Notes:

Hi, it's been a while again, sorry...

My best friend, best friend 'til the very end and if you get low, just call me whenever you're never alone, we're birds of a feather and we'll never change, no matter the weather

Tommy was still trying to figure out what exactly had happened Friday night and why. Sure, he got that Max might still be a bit pissed at Oliver, but attacking him? That was just out of line. Plus, it had been several years. He should've gotten over it by now, and if he wanted to be angry at anyone, it should be his wife. She'd been the one who had cheated. Who was to say she wouldn't have banged someone else at the rehearsal dinner if Ollie had turned her down? So this was a Max and Becky issue and not an Oliver issue. Okay, maybe a little, but still… Seriously, they should do some marriage counseling or something, if they hadn't yet. He still wasn't entirely sure he understood why Max went through with the wedding after all of that and that they were actually still married. It made no sense to him. He would've kicked her to the curb the moment he found out she'd cheated on him at the rehearsal dinner with a friend of his. Not sure why Max was blaming Oliver for his poor choices. They'd told him Becky was in it for the money. He hadn't wanted to listen to them. Honestly, Oliver did him a favor. Max should've just realized it and ended it then and there, but he hadn't and that was on him. Ollie was married now as well. Max had been way out of line and what he was pulling now was just disgusting and petty as shit. Part of him would love it if Max and Becky would be confronted with Oliver, Sara, and their kids. That promised to be some great entertainment, but given the current situation, it was probably best to keep the Queens far away from the Fullers. Especially knowing Sara and how she could get… nope, there was no reason to have her arrested as well.

He'd tried to call Oliver a couple of times the day after the entire thing went down, but his friend first didn't pick up and then the phone went straight to voice mail. So he'd texted him over the last few days, trying to figure out if everything was alright, and if they were alright, but the texts were never delivered, neither were the handful he'd sent to Sara after he got worried about Oliver's silent treatment. He'd been unsure if Ollie'd been mad at him and blamed him for the mess, since it had been his idea to go to Poison and that was the reason for his lack of response.

He hated to admit it, but they should've listened to Sara. It had been stupid, but; it had seemed like a fun idea at the time and like something they totally would've done five years ago, hell, Sara would've probably been the one suggesting it five years ago. But that had been before, before their actions would've led to serious consequences, before when Ollie still enjoyed the privilege of his family's influence and wealth, before they'd become parents and with that responsible for little people.

But Ollie's radio silence was strange and a bit worrisome. At first he'd just thought that maybe Ollie forgot to charge his phone after the night they've had but it had been a couple of days now and the couple still wasn't reachable, he'd wanted to stop by at their place to make sure everything was alright, but that hadn't been an option either because he had only in that moment realized that they'd never given him their address. And the Lances were never given it either, as he'd found out after asking them.

And they'd also found out the address Oliver had given the police for the paperwork was not accurate anymore, Laurel and he had gone there, after Quentin had provided them with it, he'd been stuck at work so he hadn't been able to come with them, just to learn that, yes, Ollie and Sara had lived there for a short while but that they'd moved out a while ago, whatever a while ago was, the couples former neighbours were not agreeing on the specifics and they had no clue if it had been weeks or just days ago, so that had not brought any answers but only a lot more questions. And no one they'd talked to had been able to provide them with their new address. Which was so fucking strange. They had all seemed very fond of the family, but they had no useful information as to why they'd moved out, where they had gone or even when exactly they had left. How the fuck could they not know?

And why had Oliver given the police the wrong address? That could get him into even more trouble. Not that he should be in any trouble at all. He'd done nothing wrong and Max just going after Ollie was just so childish. Plus, it wasn't like it used to be. Ollie could no longer afford the type of lawyers that could easily get him off, at least he was pretty sure he couldn't. Or had his family and their pull behind him. And if Quentin was right, this could turn out terrible for Ollie and with that Sara and the kids. From what he'd gathered, Ollie was the sole provider for the family. If he was put in jail, Sara had no income and, with that, no way to support herself and the children. Obviously, he and her family would help support her if it came to that, but still, Sara was totally financially dependent on Oliver. She didn't have a college degree or anything like that. The thought only just now occurred to him and it had him stop in his tracks. This was so not like independent, freedom loving Sara and blew his mind. Plus, she was like eight months pregnant. He doubted anyone would hire a heavily pregnant woman. But that was another issue they could consider when or if it came to that. There was a more pressing one right now.

