Chapter Text
"Is there a reason you always lay on me?" Jax asked, looking down at Gangle as she doodled in her sketchbook, leaning back into his chest.
"Your fur is warm and comfy." She replied flatly, pushing herself back against him even more, "Besides, who complains about their girlfriend sitting in their lap?"
"Hey, I wasn't complaining." He defended, snatching the sketchbook out of her hand, "I was merely asking." He lazily flipped through the pages, an unamused expression crossing his face as he came upon a sketch of him in a maid dress. "Really? You waste your talent on something like this?"
She snatched the book back from him as she closed it, shooting him a teasing smile. "What can I say, you're my muse." She teased, earning an eye roll from him as she hopped to her feet, "Anyway, I had plans with Zooble and Ragatha, so I should get going."
"Wow, already sick of me." Jax replied with a smile, "And here I thought you were supposed to be nice."
"I've had a bad influence." Gangle said with a roll of her eyes, leaning in and placing a kiss on the rabbit's cheek, "I'll see you later, Jaxxy Boy."
"Have fun, Ribbons." He said, giving her a wave as she walked off before he pushed himself off the couch and prepared to leave.
"Boy, she seems nice." Kinger said, making Jax jump and clutch his chest at the sudden appearance of the chess piece.
"Kinger, we've been over this." Pomni said as she joined him and the still panicked rabbit, "Jax and Gangle are dating."
"Oh, right." He said with a smile, turning his attention back to Jax as his eyes widened in surprise, "Oh, hello Jax. Did you hear Gangle is dating someone?"
"How many times do I have to tell you to stop sneaking up on me." The rabbit groaned, placing a hand to his stomach to try and soothe the sudden nausea he felt.
"Have the two of you been on a date yet?" Pomni asked suddenly, making Jax look at her in confusion as he finally managed to calm down.
"Date?" He asked, seeming more confused at the concept rather than the question itself.
"Yeah." Pomni replied, looking at him suspiciously, "Y'know, dinner, walk on the beach, a movie?"
"Those are real?" He asked with a smug chuckle, "I thought that stuff was a movie trope."
"On quite the contrary, Jax." Kinger chimed in, "Dates are an important way to show the person you are with that you care for them."
"She knows I care about her as much as I'm able to." Jax shrugged.
"Jax," Pomni interjected, "have you even tried to set up something nice for you and Gangle to do together?"
Jax paused as he thought back to all the interactions the two of them had had, quickly coming up empty handed as he shrugged once more. "Unless you count pranks as quality time, then no." He answered with a chuckle, "What's it matter, anyway? We can't really do anything in the circus, and Gangle hasn't even shown an interest in a 'real date' or whatever."
"You mean the same Gangle who reads nothing but romance manga?" Pomni asked, making the rabbit pause once more.
"...Alright, I see your point." He said, looking at the jester and chess piece expectantly, "Well, since you two seem to know more about this than I do, why don't you come up with an idea." A conceited smile crossed his face as he prepared to leave, sure that they would hear the sarcasm in his voice and finally leave him alone.
"Oh, that's a great idea, Jax!" Kinger said excitedly, making the rabbit's smile fall, "Pomni and I could talk you through how to make a date special and give you pointers on what to do!"
"You can't be serious." Both Jax and Pomni said in unison, looking at Kinger as if he had somehow lost even more of his sanity.
"Come on, I think I might have a bow tie in my room somewhere." He continued as he grabbed Jax's arm, beginning to drag him along before he could voice any protests as Pomni followed close behind, an uneasy smile on her face.
"Well... look at the bright side." She said hesitantly as she met the scowling rabbit's gaze, "Maybe this will be fun?"
Meanwhile, in Ragatha's room, Gangle wasn't in a much better situation, with both Zooble and Ragatha looking at her in shock at the information she had shared. "What do you mean you aren't planning on an actual date?" Ragatha asked incredulously, only making the ribbon character grow more nervous and shy.
"I-I didn't think it was necessary." She stuttered out, tapping her hands together anxiously, "It's not like there's much we could do. Besides, Jax doesn't seem like the type to be interested in that kind of thing."
