Grow Old Together

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You let go of the margarita glass that you had been gripping tightly, his hands finding yours under the bar table and holding them tightly. When he pulled away, the warmth his kiss had brought disappeared.

His eyes met yours again, and your mouth opened slightly, but no words came out. You searched his gaze, and you were sure, in that moment, that he was really going to kiss you.

You were interrupted by a knock on the door.

The two of you stood quickly, straightening up and avoiding each other's eyes.

"It might be Vanya," you said as you walked toward the door, growing excited and picking up the pace. "I hope-"

"Nope," Five said, stopping you from turning to handle. "It could be anyone, Eight. Get behind me."

You frowned at him, but he refused to let go of your wrist until you stepped behind him. You sighed, waiting impatiently as he slowly turned the handle and opened the door.

"Hey, old-timer," a familiar voice said, and you froze. You cautiously peered over Five's shoulder, and when your fear was confirmed, you stumbled backward, bumping into a table. Your hand fumbled around, finally gripping something - the end of an umbrella. Better that than no weapon at all.

Five turned around to face you, concerned.

"That's Hazel," you hissed, hoping the man wouldn't hear you. "He tortured Klaus and I. Oh, I'm gonna kill him." Hatred flared through your veins, but you knew it was mostly present to cover up your fear. You started to walk forward, but Five placed a hand on your shoulder to stop you, his other hand preoccupied with the margarita.

"Eight," he said softly, calmly. How could he be calm when the enemy was quite literally on your doorstep, with a gun? "Eight, I think that's the alcohol talking."

You froze, scowling.

"What alcohol? There was none. I didn't have any," you argued, gripping the umbrella handle tighter.

"The margarita?" he asked, smiling a bit. "The whole glass of alcohol that you just drank?"

You swallowed hard, confused. You hadn't realized that you had drank the whole thing.

"Eight, I know that this guy did horrible stuff to you. And trust me, I'm never going to forgive him. But let's at least hear him out - and then you can do whatever you want." Five glanced down at your legs as you noted that he was being more generous than usual. "Your knees are shaking," he noted, and you felt your face flame in embarrassment.

"It's the alcohol," you muttered, blinking hard in an attempt to stop the world from spinning. Wait - when did that happen?

"Wow," Five said softly, setting his drink down on the table and steadying you. "You're a cheap drunk."

"I'm not cheap," you muttered, pushing him back a little bit, and he shook his head.

"It means you get drunk easily, love."

"You probably put too much tequila in," you said, leaning on the table as Five grinned.

He called me love. Why is it so hard to focus right now? 

"I'm going to talk to Hazel now, all right? I promise I won't let anything happen to you," he said, brushing his thumb across your cheek lightly before turning around.

"Do you have my sister?" he asked, and you remembered Vanya.

I hope she's okay - maybe she'll come drink with us. Hey, I should've invited Klaus. He would love this!

"If not, would you like a margarita?" Hazel stood silently observing Five, clearly confused. Five sighed, turning back around and wrapping his arm around your waist before heading back toward the bar.

"Come on."

Hazel followed behind you, and you couldn't help but sneak a glance at him. He made a startled face when he saw you, and it made you feel slightly better.

I'm still here, bastard.

"You're here to kill me?" Five asked as he gently pushed you onto the barstool again, before sitting at his own spot. You grabbed the margarita from his hand, sipping through the straw as he watched with raised eyebrows.

"Oh, shit. Sorry," Hazel said meekly, tucking the gun into his shirt. "Old habits. Well, I can understand why you might feel that way."

Five had poured himself another drink by now, and sipped it casually as Hazel spoke.

"Well, you attacked our house, tried to kill my family, and kidnapped my brother and Eight. And you tortured the girl I - you tortured her." He pointed at you, and you smiled at Hazel over the rim of your glass. His face looked warped through the cup, and you giggled slightly.

"Ah. Ahem." Hazel cleared his throat awkwardly, looking away from you. "Terribly sorry about that, um, girl."

"Woman," you corrected. "I'm 30."

