A/N: Just one (short and chaste!) Coliver scene in S02E13. Does anyone understand why the HTGAWM writers are so drastically underplaying the one truly great thing about his show? I'll do my best once again to fill in. The events of "Eventually, the World Intrudes" take place the morning after the slumber party at Asher's place. How to Get Away with Murder is the property of Shondaland Productions. I don't own any of the characters in this story.
Connor was tired and stiff after a sleepless night on the floor of Asher's living room. At least Oliver had gotten some sound sleep and looked ready to start the day as they left Asher's building and headed to the parking lot. The morning was gray, damp, and chilly. Connor's phone rang as he belted himself into the passenger seat of the car.
"Hi, Gem."
Connor's expression darkened as he listened to his older sister Gemma. "Shit. Gem!" He turned to Oliver, who was obviously concerned but concentrating on navigating the rush-hour traffic. "I'm sorry," Connor said, as Gemma went on with her story. "Look, you're going to be ok. I'm going to call you tonight, Gem. And you call me during the day if you're having trouble coping. Hang in there, sis."
The phone slid out of his grasp, onto the floor on the passenger side. After riding for a few blocks in dazed silence, he felt Oliver's right hand settle onto his knee. "Hey," Oliver said quietly. "I guess that was bad news."
Connor looked up, and Oliver could see that his boyfriend was shaken to the core. Had one of his parents died? No, it couldn't be that; Connor would have said that he'd be in Grand Rapids as soon as he could, not that he would call tonight. Oliver shifted into the strong, caring, and competent mode that came so naturally to him and that Connor had come to depend on. "We're almost home," he said, squeezing Connor's leg. "I love you."
In the parking lot at home, Oliver opened the passenger-side door. He removed the seatbelt and gently shook Connor's shoulder. "Don't forget your phone, babe," he said, pointing to the floor. He was relieved that Connor was able to stand up and walk steadily, if slowly, to the elevator, but still he kept his right arm wrapped tightly around Connor's waist and carried both of their overnight bags in his left.
Connor halted and stiffened when they reached the door to apartment 303. "It's ok, babe," Oliver said as he put the bags down and got his keys out. "The deadbolt is on. See? No one's opened the door since we locked it yesterday. The windows are locked, too."
Oliver shot the deadbolt again as soon as they got into the living room and tilted a folding chair under the doorknob. "Come sit," he said, steering Connor onto the couch after hanging their coats on the rack. "I'm going to put some coffee on. Then you can tell me what's up with Gemma."
In the kitchen, Oliver plugged in the electric kettle, ground the beans, and poured the ground coffee into the cafetière. He tapped his phone and was deeply thankful when his work mate answered on the second ring.
"Zhong, I have a situation at home," he said. "I should be in later this morning, but I promised Rob that I'd do that reinstall for Stein first thing this morning." Rob was their boss, head of the IT department at the ad agency. During the years in which he and Oliver had shared a cubicle, Zhong had needed to deal with numerous "situations" involving four generations of his family and his wife's family. The two men had taken to sharing their to-do lists at work and standing ready to cover for each other. Zhong's support and friendship had been invaluable to Oliver since his diagnosis.
"Thanks, man. I'll see you later," Oliver said, ending the call just as the water reached a full boil. He poured it, assembled the tray, and rejoined Connor in the living room. The younger man lifted his head out of his hands as Oliver sat beside him on the couch. He was clearly unhappy but no longer seemed dazed. Oliver smiled but said nothing; he knew Connor would open up soon. After a few quiet minutes, he pressed the plunger in the cafetière, poured a cup, stirred the milk, and handed it to his partner.
"It's Mark." Connor said. "Gemma's husband."
Oliver was pretty sure he knew what was coming. He nodded sympathetically and poured his own coffee.
"He left her, Ollie," Connor continued. "She said he's been having an affair with a younger woman at work for two years. Shit, Jessie isn't even three years old!"
"I'm so sorry, Con." Oliver held Connor's hand but kept enough distance to allow Connor to breathe and go on with the story. "Jessie's your niece?," he prompted.
"Yeah. Jessica. Everyone else calls her 'Jess,' but she likes me to call her 'Jessie' for some reason," Connor said, pushing his fingers back through his hair. "How could her father start cheating on her mother when Jessie was still learning to walk?"
Oliver squeezed Connor's hand, then released it and reached for his coffee cup. All he could do now was listen sympathetically. Connor needed to vent.
"They started dating in eighth grade. Mark's been part of our family since I was six years old! He's been like a brother to me, Ollie." Connor pounded the armrest. "How could he be such an asshole?''
