Chapter Text
A photo of a short boy with white hair and goggles on his head, a taller blond boy with a lollipop in his mouth, and a girl between them showing off a big smile that was missing a few baby teeth was the first of many. Next was their kindergarten ceremony, each growing a tad taller, followed by their middle school graduation, each in cute mock-graduation gowns and caps and each distinct in style.
The last time you achieved something in unison was your highschool graduation photo, Xeno with his hand on your lower back and Stanley with his arm over your shoulder, sandwiching you between them, each showing off your certificates.
Every picture after that was for the individual: Stanley’s promotion ceremonies and returning home celebrations and Xeno’s many graduations from bachelor’s, master’s, and doctorate programs, along with his post-project awards. You three were always in each photo, celebrating Xeno and Stan’s brightest moments, but none seemed to focus on you.
Stanley swiped through the photos on his phone while Xeno stirred milk and sweetener into his coffee, watching the other reminisce.
They’d come all this way, to a dingy little diner off Route 66 built sometime in the 60’s and last renovated in the 80’s, just to see you. Since they hadn’t warned you ahead that they’d be visiting, you weren’t able to get the day off, and you were still fuming about that as you returned to the table with two plates.
The full works breakfast was placed in front of Stanley, and a breakfast sandwich with homefries was slammed front of the smirking scientist across from him.
“Ouch, gentle darling!” Xeno teased, though he’d visibly jumped at the slam and tried to play it off.
“I’ll do damn well as I please, Doctor Wingfield.” You rolled your eyes, turning to look at Stanley. He was chewing on a toothpick, only removing it to begin eating. You expected something snarky from him, but this time he remained silent, and you wouldn’t be surprised if it were because he was still upset that you had missed the last Marine Corps Ball.
In your defence, you couldn’t exactly fly to the east coast and take all that time off work when you wanted; it was costly!
Seeing as they didn’t need anything else, you dismissed yourself to check on your other tables. As always, you could see Xeno doing most of the talking while Stanley observed. Only, Stanley seemed to observe more than just his friend but everyone else present, especially you. Anytime your back was turned, you could feel his dark eyes staring you down, likely judgementally.
The other servers had come to recognize Xeno and Stanley and knew to seat them in your section whenever they stopped by—no matter how much you insisted they not.
When all your other tables were paid and cleared, you took the chance to pull off your apron and push your way next to Stanley for a quick break.
"My co-workers are offering to cover the closing hour for me if you want me to leave early." Stanley allowed you to pick one of the fruits from his plate and pop it in your mouth, having left the berries he knew you liked untouched.
“Unfortunately we’re here on business.” Stanley glanced at you while he spoke, feeling the same guilty pang he always did when you seemed sad.
“We’re passing through on our way to test my new engine cooling system; we booked a field out here to get it away from people.” Small, old towns hugged Route 66, and between them were vast uninhabited areas of sand and dried-up plants, perfect for testing things that may just explode.
You gave a half-hearted smile, partway glad to see them and partway sad it wouldn’t be for longer. With Stanley climbing up the ranks and Xeno being so well-regarded at NASA, it seemed as though they could do anything they wanted when they wanted, and you were still answering to the same diner owner that hired you a handful of years prior.
Not that you hadn’t chosen this path; it wasn’t as if you were godawful in school or lacked dreams. The other two were just…rare. You were an exceptional student, but they were inhuman.
“That’s nice. I’m glad you’re already in the testing phase.” You meant to share your words with enthusiasm, but they came out rather plain as you mindlessly stirred the coffee in your mug. Your eyes were lost in the swirling liquid, your mind busy considering how impressive Xeno’s projects always were.
Why did they always make a point to see you? You never had anything fun to share.
The silence stretched while you lifted the mug to your lips, taking in the watered-down coffee you were used to tasting. Although everything you did felt mediocre, you were motivated by a specific goal.
You’d been saving as much of your pay as possible to help fund a degree in archival studies, not including paying off the student debt you already had. You had managed to complete a bachelor's in two and a half years already, but you still needed a master's and doctorate to be considered in a genuine archive.
“Still foolishly rejecting our offer?” Xeno had both elbows on the laminate table, resting his chin on the back of his hands. It only took meeting eyes for a moment for you to look back down at your hands, fingers drumming along the sides of the warm mug between them.
“I can’t let you guys do all the work for me. I was super close anyways—just one more year and then I can apply to the UT master's program.” Your words were both reassurance for them and yourself.
“You said that last time.” Stanley added unhelpfully.
“I know! I know… Just, some unexpected expenses and all.” It felt like you had the worst luck; after saving up just barely enough to quit, your car broke down, and it was completely unfixable. You had to bike to work for a week before you could go out to buy a new one, and it practically halved your savings.
Stanley only scoffed, raising a hand to rest on your head. He ruffled your hair, earning a playful slap to get him to stop.
