[It's stupid, Junpei thinks, that he should be thinking about the time of year at all. How many times now have he and Charles thrown out the actual date in this world and pretended it was some other time of year, like, twice? In maybe six months? That should be enough for the actual calendar to not matter, if only so that Junpei gets another six months before he has to think about New Year's Eve even a little.
Too bad, he supposes. They had a Christmas date - which was fantastic, don't get him wrong - and so there's really no pretending it's still July or whatever, when the end of the year is actually quickly approaching.
So he's been quieter, sure. He knows Charles is fretting silently over it, but all he can really bring himself to do is sit around and pretend to read magazines, while Charles goes back and forth around the house. It's without even thinking that he glances up from the same page he's been looking at for ten minutes and sees what Charles has found, and,]
Uh, yeah. I didn't tell you about the bracelet...? [He can't honestly remember, the same way he can't seem to remember other little anecdotes he's told Charles, and maybe that's a trauma response he should think more about, but—] Wait, give me that.
[A little more urgent, as he gets up to come over with his hand held out. The bracelet is a chunky, blocky thing, and while its watch face doesn't light up anymore, that's not really his concern. Needles aren't made of iron or whatever, right, but still, he very much doesn't want Charles to be holding that thing. It was the only thing in that drawer for a reason.]
surely it won't be the worst ever, considering--
Too bad, he supposes. They had a Christmas date - which was fantastic, don't get him wrong - and so there's really no pretending it's still July or whatever, when the end of the year is actually quickly approaching.
So he's been quieter, sure. He knows Charles is fretting silently over it, but all he can really bring himself to do is sit around and pretend to read magazines, while Charles goes back and forth around the house. It's without even thinking that he glances up from the same page he's been looking at for ten minutes and sees what Charles has found, and,]
Uh, yeah. I didn't tell you about the bracelet...? [He can't honestly remember, the same way he can't seem to remember other little anecdotes he's told Charles, and maybe that's a trauma response he should think more about, but—] Wait, give me that.
[A little more urgent, as he gets up to come over with his hand held out. The bracelet is a chunky, blocky thing, and while its watch face doesn't light up anymore, that's not really his concern. Needles aren't made of iron or whatever, right, but still, he very much doesn't want Charles to be holding that thing. It was the only thing in that drawer for a reason.]