When Grady had been assigned to help Keefe control his talents, Keefe was nervous. It wasn't every day that you were forced to work with your crush's father because he was the only one who could train you. In the woods. Alone.

Especially one that didn't seem to like you very much.

But that wasn't unusual these days, most adults he met didn't like him that much.

He had always thought that Alden did until the day of the Vacker tribunal when Alden showed up at his house unexpectedly.

"Sooo...," he said, dragging out the word as he plopped onto the swing next to Alden. "What's going on?"

"Nothing bad," Alden assured him. "I'm just hoping you'll be willing to attend the tribunal today."

Ro groaned. "Nooooooooo! Then I have to go, and everyone's going to be all smug and sparkly and give boring speeches about how brilliant they are – and I'm not even allowed to stab anybody!"

Keefe ignored her. "I thought it was family only."

"It was. But I've convinced the Council to make an exception, because Fitz is going to need a friend today."

Yeah, that was kind of an understatement. Keefe was pretty sure Fitz was going to go into rage-monster mode if the Council gave Alvar anything less than a life sentence. And if Alden felt the need to bring in reinforcements...

Keefe slumped back against the cushions. "Does that mean you know –"

"What I know," Alden interrupted, "is that I'm doing everything in my power to get my family through this."

Which wasn't really an answer.

"The thing is," he added quietly. "my son is far more likely to listen to you than he is to me. Especially under the circumstances."

"Okay, but if you're looking for a voice of wisdom, you'd be better off asking someone who's a bit more... shall we say, responsible?" Keefe felt the need to point out.

"I agree. Which is why I've arranged clearance for Sophie to attend as well."

"Perfect!" Ro jumped in. "Then you don't need us!"

"Actually, that's why I do." Alden's eyes dropped to his hands, his fingers twisting the edge of his embroidered cape. "You and I both know, Keefe, that my son doesn't necessarily excel at controlling his temper. And... I don't think either of us wants to see him channel any of that anger at Sophie. So if you're there –"

"Hang on." Ro made a time-out gesture. "Are you seriously asking Keefe to be the punching bag during your pretty boy's little temper tantrums?"

"Of course not! I'm asking an empath to watch for moments when his best friend is getting close to losing control of his emotions, and to keep him from saying or doing anything he'll later regret.

"Or you could just leave our pretty little blond girl out of this one," Ro reminded him.

"No, I can't. Fitz... needs her." His eyes shifted to Keefe, and there was something tentative about his expression.

Something nervous.

"He needs her," he repeated gently, taking a long breath before he added, "I think you know that. And... I suspect you know how Sophie feels too."

Unfortunately, Keefe did – and he was always trying hard not to think about it, because it made him want to punch things.

"Hate to break it to you guys," Ro informed them, "but Blondie doesn't know what she feels."

"Perhaps not," Alden conceded. "But that mostly has to do with the fact that my son has yet to make things clear. Once he does..."

He didn't finish the sentence, but he didn't need to. Keefe was well aware of all the miserable mushiness he had ahead.

The hand-holding.

And cuddling.

And...

Ugh, if he had to watch them kiss, he was going to vomit all over his boots.

Alden placed his hand softly over Keefe's, waiting for Keefe to meet his eyes before he told him, "I realize that all of this is... complicated for you, given how you feel about –"

"I'm just gonna stop you right there," Keefe cut in, pulling his hand away and jumping off the swing. He paced to the far end of the patio, relieved that his legs pulled it off with some swagger. "Leave the feelings-reading to us Empaths, okay? Cause you're wrong. Like, super, super wrong."

"No, I'm not."

Keefe was dying to ask him how he could be so sure – and if that meant Fitz had figured it out too. But that would mean admitting it, and the only way he was going to get through this conversation was to deny, deny, deny.

Alden sighed. "Sorry, I know this conversation is difficult – and I'm not trying to meddle –"

"Um, I'm pretty sure this is the definition of meddling," Ro argued.

"No, it's the definition of caring." Alden stood and made his way closer, wrapping an arm around Keefe's shoulders. "You may not be my genetic son," he said quietly, "but I've long considered you part of my family."

Keefe had to remind himself to breathe.

Part of him wanted to pull away and run. The other part wanted to lean back and see what it felt like to not have to stand on his own. But he was pretty sure that either way, he'd end up getting hurt.

