outlierdirector: ▮ <lj user="outlierdirector">. (body▸to run from the light.)
ᴊᴇssᴇ ғᴀᴅᴇɴ | ᵗʰᵉ ᵈᶦʳᵉᶜᵗᵒʳ. ([personal profile] outlierdirector) wrote in [community profile] synthneon2024-04-13 08:24 pm

oceanview || ❝ two worlds colliding, there ain't no bargaining. ❞

OCEANVIEW PATHS

but we can leave our gilded cages.
Two worlds colliding
There ain't no bargaining
No giving in without a fight
CODE BY TESSISAMESS
crazyisinevitable: (pic#17165405)

[personal profile] crazyisinevitable 2024-12-23 06:52 am (UTC)(link)
Oh, right, my next check-in. [ Alan's tone is level, as calm as he can make it, but he remembers something Jesse said before about that. ] That's when I'll get checked out, right? Examined so that you have a better idea of how my abilities work.

[ He wonders what that involves. Does the Bureau have some machine or other device that can set off a parautilitarian's abilities? If it's in a controlled environment, it would be safe, wouldn't it? ]

I guess that makes sense. Why would anyone put me in the field when you don't really know how I'd react? I- Well, I guess I didn't react that well in Bright Falls. Estevez didn't seem that impressed with me when we first met, but I thought she warmed up a little.

[ He notes the way her expression deflates as he keeps talking about Alice, and that's when he decides it's best to drop the subject. ]

I want to try again. I have to get used to it, and I'm not going to do that if I just never go out. [ Those notes of resolve that Jesse seems to like sound in Alan's voice, and this time, they stay there. ] The next time that you're free, we should go somewhere. Maybe while you're at work, I'll look into my financials.

[ It's not something Alan really wants to do, but he does need to make sure everything's in order. Most of it should already be that way, but he figures there's no harm in double-checking. The last thing he wants is to be at the store purchasing rings only to find out there's a problem with his accounts. ]

We can go shopping, get something to eat, window shop... [ He glances to one side but he can't quite see the calendar from where they are. ] What day is it again?

[ He's still getting used to keeping track of the days again. That wasn't something he even thought about in the Dark Place. Even the scratches on the wall trick wouldn't have done him much good without a way of knowing when one day ended and the next began. ]
crazyisinevitable: (008)

[personal profile] crazyisinevitable 2024-12-27 06:12 am (UTC)(link)
Yeah... Okay. It helps, really. I trust you, because why wouldn't I? You've never given me a reason not to. [ He notices belatedly that the pace of his words has picked up somewhat, bordering on almost frenetic, but something about being examined has that effect on him. ] I know it's necessary. I know it'll help you and everyone else learn more about... about AWEs. Dimensions. The Dark Place. It's good, because it'll help you. And- and maybe it'll help me too, somehow.

[ I'm not beyond help. I have to keep telling myself that. Yes, they can help. They'll help, and I'll get better. I have to get better.

... They won't lock me away, right? She said they wouldn't. I don't remember when she said that, but I know she did.


He shakes his head once to try and dislodge the thoughts trying to creep up and unnerve him once more. He's trying to do his best to manage himself and get through the day, but sometimes it feels like all he's doing is putting on a brave face for Jesse and whoever else might be looking. But maybe soon, the act of putting on a brave face will turn into reality. Too bad he can't write that down and make it become real. ]


I never understood why you or Estevez or Steve or anyone else never... Why you didn't do what everyone else did. Is it because you've dealt with AWEs before?

[ He pauses, trying to make sense of his own thoughts so that he can better put them into words. ]

You didn't blame me for the story, or for how horrific it became. [ In between his moments of wrestling with the effects of his time in the Dark Place, Alan has had time to think a little about this. ] You didn't see manuscript pages with my name on them and blame me for writing them. I know you knew it wasn't my writing, but how did the others know? Did Estevez suspect me at first?

Thursday. [ He nods, filing that information away and trying to commit it to memory so that he can actually start to track the passage of time again.

