Yeah. ( it's what he can push out. yeah, everything has transformed. overnight for them, a month for everyone else. felicity had to endure the insanity, the violence, the uncertainty, and she lost him ( them ) again. there aren't words for that. there aren't apologies. john would tell him to do better, to aim for penance, yet he's clueless as to how to go about correcting the sins he keeps committing.
he wants to laugh about the bit in reference to retaliation as if either one of them were present enough to fight tooth and nail. and oliver surely would have until he couldn't so much as crawl. ) The important thing is that you're in your apartment, okay?
( they didn't touch him. )
Everything else, it's going to work out. ( short, clipped, like he's saying it for himself because if he doesn't, then william will want to see him. )
( john and felicity and everyone would understand if this was out of their control. if they were under the influence of whatever coma had overtaken them. and there is no duo better at making things right than these two.
retaliation could've involved everyone. maybe... felicity had retaliated. while her family slept.
but, his father's clipped response. if it doesn't confirm everything. )
No. ( perhaps, over time, he's improved with letting people help him push the boulder up the hill. when he fails, he prefers to be crushed in solitary. he can't regress to the man void of vulnerability, jagged where he should be soft. he needs a moment ( a moment here being defined as a day, at minimum ). ) I don't want you coming here. You might be putting a target on your back.
( william's ... an easy mark. he hates to think it because he's brilliant, impressive in technologically crippling someone. )
I don't belong there. ( not without felicity. ) I can do some good here. Keep people safe. Make sure they get where they're going, that they aren't being extorted. ( because he heard something about a cage and about fees, and it's not unusual for criminals to charge a protection fee. )
No, dad. I can - the app just asked me. SWINGER. It's just about signing up. If my information is in order, I can go anywhere. Yours, too.
( do this for him. )
You can also run afoul of the wrong type of person. Dad, I'm not saying you can't handle yourself, but we don't ... we don't know everything that changed. Or, I don't. ( he knows what his dad does. he punishes himself. he takes it on the chin and then he disappears. ) Don't shut down.
( Don't shut him out.
He knows now. Felicity is gone. His dad thinks he has no one. Thinks that if William ventures out that there's a target on his back. If he doesn't go out, then he's shirking a new system he has to fit into. He's not staying inside. Not forever. )
( when he shuts his eyes and hangs his head back—not praying but thinking—he can picture william at eleven, fourteen, distantly but not so long ago, arguing with him because he wanted oliver to show him he cared. he wanted his father to fight for him like he fought for everyone else. his free hand clenches at his side. the temptation to pull the curtains shut and sit in the dark for twelve hours is more alluring than showing up. )
Okay. ( he crosses the room and sinks to the edge of his bed. it's cramped, shoved back into a space with two beds. ) I'll register with the app. They — um, need my name? Designation? To turn find my phone on?
( he jests faintly, making the strenuous effort of not tapping out, not hiding. it's exhausting. william lost felicity too, he doesn't need oliver to vanish on him in addition to that. )
I think so. I haven't read the terms and conditions. But, it's official. It doesn't mean you can't keep Green Arrowing. But, it does mean that, maybe if you want to Green Arrow, you may not be able to with your phone on you. Let me work on that. See... what I can do.
( this still isn't coming here. this isn't letting him help. this isn't accepting the shelter he's offering. but it's one thing that will lessen william's worrying. )
If you're not coming here, I will be coming here. If you think I don't need to see you in person, at least once --
( with Felicity gone, something neither have them acknowledged in person. he closes his eyes again, trying not to get worked up. trying to be the clever, funny, geeky william. and not the untrustworthy workaholic he became. )
What you're saying is I'd be going in blind and without backup, for now. ( the need to throw himself into the thick of it and walk away from a beating is strong. sometimes, there's nothing like an injury to remind oliver that he's still alive. ) I didn't say I wouldn't come and see you. I want to set it up right. Get my papers in order. Do they count as traveling documents if they're electronic?
