#ft. chandler

[jazfields]

Christmas Presents - Friends edition

Jasmine is a self-proclaimed bad gift giver, but it's because she never knows what things to get people. Her main love language is quality time, but you can't really put a bow on experiences with people. She's the kind of person who keeps a stockpile of different kinds of chocolate, candles, and scratch tickets if she ever needs a last-minute gift for someone.

[However, specific gifts to some under the read more]

Lena [ @lenavaz ] - gets money designated for a spa day for her (& Sophia and Marisol). Jaz doesn't want to assume any logistics, so it's either to schedule something or get the supplies to do something more DIY.

Going with the experience theme, a few friends get passports designated to review certain kinds of activities.

Book Passport - Zarah [ @zalder ] & Jayla [ @xjaylahopkins ] Coffee Passport - Ant [ @anthwang ] Recipe Passport - Chandler [ @chvndlr ] & Elise [ @elisequinn ]

Clara [ @claraquinn ] - gets a cooler full of snow at her doorstep.

[jcksonfields]

@chvndlr

[theobrowningfd]

Merry Christmas @darpow! Hope you have a great holiday. Got you a leather bound journal to rite notes in, a cool tudar candle, and neat bookends that reminded me of you! Thanks for being a great friend.

Your friend,

Theo

Merry Christmas @joshlane! My motorcycle gang pal and friend since the good old days. Got you some things to make riding that much easier. Including a heated seat pad, a backpack to held your helmet and charge your phone! And a motorcycle shaped bottle opener. Thanks for being a great friend.

Your friend,

Theo

Merry Christmas @yoon-nyeon! Hope you have a great holiday. Got you a nice foot massager for after those long shifts working, a heated undershirt because these winters suck, and a new pair of durable sunglasses. Thanks for always being a friend!

Your friend,

Theo

Merry Christmas @chvndlr! Hope you have a great holiday. Thanks for always being a great friend and someone to talk to. I got you some gloves to wear while photographing outside (they'll keep your hands warm, a monocular if you use your phone for photos, and lastly a vintage camera that was repurposed into a lamp.

Your friend,

Theo

[savstone-rp]

@chvndlr

Sex and The City S2E1: Take Me Out To the Ballgame

[fadingmadness]

✦ ↬ closed starter ft @starsdrew ( chandler bing & monica geller )

chandler shook his head as he looked at her. how monica still didn't know who he was astonished him, but he didn't know how to explain all of that to her. "so what are you up to?"

[aishathevar]

who: aisha & closed.

where: cassidy's candies, the coast

when: march, 2024

Aisha hadn't celebrated Easter but still liked making baskets for her friends. So on an afternoon she was free, she headed to the candy shop to pick up some things. Stepping inside, she glanced around at the brightly colored candy, realizing it was busier than expected. Which was fair, because she always waited until the last minute. She didn't mind the wait though, as she stepped in line, trying to decide what to buy. Also deciding to make a bit of conversation while they waited. "So, important question-- do you have a favorite holiday candy?"

[silkchvffon]

closed for @invcntions as per usual atp

« LINCOLN, PLEASE, » marci begs as she pounds on his door, her heart racing so hard in her chest that it's the only thing she can hear. « i know you're angry, you have every right to be, but this is urgent. » she recalls kyle's words and feels the noose around her throat tighten with the memory. she shouldn't have said half the things she did, and now she has to live with the consequences — which isn't what scares her. the truly terrifying part is she can't ensure her boys' safety. « it might ... i don't ... koa and elias might be in danger. »

[jcksonfields]

@mikeyhartman @chvndlr

NEW GIRL ( 2011 - 2018 ) ↳ season 3 episode 14

[jroycethethird]

setting: sometime after the full moon, briar-rose’s apartment

featuring: royce van doren iii & briar-rose reed @briarreed

The question that had been on everyone’s mind since they felt something amiss had soon after been answered. A death. There had been a death in the coven. It came as no shock, they had been waiting for some time now to see the end of the curse wrought by Rohan realized, but it hadn’t changed the impact. A life was taken, and someone would forever be changed. This was the baseline fact. When the news broke, there was a sigh of relief but then came the surreal aftershock of it. The Supreme’s sister had been the one to pay the price, and now she was a vampire. Severed from her magic, from that fundamental thing that he suspected in huge part made her who he was. What would Royce himself be without magic? He couldn’t fathom it, couldn’t fathom going through such a drastic change, all in one torrential night.