If he looked out the window, he'd note how it's becoming cloudy outside, but actually getting a good look would mean moving away from Jesse, and he's not interested in doing that. ]


... What month is it? [ He dimly remembers seeing decorations in the coffee shop they went to, and in the store they visited, and... were there decorations on the street lights?

He didn't look closely at any of them, so he can't picture them in his mind, but he remembers seeing something. ]
Edited 2024-12-27 07:01 (UTC)
crazyisinevitable: (pic#17165405)

[personal profile] crazyisinevitable 2025-01-01 09:14 pm (UTC)(link)
I mean, yeah, there's that, but it's also because I love you. A lot. [ He rolls his eyes at himself, but then he smiles. It's a warm smile, and it reaches his eyes. It's the smile he saves for her. ] I know, you're going to laugh at me.

[ He looks like he wants to say he doesn't think he's really important to anyone who isn't her, but he stops himself from saying it out loud. All it would do is upset her, and he knows he's done that enough.

As for his thoughts, he's still trying to figure out how to navigate those and deal with them when they start taking darker turns, which they do a lot. He hasn't quite reached the point of realizing that everyone has doubts and thoughts that aren't exactly helpful, that thoughts like those make him human.

Maybe it's just one more thing that will take time to really settle in. ]


I wish- I know it doesn't matter now, but looking back on all of it, I wish that I remembered more. I know I couldn't remember more, because the story didn't work like that, but- not remembering hurt you.

You, Steve and Estevez handled everything like pros. [ I'm the one who couldn't handle myself.

He doesn't respond to her next words right away, simply moving a little closer, closing what little space remains between them and nudging the side of her leg with his.

Going back to Bright Falls is something he thought about doing once. Maybe he and Jesse could properly experience Deerfest. Maybe they could actually visit Coffee World. He knows the one place he doesn't want to see again, and that's Cauldron Lake.

Even if the threshold is closed, he really doesn't want to risk anything by going there. And aside from the nonsense of thresholds, he just has no interest in ever seeing it again. It could be the nicest lake in the world and he'd still find it difficult to look at. ]


It's December, and that means... [ His eyebrows crease in thought. ] It'll be Christmas soon. [ I guess I missed Thanksgiving. Huh. ]

I'd ask if I could go with you, but I think we both know the answer to that.
crazyisinevitable: (008)

[personal profile] crazyisinevitable 2025-01-05 08:31 am (UTC)(link)
[ Maybe at the end of the day, he just feels too much. Maybe he wasn't always like that; maybe being in the Dark Place for so long changed something about him (well, it changed a lot of things about him), and because of it, he feels things a lot more than he used to. Or maybe it's just that he's head over heels for Jesse. ]

It's okay if you do. I don't mind. I know I'm-

[ He shrugs as best as he can without accidentally hitting her with his shoulder, given how close they are to each other. ]

I know it was, and it was meant to hurt people, but I think I should have done more. Tried more things. I know that it dragged people in who didn't ever ask for any of it, but sometimes I wonder if I could have written something to take them out of the story again. I'll never be over the story hurting you.

[ They're already so close to each other on the bed, but he can't stop himself from scooting in just a little more. ]

We did it. We beat the story and the Dark Presence, and we're together. That's what matters. And I wouldn't be here at all if not for all of you. Especially you, but Steve and Estevez helped. I had so many people helping me, and I still don't think I deserved it.

[ He doesn't let go of her hand, but he curls his fingers against hers and slowly rubs them against hers too. ]

We need to do something for Christmas. Maybe a nice dinner, and shopping. I want to get you something.

[ As the conversation turns to talk about Cauldron Lake, Alan feels something like a chill settle onto his shoulders. ]

It's dangerous for you too, isn't it? The Dark Presence can probably sense you just as easily as it can sense me. [ And that worries him a lot more than being dragged back in by the Dark Presence does. ]
crazyisinevitable: (0118)

[personal profile] crazyisinevitable 2025-01-12 05:03 am (UTC)(link)
[ Something about the look she's giving him makes something inside Alan almost curl up like it's trying to hide. In a way, it's a strange reversal, because he remembers pinning her with looks before that probably caused a similar reaction. Now it's his turn. ]

I don't know. I mean, I know, but there's still that part of me that feels like I wasn't helpful at all. What I did sometimes made things worse; I'm the reason a lot of this happened, if not all of it. The loops kept happening because of me, didn't I? And wasn't the darkness a threat because of me? [ He doesn't remember the events in their entirety, but it feels like he's one of the reasons the Dark Presence became the threat that it did.

