Holding On
A/N: Thanks for supporting the story guys and we're so excited about the fact that you are enjoying our little nods to the show as well, Happy reading!
Chapter 4.
Sarah didn't have to wait around to find Connor after school, she got to the bus in record time, bundling out of the last class past a confused looking Jay and Monique and taking the seat at the front.
She let herself into her house and found Jason and Mary in the kitchen, he was busy watching something on his tablet.
"Thanks for bringing him home Mary, I really appreciate it."
"Oh it was no problem, he's feeling all better aren't you Jason?"
Jason looked up from his tablet, "Did Connor make sure you got home early?"
Sarah nodded absentmindedly as she went to look in the refrigerator.
"Can we have milkshakes now?" Jason asked.
Sarah knew brother wouldn't forget, she opened the refrigerator and sighed. Her Mom obviously hadn't bought the groceries yet. It was then she noticed the post it on the counter.
"I'll be home late tonight, I'll pick up the groceries. Don't stay up, go get something to eat. Mom."
She had left the note and money for food.
"You don't happen to know any good places to eat around here do you?" Sarah asked as she slumped against the counter.
Mary smiled softly as she shrugged on her jacket, "I do actually, my kids love a diner that's not far from here. Molly's is the best place for milkshakes in Chicago too." Mary winked as Jason's face lit up.
Later, Sarah and Jason ambled the few streets over to Molly's after Mary had left for home and given them directions.
It had a welcoming ambiance, a retro feel about the design with booths and stools against the counter. It was pretty busy, even for a Thursday evening. Most of the tables were taken by kids her own age and Sarah was having flashbacks of being in the clique filled cafeteria. Thankfully, she didn't notice anyone as she walked toward the counter that spanned the length of side wall with Jason in tow.
Jason saw him before she did.
Her brother bolted from her side and down the length of the counter towards him.
"…and can I have my Mom's regular to go please? It'll put a smile on her face." Connor Rhodes had just finished ordering as Sarah caught up with Jason.
"Sure thing Connor, I'll make sure the bacon is extra crispy for her, alright? Give her my best?" The man behind the counter smiled.
"Are you having a milkshake too?" Jason butted in before Sarah could stop him.
"Well, hey there Jason." Connor turned to look at the little boy. "You feeling better?"
Jason nodded.
Connor looked up to meet Sarah's eyes, "Hey Reese, who's doing the stalking now?" He smirked and gave a soft laugh.
"No one." She said, "We were just out and…" Sarah was distracted as Jason clambered up onto one of the tall stools.
"Can I have my milkshake?" He asked the man behind the counter.
"Hermann, these are my friends from school, they're new to Chicago." Connor said, "Jason here has had a rough day, you think you could make his milkshake extra special?"
"You're new here huh?" The man asked with a kind expression.
Jason nodded, "I miss my Dad and I like Mary but Sarah doesn't like her new school."
Hermann smiled and listened intently, "Well it sounds to me like you two need the Molly's Special Milkshake."
"Three." Jason replied.
"Three?"
"Yes. Connor helped get my sister home early like he promised. He makes her smile and she doesn't do that much anymore. So can Connor have a milkshake too?"
Sarah nearly stopped breathing at Jason's words, her cheeks burned and she became far too flustered when Connor caught her eye with a huge grin on his face, "Jason, I'm sure Connor has things to do…"
"I can have a milkshake, I'm just waiting on my order, I've got nowhere to be right now."
"Three Molly's Special Milkshakes coming up then. You kiddos take a seat." Hermann told them.
"Hey C." A voice said next to Hermann. Connor grinned.
"Hey man, working hard I see?"
The boy smiled. "Yep, just helping out since my mom can't work right now." Sarah recognized the boy talking to Connor, she'd seen him in the cafeteria with him and Natalie.
"Someone has to." Hermann put in. "Let's get those boxes out from the back."
"Coming." He sighed. "Oh hey Sarah."
How did he know her name?
"Hey." Henry, Hermann's son smiled kindly as he fist bumped Connor quickly and disappeared to the back.
Sarah reached for her purse, but Hermann placed a hand in front of her."On the house." He said.
"Are you sure?"
"Think of it as a Molly's official welcome to Chicago."
"But…"
"No buts, anyone who can make my man Connor smile like that deserves it, take a seat kid."
Sarah didn't argue anymore but looked around and found Jason and Connor sitting at a table by the window, she saw how Connor was listening to her brother's latests fixation, they were probably on bikes or car these week.
Jason had taken the window seat and Connor had sat beside him so Sarah slid into the seat opposite Jason, at least then she wouldn't be too close to her 'buddy'.