"Right," Hazel said slowly, before continuing. "Well, there's not much I can do about the past. Don't forget I'm not the only killer in this room. You got your own bloody history, pal."

Five slurped on his drink, and you turned to look at him, noticing the way he avoided your eyes.

"Speaking of which... that job you did in Calhoun, that shit's legendary. Can't believe I'm actually sittin' here talkin' to you, after all..."

"Hazel, why are you here?" Five interrupted, leaning back slightly.

"Well..." Suddenly Diego burst in from the other room, kicking Hazel roughly to the ground. You choked on your drink, but then continued to watch.

"Diego, stop!" Five shouted, leaning forward. Diego did an impressive backflip over Hazel, before glaring down at him and kicking the man repeatedly in the face. "You know, before you kill him, you might wanna hear what he has to say," Five said over all the ruckus. You shrugged, leaning closer so that he could hear you.

"I dunno. I'm kind of enjoying this."

Five glanced over at you, clearly surprised.

"I didn't know you were one to enjoy watching a fight," he said, and you grinned.

"Well, the fact that he almost killed Klaus makes it a lot easier," you said, and he sighed.

"I guess you're also a violent drunk."

"I'm gonna kill you for what you did to Patch," Diego gasped, interrupting you, as the fight paused.

"Or don't hear him out. See how that goes," Five muttered, relaxing and sipping his drink again.

"Come on!" Hazel yelled, and both you and Five sucked in a breath when Diego stabbed him in the leg with one of his knives.

"Ooooh, that's gotta hurt," Five commented, and you sighed.

"All right, it's not funny anymore," you said as they slammed their heads together. You took another gulp of your drink, welcoming the dizziness. "Whoa, this looks super weird."

Hazel picked Diego up, squeezing him, and you giggled.

"They're hugging! Look, Five. They're like brothers." Five looked at you in surprise, before sighing and removing the margarita from your hands. 

"I think that's enough, Eight."

Hazel groaned, distracting the both of you and revealing that Diego had bitten the side of his head.

"Oh, ew," you whispered as Five hastily spatial jumped over to them. He held a vase above Diego's head, but you staggered over and took it from him. "My pleasure." Your words were slightly slurred, but your aim was perfect. You smashed Diego over the back of the head with it, smiling as he thudded to the ground. "I've always wanted to do that."

Five slowly took your hand, pulling you away from the unconscious Diego.

"Alllll right. You should sit down and drink some water." He went over to the sink and began filling a glass for you as you sat down heavily.

"Why'd you only help me then?" Hazel asked, rubbing his head.

"I draw the line at biting," Five said, handing you the glass. "Hazel, whatever you came here to say, I suggest you make it quick, before he comes round."

He made his way back to the barstools, and you frowned.

"Five, you're limping again," you said quietly, your mind clearing for a moment. "Are you all right?"

"Fine," he said quickly, shaking his head. "It doesn't hurt."

You narrowed your eyes at him, but didn't say anything, allowing Hazel to speak.

"I left my partner, quit the Commission, came to volunteer."

"Volunteer for what?" Five asked, settling into his chair and picking up the margarita. 

"To help stop the apocalypse," Hazel responded importantly, brushing glass off of his shoulder.

Five turned to you and chuckled, and before long you were giggling too.

"What on earth could be so funny to you right now?" Hazel asked, clearly annoyed.

"Before I answer that, why do you wanna help us?"

"Let's just say I have a vested interest in a donut shop," Hazel admitted after a moment, and you squinted at him.

"Well, I hate to break it to you, pal, but you're a day late and a dollar short," Five said cheerily, a smile widening across his face. "The fact that you're here right now means, without a shadow of a doubt, that the apocalypse is over."

"Really?" Hazel asked, hope creeping into his voice. "How do you know?"

"The mark is dead. Found him this morning."

"He had all these knives in him," you added, trying to be helpful. "Mostly kitchen ones, but I think those are scarier than Diego's."

Hazel blinked at you, confused, while Five patted your shoulder reassuringly.

