Alani & Sam | After the Summer
Sep. 16th, 2024 12:59 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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xp_logsFollowing Sam's visit home and the family stress that entailed, Alani drops in to check in on her friend, totally unaware.
Already, Alani was wearing a thick, knit cardigan in defense of the cooler temperatures, as she walked into Sam's shared suite. She slowly offered Sam a crooked smile, tilting her head as she opened her arms to offer a hug. "Miss me? Did I miss anything, dear?"
Sam jumped up and rushed to hug Alani, lifting her up and spinning her around with the force of it. “I missed you so fuckin’ much oh my God. Fuck- you missed so much- my life went to hell in a handbasket- I had a whole mental breakdown- you missed so much. I missed you.”
A gleeful laugh slipped out as she was spun, briefly squeezing Sam tightly in an embrace before she released him and pulled back to take in his face as he spoke. “Samford, no! Don’t tell me that!” But the cry was filled with worry, brows knitting together. “Oh no, I missed you too, and I'm so sorry. Do you wanna talk about it? Drink about it? Watch a terrible, terrible film and turn your brain off?”
"I have a bottle of bourbon and could probably use someone who hasn't met my mother and isn't dating me to weigh in on everythin?" Doug and Ashley had been really great about everything- but he wasn't about to subject them to...all that, in detail. "It's a lot- like another emergency family trip to Kentucky a lot."
Alani inhaled deeply through her nose, eyes closing for a moment before she opened them again. “Okay, that. . . that is a chilling statement, I hope everything’s okay?” She led him by the elbow to his suite’s kitchenette, hesitant to take her hands off of him when really she just wanted to hug him, no matter what it was he was about to tell her about. “Tell me what you feel comfortable sharing, I’m here for you, whatever you need.”
"Do you remember how I told you oh back in March, that the next time somethin' happened it was gonna be Jeb or Elle?" Sam waited a second for her to nod. "It was Elle. She- she's fine, she's.... as safe as she can be in Kentucky, and she's looking at comin' up for a visit- but she.....got mixed up with a guy my age an' he sucked her into an anti-mutant Evangelical cult and Mama didn't say shit 'til she'd been gone fer two weeks. An' so we go down, fix things, I admit to four of my siblings that I had a similar thing happen to me at sixteen, Paigey gets shot- she's fine only bruised, and then I confront my mother 'bout y'know the abysmal parentin' that got us there in the first place and she tells me that it was my fault I had that happen to me, and that if I keep disrespectin' her that I ain't ever welcome home again, that I didn't do nothin' for the family and tried to act like I aint' never handled CPS afore, and she threatened to beat me......and Clint was in Europe so he couldn't come."
Sam sighed and leaned his head against her shoulder, ducking down to do so. "My therapist has been very helpful about it, but I'm- I can't take 'em in, but I feel like shit leavin' em down there.....and also I got in trouble with Q fer part of the mess down there."
There was a puff of air as Alani released the oxygen in her lungs as the gravity of the situation Sam described settled. She wrapped her arms around him instinctively, keeping her hold light in case the contact was too much. “Two weeks and Paige got shot?!” She croaked the combined inquiry. “Sam, dear god that’s too much! I can’t even imagine — have you spoken to her since?” Had she reached out to him? “Q? Quentin? Did he fire you?” This question was sharp. It didn’t seem like something the telepath would do, but she was unsure.
“Sam, there is nothing you could easily do if she was throwing you out of the house. Your siblings live with her, but — do you want to try for custody? Do you think that would be what you wanna do?” No doubt in her words as she went through her brief legal knowledge.
“He didn’t fire me- just ‘cut us outta the mental link again and I will’ - don’t think he liked realizin’ that it’s all authority I got issue with.” He sighed, hugging her tightly. “I dunno. I don’t want ‘em there, and they’re takin’ a vote on which of ‘em’s in charge once Liz leaves fer college and I hate that. But I also….. I don’t know that I want custody, and that’s what makes me feel all ate up.”
Alani stood a little taller, hugging Sam back with all her might. Behind his back, she circled her wrist with a finger. "I'm going to say something that's going to sound very cruel, but I really think I need to say it. If someone else hasn't already." Tilting her head to press against his own, she stared at the wall.
"Do you want to actually take custody of them? Because you don't have to. I won't tell a soul. You're their eldest brother, you're not abandoning them to live your own life or do your own things. You get to have a say too, darling. It's not selfish."
The tears were sudden, and Sam hated it. He’d been crying so much lately - more than he had in years. Hated how it made him feel. “I don’t know. I just keep thinking how I wouldn’t be as food for them now as I was back then, and the twins’re really Jay’s kids and- I don’t know.”
He took a shaky breath. “I know I don’t wanna be everythin’ to everyone…… I just don’t know what I wanna be.”
