Chapter Text
If the world could just open a portal and swallow him whole, it would be less painful than the fucking situation he was now in. He grasped at the door to Stolas’s apartment, clinging to it like a life vest, as Octavia beamed up at him, expectantly awaiting his response to her greeting. Instead, he dared to glance up at the woman he had only heard about in Stolas’s tales but unexpectedly was now face to face with.
And, yeah, she looked exactly how he had pictured her.
She was a couple of inches taller than him in her high heels, her sleek figure adorning a long brown fur coat and white gloves that went up to her elbows. Christ, where had she been? A fucking ball?
Their eyes finally met, and she glared at him, piercing blue orbs into his soul. She flicked a strand of curled blonde hair off her shoulder, sniffing in disgust at the sight of him.
“Ah, we finally meet,” she spoke, her accent even more pretentious than Stolas’s. “I was beginning to suspect all these gym sessions were a rouse.”
“See? I told you he exists, Mum!” Octavia chimed in, her similarly curled hair bouncing up and down. Her appearance was a world away from the last time Blitz saw her in comfy pajamas and disheveled hair, like any ten-year-old. Now, she was wearing a matching version of her mother’s coat, buttoned up tight like a straitjacket. It was a miracle she could breathe. Her patented black shoes glistened in the light of the corridor lights.
“Well, do you speak?” Stella asked him aggressively, making him realize he’d been clutching the door frame this whole time, stiff as a board.
Shit, Stolas! He had said they weren’t supposed to return home until later that day. Fucking happy surprise indeed. He needed to stall them from going inside to give Stolas a chance to hide the evidence of their night together.
“Pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Goetia!” he drawled, hoping the volume of his voice would carry through the apartment door and alert Stolas to who was outside.
“Oh please, call me Stella.” She offered him her hand.
Fuck, just play along.
He took it, resisting the urge to punch her in the face for all the shit she’d put Stolas through, and shook it politely.
“Were you just leaving?” Stella enquired. “I thought Stolas said he had a session yesterday?”
“Oh, yeah, um…” Shit! Make something up. “No, I was actually just, er…” He glanced down at Octavia. “Going to help Stolas with, er, Octavia’s birthday party!”
Stella eyed him, not convinced. “Help him how? Do you also moonlight as a party planner?”
“Ha! Good one.” He accentuated the laugh, leaning back on the door and thumping it with his foot. God, he was praying Stolas heard him. “No, but Stolas was stressing out about all the things he has to plan, poor guy, so I was gonna offer him some moral support.”
Stella huffed. “Ha, figures. I knew this would be too much for him to handle.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Blitzø agreed halfheartedly. He hated throwing Stolas under the bus like this when he had been nothing but supportive of him, but what else could he say without revealing their big secret?
“Well, it’s getting cold out here, shall we?” Stella gestured to him to move to the side, holding out a key to the apartment. He complied, hoping it had been long enough for Stolas to do what he needed to do and be smart enough to play along in this ridiculous charade.
“Dad!” Octavia crashed through the front door, dropping her little satchel on the floor. “We’re home!”
Within seconds, Stolas appeared from the kitchen, and (thank fucking Satan) he was fully dressed, wearing a burgundy turtleneck jumper and corduroy trousers. He was holding a cup of tea and gave a surprised face when he spotted Octavia running towards him.
“Hello, my little Starfire! What a surprise! I wasn’t expecting you home until much later!” He leaned down to hug her, minding the mug in his hand. When he stood up, his eyes widened again. “Hello, Blitzø! Just in time.”
“Yeah! I, uh, got a bit lost getting here, but it looks like I found the right place!”
“He was standing outside the door like a lost dog,” Stella interjected.
Blitzø grimaced, counting to ten to stop himself from saying something he’d regret.
“Well, it’s nice you two could finally meet.” Stolas smiled warmly, but his smile did not reach his cheeks. “Blitzø is going to help with accruing things for Via’s party as he’s much more internet savvy than me.”
Stella scoffed, looking down on Blitzø. “I‘m sure he is.”
Was…that supposed to be an insult? Who the fuck knew at this point? Everything she said was laced with a hint of disdain.
Bitch.
“Dad, have you managed to get Fizzarolli?” Octavia asked him excitedly. “He’s the best singer of all time, and the other girls would be so jealous if I had him at my party!”
Blitzø restrained himself from rolling his eyes at the ‘best singer of all time’ declaration. (She was a kid; what did she know about real talent?)
