"I spent my years weighted down by a stone heart
Drowning in irony and settling for anything"
THE WONDER YEARS - 'I Just Want To Sell Out My Funeral'

. . .

"What's happening, baby sis?" Tommy slid into the booth, grinning widely at Cali as she rolled her eyes and huffed. She shoved a menu at him. "Aw, is this for me? You're so thoughtful."

Cali swatted him with her own menu, laughing as Tommy cried out in mock pain. He pouted as he rubbed the offended area, but she just raised an eyebrow and deliberately focused back down at her menu.

"I'm paying," she said lightly. "Just so you know."

Tommy's cheeky grin returned in full force, and he leaned forward slightly. "So what's the gossip." Cali just blinked at her menu. Tommy didn't give up. He poked her face. "C'mon," he whined. "You never shout me lunch unless you have something to tell me."

Cali groaned playfully, setting aside her menu and staring at her brother. Her caramel eyes were light and happy, and something in Tommy's smile became softer and more sincere.

He hadn't seen his sister this genuinely happy for too long. It made something warm bloom in his chest as her lips quirked into an excited smile.

"I got promoted at the library!" She squealed finally, and Tommy cheered with her.

"Congratulations bub!" He let out an overjoyed laugh as she launched herself over the table to wrap him in a tight hug. Her entire body was shaking. He held her tight enough that his muscles actually strained a little. "I'm so proud of you!"

Cali drew back, already babbling about what it meant now that she was Head of the Library and how the others were really supportive and she suddenly had so much work to do! Tommy didn't pay much attention to what she was actually saying, because he had absolutely no idea what the Head of the Library was, but he was happy to listen to his baby sister be happy.

She's been through too much. She deserved to be happy. If Tommy could help with that, he would. She was his sister, his family. He loved her with all of his heart. She loved him in return.

They only had each other after all.

Sometime during Cali's ranting, a waitress had taken their order and their food had arrived. Cali paused her tale only to take a few bites and a quick drink before she was back to telling Tommy about this girl named Martha who was apparently a right bitch. Tommy made a mental note to investigate the sudden removal of this woman from the library.

"Oh Tommy," Cali sighed, finally calming down. She rested her head on her hand, staring at Tommy with a tired but blindingly happy smile. "It's a dream come true."

Tommy reached out and grabbed her free hand, his lips aching from his wide grin. "I'm proud of you," he said sincerely. "And I'm sure Mom and Oliver would be too."

Some of the light faded from Cali's face. Her grip on Tommy's hand got a little bit tighter. She let out a heavy breath and closed her eyes for a moment, and Tommy let her be about it because the loss of Oliver and their mother had broken something vital in Cali's heart, and Tommy had never been able to fix it.

"I miss them," Cali said in a small voice, opening her eyes. "I mean, Mom died so long ago but Ollie..."

Tommy swallowed thickly. "Yeah," he said hoarsely. "Yeah, Ollie's death hurt in a different way. I mean, we were so young when Mom...But Oliver was our friend. I miss him more than I could possibly say."

Cali squeezed his hand. Her eyes glittered with unshed tears. Tommy blinked rapidly, hoping to prevent himself from crying. He was Tommy Merlyn. The media would have a field day if they found him crying with his sister in some restaurant.

He tugged on Cali's hand. "Come on. We're gonna go get some ice-cream."

Cali laughed, the sound sharp and sudden. "Yeah," she said, sniffing slightly and gathering herself. "Yeah, that sounds fantastic. I paid for lunch, so you've got the ice-cream."

Tommy winked at her. "I don't know bub, ice-cream could break the bank. Maybe we shouldn't, I mean, we need the money."

Cali hit him. "Thomas Merlyn, you are going to  buy me a double scoop of chocolate fudge ice-cream or I will make sure the police never find your body."

Tommy saluted her. "Yes ma'am."

. . .

Cali hummed in delight as she crammed another spoonful of ice-cream into her mouth. Tommy walked beside her, focused on his own cool dessert. Cali eyed him. "I don't know how you can eat that and enjoy it," she said, nose scrunched up in distaste.

Tommy frowned down at his mint and strawberry ice-cream. "It tastes amazing!" He said defensively. "You just don't appreciate good food."

