Nate was on a clock, but there were things he needed to do before his time came. When he arrived in New York, the last thing Stephen Graves expected was to develop long-lasting connections. Now that he was a new person with people he cared about, he was determined not to skip town without a word. He already spoke with Noel and asked her to do her best not to lose too many memories of him, and he spoke with Devon about his plans and apologized for stepping down from the young mutant’s cause to pursue the simple life.

With goodbyes exchanged with Sveta, Nate had one last person to bid farewell. This was the one he expected to be the hardest, if only because of all the history they shared. If not for Quin, Nate might still be Stephen. He would be the man who made selfish choices, who would not be ready for the roles he ended up in. Father, teacher, friend. Quin was the one who got him started on this path.

Nate knocked on the door of Quin’s apartment, a place he knew all too well. In his other hand, he had a bottle of wine from his checkered past. He swiped it from the wine cellar of a very rich party he had talked his way into, and it was easily the most expensive bottle he owned. Currently, it had a quarter of its contents remaining.

He waited for Quin to open the door and did his best to smile, holding up the bottle. ”Hey Quin. Are you free?”

Sometimes it was weird having a job that ran 9-5 most of the time. Quin’s entire adult life had been practically dominated by police work and odd hours. Rookie beat cops didn’t get regular shift hours, and a detective brought work home far more often than the movies made it seem.

Things had been...slow lately at Haven, and the redheaded PI had found herself coming home, eating a well rounded dinner, and going to sleep at a decent time. She could then watch TV, or read books, or browse various tea shops online, or even work out.

It was weird.

It was also nice.

It was also kind of lonely.

It was also kind of boring.

Work wasn’t the only place that things had been slow. Quin had settled herself into a kind of routine and was finding it hard to break that routine. Excepting work, she hadn’t even seen very much of Nate lately, and it wasn’t like she was out hitting the club to meet anyone else. In fact, she was doing the opposite.

Sweatpants and a crew-neck sweatshirt two sizes too big for her were the uniform of the evening, and Quin had been settled into her couch with her favorite cheap bottle of rose for about half an hour when a knock sounded at her door.

Up Quin got, padding her way towards the door on socked feet, tugging at the one shoulder of her sweatshirt that never seemed to want to stay where it was supposed to be. Peering out the peep hole and seeing Nate’s familiar face, Quin opened the door with a smile.

Oh look, he had wine too! ...and wanted to know if she was free.

Looking down at herself, Quin chuckled and pushed the door open wider to offer Nate admittance.

”Free as a bird, come on in.” as they made their way inside, she nodded towards his bottle, then gestured to hers, ”I was just having some wine myself. Join me?”

Nate had considered calling ahead, but decide it was easier to show up and hope Quin was home. Her schedule had become more reliable since her career change. He remembered dating Quin the Cop, and they always made it work, but the schedule required finagling from both ends.

Ironically, it ended up being Nate’s schedule that squashed things this time. He had spent time away in other cities for the sake of Haven business, and it was another instance where the time never seemed right and something was always in the way. He felt bad knowing they were forever an almost, but life had a way of being cruel.

”I’d love that,” Nate replied with a smile, though it did not reach his slate gray eyes. He was a man who knew what to say when he needed to say it, but he was still unsure of how to broach this conversation with Quin.

Following Quin into the apartment, he set down his bottle on the coffee table and moved toward where he knew she kept her wine glasses. ”You look cozy. Had I thought about it, I could have dressed down.” Then again, dressed down and cozy led to certain things, and Nate needed to stay on task for many reasons.

”I had a video chat with Norah last night,” he finally decided. When travel became something he was tasked with doing frequently, Norah went back to Chicago to spend time with Nat. Nate got to talk to his daughter when possible, but he did have a lot on his plate, so calls came every few days rather than every night, like he would want. ”She’s settling into life well now that she’s back there.”

Quin shrugged and smiled when Nate pointed out how cozy she looked. Coming from anyone else it might have felt like a backhanded compliment, but Nate knew her and how much she valued her free time. They’d spent many a night like this, sipping wine, eating take out, and watching movies or bad TV.

That apparently wasn’t the order of the evening though, and as Nate helped himself to a wine glass, Quin wondered what had prompted this unannounced visit.

Norah was in Chicago now, and Quin had to admit that she missed the kid a bit. There was something about the way a child saw the world that was so very wholesome. They hadn’t spent much time together, but Quin had enjoyed the small version of Nate very much.

For Nate, of course, it was harder and the redhead could hear it in his voice. For someone who hadn’t even known he was a father for a very long time, Nate had settled into the role like so many ducks to water and Quin knew the distance had to be hard for him.

Norah, it seemed, was settling in well though.

”Well, that’s good at least…” she said carefully, not sure what to say to make the situation better, but positive that she needed to say something.

