everyonelives | the ground could open, he could still say please

Maybe a little?

[He doesn't really want to dance or drink at the moment, and he has a feeling William wants to talk.]

Maybe we could go for coffee instead?

( William has the same feeling, that Cooper wants to talk, and if not wants, maybe could? A lot has happened in a short amount of time. William doesn't have to be asked to leave a party twice when he's made his appearance. Stepping through the front doors is an appearance. He glances over at his sister engaged in conversation with Faith and Mickey taking a shot. Yeah, he doesn't need to be here. )

Let's walk.

( They'll find something.

He'll message his sister once they settle somewhere. Maybe they'll all meet up again, maybe they won't, but he's fine with leaving them here to their own devices. )

[Coop will also text Mickey that they're going to look for coffee, and Mia will send back a thumbs up emoji maybe twenty minutes after they find a place to sit.

What, she's having fun!

Once that's done, Coop will fall into step next to William, sliding his hands into his pockets. The fall chill is starting to settle in the air. It's always been his favorite time of year.]

How fast does it get really cold here?

Like lightning. Like uncle Barry fast. One leaf drops and there goes the temperature.

( His hands slip into his own pockets, too, happy to keep a wanderer's pace. )

How are you doing - with my dad being the Green Arrow and my uncle being the Flash, Mia being a slayer...

Oh, that's fine. Your dad seems great, but your stepmother seems like an agent of chaos.

[He noticed her "I wish I had popcorn" face during lunch and while he respects it, he also is a little uncomfortable that this is the drama she wrought upon them.]

I'm sorry about my mom.

I think if we apologize enough for our parents, we fill up a Bingo card. I like her. She's intense but she loves you. Have your mom and dad really not talked?

( Since London. )

I mean, I'm sure they communicated. But had a conversation about something important that didn't end in yelling? No, not really.

[A beat.]

But then again, my dad and I weren't exactly on speaking terms either.

After London?

( Because of his brother or because he had to play it cool? )

Because you were undercover?

Because of a lot of things.

[It's not just being undercover, it was also everything in the wake of Lucas' death, his unwillingness to question the chain of command - nothing about it felt right.]

And I don't know if you've noticed but my dad isn't exactly the most verbose.

He does give a new and minimally worded definition to laconic. So, where does your mother fit in. She wasn't in London or Prague or New Orleans, right?

( He gets the idea that she didn't join Monroe's ranks. And he wonders if that caused any friction or just sent them all in their various directions. )

[He shakes his head.]

She saw that it was going to be a shit show from the start and none of us listened to her. I think she was just back here, doing her thing and waiting to hear from us again.

[It was hard, his parents being on opposite sides of things.]

Doing her thing like hunting?

( That he could actually understand though. )

You know, it sounds like she was letting you both make your own mistakes, even if she didn't agree with them.

( Yeah, he relates to this part. )

I think our dad tries harder than he lets on to not intervene when Mia and I, well, disappear for seven months or open up a new company or, you name it.

( It was probably hard for her. Unless something worse happened with his parents. But, William doesn't want to ask. )

Yeah, Mom's always been good at that. Letting us make our own mistakes, that is. Only thing is usually we come home at the end, and this time Lucas didn't.

[Which is why she might have overreacted just a smidge at the idea of Cooper experimenting with his life again.]

I don't really think any of us are okay right now.

Yeah, it's okay you aren't. Not that I know her but - she doesn't handle not being okay well, does she?

( He's not trying to rub it in, he's just trying to give everything a little context. More context, at least. )

[He shakes his head.]

No, not really. Especially if she's alone.

[Which, he and Michael left her alone for almost a year after telling her that her oldest son was dead. Michael because he needed the mission to keep from falling apart and Cooper because he had a mission of his own. Not their best move.]

Maybe after she and Dad work it out they'll travel together for a while. I think it'll be good for both of them.

[Because they will work it out. Grief can do funny things, but apparently it can't shake his belief in his parents' marriage.]