Royce thought for a flash of a second to read Poppy’s thoughts on it, to glean what she may have been feeling as she addressed the group but ultimately chose against it. Some things he felt were truly too private. Instead he looked at his own sisters among the other witches, looked at the relief and grief stricken looks in their eyes. Relief they were alive and no longer threatened, grief over the loss of another. He wondered how it would have been for him had it been one of them, but Royce couldn’t handle the painful thought for too long. He would be broken, even if they came out immortal and strong after the ordeal. How does one cope? Pushing that fruitless thought aside, he’d made up his mind then and there on what he would do next: He would go and visit Briar-Rose Reed.

It was only right to pay your respects to the dead, after all.

Speeding to a halt on the side of the road, in a spot that was clearly not meant for parking, Royce emerged from his cherry red ‘63 Datsun Roadster in a fine linen suit, hair combed elegantly back from his face. He loathed Downtown, but some tasks came with necessary evil, or so he thought as he tried to follow his phone navigation to her door. He knocked twice, plastered on a pleasant grin when the knob turned… only to be greeted by a giant oaf of a man. A vaguely familiar one at that. “Jimmy?” Royce asked with a furrowed brow. “Jimmy Callahan, what are you doing here?” Did he get the wrong address? He swore he double checked and this was right.

The other man frowned in confusion before slowly responding, speaking each syllable in a way that to Royce felt like the giant was speaking for the first time. “…You know my name is Julian, right? Julian Chandler. Is this some kind of bit?”

Huh, could have sworn it was Jimmy Callahan, Royce thought. “You learn something new everyday,” he waved at the brunette dismissively. “Tomato, Tomahto, whatever Shakespeare said about roses and different names — Say, maybe you can help me, clearly I have the wrong address. I’m looking for Briar-Rose Reed’s home? Is she your neighbor?” The man grew defensive and narrowed suspicious blue eyes at Royce, which he instantly resented.

Jimmy, or, sorry, Julian as he claimed to be, raised a brow, “No, this is her place… Is she expecting you, because you know she’s been through a lot, Van Doren. I think she’d maybe like to be alone—”

”No, she isn’t expecting me, but I assure you it’s a cordial visit,” Royce said, a direct response to the suspicion that was evident in the vampire’s mind. When Julian’s mouth opened to speak again, he quickly cut him off. “Look, it’s Coven business, at least… A final bit of it, if you don’t mind I’d like to talk to her for just a bit.” It was silent and he noticed the way the man turned his head slightly back in the house, his lips barely moving. Royce raised a brow curiously, but only smiled politely when the other man slunk back into the shadows and allowed him space to answer.

It hadn’t been long, following the giant man further in, before he’d seen the girl in question. She didn’t look much different from the last time he’d crossed paths with her, looking just like her ordinary self. Of course, she’d look that way forever. With a small sort of grin, Royce greeted her with a raise of his head. “Briar-Rose,” he sing sang her name. “I’m sure I’m not the first, but let me be the latest to say immortality becomes you,” he said with a small sort of smirk before his features softened to a bit. That was until he spotted the tall shadow lingering in the corner. “…Does your bodyguard ever take a break?” He quipped. “Go on, go on now, Jimbo, go read some books, shoo,” he waved at him. Julian frowned and exchanged a look with Briar before he announced he’d be going to another room. Royce watched the tall man leave and murmured, “Out of sight, but certainly not out of ear shot, hm?” He turned then to the young woman before him.

“The Sup…. Poppy broke the news to the coven,” he started slowly, delicately, trying not to focus on thoughts he figured were burdened with grief and powerfully sad emotions. Emphasis on try. “I know words mean so little, and I’m sure you’ve heard it all, but… I’m very terribly sorry that this happened to you.” He ran through what ifs, a lot of them since he’d started sticking around town more. What if he had taken this job more seriously? What if he’d helped put the foot down more strongly on dark magic usage? What if they could have prevented this? Would she still be normal, whatever that meant in a town like this? He had been quietly responding to the damages the witches did around town in his own way. He gave Todd Miller a job to help him sustain himself in his new life, he offered to help finance the repairs at the hotel and casino, and now he was here. Now Royce was looking a former witch in the eye and trying to give his condolences to all she lost. To the person she no longer was. “May I sit with you? For a bit… I know you’ll think it’s not genuine, and it might not be, but I’m here, at least one final time, as the coven advisor to see a fellow witch. One who I think might just need some company?” He didn’t see Briar-Rose when he looked at her then. He saw Kathy or Cec, his darling little sisters whom he would be devastated to see in that same spot. That was the thought that propelled him to be there. He wasn’t a nice man, not really… but he could try. He thought maybe he had it in him to try this once.