"You were the last unknown left in the equation," he informed Hazel.

"Hah... shit. Really?" Hazel asked breathlessly, allowing himself to smile.

"Mm-hmm." Five shifted to set his drink down. "And if you're out, the Hellrider ain't riding." He grinned at his old co-worker, and you tried to swallow the bad taste in your mouth.

"Oh!" Hazel said with a giddy chuckle, sighing in relief. "All right!" He laughed wheezily, and suddenly you felt all the anger you held for this man drain away.

He approached the bar, and you watched as he sat to the left of Five, taking the blender and chugging what was left of the margarita.

He's just a human, you reminded yourself. And maybe this really is the drink talking, but I can let my grudge go. He's on my side now.

Five chuckled to himself as Hazel set the blender down, exhaling heavily.

"So now what?" he asked after a moment.

"You know, to be honest, I don't know. I've been chasing this thing for so long, I... I never really thought about the day after." Five chuckled, and you glanced at him, wishing you could hold his hand. It might have been awkward in front of Hazel, though. "I don't know. What about you?"

"I'm done with all this madness," Hazel replied, shaking his head. "Time to start over. You should do the same." He nodded his head at you, and Five opened and shut his mouth before clearing his throat. You smiled to yourself, staring down at your feet.

"I mean, think about it like this. If you never time traveled, you never got caught up with the Handler, what would have happened?"

Five's eyes found yours, and your heart fluttered. His hand reached out to take yours, and you smiled, intertwining your fingers.

"Well, there you go," Hazel said with a cheerful smile. "Now you can grow old together."

The words warmed your soul, and suddenly, you could picture it - you and Five as adults, curled up next to each other on the couch, watching a movie. Maybe you would have kids, or pets, or would invite your siblings over for dinner once a week.

But the thought made you smile.

"Good luck," Hazel said, standing up slowly.

"Hazel," Five said, turning to face him before he left. "One more thing before you go."

"Shoot."

"Which one of you was the trigger man for Detective Patch?" he asked, and you nodded.

"Good thinking," you whispered, wishing your brain would clear a bit more. "You could get proof that it wasn't Diego."

"Trigger woman," Hazel replied after a moment.

Five sighed, and you bit your lip.

"Huh. That's too bad. That gun could've cleared my brother's name."

"I don't mind," you muttered under your breath, but Hazel stepped closer, dashing your hopes.

"Well, today's your lucky day, Amigo." He pulled two guns out of his belt. "Take 'em both. I'm done with this life. And hey, kid?"

"Woman," you corrected, fighting off the impending headache.

"Right - woman," he said with a small smile. "I'm sorry about what I did. That was mostly Cha-Cha."

You nodded slowly, shrugging.

"I understand why you had to do it." You said the words mainly so Five would hear them, but you still meant it. "It was just your job." You squeezed Five's hand, and he turned to look at you as Hazel left.

"What?" you asked, squirming slightly as he continued to study you.

"I'm just trying to understand how someone could be so perfect," he said with a grin, and you giggled again.

"You really are in a good mood today," you teased, before bringing your hand to your head. "Ok, wow. Is this what it feels like to start to sober up?"

Five laughed, standing up and pulling you to his side. 

"Come on - let's go to your room. The most you can do is try to sleep through this." His hand tightened around your waist, and you leaned into him with a sigh as he led you to your room. When you arrived, he pulled the covers back, allowing you to settle in.

"Five?" you asked when he began to leave, and he turned to face you.

"Hm?"

"Don't leave," you said softly, chewing on your lip. "I hate headaches."

He smiled slowly, tucking his hands in his pockets and walking over to the bed. 

"I guess I could use some rest, too." He settled down on top of the covers so that he wouldn't make you uncomfortable, and you smiled, reaching for his hand as you closed your eyes.

"I'm really glad we get to grow old together, Five," you whispered, and you relaxed as he ran his thumb over the back of your hand.

"Me too," he said quietly as the darkness swept you up. "It's all I've ever wanted."


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