Something - Quinn Fabray

Chapter 4

Later that night, Ryan held Shelby Corcoran's card in his hand as he sat at his desk in his bedroom. He'd gotten home at around 7, and nobody was home. That was over two hours ago, and he was still alone in the house. Thankfully there was half a box of pizza in the fridge. Hiram was at a conference in Indiana, and Leroy was probably still at his office. At least that's what Ryan chose to believe. He was about 85% sure that his dad's weren't quite happy with each other. They bickered all the time and hadn't really spent much time together in a long time.

He didn't really know what to think of Shelby. She was surprisingly easy to talk to, and he'd found himself blabbering about all sorts of things that afternoon. He'd even told her a bit about his dads, which he never did to anyone, let alone someone he had just met. But that was a problem. She made his carefully constructed facade slip. But she's seemed interested in him, not just in his singing like most of the other kids in the New Directions. She hadn't even asked about his singing until near then end of their conversation, when she'd asked about vocal lessons. Speaking of which, should he go for them? Maybe he should stay away. If Mr. Schue and the other kids found out they'd probably accuse him of "fraternizing with the enemy" or some other crap like that. But he wanted those lessons. He sighed and placed the card on his desk, and started to get ready for bed. Maybe he'd ask his dads for advice tomorrow.

...

The next morning, Ryan woke at six and took his usual morning run. When he returned home, he was surprised by his dad Hiram making breakfast in the kitchen, whistling as he scrambled some eggs.

"Good morning," he said. "What are you doing?"

"I'm cooking breakfast, of course," Hiram replied cheerfully. "I do cook sometimes."

Not for the past five months, Ryan thought. He wouldn't say that out loud though. "Oh. Ok then." He sat down and helped himself to some eggs and toast.

An awkward silence fell over the kitchen as father and son ate. Ryan sighed inwardly. They hadn't really known how to talk to each other for a long time now. Neither of his fathers were very interested in his activities as long as he kept his grades up, and like any teenager, he didn't particularly care what his dads did at work. "You seem happy today," he ventured.

"Huh? Oh yeah," Hiram replied. "Last night's meeting was quite... productive," he continued with a smile.

Ryan refrained from rolling his eyes. He didn't need to know what his dad had gotten up to last night that took him until 1 am to get home. "I wanted to ask – "

"Listen, I'm going to be out for the weekend. Papa should be home later in the afternoon, probably around 1, ok?" Hiram said, finishing up his breakfast. "Wash the dishes, would you?" He left the kitchen without waiting for a reply.

"Sure dad, whatever you say," Ryan sighed. Would it really be too much for his dad to show some interest in him? Maybe ask how he was doing, or even ask about his grades? Or even maybe just finish his sentence? He'd take anything, if someone would just pay attention like Shelby Corcoran did yesterday.

After washing the dishes he made his way to his bedroom, deciding to take a shower. Checking his watch, he saw that it was only 9. Great. He'd already done his homework yesterday, and now he didn't have anything to do for the rest of the weekend. God knew he wouldn't be invited anywhere by his non-existent friends. Maybe Burt had something for him to do. Ryan needed to settle his mind anyway, and working on cars usually helped. Putting on a sweater, he left the house, making sure to lock all the doors before leaving for the shop.

Shelby sat in her car outside of her parents' house in Akron after a two-hour drive. Even now, over twelve hours later, she couldn't get Ryan out of her mind. She'd been preoccupied for most of the trip, and thinking back on it she guessed that wasn't entirely safe. But her mind kept drifting back to her fifteen year old son. He was quite handsome, although that was probably maternal bias. He stood slightly taller than her, at around 5'7". And he looked a lot like her. He had her jawline, her nose, her dark hair... but his father's eyes.