[moonglowmagic]

Who: @julianrchandlerx

Where: Starlight Bar

"You don't have to worry about me burning off your chest nuts tonight." She informed him as she attempted to light the candle in front of her and it didn't light. "Magic's out for the witches." She explained with a sigh, she raked a hang through her blonde hair. "As you can I'm sure tell by the many patrons here tonight." The bar was packed with witches wanting to drown out their magical sorrows for the night. "So what are you drinking, Chestnuts?"

[nicocastillo]

closed starter for @julianrchandlerx where: outside spilled ink when: a nice normal evening in mid-march

·✥·

Nico squinted into the darkened windows of the tattoo parlour, having only passed by it on a whim and gotten distracted by the designs on display. Thunder waited patiently at his feet, placated by the promise of the beach at the end of this adventure. "Might be better just to wing it," Nico told him, as though he had some vested interest in what designs his owners put on their bodies. "Alright, we'll figure it out later—" He caught sight of Julian across the street, though, and immediately brightened. "Julian! Hey," he waved, and jogged across to the other man, Thunder in tow. "How've you been, man? Hey—" the question occurring in real time to him. "You're an artist—what's your opinion on tattoos? I've only ever gotten non-magical ones, which, you know, don't really last on me? And Thunder doesn't seem to have any strong opinions about it," he said, nodding to the dog.

[savstone-rp]

@chvndlr

FRIENDS • S2E09 • “The One With Phoebe's Dad”

[fatesurvived]

You're the only one who's ever been able to see the real me. @centralperkfamily

❝ You're not giving the rest of them a chance. ❞ Ross was his childhood best friend and Joey was quite possibly his best friend now. The only person she could believe that to be true with was Rachel but even then she knew Rachel had a kind heart and admired Chandler. ❝ When I look at you, I see so many things. So many wonderful things. A promise of things to come. ❞

[julianxreese]

Let It Out // self para

It was such a struggle fumbling with the keys to his apartment, that Julian's grip of Dodger's leash around his hand tightened as the dog yanked and pulled like a fire had been lit under his tail. Not quite unusual, the two year old puppy always lacked a calm switch, bouncing around the apartment with untamable energy. Honestly, they were both growing stir crazy lately. The recent earthquake sent their city reeling and construction to repair the streets near his complex mostly locked himself and Dodger stuck inside with nowhere to go. Adding to that, Julian didn't trust his mind when left alone nor can he trust his choices. He wasn't an impulsive person, he has never been impulsive, but people change.

"Alright, alright, big guy. Relax." His attempts to coax the dog proved futile as he closed the door and dropped to his knees, giving Dodger a few head scratches before unclasping the leash and watching the Labrador retriever immediately bolt in the direction of the kitchen. Julian rose to a standing position with an exasperated sigh and placed the leash on the hook hung by the front door for convenience. He waited a moment, and then another, and then another, the anticipation of Dodger's barks for his dinner or even the sloppy laps from his water bowl to reach his ears catching Julian by surprise when neither happened. He's probably sitting in there and waiting, the thought occurred. "Dodge?" He moved toward the kitchen curiously when the sound of glass clinking stopped Julian in his tracks.

Julian's imagination immediately began running wild, from a lowly burglar breaking into the home right down to even an assassin laying in wait for the attack. He knew one, however, and Judas would surely warn him if someone placed a bounty on his head, right? Nobody in Hedgestone knew how deep his connection lay already, they couldn't. Julian went so far as rationalizing this intruder was a figment easily explained away by the dog simply knocking something off the counter. "Dodger, come here, boy." Julian called out uneasily.

"You know, that's the flaw of dogs, they're so trusting." A voice came floating from the kitchen before the body in which it belonged to crowded the doorway with Dodger at their side. The figure, tall and built slender, held a glass of bourbon in one hand he sipped at with a mannerly fashion only present in the higher social circles. And he was just as fashionably dressed as Julian remembered back in their high school days. "Maybe even too much."