"So what are the kids like at your school?"
Jason shrugged, "There's a lot of them, they like being loud too."
"I thought so too when I first started at Gaffney." He winked.
"You're new?"
"Uh huh, last year."
"Where did you move from?" Sarah asked, going against her better judgement of getting involved.
"I'm Chicago born and bred but, I had to...change schools,Lakeside Memorial. It's this posh school over a few blocks."
Sarah nodded, "I researched all the schools in our area, I've heard of it."
"You researched the schools?"
"Yeah…" She said her eyes drifting towards her little brother who was now gazing attentively out the window.
"Ah.." Connor nodded in understanding, "Well for what it's worth, I like Gaffney better."
"Really?"
Connor laughed, "Don't sound so surprised."
"Well you're getting into fights…" Sarah wished she could take back her words, she didn't want to sound so judgmental but she also didn't want to let her guard down, not with someone who her brother had taken a shine to.
She tended to have a soft spot for those people and they've only come to disappoint her.
"One fight." He corrected her, "Okay three, but they were all with Will Halstead, the guy's an arrogant jerk."
"Really?" She thought he was the arrogant jerk.
"Yes."
"You know I think you two are more alike than you think."
Connor sent her a mock glare as a waitress dropped their milkshakes over; She sounded like his mom; Jason's came with two cookies on the side and Sarah decided she liked the place.
"Are you Sarah's new best friend?" Jason asked while munching on a cookie.
Connor's eyebrows shot up in surprise, "Eh, well I'm her buddy, I help her out at school."
"You're like Mary then?" Jason inquired.
Connor smiled. "something like that, yeah."
Okay."Jason looked down at his glass. "Just don't hurt her okay?"
"Jason…" Sarah whispered, trying to catch his eye.
"Okay."
"And don't make her cry like Joey did."
Connor's gaze flickered toward her momentarily and she wanted the ground to swallow her up. "I don't plan on it."
This apparently was enough to soothe any of Jason's worries and he went back to slurping his milkshake.
Connor moved his glass around in his hands, "So…how was your class with Downey afterwards?"
"It was good, thanks."
A smile played on Connor's lips, "Good."
"I'm thinking of taking on some junior classes though." She didn't know why she was telling him.
"Really?"
"Yeah, I took some back at my old school, I liked the challenge but it's weird already being the new kid to start changing classes again."
"But it's easy to do that, to stay the same, try to do the same as everyone else and blend in. You should go for it."
Sarah murmured her approval, playing with her straw.
"Plus, it's no fun, doing what people expect of you, there's more excitement going against the current than with it." He smiled charmingly.
"Connor? Is that you?" A girl's voice, actually the girl who had all but run over Sarah with her lunch tray, resounded from the doorway.
Sarah looked on as Connor visibly cringed, "Speaking of stalking…" He mumbled under his breath, loud enough for Sarah to hear.
"What a coincidence! I don't usually visit places like this…" She looked around as if something smelled bad, "But Nina and Doris insisted. So, are you doing anything this evening? We haven't got a chance to hang out like we used to…" She all but pouted.
Connor rubbed the back of his neck, "Eh Ava, this is Sarah Reese, she's the new student I've been helping out, and this is her brother Jason."
"We've met." Ava nearly shot at him, "You're friends with the Halsteads and their band of weirdos aren't you?"
Sarah shrank back in her seat.
"You're the mean girl from the bus..." Jason remarked innocently causing Sarah to fight back a smile and Ava to scoff.
"Excuse me?" She asked.
Connor stood up to block Ava from Jason's view, "I actually can't do anything, sorry I was just picking something up for my Mom, it should be ready by now anyway. I have to get going."
He turned back to the Reese siblings, "Hey, thanks for the milkshake, I better get home. See you around?"
"Yeah." Sarah told him as he stalked over to the counter to pick up a bag of food, trying to shake Ava off along the way.
She told herself it was stupid to be disappointed when he left and she felt the tiniest bit lonely.
They got home a little later, with two burgers and waters courtesy of Hermann, Sarah figured milkshakes didn't really count as dinner anyway.
"Go and get ready for a bath, I'll come in a minute." She told her brother.
Jason pouted at first. "I'll give you 15 extra minutes on the tablet if you break the record."
That was enough to get him to the back bathroom. "No locking the door!" Sarah called.
She got out Jason's Pj's, Bumblebee, this week and heard him call for her to come and check if he'd done a good job.
Sarah smiled as she bathed him and he talked away, playing with his bikes on the water.
"Sarah? Is Dad coming soon?"
Sarah held her breath. "He said he would." James was always a tricky subject with Jason, he loved his father, probably more than anyone would guess and he missed him terribly.