Her words continue to wash over him, and a feeling of a strange kind of helplessness sweeps over him too. What can he say? She's right, even if part of him still protests and blames himself for all of it. ]


Maybe there's no point in going over all this again. Maybe we don't need to go over it ever again. It's over, right?

[ He lets out an exhale. ] Christmas. Yeah. Maybe I never did before, but- I kind of want to now. With you.

[ He shifts on the bed because he really doesn't like the idea of her going back to Cauldron Lake alone. ]

I know you can handle yourself, but "it should be alright" isn't all that reassuring. [ What if she doesn't come back? ]
crazyisinevitable: (0149)

[personal profile] crazyisinevitable 2025-01-13 07:08 am (UTC)(link)
[ Something about her movements clues Alan into this being a serious moment. A lot of their moments have been serious ones, but Alan knows Jesse's tells, from how she moves to the tone of her voice. And, well, any time she mentions Ordinary, it's not without purpose.

He remembers her telling him about Ordinary before, but a lot of the specifics of her tales were lost to the loops. All he knows is that Ordinary is where everything started for her, so he simply goes quiet and listens as she talks. ]


You set it up to happen, but then you fought to fix it. [ He's not sure if that's something he remembers or if it's just something he's certain she would do, given her tendency to throw herself at problems until they've been dealt with. ] You fought to get your brother back and you fought the Hiss.

[ He goes quiet again as he tries to digest the lesson she's trying to tell him. ]

That's going to be hard for me to accept, but- well, it's one of those things where you don't have a choice, right? I can't go back and change what happened any more than you can. [ He offers her a small smile. ] I think you're the wise one, Jesse.

[ She's already learned lessons that Alan's still trying to figure out. ]

Not clearly, anyway. I'm sure we celebrated together, but- I can't remember it. [ If he and Alice had any Christmas traditions, the memories of them are buried, but hopefully not lost for good. If they are, though, he can make new memories with Jesse. He wants to make new memories and traditions with her. ]

I want to meet Dylan properly one of these days.

[ Her tone drops, and Alan's expression drops as well. ] I know. [ I'm just scared that she won't come back. ] I know you can handle it; you handled the loops and the Taken and even Scratch. You'll be fine.

[ He makes himself inject as much confidence in that as he can, trying to not think about how the loops reset if something bad happened. Now, if something bad happens to Jesse, there's no resetting it. No undoing what's been done.

That's what scares him the most: losing Jesse forever. ]
crazyisinevitable: (004)

[personal profile] crazyisinevitable 2025-01-19 12:38 am (UTC)(link)
Yeah... but you had the pieces eventually. When you got to the Oldest House, when you started putting the pieces together. I think you figured things out a lot faster than I did. But I guess not all of us can have an otherworldly resonance helping us along the way, huh? That was a joke, by the way. I'm glad that you and Polaris have each other.

I think... I still think what I did was more guessing at what I needed to do than actually figuring things out. That's probably why you and Saga and I don't even know how many people were so frustrated with me. That, and I guess I was actually the one causing all the problems.

[ When I thought that "Return" was changed because of Scratch, was it actually changed because of me? Maybe people were right to blame me. ]

Maybe it'll come back and maybe it won't. Maybe I just have to make new memories now. He's going to wake up. I'm sure he will.

[ She squeezes his hand and he has to force himself to try and relax, not letting his fears about what could happen to get bog him down. But the truth is, he's terrified of losing her. Terrified that she'll leave for work and not come home.

