andi mack oneshots

{memories • jonah and judy}

hey guys! it's been so long since i've written but i'm trying to get back into it. hope this serves you well <3

PROMPT: after packing up to move to their new apartment, jonah and his mother have a heart to heart

word count: 1250
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Jonah plops himself down on the couch, letting out an exhausted sigh. His arms and legs ache from all the lifting and loading boxes and furniture.
That's my workout for the year, he thinks.

"We're all packed up!" says his mother, Judy. She's in the kitchen connected to the living room, making a cup of tea.
"Finally, that took forever," Jonah sighs, "How do we have so much stuff? Didn't we sell most of it?"

Months ago, when Jonah's family first started losing money due to his father's failed investment, they had to start selling things. It started small, selling a few old knick-knacks that were found in storage. That supported them enough.
However, once his mother lost her job, everything took a drastic turn. An old vase that hasn't been used in years turned to his mother's wedding dress. Slightly chipped flatware became the kitchen table. Throw pillows became Jonah's bed. The house kept getting emptier, but so did their bank account. Finally, his father declared bankruptcy.

Judy nods, "We did, but Aunt Susan bought us a lot," she smiled, stirring her mug. "Isn't that generous?"
Jonah's family has been staying with his Aunt Susan and Uncle Jim, along with their four children. With nine people living in a standard size house, there were some nights where he had to sleep on the couch or even on the floor. Sometimes one of his cousins would offer to trade places with him, but he always declined.

"And ever since your father got that new job, we've been able to buy things ourselves," his mother continues.
Jonah sits up, amused by this new information. "Why didn't you tell me any of this?" he asks.

    Maybe he just never noticed, which is a possibility. With everything going on in his life, he hasn't been spending much time over any new things packed in those boxes.

"Hey, you kept my existence a secret from your friends for how long?" Judy quips. She takes a sip of her tea.
Jonah laughs, "That's fair."
"Speaking of your friends, they're so nice!" Judy sits on the couch next to her son.

Jonah nods, "They're the best, I don't know what I'd do without them."
He reminisces on all of his best memories with his friends. The renaissance faire, the Mint Chip protest, all of them having to do 20 hours of picking up trash as punishment for said protest, so much has happened.
    Before the Good Hair Crew, sure Jonah was 'popular', but he didn't have any close friends who he could talk to about his feelings... or anything. People just saw him as Jonah Beck. This lead to a lot of loneliness and high expectations of himself. From the moment he met the GHC, he knew they were a special group. Most of the time his instincts were wrong, but that was definitely not one of those cases.

"Especially that Buffy girl, she can really trot!" Judy nudges Jonah with her elbow.
If Jonah says he didn't blush at the mention of Buffy's name, he's lying.
He recalls the times he's seen Buffy dance. Cyrus's Bar Mitzvah, Andi's party, and sometimes she posts little dance videos with Andi on Instapic. He's always mesmerised by how great she is. He always notices the way she puts all of her emotions into it, making them ricochet off the walls.

"Yeah...she's really talented."
"Is that blushing I see?" Judy teases him, making Jonah more red.
"Mom!" He nervously chuckles.
Judy laughs, "Okay, I'll lay off."

The confusing feelings Jonah has for Buffy have been nagging him for quite a few weeks. He's put off evaluating them because he doesn't want to cause himself more stress. Although, he can't ignore the pang in his heart every time she looks his way, her stunning curly locks blowing in the breeze.

His mother starts going upstairs, but there's something that's been eating away at Jonah ever since Buffy and Cyrus had met his mother.
"Actually, do you have a minute?" he asks.
Judy turns around and sits back on the couch, "Of course, sweetie!"

"There's a reason you've never met my friends until today," Jonah says, head down.
Judy gives Jonah a knowing look. "It's the trotting, isn't it?"

Jonah looks up at his mother, surprised.
"Um...yes," he replies faintly, nodding.
Jonah wonders what his mother's reaction will be. He can't read her seemingly neutral facial expression. Judy however, reads her son's ashamed one.

'It's okay," she smiles, "I understand why that would be awkward to explain."
"That's the thing, it wasn't awkward," Jonah laughs, "Okay maybe at first it was, but in the end it was fun!"
"Aw, I'm glad! I had fun too."

Jonah remembers how flustered he was when Buffy and Cyrus found his mother's Judy Bartholomew DVDs and VHS tapes and laughed, only for her to show up.
This is gonna be the worst, he thought at that moment.
Little did he know that was going to bring the most joy he's had in a long time.

"I've been so embarrassed of you for so long, and I never thought about how you must have felt," Jonah sighs, "I'm sorry, Mom."
"Baby, don't be sorry. I was a teenager once, I get it," his mother replies with an empathetic smile.

"You dressed like that as a teenager, embarrassment didn't exist," he jokes, pointing to a photograph on the coffee table.

It's of his mother in 1984 as a teen. She's in a dance studio, decked out in neon from her scrunchies to her leg warmers. He wonders how anybody took anything seriously with that fashion, or how anybody could focus in class with all the bright colors,
Judy laughs, "Good one."
She pulls Jonah into a hug.

"I can't believe I ever stopped hanging out with you, I missed it a lot," Jonah says.
Judy pinches Jonah's cheek.
"Me too, my little trotter," she smiles, scrunching her nose.

When Jonah was younger, his mother called him that all the time. Then one day, she said it while Amber was over. Once she was out of the room, Amber started making fun of him for the nickname. Later that day, Jonah told his mom that he had outgrown it. He looked at the ground immediately so he wouldn't have to see her disappointed face.

"You're the coolest, Mom."
Judy perks up, "Hey, tell you what. After you get back from that mountain wedding thing, we'll have one of our little parties like we used to."

Before he started dating Amber and became Jonah Beck, most nights after dinner they spent dancing along with those DVDs, humorous and carefree. His mother would let him wear his father's old neon clothes, even though they were way too big for him at the time.
Jonah's been wanting to ask his mom if they could start doing that again, especially when things got especially tough. He never got around to it due to anxiety over what she would say.

"That sounds great," Jonah says.
"Great!" Judy excitedly jumps up from the couch and starts rushing up the stairs.

Jonah stands at the bottom, knowing exactly why she's running.
"You're gonna go dig up your old 80's stuff, aren't you?"

Judy pauses and turns to face him, stifling a smile.
"Maybe..."

Jonah laughs as his mother continues up the stairs and into his aunt and uncle's room, where her clothes were being stored.
He puts on his winter gear, grabs his guitar, and heads out the door, eager for what's to come.
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i hope u all liked it! again, i'm sorry i took so long to write again.

remember to send me any prompts on wattpad or over on my instagram!

'till next time!
-theresa