I'm busy with work this week but I wanted to update since I haven't in a while with a oneshot I already had focusing on the Donahues but don't worry the few requests made have been noted/started :)
Sean isn't sure when the shift happened but he can't stop thinking about Sue.
He mentions her all the time to his roommates, thinks about her when he's trying to study, and daydreams about her on the long drives to his medical school interviews like he's a 14-year-old girl.
He's becoming paranoid at how much he might like her, knowing Axl will freak out but not knowing how his family will react. He's nervous when he goes home for the summer he'll be obvious about his feelings and the worst part is that he doesn't know how to turn off his Sue-filled thoughts or keep his name out of her mouth.
It's infuriating.
"How did the interview at IU go?" His dad asks him at Easter.
"Great! I went to East Indy after and hung out with Axl and Sue," Sean replies quickly.
"How are they doing?"
"Axl is, well, Axl and Sue is doing great." Don't do it Sean. "She's adjusted so well at college and she's so much smarter and mature than she used to be. She lives in the nicest apartment I think I've ever seen."
"I'm glad to hear it," Ron grins at him.
"Me too." Sean pauses before continuing before he can stop himself. "I had the best onion rings I've never had in my life at this bar Sue suggested."
"Better than Tally's?" His dad perks up.
"Better than Tally's!" Sean confirms. "Sue even-" Sean stops abruptly to stop his word vomit, hoping his dad doesn't catch on.
He does.
"So you like Sue?"
"I can't believe I forgot to tell you!"
Sean rolls his eyes; there can't be a single thing about Orson that his mother forgot to tell him over the past 40 minutes. Sean had been playing video games in his room at Notre Dame when his mom had called him and he knew, he knew he shouldn't have picked up but he did and has been held hostage since.
"Sue Heck came to the house looking for you the night of that ball she told you she didn't have a date for."
Sean drops his controller. "She did?"
"Oh Sean she looked so beautiful in her red dress!" Nancy gushes, Sean making a noise of irritation under his breath. He had seen a photo of her and Axl at the ball and she really had looked beautiful. It made his heart hurt that she would rather go with Axl and lie to him saying that she had a date rather than go with him. Hint received, Sue Heck. "Her makeup and her hair were both done so perfectly and she looked so grown up-"
"Mom," Sean cuts her off sternly, trying not to lose his cool. "She came to the house?"
"Yes, she pulled up in Axl's RV in such a hurry looking for you. I felt so bad telling her that you had already left to go back to school."
"But she had a date," Sean says slowly, his body tensing.
"She said the situation changed." Sean closes his eyes, that's why she went with Axl. "She looked so sad."
"She did?"
"Yes and then she said the weirdest thing," Nancy pauses. "She said that she was just chasing something that probably isn't even a thing. What do you think that means?"
"I don't know," Sean replies, his head starting to swim with possibility as he picks up his laptop. "That is weird."
"Isn't it? Sue is just the sweetest though." Sean tunes out his mother as she starts talking about something Frankie told her as he starts looking up snowglobes online.
The next summer in Orson feels like the longest three months of his life.
With Axl in Europe, his internship with the senator and only a handful of his friends not working full-time jobs after having recently graduated, Sean doesn't have many people to hang out with. The one person he would be hanging out with all the time is the same one he's trying to avoid due to his unfortunate feelings and her boyfriend status but it's hard when she lives across the street.
In his avoidance of his neighbor Sean spends most of the time he isn't working on the couch in his parent's basement. He can tell that his family knows something is up with him but being Donahues none of them have asked him about it.
The closest any of them had come to asking him is Nancy suggesting that he do something with his sisters, which Sean dismisses immediately, telling her that he's sure his 13 and 15-year-old sisters would rather hang out with their friends than him.
It turns out he doesn't have to wait long until one of them cracks.
"So what's your damage," Dotty asks him one day in early July, flopping next to him on the couch.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Sean replies, not turning away from the television.
"You've been moping all summer," Dotty nudges his shoulder with hers.
"I haven't been moping," Sean scowls. "I went to happy hour with Greg Norwood two days ago and hung out with Nick Roberts last weekend."
