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Growing up in a small town was both a blessing and a curse. It was a curse for the way it was impossible to hide and news spread like wildfire, but a blessing in the way people became so incredibly close. Found each other and mixed like it was meant to be.
The area was harsh, but none of that mattered as Chandler and Joey sat in the Italian's attic, also where his bedroom was. A creaky old loft room with fairy lights and memories etched into the old, worn wooden pillars. C+J carved into the wall behind a messy drawing of a scratchy heart. Seemingly broken but actually held together -- held together by this. By this love. Disgustingly cheesy, but it was the truth no matter what.
Chandler smiles, his breath coming out in soft pants as an old tune - Lonesome Town by Ricky Nelson - plays on the old radio, his own lover underneath him.
They were so close that he could count the other's eyelashes. And he has before, multiple times. Whether it be when Joey was sleeping so peacefully in front of him, Chandler awake because his mind was racing and the gamble that is dreaming wasn't worth the risk. Or if they were close like they were now, lost in each other, and Chandler was a bit curious to see if the number had changed. Sometimes he'd find a stray one and gently swipe it, hold it on his thumb to make a wish. Or, he asked Joey to. It depended on if he was awake or not. Chandler never really has the heart to wake him up, so it's often when the other is awake.
"This town is a lonesome town," he whispers, and Joey tilts his head to the side. It's done a little awkwardly given that he's lying on the dark grey carpeted floor, but Chandler thinks he looks beautiful like this. Always looks beautiful, honestly.
Looks beautiful when he's covered in dirt when he's been playing soccer, or when he's just out of the shower, still absolutely soaked yet so incredibly breathtaking. Chandler still remembers when he first saw Joey in a new light, and normally that means the other was dressed up, trying to appeal to someone, but it was the complete opposite. They were both at an abandoned train track on the outskirts of town that was now used as a junkyard, sat on two barcaloungers that'd been abandoned. Shotgunning cans, kicking the large, rusted storage crates to see who could make the biggest dent. It was Joey, of course, which made Chandler claim that the stupid piece of metal simply preferred him more.
It was... chill, basically. They rarely got such time to themselves; late in the afternoon, as the moon appeared, blanketing the town in a faint white that made everything glow softly.
"Why aren't we sad or lonely, then?" Joey asks with a chuckle, hands rubbing along Chandler's hips soothingly. The sensation sends a shiver up his spine.
Joey's always seemed to have that effect on him, though. Always brought out a side of Chandler that not even he was aware existed until he met the older. That's not to say he didn't like any of it; Chandler can't remember a time where he's been nearly consistently happy for such a long time. Can't remember a time where he's always had someone there whenever he needed them, and to get to be there for someone, have something, be a part of something so arcane. Mean something to someone. He still can't believe how lucky he actually got, is, when he looks back on it all.
Because looking back on it, on this, on them, none of it should've even happened. Shouldn't have been possible, with the town's fixed views and the parents' control over their children's lives. But Chandler got twistedly lucky, having parents that only pretended to care when it mattered. They figured that he liked his time to himself, was used to it because he had no siblings and they took that as a reason to "let him do his own thing".
And Joey got parents that had too many children, leaving him far from the main priority his entire life. Meaning his sisters kept them constantly busy, allowing him to fade into the background. Joey was only important when they needed his help with something, and that lessened over the years, leaving him, much like Chandler, on his own. It for sure messed them both up a bit; ruined how they saw themselves. Lowered Chandler's self-esteem and made Joey rebel with borderline narcissistic attitudes that got him into constant shit.
But they'd found each other, and balanced each other out. Both had no idea what love was, so they created their own version. It was a beautiful cliché, becoming careful with each other. With their surroundings, fears of getting caught calming them both right down. Such a contrast to their behaviours before that were nothing but self-destructive and uncaring with everything.
So, yeah, they definitely did get lucky.
"Because we're together."