CP Coulter owns everything!

Chapter 6

Logan's medication usually wore off around 10 P.M., so he was the most fun at night. He was always getting upset about things and yelling and then he was also much more daring about Julian and Julian swore that he'd been downright flirty on more than one occasion.

Then the next day he woke up and took his pills.

Logan came downstairs in sweatpants, holding a boxed set of Season 1 of Something Damaged. Julian could see his own face peering out from the cover, and it was very strange to see himself in pictures that he didn't remember being taken.

"Okay." Logan's green eyes were bright again as he popped the box open and pulled out a DVD. "So you are about to experience what will probably be the strangest feeling of your life," he said, looking at Julian as he deftly opened the DVD player and stuck the DVD into it. He picked up the remote from the coffee table and turned on the TV.

"I am prepared," Julian said, putting his feet up on the ottoman.

Derek came in with a bowl full of popcorn and set it on the couch. He sat down next to it, causing some kernels to spill. "We've all seen this about a hundred times," he complained, but when Julian shot him an angry glare, he pretended to pick his fingernails.

"I never get tired of it," Logan said as the title menu appeared, with Julian's face peering out sulking. He sat next to Julian, close, close, too close. Julian didn't really mind though. His shoulder was pressed right up to Logan's, his thigh ran along Logan's, his knee was on Logan's…

Logan pressed play.

And Julian found out that Logan was right. He was completely and totally right. It was the strangest feeling of his life.

Well, he didn't know for sure. Maybe he'd had stranger feelings.

But watching himself onscreen, doing things he did not remember doing at all, as if it was someone else…

That was weird.

But he was good. He'd been afraid he was a terrible actor, but he wasn't at all. He was actually very, very talented.

The first episode ended and Derek was texting someone and Logan was staring at Julian. Julian hadn't even noticed, he'd been so engrossed in watching the show and himself and trying to remember filming the show, which he didn't.

Julian glanced at Logan and jumped.

"You scared me!" he exclaimed.

"You get scared too easily," Logan replied with a smirk.

"You need to keep your eyes to yourself."

"You need to learn to watch TV without an expression so laughable as yours."

"You need to learn to ignore people with laughable expressions."

"You need to learn to stop being so adorable."

"…"

"…"

"I'm tired." Julian stood suddenly and walked jerkily out of the room, forcing his feet to move, forcing his heart to slow down, forcing his cheeks to stay a normal color, forcing his breaths to keep coming, forcing his legs up the stairs, forcing his mind to stop working, working, working, so fast, too fast.

The kitchen was open and airy, a window left open the night before letting a breeze come in from the ocean a few blocks away. Sunlight filtered through it, landing on the island, on which Julian was leaning, stirring coffee creamer into his coffee. He stared into the swirling brown substance, staring…thinking…He'd been up the whole night before, because he knew he needed to remember how he'd felt about Logan before, how Logan had felt about him, what he'd said to Logan just before he passed out, and whether or not Logan knew he was gay.

None of these questions were getting any answers, though, because he still couldn't remember anything.

"Distracted?"

Julian jumped, sloshing some of his coffee out of the cup.

Derek was standing in the entranceway to the kitchen.

"Why do you say that?" Julian asked, faking nonchalance.

"You've been stirring your coffee for three minutes," Derek said, pretending to check his watch.

"Oh. Well. I just like it extra stirred." Julian could've smacked himself. Wasn't he supposed to be an actor?

"Let's go for a walk," Derek said, jerking his head toward the door.

"Okay." Julian couldn't say no and maybe Derek would give him some helpful information – maybe he knew what Julian had said to Logan before Julian passed out.

The sun was shining bright, the sidewalk nearly empty. Julian and Derek headed in the direction of the beach, not talking for a little while.

"So," Derek said finally, not looking at Julian, "I think you deserve to know what happened the night you were shot, even if Logan tells me he'll kill me if I tell you."

There was a silence that Julian didn't want to break in case Derek changed his mind.

"It was a warm night. You had this creep who was threatening you – he left all these death threats. So Logan and I didn't want you to go out alone. You asked us if you could go outside because it was a nice night, and we went out with you. Logan started complaining and you guys fought, and he went back inside. Then you got shot. And I ran inside to get Logan, who kept his calm…way more than I did. I thought you were gonna die, man, I was freaked out. So Logan took hold of the situation – he saved your life. He told someone to call 911 and then he came to you.

"You were losing it. You got shot in the side, and you…" He took a deep breath, composing himself for something very important. "Okay, a little back story I think. You've been in love with Logan since-"

"DEREK SEIGERSON!"

Logan.

"Crap. Sorry, man," Derek said, turning around and waving.

"What are you doing?" Logan asked, panting as he ran up to Julian and Derek.

Julian, remembering the night before, felt crimson in his cheeks. What should he say? What should he do?

"Nothing. We're just walking. Is that illegal now?" Derek kept his calm, while Julian's palms were sweating. And Julian was the actor.

"I just thought you might be telling him…" Logan's eyes cut to Julian, green eyes, bright green eyes, no haze. He had apparently decided to skip the medication this morning.

Julian squirmed under Logan's gaze, intense, the green making him feel uncomfortable because he didn't know – he didn't remember – he didn't understand what had happened.

He still didn't.

'You've been in love with Logan since-'

Since when?

Was Logan in love back?

Had they been together? Were they going out? Had Julian ruined it all by not remembering?

"No. I wasn't. I wouldn't. It's not mine to tell, is it?" Derek sighed. "You need to tell him, though. Soon."

"I will," Logan said quickly, and Julian looked at him with hopeful eyes. "Just not today," he said to Julian, and Julian thought he saw something flicker in Logan's eyes – love – but it probably wasn't.

Probably it was just…fondness. Because they were best friends, weren't they?

Yeah.

But.

'You need to learn to stop being so adorable.'

Either Logan was one for strange compliments that meant absolutely nothing whatsoever.

Or he liked Julian.