Oliver and Sara had pretty much been MIA since Sara picket him up at the station.

And that fact had them all worried. What could it mean? Or what did it mean? Were they okay? Had they left town? No, he couldn't imagine them going on the run because Sara was pretty close to popping. He just couldn't see them leaving, given those facts. But then again, hadn't they been on the road while Sara had been pregnant before? So it wasn't a stretch after all, even though he wasn't entirely sure when and where and how Sara had given birth to Eloise. They'd never shared that detail, at least not with him. But even if she had given birth on the road, he hoped not literally, to child number one was one thing, but what would they be doing with child number one and two while she was giving birth to number three while being on the road? He wasn't sure. He personally doubted that they went on the run, but maybe it wasn't as far-fetched as he'd first thought.

The couple had been a huge part of their conversation, and this had been a reason why they'd decided to come here, almost as a last ditch effort and it had sort of been an afterthought and he felt kinda stupid that he hadn't checked this place out sooner. He just hadn't thought about it. Now, he wished he had because chances were they'd spent a couple of days less worrying.

Tommy was surprised when he saw Oliver sit just outside one of the side entrances to what used to be the former steel factory of the Queen empire. The choice in location for the planned night club wasn't something that had escaped him, when talking to Oliver about it and the possibility of finding investors, something that proved to be a lot harder than he had anticipated. But it seemed that no one was willing to go into business with the black sheep of the Queen family. But so far, Oliver hadn't lost any of his positive outlook and optimism. He didn't see it quite as uncomplicated as Oliver did, though. When he had offered his friend to help him find investors, he'd assumed it would be simple, given both of their family names. But as soon as Oliver's name was mentioned, the potential investors lost the initial if reluctant interest they'd showed towards him, his issues with his dad had circled around the tight community of Starling's upper echelon and business moguls and threw another wrench in their plans. Oliver's name was treated like a contagious disease, and no one seemed to want to risk the possible consequences going into business with him could have concerning potential future business endeavors with Robert and Moira.

It was ridiculous, really. Neither Robert nor Moira were that petty and they still only wanted the best for Oliver. Always had. Even if they'd gone about it the wrong way. But the majority of Starling didn't get or understand why Oliver had been cut off and that him not having been present the last five years had not been because Moira and Robert didn't want him here, but by Oliver's choice. Sure, his parents' actions had led to that choice, but still, they hadn't disowned him because they no longer loved him or wanted him to be a part of their family. Chances were they would've handed everything back over to him, had he chosen to come home at any time during the last five years. Because that had been their goal to begin with, to get Ollie to come back home. They'd wanted him to grow up and start taking on responsibility, and boy, had he done that. Even if not at all how anyone had envisioned or wanted him to. So, Tommy was sure if Robert and Moira learnt about Oliver's business plans and that people were investing in him, they wouldn't hold that against those people, but actually have that be something they would remember as a positive in the future. It would probably even heighten the chances of a joint business endeavor, while the people refusing to help Oliver would probably get fewer chances, if they were even considered at all.

For crying out loud, Oliver had bought his dad's old steel factory. He would bet everything he owed that Robert was aware that his son was now owning the building. If they didn't want anything to do with him, they wouldn't have let the business transaction go through. But people in Starling were too self-absorbed and moronic to understand that. Well, he guessed they'd just have to keep at it. Maybe Oliver was right, and it would all work out and they'd find the right person. He was starting to seriously doubt it, but if Oliver was optimistic, he could be as well.

It was very early and the only reason they'd been up and about before eight am, was because Quentin just came off an almost 48-hour shift and both Laurel and Dinah had days that were packed starting from nine on and both women wanted to check in with Quentin before that and make sure he was alright. They had picked a café close by, in the middle of where everyone needed to go after, and it had been a spur-of-the-moment decision of his to bring up the former factory and Oliver's plans for it and for all of them to go check it out in hopes of maybe finding the missing family, even if no one actually thought they would given the early hour of the day.

This was how they ended up watching Oliver sit in the meager morning sun, just outside one of the side doors with a cup of coffee in his hands and dressed in sweatpants and a T-shirt and bare feet. It was a rather strange look. He doubted his friend would go to work dressed like this, but he wasn't sure. It was his building, after all, so he was his own boss. Nevertheless, something just didn't make sense. It was when they got closer to him that he noticed the look on his friend's face.

