins you around, feeling his own sense of pride over his work, and when he puts you down you don’t miss the suspicious glance from Bethany. It completely slipped your mind the fact she essentially missed the whole day with you guys, having been totally oblivious to what was going on until just a little bit ago. She has no clue as to how quickly you and Jake have become close, but from the teasing smirk on her face you can tell she’s more amused than angry. She’d definitely be asking you details later. A part of you can’t wait until then.

Grabbing all of the bombs and any items you can use as weapons, the eight of you take your places. If this works you might only have a small window to do what you need before the soda bombs fizzle out but hopefully it’ll be enough. It has to be.

Before anyone even has a chance to second guess the plan, the bombs are being thrown. Soda goes everywhere and from what you can tell, they’re working!

The aliens get disorientated and before they can regroup you and everyone else rush out into the backyard, the boys going one way and you, Hannah, and Bethany going another. You and Bethany cut off the female alien as Hannah meets up with Sparks. Bethany latches the bin you used to catch the alien and when she’s done you head over to Hannah and her alien companion, wanting to make sure they’re both okay.

An enormous flash of light surrounds the yard and you turn around to see one of the aliens being zapped by their own machine. Everyone starts cheering as he gets flung into the air, but from the look on Sparks’ face you can tell this isn’t anything good.

He tries to get the attention of the others but they’re so wrapped up in their presumed victory that they don’t hear him. You and Hannah rush over, trying to get them to listen to Sparks’ anxious ramblings, but it’s only when the giant alien smashes his way through the trees do they understand.

Oh my God.

The alien starts talking to everyone, clearly convinced he’s won. You find yourself clinging to Jake’s side in fear and you don’t miss the fact he holds his arm out in front of you, acting as some sort of shield. The action makes your heart soar, even under the circumstances.

As the enlarged alien starts to walk away, everyone begins to freak out. Hannah starts questioning Bethany about what’s gonna happen to their parents, the twins look towards their big brother for answers, and Tom stalks forward towards the machinery, no doubt trying to think of something to do.

“Everyone, listen! We don’t have much time,” Tom says as he rejoins the group. “Sparks, can anything go on that machine?”

“Theoretically,” Sparks replies, and the satisfied look on Tom’s face tells you all you need to know. He has a plan and knowing him it’s a good one.

“Art, Lee, I’m gonna need a controller, Bethany and Y/N, I need you to keep the other aliens on lockdown.” You and Bethany look at each other, nodding, ready to take on anything together.

“Okay,” you both tell Tom and after that he’s moving to grab something from the grass.

“Jake, c’mon, this battle’s not over yet!” You’re not sure what Tom’s plan is, but you know it’s definitely not gonna be anything easy, or safe for that matter. As Jake starts to follow Tom towards the machine, you lightly grab onto his wrist, pulling him back.

He turns and looks at you a little confused, but you waste no time in letting him know why you stopped him. Reaching up, you quickly kiss Jake on the cheek, reveling in the warmth you feel there as your lips make contact. “Be safe out there,” you say, taking in his bright smile before rushing off back to Bethany, ready to take on some aliens.

*****

It’s no small feat taking down aliens, even if in fact they are…small.

You and Bethany tussle hard with the female alien and successfully knock her out after she escapes from the bin you trapped her in earlier. Of course there are a few words exchanged and some nails broken, but you and Bethany come out practically unscathed and feel pretty awesome in doing so.

The feeling is fleeting though as you realize the other male alien has become bigger as well. You hurry over to Hannah and Sparks, wanting to do what you can to make sure they’re protected. They seem fearful but thankfully it appears that Tom and Jake have successfully enacted their plan and have gained control of the alien in charge!

The two aliens battle it out, the twins controlling the commander. They seem to be doing a pretty good job, but it’s unclear how long they’ll be able to hold the other one back, especially at his size.

“Sparks!” Tom cries out while running towards you guys. “Reverse the machine!”

In a flash you, Sparks, and Hannah race over to the glowing otherworldly device. Sparks immediately gets to work on reversing the effects of the machine and his hands move so fast you can’t even keep track of what it is he’s doing exactly to complete it. You just sit with Hannah and hope for the best.

In no time Sparks finishes what he’s doing and gives you and Hannah the thumbs up. “Reversed!” Yes!

“Tom! He’s done!” You call out towards your best friend, and with a nod of understanding he uses the controller to push both of the aliens into the improved machine.

Taking several steps back with Hannah and Sparks, the three of you take cover as you watch the aliens’ machine collapse. The female alien narrowly saves her partner but leaves the commander behind. In a flash the whole thing explodes and it’s almost as if it was never there.

