Title: When I Wore a Younger Man's Clothes
Fandom: Glee
Pairings/Characters: Bryan Ryan, Will Schuester. Slight Brill.
Summary: Regionals, 1992. Bryan Ryan's infamous rendition of Piano Man by Billy Joel.
A/N: So this one is inspired by their scene in the bar in Dream On, and is set when Will and Bryan were in school together. I'm pretty damn proud of this fic, and it's the first one I've finished since last December. Hope you enjoy this piece, and reviews would be de-lovely~
P.S.-I know Terri wasn't in glee club, but let's just pretend for this sake of continuity that she was.

Will Schuester and the rest of the McKinley High glee club stood backstage, waiting and preparing to perform. They had just got done watching Carmel High's glee club…and boy, were they good. A lot of the other members were intimidated, even a bit frightened to death now, thinking they'd have no shot of winning this year. But Will Schuester knew they had their secret weapon-Bryan Ryan-to carry them home with the trophy. Sure, Bryan may not have been the nicest to him, but Will couldn't deny that he was the group's star performer. He'd been given a great piece-Piano Man by Billy Joel. He had seen Bryan slave over the piano ever since he got his hands on the sheet music, practicing at every chance possible. He always felt that his performance was never good enough, but Will couldn't disagree more.

Will looked around, hoping to catch Bryan's eye, but instead caught Terri's worried glance. Concerned, he quickly made his way over to her. He put a hand on her shoulder and asked, "What's wrong?"

Terri didn't tear her eyes away from the ends of her hair that she was twisting as she whispered, "We can't find Bryan."

Will's eyes widened in shock. "Can't find Bryan?" he said with a little more edge than he meant to.

Terri nodded. "We've checked everywhere we could think of. All of backstage, the lobby…Will, we're on in fifteen minutes! If he doesn't show up in time…" She swallowed nervously and shook her head. "I don't even want to think about it."

Will nodded solemnly and retracted his hand, stuffing both in his pockets. He just began walking away, when he had a spark. He went back over to Terri. "You said you checked everywhere?"

"Yes. And we didn't find him. I-Will! Will, where are you going?"

"Where's the one obvious place you just wouldn't expect to find Bryan Ryan?" he shouted back before he dashed off the stage.

Bryan's forehead rested against the toilet bowl as he blindly flushed it once more. This situation didn't make any sense to him. Sure, he sometimes got an adrenaline rush before going on stage, but puking his guts up? No way. But yet here he was, slouching before a public toilet, 10 or so minutes before show time.

If he made it to show time.

He let out a groan. He was grateful that no one else was here to see him in this state, especially one of those Carmel High kids. Ugh, Carmel High…that's the last thing Bryan needed on his mind. Just the thought of them made his stomach churn. More than churn, actually, as he groaned again and braced himself.

Bryan didn't hear the bathroom door open over the sound of his wrenching, but right when his hand reached the handle, he heard a familiar voice call, "Bryan? Bryan, are you okay?" Bryan tensed up and gave a quick glance at the floor. Sure enough, he saw a set of shoes that belonged to their club's uniforms.

"Bryan?"

"I'm fine," he lied, flushing away the evidence. He wiped his mouth of the back of his hand and left the stall he'd occupied since Carmel High finished performing. Will leaned against the wall and watched Bryan splash his face over the sink. "I don't quite believe you, Bryan."

Bryan snatched the paper towel that was in Will's hand and dried his faced. "Don't know why you wouldn't, Schuester. I'm feeling tip-top." There was no smile, no obvious expression.

Will took note of this. "Do I detect a hint of sarcasm?" he asked jokingly.

Bryan scoffed and slid down the wall by door. "More than a hint, I hope." he said quietly, sadly.

Will shook the playful smile from his face and got down next to him. "Hey," he said in a soft tone. "Bryan, what's up with you, man? Everyone's freaking out looking for you."

Bryan heaved a sigh. "So I'm not the only one, then?"

"The only one what?"

"Freaking out."

Will put an arm around his shoulder and moved in closer. "Carmel High get to you?"

Bryan nodded hesitantly. "That was a full out spectacle, Will. There's no way my simple piano playing is going to beat that."

Will was surprised for two reasons. 1-Bryan's piano playing was anything but simple. 2-That was the first time Bryan had non-mockingly called Will by his first name. It sounded silly, but Will felt like he was seeing a new side of Bryan Ryan. A side that was sensitive and scared and worried…one that wasn't the steel, fearless performer…Will closely studied the other boy. His blonde hair was tousled. He had his elbows propped up on indrawn knees. His hands were together, as if praying, and covering the quivering line of his lips. His eyebrows were raised slightly in worried thought, and his usually ice blue eyes seemed to melt some, emotion swirling in the pools of them.

Will decided that after several minutes of silence, it was time to speak up.

"Bryan, I want-no, need you to listen to me." Bryan interlaced his fingers as he turned to face him. "Sure, Carmel High were great at putting on a show: lights, uniforms, choreography-"

"Is this conversation going somewhere, Schuester?" Bryan asked with a greening complexion.

"But did you notice what was missing from their whole performance?" Bryan shook his head. "Emotion. Feeling. Some indication in their voices that they were human beings. All those times you sit down at the piano, Bryan, and you play and you sing, they aren't just movements for you. They're part of your being; you fill each note with passion and longing and regret, because that's what is required to make that song what it is. If any of those drones from Carmel tried that piece, they'd cover it up with shiny lights and flashy dance moves…but all you'll need to do is sit down, begin playing, and you'll have the entire audience focused right on you."

Bryan smiled and flicked away a stray tear. He let out a short laugh and looked down at the floor. Will smiled with him and squeezed his shoulder. Bryan put a hand over the one that was on his shoulder and looked up at Will. "Thank you, Will. Thank you so much."

"Anytime."

Maybe it was sympathy, maybe it was intuitive, maybe it was those stupid, beautiful eyes, but something made Will Schuester lean in and give Bryan Ryan a kiss on the lips that couldn't have lasted more than 2 seconds. A short, friendly kiss for reassurance that said, 'I'm here for you.' They stared straight into each others eyes, understanding. The bell sounded, which alerted them that there was one minute before the next group.

"Ready to go show those Carmel High robots what you're made of?" Will asked.

Bryan smirked. "You know it, Schuester."

They made it backstage just in time for Bryan to collect himself and sort his sheet music. Terri asked Will what took so long, and he responded with, "You know Bryan and his extensive warm up routines."

The entire backstage quieted down as the fateful words were announced-"And now, ladies and gentleman, please welcome, the McKinley High School glee club!" The audience clapped. Bryan took a deep breath before walking onstage and arranging his sheet music before him. As soon as he played the first note, the entire house silenced. All the was to be heard was the piano and Bryan's passionate voice, singing of old men and bartenders, Paul and Davy. The waitress and the businessman, crowds and managers. The microphone Bryan was singing into may not have smelled like a beer, but the piano surely sounded like a thousand carnivals. When he lifted his finger off the last key, the house roared with applause. Will peeked around the curtain to see the look on the Carmel High student's faces, and they were absolutely dumbstruck-even the coach! Will directed everyone's attention to them, and they shared a laugh.

When Bryan returned backstage, he was greeted with copious amounts of praise and pats on the back and handshakes. Will stood at the end of the crowd, taking in Bryan's mile-wide smile. Once the crowd had dispersed, Bryan wasted no time bringing Will tightly into his arms. Will hugged him back, and smiled even more when Bryan kissed his cheek and said, "Thank you, Will. Thank you for everything."

~END~

Hope you enjoyed. Please review!