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Artwork by Lademonessa
Felicity shifted nervously in her booth at Big Belly Burger. A pile of shredded napkins was already in front of her as she tore tiny pieces off of a fresh one. She was starting to regret volunteering for this lunch. Not that she’d really volunteered. The guys had broken out their puppy dog eyes and she’d found herself agreeing with their logic. Oliver and Tommy were convinced that the news would be better received coming from her. She doubted Lance would actually shoot either of them, but both guys maintained a healthy fear of the grumpy police captain. The bell over the door chimed and Felicity looked up to see the captain entering the restaurant. He saw her and gave her a small smile. “Oh god,” Felicity said under her breath as her stomach flipped. She thought there was a good chance she was going to hyperventilate. If she couldn’t tell Lance, someone she believed actually cared for her, Oliver and Tommy, how were they ever going to go public the following month?
Lance slid into the booth across from her. He took one look at the pile of napkins and at her face and said, “If you were one of my girls, I’d ask how bad the dent in the fender is.”
She pushed the pile of napkins away and folded her hands in her lap, “Nope. I didn’t dent anyone’s car.”
“You’re nervous about something, but if it had to do with our mutual friend, I doubt we’d be talking here,” he teased.
“It has something to do with our mutual friend, but not about his night job,” she said before she took a sip of water.
He sighed and leaned back against the booth, “What did Queen do now?”
“Nothing,” she pushed her glasses up her nose. “Why would you think he’s done something?”
He rested his arms on the table and leaned towards her, “Listen, kiddo. I had two daughters who fell hard for Queen’s charm. Personally, I don’t understand it, but I can see why you would. I’ve known for years that the two of you are together. Do you honestly think anyone really believes that you’re just his platonic roommate?”
She wasn’t surprised that he believed that she was in a relationship with Oliver. Lance had never been particularly shy with his opinion that she could do better than Oliver. “You’re right,” Felicity said quietly, “he’s not. We’re not platonic roommates.”
Lance smiled kindly, “Is this what you were so nervous about? Did you think I’d disapprove?”
“Don’t you?” she asked seriously.
He sighed, “Listen, there was a time when I’d have liked to have locked Queen up and thrown away the key and that was before the Gambit.” The captain’s face softened, “I know that he isn’t that person anymore. He’s done a lot of good for this city – in and out of his mask. Does he make you happy? Does he treat you well?”
“Yes,” she smiled.
“Good, that’s all I need to know,” Lance picked up a menu.
She squirmed in her seat and reached for another napkin. Lance put his hand over hers and gave it a squeeze. She looked out the window, “That’s not all of it.”
“Are you pregnant?” he asked in a hushed voice.
“What?” she asked loudly before covering her mouth with her hand. “No, definitely not.”
He shrugged as he let go of her hand, “Sorry.”
Felicity looked behind her to make sure the booth was still empty. “I’m not sure how to say this. I’ve only ever told my mom, but she kind of figured it out and Oliver and Tommy were both there so it kind of made it easier.”
“In my experience, when you have something difficult to say it is best to just come straight out with it,” he encouraged.
“Right,” she wasn’t quite sure if his advice applied to admitting to being in a relationship with two men. She returned her hands to her lap and clenched them tightly together. It was now or never and never wasn’t really an option anymore. She took a deep breath, “Oliver and I are in a relationship with Tommy.”
Lance narrowed his eyes at her in confusion. He tilted his head from side to side as he studied her. He even opened his mouth several times, but no sound came out. “I don’t think I understand,” he finally admitted.
“We’re in a polyamorous relationship,” she said doubting the term would help him understand.
“Queen and Merlyn are sharing you? You’re dating both of them?” He shook his head like he was trying to clear his thoughts, “Is this some weird reaction to what happened between them and Laurel?”
“No,” she touched his hand, “this has nothing to do with Laurel. They both loved her, very much, but they were always with Laurel separately. She only dated them separately.”
Lance shifted uncomfortably in his seat, “Sweetheart, you’ve really lost me. You’re dating both Queen and Merlyn? Are you looking for advice on how to pick who you should be with? If you are, I really think I’m the wrong person to ask.”
