Sing to Me - Stydia AU

Out of Here

Lydia's father glared at her, waiting for an answer. She shakily stood up straight and looked away to the oven timer, aching for something else to focus on. "Lydia." He growled. She looked back at him. "Sorry, Dad. I was just singing. I'm making your favorite for dinner! Lasagna's in the oven." She forced a smile, trying to mend the situation.

Allen chuckled. "You think I didn't already know you were wasting your time in here? You'll never be a rock star, so just stick to what you can handle. Starting with dinner." Lydia's face fell. "I never said I wanted to be a rock star." She muttered. He raised his eyebrows. "And now you're going to talk back to me? Get your head out of the clouds, kid!"

Just then, Natalie trotted down the stairs and entered the kitchen. "Allen, you're home. How was-"

"Shut up, Natalie!" He interrupted her. "You know how my meeting went, don't even waste your time asking. Maybe spend it dealing with your daughter, who thinks she can blare her damn music whenever she pleases."

Natalie looked at Lydia sadly, then back at her husband. "Well, I don't see how she was bothering anyone. In fact, she told me she'd be making her lasagna tonight for you since she knows how much you love it."

Allen scoffed. "Let me guess, you told her about my shit meeting today and she wants to suck up."

Lydia could feel the tension making her hands shaky. She would have to run if she couldn't fuse the fire of his irrational anger. "Dad, I just thought you'd like to come home to a nice dinner after a hard day."

He shot a look to her and Natalie. "So you two were talking about me behind my back. I'm so tired of this sneaky crap! I can't have one bad meeting without being gossiped about before I have the chance to talk to both of you first hand. Just back off!"

Natalie stepped closer to him. Something was wrong. He wasn't normally this mad over every detail. "Allen, did you stop at the bar before you got here?" He sighed angrily. "So I had a few beers. What's the big deal?" She furrowed her brow at him before looking in the garage, seeing his car. "You put yourself and everyone on the road in danger, that's the big deal. What were you thinking?!" He stomped toward her. "I was thinking that I'm a grown man who doesn't need permission to have a drink after a day like I had! It's not like I hit anybody." He scoffed, crossing his arms.

Natalie propped her hands on her hips. "You still made a very stupid decision, Allen. You could've at least waited until you got home to have yourself a drink." Allen got up in her face. "You mean wait until I had you two here to give me shit about it? I don't think so. You don't understand."

Lydia felt the flooding in her eyes, blurring her vision of the scene in front of her. She sniffled and wiped the tears with the back of her hand as she tried to toughen up. Her father wouldn't have any of her sensitivity.

Natalie stood her ground. "Your daughter spent all day working hard for your company so she could come home and make you your favorite dinner because she knew you had a tough day. You think we don't understand?"

"I didn't just have a tough day, I got fired! All my years working for those people, wasted!" He yelled, staring at Lydia now. Her eyebrows shot up. "W-what did I do?" She stuttered. He stepped toward her. "If you really understand, you'll quit your job tomorrow and stand up for your old man." She let out a breath. "Quit? Dad, if I do that, we'll both be out of income. Mom would have to support us until we found new jobs. Maybe we should come back to this tomorrow when you've sobered up and we can talk-"

"Enough! Just do as you're told for once!" He yelled. Lydia couldn't hold back her tears anymore. "Fine. I'll do what I can handle, like I was told." The timer went off for the lasagna and Lydia quickly grabbed her oven mitts to take it out of the oven. After sitting it on the stove, she tossed the mitts on the counter, put her apron back on the hook, and practically bolted toward the front door. "Enjoy your dinner, Dad." She said over her shoulder, through her sobs. "Where the hell are you going?" He yelled, stopping in the doorway. She slipped on her vans and rushed back into the kitchen, pushing past her father. "Somewhere I don't have to deal with this chaos. I'm tired of you doing this." She sniffled, picking up her purse and taking her keys.

Natalie gently grabbed her arm and looked at her through her own tears. "Sweetheart, please be careful. I know you need your time, just don't do anything crazy." She spoke quietly, trying to keep the conversation private. Lydia sighed and took her mother's hand. "Mom, I'm just going to Allison's. You're always better at calming Dad down anyway. I'll call you later, okay? Don't worry." Natalie gave her hand a squeeze and smiled sadly. "Just be safe. I love you." Lydia smiled back. "Love you, too, Mom."

Lydia quickly got into her car and paused to call Allison. No answer. She called again, then once more. Still no answer. Finally giving up, she threw her head back and stared at the back wall of the garage through her windshield. There was only one other person she could find at home on a Friday evening. She started the car and headed to Stiles' apartment.