Diego (gravitated) wrote in shadows_rpg, @ 2020-06-17 10:44:00 |
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Entry tags: | #group scene, #january 2018, diego, haisley, oliver |
Who: Haisley, Diego and Oliver
When: Saturday, later afternoon, January 27th
Where: Home, the beach
Status: complete
As promised, Haisley stayed with Diego and Oliver for a couple of days. While she was still a little wary of the situation, she had enjoyed having a roof over her head and non-creepy company. Oliver worked during the days but Diego was a lot of fun, showing Haisley how he made things float and how he could manipulate gravity. It was so strange being around someone who could do the things Diego could do… someone who had been through what she had.
At night when they ate dinner, Haisley liked watching Diego and Oliver interact with each other. She could tell they had probably been together for a really long time. They were nice to each other, always touching and smiling. Haisley supposed she ought to be more cynical about it, because she hadn’t come across a lot of nice people during her short life, but she tended to follow her gut about people… and Diego and Oliver were good people. She felt safe there, and by Saturday she was starting to worry they would ask her to leave soon. A couple of days was a couple of days, after all. Haisley still had her back pack full and ready for when she did have to leave and she was constantly trying to work out her next steps. Did she leave Point Pleasant and go north to Canada? Or maybe somewhere south where it would be warmer. She wasn’t sure yet but she didn’t really want to think about it until she had to.
It was a pretty nice day outside, warmer than the rest of the week had been and Oliver had cracked a couple of windows in the small trailer. The air was still brisk but it felt like heaven compared to the lower temperatures, especially with the sun pouring through the living room windows.
Haisley didn’t want to leave but she was also feeling a bit of cabin fever being in the trailer for the past couple of days. “It’s nice out,” she said from where she was lounging on the couch, staring out the front window as people drove or walked by. “Is the harbor very far from here? I’ve never seen the ocean. Might be kind of cool to go check it out?” She would go alone, of course, but obviously it’d be nicer if they went with her.
Diego had enjoyed having Haisley as their guest. Other people came into their lives so infrequently and briefly, having an extended houseguest had been an adjustment at first, but he felt like they’d all adapted pretty quickly. It had only been a couple of days, sure, but for them that was a long time to have someone else in their space. So far Haisley hadn’t been any trouble, quite the opposite really, and he thought Oliver was relaxing into the situation as well. At least as far as having Haisley around was concerned. He’d been skittish about having sex with her in the house, something Diego found amusing and frustrating already.
In any case, Haisley was fascinating to Diego, and they’d compared plenty of notes about their experiences in their separate Facilities. He hadn’t yet told her that Oliver had worked for AIR, and she hadn’t asked him to detail his escape, so there was no need yet. He wanted her to trust them first. She seemed interested in him and his powers, and he had to admit it was kind of fun to show off what he could do to someone. That was usually off limits when it came to anyone who wasn’t Oliver. They’d talked about offering to let Haisley stay with them longer if she wanted, but it hadn’t been the right time to do so yet. Oliver was hesitant, but Diego was all in. This was meant to be, in his opinion.
He was standing at the sink doing the lunch dishes when the girl spoke up. Diego glanced over at her and then at Oliver, grinning brightly. “No, it’s not far,” he told Haisley, feeling a strange sort of joy bubbling up in his chest. He hadn’t even thought that she might not have seen the ocean in her life. Much like himself when he’d gotten free. “If you have never seen the ocean ... we should go, shouldn’t we, Oliver?”
For being a teenage girl, Haisley was pretty low maintenance. Oliver figured that was because she spent most of her life in an AIR facility but it certainly made the living situation more tolerable. Of course, the walls in the house were thin and Oliver figured if he could hear Haisley getting a drink of water in the middle of the night, she could probably hear he and Diego when they... fooled around. So he had been pretty hesitant to do anything that might tip her off to the activities going on in their bedroom. It was difficult, of course. His sex life with Diego had always been pretty active, so this was new for the both of them.
