"Jay, I'm home!" Alex called into the apartment, hearing the younger boys footsteps from their bedroom. Automatically heading toward where he was.

"Hey." Jack greeted with a weak smile once Alex was in the doorway. "How was shopping?"

Alex frowned and walked over to the younger where he'd just sat himself on the bed. "It was fine, are you alright?"

Jack shook his head and turned away from his boyfriend.

"Baby, what's wrong?" Alex asked, concern filling his voice, wrapping an arm around Jack's shoulders.

"Nothing...just my moms coming back tomorrow. I have to go back to my house tonight."

"Thats not so bad. I mean we still have weekends and stuff. It's really not the end of the world."

"Yeah...but this is what I call home. Even when we're upset with each other...being somewhere with you, that's home." Jack chuckled at himself, tears beginning to run down his cheeks. "I know it's so cliche and stupid but home is anywhere I am with you...being at my house, that's not gonna be home."

"It'll be just for a few months baby, we can stand it. Okay? And you're still gonna come over as much as you want. It's nothing to be upset over." Alex bluffed because being completely honest with himself this was very much worth being upset over. He didn't want Jack to go and from the tears slowly rolling down the teenager's cheeks it seemed like he didn't want to go either.

"I shouldn't even be crying. I knew they'd have to come home eventually...just I kinda hoped it'd be a little longer."

Alex nodded and hummed in response, just pulling Jack closer into his chest.

They stayed like that for a long while until Jack broke their silence.

"I need to go Lex...I've gotta do some stuff before they get back."

He pulled away from the elder, a weak smile on his lips, eyes flicking across Alex's face as if he was searching for something. But he soon looked away and hugged Alex closely before pulling away and standing up.

"See you Monday then?" Alex asked though he already knew the answer.

Jack nodded, giving him another smile that didn't reach his eyes and showed no teeth. "Yeah...god, why is this so hard? We dated for awhile before I started staying with you. It shouldn't be this hard."

Alex nodded and stood up to, grabbing the younger boys hand. "Its cause we're so used to it. We both like things the way they are, change is hard babe."

"I guess you're right...I've really gotta go though. I'll call you later, yeah?"

"Okay." The elder said, bringing their hands up to his lips pressing a small kiss to the back of Jack's hand. "Be good kitten."

"I always am." Jack smiled once more, this one actually reaching his eyes which only accented how they glimmered when the light hit them.

"I know...I love you."

"I love you too Lex. I don't think I'll ever stop."

"Good, cause I don't think I will either."

Jack just chuckled at that, beginning to pull away from the elder. But he was only pulled back into Alex's arms the older boy kissing his lips softly.

"Bye babe." Alex mouthed, letting Jack go and leave their bedroom.

-

Jack sat on the front step of his porch waiting for his parents. His mother had just called saying that they were five minutes away. Jack wasn't really all that happy about their return but he'd missed his mom so he guessed he could at least feign happiness for a few hours. But anything past that would be pushing it, especially since he hadn't heard Alex's voice since he left the teacher's apartment earlier that day.

~

Almost a half hour later and Jack was sat across from his mom and step-father in a restaurant booth.

"Were you good while we were gone?" Jack's mother asked, looking fondly at her son.

"Of course. I paid the bills and everything." Jack smiled before directing his attention onto his cell phone screen to read a text from none other than his boyfriend.

"You've been on that thing all night, turn it off and just spend some time with us." She said now frowning at the teen with discontent.

"Well it's not my fault I haven't spent any time with you the last few months." He snapped, not thinking about the words that had left his mouth.

"Excuse me!"

"Im sorry mom...I'm just a little on edge I guess."

"You still shouldn't talk to your mother like that." Billie Joe said, finally calling attention to himself.

"Oh please, I thought we covered the fact that you're not an authority figure. Stop trying to act like one."

"Here we go." Jack's mother mumbled to herself. "Boys, calm down. Billie we talked about this, you may be his step dad but Jack's almost an adult and I can handle him myself."

Billie Joe rolled his eyes at her before cutting them towards Jack. "Fine love, I just think he should have a little more respect for you is all. Otherwise the kids not so bad." He said, wrapping and arm around Jack's mother's shoulders and sending a smirk the teenagers way.

