So, I have no idea how common power outages are in LA, but they're fairly common where I live so I just used that as inspiration lol.
Title is from the song Disconnected by 5 Seconds of Summer.
Cross-posted on AO3.
"Jules? You home?" Luke calls out as he walks through the front door of their house.
He throws his gym bag and (carefully places) his guitar case on the floor of the entry way before pausing a split second, waiting to hear if Julie responds. When she doesn't, he sighs as he makes his way into the kitchen to scour for any leftovers they might have collected over the course of the week.
He settles for the last slice of pizza in their fridge, deciding that eating it cold would have to do because he's too impatient to wait the thirty seconds it would take to just stick it in the microwave. Then he pours himself a glass of water and makes his way to the living room.
Looks like he's on his own tonight.
Again.
Which, he doesn't want to sound like he's complaining. He really doesn't.
When Alex told the band that he wanted Julie and the Phantoms to take a small hiatus after he and Willie got married, the group was more than happy to oblige.
It meant that Reggie could wind down and relax with his family after almost three years of non-stop touring and gave Luke and Julie a chance to finally move out of their too-small apartment and into a real house now that they had the financial means, which was special in and of itself because it's the first house they've officially owned together.
It was nice at first. To sit on the floor of their kitchen laughing together and eating nothing but Cup of Noodles because they were too lazy to unpack anything but the microwave.
To finally decide they probably should unpack the boxes that had been sitting untouched for almost a week.
To bicker over how they wanted to arrange the furniture in each room, and then rearrange a few hours later until they'd tried every possible layout only to decide their original idea was the best.
It was nice. It was easy. It was simple.
But of course, they're Julie and Luke, so it was only a matter of time before their minds started to crave songwriting, their fingers itching for their instruments.
Julie chose to work on her own solo project. She had too many songs hidden in her old notebooks, ones she'd written with her mom, that didn't quite fit the Phantoms sound but were too good to never see the light of day. So she was making an album dedicated to Rose.
Luke chose to work with a few artists the band had met on their rise to stardom and help write songs for their albums. He doesn't care in what capacity he makes music – he's just glad to be making it.
He knows he's lucky in the sense that Julie's not only his music partner, but also his life partner. Until the Phantoms hiatus, they really hadn't done much apart since…well, since they became a band a decade ago during their high school years.
But now he's at the studio writing until late evening, and when Julie's not recording her album, she's either answering emails or phone calls from the label, and they haven't had much time for just them since they made the decision to work on separate projects.
But like he said. He's not complaining.
He just misses her.
Luke collapses onto the sofa, his muscles that have been aching since his gym session that morning finally getting a chance to unwind. With the slice of pizza hanging from his mouth to free up his hand, he grabs the remote to switch the TV on. He settles on an old episode of Law and Order: SVU, all too aware of the time and that it's too late at night to watch anything but reruns.
He's about halfway through the episode when he hears footsteps from down the hall. Seconds later, Julie appears, barefaced and in a pair of old sweats and one of his t-shirts that almost completely engulfs her entire body and somehow, Luke thinks that this version of her is ten times more beautiful than any awards show look she's ever donned.
"You're home!" she exclaims, her perfect smile gracing her face as she skips over to the sofa where she inserts herself between him and the armrest, throwing her legs over him to where they're resting over his lap.
On instinct, he wraps his one hand around her thighs, his other reaching up to cradle her jaw.
"I am," he laughs. "I called for you when I came in. Thought you were still out."
She shakes her head, her usually wild curls restrained by the messy bun she was currently sporting. "Didn't hear you. I was on a call with the label about the track order."
Luke purses his lips. Of course she was.
"It's almost eleven, Jules. What're they doing calling you so late?"
Julie raises a playful brow. "Says the man that just got home from the studio."
"Yeah, well…okay fine." She had a point there.
Julie shoots him a smug smile. "That's what I thought."
Luke traces the outlines of her face with his gaze, starting from the loose strands of hair sticking out of her bun to her tired but sparkling brown eyes, down the slope of her nose until he settles on her lips.
Unable to wait any longer, he uses his hand that's still stroking her jaw to guide her closer, finally catching her lips with his in a sweet kiss.
Ten years.
He's been kissing her for ten years and it never gets old.
