#Autumn in Philadelphia

[oceangirl24]

Saudade: No Turnin' Back

The partial flashback in this chapter is based on the season four episode "I Never Sang for My Legal Guardian". Dialogue is directly from that episode.

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Jon didn't look overly happy to see him. "Hey Shawn, I thought you were gonna eat dinner over at the Matthews."

The look on Jon's face told him that whatever Eli was referring to, it wasn't Audrey. He tried not to jump to conclusions about what life-changing event Jon was considering without her. He swallowed back the negative feelings lurking beneath the surface, tucked a stray lock of hair behind his ear and shrugged.

"Yeah, I was but, uh, I'm tired. I wanted to turn in early."

Trying to distract himself from the worst-case scenarios that his mind wanted him to embrace, Shawn glanced down at Jon's attempt that had all been lack-luster since Audrey's departure.

"Chicken A L'Tang." He tried not to grimace at the dish he once thought of as a high-class meal when he first moved in. "What's the special occasion?"

"I gotta date." Jon's smile glitched for a moment as he himself tried not to grimace at both the meal and the reason for it. "But hey, you know, I can easily stretch it three ways."

They stared at each other for a moment as uncomfortable silence swelled around them. She hadn't been mentioned since their last blowup about going to the City in the summer to get her. They had been too busy struggling to get along and live together. Shawn resented everything about the situation, but he resented Jon's attitude and refusal to try to make their family work most. Jon tried to pretend everything was normal and that Audrey never happened, which only infuriated him more.

Shawn resented that he was dating again.

So strong was his resentment that he was ready to go back to Chet and he made sure Jon knew it every chance he got. So he flipped through the mail as though he didn't care what Jon did and held up a handful of letters.

"Hey," his faux smile was much better than Jon's, "I finally got another letter from my dad." There was an ever so slight emphasis on "my dad". He didn't so much so much as look at Jon as he said this. Shawn held the envelope close to his nose as he scrutinized the address.

A silent "you're not  my  dad" hung in the air between them.

Jon faltered for a moment, then recovered enough to ask casually, "Where is he now?"

"He's still at that truck stop in Readin'."A cold bitterness settled over Shawn as he stared at the letter and imagined Chet sitting at the truck stop laughing it up with whoever else was there with not one care in the world.

Disgusted, he tossed the letter in the trash.

"What'd you do that for?" Jon stared at him, completely dumbfounded. He couldn't understand the teen anymore. All day every day he had to hear about Chet and how much Shawn wanted to be with him. Every day he watched Shawn excitedly get the mail hoping for a letter, then make excuses for why Chet hadn't written yet.

Now the letter was finally here, and it went straight into the trash.

"It's fifty miles from here, Jon. I mean the least he could do is come visit me." Shawn struggled to keep a straight face. He was angry and hurt by both Chet and Jon and he didn't know what to do about it.

Jon walked away from building a real family with him and refused to even try to make it walked away from the family he had with him and refused to even stop by to say "Hey, kid, how are ya?". Shawn wanted to hate them both, but all he could feel was the familiar numbness of rejection.

Jon saw the look and felt horrible. His conversation with Eli came back to him and although he didn't have quite everything ready he knew Shawn needed some hope even if it wasn't quite in the form he wanted. But doing what Audrey wanted him to do with Shawn was a start.

Right?

"Hey, you know, Shawn, I spoke to an attorney today," he said a little too cheerfully as he walked around the kitchen counter to close the distance between them. "A couple of signatures and I'm your legal guardian."

An  attorney? Not the  family  attorney Jon had been working with for the past few months?

Shawn's eyes narrowed slightly.

"I thought you did that months ago," he said in accusatory tone even though he knew Jon hadn't. That's what the cancelled big celebration at Chubbie's had been for after all. But if Jon wanted to play a game where Audrey didn't exist, he would crush him at it.

The remark caused Jon to falter. Months ago, before Audrey's involvement, Chet had sent him the guardianships papers. Once Audrey became a part of their lives, that solo signing was put on hold. Shawn knew that, so why was he acting like he didn't?

Then he realized they were playing the game again, the one they played since Audrey left. Apparently the game was now constant.

"Well, I got the forms." Jon couldn't look the teen in the eyes. "I just never got around to fillin' them out."

Another lie to rewrite the past year.

Shawn hated the game, and he was beginning to hate his opponent.

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[pangeen]

" The Halls of the Forest " //© William Smith

[harrisx28]

Fall at Laurel Hill in Philadelphia🍁

[oceangirl24]

Thank you. I am very much looking forward to reading this as soon as I can.

Happy New Year!

Breaking the Fourth Wall – A gift fic in a special format

Fandom: Gravity Falls

Rating: G

Summary: Something sinister lurks for the girls and Pacifica, and Audrey steps up to face the threat.

Dedicated to @mercedesaria, for her love of a 90s-2000s sitcom.

Thanks to @bonpocalypse for giving an initial read and vetting through this story!

Notes: Audrey, who is more on the forefront here, makes her first appearance in Six and Seven, in which she bullied young Nilam until Great Grunkle Ford mediates the situation. Aria wrote a review saying how she was “very partial to that name”, given she writes a series featuring Audrey whom Jonathan (rather reluctantly) takes under his wing as a teacher-student. The two grow closer over time as the events unfold. Truthfully the name was taken from Pau’s next-gen comic which features a similar flashback of Cedric being bullied by a girl of the same name. Nevertheless, I decided to flesh out Audrey more, particularly in Episode IV: Death and the Maiden, and also in this gift fic.

