It Takes Two

Pandas Can Fight

It had been a little over a month since Jake and Avery moved in with Andy. Avery had adjusted a lot better than Jake had expected, and he was grateful for it.

He wondered if she would have adjusted so well if they had lived alone or god forbid with a stranger.

A random person was never an option for him as a roommate, but he still thought that Andy specifically was part of the reason she was handling it so well.

Andy was amazing with Avery. He was so patient with her and willing to play with her whenever he could. Jake didn't think he could ask for a better person for them to live with.

Jake was sitting in the studio, listening to Jinxx track a guitar part. "How was that?" Jinxx asked, pulling off his headset. He had volunteered his talents to help Jake try his damndest to make this record good.

"It was perfect. We can take a break for a minute to give your hand a break." Jake replied, pausing the track.

Jinxx nodded, and sat his guitar aside. "So how's living with Andy going?" He asked curiously.

"It's going great actually." Jake said, adjusting a track.

"I figured it would. You and Andy have lived together before." Jinxx nodded, moving to sit in the chair next to Jake. "I'm glad it is though. I've been worried."

"Avery has adjusted great. She loves living with Andy." Jake reassured him. A lot of people have asked him recently about how Avery was adjusting.

"I didn't mean I was worried about Avery, Jake." Jinxx said with a soft smile. "I was, but I meant you."

"Why would you be worried about me?" Jale asked I'm confusion as he turned to face Jinxx.

"Because you just went through a really hard divorce and was forced to sell your dream home while also navigating being a single parent?" Jinxx said with the appropriate amount of sass. "The fuck do you mean, dumbass?"

Jake laughed at Jinxx's bluntness. "I'm fine, man." He said to him, but the unimpressed glare he received in return made him laugh again. "I'm serious, I'm okay."

"I don't believe you, but okay." Jinxx rolled his eyes at the younger man, looking pointedly to his left hand before looking back to his face. Jake knew what he was silently implying, but was kind enough to keep it to himself. "Andy seems to love having you guys around." He said instead.

"Really?" Jake asked. Sure, Andy has said that he liked them living with him, but Andy was nice, Jake had assumed he was just saying that.

"Yeah. I think he needed this just as much as you guys did." Jinxx replie Andy had been a ghost of himself ever since Nikki had cheated on him, but he noticed a significant change in the younger man ever since Jake and Avery moved in with him.

Jake didn't know what to say to that. On one hand, it made him very happy that their presence had been helpful to Andy, but on the other, he couldn't begin to understand how. If anything, Jake would have thought them living there would have made things more stressful on Andy.

"He seems just like he always does around me." Jake mumbled, unsure of how to respond.

"Exactly. He's back to himself with you." Jinxx said, watching the swarm of emotions swim across his friend's features. "It seems like you are too." He added. Jake glanced at him in surprise. He didn't realize he hadn't been himself.

"Like I said. You all needed each other." Jinxx reiterated, nudging Jake's arm with his knuckles gently before he stood up. "I'm going to get us some lunch. Do you want shawarma?" He asked.