Barlights

The group decided to go back to Tali’s apartment, where she currently lived alone (though Casper and Dean were already placing bets on how long that would last). Everyone sat on the couch watching the Spanish channel while Chandler paced behind them dialing buttons on a cell phone.

“Why do we watch this shit?” Cas huffed. “We don’t even know what they’re saying. I don’t even know what this is.”

Noah rolled his eyes and shook his head at Casper. “It’s Spanish, you uncultured swine.”

“Mate, I just make up my own translations,” Dean admitted with a shrug. “Much more entertaining than what’s actually happening.”

As Dean began to explain to Cas his version of what was happening on the television, Chandler’s voice burst over all other noise the room. “Hi, Daddy!” he greeted in mixture of excitement and fear. “Daddy, I know you’re mad, but you just have to—No, Daddy, I wasn’t trying to waste your money—Will you just listen to me?”

Growing irritated, Casper reached for the remote, murmuring, “Can’t even fuckin’ hear. He screeches like a howler monkey.”

“Dad, I’m gay,” Chandler huffed into the phone. “What? No! I can’t just take it back! Being gay doesn’t just blow over—“ He scoffed. “Well, I didn’t love her, anyway. Okay? Because I like men. I don’t know what you aren’t getting here.” He paused and gasped. “Well, fine! I don’t need you, anyway! Or your money!” He paused again. “Well, that’s okay, because I’m staying with Tali!”

“He is?” Thalia quietly asked herself. Dean snickered as Cas groaned and handed him a twenty.

“Well, that settles that that,” Noah murmured jokingly. Tali rolled her eyes.

Chandler hung up the phone and shoved it in his pocket, leaving the room in a dreadfully uncomfortable silence, save for the barely coherent Spanish screaming from the television speakers. Not caring for the quiet and not particularly caring much about the sensitivity of the situation, Gabe looked to his friends and asked, “So, you guys wanna help me set up the new furniture in my apartment?”

Murmurs of Yeah, Sure, Okay, and other agreements sounded from the men on the couch, except for Noah who said, “Can’t I’ve got a lecture to give.”

Out of a curiosity which Gabe rationalized as “being polite,” he turned to Chandler and offered, “You can help too, if you want.”

Politely, Chandler declined “I kind of want to be alone tonight,” he said softly. So, he was. Tali went on her date with Matty, and Noah left to give his lecture—which he decided was going to be held in the subway because he was a “cool” professor.

In the meantime, Dean and Casper accompanied Gabe to his apartment, which was left barren in the wake of Lizzie’s move. In the center of his empty living room, Gabe stood where there was once a lovely glass coffee table, one he remembered putting his feet upon so fondly when he watched his favorite programs.

“I’m 26 and divorced,” Gabe whispered, combing a hand through his hair. The room fell into a hush, as both Dean and Cas found themselves at a loss for how to console their friend. “This isn’t where I thought I’d be, mates. Not in a hundred years.”

Dean stepped forward and patted Gabe on the back. “I hate to say it, but the best thing for you to do is get back out there,” he suggested. “You know, just… dive back into the dating pool.”

Before Gabe could protest, Cas piped up. “Dean’s absolutely right,” he concurred. “And I don’t think there’d be anything wrong with taking your time, maybe experimenting a little—“

“What are you trying to say?” Gabe asked warily.

“I’m just saying that people are different, and… you’ve been with Lizzie for a long time. It’s kind of like ice cream. You’ve spent all this time eating vanilla, and vanilla’s great for awhile, until you realize that you don’t really like the vanilla, that vanilla’s kind of accent flavor that doesn’t quite taste good on it’s own… like chocolate. Or maybe you like something sweeter, like strawberry, but you wouldn’t know how much you liked strawberry until you tried it.”

“So…” Gabe waited expectantly for the conclusion of this peculiar metaphor.

“What I’m saying is that maybe you should give up vanilla,” Cas said. “And by vanilla, I mean Lizzie.”

“Yeah, what he said,” Dean agreed. “You should try other flavors. Just… reach forward and—“ Dean paused for dramatic effect. “Grab a spoon, mate.”

Giving up, the boys put their furniture party on hold to go get ice cream of the literal variety. Chandler, on the other hand, had not given up and spent his “alone time” leaving several confused apologies on his ex-fiance’s answering machine, none of which made any sense at all. So, it seemed that Tali was the only one having a decent night, but perhaps even that was a stretch…