Notes:
Sorry for the long wait and I hope its length makes a bit up for it, and also, this chapter took on a life of its own and turned out completely different than expected, let me know what you think.
Now you're just somebody that I used to know No, you didn't have to stoop so low A long time ago, we used to be friends
Oliver
It had been several days after his initial arrest that Oliver noticed his cell phone was missing and that also reminded him that his car was still parked close to Poison, which was probably also where his cell phone was. They decided to take Sara's car to drive down there and pick up his car, and check if his phone was at the club. They'd agreed that he'd take the kids to a nearby park while Sara tried her luck with the phone. They both agreed they weren't going to take any risks in case Max was on the property while they were looking for his phone. Sara wasn't on top of Max's list of favorite people, but he'd probably give her less trouble than him. Plus, her being heavily pregnant could play in her favor. It was when he got behind the wheel that he noticed Sara's phone still lying on the car center console. He connected it with the charger they kept in the car, while Sara was handing Eloise some snacks, before pulling out of the parking and onto the street. He hoped this wasn't going to be another decision they were going to regret, but he needed his phone. It was impossible to find investors if he couldn't call people or be reached in case someone was trying to get a hold of him. He doubted it given how everything's gone this far, but you could never know.
The plan was to get his phone first and then try their luck at the industrial landfill outside of Starling. Chances were that even if that was a bust, the people working there might know where they could get used stuff for cheap. What they hadn't decided on yet was whether they'd head back home with both cars first or if they'd take both cars to the landfill. He tended to go for the former. Even if the latter would be more practical in case they were allowed to get stuff from the landfill, because they would have a car they could fill with materials, while otherwise they only had the trunk available. It would be easier if they were both in the same car, though, especially in case Benjamin was crying. Eloise usually did a great job trying to calm him down and distract and entertain him, but Sara still had the best chance if he was really worked up. And it would be highly stressful to drive with a crying baby while not being able to actually try to calm him down, plus he knew Sara rather not drive right now if possible. She was still several weeks away from her due date, but she'd rather not take any chances, even less with the kids in the car. Plus, everyone's told them third children were unpredictable when it came to the estimated time of birth and Sara had been complaining for a while now about their youngest already residing in her pelvis, which had been a sign with both of their older ones that labor was near. Maybe they'd get the chance to put the materials they found to the side and he could go pick them up after dropping Sara and the kids off back home. If they were even allowed to take anything with them, which he seriously doubted, so one car was the more logical way to go.
It also brought up the question who would be driving with the kids. It wasn't that long from Poison back to their home, but from Poison to the landfill and back home was a different story and a rather big distance to cover with two cars and alone with the kids.
Sara also got more stressed out when Benjamin was crying and she wasn't in a position to do anything to sooth him, she'd tried to explain the way it made her feel, back when Eloise was a baby but she'd struggled trying to put it into words. The gist of it was, she couldn't focus on anything but her crying child and had a visceral reaction to it and it nearly tore her insides apart and she couldn't bare it, all of her instincts and every fiber of her being was focused on the crying baby and all she wanted and needed to do in that situation was hold him close to try and calm him down. So, while one of his children crying tore at his heartstrings and his instincts also screamed at him to comfort them, he was still able to put his focus on other things, like the road, traffic, work if he was mid construction and needed to finish it to avoid an accident, something Sara struggled with severely. There'd been a couple of instances, mostly with Eloise that they'd been in situations Sara couldn't give in to her instincts right away and the effect it had had on her was something he'd never forget. Her hands had been shaking and she'd been crying herself and afterwards, she hadn't let go of their baby for hours. Definitely a situation he'd like to avoid ever happening again.
Had he had his phone he'd probably asked Tommy to drive him to get his car, but as it was… and they'd also needed to check for his phone, Sara was probably the best option out of all of them. The last time she'd interacted with Max had been a good five years ago, and while that hadn't been the friendliest one, chances were Max wouldn't hold as much animosity towards her as he did him. He hadn't had any issues with Tommy, McKenna and Laurel hanging at his club. He'd only focused on them once they got themselves involved in the matter when he came after him.
Everything was just such a mess. He hoped the drive there would be quick and that his phone was at Poison and Sara could get it without a hitch. It would be nice if at least something would go their way for a change.
Sara
It was only after she turned her phone on, once it was partially charged, that she realized their short period of absence and them not having been reachable, which hadn't been on purpose at all, she'd just forgotten her phone in the car when they took the sleeping kids out of it after bailing Ollie out of prison and this was the first time they'd used the car since then. And she really hadn't noticed. Being used to not using it while spending time with Ollie and the kids. Sara was still getting used to people noticing brief periods of silences from her and Ollie's side. Not that they hadn't had people who cared about them over the years they'd been traveling or even in Georgia, but not to the point of blowing up their phones. Besides, people had known that Ollie and she had a tendency to just spend time with their children, alone. Plus, neither she nor Ollie were glued to their phones. It was something they used for communication, mostly with each other, so they had a tendency of leaving them wherever on the days they spent together. Ollie had been better at keeping it with him, depending on the job he'd been working but especially lately, in case anyone wanted to get in touch with him because of Verdant. She on the other hand still wasn't really good at keeping track of her phone, she was already keeping track of her kids' and husband's whereabouts, toys, clothes, food and household items, their finances and whatever else she needed to in order to properly take care of her family and avoid as many meltdowns as possible, and priorities needed to be set. Her phone wasn't a priority most of the time. Only when she was alone with the kids and even then, the priority was to have it on her in case of an emergency or to let Ollie know if she went somewhere, again in case of an emergency, so he would know where to start looking for them. That was pretty much it.
