Hello! It is Wednesday and I am back with a new chapter of this story :P Well, it's technically gone past midnight here in England but I think it still counts! In spite of the fact that in this chapter I will be continuing telling the story of Justin and Eli, it also focuses on Justin's father, James Morgan a fair bit as well! It shows that despite being a flawed person, he is at least consistent and caring. This story touches on the break up of Justin and Eli. It doesn't go too heavily into it for now but that will come. I think over the course of the chapters surrounding them that I have uploaded, it's pretty clear why they end up going their separate ways. And their undeniable passion makes it understandable that things end in quite a dramatic way! I hope you enjoy this though. Like the story suggests, it deals with three separate occasions, all slightly (or greatly) mirroring each other :3
Disclaimer: I own the story and the OCs mentioned!
This story is one of many tales. In some ways they are very alike. In others, not very alike at all. But they are all a part of life. They all involve lessons. And they all revolve around the same people, but all very different human beings.
For the first one, I actually witnessed it first-hand. And because it happened first of all and quite a long time ago now, we will begin right there. We shall begin in the Morgan apartment when everybody was living together in their different sections and a father and son in a kitchen together.
It was not rare for me to join another family to my own for dinner when we were all living in such close proximity and that day was one of the days where I joined Jessie and James and their children. It was all the more enjoyable from the fact that I was also there because the girl of their twins, Jazmyn, had chosen to write all about me for one of her school projects!
Naturally, I was flattered beyond belief. But this tale is not about that. This tale is not even about that particular Morgan child. It is about her twin brother. And I remember the exact expression on his face as I glanced over from sitting on the sofa when everybody else but he had gotten down from the kitchen table after finishing eating.
The deep purple haired young boy had a prominent frown on his face but it wasn't exactly a jagged one. It was definitely an absentminded one. And it was one that he was trying to hide also. So because of that, his creased brow moved in between showing that and having raised eyebrows instead. And as those expressions switched in between being on his face, he had one palm pressed flat on the table and with the other; he was pushing around the contents in his dinner bowl with his fork.
I could not hear a sigh that escaped his lips and nor could I gather whether he actually was exhaling or not. But his lips puckered just a little more than normal. And it was at the exact moment that his lips protruded a touch more and after Jessie and James whispered something or other and before the magenta haired woman led the younger two siblings away for bath time that the lavender haired male turned around properly from washing the dishes.
With a tea towel over his shoulder and his long locks hanging about his face, he turned to look at his son and with his hands on his hips. And after just a couple of seconds of observing and the deep purple haired young boy pushing his pasta around in his bowl some more, James decided to approach his son for good. And not only that, but he addressed him straight away. I watched from a good few metres away as James spoke to his eldest son.
"Is pushing your food around your bowl more interesting than it actually being in your belly, buddy?" James addressed Justin lightly and for no reason that I could think of, the older of the two switched where the tea towel was lingering on his shoulder onto his opposite one. After taking a few more steps forward, the lavender haired male invited himself to sit opposite his son. Justin barely looked up. "You really like it that little?"
The long deep purple haired young boy seemed to react to his father in slow motion. I observed that he could hear James almost straight away but it took his brain a little moment to catch up and prompt his body to outwardly react. And even when he did, he only very slowly moved his eyes away from his dinner bowl and locked into his father. As well as this, it seemed as though he wasn't really hearing him.
"Huh?" Justin mumbled out of habit and I wondered if it was him hearing his own voice that seemed to snap him into proper action and interaction. It certainly seemed that way. His innocent teal orbs mixed with an extra hue of green widened and blinked. And then he tried to have more words for the male opposite him. "O-Oh…"
However, the lavender haired male got there again first. With a small, fond smile taking over his lips, he pushed his hair from his eyes before his own palm planted flat on the dinner table. He interrupted.
"I really hope that this isn't a protest because Jaxon chose tonight's food." The ex-rocketeer male uttered with some seriousness in his voice but a jot of playfulness all the same and then he added before Justin's brow had a chance to crease with a frown all over. James leaned further forward and pushed the bowl a bit more towards his son. "C'mon. Get the rest of it down you, please. You've already been sat here long enough. Surely you can't deny yourself of your brother's favourite for the rest of the night."
Justin very much did let out a sigh that time and it was a sharp one! As well as that, to make a point, he pushed his bowl away from him once again and even further than James had pushed it towards him. And then he couldn't help but defend himself, an innocent frown taking over his young features.
"It's not that. I'm just not hungry, okay?" the deep purple haired young man retorted but not in too much of a harsh way so James let it slide with nothing more than raised eyebrows from his part. And then almost as though Justin himself was realising how long he had been sat at the kitchen table without everyone else – and it wasn't something he really wanted, his expression softened all over again.
His face appeared all the more introverted. And then naturally, a similar, caring expression took over James'.
Nevertheless, he still had to remain a parent. Instead of pushing his bowl towards him for a second time that time, he lightly patted his eldest son with his fingers on the boy's knuckles.
"Alright, well I would like you to finish at least half of it. I know you can get that much down you." James instructed fairly, a hand running through his own long locks all over and after he felt the deep purple haired young boy looking directly at him rather than the food in his dinner bowl, the older of the two added with another smile. "And make sure you drain the rest of your juice. Your Mom poured it into a glass for you from a tiny carton so it's all the more special-like."
And I watched as I waited for Jazmyn to finish tidying her bedroom and to return to me and I saw that despite the fact that Justin's eyebrows rose all over and he let out another sigh, his hand that was flat out on the table reached for his glass of juice and he began to down that pretty much as soon as he was asked.
