How Green Becomes Wood

"See you tomorrow," Cooger said, holding up one hand to wave goodbye. Then he got back into his car, lingering for a moment, staring up at the house, overcome with excitement and nerves. It had been over a year since his last date, it wasn't something he cared to focus on. And now... He was excited, but nervous, and it wasn't at all like he thought his day was going to go.

Very quickly he pulled out of Lex's driveway and into his family's, letting himself in, wanting to talk with Dark.
 
"With Ivy last I heard, but he might have headed out to the shed by now," Xander told him. "He doesn't take her out there much consider she likes to grab and stuff things in her mouth.
 
"I wouldn't take her to the shed, either, she will end up stabbing someone, I'm certain of it." Cooger replied, scanning the house to try to spot his friend. After a moment he said, "I'm going to go check the nursery for him."
 
"Right, see you." Cooger said with a nod before nearly dashing up the stairs, knocking briefly before opening the door to the nursery, where he found Dark sitting on the floor, trying to brush Ivy's hair and get it out of her face. By no means was it uncommonly long, but for a baby it was on the longer side, so he was attempting to get her to let him put it into pig tails, but every time he went to brush it smooth, she'd take the brush to try to brush her own hair, mess it up, and the more he tried to counteract her, the more she thought it was a silly game. When Cooger stepped in, Dark looked up and said, "I did not know you were stopping by," but only moved slightly to the side so Cooger could sit down with him. Were it anyone else, he'd be annoyed.

"Lex asked me out."

This made Dark blink, "And you accepted?"

"Well, yeah."

"Good," He looked down, "It was about time one of you made a move."

Cooger sat down next to him, "What are you talking about?"

"You have liked her for months."

"No I haven't." Dark turned sharply and looked at him with furrowed brows, but said nothing. Cooger spluttered, "I haven't!"

"Yes you have. And she has liked you." He took up the brush again, once more attempting Ivy's pigtails, but the sight of her uncle made her even more wiggly than before. "Where are you taking her."

"That panini place you forced me to go to." Cooger replied, lifting Ivy into his lap.

Dark sat back, setting the brush aside and looked over at his friend, "I knew you would like it."

"You don't always know what I like."

"Yes I do."

"You're wrong sometimes."

Dark sniffed, "No, I am not."

"You are."

"No." He looked at his friend for a few moments, searching his face, "Why are you worried?"
 
Lex, meanwhile, was not particularly worried as she went about cleaning up her workspace and preparing for her next project. She felt like doing something useful this time. What did she feel like making? She let her mind wander as she ran her hands over some of her collection of metal. A windchime, perhaps? No, not useful enough, even if it was pretty. Shelf brackets? Too easy. Ah, how about a garden trowel? She'd never made one before, and they were useful to either keep or sell, and she could make the handle decorative if she wanted to. Perfect.

It wasn't that she wasn't excited to meet Cooger for an official date tomorrow. She was looking forward to exploring furthering their relationship, but the practical side of her cautioned her to be wary of how excited she allowed herself to be. Cooger was a very good friend, and she wasn't going to let romantic notions ruin that. If it seemed going forward was a good idea, she'd gladly pursue it, but if it seemed like it wasn't the best idea, she was okay with letting it go.
 
"Because of Toby," Cooger answered, standing Ivy up in his lap and helping her to bounce, "I'm glad you and Daizi got this, but I've no interest in being a dad at all. But you can't date someone without dating their family, and she's got a kid."

"Toby is nearly an adult, I am certain he is not seeking out his ideal stepdad." Dark pointed out, "I understand the concern, but certainly she knows you are not interested in being a father, yes?"

"I think she knows," Cooger answered, flipping Ivy upside down and making her squeal, "I'm pretty sure we've talked about it before."

"So she knows, and must be comfortable with the idea of you not doing anything with Toby, since she asked you out."

"Sure..." Cooger murmured, "but it still feels s****y. I don't know how you're supposed to balance that. I like the kid, but I don't feel particularly strongly about him, but he's her kid, so it's pretty important to like him."
 
Lex sat in her garage with the door open, feet propped up on her old-school anvil as she watched a couple of YouTube videos about how to make a garden trowel. She wanted a design with the least amount of wood possible because while wood was nicer to hold than metal, she was not great at working with it. She figured she could probably smooth out a handle well enough, but what shape? So, research time!
 
Dark sighed, squeezing Cooger on the shoulder, "It is just one date, my friend. You like her, she, for some unknown reason, likes you, and likes you enough to be the one to ask you out. Go take the woman you swore you didn't like out to the panini place you swore you would not like, and have a nice time. If it goes further, you can have adult conversations and figure it out."

Cooger grumbled slightly, not finding romance nearly as easy as Dark did, "What if it doesn't work out, though?"

"Then I hope she only blames you and does not decide to egg my house." Dark replied with a teasing grin, "It's one date, if you do not have chemistry, you decide to stay friends. It is not so complicated."

"Why do you overstress everything except for this?"

"Because this is not stressful," Dark shrugged, taking out his phone, "I am texting you what to wear tomorrow."
 
The next morning, Alec was nearly ready to go to work when he got a text. "Huh, that's odd," he said to the room in general, his jacket on one arm but not the other. "Tristan texted both of us that we don't need to go in to work today. He says we're taking an impromptu day off."
 
"Impromptu?" Xander asked with a frown.

"I think it's impromptu. The text actually says 'impartial,' but I'm not sure how to take an impartial day off," Alec said certainly. His phone dinged again. "Oh, that's Katherine - it's a group text - and she seems to just be going with it. Should I ask or let it go?"
 
"You could ask..." Daizi said, considering it, because she was very curious about why it was called off, "but it may feel invasive to him. He probably would have told you if it was something he wanted you to know."

"Ask Katherine privately if it is normal," Dark advised.
 
"Oh, that's a good idea." Alec took his jacket off and hung it up before texting his coworker. After a few moments, she replied. "Oh, it looks like it happens semi-frequently but is sporadic," Alec reported. "She says he doesn't share much, but she thinks it has to do with his legs or pain." He frowned and glanced at Dark. "You can have pain in your legs when you can't move them?"
 
"You can have leg pain if you do not have legs," Dark answered, "it is good you did not ask him about it. Those questions can be difficult to answer, especially when you are in pain."
 
"Oh," Alec winced. "That sounds like possibly the worst thing ever. I don't really understand how that works, but... maybe we could do some kind of care package for him?"

Xander kicked off his shoes since he wasn't going to be driving Alec anywhere after all and went to flop on the couch. "I bet if it's a sem-regular thing he's used to it. Or as used to that kind of thing as you can get."

"Yeah, but I'm not used to it," Alec mumbled.
 
"Your heart is in a kind place, but I wouldn't start giving gifts until he talks about it, if he talks about it, and mentions what helps him." Daizi said gently, "Not everyone wants a lot of attention for those things, it's always better to follow their lead rather than presuming what will help them.'
 
"Sorry," Alec apologized, going to hug Daizi. "I just want to do... something. I don't like seeing or hearing about people who are in pain, so... you know. I smother, I guess, or attempt."
 
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