While Diego was washing the dishes, Oliver was sitting at the table already budgeting the month for bills and groceries. The suggestion to go to the harbor prompted him to look up from the notepad he was writing on and he blinked once at Diego before glancing at Haisley. She was looking back at him with excited, hopeful eyes, something he recognized from years of traveling with Diego. "Yeah, of course we should go," he said finally, because he wasn't going to say no, especially if Haisley had never seen the ocean. "Um... now?"
Haisley smiled as soon as Oliver agreed and she nodded, not really wanting to make that choice for them but now was better than later, in her opinion. "Definitely now, while it's still sunny. I mean, if that's okay? Who knows if the weather will suddenly suck again."
Diego was already drying his hands off, and he grinned at Haisley’s answer. He shook the towel out and re-hung it before he clapped his hands together. “Hell yes, let’s do it,” he said with enthusiasm, beaming at both of them. Oliver looked less than thrilled about it, since he’d been in the middle of something, but he would get over it. He almost offered to take Haisley by himself if Oliver didn’t want to go, but he honestly wanted Oliver there with them. He’d been there when Diego had seen the sea for the first time, and that sort of wonder and joy was contagious. Oliver should get to bask in it too. It would do them all some good. “I’m just gonna change my pants.” Diego strode off toward the hallway and their bedroom.
Oliver watched Diego go and then stood to get his shoes on. He had been working so he hadn't as much time to spend with Haisley as Diego had. He felt a bit awkward being alone with her but if they planned on asking her to stay longer, he supposed he should probably get used to the situation sooner than later. "The harbor is really pretty," he told her as he grabbed his shoes by the door to slip them onto his feet. "There's a beach here too but it's pretty small and I was told the water is still too cold to swim in, even in the summer. Thankfully we're not too far from some of the bigger beaches, so maybe when it gets warmer we can all take a day and drive to one."
Haisley was tying her own shoes when Oliver spoke and she glanced up at him, wondering if he knew that offering such a thing meant she would still be there when the weather got warmer. Maybe she would be. Maybe not. But she definitely wanted to see the ocean. And she definitely wanted to go to a beach with a lot of sand, preferably where she could swim. "That would be cool," she said, trying not to sound too eager. "I kind of remember that we lived near Lake Michigan when I was little, but we never actually went there." She liked Oliver just fine and she didn't feel too awkward sitting there with him while Diego changed. He was really cute and nice to look at, but Haisley got the feeling they were both trying to figure each other out. It was easier when Diego was in the room with them.
It would be chillier by the water -- why did they keep living in such cold places? It made Diego miss California -- so he was pulling on another long-sleeve shirt as Diego emerged from the bedroom. Catching the tail end of what Haisley was saying to Oliver, he smiled. “We used to go to Lake Michigan all the time when we lived outside of Chicago,” he chimed in. Diego snagged up his shoes from their spot by the door and plunked his ass on the floor to put them on. “It was beautiful. And it looks like a sea, it’s so big. But it’s nothing like the real ocean. You will love it.” He beamed briefly at Haisley, tying laces, then bounced back up once he was done. Diego slipped into his jacket. “I was born by the ocean, but I was taken away so young, I did not see it again until I was a little older than you.”
Oliver sometimes wondered why they kept moving to colder climates too, but safety was more important than nicer temperatures. Although... maybe he was thinking about checking out Charleston or Atlanta when they eventually left Point Pleasant. With his shoes tied, he joined Diego by the door and slipped on his own coat before digging around in the small basket on the shelf by the front door. He had tossed a few winter-based items in there and he found a wool hat to offer to Haisley. "It's nice outside, but it's going to be chilly by the water," he explained. She took it from him with a small smile and slipped it on over her head, covering her ears.
"I only remember my crappy neighborhood and the crappy apartment I was in until... I wasn't anymore. My mom never took me anywhere... I mean, there was school, I guess. What ocean did you get to see first?" she asked Diego. "I mean... where did you go?"
A noise very nearly escaped Diego’s throat at how cute that hat looked on Haisley, but he managed to swallow it back. He’d had that feeling a couple of times since she’d shown up, like she was a kitten he was dying to pick up and snuggle. Diego knew nothing about humans was that simple, of course, but he was finding moments of delight having her around, and he kind of liked it. He hoped she would want to stay. At least for a while. “We drove to California from Arizona, to San Diego,” he answered with a nostalgic smile. That had been one of the most beautiful moments in his life, and he remembered every detail of it. “That’s southern Cali, the Pacific ocean, warm all the time.” Diego gave a wistful hum as he opened the door to lead them out. “We stayed ... what, eight, nine months there?” he asked Oliver.
