Chapter Text
Halloween was Jerome's favorite holiday. It was the time for horrors that hid in the dark to be looked in the eye. The costumes were always fun. They weren't like the circus costumes that he'd always see. The familiarity of the circus uniforms made them boring.
Though he was always sad when the night would come to an end, the next day he would take all the jack-o'-lanterns that were sitting around the circus. They were all starting to rot away with mold being more visible on the inside. He's never asked, but no one ever complained about the pumpkins that go missing. He might be doing them a favor by getting rid of them himself.
It had become somewhat of a tradition for Jerome and y/n. Try to wake up early to start throwing or smashing the carved pumpkins with objects nearby. Jerome always beat y/n in terms of waking up early because he never went to sleep. The only reason why he was able to pull an all-nighter was because of the sugar rush he'd get from binging almost all of his candy. He'd also steal from his twin's stash, but will vehemently deny the accusation.
Speaking of his twin, he never understood why Jeremiah tagged along. It's not like he threw or stomped out any of the pumpkins. He always stood back while he buried his nose into a book. Maybe he bothered being there in the first place because he knew that y/n was going to be there. Once all the pumpkins were no more, he'd shove a book into her hands and get her invested in it.
Books. Jerome never understood why his twin was so invested in them. The fact that y/n was slightly interested in them too only made it worse. Thankfully she wasn't obsessed with them to the point where she always carried a book around. Still, he always felt a pit in his stomach when Jeremiah and y/n sat close to read together.
It just wasn't something he could get invested in. Fiction or not, didn't mean a thing to him. Frankly, the only books that he has read were picture books. Which made their bond over dumb pages that much more—
"Ow!"
y/n walked in between the trailers to where Jerome said he was going to smash the pumpkins. She didn't think he'd start early, but that might be expected since he wasn't patient. What wasn't expected was a spongy yet firm pumpkin to hit the side of her head.
Her glasses flew off her face and pumpkin guts got all over her. Jerome could see tears build up as she put a hand on where she was hit. He almost wanted to roll his eyes and tell her that it probably didn't hurt that bad. His mom's hand probably hurt away more than some pumpkin.
And he probably would have said that if Jeremiah hadn't jumped onto his feet and skedaddled over to her. Comforting her while shooting a stern look at Jerome's way. Almost like he was telling him to apologize which made Jerome huff. It's not like he wasn't going to apologize, but the fact that Jeremiah felt the need to guide him was slightly irritating.
"I'm sorry, y/n, I didn't mean to hit you or anything." The little girl moved her face away from Jeremiah's hand that was wiping off the pumpkin mush. She claimed that she was alright and it didn't hurt too much with a small forced smile. Her reaction slightly eased Jerome to an extent.
It was good to know that she was okay. At least that's what she claims. Yet the forced smile only made him feel worse. 'She said she was okay, but she said nothing about not being angry.'
Just as y/n put back her glasses on Jerome called her name. y/n and Jeremiah turned their attention back to him. He held a carved pumpkin sideways above his head. y/n looked on with curiosity while Jeremiah looked on with panic.
He tried to tell Jerome to not do it, but it was too late. Jerome pushed the soft part of the pumpkin atop his head. Chunks and juice from pumpkin fell off his shoulders as he spoke with a proud grin, "We're even now."
A giggle slipped from y/n's mouth before it quickly turned into laughter. The tears that she had tried to hold back freely slipped out. As she laughed she said, "You didn't have to do that."
He shrugged as his grin turned into a wide smile after hearing her laugh. "I know, but I feel like I was missing out on the fun," He turned his attention to Jeremiah, "Do you want to join us?" The boy quickly backed away from them. He watched his brother scope pumpkin mush off the ground before flashing an impish smile.
"No, don't you dare!"
The girl hid her amused smile behind her hand and bit down on her lip to hold back a laugh. There was always something amusing seeing Jeremiah get riled up over anything. He's reserved for his age, maybe too reserved, but she always thought it was a good trait. It was admirable because she believed she was too open. Too emotional.