"Tommy, it's disgusting."

"Well...you're disgusting."

"Take that back!"

"Take back what you said about my ice-cream!"

Cali shook her head and devoured another bite of her superior dessert. "You're no brother of mine," she said, mock angry. Tommy spluttered beside her, stumbling over excuses and insults and some sort of offended noise that sounded like he was choking on something. His dignity probably.

A cell phone ringing interrupted the playful moment, and Tommy shot Cali an apologetic look as he pulled his mobile out. "It's Thea," he explained, answering the call and holding the phone to his ear. "Hello your majesty! How may I be of service-"

His face went slack.

Cali immediately reached for him, abandoning her ice-cream in the nearest bin. "Tommy?" She touched his arm, and he jerked, but he never responded to her. "Hey, Tommy, what's wrong? Is Thea okay?"

Tommy swallowed. "Yeah, Thea. We'll be there as soon as we can. Yeah. Alright, thanks for letting me know. I, uh, I guess we'll see. Bye."

He hung up, turning his blank stare on his sister. Cali shook him lightly. "What is happening?!"

"Cali." Her name was a whisper, Tommy's eyes wide and stunned and pained. "Cali, bub, we have to get to Starling Hospital, okay? I'm going to call for a ride."

Cali didn't let him go. "Tommy, tell me what's going on. Why are we going to the hospital? Is Thea okay?"

"Thea's fine, sis."

"Then why are we going to the hospital?"

Tommy looked down, jaw clenching and unclenching. His voice was cracked and fragile when he said, "They found Oliver. He's alive."

Cali reared back, her hand immediately going to cover her mouth as she let out a cry of surprise. Tommy stared down at the ground, hand tightening around the cup of ice-cream. Oliver Queen, Starling City's beloved playboy, had returned. He'd come back. Tommy's best friend was back.

Oliver Queen had returned to them, and Tommy was almost afraid of what that meant.

. . .

"I can't believe they didn't let us see him," Tommy fumed, pacing back and forth. His hand fidgeted with his tie, simply for something to do. Cali watched him, emotions caught in a tumultuous hurricane of shock and horror and numb.

Oliver was back. Oliver had survived. Oliver didn't know about Michael. She couldn't tell him about what happened during the five years he was gone. He couldn't know.

She didn't know what to say to him at all.

"Tommy," she said haltingly, rising to her feet and grabbing at her brother's shoulders. Tommy immediately gripped her in a hug.

"He's alive, bub," he whispered into her hair. "My best friend is alive and I have no idea how I'm going to make it through this dinner."

Cal let out a shaky breath, resting her forehead on her brother's shoulder. "Tommy, I'm worried," she admitted. "I don't know what he's been through, I don't know if he's our Oliver. He could've been through anything. It's been five years."

Tommy hummed, swaying them both slightly. "We'll be okay. Ollie will be okay. Everything's going to be okay."

"I don't want him to know about Michael."

Tommy froze immediately, his breathing stuttering as he tried to process Cali's sudden switch in thought. The more he thought about it himself, the more he realised why she wouldn't want Ollie to know. He could perfectly picture the shame colouring her cheeks, and the way she was breathing too heavily to be considered casual.

His lip curled at the thought of the scumbag who'd torn Cali down. Michael Martin had done horrible things to Calissa Merlyn, and Tommy would gladly punch the asshole if he wasn't already in prison.

He drew back, brushing Cali's hair away from her face. "Hey," he murmured gently. "I won't say anything about it. I'm sure Thea won't either. Besides, Olivers been through enough on his own. I don't see any reason to add to his stress. Now, keep your chin up, alright?" Cali gave him a shaky smile, drawing her shoulders back slightly. Tommy brushed a thumb over her cheek gently. "That's my girl."

"I love you Tommy," she said quietly, reaching out to take off his tie. He looked better without it. Besides, it was only Oliver they were seeing, not their father.

Tommy pressed a kiss to her forehead. "And I love you too, bub. Now come on, we better not be late to this dinner. I think Moira might skin us both if that happens."

Cali giggled and let him hold her hand as he led her out to the waiting car.

. . .

They arrived at the Queen mansion early, which was good, because Cali couldn't make herself get out of the car. Her legs were blocks of ice, and her heart hammered away in her chest. She gripped her purse hard enough that her fingers hurt, and even when Tommy opened her door, she couldn't bring herself to look away from the headrest of the driver's seat.

"Hey bub," Tommy said lowly. "You're alright. This is going to be hard, but I'll be right there beside you, okay? Thea will be here as well-"

"Thea's probably too high to really care what's happening right in front of her," Cali said viciously, still refusing to look at her brother. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean that."

Tommy sighed, his hand hovering above her carefully styled hair. He didn't let it drop, but Cali felt it's presence and comfort anyway. Oh Tommy - he always knew what she needed to feel okay.

"It's okay to be afraid," Tommy promised. "But Oliver needs you right now. He needs me and Thea and Moira. He needs normal. He's been stranded on an island for five years. He doesn't need to be treated like glass."

Slowly, painfully, Cali tore her gaze away from the seat in front of her and turned to face her brother. "I'm scared that he won't be our Ollie," she admitted shamefully. "Is that wrong? I know I can't expect him to be the same, but I really can't help but hope that it's the same Ollie that got on that boat."

Tommy let his hovering hand settle on her shoulder. "It won't be him. I know it won't be. But he'll still be Oliver Queen and he'll still be our best friend, okay? He's still Oliver."

Cali nodded, breathing out an 'okay' as she reached a hand out for Tommy to grab. Gently, he eased her out of the car and steadied her on her feet as she took several deep breaths. She looped her arm through her brother's and allowed him to walk her up to the front door. One knock was all it took before the giant wooden doors were opening and then Cali had no more chances to run away.

"Welcome Mr. and Ms. Merlyn," Raisa greeted, bowing her head respectfully.

"Raisa," Tommy scolded playfully, an easy smile on his face. "I've told you before. Mr. Merlyn is my father. Please. Just call me Tommy."

"And you know that I'm just Cali," Cali chimed in, smiling at the maid. Raisa had been a solid support for her throughout the five years after Oliver's disappearance, from dealing with the grief of losing a friend to the grief of dating to the wrong person. Raisa had been the one to call the police on Michael when he'd gone too far and Thea had gotten hurt.

Cali shivered. Tonight was not a night to think about that man. Tonight was a night to celebrate that Oliver had returned to them, that Oliver was alive.

"Where's the man of the hour?" Tommy asked brightly, and Raisa gave him a knowing yet sad look.

She nodded her head at the stairs. "In his room, preparing for dinner." She paused and lowered her voice. "Please, go gently. There are ghosts in his eyes. I fear that Mr. Queen has seen too much during his time away. His hands shake when he thinks nobody is looking."

Tommy thanked her, his mood sombering slightly. Cali kept her tight grip on his arm, even as she offered Raisa a warm kiss on the cheek. "I trust you to keep an eye on him when we aren't here," she whispered to the maid. Raisa laughed softly.

"Of course."

The two Merlyn siblings moved further into the house, silently agreeing not to invade Oliver's space. The man had been by himself for five years. It wouldn't do well to crowd him suddenly and take away one of the only safe spaces he had left in a house that had grown to be unfamiliar to him. Instead, they greeted the rest of the Queen family.

"It's nice to see you both," Moira said, hugging them both gently. Cali gripped back onto Tommy's arm as soon as she could, offering Moira a tight smile. "Oliver seemed relieved to know that he would see you both tonight."

"How is he?" Tommy asked.

Moira sighed and shared a glance with Walter. "It will be hard for him," Moira admitted. "He's missed a lot, and everything that was once familiar is now foreign. He's come home to another island, and I worry that he will be swept back out to sea."

Cali shook her head. "We won't let him go this time."

Walter gave her a soft look. "That may not be up to you, I'm afraid. Oliver just needs time."

Cali raised her chin. Walter didn't understand. Oliver wouldn't drift away from them again because Cali wouldn't let him. She would hold onto him, no matter what, because she'd let him go once and then she'd spent five years struggling not to follow him into the abyss of the ocean.

They'd just gotten Ollie back - she wouldn't lose him again. She couldn't.

Not again.