( watch him hyperfocus on insignificant details to get through this, to tiptoe around the chasm inside of him that threatens to swallow him whole. )
I assumed it'd be the same person I was living with before, unless they contracted and deciced to move out. I haven't seen anyone yet. It used to be Katherine.
I'm getting them in order as we speak. ( there's an echo if they're both on speakerphone now, though nothing unbearable. thankfully, he's had practice with making his voice carry. registering himself with the system is annoying but it isn't as if they don't already track everything. oliver's fairly convinced they're chipped somehow. they come into the city in a hospital gown of all things. )
No. It doesn't matter. Whoever I get thrown in with isn't going to have much say in it. We'll make it work. If it is Katherine, we're at least civil.
( once he's accepted the terms and filled in all the boxes, he tucks the phone back up against his ear between his shoulder. he can't promise he won't go searching for trouble because he is who he is but he can address what he's glossing over to placate his son. )
Good. Me too. ( William gets his in order a bit faster, always nimble with his keystrokes. William also worries they're chipped. But, it's a different priority. Funny, had none of this happened, had they not fallen asleep maybe they wouldn't be thinking in such drastic terms. Really, the city can blame itself for him and his father's more nefarious plans when you think about it. )
Only?
( Civil is something, but it doesn't sound great. he knows his father doesn't rub everyone the right way. but, he's his father. )
You also couldn't hide here if you wanted to. Which... sounded more like a threat then I had intended.
We're... friends? ( tentatively. they haven't hit it off the wrong way and the conversations they've had have been good. oliver wants to protect katherine. whoever she'd been before, they all have histories, she seems like she wants to do better here. he knows what starting over is like. he doesn't know her well enough to branch beyond that. admittedly, he spent most of his time with felicity and william, when he wasn't out at night. ) We're friendly.
I don't need to hide. ( yet. ) It looks like they want my exact route. Where I'm going, what time I'll be there. Specifics. I know what you meant. If we felt exposed before, we're under extreme scrutiny now.
( Not that that inflection. But, sure. Friendly. William does not need to dig underneath to what that means. But, he guesses it wouldn't, would it? Oliver had Felicity. And their second wedding, the one he'd missed. )
I don't know, according to a friend Doms were murdered not long ago. Maybe - do local digging. Tell me if it's really safe for me. Unless, getting here, it's not a hassle.
( That's a lot of scrutiny. He hadn't tried to put any routes in yet. )
We could be if I was better at making friends. ( he is when it's beneficial, when he lets down his walls. now? he's not sure he wants any friends right now. he needs them with the current state of affairs, more so now than before with a ready-made contract in his back pocket. ) Have you checked in with any of yours?
( pot, kettle .. maybe. family comes first and he wouldn't trade that for anything, he's glad that's ingrained. this is something he won't talk about with william — not in its entirety. coping, dealing with losing his wife, having to meet quota. finding his footing won't be simple. they have that middle ground to relate with each other. making contracts with strangers now. )
Either way, I can meet you at the crossing point. You would be safe as long as you gave me notice.
It's like what the SCPD wishes they could inject us with.
You -- were mayor. ( That's all he has there. His dad's not good at making friends. He won't lie that he is. He sighs. ) One. I didn't make many. ( And he doesn't want to tell you about the eighteen year old he's been sleeping with. ) I should tell my ex-husbands I'm not gone. Shouldn't I?
( family before everything, unless the world needs them. then he would sacrifice himself and his family would live. )
It's what they did inject us with. ( Wrists. ) In the 2030's.
( He pauses, probably longer than he should as he goes over to his door. There's a note that was slid underneath, one he reads, his stomach dropping. He hasn't spoken for a few minutes by the time he forgets his father's there on the line.
He sounds far away. )
The crossing point, right. Should take about fifteen, twenty minutes. It's secure.
