Title: Since
you're Gone
Author: TWBasketcase
Rated: T for
language, drug use, and sexuality
Chapter Summary: Claire
is getting ready for work when John returns home furious. Andy calls
the house looking for John.
A/N: For those wondering why it
took Allison so long to tell Eddie her news, well I did that
purposely to show that Andy was the one throwing the marriage in
everyone's faces, while Allison was trying to keep things to
herself on the down low. Allison is not a bursting with news type
person, even though Eddie is someone that she trusts. I apologize if
you didn't agree with it. :) I hope you enjoy the next installment!
Chapter 11 - Bomb Dropped
If there was one thing that Claire Standish prided herself in it was her ability to make herself look good in any given situation - including being six months pregnant. She was really beginning to show now - in her opinion - and she had finally accepted the growing bump in her belly. She couldn't wait to start her shopping for him.
John wasn't really one for baby shopping; he felt that clothing and blankets and should be left up to Claire. He was always more interested in working with his hands and building things, so the previous week he had started work on making a hand built crib for their son. Bedroom furniture was costly - and they needed to save all the money that they could - so he made a deal with her that if she would do all the (what he called) crappy-cheesy-shit-shopping, he would use his skills to make all of the wooden furniture. It was a deal that Claire readily agreed to - mainly because she worried at the thought of John dressing their son.
The last thing she needed was an infant with a Mohawk, a pierced ear, and a leather jacket.
On the other hand, other clothing arrangements were frustrating her as well. She and Allison had accompanied Michelle to Madison to go looking for some dresses for the wedding. While they hadn't found a bridal dress, they did pick out a design for the bridesmaids, got Allison's fitted, and paid for. Meanwhile, Claire could not even get fitted due to the fact that in two months - when the wedding was scheduled - she would be close to her due date, and very, very pregnant. They had made an inquiry to the tailor in the shop, who was only able to say that he could take the design of Allison's dress and create one that was a maternity for double the amount of money that the dress was originally worth.
Luckily for them Michelle's mom was in charge of the wedding party dress.
It was really the first time that she had such a major role in someone's wedding. Four years ago when Allison's father had married her stepmother, she was able to do hair and makeup as well as help with hall decorations. She remembered how much fun they had, and how romantic she thought the whole thing was. She really was a romantic at heart and the whole evening she had dreamed of what it would be like if it had indeed been her own wedding that she'd been preparing for. Of course if it was hers she would be able to get just about anything that she wanted for it. Her parents only wanted the most lavish and high end for their daughter - including their yet to be born grandson. Her mom had been bugging her for the last year about marrying - whether it be to John or not was another matter entirely - and it slightly irritated the redhead. Her mother had always been the traditional house-wife-marry-rich type, and she wanted nothing more than her only daughter to follow in her footsteps.
And being the mushy romantic and dreamer that she was, of course she did want to get married someday. However, the thought of her and John standing at the altar of a church in lavish garb seemed strange to her. Would John even step foot in a church? She knew for damn sure that he really was not a religious person. Would he even dress up? They were having a hard time convincing him into a tux for Brian's wedding. He showed up to his prom with a pair of combat boots and a cherry tie on, and the only formal birthday party he had ever been to he streaked at. (1)
He was a lost cause.
But that didn't entirely mean that they couldn't get married. There were all kinds of weddings that happened: casual, outdoor, on the beach, in Jamaica, in Vegas, in front of Elvis, in front of City Hall, in front of an alien, Star Wars themes, cowboy themes, hell even nude weddings weren't unheard of. There was so much that they really could do if they'd only put their minds to it, yet he never wanted to hear of any such talk. Predictably, that irritated Claire's parents, and they questioned the motives of a man who would not only move in with their daughter out of wedlock, but also impregnate her as well. Her parents were very Christian and the thought of a 'bastard' (as they had put it) child had unsettled them both very much at first.
Her parents of course eventually warmed to the idea of a grandchild (even if it did make them feel old) because of the fact that it was their precious daughter carrying it. It had been a long time since there had been any small children in the family, and her parents figured that they could have a lot of fun again - especially since the child wasn't theirs.
A quick jolt coming from her abdomen pulled her from her thoughts and she smiled to herself; if she didn't move faster then she would definitely be late for work, and being late for work at a spa on a Saturday would only create a nasty work environment, not only with her coworkers, but for her awaiting customers as well.
She quickly applied a thin layer of black mascara to her eyelashes, and tossed the tube back in her purse, zipping it up and tucking it away in the process. She turned the light off, and exited the bathroom, nearly crashing over John in the process.
'My god, John! You scared the shit out of me!" She placed a hand over chest and took a deep breath. "When did you get home?"
He only stared at her in an agitated manner and squeezed past her down the hallway. "Just now."
