#our life fanfiction | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

bouwrites · 2 years ago

Text

And Your Bird Can Sing: Chapter 1

Arrival

Story Summary: This story is told through original moments during Step 2, and a Step 4 epilogue, from Derek’s POV. I wanted to preserve Jamie/Cove but also give Derek another love interest, as well as explore some themes that Jamie’s established backstory doesn’t allow. Mind the content warnings (in the tags) if you’re sensitive to certain things.

Next.

Ao3.

Story under read-more.

It’s early summer. Derek, Cove, and Jamie are all still reeling from the discovery of a new kid in Sunset Bird, and that new kid’s atrocious attitude.

Cove teases, like he’s just found the new best joke by imitating the poor guy, and so easily surfing past such a sour meeting, but Derek and Jamie both just think it’s sad. How can someone be so determined to be miserable? In Derek’s opinion, all that effort should be spent trying to get better. If he does, he’ll be well on the way to his goal, and then… then he can actually be happy.

Spending all that energy looking for everything to hate is never going to lead to anything getting better. He’s just going to keep finding more things to be miserable about.

(But Derek’s gut flips uncomfortably when he thinks about that, so he quickly distracts himself with ensuring his two friends aren’t shaken by their encounter with Jeremy.)

Thankfully, the awful encounter in the park doesn’t stick too badly with them. They’ll definitely be avoiding Jeremy if they bump into him again, except maybe Jamie who might just try to drag Jeremy kicking and screaming into friendship, but no lingering concern or hostility brings their mood down even when they discuss the topic.

It’s a shame, though. Derek might have plenty of people to talk to back in Prism Vista City, but out here in Sunset Bird, there aren’t that many kids to befriend. It’s a pretty hard blow to realize that the one new kid their age since Cove (aside from Derek himself, who only visits pretty often and doesn’t actually live here) isn’t even going to give making friends a chance.

That does put a downer on the group. Derek wants to make a new friend, and he’ll feel better about going home every day if Cove and Jamie aren’t as alone as they are out here.

They’ve got each other, but… but that’s part of the problem. Derek stamps down those feelings fast – he already knows his crush on Jamie is pointless. Jamie is so in love with Cove it’s ridiculous, and Cove clearly feels the same way.

There’s no way Derek can get between those two. It’s best that neither of them ever find out.

Well! Maybe it’s all okay after all. Those two don’t need anyone but each other. No matter how the thought twinges at Derek’s heart, it’s too true. They don’t need another friend. Derek is just lucky they consider him one, anyway.

So, they’ll be fine. He has nothing to worry about. Even if no new friends move in for the rest of their lives, those two will be okay.

(Derek needs to be happy about that.)

But regardless how they all feel about it, it’s in the shadow of losing the potential friend Jeremy represents that their little neighborhood is upturned again.

A house some ways down the street, the same street Cove and Jamie live on, but several houses down, one of the few properties that aren’t just rentals for families on vacation (which is why Jeremy is here, so he won’t be here after the summer, anyway), is sold. Jamie mentions that it’s Shiloh’s old place, though Shiloh moves out before Derek’s first visit, so he never has the chance to meet the kid.

Derek almost misses it entirely, the “For Sale” sign there doesn’t change for nearly Derek’s whole time visiting so he stops paying attention to it until the house is sold, and then he doesn’t visit for long enough that he’s sure he misses the family move in.

And he does. Jamie dutifully reports that the family moves in late in the evening, so he doesn’t see them himself, but he does know the moving truck comes and goes and the sign is officially gone, so they’re all set up.

And Derek is visiting, talking with Cove and Jamie in Cove’s room, when the Holden’s doorbell rings.

They assume, naturally, that it’s just Jamie’s moms coming over. It’s a little early for Derek’s dad to come for him, but there are any number of reasons Jamie’s moms come to visit or to call Jamie back home. So, they all head out to the living room to check it out, wondering if Jamie has to go already.

Even so, it’s not that surprising to find a pair of adults they don’t recognize talking to Mr. Holden at the door. What is surprising is the kid standing just behind them.

Jamie gasps quietly and grabs Cove’s arm, vibrating with excitement to have another shot at making a new friend. Cove is much warier, unsure if this kid will be another Jeremy.

But Derek isn’t sure what to think. The new kid stands upright, proper, maybe a little too stiffly, but his eyes fall to the concrete and the gentle tug down on his lips flattens some of the excitement in Derek’s chest.

His hair, dark brown, is combed neatly, and his clothes are a little too fancy for a beach town like Sunset Bird, like he just steps out of church. In his button-down shirt and pressed pants, he looks just a little preppy, but something about the way he stands, or the distant look on his face, makes him seem kind of… too cool for that.

Or, it makes it obvious that his appearance is just a façade. He has the same vaguely uncomfortable but resigned expression that Jorge does sometimes when he’s forced to wear something he doesn’t like.

(It makes Derek nervous, just a little. After his encounter with Jeremy, he just wants to know what kind of person this new kid is and not be left guessing.)

Mr. Holden invites the family in, saying, “It’s so nice of you to come introduce yourselves to the neighbors. I was going to head over tomorrow myself, so you’ve saved me the trip!”

The adults all laugh politely until the new parents, both kindly-looking, if a bit stiff like their son (it’s probably just because they’re new to town), catch sight of the three boys. “Oh! Are these yours?” the woman asks.

Mr. Holden chuckles. “Just the one. Say hi, Cove.”

Cove awkwardly waves a hand, offering a polite greeting.

“The other two are visiting. That’s Jamie, he lives just across the street.”

“Hi! Nice to meet you all!”

“And Derek is the son of my work partner,” Mr. Holden continues. “They’re all good friends, so you’ll usually see them together.”

“How delightful,” the dad says, bending down just a little to look at the boys. “And how old are you all?”

“Thirteen!” Jamie chirps happily. “All of us.”

The dad grins broads. “That’s wonderful. Our boy is just fourteen, so I hope you can all get along.”

Derek glances sneakily to the boy in question, who finally ducks his head, rather than only lowering his eyes, to disguise the heavy rise and fall of his chest – a sigh.

Fourteen, huh? He doesn’t look that much older than them, though one year isn’t really that much anymore. Unless you’re Elizabeth, in which case just two years is such a vast chasm of time that they can’t possibly relate to each other in any way at all. Derek wonders if Elizabeth will get along with this fourteen-year-old, or even give him the time of day.

“I’m sure they’ll be thick as thieves in no time,” Mr. Holden says with a laugh. “Maybe they can go hang out while we talk? I’m sure the boys won’t mind showing Ryer around, will you boys?”

“I’d be delighted!” Jamie says, a spark in his eyes showing just how much.

“We’d be happy to, sir,” says Derek. “Would it be okay if we go out?”

The new parents share a look with each other, but Mr. Holden chimes in before they say anything. “Sunset Bird is a really safe place for the kids. Cove and Jamie have been going out on their own for years now, and they all know where they can go and where they can’t. Ryer will be in fine hands.”

With some reluctance, the mom agrees to let them go. “Okay,” she says. “Ryer, you listen to your new friends, now, alright? Behave.”

Ryer’s response, quiet but polite, comes clear despite a cute accent. “Yes, ma’am.”

“Alright. And be back home by dinner.”

This time, Ryer merely nods.

Having the green light now, Jamie leads the way out of the house, followed closely by Cove, then Derek, with Ryer trailing slowly behind after them.