”No chance of business taking you that way any time soon?” she asked, feeling slightly bad that she’d never even thought to ask about the arrangements Nate had made with Norah’s Mom.

Nate had to give Quin her credit. Even with Norah’s mother in the picture, she had always been great with Nate’s daughter. It was unfair to try moving back into things with Quin when Nate was still dealing with Natalie’s departure from his life. Still, throughout the on-again-off-again rollercoaster that was their relationship, Quin never stopped being an amazing friend to Nate. (Well, with the exception of the fallout after things ended the first time, but Nate could not blame her for reacting poorly to his lie that changed everything.)

Because Quin cared, she knew that being away from Norah was hard on Nate. He was not vulnerable to everyone, but she had earned his vulnerability.

She also unknowingly opened the door to the reason he was visiting her tonight. ”Not exactly. That’s actually why I’m here.”

Filling both glasses carefully, Nate did not look up when he said, ”Effective immediately, I’m stepping down from Haven.” It was easier to tell her that news without meeting her eyes. He would have to find them eventually, but for now, he was sparing himself that.

”I’ve already spoken with Devon and explained my reasoning. We’ll start the process of moving any ongoing projects I have to new personnel. It’s being handled quickly, honestly. The man is efficient.” Devon was not happy to lose him, but he was still Nate’s friend, and accepted Nate’s appeal to a more emotional plea than a business one.

There’s this feeling a person gets sometimes, one of those things that German’s probably have a fancy name for, but you just know that something isn’t right. Someone superstitious like Quin would say that a person’s aura was off, or that the vibes they were giving off were out of synch with the way they normally felt.

Oddly enough, she wasn’t surprised when Nate told her that he was stepping down from his position with Haven and that it was happening quickly.

It was such a Nate thing to do. Nate who never did things halfway. Nate who always did things with his whole heart.

Nate who was making a study of not looking at her.

Quin swireld the wine in her glass, mostly to have something to occupy her hands as she digested what she was hearing.

Things between them had been casual this time. Casual to the point where sometimes they really weren’t even a thing. That had been the beauty of the arrangement though, they were friends, friends who knew each other so well that distance was almost as comfortable as proximity.

Still though, that little knot of emotions in the back of Quin’s mind had wondered if it would become more. If they would somehow manage to regain that magic they’d lost so long ago.

”When do you leave?” she asked simply. There were other things that she wanted to ask, that she felt like maybe she deserved to know.

There weren’t any tears, at least not now, though the redheads chest did tighten a bit as she watched Nate from across the room. She sighed softly.

He was always going to be the one who got away.

Nate did not explicitly say he was moving out to Chicago, but Quin was smart enough to know what stepping down from Haven meant. Norah was staying in Chicago because work made it hard for Nate to see her. He believed in the mission, but if he was leaving, it was because he wanted to spend the time with Norah that she deserved.

And so, Quin jumped right to the question at hand. Sighing, Nate took the wine and walked over to the couch to join her. ”I’m sorting things out, but I’ll be leaving this weekend and handling any Haven exchange-work remotely. Once the decision was made, I did not want to drag this out. Norah and Nat will be waiting for me.” He was hoping he could leave it there. Questions about Natalie would be awkward, because how did you talk to one of the only two women you loved about the other?

”Before I left, I wanted to come see the people that mattered. I gave my goodbyes to the school. I said goodbye to Noel, then Devon, then Sveta.” Nate finally raised his eyes to Quin, unsure of what emotions they were even expressing now. ”You were the person I wanted to say goodbye to last.”

When Nate offered the second glass of wine, Quin took it despite the fact that she was already holding one. This was the kind of night that two-fisting wine glasses seemed appropriate.

Nate still wouldn't look at Quin as he explained the details of his departure. For the first time a little pang of panic and heartache surged through Quin. That weekend? So soon? Where had the rest of the wine in her first glass gone?

There was no reason to hold it now, so Quin stretched out her arm and set it, somewhat precariously, on the edge of the coffee table as Nate answered another one of her questions.

Nat and Norah would be waiting for him. Not just Norah. Was he trying to tell her something, or had he simply said it that way because Norah was staying with Nat? Quin wasn't going to ask, but the part of her that was heartbroken that Nate was leaving wanted to know.

Quin nodded as Nate explained how he'd said goodbye to everyone at Haven and she met his eyes as he told her that she was the one he wanted to say goodbye to last.

"Why?" she said, pulling the second glass in and wrapping both hands around it. Quin didn't want to make this any harder on Nate than it had to be, since the decision was already made...but she did feel like she deserved to hear his reasons. "Surely this was the hard way..."

This was hard, and Nate knew it was going to be hard. What he did not want to be was the kind of man who avoided a moment like this to save himself from the pain of saying goodbye. It was just hard because he knew his pain came from knowing he was causing Quin pain.