Felicity had a fleeting thought that explaining her relationship to people might be easier with visuals. Maybe she could design a pop-up book or a short animation that she could give to people instead of having awkward conversations about her love life. She took another deep breath, “Oliver, Tommy and I are in a relationship together. All three of us. I’m with them and they are with me and each other. We’ve been together for almost five years.”
The man who’d become like a father to her stared at her in disbelief. He covered his face with his hands and then ran them over his head. He suddenly looked extremely tired, “Five years?”
She nodded her head vigorously, “Yes.”
“Oliver and Tommy together?” he brought his hands together and laced his fingers. “The kiss in the papers was real.”
“Yes,” she confirmed. It had been a month since the photo of Oliver and Tommy kissing on their front steps had been published. After the initial uproar, the current consensus appeared to be that the guys were vamping for the cameras because they knew they were being followed. Instead of bringing Oliver and Tommy relief, the public’s disbelief was spurring them to finally come out. They were all tired of living a lie.
He pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. She would’ve sworn that he’d said, “Tommy,” but she wasn’t sure.
They sat in silence for several minutes before she couldn’t take another second of it, “I know that it’s a lot to take in and we’re asking for you to accept us – accept something that is unconventional and not easily understood, but I really hope you will. You’re important to me – to all of us.”
“Why are you telling me this now? You’ve been getting away with this for years and no one knew.”
She could feel her panic mounting as she thought that Lance might reject them and that he would’ve preferred if she’d stayed silent and that he remained in the dark. If she couldn’t persuade Lance to be open minded, there was no chance in hell that the public wouldn’t turn on them. Knowing that the only way out, was through, she decided to keep talking, “It’s been almost five years and we’re tired of living the lie. We want to be able to go out in public and not worry about slipping up. Tommy and Oliver deserve to be able to be themselves and not behave as if they should be ashamed,” she explained. “We’re going to release a statement.”
“I don’t know what to say,” he said honestly.
“Do you hate us?” she asked quietly.
He rubbed the back of his neck, “If I don’t hate those boys for what they did to my girls or for what you and Queen do at night, I don’t imagine I’ll hate you for this.”
She reached across the table and took his hands. “Thank you,” she smiled with relief.
“I don’t hate you, but I think you’re all making a mistake. Honestly, I’m surprised this has lasted as long as it has and I believe that you think that this relationship is healthy, but I see this ending only one way. I’ve known those boys almost all of their lives and I know how things always play out with them. One or all of you are going to end up getting hurt. The media is going to crucify you and you know from experience that women are held to a different standard than men. For as long as you live, you will never escape this relationship.”
Felicity’s eyes welled for tears, “I don’t want to escape this relationship. We plan on being three for as long as we live. We also know that there are going to be people who will judge us, but we hope that the people who know us and consider us friends will remember who we are and continue to love us even if they don’t understand.” She rose from the booth, “I know this was a lot, but I hope you’ll think about it before you decide to walk away from us.”
“Whoa,” Lance said as he grabbed her wrist, “sit your butt back down. I didn’t say anything about walking away and we haven’t had our lunch.”
She sat back down, “I thought you were disapproving of our choice.”
“This is a lot for me to take in. I’m not speaking to you any differently than if you were my own daughter. When Sara told me that she liked women, it didn’t matter. All I want for Sara is for her to be loved and for her to be safe. She’s chosen to live a life where I can’t rest easy about her safety, but I don’t worry about her heart. I know that Nyssa loves her and makes her happy and that’s all I can ask for. If the three of you love one another and you’re happy, then I will find a way to get comfortable. Okay?”
“Okay,” Felicity let out a deep breath.
Lance turned in their booth and signaled for the waitress to take their order.
“Mr. Queen,” Oliver’s executive assistant greeted him at the elevator, “there’s a police officer in your office. He refused to give me his name or why he’s here.”
Oliver tried to keep his face neutral. He’d heard from Felicity, so he had a good idea who was waiting for him. He smiled at his assistant, “It’s all right, Mrs. LeRoy, I’m sure it’s nothing.”
Sure enough, the former detective was sitting on Oliver’s sofa with his hands folded between his knees and his head hung in thought. Oliver didn’t break his stride as he entered his office, “Captain, what can I do for you?”
“Cut the shit, Oliver, you know exactly why I’m here,” Lance said angrily as he rose to his feet.