"Probably because he's never had one." Zooble chimed in, "I'm almost positive you're the first person he's ever been with."
"Gangle, have you considered that Jax may want to go on a date, but he doesn't know how to ask?" Ragatha asked.
"I find that a bit, uh, unlikely." She replied, "I really don't think this is as big a deal as you two are making it out to be."
"I usually stay out of this kind of stuff," Zooble began, "but even I have to admit that it's a bit strange you two haven't had a real date."
Gangle sighed as she looked down at the half finished sketch of her and Jax, a small smile crossing her face before she looked back up at her friends. "So what should I do?" She asked, "I don't want to freak him out or anything."
"Maybe start with something simple." Ragatha suggested, "What if you two had a meal together? It's a bit early for dinner, but I'm sure it will work the same."
"A-are you sure?" Gangle asked hesitantly, "Maybe Jax and I can just have our own kinds of dates."
"I don't think Jax will consider anything a date on his own." Zooble commented with a small snicker.
"Come on, Gangle, trust me." Ragatha said with a pleading tone, "Me and Zooble will take care of everything."
"Wait, what?" Zooble asked in surprise, looking at the doll with a mixture of shock and annoyance on their face.
After a moment of silence, Gangle sighed and nodded. "Alright, I trust you guys."
Ragatha smiled wide as she hopped to her feet. "Great! Now, let's find something for you to wear!" She said as she grabbed the ribbon character's hand and rushed towards her room.
"W-wait!" Gangle protested, but it went unheard by her two companions, "I don't really have clothes."
The trio rushed passed Kinger's room, where, inside, Pomni and the chess piece were busy trying to make Jax look presentable. "There, that should give you a dapper look." Kinger said proudly as he finished tightening the bow tie around Jax's neck.
"Is this really necessary?" The lagomorph asked, wincing as Pomni drug a hairbrush through his fur, "Shouldn't me and Gangle choose how we spend our time together?"
"While I'd usually say yes," Pomni replied, struggling to smooth out the mess of tangled, purple fur in front of her, "I'm in too deep to stop at this point."
"Well, now that you look the part, we just need a date idea." Kinger said, scratching his chin as he looked off in thought, "On my first date with Queenie, we went to the natural history museum and she told me all about the different types of insects they had on display."
"I don't think that's an option for a number of reasons, Hoo-Hah." Jax replied, a sour expression practically glued to his face.
"Maybe the two of you could share a meal?" Pomni suggested as she finally finished brushing him down, tossing the hair brush to the side.
"That's every meal, stuffing muncher." Jax scowled, "There's only one place to eat in this entire place."
"I meant just the two of you." She clarified, pausing as his insult finally registered in her mind, "Stuffing muncher?"
"Well, what are we standing around for?!" Kinger asked enthusiastically, "Pomni and I will go prepare something, and you'll stay in your room until it's ready!"
"I'm really starting to regret ever talking to either of you." Jax complained aloud as Kinger grabbed his arm once again and started pulling him towards his room. It wasn't long before the trio were at his door, with Kinger pulling it open and unceremoniously shoving Jax inside.
"Now, don't leave until we say so." Kinger explained, an uncharacteristically stern tone in his voice, "We wouldn't want to ruin the surprise for Gangle." Jax opened his mouth to respond, only for Kinger to shut the door on him, a muffled censor ringing out from inside the room.
"Kinger, are you sure you know what you're doing?" Pomni asked as the pair began to head down the hall, their end goal being the seldom used kitchen on the other side of the circus.
"Of course I do!" He replied confidently, "I can cook a great mushroom chowder with couscous!" He paused as a confused expression fell across his face. "Well, at least I think I can."
"Oh boy." Pomni muttered, only for the sound of a door shutting to snap her out of her confused and nervous thoughts.
"Oh, what are you two up to?" Ragatha asked as she closed the door to Gangle's room.
"We were trying to figure out if I used rice or couscous." Kinger answered, only making Ragatha and Zooble look at him in confusion.
"Kinger and I somehow got roped into making dinner so Jax can ask Gangle on a real date." Pomni explained with an exasperated sigh.
"What a coincidence," Ragatha began as Zooble rolled their eyes, "we were doing the same thing for Gangle."
