Good Girls One Shots

Finding Out

When his parents told him and his siblings that they were getting divorced, he couldn't exactly say he was surprised. They argued all the time, usually about the same thing, and while Kenny wasn't quite sure what it was yet he was determined to find out. Maybe he could fix it. Later that night he was awoken by his parent's hushed arguing. He crept to the stairwell to listen.
"You lied to the FBI, Beth!"
What?
"It was either that or go away for over 20 years because that damn fed has a hard on for me!"
His dad just looked at her.
"What?" She snapped at him.
"Did he tell you that?"
Who? What was going on?
"God, Dean. One of these days I'm going to tell him about your weird obsession with him."
"The guy already shot me, what else is he gonna do?"
Kenny had to stifle a gasp. They were talking about the guy who shot his dad?
"Believe me, you don't want to know."
The kitchen was quiet for a moment before Dean broke the silence with a desperate:
"Why him?"
"What?"
"Does he like.. listen to you more? Or encourage you in ways I don't?"
Beth stared blankly at him before giving him a chilled answer.
"I just really like having sex with him."
Ewwww. He so did not need to hear that. Then he realized: that's why they were fighting. His mom cheated on his dad. He couldn't help but be mad at her. How could she do that to him? To their family?
Dean threw his hands in the air and left the kitchen. Beth sighed, rubbing her temple, before reaching for the bourbon that she kept hidden away on the top shelf that she thought they didn't know about. She poured herself a glass and took a hearty sip before picking up her phone. Who was she calling? Whoever it was picked up fairly quickly. He wished he was closer so he could hear the conversation from both ends.
"Hey. He just left. I don't even know what to do anymore." She said with a sigh. There was a beat of silence. "No, you don't have to- okay. Fine. See you soon."
Kenny moved down the stairs a bit, hoping to be able to better hear what they were saying. Just as he put his foot on a lower step it creaked. Having been compromised, he ran back up stairs as quietly as he could to his room. He heard his mom's footsteps on the stairs and pretended to be asleep.
"Kenny, I know you're awake." She said as she walked into the room.
He couldn't pretend anymore.
"How could you, mom?"
"How could I what, baby?"
"Cheat on dad!"
She sighed. She seemed to do that a lot lately.
"How much did you hear?"
"Enough."
"Do you really want to know? This isn't just about me."
Now he was curious.
"Tell me."
And so his mom told him the story (which she somehow managed to make PG) of how his dad cheated on her for a long time and almost lost all of their money. Kenny was stunned, but he still had questions.
"Who were you and dad talking about?"
"We were talking about my... friend, Rio. Your dad really doesn't like him."
"Isn't he the one that helped me with my math homework?"
"Yes."
"And is he..." He hesitated. "Is he the one who hurt dad?"
"I'm not going to lie to you, Kenny. He did."
"Is he who you called?"
"Yes, he'll be here soon. Do you want to talk to him?"
He gave a nod. They went downstairs to find Rio sitting on the island finishing off Beth's abandoned bourbon. If he was surprised by Kenny appearing behind her he didn't show it.
"Elizabeth."
That was weird. No one called his mom that.
"Hi." She said softly.
He watched as Rio pulled his mom into a hug, which she almost seemed to melt into.
"Thank you."
"It's no problem."
Kenny cleared his throat. He was still distrustful of the man.
"Kenny wanted to talk to you. Is that okay?"
"O'course."
"Mom? Could you give us a minute?"
"Sure. Call me if you need me."
Kenny faced the tattooed man.
"Are you my mom's boyfriend?"
Whatever Rio was expecting to come out of that boy's mouth, it certainly wasn't that. He thought it over for a moment before answering.
"We're partners."
Kenny seemed to deem that an acceptable response.
"Good."
Rio was taken aback once again. What?
He raised an eyebrow at the boy.
"I like you. You're good for my mom. My dad always makes her upset, but she's different with you."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah. Even though you hurt my dad, you're better than the guys that Auntie Annie usually dates." He said with a wrinkle of his nose.
"You know about your dad?"
Kenny nodded. "I made my mom tell me. I understand why you did it."
He wasn't quite sure what to say.
"Thanks, kid."
The boy yawned.
"It's late. Head up to bed, okay?"
"Okay. And Rio?"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks."
"For what?"
"Making my mom happy again."
~
"Kids! Your dad is here!" Beth called up the stairs.
Kenny came rushing down.
"Mom?"
"Yeah?"
"Can I stay with you and Rio instead of going to Dad's?"
"It's okay with me, but you'll have to talk to your dad."
"Thanks, mom!"
"Kenny?"
He turned around.
"Yes?"
"Is there a reason why you want to stay here?"
"Dad's being weird every time we're with him."
"How so?"
"He's always asking about you and Rio. Also, why does he call him bounce house guy?"
Beth couldn't help but be angry. How dare he?
"I'll tell you later, okay? Right now I have to go talk to your dad."
Beth went outside to find Dean with his tacky car. She gestured at him with a 'come hither' motion.
"Beth." He said when he reached her. Obviously he didn't notice that there was steam practically coming out of her ears.
"Why have you been interrogating the children about my relationship with Rio?"
He had the audacity to look indignant.
"You're dating a crime boss, Beth!"
"No shit. By the way, Kenny wants to stay here."
"No."
"Dean.."
"No! He's my son and it's my time with him!"
"He's old enough now where he can decide which parent he wants to spend more time with. Now, we can take this to court which I know you can't afford or we can settle this civilly."
Dean looked pale. "Fine."
"Good." Beth said, eyeing something over his shoulder.
"What are you- oh." Dean turned around to spot the sleek black car pulling into the driveway. Rio and Marcus climbed out of the vehicle.
"Go inside, okay pop?"
Marcus ran past into the house.
"Car man." He nodded at Dean before turning to Beth with a smile. "Hi."
"Hi yourself."
He leaned down to kiss her, and Beth could practically see Dean changing colors in front of them.
"I'm going to round up the kids. Kenny's staying with us."
"Sounds good. Marcus has been wanting to hang out with him more anyways."
The other three Boland children chose that moment to come out the front door.
"Hi dad."
"Hey guys!" Said Dean, who still hadn't quite returned to his normal color yet.
"We're ready to go."
The kids began the descent to Dean's car when Jane turned around and ran to Rio. She hugged his legs and gestured for him to bend down. He complied, and Jane said something in his ear. Beth didn't think she'd ever seen him smile that widely before. He whispered something back to her and Jane skipped back to the vehicle.
After the departure of her ex husband and her other kids, Beth shot him a questioning look. Rio returned if.
"What?"
"What did Jane say?"
"She said 'I love you daddy.'"
Beth was touched, and she knew it wouldn't be long before the other kids adopted Jane's new sentiment.
"I love you."
"I love you too."
They went back in the house, and for the first time in years Kenny saw his mom be truly happy.