For this work, I took a look over a few episodes of Boy Meets World, which is a sitcom Aria based her fanfiction series Autumn in Philadelphia from, and decided to write this story in a screenplay format. Canned laughter, recorded applause… those are something you can find from a 90s/2000s sitcom, while the sitcoms of the 50s were filmed before a live audience. Other inspirations also include DuckTales 2017 episode Quack Pack (although that's more of an 80s sitcom) and Wandavision.

I had an idea of the four friends doing a social studies project on the 90s/2000s and hence they reenacted a few scenes. The one they are reenacting at the beginning is from Boy Meets World Season 2 Episode 20 Pop Quiz, as the headmaster admonishes the two students for their appalling grades. Something unsettling happens, and it turns out to be a glitchy showman from Zoe’s video app that decides to take control of this show. I debated various ways on how to deal with him before deciding upon a game show. The scene featured at the end is transcribed right from Mercedes Aria’s Autumn in Philadelphia Trilogy – Squirrelly Funerals and Nutty Neighbors.

To Aria, you’re a dear friend, and I’d like to thank you for your incredible support and the valuable feedback you’ve provided on several of my writings. As of late, I had the opportunity to delve into your own stories, which are nothing short of extraordinary especially since I garner deeper insights from watching the show. I love how you integrate your OC into the canon – how Audrey becomes a mother figure for Shawn and is a close partner of Jonathan. It’s a pleasure to have you not only as a writing friend but also as someone whose work I admire wholeheartedly. I look forward to many more exchanges of creativity in the future.

I hope you'll enjoy this gift fic. And Happy New Year!

[c0mmencement]

tumblr, my beloved: i’m a brunette again for the first time in six years

[davidwallacesgf]

“oh my god, i do not have time for you.”

LMAOOO the lawyer deserves a vacation for having to deal with the gang all the time

[unusual-suspects]

snapshots of my adventure this morning c:

[phillypeel]

10.19.24, Market Street, 2:27 pm

peel waiting for the bus

[oceangirl24]

Saudade: Losing Audrey Part I

Audrey's removal was temporary...

...He pulled into the driveway and turned off the vehicle but didn't get out of the truck. He felt disconnected from his body and couldn't make any part of himself move.

"Jon?" Shawn put his hand on his shoulder and gave him a shake. "What happened in Feeny's office? Where's Audrey?"

He wasn't prepared to answer these questions. He wasn't prepared to shatter Shawn's hopes for the future.

Jon stared at the windshield and wondered when it started raining.

"Jon. You're freakin' me out. Where's Audrey?"

"Gone." His voice was thick with emotion, and it was hard to get the word out.

"Gone?"

"Feeny knows."

Shawn sat back and frowned as he studied his teacher. "How much does he know?"

"Everything," Jon sighed despondently. "Except that I was gonna propose next month and that we were gonna adopt you."

He tipped his head back over the top of the car seat and stared at the ceiling.

"Hmm," Shawn replied, rubbing a finger over his lips. "So, he doesn't know about Saturday?"

"No."

Shawn nodded, unsurprised. "When is she gettin' back?"

Jon flinched at the question. "She isn't."

..."Man's gotta god complex," Shawn remarked rolling his eyes. He turned sideways to face Jon and rested his arm on the back of the seat. "Who died and made him Audrey's dad? Last time I checked, Pops was still kickin'."

Jon snorted in distaste at Shawn's word choice regarding Richie. "George thinks he knows best."

"Maybe in school stuff." Shawn paused to watch his teacher's pained expression. Jon was taking this incredibly hard. It surprised him when, by Shawn's estimate, it was only a few weeks they'd be without her.

It wasn't ideal but it also wasn't a tragedy.

A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

Jon's got it so bad for Aud, he thought gleefully.

But his teacher wasn't smiling, so Shawn didn't tease him.

Instead, he said thoughtfully, "The school year's almost over. What's Feeny gonna do if we take off to New York as soon as the last bell rings? Call the cops and report us for intent to form a family?"

"My office now, Mr. Turner. I do not care what you are doing. I do not care what state of dress you are in. My office.  Now."

Jon felt the way Shawn looked: sick and helpless.

"Can I ask what this is about?" he ventured, bracing to be yelled at for insubordination.

"You lied to me, Mr. Turner," he replied with disgust. "You told me there was no romantic relationship between you and Miss Andrews. You have fifteen minutes to get to my office or I will come to you. And you do not want that."

The sound of the receiver dropping roughly into its cradle echoed in Jon's ear as he tried to wrap his head around the unspoken threat in Feeny's words.

"What?" Shawn jumped to his side and grabbed him by the shirt sleeve.

Numbness settled over Jon.

"He knows."

Shawn was positive he could feel Jon's fear and it made him shudder.

"He knows what?"

"Everything."

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[emmathegrosssadhumanbeing]

Walking away from reality 🌞

[prettydaddy-halloween]

[harrisx28]

Fall in Philadelphia🍁

[secondsofpleasure]

liminal spaces / 10.2023

[davidwallacesgf]

the fact that them putting wine into their veins WASN’T the physical, pain, and endurance test ??? 😭

[sarahcornell]

philadelphia museum of art, october 2022

shot by sarah cornell

[jarviskingston]

🌏🌍🌎