Two Weeks In Victoria [Jacques & Rose]
Aug. 12th, 2017 03:57 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
roesslyngTitle: Two Weeks in Victoria
Fandom: Original
Characters/Pairing: Jacques & Rose; Jacques/Yuriy
Rating: 0+
Length: 1.9k
Summary: Two weeks of vacation away from Halifax means two weeks away from Yuriy, but Victoria is beautiful, and Rose is good company, and Jacques will manage (somehow).
Other: This series of scenes jumped into my head and wouldn't go away, so... yes. I don't expect I'll be writing many other things with Rose, considering her location, but I've wanted to scribble down something related to this side of Jacques's family for a while.
Two Weeks in Victoria
Thank you for flying with WestJet. If Victoria is home, then welcome home! If not, please enjoy your stay.
The air was fresh and crisp when Jacques stepped down from the plane and onto the tarmac, quickly making his way past slow-moving passengers onto the marked walkway. Down he went, slipping under the pretty shaded canopy dangling with bright flowers, and then inside the terminal. He knew there would be someone waiting for him.
As he scanned the arrivals area, it wasn't hard to pick his aunt out from the crowd: a well-dressed young woman, standing slightly apart from everyone else and looking cheerful and calm and unhurried, as if she had all the time in the world.
Her dark eyes lit up when she caught sight of him.
"Aunt Rose!" Jacques latched onto her, smiling, hugging a bit more tightly than he usually would. It had been too long since they'd last seen each other.
"Well, it's good to see you got here safely." She gave him a squeeze. "I swear, every time I see you, you're taller."
"Nah, you're just wearing lower shoes."
"Oh, hush. Let's get your bag."
When it was over, and they were driving on their way to Victoria, Jacques slumped in the passenger seat. Tried to stay awake. But the warm western sun and the air slipping in through the open window lulled him.
"Long flight?"
"Mm." He opened one eye. "I've been up since five. Halifax time, that is."
"Oh dear."
He laughed. "Worth it." And it was. It really, really was. Two weeks in Victoria, and staying with the aunt he hardly ever had a chance to see. Rose didn't act like an aunt, and she didn't look much like one either; she was much younger than his mother, and dressed very stylishly. She looked like she could be his sister, and she acted like a friend, and as far as Jacques was concerned, visiting her was always a good time. As for his other relatives, well...
"Your grandmother told me to ask you if you've been practicing your Chinese."
"...Uh."
"I'll take that as a no." But even as Rose said it, she was smiling.
"Maybe we can work on it while I'm here."
"Maybe we can."
And past the windows, the landscape rolled by. Mountains. Trees. Flowers. Vineyards. Sparkling water and roads and tourist traps. Jacques closed his eyes again. It was so much like home – at least in some ways. And in some ways, it wasn't anything like home at all.
Rose's apartment was familiar and comfortable to him by now. The bright windows. The old, squishy sofa. The big, full bookcases. The plants on every available surface – it was as if the plants and the bookcases were in a symbiotic relationship; as if the bookcases existed so that the plants could have a place at the very top, and in return they trailed their vines down with love.
She nudged him toward the sofa as soon as they stepped through the door. "Take a nap," she said, her eyes laughing. "You look like death. We can go out later if you want. I have some work I need to take care of first."
"Yeah, well –" A yawn interrupted him halfway through his would-be objection, and Jacques decided that, well, maybe she had the right idea. He draped over the sofa, cozied up under the crocheted throw blanket, and slid his phone out of his pocket.
Too many messages. He squinted at them, decided that replies could wait, and sent off two texts – one to his mother:
Got to Vic safe. Rose says hi.
And another to Yuriy:
I'm here. See you in two weeks. Miss you!
Then he closed his eyes, and let the weight of four time zones and hundreds of kilometres hit him full-force.
