HOW DO YOU DEVELOPMENT
I feel like everyone's really OOC, and I think there should be more development between Reed and Julian before the third part . I tried.
The rain had started pouring around 11am on Sunday morning. Almost everyone was inside, keeping away from the horrific weather. Even the twins had been dragged back inside by Kurt, after trying to get up to something ridiculous again.
By 2pm, Julian was the only person outside, lying alone on a bench, his hands folded neatly against his stomach. He wasn't entirely sure how long he'd been there, but he was soaked through. He'd probably have to go back inside soon, or Derek would start telling him again about how he was going to get hypothermia.
How was Dalton's resident playboy secretly a mother hen?
"Julian, what are you doing?!" a voice called across the courtyard.
Julian sat up to watch the smaller boy running over to him, head ducked from the rain. "Be careful," he called, though tonelessly, knowing the other boy's disposition for clumsiness.
"What are you doing?" Reed repeated, sitting next to him and brushing his wet curls out of his face.
"I like it." Julian answered simply, looking up at the sky.
Reed didn't reply, but tilted his head back slightly to follow his gaze.
Julian bored quickly of the task they'd been set, instead staring aimlessly around the room. He smiled as his eyes settled on Reed, who was being teased by the twins. They'd seated themselves on either side of their dormouse, and Reed was looking flustered as they successfully distracted him from their work. One would start pinging Reed's curls, and while he was distracted batting that one away the other twin would move around the items on the desk, so Reed was never quite sure where to find his pen. He started laughing and hid his face in his hands, removing them to say something to the twins that Julian couldn't hear over the babble, but whatever it was made them both grin. Julian found himself grinning at the scene, when the left twin looked up. Their gazes met and Julian quickly looked away, missing the eyeroll Derek gave him, who'd barely paused in his conversation with Logan.
"Jules, are you coming?" Logan asked.
"Where?" Julian asked quickly, trying to cover up his mental absence.
Julian arrived to the party a couple of hours late, having change his mind about attending hours after it'd started. It was at a day student's house, though he wasn't sure which anymore. He'd just followed Derek's directions.
Music was loud and rooms were dimly lit, people dancing everywhere. Julian noted that the bass was aggressively loud, frowning as he scanned the room for someone he knew, pressing down the thought of "Peasants." He spotted Derek dancing with some girl and considered making his way over to them when he spotted Reed on the floor surrounded by a pile of cushions, and instead decided to investigate the strange behaviour.
"Hey." Julian shouted over the music, and gesture to the cushions. "What are you doing?"
"I have to make sure I don't fall down." Reed slurred his reply slightly, nodding slowly as he said it.
"Have been crying?" Julian asked, tilting his head, trying to catch a better view of Reed's face in the dark room.
Reed's eyes started to water. "I'm going to be alone forever!" he exclaimed, looking so desolate Julian almost laughed at the ridiculousness.
"How much did you have?"
Reed shrugged in response, his head now bowed as he continued crying.
Jesus Christ. "Do you want to go outside and get some air?"
When Reed didn't reply, Julian pulled him to his feet anyway, guiding him out to the front yard as Reed clung to him for balance.
"Okay?" Julian asked, glad for the distance from the volume of the music, though it was still insanely loud.
"What if no one ever loves me?" Reed asked dejectedly, sitting down on the grass and pulling his knees up to his chest.
Julian sat down next to him, putting an arm around his shoulders. For purposes of balance. Definitely. He was surprised when Reed leaned into him, resting his head on his shoulder.
Of course Reed would be a weepy, needy drunk.
"You won't be forever alone. Some girl will come along and find you adorable." Julian tried to reassure him, uncertain of what kind of reaction he'd receive.
"Might not want a girl…" Reed mumbled into Julian's shoulder.
"Alright, some guy then."
"Let's play truth or dare," Reed giggled, then frowned. "No, truth. I might fall down else."
"Who's starting?" Julian shook his head, but allowed Reed his game. It seemed like he was too drunk to remember anything in the morning anyway, even if he did find out something interesting.
"Are you… a dog person, or a cat person?" Reed was still slurring, and leaning heavily on Julian now.
Julian laughed. Was this how Reed played truth or dare? "I'm a hedgehog person." He replied.
"Now you have to ask me one." Reed reminded him. Reed was so drunk he could barely stand, and yet he was judging Julian.
