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"I'm not sure most people see it," Julian said pensively. "We aren't mindful enough."
"Agreed." I inclined my head and reached for my beer. "We forget how powerful words are and how long they'll follow us."
Childhood bullying was a great example. In Julian's case, it had made him feel like there was something wrong with him. That shit was hard to shake.
"Exactly," Felicity agreed. "Plus, we tend to dismiss or even fear the unknown."
I smirked and tipped my glass at her. "The unconventional."
"There it is," she chuckled. "And here you two are now. You both gave in at some point. That must've been a relief."
"Indescribable." Julian squeezed my leg under the table.
Perhaps Sage or Sophie had given Felicity a heads-up about not asking further, ignoring the topic of what our remaining family felt toward us, because she left the present and the future alone.
"Last question." Felicity smiled. "Does love conquer all?"
I laughed under my breath and exchanged a sideways glance with Julian. I nodded to him, 'cause he may call me romantic, but he was better with words than I was.
"No," he answered, facing Felicity, "but I believe it gives us what we need in order to fight."
Perfect.
*
A lot of things were perfect lately. With the publicity and gossip out of sight and out of mind, we dove back into work. We wrapped Little Paul's last scene, and a few days after, it was time for Sophie's character's family to finish. It was hectic, and Julian and I had little time together. But having him on set made all the difference.
I craved those brief moments. Whether I turned to see him waiting with my coffee or he was sitting on a crate nibbling on a pen and working on his songs, it reenergized me to see him. We were on the same page; I wasn’t losing myself in work while he was merely waiting for me to get off. He was just as devoted.
I may have asked the guy who was documenting the project to take shots of Julian so I could have them developed.
Same went for everyone else I cared for. They weren't merely friends to us. We were surrounded by family, and I wanted moments captured. Brooklyn, always attached to her sponges and brushes. Tennyson, bothering with a shitload of paperwork to pull through something he believed in. Sophie, who'd earned her stardom in front of the camera. Asher, when he visited with his and Brooklyn's daughters.
Daniel and Zane were supposed to visit too, but one day they got the call they'd been waiting for. Then they packed their bags and flew off to adopt a boy and his baby sister.
On the flight to southern France, we celebrated them as best as we could. Sophie, Brooklyn, and I got some online shopping done. They covered the baby shit, and I focused on the daddies-to-be.
"I think they need a flat screen in the bathroom," I said, scratching my nose. "That way, they won't miss out on games during bath time."
Brilliant, I reckoned.
In the meantime, Julian put his headphones on and tinkered with an app where he could compose. He mentioned a lullaby, which I thought was sweet as fuck. Lastly, Tennyson made some calls to hire a party planner for a welcome-to-parenthood shindig when we all got home. Sophie had wanted to do it, but she'd go overboard.
"You know what this means, right?" Sophie, seated behind me, tapped a pen on my head. "You and Julian are next."
I laughed, side-eyeing Julian to make sure he hadn't heard. But he had. He gave me a look of amusement in return and rolled his eyes.
What the hell did that mean?
I wouldn’t rule it out simply 'cause I couldn’t predict the future, but I couldn't say I was interested in changing diapers and giving up, you know, sleep. The uncle gig suited me far better. I did love children, but I also liked the opportunity of handing them back to their parents. Always had.
Julian removed his headphones and kissed my shoulder. "Don't overthink it, love. I'm too selfish to share you."
I let out a sigh of relief and stole a smooch. "Good. There's plenty of other shit I see in our future."
"Oh, yeah?" He quirked a brow and smiled lazily. "What kind of shit?"
I shrugged. Maybe I'd opened my mouth too fast. I didn’t wanna scare the kid.
"Well, we're buying a house together when we get home." I rubbed the back of my neck, and it was probably best I left it at that.
"Very true. I can't wait." He threaded our fingers together and gave my hand a squeeze.
"Me either."
*
Our first evening in Nice, I went to dinner with Sophie and the young guy who'd be playing April's son as an eighteen-year-old. Brad was a sweet kid, and Sophie had already taken him out for dinner back home, when he landed the part. But getting relaxed in each other's presence before a scene was always a good idea.