She began to quickly text her family and Tommy back, explaining why they hadn't been reachable. Sara knew it probably sounded like a cheap excuse, but it wasn't and it wasn't her problem whether they wanted to believe her or not. She looked at Ollie and then back at her phone, the amount of messages she's gotten were insane, seriously. They hadn't been in contact for like three or four days. That wasn't a lot. And it wasn't like they'd been in constant contact before. Sara appreciated them worrying, but it was a bit excessive. Ollie and she weren't children, and they didn't owe anyone shit. They should be allowed to not check in with anyone for such a short period of time, without her phone blowing up.
She mentioned as much to her husband, who looked at her observingly at a red light, letting her vent a little longer, and then letting the silence that followed hang for a while. A sign that he was seriously thinking about what she had said and trying to put his thoughts and feelings on the matter into words. It always took him a moment to gather his thoughts and give voice to them, as she just sat quietly and waited for him to figure out what he wanted to say.
"I think, maybe we'll need to talk to them about boundaries. If this bothers you this much. I believe they were simply worried about what happened and not having been able to reach either of us, probably played into their actions and the excessive amount of messages you received from them." What he said made sense, and she understood that, to some degree, it had just been an unfortunate chain of events. Cutting her family out hadn't been on purpose. They'd just had other more important issues on their minds and things to focus on. Existential things and their children. It was still new to her to remember that her family was more involved in her everyday life again, sort of. And it meant they needed to be kept in the loop to some degree, because they would worry otherwise, but this was too much. Way too much. She felt suffocated by it.
"Boundaries sounds good. Because I can't deal with this on the regular, or any time you and I decide to make decisions that won't include any of them and my phone ends up blowing up because I felt it wasn't information they needed or just didn't think about informing them. I'm not a child, I shouldn't have to check in with them daily. And I've got too much shit to think and worry about without including the grown ass members of my family, you're obviously not included in that. And this is something that doesn't really concern them." And she did understand that it was sort of an extreme situation right now, but still. It was an issue concerning Ollie and her and their children and not really anyone else. They should've realized their messages weren't going through and trusted in the fact that they would reply to them as soon as they got their messages, what they had done was also sort of redundant and absurd. Why keep on sending texts and trying to call if the phone was obviously not turned on or out of battery?
"They worry, Sara and they are sort of involved in the matter. Tommy, Laurel and Quentin were a part of what happened." Ollie glanced in her direction, before putting his eyes on the street in front of them again. He wasn't wrong, she knew he wasn't but she couldn't help the way their actions made her feel.
They were thankfully interrupted by Eloise before she was forced to give him a reply, their daughter had been surprisingly quiet up until this point, but then again, she'd been engrossed in one of the picture books they'd kept in the car for her. But now she was happily chattering away, sharing something she'd seen in one of the books and asking some questions. This was nice. This calmed her down a little, just listening to her first baby and her daddy talking about a bunny that travels around the world. It had been a spur-of-the-moment pick in a bookstore in Germany, Ellie had still been too little for the book and she'd been surprised the store had the English version of the German children's book, but it had just jumped at her. Letters from Felix: A Little Rabbit on a World Tour. She'd noticed it in bookstores before, in Poland, Norway and Bulgaria, but she'd spoken none of the languages and therefore hadn't bought it. So when she'd seen it in that little book store in Germany, in English, she'd just had to get it. It had fit them so perfectly; it had almost been as if it had been made for them; they'd been traveling around the world and the bunny in the book was traveling around the world as well and it had been so beautifully illustrated. She'd just had to get it, even though, it had theoretically been out of their budget and too expensive but she'd splurged and Ollie hadn't minded once she showed him the book, she'd still felt guilty, because she'd known it would mean Ollie would make up for the unplanned spending on her end in eating less on his. He'd always been the one to cut down on food when money was too tight, making sure she'd get enough to eat, because she was also the one feeding their daughter. It had been something she'd struggled with a lot, knowing he was going hungry while she was not. Him pointing out the fact that she was responsible for feeding their daughter had made things a bit easier but still, she'd hated it. Hated knowing that he would be hungry while she wasn't. Rationally, he'd been right, but it still hadn't changed the guilt she'd felt.
And she was glad now she had gotten the book, it was Eloise's favorite, they now owned several of the books from the series. And their daughter loved asking them specific questions about places Felix was at and wondering if she'd been there as well and wanting to know everything about the places and the things they'd done and how she'd liked it if she'd been too little to recall. The books sometimes even helped her remember certain places and events. This time she was asking about the oceans, a theme they talked about for the rest of the drive to the car park close to Poison where Ollie had parked his car on Friday.
