Video

[runningstart]

I think being friends with about forty thousand people warrants a network announcement. If any of you know Jaime Reyes, he's been Ported out.

Pretty smart guy told me that three months is a good amount of time to wait before assuming someone's not coming back with their memories, SO. I had a good idea of what we can do to make this a little happier, which is probably what he'd prefer anyhow. 'Cause he's a hippie.

Anybody interested, share a story about Jaime! Funny, nice, interesting- anything's fine so long as it's not depressing. Or if you don't have a story, maybe something you like about him or you could leave a message of something that you'd like to say to him. Maybe we can show him this if he gets back. Make him cry, so I can get blackmail pictures.

[A heavy pause.] Iiii don't want to make this sound like a eulogy or anything. Especially if he DOES come back, because then I'll look really stupid. But he's not from my world, so. You all know how that goes.

Jaime is...a seriously good guy. He's really a great- He's a great person. So. If you DON'T know that loser, definitely read around to what people have to say. You'll probably want to get to know him when you're done.

Comments

[voice]

[timecapture]

Oh, no, Jamie's gone?

[She really liked Jamie. She hopes he'll be alright.]

All I've got is the time he talked me into going and helping out during Thanksgiving. [Which, granted, she'd done, and happily.] He was really sweet, and he helped me get a lot of things off my chest in the meantime.

I hope he's okay, wherever he is.

[voice]

[runningstart]

[Knowing what Jaime told him, Wally can't exactly say that Jaime's definitely okay so he'll just focus on something else.]

Yeah, I think he kind of enjoys playing the agony aunt sometimes. And roping people into giving back to the community. I think those are legit his actual hobbies.

(Text)

[hallowedhorcrux]

What a shame. You have my condolences.

It is never easy to lose.

(Not that he would know the feeling. You have to have empathy for that.)

Is it common for friends to blackmail each other?

permatext

[runningstart]

[oh it's this guy, the magic dork]

yeah in certain circles of friendship this is considered the highest tier of bonding

text;

[infomodder]

[Yes do spread April's three month rule, it is a law in their home.]

When he was on that road trip back in June, he took the time to photograph several mugs featuring puns and send them to me. Claimed he found my people. Then he brought me presents from the trip including pun mugs.

[So basically: long live Saint Reyes.]

permatext

[runningstart]

yeah he got me a bunch of junk too

i mean its not like the guy makes a million bucks either but he bought stuff for all his friends and sent everybody texts and pictures and stuff

hes so thoughtful it makes me sick

[tactile_telekinesis]

Aw man, that sucks.

I didn't know him. At all. But I saw him talking around. Seemed like a cool guy.

[runningstart]

Dude, he's a really cool guy. I mean, he's a dork and a nerd and a pacifist, but give him half a chance and he'll be one of the best friends you could ever have. I'm pretty sure he was put on Earth for the sole purpose of helping other people. Like one of those Mother Theresa figures.

[maglevflash]

That loser climbed up to my hospital window with a cactus just to say hi.

[There were a lot more memorable moments she has of Jaime, but a lot of them were personal. Not something she wanted to share.

She had just been riding with him a few days ago.]

[runningstart]

God, seriously? With a cactus? Did he use a ladder or did he ask you to lower your hair?

Don't answer that. I don't wanna know just how Prince Charming that nerdlord can get. I'm already way too in love with him as it is.

video;

[brushoff]

He brought me booze and we ended up forming a book club.

[ it was a REALLY WEIRD FIRST MEETING. ]

video;

[runningstart]

Wh- Wait, he brought you liquor? Jaime Reyes did? Did he say how he got it?

video;

[fridgeflower]

Jaime's really the kind of person I wish I could be in a lot respects. I think we're similar in some ways, but... He speaks to people so easily, and his closeness to other people is so natural and genuine. And he's very honest. I could say a lot more, really, and maybe even that wouldn't quite do him justice.

I hope he comes back. If not, then I'm glad I've known him. He's a comforting person.

[ She might be avoiding getting teary-eyes, because DANG IT IF SHE CRIES IN FRONT OF WALLY AGAIN... ]

video;

[runningstart]

[wally already thinks she's quick to cry too so STOP IT UP LAURIE, you can do it!!! but she'd probably get a free pass about crying over jaime reyes]

Yeah, seriously all of the above. I agree with all of it. I don't even know- like, how is someone that nice without getting frustrated with people? I don't even know how that's supposed to work, it's almost freakish. Like that's his superpower or something.

video;

[amadaman]

... I was planning to have Minato-san let me into his room and leave him post it notes of messages all over his room every day if you wanted to join in on that.

A friend did that for me while I was gone. It's really nice to come back to.

video;

[runningstart]

[Huh, it's Ken. Though Wally doesn't think he knows Wally, so he'd better keep it casual.] Dude, that seriously sounds awesome. But- nah, I'll do my own thing. That'll be all you. Thanks for the offer though.