They pull away eventually, Julie shooting him a dopey smile that Luke is sure he mirrors right back.
"Hi," she says softly, barely a whisper.
"Hi."
And Luke's about to go in for a second kiss when he's interrupted by something vibrating against his thigh. A phone. Julie's phone.
He groans, tucking his head into the crook of her neck.
"Don't answer it," he pleads. "Whatever it is, it can wait until tomorrow."
But Julie's already pulling away from him.
"If they're calling me this late, it probably can't," she tells him, pulling out her phone to accept the call. "Hello? Hey, Andi. Yep. Yeah, I've got time."
She shoots Luke one last apologetic glance before walking out of the room.
Sighing in defeat, he turns back to the SVU episode he had so easily forgotten about in Julie's presence.
"Guess it's just you and me, Detective Benson," he says to the TV screen.
Great. Now he's talking to TV show characters. How much more pathetic can he get?
But after that thought, everything happens in the blink of an eye. Literally.
One second he's watching Benson and Stabler interrogate a suspect, the next he's staring into the pitch black, an eerie silence surrounding him.
"What the hell," he mutters to himself.
Did they…did they just lose power?
He pushes himself up from the couch, carefully trying to maneuver around the coffee table and over to a light switch. Sure enough, when he flicks it, nothing happens.
"Jules?" he calls out.
"In the office!"
Luke makes his way down the hallway, trying to avoid any walls or objects he could possibly run into. He's doing pretty well until he makes it to the foyer, his foot colliding with a heavy object.
"Ow!" he cries out, grabbing at his foot. Why is it that in the moment, stubbed toes always feel worse than any other injury he could think to imagine?
But then a bright light is shining on him, and Luke can make out Julie's amused smirk as she watches him hop around the foyer on his last remaining good foot.
"Why the hell do we have a table in the middle of our entry way? Who does that?" he asks, and sure, maybe he's being dramatic. But his toe really hurts.
"Luke, literally so many people have foyer tables," Julie deadpans. "And you would've been fine if you'd just used the flashlight on your phone, genius."
Luke rolls his eyes but doesn't respond. She's right, but he's stubborn and refuses to give her that satisfaction.
"What happened?" he asks instead.
"Blackout, I guess. Cell towers are down, too. My call cut out."
Luke sighs, running a hand through his hair. "I knew we should have installed those automatic generators before we moved in."
Julie giggles. "Well, too late for that now."
She's silent for a beat before biting her lip, a mischievous smile playing at the corners of her mouth. "You know what this means, right?"
He grins at her. Yeah. He knows exactly what this means.
"Drive?"
"Drive."
Power outages have always been one of Julie's favorite things.
Some of her fondest memories growing up are from a time when her neighborhood had lost power for a week thanks to a large tree falling on the powerlines, and her and Carlos and her parents had nothing to do but be together. No cable, no internet, just the four of them tasked with the challenge of entertaining each other.
How they created their own little fortress in the studio with candles instead of lights, takeout instead of homecooked meals. How they had to take quick two-minute showers so that the hot water in the water tank lasted as long as possible.
Carlos, who had just finished taking an after-school magic class, would put on elaborate shows (or, well, as elaborate as a seven-year-old could), forcing Ray to be his assistant on specific tricks. Julie and Rose would perform mini concerts, Julie pretending that their audience of two was multiplied by the thousands and that the studio had miraculously transformed into Madison Square Garden.
But her absolute favorite part of that entire week came after the sun went down.
It was then that her parents would pile her and Carlos in the car, and just drive.
They would take them through the neighborhood, the streetlights that lined the sidewalks standing tall but dormant, the traffic lights nothing more than a huge hunk of metal hanging over the roads, only the moon and the headlights of their car shining on the pavement.
When Julie was younger, she liked it because it made her feel a bit rebellious. Like she was breaking the rules driving through a traffic light that wasn't green, even if it wasn't working and even if it was her dad driving. But as she got older, and especially after she got her license and was able to make those blackout drives alone, she came to love the sense of peace it brought her.
The sense of peace it brings her.
As Luke sits in the driver's seat, one hand on the wheel and his free hand interlaced with hers, she stares out the window into the pitch-black night.