Sara got out of the car, walked around it and got Benji out while Ellie had unbuckled herself and was now climbing to the front of the car, still completely engaged in the conversation she was having with her father, who'd stayed sitting to continue talking to their daughter. She unbuckled their baby, took him out, walked to the back of the car, noticing that Ollie had already opened the trunk for her, she sat on the edge and got comfortable before placing Benji so he could nurse. Last thing she wanted was handing Ollie a hungry and therefore grumpy baby, when she wasn't sure how long it would take her to figure out if Ollie's cell phone was indeed at the club. She'd called the station on their way to the club, and they'd told her it wasn't there, which they'd assumed, since he'd been given all of his stuff back, after she'd paid his bail. But they just wanted to make sure. If they could've avoided a potential run in with Max, they'd preferred it. But as it was, the only place it could be, since he no longer had it at the station, was at Max's club. And they couldn't really afford to just leave it and get a new one. She wished that was an option, but it was not. So, she was going to hand the kids over to Ollie and then try her luck at Poison, hoping Max wouldn't be there at this time of the day.
They hadn't parted on the best terms. Which was mostly his fault. Had he not thrown Tommy and her in the same boat as Ollie and treated them like crap, she wouldn't have quit their friendship. She'd liked Max. Until the moment he'd started to behave like an ass towards her, simply because she refused to stop being friends with Ollie after the rehearsal dinner fiasco. Which had been bullshit, and an insane expectation, especially since he'd still gone through with the wedding. He had expected her to stop hanging out with Ollie while he was still married to the woman who'd cheated on him on the eve of their wedding. How was Ollie the only one Max had blamed for it? She didn't get it. And she never would. But Max's out of line behavior had just pissed her off, and the situation had escalated from there. They'd both been in the wrong, but still. She'd been on his side originally. What Ollie and Becky had done had been shitty, sort of funny in a twisted kind of way, and an impressive feat on Ollie's part, kind of, Becky'd always had the hots for him and tried to get into his pants before she'd changed tactics and got her claws into Max. She was sure it had originally been a desperate attempt to make Ollie jealous, which had horribly misfired. Ollie couldn't have cared less who she was screwing. He'd really never shown any interest in her, she wasn't his type at all, sure, she'd been hot, but as Ollie had put it not worth the trouble and drama and clearly someone who wouldn't get one and done. And he'd usually kept his hands off of girls he was sure were going to interpret more into a one-night stand and start to show up and cause drama. He was all for having fun, but not willing to add more drama than he was already getting from Laurel into the mix. It was also why he'd always been extremely honest with the women he took home and let them know it was just about sex, nothing more, nothing less. Ollie had always been very fair and upfront with his flings. It was why women respected him, even with his reputation, they'd still gone home with him, and while he'd been known to sleep around, his reputation hadn't been negative or bad, as opposed to other guys, or some of his frat brothers. He'd always been respectful towards the women he took home and never made them false promises. There'd still been the occasional women, or better said girls, that thought they could change his mind by sleeping with him and once they got him into their bed, he would leave Laurel and start dating them. It had been ridiculous and their actions following a casual hook up, had led to turning him completely off. Ollie'd hated nothing more than women who didn't get the hint and tried to turn casual fun into something serious by hounding him, at times almost stalking him. Becky'd been too clingy for his liking, so he'd been certain she'd turn into one of those women that he'd have trouble getting the message across and rid of. Which was why he'd never showed any interest in her or even entertained screwing her, even though she'd physically been his type.
She listened to the conversation between her husband and her daughter, apparently they were now driving to the lost island of Atlantis, in their car, which could turn into a submarine, she had to grin. She loved her daughter's imagination and Ollie's willingness to play along. They came up with the best stories and adventures. She was so grateful that they'd been able to give Ellie the chance to see the world, even at such a young age and chances were there were a lot of places she wouldn't remember but she remembered being on the road and the feeling of freedom that came with it, and she knew their baby missed it at times, just like she did, and she was sure Ollie as well. They may decide to go back to a more nomadic lifestyle at some point, when Benji and their youngest were a little older, but traveling with three kids, two of them under two was too stressful even for them, besides she really wanted Ollie to get the chance to run his own club, it was important to him. And she loved to watch him thrive. Something she knew he would. All they needed was the money to actually get the club going.
Sara hoped she was right, and they would find that one person willing to invest in them. Preferably sooner than later. Ollie deserved a win after everything they've been through, everything he'd sacrificed for her and their kids and still was. He was doing so much, working so hard and she knew just how much their current situation was bothering him, how it was seriously messing with his mental health, she hadn't seen him like this in a long time, he seemed almost defeated. And that worried her and nearly broke her heart at the same time. She hated seeing him like this. Not that she thought he might do something stupid and risk everything they've worked for but still, she was keeping an eye on him, making sure she'd notice if the pressure was getting too much so she could interfere before he was spiraling because the moment he was in the spiral, getting him back out would be a lot harder than keeping him from entering it in the first place. She shuddered when she was reminded of Russia, no, she wouldn't let it get that bad again, she'd been young, stupid and unsure what to make of his behavior, she hadn't realized until it had almost been too late. She'd been so worried about offending him or how to bring her worries up that she'd stayed quiet for way too long, just watching him spiral and sink deeper and deeper into a vortex of self-destruction. Their marriage had been too new, she'd been too unsure about where they stood, what their situation and the state of their relationship was and she'd also still struggled with the whole going to be responsible for another helpless human being soon thing, without any kind of financial or residential security, Ollie had been all she'd had and she'd been terrified to lose him. So, she'd been scared to push too hard, to demand things from him. Like his parents and her sister had, which had partially led to the situation they'd found themselves in. She'd relied on him financially and emotionally, she still did, but she was no longer worried, or afraid because she knew where they stood; she knew there was no way she'd ever lose him. She knew they were as solid and capable of standing the test of time as the Pyramids and Sphinx in Giza.
