October 2016

Auditing was not the profession he would have chosen for himself. He went to college to study business and somehow just ended up in auditing. There was something he enjoyed about it though. The chance to spend time in new buildings and meeting new people, and maybe the idea that everyone was scared of the auditor coming. That, he also enjoyed.

Today, though, he was stuck in the office finishing paperwork. He and Melissa had been married for two months now, and upon returning from their honeymoon, he had gone straight back to work. Meanwhile Melissa, well she did whatever a Central City Socialite did.

Leonard's intercom buzzed, and then he heard his assistant's voice: "A Mr. Oliver Queen is on the phone for you. Shall I put it through, Mr. Snart?"

"Yes, put it through, Claire, and you're free to go. I'll be heading home after this call."

"Okay, I'll see you tomorrow Mr. Snart."

Leonard picked up the phone. "Oliver, hey man, how's things?"

Oliver was happy to hear his friend's voice come down the line. "Yeah, not too bad," he replied. "Just wondering if you're free tonight?"

"I didn't really have plans. Are you in Central City?" Leonard asked.

"Yeah, last-minute trip this morning. Tommy is here, too, and we figured if you and Mick were both free, we could go out like old times."

"Mick shouldn't have plans, unless he's working. I'll check with him, but how about we meet at The Hub at seven and grab dinner?" Leonard suggested.

"Sounds good on this end! Looking forward to catching up. Tommy and I will see you at seven," Oliver said before hanging up.

Leonard wasn't sure what exactly had brought his friends to Central City, but he hadn't seen them since his wedding, so he was glad they were in town.

As he packed up for the night, he called Melissa to let her know he was going out with friends. She didn't seem all that bothered by it, telling him she'd had a headache all day. Leonard then called Mick and let him know the plans before heading out to The Hub.

The Hub was the place in Central City that Leonard loved yet Melissa hated. It was nothing more than a bar, yet it was so much more at the same time. It was long, with light wood paneling the walls, with booths on the upper level. The lower level consisted of tables directly across from the bar itself, as well as a open space at the back of the room with couches, shuffle board, foosball, and a bookshelf stacked full of board games. It was the place where memories had been made. The place he and Mick would grab a beer and watch a game. It was the place he and Sara had found in college. "Friends had a coffee house, we'll have The Hub," she had told him.

Leonard pushed the door open and gave a nod to Frank behind the bar. He knew the staff by name. He'd been coming here since his first week in the city, and it was the one place that felt like home.

Grabbing a beer, he made his way to a table in the back and slid into a booth. He loosened his tie and took a drink of his beer, glad that the day was over.

The door to The Hub opened, and Leonard smiled as he saw his friends walk in, surprised to see his sister with them. They reached him, and he hugged Lisa tightly. "I didn't know you were coming," he said

"Well I couldn't let you boys have all the fun," Lisa said with a smirk that she no doubt got from him. "I'll get us some drinks, shall I?"

Lisa walked off toward the bar as the guys sat down. Leonard pulled at his tie again, feeling a little overdressed. The conversation flowed easily and reminded him of the times they'd spent together in college.

"So how's married life?" Tommy asked as Lisa appeared back at the table with a tray full of drinks.

Leonard took another drink of his beer. "It's good man," he replied. "Another year and Oliver will know it, too."

"And this year is going to fly by," Lisa said as Leonard's phone started ringing.

"It's Melissa, I should get this," he said, walking off and answering the phone.

"So how is he doing really?" Oliver asked as soon as Leonard was out of earshot.

"Seems to be fine, liking married life, but you know Snart, keeps his emotions to himself," Mick told them. "I still don't really like Melissa. There's something about her that I just don't trust, but it could be because she hates this place."

"Melissa, or as I like to call her, "The Anti-Sara," she thinks she is too good for The Hub." Lisa said.

"The Anti-Sara?" Tommy said with a laugh. "That's a good name for her."

"I don't know why she won't come to Star City," Oliver said.

"Oh, that's easy, she hates the thought of seeing Leonard and Sara together," Lisa explained. "She knows about them, mostly because I've brought it up a lot, but she's scared she will lose him."