The significance of the look and his subsequent musings at understanding it were interrupted when a small figure walked into their view from the open door next to Oliver and softly touched the man's shoulder. And it would only be later in the confines of his own home that he realized what the look on his best friend's face had been. Hopelessness and defeat.

"Hi, princess." They were close enough to make out the words, and he saw the smile that automatically lit up his face, even if it didn't manage to rid it of all the other emotions he seemed to have struggled with previous to his daughter's appearance.

"Hi daddy. Are you okay?" Tommy could detect worry in the little girl's voice and he felt bad for her. A girl her age shouldn't have to worry about her dad. But he guessed it wasn't that surprising. According to Quentin, Sara had brought the kids to the precinct with her when she went to pick Ollie up, so Eloise knew something troubling was going on. She might be just a small child, but even four-year-olds understood it couldn't be a good thing if they were woken up in the middle of the night and their mom took them to the police station with her so they could pick up their dad. He seriously hated Max right now for forcing Sara to do that.

"Of course, baby, why do you ask?" He watched Oliver brush his hand through his daughter's tousled hair, lovingly and carefully untangling some strands, slightly taming her disarrayed curls in the process.

"You look sad." The little girl's small hand touched her father's face softly, in a perfect replica of the way Sara used to touch his or Ollie's faces when they were struggling with something and tried to hide it from her. He carefully lifted the four-year-old into his lap and kissed her crown before softly placing his chin atop of her head.

"I am a little sad, but it's nothing you need to worry about, baby. Are mama and Benji still sleeping?" He moved his head from his resting place and slightly leaned back so he could look at his daughter's face.

"Yeah, they are. Why are you sad, daddy? Because mama and you were fighting?" her little face was titled up, and she was searching his face for the answer to her question. He wondered how Ollie would respond to that, what he would tell his daughter. And shit, Ollie and Sara had been fighting? Because of Ollie's arrest? He hoped they were okay. He felt another load of guilt wash over him at the thought of causing problems in their marriage. Why the hell had he suggested they head to Poison? This was all his fault.

"I'm sorry, baby, mama and I thought you were sleeping. We didn't want you to hear that." Ollie placed his hands on either side of her face while telling her that before bending forward and lovingly and lingeringly kissing her forehead.

"No, I'm not sad because of that. Mama and I took care of the issue we had, and we're fine. It's just sometimes when you love someone with all your heart and you feel sad, or scared or both and you don't know how to tell them, those feelings turn to anger, and because you love them and you know they love you too, you can give voice to those feelings and the anger because you know it's okay, they won't hold it against you. Because the person you love more than anything in the world and loves you the same way is your safe space. Just as long as you talk about it afterwards and apologize for yelling at them. Mama is that person for me, and I'm that person for mama. And that won't ever change. Alright, baby? I love mama more than anything in the world even when she drives me crazy, especially when she drives me crazy." The way Oliver explained the situation to his daughter warmed his heart and the little wink at the end had little Eloise grin at her dad.

And he was grateful to know that his two best friends were okay. And Jesus, when the hell had Ollie gotten this sappy and romantic? That was like the type of shit someone would say in a rom-com. Who was that man and what had he done to his friend? It was sweet as fuck, though. Seriously, he was sure he'd get a fucking sugar rush and a couple of cavities from it. He wondered how Sara would've reacted if she'd heard him talk like that, part of him was convinced she'd decked him. The blonde had never been one for sweet words and romantic shit. Maybe it had changed, but he doubted it. And it was so easy to picture her eye-roll while she hit him in the arm or shoulder, or possibly smacked him on the back of his head, all the while calling him an idiot.

"Okay daddy. And it's okay, I sometimes fight with Benji too and I love him lots." The little girl turned all the way around and wrapped her little arms around Ollie's neck, pulling him close into a tight hug, a move that once again reminded him of Sara, especially when he saw one of her little hands hold her dad at the back of his head. And it gave him the impression that the little girl had seen her mom do that with her dad a lot. Ollie wrapped his arms around his daughter and held her close, kissing her temple and staying like this until the four-year-old loosened her arms around his neck and began to wriggle out of his arms.

"I am a little sad because the plans mama and I made when we decided to move here aren't working out the way we thought they would. And someone daddy used to know is trying to make our life difficult. But it's nothing you need to worry about, pumpkin. What does mommy always say?" He answered his daughter's original question once she got settled in his lap again. She hadn't seemed to still remember it, so Tommy was surprised he brought it up again instead of just letting it go, but he guessed it was fair. He'd probably do the same if he'd been talking to an adult and sidetracked them unintentionally. If he still remembered the original question, he'd answer it, so he guessed there should be no reason why one wouldn't do the same with a kid.