She'd learned in their years of travel that the most beautiful and nourishing plants grew after a draught and the following flood. They'd been stripped bare and faced complete destruction, but they rose from it, just like the African savanna did each year. Not that she felt like hitting rock bottom again, but she now understood that some arguments, some subjects needed to be brought up no matter how difficult it was and how destructive the conversation could be. She'd rather piss him off and offend him, than lose him.
So far, he was not yet spiraling but they needed to make headways. They needed to find a way to get an income. Otherwise she wasn't sure how to keep him afloat, to keep him grounded. They needed a win, Ollie needed a win. They needed an investor, desperately. She wondered why Tommy hadn't offered. It was strange. But she wasn't going to ask him, just like she wasn't going to ask her family for money. No, they'd manage somehow, they always had. This time was no different. It was just a question of time. But being home didn't help. She knew Ollie was worried about what her family would think if they knew their current situation. She knew he was stressing out because he cared a lot about her family's opinion of him, he didn't want to disappoint them, he was worried they'd think he wasn't doing a good job taking care of his family if they knew… which was bullshit, well not the part of what her family might think, that was probably spot on, but him not doing a good job taking care of her and the kids, he was doing an amazing job, had been for as long as they've been a family. And she didn't care what other people thought, it didn't matter to her. But she knew how important the opinions of people Ollie cared about were to him. And he just wanted to make her mom and dad proud. Especially now that his parents were no longer a part of his life. The thought of disappointing hers the same way he had his was bothering him a lot.
She got back up, and redressed when it was obvious that Benjamin was done. Placing him on her hip and walking to the driver's side, opening the door.
"I've got another passenger for your adventure. I think he'll make a skilled engineer or explorer." She handed Benji over to Ollie, before leaning over her husband to kiss her daughter's crown in a goodbye, not an easy feat, repeating the action with her son before meeting Ollie in a searing kiss.
"Good luck, babe. And thank you." He smiled gratefully and encouragingly at her.
"Thanks. You guys have fun and try to stay out of trouble and accidents. Wouldn't want you to be lost at sea or on the hidden island of Atlantis." She grinned and winked at him. Eloise piped up and turned her head towards her for a quick second before going back to whatever she'd been doing, assuring her that they would be alright and find their way back home.
"We'll probably be here or just down the road at the little playground, or in Atlantis." Ollie let her know, well, here would be the easiest for her, but the playground would mean the kids got some time to run or crawl around and get rid of the energy, which would make driving back easier.
"Okay, I hope I won't be too long. Love you. Bye my little adventurers." She kissed him hard again, before waving at her kids, taking hold of Benji's flailing hand, kissing his little fist and then turning around and walking away, looking back again after Ollie's hand playfully swatted her ass. She saw him grinning and winking at her, a look she returned but also adding an eye roll. It was nice though, they'd finally gotten out of their dry spell, well, sort of, they'd had sex for the first time in what felt like forever after their argument, after first having been interrupted by a hungry Benjamin and then checking that both kids were sound asleep, and heading to their makeshift living room, it had been rushed, like most of the time since they'd had children. The exceptions had been the times they'd had an actual apartment or house they'd lived at, like they had had in Georgia. But whenever they'd been on the road or the living conditions had led to them sharing the bed with Eloise, the sex had been rushed, them not having wanted to leave their daughter alone for too long or risk her walking in on whatever space away from her they'd found to indulge in their needs or just to make sure they wouldn't get interrupted, but still, rushed as it might have been, it had been nice, she'd missed it, missed him.
There was also a promise in his action and the look he gave her, it made a shiver of anticipation run down her spine. Letting her know that somewhere in the near future there'd be a repeat performance. Hopefully. If the kids played along.
Sara walked the short distance down the road until she stood in front of the building hosting Max Fuller's club. She hoped someone was there. She walked up to the front door and tried it, to her surprise it opened right up, not what she'd expected. So, she carefully stepped inside and looked around, trying to figure out the best place to start looking for an employee she could ask.
She decided to head towards the bar, chances were that someone would be there to restock, or do inventory or something, at least from what she remembered from her short stint at Oblivion and given Ollie's experience, even though he usually spent less time behind the bar and more manning the doors, given his physic, attitude, presence and charisma. He was good in deescalating situations, or stepping in and stopping them before getting out of hand if need be. Ollie'd really beefed up over the years and not just because of his work as a bouncer at different clubs, no it had also been, or more accurately the deciding factor had been Ollie wanting to ensure he could keep her and Eloise safe, no matter the situation. He'd always cared about his looks and he'd worked out before, but not like he was now. He'd also learned how to fight, how to handle different weapons and the best way to defend himself and her and the kids. And once he'd started to live healthier, take better care of his body and working out almost religiously, he'd also began to find work as a bouncer. It was something he'd always really enjoyed. Working construction had also played its part in improving his physic and he'd worked out to help his body better deal with the physically very demanding job.
