Starlight

XXVII: Five Forever

From now on we are joined
And we shall not be parted.
From this day on it's all for one
And one for all for life!

- 'Five Forever', Little Women

xx.xx

"Ugh, never let me procrastinate anything again." Robbie wound the spaghetti around her fork, trying her best to not send the sauce flying everywhere, "I finally submitted my Russian Literature essay the other day; I stayed up all night working on it and honestly, I got to the point where I don't even care about the grade anymore."

"See, she says that - but then she'll come out on top of her class when the grades come back." Finn rolled his eyes and nudged Hidgens in the side. "She's always been the same."

"I don't doubt it." Hidgens replied, clearly not noticing that his own forkful of food was slipping - until it fell directly into his lap. "...Shit."

"Well," Robbie said, passing him a napkin as he began dabbing at the stain, "Those pants are ruined."

"Here's a trick my grandma taught me: baking soda. It'll take that right out, don't worry," Danny smiled. "...Or maybe I'm thinking of lemon juice... Or was it laundry detergent?"

"Wow," Finn interjected, in his usual deadpan delivery. "I didn't realize you were such a domestic goddess."

"Oh shh," Danny frowned. "You aren't one to talk; you don't even own an iron."

"I'm just gonna go throw these in the washer." Henry left the table, leaving Robbie with a little squeeze on the shoulder as he left the room.

"Thank you guys so much for coming tonight," She spoke in a hushed voice, hoping that Henry couldn't hear them, "Sorry to drag you all the way over here. He's really anxious about tomorrow, I think he needed the distraction."

"Oh shut up, you don't have to thank us. We love you, you idiot."

"Yeah," Danny gave her hand a squeeze and shot Finn a disapproving look. "You know we love the Professor, too. Besides, his place is so..." He looked around, mentally grasping for the right word. "Interesting."

"It's insane, I know." Robbie sighed. "But you've got to admit - if there was some kind of global disaster, this would be the place to stay holed up. He's got a lab, a full bar... He's prepared well."

"A full bar?" Finn's eyes widened. "Why did we not get absolutely hammered here on Christmas?" Robbie rolled her eyes and he dropped the act. "But you know - if you need us at any point tomorrow, you've just got to call. I know it's going to be a weird day for both of you."

"I just don't know what to expect, and Henry is beside himself with worry," Robbie whispered, leaning across the table, really hoping that he couldn't hear them now. "I mean - Scott has an attorney. How would he even know an attorney? What is he planning?"

"He's probably just appealing against being expelled. He doesn't have a case at all. You'll meet with them tomorrow, you'll remind him of the fact that he harassed you for weeks, and that'll be the end of it. He's such a bastard, he--" Danny stopped short as he spotted Henry re-enter the room, and flashed him an over-the-top grin.

"Who's a bastard?" Hidgens laughed and settled back down in his chair, now wearing a different, darker pair of pants, and covered his lap with a napkin.

"Don't worry," Robbie sighed, "We weren't talking about you. We were just talking about... Well, y'know. Tomorrow."

"Oh." He squirmed in his seat.