Sophomore Year || Parenthood Series, Book One || WATTYS 2018

Chapter Eleven

SOUNDTRACK: "Ordinary World" - Duran Duran

ONE WEEK LATER

Jared was in his kitchen a week later, fixing a late dinner for himself when he heard a knock on the front door. He put his knife down and wiped his hands on a dish towel before going to see who it was. His eyebrows shot into his pomegranate hairline when he saw Ryan standing on his front porch through the peep hole. He opened the door.

"Ryan, hi," he said awkwardly. "What - uh - what are you doing here?" He looked around the other man to see if Kate was with him, trying to find a reason for his sudden appearance. "Everything alright?"

"I needed to talk to you," Ryan said. "Can I come inside?"

Jared nodded and stepped back to allow the other man to come inside. In the light of the entryway, he could see that Ryan looked exhausted. He had dark circles under his eyes and his clothes looked like he had slept in them.

"What's up?" Jared asked. "Can I get you anything?"

Ryan shook his head and bit his bottom lip. "I saw your decision."

Jared nodded slowly, remembering the conversation he'd had with Sam about taking Kate one weekend a month. The lawyer thought it was a good idea, given the circumstances and the request was going through the legal process as they spoke. A decision was expected in the next week. Jared had even allowed Ryan to fully adopt Kate, so long as he still had his weekends with her.

"What about it?" he asked.

Ryan sighed. "I don't think it's gonna work for me."

Jared shook his head in disbelief. Was this guy really going to keep making things difficult for him? "Well, I'm sorry about that, but one weekend a month is more than fair. Kate even agreed that it would work best for her. And in my eyes, that seems like it would be the most important factor in all of this: what Kate wants."

Ryan shook his head and swallowed, like he was trying to force words out, even though he knew it was a terrible idea. "I don't mean that decision. I don't care about that." He swallowed and ran his hands across his face before letting out a long breath. "I mean that I don't think having Kate to myself completely on my own is going to work for me."

Jared blinked in disbelief. "You what?"

"I can't take her full time," Ryan said.

"What the hell have you been doing these past few weeks, Ryan?!" Jared demanded. "If you don't want her, why are you fighting for fucking custody?"

"Because it was the only way I could guarantee that you'd take her," Ryan explained. "Look, I never wanted kids. I still don't. But I loved Rachel. And Kate was a package deal that came with her. And for the most part, Kate was a good kid growing up; she didn't have any issues and things were pretty easy for us. So when Rachel got sick and things started looking bad, she started to process of making me Kate's full legal guardian." He crossed his arms. "But I knew I would never be able to take care of her by myself. So when I saw your name on her birth certificate, I asked Rachel if it was true. She told me it was. And when she died, I knew it would be an out for me."

Jared scoffed and shook his head again, unable to understand how Ryan could be so selfish. "So you figured you'd start an adoption petition, 'discover' that I was Kate's biological father, and then let the courts force the issue?" He cursed under his breath. "That's...uh...that's really a douche move on your part, man."

"Look, I don't know what to do. I can't keep her," Ryan said.

"She's not a fucking dog, Ryan! She's a kid! With feelings!" Jared exclaimed. "I mean, what the hell would you have done if I refused in the beginning? What if I just said I wanted no part and I just walked away?"