Jerome didn't feel like terrorizing his brother by chasing him around. It did sound fun, but he wasn't in the mood at the moment. So he put one foot forward and the other one back before throwing the pumpkin guts. A loud 'ack' came from Jeremiah as the mush covered his face. His teeth held down his tongue, preventing him from yelling at his brother.
Hearing a giggle erupt from y/n lessened his irritation. Not by much, but he didn't feel the need to berate Jerome. y/n wasn't upset anymore so he supposed that this wasn't too bad.
"You look great, Miah," Jerome spoke as Jeremiah cleaned his glasses with the lower half of his shirt, "Did you do something with your hair? What do you think, y/n?" He rolled his eyes at Jerome's words and felt his irritation rise once more.
As soon as the irrigation started bubbling like hot water, y/n's response cooled everything down. "I think he looks great with and without it." Her bashful response made Jerome roll his eyes in annoyance that she wasn't following his skit like she normally does. Feeling his disappointment she quickly added, "But I would say the moldy pumpkin is a great wardrobe improvement."
Her hastily stabled response was too late for Jerome's liking. Leaving Jeremiah to be the only one who was remotely satisfied by the outcome.
"That was funny, but I need to clean this off and maybe get an ice pack." y/n explained as she felt the throbbing pain come back. As she began walking back to her trailer Jerome ran after her to walk beside her. Jeremiah trailed behind them. "Come on, it can't hurt that much. Laughter is the best medicine and it looked like it was helping just a minute ago."
The boy behind them furrowed his eyebrows. Not appreciating how his brother dismisses how she's feeling. There could be some serious head damage, but he held back his response and let y/n playfully brush it off.
When they entered the trailer, y/n called out for her mom to get no response. The woman did tell y/n that she was going shopping during breakfast and asked if she wanted to come along. Even though she often clung to her mom, she rejected the offer and ran out of the trailer.
Jerome sat at the small dining table, not caring if he got pumpkin anywhere. He folded his arms on the table and rested his chin on it. Waiting for y/n and Jeremiah to clean up so that they could get back to destroying pumpkins. The chair he sat in was tall enough for him to swing his legs back and forth to pass the time.
Jeremiah followed y/n to the bathroom where she handed him a towel. She turned on the sink so that they get rid of any stickiness left behind. They both took off their glasses before throwing the lukewarm water on their faces. He'd stop when he noticed y/n staring at his reflection.
"What?" He asked, feeling his face reddening at her intense stare. Within a second her blank stare was gone and replaced with its usual sparkle. She cracked a bright smile, "You look weird without your glasses." He blinked before slightly smiling. "You look weird without yours."
After that short exchange, they went back to cleaning their faces. y/n couldn't help, but realize how similar Jerome and Jeremiah looked. Of course, she knew that they were twins, she just never paid attention to it or cared. She always differentiated them by how they spoke and some minor physical features.
Jerome was always louder and typically enthusiastic. He reminded her of a rabbit jumping around in the sun without a care in the world. Carefree, yet hard to get a hold of and keep up with. Hopping from one thing to another.
Jeremiah came off as meek and never spoke up unless he wanted to. She'd always listen to what he had to say since it was no secret that he was the smart one in their little group. Yet there wasn't the same infectious excitement like with Jerome.
Their eyes reflected their personality, y/n thought. Jerome's was a warm, cozy dark hazel. While Jeremiah's deep blue eyes have a sharpness to them. The way they acted and spoke complemented each other. It made her wonder if she'd prefer one over the other.
She didn't dare dwell on that thought. How could she pick between the people that she's been with since they were in diapers? She felt ashamed for even thinking that. Even if it was a simple question of who she likes being around more, it felt wrong. She wasn't even sure what brought up that question in the first place.
y/n entered the kitchen while Jeremiah went looking for something. She wasn't sure what he was looking for, but she didn't care too much. Her trailer was a second home for them since they spent so much time there. Her mom didn't seem to mind them sleeping over just as long as they went to sleep on time.