Jacques had been reluctant, at first, to accept Rose's offer. Just a little. Just a teeny tiny bit. It wasn't because of the length of the flight, or because of the cost of getting there. It was just that there were so many things going on! True, his new job wouldn't start until after he returned, if he stuck to the dates that Rose suggested. But there was art to do, and there was Yuriy.
"But you always go and see her during the summer," his mother had said, peering at him over the edge of her coffee cup. "And your grandmother is looking forward to seeing you, too. Don't you want to see her?"
"Well, yeah, but –"
Jacques trailed off, shrugged, and left it alone. Every way that he could think of to explain sounded juvenile, even in his head.
He didn't want to confess that he wanted to spend extra time with his boyfriend.
In the end, it was Yuriy himself who nudged him to give in.
"You should go," he said. "If you can afford the ticket, then go."
Jacques laughed. "What, you don't want me around?"
"I can live without you for a little while." A hint of a smile tugged at Yuriy's lips. "I will survive, I promise. Would it not be good for you to see your family? They are so far away. You should do it if you can."
Maybe he was right, Jacques thought from the comfort of Rose's sofa, resting there in his jetlagged daze. A change of scenery was good. And... seeing family. That too.
There was only so much you could do when they lived on the other side of the country.
He listened to the sound of Rose moving around the apartment. Soft slippered feet patting across the kitchen floor. The whistle of the teakettle. The low hum of the radio. Birdsong and noise from the street filtering in through the open window. Like home, but not. Different, just enough, and good.
Quiet footsteps coming closer.
"Wake up, sleepy head. Unless you don't want to sleep tonight."
"Ugh... okay." But he didn't move.
She stepped closer. Dipped a hand to ruffle his hair. He breathed in the comforting scent of her perfume. Florals and greens.
"Come on, now. Have some tea."
Well, all right.
They went out after. Later. After tea, after talk, after quickly catching up.
It was warm. The air was fresh, and it was early enough in the summer that, even though there were tourists, it wasn't overwhelming. Not yet, anyway.
They went down to the park by the sea, the one they had been to on other trips before. It was so different from the ocean-side walkways back home. The sunny bay was gentle, its pebbly beach welcoming. Jacques thought of the rainy, steel-grey skies of home, and the cold wind coming off the Atlantic. It wasn't anything like this.
Together, they walked along a shore scattered with pebbles worn round by the ocean. Rose put her hands in her dress's pockets, kicking at the stones as she went. For once, she was wearing sensible shoes.
"So, who's that guy I've been seeing in your Facebook pictures?"
Jacques glanced at her in surprise. "Oh, that's Yuriy. He –"
"Yeah, I saw his name. But that isn't what I meant."
"Uh?"
"You two look really happy. How long have you been together?"
Oh. Ohh. Well, okay. Jacques could feel himself blushing a little. "A while," he said. "Um. A few months." He laughed. "It feels like longer."
"And you haven't changed your status?" She gave him a nudge. "I didn't even know my favourite nephew was seeing anyone."
He nudged her right back, and tried to decide how to put it. It was an explanation he'd rather not have to give, but it didn't seem so bad to tell Rose, not really. "His family doesn't know yet. And he'd rather they didn't find out from Facebook, you know?"
"Oh. Yeah, I understand. Say no more." She quieted for a while, looking out at the water. "You should tell me about him."
"Should I?"
"Yes."
They found an old driftwood log, huge and worn grey by the sea and weather, and sank down onto it to look out at the bay and the glistening water. Jacques reached into his messenger bag, pulled out his sketchbook and a pencil, and drew while he talked.
He told her everything. At first, he didn't mean to. It wasn't like he meant to keep going once he started. But it happened anyway.
It was strange to put it into actual words. The course of his relationship with Yuriy had been so gradual, so natural. The way they had come together felt so right, but it happened so slowly, and until Rose had asked he hadn't thought about it like that at all.
"He's a great guy," Jacques said in the end, unable to stop himself from smiling a bit as he looked out at the ocean. "I feel comfortable around him, like I can really be myself around him. You know?"
