24 Gifts Of 2016 - Day Thirteen - Four Times The Walkers Found Out About Ryan (Good Enough!Verse)
So... I mentioned this a long while back and I'm finally posting it as a gift! In my Good Enough!Verse (The OC/Brothers & Sisters crossover), the Walkers and Ryan don't find out about each other until Ryan is nineteen. This is how it might have gone if they had found out at earlier points in Ryan's life... I may at some point have some random one shots set in any of these AUs of an AU... lol
Four Times The Walkers Found Out About Ryan
1. Three
Nora hurriedly dried her hands on a towel as she went to answer the door. On the other side stood a women with permed bleach blonde hair, holding a blonde toddler in her arms. "Can I help you?" Nora asked, puzzled.
"Is this William Walker's house?" the woman asked.
"Yes, I'm his wife, Nora..."
"This is his son, and if he doesn't want him, he can put him in foster care, but I'm done," the woman said, shoving the toddler at Nora, who automatically took him, not wanting the boy to fall.
"What are you talking about?" Nora asked, stunned.
"What, you didn't know your husband likes to sneak around?"
"Nora? Who's at the door, sweetheart?" William asked as he came into the foyer, stopping short at the sight of Dawn. "What are you doing here?" he asked coldly.
"Dropping off our son," the woman said. "I don't care what you do with him, but I'm done. Frank doesn't wanna raise someone else's bastard."
With that she turned to leave, and William darted forward to grab her arm. "Dawn, you can't just..."
"Make you deal with it? It's nothing but trouble, always crying and wanting something. If you don't want it, just dump him with social services," Dawn said, yanking her arm free as a large man got out of a dilapidated car on the curb.
"Hurry your ass up, Dawn. We got somewhere to be."
Dawn darted down to the lawn to the car and both got in, fleeing with a squeal of tires on asphalt. Nora watched, horrified by the woman's words, as she held the sniffling toddler trying to comfort him even as his mother left him behind. "William?" she asked as her husband returned. "Is what she said true? Is this..."
William hesitated a moment, then nodded, reaching out to brush a hand over the back of the boy's head. "My son," he said. "I..."
"Don't," Nora said coldly. "I don't want excuses, or apologies. I want to know what the hell you... you have another child with some woman who just abandoned him."
"Dawn was... a mistake. A fleeting... I made a mistake. And I've been giving her money to take care of him since I found out. I didn't... I didn't think she'd ever... I'm so..."
"Don't you dare pretend that a 'sorry' will fix this, William Walker," Nora said. She was distracted as the little boy began to cry outright, although quietly, an she held him a little closer, resting her cheek on his hair as she tried to comfort him. "And don't think you're mistake is going away. This poor baby is staying with us."
2. Five
"I don't know how to apologize..."
"There is no way to fix this," Nora said, still refusing to look at him and instead focusing on their stunned children. "But you heard your father. You have a half brother, and he's sick. He needs bone marrow, and all of you are his best chance. We won't force any of you to get tested or donate, but..."
"He's our brother," Justin said. "I mean, it's not his fault that Dad... it's not his fault. I'll get tested." The sentiment was echoed by the others.
"Thank you," William said.
"We not doing this for you," Kitty said bitterly. "We're doing this for... what's his name?"
"Ryan," William said. "His name is Ryan."
"We're doing this for Ryan."
~~~~
Kitty was the closest match, and when they told her she immediately asked how soon they could do the procedure. It was only later, after it was all over, that she asked Justin to take her to the pediatric wing to find Ryan. She wanted to see the little boy that was her brother, the little boy she'd just, hopefully, saved.
It wasn't hard to find him, since both their parents were in the room with him. Kitty and Justin watched for a few moments as William tried to apologize to Nora, who ignored him in favor of adjusting the blanket over the sleeping boy.
"Nora, please, say something."
"Like what? Should I ask 'how could you?' because I know how, I know she's not the first and probably won't be the last. The one question I really want an answer to, us how you could chose to have an affair with someone who would abandon their child."
"Abandon?" Kitty asked, horrified.
"How long have you..." William began.
"Long enough," Justin said, pushing his sister's wheelchair into the room so they could both get a better look at the sleeping child. "He looks really bad," Justin said.
"He's been very sick," Nora told her youngest, putting an arm around his shoulders. "And his mother... she apparently hasn't come back since he was admitted."
"What happens when he's released from the hospital?" Justin asked, looking briefly at his mom, then at his dad, the latter of whom refused to meet his eyes.
"He'll be placed..." William began.
"He comes home with us," Nora interrupted. "He's your brother. He should be with family."
3. Eight
"I made a mistake, years ago," William said as he and Nora sat in their car headed to Fresno. "I... I had an affair."