I was very certain that I heard James mumble the words "thank you, buddy" but he didn't make a big deal out of it. Nor did he want to make a big deal out of his son's unusual quietness as well. All the same, as the deep purple haired young boy's eyes dropped in the middle of drinking and they stared back at the table after he had drained that glass for good, the lavender haired male couldn't stop himself from addressing it for the first time.
Because he had been intending to leave the table and finish off the washing up while Justin hopefully ate a good amount of his dinner, his body had turned slightly to head on his way. But due to the fact that his eldest son was then far more of a priority, his body leaned back to the table all over.
And I believed that the deep purple haired young boy caught on to this from the way that he tried to play it off by holding his fork in a stronger grip.
But this was not enough of an act to make the ex-rocketeer forget his concerns. When it came to his children, he never wanted their emotions to seem invisible or unimportant to him. So because of this, he just had to ask.
"Is everything okay with you, Justin?" the lavender haired male questioned and he leaned back in his chair to hopefully seem like he wasn't suffocating his eldest son, desperate to know answers. I knew that there was a part of him that definitely was and Jessie too from the way that they had been whispering.
And I had to admit that even I caught onto the way that Justin hadn't been talking about one of his video games or football with his friends or music class over dinner.
I guessed that being addressed by his actual name rather than a casual, pet name caused Justin to feel a little on edge even though James had tried to prevent that by leaning back in his chair and playing with his hair.
At that point, the eldest Morgan son had fed himself mouthfuls of pasta and vegetables and perhaps he was glad about the fact that he couldn't answer straight away out of politeness. However, his eyes still widened in between chewing his mouthfuls. And this expression and this expression alone paired with him gripping onto his empty glass all over again for something to do spoke volumes.
An observant frown threatened to take over his father's face at the same time that Justin abruptly swallowed his dinner and blurted out. He still managed to blurt out a little coolly, much like himself in the later years of his life.
"I don't want to talk about it." Justin responded and I knew him to be a smart boy of the age of ten at that point so as I turned my head from waiting on the sofa, I noticed the way that he knew himself that his words could have easily led his father to believe that there was something wrong. Only proving further his youthful intuition there and then, he decided to keep quiet after that, only dropping his eyes downwards and resuming eating.
It was the lavender haired male's turn to quietly sigh as he began to realise that it wasn't just a pointless hunch and that there potentially was something bugging his ten year old boy. It was true that he wanted his children to know that their emotions were important to him but he also didn't want to worry them with his own excessive worry.
So he encouraged himself to keep it rather casual and just speak matter-of-factly as he removed the tea towel from his shoulder at last and started to play with it on the kitchen table. Justin warily looked up from swallowing more food.
"Well… You don't have to talk about things that you really don't want to." James began and the deep purple haired young boy managed to keep his expression level, not wordlessly yelping out about how little he wanted to talk! Even so, the lavender haired male felt the need to add, twisting the tea towel in his hold. "But, you know, buddy… If there is something the matter then I hope you know that I will listen and not make a big deal out of it and just try to help you to the best of my ability… Your Mom too. But if say, something did happen at school or something… I think I need to know."
Justin exhaled out his nostrils and dropped his fork in his bowl and pushed it further away from him for a second time. And it became obvious that the lavender haired male's words were making sense. In addition to this, his logic and also sensibleness when it came to emotions were perfectly clear.
So because of this, the eldest Morgan boy found himself indulging the older male a little more than he initially intended to after everybody else left the table. His elbows planted on the table and his fingers raked through his locks as he spoke.
"It's nothing that has happened to me. I'm fine, Dad, I promise. You don't have to worry about me. It's nothing that has happened to me." Justin quietly insisted and because the male ex-rocketeer couldn't help but breathe out slightly with relief when he heard his son insisting these things that he was okay. That was the main thing for him! He stopped gripping the tea towel so tightly. Nevertheless, contrasting this, Justin began pawing at his hair as he blurted out. "It's something that I did myself."
Nosily (but hopefully discreetly) I hopped onto the back of a sofa for a better look of the whole scene. And there and then I shared a similar expression with James and we both tilted our heads, staring at the deep purple haired young man.
We both knew him to be a very enthusiastic sort of child who threw himself wholeheartedly into everything that he wanted to be a part of. Words that we both would have described him with were things like mischievous and talkative and outgoing and kind-hearted too.
So in that moment it was a little bizarre and bewildering for us to think that Justin could have done something that negatively affected things. He was only ten years old. It was hard to believe that the ten year old boy could have done something that negatively affected others.
It became clear to me that not after very much time at all that the lavender haired male had been staring and silent for a bit too long. But it wasn't a bad or unproductive thing. At the same time that he tucked some of his hair behind one of his ears, the deep purple haired young man had had enough at feeling so under a microscope!
And this dash of uncomfortableness led him to blurt out some more things. He let go of his hair and it fell down, framing his youthful face. Then, he reached forward and began tangling his fingers in the tea towel in which his father had let go of and abandoned on the table in front of them both.
"Do… Do you remember about a week ago when you poked your head around my door and you found me playing my guitar…?" the deep purple haired young man mused out loud and then I watched as for the first time, momentary lightness took over his face when he saw his father stare some more in a telling way. He understood that he was going to have to be a little more specific! "Okay, okay! It might have been a few days ago. You poked your head around my door and found me playing guitar when I was meant to be studying… And… What did you tell me?"
James took a couple of moments to enjoy feeling a bit more relaxed upon seeing a slightly less serious expression on his young son's face and he grinned for a few seconds before he pondered. The lavender haired male pondered just for a short amount of time and he touched his own chin. Then he responded with words to the best of his knowledge.