"Hello. Can I help you? We're closed." Sara was still on her way towards the bar when a female voice addressed her. She turned towards the sound of the voice.
"Hi, sorry, I know, but my husband lost his phone at the club Friday night, and I was wondering if maybe it was found?" She smiled at the young woman charmingly, explaining why she was here at the club's off hours.
"Ahm, let me go check, we keep the lost and found in the back office. I'll be right back." The tall brunette walked past the counter and disappeared behind a door. Sara walked all the way to the counter, waiting patiently, hoping the staff had found the phone or someone had been nice enough to hand it over to the club's employees, she wasn't sure what they'd do if the phone was gone for good. That would majorly suck.
"Look what the cat dragged in, if it isn't Sara Lance." Sara closed her eyes in disbelief at the voice, cursing her luck, before plastering a friendly smile on her face and turning towards him. She watched Max saunter into the club's main area, coming from the door that the woman had vanished behind.
"Max, hi, how have you been?" She hoped this interaction would be quick, and not make the situation between Max and Oliver any worse.
"Great, with Oliver gone. Wouldn't have minded had he never come back. Club's closed." His words didn't surprise her, not after what Ollie had told her had happened when they'd run into each other for the first time in over five years. She still couldn't believe Max hadn't gotten over it by now. It was ridiculous. It had been five years. And he didn't seem to still hold it against Becky, so why was he still holding it against Ollie? It made no sense to her. Yes, Ollie had betrayed their friendship, in a way, but Becky's betrayal was worse, and if he was still holding a grudge against someone it should be against the person who'd promised to stay true to him and hadn't even managed to do that before speaking her vows. It was a joke. And so stupid and unreasonable. But she guessed it was easier to still hold anger against Ollie than the person he was spending his life with. But if he was still feeling this strongly about it, maybe he shouldn't still be with Becky. Just a thought. Not that she was going to share that with Max. She just didn't get it.
"I'm glad to hear you're doing great. I know it is. I'm just here because Ollie's phone is missing and the only place it could be is here. I was wondering if someone found it?" She decided to not beat around the bush and come straight to the point. The less they interacted, the better, she guessed.
"Why doesn't it surprise me that Queen sent you instead of showing up himself again? Still doing his dirty work and cleaning up his messes, I see. Some things never change, I guess." There was a smug and slightly annoyed smile on his face while he was walking around the edge of the counter towards her.
"I offered, I thought it might be better if the two of you didn't interact right now." She tried to keep things civil, to not have them escalate. Really, hoping Max wouldn't keep on trying to get a rise out of her and just answer her question so she could be on her way back to Ollie and the kids and enjoy the rest of their day.
"Whoa! Oliver knock you up?" Max had stepped out from behind the bar and she could pinpoint the exact moment he realized she was pregnant, a fact that had been hidden by the counter between them. His eyes grew and he stopped in his advancement, it looked like the last thing he'd expected was for her to be with child.
"Yes, he has, this is the third time, actually." She replied, having to hide her amusement at his reaction, gesturing towards her stomach at the end. Maybe he'd ease up on Ollie, knowing he was a father of three. Hopefully. Maybe.
"Really? Third kid? All Oliver's?" His stance had relaxed a little and his eyes strayed over her body taking her in, she noticed how they stopped for a moment when he registered the golden wedding band adorning her left ring finger. He'd raised a surprised eyebrow and looked at her face, almost a bit bemused but also very perplexed.
"Yeah, third kid, all Ollie's. Our oldest is four, our son is ten months. And this one is due in about four to six weeks." She wasn't sure why she was sharing the information with him, maybe because he had suddenly dropped his defenses and walls and no longer seemed to hold any animosity towards her but just genuine curiosity. And because they had been good friends before… before, Ollie'd slept with his fiancée. And fucked up everyone's friendship.
"Wow. Four? You have a four-year-old? I can't picture myself having a kid now, and I've been married for a good six years. You guys, got three, well, almost. And one of them is four. Damn." Max sounded so honest, thoughtful and a bit impressed, she guessed.
"Yeah, it's crazy she's four already. Seems like yesterday that she was a baby. Ollie and I've been married for about four and a half, almost five years now. How is Becky?" It was true, she still struggled with the thought from time to time, it was even more insane to think that she'll be five soon. She asked about Max's wife not just to be polite but also because she was interested to know how she was, part of her was surprised to learn they were indeed still married. She'd really expected them to have gotten a divorce by now. But maybe she'd been wrong with her assumptions and assessment. And Becky had just made a stupid mistake.
