Justin Taylor (jstn_sunshine) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2017-07-31 23:28:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, diana meade, justin taylor |
Who: Justin Taylor and Diana Meade
When: Backdated: Mid July
Where: The Beach
What: So Justin's dream!boyfriend looks like Diana's dad.
Rating/Warnings: Family Friendly
Status: Complete
The sun was setting over the ocean as Justin finished his sketch. He was planning on doing a larger, colored version for the art exhibit in the park in a few weeks, but he’d decided to do a practice sketch first. He was looking forward to the art show as he did most art shows that he took part in, but this one was different than most because it wasn’t quite as formal as the ones that took place in galleries and this one would be more local artists than some of the ones he’d taken part in.
With the ocean sketch finished, he turned to another page that had a various finished and unfinished sketches on it. There was one of Brian, that he’d done some time ago as well as one of Royston had he’d started a few mornings earlier while he’d watched his boyfriend sleep. He hadn’t even realized, when he’d started it, that Brian’s sketch shared the same page, but it seemed right somehow that he couldn’t quite explain.
Diana had done the distraction route. Twice, in fact. She’d spent time alone in her room and at one point her dad had come in to check on her and she’d started crying without any explanation on her end or any understanding on her dad’s. He’d still handled the situation pretty well. He didn’t ask her a lot of questions, he’d just accepted the fact that something upset her enough and that she’d cheered up a little after he’d sat there with her. She was just glad he was there for her like he was in the dreams.
Today she was at the beach, somewhere that was comforting in a small way because it made her feel less out of sorts. She was by the water in the dreams and here. As she walked, she noticed someone either drawing or writing. From where she was, she couldn’t be sure. Normally, she wasn’t the sort of person to start up conversations with complete strangers without there being a clear starting point, like waiting in line at the grocery store or while she was working. Really, she’d intended to go past, but she made a split second decision and paused next to the bench. “Is this seat taken? I think I need to sit a moment.”
Justin looked up at the sound of someone else’s voice and shook his head, “Go ahead.” He moved his messenger bag to the other side of the bench and went back to touching up the sketch of Royston. Some people probably would have minded if a stranger came and sat down beside them when there were other empty benches around, but Justin didn’t mind sharing at all.
Carefully she took a seat, staring for a few moments out at the ocean. It was peaceful and she was almost able to relax. At least her life outside of the dreams was only dangerous when she decided that it was going to be. After some time, she glanced over at what the guy next to her was sketching and her brows furrowed a little. Not because of the sleeping men on the pages, but because one of them looked remarkably similar to her dad. “Nice sketches,” she said after a moment, not really sure what else to say. How did you ask if the random stranger sitting next to you somehow knew your dad? “I’m Diana, by the way. Diana Meade.” If he reacted to the last name, that would give her some indication, she figured. If not, then...well, it was probably about to be very confusing.
As the girl spoke again, Justin glanced over at her, setting the sketch pad down onto his lap ano smiled, “Thanks. I’m Justin.” As far as Justin knew there was only one person with Brian’s face and that was Brian Kinney so the name Meade didn’t cause any sort of reaction.
No reaction. Diana had been sure there would have been one. Her brow furrowed in thought as she tried to figure out what to say next. She was good in normal conversations, ones that made sense to her, but not really these. The dreams had made things complicated. “Nice to meet you, Justin.” She didn’t know that name either. “Do you come out here to draw a lot?” A pause. “Just ignore me if I’m being too nosy. It happens all the time at work.” Asking people what spells they were doing, what the things they were getting from the store she worked for was being used for. She had so many questions about magical things in general.
“Every now and then. I don’t really have any one specific place I draw at.” One of the things Justin liked to sketch was people, so he would people watch often whenever he was in public and tended to sketch the people or things he found most interesting. Brian, he could draw from memory now, but he had done less sketches of his dream boyfriend since he and Royston had started dating, “And you’re not being too nosy. So, don’t worry about it,” He gave her a bright smile to reassure her.
Diana didn't know if she could keep herself from being at least a little nosy. Especially when there was a random person sketching a man who looked like her dad. “Well, that's a relief.” She offered a quick smile. “Who's the man here,” she asked, pointing toward her dad’s apparent doppelgänger. “I'm mostly curious because...well, he kind of looks exactly like someone I know.” Also known as her dad.