I was notoriously unlikeable as mayor. ( his campaign was spearheaded by the media from the beginning. he likes to think he did some good while he was there for the police department, for quentin, operating in the light in laurel's memory. there's a lot of ugliness and chaos when he reflects in everything from barry messing with the timeline to prometheus and ricardo diaz, and ultimately his secrets and duality that assisted in decimating everything and everyone around him. ) I don't know. Were you close? On again, off again? Maybe if you want them to speak to you again and not think you're as careless as disappearing for a month feels.
( william can't see him squinting like he's trying to figure out the dynamic of multiple ex-spouses. how do they holiday? also: why is it that serious? in a land of whips and handcuffs, marriage is still laughable. sure, he remarried, but he and felicity made fun of every aspect that duplicity ( probably deliberately ) misinterpreted. )
How did you get around it? The microchipping.
( he's unusually quiet, long enough that oliver notices the lack of focus, if only because it means he has more heavy lifting to do in the conversation if william's distracted. )
Also, ultimately arrested. ( was that when he was mayor? those years all bleed together. he'd gotten it wrong with felicity, too. ) Not close, no. We each had another date after the fact -- which sounds like I'm telling my dad I'm playing the field.
( no no no. luckily? he gets distracted by the piece of paper before Oliver brings him out of his head. it's also not serious, dad. but they were allies. )
We didn't. Well, I hacked it once by keycard, but not the checkpoint. That was unhackable.
( right, they're talking. )
Yeah. I'll -- grab my coat. Is it cold out? I'll be there. Leaving now.
( he ends the call, setting the paper down and gets his things together. never mind that his hair is longer and he's sporting facial hair now. no. he focusing on pushing one foot forward. only one husband is in the city now. ex. ex husband. methos. but he's focusing, holding his phone, ready to be checked if need be. it takes only ten minutes to get to the check point, but he gets into line and it feels like forever as he waits in the line. maybe his father will beat him to it.
they didn't discuss who was meeting who on which side. )
It's expected. ( it's what he encouraged, isn't it? for william to put himself out there and meet people. marriage isn't what he anticipated but duplicity is nefarious in its practices and its determination to drive people closer. ) The nature of this city and you being single.
( mm......mhm. change the subject. )
You won't need a coat. ( he tries, not certain if william hears him or not before he hangs up. he stares at the device in consideration for a beat, then shoves it into his pocket. as a man that appreciates routine as a means of encouraging productivity and order, he hasn't bothered cleaning up. he's not full-on homeless on the island get-up but his hair's grown in a few inches. it serves as a disguise in and of itself to people he doesn't want to be recognized by while he's out. whatever side they meet on is irrelevant to oliver, probably not to the regulations of the city. it can all be sorted when he reaches the front of the line.
his side of the line is shorter, if only because the walk there feels sketchy. he doesn't glance over his shoulder because he's attuned to listening for the right sounds and watching the shadows change, but he can see why someone would want to stay indoors. it's another tedious ten minutes or so before he's able to take the elevator up, feeling prickly at best. his smile is practiced when he spots william in line, three people ahead of him. )
You brought a coat. ( does he have regrets? it's warm. ) Hi.
( yeah, he hasn't really paid any attention to the temperature, not after the cloud he'd entered, after reading that letter. he sees his dad, before he registers seeing his dad and then he hears his voice. )
I brought a coat.