The door closes the parents inside, they make it a few houses down with Jamie chattering about the neighborhood and what there is to do nearby, and then Ryer abruptly stops.

Derek looks back at him. Ryer looks back over his shoulder, his lips quirk further down into a true frown for just a moment, then all at once the rigidness in his posture melts away. With an audible sigh and a bit of a slouch, Ryer passes a hand through his perfectly-neat hair, mussing it up without much thought.

And it… kind of transforms him. Altogether, the change in his posture, attitude, hair, which hangs loosely down now, no longer stuck in place, and falls just over his eye when he bows his head like this.

“Look,” he says. Despite not saying more than two words up until this point, even his voice is different. Tired, reluctant, with the same politeness but a much different tone than he uses with the adults. And it’s hard to tell, since he doesn’t say much at all, but Derek thinks his accent is thicker, too. “I’m sorry for interrupting y’all. You can go hang out or do whatever. I’ll just explore on my own and we’ll… meet up in an hour or two so the parents don’t get suspicious?”

“What do you mean?” Jamie asks, excited expression falling. “You don’t want to hang out with us?”

Ryer bites his lip and cards his hand through his hair once more, messing it up even further. It’s weird how much better the more relaxed look suits him, though Derek has to fight the urge to do something about the strand that hangs right across the side of his face.

Tuck it behind his ear or something. The rest stays swept aside, though teased by the fidgeting with it, but that little bit…

“I know you guys are friends,” Ryer says. “You didn’t ask to spend time with a stranger. I just… It’s not necessary. That’s all. It’s cool if you want to keep doing what you’re doing. I won’t bother you and the parents don’t have to know. That’s what I mean.”

Cove just rolls his eyes. “You don’t know Jamie very well yet,” he says. “You’ll find out soon how stupid that is.”

“I appreciate the sentiment, though!” Derek says, rubbing at his neck. “But, no, we want to get to know you. You don’t have to worry about interrupting us or anything. We weren’t doing anything important.”

“There are never new kids in Sunset Bird,” Jamie exclaims. “You’re the most interesting thing to happen since Cove moved in!”

Derek winces, just a little. He knows Jamie doesn’t count him since he doesn’t actually live in Sunset Bird, but… it’s still a reminder that he’ll never hold a candle to Cove Holden.

Ryer looks at him. His brow twitches together, furrowing just slightly, for just a moment.

“And that was years ago!” Derek says eagerly, brushing past the absolutely-not-a-slight.

Ryer’s eyes, finding some kind of life for the first time, fix on Derek. A warm kind of smolder forces Derek to look away himself, but those deep brown eyes stick in his head, somehow. “…Is this town really that boring?” Ryer asks.

Jamie laughs, loud and bright and clear, which makes Derek’s chest flutter and turns his eyes even more firmly away. “Not when we’re together, it’s not!” chirps Jamie happily. “But I got to admit we do have to make our own fun a lot of the time. There really isn’t much to do around here except go to the beach. Or the park. The hill behind my house is nice, too!”

Ryer hums, which Jamie interprets as “Then, I absolutely must see all those places,” and with renewed vigor, grabs Cove by the arm and leads them all towards the park.

Jamie and Cove lead the way, obviously, and Derek starts following as well, but Ryer waits until Derek passes him to follow at the rear of the pack, just behind him, and despite being between Jamie and Cove in height, carefully maintains his pace to match Derek’s shorter legs.

Derek is so used to following after the other two that this, for some reason, throws him completely off guard.

Jamie practically sprints everywhere. His excitement and energy are so amazing, but between that and Cove’s long legs, Derek usually ends up running behind them if he’s not the one leading the way in the first place.

The way Ryer so casually positions himself near Derek, keeping pace unobtrusively, behind him so as to allow him to run to catch up if he wants but still keep an eye on him… it makes Derek wonder if Ryer has siblings.

That’s what Derek does with his brothers.

Or maybe he just prefers to be at the back. He’s kind of quiet, Derek thinks, so it isn’t surprising if he just doesn’t like to be in the middle of the group.

“So,” Derek says, trying to start conversation. Ryer slips easily into silence, but that silence seems a little bit unbreakable, almost heavy, so it’s more awkward than it should be to speak up. “What brings you to Sunset Bird, anyway?”

Ryer shrugs. “Dad’s work.”

Jamie slows down, letting Cove do so as well, to hang back to listen. Derek presses just a little more. “Where are you from before this? I like your accent!”

Ryer again passes his hand through his hair. “Texas,” he says. Derek wonders if Jamie can even hear him, since nothing Ryer says thus far comes out very loud. He’s not mumbling or anything, just soft-spoken. It reminds Derek of Jorge, and thus is kind of endearing. “Dad was offered an opportunity at work. It’s apparently very prestigious. So, he took it, and we moved out here.”

Texas. Wow. That’s so far away.

“Woah!” Jamie shouts in wonder. “Cool! And how’s Sunset Bird compare so far?”

Quiet for a while, then, “’s alright.”

“He hasn’t had time to get used to it, yet,” Cove says understandingly. “He’s barely even seen anything. We can ask him to compare later, once he’s had time to think about it.”

Jamie chuckles. “Yeah, good point. That wasn’t a very fair question. Oh! I just realized we didn’t even ask your last name!”

Ryer hums quietly. “Finch,” he answers. “Ryer Finch.”

“And what do you like to do, Ryer Finch?”

Ryer shrugs noncommittally, taking the approaching park as a chance to direct his attention elsewhere.

“Hey, there it is!” Jamie cheers. “Come on!”

And just like that, Jamie is running again, dragging Cove along beside him.

Ryer sighs, slumping a little, and shakes his head just once before he glances over to Derek. “Does he always have so much energy?”

Oh. Derek can’t help but laugh. Maybe he’s just used to it, between Nicolas and Jamie himself, but Derek sometimes forgets that Jamie can be a bit much for people. “Yeah,” he admits, grinning. “That’s just how he is. Is it too much? We can just ask him to cool it down a little if you need to.”

Ryer, hand in his hair once more, shakes his head. “It’s fine.”

When it’s clear that he’s not going to say anything else, Derek smiles and turns to catch up. Seeing Ryer lazily continuing to meander, though, he slows as well, not wanting to run ahead of him.

Then they’re in the park. Ryer looks around passively, taking it all in without comment.

“This is the park!” Jamie announces proudly. “It’s pretty fun. I guess it was more interesting when we were younger, but I still like the swings.”

“The main attraction is the beach,” says Cove, “which is just over there.”

Ryer hums.

“Do you like the beach?”

A shrug. “Never been.”

Simultaneously, Jamie and Cove stop short. Their jaws work uselessly, trying to express anything as they helplessly try to process what they hear.

Admittedly, even Derek has a hard time imagining that. Ryer’s never been to the beach before? But for a couple of beach bum kids like Jamie and Cove… the idea is unthinkable.

“This is a crisis!” Jamie announces suddenly. “Where’s your swimsuit? Come on, let’s go change real quick. I’m sure we can swim a little before dinner!”

Jamie reaches out without thinking to grab Ryer’s arm, already marching back towards the houses.

A sharp, quiet hiss, which Derek thinks Cove and Jaime might not even notice, escapes Ryer’s lips the moment Jamie’s hand closes around his arm. What the other two definitely do notice is Ryer rip his arm away, out of Jamie’s grip like it burns him.