"Tell me a secret." Julian said, instead of trying to think of something a drunken Reed could cope with.
Reed leaned back to squint at Julian. "I can't tell you that." He said after a minute, resting his head back on Julian's shoulder.
"No, you have to tell me now." Julian grinned. "Those are the rules."
"No." Was Reed's simple reply.
"Fine, tell me a different one." Julian rolled his eyes. It was Reed's game and he wouldn't play it properly.
"I am very ticklish." Reed told him, like he was saying something of great importance. "But, you can't tickle me now. Because Charlie said I have to not fall over. Are you ticklish?"
"You just stole my question!" Julian grinned, then replied "Yeah. But if I'm not allowed to tickle you, you're not allowed to tickle me."
"Deal." Reed replied, apparently either not realizing or not caring that Julian didn't technically ask him a question.
"Tell me another secret."
"That's the same thing as last time!" Reed protested.
"I'll keep using it until you tell me all your secrets."
"I… I do not like thunderstorms." Reed proclaimed, sounding sleepier now. "What would you do if you could spend a day with yourself? But another one of yourself. Not you."
"I don't know, probably have sex with myself to see what it'd be like," Julian replied, grinning as he earned a laugh from Reed. "Tell me another secret."
"You tell me one first," Reed replied.
"That's not fair," Julian protested. "You just had your turn."
"Tell me a secret?" Reed asked again.
"You have to keep it. And I have to whisper it so no one else hears." Julian warned him.
"Okay." Reed nodded, allowing Julian to rearrange them so that he could whisper in Reed's ear.
Julian hesitated slightly; he'd never told anyone before, but Reed was so drunk he probably wouldn't remember it in the morning, so if he regretted it it'd be fine. "I'm bi," he whispered, pulling away to check Reed's reaction.
Reed seemed too tired to do anything but nod and snuggle back into Julian.
"Come on, your turn." Julian reminded him. "Tell me a secret."
"It's a big secret." Reed replied. "So we're even. It's the one I almost said first."
"I get to know?" Julian asked in mock delight, though he was interested in what the dormouse had to divulge. "What is it?"
"I like you." Reed mumbled.
Julian paused. Reed couldn't mean…? "Well, I'm glad you like me, we're friends." He replied, trying to divert Reed. If that was what he meant then he'd probably regret telling Julian in the morning.
"No," Reed protested. "I- I like you." He paused before mumbling "I want to kiss you."
Julian stiffened. "Not now," he said gently. "You're drunk."
"A bit," Reed nodded in agreement. Julian could feel him falling asleep against him.
"Who are you here with?" Julian asked quickly.
Reed ignored him, his eyes closed.
"I know you're not asleep yet." Julian told him, but Reed just clung to him tighter.
Julian sighed and removed his phone from his pocket, choosing to call the Tweedles. They were usually at the head of all mayhem.
"Hello, Cheshire." The twins answered.
"Are you at the party?"
"No, we're busy this evening." One of them replied.
"Who did Reed come with?" Julian asked.
"A lot of people. Why?" Were they switching halfway through sentences? Julian thought they might be, but they were too swift to tell.
"He's passed out. Well, almost. I think. Anyway, I'm bringing him back to Windsor."
"Wait." Their tone changed. Almost warning. "We'll come and get him."
"It's fine, I've got it." Julian rolled his eyes. Were they worried he'd forget to put Reed in the car and leave him behind?
"We know how you feel about the dormouse, Cheshire."
"I'm going to bring him back to you." Julian bristled. "You can trust me. I'll take care of him until we get there."
Julian carried Reed, who was still sleeping, from his car back to Windsor. The twins must've been waiting, because they opened the doors immediately. One of them reached to take Reed, and Julian tried to make sure Reed was transferred as smoothly as possible so as not to wake him.
"How much did he have?" The other twin questioned.
"I don't know," Julian replied. "He was smashed when I got there."
Both twins hesitated before telling him, "Be careful with the dormouse, Cheshire."
"If you were to ever hurt him-"
"We have access to weaponry-"
"And large tracts of land."
Julian rolled his eyes. "Don't worry, I'm not going to wreck Wonderland." He smiled as he turned away from the door. "Your precious dormouse is safe."
The twins weren't accusing Julian of wanting to do things to Reed when he's passed out, but I know that's what it sounds like. It was meant to be more "Don't you dare kiss him when he's drunk." Thank you for reading ^.^