"Just about," Oliver said with a nod. He had really enjoyed San Diego. The weather, the people, the food. They hadn't been back since leaving over a decade ago... but he still yearned to return every now and then. Especially when they were living somewhere with cooler temperatures. More than anything Oliver wanted to take Diego south, to where he had been raised before the facility stole him from his family. But the fear that they would be waiting there for them still terrified him.
Haisley followed the two men, trying to imagine what Diego had described. She was picturing sandy beaches and palm trees and well dressed people. That's what she had seen on the television when she had been good enough to receive tv time. She couldn't remember the name of the show, but there had been a lot of attractive teenagers with awesome cars and big houses who had a lot of sex and parties with bonfires. To her, that was California. "It sounds awesome. I guess if I had been thinking about it, I should have gone west, right? But I sort of started running and hitchhiking and... ended up here. Which hasn't been so bad," she added with a grin, just so they knew she didn't regret it. "Do you think you'll ever go back there?"
They had been traveling for a long time, dipping in and out of cities and rural areas both, so Diego felt like he knew what most of the country was like now, and he really missed California too. But he knew why they had to stay on the road and protect themselves. Diego wasn’t sure they’d ever be comfortable enough to just settle in somewhere for good, but maybe they could ‘retire’ somewhere out of the country, out of AIR’s reach. But that was a ways in the future. “Here’s not so bad,” Diego agreed, shooting Haisley a smile in return. “And we hope to, someday. We have cross-crissed so many times.” He chuckled as he opened up the car door and plunked himself into the passenger seat. The weather was nice, especially for January, and he was glad they were taking advantage of it.
Haisley climbed into the back seat, zipping her coat up to her chin. She thought about jumping all over the country, seeing new places and meeting new people. She knew some basic geography but thorough education hadn't really been on the facility's high list of priorities. A part of her felt stupid about that, because what if she said something dumb, or didn't know the answer to a simple question? She supposed that was something to worry about when she actually needed to worry about it.
Oliver got into the car as well and started up the engine before glancing back at her with a small smile. "Seat belt," he said before nudging Diego with his elbow. "You too. The weather is nice and the snow is melting but there may still be some slick spots." Haisley didn't protest but buckled herself in, adjusting the strap against her chest. Her heart was beating so fast and Haisley knew it was a combination of excitement and also mild trepidation. She trusted Diego and Oliver. She did. But it was hard to brush off the lingering, nagging worry that they weren't taking her to the ocean, but to them. Her palms felt a bit sweaty at the thought, but again... she would worry about it if she had to worry about it. "Did they teach you anything at the facility?" she asked Diego abruptly, just to get her mind off of treacherous behavior. "Like... math and shit?"
Diego buckled up absently, then rested his hand on Oliver’s thigh as they got going. He twisted enough to glance back at Haisley with a smile and shook his head a bit. “Not a lot,” he said. “They taught me enough English to get by, some very basic math, and they gave me books to read if I asked for them. But no one tutored me in much. Oliver can tell you, I was so lost with so many things.” He chuckled, glancing fondly at his lover’s profile. Diego wouldn’t have survived without him, he was sure of that now. “Especially money, it took a long time to make sense. ... are there things you want to learn? We can help you.” There were surely things she needed to learn, but Diego didn’t want to insult her intelligence, especially since she’d been making it on her own for a little while. He almost added that they could teach her Spanish, but that was a pretty big undertaking, and they did sometimes enjoy the privacy of speaking only to each other.
It did make her feel a bit better that Diego hadn't seemed much better off than she had been when escaping the facility. "That's kind of what they did with me. Uh, not teaching me English, but like... math. Some geography and stuff like that. I don't know what I want to learn yet, 'cause I don't know what I need to know? Does that make sense?" Haisley huffed a laugh and looked out the window, because it was still kind of embarrassing to admit she was basically stupid. Kids her age now were graduating high school, weren't they?