"Well… Yeah. I think I advised you that you needed to study more instead of playing guitar otherwise you won't get a grade that I know you're capable of." the lavender haired father replied and then he paused, for a good few moments, his meadow green orbs widening with care and concern. "Did that upset you? Justin, did I upset you with what I said?"
It probably felt like a lifetime to James, but Justin was quick to shake his head. He was quick to shake his head because he was telling the truth. And rather sweetly, he reached across and touched his father's knuckles with his fingers as he continuously shook his head.
"No… No, that didn't upset me." The deep purple haired male told him and after James could breathe out in relief all over again but still didn't relax entirely, Justin went against the fact that he said that he didn't want to talk about it and spoke about it for good. His brow furrowed and his lips puckered with disappointment in himself and also the fear of disappointing his parents as he admitted. "I… I barely studied at all, Dad. And they surprised us with the mock versions of those tests today. And I did… so bad!"
Justin's voice rose and grew higher in pitch towards the end of his explanation and this paired with the way that his eyebrows started to tremble with emotion showed just how he felt about it. I had a great deal of sympathy on my face there and then and I expected to turn my face further and see the exact same thing on the lavender haired male's expression.
However, I was stood corrected. In actuality, the male ex-rocketeer had quite the unmoving expression on his face. It was extremely level and still. There was barely any empathy there. But there wasn't no empathy at the same time. James just continued tilting his head and waiting for his son to continue.
When Justin didn't add any more words and his brow continued trembling and his eyes joined in as he silently agonised over the fact that he had indeed disappointed himself as well as his parents – especially his father there and then – the lavender haired male leaned slightly forward and spoke.
"What did your teacher say?" was all the lavender haired parent asked and I gathered that this wasn't the question that the ten year old boy was expecting from the way that he gulped. And then it appeared to be the question that he least wanted to answer from the way that his cheeks promptly reddened and he leaned back in his seat.
Nonetheless, he still answered his father and it was probably down to feeling like he owed it to him after partaking in disappointing actions.
"She… She said that she was disappointed in a lot of us. She didn't say that I had let her down. But she said that she guessed that some of us would get low scores out of excitement of being so close to being done with school for a journey… But she told me that she expected me to be more focused and to get a better grade."
As the deep purple haired boy recapped his teacher's words from that school day, his cheeks grew all the more redder and clenched also. I couldn't help but feel that his teacher was slightly harsh! But that was probably because I watched him be a bit unlike himself at the dinner table and I remembered my good friends at that age. They needed guiding. Not being told they were disappointments. Especially when Justin himself always wanted to stay in the lane as far away from disappointing people as possible.
The lavender haired male nodded his head and his meadow orbs glittered more with empathy and care as he heard his son's re-telling. I found myself wondering if he secretly wanted to march down to the school in the morning.
But unlike me, on the exterior he remained far more collected and most importantly just listened. He listened to Justin's words and he listened to his silence all the more so. And then after the deep purple haired young boy remained wordless for a good few minutes, the older of the two finally spoke once more, pushing his hair from his eyes.
"How does that make you feel, kid?" James wondered out loud and I knew in that moment that it was the way that the lavender haired male uttered a pet name for just the second time that day that it caused the next reaction and expressions that Justin then had.
The deep purple haired ten year olds boy's cheeks flushed all over again and though his eyes didn't prick with tears, they narrowed and glossed with some kind of emotion. His full lips puckered quite a lot. He very much threatened to sniff as James' caring nature and his caring word for him caused him to show much more emotional vulnerability.
"Made me feel stupid…" Justin muttered but also whispered and perhaps it was his different sounding accent to his father that made that simple word feel all the more heart-breaking. I very quickly shook my head in disagreement though no one was watching.
I was certain that the lavender haired male was feeling the same way as I that time and all the more so from the way that he quickly added quietly but meaningfully, gently reaching to tap his eldest son under the chin a couple of times.
"That's not a very nice word to use for yourself, kid…" the ex-rocketeer told him and after Justin heard that word for yet another time, he properly sniffed that time. And then he paused. Justin paused and he had a couple of moments to himself to think about what he really meant.
His ten year old expression unscrewed and he looked around the room as he pondered what he was truly feeling. And then very bravely in my opinion, he articulated himself some more and with his little nose scrunched up.
"Embarrassed I guessed… I shouldn't have assumed that I didn't have to put any effort in. I should have known better and for that I felt embarrassed…" Justin explained quietly and levelly and managed to meet his father's eyes the entire time and that was a testament to his courage.
I for one found myself smiling. I didn't expect James to show that on the outside along with me. And I was right from the way that he pushed his hair from his eyes but answered his son quickly all over again to hint how proudly he felt for his eldest boy to express himself so maturely.
"Well… I think that's very acceptable for you to feel in this circumstance. You probably should have known better. But know you'll know for next time." The lavender haired male began and I knew that he was intending to go on further – and properly express his pride and support for Justin – when the deep purple haired young boy interjected.
He heard his father reinforce his own words to some degree and though his cheeks grew rosy all over again and some of his hair fluttered away from behind his ear, he blurted out once again. He suddenly questioned, his eyebrows knotting with worry but his eyes blinking as he prepared himself for what he thought was to come.
"Are you going to say 'I told you so?'. I mean…. You did tell me… You did try to tell me… So are you going to say it?" Justin questioned hurriedly but like he didn't want to say it nor did he want to hear it! And following that, he bit his lip and sunk back in his chair and continued to have quite the nervous expression. He was trying to hide that apprehensive expression and breathe in and out. But he was very much a people pleaser. And he hated to think that he had disappointed his family.
