He's Probably Fine - Jacksepticeye Egos Fanfic

Chapter 1 - Aftermath

Chase kicked his feet absentmindedly, watching the cars go by with a half-smile.

It was a nice, bright evening, one of the few Chase had enjoyed in London. It reminded him of his home in LA, where the land rolled out in swathes of green and stony brown, the streets were lined with palm trees, and the sky went on forever. Chase's smile widened and his feet kicked a little faster as he remembered the plane ticket in his bag; he'd be back home soon enough.

The occasion was not exactly ideal. Schneep had vanished. Jack was in a coma. Jameson Jackson had snapped himself back in time. Marvin was, of course, nowhere to be found.

"What a cryptid," Chase muttered, shaking his head.

Halloween had been... a mess. After Jameson commandeered the pumpkin-carving video and vanished like a ghost from the room where they had been recording, Chase and Jackie were left alone to riddle out what had happened. Based on the end of the video, it seemed that Jameson was alive, at least. For this, they were grateful. But what the hell were they supposed to do now?

Well, for starters, they had to keep up with Jack's upload schedule, just as they had been doing after Jack went into his coma. That wouldn't be too bad, at least. Chase felt up to the task.

Just then, a shadow crossed the spot where Chase was sitting, and he glanced up, squinting. A figure atop a nearby building was standing perfectly in front of the setting sun. White light burned around his silhouette like a halo.

Chase grinned as the figure dropped down, clinging to the side of the building as he glided to the ground. He landed like a superhero at the edge of the parking lot and trotted over to Chase's bench.

"What's up, Jackie?" Chase asked, looking over as the superhero sat next to him.

"Not much," Jackie replied simply. "When's your flight?"

"Plane departs at 3 am," Chase replied. "It's a direct flight, 11 hours. Dude, I'm gonna sleep the entire time."

Jackie nodded, looking impressed. "Weird flex, but ok."

Chase laughed at this, leaning back on the bench as Jackie cracked a smile. It felt good to laugh, after everything that had gone wrong. It felt like things could still be normal. They could still be okay.

"You excited to see the kids?" Jackie asked.

Chase laughed again. "C'mon, bro. Do you really have to ask?"

Jackie shrugged. "I guess not."

"The flying back and forth was torture," Chase added, looking up into Jackie's eyes. "I'm finally going to be in the same city with them."

"And Stacey can't make any more stupid excuses," Jackie added, looking stern.

Chase smiled. "That too," he agreed, looking back towards the road.

"How about this guy?" Jackie asked, pointing his thumb back across the parking lot toward the hospital. Jack was somewhere inside, lying still next to a quietly beeping vitals monitor.

"You gotta take care of him," Chase sighed. "You gotta. He has to be okay."

"He will be," Jackie assured him. "I'm... I'm actually thinking of having him moved back into his apartment. What do you think?"

Chase harrumphed in agreement, nodding. "Well, yeah. That sounds like a good idea. It's fuckin' expensive to leave him in there, and those doctors really aren't helping him." Chase scratched his head. "Honestly... the only one who could really help him would be-"

"-Henrik," Jackie finished.

Chase sighed. "Yup."

There was a long moment of silence.

"He'll be back, Chase," Jackie added. "I'm sure he will."

"You're right," Chase replied, but he didn't sound convinced.

Jackie studied his friend's face beneath the shade of his favorite baseball cap. More than anything else, Chase looked tired. The sleepless nights were etched into the dark circles under his eyes. Halloween had taken a lot out of both of them. Now it was November, and the winter was beginning to turn. Jackie was worried about Chase, more worried than he had ever been. He didn't know how to keep Chase's spirits up. He didn't know if he could be there when Chase would need it. But there was one thing that always made him smile - his kids. They were waiting for him in LA.

"You've got a therapist in LA, right?" Jackie asked, gingerly.

"Yeah," Chase said, nodding. "We're meeting next week."

"Good," Jackie said. He felt a little relieved. Chase's eyes followed him as he stood up. Jackie pulled a blue cloth mask from his pocket and began tying it around his head. Under the neckline of his sweatshirt, Chase could see that he was wearing his red superhero suit. It looked like Jackie had a busy night of vigilante justice ahead of him. "Take care of yourself, alright?"

"Hey, you take care of yourself too," Chase countered. But Jackie gave him a knowing smile.

"You know what I mean, Brody."

Chase sighed, grinning in spite of himself. "Yeah."

"And don't be late for that flight," Jackie added. He clapped Chase on the shoulder and strode back toward the hospital. Just before he slipped down an alley and vanished, he turned back and gave Chase a friendly wave.

Chase returned it, and then Jackieboyman was gone.

And I, Chase thought with a grin, have a flight to catch.