“Best I get back to work. Thank you guys for stopping to see me, really. Oh! Don’t pay. I’m taking your bill.” It was a small gesture, but you got a discount anyways, and you wanted to treat them somehow. Xeno nodded along, standing to put his coat back on while Stanley reached for his matches.
To leave you here, in the middle of nowhere, as if you weren't the single most important thing to either of them, felt wrong. But your wishes took priority.
As you moved to put your apron back on, Stanley stopped you by taking the straps. Albeit a tad tighter than you usually made it, he tied it snug around your waist with a bow, careful enough to make sure it looked even before seeing himself off. Xeno gave a quick snicker at his companion's antics and opened his arms to offer a hug. Of course, you accepted, and he held you until you parted of your own volition.
“Good luck with your project, Xeno. Even if you don’t need it.”
“I’m always better off with your luck than without it. Until next time!”
Just like that the diner seemed to quiet down, no longer filled with their banter or the sheer force of their presence. It was dipping into the afternoon, anyhow, and your morning shift was nearly over.
Your coworker hailed you over to the main counter by the till, offering you a billfold.
“What’s this?” You took it in your hands, looking up at her with a confused glance.
“Your little admirers paid while you were in the kitchen and told me not to tell you.” You opened it to reveal cash that was well over quadruple the cost of the bill itself.
You slammed it back shut, jogging to the door to catch the perpetrators only to see their car was already taking off down the empty road, stirring up dust behind it and leaving you cursing under your breath. They were always one step ahead of you, and you hated that you’d become predictable enough for them to get away with whatever they liked.
“I can’t believe you’re still dragging those boys for a ride, they’re totally whipped for you.”
“Yeah, you’re better than me! The muscles on that military man…”
“Not to mention how smart the scientist is!”
“I bet they’re both loaded.”
The two servers you’d gotten relatively close with bickered behind you as you processed the payment, putting the overly generous tip in your apron pocket with a dramatic sigh.
“They aren’t ‘whipped’ for me. They’re just being nice because they feel bad that their childhood friend didn’t make it big like them.” At least, that was what you assured yourself with to keep all the ridiculous, childlike, crushing thoughts away. You’d all grown up together; of course they would try to make you feel better.
“Whatever you say, girl.”
It had been a week since you saw those two.
Xeno had updated you by email on how it went, including images and attachments of the project paper. You had parsed it, though most of the technical jargon was lost on you. It seemed things had gone well, since it was marked as ‘approved.’
Today was one of your days off, and it was about time you checked the mailbox you’d neglected during the last handful of workdays. Not that it needed to be checked daily. Most of the mail you got was from Stanley while he was deployed or the NASA aerospace engineering newsletter Xeno sent (fully annotated on what he had a hand in) to you every month. This time there were a few flyers, though most peculiar was a legal-sized envelope with no return address.
‘Huh.’
Using your finger to rip the folded edge open, you found a handful of papers held together with a paperclip, underneath which was a NASA business card for the one and only Dr. Xeno Houston Wingfield. The top paper caught your eye: an acceptance letter to the School of Information master's program at the University of Texas.
Your grip on the papers tightened, flipping through the ones behind it: your course schedule and upcoming meetings with your supposed advisor at the university, a co-lease agreement to an apartment awaiting your signature, confirmation of a moving company arriving two weeks from now, and a letter of sponsorship evidence from Xeno himself.
The papers fell from your shaky grip onto the kitchen counter below, your hand coming to your mouth, which hung open.
It wasn’t long before you pulled yourself from the shock, grabbing your phone and dialling Xeno’s cell. It only rang once before the hum of his workshop came to life through your speaker. It was always noisy wherever he worked.
“What the hell is this, Xeno?”
“You may have to elaborate on what ‘this’ means, dear.”
“You know damn well what I’m talking about! How do you even apply on someone’s behalf? This is insane!” You could hear him stifle a laugh, as well as distinguish that he was walking away from all the noise, which abruptly cut at the sound of a door closing.
“Don’t worry about how. Just worry about packing.” Xeno clicked his tongue, and though you couldn’t see it, you could tell he had a mischievous smile on his face. “And how about thanking us while you’re at it?”
You were stunned to silence on the other end, fidgeting with one of the flyers on the counter while your eyes scanned your run-down apartment. There wasn’t a ton to pack, but still. To have this sprung on you out of nowhere… It felt just like the days in school when you’d get pushed into one of his experiments; you could never predict what came next.
A sigh broke from your lips.
“Of course I’m thankful, Xeno. I don’t know where to begin thanking you.”
Your eyes watered against your will. While your expression couldn’t be seen through the call, Xeno still picked up on the quiver in your voice, which only boosted his ego.
“Sorry, did you say ‘thanking us’ earlier?”
“Who do you think you’re moving in with? Stanley went through all the trouble of getting relocated to Austin so you wouldn’t be alone.”
“Hah!” You snickered at the joke, though his end was silent.
“Wait, seriously?”