10-4, coffee that.

「 mr. deacon james 」

Full Name: Deacon Allen James

Nickname/s: Deac, DJ, Dekes, James, Big D

Gender: CIS Male

Date of Birth: April 13, 1987

Age: Thirty three

Ethnicity: White

Place of Birth: Birmingham, Alabama

Sexual Orientation: Heterosexual

@tupeloextras || [tw: mention of drugs, divorce]

It wasn’t fair to say Gabrielle had favorite patients. But she did have favorite patients and the twins were some of them. She had a bright smile as she went into the room. “How are my little ones today?” She waved at Laney before messing with Dylan’s hair. “I’ll take whoever wants to see me first. But I do have something special for whoever does go first.” She pulled out two lollypops, a smile on her face. Truth be told, both would get it. But her trick was usually enough to get them to play along. 

Neither of the twins was particularly hard to convince when it came to offering a lollipop, and Deacon had a feeling that Gabrielle knew that. Before he could stop her, Laney darted forward and hopped up on the table while Dylan snuggled deeper into his dad’s arms. “That’s Laney for ya,” Deacon said with a laugh, shaking his head. He knew Dylan would get over this fear, but for now, it was much more likely that his daughter would take the lead. 

“Bonjour,” Iain called as soon as he heard the doorbell go off, as was habit, “You hate to do ‘zis to me? I literally work in a flower shop, I’m not sure why you think these questions would upset me.” Iain was mostly teasing because people said that fairly often to him. They were all a little hopeless, but that was what Iain was there for. His favorite thing was making bouquets for people that had absolutely no idea what they wanted because they tended to be open to letting his pick whatever he wanted. “Who are looking for flowers for and what sort of message are you trying to send?”

Deacon couldn’t help but let out the breath he hadn’t even realized he’d been holding. He wasn’t one to brag about having a clue when he didn’t, and flowers were absolutely something he didn’t know anything about. “I guess that makes sense,” he said as he approached the counter, laughing softly at himself more than anything. “I need to find something for my baby sister that says ‘I’m sorry for bein’ a real jerk.’” Deacon chewed on his bottom lip, hoping Iain would be able to figure something out but trusting that he would. 

Deacon stepped into the flower shop in full uniform, only somewhat rushing to order flowers while he was on his lunch break. He wasn’t normally one to order flowers but he’d been feeling a little guilty about the way he’d reacted to Sydney’s costume at the Monster Mash and wanted to make it up to her. Delaney suggested flowers, and Deacon thought it was a good enough idea. “Hello,” he said as soon as he stepped inside, reaching up to run his fingers through his hair. “I hate to do this to you, but I’m another one of those hopeless guys needin’ your expertise.” 

“I couldn’t agree more, it’s totally uncool” she grinned, expression her physical exurberance with a gentle kick of her sparkly heeled feet. The conversation may have just begun but Polly was already endeared towards the man who claimed Kennedy’s heart. “Faces are very important. Your cells, the very genetic makeup of your essence formed something that’s uniquely you. Anyone can come up with a name and get it changed by signing a little slip of paper. But no one else on the planet has that face, it’s just yours” she flattered in her impromptu impassioned speech. “Unless you’re a twin, are you a twin?” 

Polly snorted in amusement, mirroring his pose. “I am impressed by its vibrance, you should be very proud. Of the aura and the costume, gold stars all around” she complimented. “Though if you want to know the color I won’t answer. Everyone thinks they want to know then they get disappointed, as if I control it” she rambled, shucking her teeth in brief dismay. “You own a horse?” a delighted gasp overtook her. “Do you think you could teach me to ride one? It’s not on my list but I’ve rode just about everything else with four legs. Camels, Alpacas, elephants, a donkey named Tortellini. He wasn’t very polite, would not recommend” 

“I’m not a twin,” he admitted, but he did hold up a finger. “I do, however, have twins. Delaney and Dylan, they’re six.” She hadn’t asked that, but it was pretty normal for Deacon to bring them up at some point and it felt like a good enough moment. “They’re clearly not identical, though, so they don’t have the same face.” 