Oliver curled his hand around Diego's, content with letting the two chat some more as he drove them towards the pier. Well aware that "helping" Haisley meant she would be staying much longer, Oliver glanced up at Haisley in the rearview mirror again. "We can help you," he said, echoing Diego's words. "It might take a while to get used to having a routine and need to know some basic stuff, but we're going to be here for a bit too, so... if you want to stay longer, you can." Oliver knew that they probably needed to sit down and have a more in depth conversation about it. Making sure there were some rules in place and all of that, because taking on Haisley meant exposing themselves a bit more, and it was definitely risky. But Oliver knew Diego needed this, and he wasn't usually one to deny Diego much of anything.
Haisley's hands were clutched together between her knees and she felt a surge of excitement when Oliver offered to let her stay longer. She didn't know how long, but longer was longer and that meant she wouldn't have to head out and find a new place to stay anytime soon, right? "I kind of feel like I'd just be in your way," she said lamely, wanting to make sure they had an out if they wanted one. Maybe they were just offering to be nice but they were hoping she would say no.
Diego had planned to make the offer to Haisley, but he'd been saving it for the marina’s lovely environment to make it a Moment, and his brow flexed as he glanced at Oliver. Oh well, it was probably more reassuring coming from him anyway, since he was the more practical one. Diego didn’t want to think of him as odd man out, but he hadn’t been through what they’d been through. Diego was mostly focused on watching Haisley’s face though, and he thought he saw a positive reaction there. He beamed at her, his fingers squeezing Oliver’s. “Nonsense, we can fix up the guest room,” he said to Haisley. “We can help you get adjusted. It can be overwhelming and frightening, and we don’t want you to be alone through all of that.” She was so young, and looked so tiny and breakable, Diego wanted to just hug her and carry her around on his shoulders and take care of her. It hadn’t been long at all yet, and there was still the possibility this would turn awful somehow, but he had to follow his gut. He was just glad Oliver was also on board, however cautiously.
If Oliver had known Diego planned on making the offer a bigger Thing, he would have held off saying anything. But he wanted her to have time to think about it, and he wanted to show Diego he was behind the idea too. Frankly, Oliver knew he was the odd man out. He had been on the other side of things, though he knew Diego hadn't told Haisley about that yet. Diego had someone who he could truly bond with now. Oliver wasn't really jealous about that, not in the way he would be had it been an older, attractive man... but he still felt like he might find himself on the outside of a lot of conversations. Maybe Diego just needed someone to depend on him the way he had depended on Oliver. Maybe Oliver was overanalzying this way too much and he just needed to relax a little.
Haisley was also of the same thought that this could end up being terrible, but... maybe fate was a real thing? Because what had really drawn her to this town besides the name? Why had that truck driver dumped her off at Seaview? Why had she chosen that one particular house across the street from Diego and Oliver? What were the odds of any of that happening? It was well beyond her comprehension. All she knew was they were nice and offering her a room and offering to help and Diego was like her. "I won't be any trouble," she promised. "You already know I don't need to eat a lot. And I don't have a lot of clothes to wash and I can help clean and stuff." Haisley grinned at Diego. "You guys are like... how are you this nice? It's weird."
It was sad and endearing all at once how Haisley sounded like she was trying to talk them into agreeing to the offer they’d already made her. Diego understood the impulse -- he’d often felt unworthy of Oliver’s help in those early days. Their situation was a bit different, of course, being lovers, but when you’d been nothing but an experiment to everyone around you for so long, self worth was hard to come by. Still twisted around to look at her, Diego offered Haisley a gentle smile. “We have been where you are, but we had each other and it made all the difference,” he said. “Nobody should have to go through it alone.” It never should have happened in the first place, but that was a bigger problem than they could solve, and he wanted to make a difference any way he could, now that the opportunity had presented itself. He squeezed Oliver’s fingers and faced forward again so he wasn’t putting her so much on the spot. He knew sentiments like that could be awkward when you weren’t used to positivity aimed your way. “Besides, Oliver works too much, I need another partner in crime,” he added lightly.