"Oh William," Nora said, heartbroken.
"I'm sorry. It's was a horrible mistake, the woman... she doesn't even begin to compare to you. But... she got pregnant. I... I have a son with her. His name's Ryan, he's eight years-old."
"Alright," Nora said, trying to keep her composure. "Why are you..."
"I got a call, a frantic call, from Ryan's older brother. Their... Trey's father... the man who's been raising Ryan... he... he killed Dawn... their mother. The man's been arrested, but the boys are... Ryan's only eight, and Trey's twelve, they're just children..."
"So we're going to get them?" Nora said. "And then?"
"I... don't know. But I need to make sure Ryan's safe, and that means making sure Trey's safe. He adores his brother."
"I would assume Trey knows you're..."
"Yes. Trey told me that Dawn told him that if I thought Ryan wasn't taken care of I'd take him away from them and he'd never see his brother again, but he'd rather lose his brother than let Ryan get hurt. As far as I know, Ryan has no idea."
"We'll bring them back to Pasadena," Nora said. "You can either tell our children the truth, or you can tell them that Trey and Ryan's parents are old friends of yours and they... and the boys need someone to take care of them so we will. But those boys will come home with us."
4. Fifteen
William pulled his car to a stop half a block down from the address Ryan had given him on the phone. It had been several years since he'd visited Ryan in person, things too difficult to explain now that he was old enough to realize it was strange that an 'old friend' of his mother's was so interested in him and his well being. But when the boy had been left without any other options, he had called William for help.
Ryan was sitting on a low concrete wall, a cigarette dangling from his lips, and the beginnings of a bruise forming around his eye. He sat hunched over, a battered backpack on the ground between his feet, and a sense of defeat surrounding him.
William sighed and pulled forward, coming to stop next to Ryan, who looked up, a look of hopelessness on his face as he got up and walked around to get in the car, hunching down on himself. "What happened?" William asked.
"Ma kicked me out. No one had room for me... it was call you or call this public defender with creepy eyebrows," Ryan replied. "I'm sorry, I just didn't..."
"It's okay," William assured him.
"Where are we going?"
"Pasadena, to my family's house."
"Are you seriously gonna drop your illegitimate son on your wife and kids?"
William looked over, surprised. "How long..."
"Come on. Rich guy shows up a couple times a year? Ma makes sure the house is clean, our clothes are clean, there's food in the house and very little booze? It had to be because either me or Trey are your kid, and I'm the one you were always looking at. And when I asked Trey, he told me the truth. Said ma admitted it, she told him if you didn't think she was taking care of me, you'd take me away and Trey would never see me again."
"I would never have done that. Trey's your brother, family's important."
"Says the man who screwed around on his wife with a junkie stripper," Ryan said. "How are you going to explain me?"
"Your mother was an old friend, and she's not able to take care of you anymore, so I offered to take you in. My wife's been feeling a bit... 'empty nest' since our youngest moved out, she'll be happy to have someone around."
"So you'll keep lying."
"It's not like I can tell them the truth."
"Right, because then you aren't their wonderful saintly father. This way, you're the good guy who took in the kid who was left homeless, the kid who got hit at home."
"Ryan..."
"Whatever. I'll go along with your story. I just don't wanna end up sleeping on a bus bench."
~~~~
"When did you find out?"
Ryan looked up, startled, at Nora's question. "What?"
"When did you find out my husband was your father?"
Ryan was quiet for a moment, looking at her, then looked down at the water of the pool. "I was eight. My dad was sent to jail for armed robbery and I kept crying, because as horrible as things were with him around, they were worse when he wasn't. And I loved him. My brother Trey told me that he wasn't my real father, mom's 'friend' William was. Ma told Trey that if William didn't think everything was fine, he'd take me away, so... Trey helped her make the house look nice whenever William was going to come see us. See me." He shrugged, looking up again. "How long have you known?"
"The way he said you were the son of a friend of his," Nora said. "First of all, I know his friends. Second, he's... well, he's a little classist and he would not be friends with people who suddenly 'couldn't care for their son', and left him with a black eye."
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have called him, I just... no one else would let me stay with them. I didn't... I didn't wanna end up homeless. I was scared."
"It's not your fault. And you are welcome to stay."
"You can't mean that."
"You didn't do anything to me. William and your mother did, but not you."
"What if your kids figure it out, too?"
"I intend to tell them. They deserve to know they have another brother. And you deserve to have a relationship with your sisters and brothers."
The End
Ta-da! Nora did say in a chapter of Good Enough that if she'd known about Ryan sooner she would have taken him in so he'd have a loving family... lol... I just can't see her ever turning her back on a helpless child (or even a completely lost and alone teenager), especially one that was related to her children.