"Hmm." Rose leaned back on her palms, tilting her head upward, closing her eyes for a moment. "Does this mean you're going to keep this one?"
"Maybe. I hope so."
"The last one didn't last very long."
"She moved to Ontario. Didn't want to do the long-distance thing."
"And the one before that?"
Jacques shrugged. "It just... We didn't work out."
"But you think this one will." It wasn't a question.
Jacques could feel his cheeks heating again. He rested his head against one hand, balancing his sketchbook on his knee. "It's too early to get serious about this," he said. "I mean, we've been friends for a while, but we haven't been together that long, I guess, and –" He shrugged. "Well. You know."
"Mmhmm. I know." She reached over and patted him on the back. "I just like seeing you so happy. That's all."
"Maybe you'll get to meet him some day." He glanced at her as he said it. Victoria was a long way from Halifax, and they both knew that it wouldn't happen unless Yuriy decided to stick around.
Rose smiled at him, broad and dazzlingly bright. "Maybe I will," she said. "I hope so. I'd like that."
Later, they made their way back to Rose's apartment. The streets were busy and bright, humming with life. They wove their way through the crowds, eventually escaping to the residential streets, where the tourists didn't go, and into the dark of the chilled spring evening.
After Rose turned in for the night, Jacques sat up a while with a cup of herbal tea and his sketchbook and his phone. He sent Yuriy a picture of some of his drawings, and a photograph of the bay.
He received a reply a few minutes later.
It sounds like you're having a good time.
Jacques quickly did the calculations in his head. Four hours of difference between Pacific and Atlantic time zones –
Why are you awake?!
I was hoping to hear from you.
It wasn't quite an "I miss you," but it was more than close enough for Jacques.
I'm okay.
Rose says she wants to meet you some day. I told her all about you.
I think I would like that.
I hope it was good things.
Jacques smiled.
Sure, it was a little early to tell where this relationship would go. A little too soon to hope that it would last. But that was all right.
He had a good feeling about this one.
Fandom: Original
Characters/Pairing: Jacques & Rose; Jacques/Yuriy
Rating: 0+
Length: 1.9k
Summary: Two weeks of vacation away from Halifax means two weeks away from Yuriy, but Victoria is beautiful, and Rose is good company, and Jacques will manage (somehow).
Other: This series of scenes jumped into my head and wouldn't go away, so... yes. I don't expect I'll be writing many other things with Rose, considering her location, but I've wanted to scribble down something related to this side of Jacques's family for a while.
Two Weeks in Victoria
Thank you for flying with WestJet. If Victoria is home, then welcome home! If not, please enjoy your stay.
The air was fresh and crisp when Jacques stepped down from the plane and onto the tarmac, quickly making his way past slow-moving passengers onto the marked walkway. Down he went, slipping under the pretty shaded canopy dangling with bright flowers, and then inside the terminal. He knew there would be someone waiting for him.
As he scanned the arrivals area, it wasn't hard to pick his aunt out from the crowd: a well-dressed young woman, standing slightly apart from everyone else and looking cheerful and calm and unhurried, as if she had all the time in the world.
Her dark eyes lit up when she caught sight of him.
"Aunt Rose!" Jacques latched onto her, smiling, hugging a bit more tightly than he usually would. It had been too long since they'd last seen each other.
"Well, it's good to see you got here safely." She gave him a squeeze. "I swear, every time I see you, you're taller."
"Nah, you're just wearing lower shoes."
"Oh, hush. Let's get your bag."
When it was over, and they were driving on their way to Victoria, Jacques slumped in the passenger seat. Tried to stay awake. But the warm western sun and the air slipping in through the open window lulled him.
"Long flight?"
"Mm." He opened one eye. "I've been up since five. Halifax time, that is."
"Oh dear."