"Becky's good, working in advertisement. Climbing up that corporate ladder pretty quickly." She smiled at the proud look on his face and hoped it was for talent and she wasn't sleeping her way up, something she wouldn't put past her. Mostly she hoped so for Max, he seemed to genuinely love her and he looked so proud, and she could easily relate to that feeling. It was how she felt about Ollie and everything he's achieved and especially now that he was going for his dream. She couldn't be more proud of him. So it would be a bummer if Becky were cheating on him, and that being the only reason why she was climbing up that ladder so fast.
"That's great. I'm glad to hear that. And you've got a successful club I've heard. The hottest place to be right now." She liked this, it was nice to catch up with him. They had been good friends, she still couldn't entirely understand what Ollie had been thinking or why he'd suddenly been interested in Becky, when he'd never been before. Maybe he'd just wanted to know if she was still into him. Maybe he'd thought that action would keep Max from marrying her and it had been a warped way for Ollie to try and protect his friend, keep him from making a mistake and a choice he might end up regretting. She'd never asked, and Ollie'd never shared. She got Ollie having hooked up with several of Carter's girlfriends, hell, she'd even hooked up with several of Carter's girlfriends, but Max had been his friend. And hers as well. He'd just forced her to pick a side, and she'd always be on Ollie's side even when he was wrong. It was the two of them against the world.
They fell silent after, both unsure how to proceed now that the necessary pleasantries were taken care of. They just stood there looking at each other until the brunette from before returned.
"Hey, this one was put in our lost and found. Is this your husband's phone?" She held up a phone that looked like it could be Ollie's. But she couldn't say for sure.
"May I have it for a moment? Or do you by chance have a charger? I could say for sure once it's turned on. I know what his lock screen looks like, and also his PIN." She'd understand if the woman wouldn't just want to hand it over to her.
"Yeah, I think we have one that should fit, hold on." She went back to the room she came from, both Max and she looked after her and then at each other, and Sara was pretty sure they were thinking the same thing.
"She draws a crowd, makes a lot of tips, not the sharpest tool in the shed though." Max confirmed what she had thought.
"Yeah, as long as she does her job well, who cares. But it's easier to identify someone's phone when it's on. Especially since Ollie doesn't really care about the case just as long as it's sturdy, and I honest to God, wouldn't be able to even tell you what mine looks like, even less Ollie's." It was true. They both had more important things to worry about than cell phone cases. Ollie got his to keep his phone protected at work, and she got hers because she has a tendency to drop her phone or the kids got their hands on it. Practicality and sturdiness were key for both of them.
"True, and she's great behind the bar. Really? Wait, you got his PIN?" Max almost sounded as if he wanted to say more concerning the cases when he got sidetracked by another statement she'd made.
"Yeah, and he knows mine, why?" Why wouldn't she or he? They had nothing to hide from each other and she trusted him, and he her. She didn't go through his phone to keep track of what he was doing, but she used his phone if she needed to look something up or call someone or whatever, and she couldn't find hers. Same on his side. She really wouldn't know a single reason why they shouldn't be able to access each other's phones. They had no secrets between them, and she trusted him fully. If you had nothing to hide, you had no reason to lock your significant other out of your electronics. At least that was how Ollie and she felt. She respected his privacy, and he respected hers.
"I'm just surprised. I'm not sure I know any couple that would hand over full access to their phone to their partner." Max explained.
"Really? That's kinda sad. I wouldn't know why I shouldn't give Ollie access, one I trust him and two, I've got nothing to hide. And even if he went through my texts and saw me complaining to a friend about him or whatever, it's most likely about something he already knows I was annoyed about. I let him know when and why he pisses me off and vice versa. It makes life a whole lot easier." She explained to Max, wondering what it said about his marriage if they didn't trust each other with something like that. And it was true, she usually let Ollie know when something was bothering her or he'd done something that pissed her off, and vice versa. Holding on to shit like that and letting it fester until one of them exploded was too fucking exhausting and pointless, eventually they'd tell the other, but if they'd do it right away, it was usually just a slight annoyance and nothing big, but once they let it fester shit would get real ugly, they'd found that one out the hard way as well. And it had taken them a while to reach the point of open and honest conversation but once they did, their relationship only improved and neither of them would ever want to go back to where they'd been before they'd learned to be honest with each other and share their issues. They'd struggled so much with talking about their feelings at the beginning. It had been where most of their issues had come from. Once they figured that out and started to work on it, most of the problems they'd had just evaporated and their once almost constant arguments had become few and far between.
"Huh, that's an interesting take. I never thought about it that way." Max looked contemplative and smiled slightly at her, something she returned. It was making her a little sad for him, but then again, given the way his marriage started she wasn't surprised that there were trust issues between him and Becky, even though, she felt that was something they should've seriously worked on right away. She couldn't imagine being with Ollie while not completely trusting him and always having to wonder if he was maybe being unfaithful. She would've never renewed their vows, or made them for the first time depending on how one wanted to look at it, good a year after they first got married, had she had any doubt as to his commitment to her. They'd legally gotten married because it had been the most logical step given their situation. They'd chosen to have an actual small wedding ceremony later on because they loved each other and had decided they wanted to spend the rest of their lives together. Staying true to each other. It was a commitment they both took very seriously and one neither of them would've made had they not known for a fact that they both wanted the same and looked at it as the lifelong commitment it was, and not just to each other and their daughter but to them as a family. They'd promised each other that day that they would stick together no matter what, through the good, the bad, the ugly and everything in between.