“Good boy,” she winked at him as she bit her lower lip and looked around. They needed to find a place that wasn’t family friendly because some of the questions wasn’t gonna fly in that environment. “Ah, right there.” A sports bar with drunk men who wouldn’t blink twice when she asked him personal questions. “You’re paying, right?” she asked with a wink.

Deacon felt very much like he was along for a ride of which he had little to no control, but that wasn’t somehow as terrifying as it should’ve been. If anything, it was because it was Kennedy’s friend he was trusting himself to. “Sure,” he said with a shrug, letting Shiloh lead the way. After all, Shiloh didn’t strike him as the type to like to hear ‘no.’ “Just remember I’ve got twins, so don’t break the bank in one go, alright?”

“Hey Doc,” Deacon said as soon as the door opened to the patient room he and the twins were sitting in. They were sitting in the chairs, waiting to see which one would go first on the fancy table. Laney was in his lap and gave Gabrielle an excited wave as soon as the doctor was inside the room while Dylan squirmed uncomfortably. While Laney was always glad to see her pediatrician, Dylan had developed a bit of a fear of needles in the past few years and getting him to come was a bit of a struggle, one that got worse each time they had a check up. “Who do you want up first?” Deacon asked, raising a brow in the woman’s direction. 

Sydney couldn’t help but roll her eyes as Deacon talked about her choice of costume. “Oh c’mon, you are exaggerating and you know it.” She told Deacon with the shake of her head. “It’s really not even that bad,” which she also knew wasn’t true, but it didn’t stop her from flashing a smile at her brother. “As if you didn’t need a costume for you to hear what they’re thinkin’ anyway.” 

Deacon might’ve been exaggerating. It was entirely possible, but there was a big part of him that would always err on the side of overly protective when it came to Sydney. She was his baby sister, after all. He squinted his eyes at her, trying to read her face carefully. “You know how hard it is bein’ your big brother?” His voice made it clear he was joking, because Deacon wouldn’t give up being her brother for anything in the world. “I just think you could’ve gotten your point across without showin’ quite so much skin, that’s all.”

A tingle of laughter sounded, Polly pleasantly charmed by the simple motion of Deacon’s tipped hat. At the mention of her musical soulmate, Polly’s entire expression brightened. “You talking about my Ringo” she questioned, wondering if she remembered Kennedy mentioning having a beau. Her head tilted to one side momentarily, eyes narrowed in concentration before inevitably smoothing in recognition. “Oh you’re that John Wayne!” she drew her hands together into a single enthused strike. She’d definitely seen Deacon around town in uniform but apparently she’d never paid much attention when he stopped by the shop. “Polly, Polly Foxx. With two ‘x’s’. Pleasure’s all mine John Wayne” she raised her hands, arranging her fingers around an invisible camera. With one eye shut she shucked her teeth in a faint clicking noise. “There, now you’re logged in my memory forever. I’m terrible with names but excellent with faces. There’s a whole rolodex of nameless visages in here” she babbled, tapping her temple.

“I should have know you were Ringo’s sweetheart, I can see it in your aura” she revealed, and her eyes traced the outline of Deacon’s frame as if she could truly see an essence emitting from him. “It’s the perfect compliment to hers. People take that for granted, body chemistry and all, but those are the type of connections that last”. Polly shifted on her stool to face him better. “Does this mean I can cross meeting a real life cowboy off my list, I definitely added it for shits and giggles but this seems like divine opportunity” 

Deacon had to admit, Polly was different, but that hadn’t ever been bad in his book. After all, it’d been one of the things he’d loved most about Kennedy from the start, and it made perfect sense that she’d befriend someone like Polly. “Well, that’s a handy skill to have. If you’re no good at names, at least you remember faces. I swear, some people don’t even try to be good at one or the other, and that’s just plain rude if you ask me.” He smiled as he said it, hoping she could read his joke.  

