March - Falsettos Oneshots

Names

Me writing stories several days in a row? It's more likely than you'd think. I'm just bored and this is entirely based off one of my best friends who couldn't remember Charlotte's name until he named about 50 cats Charlotte in a game. Now he knows her. I used Jason since he really relates to the character and made his discord nickname (on the servers we share) and pic both Jason so yeah. Shout out to him I guess ^-^ Alrighty, hope you enjoy! (Also, love you all & thanks for all the support <3) ~ Cassie 

When I first met Jason, he could not for the life of him remember my name. And it's not like 'Charlotte' is that difficult to remember. For a couple months I had been the kid's on and off babysitter, watching him when none of his parents were available; therefore, I also spent a lot of time around him. And yet, despite everything, he only sort of knows who I am.

Tonight, I am in charge of watching him while Trina and Mendel go on a date. It had been a while since they had actually gone out together, as Mendel was pretty busy with work and Trina had taken up a daily exercise regimen. It is wonderful to see the two of them so happy and healthy, unlike Marvin, who has recently been wallowing in his misery. Marvin is so incredibly distraught about having broken up with Whizzer, despite him being the one to do things. Well, I've learned not to judge his actions.

I walk up to Mendel and Trina's house and knock on the door. On the other side, I hear voices on the other side, with Jason very clearly saying "Is that Cordelia's girlfriend?" The funny thing is, he sees Cordelia about the same amount as he sees me, and still he only remembers her name and not mine. Mendel answers the door with a smile while Trina confirms that it's me at the door. I expect her to say my name, but she doesn't.

"Thank you so much for watching him tonight. Well it's not that we don't trust him to be independent, but it's safer this way," Mendel says with a smile. "If nothing goes wrong we should be back around 9:30. Jason can do pretty much whatever he wants as long as he's not hurting himself or anyone else. I'm serious. I have a patient whose kid likes to play with knives and I don't need Jason to be getting any ideas."

"Mendel, he's crazy but not that crazy. Jason's more likely to get hurt flailing around in a weird attempt to dance. Or he might lose to himself in chess and get upset. I mean, I've never seen that happen, but I wouldn't put it past him," Trina supplies with a laugh.

"I don't get upset when I play chess! I even let you guys win sometimes. Even though you usually still manage to lose!" Jason shouts from inside.

"Well, anyways, we have to go. Thank you again!" Trina shouts, allowing me to enter the house before exiting with Mendel. After they are gone, I turn to Jason, who is smiling at me.

"Hello, uh, lesbian neighbor. How are you on this fine day?" he says, attempting to gloss over the fact that he has no clue what my name is. I could use that to my advantage. Maybe I could have some fun with this.

"So, have you figured out my name yet?" I ask with a smirk. Clearly not expecting the question, he stands there gaping as he tries to remember it. "I'll give you a hint. I have a name other than 'Cordelia's girlfriend'. You'll figure it out soon enough."

"You heard that?" he replies, wincing. "Um. Your name starts with a... C, right?"

"At least you have that much right. If you can figure out my name by, let's say... 8:00, I will play a game of chess with you. Deal? And you can't just spit out names. You have to actually want to speak to me each time you try," I say. 8:00 gives him about four hours to figure it out. I think it's doable if he tries hard enough. I reach out my hand for him to shake, and he looks back at me with a glint of determination in his eyes.

"You're on, Cornwallis," he says, shaking my hand intensely.

"Not even close."

"Yeah, I figured. So, uh, what's for dinner, Craphole? I mean-"

"What did you just call me?" I say, trying to contain my laughter. "I don't think that's a very appropriate name, Jason. And anyways, your mother said that she had made vegetable stir fry for you, so you can have that whenever you get hungry. I'm honestly not sure if you're hungry now or you just wanted to attempt to strike up conversation."

"No, I'm fine for now. Thank you, Cruella," he says, pausing once he finishes. Upon seeing my stoic expression, he frowns. "Am I at least getting any closer?"

"Not at all."

Around an hour or so later, Jason still has made absolutely no progress in attempting to figure out my name. He has called me a wide variety of things including Corey, Clark, Candy and Cassie, none of which are accurate. And only one of the three is actually a female name. He seems to have given up. Well, at least for a while. He comes back into the living room after eating dinner, sitting down next to me on the couch. Jason practically sinks into the couch, back rounding as it consumes him. With his head resting on his chest, he looks like a pouting little kid. He sighs and frowns.

"I don't think I'll be able to figure out your name. What is it? Chorn? Chess? Chardonnay?" he exclaims, exasperated. "None of my ideas are even names at this point! Am I dumb or something for not figuring it out? If nothing, could you at least give me another hint?" He looks at me earnestly, practically pleading for me to let him off.

"How about I give you the first four letters? That's about half of it," I say, truly hoping that he'll figure it out. Jason nods, and his eyes light up. He moves around a bit so that he's sitting up and moping significantly less. He looks incredibly pleased with my offer, so I continue. "Well, my name starts with c-h-a-r."

"Charcoal? Chartreuse? Charity! No? Charlene? Character with a name that is never once mentioned?" Jason notices how my expression still hasn't changed, and he frowns, dropping his head in his hands. "I'm never going to get it. I give up."

"It's Charlotte."

"Yeah, that should've been obvious," he replies, laughing sadly.

"Don't worry. I'll still play chess with you," I say softly.

"Really? Thanks, Charlotte!"

"Alright, go get the set."

~Time skip in honor of all the StarKid references I'm making~

"Hi, Charlotte!" Jason says excitedly as he sees me pass by. I've decided that today would be a good day to take a walk, as today the weather is extraordinarily pleasant. It is a nice autumn day, and the falling leaves make a gorgeous array of fiery colours as they softly descend from the trees above. A faint breeze blows around me, causing my hair to blow in my face slightly. I take a deep breath and bask in the freshness that surrounds me before returning Jason's greeting.

"So, you wouldn't believe the method I'm using to remember your name!" he continues, bouncing a little as he rushes over to me. As he moves, he brushes past a pile of leaves causing them to spiral up into the air like a whirlwind of nature. Though it is truly beautiful, it is also quite chaotic.

"Is that so?" I reply, picking a deep amber leaf out of my hair and releasing it, watching as it flutters to the ground. I laugh slightly as he nods frantically. "Jason, calm down. You're making a mess." He shrugs and walks next to me, deciding not to interrupt my walk, which is actually pretty adorable. He almost trips on a nearby tree root, however, as he is fairly distracted by our conversation.

"You know how there are a lot of stray cats around here? I've named them all Charlotte, so whenever I see a cat, I say 'hey, it's Charlotte' to help me remember. Isn't that clever?" he says proudly, with a big toothy grin.

"That must confuse the heck out of your parents," I state. Jason suddenly rushes off to a house a few doors down to say hello to 'Charlotte.' Well, if naming cats that is working out for him, I'm not going to stop him. At least he no longer sees me as second to Cordelia. I mean, even though I love her, I am certainly not her subordinate. I'm proudly my own person. After a moment, he jogs back over to me.

"Alright, so I'm getting a bit attached to all these Charlottes. But I can't keep them all, so we can let everyone have a Charlotte!"

"If it works for you, it works for me. Let's go home." I guide him back to his house before returning to my own. Though I'm thrilled that he finally remembers my name, I can't help but find this situation bizarre. In any case, there's nothing I can do other than just let him be a kid. And anyways, maybe I'll see one of these Charlottes around some time. Although seemingly trivial, these cats will forever linked to Jason's childhood, and I can't think of a greater honor than that.