Hello all! I wrote this fic for harukakamiya on LiveJournal for the Secret Santa exchange at idontdance. In addition to the prompts I listed below, she also asked for "fluff and comedy, but realistic angst." I tried really hard to keep the balance and I hope you all like it!
Prompts: anarchy, middle school, Japan, yoga
Disclaimer: I own nothing, especially not the boys. If I did, would I spend my time on the internet? Sadly, Disney owns them.
Chad marched purposely through the crowded New York sidewalk, full of people on their way home from a long day at the office or headed for a long night out. He kept his head down and his shoulders hunched. He usually walked with his head held high, but most days he didn't have to keep his team two hours after scheduled practice to work on their game.
He originally didn't want to work with middle school students. He wanted to coach high school basketball, like Coach Bolton but he realized he could take these kids before they were in the varsity team and make them great, they'd be better in the long run. He always remembered to keep the fun in the game, but they had to work hard. Usually he didn't have a problem with his team but tonight they acted like they had never seen a basketball before.
Chad sighed as he checked his watch. Ryan was going to kill him for being late; they had to get the house ready for Ryan's parents this weekend. They were both so busy with their jobs that this small window of time when most people ate dinner was the only time they had to do productive things, like clean the apartment.
"Good evening, Mr. Danforth." The doorman's voice broke Chad's thoughts.
"Hey, Mike. How's Elena?"
The doorman smiled as he held open the door. "Just fine sir," he said even though Chad had insisted he stop. The young man was only a few years younger than him and Ryan and it felt weird. "She's a bit tired, but that's expected."
"She's due next week, right?" Chad asked and Mike nodded. "If you need anything, just let us know, okay?"
"Very good sir." Mike said with a bit of a smirk as Chad rolled his eyes.
"Stop calling me that!" They both laughed and Chad made his way to the front desk. This apartment complex was much fancier than Chad ever imagined he'd live in, especially in New York but Ryan insisted they use the money his parents saved for him. Chad always chipped in for rent, though sometimes he suspected Ryan didn't use it.
"Hey Sierra," Chad greeted the desk clerk with a small smile. "Any mail for us tonight?" Ryan never checked for mail, not anymore.
"Let me check," the soft-spoken girl said before turning to the large array of slots behind her. With her glasses and mild manner she made him think of Kelsi. She was supposed to call them sometime this week. "Here you go." She handed him a small stack of envelopes. He thanked her and headed toward the elevator. Normally he took the stairs, but tonight's practice drained him.
He flipped through the stack of bills without interest until he landed on an envelope with their address in handwriting instead of laser print. He glanced at the upper left hand corner: no return address. Chad slumped against the elevator wall as it slid up to their floor. Not again.
Ryan had recently won a Tony and a lot of publicity for his role in the critically acclaimed play, "Japan." Ryan portrayed a soldier in a Japanese POW camp that befriends one of his guards and tries to get him to free the prisoners, but the man's sense of duty was too great and they are all killed. It was a beautiful play and nothing like what anyone expected Ryan to be a part of.
He had choreographed a few off-Broadway productions, but nothing that became as successful as this. Chad remembered when Ryan came home with the script, he had never seen Ryan so excited about anything. Chad asked him why he wanted to do something like this and Ryan simply said he wanted to be in something that mattered.
And it did. Everyone involved with the play now had hundreds of fans waiting for them outside the theatre. So when Chad and Ryan showed up at the Tony's together, everyone saw, and not everyone accepted them.
For months now they had been receiving death threats and hateful letters. Some because he was black, some because they were gay. All of them upset Ryan, more than Chad had anticipated.
"Why can't they just leave us alone?" Ryan had whispered desperately as they held each other one night after a particularly nasty letter addressed to "The Sinners" found its way into their mail. Chad chewed out the post office for hours.
Now Chad screened the mail and never told Ryan. He'd rather have him believe the letters had stopped. Chad sighed as he opened the innocent looking white envelope and scanned the letter inside. It was the usual "rot in hell, faggots" and Chad crumpled it into a ball before stuffing it into his messenger bag. He would shred it later.
The elevator bell rang and Chad wearily walked toward their door at the end of the hall. He was beat from dealing with his kids and the letter just added to the weight on his shoulders.
Soothing music greeted him and candlelight flickered off the walls as he entered the apartment. The place looked spotless and Chad instantly felt guilty. Ryan must have cleaned up this afternoon so he could do his pre-show yoga.