And as screwed up as the Walkers are, you know Ryan would have had a happier childhood with them than he did with the Atwoods. And if anything like the Oliver mess had happened? At least one Walker would have listened to him and believed him.
Four Times The Walkers Found Out About Ryan
1. Three
Nora hurriedly dried her hands on a towel as she went to answer the door. On the other side stood a women with permed bleach blonde hair, holding a blonde toddler in her arms. "Can I help you?" Nora asked, puzzled.
"Is this William Walker's house?" the woman asked.
"Yes, I'm his wife, Nora..."
"This is his son, and if he doesn't want him, he can put him in foster care, but I'm done," the woman said, shoving the toddler at Nora, who automatically took him, not wanting the boy to fall.
"What are you talking about?" Nora asked, stunned.
"What, you didn't know your husband likes to sneak around?"
"Nora? Who's at the door, sweetheart?" William asked as he came into the foyer, stopping short at the sight of Dawn. "What are you doing here?" he asked coldly.
"Dropping off our son," the woman said. "I don't care what you do with him, but I'm done. Frank doesn't wanna raise someone else's bastard."
With that she turned to leave, and William darted forward to grab her arm. "Dawn, you can't just..."
"Make you deal with it? It's nothing but trouble, always crying and wanting something. If you don't want it, just dump him with social services," Dawn said, yanking her arm free as a large man got out of a dilapidated car on the curb.
"Hurry your ass up, Dawn. We got somewhere to be."
Dawn darted down to the lawn to the car and both got in, fleeing with a squeal of tires on asphalt. Nora watched, horrified by the woman's words, as she held the sniffling toddler trying to comfort him even as his mother left him behind. "William?" she asked as her husband returned. "Is what she said true? Is this..."
William hesitated a moment, then nodded, reaching out to brush a hand over the back of the boy's head. "My son," he said. "I..."
"Don't," Nora said coldly. "I don't want excuses, or apologies. I want to know what the hell you... you have another child with some woman who just abandoned him."
"Dawn was... a mistake. A fleeting... I made a mistake. And I've been giving her money to take care of him since I found out. I didn't... I didn't think she'd ever... I'm so..."
"Don't you dare pretend that a 'sorry' will fix this, William Walker," Nora said. She was distracted as the little boy began to cry outright, although quietly, an she held him a little closer, resting her cheek on his hair as she tried to comfort him. "And don't think you're mistake is going away. This poor baby is staying with us."
2. Five
"I don't know how to apologize..."
"There is no way to fix this," Nora said, still refusing to look at him and instead focusing on their stunned children. "But you heard your father. You have a half brother, and he's sick. He needs bone marrow, and all of you are his best chance. We won't force any of you to get tested or donate, but..."
"He's our brother," Justin said. "I mean, it's not his fault that Dad... it's not his fault. I'll get tested." The sentiment was echoed by the others.
"Thank you," William said.
"We not doing this for you," Kitty said bitterly. "We're doing this for... what's his name?"
"Ryan," William said. "His name is Ryan."
"We're doing this for Ryan."
~~~~
Kitty was the closest match, and when they told her she immediately asked how soon they could do the procedure. It was only later, after it was all over, that she asked Justin to take her to the pediatric wing to find Ryan. She wanted to see the little boy that was her brother, the little boy she'd just, hopefully, saved.
It wasn't hard to find him, since both their parents were in the room with him. Kitty and Justin watched for a few moments as William tried to apologize to Nora, who ignored him in favor of adjusting the blanket over the sleeping boy.
"Nora, please, say something."
"Like what? Should I ask 'how could you?' because I know how, I know she's not the first and probably won't be the last. The one question I really want an answer to, us how you could chose to have an affair with someone who would abandon their child."
"Abandon?" Kitty asked, horrified.
"How long have you..." William began.
"Long enough," Justin said, pushing his sister's wheelchair into the room so they could both get a better look at the sleeping child. "He looks really bad," Justin said.
"He's been very sick," Nora told her youngest, putting an arm around his shoulders. "And his mother... she apparently hasn't come back since he was admitted."
"What happens when he's released from the hospital?" Justin asked, looking briefly at his mom, then at his dad, the latter of whom refused to meet his eyes.
"He'll be placed..." William began.
"He comes home with us," Nora interrupted. "He's your brother. He should be with family."
3. Eight
"I made a mistake, years ago," William said as he and Nora sat in their car headed to Fresno. "I... I had an affair."
"Oh William," Nora said, heartbroken.
"I'm sorry. It's was a horrible mistake, the woman... she doesn't even begin to compare to you. But... she got pregnant. I... I have a son with her. His name's Ryan, he's eight years-old."