She'd never considered getting married, well, that wasn't true but she'd always known even as a little girl that the only way she'd get married was if it would be for the rest of her life, like her grandparents had been, and to someone she could put her entire trust in, someone she'd never have to doubt, and as she grew older she became way too cynical to believe love like that still existed outside of stories and fairytales. She'd seen too much, understood perfectly how people presented their relationships or marriages and what went on behind closed doors or one party's back. And she wasn't willing to put up with that. So not committing meant not getting humiliated and hurt and that seemed to be the better choice. Even when Ollie and she had first gotten married, while she'd already been completely in love with him and willing to commit to him fully, she hadn't looked at their marriage as that, it had been a means to an end. The most logical and simplest solution to a complicated issue. It had only been after Eloise was born, after everything they'd been through up to that point, after Russia, that she'd looked at Ollie as that person. Her person, the only person she could see herself commit to fully and completely and for the rest of her life. But she'd only been willing to do that, once she was certain, she was that same person for him. That he felt the exact same way about her as she did about him.
And by the time he'd asked her to marry him, she'd had had no doubt about his feelings for and commitment to her, she'd told him yes, without a moment's hesitation. And had yet to regret that choice.
She knew now that Ollie had never been unfaithful to her, never cheated on her not even at the beginning when they hadn't officially been together, when they'd still struggled to navigate in the terrifying deep waters of their new and unexpected situation. She hadn't been sure, for a long time, she had wondered… she'd felt guilty to doubt him but then again they'd never talked about their relationship, never set rules for this thing between them. She'd never asked him to not be with other women, too scared about the implication of a demand like that and also the consequences that would come with her asking him to only be with her and him not doing it. She hadn't been sure what she'd done in that situation, she'd been dependent on him, sure she could've called her parents and asked them to pay for a flight back home and she was sure they would've done it. But then she would've had to explain being pregnant, and not just being pregnant but with Ollie's child. Plus, it would've also meant leaving Ollie behind and she wouldn't have been able to do that. But she wouldn't have been able to stay with him had he so blatantly ignored her wishes and slept with other women. So, she'd never made any demands, never shared her feelings and needs with him and it had only been after he'd asked her to marry him that she'd dared to ask. He'd been taken aback and slightly hurt at her question, that had been the only answer she'd needed even though he'd answered it, swearing up and down that he'd never cheated on her, that the moment they'd signed the marriage license she'd been the only woman he'd been with. And if she were honest, it made sense, it was who he was. How he was raised. If you signed a contract, you had to uphold it, fine print and everything. And a marriage license was nothing different but a contract. So, she should've known that he'd probably take it more seriously than she had. It had just been because he'd ended up on a path of self-destruction and had tried so hard to get rid of her at times that it wouldn't have surprised her had he gone to bed with other women, but then again, in that scenario he would've made sure she'd known. And he hadn't. It was another situation that had made it clear to them how important it was for them to talk to each other, to address their worries and fears and expectations.
Sara was ripped from her thoughts when the tall brunette walked back in with not only the cell phone but a charger as well. She plugged it in behind the counter and put the phone on it, all three of them watching the screen while it was charging. Neither knowing how to fill the rather awkward silence that had filled the room.
They waited until it was by around twenty percent and no longer in the red, until they turned the phone on. It didn't take too long for the display to go from black to the photo of her and the kids Ollie had taken at the park about a week ago. Making it unmistakably his phone.
"Aw, cute." She turned her head towards Max at the unexpected sound breaking the quiet that had lingered and saw him look at the screen and her and Ollie's babies on it.
"Thanks, and yeah, they are. A handful, but a cute one." She smiled at him with pride and winked at him.
"Yeah, that's not hard to believe, given their parentage." Max smirked at her. And he wasn't wrong. Besides, Max knew better than most just in how much and what kind of trouble Ollie and she used to get into.
"Fair enough. Do you mind if I let it charge a little more?" Sara became serious again, while asking the question.
"No, that's fine." Max agreed to her relief, sure they could charge it in the car, but it would be helpful if it was already partially charged, since she wasn't sure what their plan would be, if they'd stay at the playground a little longer, if Ollie and the kids had even gotten there or if they'd head straight back home to leave Ollie's car at home. Huh, maybe they could go straight to the the landfill and get Ollie's car after, if it was evening chances were both Ellie and Benji would fall asleep in the car which would make the drive home a lot less stressful with only one of them with the kids. It would be a detour both ways, but still… it might be easier. She'd have to check with Ollie what he wanted to do, since he was probably going to be the one driving the kids. She really didn't feel comfortable driving the kids around right now. The little one inside of her had decided to mostly hang out in her pelvis lately, which was rather painful and, depending on her movement, it could be rather distracting. She was also a little worried because, with her older two, it had been a sign that labor would set in soon. It had been around two to four weeks later with both. This one had been chilling in her cervix for almost three weeks now. She was already pretty low, so she wondered if it meant once labor set in, she'd be out in no time. Benjamin had already been born pretty quickly, at least compared to his older sister, sweet Eloise had taken fucking forever to get out of her, she'd been about ready to either just pull her out herself or kill Ollie, but that moment had been when she'd finally decided to come out of her. The last thing she wanted was to end up giving birth to her third child at the side of the road with her older siblings in the back. And as painful as having her little one resting in her pelvis was, she was grateful for every additional day she stayed in there. While her baby girl would most likely be fine if she were to give birth now, she'd prefer to keep her inside for at least another two weeks so she'd be considered full term and no longer late preterm. But theoretically labor could set in any day now and given her youngest's position she wasn't willing to take any risks, especially while driving. So Ollie driving whenever possible and him taking the car with the kids in it, only made sense. So did both their phones being mostly charged while they were driving home, just in case.
