#it's nice to have a friend

[poetatorturadaa]

Have my back, everyday, fels like home.

jason todd x fem!reader, light angst?, hopeful ending. soeees, I had this saved in notes for a long time, it doesn't have an exact beginning and nor an end, but I wanted to share it. English is not my first language, so let me know If I missed something, I hope you like it. <3

Jason looks at her and his eyes soften with something else, something like tenderness as he watches her take the strawberry from the bowl and chew on it. It's strange for him to think that she was ever interested in romance. It's not that he thinks romance doesn't suit her—he's seen her living with his siblings, she's a sweet, warm presence who can bring out the best in anyone. Hell, even Damian's. But she always plays the role of friend, of platonic confidant. No one seems to be able to see past her pretty face and realize how alone she feels.

Jason is not a poet, nor does his training as a vigilante offer many insights into romance. But he can see that there is something in her that craves attention, to feel loved. It's not Jason's place to fill that void, or at least, he's not supposed to. He then looks away and continues cleaning his motorcycle.

A weight floats in the air. Y/n doesn't recognize it, but the silence becomes too pronounced. It's almost as if even the cartoon on her phone knows there shouldn't be such an absence of words.

Jason's gaze moves back to Y/n's face, who remains focused on the screen. It's like it's easier to pretend that a cartoon is more interesting than whatever else is happening in the room. There's a strange electric hum in the air and her skin tingles when his gaze meets hers. There are so many different possible futures, each of them tugging at her heart in a thousand different ways.

He couldn't say anything, let the energy dissipate and pretend it never happened. He might give in and confess a secret that could turn everything upside down. He could engage in a monologue about the state of his soul.

Instead, he speaks plainly, as if none of these things were possible or even worth mentioning. "Do you want another strawberry?"

Y/n looks at Jason and feels a strange kind of kinship with the silence that hangs between them, even if he's doing her job, making the sound of metal scraping against stone. Still, she can't let herself get comfortable with the silence between her and Jason, and her thumb flicks across her phone to change the cartoon episode she'd just finished. "Yes, of course," she begins, looking at Jason, "So...what were you saying about Dick?"

"Dick seems to think you're keeping me balanced," he says quietly, taking a couple of seconds to extend the now half-full bowl of strawberries toward Y/n. There's a subtle change in her tone, a slight drop in sharpness. It's subtle, but is there anyway. "He thinks you... tame me or something." He lets out a soft, almost imperceptible laugh, though that's completely accurate to her relationship with Dick.

In Jason's eyes, Y/n could only be described as the sunsets that seem to be longer in summer, a cup of coffee with the perfect amount of sugar on a winter night, and the sweet, pungent aroma before the rain. She is able to bring a strange feeling of calm to anyone who crosses her path. And as a close friend of the Bat-family, she is one of the few entities capable of talking reason to them. Y/n has the unique gift of being able to keep all of their tempers in check.

She lets out a small giggle at Jason's words, amused by the way Dick perceives her, oblivious to the fact that Jason actually thinks of her the same way too. "He must know something to think that." She scoffs, her voice as reserved as ever as she turns off her phone and puts it in her back pocket, turning around and placing her chin on the back of the couch to now look at Jason as her hand goes to grab another strawberry from the bowl he's holding. He extended it to her.

"He has this idea that you... calm me down" Jason continues, looking at her now. His expression has softened. "He has told me more than once that as long as you are in the game, I will be fine. That you will keep me in line and make me less destructive."

He pauses, turning his gaze to the metal of the motorcycle, which is now in perfect condition to be used again. "It's actually a little insulting," he says, his voice thick with sarcasm. Y/n brings out the best in everyone, but it seems like no one believes she might be the one who needs to let her guard down.

Y/n discovers that she admires Jason more than she should. Maybe just a second longer, but Y/n is detail oriented. And that extra second was incredibly countable. The vigilante, and his gray-green eyes, tired and constantly expressive, in which she felt that if he looked for a second too long she would get lost again. Distracting hands. His expression was so different and complicated to put into words.

"I think we all need someone to take care of us." She responded softly, expressing between the lines her inner desire to have someone to take care of her too.

Jason's expression changes again. It is something so subtle that it cannot be pinpointed. But the weight is still there. And it's almost as if an entire novel has been written since his last words.

He looks up again and again his expression is hard to read. "I doubt anyone has ever taken care of you." His tone is soft, almost calm. It may seem like a shot to the heart, and maybe it is. But he says it sincerely, he knows that even though he and the rest of his siblings, even Bruce, or many other superheroes, are always there, she doesn't have a person to take care of her like she wants to be taken care of. And she deserves more than that.

[roselandsrl]

How its started

How its going

[phefics]

𝐢𝐭'𝐬 𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐚 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝

𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩: pre-fred weasley x reader 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: 1.1k 𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: you and george smoke on the astronomy tower, and discuss your apparently obvious crush on his twin brother. (series masterpost)

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐎𝐍𝐄.

It was a cool evening in June, only a few weeks left in the school year when you snuck out of your dormitory, accompanied by George Weasley, and snuck up to the Astronomy Tower.

As you sat on the balcony, looking out at the night sky, you felt so incredibly lucky that you had stumbled into the same train car as the Weasley twins on the Hogwarts Express. Ever since that day, you had been inseparable. While Fred had been Sorted into Slytherin, you and George had both been Sorted into Ravenclaw, giving the two of you more opportunities to spend time together. You loved the twins equally, just in different ways.

George was your best friend, your confidant. You had all your classes together, played Quidditch together, lived right down the hall from one another during school. And Fred…Well, it was complicated.

He was also a dear friend, a fellow Quidditch player, someone you trusted and enjoyed spending time with immensely. But he was also impossible to be around lately, with his teasing smirks and his broad shoulders and his effortless humor.

As you had grown up together, Fred had become more than a friend, in your eyes. And it was terrifying, ridiculous, and utterly inconvenient. You had spent so long being completely content with your friendship, and then, almost out of nowhere, you found yourself wondering what it would be like to kiss him.

Well, perhaps it wasn’t out of nowhere. Ever since you were young, Fred had always been right there. Making you laugh, hexing the boy who used to bully you in your third year, looking incredibly handsome in just about every outfit he wore, including his mother’s knitted Christmas sweaters.

As you sat with George, your mind swirled with those thoughts of Fred and how it would probably ruin your friendship with both twins if you ever pursued it, a joint burning between your fingers.

“You’re in love with him, aren’t you?” George asked, seemingly out of nowhere, his eyes not leaving the stars as he spoke, as if it were a casual question to pose.

You choked on the smoke in your lungs, hurriedly passing him the still-lit joint to avoid dropping it on the stone floor. It took a moment to regain your ability to breathe, the question having taken you off guard enough to send you spluttering. “What? Who are you even talking about?” you retorted, tone defensive.

“You know who,” George replied, finally turning to you, a knowing look on his face. “I mean, you aren’t very subtle about it, darling.”

Your cheeks flushed, and you avoided his gaze. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“It’s okay, y’know. I’m not jealous or anything. Remember when we ‘dated’ back in Second Year? No offense, but I didn’t exactly feel sparks the one and only time we kissed.”

Laughing, you felt yourself relax despite his little interrogation. “Really? You aren’t upset?”

“Not even a little. I think you guys would be a cute little couple,” he teased. “And you’ll still be my best friend, even if you’re shagging my brother.”

Your blush deepend, and you smacked his shoulder playfully for his crude words. You felt happiness for a moment before the feeling faded into anxiety. “I just…I don’t think he feels the same.”

George scoffed. “Look, Fred is a bit thick when it comes to girls. He doesn’t like talking about his feelings, even to me. But when he talks about you, I can see the way he lights up. He gets this stupid smile on his face…It’s actually quite gross, you know.”

He laughed, which made you laugh, too. Your head fell onto his shoulder, feeling solace in your best friend’s touch. The whole Weasley family was very affectionate, while you had grown up in a stiffer household, your grandmother was too busy comparing you and Neville to your parents to verbally praise you, let alone spare a hug when it was needed.

“Are you just saying that to make me feel better? Because false hope isn’t gonna be helpful in the long run,” you said.

George met your eye, an uncharacteristically serious look on his face. “Pinky promise, I’m not,” he said, holding out his hand.

You interlocked your pinky finger with his, relieved and hopeful that maybe, just maybe, this little crush could go somewhere.

“Just…Give him time to realize it. I can try to knock some sense into him, if you want.”

You snort. “I can’t believe you’re his voice of reason. No wonder you two get into so much trouble.”

George poked your ribs, a mock-offended gasp slipping from his mouth. “Rude! I got into Ravenclaw, I clearly must have some reasoning skills, otherwise we need to call up the Sorting Hat and tell it that it fucked up.”

You laugh, and finish the rest of the joint between you two before standing, ready to sneak back to the dorms. The Common Room door opened with the answer to a simple riddle, and the usually bustling space was empty and silent, a perk of the late night adventure.

“So, what am I supposed to do now?” you asked.

“Instead of not-so-secretly pining for him, why don’t you actually flirt?” George replied.

The idea of flirting with Fred felt unnatural, but you realized that the way you two acted already could be easily translated into flirtatious behavior; the teasing, the physical affection. It wouldn’t be weird for you to let your touch linger, or crack a joke about finding him attractive. Small steps wouldn’t immediately alert him to a change in your behavior, but might help him realize there was a spark forming. As usual, George had brilliant plans.

Before heading to your dorm, you turned back to give him a hug. “Thank you,” you whispered.

“Any time,” he replied, pressing a quick to your forehead before tiptoeing back to his own room.

In your bed, you thought over the conversation, feeling a whirlwind of emotions: First, embarrassment that you had been read so easily; but more importantly, hope and excitement at the idea that Fred could like you, want you the same way. What had once felt like an impossible fantasy now seemed much closer.

The school year was coming to a close, and you had already planned to spend part of your summer break at the Weasley’s home, which would give you more of an opportunity to spend time with Fred, and to explore what could become of your relationship.

It took some time for you to fall asleep, too giddy to relax, but you eventually settled and dreamt of freckled shoulders, hands in your hair, and hushed laughter.

[the-lesbianest-batman]

byler people, show this some love!

ac: me, scp: megawrld, song: it's nice to have a friend by taylor swift

[taylorswifttournament]

[cinnamon-notes]

—something gave you the nerve to touch my hand

[bylrndgm]

It's Nice To Have a Friend as a diary entry. Something gave you the nerve to touch my hand.

[365-days-of-taylor-swift]

November Day 7

Check out the masterpost to vote on more poll

You can find the other half of this poll here

[bidamonalbarn]

IM SICK OF YOUS 😭😭😭😭

[asteracaea]

if you had to pare lover down to just 13 tracks, which songs would you keep?

*you may replace one of the original tracks with all of the girls you loved before if you like!

[stylestiel]

It's Nice To Have a Friend by Taylor Swift

Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0imS8C3oKXY5cqxCQQ7Pzr?si=qfmKfl2KRXiplc9C8lfkLA&pi=u-n5LkXNKPRJ29

[roselandsrl]

"But wasn't obvious" obvious- Baby queen

[phefics]

𝐢𝐭'𝐬 𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐚 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝 (𝐦𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭)

𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: y/n longbottom and the weasley twins have been best friends since their first year at hogwarts. it's obvious to everyone but her and fred that they're in love with each other. as the summer before their last year at hogwarts comes to an end, y/n and fred finally come to their senses. 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐧 𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞: ravenclaw!george weasley, slytherin!fred weasley, aged up characters/"hogwarts uni" au (characters are 18+ while attending hogwarts) 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐬: fem!reader, longbottom!reader, ravenclaw!reader, seeker!reader, friends to lovers, first kisses, loss of virginity, fluff, angst, smut, marijuana and alcohol usage, best friend!george weasley, bisexual!george weasley, more to be added 𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐬: spotify playlist | pinterest board

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐧𝐞. george asks y/n about her crush on fred, and offers her advice on how to get through to his brother.

more chapters coming soon!!

[mikelogan]

pick based on whatever criteria you want, whether it's the color, the song, or the lyric itself!

all albums

[alastairstom]

speaking my truth: i really like it's nice to have a friend. it's such a unique, steady, and calming song, and while it might not initially stand out on lover, it's a deeply intimate track with excellent poetic lyrics. it makes me sad that so many people call it a skip.

i also think that steady song that creeps up on you over time is... the point? it's like realizing that someone who you've long thought of as a best friend is something else entirely <3

[yourmomxx]

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐈𝐕: 𝐈𝐓’𝐬 𝐍𝐈𝐂𝐄 𝐓𝐎 𝐇𝐀𝐕𝐄 𝐀 𝐅𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐍𝐃

warnings: bit of language

word count: 5.3k

Katie Otto walked up the stairs leading to the Nolan Residence with confidence, groove, and a plan. Much more she didn’t really have to offer.

She had to admit, as she looked around, against her better judgement and maybe morals, that the house was really nice. The stone path that led up after the fence gates to the entrance door had more flowers blooming and planted than her family did in their entire garden.

She wondered, quietly, how much they paid their gardener for all of this paradise.

The hollow sound of the door knocker reverberated through the walls. Katie looked down at herself and straightened out her button-up shirt. She realized she did that more often now since they came to this town.

The white gate swung open, and she was presented with the sight of an – in her objective opinion – incredibly handsome man. His dark blond hair was tousled on his head, and he had freckles like small, peppered sprinkles on his nose. A brown Henley was hugging his arms and shoulders in just all the right places, and Katie forbid herself from smirking. If only all of the other rich people’s housekeepers were this hot.

He smiled at her. Of course, he also had a beautiful smile. “Hello. How can I help you?” Or this nice.

Katie smiled back. “Hello, my name is Katie Otto,” she introduced herself. “I was looking for Mr Nolan? Is he home, by any chance?”

The man chuckled. “Well, that depends on which one of them you want to see. But one you’re already talking to.”

Katie raised her eyebrows. “Say what now?”

Mr illegally-Hot smirked and held out a hand for her to shake. “Dylan Nolan, it’s very nice to meet you.”

Baffled, Katie grabbed his hand and shook it in a firm grip. “You look surprised,” Dylan remarked, still with that perfect smile.

“Well, I-“ Katie stuttered, “Excuse me, but I am used to Housekeepers opening the door for me whenever I visit someone in this town, so.”

Dylan dipped his head. “Yeah, that’s probably right. We were told that we sort of –“ He gestured around, “Don’t do all of this right. You know, being rich.”

“But where are my manners, please, come in. Could I interest you in some coffee?”

Dylan Nolan closed the door behind her, and Katie’s jaw almost fell to the floor when she took in the interior that was the Nolan Mansion. After the cream-white outside and the garden, and the high black metal fence surrounding the entire property, she figured she knew what she was in for.

But this? Overpowered her wildest imaginations.

In the middle of the entrance lobby – these people had a lobby in their house, for Christ’s sake! – was a tall plant pot, and even the stone it was carved out of looked expensive. Pendant lights graced the ceiling and threw perfect illumination all around. On the right and left side, two open stairways led upwards, met in a bridge, and connected to one open threshold on each side, which probably led to the upper floor.

Dylan walked past her and under the bridge, Katie followed him. Hidden by the prominent staircases, the lobby stretched further, bringing them to the kitchen on one, and the living room on the other side.

Katie could see that a hallway stretched even further than this and made out another set of stairs in the dim light. Remembering the two hallways that also led in different directions right when one entered the house, she knew that she was only witnessing a fraction of the wealth that the Nolan family bathed in. That little, nagging monster of jealousy settled itself in her chest again.

Dylan snapped her out of her thoughts. “Here you go,” he said, placing a glass of water in her hands. Great, she thought, even their dishes felt expensive. Nevertheless, she smiled thankfully at him and took a sip. The water tasted the same as hers at home. She didn’t know why she was expecting any different.

“So,” Dylan started, and poured himself a glass. “You said you wanted to talk to Mr Nolan? Any specifics on what about?”

Katie cleared her throat and put her glass down on the kitchen counter. Grey marble. Bold, but impressive.

“It’s about your son, Cooper,” she started, “I-“

“Oh, no no, wait, you have the wrong guy,” Dylan interrupted her with an unsure chuckle, “Cooper is not my son. I’m just his godfather.”

“But the school gave me your contact information when I asked for his parents?”

“I- they did what now?”

Katie tilted her head. Now she wasn’t really following. “Is there something wrong?”

Dylan sighed. “Look, when Cooper was born, it was already pretty clear that his father would have to work just a little bit more if they wanted to keep their wealth as it was. When his mother, Lauren, also decided she would be going back to work, Cooper was primarily thrusted into the arms of nannies, chefs, and chauffeurs – everyone that did or did not know how to take care of a child.”

He poured himself another glass. “But, as his Godfather, and best friend of his actual dad, I felt the sort of responsibility to take care of him. So now, Cooper has his own bedroom here, and he comes over whenever he feels like it. The school must have written me and my husband down because we are more easily accessible than the Bradfords, and we are almost as close to him as them.”

Katie nodded in understanding. Then, “You have a husband?”

Dylan raised his eyebrows just as he was about to take a sip out of his glass. “Yes.” A pause. “Is that going to be a problem?”

Katie quickly shook her head. “No, oh God, no, that’s not what I … I have a husband, too!”

Dylan grinned. A beaming grin that was. “Congratulations, Mrs Otto.”

Katie nodded. As far as first impressions in Westport went, this was by far not her worst.

“So, you wanted to talk about Cooper?” Something shifted in Dylan’s face. “He isn’t in any trouble, is he?”

“Oh, no, no, Cooper is …” A plague that has infested my house and just won’t leave, “… a lovely kid. This is just about my son’s birthday party. You know, Oliver Otto?”

Dylan’s gaze drifted off for a brief second, while he searched his memory for any trace of the name she had mentioned.

“Oh yeah, right, Oliver. Cooper’s been talking about him.” Katie tilted her head. “Has he? Really?”

“Yeah. You know, basic school stuff, nothing out of the ordinary. He seems to like your son very much. But, you mentioned a birthday party?”

“Right. Well, Oliver told me how all his friends went totally out for their thirteenth birthday, and I wanted to give him the same experience.”

Dylan scoffed while sipping from his glass. “Tell me about it. When Cooper celebrated his thirteenth birthday, he had his parents book an entire aqua park. My daughter wants Taylor Swift to show up and give a private Reputation Tour concert.”

“Taylor Swift?” Katie exclaimed. “That woman is an icon. Surely your daughter understands that there is no way you can get her to show up.”

Dylan dipped his head. “Oh no, we could totally have her here,” he said, and then he smirked. “But there is just nothing more entertaining than seeing a rich kid not getting what they want.”

Katie nodded her head. “Amen to that.” And Dylan laughed.

“But I’m sorry,” he said, “We are totally drifting off again. You want to throw a birthday party for your son?” Katie swallowed her water and nodded.

“Yes. And since it’s a surprise, and Cooper and Oliver seem to be –“ A pair forged in hell, “-really good friends, I figured I would ask you if you could ask Cooper to come.”

Dylan nodded. “That’s actually a great idea. I honestly really like that him and Oliver are getting along so well.”

Katie smiled. “Me too.” But God, did she hope it did not stay that way.

“It’s going to be a big party,” she explained further. “Oliver wants to show all of his friends how proud he is of his home.”

Dylan let out an impressed noise. “You don’t see that often today.”

An idea sparked in Katie’s head. “Would you maybe like to bring your daughter too?” She made a sweeping gesture with her hands. ”I mean, the more, the merrier, right?“

Dylan nodded. “That’s actually not a bad idea.” He weighed his head, contemplating. “If it’s anywhere in the next week, I’ll probably have my husband drop them off, I need to get some documents sorted. But Cooper and Kendra should be free in that time.” He added.

Kendra was probably his daughter, Katie pieced. “Well, isn’t that nice! Could I just – have your number, maybe? For all the details.” Dylan took her phone and typed something into the keyboard. “Sure thing.”

Katie left, filled with satisfaction, a new number in her phone, and the spark of hope that maybe there was a somewhat grounded, rich person in Westport.

**

Later that day, Cameron Nolan came home after a shorter day of work, holding the door open for his daughter that he’d picked up from school on his way back. For the past hour, Dylan had tried to rock little Jake back to sleep, but to no avail. Not even singing or reading his favorite books had done anything to change that. So now, he was sitting at the kitchen table, an animal fork in hand, feeding their youngest son some cut-up fruits.

“Hi,” Cameron breathed out, and pressed a whispering kiss into his husband’s hair.

“Hey,” Dylan said back. “How was work?”

Cameron visibly suppressed a sigh and shook his head. “Let’s not. Americans are idiots and more I will not elaborate.”

Dylan let out a laugh.

“I’ll be upstairs!” Kendra called. Dylan stopped her. “Nope, you won’t. Come here for a second.” Kendra shot her father a distrusting look, but rounded back anyways. When she gazed at Cameron in question, he just shrugged.

“Oliver Otto’s mom came by today,” Dylan started to explain. He skewered an apple slice and lifted it to Jake’s mouth. “She invited you to his surprise birthday party. Cooper is going, too.”

Kendra nodded. “Alright. I’m not.”

Dylan’s eyebrows shot up.

“Why not?” Cameron asked, head tilted. Kendra shrugged.

“Because,” she said, “I’ve driven past Oliver Otto’s house before. They’re poor. And I mean, like, really poor. They live in a crappy, small house, with crappy, small rooms, and have crappy, little money. And I’m pretty sure it’s gonna be lame.”

“Excuse me?”

“I said-“

“I heard what you said,” Dylan cut her off, “I just really don’t understand where it’s coming from. Why exactly would it bother you where, or how the Ottos live? I remember having raised you with very different morals than that.”

Kendra rolled her eyes slightly, just that much as she thought her parents wouldn’t notice.

“Everybody cares about stuff like that, Dad,” she argued. “And I don’t even like Oliver. He can be Cooper’s boyfriend; doesn’t mean he has to be mine.”

“You are going to that party, young lady, just so we’re clear.” Cameron undermined his husband’s words. “Simply for what you said about the Otto’s lifestyle, I don’t care if you like Oliver. It’ll be good for you to get some perspective. ”

“But I don’t want to!”

“I don’t care! You were invited, you’re going.” Kendra glared at Dylan, then at Cameron, let out a frustrated noise, and stomped towards and up the stairs loudly.

Dylan sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “You get now why I’m against letting one of the world’s most famous singer perform at her birthday?” He asked Cameron.

When they had first made the decision to adopt Kendra, they had been aware that raising her – another human being – would not be easy. They’d moved to Westport long before they’d taken Kendra in, and she had never known anything different than the lifestyle of the rich and the famous, or had any sort of idea what it felt like to count your last pennies.

Dylan and Cameron did.

They had known, from the first day on, that they would do their best to shape their child into a decent human being, someone who had it better than they did in their childhoods, but, other than the majority of people in this town, knew about the decent values of humanity.

Dylan didn’t want to make his daughter’s life harder than it had to be, but he wasn’t going to let her personality rot away like a dead fish in an abandoned alleyway, either. In front of Katie Otto, he may have made it seem like it was something he enjoyed, but it was unfortunately something necessary.

As her father, Dylan wanted to give Kendra everything that he could, and that she deserved and more, but as the person responsible for her and the way she turned out, he knew that couldn’t be possible.

“Come here.” Cameron carefully pulled Jake’s fork out of his husband’s hands. He crouched down in front of Dylan’s chair, and rubbed his upper arms. “Let me handle this. You go upstairs and get some rest. Alright?”

Dylan weakly gazed into his husband’s beautiful, beautiful, blue eyes, and sighed. “Thank you.” He kissed him long and deep. “And hi, by the way.”

Cameron grinned, eyes still half-closed from the kiss. “Hi.”

With a sigh, Dylan stood up, formally shook Jake’s hand – the little guy was very specific on greetings and goodbyes since he first learned about them – and made his way up the stairs. He could practically smell the freshly washed scent of their bedsheets already.

Behind him, he vaguely registered Jake babbling “Dada” and Cameron making whooshing plane noises.

Dylan couldn’t help but smile.

**

Katie Otto was on her way to ‘Mother of the Year’-Award, she was sure of it. That was, mostly, because she made sure of it, but honestly, getting caught up in details was for losers.

Her living room was already swarming with more than a dozen kids that she had invited to her son’s – not asked for and, because of that, very much surprise – party.

The doorbell rang with its unmistakable melody, and Katie interrupted herself in draping the presents to open hopefully another guest. Oliver and Greg weren’t supposed to be back until later.

Surely enough, when she opened the door, a tall man came into her view, wearing a beige trenchcoat over a dark suit, and smiling politely at her from the doorsteps. He’d brought two children with him, one of them who Katie recognized to be Cooper Bradford, so the girl next to him, had to be Kendra Nolan, which made the man behind them her second parent, and therefore Dylan Nolan’s husband.

Binge-watching Brooklyn 99 did pay off after all.

The young girl, which Katie assumed to be Kendra, had dark brown her that fell in soft waves over her shoulders, and a mix of green and blue eyes, which united both her father’s eye colors in them. She was tall, almost as tall as Cooper next to her, but from experience Katie knew that it took a while longer for boys to hit puberty than it did girls.

Cameron Nolan was a broad-shouldered man with black hair and piercing blue eyes, that reminded her of guys how they were only described in the romance books she used to read as a teenager and had now inherited to Taylor.

“I apologize for my appearance, but I just got home from work and did not have any time to change.”

This man went to work. And he just apologized to her for showing up not-even-that overdressed for bringing his kids to a birthday party, could that family get any more perfect?

“Oh, it’s all right,” Katie said. “Oliver isn’t home yet, I left my husband in charge with distracting him.” She gestured inside the house for the kids to come in.

Cooper walked up to her and presented her his politest Westport-smile.

“It is so nice to meet you, Mrs Otto.” He shook her hand firmly before entering the house.

“Thank you for the invitation,” Kendra simpered, before she, too, shook Katie Otto’s hand in greeting.

Cameron let out a sigh of relief internally.

Katie watched both of them settle inside the living room before she directed her attention towards Cameron again. “The escape room will take an hour, but cake and presents are gonna be after that. So you can probably get them at around eight, nine at the latest.”

Cameron Nolan nodded. “Sounds great. I’m sure they’ll have a lot of fun."

Then, he smiled one of those blinding million-dollar smiles and waved goodbye to his children. Katie closed the door behind him. She threw a look at her watch. About ten minutes until Oliver and Greg returned.

Kendra regarded the simple interior with a skeptical look, all traces of false formality vanished.

“Looks … interesting,” was all that Cooper said. She rolled her eyes. Cooper spotted his friends, and Kendra followed to join them on the sofa. Other than Cooper, who was spilling words like a waterfall, cracking jokes and charming everyone in a two-meter-radius, she rather sat back and observed in silence. Sooner than she expected, the lights went out and they were all yelling “Surprise!” at a not so happy-looking Oliver Otto.

**

Alright, so, that whole escape room thing the Ottos had set up? Way more fun than she expected it to be. Also, if there should ever be any need for it, probably the perfect test facility for natural selection.

Maybe that’s why her parents didn’t want her watching the Maze Runner movies.

Already about three numbers were sticking to the massive codeboard, and people were actively looking for the remaining ones to open the door.

Kendra found herself standing next to Alice McCarthy, both girls highly concentrated looking at a field of colors, when Cooper pushed past them.

“Hey, Oliver!” They heard him yell. Kendra and Alice shared a look, and quietly decided to abandon their mystery to go see what was going on over there. eyHey, Olikverioödioxvjöois

Cooper was standing in front of Oliver, holding a framed photograph in his hand and talking to Oliver about it.

Alexander was positioned behind him, grinning at everything he said, like a mindless lapdog. God, that guy annoyed her to bits. Kendra couldn’t help but throw a curious look at the picture in Cooper’s hand anyway. It was a framed photograph of the Otto family, all a bit younger than they were now, grinning at the camera next to a town sign that read ‘Colonial Williamsburg’. From the corner, their same old minivan was peeking into the frame.

Interesting.

“So,” Cooper concludes. “You had a custom Bentley, but you still drove that minivan?” He scoffed and threw a look at Alexander, who straightened his shoulders and mimicked his facial expression. “Doesn’t add up, hombre.”

Kendra noticed a short stutter in Oliver’s calm, collected demeanor. “Well …”

That’s when Oliver’s Dad chimed in. Kendra remembered his name to be Greg.

“Oliver, tell them the truth.” Oliver frantically looked around. Greg sighed. “Fine. Then I’ll do it.”

He turned to Cooper and his friends, a hard mask of earnestness on his face. “I had the picture photoshopped,” He admitted. “We had some trouble with the FBI. Those vultures never let go so easily.”

Cooper’s eyes widened. Greg Otto turned to go, but before he left, added, “Oh, and my real name is not Greg Otto. It’s Walker. Captain Randall Jay Walker.”

He curtly bowed his head and left them standing.

Slowly, Cooper turned around to face Oliver again. His eyes darted between the picture in his hands and the boy before him. After processing the freshly gained information, his lips quirked in an impressed frown.

“Alright, Otto, my respect.” He handed the photo, without looking, to Alexander, who, obviously, accepted it like a golden trophy.

“Your family does seem kind of cool.”

Kendra watched a smile grow on Oliver’s face, one that he tried to downplay with a clearing of his throat. “Alright, then,” He said. “Let’s find some clues, right?”

Kendra only caught a glimpse of the boys walking away, Cooper casually throwing an arm around Oliver’s shoulders as they went.

She found the consequent drowned puppy-look on Alexander’s face way more amusing than she probably should.

**

When they, under loud cheers and multiple clapping, were finally able to leave the basement, Kendra allowed herself to pull Oliver aside for a second while the others rushed to the cake-table.

“What-“ Oliver spluttered, before he realized who he was looking at, and his confused frown turned into one of somewhat-annoyance.

“What do you want?” He spat. Kendra didn’t react to his question, but she didn’t take her hand off his upper arm either, as if there was a chance that he would dash and make a run for it any second if she let go.

“This party wasn’t even so bad,” She admitted, and now, Oliver looked caught off guard again. “You know, for the fact that you’re poor.”

Oliver sighed arrogantly, pushing out his chest. “I don’t know if you got the memo, but-“

“Oh, I did,” Kendra interrupted him. “Your Dad’s a money launderer and none of this is actually real? Please.” She scoffed. “Cooper, you can fool. As much as I love him, he’s not the sharpest tool in the shed. But not me. I see right through you.”

She squinted her eyes at him menacingly.

Oliver swallowed hard. “So what are you gonna do now?” He asked weakly. “Are you going to tell everyone?”

Kendra pretended to think for a second. “No, I don’t think so.” Oliver furrowed his eyebrows.

“I really want to see how you’re going to make an idiot of yourself when you inevitably have to tell them at some point.”

A grin spread across her face, blinding, but oh so fake, and Oliver almost felt himself shudder. Was that-? It couldn’t be.

“Evil smile,” He breathed out. Kendra tilted her head. “What did you say?”

“Nothing.” She gave him a weird look, but then turned, and stepped away to secure herself a piece of cake. Oliver looked after her, heart racing a bit faster than it usually did.

**

A short knock sounded against the door of her room. Kendra put down the book that she’d been reading. It was a Stephen King. The Body had given her a taste for it.

The door was pushed open and Cameron leaned against the threshold, wearing a more comfortable pale shirt, and sweatpants. He smiled softly at her and Kendra sat up on the bed.

“How was the party?” Cameron asked.

She regarded her fingernails. “It was alright.” Cameron raised his eyebrows.

“Actually, it was pretty cool,” she admitted. “They did that whole Escape Room set-up and we had only one hour to get out of it. And then, at the end, we thought we wouldn’t make it, but we did, just at the last second! And there were sirens, and lights, and it was awesome.”

Cameron’s smile grew wider as he listened to her rambling. “I’m glad you liked it,” He said. “And what do we learn from that?”

“That poor people can have cool stuff, too?”

He shook his head. “You know that’s not what I mean.” Kendra looked away from him. “Since when do you care about all of that?”

She shrugged. “Don’t know. Everyone cares about it, I guess.”

Cameron tilted his head. He furrowed his eyebrows. “But that doesn’t mean that you have to. That’s not what your father and I have raised you to be.”

Kendra let out a low groan. “Aren’t you supposed to be the nice parent?” She asked. “You know, cool, laid-back, loosening the reins a bit?”

He chuckled and pushed himself off the threshold. “Maybe,” He said. “But that still leaves me at being a parent, first and foremost.”

The mattress shifted and the sheets rustled as he sat down next to her on the edge of the bed. He let his gaze wander around her room, contemplating.

“Sweetheart, there is something I want you to understand,” He said eventually.

“Your Dad and I, we got extremely lucky in the things we did. And the jobs we got. Some people do not have that luck.”

He gestured around her room, to the frames and decorations, and to the candles that smelt so nice but of which most of them she’d never lit.

“Everything that you have, that is an immense privilege. And I know we told you that a thousand times, so it’s kind of lost its meaning. But our money, the material value of the things we own, does not define our characters in the slightest.”

He lowered his voice. “I mean, have you looked at most of the adults that live here?”

She snorted. “I’ve heard you talk about some of the cases you get,” She said. Cameron nodded. “See? The only thing defining how and who we are, is ourselves. Not the house we live in, or the trips we go on, or the clothes we wear. And we want you to understand that. That was part of the reason we made you go to that party today. I mean, you had fun there, didn’t you?”

She nodded hesitantly.

“Exactly. The way you talked about Oliver’s birthday party, I haven’t heard you talk about any of the others you’ve been to. And those were thrown by rich people.”

Kendra nodded. She looked up and looked Cameron in the eye.

“You’re right,” She mumbled. “I guess I understand what you guys have been trying to teach me.”

A gentle smile grazed her Dad’s lips as he pushed a strand of hair behind her shoulder.

“More I didn’t ask.”

Cameron got up and made his way to the door. Before closing it, he said, “Make sure you go to bed soon. I think Cooper wants to go to the Club tomorrow.” He winked at her. “Just so you can charge up.”