How'd you get to be buds with Jaime? You went on that roadtrip thing he went on with everybody, didn't you?

audio

[beneathbluerafters]

He's... genuinely nice. That's increasingly rare in this day and age. He helped me buy tee-shirts and jeans, and we went to the movies once.


... He'd better come back.

audio

[runningstart]

Hey, the three month rule is absolute. Apparently. But now that I think about it, it does kinda work pretty well. Kinda seems like anyone who's gone longer than a few weeks runs the risk of not showing up again, but...well. We'll just hold out. No point getting depressed at the starting line of the race, right?

encrypted

[boobwindow]

When was this?

encrypted

[runningstart]

Sometime yesterday, I think. I was gonna text him and I couldn't pull him up anymore, so I went to his house...wasn't there. I checked his work and he wasn't there either, I'm pretty sure he's actually gone.

( audio )

[chancetoatone]

He is a very kind and compassionate young man.

[And Thane really likes him.]

I hope he finds his homeworld is well.

( audio )

[runningstart]

I think he's the pope back home, I'm pretty sure. He's either Pope or he's Pope-in-training. They have camps for that, for Pope-like youth. [is this joke going over your head]

video;

[nagachika]

Can't say I know the guy personally, but I think it's still a pretty good thing to want to do for a friend.

Didja see Josuke's thing where he made a list of people who've gone? Maybe you can add Jaime to that list, too. It's a pretty heartwarming thing to do for someone important, so.

Thought I'd let ya know.

video;

[runningstart]

Oh, hey man. Yeah, like I get it for the whole remembrance thing but it kind of feels like a memorial. I dunno. Maybe if he doesn't come back.

video

[resipiscent]

He's a good guy.

video

[runningstart]

...wow dang, don't break the word bank there Riku. Slow down, you're starting to embarrass yourself.

[Voice]

[medalsome]

Jaime... is a great roommate. I hope he comes back soon. [Seriously, Joaquin doesn't want to imagine him just gone.]

He taught me how to work a television, how to use the stove, how to watch things like Netflix and use the XBox. And he taught me how to drive a motorcycle. I think I might have been in over my head if he wasn't there to help me out.

[Voice]

[runningstart]

Dude, he gave you a crash course in modern technology. The Comforts of Life, 101 with Professor Reyes.

Yeah he's pretty awesome. I dunno even when he found time to do half the stuff he does. I think he spends a lot less time on the internet than he makes it sound like he does.

voice

[stealwithit]

Where do I start? Hmm.

He got really, really excited at Ken's soccer game. To the point where it was almost embarrassing being next to him but mostly, it was pretty heartwarming.

Also, he gets flustered so easily, especially about Traci. It's the cutest.

voice

[runningstart]

DUDE RIGHT? He is so, so flustered over his girlfriend. And smug. But I think you have to hit a certain demographic for the smug to come out.

Also yeah, embarrassingly heartwarming is a pretty good phrase to describe him. He should have that tattooed onto his face, as a warning to anybody who wants to be friends with him. "Will humiliate you with unsolicited sincerity."

video

[microbrobotics]

[ Goddammit, people need to stop leaving. ]

What?

video

[runningstart]

It's okay. Seriously, do some interviews; the three month rule is legit. [wally has literally asked one person, and that is the person who told him the rule in the first place] No reason to panic about anybody leaving until you hit that three month mark. [That's Wally's story and he's sticking to it for the sake of his own feebly scotch-taped broken heart.]

[thiwp]

[ hm. hm. ]

We really don't know why some people go home and some don't? This just happens?

[runningstart]

I mean, [he sighs] there's theories. Some people say this god thing called "Lachesis" inhabits the Porter and decides, but like I think there's rumors going around about it being AWOL? I don't even know if I believe that crap either. Maybe it's some kind of crazed AI that used to operate the Porter protocols or something.

It seems like it's completely random but I bet if everyone gathered the raw data, they could pull at least a few patterns out of it.

video;

[earnedmystripes]

[On one hand, he's sad that Jaime's gone. On the other, doesn't the kid deserve to go home, be with his family and his friends and his home that needs the Blue Beetle? Most stories he could tell are either depressing or would compromise one of their secret identities, so he just settles on--]

He's the kind of guy that makes any place better, just by being in it.

video;

[runningstart]

[Wally can't even really celebrate Jaime going home as a good thing though, considering how many times Jaime told him he hadn't wanted to go back. Not with everything here still unresolved.]

That's...really fitting. He was such an annoying humble idiot about it, too. If you tried to tell him that stuff he'd just dodge it and be like "yeah okay but YOU'RE GREAT TOO," and I'm like. DUDE. SHUT UP AND LET ME LOVE YOU. I wanted to slap him sometimes. Trying to pay him a compliment was like trying to wash a hydrophobic wall.