He laughed. "Worth it." And it was. It really, really was. Two weeks in Victoria, and staying with the aunt he hardly ever had a chance to see. Rose didn't act like an aunt, and she didn't look much like one either; she was much younger than his mother, and dressed very stylishly. She looked like she could be his sister, and she acted like a friend, and as far as Jacques was concerned, visiting her was always a good time. As for his other relatives, well...
"Your grandmother told me to ask you if you've been practicing your Chinese."
"...Uh."
"I'll take that as a no." But even as Rose said it, she was smiling.
"Maybe we can work on it while I'm here."
"Maybe we can."
And past the windows, the landscape rolled by. Mountains. Trees. Flowers. Vineyards. Sparkling water and roads and tourist traps. Jacques closed his eyes again. It was so much like home – at least in some ways. And in some ways, it wasn't anything like home at all.
Rose's apartment was familiar and comfortable to him by now. The bright windows. The old, squishy sofa. The big, full bookcases. The plants on every available surface – it was as if the plants and the bookcases were in a symbiotic relationship; as if the bookcases existed so that the plants could have a place at the very top, and in return they trailed their vines down with love.
She nudged him toward the sofa as soon as they stepped through the door. "Take a nap," she said, her eyes laughing. "You look like death. We can go out later if you want. I have some work I need to take care of first."
"Yeah, well –" A yawn interrupted him halfway through his would-be objection, and Jacques decided that, well, maybe she had the right idea. He draped over the sofa, cozied up under the crocheted throw blanket, and slid his phone out of his pocket.
Too many messages. He squinted at them, decided that replies could wait, and sent off two texts – one to his mother:
Got to Vic safe. Rose says hi.
And another to Yuriy:
I'm here. See you in two weeks. Miss you!
Then he closed his eyes, and let the weight of four time zones and hundreds of kilometres hit him full-force.
Jacques had been reluctant, at first, to accept Rose's offer. Just a little. Just a teeny tiny bit. It wasn't because of the length of the flight, or because of the cost of getting there. It was just that there were so many things going on! True, his new job wouldn't start until after he returned, if he stuck to the dates that Rose suggested. But there was art to do, and there was Yuriy.
"But you always go and see her during the summer," his mother had said, peering at him over the edge of her coffee cup. "And your grandmother is looking forward to seeing you, too. Don't you want to see her?"
"Well, yeah, but –"
Jacques trailed off, shrugged, and left it alone. Every way that he could think of to explain sounded juvenile, even in his head.
He didn't want to confess that he wanted to spend extra time with his boyfriend.
In the end, it was Yuriy himself who nudged him to give in.
"You should go," he said. "If you can afford the ticket, then go."
Jacques laughed. "What, you don't want me around?"
"I can live without you for a little while." A hint of a smile tugged at Yuriy's lips. "I will survive, I promise. Would it not be good for you to see your family? They are so far away. You should do it if you can."
Maybe he was right, Jacques thought from the comfort of Rose's sofa, resting there in his jetlagged daze. A change of scenery was good. And... seeing family. That too.
There was only so much you could do when they lived on the other side of the country.
He listened to the sound of Rose moving around the apartment. Soft slippered feet patting across the kitchen floor. The whistle of the teakettle. The low hum of the radio. Birdsong and noise from the street filtering in through the open window. Like home, but not. Different, just enough, and good.
Quiet footsteps coming closer.
"Wake up, sleepy head. Unless you don't want to sleep tonight."
"Ugh... okay." But he didn't move.
She stepped closer. Dipped a hand to ruffle his hair. He breathed in the comforting scent of her perfume. Florals and greens.
"Come on, now. Have some tea."
Well, all right.
They went out after. Later. After tea, after talk, after quickly catching up.
It was warm. The air was fresh, and it was early enough in the summer that, even though there were tourists, it wasn't overwhelming. Not yet, anyway.