Jamie blinks back, not expecting such a reaction, then crumples. “Oh, I’m so sorry, I didn’t think about whether you’d be comfortable with us touching you. That’s my fault.”

Ryer, still tense but slowly, purposefully, relaxing muscle by muscle, still has a tight voice when he says, “’s fine.”

“It’s not,” Jamie protests. “That was stupid of me. I’ll be more careful from now on, I promise. So… just let me know, alright? No touching at all?”

Ryer is still stiff as a board and slightly pale when he jerkily nods.

“Are you alright?” asks Derek. “Anything we can do to make you more comfortable?”

Ryer’s head jerks sideways, a shake for no, but he closes his eyes and breathes. “I-I don’t like-” he starts then stops, but huffs and forges on. “Just… no surprises, please.”

“Yeah, of course,” Jamie says quickly. “Let’s just do something here for a bit. What do you like to do for fun? We can use the swings, or maybe play a game like-”

Derek grabs Jamie carefully to get his attention and holds a finger to his lips. Ryer has his eyes closed, breathing deeply but somehow looking startlingly unaffected. Derek whispers, “Give him a minute.”

Jamie shuts up fast. All three of them look at their new friend with concern.

Ryer slowly shakes his head, smoothly this time, all traces of his initial reaction gone. “What do you guys like to do?” he asks.

Since Jamie and Cove still look unsure, Derek fields the question. “I really like soccer!” he says as normally as he can manage. “And football. I spend a lot of my time practicing when I’m not hanging out with these two or looking after my brothers.”

“Sports,” Ryer says, voice now slightly strained, but Derek smiles because it sounds like it’s for an entirely different reason than before. “Oh boy. Your school have a team or something?”

“They do, actually! And I’m going to join it next year! I’m, uh… not sure which one, though.”

“…I’ve played football,” Ryer says, in much the same manner one might admit to playing with an electrical outlet. “Don’t know much about soccer, though.”

“Maybe we can play sometime?” Derek offers. He purposely doesn’t specify which, since he thinks Ryer probably doesn’t like football very much. He’ll be happy just to kick the soccer ball around a little, and maybe that’s something more comfortable for Ryer, too.

“Maybe.”

Hey, Derek will take it.

“But all together,” Derek says, “it kind of depends. We spend a lot of time here or at the beach, obviously. Really, we just play some games or talk most of the time.”

“I like fashion,” Jamie admits. “My moms don’t like me using the sewing machine on my own, but I’m learning. And sometimes I dress up Cove.”

Something odd flashes across Ryer’s expression, but it’s gone before anyone can interpret it.

“And Cove is all about the ocean,” Jamie continues.

Cove shrugs. “It’s true. If there’s decent waves, I’m probably surfing.”

“If not, he’s diving,” Jamie says. “Definitely swimming, one way or another.”

Ryer hums. “Fun.”

“It is!” Jamie says eagerly. “And you?”

But Ryer’s eyes are on the horizon, towards the ocean, as he cards his fingers through his hair. “Sorry,” he says. “Uh… Jamie? What’d you say about… the sewing machine?”

Jamie tilts his head cutely. “My moms don’t like me using it by myself…?”

“…That makes sense,” Ryer says after a moment.

“No, yeah.” Jamie nods along. “I get it. I’m still pretty new with it and it can be dangerous. It’s just sometimes frustrating that I have to wait for one of them to watch before I can do anything.”

Jamie sends Derek a look. They both hide their frowns. That’s three times now that Ryer avoids the question of what he likes to do – though the second time might just be missed. And Derek isn’t sure if Jamie notices, but… he doesn’t think Ryer and Jamie are talking about the same thing just now.

Cove eyes them all one after another, knowing he’s missing something but not knowing what, then sighs. “Well, there’s not much more to see over here except the beach, and you’re not really dressed for that.”

Ryer fiddles with the cuff of his buttoned shirt.

“We could head into town,” Cove offers. “Show you the shopping street.”

“Works for me,” Ryer says.

Cove smiles, then turns to lead the way. Jamie joins him quickly, latching on to his arm as always, but this time Derek waits for Ryer to move first.

They both just stand there for a moment as the other two get further away, waiting for the other to make the first move. It takes just long enough that Derek worries Jamie and Cove will notice, but Ryer eventually ducks his head and starts moving.

(Derek swears he catches a hint of pink on Ryer’s cheeks before he rushes past.)

Derek grins to himself as he slots himself into step. Despite being behind now, Ryer still doesn’t walk too fast, still maintaining his pace for Derek’s stature.

The walk is quiet. The tension drains away in the long pause, so all four boys are relaxed once more when they get to the shopping street.

Jamie starts pointing things out immediately, telling Ryer how this is where he can find some decent ice cream, and how this is where he and Cove met a magician when they were younger.

Derek pays attention, too. He doesn’t come to this part of Sunset Bird that often, so it’s all still fresh for him, too, but he’s distracted by a gentle, quiet humming.

A tune, upbeat and happy, but with something else, too. Derek listens for a moment. At a few points the hum stops, interrupted by a soft click of the tongue or disapproving hum, then restarts and continues with a different note.

He looks over to the source of the music, then follows Ryer’s eyes to the telephone wire above them all, and specifically two birds perched there. One flies off, circles around in a tight loop, then lands right back next to the other, which doesn’t move a muscle but to turn its head to watch.

That happens a few times, almost like the one bird is trying to convince the other to fly with it.

When Derek looks back to Ryer, the humming stops abruptly. Ryer’s eyes – a little golden-amber in this light – meet his. Ryer gives him a tight smile, then looks back to the birds. Derek smiles too. It’s cute, and they’re the only ones who notice, so it’s almost like a secret between them.

But the little song Ryer hums is well and truly gone. Derek has no doubt that, now that Ryer knows he’s paying attention, he won’t be starting that again.

Which is too bad. Derek wants to hear that song in full. But… given how Ryer avoids telling them about his interests, Derek is reluctant to just ask him about it.

Derek looks back to the birds. That’s the other thing. The tune is happy overall and energetic, but there’s a sense of… longing? Like the bird who just wants to fly with his shyer friend, but the friend isn’t cooperating. Or even like the bird who just wants to fly with his brave, bold friend, but can’t summon the courage to leap.

“Hey, are you two paying attention?”

Derek jumps at Jamie’s question, feeling the heat rise to his cheeks when confronted with the fact that he isn’t.

Ryer just hums noncommittally.

Jamie looks between them, back and forth, then back and forth one more time, then his face splits into a wicked grin. “If you two wanted to go on your own, you can just say so. Cove and I won’t interrupt your date.”

Immediately, Derek knows he’s as red as a tomato. “Jamie!” he protests.

But Jamie just laughs, glad his teasing jab lands, which puts a sinking feeling in Derek’s gut. “Just teasing!” Jamie shouts playfully. “Come on, slowpokes. We won’t have time to see anything before we have to go back if you don’t get a move on!”

Bashful now, Derek carefully glances to Ryer. As he suspects, Ryer is an extra step away from him now, and not meeting his eye.

It has to be awkward for a stranger to suddenly be accused of something like that. Jamie is super friendly, so he’s just treating Ryer like he would Cove or Derek, but… this is still the very first day of them knowing Ryer.

It makes sense that he’s uncomfortable.