I watched and I couldn't help but think it was the wrong decision when James took quite a long time to answer his boy. At first all he did was shuffle in his chair and then he leaned forward in his chair, his head tilting. Because he was still silent, the deep purple haired boy recoiled back in his seat further and held his breath.
No doubt did James catch on to this from the way that he decided to come out with his answer following that moment. Or rather, he came out with a question. He asked his son, care glittering in his eyes all over again and a gentle smile taking over his lips.
"If I said that, do you think it would make you feel better?" James responded and then it was his turn to lean back in his chair while Justin edged forward all over again.
Once more, because the eldest Morgan son was not expecting this and had been preparing himself for a harsher truth, out of the sheer relief and adrenaline of it all, he answered promptly. He shook his head and mumbled out the truth.
"No… No… I'm sure that would make me feel much worse actually." He uttered honestly and concluded and it was after the lavender haired male heard these words that he made a noise out of his nostrils all over.
However, that time it was a bit of laughter and he showed even more of a smile as he tapped his son on the knuckles with his fingers all over again before standing up in his seat. The deep purple haired young boy looked up at his father in confusion as he looked down at him, his hair then tucked behind both ears.
"I tend to agree with you there, Justin. And as your dad, I feel as though it's my privilege to try and help you feel better if it's what you want to feel better. I wouldn't dream of pointing out such things." The lavender haired male sincerely told his son with an ongoing smile and I watched as Justin didn't quite catch on to what was going on straight away as James moved round to his side of the table and cupped his hand around his cheek. James continued as Justin blinked. "Now, you can finish off your dinner while I continue all these dishes. Then I'll assist you with a little bit of studying. Don't worry, kid, you'll smash it better next time."
And there and then in that moment I breathed out contentedly and it wasn't just because Jazmyn had returned and quickly come to my side and began stroking the side of my own face! I always appreciated seeing loyalty in people and especially parents to their children. And I always enjoyed the innocent wonder of someone realising they were being so very cared for.
I watched as Justin's eyes moved in between his father with his hand sliding away from his face and his half-empty dinner bowel quite a few times! The lavender haired father managed not to smirk. Justin didn't manage to withhold his eyes widening and his words of surprise. He exclaimed.
"You'd do that for me? Even though I didn't listen to you the first time round?" Justin questioned uncertainly but giddily all the same and as he grinned back in response, instead of the lavender haired male sighing out and uttering more life advice to his ten year old son, James took a leaf out of his courageous book and told the truth instead.
And he told the honest truth with a smile on his face and his hand going back to his eldest boy's cheek. He sparkled just for him.
"I would do that and more. For you, I would do that and infinite amounts more." The lavender haired male told his son and with that, Justin sheepishly but gratefully decided to eat the rest of his dinner and James cracked on with that he needed to do.
And that is our first story. The second one happened a good many years later. In fact, it happened over a decade later. But it is still about a father and son.
And that lavender haired father to the deep purple haired son was doing his rounds before heading to bed that night, checking all of the windows and doors to a different house, the Morgan Mansion, was shut.
He told me after he was happy for me to hear this story that he didn't know why he was taking so long on it that night. Truthfully, it was his second round of doing it because he hadn't trusted himself the first time! He was wearing a dressing gown with just some shorts underneath because it was still hot in the end of that Kanto summer. But as James checked one of the windows nearest to the front door and gave it a rattle, he couldn't help but feel that rain was nearing.
The lavender haired male was about to finish that second round for the night and call it a night – probably checking on the sleeping faces of his children before he actually headed to sleep himself – when something caused him to just have to check the front door a third time.
Yet again I am stating that he himself said he didn't know why. He just felt a need to do so. He was sighing at himself a little bit for this reason as he approached the door, running a hand through his still long locks. He was shown that he was correct about the sensing of rain coming when he started to hear it slowly pattering on all of the windows and that door too.
However, he didn't feel smug or any particular emotion about it. It just was what it was. He was far too busy rattling that front door one last time and checking it was locked.
It was. So he took a step back. But he still didn't look away. He still didn't move away. He still didn't look away.
The lavender haired male tells me that he didn't look away for quite some time. And then when his feet switched on the floor and his calves jolted, his body trying to take him away, it quickly became obvious why he needed to be right there at the right time.
It suddenly occurred to him that the luminous light from outside was not the moon shining in. It was from a car. A car had pulled up on the drive way and then that person had walked right up to the front door and was letting them inside the house.
Needless to say, the lavender haired male was quick to reach forward and turn the handle so the person on the other side didn't have to. He was of course curious as to who was going to be a late night visitor – or perhaps an unwanted one – but he still didn't react to overtly either way.
It was the other person on the other side of the door who had everything on the exterior and for all to see, though of course it was just James there. When the lavender haired male turned the handle and the door swung open, the porch light clicked on and the person outside's face was visible. It was oh so visible. And oh so familiar.
It was Justin! But neither of the males looked particularly happy to see one and other and on James' part, that will become clear as the second story goes on.
But for the time being, the deep purple haired male reacted to having the door opened on him and he hiccupped and took a step back. Then when he realised it was his father, he couldn't contain everything that he had been feeling up until that moment and resumed doing what he had been doing the whole time that he had been driving himself from the next town away.
It was obvious that from where he had come from had a lot heavier rain because he was very sodden from it. His face was sodden with wet. But it wasn't just rain drops. Justin had been crying. There and then, Justin continued to cry.
His face was very red and blotchy, I'm told, and his expression was completely screwed up. His shoulders were hunched up to his ears but trembling at the same time. Justin whimpered clearly at the same time that his father decided to utter just his name.