"Chandler." Julian breathed an enormous sigh of relief, steadying his heartbeat as well as he could. It hadn't been long since he found himself in the other male's presence, a quick run-in at the Urie mansion after Austen's resurrection became public knowledge. The brief pleasantries were tainted by awkwardness especially with how the house of cards that was his relationship to Morrigan came crashing down unceremoniously. He always admired Chandler's confidence roaming the school halls like he owned it, head held high, and tenacity spilling from his lips. Julian could never adopt the loquacious candor Chandler presented with performance, and though the last name contributed to Chandy's infamy, Julian never saw him as cold-hearted or standoffish. "Come here, buddy." The man directed a murmur towards the dog and patted his thigh, watching Dodger trot over to stop at his master's rightful side. His gaze came to settle on the man, "Whatever the hell it is you're here for, I really don't have the mental capacity right now."

Chandler hummed lightly, glancing between the puppy and his owner, "I hope you don't mind that I let myself in. You weren't home yet and I personally didn't have the mental capacity as you so described it to make the tedious journey all the way back here. My time's far too precious, you know." He released a scoff and crossed the threshold into the living room before taking a seat in an armchair that was looking a little worse for wear. Every piece of furniture contained within Julian's apartment had been well-maintained apart from the one Chandler sat himself in. Which only bore a tell-tale indication of constant use. "We need to talk, Julian. Sit."

"Talk? Oh, now you want to have a little chat." Julian's words ran dry in his mouth, experiencing an understandable array of emotions given instructions from someone you do not want visiting your residence and stringing the sentence humankind has learned can only follow dread. "I think we both know what this is going to be about." He stated after a pause, shrugging an arm in defeat and finding a spot in the middle of the couch. Dodger didn't hesitate jumping up on the cushions and resting his head in Julian's lap. If there's one sliver of comfort he could focus on, it was that.

"I assure you, you don't. Not completely, anyway. And do spare the dramatics." Chandler crossed one leg over the other casually and touched his lips to the glass he still totted, allowing the silence rise between them until it would leave Julian slightly squirming. The art of intimidation isn't a lesson obtained without an expert leading by example. His father, both birth and adopted, didn't hesitate proving their throne of power at every opportunity. Julian shifted uncomfortably in his seat from where Chandy could see which he didn't enjoy as much as he imagined. "You see, dove, I don't hide the lengths I will and have gone in further establishing my loyalty to family. I'm a bonafide Urie through and through. My position, the wealth, all pale in comparison to my sister's happiness." He sat back comfortably, continuing the spiel, "You made her happy. I'll be the first to confess that I'm forever the captain of this secret Julian and Morri ship however doomed for failure it became." Chandler waved a hand dismissively, "No matter my personal liking of someone, Morrigan's safety is and has always been my priority."

"I'm not a threat to her." Julian couldn't be certain that was the point being presented. He never sensed an inkling of a doubt Chandler was the type of person who traveled the ends of the earth for those he held most dear. If their roles were reversed, god forbid, he would do the same for Casey and has gone to lengths protecting his sibling. Julian traded his life for Casey's when the borders closed for good knowing his time in Hedgestone was sealed anyway.

"Oh?" Chandler observed as the dark-haired male spent the pause digging around in his jean pocket and produced a cell phone. Nothing but the sound of Chandler's fingers tapping the surface filled the air until his searching came upon a video sent through a chain of text messages. The moment he pressed play and turned the screen around, Julian's stomach immediately dropped with recognition. There, displayed in color complete with sounds, was his private meltdown at the batting cage a couple days back. Being present there and experiencing the anger was one thing, watching himself was somehow worse. The defeated expression along his features must have caught Chandler's attention for the other resumed, "When the outside world sees a man who's centered his personality around patience and a calm head lose his shit so ferociously, people begin asking questions. They start making connections and all roads lead to their guarded leader."

"You had me followed." Julian mustered the statement quietly, feeling a nauseous bile linger in his throat.

"Of course I had you followed." Chandler lifted his gaze in an eyeroll and released a sigh surrounded by impatience as he shoved the device back into his pocket. "You've been followed even after our cover was blown, Julian, I personally saw to it during my time away from St. Cascadia. Morri isn't aware yet of the precautionary steps I've put in place, but she will once I take my leave." He debated showing her the video that accompanied the explanation. Chandler despised keeping secrets from Momo, but she would've been outspoken about her objections. "If somebody like me possesses the means to snag this footage, what makes you think the gossip bitch herself hasn't already?"