"Aren't you going to clean up?" y/n asked, but Jerome rolled his eyes. "No, let's go back outside." Her head tilted to the side with a pleasing look. He hated it when she did that. It was like she knew that was the magical key to get him to do anything. It wasn't fair and he planned to stand his ground.
"Come on, let's go." He pouted.
"Just wipe some of it off or do you want to be Pumpkin Head for the rest of the day?" Her words only made him smile. "I like the sound of that. Pumpkin Head."
The little girl wasn't sure how to respond to that or how to convince him to clean up. Before she could think of something, Jeremiah came into the room with a flashlight. Jerome asked what y/n was thinking, "What's that's for?"
He didn't acknowledge the question and asked y/n to come over to him. She glanced at Jerome who shrugged. Once she stood in front of him, he suddenly put the flashlight in her face before turning it on. "Ah! Miah, what was that for!?" y/n cried out and protected her eyes with her hands. All while Jerome laughed at them.
Jeremiah didn't react to their response. He spoke with a matter-of-fact tone, "I'm trying to check your pupil dilation." The girl made a face before whining about giving a warning first. He seemed undeterred by her response but was insistent on checking her eyes.
"I feel fine and it's not like my skull was broken."
The boy sighed before explaining the reason behind his persistence. "Head damage is a serious thing, y/n. It can have long-term effects like memory loss, headaches, could lead to depression, and more." With his grave tone and expression, y/n started to worry. She hadn't thought of that or even knew that. Though a word popped out to her. It sounded familiar and she might have heard it before. Yet she had no clue what it was or meant.
"What's," She asked, wondering if it was better not to know, "What's depression?" Jeremiah was taken aback by the question. His heart picked up as he didn't know what it was either.
Slightly inhaling, he said, "I don't know, but it's probably nothing you want." Even if they didn't know the meaning of it, it intensified their fear.
The two played doctor and patient while Jerome passed out. Getting no sleep had caught up to him. Waiting on them was such a bore. With each second that passed, his eyes started getting heavier and their voices lulled him into a dreamless slumber. By the time the two children estimated that she was probably going to be okay, Jerome was in a deep sleep.
Nothing was going to wake him. y/n didn't admire the rare moment of calmness that came from the wild child. As she heard the pop of a marker come from behind. "What did he do this time?" She asked as Jeremiah walked past her and toward Jerome. He didn't look at her when he explained that Jerome had taken his Halloween candy. How he caught the boy with his hand in the bag and took most of the "good candy". Leaving behind candy corn, licorice, and sour candy.
Even though Jerome would eat just about any candy, even the ones that the two considered the "bad candy". He'd leave behind the candy he knew Jeremiah didn't like because he'd often hand them off to him. While Jerome would eat just about anything with sugar, sour candy wasn't his favorite. He couldn't understand how Jeremiah could eat bitter or sour candy. It wasn't the worst, but not his favorite.
"I guess that's a good enough reason." y/n said, her voice trailing off. She wasn't on board with drawing on Jerome's face but thought it would be kind of funny. "I'll share my candy with you, so don't use the permanent markers. I'll get my coloring ones." Jeremiah scoffed, "Coloring markers? He'll be able to wash it off too easily and how is that going to be good payback?"
The girl didn't know how to counter that, so she didn't. She sat back and watched him draw on the sleeping boy's face. Drawing a unibrow, round glasses, and a curled mustache that looked reminiscent of a cartoon villain. Once he was done she commented, "He's going to be angry when he wakes up."
Putting the top back on the marker he shrugged his shoulders. "I don't care." A small satisfied smile graced his face. All while y/n wondered what Jerome was going to do to get back at Jeremiah. Maybe he'll hide his glasses until he says sorry or something. Either way, she was going to have front-row seats of their bickering, but that wasn't any different from how they normally are.
Even if they squabble almost every day, she wouldn't trade that for anything. She doesn't know how she'd be able to live in the circus without them.