( he finishes through his side, meeting his dad in the middle. knowing Felicity is gone, despite her not being his biological mother, propels him into his father's arms. he's not afraid of realignment. or jail. but, coupling that discovery with that revelation. it takes his breath away. just give him this moment.
they are lucky they are not both dominants. there are no curious onlookers. to anyone else, it looks like a reunion after the failed? rebellion. )
( he doesn't realize he needs the embrace until he's in it and returning it openly. generally, he adjusts to the rule of thumb of whatever length william's comfortable with. the only good thing about having family in the city is being able to communicate without verbalizing any of it. felicity isn't his birth mother but for a time, she was his guardian. a mentor. someone that would have fought tooth and nail for him, and did as oliver recalls. she was a mother to him even if that version wasn't here, it was still her.
oliver thinks by now that he should be accustomed to losing people. he should be a professional with his coping mechanisms, sliding fluidly from one lost connection into another. it's survivable, never easier. maybe he leans into the bear hug aspect, crushing william because it isn't often they get to hug like this. pats on the back, one-armed quick hugs that men do? yes. he doesn't care if anyone's staring, though he imagines it takes more to turn heads around here.
when he draws back, one hand finds william's shoulder to squeeze it firmly. a reminder that he's here in spite of every bone in his body wanting to fold. he wants to go back to sleep. )
It's going to be okay. ( it's an acceptable lie. )
( he wants to reverse time. but, that's not things work, is it? not without a big mutliversal god. the hug ends before it should, but he's not going to cling onto him. he is Oliver's thirty-something grown son. he does not need to collapse into his dad's arms. he too desensitized himself to losing people years ago. but, he closed him off to that until he sought after lian yu. and then he gained a sister. )
It always is. Gets. Things get better. ( he means. ) Your hair's been longer.
( he can if he wants. he would catch him. it's neither the time, nor the place but he would keep william steady. over the years, he's come to care less and less about big, emotional displays. that's life. emotions and needing people is a huge part of being alive. he thinks he sees flashes in william. pieces that match his adamance to be an impenetrable fortress. he hopes that in finding himself, he sheds as much of that defense mechanism as he can. )
Time changes everything. ( whether it's an abundance or a lack thereof, time puts loss into perspective. ) Yeah. ( he grimaces but there's a smile pushing through beneath it. ) I was thinking of growing it out. Get one of those buns that the artsy guys wear.
No? ( is he joking? his expression got real serious. ) Be honest.
( a defense mechanism his dad still exhibits. william has done his best. he'd been making progress, too. he can't be surprised he's regressed. will regress.
that does earn his dad a laugh. )
No. Never. Please. There are so many things I'd rather see than you with a manbun. ( But, he'd also not rather see them either. So. It's time to change the subject. He thinks about leaving it, dealing with it himself, getting onto the network in a desperate attempt at drumming up someone. ) Dad, I...
( he wants to divert all his energy into keeping things light. not avoiding or ignoring the problem but alleviating it for both of their sakes. dwelling only works in private when nobody is around to judge the depression cocoon. he tilts his head some, listening, feeling a change in tone. he expects this to the be the moment that william dumps an apology on him about felicity. it's a natural evolvement of what they haven't said out loud, that's what he thinks this is about. )
What is it? ( not shutting down means not cutting william off from saying what he has to say. ) You can tell me anything. You've already broken the ice by cutting me deeply about my style choices. ( but he's zipping it, presenting his palms to william in a vague c'mon gesture. let's hear it. they can walk if he wants, although that might involve putting in a planned itinerary. )
A man-bun isn't a style choice, it's a retro mistake.
( but, even that joking reply feels and sounds more rote than anything.
felicity being gone does swirl around his head. it clouds his thoughts and slows his optimism but his 'dad, i,' is about the letter he'd received and not his recently departed step mother. )
I got something in the mail. I have the weekend. To contract.
( Technically, the weekend and a few days, but, he has until the twentieth. )
I lost an entire month and this city still believes I should do my civic duty. I only have a few days before they expect me to find someone.
( one of his ex husbands, which is problematic at best as a sentence, let alone a reality. his eyebrows don't shoot up. his expression is predictably unresponsive, though there's no shortage of hair-raising anxieties to unpack. a weekend would be long enough for oliver who can disassemble a human being with his bare hands. for his son? it's not enough time to be certain of the quality of someone's character. )
We should sign one. ( he concludes, with or without the answer. he won't make william ask. ) There have been platonic arragenemnts in the city before.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2021-05-13 10:14 pm (UTC)he wants to laugh about the bit in reference to retaliation as if either one of them were present enough to fight tooth and nail. and oliver surely would have until he couldn't so much as crawl. ) The important thing is that you're in your apartment, okay?