"Justin…" the lavender haired male breathed out but he didn't have time to reach out to him or step aside or even invite him in. As James' heart was understandably sinking, the deep purple haired male whimpered a second time – far louder and in a more heart-breaking way.
Justin gulped and then he groaned and he sobbed out with a face fiercely screwed up.
"D-Dad… Dad, I am such an idiot…" the deep purple haired male wept and with a continuously screwed up face and that time, the lavender haired male had a chance to react but just in a couple of ways. With a heart breaking in his own chest at the state that his son was in, he just reached out and pulled the younger male inside. The lavender haired male quickly pieced together what has happened but Justin added all the same. "It… It's over. It's over now…"
The lavender haired male rather surprisingly in his position didn't say anything. He didn't say anything at all. He had an expression that was full of sadness and hurt for his eldest boy and despite the fact that he knew what his words meant and were not surprised by them in the slightest; he didn't say anything with words at all.
James just merely exhaled and his arms in his dressing gown sleeves reached out to his son and he just held him by the sodden cheeks, pulling him close into his chest. Justin gasped and hiccupped but he continued crying against his father, not really caring at all about the display he was putting on.
It was so raw. It was so real. It was so raw to him and so real to him the pain he was feeling after he had to break up with his boyfriend. A part of him always knew that it was coming as well. But he was so very shaken up by the way that he had to take initiative and break up with him himself before things went any further or got all the more complicated.
The deep purple haired male continued to shake against his father while his hand moved to rub his back and then to the back of his hair, trying to soothe him – trying to soothe him in any way.
However, when the older of the two sadly began to get the impression that he couldn't really be soothed at all, but especially not in the hallway, the lavender haired male felt the need to hesitantly pull away from his son.
James was intending to look at him and talk to him but ended up surprised by the deep purple haired male doing that himself. His expression was no longer as screwed up but it was very blotchy still, and wet. Justin hardly managed to look at his father at first while he held his face but then he uttered thickly, letting out a very loud and vulnerable sniff.
"Can… Can I come back home, please?" the deep purple haired male asked and then he broke down in tears all over and James gripped his face tighter when he wouldn't look at him all over, lightly pressing his forehead against his before looking right at him.
I know that his heart was ripped right down the middle but he kept his composure and told his son, telling him compassionate words because he meant them, not because he wanted his son to stop his display.
"Of course. Of course, Justin, you can come back home." James told the deep purple haired male and after he just shakily nodded his head and gulped, wetness still pouring from his eyes and nostrils too, the lavender haired male moved his hands to his arms, feeling the dampness of the hoodie that he was wearing. "Come on. I'll tuck you into bed, boy. I'll tuck you in bed and fetch water for you and warm you up."
And very much like he would have done when he was the age of the first story, James pulled away from his son but to stand behind him instead, planting his hands on his shoulders and pushing him gently towards his bedroom in the Morgan Mansion. He decided to lock up the front door for the fourth time later on. There and then, needless to say, Justin was his one and only priority.
And the two of them managed to hardly make a sound at all and wake nobody else in the house up as James encouraged the deep purple haired male to his bedroom. A good part of him wondered if Justin was going to start sobbing all over again when the realisation hit him that he was moving back into his family home after moving in with his deep violet haired boyfriend. It was only going to be temporary and most people believed that it was for making music rather than making other things.
But still, the lavender haired male wondered if this detail was going to break Justin all the further. But he didn't have to fear. Of course, other things would upset him and cause him to crumble in the not too distant future but seeing his bedroom wasn't one of them. Perhaps it was oddly comforting to realise that he still knew himself well enough to know that he was always going to return there.
Lightly, James pushed Justin's bedroom door to one side with his foot while his twenty two year old son hugged his arms around himself and through tear stained eyes; he took in all the posters on his bedroom walls.
"You get into your pyjamas now, Justin, and I'll get you your things and be back in no time at all. I'll be back in just a little bit. I think you have things in your wardrobe to change into?" James quietly stated and then questioned but before his feet and his ankles could encourage him over to that wardrobe belonging to his own, it was like the deep purple haired male very quickly realised how wet with rain that his hoodie was.
But in actual fact, he was coming to realise which hoodie he was wearing exactly. With another hiccup and a wave of pure pain washing over his face, causing it to screw up all over again, with no hesitation at all, Justin started fumbling and trying to desperately very hurriedly take his hoodie off.
Without saying anything at all and without conveying with words that he understood why Justin suddenly reacted like that, James turned back to his son and he carefully helped him, lifting the black and slightly holey hoodie over his head. In truth, he assisted with discarding it in a corner on the floor of the room.
Understandably, Justin needed a little bit of a sit down and to shed a couple of tears after that and he shakily sat down on the end of his bed but didn't pull his legs to his chest. While James silently swallowed and ran a hand through his hair, in between tears that were trying to rid himself of the emotions attached to his deep violet haired summer love, Justin couldn't help but notice how soft and plush the sheets on his bed felt.
They were soft. They smelled so good. They were fresh.
Tears pooled in Justin's eyes all over again and the lavender haired male didn't know whether to look at his son or not when it became clear to him that he was coming to a realisation. But then James knew that he couldn't hide things from Justin, like Eli had wanted to hide part of himself and Justin from the rest of the world.
The deep purple haired male croaked out from a dry mouth to contrast his cheeks but didn't have too much bitterness to his tone. In fact, he didn't have too much of anything.
"Did… Did you know it was going to end tonight…?" the eldest Morgan son questioned and his eyelids twitched with the heaviness of tears weighing them down while James' grooved with uncertainty of what exactly he was going to come out with. But then he knew that he just had to tell the truth.