“You’re one of the best things that have happened to me,” Shiloh said as she placed her hand over her chest. Perhaps it wasn’t ethical to use the male for her own gain so he could prove himself to her in terms of how good he was for her best friend. “Just know that because you’re doing all of this for me doesn’t mean I’m not going to invite you for dinner to give you the firth degree and make you jump through a few loops.” Her finger was pointed towards him. “Speaking of which, there’s no better time than right now. I think we should get breakfast and sit for a bit, hm?”

“I wouldn’t expect anything different,” he admitted. It was natural for friends to be protective when it came to relationships, and Deacon was glad to know that Kennedy had people in her life who cared. “I’ve got a little bit of time, yeah, If you want to grab a table, I can get our food, or you can stand in line with me if you’re wanting to start the interrogation now,” he teased. 

☞ t u p e l o   t a s k   # 2 : p l a y l i s t

[ [ a e s t h e t i c s ] ]

two sets of eyes watching your every move, “it takes a village,” button ups with the sleeves rolled up, not being afraid to swing a hammer when the need arises, the sizzle of a hotdog on the grill, second chances and three strike rules, six shoes by the front door, the shifting of his weight with a police belt on, a tug on the fishing line, the click of an empty chamber at the range, dad jokes met with groans, always believing the best in people, sunsets in a truck bed just looking a little better than anything else

[ [ p l a y l i s t ] ]

[ "Push” - Steve Moakler ] Sometimes I swear this world’s coming at us faster than we’re coming at it. Sometimes it feels like we’re moving backwards, like we can’t find a way to get ahead. No matter how tough it looks, I want you to know, I ain’t afraid to push.

[ "Natural Man” - Jon Wolfe ] When the rain comes down and the walls close in, when the world outside’s so cold and grey you can’t feel a thing, baby, run to me. Knock on my door. Let your wave break gently on my waiting shore.

[ "Walk Like Him” - Mitchell Tenpenny ] Papa said I’m stubborn like him and I guess that he would know. My daddy got it from him and I make three in a row. Well, ain’t that how it goes? A bloodline keeping him alive. One day, my babies’ll look at me and see what he was like.

[ “I’m On It” - Walker McGuire ] Girl, you thought I was gone when you left me, but it’s gonna be hard to forget me. Keep tellin’ yourself that it’s over, the only ‘over’ I’ll be is over your shoulder.

[ "Tough Little Boys” - Gary Allan ] Well, I found out fast that bullies just laugh. You’ve got to stand up to them, so I didn’t cry when I got a black eye. As bad as it hurt, I just grinned. But when tough little boys grow up to be dads, they turn into big babies again.

Deacon slid up behind Bree and rested his hands on her waist like he’d done a million times. There were only a handful of people who could get away with this without losing their head, and he was glad to be one of them. “Gotta say,” Deacon said as he slipped around to face Bree, hands moving up to her shoulders “Growin’ up, I don’t quite remember havin’ such a fantasy about Bat Girl or Cat Woman, but right now? I’d let either of you have your way with me. Maybe both, if I thought I could get away with it.” He was mostly joking, enjoying poking fun at Bree whenever he could. He had, after all, threatened to ask Chesney Ragsdale out on a date numerous times if only to rile her up, and now it was no different. She busted his balls equally as often, and Deacon loved her for it. “You still joinin’ us tomorrow for trick-or-treatin’? Laney and Dyl asked me to ask you. I warned them you might be a little busy handin’ out candy with Red, but they swore you’d promised.” 

“Look, the vampire thing is kind of adorable,” Deacon said as he approached his sister for the first time that night. “I’ll give you that ‘cause you work at a funeral home and all, but c’mon, Syd. The whole ‘sexy’ vampire thing? Why you gotta do this to me? I’m just out here tryin’ to have a decent night out and now my baby sister’s flashin’ so much skin I can practically hear half the town thinkin’ about what they want to do to ya.”