"You aren't acting like yourself," Dotty bites the inside of her cheek. "I know Axl isn't around this summer but you haven't even hung out with Sue or taken us out for ice cream and you always do that in the summer-"
"Nothing's wrong Dotty," he snaps and immediately feels guilty when Dotty's face falls.
"You're lying," Dotty says quietly, staring at her hands on her jeans. They're slightly shaking causing Sean to wince; Dotty hated confronted him. "You don't have to tell me what's wrong, just know I'm here for you."
"Nothing is wrong," Sean softens his voice and gives his sister a slight smile, "but thank you."
"Okay." Her hands are still shaking.
"Maybe we could go get ice cream tonight Milkshake?" Dotty smiles at the old nickname she asked him to stop using when she turned 11.
"I'll go ask Shelley. Maybe Sue is free and will want to come too?" Dotty looks so hopeful, the shaking in her hands finally calmed down that Sean couldn't say no.
"I'll text her but Dotty?" Dotty pauses in her movements to leave the basement and turns to him expectantly. "Maybe next week we can go just the two of us?" Dotty beams and nods so furiously that he instantly feels bad he's never asked her to go alone before.
He texts Sue to ask if she is free to join them and her response comes within seconds: I would love to go! You have perfect timing, I just finished washing the potato smell out of my hair! I'll be over in 15, is that cool?
Sean chuckles lightly as a small smile crosses his face before exhaling sharply as he recognizes how pathetic he is at receiving a single text from Sue.
He is unable to keep the smile off of his face as he types his response, missing the fact that Dotty is watching him with a wide smile on her face.
After Sean helps Sue and Lexie get their apartment back he tries to give her some space.
He can admit he came on pretty strong with his line about rescuing and while Sue has never come across as being a potentially needy girl he's still kind of down she hasn't reached out to him since. So it's safe to say he's surprised when three weeks later while his parents and sisters are visiting him for the weekend he opens the door to Sue's smiling face.
"What are you doing here?" Sean asks, harsher than he intended which earns him a dirty look from his mom.
"Your mom invited me to have dinner with you guys," Sue bites her lip nervously. "Is that okay?"
"Of course Suzy Q," Sean gives her an apologetic smile as he steps aside to grant her entry into his apartment. "I'm sorry, I was surprised."
"That's okay," Sue accepts his apology easily, turning before picking up a box that had been resting at her feet that she is clearly struggling to carry. "I brought some old clothes for the girls."
Sean chuckles before reaching out and taking the box from her and dropping it in his living room. "The girls can look at them later, I'm hungry. Are we all ready to go?" His family starts to get their coats on and he looks back at Sue, who is staring at him with a dazed expression.
"Sue?" Her eyes snap towards his in alarm.
"I wasn't staring at your arms," she says quickly.
"I, I didn't say you were?" Sean says in a voice that he knows isn't cool by the snort his dad lets out under his breath.
"Okay." Sue stands there awkwardly, seeming to be shaking her head at herself but before Sean can comment his mother cuts in.
"So Sue what is a good place to eat around here?"
Sean waits as Sue, his mother and his sisters exit his apartment, moving to follow them but stops when his dad places his hand on his arm.
"You're making moves on her right?"
"What? On Sue?" Sean baulks when Ron nods. "She has a boyfriend."
"It can't be that serious, she obviously likes you." His dad gives him a look that says he should know that. "And you like her."
"Haven't we been over this?"
"Yes and you lied," Ron gives him another look. "You're putting the moves on her, aren't you?"
Sean pauses. "Maybe."
Ron laughs and puts his arm around Sean's shoulder, giving him tips as they leave for dinner.
Sean is still single and hating his life sans-Sue when Thanksgiving rolls around.
Thanksgiving Eve Axl shows up at his parent's house before they go out to the only bar in Orson, telling Sean quietly that he needs a real home-cooked meal because Frankie is hosting Thanksgiving again this year.
Sean laughs, glad that Axl will never change, and leads him into the kitchen where Nancy gets so excited to see Axl she starts taking things out of the fridge to cook before she's even finished hugging him.