She rubbed a careful circle on his back, trying to comfort her friend and feeling out of her depth. She'd do her best. "You have a right to find out, to just be you and figure out what that means, for you," and Alani hoped this was a reminder, not a new statement.
"You don't have to decide any time soon, you can just focus on, ya know, you. You're my friend, and I can empathize as much as I can, but I also have a very big vested interest in you as a person, thank you very much." She tried to joke.
"I just- Paigey's in her program, and Jay's- he and I ain't good at talkin' to one another and this would be one hell of a talk and-" He sighed. "I'm so tired, and I need a fuckin' break. I swear to god if I get a call from home and Jeb's gone and done somethin' I'll lose it."
“I could break your phone?” Alani laughed, a slightly wet sound that she cleared her throat after. "You deserve a break, I'd take you home with me next time, if that'd help. I'll tell my parents you're like a brother to me and they'd let you stay. But I'd want you here. I'm very selfish, I fear."
"Well if you break it, Quentin can't make me leave work and put me in time out." Sam teased. "Well, Clint loved Hawaii when he went with you. I bet it's beautiful."
Her laugh was more sure this time as she squeezed him, grin back on her face. “Also true, if it’s me, you don’t get in trouble. And, I admit, my parents have very nice home. I used to be able to walk to the beach I did all my training on. I really would take you with me, just say the word.”
Alani pulled back enough to look Sam in the eyes as she offered.
"We'll see." He promised. "Could also be fun to take you down to Kentucky and have you do redneck shit with me."
“Ohhhh, I’ve never been to Kentucky, we can flip a coin and then do the other one later? Like a weird meet the family, no we’re not together, we’ve adopted each other as siblings,” she snorted a laugh, patting Sam’s back for good measure.
“Did anything else happen while I was away? I mean on a good side?”
Sam bit his lip, clearly deep in thought. "Arthur and I went axe throwing?"
"Ohhh, that sounds fun! I used to watch Arthur's show when I was younger, he can throw a mean axe." She nudged him in the ribs. "I don't wanna push you, we don't have to drink, but I do think I have a nice little temporary fix. Just answer me one question: how do you feel about famous actor Brad Dourif? And also the word 'nec-raw-mancer'?"
"Arthur had a show?" Sam asked. "Since when?"
“Baby boy, he had tv shows! Back in like the tens, Longshot for Survival was the one I watched, it had a couple of seasons.” The polite ribbing gave way to embarrassment that this apparently hadn’t been the norm for people their age to watch. “He survived, if you were wondering."
"I'm sorry, I was too busy changin' diapers to be watchin' survival shows.... I did enjoy Reba reruns though." Sam laughed, reaching around her to pull down two glasses and the bottle of bourbon. "Wait- Arthur was an actor actor? He in anythin' else?"
Now that she mentioned it, his face was real familiar lookin.
"Ahhh, okay you got me there, I blissfully forget you were a single mom who worked two jobs instead of gluing yourself to a tv.” A gleeful grin appeared, proud of her ability to make that reference. “Oh, hmm, ya know, I don’t actually know. I watched the survival stuff because it interested me. Uh, I’m actually not much of movie person? I’ve only just got into shlock but he might have an IMDB? Want I check?”
Her phone was wiggled in front of him, background of a tree covered in red blooms lighting up.
"Please do, now that I'm thinkin' on it I could swear I'd seen his face before. But I can't put my finger on it." Probably one of those movies he fell asleep watching with Mel.
“Anything for you,” like she hadn’t been curious herself, already searching. “Hmm, he was in Dog Cops, wait sorry, that was a TV show. Let’s see, movies. The Spineless Ones? And the sequel. Something called the Starlight Citadel too. These might be just schlocky enough for a movie night, if the names are anything to go by.”
"Starlight Citadel?" Sam asked, eyes wide. "Mel loves that movie."
“I have never seen it,” Alani chuckled, sneaking her glass to take a sip, “guess it’ll go on the to watch list, top of it, even, in honor of your sister.”
"I've slept through it at least a dozen times." Sam teased. "Which means I'm practically an expert in knowin' when the loud scenes are."
"Samford, has anyone told you you're the best, recently? If not, I will, and also that I love you for being such an amazing person." Of course with that came a tilt of her head. "And remind you that we should do something very stupid to have fun sometime in the near future. Like bull riding at a bar. Please?"
Sam’s eyes lit up with an almost feral glee. “Yes.”
His face split into a grin. “I’ve never actually done that before, you’ll have to take a video of me fallin’ on my ass.”
Immediately, Alani's eyes lit up, joy mirroring his as her own smile ticked up. "Oh I haven't either, so please get one of me, as I go flyin'."
"This Saturday?" She offered hopefully.
“Yer on.” Sam grinned. “This is gonna be so good. I can’t wait.”