”Norah is an important part of my life, and her life is in Chicago. It’s where she grew up, and it’s where her mom is. I want to be part of her life, and I want her to grow up with her mom and dad… however we end up.” Moving, he did want to see if he and Natalie could really make things work, not just for Norah’s sake, but if they could not, he still wanted to co-parent with her. He wanted Norah to grow up with a family.

”And I saved you for last because saying goodbye to you sucks,” he admitted. ”I don’t want to say ‘in another life,’ because that doesn’t make things hurt less, and I know that.”

Nate held his glass up—the last of an incredibly expensive vintage he might never have again. ”But I wanted to say goodbye because you literally changed my life, Quin. I’m not as big on destiny, but you were someone I know I was supposed to have in my life. And I don’t want to make this sound so final; it’s twenty-nineteen and I’ll be a call or text or facetime away.” It was not final, but he knew moving halfway across the country and giving things a chance with the mother of his child, he was finally putting an end to their cycle of almost making things work. That hurt, and it did not just hurt her.

”But, I guess I wanted to thank you for everything. Being with you… heck, knowing you. I wouldn’t trade that for anything.”

Quin listened and studied the wine in her glass as Nate continued to speak. He explained a lot of things and answered a lot of questions that Quin hadn't even asked. They gelled that way sometimes, able to pick up on subtle cues in one another's body language or the things left unsaid.

This really was it though...wasn't it? People didn't talk this way if they were leaving a door open for the future. Even if Chicago was only a call, text, or Facetime away, a much bigger distance was going to open between them when Nate walked out the door tonight. This was the only way though, Quin could see it in everything Nate had done since he'd knocked on her door.

It all made sense, the more Quin thought about it. Nate had grown up an orphan and his formative years had been spent without the influence of even a single parent. The person he was, or the person he had become, couldn't let his own little girl grow up without all the parents he could manage.

It all made sense, but it all still hurt too.

Nate finished speaking and Quin reached up a shirt sleeve to wipe away a tear she hadn't even known was getting ready to fall.

"I wouldn't trade it either." she said, voice stronger than she'd feared it would be, "You changed yourself though Nate. You just needed the chance. You've got a lot of love to give, you always have."

That said, Quin took a rather large sip of the wine Nate had handed her, eyes widening as the taste permeated her sadness, "Woah...did you take this from Devon's place when you said goodbye? It's really good."

Levity was good right? It helped detract from the silly tears that now refused to stop building and spilling over of seemingly their own volition. Maybe Nate would be polite enough not to mention them.

When you knew someone for years, you developed an understanding that was rare. Two people could work through wildly different backgrounds and life experiences and reach a point where a true connection was formed.

It also made this hard. Life was full of almosts and never weres and with all they had gone through, there was a pang I'm Nate's heart knowing that was what they were. They could stay friends and they could talk, but a door was closing. A chapter, and one Nate would always look back on fondly.

Nate saw the tears in Quin's eyes, and as she gave him the credit she thought he deserved, he felt the welling up in his own eyes, too.

He appreciated her light-hearted compliment for the wine. Nate chuckled. "Well, I have kinda been sitting on this bottle. Since... I stole it from some tech mogul's cellar twelve years ago," he admitted. Among his criminal activities, this one was one of the more light-hearted.

"If it helps, the guy was an asshole. Besides, it seemed important to have one really good bottle of wine for when I had an occasion important enough and people important enough to share it with." He sipped his wine and smiled. "So if you can overlook the product of my checkered past just this once, I'd appreciate it."

A few years ago Quin would have been absolutely scandalized by the thought of imbibing in stolen goods.

It wasn’t a few years ago though, and Quin definitely wasn’t the same person.

This wasn’t the time to get nostalgic though, and she simply smiled and toasted Nate with the glass, glad that the tears in her eyes hadn’t spilled over.

”I think I can forgive you this once…” she said, giving him a somewhat knowing look over the rim of the glass as she took another small sip, not quite ready to be finished.

Quin wanted to ask if she could call, or text...but a clean break was better for everyone involved.

Still. She took another sip. Damn that was good wine.

”You said this was your last stop for the night?”

When they met, “Nate” and Quin were more morally black and white, respectively. Nowadays, it was interesting to see how, in many ways, they brought each other into the gray. Nate was less selfish and Quin was less rigid and maybe, just maybe, they were better off for it all.

They shared a toast over once-upon-a-time ill-gotten gains, savoring the moment.

> ”You said this was your last stop for the night?”

”Of course. I couldn’t leave anyone else for last.” The former thief raised a curious eyebrow, grinning. ”Though don’t get any ideas, Quin. Sadly, someone had to teach me how to be a man of honor.” Well, several someones, but it was undeniable Quin got him started on the path to being a man his daughter could be proud of. That meant everything.