It's hard to explain the silence of a power outage. There's no far-off hum of air conditioners or furnaces people learn to just tune out over the course of their lifetime, no TV playing so loud it bleeds onto the street. It's as if the hustle and bustle of a functioning city dies with the power. Like the world has become infinitely silent. It's the most calming thing Julie's ever experienced.
She lets out the breath she feels like she's been holding for weeks, the tension and stress that have been building up in her body finally releasing as she listens to the sound of nothing. She knows she's been pulling long hours trying to get her solo album as perfect as it can be, but she hasn't realized just how much it's taken out of her until now.
She feels Luke glance over at her. "You good?"
Julie nods reassuringly. "Yeah. Just…relaxed. Where we going?"
She doesn't know why she asks that. She already knows the answer.
"Where do you think?" he says playfully.
She grins back at him. "To the end of the blackout?"
"You're damn right."
Julie laughs. It was a tradition her family started all those years ago, and one she and Luke have continued with. They drove until the first sight of power, and then would turn back. Sometimes it would take five minutes, sometimes twenty. But there's nowhere else for them to be. No phone service to answer calls, no internet to respond to emails. They have all the time in the world.
She knows she's missed Luke. How could she not? Their lives have been entwined in every aspect of life for the last decade. Which is why she'd initially thought that working on separate projects while the Phantoms were on hiatus would be good for them. Would give them each their own thing.
So she knows she's missed him. She just doesn't realize how much until they're in his car, driving down the pitch-black road as they play silly road games and talk about nothing and everything to pass the time. It's easy with him. It always has been. Even at fourteen, when she felt like life had delt her the hardest hand imaginable with losing her mother, it was easy with Luke. Even now, on the rare occasion like tonight when they finally have time for each other, it's easy.
It takes about fifteen minutes before they see a gas station lit up in the distance.
"Pretty good-sized blackout," Luke says.
He pulls into the gas station to turn around and start heading back to their house.
"No kidding. Largest one we've had in a while."
Luke hums in agreement.
"So," Julie starts, grinning at him as she places her elbow on the console, resting her head in her hand. "What do you want to do when we get home?"
Just then an oncoming car lights up the inside of their own, illuminating the bright smile set on Luke's face for just a moment as he thinks of his response.
"Monopoly," he finally says.
Julie can't help but laugh. "Monopoly? It's just the two of us, Luke. That's not going to work."
"That's not true. It says minimum of two players in the directions."
"One, it's really cute that you know that, and two, maybe so but it's definitely not as fun with two players!"
Luke scoffs. "I think you're just afraid I'm gonna whoop your ass like I did last time."
Julie's jaw drops in disbelief. The audacity of this man…
"That only happened because you, Reggie and Willie teamed up against Alex and me! So not fair."
"All's fair in love and war…and Monopoly."
She tries to glare at him, but it's not like he can see it in the dark, even if she were able to keep herself from breaking out into a smile.
"Well we'll just have to see about that, won't we?"
"Bring it, sweetheart."
When they arrive back home, Luke practically beelines it to their game drawer, this time thinking to use the flashlight on his phone.
"I'll find the game. Meet you in our room!"
Julie laughs. "Someone's eager," she calls out, but it falls on deaf ears as he's already made his way through the halls in search of the game.
She starts for their room, grabbing a few candles and a lighter along the way. Who said game nights and blackouts couldn't include a bit of romance, too?
But just as she's about to light the first candle, the lamp on her nightstand she'd left on before the power outage flickers a time or two, before becoming a steady stream of light brightening the room.
Before she can even process that they have power once again, she feels the familiar sensation of her phone vibrating in her back pocket as she receives an abundance of texts and emails that seem to finally have gone through.
And just like that, the magic of the blackout is broken.
She pulls out her phone, reading the first message.
Andi: Call me as soon as you're able. We have a bit more we need to decide on for the album tonight.
"Let me guess. You've gotta call them back?"
Julie startles, her eyes snapping up to meet Luke's disappointed gaze. Her heart lurches at the thought that she's the one disappointing him. She never wants to be that for him.
But she also knows that he understands. Understands what this album means to her.
"I…I'm sorry," she says, struggling to find the right words. "It sounds important. Hopefully it won't take too long."
He just shrugs her off, already walking towards the bathroom after setting the Monopoly board on the edge of their bed. "It's fine. I gotta shower anyways. I'll leave you to it."