"Yes!~" Alani cackled as she shook Sam slightly in her joy. "You won't regret it - I mean, or we'll both regret it and we'll land sore on our asses but it'll be great!"
Already, Alani was wearing a thick, knit cardigan in defense of the cooler temperatures, as she walked into Sam's shared suite. She slowly offered Sam a crooked smile, tilting her head as she opened her arms to offer a hug. "Miss me? Did I miss anything, dear?"
Sam jumped up and rushed to hug Alani, lifting her up and spinning her around with the force of it. “I missed you so fuckin’ much oh my God. Fuck- you missed so much- my life went to hell in a handbasket- I had a whole mental breakdown- you missed so much. I missed you.”
A gleeful laugh slipped out as she was spun, briefly squeezing Sam tightly in an embrace before she released him and pulled back to take in his face as he spoke. “Samford, no! Don’t tell me that!” But the cry was filled with worry, brows knitting together. “Oh no, I missed you too, and I'm so sorry. Do you wanna talk about it? Drink about it? Watch a terrible, terrible film and turn your brain off?”
"I have a bottle of bourbon and could probably use someone who hasn't met my mother and isn't dating me to weigh in on everythin?" Doug and Ashley had been really great about everything- but he wasn't about to subject them to...all that, in detail. "It's a lot- like another emergency family trip to Kentucky a lot."
Alani inhaled deeply through her nose, eyes closing for a moment before she opened them again. “Okay, that. . . that is a chilling statement, I hope everything’s okay?” She led him by the elbow to his suite’s kitchenette, hesitant to take her hands off of him when really she just wanted to hug him, no matter what it was he was about to tell her about. “Tell me what you feel comfortable sharing, I’m here for you, whatever you need.”
"Do you remember how I told you oh back in March, that the next time somethin' happened it was gonna be Jeb or Elle?" Sam waited a second for her to nod. "It was Elle. She- she's fine, she's.... as safe as she can be in Kentucky, and she's looking at comin' up for a visit- but she.....got mixed up with a guy my age an' he sucked her into an anti-mutant Evangelical cult and Mama didn't say shit 'til she'd been gone fer two weeks. An' so we go down, fix things, I admit to four of my siblings that I had a similar thing happen to me at sixteen, Paigey gets shot- she's fine only bruised, and then I confront my mother 'bout y'know the abysmal parentin' that got us there in the first place and she tells me that it was my fault I had that happen to me, and that if I keep disrespectin' her that I ain't ever welcome home again, that I didn't do nothin' for the family and tried to act like I aint' never handled CPS afore, and she threatened to beat me......and Clint was in Europe so he couldn't come."
Sam sighed and leaned his head against her shoulder, ducking down to do so. "My therapist has been very helpful about it, but I'm- I can't take 'em in, but I feel like shit leavin' em down there.....and also I got in trouble with Q fer part of the mess down there."
There was a puff of air as Alani released the oxygen in her lungs as the gravity of the situation Sam described settled. She wrapped her arms around him instinctively, keeping her hold light in case the contact was too much. “Two weeks and Paige got shot?!” She croaked the combined inquiry. “Sam, dear god that’s too much! I can’t even imagine — have you spoken to her since?” Had she reached out to him? “Q? Quentin? Did he fire you?” This question was sharp. It didn’t seem like something the telepath would do, but she was unsure.
“Sam, there is nothing you could easily do if she was throwing you out of the house. Your siblings live with her, but — do you want to try for custody? Do you think that would be what you wanna do?” No doubt in her words as she went through her brief legal knowledge.
“He didn’t fire me- just ‘cut us outta the mental link again and I will’ - don’t think he liked realizin’ that it’s all authority I got issue with.” He sighed, hugging her tightly. “I dunno. I don’t want ‘em there, and they’re takin’ a vote on which of ‘em’s in charge once Liz leaves fer college and I hate that. But I also….. I don’t know that I want custody, and that’s what makes me feel all ate up.”
Alani stood a little taller, hugging Sam back with all her might. Behind his back, she circled her wrist with a finger. "I'm going to say something that's going to sound very cruel, but I really think I need to say it. If someone else hasn't already." Tilting her head to press against his own, she stared at the wall.
"Do you want to actually take custody of them? Because you don't have to. I won't tell a soul. You're their eldest brother, you're not abandoning them to live your own life or do your own things. You get to have a say too, darling. It's not selfish."
The tears were sudden, and Sam hated it. He’d been crying so much lately - more than he had in years. Hated how it made him feel. “I don’t know. I just keep thinking how I wouldn’t be as food for them now as I was back then, and the twins’re really Jay’s kids and- I don’t know.”
He took a shaky breath. “I know I don’t wanna be everythin’ to everyone…… I just don’t know what I wanna be.”
She rubbed a careful circle on his back, trying to comfort her friend and feeling out of her depth. She'd do her best. "You have a right to find out, to just be you and figure out what that means, for you," and Alani hoped this was a reminder, not a new statement.