Oliver turned around and shut his office door. He tried to decide if he should turn his glass walls opaque or if that would make things worse. Lance would probably be more hesitant to shoot him if Mrs. LeRoy could see. “Felicity said that you took the news okay, I’m a little surprised to see you here,” Oliver said honestly.
Lance raised an incredulous eyebrow, “Did you honestly think I wouldn’t talk to you about this?”
“Right now, I’m a little worried that you came here to shoot me,” he laughed nervously and dropped his eyes to where Lance was holding his hand over his holster.
The Captain looked down, sighed and dropped his hand, “Relax, Oliver. If I didn’t shoot you when you started dating Laurel, I’m not going to shoot you over this.”
“But you’re angry with me?” Oliver was unsure of where they stood. Based on the phone call he’d just had with Felicity, he thought that Lance had been supportive or at least open to their choice.
“I want to make sure you’re not going to hurt someone,” Lance said accusingly.
“I have no intention of hurting Felicity,” Oliver started.
“I’m not worried about Felicity. She is tougher than all of us put together and I’m pretty sure if you wronged that woman she would destroy you.” Lance dropped heavily onto the sofa, “I’m worried about Tommy.”
“Tommy?” Oliver asked with surprise as he sat across from the captain.
“I got to thinking after my lunch with Felicity. This thing between you and Merlyn has been going on a lot longer than five years,” Lance’s eyes bored into Oliver’s. “I would say that this has been going on since you boys were in high school, maybe earlier.”
“We both know I wasn’t a good boyfriend to Laurel and I didn’t treat her with the respect that she deserved,” Oliver said guiltily.
Lance held his hand up, “I’m not here to discuss Laurel and how unworthy you were of her. We both know where we stand on Laurel. I’m here because that boy has never had anyone stand up for him and it’s about time someone does.”
“Quentin, listen.”
“No, you listen. I was at the hospital the night he tried to take his own life.” Lance held up his hand when Oliver went to speak, “Let’s not lie to each other now. I know it wasn’t an accidental overdose. I also know that Malcolm Merlyn was beating the stuffing out of that kid and everyone was too afraid of that bastard to protect Tommy. I failed him then because I didn’t like you. I thought you were both arrogant and thoughtless. I should’ve done something the first time Sara told me that Tommy had suspicious bruises.”
“There wasn’t anything you could’ve done. Tommy would’ve lied and Malcolm would’ve taken your badge or worse,” Oliver said truthfully.
Lance leaned forward, “Maybe so, but no one deserves what happened to that kid.”
“I agree.”
“That night in the hospital, I watched you as the doctor explained what had happened. I saw your face when you realized what he’d tried to do. It wasn’t the face of a concerned friend. It was the face of someone who realized how close he’d come to losing everything.”
Oliver sat back heavily in his chair and drew a shaky breath. He wondered how many people had figured out their secret back then. His mom. Malcolm. Quentin. They thought they’d been so careful at hiding their feelings from the world.
“When you went into his room and held him as he cried,” Lance’s eyes were heavy with emotion. He cleared his throat, “At the time, I chalked it up to how inseparable the two of you had always been and that you were carrying a secret. I thought the secret had been about Malcolm’s abuse, but now I know it was more than that.”
“Yeah,” Oliver said quietly.
“You were in love with one another back then. Is that why he tried to take his own life?” Lance asked gently.
Oliver wished he’d frosted his windows as the first tear escaped his eyes. He took a deep breath to try and get his emotions under control. He swiped at his eyes with trembling fingers, “He never said so, but I think it was part of it. Malcolm knew or suspected that something was going on and he didn’t approve. Tommy and I never really talked about how we felt and I think Tommy was really tired. Tired of being beaten. Tired of not being able to admit our feelings for one another.”
“Tired of watching you with Laurel.”
Oliver rubbed his hands over his face, “He understood about Laurel. Just like I understood about the girls he was with. We both do like women. We always have.”
“But you were always attracted to one another too,” Lance offered.
“Yes.”