Derek feels bad. Jamie doesn’t mean anything by it, but he isn’t actually the best at realizing when his familiarity crosses a line without being told explicitly.

Derek is a little more used to looking for those things, keeping an eye on how comfortable his brothers are, so even though Ryer definitely tries his best to act like everything is fine and not bring down the mood, Derek can tell he’s still awkward around them all. Definitely not comfortable enough for that kind of teasing.

And Derek can’t say he appreciates it much himself, but it’s just one of those things. He has to suffer that silently, because if Jamie gets any hint of why Derek is so uncomfortable with teasing about that kind of thing…

The only person Derek would want to go on a date with is the very one making fun of him with that glint in his eyes, like he’ll love to see Derek and Ryer together.

Derek sighs, trying to shake it off. Jamie is a great friend. He’ll be happy so long as his friends are happy. It doesn’t mean anything.

(Even if it does feel like Jamie is trying to pawn him off on the new kid. It’s not.)

He has to admit, though… Ryer is kind of cool. He’s quiet and Derek doesn’t know much about him, yet, but he seems easygoing, generally, and he’s definitely handsome.

Derek wants to get to know him better. He hopes Ryer will be willing to put up with them all enough to do that.

Despite their embarrassment, though, Ryer still waits for Derek, and they follow behind the other two only when they meet eyes and nod, both ready to continue.

“So, uh,” Derek says, searching for a topic to clear up the now-strangled atmosphere between them. “Where does your dad work, anyway? I actually live in the city, but my dad works with Cove’s so he lets me come sometimes.”

“In the city,” Ryer answers. “It’s just an office thing. I don’t know the details. He’s a… tech guy. Software development and helping other companies figure out how to use it.”

“Woah, cool! Do you know a lot about tech?”

Ryer shrugs. “Probably more than most kids our age? I guess?”

Jamie suddenly turns, bouncing on his toes as he asks, “Ooh! Ooh, do you have a cell phone? My cousin Lee said that one of her friends got a cell phone recently and we’re both so jealous that they can just call their friends whenever they want.”

Ryer bites his lip. “Not that kind of tech, but… yeah, I have one.”

“Lucky! But give me your number! I’ll call you sometime!”

Cove chuckles softly, relieving Ryer from having to reply. “We can literally just walk down the street if we want to talk to him,” he says. “Derek might want it, though.”

“I want it anyway!” Jamie insists. “I’ll give it to Lee – you two should meet! You’ll like each other.”

“Telling him you’ll give it out to people he’s never met probably isn’t the best way to get his number, Jamie,” Cove says calmly. “Besides, all we really need is his landline, and that’s mostly for our parents.”

“Oh!” Jaime exclaims. “You’re right! Hey, Ryer, let me give you all our numbers at least. That way, when we’re out, we’ll always have a way to contact home!”

That seems somewhat more agreeable, since Ryer’s tense posture relaxes a little. “Sure, I can save them, if you don’t have them memorized. I’ve only got the phone in the first place to call home if I need something when I’m out, anyway.”

Jamie giggles. “Elizabeth is going to be so jealous. She’s always hogging our phone to talk to her friends. I bet she’d give anything for a cell phone of her own.”

Ryer smiles politely but doesn’t comment. He just pulls out his little phone, flips it open, and starts navigating quickly through it. One by one, he enters Jamie’s number, then Cove’s, then Derek’s, then Derek’s dad’s cell phone because Derek thinks it should be there as a backup just in case (since calling Derek’s home won’t actually do him much good if something happens in Sunset Bird – though his parents are trusting the Lasts and the Holdens to handle anything if that situation does come up, it’s still always good to be prepared), then Jamie tries to give him Ms. Preece’s cell phone number, too, citing the same reason with less success, but Ryer enters it anyway, unable to find a polite way to refuse.

Derek can tell Ryer is a little overwhelmed, and a little confused, since they all obviously have those phone numbers memorized regardless, he doesn’t see any point to saving them in his phone. All the same, Derek feels better knowing Ryer has access to all the parents. It doesn’t even have to be an emergency, though Jamie is the only one who says that so explicitly so soon – Derek is waiting for Ryer to get a little more comfortable before putting that option out there (why would he call parents he’s uncomfortable around, anyway, even if he does need their help?), just having easy access to the parents around Sunset Bird makes everything safer.

“Hey, you said your dad works in the city, right?” Derek asks. “Maybe he’d be willing to take you over to my place sometime? We could hang out in the park or go to the pool or something. We’d have to escape my brothers, but…”

“Ooh,” says Jamie, already teasing. Derek meets Jamie’s eyes, challenging him this time, which cuts Jamie short.

No teasing this time. While yes, Derek wants to be friends with Ryer, he mostly brings it up because… well, because hanging out just the two of them means Derek can keep things quieter than Jamie usually manages.

Hopefully. That’s assuming they can escape Nicolas, but the point stands.

Ryer isn’t comfortable with them, yet, and while Derek is sure that visiting a near-stranger in the city isn’t a comfortable thing, either, Ryer always seems more comfortable thus far when Jamie and Cove are running off to lead the way, and it’s just Ryer and Derek mostly alone.

It has nothing to do with Derek, he thinks. Ryer is just more comfortable around fewer people. Trying to befriend the group of three is obviously a little stressful for him, so Derek thinks maybe he can get to know Ryer on his own, and the other two, or possibly even Jamie alone, then Cove, can get to know him here in the neighborhood before they try again to have a big hang out with all of them.

Jamie picks up on his intentions and changes tactics. Rather than tease Derek about trying to set up a date, he says, “That’s a good idea! You can come over to my place sometime, too. It’ll be just us! And maybe I’ll introduce you to my sister. If she’s willing to grace us with her presence.”

Unfortunately, when Jamie invites Ryer to his place, Ryer can’t hide a wince. “I don’t know,” he says. “We’ll see.”

All three younger boys share a look, but unanimously decide to move on. Jamie grabs Cove yet again, shouts that they should start heading back home, and skips ahead.

Left in the dust again, Derek sighs, then smiles at Ryer. “Ready to go home?”

Ryer’s lips twitch down, but the rest of his face doesn’t reveal his true thoughts. He doesn’t answer, not really, but he does let out a tired breath (his hair slips down, and is pushed back again by an idle hand, but that little bit still insists on dangling) and take his spot next to Derek to walk all the way back to the neighborhood.

#Our Life Fanfiction #our life: beginnings & always #fanfiction #write #okay ready for the cw tags?#cw: abuse #cw: homophobia

4 notes · View notes

bouwrites · 2 years ago

Text

And Your Bird Can Sing: Chapter 2

Music

First, Next.

Ao3.

Story under read-more.

Derek knows it’s his idea, but he honestly doesn’t expect Ryer to actually come over. Especially since Derek doesn’t hear much from Jamie or Cove about hanging out with him, yet.

Jamie reports that the Finchs come over to his place once and meet his moms. They’re as friendly and polite as they are when Derek meets them, but they seem a bit protective of Ryer, since they’re not eager to let him hang out with Jamie too much, especially unsupervised, and they aren’t very comfortable even letting the other parents watch them, either.

Cove’s account isn’t that different, really. They’re fine, they meet his dad and his mom and learn a bit about the family, but are generally reluctant to send Ryer out to spend time with them.

Jamie and Cove do spend time with Ryer while Derek is stuck at home in the city, but they do so when they stumble across Ryer already out wandering rather than setting anything up between their parents.

