Chapter Text
It was the last day of school, and no one in GCHS could get anything done. Not even Dr. Winston was able to get his students in line for a short lab that he promised was fun. Sombra was the loudest of them all, cheering and hollering and ignoring every teacher and student she didn’t like or want to associate with. She had learned her stubbornness through three years of practice, but she was very near to being free for the summer and fast approaching becoming a senior.
Hanzo, too, celebrated, but he was much more subdued about the ordeal than his close friend. While she yelled, he sat back and watched, a smile on his face. The gears in his brain turned like clockwork, thinking up one last prank to pull with Jaime. Cling wrap over the toilet seats, tampering with the locks on the principal’s door, dropping a stink bomb in Dr. Winston’s lab. The endless possibilities thumped around in his head until Sombra interrupted his train of thought by dropping down on his desk.
She crossed her legs and grinned down at him, purple eyes flashing with excitement. “Can you believe it? The last day of school!”
Hanzo smiled back at her, one pierced eyebrow raised, “What is there to not believe? Besides, school isn’t over for you yet. You failed P.E. and have to take it over the summer and you have another year,”
Sombra waves him off, dismissive, “Psh, all I gotta do is run a little in the mornings. What really matters is that I’m almost outta here.”
Hanzo shook his head, “Only for the summer.”
“Oh, that’s right, you’re graduating. Gonna be Mr. Big-Shot once you leave all your friends behind?” She teased.
“As if I could get rid of you in the first place.”
Sombra punched him on the arm, grinning.
“What will you do when I’m gone?”
“Join track and field, follow in Reyes’ footsteps, kick his ass, y’know, as one does.”
“Hopefully you’ll last longer,”
Sombra paused at that, “Perdón? What do you mean?”
“He didn’t tell you? He left the team,” Hanzo replied, shrugging his shoulders.
She frowned, eyebrows knitting together, “Why the hell did he do that?”
“Ask him yourself, he’s headed our way,” he said, tipping his head in Gabriel’s direction as he strode confidently towards the pair.
He wore his typical leather T-Bird jacket with a pair of torn jeans and comfortable (though well-worn) boots. He looked as confident as always, though his eyes were hidden behind sunglasses so one couldn’t really tell. Giving a slight wave to his friends, he arrived, taking a seat in one of the desks next to Hanzo and smiling at them.
“Hey, guys,”
Gabriel was happier than normal, that could be told just by the way he smiled and the light color to his cheeks. Both Sombra and Hanzo knew that could only mean one thing… he had started dating again. Gabriel, while a rebel at heart, grew soft when it came to romance, and the T-Birds often took advantage of the opportunity to tease him about it. Maybe it was jealousy, or maybe they just enjoyed the look on his face when he was mad, but nonetheless it made Gabriel self-conscious.
Dating was his business, and he didn’t like sharing his business with anyone. Except Jack, he thought, causing his cheeks to flush further. Jack was quick to become the exception to every dating rule that Gabriel had set in place. After summer ended, he had even taped the list to his mirror to remind himself.
No long-term relationships.
No lovey nicknames.
No late-night calls.
No ditching the T-Birds.
No falling in love.
He knew it was ridiculous, that even creating such a list was just asking for it to be balled up and in the trash within a few weeks, but he couldn’t help it. Jack was a distraction, but now, with the list tossed to the side and Gabriel allowing his very-real emotions to blossom in his chest, he found he didn’t care.
Hanzo and Sombra seemed to already know what was up with him, and he didn’t further extrapolate. Dating, after all, was still his (and Jack’s) business.
Sombra swiped the sunglasses from his face, “You look like an asshole wearing these inside,”
Gabriel smiled, shrugged, and let his chin rest on the palm of his hand. “You two look ready for summer,”
“I’m always ready to ditch this shit-show,” Sombra grumbled, placing the sunglasses on top of her head and facing her phone towards her to use as an impromptu mirror. “Looks like the same goes for you,” she said, eyeing him.
Gabriel raised his eyebrows, “You must be referencing how I left the track team,”
Hanzo snickered, “What a turn of phrase, looks like someone does pay attention in English class,”
Sombra, however, was not as amused as her friend, and crossed her arms over her chest, “You didn’t even tell us,”
Ah, Gabe thought, So that’s why she’s upset with me. “I meant to, I’ve just been a bit… busy is all.”
“Too busy to hang out with your closest friends,” Hanzo said, sobering up.
“Yeah, I know you have a boyfriend now--”
Gabriel tried to interrupt, to protest, but Sombra just continued to talk over him.
“But that doesn’t mean you can just avoid us, jefe,”
He recognized the looks on their faces, the mixture of hurt and worry. It was almost summer, and he was graduating. He could put the pieces together. Gabriel’s shoulders slumped.
“I didn’t mean to avoid you guys, honest.” He muttered.
Hanzo nudged his arm, “Then explain, what have you been doing?”
The two T-Birds watched their leader, Hanzo’s eyes unyielding and Sombra’s legs and arms crossed. Both had all the time in the world. Gabriel felt his face burning, but for once he wasn’t thinking of Jack. The blonde was, in fact, as far away from his mind as possible.
“I want to go to college next year, and I haven’t been doing well in my classes so I was trying to… y’know… salvage whatever I could,”
Hanzo, who had perfect grades despite his fooling around, scoffed, “You could have asked for help,” he grunted.
Sombra had yet to let him off the hook, however, and continued to stare him down.
“And,” Gabriel continued, meeting her eyes, “I’ve been trying to be a good boyfriend. For once.”
Sombra burst out into laughter, the borrowed sunglasses on her head nearly falling off as she leaned over. “Oh man, that’s rich! You’ve gotten so boring, jefe,” she said, though she smiled to disarm the hurtful words.