"Alright," Nora said, trying to keep her composure. "Why are you..."
"I got a call, a frantic call, from Ryan's older brother. Their... Trey's father... the man who's been raising Ryan... he... he killed Dawn... their mother. The man's been arrested, but the boys are... Ryan's only eight, and Trey's twelve, they're just children..."
"So we're going to get them?" Nora said. "And then?"
"I... don't know. But I need to make sure Ryan's safe, and that means making sure Trey's safe. He adores his brother."
"I would assume Trey knows you're..."
"Yes. Trey told me that Dawn told him that if I thought Ryan wasn't taken care of I'd take him away from them and he'd never see his brother again, but he'd rather lose his brother than let Ryan get hurt. As far as I know, Ryan has no idea."
"We'll bring them back to Pasadena," Nora said. "You can either tell our children the truth, or you can tell them that Trey and Ryan's parents are old friends of yours and they... and the boys need someone to take care of them so we will. But those boys will come home with us."
4. Fifteen
William pulled his car to a stop half a block down from the address Ryan had given him on the phone. It had been several years since he'd visited Ryan in person, things too difficult to explain now that he was old enough to realize it was strange that an 'old friend' of his mother's was so interested in him and his well being. But when the boy had been left without any other options, he had called William for help.
Ryan was sitting on a low concrete wall, a cigarette dangling from his lips, and the beginnings of a bruise forming around his eye. He sat hunched over, a battered backpack on the ground between his feet, and a sense of defeat surrounding him.
William sighed and pulled forward, coming to stop next to Ryan, who looked up, a look of hopelessness on his face as he got up and walked around to get in the car, hunching down on himself. "What happened?" William asked.
"Ma kicked me out. No one had room for me... it was call you or call this public defender with creepy eyebrows," Ryan replied. "I'm sorry, I just didn't..."
"It's okay," William assured him.
"Where are we going?"
"Pasadena, to my family's house."
"Are you seriously gonna drop your illegitimate son on your wife and kids?"
William looked over, surprised. "How long..."
"Come on. Rich guy shows up a couple times a year? Ma makes sure the house is clean, our clothes are clean, there's food in the house and very little booze? It had to be because either me or Trey are your kid, and I'm the one you were always looking at. And when I asked Trey, he told me the truth. Said ma admitted it, she told him if you didn't think she was taking care of me, you'd take me away and Trey would never see me again."
"I would never have done that. Trey's your brother, family's important."
"Says the man who screwed around on his wife with a junkie stripper," Ryan said. "How are you going to explain me?"
"Your mother was an old friend, and she's not able to take care of you anymore, so I offered to take you in. My wife's been feeling a bit... 'empty nest' since our youngest moved out, she'll be happy to have someone around."
"So you'll keep lying."
"It's not like I can tell them the truth."
"Right, because then you aren't their wonderful saintly father. This way, you're the good guy who took in the kid who was left homeless, the kid who got hit at home."
"Ryan..."
"Whatever. I'll go along with your story. I just don't wanna end up sleeping on a bus bench."
~~~~
"When did you find out?"
Ryan looked up, startled, at Nora's question. "What?"
"When did you find out my husband was your father?"
Ryan was quiet for a moment, looking at her, then looked down at the water of the pool. "I was eight. My dad was sent to jail for armed robbery and I kept crying, because as horrible as things were with him around, they were worse when he wasn't. And I loved him. My brother Trey told me that he wasn't my real father, mom's 'friend' William was. Ma told Trey that if William didn't think everything was fine, he'd take me away, so... Trey helped her make the house look nice whenever William was going to come see us. See me." He shrugged, looking up again. "How long have you known?"
"The way he said you were the son of a friend of his," Nora said. "First of all, I know his friends. Second, he's... well, he's a little classist and he would not be friends with people who suddenly 'couldn't care for their son', and left him with a black eye."
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have called him, I just... no one else would let me stay with them. I didn't... I didn't wanna end up homeless. I was scared."
"It's not your fault. And you are welcome to stay."
"You can't mean that."
"You didn't do anything to me. William and your mother did, but not you."
"What if your kids figure it out, too?"
"I intend to tell them. They deserve to know they have another brother. And you deserve to have a relationship with your sisters and brothers."
The End
Ta-da! Nora did say in a chapter of Good Enough that if she'd known about Ryan sooner she would have taken him in so he'd have a loving family... lol... I just can't see her ever turning her back on a helpless child (or even a completely lost and alone teenager), especially one that was related to her children.
And as screwed up as the Walkers are, you know Ryan would have had a happier childhood with them than he did with the Atwoods. And if anything like the Oliver mess had happened? At least one Walker would have listened to him and believed him.