( they didn't touch him. )
Everything else, it's going to work out. ( short, clipped, like he's saying it for himself because if he doesn't, then william will want to see him. )
no subject
Date: 2021-05-13 10:19 pm (UTC)retaliation could've involved everyone. maybe... felicity had retaliated. while her family slept.
but, his father's clipped response. if it doesn't confirm everything. )
You should be here. I can get you here.
no subject
Date: 2021-05-13 10:29 pm (UTC)( william's ... an easy mark. he hates to think it because he's brilliant, impressive in technologically crippling someone. )
I don't belong there. ( not without felicity. ) I can do some good here. Keep people safe. Make sure they get where they're going, that they aren't being extorted. ( because he heard something about a cage and about fees, and it's not unusual for criminals to charge a protection fee. )
no subject
Date: 2021-05-13 10:38 pm (UTC)No, dad. I can - the app just asked me. SWINGER. It's just about signing up. If my information is in order, I can go anywhere. Yours, too.
( do this for him. )
You can also run afoul of the wrong type of person. Dad, I'm not saying you can't handle yourself, but we don't ... we don't know everything that changed. Or, I don't. ( he knows what his dad does. he punishes himself. he takes it on the chin and then he disappears. ) Don't shut down.
( Don't shut him out.
He knows now. Felicity is gone. His dad thinks he has no one. Thinks that if William ventures out that there's a target on his back. If he doesn't go out, then he's shirking a new system he has to fit into. He's not staying inside. Not forever. )
no subject
Date: 2021-05-13 10:49 pm (UTC)Okay. ( he crosses the room and sinks to the edge of his bed. it's cramped, shoved back into a space with two beds. ) I'll register with the app. They — um, need my name? Designation? To turn find my phone on?
( he jests faintly, making the strenuous effort of not tapping out, not hiding. it's exhausting. william lost felicity too, he doesn't need oliver to vanish on him in addition to that. )
no subject
Date: 2021-05-13 10:53 pm (UTC)( this still isn't coming here. this isn't letting him help. this isn't accepting the shelter he's offering. but it's one thing that will lessen william's worrying. )
If you're not coming here, I will be coming here. If you think I don't need to see you in person, at least once --
( with Felicity gone, something neither have them acknowledged in person. he closes his eyes again, trying not to get worked up. trying to be the clever, funny, geeky william. and not the untrustworthy workaholic he became. )
Who are you living with?
no subject
Date: 2021-05-13 11:01 pm (UTC)( watch him hyperfocus on insignificant details to get through this, to tiptoe around the chasm inside of him that threatens to swallow him whole. )
I assumed it'd be the same person I was living with before, unless they contracted and deciced to move out. I haven't seen anyone yet. It used to be Katherine.
no subject
Date: 2021-05-13 11:06 pm (UTC)They only count if they're electronic. They're mandatory.
( it helps for william to worry about his dad, the Green Arrow, and not his dad the grieving husband. )
Okay. It's probably Katherine. I could look for you if you'd like. Records are pretty public. Do you want me to check?
no subject
Date: 2021-05-13 11:25 pm (UTC)No. It doesn't matter. Whoever I get thrown in with isn't going to have much say in it. We'll make it work. If it is Katherine, we're at least civil.
( once he's accepted the terms and filled in all the boxes, he tucks the phone back up against his ear between his shoulder. he can't promise he won't go searching for trouble because he is who he is but he can address what he's glossing over to placate his son. )
I'm not going to disappear.
no subject
Date: 2021-05-13 11:35 pm (UTC)Only?
