darker_london | Happy Julian (Joe, Julian) (Reply)

Julian had put Aislinn to bed and then he had helped his mother put Jaida to bed as well. Then he made his way into the kitchen where Joe was fastidiously cleaning out the fridge because something in the back smelled slightly questionable. "Dad, can I talk to you?" Julian asked, climbing onto a stool at the high. He immediately began fiddling with a piece of fruit he plucked from the bowl and when he looked down he noticed it was a banana. Stupid phallic, distracting fruit. Quickly, he put it back.

"Of course you can!" Joe said, peeking out from behind the fridge. "What it is, Son?"

"Well...Renee asked me the other day if I could move in with her. I mean...Damon and Aislinn and me. And I know you pretty much wanted me to live here and stuff, but I don't know...I'd be close and maybe-"

"Jules..." Joe held up his hand so Julian wouldn't work himself into a tizzy. He stood slowly and he closed the fridge door because it still smelled of old cheese. "You're eighteen. And a father. You can do whatever you want to do. I'll miss you, of course, but it will be a damn sight better than having you in Bristol, which still kills me. And Jules...I'm actually really proud that you want to do this on your own so soon. Mum and I are always here to babysit of course. Always."

Julian grinned at Joe lopsidedly and he bounced off the stool. "Really?! I thought you'd be all over-protective and weird about this."

Joe chuckled and he wrapped his arms around his son. "Julian, you're going to live with Renee. You're not running off to the streets of Bristol. This I can handle." And he planted a kiss on Joe's head. "You know you can come back here for anything. Anything at all. But I want you to do what makes you happy and I know Renee does."

Julian beamed at Joe and he bounced up and down. "I'm going to have an apartment, Dad! Which totally means I need a job here! Balls!"

Joe chuckled and he mussed Julian's hair affectionately. "Mum and I can handle the first few months. You'll find something eventually. And you'll have plenty of people to play daycare for Aislinn." Joe's offer to pay was probably due to his guilt over the fact that losing his job was the reason Julian was separated from his family at the moment anyway and he knew Julian was not having a great time of it. Joe could afford things like that now that he worked for Peter's hospital. And he had job security because Peter was Peter.

"You rock so hardcore." Julian planted a kiss on his father's cheek and then he raced away to find Damon. "Thanks, Dad!"

"Any time, Son." Joe watched him fondly and then he turned back to find to his quest for the questionable cheese.