Looking over when Anna chimed up, Jonathan looked at the disk she offered and nodded. "Yeah, that could be. Looks like the rest, so let's test it out." Taking the disk carefully, Jonathan shuffled back to the computer, not really thinking about what he was about to see until the DVD was in the computer and a media player began to run. This was... this was stuff from an alternate dimension maybe. A future alternate dimension. One where he'd died.
The thought had Jonathan wringing his hands nervously as he began to watch. Andrew's initially shaky camerawork making Jonathan smile. Seeing his friend, despite having seen him to shortly before, made him smile more. When his friend began describing the situation he was in, acting as essentially a hostage of the Scoobies, Jonathan's smile began to wane. When the dry-erase board full of explanations came in next, that continued until his brows were furrowed completely and a worried frown was upon his face.
Without thinking, Jonathan powered through each disk, completely lost in this other world where he didn't exist any more. The story Andrew told was one that showed his obvious attempts at making the situation seem lighter or better than it was, his own distance from reality helping him deal with the severity Jonathan could see around him. That severity was only really addressed by Andrew once on the last disk, with his friend looking subdued and solemn. Talking about a last battle against the First, the über-vamps, and the Harbingers.
Seeing Andrew talk about accepting his own death as fair for having killed his best friend... Jonathan felt something tight form in his chest and, yeah, okay, he kind of felt like crying. Which was something macho men were afraid of, but since he was far from macho, he didn't care. Andrew had been prepared to die. He had been okay with the thought of dying. But if he was here and this was all past-tense for him to edit the videos... he obviously hadn't.
But that look on his face. That feeling. Had it ever gone away?
Could something like that ever really go away?
Jonathan felt that tightness in his chest grow worse when the video finally came to an end. There were more home films, with later years. But he felt he had no right to watch those. It was far beyond his time and this was Andrew's life now. It was his and his alone.
When he snapped out of his mind and thoughts, he saw Anna was still there and apologised for having lost himself. It didn't take much to deduce from Anna's own temperament and talk to determine that Andrew hadn't, in fact, gotten over what happened, and Jonathan thought about what he could do to help. There had to be something. What happened wasn't Andrew's fault. From the descriptions, the First was... it got in your head. Made you do awful things. And Andrew had always been so impressionable. It was something that had been addressed over and over again in group therapy.
So he wrote a letter. Talking to his friend, letting him know all of this. Straight from the horse's mouth, as it was. It took forever to write, to get everything out—if only because Jonathan wanted to handwrite it. A typed letter could be from anyone, but this? This Andrew had to believe was his. Had to believe and know. Just as Jonathan knew his own presence here wasn't permanent, this letter would help. Somehow. It was something to believe in at least, and it could help his friend move on. And hopefully... when he got back and if he remembered this, or even if he didn't, then they could make sure to always remain together. To do things right and save the world. Become the heroes they wanted to be.
Signing it as 'your friend, always', Jonathan smiled when it was done, folding the multi-page letter and leaving it on Andrew's desk with a soft sight. Looking to Anna, he smiled sadly and said, "When he comes back... make sure he gets it? And reads it. He might be too scared to, knowing Andrew. But... it's important."
Nodding, he looked back to the letter, repeating its importance before bringing his face to his hands and letting out a groan. Space and time travel, beyond dimensions, was way too complicated. He hoped he never saw another reality's timeline ever again.