"Hank really dumped his date to take you to Homecoming because you didn't have a date?" Axl clicks his tongue in amusement as he sits in on dinner with the Donahues. "He loves you."
"No he doesn't!" Shelley exclaims, granting Axl a dirty look.
"Axl's right Shel," Sean grins, pointing his fork at her. "He totally likes you."
"Stop it!" Shelley whines, wrinkling her nose.
"What's the problem? He's cute and his brother is hot so you know he will be in a few years," Dotty jumps into the conversation.
"It makes me uncomfortable when you call guys hot," Axl teases Dotty. "Aren't you like, 12?"
"I don't see what the problem is either," Nancy says to Shelley while handing Dotty the mashed potatoes. "You two are best friends."
"Exactly!" Shelley stresses. "That's the only reason he did it."
"The only reason he did that was to show you how much he likes you," Sean makes a face before turning to Axl. "Maybe we should go have a chat with him."
"A shakedown?" Axl grins mischievously. "We haven't done one of those since Sue was dating that short wrestler, dude, that guy was the worst. What was his name again?"
"Matt," Sean supplies with a shiver, an action Axl mirrors.
"Leave my friend alone!" Shelley narrows her eyes at her brother, Sean shrugging.
"No promises."
"Sean!"
"Hey, no one is allowed to date my sister without being a little afraid of me," Sean tells her. "Someone has to keep him in line."
"He doesn't like me," Shelley growled.
"Sure he doesn't," Dotty smirks, Shelley groaning loudly.
"No he doesn't! Sean drives five hours at a time to offer to bring Sue to proms and balls that she doesn't have dates to and he doesn't like her!" Shelley explains in frustration. "And Sean's been turned down as that date three times but I guarantee he would do it tonight for her if she needed him but none of you are sitting here accusing him of liking Sue!"
"That's because it's Sue," Axl rolls his eyes, oblivious to the energy shift in the room. When no one responds he looks around the table to see Nancy tilting her head in thought while Dotty is glaring at Shelley and Sean shifts uncomfortably in his chair. Axl drops his fork noisily onto his plate. "You like my sister don't you?"
"Maybe," Sean answers nonchalantly, Axl throwing his head back and groaning.
"What the hell Sean-"
"Nice going," Dotty whispers to Shelley, who mouths 'sorry' to her brother. Sean shrugs in response, Axl had to find out sometime.
A long month later, Sean rings the doorbell to his parent's house with his girlfriend's small hand snug in his larger one.
He finally nabbed the girl of his dreams thanks to the snowglobe he purchased and being so miserable without her that he blurted to her how much he liked her while they were playing Celebrity Old Maid with Brad.
Luckily for his unsmooth-self, she felt the same and they had started dating which led Sean to bring her home to 'meet his parents'. Sean didn't tell his parents much about his new girlfriend but he heard the disappointment in his mom's voice when he failed to mention that his new girlfriend is Sue.
Ever since finding out he liked Sue, his mom had become convinced they were meant to be and even though he agreed he was so over her daily texts asking if he had asked out Sue yet that he decided to leave out his new girlfriend's name in lieu of his mom blowing up his phone even more.
Sue tugs on his hand lightly touching the back of his hand with her free one. "You don't think your parents will be upset that I'm your girlfriend, do you?"
"Of course not," Sean pulls her closer by their joined hands. "They love you."
"Really?" Sue looks up at him, her hopeful smile bright. Sean's eyes flicker to her lips before meeting her eyes again.
"Really." Sue smiles at him, instantly calmed and Sean grins before leaning down to capture her lips with his. He had just wrapped his arm around her to pull her closer when a high-pitched scream tears them apart.
"Mom?" Sean stares at his mother wide-eyed who is jumping up and down in excitement and is clearly responsible for the scream. "Are you serious?"
"I was hoping Sue was your girlfriend!" Nancy exclaims, reaching out to take Sue's hand to drag her inside. "I'm so glad I made your favorite…"
Sean tunes out his mother instead watching Sue look at him with a beaming smile over her shoulder and he winks before flashing her his own beaming smile.
'Told you' he mouths.