James wasn't a bad dad, he was great from the parents Sarah had known standards, but he had been overwhelmed by the situation of having a special needs child and having to care for a girl that wasn't his.
"I don't know." Sarah admitted. "I'll ask mom later if we can call him tomorrow, okay?"
Jason bit his lip. "Okay."
She would call this a won fight.
Connor came home just as his mother was being taken inside by Kelly. "Oh there he is." the nurse smiled. "Good."
"What are you guys up to?" Connor asked.
"Nothing, we were just waiting to see if you'd keep your end of the bargain." Kelly smiled.
Connor's gaze softened. "Ah, yeah, what song are we on today?"
"I believe it was Cole Porter…"
"Right." He took the handles of his mother's wheelchair. "How are you feeling today?"
"It was a good one." Elizabeth told him as she reached for his cheek from behind. "You? No more getting in trouble?"
"It's only Thursday…" Connor said cautiously. "But no, Nat kept me on my toes."
"Good, is she still dating that boy we met last year?"
"Sadly," Connor informed her as they reached the living room, which contained a giant piano.
"You'd be good together,I've always believed so."
Connor rolled his eyes. "Mom…"
"What? I want you to be happy, Natalie's from a good family and we've known her parents since you two were with Mrs. Hannigan."
Bless Mrs. Hannigan. That was his piano teacher and the one person responsible for him meeting Natalie.
It had been her parents that had recommend Gaffney when he got kicked out of the academy.
"I don't see Natalie like that Mom, she's like my sister." Connor huffed.
"Fine, sorry." Connor helped his mother into the small chair next to the piano as he sat on the stool.
"Oh good, I didn't miss it." Katie smiled. "I've already got what you asked me for ready in case we get hungry from all the playing." The old woman winked at Connor.
"Thank you Katie, you're the best."
"I don't like you two plotting without me." Elizabeth gazed at the two of them suspiciously.
"Are we ready?" Kelly came into the room. "I've brought you a blanket m'am."
Kelly sat by the arm of the couch and handed Elizabeth the wool blanket, it was warm outside but the house clearly was below the right temperature for his mother's health.
Connor sighed, turning to his around as his hands moved to the keys and a melody began to play.
His mother's eyes closed as she enjoyed the melody and her son's voice.
You'd be so easy to love
So easy to idolize all others above
So worth the yearning for
So swell to keep every home fire burning for
And we would be so grand at the game
Carefree together that it does seem a shame
That you can't see your future with me
Cause you'd be, oh, so easy to love
You'd be so easy to love
Easy to idolize all others above
So worth the yearning for
So swell to keep all the home fires burning for
We'd be so grand at the game
So carefree together that it does seem a shame
That you can't see your future with me
Cause you'd be, oh, so easy to love
Easy to love
Easy to love
In the final notes, Connor looked over at his mom, she was tired he knew but nothing made her happier than those little moments in which there didn't seem to be nothing more than the music.
The kids at school were right about one thing about him, that stereotypical tendency that all the rich kids were enrolled in expensive piano lessons, yet it was one of his favorite things to do, just him and his mother.
Small clapping pulled him back from his thoughts, "That was beautiful sweetheart."
Connor smiled softly.
"I'm suddenly hungry, who's with me?" Katie winked at Connor.
"So, I brought you something…" He told his mom as they both sat in the small kitchen table, there wasn't much point in using the dining room anyway. "I'm sure Kelly's gonna have my head for it, but it will be totally worth it."
He gave her a toothy grin. Elizabeth eyed plate in front of her as Katie brought it over. "Enjoy."
"Molly's?"
Connor shrugged. "Hermann says hi."
Elizabeth smiled. "Thank him for me, aren't you going to eat?"
"I'm good, I had a Molly's special earlier." His mom looked sternly at him for a moment.
"Is that why you are in such a good mood? Sugar?"
Connor shrugged again. "Maybe."
"How are things going at school? Is Sarah settling okay?"
"She's fine." He told her. "Soon, she won't need me anymore." Elizabeth sensed a glint of sadness in his voice. "Nat says, she'll be here Friday after school, is that okay?" He added rather quickly.
"Perfect." They remained quiet for a moment as Elizabeth held on to her burger and took small bites. "Connor?"
"Yeah?"
"Something else on your mind?"
He bit his lip. "Do we still have some of my old toys upstairs?"
His mother shot in a puzzled look. "What are you up to?"
The next few days seemed to pass in a daze for Sarah, there were still a few teachers to meet and other classmates to annoy apparently, specially that girl Ava who seemed to glare at her constantly.