Coming to sit down next to him briefly and letting out another sigh, he ran a hand through his hair and answered his son honestly and levelly too.
"I… I didn't want it to be true… But I thought that I would get it ready for you however or whenever you came home…" the lavender haired male told his son and because this was the truth and because he knew it – just like how he knew that he and Eli would never have the relationship he wanted – Justin didn't nod his head but he sighed.
He sighed and he began to fight the urge to lie down and curl up and decided to stand up on shaky legs instead, intending to bravely move over to the wardrobe and find his pyjamas. Before he left his side completely, James stood up as well and he let a lingering hand stay on the top of his head for a couple of moments.
But then the lavender haired male departed to the kitchen to get a couple of things for his boy and Justin got into his pyjamas for good. I'm not sure what James was thinking when he was pouring a glass of water for his eldest son and making a hot water bottle for him and locking the front door all over again – he didn't tell me.
And I didn't know what Justin was thinking either or if he stopped and cried or wept or grunted a few times in between changing himself, ridding himself of Eli's clothes as well as his memory.
But I was certain that there was of course a lot of heartbreak there. There was a lot of uncertainty on both sides. Both of them wondered why it hadn't worked out between the deep purple haired male and the deep violet haired male. Deep down, one of them knew why. Even deeper down, the lavender haired male knew why as well but still believed that his son deserved everything that he went after.
I'm pretty sure that James let out a sigh and shook his head to himself when went back to the kitchen after locking the front door to collect the bits for Justin. It was certainly going to be a rocky road ahead. But one that he still wanted to navigate alongside his boy.
The lavender haired male didn't waste any time in heading back to his son and the deep purple haired male was curled up and under his bed covers when he entered all over, his cheek resting on his pillow as he laid on his side and tears that he no longer needed drizzling out and down onto the material.
Wordlessly, James just held his breath and placed the glass of water on his night stand and he slid the hot water bottle under his sheets. Even if it was summer, he was certain that Justin was going to shiver a lot. That became clearer when he could feel the younger male's body trembling in the covers as he slid and sat down on the floor next to his bed, his hand silently reaching for the frame under the duvet.
More tears spurted out of Justin's puffy eyes and made a home on his pillow. He started to whimper once more but much more quietly that time and it caused the lavender haired male to begin to rub up and down the patch of duvet which he believed was Justin's leg.
"Do you want to talk about it, Justin…?" James asked in a very whispery but not condescending or aggravating voice. He swallowed once again as he asked this, his eyes filling with all the more concern into the middle of the night that the deep purple haired male returned to. The way that the eldest Morgan son's face screwed up before he did anything else made it perfectly clear what his answer was. After Justin seemed to shut out the world and his cheeks reddened and his eyes bled with tears, James couldn't help but add. "Can I talk about it…?"
And the lavender haired male told me that he was very surprised with how promptly Justin answered that question. His answer in itself wasn't what he was expecting. His eyes fluttered sorely open and he mumbled through slightly cracked lips.
"Go ahead…" the deep purple haired male told his father un-movingly and then he stretched out his legs under the covers before pulling them close to him all over again.
The surprise of the promptness of his son's answer as well as his response and Justin's trembling body in the covers made James not to come out with what he felt in his brain for a good couple of minutes.
For the time being, he wordlessly ran his hand up and down his son's body in the duvet and tried to soothe him. Perhaps he tried to soothe the both of them.
He only uttered the words when he was sure about them and had thought about them a lot. Even then he didn't know if they were out of place.
"Just… Just, I know it hurts, Justin… God, I'm sorry… It must really hurt… But… But don't shut all of it out… Don't shut all of that out along with the joy you once felt… You've got a soulful heart, my best boy… That is an asset to you, not a downfall…" the lavender haired male told his son and in response, the deep purple haired son of his gulped and squeezed his eyes further up and buried his face against the pillow, half nuzzling it for comfort.
I'm sure that a huge part of James wondered if he'd spoken out of turn and it was too quick to hear that kind of thing. Perhaps it was. Perhaps Justin wasn't ready. But maybe he would always be ready for the truth, even if it tore him apart at times. Maybe it was better than not hearing the truth and just assuming it.
The lavender haired male didn't say anything as Justin didn't respond with words to these words and he just wept following them instead. Then James continued rubbing up and down his leg, slowly and softly.
But then after some minutes – after a good few minutes – courageously as well as bravely, the deep purple haired male opened his eyes all over and he mumbled to his parent. At first he felt like he couldn't look at his father due to the fear of believing that he already knew what his response was going to be. But then he found his eyes locking onto his, his eyelashes fluttering with vulnerability and heaviness.
Justin swallowed and then questioned in a very hoarse voice.
"Are… Are you going to say 'I told you so?'. I know… I know that you probably saw this coming… So are you going to say that to me?" the deep purple haired male asked in a hoarse voice that was also almost like a child's.
But unlike when he was a child, the lavender haired male didn't take a while to respond in turn.
Though his head did tilt in a marvellously similar way and Justin drew back in heartbroken apprehension, the longer haired male came out with words without even shaking his head at all.
"Would that make you feel any better…?" the lavender haired male questioned and needless to say, Justin shook his head in response, and as well as this, he sniffed and nuzzled his pillow all over again. And so, the older of the two added, his voice quietening with seriousness and edging closer to his trembling son in bed. "I'm your dad, Justin. Whatever I think, whatever I suspect, I'm always just going to want you to feel better if that's what you want for yourself. I know you might linger on this pain… That's okay; just don't shut it out too much or the joyous memories out completely either… And just remember… You are loved."