( Civil is something, but it doesn't sound great. he knows his father doesn't rub everyone the right way. but, he's his father. )
You also couldn't hide here if you wanted to. Which... sounded more like a threat then I had intended.
no subject
Date: 2021-05-13 11:50 pm (UTC)I don't need to hide. ( yet. ) It looks like they want my exact route. Where I'm going, what time I'll be there. Specifics. I know what you meant. If we felt exposed before, we're under extreme scrutiny now.
When do you want to meet up?
no subject
Date: 2021-05-13 11:57 pm (UTC)( Not that that inflection. But, sure. Friendly. William does not need to dig underneath to what that means. But, he guesses it wouldn't, would it? Oliver had Felicity. And their second wedding, the one he'd missed. )
I don't know, according to a friend Doms were murdered not long ago. Maybe - do local digging. Tell me if it's really safe for me. Unless, getting here, it's not a hassle.
( That's a lot of scrutiny. He hadn't tried to put any routes in yet. )
So it's like Uber on tracker steroids.
no subject
Date: 2021-05-14 12:12 am (UTC)( pot, kettle .. maybe. family comes first and he wouldn't trade that for anything, he's glad that's ingrained. this is something he won't talk about with william — not in its entirety. coping, dealing with losing his wife, having to meet quota. finding his footing won't be simple. they have that middle ground to relate with each other. making contracts with strangers now. )
Either way, I can meet you at the crossing point. You would be safe as long as you gave me notice.
It's like what the SCPD wishes they could inject us with.
no subject
Date: 2021-05-14 12:22 am (UTC)( family before everything, unless the world needs them. then he would sacrifice himself and his family would live. )
It's what they did inject us with. ( Wrists. ) In the 2030's.
( He pauses, probably longer than he should as he goes over to his door. There's a note that was slid underneath, one he reads, his stomach dropping. He hasn't spoken for a few minutes by the time he forgets his father's there on the line.
He sounds far away. )
The crossing point, right. Should take about fifteen, twenty minutes. It's secure.
no subject
Date: 2021-05-14 12:43 am (UTC)( william can't see him squinting like he's trying to figure out the dynamic of multiple ex-spouses. how do they holiday? also: why is it that serious? in a land of whips and handcuffs, marriage is still laughable. sure, he remarried, but he and felicity made fun of every aspect that duplicity ( probably deliberately ) misinterpreted. )
How did you get around it? The microchipping.
( he's unusually quiet, long enough that oliver notices the lack of focus, if only because it means he has more heavy lifting to do in the conversation if william's distracted. )
Should I head out now?
to action
Date: 2021-05-14 12:52 am (UTC)( no no no. luckily? he gets distracted by the piece of paper before Oliver brings him out of his head. it's also not serious, dad. but they were allies. )
We didn't. Well, I hacked it once by keycard, but not the checkpoint. That was unhackable.
( right, they're talking. )
Yeah. I'll -- grab my coat. Is it cold out? I'll be there. Leaving now.
( he ends the call, setting the paper down and gets his things together. never mind that his hair is longer and he's sporting facial hair now. no. he focusing on pushing one foot forward. only one husband is in the city now. ex. ex husband. methos. but he's focusing, holding his phone, ready to be checked if need be. it takes only ten minutes to get to the check point, but he gets into line and it feels like forever as he waits in the line. maybe his father will beat him to it.
they didn't discuss who was meeting who on which side. )
no subject
Date: 2021-05-14 01:07 am (UTC)( mm......mhm. change the subject. )
You won't need a coat. ( he tries, not certain if william hears him or not before he hangs up. he stares at the device in consideration for a beat, then shoves it into his pocket. as a man that appreciates routine as a means of encouraging productivity and order, he hasn't bothered cleaning up. he's not full-on homeless on the island get-up but his hair's grown in a few inches. it serves as a disguise in and of itself to people he doesn't want to be recognized by while he's out. whatever side they meet on is irrelevant to oliver, probably not to the regulations of the city. it can all be sorted when he reaches the front of the line.