Haisley didn't know much about self-worth. Her mom had given her away when she was eight and then she had just been a test subject until recently. She had been punished for bad behavior and rewarded for being cooperative. To her, trying to keep Diego and Oliver happy meant she could stay with them. It didn't seem like they were asking much from her, but that didn't mean she couldn't be helpful where she could. Haisley grinned at Diego, even as he turned to face forward again. "I could be a good partner in crime, I think," she said.
Oliver chuckled, squeezing Diego's fingers in return. "Don't encourage him," he told Haisley. "To be honest, I was hoping you would keep an eye on him for me. Diego likes to get into trouble. I need you to make sure he keeps his feet on the ground... literally, even."
Diego gave a warm laugh. “I don’t like trouble, trouble likes me,” he said, his tone a little flirty as he gazed over at Oliver. He didn’t get into as much mischief as he had as a younger man, but sometimes he did still get entangled in situations with people. What was that saying? Idle hands did the devil’s work? But now he would have someone else for company while Oliver was working, so maybe that would help calm his usual restless curiosity. Diego tended to make friends wherever they went -- usually maintenance men and landscapers, whoever hung out at the local watering holes -- but he’d never found a friend like Haisley before. They had an unprecedented amount of things to bond over, and now that she’d accepted their offer to stay with them longer, he was feeling pretty damn optimistic about the near future.
Wasn't that the truth. Oliver smiled and brought Diego's fingers up to his lips to kiss quickly. He knew Diego had never purposely courted trouble. It had taken a while for them to get used to their situation and they had always been able to handle whatever happened. Their life together felt natural now and Diego could control himself much better than he'd been able to at seventeen. Oliver wasn't worried about that. And it didn't seem like Haisley's ability was something that would draw a lot of attention if she lost control of it herself... or if it was even something she could lose control of. They still had a lot to learn about her.
Haisley was watching out the window now. It was daytime and she was able to get a better look at Point Pleasant. It seemed... normal. Quiet, even. "I don't even know if you can get into trouble in a place like this?" Haisley's lips twitched. "It's like... the perfect place to hide from them, you know?"
Point Pleasant did look quaint and idyllic on the surface, but they’d been in towns like that before and found that there was always a seedy underbelly. It was the same everywhere. Oliver got to see more of it first-hand working in hospitals, especially with psych patients, but Diego had seen some crazy shit himself. “It’s been good to us so far,” he told Haisley, his own eyes on the town passing them by as Oliver drove. “Let’s just hope it stays that way for a while.” He wasn’t eager to pick up and move again anytime soon. Before too long they had arrived at the little parking area near the beach, and Diego eagerly hopped out of the car and gave a stretch. It was a good day to be out walking, and there were a few other cars scattered around, but the place didn’t seem to be crowded.
Haisley was eager too and she followed Diego out of the car, immediately breathing in the salty air. It was wonderful. She knew exactly where to go, but she waited for Oliver and Diego, not wanting to run off. Oliver slipped his hand into Diego's and she followed them down the wood walkway toward the beach. She could hear some kids in the distance and a couple jogged by. It was like it wasn't winter all of the sudden. But she supposed this kind of weather felt like spring in the middle of January. The end of January? As soon as Haisley got a better look at the ocean she shoved her hands into her pockets. It was really stupid of her but after spending almost ten years in a tiny white room, only being allowed outside for twenty minutes at a time, surrounded by trees and darkness... Haisley burst into tears. Yes, she had seen other towns and cities while she was moving across the country, but this was different. It felt like freedom.
Oliver heard the sob and he frowned when he saw Haisley crying. His concerned gaze shifted to Diego's because he wasn't sure if they should say something or leave her be. He knew how Diego had reacted to seeing the ocean for the first time, but that had been of joy. He wasn't entirely sure how to handle this.