"Ohh, that's very nice of you two." Kinger said, seeming to finally have abandoned his thoughts about couscous, "Would like our help? Me and Pomni don't have anything going on at the moment, right?" He looked down at her, being met by a confused, yet accepting expression on the jester's face.
"Sure, Kinger." She sighed, pulling a small smile on her face before turning back to Ragatha and Zooble, "Well, why don't we work together? It would make the work take less time, at least."
"Is it too late to back out of helping?" Zooble asked, earning a small glare from Ragatha, "Fine, fine. I'll go set the table." The abstract character turned and began to head towards the dining area, with the rest of the group following close behind, discussing what exactly they should make for the couple.
Meanwhile, back in Jax's room, the rabbit stared up at the ceiling, having taken to tossing a pillow into the air to try and pass the time. It had only been a few minutes, but he was already bored out of his mind waiting. "Can't believe I let them talk me into this." He said aloud. He would have loved nothing more than to blow this whole thing off and go set up pranks or wander the grounds until nightfall, but a part of him was worried that Kinger and Pomni were right. What if Gangle did want a date? What if some cheesy rom-com scene was something she would enjoy? What if-
"Listen to yourself, man!" He cried out, interrupting his own thoughts as he sat up in his bed, "If there's one thing you know about romance, it's that it's supposed to be enjoyed by both parties. This dinner sounds boring enough to make even Gangle think it's lame. So why don't you go get her and go do something fun!" He smiled wide as he hopped out of bed, cracking his knuckles as he chuckled to himself. "Man, I am such a good negotiator." He slowly opened his door and peaked out into the hall, making sure neither Pomni nor Kinger were around to bother him any further. Once he was sure the coast was clear, he crept out of his room and quickly made his way to Gangle's, figuring it was the most likely place for her to be. "Oh Ribbons~" He called out in a sing-songy tone as he rapped his knuckles on the door.
The door swung open to reveal Gangle, who had a ribbon tied in a bow on the corner of her mask, making him pause as a light blush dusted his face. "What's with the bow tie?" She asked, snapping him out of his thoughts as his smile fell at being reminded of the forced plans.
"Ugh, don't remind me." He grumbled, "Jingles and Hoo-Hah found out we haven't been on an 'actual date', so they basically forced me to go along with a plan for me to take you to dinner."
"You're kidding." She said with a chuckle, "Zooble and Ragatha did the same thing with me. They're off making the food right now, actually."
"I think that's where Pomni and Kinger are too." He mused, his smile returning as he leaned against the door frame, "Well, I figured that that kind of thing would be too cheesy, even for you."
"As nice as it is in media," She began, a shy smile on her face, "it is a bit... boring in my experience."
"Well, then why don't we go make our own fun?" He offered, holding his hand out to her.
She began to reach out, on to hesitate as she looked down the hall, beginning to tap her hands together nervously once more. "Wouldn't it be kinda mean to make them do all that work for nothing?"
"Well, maybe a bit." He replied honestly, "But you know what's meaner? Forcing two people into a date that neither of them really want." His expression softened as he gestured his hands towards her. "So, why don't we get a bit of revenge by having fun in our own way." After a moment of silence, a confident smile crossed Gangle's face as she reached up and untied the bow tie from Jax's neck, tossing it aside before she undid her bow and tossed it away as well.
"Let's take a walk by the lake." She said as she put her hand in his, coiling her ribbon around his hand and wrist as he began to lead her down the hall.
"How does a walk sound less boring than something with food?" He asked, earning a chuckle from his partner as they quickly made their way to the tent's exit, stepping out into the cool wind that swept over the grounds. The pair took off running down towards the lake, their hands intertwined as they shared a laugh. It wasn't long before they were at the lake's shore, where Jax let go of Gangle's hand to pick up a few stones from the ground and begin skipping them across the water, watching as they bounced a few times before sinking into the depths. Gangle was quick to join him, grabbing a few rocks of her own and skipping them nearly halfway across the lake. "Oh come on, how is that even possible." Jax complained as he tossed another stone, watching it bounce once before it sunk beneath the surface, "If you tell me 'it's all in the wrist', I'll drown you."