"No, no, no, why would you have any possible reason to do that?" Julian sharply sat up further in his seat to a point where Dodger lifted his head with slight alarm, but the man couldn't see straight. There have been eyes on him since the relationship toppled, watching him, anticipating his next move as if he were seconds from causing a woman he loved harm. Chandler's reasons hardly mattered now, surveillance or no, there's now digital evidence proving Julian approached dangerous territory. "I don't need you breaking into my apartment and telling me I've slapped a target on my back, Chandler. I suffered with it for years watching her from the sidelines. Seeing how the world treated her, how every person in our school looked at her, the mantle she took after what happened to her father and Desmond-"

Chandler raised his hand and swiftly interrupted the statement at the mere mention of their deceased brother, "Please, waste your breath and continue lecturing me on the burdens that come with being a leader. It's not as if I wasn't there attending unbearable lessons with Dezzie." He spit with sarcasm, pinching the bridge of his nose before leaning forward in seriousness Chandler couldn't stand. "Don't assume I'll send off this video for Savitri to peruse and post. I'm a petty bastard, but perception is everything." Especially from Hedgestone's many residents. "I understand how it seems you've been abandoned and left to drown as the rest of the faction moves on, dove. You two chose distance and that was supposed to save your life." Chandler straightened his posture with demanding assertion, "What you have been tormenting yourself over, you can't have it both ways and straddle the line. You can't love her and expect to remain the golden boy-next-door you've painted for the world's viewing."

Wasn't the notion sensible, believing a man harboring the best friend status found Julian's breakdown useful and present everyone's most reviled blogger the perfect opportunity to post the bombshell on a new target they haven't written about before? Julian knew the only reason the other male refrained and she wasn't in this room. Somehow, he cannot appreciate it the way Chandler hoped for, as if he preconceived a sign of gratitude. "Save my life? Staying in Hedgestone and watching as you both carry on as if you didn't destroy what little life I tried building consumed me, Chandler." He exclaimed in exasperation, shaking his head repeatedly. "Morrigan doesn't want to be with me anymore, I'm nothing. It was her kingdom or love and you know her choice."

"I cannot speak on Morri's behalf and give you a false sense of hope by promising she desires another whirlwind romance with her high school sweetheart, but you also can't proclaim standing at her side while simultaneously showing disgust for the blood on her hands. So to speak," Chandler's hazel gaze pulled from Julian and rested on the back of his own hand, inspecting the nails coolly. "Take a walk on the dark side and embrace who you could be if she happened to take you back. It's not a bad place to be garnering a leader's favor, handsome. Don't think of it a treachery or betrayal." He looked upon the oldest Reese through a half-lidded stare coated by playfulness. "Own it."

Julian could do nothing but process the words with mass confusion, staring dumb-founded as he pictured himself standing at the edge of a vast forest, nothing but swirling darkness reaching forward and claiming him. He traveled along its length for many years, always staying safe at the border, but never making a valiant dare hopping the fence to see what awaited on the other side. His foot slowly inched over, flirting the temptation, particularly regarding his interactions with dangerous people, and yet he still chose righteousness. Maybe he wasn't completely good. He wasn't innocent, perfectly behaved, nor angelic. What made him saintly maybe became an attractive appeal for Morrigan, but loving her turned his soul to poison. This is the eternal dark without a dawn. "You want me to own it. I mean, I had no way of knowing I was inflicted with whatever this is after I've lost everything. Right?"

"Ah," Chandler released a hum and nodded once in understanding, "Right, this is about wonder boy's little hot dish of gossip he calls an expository article." He himself threatened violence upon the reporter when the written piece crossed his phone's screen. An attractive imbecile, if he has ever been acquainted with one. "How rude it should be of me to send an assassin after him, would it not? Justified, but rather impolite. I'd prefer burying my own bodies."

Julian opened his mouth and expected a response to spill, ultimately closing it instead when there were a half dozen sarcastic statements that could have been offered. No, Leonardo's article did not sooth his anxieties and convince him he wasn't tearing the hair from his skull for no silly reason. "Yeah, so," He mustered, "I'm going to pretend you didn't just say that, you know, in case he disappears and I'm questioned. I don't really care to drop the soap for your benefit."