He'd sacrifice anything to get her back, just like he did before, but he'd rather them not have to get to the point where sacrifices are necessary from either of them. ]


I love you. I know you know it, but I just wanted to say it. Again.
crazyisinevitable: (pic#17165390)

[personal profile] crazyisinevitable 2025-01-20 05:19 am (UTC)(link)
I'm starting to think that no one who's seen what's really out there can. How do you go back to just minding your own business walking down the street and not thinking about things like the Dark Presence and the Hiss?

[ Sometimes Alan thinks he feels something or someone standing behind him when he writes; sometimes it feels like there's a hand on his shoulder or a breath against his neck. Other times, he thinks he catches a glimpse of something reflected in a mirror or a picture on the wall. ]

The Bright Presence... Yeah, I met him- man, it feels like it was so long ago. I remember thinking it was weird to see someone in a diving suit when we weren't underwater. Maybe that was just a strange kind of foreshadowing. I wonder what happened to him. I think I heard from him once, but it wasn't for very long. I think I was too deep for him to really reach me.

[ He goes quiet too for a moment, stilling as she moves and lays down on top of him, resting against him. It doesn't bother him; in fact, he likes it. He likes having her this close.

With her on top of him, he has easier access to her hair, which he starts to touch and stroke as she continues talking. ]


So, you knew... Or Polaris told you. [ His expression shifts briefly to a faraway look, but he's still there with her: no more drifting away or drowning. ]

I was somewhere else. Bright Falls, I think. I don't really understand how it all happened, and I thought it was only a dream at first, but dreams don't work the way this one worked.
crazyisinevitable: (0163)

[personal profile] crazyisinevitable 2025-01-27 07:01 am (UTC)(link)
That must be nice. I mean, really, to just do what you can to go about your day normally... I'm a little jealous, and I know how that sounds. I don't know how you do that either; to live a double life all the time. Does it ever get hard to do?

[ He huffs out a dry laugh. ] "When things get out and damage that normal life". [ He thinks he knows what she means, but he still can't stop himself from thinking that he got out and damaged people's normal lives. That's why he thought he should be locked up or put down or hell, even kept in the Dark Place forever, as much as he didn't want that for himself. ]

Sorry. I- well, I didn't plan on anything happening. I still don't know if this counts as "something" happening, but it felt real.

[ He shifts when she squeezes him, but not out of discomfort. Her touch has always comforted him, even when he was too strung out to really know that. ]

I was- well, I was me, but a me who denied that anything out of the ordinary ever existed. I was still Alan Wake, but I was also successful. I mean really successful.

[ His mouth twists to one side; he still remembers how he dreamed about being a great writer, compared to the other great writers who had come before him. He wanted to write great novels, thought-provoking ones, ones that told stories that really made people think.

... Look at where that got him. ]


I just refused to believe that the Dark Presence was real. Anything that couldn't be explained couldn't be real. And- and you were there too, but your name was Beth. You still worked with the Bureau.

[ His lips turn down into a frown. ] Beth and Alan- that other Alan, they were having problems, just like Alice and I were. He wasn't even sleeping in the same room as her.

[ For some reason, that still really bothers him. ]
crazyisinevitable: (008)

[personal profile] crazyisinevitable 2025-01-29 08:33 am (UTC)(link)
Isn't that what we're trying to do? I mean, some of the time; around you, I don't have to be normal, but I'm trying because you don't need someone who can't stop jumping at his own shadow. I think I have the appearance but it definitely doesn't come off as right.

[ He shakes his head. ]

Scratch... Where did Scratch stop and I started? I thought that Scratch was... Weren't we two parts of the same person, or am I just talking crazy? I know that I caused problems. Scratch definitely caused problems. [ I think he killed Jesse once. More than once? Was that really Scratch or was that just me flipping out? Either way, it's bad. ]

... The Duck? [ He looks at her, confused. Maybe he's just confused about everything relating to what he thought was an entity called Scratch. Jesse just said that about Scratch, but Alan can't shake the feeling that Scratch was something else entirely. ]

I was a skeptic, way back when all of this started. But even then, I knew that weird things were going on, even if I didn't know exactly what it all meant. This other Alan seemed to have closed the door on the possibility of unexplainable things happening.