his side of the line is shorter, if only because the walk there feels sketchy. he doesn't glance over his shoulder because he's attuned to listening for the right sounds and watching the shadows change, but he can see why someone would want to stay indoors. it's another tedious ten minutes or so before he's able to take the elevator up, feeling prickly at best. his smile is practiced when he spots william in line, three people ahead of him. )
You brought a coat. ( does he have regrets? it's warm. ) Hi.
no subject
Date: 2021-05-14 01:22 am (UTC)I brought a coat.
( he finishes through his side, meeting his dad in the middle. knowing Felicity is gone, despite her not being his biological mother, propels him into his father's arms. he's not afraid of realignment. or jail. but, coupling that discovery with that revelation. it takes his breath away. just give him this moment.
they are lucky they are not both dominants. there are no curious onlookers. to anyone else, it looks like a reunion after the failed? rebellion. )
no subject
Date: 2021-05-14 01:38 am (UTC)oliver thinks by now that he should be accustomed to losing people. he should be a professional with his coping mechanisms, sliding fluidly from one lost connection into another. it's survivable, never easier. maybe he leans into the bear hug aspect, crushing william because it isn't often they get to hug like this. pats on the back, one-armed quick hugs that men do? yes. he doesn't care if anyone's staring, though he imagines it takes more to turn heads around here.
when he draws back, one hand finds william's shoulder to squeeze it firmly. a reminder that he's here in spite of every bone in his body wanting to fold. he wants to go back to sleep. )
It's going to be okay. ( it's an acceptable lie. )
no subject
Date: 2021-05-14 01:49 am (UTC)It always is. Gets. Things get better. ( he means. ) Your hair's been longer.
no subject
Date: 2021-05-14 02:05 am (UTC)Time changes everything. ( whether it's an abundance or a lack thereof, time puts loss into perspective. ) Yeah. ( he grimaces but there's a smile pushing through beneath it. ) I was thinking of growing it out. Get one of those buns that the artsy guys wear.
No? ( is he joking? his expression got real serious. ) Be honest.
no subject
Date: 2021-05-14 02:19 am (UTC)that does earn his dad a laugh. )
No. Never. Please. There are so many things I'd rather see than you with a manbun. ( But, he'd also not rather see them either. So. It's time to change the subject. He thinks about leaving it, dealing with it himself, getting onto the network in a desperate attempt at drumming up someone. ) Dad, I...
no subject
Date: 2021-05-14 02:28 am (UTC)What is it? ( not shutting down means not cutting william off from saying what he has to say. ) You can tell me anything. You've already broken the ice by cutting me deeply about my style choices. ( but he's zipping it, presenting his palms to william in a vague c'mon gesture. let's hear it. they can walk if he wants, although that might involve putting in a planned itinerary. )
no subject
Date: 2021-05-18 03:34 am (UTC)( but, even that joking reply feels and sounds more rote than anything.
felicity being gone does swirl around his head. it clouds his thoughts and slows his optimism but his 'dad, i,' is about the letter he'd received and not his recently departed step mother. )
I got something in the mail. I have the weekend. To contract.
( Technically, the weekend and a few days, but, he has until the twentieth. )
I lost an entire month and this city still believes I should do my civic duty. I only have a few days before they expect me to find someone.
no subject
Date: 2021-05-19 05:47 am (UTC)( one of his ex husbands, which is problematic at best as a sentence, let alone a reality. his eyebrows don't shoot up. his expression is predictably unresponsive, though there's no shortage of hair-raising anxieties to unpack. a weekend would be long enough for oliver who can disassemble a human being with his bare hands. for his son? it's not enough time to be certain of the quality of someone's character. )
We should sign one. ( he concludes, with or without the answer. he won't make william ask. ) There have been platonic arragenemnts in the city before.
(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From: