Chapter Text
Of course, Harl, Tippy, Daisy, and Duke all faced prison time. After the trial, Harl and Tippy got four hours each for breaking into the museum. For the damage to the police station, Daisy got six hours, and Duke got twelve, which Mary Sinclair thought was ridiculous. She told Harl and Tippy as much when they were released. "He did a lot of good, helping to rescue Evelyn," she said on the drive to Sinclair Tower. "So what if he broke you two out of jail? Daisy was the one who blew up the station! I should have a talk with my people on the inside."
"Y'know," Harl said, "you having power over the police department isn't as reassuring as you think it is."
Tippy nodded, then spoke up. "Is someone picking up Daisy when she gets out?" he asked. "I assumed you wanted to speak to all of us…"
"Not for this, no. This is exclusively for you and Harl."
Tippy glanced at Harl, who looked just as confused as he was. Mary smiled at them from the passenger's seat before turning to face forward again.
The drive didn't take long; they soon arrived at Sinclair Tower. Mary still didn't explain why she wanted them there, staying silent with a small smile throughout the elevator ride. "I'm assuming this has something to do with recent events," Tippy said when they exited. "I'm not expecting any sort of reward, so –"
A child crashed into him. "Hi, Uncle Tippy!"
Tippy gasped. The little girl grinned up at him, hugging his waist. "Mommy said you rescued her," she said, "an' that you're my uncle, an' I should hug you right away!"
Evelyn walked out of the next room with a smile. "She's one of those kids who can't keep a secret," she said while TIppy gaped at her. "Don't tell her anything you don't want her to repeat to everyone she knows."
"I…" Tippy shook his head. "I thought you said…"
"I said a lot of things at that diner." Evelyn sat down on the couch. "I regret most of them. Mason will be joining us soon. He's a little shy, so I told him he could take his time."
Tippy nodded and knelt down to look the girl in the eyes. "You're… Alice, right?" he said, as if he could have forgotten.
She nodded and beamed at him. "Yeah! My brother's Mason. He's weird. You're my mom's brother, 'cause that's what 'uncle' means. Are you weird?"
He laughed. "Some would call me that, yes."
Mary chuckled and sat in a chair across from Evelyn. "How about you three sit over here?" she said. "Alice, you can tell your uncle how excited you are to start first grade."
Tippy blinked. "Three of us?"
Harl laughed. "Did you forget me?" he said. "It's okay! You probably have a lot on your mind."
"Oh! Right!" Tippy's face flushed. "I'm sorry, Harl, I…"
Alice giggled. "You are weird," she said. "C'mon, let's sit with Mommy."
She picked up his hand and tugged him over to the couch. Tippy sat next to Evelyn, Harl sat on his other side, and Alice threw herself backwards on the floor with a thud that made Mary gasp. "Alice! Don't hurt yourself!"
"I'm okay, Gramma." Alice sat up again. "I'm gonna get Mason."
She stood up and ran into the next room. Evelyn watched her go with a smile.
Tippy felt a lump in his throat. "Evelyn," he said.
"Oh!" Evelyn turned to him and Harl. "I forgot to ask… you two are together, right? I want to be sure before I introduce my kids to their Uncle Harl."
Harl sputtered incoherently. When Tippy looked at him, his face was almost as red as his flannel. Tippy himself felt his own cheeks burning. "We're, ah," he said, looking back to Evelyn, "not… officially together, no." His hands twitched in his lap. "Not that I have any problem with making it official, but we haven't… had that conversation."
Evelyn raised an eyebrow. "Really?"
"We've had conversations!" Harl added. "But, they weren't… uh…"
"What I'm hearing is that I can hold off on explaining gay relationships to Alice for today."
Tippy nodded, too embarrassed to speak.
Evelyn cracked a smile. "Well, let me know when the conversation happens. I'll support you no matter what, Tippy." She leaned over to look at Harl. "You too, Harl, if you end up part of our family."