"Luke," she calls out, causing him to halt in his steps. "Are you okay?"
He doesn't turn back to face her, but she can see the tension in his shoulders as he reaches up to run a hand through his messy, slightly overgrown hair, something he only does when he's frustrated or upset.
"I'm fine, Julie. Totally fine."
Then he retreats the rest of the way to the bathroom, effectively shutting the door and shutting her out all at once.
He's definitely not fine.
Luke tries not to be too upset at the fact that their night was ruined by the inconvenience of electricity (a sentence he never thought he'd say), but he's finding it extremely difficult. He isn't upset at Julie per se, just more at the entire situation in general.
He was so ready for tonight. To stay up with Julie into the early hours of the morning doing nothing but playing games and talking and kissing and just being. Was that too much to ask? To spend some quality time with his girlfriend?
And blackouts are one of her favorite things in the world. He wanted to give her a night of that, knowing that the album has been taking a toll on her.
But apparently, that was too tall an order to fill.
He sighs, stepping out of the shower. He throws on a fresh pair of pajama bottoms before running a towel through his hair in an attempt to soak up as much water as possible.
Grabbing his phone off the bathroom counter, he makes his way back into their bedroom, only to be met with almost complete darkness, the only bit of light coming from where Julie's currently trying to light an array of candles.
"Um, Jules? What's happening?"
She whirls around, pointing the lighter she was using for the candles at him.
"Don't turn the lights on!" she says frantically.
On instinct, Luke throws his hands up as if he's done something wrong.
"Uh, okay?" he drawls out.
"And…give me your phone!"
He raises a confused brow at her, but nonetheless surrenders it. She takes it, turning it off and placing it on the nightstand where, upon further inspection, he realizes her own phone currently resides as well.
"You wanna tell me why you're acting like you're about to kidnap me?"
In the faint light he can see her roll her eyes.
"I'm not kidnapping you," she says, and he watches her carefully as her exasperation melts into a satisfied grin. "The blackout didn't last as long as we thought it would earlier so…I'm bringing it back to us."
And finally, he understands what she's trying to do.
"Jules," he says softly, stepping into her space. "You don't have to do that. I was just being stupid earlier and-"
"How you feel is not stupid, Luke," she cuts him off, wrapping her arms around his neck. "I know it's been hard lately. We're not used to spending so much time apart. But that's what makes nights like tonight even more special, and I'm sorry I almost ruined it earlier."
Luke shakes his head vigorously, the backs of his fingers grazing over her cheekbone. "You didn't. It's okay. I know what your album means to you. How important it is. I get it."
"Yeah, but you're just as important," she assures him, her deep brown eyes sparkling in the candlelight. "So tonight, it's just you and me. The rest of the world can wait."
He doesn't respond right away, and she knows him all too well to know when he's hesitating because of his own guilt and fear of being too much of a burden to say what he really wants or needs.
"Luke," Julie says, grabbing his chin gently, yet firm enough to force him to look her in the eyes. "Seriously. The world can wait."
And seeing that fire and determination and certainty in her eyes, all of which undoubtedly makes Julie Molina who she is, finally gives Luke the reassurance he needs.
"World can wait," he repeats, his face slowly breaking out into a playful grin. "I've got a Monopoly game to win."
And with that he launches himself onto their bed, right in front of the board game.
She laughs as she follows, sitting down across from him and opening the Monopoly box. "Good luck with that, honey. You're going to need it."
"Hey Jules," he says, causing her to pause in setting up the game. "Thank you."
She smiles softly at him, leaning over the board to give him a quick peck on the lips.
"Of course."
He knows in the morning Julie's going to have to make up for lost time with her album production, and he knows that he's going to be too sleep deprived to create any music worth recording, but in the moment, he just can't find it in himself to care.
In the end, neither of them ends up winning. Julie had been right earlier, as she usually is, and Monopoly with two people definitely is not as fun as it is with a group. But they play in the candlelight until Luke officially can't take the boredom of it anymore (although Julie argues it's because he lands on her hotel-clad Boardwalk property for the third time), and they decide to switch to Battleship, a classic that was made for two people.
Julie beats him handily every single time.
It's far more than perfect.