That strikes Derek as odd. Why are his parents so willing to let him wander around alone, but unwilling to trust the other parents to look after him? But whatever the case, given how those two turn out, Derek is sure that there’s no way in the world Ryer’s parents will agree to bring him all the way to the city to leave him in the hands of some family they know even less than the Lasts or the Holdens.

But when Mr. Finch brings Ryer by, and Derek’s mom answers the door, he’s just as polite as ever, and in fact seems a little relieved. The parents talk a little about their families, with Derek and Ryer sitting quietly nearby. Derek spends most of the time distracting Nicolas, since Ryer has a dark sort of look on his face as he watches the parents closely and Derek doesn’t want to provoke him somehow.

Mr. Holden’s divorce is brought up at some point, and Jamie’s moms, but Derek’s mom has a sharp look in her eye that makes Derek nervous, and he doesn’t know why, so he does his big brother duty and just makes sure Nicolas and Jorge don’t notice.

All he really catches is the end of the conversation, when his mom declares that Ryer is more than welcome to visit any time and Mr. Finch says something that sounds like volunteering Ryer to babysit the younger ones, if they need it.

That’s when Derek manages to catch Ryer’s eye. All the solemn… something in his expression melts away in an instant, and he smiles gently, then turns his eyes to Jorge and asks about his puzzle.

Jorge doesn’t say a lot, still not used to Ryer and not being super talkative in the first place, but Ryer isn’t very talkative either, and Derek thinks that, after a minute or two, he sees a smile on Jorge’s face just from sitting together companionably and not bugging him.

Mr. Finch leaves to go to work, leaving Ryer behind at their place, and Derek’s mom stands at the door for just a moment, pursing her lips, then turns on her heel, eyes Ryer and Jorge absorbed in the puzzle, and smiles at Derek.

With a silent tilt of her head, she asks Derek to follow, so he naturally obeys, trailing after her to a further part of the room where Jorge and Ryer won’t hear them.

“Nico,” she says sweetly. “Why don’t you go grab your car? You can play in the living room today.”

Nicolas’ eyes sparkle. He immediately darts past Derek to get to his room to grab his favorite toy. (Well, his favorite that isn’t just anything of Derek’s.)

Derek worries his lip. His mother frowns after Nicolas’ retreating form. “We don’t have much time, just… Derek,” she says carefully. “You’ll look out for your new friend, won’t you?”

Derek blinks, baffled by the question. “Of course?” he answers. “Why?”

His mom shakes her head sadly. “It’s nothing. I hope it’s nothing, anyway. Just do your best to make him feel welcome, okay? I want him to know he’s safe here.”

That he’s safe? Why wouldn’t he be safe? Derek wants him to feel comfortable here, too, but…

Derek doesn’t have a chance to question his mom, because that’s when Nicolas comes barreling back into the living room, already screaming for Derek to play with him.

Their mom just smiles at him and squeezes his shoulder lovingly. “Go out to the park,” she says. “I’ve got your brothers for today.” Then she goes over to occupy Nicolas herself.

Well, Ryer will probably be more comfortable at the park than inside a strange apartment, so Derek quickly moves to do as he’s told. He grabs Ryer, whispers the plans so Nicolas doesn’t overhear, and grabs a bag from his room before they quietly slip out the door.

His mom’s concern weighs heavily on Derek. If she thinks there’s something wrong, then Derek has more pressure than ever to become friends. Whatever it is she’s concerned about, there’s no way Derek or his family can do anything about it if Ryer doesn’t trust them, so…

But what is it? Does she think he’s not safe? Or does she just recognize that he’s still uncomfortable?

Derek doesn’t know what his mom’s warning is about and it’s seriously nagging at him.

“You alright?” Ryer asks carefully.

Derek jumps, then has to fight the urge to slap himself. It’s just him and Ryer now! He can’t get caught up in useless thoughts like these! This is the time to be getting to know his new friend, and getting his new friend comfortable with him.

“Yeah, I’m great!” Derek says cheerily, casting the serious thoughts aside for now. “I can’t believe you’re actually here! It’s sort of a role reversal.”

Ryer awkwardly cards a hand through his hair (it’s neat again when he arrives at Derek’s apartment, and now gets teased yet again by those fingers) but manages nonetheless to smile. “I guess you’re more used to being the visitor than the host?”

“Yeah! So, I’m going to be the best host there is!” he says proudly. “But, uh… I wonder what we should do.”

“What do you usually do at the park?”

Derek chuckles. “Well, usually I practice, but I got the impression you aren’t really into sports.”

Ryer scrunches up his nose a little. “Not really,” he admits. “Honestly, I don’t really like competition.”

“Cool, cool,” Derek says easily. “A co-op player. I gotcha.”

He grins when that pulls a chuckle from Ryer. “Yeah, something like that,” Ryer says. “I’m fine to just throw the ball or whatever, though, if that’s what you want to do. Or if you want to practice, I can just hang out.”

Derek shuts that down immediately. “Don’t be silly. We have to do something together. I want to do something with you. I can practice alone anytime I want.”

Ryer’s fingers slip through his hair again and he turns his gaze to the sidewalk. “Alright,” he says, even quieter than usual.

With no other ideas, and still unsure about Ryer’s actual interests, Derek drops his bag and digs out a soccer ball. As Ryer says, he has no objections to just kicking it back and forth for a bit, and neither does Derek, since the lax nature of their activity gives him more opportunity to just talk.

“So, how’re things in Sunset Bird with Jamie and Cove?” Derek asks.

Ryer grunts impassively, trying to copy Derek’s technique as he kicks the ball back, even without Derek commenting. “I’m… still not sure what to think about them,” he admits. “They’re nice. Good people. Just…”

“A lot?” Derek says, chuckling. “I know Jamie has a lot of energy.”

Ryer hums. “Couldn’t be me. You keep up with them just fine, though.”

Derek laughs. “Yeah, but honestly? It’s kind of nice to have some quiet moments, too. I mean, you saw Nicolas. That’s home, all the time. And then I go to Sunset Bird to hang out with friends and Jamie has just as much energy. Don’t get me wrong, I love visiting, and I love Jamie and Cove, but I wouldn’t be opposed to just finding some quiet sometimes.”

Ryer’s lips stretch into a tiny smirk. “We’ve got all this grass here,” he says. “Looks pretty comfy.”

Derek eyes him. “Seriously?”

Ryer shrugs, half joking half serious, a noncommittal sort of “I’m as serious as you want it to be” kind of shrug, with just the slightest hint of teasing.

“You know…” Derek says, stopping the ball under his foot. “Why not? We can just… lay down.”

“And talk or not talk as much as we want,” Ryer says. “Who’s going to stop us?”

Derek takes that in for a moment, then a disbelieving laugh bubbles in his throat. “We can,” he says, his wonderment clear. Then, right there, he just plops right down, and lays back in the grass.

Looking up at the sky, and the tree shading him from the direct sun, Derek keeps laughing. It’s so vast. The breeze carries the sound of the city, and the scent of the ocean, but it’s peaceful. “I can’t believe I never even considered this before.”

He knows why. It’s not really surprising. At home, there’s always Nicolas to keep him busy. When he comes to the park usually, he’s focused on practicing. And then Sunset Bird is Cove and Jaime’s time. The only time Derek has to himself to just chill like this is right here at the park, but without Ryer there Derek doesn’t have any reason not to train.