"You don't have to decide any time soon, you can just focus on, ya know, you. You're my friend, and I can empathize as much as I can, but I also have a very big vested interest in you as a person, thank you very much." She tried to joke.
"I just- Paigey's in her program, and Jay's- he and I ain't good at talkin' to one another and this would be one hell of a talk and-" He sighed. "I'm so tired, and I need a fuckin' break. I swear to god if I get a call from home and Jeb's gone and done somethin' I'll lose it."
“I could break your phone?” Alani laughed, a slightly wet sound that she cleared her throat after. "You deserve a break, I'd take you home with me next time, if that'd help. I'll tell my parents you're like a brother to me and they'd let you stay. But I'd want you here. I'm very selfish, I fear."
"Well if you break it, Quentin can't make me leave work and put me in time out." Sam teased. "Well, Clint loved Hawaii when he went with you. I bet it's beautiful."
Her laugh was more sure this time as she squeezed him, grin back on her face. “Also true, if it’s me, you don’t get in trouble. And, I admit, my parents have very nice home. I used to be able to walk to the beach I did all my training on. I really would take you with me, just say the word.”
Alani pulled back enough to look Sam in the eyes as she offered.
"We'll see." He promised. "Could also be fun to take you down to Kentucky and have you do redneck shit with me."
“Ohhhh, I’ve never been to Kentucky, we can flip a coin and then do the other one later? Like a weird meet the family, no we’re not together, we’ve adopted each other as siblings,” she snorted a laugh, patting Sam’s back for good measure.
“Did anything else happen while I was away? I mean on a good side?”
Sam bit his lip, clearly deep in thought. "Arthur and I went axe throwing?"
"Ohhh, that sounds fun! I used to watch Arthur's show when I was younger, he can throw a mean axe." She nudged him in the ribs. "I don't wanna push you, we don't have to drink, but I do think I have a nice little temporary fix. Just answer me one question: how do you feel about famous actor Brad Dourif? And also the word 'nec-raw-mancer'?"
"Arthur had a show?" Sam asked. "Since when?"
“Baby boy, he had tv shows! Back in like the tens, Longshot for Survival was the one I watched, it had a couple of seasons.” The polite ribbing gave way to embarrassment that this apparently hadn’t been the norm for people their age to watch. “He survived, if you were wondering."
"I'm sorry, I was too busy changin' diapers to be watchin' survival shows.... I did enjoy Reba reruns though." Sam laughed, reaching around her to pull down two glasses and the bottle of bourbon. "Wait- Arthur was an actor actor? He in anythin' else?"
Now that she mentioned it, his face was real familiar lookin.
"Ahhh, okay you got me there, I blissfully forget you were a single mom who worked two jobs instead of gluing yourself to a tv.” A gleeful grin appeared, proud of her ability to make that reference. “Oh, hmm, ya know, I don’t actually know. I watched the survival stuff because it interested me. Uh, I’m actually not much of movie person? I’ve only just got into shlock but he might have an IMDB? Want I check?”
Her phone was wiggled in front of him, background of a tree covered in red blooms lighting up.
"Please do, now that I'm thinkin' on it I could swear I'd seen his face before. But I can't put my finger on it." Probably one of those movies he fell asleep watching with Mel.
“Anything for you,” like she hadn’t been curious herself, already searching. “Hmm, he was in Dog Cops, wait sorry, that was a TV show. Let’s see, movies. The Spineless Ones? And the sequel. Something called the Starlight Citadel too. These might be just schlocky enough for a movie night, if the names are anything to go by.”
"Starlight Citadel?" Sam asked, eyes wide. "Mel loves that movie."
“I have never seen it,” Alani chuckled, sneaking her glass to take a sip, “guess it’ll go on the to watch list, top of it, even, in honor of your sister.”
"I've slept through it at least a dozen times." Sam teased. "Which means I'm practically an expert in knowin' when the loud scenes are."
"Samford, has anyone told you you're the best, recently? If not, I will, and also that I love you for being such an amazing person." Of course with that came a tilt of her head. "And remind you that we should do something very stupid to have fun sometime in the near future. Like bull riding at a bar. Please?"
Sam’s eyes lit up with an almost feral glee. “Yes.”
His face split into a grin. “I’ve never actually done that before, you’ll have to take a video of me fallin’ on my ass.”
Immediately, Alani's eyes lit up, joy mirroring his as her own smile ticked up. "Oh I haven't either, so please get one of me, as I go flyin'."
"This Saturday?" She offered hopefully.
“Yer on.” Sam grinned. “This is gonna be so good. I can’t wait.”
"Yes!~" Alani cackled as she shook Sam slightly in her joy. "You won't regret it - I mean, or we'll both regret it and we'll land sore on our asses but it'll be great!"