"No need dropping the soap when I have a view of that perfectly chiseled bottom for free any day." Contemplation covered his sharp features before the matter at hand pulled him back to reality. "Look, you haven't lost anything, Julian. Anyone who judges you for what your heart cannot help yearning are not true friends. It's not my responsibility to speak for Momo, but I will say this," Chandler rose from the chair to a standing position as his nimble fingers worked on the buttons of his designer coat. "Beyond the frigid distant dictator, I think she still loves you. You're the one who got away. The teenage dream, the..." He rolled his wrist as if it may help conjure the thoughts, "The reason why I do not have little nieces and nephews to spoil rotten by now."

Julian hesitantly followed the other's lead and stood up the same time Chandler had, folding his arms across his chest so he wouldn't fidget. "You really think if past events were different, we'd have children." A fantasy, a world without Douglas' existence suffocating his daughter's choices of the man she would spend the rest of her days with, just the two of them and any number Morrigan wanted for children. Whether it is one or three or ten, Julian would abide if her happiness persisted. "I know you're only saying it to make me feel better, but as long as I make sacrifices for her, I'll keep losing everything."

"And here I am, left playing the matchmaker." Chandler extended a hand and gently ruffled Dodger's head as he squeezed past both him and the dog's owner to reach the front door, shrugging, "You know the choice you're faced with, dove. Though, I'm tickled by an inkling you have already made it."

"Maybe I have. Now, it's up to Morrigan." Julian rounded the couch and met the other at the apartment's exit. The last few days brought an accumulation of extreme exhaustion and here Chandler arrives to dump the avalanche when all he needed was a beg for pitiful mercy. He was talented at that, wasn't he, throwing himself at clemency's feet and kissing the ground she walked. Why shouldn't his pleading extend towards her right hand man?

"Good. I knew I liked you for a reason. Other than those rippling pectorals and that hair even I'm jealous of." Chandler reached out his hand again and flirtingly wound a lock of Julian's curls around an index finger, humming as the man pulled away in annoyance. Releasing a chuckle, he dropped his arm and nudged open the door, "Allow me to arrange a meeting and perhaps, I'll see you around the mansion more often. God, how I have missed that face."

"Chandler?" Julian knew he should let this go and save the conversation for another day, but he waited over a decade for answers. He watched Chandler turn around at the sound of his name with the same curiosity shared between the two men. "You left me in that hallway with excuses, did you forget that?" Julian sure didn't. "I spent weeks debating whether I should've stood at those gates and waited for someone to come out to tell me what the fuck happened, but no, all I had were your words. That I was just a distraction, your amusement, that I'd been used for my naïve outlook." He stepped forward, closing the space that much further and feeling the same anger spike. "Is this you saying she actually loved me?"

When they were standing next to each other, Chandler only just noticed he towered over Julian by a few inches. Somehow, he knew the subject would land here. Their last chat at school after the incident at home. The unimaginable torture of the three Urie children and the reason he vanished on his travels. God, how he dreaded this confrontation. "I know you possess the brains in that pretty head of yours, Julian. Think about it," He tipped his head back, "You are bombarded by confirmed tales about our father from myself, you know the horror stories from Morrigan. One day, everything is fine and the next, we're no longer attending classes. Leaving me with the task of shattering a relationship Morri cannot do herself. Fill in the blanks, dove."

His worst fears realized. Julian couldn't face the fact he was being told complete lies back then and he was struggling coping with it now. He thought back on that day, pinpointing details overlooked by the initial shock. Something about Chandler's demeanor screamed exhaustion. The rings around his eyes, the irritability alone, hinted toward what had caused the haunted look on the other man's face. No smiles nor playfulness, only hidden desperation. "Tell me what happened, Chandler. Did he touch her?" He couldn't help playing the defensive even if the man in question was buried six feet under.

Chandy breathed a humorless chuckle, shaking his head with overwhelming sadness. "I can't, Julian, I'm sorry. Only four people know what happened and two are dead. It's in everyone's best interests if we keep it that way." He turned on his heel and placed a hand to the doorknob, the deja vu creeping along his spine of history repeating itself. Chandler's mind flashed backwards in time, to his torment implemented by his adopted father. His memories shut down a long time ago and he had no choice but leave that boy behind. Leave Julian behind. Something told him he couldn't do that this easily now. "Look," Chandler turned slightly, "You will never fully grasp the sacrifices Morri made for you, Julian. She, my brother, and I risked everything for you. We protected you...and I protected her." He allowed the statement sit for a second.