They went down to the park by the sea, the one they had been to on other trips before. It was so different from the ocean-side walkways back home. The sunny bay was gentle, its pebbly beach welcoming. Jacques thought of the rainy, steel-grey skies of home, and the cold wind coming off the Atlantic. It wasn't anything like this.
Together, they walked along a shore scattered with pebbles worn round by the ocean. Rose put her hands in her dress's pockets, kicking at the stones as she went. For once, she was wearing sensible shoes.
"So, who's that guy I've been seeing in your Facebook pictures?"
Jacques glanced at her in surprise. "Oh, that's Yuriy. He –"
"Yeah, I saw his name. But that isn't what I meant."
"Uh?"
"You two look really happy. How long have you been together?"
Oh. Ohh. Well, okay. Jacques could feel himself blushing a little. "A while," he said. "Um. A few months." He laughed. "It feels like longer."
"And you haven't changed your status?" She gave him a nudge. "I didn't even know my favourite nephew was seeing anyone."
He nudged her right back, and tried to decide how to put it. It was an explanation he'd rather not have to give, but it didn't seem so bad to tell Rose, not really. "His family doesn't know yet. And he'd rather they didn't find out from Facebook, you know?"
"Oh. Yeah, I understand. Say no more." She quieted for a while, looking out at the water. "You should tell me about him."
"Should I?"
"Yes."
They found an old driftwood log, huge and worn grey by the sea and weather, and sank down onto it to look out at the bay and the glistening water. Jacques reached into his messenger bag, pulled out his sketchbook and a pencil, and drew while he talked.
He told her everything. At first, he didn't mean to. It wasn't like he meant to keep going once he started. But it happened anyway.
It was strange to put it into actual words. The course of his relationship with Yuriy had been so gradual, so natural. The way they had come together felt so right, but it happened so slowly, and until Rose had asked he hadn't thought about it like that at all.
"He's a great guy," Jacques said in the end, unable to stop himself from smiling a bit as he looked out at the ocean. "I feel comfortable around him, like I can really be myself around him. You know?"
"Hmm." Rose leaned back on her palms, tilting her head upward, closing her eyes for a moment. "Does this mean you're going to keep this one?"
"Maybe. I hope so."
"The last one didn't last very long."
"She moved to Ontario. Didn't want to do the long-distance thing."
"And the one before that?"
Jacques shrugged. "It just... We didn't work out."
"But you think this one will." It wasn't a question.
Jacques could feel his cheeks heating again. He rested his head against one hand, balancing his sketchbook on his knee. "It's too early to get serious about this," he said. "I mean, we've been friends for a while, but we haven't been together that long, I guess, and –" He shrugged. "Well. You know."
"Mmhmm. I know." She reached over and patted him on the back. "I just like seeing you so happy. That's all."
"Maybe you'll get to meet him some day." He glanced at her as he said it. Victoria was a long way from Halifax, and they both knew that it wouldn't happen unless Yuriy decided to stick around.
Rose smiled at him, broad and dazzlingly bright. "Maybe I will," she said. "I hope so. I'd like that."
Later, they made their way back to Rose's apartment. The streets were busy and bright, humming with life. They wove their way through the crowds, eventually escaping to the residential streets, where the tourists didn't go, and into the dark of the chilled spring evening.
After Rose turned in for the night, Jacques sat up a while with a cup of herbal tea and his sketchbook and his phone. He sent Yuriy a picture of some of his drawings, and a photograph of the bay.
He received a reply a few minutes later.
It sounds like you're having a good time.
Jacques quickly did the calculations in his head. Four hours of difference between Pacific and Atlantic time zones –
Why are you awake?!
I was hoping to hear from you.
It wasn't quite an "I miss you," but it was more than close enough for Jacques.
I'm okay.
Rose says she wants to meet you some day. I told her all about you.
I think I would like that.
I hope it was good things.
Jacques smiled.
Sure, it was a little early to tell where this relationship would go. A little too soon to hope that it would last. But that was all right.
He had a good feeling about this one.