"What? Are you for real?" Tommy asked, surprised, as both Mick and Lisa nodded.

Oliver sat, shocked at what he had heard, but he changed the subject as he saw Leonard heading back to the table.

"So Lisa, when are you coming to Star City for a visit? Felicity has been asking when she's going to see you next."

"I have no idea," Lisa repiled as Leonard arrived back at the table. "I should really plan another girls' weekend for us all."

"I can come to that right?" Tommy said as Lisa rolled her eyes.

The rest of the night ran smoothly, as if no time at all had passed between the group of friends, but to Lisa, Leonard seemed unsettled after his phone call with Melissa. She offered to drive her brother home so she could talk to him.

"Len, what's going on?" she asked once she was driving.

"What do you mean?"

"You and Melissa, you've been back for two months now and you just don't seem happy, not like the Leonard that I remember."

"Everything is fine, sis. I don't know what you're talking about!"

"I'm talking about you not being the same Leonard that I grew up with." Lisa said with a sad sigh. "I miss my brother."

"I'm right here, and I'm not going anywhere. I don't know where this is coming from, Lisa."

"It's silly, just don't even worry about it," she said as she pulled up in front of his house. "I'll see you soon."

Leonard leaned across the car and gave his sister a hug. "I love you, don't ever forget that," he told her before getting out and heading inside.

Once inside, Leonard made his way to the kitchen. The house was quiet, and he figured Melissa had gone to bed. He poured himself a glass of water and thought about his earlier conversation with his wife, then thought about Lisa's comments. Things were different, he really couldn't deny that, but he just wondered when his relationship with his sister changed. They had always been close, and now it was as if they were worlds apart, much like he felt with Sara. Leonard remembered the day as if it was yesterday, the day they swore that they were never going to let anything come between them. So much for that.

Sara sighed, blowing her finger slightly. It was October, and the Fall Formal was right around the corner. The problem was that Leonard hadn't asked her yet. They had been playing this "Will they, Won't they" dance for the last year now, and she was ready for them to finally do something about their feelings. She was hoping that he would just ask her to the formal and that would be that. It wasn't like they hadn't even talked about it, they had, but they were afraid that becoming a couple could change their friendship, destroy it even, and neither of them wanted that.

Sara looked to her left as Felicity collapsed onto the chair next to her. "So did Leonard ask you yet?" She tucked her hair behind her ear as Sara scowled at her. "I'll take that as a no, then."

"I have no idea what is wrong with him! We've talked about this, and I just want this to move further than it currently is," Sara exclaimed, frustrated.

"He's a boy; he just needs to think it was all his idea," Felicity said with a shrug as Leonard appeared.

"Who needs to think it was his idea?" he asked.

"Oliver," Felicity replied a little too quickly. "I should probably go find him, anyway. I'll see you two later."

As Felicity walked off, she gave Sara a nod toward Leonard and kept walking.

"So do you still want a ride home?" Leonard asked.

Sara gave him a half smile and nodded as she stood up. She headed to the parking lot where she knew his truck was, leaving Leonard to trail behind her.

The ride was quiet, the unspoken words between them almost deafening in the cab of the truck. Leonard turned the truck in the direction of the park on the edge of town, and Sara turned to stare at him as if she was annoyed.

"This isn't the way home." She turned her head to look out the window as he drove.

"You know I can still hear you when you mumble right?" Leonard asked.

Sara turned back to look at him and rolled her eyes. "Where the hell are we going, Len?"

"You'll see," he said, not giving anything away as he pulled his truck into the park's private road.

The two of them had spent almost the whole of their summer here, but now that it was fall, the place looked different somehow. It wasn't just the leaves having changed colors; it was the fact that Sara knew when she got out of the truck it would be cool outside. The thought made her pull her jacket tighter around her as Leonard pulled his truck into a spot at the back of the park and got out.

"You coming?" he asked.

"Are you planning on killing me and dumping my body?" she threw back at him.

Her question was met with laughter as Leonard closed his door and waited by the trail opening for her.