She saw Connor here and there, he walked her to class and even waited for her and Jason at the bus, the little boy seemed to be more and more attached to him.
And that worried Sarah, specially because she was sure once the 'buddy' thing was over, they would go back to being a sophomore and a junior and she'd be a ghost on her own again.
Friday afternoon came, Sarah had officially survived her first week at Gaffney unscathed.
"So? Did we make the cut?" Jay asked as they walked over to the bus with Jason in tow.
"What?" Sarah asked absentminded.
"How did you like your first week?" Jay smiled.
"Oh, yeah, I didn't get thrown food on me more than once so I guess I'd call it a success."
He laughed. "Good."
Sarah saw the kids gather on the bus as she made it on with Jason and sat in front, him on the window.
The other kids, including Emily's brother Ethan, who she'd met and Will Halstead sat around her.
"So Sarah, a bunch of us are gathering for a bonfire this weekend, You in?" Emily asked as the bus pulled away.
Not her kind of gathering, she preferred to be locked in her room with a good book to read. "Doesn't that happen the week after school?"
She asked, research, she hadn't been invited to a bonfire before.
"Yeah, well it's your first week, so a bonfire is in order." She told her.
Sarah froze. "It's okay, you don't have to bother…"
"Don't even try and persuade her." Monique mumbled. "She'll always find a way to tell you why it's a good idea."
She sighed.
"You have to come Reese, it's an initiation of sorts here at Gaffney." Will told her with a smile.
How could say no to peer pressure?
"You really don't have to…" They'd reached her stop. Jason had already stood up.
"See you tomorrow?" Emily told her. "I'll text you the address?"
Natalie Manning had learned early on that being best friends with Connor Rhodes came with it's perks.
Bless Katie's chocolate chip cookies. "We've miss your pretty face around here sweetie." The elder woman told her.
"I've missed you guys, you have no idea." Nat smiled.
"Good, then you will be coming around more often?"
"Katie…"
"What?" The woman turned to both teens. "I'll admit I have my favorites and she's one of them."
Natalie smiled as she and Connor climbed up the stairs. "Is Claire still MIA?"
"Pretty much, she's only around by the time my dad comes home, like moth to light." Nat giggled.
"Connor?" Came Elizabeth's voice.
"Hi." Natalie opened the door slightly, a bright smile appeared on the woman's face.
"Nat, I thought that was you, how are you honey?"
"I'm good." Natalie smiled. "Sorry I've been a little busy."
"No, of course…you don't have to apologize."
"I do, that's no excuse…" Nat mumbled. "Really, Connor's been keeping me up to date enough." Elizabeth said kindly. Nat blushed. "I like to hear that you've been doing good."
"Yeah, my mom said she'd come and visit soon now that my brother is in day-care."
"How's is everyone?"
"Good, we're all good, thank you." Nat bit her lip.
"Oh lord, I'm not that scary am I?" Elizabeth asked softly. "I wish I could wear a wig or something…so I wouldn't look as dreadful."
"Mom…"
"No, let me fuss, I've been bald for too long."
"I think you look beautiful." Natalie said. "Maybe a little nail polish?"
"Please, I'd ask Claire but she's going through her second adolescence right now."
Nat gazed at Connor. "Come, sit, I want to hear more about you…"
"There's not really much to tell.." Nat suddenly felt on the spot.
"I thought you'd heard enough from me?" Connor joked pulling a chair for Nat and himself next to Elizabeth.
"Are you still dating Jeff?"
"Yep." Natalie said. "And Connor still disapproves."
"That sounds like my son, he's keeps looking out for you, doesn't he?"
"Always." Natalie smiled. "Although I've barely seen him this week, he's been busy."
"Ah, with his 'buddy?" Elizabeth gazed at her son.
"Yep, he's been doing a great job…" Nat smiled.
"Just a week or more so of that and you'll have me back to being your driver, don't worry." Connor said mockingly.
"Oh, no please, becoming a buddy seems to be doing you good." His best friend remarked, earning a smile from Elizabeth.
Connor blushed and then rolled his eyes. "Yes I think so too."
But soon it would all be over, and he felt a sense of emptiness, truth was, he enjoyed taking care of people, his mom and Natalie being his priority.
Was he enjoying taking care of Sarah too?
Happy Wednesday guys! What did you think? We fill in a few blanks on Sarah and Connor in this chapter. Drama ensures ahead so be sure to stay tuned!
Also, check out the song "Easy to Love" From Anything Goes, that Colin actually sings beautifully in the Cast Recording, this was a small nod to him and his Musical Theatre background.
Don't forget to review, to hear what you think makes us happy :)