Kendra agreed. “Alright. Thanks, Dad.”

He threw her a small kiss, and walked out the door, closing it behind him.

For a few seconds, Kendra simply basked in the quiet that was left, now that she was alone. Then, she stood up from the edge of her mattress and walked over to her desk.

She pulled a small, pink bag closer to her. It was the swag bag from Oliver’s birthday party. For the first time that night, she reached into it. Her fingers closed around something thin, that felt like a stick, and she pulled it out.

Turning it in her hands, she recognized it to be a breakable glow stick. She’d seen those sometimes on kids, around their wrists or even as necklaces if they had enough, but she had never owned one of those.

She gripped it harder and turned both her hands to kink it in the middle.

When it lit up in a bright, glowing green, a smile spread across her face.

**

“And then, after the lights went out, Christine Gravy poured a champagne fountain that was higher than me!”

“Everyone has champagne fountains these days, Alex. Calm down.”

Kendra rested her hand on Kilian’s across the table. “Kilian, if we both don’t have partners by fourty, let’s get married.”

The brunet boy tilted his head and furrowed his brows at her, but a second later, he just shrugged and said, “Sure.”

Smiling, Kendra pulled her hand back.

“Guys, I have something to say,” Simultaneously, all their heads turned around to look at Cooper, who was standing at the end of the table, back from somewhere that Oliver had pulled him just before they’d started eating.

Cooper threw a look at Oliver next to him, who nodded a bit shakily.

“Oliver has told me that he and his family are not really rich, and that he just made up all this stuff to not look bad in front of us,” Cooper explained.

Kilian’s eyebrows shot up.

Kendra slid to the edge of her seat in anticipation of what was coming next.

Jonas paused mid-bite.

Thomas narrowed his eyes at Oliver.

Alexander leaned back and crossed his arms. The ghost of a smile made his lips twitch.

Cooper continued. “We’ve talked about it, and I’ve decided that he will still stay in our group. Because he’s our friend. No matter how much money he has.”

“Or doesn’t have,” Kilian added in a low voice. Kendra almost snorted.

Seemingly satisfied with his announcement, Cooper sat down at his usual spot on the bench, next to Alexander, fittingly, gesturing for Oliver to do the same.

For a moment, nobody at the table said a thing. Cooper didn’t seem to realize, because he was too focused peacefully cutting and chewing at his hotdogs.

Thomas was the one to finally make the first move and leaned closer into Oliver’s direction. “So, you really don’t have any money, Otto?”

Oliver shook his head.

“Not even a different house?” Jonas asked, joining in.

Another no.

Alexander looked terribly full of himself. Kendra noticed how he had seemingly sat up straighter since hearing the news, and his chin was way too high up in the air for her liking.

“That’s just a pity now, isn’t it?” He sneered, lips pulled back in a slimy grin.

And, Oh No.

Kendra groaned.

For God’s sake.

She had been so satisfied with Oliver Otto’s downfall. Or, at least, the idea of it. And now, Alexander Thornton had to come and ruin all of it by agreeing with her, even if he didn’t know it. She squeezed out of her seat, took a step over to where Oliver sat, and grabbed the boy by the arm, pulling him out of his chair.

She stood there for a second, awkwardly, holding Oliver Otto firmly on his arm, the boys on the table all watching her carefully and with confused looks.

“Shut up, Alexander,” she eventually spat, and dragged Oliver away, near to a shadowed wall, where not as many people would be listening in on the conversation they were about to have.

“Ow,” Oliver finally exclaimed his first sound to her, as she roughly maneuvered him to stand in front of her, then let go of his upper arm.

“So, you just told Cooper about you not being rich?” Kendra asked, completely ignoring how Oliver was rubbing his arm where she had seized him.

Oliver threw her a confused look.

“Yeah, I did.”

“And that just worked?” Kendra kept drilling. “He didn’t say anything about it?”

Oliver finally looked up and met her eyes, and the confused look on his face turned into a smug curl of his lips.

“You thought I would crash and burn, didn’t you?” He snickered. “You thought that they’d drop me after hearing I’m not rich.”

Kendra pursed her lips, and refused to look him in the eye.

“Screw you, Otto.”

Oliver was still grinning. “You wanted to get rid of me,” He stated. “But guess what.” His tone got lower now, as he leaned slightly forward, triumphant glint still in his eyes, “Cooper and I are friends now. And I’m gonna be around a whole lot more from now on.”

He walked backwards into the approximate direction of the table, crossed his arms in the air in front of his body, and threw them up in triumph.

“Screw you, Nolan!”

Kendra glared daggers into the side of his head the entire rest of lunch, while Cooper conversed and laughed with him, as if they’d known each other since preschool.

School bell rings, walk me home Sidewalk chalk covered in snow Lost my gloves, you give me one "Wanna hang out?" Yeah, sounds like fun

-It’s Nice to Have a Friend, Taylor Swift

tagged: @ficsnships