Max's employee had said her goodbyes and left to do inventory at the stockroom and silence had set between them again. It was when the phone was up to fifty percent that she decided it was enough and to head back to her car to see if her family was still there. She removed the phone from the cable and bit her lip for a moment, wondering how to proceed while turning towards the man she'd once considered a good friend.
"Look Max, I… Ollie didn't mean anything by coming here. It wasn't… the boys didn't think. Ollie and I just moved back to Starling not too long ago, and this was the first time in more than five years that Ollie and Tommy went out together. They didn't… look you can go through with this, but you won't gain anything from it. Ollie's got no claim to the Queen fortune and all we've got is in the four-digit area, and even that just barely. You'd ruin us and leave three kids without their father, a roof over their heads, and food on the table. Ollie's the primary breadwinner and I'm taking care of the kids. I can't stop you from doing this and going after Ollie legally, but I just want you to understand what going through with this will mean. Not for Ollie, not for me, but for our three kids. They are used to having dad in their life, spending time with him every day. It would potentially mean that I'd have to give birth to our third child all by myself, while also having to figure out what I'm going to do with our older two during that time. We don't hand our children over to strangers to raise them, we do it all by ourselves. They have never been away from us. Our family means everything to us. Please don't take this away, please don't destroy my children's sense of security and safety. Please don't force them to only be able to interact with their dad through a glass window and a phone. If you don't want to do it for Ollie or for me, please consider what that would do to three innocent children." She hadn't meant to bring it up, even less to beg, but if begging would help, she was willing to give it a shot. She was willing to do about anything to make this go away. So telling him the truth, being honest, and sharing their situation with him felt right. She wasn't sure if he cared or not, but Max wasn't a bad person. Not really.
Max looked at her for a long time. Not saying anything, just mustering her.
"He's a good dad? Oliver. A good husband?" There was something more in those questions an underlying meaning but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.
"He's the best dad any kid could have. Very involved. He loves his children more than anything in the world and there's nothing he wouldn't do for them. They are so lucky to have him as their dad. And I am so lucky to have him as my husband. I couldn't do better. Ollie's completely devoted to our family, he's an amazing husband, very dedicated and hellbent on making all of my dreams come true, no matter what it takes, even if it's blood, sweat and tears. There's nothing he wouldn't do for me and our children." Sara once again chose to answer him honestly and hoped that she had also answered the unasked questions as well. She waited for a beat, gauging his reaction, but when none came and he just kept on mustering her she decided it was time for her to head out and meet up with Ollie and the kids.
"It was really nice talking to you, Max. And thank you for just giving me the phone and letting me charge it. I appreciate it." She smiled at him gratefully and she meant it, all of it, before turning around and walking towards the main entrance.
"Hey Lance! Or I guess it would be Queen now. Tell Oliver I'll drop the lawsuit just as long as he stays away from Poison and Becky. But he better treat you and the children right. It was nice talking to you as well. You're welcome at Poison at any time." His voice stopped her in her tracks and had her turn towards him.
"Thank you, Max. Seriously, I mean it. We really appreciate it and I'll make sure he will." She smiled at him gratefully before turning back around and leaving the club, feeling so much lighter than she had when entering it. This was good. Finally, things seemed to start looking up for them, at least a little. Even if she was only fully going to believe it once she had confirmation from her dad that Max had really withdrawn the charges against Ollie.
Notes:
I have no clue where the Sara/Max interaction came from... I hope it is realistic and I decided to ignore the later Seasons of Arrow and go with Season One Max. He seemed like a douche but not much more and I sort of get why he might not have been too happy to see Oliver... cause Oliver was definitely in the wrong here... you can twist and turn it every way you want, Oliver was wrong. And Max had a right to be angry.
Also while Oliver was known to have cheated on Laurel, as far as I know Sara has never once cheated on anyone she was with. She'd been involved with people in relationships and the reason they cheated (well maybe not the reason but you guys get what I mean) but she's never been the one to cheat on anyone. Just want to point that out. There's a diff and it's an important one. Also she was nineteen and pregnant by a guy who'd been seriously involved with her sister up until after they learned about her pregnancy and was known to be a serial cheater. She loved him, but she wasn't blind to his flaws and behavior. Just saying.
I hope this chapter made sense. Let me know if it didn't.
Chapter title is from the songs "somebody that i used to know" by Gotye
and "We Used to Be Friends" by The Dandy Warhols