And despite the fact that James' words were expected to uplift, even if he didn't put that much hope on them himself, it was probably not the reaction that he was hoping for when Justin broke down all over again, his palms over his eyes and crying into his hands as his father's resonated in his ears.
The truth was that he knew he was loved. He was just beginning to think that he was never truly loved by the person that he was just in a relationship with.
So for that exact reason, Justin continued sobbing and sobbing and sobbing. And James continued smoothing and smoothing and smoothing down the covers by the side of him and hoping to see the deep purple haired male feel a little better as time passed.
But sadly when he saw that that wasn't happening and Justin's cries seemed to get louder and all the more wholehearted as time went on, the lavender haired male knew that he needed a different approach. And so he intended to stand up and move closer to Justin on the bed. But the deep purple haired male didn't know this.
The crying male suddenly hiccupped and his actions subsided for some moments and he peered at his father from behind shaky fingers, uttering with child-like innocence and vulnerability all over again.
"You… You're not going are you…?" Justin mumbled and because he only gave his father time to do this, the lavender haired male just tilted his head on one side. The deep purple haired male started to tug on his own locks as he added. "I mean… Please stay."
And perhaps surprising the younger or the two that time, it was James' turn to be quick to reply. Like he previously didn't need to shake his head, there and then he didn't need to nod. Before he reached for a spare of Justin's pillows and settled down all over again, he uttered.
"Of course I'm going to stay. Of course I'm going to be here for you." The lavender haired male told his son and he didn't get a smile in response. All Justin did was breathe out and breathe out and shut his eyes, his head falling back on his own pillow.
And then after James was cuddled up with a spare of Justin's pillows and still on the floor but close to Justin's side, the deep purple haired male wordlessly showed his gratitude and feeling the loving support of at least one of the people that he loved by untucking his clammy hand from under the duvet and holding it out to him.
And so, the lavender haired male didn't hesitate to hold it back and not let go of it even after the deep purple haired male finally drifted off to a sleep where his heart felt a lot more healed. James held his son's hand while he slept and caressed it gently, silently feeling the bare skin of where a ring usually laid.
Then eventually, they fell asleep together. They fell asleep side by side, once again proving that their relationship was as strong as when that same deep purple haired male was a ten year old boy. He really would go to above and beyond for Justin.
But James would go above and beyond for other people too. Even for the people who technically hurt that beloved boy of his. And so, that brings us onto our final story.
Instead of his attention being drawn to the front door less than a couple of months later by nothing other than an inclination, the lavender haired male was encouraged to go to that same front door after he heard a knocking sound.
Once more, it was the middle of the night. But that time, it was far later. In fact, it was almost approaching the early hours of the morning. But some things were still the same. The lavender haired male came dressing gown clad to the front door when he heard the knocking door. Justin and Eli were still broken up. It was raining once more. But far heavier that time.
And the person in a very similar black hoodie was visibly drenched by it when he came to knock on the door of the Morgan Mansion at nearing 3 o'clock in the morning in October in Kanto. The lavender haired male's sleepy eyes widened as he took in the black hooded figure and he almost needed to take a surprised step back when the person tugged the hood away from his face as soon as he saw the person he was hoping for.
James didn't have a chance to utter his name out of his lips in frowning bewilderment. Still getting drenched in rain as the porch didn't offer much protection in such a downpour, the deep violet haired male himself was the first to break the silence.
"Sorry…" was all he offered at first and he raised his hand up to wipe a rain drop from his top lip. After he absentmindedly ran his hands through the shorter sides of his hair before carelessly fluffing the top part, he the deep violet haired male added, blurting out. "Can… Can I ask you a question…?"
The lavender haired male hadn't seen the Unovan male in person since just after he and his son had broken up and that was probably shown on his face there and then. I'm told that he folded his arms over his chest and his head started to tilt.
Despite the fact that James potentially had a million things that he wanted to say to Eli and not many of them pleasant, there and then the lavender haired male waved a bit of a hand that uttered "be my guest".
He resisted making assumptions and asking him if he was looking for Jordan instead, and chose to just listen.
I like to imagine that Eli showed off an expression of surprise and his naturally wide yet sunken eyes probably looked down to the ground when he was granted this. And it was probably because of this that the lavender haired male had a defensively loyal inclination. He leaned his elbow on the side of the door frame, beginning to change his mind.
"If… If it's about Justin then I think I should warn you… Maybe I'm not the best person you to ask." James uttered levelly and tellingly and with an eyebrow raise.
And then Eli's eyes were forced to look up and lock onto James' all over again. They probably wanted to dart all about but didn't want to offend like he most likely had done by having different future visions compared to his son.
However, the Unovan male's brow furrowed. And he responded quite directly for him.
"It's not about… Justin." Eli insisted and then because he realised that his words were not strictly true, he had a change of tactic, starting to fiddle with his sodden hoodie strings. "I mean… I suppose… I suppose it is but…" the deep violet haired male continued and after his focused eyes saw everything that James was showing on his own face, he got a little impatient. He grew impatient in a bit of an emotional way. "Can I just ask it?"
The lavender haired male levelled out his own face once more and that time, he nodded his head. Once more, he made a gesture with his hand that implied that Eli was welcome to despite everything that had gone on between them – or more importantly – him and his son.
The deep violet haired male felt the need to respond to this by running his hands over the shorter parts of his hair and then through the longer, then straighter parts.
But then after that, he figured that because he hadn't been honest with the deep purple haired male, he had to be honest with his father.
He came out with and he almost begged.
