Crying

A Logan/Julian drabble

"Jules" Logan knocked impatiently on the door of his friend's room. "Jules come on. I know I've been acting like a dick but please let me in. I have to apologise sometime"

"Then just come in" Logan heard Julian say faintly through the closed door "You might as well get this over with"

Logan opened the door and found Julian sat on his bed hunched over a script, furiously highlighting something on the page. Logan noticed that Julian's hand was shaking as he marked the page, and as he looked at his face he could see what looked like tear tracks.

"I'm sorry. For arguing with you. I shouldn't have said all of that. I didn't mean it"

"I know. I didn't mean any of it either" Julian smiled faintly, his eyes still glued to the paper

"I know" Logan said as he closed the door and approached Julian's bed. He sat carefully on the edge, trying not to disturb the array of papers and books that were covering the surface of it. "Are you...okay?"

"Fine. Why'd you ask?" Julian smiled up at him from his script

"You're doing the OCD work thing again...You only do that when you're upset or stressed"

"It's unlike you to notice anything but yourself. What's wrong with you, your royal highness?"

"I'm trying...to be a good friend. I'm gonna stop chasing people. I'm just gonna stop"

"Well. That's good"

"Hmm" Logan studied Julian's face now that he was closer and could definitely see dried tear tracks. "Jules...what's wrong? You've...you've been crying. Why?"

"Stress" Julian shrugged nonchalantly "I guess it's just all the work here and this film coming up doesn't really help"

"No" Logan shook his head. He knew Julian, and he knew he worked fine with both school and his career. This had to be something else "That doesn't bother you. You work fine under pressure. Maybe even better than you usually do. It's something else"

"Wow. You are being perceptive today"

"Jules..."

"Okay... I...I have this fan...and they've been getting a little too attached to me"

"Oh"

"I've been getting messages and they keep sending me this stuff. They said if I take this new role that they'd...well that they'd kill me"

Logan looked at Julian in shock. "Please tell me you've told somebody about this"

"I've told Derek..."

"You need to tell the police. This isn't just a fan, Jules. This is a stalker..."

"Don't you think I know this?" Julian asked, his voice creeping up in octaves and breaking slightly at the end "Don't you think it's all I can think about? They could be anywhere. They left a message in Dalton...right outside Stuart after the fair. They can come for me any time they want" By the end Julian was fighting to keep the emotions in his voice under control, and tears were threatening to fall from his eyes again.

"I won't let anything happen to you" Logan said quietly, his voice low and furious "I mean it Jules. Nothing's gonna happen. Not while I'm here"

And then the tears fell again, and Logan found himself throwing the papers off of the bed, and dragging his friend over so that he could hold him close in a comforting embrace as he silently cried. "Nothing's gonna happen to you. You're safe here"