"Me not saying it doesn't make it less true." She teased as she tossed another stone across the water, glancing at Jax as he watched it bounce farther than any of his throws did, "First of all, don't hold the rock like that." She reached over and grabbed his arm, carefully adjusting his fingers to pinch the edge of the rock instead of just holding it in his palm. "Then all you do is pull back and" -she guided Jax through the motions as she spoke, doing her best to make it as clear as possible- "flick it!" She watched him flick his wrist forward and fling the rock towards the water, making it bounce a handful of times before it sunk beneath the water, not as far as her throws, but still much better than he was doing before. "See? It's easy."
"If you wanted to hold hands again, you could have just asked instead of doing all of that." He snickered, earning a gentle punch in the arm from the ribbon character.
"Do you ever act any other way than 'insufferable'?" She asked with a smile.
"Sure I do." He replied with a shrug, "I think Zooble has a list of all the ways I act, but I doubt any of them are positive."
"I don't think they've seen the sides of you I have." She replied as she sat down on the lake side, slowly leaning back to lay in the grass.
"I try to keep it that way." He muttered as he joined her, laying down next to her as they stared up at the afternoon sky, watching as digital clouds passed by. The sat in silence for awhile, neither of them having anything to say, but not minding the comforting silence that they shared.
"Is this a date?" Gangle asked, abruptly breaking the silence and yanking Jax out of his thoughts.
"How should I know?" He answered, ripping a few pieces of grass from the ground and watching them blow away in the breeze, "Last I checked, you knew more about romance and %$!& than I did."
She turned herself onto her side to look at him, a nervous expression on her face. "Well... do you want it to be?" He froze as he heard her question, having to physically stop himself from jumping to his feet and running away. He hadn't even thought about what he'd consider a date to be, much less if he really desired it. He silently cursed his restricted upbringing for putting him in a position like this, before quickly refocusing his thoughts on the questions. Gangle grew more and more anxious at his lack of an answer, turning her gaze to the ground as she tried to keep herself from panicking. "I-it's fine if you don't." She stuttered out, "I understand if this isn't your thing, or if you're apprehensive about actually calling something a 'date'. Heck, we only officially became boyfriend and girlfriend a few days ago, so I understand if this feels rushed or-"
"Yeah, I guess I'd call it a date." He interrupted, rolling onto his side to meet her gaze, "Unless you want to keep spiraling, which I'm more than happy to laugh at."
"Do you really mean that?" She asked, a hopeful smile on her face.
"Well, partially." He explained, "It is fun to watch you freak out, but at a certain point-"
"No, the date thing." She interrupted with a soft laugh, "Did you really mean it when you said you'd call this a date?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah." He replied with a nod, "I just consider spending quality time with your partner a date, I guess. As long as all parties are having fun, then who cares what they call it."
"That's... a lot more mature than I figured your thought process would be." She noted, earning a small glare from the rabbit.
"Hey, I can be mature when I want to be." He defended, "I just hardly ever want to be. How am I supposed to keep everyone sane if I'm walking around serious all the time?"
"Oh, is that what you call your pranks and insults?" Gangle asked with a bemused chuckle, "Keeping us sane?"
"Exactly." He said with a self congratulatory smile, "If it wasn't for my antics, you'd all be bored out of your minds."
"Well, I guess I can't argue with that." She begrudgingly agreed, "You do add a certain... excitement to the circus."
"And you get most of it." He chuckled, slowly placing his hand on top of hers as a blush dusted his cheeks, "Whether that's a good or a bad thing is up to you to decide."
She glanced down at their hands and felt a flutter in her chest, curling her ribbon hand around his once more as she inched a bit closer to him, resting her head on his chest. "I'd say it's a good thing." The air fell silent once more as they laid together, with Jax gently tracing a thumb along the edge of her ribbon and making her tighten her grip on his hand.
"They've probably finished cooking by now." Jax commented, glancing down at the woman in his arms.
"Do you want to go back and see?" Gangle asked, earning a sharp laugh from him in response.
"Not a chance." He replied, pulling her closer against him, "I like our walk by the lake much more."