Harl laughed and put an arm around Tippy's shoulders. "I'd like to be!" he said. "But I guess we have to talk about it first, right, Tippy?"
"Right," Tippy said. "Right. I…"
He looked at Evelyn, who laughed. "Later, okay?" she said. "After you've met Alice and Mason."
Alice came back with a slightly older boy in tow. "Mason's here!" she announced. "Mason, this is our Uncle Tippy!"
"Don't drag him, Alice." Evelyn leaned forward. "Mason, are you feeling better?"
"I'm fine, Mommy," Mason said. He kept his distance from Tippy and Harl and stood next to Mary's chair. Tippy tried to give him a reassuring smile.
"Hi, Mason," he said. "Your birthday's soon, isn't it?"
Mason regarded him suspiciously. "How'd you know?" he asked.
"I told him," Evelyn said. "He's invited to your party, by the way."
"I am?" Tippy said in surprise.
"If you can pull yourself away from the city long enough, yes. It's at our home, a week from Saturday. You don't have to come, but…"
Tippy took a deep breath. "Evelyn, I'm sorry, but we need to talk before I make any promises. Could we step outside?"
Evelyn glanced at Mary, who nodded. "I'll watch the kids," she said. "Discuss what you need to."
The two of them went to the next room over. Tippy's heart was pounding. He took a deep breath and put a hand over his chest. "Evelyn," he said, "what's going on?"
"I thought that was obvious," she said. "I'm inviting you to be a part of our family again."
"The last time we spoke, it didn't sound like that would be a possibility."
Evelyn looked away. "Yeah," she said. "Then you almost died, and I realized what was more important."
"Evelyn…"
"Listen," she said, "I've always been someone who runs away from my problems. Mom died, and I holed myself up in my room. You got sucked into a cult, and I went to college and cut off all contact. That's not what I should've done. I should've been there for you. And then when I talked to you at the diner… I was trying to justify it. Make myself believe that running away was the right thing to do. It wasn't. I'm sorry."
Tippy struggled for words. "It's fine, Evelyn. I'm sorry, too."
Evelyn looked back at him with a small smile. "I notice you aren't arguing with me about calling it a cult."
"I don't know what it was," Tippy said. "I… I'm willing to believe that's what it could have been."
"I think your issue is you're a problem-solver, even when the problem is unsolvable. Is that fair?"
Tippy nodded. "It could be. I didn't want to accept the world as it was, where tragic events happened with no one to blame. So when an alternative world was proposed to me, I… gave up on this one."
"I can understand that," Evelyn said. "I hope you learn to see the good things here."
Tippy smiled. "Harl's been a great help."
Evelyn returned the smile and opened her arms. Tippy gratefully accepted the hug. They held each other in silence, Tippy trying to will away his tears. When they separated, he rubbed his eyes and tried to laugh it off.
"I'm glad you're here, Tippy," Evelyn said.
"Me too," he said. "Me too."
They made a plan for Tippy and Harl to come to Mason's birthday party. Mason himself didn't seem keen on the idea, though Evelyn promised Tippy he'd warm up to him. "Just make sure you bring him a good present," she said. "I'll let you know what he likes."
When Tippy and Harl left the building, they were immediately accosted by Daisy. "Hey!" she said, crossing her arms. "Where's my money?"
Tippy chuckled. "Honestly, I hoped you would forget about that, after everything that happened.."
"Yeah, you almost died and junk. So what? My rent's due in like, a week!"
"Did you just get out of jail?" Harl asked. "How did you know we were here?"
Daisy shrugged. "I was gonna see if Sinclair would give me a reward, but hey, you're here instead. So how 'bout it?"
"Well…" Tippy sighed. "I can't get it to you right away. Give me a day or two."
"Ugh! Fine."
Tippy rolled his eyes. "I'll be in contact with you," he said. "Goodbye."