Sara got out of the truck and realised that she had been right about the cold; she wished she also had a scarf as she walked to the trail and past Leonard. She knew where they were going, they had been so many times in the last couple of months. The difference was when she arrived at the spot on the side of the lake, there was a picnic blanket, basket and a huge sign on the grassy area: "Sara Lance - Will you go to the Fall Formal with me?"

Placing her hand to her mouth in surprise, she smiled widely and quickly turned around to see Leonard just shrug at her. "So what do you think?" he asked moving towards her slowly.

"Yes," she said with a laugh as he reached her and she wrapped her arms around him. "I'd love to go with you."

Pulling out of the hug, Sara shook her head. "When did you have the chance to do this? We've been at school all day."

"Lisa had a couple of free periods this afternoon, so she and Tommy helped me out," Leonard explained as he made his way over to the picnic blanket, pulling Sara along behind him. "I got some of your favorite things."

As they sat down, Leonard pulled a bunch of sunflowers out of the basket and handed them to her before pulling out her favorite type of chocolate and cans of soda.

"I think you've outdone yourself," she said with a smile, smelling the flowers.

"I just didn't want this to be like everyone else. I wanted this to be something that you would remember because this, us, it's not just about the formal. I know we said it could ruin our friendship, but I don't want to look back and wonder what if. I don't want us to only ever be an almost."

"Leonard Snart, are you asking me to be your girl?" Sara said with a grin.

"There's no one else I'd rather have that title," he said, reaching out and taking her hand. "What do you say?"

Sara's smile grew wider, if that was even possible. "Yes, I don't want us to only ever be an almost, either," she agreed, threading her fingers through his.

Leonard looked down at their hands and smiled before looking up at her. They had been friends for almost two and a half years now, but over the summer things had changed between them, and as he looked at Sara, Leonard couldn't think of anyone else he'd rather be with, ever. Using his free hand, he tucked her hair behind her ear and then leaned forward and pressed his lips softly to hers.

Sara returned the kiss almost immediately, moving her free hand to his shoulder and then sliding it to the back of his neck. When they broke apart, Sara let out a small sigh and opened her eyes to look at him. She bit her lower lip and smiled.

"So this is actually happening," she said.

"We were crazy to think anything could ruin our relationship. It's never going to change for us," Leonard said.

"Never," Sara agreed.

Sara looked at the sunflowers sitting in the vase on the table in her hotel suite and shook her head. That memory seemed like another lifetime now. She had loved Leonard with every part of her, and even now after all this time she felt like a piece of her was missing. This was part of her life she couldn't share with Felicity or Laurel. It wasn't that they didn't understand, they did, but it had been so long that she knew they felt it was time for her to move on and find someone else, especially since Leonard was now married.

A knock on the door caused her to turn and look across her hotel room, confused. Nobody knew she was in Central City except Felicity. She had drawn the short end of the stick and was stuck attending the annual fall catering conference. Standing up from where she had been working, she made her way across the room and looked through the peephole to see who it was before pulling open the door.

"Sara Lance," Lisa said, pushing her way past the blonde and into the room. "You don't write, you don't call, and then I hear you're in Central City and don't even tell me you are coming."

Sara closed the door and followed Lisa back into the room. "It's a business trip, Lisa, I'm not on vacation."

"What, so you're going to work the whole time? Oliver and Tommy were able to hang out when they were here two weeks ago," Lisa countered.

"Well no, but I mean, I just wasn't sure who to contact."

"You contact one of your best friends in the whole world and you say 'Lisa, I'm coming to town, let's hang out,'" Lisa said, moving toward Sara and then pulling her into a hug before letting her go and hitting her on the arm. "You don't let me find out from Felicity two days into your trip."

"I'm sorry Lisa, I really am. It's just with Leonard married now I wasn't sure if- Well, things are different."

"Between you and him maybe, not between us. In my eyes you'll always be my sister, I'm not accepting that bitch into my family."

Sara laughed. "I think them being married makes her part of your family."

"Not if I don't want her to be. Now where are we gonna go?"