[ Alan nudges Jesse with his shoulder as he tries to put his thoughts into something that makes sense. ]

It felt like he cut her off. He was pulling away, leaving her by herself, and hardly even talking to her anymore, as far as I could tell. It's... What if I did that to Alice? What if I do that to you?

Married, but not even really talking to his own wife. [ Alan's expression seems to darken as he thinks back to everything he experienced in the dream or whatever the hell it was. ] What's the point in having fame and money if you don't have someone around that you care about? It's not going to fill you up; it's just going to make you feel like you have what you want, when you don't really have it.

[ Alan realizes as he says those words that he really means them. His priorities seem to have shifted a lot now, leaving behind who he used to be before all of this began. ]
crazyisinevitable: (0162)

[personal profile] crazyisinevitable 2025-02-14 03:39 am (UTC)(link)
For my own good? [ The look he gives her is a blank one, as if Alan isn't quite sure what that means. His focus has been on improving himself for her, so that he can be a good partner to her. He hadn't thought of it in terms of doing it for himself. ]

I think Barry's long gone. He's moved on, probably to bigger and better things. Barry always had the crazy ideas and the crazier, bigger dreams.

[ I think I just have her. And I could be all right with that, but can she?

She squeezes him and he shifts slightly, but out of pleasure, not discomfort. Her touch makes him feel good. It keeps him grounded when his worries threaten to take him over. Still, he can't quite push aside the questions he still has about Scratch, but maybe he shouldn't ask Jesse about them. ]


Can anyone see the Altered Items that you have, or are those classified? I know it's just a duck, but- [ He shrugs. ]

I think he wasn't ready to accept that this is the way the world is. It's weird, it's full of things you can't explain, and there's a lot of things out there that might try to kill you. I wouldn't blame him for that, except- why did he feel like he had to distance himself from her?

[ Alan shakes his head. He knows he thought about what he could do to protect Jesse: if maybe it was better for her if he didn't keep dragging her into his problems, but he'd never purposefully pull away from her like the Alan in the dream did. ]

Actually, now that you mention it, she did think it was because of her. I- I wanted her to see that it wasn't her fault. I know, it's crazy, to want to help someone I dreamed up while asleep, but...

[ It was Jesse, even if she went by the name Beth. I only wanted to help. ]
Edited 2025-02-14 03:39 (UTC)
crazyisinevitable: (0128)

[personal profile] crazyisinevitable 2025-02-17 04:37 am (UTC)(link)
[ A dry laugh escapes him in a quiet huff as he briefly goes back in his mind to the Writer's Room. He's not remembering anything specific, just remembering sitting there in the almost dark, except for the lamp on the desk. Was he doing all of this for him, or was it for Alice or for the people stuck in the AWE? Maybe it started out as him just trying to get home, but it seemed to morph into more than that. ]

Maybe he would, but should he? A lot can change in thirteen years. Maybe what I should be doing is figuring out how to make new connections. New friendships.

[ Why do I feel like everything from before 2010 is gone? It just feels like everyone moved on without me, because why would anyone wait around? Anyone except for Jesse, I mean. ]

Huh. [ He files that away for later; he doesn't intend to go poking around or poking at anything stored in the Oldest House, even if he's allowed to go near any of it. He probably shouldn't go near any of it, right? Maybe the most he'll do is ask if he can look at the duck, for... some reason. ]

Yeah, maybe that was it. I know it sounds crazy, but I really just wanted to talk to him, to figure out what the hell he was even doing. Maybe if I talked to him, and put it together with what Beth was saying, it would make sense. Maybe it wouldn't make sense at all. I don't know.

[ He shifts his gaze to try and meet hers, because she's right. That's exactly how it would go, between them. ]

I know that if you tried to lock things away, I wouldn't like that. I wouldn't want you holding anything back; so yeah, that would put distance between us. I don't know if I'd push you away, but I might push you away by asking you to not keep things from me. I don't want you to keep the weirdness from me.

[ That made more sense in his head, and so he adds: ] That sounds crazy, but you know what I mean, right?

[ At her next words, something in Alan's face tenses. ] You think I was- You think it was a vision?

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