She wouldn't be there if she didn't want to.

( That's really half the battle. )

So, first time in Star City. What do you think?

I like it.

[He's always liked the Northern part of the country. The seasons change, the people are an average amount of asshole no matter what coast you're on. He doesn't know how to deal when people favor nice over anything else.]

I think staying here for a while would be really nice.

I like you being here.

( It feels too good to be true. All of it. Mia being here makes everything a little easier, but being with Cooper makes everything more colorful, brighter, even in the parental strife and the parental mischief. )

I want you to stay. I do. So, don't mistake this but - I don't live with my dad. I actually have my own apartment not far from here, but I know we've just started this thing with us. For real. And I don't want to put all this pressure on you or on us, so for now, I can stay with my dad and you can have the run of my apartment. There's a car service, a gym, a bar on the roof -- and the first floor -- it's a little too much -- but - it's yours for however long you want it. However long you want... me.

[At first, he's surprised by the offer, and it confuses him because that's not how he normally operates. But after he gives himself a minute to think it over, it makes sense. He's also never stuck around this indefinitely before. It makes sense that having space would be good for them.]

Are you sure? Because if you don't want to be stuck with your dad, I can find somewhere else. Technically I think Allison pays me now.

[It's a big "I think" but he thinks he could talk to her about it.]

We need to circle back to you 'think' --

( Because, something big and romantic is happening, but they will talk about this. Has he filled out a W4? I9? Not the time. )

I'm sure if you're sure. It's just going to waste, and as funny a picture it makes to have you be the one staying with my dad and sister, this makes more sense. You get your own space. You can figure it out. Whatever your next step looks like, if it includes me, because Allison does pay me, for the record... ( He can't stop his brain. ) I'm not saying don't call her after we're done this very romantic conversation, but maybe make sure she is. Or, make sure you do what you need to do for her to --- be.

I've never had a pay check before. I don't know how these things work.

[But the Argents are definitely much more of an employer type scenario than the outfits he's worked with in the past.]

But I think it's a good idea. It would be way weirder if I was living with your dad, and it'll give me time to figure out if I have any weird cohabitation habits.

[He makes a face.]

It's been a while since I've lived in one place for a super long time.

How do hunters get paid?

( Do they get paid?

Yes, he is one vote for Cooper not living with his dad and stepmom. Oliver Queen would be protective but hospitable. His dad would actually prefer that, which is why William suggests the alternative.

Weird cohabitation habits. That seems like a Pandora's Box he could open, if only because Cooper's the first guy to get him to even care about that. I he's honest. But, Cooper has made him honest over time. He warmed his heart somehow.

He didn't think it was possible being the son of Oliver Queen. )

How long's super long?

They don't. They do good old fashioned credit card fraud. Unless you're the Argents and you find a gig that lines up with your actual gig.

[Weapons trade, et cetera.

The second question takes longer to answer, because he has to think about it.]

Well, when I was in high school Mom and Dad would settle places where there's a lot of work so like big cities. But that would change year to year, so nine months give or take? But after I graduated, I started picking up jobs more regularly so since then, I've never spent more than a couple weeks somewhere, maybe a month.

Always with them?

( He likes hearing about Cooper's life. He's an analyst at heart, so, knowing all of the details gives him the best picture. )

Not always.

[He shrugs.]

I mean, hunting isn't the kind of gig you want to do alone. Not that there aren't hunters who are terrible at making friends, but that was never really me. Sometimes I'd get pulled off on cases with friends or Luke and I would go off alone, or Dad or Mom would tap me for something. We stuck together when Lucas and I were kids, but once we got older, they let us make our own choices.

[But there were always touchpoints in between. They always came back together in the end, to make sure that they were all safe and in one piece. Only Lucas didn't come back this time, and for the first time since he lost him, Cooper really allows himself to feel it. It's hard to ignore the empty chair at the table, now that Evelyn is back with them again.]

the ground could open, he could still say please

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)