Voice

[kanadian]

What?

He's gone now too? [ Wah sad marines. ]

How long?

Voice

[runningstart]

Not that long, probably only like a day or two, but. Yeah, he's definitely for sure outta here.

You used to live at his house, right? [Didn't Wally talk to this guy as Kid Flash at a swear-in like forever ago?]

video

[deadkord]

Wait, so he's gone? But... he'll probably come back?

[ Ted's still getting a grasp on this world's terminologies. Also, he's kind of genuinely concerned. ]

video

[runningstart]

Ah. Uhhh, yeah, people can get sent back sometimes, or just. Go in limbo? Hell, they could actually be kidnapped and I wouldn't ever know any different, but the pattern is the same whether or not they remember going home.

Sometimes they'll show back up in a few weeks, and if it's pretty soon after they'll keep their memories. That gets less likely the longer it is though. And some people just never come back. [Like Artemis.]

voice; id reads robin

[performance]

. . . He's a good person. Someone who'll go out of his way to try to make just about anyone feel better, even if he doesn't know them. Even if that person's been acting like a jerk. Not that I'm naming any names. Or implicating myself.

[ Ha. ]

voice;

[runningstart]

Dude. [a sigh] Dude, you were kind of in a bad place. Whatever happened, he probably knew it and didn't blame you. He's annoying like that.

voice; pretend this backdated

[matadorable]

[This isn't the type of thing Manolo typically does. For one thing, his songs tend to revolve around emotions and matters of the heart, rather than trying to paint a picture of a scene from real life. For another, he's pretty shy about playing his music across the network. But they were asked to share a memory about Jaime, and he couldn't help himself.

He strums a few chords on his guitar, and it soon becomes clear that this is some traditional Mexican folk music. The style and tone is highly reminiscent to this type of song, and after a brief prelude, he sings:

♫ The evening of October sixteenth
is a night I won't soon forget
'cause I was saved by Jaime Reyes
and I am forever in his debt
To those who hear this, let it be known
he is fearless, no matter the threat... ♫

He then goes on to regale everyone with the tale of their foray into a certain haunted house. About how, on that fateful night, the fog was thick -- an ominous omen in the air. Manolo had wandered alone, uncertain, having ignored warnings to beware. But then came the great Jaime Reyes! They wandered through the halls, hanging dollheads staring as they swayed. But they stuck together, side by side, as they struggled to find their way.

Along the path, though, they found a coffin. They wondered what danger slept inside, but then an anguished scream pierced the night. A monster. Before he could flee, the creature seized his leg, and he thought this surely must be the end. "Please run," he said, "go save yourself!"

But Jaime never abandons a friend.

And, of course, he recounts the heroic deeds of this man, who wielded a piece of wood wider than his small frame. It was a battle, of which angels would sing! With a mighty swipe, he knocked that creature of its feet, and said: "Take that, you ugly thing!"]

voice; u got it

[runningstart]

[It’s really dorky.

It’s dorky because it’s a song about two dorks going into a dorky haunted house and being dorks inside of it. It’s dorky because Wally can picture Jaime with his dorky hair and his dorky lanky limbs flailing a chunk of plywood or something around at those kidnapping droids to save this guy. Not suiting up because he’s got to protect his super secret ID, because he still cares about that junk and it’s super, super dorky.

It’s also got Wally putting his head down in his arms and trying not to cry.

No idea why. He’s spent the better part of the day convincing himself that twenty-four hours is not enough time to start feeling sad about your friend disappearing. So what if he’d already eaten all the food in the house when Robin had only been gone for twelve? So what if he’d run himself ragged to the point of passing out in a meadow somewhere when Bart had disappeared? A day is not long enough to start…whatevering. Mourning. Or not, or something.

But he keeps getting he’s so kind as the reigning opinion of Jaime Reyes and there’s only so many times Wally can say yeah, definitely in response before it starts to sink in that if this stupid, selfless jerk doesn’t come back, or if he doesn’t come back with his memories, a whole lot of people are going to be devastated. He has dorky songs and dorky stories all in this post about how stupidly nice he is and there’s a chance that even if he gets to see all of it, he won’t even remember.

Even if he didn’t remember, though…Jaime’s the kind of person who’d probably cherish all of this stuff anyway. Feel weird about it sure, but he’d probably just take it all in stride and try to connect with all of these people again. Even if he didn’t remember, if he somehow found this post he’d probably be texting Wally the next day asking if he wanted to hang out, because that’s what he does. That’s who he is. Always reaching out, even if it’s not in his best interests, even if it’s hard for him to do.

Never abandoning a friend.

The song ends and Wally just keeps his face down for a minute to compose himself, clearing his throat before picking his head up long enough to croak out,] Good song. Catchy. [Trying to save face. Feeling sad but hopeful all at once, and that’s kind of a new thing for him lately.] Nice way to immortalize a guy’s achievements.