Diego was excited for Haisley as they led the way down the wooden path, hand in hand. He had at least gotten the privilege of seeing the ocean as a child, before he’d been taken, so he had that memory to cling to. It was going to be amazing for her to see it for the very first time. He looked around at her just as Oliver did, then briefly met his man’s gaze. Diego didn’t know her well enough to know if that sob was joy or sorrow or some crazy mixture of both, but it came straight from her gut, he could tell. Diego touched his chest, his heart going out to her and his expression turning sympathetic. He let go of Oliver’s hand to back up a pace or two and lightly rest a hand on Haisley’s shoulder. It wasn’t as invasive as a hug, but he wanted her to know he was there for her, as much as a near-stranger could be. She certainly didn’t feel like a stranger anymore. Diego knew there probably weren’t any words for what she was feeling, so he didn’t try to inject any.
Haisley tensed briefly at Diego's hand on her shoulder but she relaxed once she was sure he wasn't going to drag her back to the car or berate her. Of course he wasn't. He didn't belong to Them. "Sorry," she muttered, bringing her hands up to wipe impatiently at her eyes. "I just... I don't want to go back. If they find me they'll take me back." And then she wouldn't be able to ever walk to the ocean again, or see anything else like it. It just felt like a useless sort of existence to her.
"We'll do our best to make sure they don't find you," Oliver said. "Diego and me... we've been together well over a decade. There's been a lot of travel, but they've never found us. We'll keep you safe, Haisley." He knew that was a lot of responsibility to take on, but he felt good about this town. It felt safe here, despite some of the oddities.
Diego was glad that Oliver spoke up before him, because there was a hard lump in his throat and he needed a second to swallow it down. He knew that fear very intimately, and it filled a part of him with rage that someone else was feeling it too. He’d been through bouts of intense anger on behalf of the people who were still locked up in those facilities, victim to AIR’s tortuous ‘science,’ but this was the first time he’d actually been able to look one of them in the eyes. Haisley had gotten away, and she was never going back. “We’ll protect you,” he echoed, his voice firm and serious. “We’ve made it this long and this far, and they’re not taking either one of us back.” He would die first, but he didn’t spit that out at the moment. Diego gave Haisley’s shoulder a squeeze, wishing he could just grab both of them and hug them hard, then let her go. “Come though, let’s get a better look, yes?” He smiled faintly and gestured toward the ocean. They were barely there, she needed to see it up close.
Haisley's mind ran the same track as Diego's. She would die before going back to that place. Somehow death didn't seem as scary as being dragged back to that room. Being starved for days on end until she complied again. Fuck no. She would run into the water in front of her and drown herself before she let that happen again. Oliver and Diego's words were comforting and while Haisley knew it was probably stupid to believe them right now, she did. She trusted them. Nodding, she lowered her hands and started to walk towards the water. There weren't a lot of waves, but she could see the tide push up against the sand and recede slowly. It was really calming in a way and Haisley knelt down to start untying her shoes. She didn't care if it was still chilly, she just wanted to know what it felt like against her bare feet.
Oliver walked with them, his hand coming to rest against Diego's lower back. "Are you okay?" he whispered, knowing that this probably brought back memories of his own time at the facility, and everything they had gone through after.
Part of Diego wanted to stop Haisley before she put her feet in that water, sure it was icy cold, but he understood the impulse, and he didn’t want to get in her way. She would be all right, as long as they got her warmed up again quickly, and they would. His eyes flickered over to Oliver at the question, but didn’t rest there for long. There was that lump in his throat again. “I don’t know,” he murmured, and it was honest even if it wasn’t very satisfying. “She’s just ... so young and small.” His voice cracked on the last word and Diego crossed his arms over his chest, one hand coming up to cover his mouth for a moment. He didn’t want to cry right then. He’d been young and small too, when they’d done everything they’d done to him, but somehow it seemed so much worse when it was someone else.
Oliver watched as Haisley peeled off her socks and made a note to stop at the store soon to buy her some new, clean ones. The girl walked towards the water, tentative at sticking her feet in the water, which was probably for the best because it was probably going to be cold as hell. "She's young and small," Oliver agreed. "But she got away, just like you did. She made it all the way here from Michigan. So she's obviously very strong too. And you found her." Oliver reached up to brush his fingers against the nape of Diego's neck, massaging gently. "We'll take care of her and keep her safe. She'll be all right, mi amor. I promise."
