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They trotted in a clump along the beach, led by Miss Peregrine. Despite having lost their home, going to live on board a boat and not staying anywhere for very long, their ymbryne still preferred to stay as close to their usual routine as possible. As such, they were now out for their daily walk.
"Enoch?" Claire chirped from her place at his side, her big brother's much larger hand clasped in her two tiny ones.
"What is it, bheag aon?" He looked down at her, expecting a reply. When none came and she just stared at him, he sighed and scooped her into his arms. She settled herself as Enoch kept walking. Jake smiled at the sight of it. Enoch wasn't the easiest of people to get along with but he had a soft spot for the younger children, especially Claire, and he was surprisingly good with kids. It was cute to see this softer side to him.
"When you and Jake get married, can I be your..." she didn't know what it was called. "...the girl with flowers who walks down the aisle before the bride and sprinkles the petals because it's a special day?" That caught Jake's attention. Enoch had some pretty serious abandonment issues thanks to his parents and Abe, so commitment and feelings in general could often be intimidating and a source of anxiety for the Scotsman. Jake pretended he wasn't listening, eager to hear his boyfriend's reply, but Enoch just smiled sadly.
"I would love for you to be our flower girl, Claire, but we can't get married." Claire practically deflated in his arms.
"Why not?"
"Marriage is just for a man and a woman. Boys aren't allowed to marry other boys."
"That's not fair!" Claire said indignantly, her little face turning bright red. "Anyone who loves each other should be allowed to get married!"
"No, it isn't fair, but that's just the way the world works." Claire folded her arms and huffed. In an effort to cheer her up, Enoch smirked at the little girl conspiratorially, unaware that Jake was listening. "D'ya wanna hear a secret?"
"Ooh, yes please!"
"Me and Jake aren't allowed to get married, but if we were, I'd ask him."
"Oh wow!"
"And if he said yes, you could absolutely be our flower girl." Claire clapped her hands in delight and threw her arms around Enoch's neck. Neither of them noticed Jake blushing furiously behind them.
"Y'know," Jake said when they were getting into bed that evening, "we could get married if we wanted to." Enoch froze, the covers half pulled back, staring at the boy in the bed like a deer in headlights.
"You-" he blushed and looked away, somewhat ashamed. "You heard that, did you?" He got into bed beside the American but didn't snuggle closer like usual. Jake nodded and Enoch flushed even redder.
"Don't be embarrassed," Jake reassured him, "I just thought I'd let you know. We'd have to wait a few years, obviously, but if you still want to when we're, I dunno, twenty-two? Twenty-five? Then we could find a loop after it's legal and we could get married." Enoch side-eyed Jake coyly and smirked.
"Are you proposing to me?" Jake blushed and laughed softly.
"Nah. I wouldn't wanna take that away from you, seeing as you seem to already have some ideas?"
Enoch buried his face in his hands, laughing.
"Now you're just making fun of me." Jake shrugged.
"Yeah, a little bit." Enoch snuggled close, resting his head on Jake's slim chest, and he hummed in appreciation when Jake started gently running his fingers through the Scotsman's curls. "I would say yes, you know."
"Huh?"
"If you asked me to marry you. I would say yes."