He walked away with Harl, only to stop when Daisy called after him. "Hey, Tippy?"
Tippy looked back over his shoulder. Daisy smiled. "I'm glad you're alright," she said. "Y'know. All things considered."
"You too," he responded. "See you around, Daisy."
Harl volunteered to pick up Duke when he was released. While he prepared to do that, Tippy went to his apartment. He put a quick lunch in the microwave and picked out some clothes to take to Harl's place while it cooked. As cramped as the apartment was, they had decided to spend the night there, seeing as Harl had spent so many nights in Tippy's apartment. Besides, Harl's bed was bigger.
While he ate, footsteps approached his door. Tippy stood up and moved to open it for them, but hesitated; Harl was out, and he didn't know who else would visit him. He took a step back and waited for them to knock.
"Tippy? You home?"
That was Fendrich's voice. Tippy panicked. "No," he said.
"Yeah," Fendrich said, "I get it. But seriously, I'm just here to apologize. Can you let me in?"
Tippy sighed. "Alright," he said. "Door's unlocked."
"Huh, not opening it for me? Wow, I must've really messed up this time."
He walked in and sat on the couch. Tippy stood and looked down at him. "So," he said, "you're here to apologize."
Fendrich nodded. He didn't say anything.
"Well, I'm certainly ready to hear it."
"Give me a minute, this is hard for me."
"Hard for you," Tippy said. Then, louder, "Hard for you?"
Fendrich seemed to realize his mistake. "I mean, obviously it's hard for you, too, I just –"
"No, I'm not done." Tippy jabbed a finger at him. "You were the one who kidnapped Evelyn, continued to try and keep her captive when we came to rescue her, and it was one of your hires who almost made me fall to my death. I don't care if this is hard for you, because you're the one in the wrong!"
"I know, alright?!" Fendrich snapped. "I know how badly I bungled this, and I'm trying to make up for it! Evelyn doesn't want to speak to me, fine, I'll accept that. She's a Sinclair now – fine! But I am not losing you, too."
"And why is that?" Tippy crossed his arms. "You didn't have a problem framing me for the kidnapping. Or tying me up in a closet."
"Because…" Fendrich ran a hand over his face. "Because…"
He fell silent. Tippy tapped his foot as the seconds dragged on and on.
"Because you're the only thing left I have of your mother."
Tippy let the words sink in and took a moment to appreciate their weight.
Fendrich didn't look at him. "In the grand scheme of things, we weren't together for that long," he said. "But I loved her. It's been over a decade since she died, and I still miss her. My stepdaughter – her daughter – is gone from my life. You're all that's left."
"I understand," Tippy said. "I have no intention to cut you out of my life, Fendrich."
Fendrich faced him with a frown. "Is there a 'but' coming?"
"What?"
"You know. Something you want from me."
Tippy looked away. "There's nothing I want from you," he said. "Just…"
Fendrich brightened up. "So there is something! Whatever it is, I can get it. Y'know, so long as it's something I can buy."
He sounded so sincere. Tippy took a deep breath. "Pay for my name change," he said.
"Wait, really? Again? What for?"
"I've come to realize that the identity I've built my life around…" Tippy picked at his collar. "…is no longer one that fits. I will stay as Tippy, but I would like to change my surname back to 'Freeman,' and, well, I can't justify spending that sort of money right now."
"Oh, sure, sure!" Fendrich stood up and took out his checkbook. "What's the filing fee, a hundred fifty? Hang on, you have all your documents to change, too. I'll give you two hundred."
A paltry sum, compared to the millions Fendrich earned with his business. "Thank you," Tippy said. A thought occurred to him. "I would like you to pay Daisy Lewis, too."
"Really? Alright. I guess she was pretty involved. Sure, I'll pay her." Fendrich handed him the check and laughed. "Wow! I'm glad that's over with. I guess I'll be going, now!"
Tippy nodded, calling upon all his self-restraint not to crumple up the paper. "Goodbye, Fendrich."