Maybe eighth grade is too early to pick a life partner, Oliver thought. If I'd tried that, I probably would've picked a girl.
"And how could I be such an asshole?," Connor went on. "Gemma said that she's known about the other woman since last October but that she and Mark had been trying to work things out until last week, when he finally left. I saw them at Christmas and didn't have a clue."
Oliver couldn't let that go unchallenged. "None of this is your fault, Con. It's very easy for life to swallow you whole and make you unable to see anything except your own problems. Eventually, the world intrudes."
Connor looked lost but interested. "What do you mean?"
"I couldn't think about anything except myself when I was first diagnosed with HIV," Oliver explained. "I was pretty useless at work, and Zhong was doing my job as well as his. Things couldn't have gone on like that forever."
More stuff that Connor had missed. He'd been trying so hard to make things better at home that he'd never even thought to ask Oliver how things were going at work.
"One day, Zhong's father showed up at the office. First time that had ever happened. He said that Zhong's wife's grandmother had died. Zhong's wife was devastated and completely shocked. Her grandmother had raised her while her parents basically worked all day every day at a laundry. The old lady had been spry and healthy, and then she had a massive coronary and died."
Oliver removed his glasses and wiped a tear. "Of course, I didn't know any of that at first. I just saw Zhong sink into his chair as his father spoke to him and turn scary pale while he spoke to his wife – both were short conversations in Chinese. After he got off the phone, he finally switched to English and told me just that his wife's grandmother had died and that he needed to go see to the arrangements."
Connor was riveted. How the hell had all this gone down while they were together but Oliver not told him a thing?
"That was it. The world had intruded on me, and I had finally remembered that I wasn't the only person who had some serious shit to deal with. So I pulled my head out of my ass and told Zhong that he should take all of the time he needed and not worry about anything at the office. Then I started doing my share of the work again."
"I had no idea, Ollie," Connor said quietly.
"You've been totally in your own head for months now, obsessing about work … school … us," Oliver said. "But now the world has intruded on you. I know you'll get over yourself and help Gemma. Maybe we should invite her to visit us for a weekend."
Connor frowned. "She may not want to be so far away from the kids for a whole weekend. And we definitely don't want her and both kids here for a whole weekend. I'm crazy about my niece and nephew, but they're noisy, messy, super-active kids – not the kind you want to be around 24 / 7."
"So maybe we should visit her for a weekend," Oliver countered. "I'm sure that the kids will be spending some time with their father. We can take Gemma out to dinner or to a concert or something. I'd love to meet her."
"Thanks, Ollie. That's a good idea," Connor said. "I don't know what I'd do without you."
"I don't know, either," Oliver joked. "Luckily, you've got me, and I'm not going anywhere." He stood up. "Time for breakfast. I think there's a carton of fresh blueberries in the fridge. They'll go well with oatmeal."
Connor hadn't even noticed that they'd missed breakfast. "Don't bother cooking. I'm not hungry."
"Too bad. You're going to let me make you some oatmeal anyway," Oliver said calmly but firmly. "I know you have three lectures to sit through today and a discussion section that you have to be fully awake for. You won't get through all of that on an even keel after no sleep, crap news from Gemma, and no breakfast."
Oliver was right, of course. Connor needed to stay as awake and calm as possible. He needed to be there for Gemma now, on top of being there for the rest of the Keating Five.
"I'll come pick you up at 5:15 this afternoon," Oliver continued. "That's when your Contracts lecture ends, right?"
Connor smiled and nodded. What had he done to deserve this beautiful man who had memorized his school schedule?
"We can go to the gym. We haven't done a workout together in a while. Then we're coming home for a quiet night in."
"Ollie, we're not safe at home overnight! The police still haven't caught Phillip."
"Fine. If you don't want to stay here, we'll go to a hotel." Oliver had anticipated that response. "But no more sleeping on a hard floor with three other people tossing and turning and snoring all around us. Wherever we are tonight, you're going to have a hot meal and a hot bath and a sound sleep." He cupped Connor's cheeks in his hands. "In a proper bed, with your boyfriend next to you."
Connor gave up at that point. He leaned forward, lay his cheek on Oliver's shoulder, and let the other man pull him in to an all-encompassing hug that gave life and demanded nothing in return. He rested silently in his Ollie cocoon for as long as he reasonably could and then pulled himself together. He started thinking purposefully about the busy day ahead of him – a busy day as a law student, a brother, and a boyfriend. Annalise Keating and her craziness would have to do without him today.
"OK, we'll go to a hotel tonight." he said before draining his coffee cup. "In the meantime, oatmeal and blueberries sound great."