So he just stood there, stiff and silent, watching the frothy water smooth the dark sand into a shiny, black canvas.

It wasn't fair that the beach got so many do-overs.

"I've never told anyone this," Alden murmured, "but long ago before I met Della, there was... another. Someone I was convinced was my perfect match – and the matchmakers agreed. But, as it turned out, she... preferred a close friend of mine." He let the words hang there for a beat before he added, "So I'm no stranger to your situation, Keefe."

"There's no situation," Keefe insisted.

"Maybe there isn't. But I'm going to pass on some wisdom to you anyway. I'm a father. It's what I do. And don't worry, I'm not about to give you a long speech on how someday you'll find your true match like I did – though you will." He pulled Keefe slightly closer, giving his shoulder a gentle squeeze. "The wisdom I want to give you is simply this: If you really care about them, let them be happy."

Let them be happy.

Those words made Keefe want to vomit even more than the idea of Fitzphie smoochfests.

"I know," Alden said gently. "Believe me, I understand exactly how heartbreaking that is to hear. But take it from someone who ended up losing two valuable friendships. There's only one way this ends –"

"Uh, no there isn't!" Ro snapped. "We're talking about teenagers! Stop acting like any of this is a done deal." She waited for Keefe to meet her eyes before she added, "It isn't."

Alden sighed. "I suppose only time will tell. But that doesn't change where we are today. Today, Sophie and Fitz are both going to need your help. So the question is, are you willing to be their friend?"

Keefe opened his mouth to answer, but Alden shook his head, drawing Keefe into a hug before he stepped away.

"That's all I came here to say," he said, pulling his pathfinder out of his cape's inner pocket. "I hope I'll see you at Tribunal Hall in a few hours. But I'll leave that up to you. Think about what I've said, okay?"

Keefe managed a shaky not as Alden held the crystal up to the sunlight and glittered away.

Looking back on that day, after attending the tribunal and Fitz trying to date Sophie and everything going wrong, he was surprised that Alden had asked him to do that.

Maybe it was that he was older now and could look back on the moment differently, but Ro had been right, Alden had been meddling. But more importantly, Alden had seen a teenage kid and used his self-destructive nature against himself, knowing that Keefe would always sabotage any chance he had with Sophie. Alden used him, called him family, and knowingly asked him to be a human shield for the woman he was in love with to protect her from his best friend all while asking him to step back from their relationship because it was impossible for her to love him.

He had never told Sophie about that, he never told anyone about that. It made him ashamed that he had ever believed Alden to be a father figure.

So in a way, he was glad that Grady never manipulated him like that. Grady didn't hide that he didn't like Keefe, there was no false narrative that he would ever accept Keefe.

Grady trained him, helped him with control, and they never breached any conversation beyond that. It's not like Keefe thought Grady was a bad person for not liking him. He often thought of Grady as being an all-around good guy.

Grady had refused to be on the council, he often stood up for his family, he took Sophie in, and when he caught Keefe running away, he offered support instead of getting angry.

In fact, looking back on his interactions with Grady, most of the time Grady was mad at Keefe he didn't take it out on him. Sure he grumbled, but he never screamed like Keefe's father or messed with his emotions like Alden. He never gave up on him like his mother or scorned him like the council.

Grady was an honest guy.

So when they finished up practice one day, Keefe lingered as they were packing up and decided it was time to clear the air.

"Can I ask you something?" Keefe said, fidgeting with one of his sleeves.

Grady gave Keefe a strange glance and nodded, continuing to pack up his satchel.

Keefe took a deep breath, "Why don't you like me?"

It had come out quieter than he wanted, but being vulnerable with Sophie's dad was risky. If he said the wrong thing, it would only make things harder for Sophie.

Grady stopped what he was doing. He looked Keefe in the eyes and slowly stood. It was hard to read his expression, at first Grady seemed to be conflicted like he was torn between telling the truth or waving him off.

But he must have seen the plea in Keefe's eyes.

He sighed a heavy sigh, briefly squeezing his eyes shut. When they reopened, a determined and hard look returned to Keefe.

"Let's sit shall we," he motioned to a fallen tree nearby and they sat side by side.

Grady looked at Keefe, his hard steely eyes analyzing him.

"You like my daughter, don't you," he said, a statement more than a question.