"Sure, sure. Bye, Tippy!"
He left. Tippy closed the door behind him and pressed his back to it. He looked at the check for two hundred dollars, read his stepfather's signature, and carefully put it aside. Emotion overwhelmed him. He pulled his hat down over his eyes and let the tears fall.
Harl was back to pick him up later that night. "Are you alright?" he asked when Tippy came out of the building.
Tippy smiled. "I'm better now that you're here."
"Oh. Did something happen while I was gone?"
"Nothing too bad. I'll tell you later."
He put his bag with the rest of Harl's stuff and climbed on the seat behind him. Harl glanced back at him before he started pedaling. "There's other stuff we should talk about, too," he said.
"Really? Like what?"
"What you told Evelyn."
A car honked as they rode by. Tippy reflexively grabbed Harl's waist. "What did I tell her? I don't remember the specifics."
"You know," Harl said. "I want to have that conversation. About us."
"Ah." Tippy smiled. "Yes, Harl, I return your feelings, and I would enjoy us being together in an official sense."
"What?" Harl swerved to avoid a pothole. "You can't just say that! We have to have the conversation!"
"Do you feel differently?"
"Of course not, Tippy, you know that!"
"Then I don't see the problem in keeping it at that."
"But what does it mean for us?" Harl asked. "Like… what can we do that we couldn't do before?"
Tippy moved to press his lips on the back of Harl's neck, only to jerk back when they went over a bump and Harl's head collided painfully with his nose. "Ow!"
"Sorry!" Harl yelped. "What were you saying?"
Tippy rubbed his nose. "Maybe we should wait until we get there."
Once at Harl's apartment, Harl unlocked the door and paused. "I should really get that spare key made," he said. "You gave me your spare. It's not fair if I can get into your apartment and you can't get into mine."
"Harl, do you really think I can't get your door open, locked or not?"
"Good point!" Harl laughed. "I still want to give you a key, though."
Inside, Harl showed Tippy where he could put his bag. "I guess we don't need the air mattress," Harl said. "I mean, if you still want to…"
"Only if it's alright with you," Tippy said. "I don't want to be a nuisance."
"You're not a nuisance, Tippy!" Harl beamed at him. "I like having you around, and not just because I can't sleep when you're not here."
"We… should probably work on that, relationship or not. It's not the most healthy situation. What if I end up spending the night at Evelyn's house, one of these days?"
Harl shrugged. "Maybe we can call each other and fall asleep on the phone?"
Tippy chuckled. "We'll worry about that when it happens, I suppose. Harl…"
Harl turned to look at him. Tippy stared into his eyes and thought back to their month in space, with each other as their only company. How the man he had considered to be an annoyance had become someone so important to him he couldn't imagine life without Harl at his side.
Harl tilted his head and smiled at him. "What is it, Tippy?" he asked.
"I love you, Harl."
Harl's cheeks turned pink and his small smile turned into a dopey grin. "Really?"
"Of course! I told you I returned your feelings, didn't I?" Tippy moved closer and gently took one of Harl's hands in both his own. "You said it to me," he said softly, "and I wanted to say it back. I love you, Harl. I know it wasn't easy, getting to this point, but I'm glad you're here with me."
"I love you too," Harl said, still smiling. You care a lot about the people important to you, and you don't give up on them. I'm glad I'm one of those people."
Tippy moved a hand and ran it through Harl's hair. Harl put his hands on Tippy's waist and pulled him closer. They stared at each other for a few moments longer, smiling at each other, before Tippy closed the distance between them in a kiss.
There was no utopia waiting for him. Despite the ache he still felt at the loss of Paradoors, Tippy was starting to see the good things about this world. He had Evelyn and her children. He had Duke, Daisy, Hank and Betty, other friends and people who cared about him. And he had Harl, who loved him, and who he wanted to stay with for years and years to come.
It would be enough.
THE END