She looked even more young and small against the backdrop of the mighty ocean, and it made Diego’s heart hurt. What Oliver said was true though -- Haisley had survived so much on her own already, she had to be strong. That didn’t mean she was invincible and didn’t need someone to worry about her though, and he was already stepping into that role, he supposed. They both were. Diego definitely hadn’t expected for them to semi-adopt a teenage girl their first couple of weeks in Point Pleasant, but life was unpredictable. “I know,” he said softly to Oliver, giving him a wan smile and leaning against him briefly. He was grateful for the comfort, both physical and verbal. “I just ... want to crush every AIR facility into dust,” he muttered, his tone getting darker as he watched Haisley sample the ocean.
"I know you do." Oliver lowered his hand and watched with some amusement as Haisley quickly moved back from the water after letting the tide brush up against her feet. That water was definitely cold. But it felt nice standing there, listening to the ocean, even with the cooler breeze. "And maybe we can't do that, but we can help her. Keep her safe, right? It may seem small, but it's still a way to say fuck you to the facility." He glanced at Diego, a faint smile on his lips. "It won't be easy, you know that, right? She has a lot to learn and some days may be more difficult than others."
Diego nodded a bit. It didn’t seem like a small thing to him, saving a life, but he knew what Oliver meant. They could keep her safe, and hopefully help her work through the long journey she had ahead of her. It was a mindfuck, to be treated as an object, just a guinea pig to run experiments on, denied an education and socialization and any normal life. Diego knew Haisley would struggle, because God knew that he had. “Of course I know,” he told Oliver, but the words were easy and soft. “Many days were not easy for us, either. But we weathered them with love, and we will do the same for her.” He tore his eyes away from the girl and looked at his man for a moment, a warmer smile crossing his face before he leaned in to press a kiss to Oliver’s cheek. “This makes two lives you have saved, my love. My hero,” he murmured, meaning it sincerely.
Oliver knew he would do his best to weather the days ahead with patience and understanding. It had been different with Diego, because he had already loved him. For all intents and purposes, Haisley was still a stranger to him. They didn't have the same circumstance to bond over the way she did with Diego. That didn't mean Oliver didn't care. But he had a feeling taking care of a teenage girl wouldn't come as easily to them as it had taking care of each other. Oliver shook his head and reached for Diego's hand. "No, it wasn't me, Diego. You're the one who saved her. And we're both responsible for her now, at least for as long as she wants to stay with us." Oliver couldn't take credit for Haisley. Diego found her. Diego brought her in and it was Diego who convinced Oliver to let her stay. Oliver knew it was the right thing to do, but at the end of the day, Diego was the hero, not him.
Haisley turned back to Diego and Oliver before reaching down to try and put her socks on without falling over. "That water is fucking cold. But I like the smell of it. Can we check out some of the town? I mean, we don't have to go in anywhere, but I kind of want to see where everything is."
“If it weren’t for you, I wouldn't have been there to save her,” Diego pointed out as he linked their fingers together. He may have been the one who had opened the door to the girl, but he was only in the right place at the right time because of Oliver. He’d done the right thing all those years ago, and Diego felt ready to pass that right thing along. Haisley interrupted any further ‘no you’re the best’ bickering they might have gotten into, and Diego flashed her a bright smile. He knew it wasn’t going to be an easy road, and that he knew next to nothing about teenage girls, but Diego was pretty accustomed to diving headfirst into life situations he knew nothing about. He’d been doing it for years. Oliver had always helped him, so now they would all three help each other. “Of course,” he said, glancing over at his man. “We can take a little driving tour, can’t we, love?”
Oliver would have protested but then Haisley was back with them and it wouldn't be polite to talk about her like she wasn't there. So he smiled and nodded. "It's not a large town so it shouldn't take us too long. But it'll be good for you to know where everything is." He was going to try hard not to insist she stay at the house at all times. She wasn't a prisoner and he wanted her to know she had the freedom to roam. But hopefully Diego would go with her, at least until she made some friends her own age. "Let's go see what there is to find." There were a few places he had yet to go, so he was more than happy to explore with Diego and Haisley. Things seemed decided now... and a bit more permanently. It was time to start adjusting.