Keefe quickly inhaled, knowing Sophie was likely to come up.

"Yes, sir," Keefe agreed, unable to lie, "who doesn't?"

Grady sighed, "No Keefe, you know what I mean. You look at her like you love her."

Keefe, unable to help himself, joked, "My statement still stands."

Grady didn't laugh, still studying him. "We both know that you're different though."

Keefe, uncomfortable, protested, "Well, not that different. Look at Fitz and Dex-"

Grady shook his head, "Still different. Those were crushes or... infatuations. What you and Sophie have isn't that."

He stared at the man before him and as much as he tried to compose himself, he was sure his eyes were as big as saucers. It scared him how open Grady was about this, even if Keefe had asked.

"Is that such a bad thing?" Keefe asked, unable to look at Grady. Focusing on the trees in front of them.

"I don't like boys flirting with my daughter," he stated, but Keefe could tell that wasn't fully what he meant.

Keefe glanced at Grady, "But then you would be mad at the other boys too, you never are. It's always me."

"No it isn't," he deflected.

"Yes," Keefe pressed, "it is. You always greet the other boys kindly and say their names. I always get'that boy'".

Grady's face went a little red and Keefe knew he had been right to press. Grady had always tried to hide his dislike for Keefe whenever there was a group around but Keefe could always tell. It was what all parents did around him, looked at him with caution and whispered.

"Is it-," Keefe stuttered, looking once again in the distance, "Is it because I'm so messed up? Because I don't exactly come from a model family?"

Grady's eyes widened and he shifted so his body faced Keefe's head-on.

"Look at me, Keefe," he insisted. And Keefe looked at those steely eyes and saw Grady's surprise. "You are not 'messed up', you hear me? I know that I haven't always been kind to you, and I'm sorry for that. I'm the adult here and I should have acted like one."

He sighed, continuing, "When Sophie first arrived, it was all such a whirlwind of surprises and I hadn't been a father to a teenage girl in so long that I had forgotten what it had been like. Suddenly there were all these people who were trying to be her friend, pretending to be her friend, bullying her, and putting her in danger. It had been hard to decipher who was who. I'll admit, the first time I saw you hanging out with her and cozying up to her-"

Now it was Keefe's turn to turn red.

"-all I knew about you was that you were the son of Lord Cassius, who is not my favorite person. I took that out on you and I'm sorry."

Keefe sighed, "Most people assume I'm like him. Sometimes I wonder if they're right."

"Their not," Grady said firmly. "As I've gotten to know you over the years I've met a boy who's empathetic, kind, courageous, and most importantly: a good friend."

He nodded, "But not good enough to date your daughter."

Grady shifted, "It's not that you're not good enough, last time a boy loved my daughter, he killed her."

Keefe jolted, looking at the grief in Grady's eyes.

"I know that's not fair to place on you," he whispered. "But Sophie is so often in dangerous situations and she always makes sure to put her friends before her own health. If she fell in love with you, there's no telling how much danger she would be in to save you. How much pain it would put her through if you got hurt. I just want what every father wants for his child, to keep them safe."

It started to make more sense to Keefe now. How helpless Grady must have felt at Jolie's death and how that would translate to their situation. He was selfishly relieved that Grady's problem hadn't really been about Keefe.

"I would do the same for her," Keefe said, trying to get Grady to believe him.

Grady gave him a pained smile, "I know. None of the other boys were close to being anything serious with her so it never bothered me when they pursued her, but you?"

He looked at Keefe, "You're each other's worlds. You've realized that a lot faster than she has and a part of me had hoped that she wouldn't come to understand that until after the Neverseen were dealt with."

Keefe's heart was beating so quickly with nerves that he hoped Grady couldn't hear it.Was it true? Could Sophie really see him that way too?

"When this is all said and done, Keefe," Grady placed a hand on his shoulder, "I would be honored to have you as Sophie's partner, her choice determining of course. You are a good person."

Keefe's throat caught and he found himself unable to say anything, emotion filling his eyes.

"Now," Grady cleared his throat, "Let's get you home."

Keefe nodded and they hopped off the log and walked out of the woods towards Sophie's house. When they arrived, Keefe took out his Pathfinder and looked at Grady.

"Thank you," he said, trying to convey how he felt in those two words.

Grady gave him an endearing smile, "Of course."