"Can… Can I sleep in Justin's bed for just one night tonight? Please…? I've barely slept this last month…" Eli explained and his eyes darted for the first few words but then they remained fixed. Needless to say, James' eyes remained fixed on the Unovan male. In addition to this, his elbow remained fixed on the door frame and as well as this, he unblinking, stared back at the male on the other side of the door to him.
I'm sure that Eli was wondering what his reaction was going to be from him. Certainly, it could have been anything. He could have even offered suggestive expletives and the deep violet haired male would just have had to accept it.
But the lavender haired male was not like that. Thankfully, he was not like that at all. Eli had caught a flight from a region a fair while away in order to seek some comfort and because of that, even though a lot of things had gone on between the two shades of purple haired males, James couldn't deny someone of something to make them feel better.
And although James didn't make it perfectly clear with words at first, he stepped aside and gestured with a hand for Eli to come in from the dark and into the house. The Unovan male let out a shaky breath but didn't get his hopes up straight away. It wasn't until the lavender haired male uttered his next words that made his intentions clear.
"Go on ahead into Justin's room. He's got spare clothes in the wardrobe you can wear. I'll get you some extra things." The lavender haired male told the deep violet haired one and before they both knew it, oddly paralleling what he happened with his own son a couple of months prior, James was in the kitchen preparing a hot water bottle and a glass of water for the Unovan male.
I'm still not sure what he was thinking, nor what the deep violet haired male got up to in between changing into one of Justin's hoodies that had a different band motif than he preferred but was oversized on its owner's shoulders so fit Eli's pretty well.
I'm certain that there was a great deal of emotions and opinions in each other's minds though. But despite this, Eli owed it to James and perhaps James even owed it to Eli for making his son as happy as he once did – even if it ended badly.
After all, he had tried and continued to try and encourage the deep purple haired male not to block out the joy along with the heartache.
A couple of moments later, James returned to his son's bedroom but naturally, it was a different male in his bed. I wonder if he noticed they were curled up the same. I didn't know. He didn't tell me.
The lavender haired male just placed the glass of water on the side and tucked a hot water bottle in the sheets and after he was thanked by Eli with a silent nod, he turned on his heel.
I don't know why he did this – whether the deep violet haired male let out a sigh or a gasp or a noise of some sort – but before he left the room, James stopped and he turned. He asked this question before he could stop himself.
"Do you want me to stay for a bit?" the lavender haired male offered in a way that didn't suggest he was bothered by either answer but Eli on the other hand, showed off surprise on his naturally wide eyed yet sunken expression as he tousled his own locks.
He looked rather taken aback. This made James a bit more uneasy. But then the Unovan male thought about it. Though he went about it very quietly and like he didn't care either way either, he pressed his own cheek against Justin's pillow and cuddled even further under Justin's covers. And he replied.
"Y-Yeah… Five… Five minutes wouldn't hurt." He told him and after James just wordlessly nodded his head and raised his eyebrows just once in response but then slid down, leaning up against the side of the bed; Eli couldn't help but feel like he had one thing to ask the lavender haired male. He was only going to take it as a sign to do so if they met each other's gaze. And because this happened, Eli mumbled out. His sunken yet round eyes twitched with a guess over a future answer. "Are… Are you going to say "I told you so" to me? I mean… I think you knew that I was going to displease your son eventually…"
And although the lavender haired male let out a sharp breath and Eli quickly looked away, pressing his cheek further against the pillow, he didn't mean anything in particular by this. And as well as this, going against his usual routine, he didn't respond with a question that time.
Pulling his legs to his chest and then casually resting his arm on the bed next to Eli, maybe even offering him some comfort, the lavender haired male responded to him with a wan smile.
"My son being content pleases me, Eli… I never wanted to believe any worrisome outcome I had feared for the two of you. I never wanted to be correct. I'm still not sure I am… If you're meant to keep making each other happy, then I want that for him. I want that for the both of you."
And then it was Eli's turn to breathe out. He nodded and breathed out and then following that and side the lavender haired male by his side for a lot longer than he expected, he fell off to sleep thoughtlessly for the first time in months.
Contrary to a ten year old Justin and a twenty two year old Justin and a remaining thirty four year old Eli's apprehensive beliefs, James never uttered those famous words to any of them.
But they were uttered without saying a word and back at him the very next day!
When it became clear to Justin's other parent – when it became clear to Jessie that Eli had spent the night and felt a lot better for a long time in a while to sleep in Justin's bed – she had an 'I told you so' for James.
She for one always knew that Eli cared about him a lot more than anyone realised. Just because he couldn't express it in ways and in front of a whole gaggle of other people, it didn't mean that it wasn't there.
And thankfully she was right. Thankfully he did care. And James did too. He cared enough to never utter those words on three separate occasions.
Some of those occasions were alike. Some of them were different. Yet they all involved people who owned my heart. Even if some of them couldn't share with the world that one of those people in particular would always own their heart – in spite of their separate yet united futures.
The End
There you go! Thanks so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed :3 It's always interesting for me as the writer to notice what elements go into certain characters and relationships. When it comes to Justin and Eli, a lot of music and songs has always inspired events/traits/chapters. Which seems pretty fitting really, seeing as the two of them are both heavily passionate about that art form :) Justin certainly goes through a lot of heartbreak with this particular break up. I've shown him dealing with struggles before, but this situation in a way is vastly different because I think it causes him to act in ways that, looking back, he wouldn't be proud of. But like I said, more of that to come! Eli doesn't exactly have an easy time of the separation either. He is lucky though to have James. He's got support there. He just needs to be hopeful enough to go and find it :3 Thanks again for reading and I will be back with another chapter to see you then!
AmyBieberKetchum signing out :)