A Marvellous Christmas | mcu actors

December 18ᵗʰ

After a few weeks, the news kind of sunk in that Jo's best friend was now a big hit actor. If Jo was stressed out, she never told him anything, because Tom's life was about to change as well and he couldn't just enjoy it if she let him know how distressed she was over it. Though she didn't have to say anything, because Tom knew how to recognise some details on her face, in her behaviour, that let him think that maybe she needed for the both of them to talk about it a lot. So Tom decided, just after talking with his father about it, that he would have to sit down with Jo and Harrison to talk about it as well. In Tom's head, it was clear that he would have to start to Jo, because Harrison knew that being an actor meant having to do some sacrifices and he was tougher than she was. Jo was this girl who always felt more than she was supposed to, who'd overthink everything and he wanted to put an end to her possible misery. He could see it in the way her eyes had dulled down, in the way that the corners of her mouth never went as high as they used to and kept trembling, like it was an incredible amount of effort to smile at him, in the sound of her laugh that was a bit forced, in the way she would twist her fingers around each other, like she was trying to anchoring herself to an invisible point.

So Tom invited her to his place one afternoon, a few days after that phone call that changed everything. He had made some cookies and was boiling water for cups of tea when Jo arrived at his house. She didn't even ring the bell anymore: Tom had given her the passcode a few years ago and she only had to knock at the front door. As always, Tom greeted her with a high five and they made a beeline to the kitchen, where the kettle was starting to whistle and two cups were waiting on the table. They fixed themselves a cup each, dropped the teabags into the ceramic and climbed the stairs to Tom's bedroom, where his dog was sleeping on his bed.

"C'mon Tessa, you know you're not supposed to be up here, get down", he moaned.

But as always with Tessa, she won and Tom sat on the carpet next to his bed. Because his resilience and authority on Tessa was close to none, she would always melt his heart and then he'd give up. Sitting in front of each other, they awkwardly sipped on their teas like two grandmas before Tom sighed and declared they were being idiots.

"C'mon Jo, I'm still me. It's just my job that's changing!"

"I know, I know. It's just that.. Marvel's big. It's really big. And you're gonna be gone for months at a time while I'll be studying in uni like the no-life that I am."

"You've always said you wanted to go to uni, that's not fair, Jo. I've always wanted to make it to America and now that I do, you're making it ten times harder."

"I know", she sighed. "I'm really happy for you, though and you know that. I'm so proud and you deserve it so much."

"But.."

"But selfishly, all I can think about is how you're gonna move on from me and find yourself some amazing friends that really don't compare to me and I'll be on my own while you'll be living your best life out there."

Tom sighed, gulping the rest of his tea down. She had valid feelings and he knew how insecure she could be. It really wasn't that much of a surprise that she'd feel that way. Especially when she knew he was about to bring Harrison with him, because they were inseparable. Jo'd always known that Harrison was Tom's "main best friend" and that she was secondary. He had brought Harrison to countless of events and they had travelled together a few times before, when Jo hadn't been invited. Tom didn't realise that though, that he was making her feel very self-conscious and that sometimes, he wasn't being fair. But Jo was never really mad at him, because it's difficult to be mad at someone that you love so much.

"Let's make a deal, here and there. I promise that I will never, ever, move on from you. Because you're my best friend, you're part of my family, and I would never be able to imagine my life without you. But promise me that if one day, you feel like we're growing apart, you'll let me know. You won't tiptoe around the matter and not tell me shit to not hurt my feelings or whatever. Promise me you'll always be the most honest and sincere person in my life."