Sure enough, Ryan sat on a small mat in the middle of the living room, serenely exhaling air. Chad watched in amazement as he then twisted his limbs into a complicated looking knot. He would never understand yoga, or how it was supposed to relax you. But Ryan swore by it, and Chad couldn't complain when it proved useful in bed.
Chad smirked at the image, dropped his bag in a chair and tried to sneak quietly into the kitchen, only to have Ryan's voice stop him.
"I wondered when you would be coming home." There was a hint of impatience in Ryan's voice. He must have been upset at Chad for being late, which Chad should have realized when he saw the candles. Ryan only broke out the full yoga atmosphere when he was pissed.
"I'm sorry," Chad said as he tugged his hair from the elastic band holding it back. He had cut it a while ago, but he hadn't been to a barber in a long time and it had grown to its Wildcat days and he always pulled it back during practice. "The kids were horrible tonight and I had to keep them for a while more."
"I'm guessing that went over well," Ryan said in a dry voice, his back still to Chad.
"I'm expecting a lynch mob in the morning." Chad walked toward Ryan as he slowly but steadily pushed himself into a headstand.
"They've discovered basketball anarchy?" Ryan asked, looking up (or down?) at Chad.
"Something like that." Chad leaned over, trying to look Ryan in the eyes. "I didn't mean to skip out on cleaning the apartment. Really." He backed up as Ryan flipped back into a sitting position, exhaled again and stood up.
"It's okay," he said with a bright smile as he threw his arms around Chad's neck. "I got the cleaning ladies to do it." He pecked Chad on the lips before practically skipping to the kitchen. As long as yoga prevented Ryan from blowing up at Chad, he learned to accept it.
"I thought we agreed not to use the building's cleaning service." Chad said as he followed Ryan into the kitchen, his stomach growling. When they first moved in, Ryan wanted to take advantage of all the services the apartment complex offered, including cleaning. But Chad had convinced him it would be better if they didn't, it would feel like their apartment instead of a hotel room or something.
"I'm just glad that English teacher didn't keep you, again." Ryan said into the refrigerator, ignoring Chad's statement. Chad rolled his eyes at the actor's back.
"You don't have to worry about her, you know. And besides," Chad continued as Ryan pulled out a bottle of water and turned toward him. "I'm pretty sure this would deter her from any future advancements." He held up his left hand and wiggled his fourth finger. They had joined just about every other gay couple in the country and got married in California just after the state made it legal. Not that it counted any more.
"Somehow I don't think that would stop a woman like her." Ryan sulked. Chad hated this insecure, jealous side of Ryan that tended to come out whenever Chad befriended a woman, but to be fair Alice, the school's newest teacher, had hit on Chad at the faculty party in September. But once he explained he was married they had resolved to be friends.
"She's really nice, you know. You should give her a chance." Chad said but Ryan only scoffed and turned to put the water back. Chad hugged his husband from behind and held tight when he tried to wiggle away. "I love you and only you," he murmured into Ryan's pale neck before placing a kiss there.
"I love you too," Ryan said as he leaned into Chad's arms. "I just…I'm afraid with the letters and everything that's happened since the summer that being with me has become too…too much."
Chad's stiffened slightly. They hadn't talked about the letters in weeks. "What made you think of those?" He asked in what he hoped was a calm voice.
"Well, I cleaned up a bit myself and found one in the desk drawer." Chad swore and Ryan turned in his arms. "Why were you keeping them from me?"
Chad rested his forehead on Ryan's and sighed. "I just didn't want them to upset you anymore. There hasn't been so many lately, so I figured they would stop soon and we wouldn't have to worry about them."
Ryan kissed him softly. "You shouldn't have kept them from me," he said when they parted. "But I still love you for it." They kissed deeper now, but both content to not let it go any farther. Finally they pulled apart for air and Chad's stomach rumbled loudly.
They both laughed and let go of one another. "I'll make you something," Ryan said as he headed back to the fridge. Chad sat at the kitchen table as Ryan chattered away, detailing all his plans for his parents this weekend.
They ate and after promising to meet him after the show tonight, Ryan left for the theatre, leaving Chad in silence for the first time all day. He laid back on the couch and smiled as his thoughts went through the past ten years he had spent with Ryan.
He realized that even through the worst times he was still completely happy because he was with the man he loved and was true to himself.
And that was more important than anything.
I'm still a little hesitant about the ending, so I would really love to hear what you guys think! Please review!