“Not yet, dearest,” Stolas stroked her hair. “I was just about to enquire, but I don’t want you getting your hopes up. He may be fully booked next weekend,” he warned her, his tone soft but measured. “I apologize if that’s the case, but I will make it up to you, promise.”
Damn, he’s a good dad.
“You’ve known that’s all she’s wanted for weeks now. Why are you only making calls the week before her party?” Stella asked, ruining the sweet father-daughter moment. Blitzø couldn’t fathom how Stolas has dealt with her shrill voice all these years.
“Sweetie, I‘m sorry your father is such a useless case.” Stella stroked her daughter’s hair, her sickly, sweet voice penetrating a wave of anger through Blitzø’s body.
Oh, this will not fucking STAND!
“He doesn’t need to bother asking because I know Fizzarolli personally!”
Three pairs of eyes turned to look at him, the magnitude of the words he’d just said hitting him like a freight train. Shit. He knew he should’ve kept his big hole shut!
“You… you know him?” Octavia whispered.
“Ye-yeah.” Well fuck, he’s in it now. “We go way back. I knew him before he became super famous.” He dared a glance at Stolas, who looked back at him in shock. “That’s why your dad really needed me! He wanted to keep it a surprise, but oh well!”
He chuckled, gritting his teeth. Fuck, someone needed to say something, or he was gonna combust from how fucking awkward this was.
“No. WAY!” Octavia squealed, removing herself from her parent’s embrace, and grabbed Blitzø’s hands. “Please, please, please, can you call him?! I‘d be the happiest person EVER!”
And, ugh, if that didn’t make him hate running his mouth even more. She was looking up at him, all doe-eyed, completely enamored by her dad’s new friend, who just so happened to know her favorite celebrity. What she didn’t know was he had less of a chance of getting Fizz to her party than Stolas because he hated his fucking guts!
“He will try, Via,” Stolas, thank fuck, chimed in, saving him from having to respond. “But he may still be busy, remember.”
“Okayyyy,” she conceded but still smiled at Blitzø. “You’re the coolest friend my dad’s ever had!”
“Ha, thanks.” He gave her a genuine smile because he was pretty sure he was the only friend her dad had, and that broke his heart a little.
“Via, it’s time for guitar practice.” Stella placed a stiff hand on her shoulder, moving her away from Blitzø’s embrace. “We shall leave your father and his friend to their business.”
“Ughhh, not now!” Octavia groaned.
“Excuse me, I do not want to hear that noise again!” Stella chastised her, pushing on her back and leading her away. The two men remained in place and waited for Octavia’s door to close and the sound of guitar strumming before they spoke.
“Fucccckkkk,” Blitzø exhaled, grabbing a tuft of hair in his hands. “That was a close one.”
“Indeed, it’s a good thing I have acute hearing, or that could’ve been awful.” Stolas let out a deep breath, playing at the jumper around his neck. “And your quick thinking made Stella none the wiser!”
“Yeah, except now your kid is expecting me to get Fizz on personal request to her birthday party!” He groaned, rubbing his eyes.
“Mhm, that was rather…bold of you.”
“Idiotic. The word you’re looking for is idiotic,” he deadpanned. “Look, I don’t wanna disappoint her but-”
“Blitzø, it’s okay,” Stolas interjected. “You don’t need to contact Fizzarolli. I will enquire, and if he is available, I‘ll let Octavia know it was on your doing. If he is not, then yes, she will be upset, but not unexpected. Her mother has her thinking she can have whatever she wants, but that’s not how the real world works.”
“Too fucking right,” Blitzø nodded in agreement. “Well, seeing as we’re still keeping up appearances, do you actually want help with party planning?”
“Oh, you don’t need to stay. I can make an excuse for you to leave early,” Stolas assured him. “You’ve done more than enough.”
But what if I want to stay?
The thought came to him out of nowhere. With the ice bitch and the kid around, there was no chance they’d be getting up to anything salacious, so it surprised him that he felt no desire to do anything better with his time. In fact, he kinda liked the idea of sitting on the couch with him, scrolling the internet for party ideas whilst sipping on a cup of herbal tea.
Christ on a stick, what had this guy done to him?!
“I got nowhere else I need to be.” He shrugged, playing it cool. “If you recall, I was stalling from going home to the ass-kicking I‘ll get from Moxxie.”
Stolas chuckled that cute hoot he did when he found his crass humor amusing, his eyes crinkling at the sides. “Alright, if you’re sure,” Stolas agreed, taking a sip of his tea. “But first, I have a call to make…”