Sighing, Sara shook her head. "I have to give a presentation tomorrow at the conference, and I really need to prepare for that, but I promise that I have tomorrow night free. Why don't you call Caitlin, and the three of us can go out then?"

Lisa threw her hands up in the air at her friend. "Fine, I guess I can do that, but you aren't getting out of this," she said, hugging Sara again.

"It's a promise. I'm looking forward to it," Sara said as she returned the hug and walked Lisa to the door.

"There is this new place on 5th we can go to."

"Sounds great!" Sara said, not really wanting to go back to The Hub just yet.

After Lisa left, Sara worked some more on her presentation before ordering room service, binge watching Friends, and falling asleep.

The next day, Leonard was sitting at his desk trying to work, but he couldn't shake a strange feeling he was having. He had seen a girl on the street that morning who had looked like Sara, but as the cab went flying by, he hadn't gotten a good enough look. He had texted Lisa to ask if she knew whether Sara was in town but hadn't heard back.

If Sara was in town, it was crappy timing. He didn't need seeing her to complicate things. He texted Lisa again and waited for a response. He had to work a late day anyway; he had to go to a newly opened place that evening to finish up an audit while the client was around.

Sara's presentation had gone perfectly. She was so proud of herself and was suddenly glad that she had plans with Lisa and Caitlin. She could definitely use a night of celebratory drinks and dancing before heading back to Star City.

After the conference finished, she headed out to buy herself a dress for the evening. She hadn't packed anything for going out, and she knew Lisa would not allow her out in a pant suit. Sara ended up with a long-sleeve, black dress with sparkles all over it. It fell just above the knee and had a low scooped back, and she knew it would be one Lisa would approve of. After her shopping trip, she headed back to her hotel to get ready for her night out with her friends.

The audit had gone well, and just as Leonard was about to head out, he saw his sister sitting with Caitlin at a table with a glass of wine. Making his way over to his sister and her friend, he smiled at them.

"Hi Cait," he said, giving the girl a hug but noticing she seemed a little off as she returned it. He turned to his sister and gave her a hug, too, before pulling back. "You haven't answered any of my texts today and I've been wanting to talk to you."

"Sorry, I was busy, I was going to call you later, since I'm out with Cait now," Lisa said, hoping he would just leave.

"It's fine, I have news, and I guess Cait can hear, too. It's pretty big, but Melissa's pregnant. I'm going to be a dad."

He expected the girls to be excited, but they looked shocked or worried, he thought as he heard a glass smashing on the ground. He turned to look at where the noise had come from and came face-to-face with Sara.

"I… umm." She bent down to clean up the glass she had dropped. What could she possibly say? One of the waitstaff came and told her he would clean it, so she stood back up again and looked at Leonard.

"Sara," he all but whispered, suddenly realising why his sister hadn't texted him back.

"Hi, Len."

He looked at her with sad eyes. That was not the way he wanted her to find out. She looked gorgeous, ready for a fun night out, and he had just dropped a bombshell.

"I guess congrats are in order," she offered moving to him and giving him a hug.

She was warm and fitted into his arms just like he remembered: perfectly. Her perfume was still the same, he thought as he returned the hug for a moment before pulling back. "Thanks, Sara. I didn't know you were in town."

"I had a conference. I go back to Star City tomorrow," she told him.

Lisa got off her chair and moved between them, hugging Sara. "You go sit with Cait, and I'll walk my brother out," she offered.

Sara nodded, not willing to trust her voice again as she moved away from the siblings and was pulled into a hug by Caitlin.

Leonard walked toward the door with Lisa and let out a sigh. "You could have just told me"

"I didn't know until Felicity contacted me yesterday. Sara wasn't going to tell anyone she was here, and I'm sure that your announcement has probably ruined what was going to be a fun evening," she said ,annoyed, before letting out a sigh much like her brother had. "I'm sorry, Len. I'm happy that you are happy, I just want Sara to be happy."

As Leonard left and watched his sister return to Caitlin and Sara, he couldn't help but think that he wanted the same thing. He wanted Sara to be happy. It wasn't going to be with him like they had promised all those years ago, but that didn't mean she couldn't be with someone else.