"Don't worry. Everything is going to be alright." The smile lighting up the little blonde's face was almost blinding and so much like her mother's. He had to admit, she was pretty adorable.

"That's right, and mama's the smartest person I know. So, if she says everything is going to be alright, it will probably be. Which means there is nothing for you to worry about, princess." Ollie grinned at her and playfully bumped her nose with his pointer finger, making her giggle. The father and daughter sat together in silence for a while after that, Eloise's head resting against Oliver's chest, his head back on her head, his face now no longer visible to his young daughter told an entirely different story than what he had just told her. He looked worried, very worried. Almost as if he carried the weight of the world on his shoulders.

Tommy wished there was something he could do to help, but his dad would kill him if he handed money over to Ollie, and he wasn't sure what exactly he could do about the Max situation…maybe his dad would let him spring for a lawyer, he doubted it but that could possibly be something he could try to bring up. Maybe. But predicting his dad's reactions to anything he did or didn't do or say was almost impossible. It was worth a shot, though. If there was a chance his dad was willing to help Ollie out, it was worth the risk of whatever other reaction might come from his dad when bringing the matter up with him. For now, he'd wait until they knew more and what Max was going to do next.

And it was only when his friend addressed the blonde in his lap, asking her if she wanted to get a hot chocolate and breakfast that his mind registered what were obviously pajama's that she was wearing, she was also barefoot, and the question he had asked her about Sara and Benjamin when she had first joined him. They were sleeping here? They were living here? Since when and why? And how? This place was run down and definitely needed a lot of work before it could be used again. There was no way someone could actually live here, even less with little kids. Okay, so it wouldn't have surprised him if they'd run into a hobo or two who were living here, but not Oliver and his family. This wasn't right.

The words about them sleeping in a car at certain times in their lives passed through his mind again and the sadness and anger rose again within him, just like it had when he had first heard about it and every time he had thought about it since. The unfairness of it all was infuriating.

But why hadn't they said anything? Why wouldn't they tell them? They could crash at his place, or he was sure either Laurel or her parents would be more than willing to let them stay with them for as long as they needed.

He exchanged a troubled look with the Lances before they all decided to follow the father and daughter inside, at a distance. It felt wrong though, intrusive. And that thought made him stop dead in his tracks.

Ollie and Sara had purposely stayed out of touch the last couple of days since their lives were turned upside down because of Max Fuller. They had purposely avoided the questions about where they were staying and were always more than happy to come visit them at whoever's place they hosted the meals. The couple didn't want them to know where they were living. They didn't want them to know the true state of their finances and their lives. They must know that if they'd asked, every person currently following Oliver and Eloise would be more than willing to help them out.

And yet, they hadn't asked for help, not once. Or even just let on that they might need some.

And it couldn't be because they were ashamed of their living conditions. They had had no issues telling them about having lived in a car or other less than ideal places before. They could've told them they were living here if they'd wanted to, but they hadn't.

"Guys, wait." All three Lances stopped and turned towards him.

"We should leave. This is none of our business and they obviously don't want us to know about this. This isn't right. They made it pretty clear that they want to be left alone right now. We should respect that. We now know where they are and that they haven't left town and that they're okay. So…" he gestured towards the direction they'd come from, hoping he'd managed to get through to them and they'd agree with him. If not, well, he couldn't stop them, but he also wouldn't join them. Oliver and Sara were his best friends, and as difficult as it was, he was going to respect their wishes and leave them alone for now.

He got the answers he wanted. They were okay, well, sort of for the most part, and they hadn't left the city. That was enough for him, for now. He had to trust that they would reach out to him once they dealt with this situation, however they needed to deal with it. They were used to doing things alone, to dealing with things like this alone. They'd been all they'd got for five years, so it wasn't fair to expect them to just change their habits overnight.

They'd reach out when they were ready, he was sure of it.

Notes:

Let me know what you think... I hope I did Tommy justice and you enjoyed the chapter.

and the original plan for this chapter was entirely different but then Tommy decided it was his time to say something... so here we are... we will get to Oliver and Sara and the aftermath of Ollie's arrest at some point, I promise.

There's also an explanation for Oliver's choice given the address he put on the form. It will all be explained in time.

Chapter title is from the song "Oath" by Cher Lloyd feat. Becky G.