This is for the lovely thatnellgirl who prompted for Quintis – Here Alone. And a very special thanks to insertclever-titlehere for stirring up the headcanon explored in this story. For context, let set this story four months after the events in Crossroads.
Happy was examining the wall panels when she heard the team moving towards the door. Turning around, she saw they were all outside with the door rapidly closing. Seeing Toby next to her, Happy lunged for the exit, only to be held back by shrink.
"This will be good for you. Please don't hate us," Paige yelled as the door to the safe room shut.
Happy easily shook off Toby and yelled, "When I get out of here, I will kill you all."
Toby took a step back, hands in his pockets when she whipped around and pushed him against the wall. "You," she seethed, "You were a part of this."
Slipping around her with his hands up in defense, he stated, "I was desperate, I needed you to hear me out. This seemed like a good plan at the time."
"Gallo, don't do this to me." Happy pounded on the door, her usual cool demeanor slipping into minor hysterics. "Let me out now and we can forget this ever happened."
"Hey, hey, it's no use. They're not there. It'll be a while before they let us out." Toby's voice was soft and he reached for her, only to send her shirking back from his hand.
"Don't touch me," she spat, which sent him reeling. "I might be stuck in here with you but that doesn't mean a thing."
He sighed as he watched her settle next to the door, knees pulled up so she could rest her chin on them with her arms wrapped around her legs.
Toby inched closer and she glared, stopping him in his tracks. When she looked back down, he bridged the gap between them and knelt in from of her.
Happy's head snapped back up but Toby didn't waver. There were things he needed to tell her and he wasn't losing another opportunity because of his own fears.
"This thing between us is messy and I screwed up, for which I will forever regret. Hurting you was the last thing I wanted, Happy." He wanted to hold her hands but stopped himself, his hands hovering over hers before pulling back.
"I don't know if I'm still your best friend but I really hope I am." Toby settled onto the floor and sat cross-legged as he continued. "You have walls and I get that. I was able to climb them, and you started to lower your defenses. I cannot adequately put into words what that means to me, which is everything."
She grunted, rolling her eyes and avoiding his gaze.
"As I told you before, I am okay with the fact it will take you longer to get to where I am now. But I want you to know that I am in love with you, Happy Quinn, and I will never stop fighting for us, even when you're all but begging me to."
Her eyes widened and she made a move to distance herself from him but he pressed on. "Wait, I need to clarify that." She stilled, waiting for him to explain. "I will never push you to where you're uncomfortable. If you want me gone, I will give you the space you need. Just know, there will not be a day where I want to be with anyone else. I am going to wait as long as it takes for you to see how true my intentions are."
Her jaw clenched and she let out an exasperated breath. "You sure have one hell of a way of showing it."
Toby hung his head, the shame overwhelming him. "I want to be the man who is worthy of you. You are the best thing in my life, and it is killing me how I messed this up."
She looked up at that to speak, the emotion in his voice clear as day. "What did I do that made you think I wanted anything different?" Happy nudged him with her foot and he locked eyes with her. "I bought a dress and new heels, I even wore perfume for you. And then I was made to wait at that restaurant, alone. They were closing when I finally gave up and left."
His hands covered hers and this time she made no move to stop him. "Oh, Happy, I am so sorry." Toby shut his eyes and took a deep breath, stroking her knuckles with his thumbs when he let out the breath and spoke. "I'm going to tell you something I should have told you a long time ago."
"What's that?" she asked,
"As you've put it, I did need to self-medicate before our date. It wasn't because I didn't want to go. It was because I was so afraid of screwing up the chance you finally gave me."
"Happy, do you remember when Walter was racing and he borrowed Lucky the King's Lambo?" She nodded, a confused look on her face as she didn't know where he could be going with this story. "He told me the racing occupied his entire brain, which meant he didn't have to think about anything else."
"Where are you going with this, doc?"
"I suffer from panic attacks and the thought of disappointing you brought one on." Her hands moved so she could hold both of his with hers, their fingers intertwining as Toby continued. "It's been years since I've taken the Alprazolam and the dosage was too high. The gambling worked to calm me down but you hated it, so I stopped." Squeezing her hand, she looked at him. "Being around you was enough to stay calm, I didn't need the rush of gambling anymore."
"We can't pick up from where we were, you know that." Happy's eyes were sad despite the small smile on lips. "It's pretty clear my feelings for you. And I do miss my best friend." He broke into a huge grin. "That said, I don't know how much time I'll need before we can try dating again. But I do want my friend back."
"However long you need, I'm waiting." There was no hesitation, a hint of desperation that only endeared her more. "I never stopped being your friend, by the way."
They sat in silence for a while before he patted his shoulder, indicating for her to rest her head while they waited. Happy rolled her eyes and scoffed, only to move closer to him and lean her head on his shoulder.
His arm was around her when the door finally opened and Paige poked her head in.
Happy jumped up, "Finally." Pushing past Paige, she said "Where's Cabe? He has a lot of explaining to do."
Toby shared a look with Paige before rushing after the mechanic, slight panic about what she was going to do to them all now that they were free from the safe room.