He has to get better, so he can’t stop training, but… man. He only lays down for ten seconds and he hopes with all his heart that Ryer will visit more, if only for the excuse to… stop for a few minutes.

He doesn’t even realize how hectic his life is until he stops for half a second. He doesn’t realize how tired he is.

Ryer lays down near him, stretching luxuriously, uncaring how his shirt rides up. Derek is so busy trying to catch up to the idea of slowing down that he can’t think to do anything but the same. He stretches his arms out over his head, extends his legs as far as they’ll go, and just feels the tension all go through his body.

And relax.

Grass has no right to be this comfortable. God, Derek might just fall asleep right here.

He opens his eyes to look over at Ryer, smiling at how his friend is similarly relaxed. Derek can’t remember seeing Ryer actually relaxed until now, but just laying here in the grass, there’s a soft smile on his face, and he’s utterly at peace.

Derek is about to close his eyes and follow Ryer’s lead, but he allows his gaze to trail down, to where Ryer’s shirt rides up and exposes his belly button.

And Derek leaps up in shock. Poking just out from beneath the shirt, a dark, mottled bruise, huge and ugly on Ryer’s ribs, is unmissable. “Woah!” Derek cries in alarm. “What happened?”

Just as urgently, Ryer jumps up to a sitting position as well. His hand finds his side, where the enormous bruise is, and his expression tenses and closes off. “Don’t worry about it,” Ryer says mutedly.

“Wha- Ryer, that looked bad. Are you okay?”

“’m fine,” Ryer says, laying back again, carefully ensuring his shirt keeps his bruise covered this time. “Seriously, don’t worry about it.”

“But-”

“It was just an accident. Doesn’t even hurt,” Ryer says simply. “It only looks bad.”

Derek can’t convince himself that Ryer is telling the truth. Still, all he can do is bite his lip. If Ryer doesn’t want to tell him about it…

Ryer sighs and sits up. “Dude, relax. I can tell you really need it.”

“Maybe we should head back,” Derek titters. “Mom can take a look at that. She’ll know what to do.”

“Nothing to do,” Ryer says casually. “It’ll heal on its own.”

Derek blinks. “How do you know?”

“I’ve had-” Ryer stops short for a moment, then continues as if nothing happens, “I’ve already had it looked at. It’s fine.”

“But how did you get it?”

“Derek.”

Derek bites his tongue. Right. He shouldn’t push if Ryer doesn’t want to talk about it. “…Alright,” he says quietly, reluctantly laying back down.

But he can’t get comfortable. Not knowing his new friend is hurt. He has to… to do something about it. Does he need ice, maybe? Oh, man, Derek drags him all the way out here to the park in the hot sun – he should probably be resting, shouldn’t he?

Ryer groans softly, sits up, and pulls out something small and rectangular from his pocket that he cups in his hands. “Just…” Ryer says, voice tense, “try to relax. Alright?”

Then, as Derek sits up again as well, Ryer doesn’t leave him any chance to reply, because he puts his cupped hands to his mouth and fills the air with music.

He has a harmonica! Despite himself, Derek can’t stop from smiling when the tune fills the air. It’s slow at first, but chill, something to just sit back and absorb. Repetitive. Kind of folky. Almost nostalgic; something Derek feels like he’s heard before, even though he doesn’t recognize it.

Despite Derek’s remaining concern for Ryer’s injury, the music makes his recommendation to relax into an order. Derek loosens into the sound without thinking about it, like the music itself takes up the space of his thoughts, dislodging them so he can let them go and really just chill.

But even better than sitting back and closing his eyes, Derek finds, is just watching Ryer.

If Derek thinks he never sees Ryer as comfortable as he is laying down in the grass, he eats his words now. Ryer’s harmonica and hands are up over his face, but Derek sees in his cheeks and eyes easily the biggest smile he sees yet on the older boy. Ryer relaxes, too, falling into the music. The part of his hair that hangs in his face sways as he does, moving a little with the music.

Man… there’s so much life. It’s like when Jamie gets really excited about something, like when he puts Cove in a new outfit and has to show it off. Ryer feels the music in a way that makes Derek, watching him, almost jealous. This is what Ryer is meant to be doing. Making music.

It’s the same, but different. When Jamie shows off his passions, everything buzzes with his energy, and Derek gets swept away in the excited current. Ryer is just as into it, and the energy is there, but it’s chill. There’s a kind of safety to it that says it’s okay to take it easy for a while. It’s the kind of thing to sink into and experience.

Derek thinks to the properly groomed, polite Ryer who shows up at his house alongside Mr. Finch, and to the Holden’s place, too. He thinks of the quiet, a little awkward, but friendly Ryer who spends the day wandering Sunset Bird with him, Cove, and Jamie. He thinks of the little tune Ryer hums when he thinks no one is listening, watching the two birds on a wire.

There’s no doubt in Derek’s mind that this, musical Ryer, is the best one. This is where Ryer has the most fun. Maybe it’s even where he’s most honest.

“Wow…” Derek breathes.

All too soon (but for all Derek knows, it might be hours), Ryer finally stills and lowers his harmonica with a sigh. The smile he sends Derek is tight, but genuine. “Good little break?”

Derek keeps staring, entranced for a moment by Ryer’s eyes rather than his music. “Yeah.”

Ryer flashes him a grin, a wide, toothy one Derek never sees before that makes something in his chest flutter, then just hums, closes his eyes, and plays a few more repetitions of the melody seemingly just for fun.

“You’re really good at that,” Derek says.

Ryer drops his hands again and ducks his head. “I like making music,” he says. For some reason, though, his eyes are far away.

Derek can tell. “Why didn’t you want to tell us that?” he asks.

Ryer winces. Derek immediately regrets the question, but he can’t take it back now. It just slips out.

Ryer spends a long time just poking at the grass. Derek isn’t sure if he’s considering his answer, or deciding how to not answer at all, or just ignoring the question, but Derek doesn’t try to say any more regardless. He just props himself up on his elbows and watches, waiting.

Eventually, his patience pays off. “I want to be a musician,” he admits, his whisper barely overcoming the background noise of the park. “But… Mom and Dad think the arts are useless. I’ll- waste my life if I pursue something that’ll never make me money.”

“Oh.” Derek doesn’t have that problem. He knows pursuing a professional sports career isn’t that different. It’s hard. You have to be the best. Of all the people that want it, so few actually get it that it becomes unrealistic. But his parents are all for him following that dream. They support him every step of the way.

“It’s not like they don’t let me play,” Ryer says, though his tone is so glum Derek thinks that’s not entirely true. “They think classical training is good for me, and they want me to have a broad skillset, but… they don’t want me doing anything with it.” He sighs. For the first time, bitterness creeps into his voice. Bitterness and sharp, cold anger. “What’s the point? Why even bother with piano or voice lessons if I’m not allowed to- Nevermind. You don’t want to hear me complain.”

“Yeah I do,” Derek says softly. “You can say anything you want with me. I’m happy to listen.”

Ryer smiles weakly but shakes his head.

“What do they want you to do?” Derek asks.

Ryer’s smile thins into nothing. Not a bad expression, just a neutral one. “They’d like me to be a doctor.” He tries valiantly to smile. “Their first idea was obviously lawyer, but I actually do like biology, so they insist I can use that to get a medical degree. I’d rather study ecology, though. I think they might even go for it, so long as it’s a nice, respectable science field.” He sighs again. “The bad part is that I’d like it. I love studying the environment and learning about the world. I just… want the option. I guess I’m selfish like that.”

Derek grins. “Hey, you’re talking to the guy who can’t even decide between football and soccer. But I get it. There’s just no time to master two things, especially when they’re so different. To make it and be the best…”

“Yeah,” Ryer murmurs. “I should probably just give up.”

“What? No way! That’s the opposite of what I’m saying!” Derek exclaims, jumping up. “You’re great! And if you want to make it as a musician, then you can! You just can’t split your focus, you know? I mean, back-up plans are good, but you got to give your main goal your all if you want to get better!”

“…You really think it’s worth it?”

“Yeah, dude! I can already tell how much you love music. And you’re good at it, too! You can definitely do it!”

Ryer hugs his knees, turns his harmonica over in his hand a few times, examining it closely. “My parents don’t like… non-classical instruments,” he says. With a shake of his head, he says, “Which basically means anything but piano and violin. I had to convince them to let me learn the cello because they think it’s just a background instrument. They don’t even know I have this.”

Piano, violin, cello, and he mentions voice lessons, too. “How many instruments do you play?”

Ryer’s cheeks tinge pink. He runs his hand through his hair again. “Anything I can get my hands on? I’m not great with wind instruments, mostly, since you can’t really borrow them on account of it going on your mouth. So, I just don’t have any practice. But I had a friend back home who let me use her guitar. And I’ve played with every instrument in orchestra class in school. Plus piano lessons and classical voice training. I’m going to try to find a ukulele at some point. Always wanted to play, and it feels appropriate, after moving to the coast.”

“Geez,” Derek says in awe. “And you didn’t even mention the harmonica.”

Ryer shrugs. “It’s easy to hide. Not like a guitar or something. It made sense to get one when I had the chance. The instrument doesn’t really matter. I sing a lot a cappella, too. I just like music.”

“Cool.”

Ryer stands then, brushes off his pants, and pockets his harmonica safely away once more. “Anyway,” he says, mussing up his hair again. “That’s enough of that. We were going to pass the ball a bit, right? How do you kick it again?”

Derek smiles gently. So, he’s still a little uncomfortable. Well, Derek won’t force him to linger if he’d rather move on. Instead, Derek happily begins showing Ryer the proper technique for passing the ball, and they spend the next long while just passing it between them with only idle conversation.

Ryer does hum, though, when the quiet stretches long enough. He starts humming a tune even as he kicks the ball back or intercepts it. Just a jaunty, happy, mindless thing, but it’s exactly what Derek hopes for.

Even that makes Ryer straighten up a little and get into the activity more. It’s cute. And it fits.

And when he notices Derek listening, this time he doesn’t stop.

“Hey,” Ryer says suddenly after a while. “When’s your mom expecting us back?”

“We should probably be going soon,” Derek admits somewhat reluctantly. “I didn’t bring any lunch, so she’ll expect us back to eat.”

“Oh.” The quiet discomfort is back in his voice. Derek wants to get rid of it. “Okay.”

“Hey,” Derek says. “I’m glad you came.”

It works. Ryer lets go of just a little of the tension building up and manages to smile. Reminding him that he’s welcome, and that Derek wants him here, reassures him.

He’s still nervous, especially as they set off back towards the apartment, but it’s better than it might be otherwise.

Derek slips his key into the door, unlocks it, and pushes it open.

“Derek’s back!”

Derek braces himself like always for the familiar missile to plow into him. Oof, Nicolas is starting to get strong. But all Derek can do is smile at his little brother, pat him on the head, and say, “I’m back.”

“Welcome back, boys,” his mom’s familiar voice draws them both further into the apartment. “Did you have fun?”

“Yeah!” Derek says.

“That’s wonderful. I’m almost done with lunch. It’ll just be a few more minutes, okay?”

“Okay!”

“And Ryer, dear,” Derek’s mom says. “What do you like?”

Ryer smiles politely. “I’m not picky,” he replies.

Derek’s mom fixes Ryer with a knowing expression but doesn’t push it. She just shakes her head and lets it go. “Well make yourself at home, then. As I said, it’ll just be a few minutes.”

Ryer and Derek share a look. Derek picks up Nicolas, who is still clinging to his legs, and starts to wonder what they should do to pass the time.

Ryer smiles, then slides towards the counter where Jorge sits with his puzzle. “Woah, look how far you’ve gotten!” he says. “Can I join you?”

Jorge, obviously flattered by the note of his progress on his puzzle, looks unsurely between Ryer and Derek for a moment before, with some silent encouragement from Derek, nodding to Ryer and scooting a little to allow him better access to the puzzle.

Of course, Ryer and Jorge get along. Even when Ryer starts humming softly to himself, it doesn’t seem to bother Jorge. They both just enjoy their time spent together on the mutual activity without distraction.

It’s a little annoying to be abandoned for his brother, but Derek’s heart warms seeing someone take an active, Jorge-like approach to bonding with the middle Suárez brother, so he has nothing to complain about.

It’s probably hard for Ryer to tell, but Derek can see plainly on Jorge’s face that he’s pleased about it, too.

Doing his part, too, Derek plays with Nicolas, mostly just to keep him away from the puzzle he will absolutely ruin if given the chance. If Ryer is going to connect to Derek’s siblings, Jorge is the obvious first choice. Their personalities aren’t too different, so it makes sense that they’ll find each other easier to get along with than a ball of energy like Nicolas.

Much like Derek’s plan to divide and conquer befriending Ryer with Cove and Jamie in the first place, it’s probably a good idea to let him get more comfortable with Jorge and the apartment before trying to throw Nicolas at him, too.

Luckily, he and Jorge are alike enough that Derek doesn’t need to mediate there, so he can just focus on keeping Nicolas out of the way until Ryer is more comfortable here.

“Lunchtime!” Derek’s mom calls to the apartment. Jorge and Ryer look up from their puzzle, and Ryer follows Jorge’s lead in standing to head over to the kitchen. “Youngest to oldest, come on now.”

Despite saying that every time, Jorge doesn’t hesitate to get his plate first while Derek stands back with Nicolas, who refuses to go without him. Derek smiles at Ryer. “Go on, it’ll be easier if you just get yours first.”

Ryer tilts his head. “I’m the oldest,” he says.

Reluctantly, and mostly just so that Nicolas doesn’t have to wait, Derek goes next, accepting both his and Nicolas’ plates and trying to ignore his mom’s wink and sly little smirk.

Derek can’t help the heat in his cheeks.

Ryer takes his plate, exchanges a few words with Derek’s mom, then joins Derek in front of the couch, putting his food on the coffee table like Derek does and sitting on the ground.

The TV is turned on in the background, but most of their lunch conversation is dominated by Nicolas and Derek’s mom, then Derek himself. That said, Ryer does chime in occasionally. Less than Jorge, but he’s not just silent the whole time, which is a relief.

He doesn’t eat much, though, which concerns Derek. Most of the meal is just him picking at his food, and he does eat, it’s just that by the time Nicolas’ plate is completely clear, Ryer eats maybe a fourth of his.

If that much.

When everyone else is distracted, Derek carefully nudges Ryer. He eyes the plate, then Ryer questioningly.

Ryer ruffles his hair, and maybe his cheeks pink a little, but he shakes his head.

Whether that means there’s nothing wrong or that now just isn’t the time or that Ryer just isn’t going to say anything… Derek can’t quite tell.

Thankfully, or perhaps unfortunately, Derek has little brothers who aren’t as tactful. Surprisingly, it’s Jorge that asks, “Aren’t you going to eat?” with that concerned little frown on his face. “Do you not like it?”

To Jorge’s credit, he does ask quietly, in a whisper, but it’s just not quiet enough that their mom doesn’t hear.

Her eyes fall on Ryer, and his mostly-full plate, and Derek winces from sympathy. Whatever Ryer’s reason, now he risks being seen as rude, even if only in his own head.

Ryer handles it with a surprising grace, though. “Of course, I like it,” Ryer says smoothly. His eyes lift to Derek’s mom. “Your cooking is delicious, Mrs. Suárez. I really am sorry that I can’t finish it all. Unfortunately, I just don’t eat very much. I never have.”

Derek’s mom frowns. “I guess I should have asked you how much you wanted. Well, don’t worry about it, just eat however much you’re comfortable with.” She hums thoughtfully. “I thought for sure a growing boy like you would be starving after going out to the park with Derek.”

Ryer snickers softly. “We didn’t actually do that much.”

Mrs. Suárez raises an eyebrow, turning her doubting gaze to Derek. It says, “My boy? Not doing a lot? We can’t be talking about the same person.”

Derek straightens his back. “It’s true,” he says, half defending himself and half justifying Ryer’s lack of appetite to spare him the politeness faux pas. “We spent a lot of the day relaxing.”

Derek’s mom huffs a quiet laugh. Her voice is teasing, directed solely at Derek, when she says, “Well, now I know you’re pulling my leg.”

“It’s true!” Derek scoffs.

“No way,” says Jorge, like a traitor.

“I can relax when I want to!” Derek protests. Seeing that everyone is done with their food, though, he stands and starts taking up the plates, purposefully taking Ryer’s as well, once he checks silently to ensure he doesn’t want more, to wash them.

He freezes at the look every member of the family fixes him with, forcefully confronting the fact that – oh, right. He’s going out of his way to do work this very moment, despite having a friend over and not being asked.

Ryer laughs, standing as well. “I had to be persuasive, but he somehow managed it.”

Jorge still looks at them with doubt in his eyes. “How’d you do that?”

Ryer leans closer to Jorge to stage-whisper conspiratorially. “I didn’t give him any choice. Remember this well, kiddo. Find the right music, and you can make almost anyone chill out for a bit. That’s like, my specialty.”

Derek falters on his path to the kitchen, not expecting Ryer to reveal his interest in music to the rest of the family. He’s glad he is, he wants Ryer to be open about his interests here, to feel like he can follow them here, if nowhere else, but he really doesn’t expect Ryer to give the rest of them that chance considering it takes trying to distract Derek from that bruise for him to even consider revealing it to him.

“Music?” Derek’s mom asks. “That’s unexpected. Derek’s never been very interested in music. Do you like it?”

“Definitely,” Ryer says.

“And he’s super good at it, too!” Derek shouts from the kitchen, feeling like if Ryer is this open about it then he can brag a little about his new friend. “He plays so many instruments! I totally didn’t expect him to just pull out a harmonica in the park!”

“It’s easy to carry,” Ryer says bashfully, running his hand through his hair. “And I don’t play that many. Just whatever I can find easily enough to practice with.”

“Not that many, he says,” Derek teases. “Just everything he can get his hands on.”

“I want to hear!” Nicolas shouts suddenly. “I want to hear what you played for Derek!”

Ah. Right, Derek probably should expect that.

Jorge is nodding, though, obviously curious about something that can actually make Derek relax, and even his mom is tapping her chin thoughtfully. “I admit, I’m curious,” she says. “But please don’t feel pressured. I know it’s different playing for a friend in the park and being put on the spot by his family.”

Surprising Derek even more, Ryer chuckles and shakes his head. “No, it’s no problem. I’ll play the same song for you. Just don’t expect too much. It’s music, not magic.”

“It’s a little magic,” Derek says without thinking.

Oh. Oops. Ryer turns noticeably red, awkwardly clearing his throat as he takes out his harmonica (and Derek’s mom laughs).

Derek’s mom silences the TV, but the boys are so enraptured before Ryer even lifts his instrument that they don’t notice. Derek himself even puts down the washing and shuts off the water just so that it won’t distract.

And Ryer looks over to him for just a moment, smiles, then closes his eyes, lifts his cupped hands to his mouth, and begins to play.

The tune is familiar now to Derek, but it loses none of the magic. Just like the first time, Derek can’t help but just watch Ryer play.

Now, though, he can watch his family too. Nicolas is watching with wide eyes, whereas Jorge closes his to listen. Derek’s mom, though, he can see her shoulders drop. She sighs softly, even letting out a gentle, “Oh.”

She breathes in the music, swaying with it like Ryer does, and Derek can even see her lips move, like she knows the lyrics.

When Jorge opens his eyes, he notices this too, and smiles in a way that makes Derek think he’s happy for this moment just because it obviously means something to their mom. And Derek can’t disagree. Even Nicolas stays quiet throughout, so their mom just soaks in the tune, humming along, shaping unspoken lyrics that none of the kids recognize.

Except for Ryer. His eyes light up and he nods eagerly to Derek’s mom, encouraging her. She chuckles a little. “I don’t actually remember most of the verses,” she says softly, turning her eyes to her children, “but the chorus goes-” After just a moment for Ryer to get to the proper place, she starts to sing.

“O ye’ll take the high road and I’ll take the low road

And I’ll be in Scotland afore ye;

But me and my true love will never meet again

On the bonnie, bonnie banks of Loch Lomond.”

Ryer goes on for a moment longer, resolving one more run through that same tune, before he stops playing entirely.

To thunderous applause. Or, at least Nicolas is clapping his little heart out, both for Ryer and for his mom.

Derek feels like clapping, too. It’s rare that he hears his mom sing. He can’t remember her ever doing it outside church, really, so hearing her solo with just Ryer’s harmonica is pretty special, even if it’s just something small.

Their mom sighs longingly. Nostalgically. “Oh,” she says, “that song brings back so many memories. Thank you, Ryer, for playing that for us.”

“You know it,” Ryer says. “I know it’s not an uncommon song, but I didn’t expect…”

Derek’s mom laughs playfully. “It brings me right back to my school days!” she says. “Believe it or not, I played piano back then. I remember that song specifically because I was learning it when I fell in love with my husband.” She looks between the boys. “I’ll never forget how frustrated I was with it because I kept getting distracted thinking about Rio!”

Ryer laughs, loud and delighted. “That’s so cute!” he says. “But- you play?”

“Oh, it’s been a long time,” she admits, shaking her head slowly. “But I think I have a keyboard stored away somewhere here. It’s one of those things I always told myself I’d pick up again, but never found time for.” She smiles warmly. “I’ll look for it. If I can dig it out, you’re more than welcome to use it whenever you’re here.”

Ryer’s expression is so stunned, one would think she’s telling him she’ll give him the moon. “Really?”

“Of course! We could use some more music around here, I think.”

Derek can’t agree more. He’s looking forward to hearing more music around the apartment.

#our life: beginnings & always #Our Life Fanfiction #fanfiction #write

2 notes · View notes