Justin quirked a brow slightly, “Oh really? He’s someone from my dreams.” He was extremely curious if the person she knew actually was Brian and what her connect to him was in the waking world. “My boyfriend in them actually.” He watched Diana to see what her reaction would be to that.
Someone from his dreams. She wondered if that meant he was one of the people from Valarnet. The moment he said he was his boyfriend, she knew the answer was probably yes. She tried to school her face, but the surprised expression was mostly due to the fact that she hadn't expected someone with her dad's face to be someone's boyfriend. “He looks like my dad,” she said quietly. Because she still didn't know what to do with the information she'd just been given. She'd been the one asking for it, though.
Justin couldn’t hide the surprise on his face at that revelation and he was suddenly glad that the sketch of Brian hadn’t been a nude one. “Your dad? His name wouldn’t be Brian Kinney, would it?” She had said that her last name was Meade, but there were many reasons she could have had a different last name than Brian.
Brian Kinney. Diana shook her head. “Charles Meade.” She didn’t know there were nude drawings, but she’d be eternally grateful to never have to see sketches of her dad naked. “Is this something that happens often? People that look like other people? No one’s ever mentioned that before.” Outside of some people talking about doppelgangers, but she didn’t really read much about it. “This is...bizarre.”
How many other people looked like her dad in someone’s dreams? Were there people she shared a face with? What exactly did any of this mean? There were a lot more questions than answers at this point. She was definitely going to have to talk to Jim about this because she didn’t actually have a lot of other people to talk to when it came to these sorts of things.
Charles Meade. So not Brian then. Justin couldn’t hide the relief on his face as she said that. “Tell me about it,” While Justin knew that he was unlikely to drop everything if Brian actually were in the OC, he really didn’t know exactly how he’d react. He wasn’t seventeen anymore so much less of a starry eyed schoolboy like he’d been in the dreams, but there was something about Brian that always caught him a little off guard after a dream. “Yeah, it is kind of a thing, from what I’ve seen. I don’t think it happens often, but I know there have been people who have looked alike, but aren’t related.”
She pulled out her phone, flipping through it to find a picture of her with her dad. Once she found it, she held it out to him. “This is my dad. In case you’re wondering, suits do seem to be one of his wardrobe staples. He’s a lawyer, so I’m told that that is why. Apparently they don’t do a lot of casual wear. Though, I have caught him in a pair of jeans before. I may have bought them for him in an attempt to see if I could talk him into wearing them. He humored me.” She smiled a little. “He’s good at the whole dad thing. I have never considered the possibility of him looking like someone else. I think I’ll probably be able to tell them apart, though. By the obvious lack of response if I run into your Brian Kinney.”
As Diana turned the phone towards him, Justin’s pulse rose slightly as he stared at the picture. He definitely looked a little older than Brian, but then again, in his dreams, Brian was only thirty one, but with the suit he looked exactly like Brian did most of the time, “Wow. That’s fucking crazy. Brian owns an ad agency, so suits are definitely part of his wardrobe. And yeah, you’d probably be able to tell them apart though. Brian is very meticulous about his looks. Wants to stay young and beautiful forever.” Justin smirked a little.
Diana laughed a little at his reaction. Mostly the talking part. “That is terrifying. Just a little. Perhaps we shouldn’t let them meet.” The part about staying young and beautiful forever? Well, Diana was pretty sure that her dad wasn’t exactly the same. He liked to look his best, but she didn’t think he believed in being young and beautiful forever. “I’m pretty sure single parenting and being young and beautiful forever would be really difficult.” It was a little unusual, but then what wasn’t about this place? “This has been a sufficiently weird day. I’m going to get some coffee if you want to come with. I think I need it right about now.”
Justin laughed as well, “Yeah, he’s pretty obsessed with his looks. He almost had a breakdown when he turned thirty.” Trust Brian to become a drama queen just because he wasn’t in his twenties any longer. “I’d love to get some coffee. We could trade more stories about the differences between you dad and Brian.” It was bizarre to think about, but Justin had seen quite a lot of bizarre things over the last couple of years, so this really shouldn’t have been that different.