"If you can't tell me anything, then why come here at all?" Julian hissed through his teeth in frustration. That's what this is, a constant running in circles and a haunting of a ghost's tormenting whispers. This is the reason why he found himself at a batting cage, losing his marbles, and taking the insanity out on a meaningless fence that did absolutely nothing. It mattered little compared to what Morrigan must have endured at the hands of her father, something now left to his imagination. Just another reason he was relieved Douglas was gone. "Why play matchmaker now, as you called it? What are you really doing here, Chandler? Just enlighten me for once."

"Oh, handsome," Chandler reached out his hands and began straightening the collar of Julian's shirt with a wistful sigh, wanting to speak a million sentences and offer the brutal reasons why he does what needs doing. The mender, the guard dog, the loyal sibling protecting his sister's happiness. Even in that moment, though, he could appreciate Julian for merely what he was born with. Chandy and Morri always had that trait in common, a real taste for the attractive ones. "I'm fixing it."

Julian stood stock still, knowing the other's fussing had been a standard habit he relented complaining about. Maybe it was a method of caring, of acceptance, or it could have very well been an obvious flirtation. "How?" He brushed Chandler's hands away and stepped back while his gaze searched the other's expression. Clearly, guilt doesn't just weigh heavily, it also brings his ex's best friend to his doorstep in the search for mending past mistakes. Admirable. And confusing all the same.

Chandler considered this briefly, pondered his own plan weaving a solution for Morrigan and her past lover. Momo forever carried her shackles as a leader and guarded her heart safely, but if she understood how dire the situation became with regards to Julian's place in the dark from their secrets, she would know Douglas' leash shattered the day he died. One promised meeting and she could have everything if she asked it of Chandler. "Trust me." Trust me now like you trusted me back then.

"Chandler," Julian began as patiently as he could muster, "That's not a comforting answer-"

"Ah, ah, ah," Chandy shot out one hand and placed a finger to the man's lips in order to silence him which, he could have found rather humorous seeing how easily it succeeded in doing so, "It's the only answer I can provide for the time being. As of now, don't do anything stupid until you hear back from me, capeesh?" He patted Julian's cheek amusingly and didn't bother staying for drinking in the oldest Reese's stunned silence before finally taking his leave.

Chandler's last goodbye adhered to the basic identifiers of his ostentatious personality, finding new and improved ways earning jaw-dropping moments, making memorable exits no one could question. His mouth curved in a displeased frown as the straight and narrow road ahead veered into a completely different lane. It was slowly driving past an horrendous car crash one could not look away from, a beautiful disaster of mangled decisions and gruesome scars that would take ages to heal. Julian fought his losing battle for the very last time.

Right here and now, all he can do is dive headfirst and hope this isn't the death of him.

[jazfields]

"Yeah, and again, flip that, reverse it, and same. Seriously, you're good." Jaz gave his shoulder a gentle nudge. Frowning slightly at his response, Jaz took a contemplative sip of her drink. "I'd prefer not to have worm juice on my outfit tonight, so no, but if you ever want to play in the dirt, I am just a text away." Hopefully he would understand the extended metaphor. She looked away from him for a moment, wordlessly communicating something to the bartender.

"Woah, wait. I didn't - I mean yes, I did but like...it's not personal. I just like men more than women. But I do like both and nobody in your family is hard to look at so like....it's not rude if it's just my sexual orienenentation, right?" He offered, stumbling on the last word because holy shit was it hard to say orientation right now. The way she looked at him and then asked him if he was okay...he didn't know how to respond. On one hand, his life was going fantastic! He had worked so hard to get to where he was at now and it was finally paying off. For the first time in his life, he liked what it looked like and who he was. But there were things he was battling that nobody saw, and he was scared he was going to sabotage himself. Things had never been this good, and they wouldn't be able to stay that way. He didn't wanna lie to her, but he also didn't want anyone looking too closely. So he just shrugged. "You really wanna open that can of worms here?" He finally replied.

[emptytcwn]

rio <3