“I’ve seen you with Felicity. I know the way you look at her isn’t platonic. I suspected that the two of you were together long before I knew how you spent your nights. Once I learned the truth about that, I never doubted for a second that the two of you were together.” Lance sighed, “I don’t want you to wake up one day and decide that you don’t need him anymore – that he’s no longer convenient for your plans to leave a legacy.” At Oliver’s surprised look he continued, “All of this, the company, saving the city – these are the actions of a man who wants to leave the world a better place for his children. What happens to Tommy then?”
“Captain,” Oliver leaned forward, “I love, Tommy. This isn’t some passing fancy or me working out some repressed feelings from my childhood. We are fully committed to one another and to Felicity. The life I’m building, I’m building it for all three of us. Any legacy I leave, it will be tied to both of them.”
“Okay,” Lance stood up.
“Okay?” Oliver asked as he stood up.
“Yeah, I said my piece. You heard mine. Okay,” Lance started walking to the door.
It took a few seconds for Oliver’s legs to work. “Captain,” Oliver extended his hand, “thank you.”
Lance shook Oliver’s offered hand, “For what?”
“For standing up for him.”
“What can I do for the SCPD today?” Tommy asked without looking up from his clipboard. His bartender had found him in the loading bay to tell him that there was a police officer there to see him. He assumed that the cop was there to tell him about a new drug in circulation or to provide a description of someone committing sexual assaults. Sometimes running a club was downright depressing. He looked up and nearly tripped over his feet, “Oh, Captain Lance.”
Lance was seated on a stool at the end of the bar, “Merlyn.”
“Can I get you something? Seltzer? Soda?” he asked nervously as he stepped behind the bar.
“Seltzer, thank you.”
Tommy’s hands shook slightly as he filled a glass with ice and seltzer. Lance was staring at his folded hands and appeared to not be paying Tommy any attention. He’d heard from Felicity and Oliver already about their encounters with his former girlfriend’s father and hadn’t expected that the man would seek him out. Tommy always thought he’d been way below the captain’s radar. Lance groused the whole time Tommy was with Laurel, but never to the extent he did about Oliver. Tommy always thought that Laurel’s dad’s disapproval was only slightly more than it would’ve been if he’d been any other guy dating his daughter. He was surprised to hear from Oliver that Lance’s main concern about their relationship was Tommy’s wellbeing. He placed a lime in the glass and sat it in front of the captain. Tommy leaned against the counter opposite of the bar, folded his arms across his chest and waited.
Lance’s hands wrapped around the glass, “You’ve spoken with Felicity and Oliver?”
“Yes.”
“Then you know why I’m here,” Lance looked up from his glass.
“Not really.”
Lance snorted, “Yeah, me neither.”
“Are you here to warn me off Ollie?” Tommy teased.
“I should. You’re too good for him,” Lance took a drink.
He dropped his arms to his sides, “Captain, I want to thank you for the things you said to Oliver. It’s nice to know that there’s someone out there other than Oliver, Felicity and Thea that worry about me,” Tommy said sincerely. The Captain might’ve been overbearing and overprotective, but Laurel and Sara never doubted for a moment that they were loved. Tommy had often wished his dad had been more like Lance when he was growing up. When Oliver had told him that Lance was worried about him, Tommy had been reminded of what it felt like to have a parent who actually cared about him.
“Not enough people worried about you when they should’ve and I’m sorry that I didn’t get you out of that house,” Lance said with a grimace.
Tommy hated when people blamed themselves for things that belonged squarely on his dad’s shoulders, “That’s not on you. The only person I ever told the truth to was Ollie. I didn’t ask for help. You had no way of knowing.”
“Maybe not, but I suspected and that should’ve been enough. I failed you because I disliked Oliver and I painted you with the same brush. You didn’t deserve that. You deserved for me to do my job and to investigate my suspicions of abuse. I’m sorry.”
Tommy sucked air through his teeth and focused his eyes on the ceiling. He hadn’t realized it, but he’d been waiting for twenty-five years for someone, other than Oliver, to acknowledge that he’d been failed and that he deserved better than what he’d received from his father. He stepped forward and held out his hand, “Thank you.”
Lance shook Tommy’s hand and then clasped it between his for a moment. He picked his glass back up, “You have great taste in women, but your taste in men needs some work.”
The two men stared at each other and then Lance winked at Tommy. It took a moment, but Tommy burst out laughing and Lance eventually joined in.