"Alright. And as for you Jack...I know you're upset with me. You should be. I've been a pretty terrible mother and I-" she cut herself off for a moment before continuing. "I feel really bad about this now but I did keep your dad away as much as possible after the divorce. You should be angry with me...but I don't want my son that actually talks to me to hate me. I don't want to force you into cutting me out of your life. So be mad, as upset as you want Jack. I deserve it but please don't hate me the way your brother does."

"Mom...-"

"Wait, let me finish. I get that you snap on me a lot more lately, even on the phone you'd have an attitude. And I deserve it but I still want some form or respect...I don't want you walking all over me because I let you."

"You know I don't and wouldn't do that...I don't hate you either..." Jack sighed, hating every moment of this. "I'm just upset and I can't help that, neither can you. So can we just get back to dinner? Try and be as normal as possible, yeah?"

His mother nodded and smiled towards Billie Joe who oddly wasn't looking down at her as he usually did but staring straight at Jack. Which did make the teen feel a little more than uncomfortable especially since he couldn't make sense of what type of look Billie was even giving him. It wasn't the usual discontent he had in his eyes, no it was almost a fondness lying in his expression which was weird in itself. But he tried to shrug it off as best he could, picking up his glass and taking a gulp of water.

-
Jack trugged up to his bedroom, they'd been back home for a couple hours now. His mother and Billie Joe having gone to bed early that night, leaving Jack to call Alex in peace.

He opened his bedroom door expecting to find his room empty and bed waiting for him but that was not the case. A much unwanted presence was sitting on his bed a small smirk resting on his lips.

"Get out." Jack practically growled standing his ground at the door.

"Come sit down with me." Billie Joe said, patting a spot on the bed on either side of him.

"I said get out."

"Oh calm down, I just want to talk. I'm not going to assault your asshole the way I bet your boyfriend does."

Jack turned bright red at that unsure of weather it was more anger or embarrassment that filled his cheeks.

"I don't want to talk to you." He stated, still standing at the door.

"Doesn't matter. Listen, I'm supposed to say sorry about how I act towards you. Your moms all about changing things since we left and I wanna make her happy...So I'm sorry for being a dick, okay?"

"Doesn't count, you didn't mean it." Jack said now suddenly enjoying this as he leaned against the door frame.

"I am. Listen you're a good kid okay, I wish I had kids as good as you. But I don't and maybe you are a flaming homo but I do consider you family, is that good enough for you?"

"Not really. But I'll take it...and uhm Billie...thanks."

"For what? I just called you a flaming homo."

'Which isn't far from the truth' Jack thought, "Just thanks for picking my mom up when she was at her worst. It doesn't mean I like you or anything but you're pretty decent."

"I'll take it." Billie said mocking Jack as he stood up from the bed. "And uh...I'm sorry about all the gay jokes...I just assumed you were since you've never brought a girl home. And that you straighten your hair every morning."

"Says the middle aged guy who wears eye liner-"

"Hey, it's punk alright. And your mom likes it. "

"Right." Jack said with a roll of his eyes. "Anyways you weren't so far off on the gay thing. But you still shouldn't have been such an ass about it."

"Ah so my gaydar isn't broken?"

"Shut up. I like guys okay, don't even try and say you never even at least experimented with guys."

"I never said I didn't."

Jack laughed at that, he knew Billie wasn't that bad before but now he finally felt somewhat of a more pleasant connection with him. And if he said that didn't feel nice he'd be lying. Because though he didn't like Billie, not in the slightest, he'd rather not have a terrible relationship with the person his mother clearly loved.

"Thanks for the talk. I'm ready to turn in though, so..."

"Okay. M'leavin'." His step father mumbled as he stood from where he sat before shuffling past Jack out the door.

"Hey, you mind keeping this from Mom? All of it."

"It'd be my pleasure not to tell her."

"Thanks, you're not too bad for an asshole."

"Yeah, you're not too bad for a pansy either."

Jack laughed again and shut the door when Billie disappeared down the dark hallway. Maybe living at home for the next couple months wouldn't be so bad.

Notes

Raise your hand if you thought something sexual was going to happen between Jack and Billie Joe.
Now that thats over...I'm really hoping I can get the next chapter to you guys within the next two days bc I would like to hit some milestones soon and then end this (all in the name of giving myself time to write other things of course). And I'll be posting the first chapter of my arranger marriage fic in possibly the next couple minutes b/c I need to write a summary first lol.