Work Text:
Tommy drives to the 118 Fire Station to Pick Evan up for a picnic date that they had coordinated a week ago, and when Tommy gets there he’s shocked to hear his song being played inside the station. He lets himself sing his and Nic D’s part before wiping the smile off his face and walking inside the station. When he walks in Howie instantly runs to Tommy and hugs him (acting like they didn’t have lunch together yesterday).
“Who is this?” Tommy says in false curiosity, not wanting them to know yet that he’s the guy rapping in those songs. Hen, Howie, and Eddie (not surprisingly, given that he doesn’t think Tommy’s talented) seem to buy it but Evan almost starts laughing, knowing that Tommy recognizes his own flow.
“A rapper that Ravi, the one person here you haven’t met, is a fan of. I think his name is Conner Price.” Tommy nods at Howie’s explanation. Tommy hums part of Golden Goose perfectly, which Hen hears and she asks him if he wants to actually try to rap the song (secretly wanting to see if Connor and Tommy are the same person).
“You clearly like the song, why don’t you try to rap it?” Eddie rolls his eyes at Hen’s question, thinking that Tommy can’t rap at all, and responds before Tommy can.
“I don’t think anyone here wants to hear him epically fail at the speed of Connor’s flow, Hen.” Tommy swallows a laugh at Eddie’s oblivious comment, knowing Eddie will eat those words soon. Tommy smirked and then started rapping at a slightly faster pace to each of the different flows, shocking himself with his memory. He even mimics throwing a dart, making the others laugh at how silly Tommy is sometimes.
“Wait you’re Connor Price?” Eddie says to Tommy, shocked that he’s that talented, and getting a raised eyebrow in response.
“Don’t know, does it change your shitty view of a man that you claim to be friends with, Eddie?” Tommy says in a condescending tone and maintains eye contact with Eddie throughout it.
“I wasn’t trying to say that I have a shitty view of you, Tommy. I was just shocked.” Eddie says, trying to backtrack, a common move for him to pull because it usually works, but Tommy just rolls his eyes again and scoffs.
“The backtracking and blaming may work on everyone else here, no offense guys, but it won’t work on me, Eddie, I’ve dealt with too many friends like you for it to even phase me anymore. You ready to go, sweetheart?” Tommy says before sticking his hand out for Evan and walking out with him in tow. Hen and Chimney laugh, expecting Tommy’s sass a lot earlier.
“Why do y’all even like that guy? If his music is anything to go by, he’s arrogant, cocky, and clearly rude as hell to everyone.” Eddie says, hoping that cutting Tommy down will ease how much Eddie wants to be Tommy, which is a lot more than Eddie’s willing to admit.
“We like him because he doesn’t let people walk all over him, anymore. His music doesn’t show that he’s arrogant, or cocky, they show that he’s confident in who is, which is a severe upgrade from the version of him we had met. And lastly, he isn’t rude to anyone who isn’t rude to him first.” Chimney says, defending his close friend, knowing that nothing Eddie had said is true in the slightest.
“Sometimes I forget if we’re a family or not,” Eddie says in a sour tone, hating how much people love Tommy and wishing people loved Eddie that much.
“You aren’t the only family we have Eddie. Tommy was one of the founding members of this family, so he’s family as much as you are.” Chimney says while going back to what he was doing before his peace was interrupted by Tommy walking in. Hen turns up the song that is playing right now by hitting the plus button on the speaker and basks in his soft voice and self-reflecting lyrics.
“Why does it kinda sound like he’s talking to his past self at the beginning of Connor’s part?” Hen says, not knowing what Eddie had said not that long ago about Tommy. Chimney gives Eddie an ‘I told you so’ look while frowning at the fact that some of the lyrics show that when he wrote this song he wanted to give up.
“It’s like he’s telling his past self to not give in to the hate he’s always heard, and to be proud of who he is. And I thought I couldn’t respect this man any more than I already did. And that self-awareness of ‘I’m not perfect’? God damn, this man is something else.” Chimney says, openly fanboying over his friend, while Hen similarly reacts to how much Tommy’s changed over the last 7 years. Hen checks Ravi’s phone to see what song is now and is curious when she sees that it’s a song called EGOT.
“You think that part could’ve been about Sal and Gerrard?” Hen says to Chimney when the ‘quit acting like everybody’s in love with, like there’s one of you, buddy I promise you I’ve seen a couple you’s, and I ain’t talking w’s’ part.
“What’s about me and Deluca?” Gerrard says while coming down the stairs and hearing the song playing on the speaker for the first.
“This line,” Chimney says while rewinding the song to the line that they think is about Gerrard and Sal, knowing that it’ll piss Vincent off.
“That would be impossible, given that I’ve never met a rapper before,” Vincent says, angry that someone would say something so rude to 2 people that they’ve never met, not knowing that he’s listening to Tommy.
“Actually you have met a rapper before, he worked for you for about 13 years. These songs were done by Tommy Kinard.” Chimney says while smirking as Vincent’s face turns red out of anger that a gay man would become so famous.
“I prefer Sal’s versions to these songs,” Vincent says to try and get the 118 to believe that Tommy is copying Sal’s stuff, which is the reverse of what was really happening but that isn’t relevant.