Feeling a rush of relief, the three of you get up off the grass and hurry over to the others. You reconnect with Bethany first and then meet up with the boys. You all breathe out words of praise and sighs of relief at seeing everyone’s okay and that the plan worked.

You go to move towards Jake, but Bethany’s worried voice cuts through, causing you to turn around.

“Tom? What about the others? There’s so many.” Looking up at the sky you feel your heart sink at the sight. Dozens of spaceships take up the night sky, no doubt hundreds of aliens aboard them and ready to invade. You’re too late, they’re already here.

“Retreat! Retreat! The machine is destroyed! We have been outsmarted by the hu-mans! The invasion has failed! Retreat to Zirkon right away! Retreat! Retreat!” Sparks’ voice rings out across the backyard and just as soon as they appeared, the spaceships are gone.

“It’s gone. It’s over, it’s all over. We won!” Tom says as he takes it all in. You all move forward, meeting up with Sparks. The smoke is still clearing but the evident relief and happiness on not only your guys’ faces but Sparks’ as well is refreshing. “Thanks, Snuggs, for everything.”

“You’re alright for a space maggot.” Jake tells Sparks and you nudge him softly in his side for it, rolling your eyes at him teasingly as he smiles down at you. “I’m gonna miss you.”

“Miss him? He’s staying here, with us!” Hannah exclaims as she goes to crouch down in front of her newfound friend. “Please don’t go, you can be part of our family.”

The sight warms you heart and you find it cute how Hannah’s taken such a liking to him. Honestly who wouldn’t? Sure he’s an alien, but he’s so kind and he protected people of another species he hardly even knew. You have a feeling there aren’t many other aliens who would do the same.

Sparks pulls something out of one of his pockets, and when he hands it to Hannah you can see exactly what it is. It’s a photo of Sparks and three other aliens, a female and a little boy and girl. It’s his family! Sparks is a father!

“Han,” you say lightly, kneeling down next to the younger girl. “I think he’s already got a family.”

*****

It’s a sad sight, all of you saying goodbye to Sparks on the roof. You nearly lose it as Hannah hands him her sock monkey and the two of them hug.

After a final goodbye, Sparks is off, back to his home planet. The air is still and the only thing you can hear are the crickets and cicadas in the trees surrounding you. Another moment passes before you all look at each other, grins breaking out on your faces leading everyone to erupt into cheers.

The twins are high-fiving each other, Bethany and Tom are hugging Hannah, and you turn towards Jake. When you do, you’re taken by surprise as he rushes towards you, nearly knocking you off your feet as he connects his lips to yours.

The action is sudden and slightly startles you as you weren’t expecting it. Feeling your stiffness and apparent shock, Jake breaks apart from you and takes several steps back.

“I-I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have done that! I just got excited I wasn’t-!” Cutting him off you take back the distance he made between you, grab onto his shirt, and pull him down towards you, connecting your lips once more.

This time he’s shocked, but Jake quickly recovers and takes your face between his hands, moving his lips perfectly in sync with yours. Even after being piled on with dirt and grime, somehow his pink lips are still soft to the touch and you don’t ever want to know what it’s like to not be able to kiss them.

Needing a second to catch your breath, you reluctantly break apart from the blonde, giggling as he quickly sneaks another peck in. You look up into his blue orbs and smile as you say, “It’s you and me, remember?”

“Ugh, get a room!” Looking over Jake’s shoulder you laugh as you see the “disgusted” look on Tom’s face. He smirks at the both of you before saying, “I should’ve known Jake wouldn’t give up on you.”

Looking over his shoulder, Jake laughs and retorts, “That’s on you, cuz! There was no way I was giving up that easily on this girl. Not even with your threatening best friend warning.”

“Tom!” You cry out, mock disbelief spreading across your face over this revelation. Of course he’d try and block his cousin from getting to you, he’s so protective.

“I think it’s cute!” Bethany coos and you smile at her in return.

“Yeah well just make sure you don’t continue to make out in front of everyone for the rest of the trip. I for one would like to get through the week without throwing up. Plus, there’s children present.” Tom glances towards Hannah and you laugh at her obvious look of irritation, clearly feeling insulted.

“Hey!” Hannah interjects, crossing her arms. The little girl starts to go in on her older brother over the clear level of maturity she has and the sight makes you smile. You’d never get tired of the Pearson family.

Chuckling and shaking his head, Jake turns his attention back to you. He leaves one hand cupping your face as the other grabs onto your waist, gently bringing you in closer to him.

“Anyways, you and me, huh?” He questions, referring back to your comment. He uses one hand to point up at the sky, referencing the aliens, and then points back at his difficult cousin. With a smile on his face he asks, “Against all odds?”

“Against all odds.”

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