Gabriel smiled back, “I’m just trying to grow up a little bit before I get out into the world. You got me?”
“Of course I get you, but I still have at least one more year of foolin’ around, so I’m still gonna make fun of you for it.” She uncrossed her legs and hopped to the floor to hug Gabriel. “They grow up so fast,” she sighed, pressing Gabriel’s face against her collarbone and pretending to cry.
Hanzo shook his head at the two of them, “I think it is rather honorable, if I’m honest,”
Sombra continued to pretend to sob, almost smothering Gabriel until he pushed her off. “Alright, alright,” he said, smiling. “I get it, love and acceptance and all that shit,”
Sombra scoffed, “And don’t forget the endless teasing, Reyes. I’m not letting you off that easy,”
Just then, the doors behind them opened, and in stepped Jack, wearing an outfit Gabriel had never expected to see him in. He stood up, eyes wide, “Jack?!”
Ana stood Jack up in front of the mirror, her hands on his shoulders to keep him from turning away. Jack wasn’t sure about this, he had never mixed such different styles up before. But he had to admit, after hanging out with both the T-Birds and the Pink Ladies and not being apart of either officially, that he would take a small part of both groups and incorporate it into his own style.
It had been his idea, after learning that Jesse had tested negative for HIV/AIDS, to sort of bring the two groups together. It was true, he was an outsider, but both groups had seemed to like him well enough (he was dating the leader of the T-Birds and best friends with a Pink Lady). Jesse had become a bit kinder to him after everything, and had even offered to help him by bringing his own collection of clothing over.
Soon, all the Pink Ladies were in on it and Jack’s house was full of people and his room ruined with clothes. His parents were good hosts, providing snacks and space and drinks when needed. Jack was grateful that his father didn’t mind him having other guys in the house and trusted him enough to leave him alone in a room with a few of them (namely, Jesse and Reinhardt).
Reinhardt, having told his friends he had dropped out of beauty school and would be enrolling for his last year in GCHS, felt a weight lift off of his chest. Even better, he was provided with the excuse to practice on Jack’s hair and makeup when the Pink Ladies gathered for their “secret mission.”
Jesse, who was sitting on Jack’s bed, examining his outfit while Ana kept him still and facing the mirror. The southerner spun his finger around, “Spin around, darlin’, lemme see you better,”
Jack kept his eyes down at his socked feet, wiggling his toes with impatience as the group of Pink Ladies looked him up and down.
“He could use a jacket,” Lena piped up.
“And those cute combat boots, the pink ones,” Ana added.
Jesse narrowed his eyes, making Jack more uncomfortable.
“Maybe this was a bad idea…” Jack mumbled.
Jesse stood up, cupped Jack’s face in his hands, and made him look in his eyes. “It’s a fuckin’ great idea, Jackie. You aren’t changin’ for Reyes, you’re changin’ for yourself and if that ain’t admirable I don’t know what is.”
Jack flushed, blinking at the southerner in surprise. “I thought you didn’t like me?”
“I don’t. Now shut up and put this on,” he said, shoving a leather jacket in his hands.
Jack ran his fingers over the cool material, admiring the scent of it wafting up into his nose. It was familiar, the same smell that hung over Gabriel, and that in itself was enough for him to put it on.
But moreso was the change. He wanted to be different, he wanted to be a Jack he felt comfortable with, confident in, a Jack that could step into university without worrying about who he was. And he had the T-Birds and the Pink Ladies to thank.
Jack slid on the jacket and took the pink boots from Lena’s waiting hands. They were shiny and stiff, but comfortable when he put them on his feet. When he stood up and smiled at the Ladies around him, he felt like a new man.
Jack had one hand on his hip and was backed by the Pink Ladies, making him look like he was the leader of the group rather than Jesse. Gabriel choked at the sight of him in a pink half-shirt with the number 76 on the breast, boots to match, and a black leather jacket slung over his broad shoulders. His jeans were rolled up, exposing a slight bit of skin on his ankles where the boots didn’t quite reach.
“Like the new look? I wanted to try something new before school officially ended,”
Gabriel stuttered, tried to say anything to compliment Jack. He was the same as he was at the beach, and yet so vastly different. More sure of himself, more Jack than he had ever been. “Holy shit,” Gabe breathed.
Sombra wolf-whistled, a grin on her face. “Quite the boyfriend you got there, Reyes,”
Gabriel elbowed her, face flushing, “S-shut up,”
Jack laughed, looking shy until Jesse nudged him forward.
“We should get out of here,” Hanzo mumbled to Sombra as Jack and Gabriel approached each other, both unsure of how to continue.
And then they were alone in an abandoned classroom, the T-Birds and Pink Ladies leaving the two to sort out their relationship. Gabriel touched Jack’s elbow and smiled. “You look great,”
“You aren’t so bad, yourself,”
They shared a laugh. Gabriel pressed his forehead against the blonde’s and closed his eyes. “You didn’t have to change your outfit for me to like you, Jackie,”
Jack shifted to press his lips against Gabe’s cheek, “That’s good, because I didn’t do it for you, anyways.”
“Good, because I couldn’t care less what you wear as long as you’re you,”
Jack laughed, “That’s gay, Reyes,”
“I would hope so, considering we’re dating.”
Their lips met in a kiss, Jack cupping Gabriel’s chin in both of his hands, pressing their chests together. The bell rang behind them, but neither seemed to hear. Their tongues met, making the kiss sloppier but nonetheless precious to look back on in the years to come. The roar of students talking and rushing down the hallway was muffled through the classroom doors, the clock ticked patiently on the wall behind them.
Gabriel pulled away, lips swollen, cheeks rosy, “I love you, Jack,”
Jack pecked him on the lips once more, his features soft in the poor lighting of the classroom. “I love you too.”
And with that, summer began anew.