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"Have yourself a merry little Christmas."
Dec. 30th, 2018 05:15 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
magicmomentsWho: Merlin Larson and Brandon Blake with everyone from the Turner/Casey/Hartley/Larson brood
What: Christmas!
Where: Turner/Casey/Hartley/Larson Residence, NYC
When: Christmas Day (more bendy time, for reasons)
Something had shifted, Merlin just didn't know what. He had fully expected to wake up the morning after Brandon stayed over to find Brandon had left. He had been full of guilt thinking he was imposing the whole time he was there, trying to leave so he wasn't putting Merlin out. Especially after he got upset and broke down in tears. They didn't talk anymore after that. Merlin let him have the quiet he needed to feel upset and grieve, because that was probably what he was trying to deal with on top of everything else. Besides, Merlin didn't think there were any right words to say after that. Brandon ended up falling asleep while he was crying.
But Brandon hadn't left. He was still sleeping soundly beside Merlin when he woke up disoriented that he was in his own bed and not still in London and had a celebrity passed out beside him stealing most of the covers. Unfortunately, Merlin had to get to an early meeting with Caden and he didn't want to interrupt Brandon's sleep when he probably really needed it. Instead, he wrote him a note and left it for him. He told him again to come to Christmas with his family so he wasn't alone and offered to drive him to and from his chemo appointment Christmas morning. He even invited him to stay over for a few days so he didn't have to be alone. He didn't expect Brandon to accept any of that. He didn't expect to hear from him again after he revealed.
Only, Brandon did accept, albeit reluctantly. He sent Merlin an email thanking him extensively for how he helped him, saying not many strangers would sit on a bathroom floor with you in the middle of the night while you were as sick as a dog just so they didn't have to be alone. He also said he thought they needed to talk more because he didn't want to leave things like that. So, Merlin drove him up to Stamford that morning for his treatment and sat with him while the chemo pumped through his veins. They watched Home Alone together on Brandon's iPad until Brandon started to feel really rough and couldn't concentrate.
It was a difficult drive back. There was traffic everywhere being Christmas and a light snowfall meant they had to go slow. Brandon was yet again feeling sick as a dog and Merlin had to stop four times for him to use gas station bathrooms. He gave Brandon multiple loopholes to renege on the family Christmas but Brandon was a trooper and Merlin was glad he did come because it turned out to be a nice day. The whole Turner brood was here from Chicago, Christian's sister, Calli, came and so did Autumn and her mom. It wasn't conventional. Neither Evan nor Brandon could stomach the Christmas dinner so they sat it out together in the living room watching more Christmas movies on Netflix. When Merlin came through to check how Brandon was, he found him crashed out and Evan said he was pretty much out cold five minutes after they started the first movie.
The good thing was that Brandon didn't seem bothered that Merlin's family and extended family would know he was there for Christmas. He just asked that no one take any photos because he knew he looked shit and if they ended up on social media, everyone would assume he was doing hard drugs. Technically, he kind of was. You couldn't get harder than chemo, but that wasn't the point. He was awake when everyone filtered away from the dinner table to relax and catch-up. Merlin made sure Brandon was seated strategically close to the living room door so if he needed the bathroom urgently, he just had to shoot across the hallway.
"How are you feeling?" Merlin asked when he came to sit down beside Brandon, nursing a cup of tea Nana Turner just made for him, offering it up. "This is weak but don't feel you have to force it down. Nana said it helped her friend when she was going through chemo."
What: Christmas!
Where: Turner/Casey/Hartley/Larson Residence, NYC
When: Christmas Day (more bendy time, for reasons)
Something had shifted, Merlin just didn't know what. He had fully expected to wake up the morning after Brandon stayed over to find Brandon had left. He had been full of guilt thinking he was imposing the whole time he was there, trying to leave so he wasn't putting Merlin out. Especially after he got upset and broke down in tears. They didn't talk anymore after that. Merlin let him have the quiet he needed to feel upset and grieve, because that was probably what he was trying to deal with on top of everything else. Besides, Merlin didn't think there were any right words to say after that. Brandon ended up falling asleep while he was crying.
But Brandon hadn't left. He was still sleeping soundly beside Merlin when he woke up disoriented that he was in his own bed and not still in London and had a celebrity passed out beside him stealing most of the covers. Unfortunately, Merlin had to get to an early meeting with Caden and he didn't want to interrupt Brandon's sleep when he probably really needed it. Instead, he wrote him a note and left it for him. He told him again to come to Christmas with his family so he wasn't alone and offered to drive him to and from his chemo appointment Christmas morning. He even invited him to stay over for a few days so he didn't have to be alone. He didn't expect Brandon to accept any of that. He didn't expect to hear from him again after he revealed.
Only, Brandon did accept, albeit reluctantly. He sent Merlin an email thanking him extensively for how he helped him, saying not many strangers would sit on a bathroom floor with you in the middle of the night while you were as sick as a dog just so they didn't have to be alone. He also said he thought they needed to talk more because he didn't want to leave things like that. So, Merlin drove him up to Stamford that morning for his treatment and sat with him while the chemo pumped through his veins. They watched Home Alone together on Brandon's iPad until Brandon started to feel really rough and couldn't concentrate.
It was a difficult drive back. There was traffic everywhere being Christmas and a light snowfall meant they had to go slow. Brandon was yet again feeling sick as a dog and Merlin had to stop four times for him to use gas station bathrooms. He gave Brandon multiple loopholes to renege on the family Christmas but Brandon was a trooper and Merlin was glad he did come because it turned out to be a nice day. The whole Turner brood was here from Chicago, Christian's sister, Calli, came and so did Autumn and her mom. It wasn't conventional. Neither Evan nor Brandon could stomach the Christmas dinner so they sat it out together in the living room watching more Christmas movies on Netflix. When Merlin came through to check how Brandon was, he found him crashed out and Evan said he was pretty much out cold five minutes after they started the first movie.
The good thing was that Brandon didn't seem bothered that Merlin's family and extended family would know he was there for Christmas. He just asked that no one take any photos because he knew he looked shit and if they ended up on social media, everyone would assume he was doing hard drugs. Technically, he kind of was. You couldn't get harder than chemo, but that wasn't the point. He was awake when everyone filtered away from the dinner table to relax and catch-up. Merlin made sure Brandon was seated strategically close to the living room door so if he needed the bathroom urgently, he just had to shoot across the hallway.
"How are you feeling?" Merlin asked when he came to sit down beside Brandon, nursing a cup of tea Nana Turner just made for him, offering it up. "This is weak but don't feel you have to force it down. Nana said it helped her friend when she was going through chemo."
