Il libro di Jaylos

Anniversary

taken from: Skypan on Ao3
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Carlos leans on his boyfriend's locker, waiting for him to arrive. There's a present wrapped in pink in his arms and a nervous smile on his face. When Jay finally arrives, giving him a peck on the cheek, Carlos pushes the box into his arms. "Happy one year anniversary!" Carlos says happily.
Jay looks down at the gift and then back up at Carlos in confusion. "One year?"
Carlos's face falls and his heart sinks. Jay doesn't even remember when their first date was. Maybe I'm being ridiculous, or maybe he just doesn't want to celebrate our anniversaries. Maybe I'm not that important to him... "One year since our first date," he says as he clears his throat. "D-don't you remember?"
"Well yeah I remember our first date, but-"
"Ha, fooled you!" Carlos says quickly, doing the first thing that comes into his head. "I mean, who would make a big deal about a year of dating, right? That would be ridiculous." He sounds upset and he knows it, his voice trembling as he tries to force a laugh. He's slowly backing away and Jay reaches out towards him.
"Wait, babe, that's not-"
"No, no, seriously, you can just throw that thing away, it's an empty box. Ha, hilarious, anniversaries are stupid, right?" He says before turning and running away down the hall.
......
Carlos spends the rest of the day alternately avoiding Jay and mentally berating himself. He spends lunch in the girl's dorm, being comforted by Evie and somewhat by Mal (she's not so good at it, but she tries).
By evening Jay is worried. He goes looking all over the school, checking their favorite spots, then finally admits defeat and asks the girls.
As soon as he walks in the door Mal begins scolding him. "Honestly, I know that we weren't raised with proper relationships, but you'd think after being Auradon for a while you'd be able to figure it out, and even if you can't you could have faked it when you saw how excited he was! How inconsiderate can you be Jay?!"
"Guys, it's not like that- Look, can you please just make sure that Carlos comes back to our room by eight? Please, for me? I want to make everything right."
The girls exchange a glance and then agree. Once Jay leaves Carlos rolls out from under Evie's bed. "Is he gone?"
"Yeah, but he wants you back at the room by eight," Mal states.
"Sounds like he has something planned," Evie remarks from by her sewing machine.
......
When eight o'clock rolls around Carlos finds himself standing in front of his own door. After a pause to prepare himself for whatever might be on the other side, he lets himself in. He finds Jay in a tuxedo, standing in front of a romantic dinner for two. There are candles and rose petals all over the room, and Jay is holding a single red rose.
Carlos blushes red and walks over to Jay, looking around the room. "You did all this... For me?"
Jay nods once and presents Carlos with the rose. "I would do anything for you, my love," he says with a grin.
"But I thought you didn't even remember our anniversary... To be honest, I thought dates weren't that important to you," Carlos says as Jay pulls out a chair for him at the table. When he sits down Jay pushes the chair back in before moving around to his own chair.
"We met for the first time on April 6th in 2001. You were two, I was three, and we met at the park. I stopped Gaston the Third from kicking sand at you and then we hid in the bushes together for hours," Jay states as he opens a bottle of sparkling cider and pours a glass for each of them. Carlos is shocked and starts to speak up, but Jay gently shushes him, implying that he's not done.
"The first time I came to your house was September 29th of 2004. You had stayed home from school and so I brought you the homework assignments. Your mom wouldn't let me in the house, so I had to climb up the rain gutter to get to your window.
The first time you came to my house was February 8th of 2005. You had heard my dad yelling at me for not stealing anything from you no matter how many times I went to your house, so you brought me one of your mother's old fur coats. You brought it even though it made your mom beat you the next day..."
Carlos stares openly as Jay is talking, he didn't know how Jay remembered all of this, nor how he knew about his mom punishing him for the fur coat.
"Now here's the important part: Our first date was July 18th of 2005. I got up at six in the morning, got a good haul for my dad, and then went out and found the prettiest weeds I could," Jay said, smiling fondly at the memory. "I mustered up my courage, and then climbed up to your window. When you opened the window, I held out the weeds. I remember hoping that you couldn't tell how much I was blushing. Then I said that love is a weakness-"
"But sometimes even the strongest are weak," Carlos finished, tears in his eyes. "I-I remember..."
"Then I asked you to go on a date with me. I stole the freshest bread I could and took you to a part of the water front where you could see Auradon, because that's the prettiest sight on the Isle. When we left I kissed your cheek and you looked at me with those big brown eyes... I could never forget it," he leans forward and brushes away a tear from Carlos's face. "A year ago today, March 12th 2015, I asked you out again. I mustered up my courage, found the freshest flowers I could, and came to our room. I told you that despite what we were raised to believe, love is not a weakness-"
"It is a strength, and we make each other stronger," Carlos finished again, smiling at the memory he had been thinking about just last night.
"Then I asked you to go on a date with me. I bought the chocolates you like so much and some of those crackers we used to have to eat on the Isle and took you to the roof of the castle so we could see the Isle. That way we could remember the old days. When we left you kissed me and every time I think about it..." Jay takes Carlos's hand and places it over his heart. Then he closes his eyes and Carlos feels his heart speed up under his palm.
Jay opens his eyes and smiles at Carlos in a way that makes his breath hitch. "I did not forget our anniversary, and dates are very important to me. I promise to never overlook our new anniversary again... But I think we should celebrate our old one too."
Carlos leans over and gives him a sweet kiss. "I think that's a great idea," He pauses for a moment and then looks straight into Jay's eyes. "I love you."
Jay grins slow and easy, a delicate smile that is reserved only for Carlos. "I love you too."
That night as they cuddle together in the same bed, Jay makes a mental note. March 12th, 2016, first time we said I love you.