She furrowed her eyebrows; he looked really upset. "What's the matter? Did something happen to you?" She placed her hands on her hips and followed him into their bedroom. "Where did you go anyways? I got out of the shower and you were gone…"
"No where, I just went for a drive," He snapped, and quite obviously lied to her. "The jackasses on the road pissed me off is all, now shut up and leave me alone." He stripped himself of his black Guns N' Roses t-shirt and looked around the room for something clean.
Claire pointed in the direction of the laundry basket and sighed. "Please don't talk to me like that! All I did was ask you a question…"
He perked an eyebrow. "And all I did was answer, now drop it." He removed his pants and began walking towards the bathroom in the hallway. Claire, however, didn't want to drop the topic; obviously something was bothering him, and she wanted to know what it was.
"John, I'm your girlfriend…I'm here for you to talk to…" She smiled at him sweetly when he turned around.
He only frowned. "Really? When do I ever get the chance to talk between your gab fests?"
She glared at him. "You know, you should really be nice to people who are nice to you."
He snorted. "Yeah? And where the fuck does that ever get anybody?"
Before she could answer the phone rang; she sighed quietly to herself and began walking towards the living room to retrieve it. "I'm not done with you!"
"You were never started in the first place!" And with that, she heard the sound of the bathroom door closing and locking.
"Stubborn little baby," she muttered under her breath. She picked up the phone and held it against her ear. "Hello?"
"Claire?" It was Andy.
She smiled at his voice. "Yeah, it's me. How are you doing today?"
"Um, I'm, uh…fine I guess. Look, I don't want to sound like a dick and get you off the phone or anything, but is John there? I would really like to speak with him…" He trailed off rather distractedly in her opinion. She bit her lower lip and tangled the phone cord around her finger.
"Well, he is kind of busy right now. You'll have to call him back." She heard the sound of water turning on in the shower.
"Look Claire, you know I'm not usually rude like this, but I really need you to get him on the phone. It's…uh, you know…urgent." He sounded like he was in a hurry for something, but the tone of his voice made Claire a little suspicious. Why would he be calling there asking to speak with John when they had not been getting along at all for the past few weeks?
"What is this about, Andy? He is in the shower and he wouldn't be very happy if I disturbed him for just a phone call." She tried to sound as nonchalant as possible.
He sighed. "I can't really say at the moment…it's, uh, between me and him. I promise you though, that it is important. Hell, I'll pay you if I have to!" The desperation in his voice was reaching an alarming rate; it was enough to actually make her want to give John the phone.
"It's not good to bribe people, Andy. That can get you in trouble." She untangled the phone cord and stood up straight.
"Will you get him then?"
She shrugged at the phone. "Yeah I will, but don't get mad at me if he is all pissy at you."
Andy scoffed. "John, pissy? That's like saying Vernon wasn't cheesy."
She chuckled at the thought of their old vice principal. "I suppose so. Just hold on one second then, okay?"
"Sure." His voice lowered to a gentle tone. "Claire?"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks a lot. I won't bug you like this again." He sounded almost embarrassed by his tone of voice, which made her wonder just what it was that he was calling about.
She bit her lip once more and stared over her shoulder at the bathroom door. "Sure, no problem." She set the receiver down on the corner of the couch and made her way to the bathroom door. Using her finger nail to turn the cheap doorknob lock, she opened up the bathroom door. "Johnny?"
He pulled the curtain back to reveal his sopping wet face. "What do you want?"
She smiled at him slightly. "Don't get mad at me or anything, but Andy is on the phone."
He looked taken aback for a second. "Why would I get mad at you? He's the fucking idiot."
She rolled her eyes. "Well he's demanding that I come in here and pull you out of the shower just so that you can talk to him."
He looked disgusted. "Why the hell would I want to go talk to him while I am wet and naked? If you have to come in here it should be to get in here with me." His eyes looked far off for a second before he shook it off and looked annoyed again. "What the fuck does he want anyways?"
She sighed. "I don't know, he wouldn't tell me. He just said that it was really important and that he couldn't wait to call you back."
John snorted and went back behind the shower curtain. "He's probably just wantin' to kiss my ass some more."
"What?" Claire asked, not sure if she heard him correctly. "Why would he want to do that?"
He paused briefly. "Never mind, don't worry about that. I just don't want to talk to him."
She bit her lip and leaned against the tiled counter. "Why not?"
"Because it's just the same old fuckin' bullshit from him, and I don't care enough about him to bother listening. Tell him to go fuck himself." The water turned off and he reached his arm out of the curtain and grabbed a towel hanging on the rack.
"John, he sounded really…desperate, and Andy sounding desperate is not something that you hear everyday. I really do think that it's important…I swear on John Bon Jovi's life."
John pushed the curtain back from the shower and deadpanned. "In that case, Sporto can go fuck himself, and that faggot can die."
Claire giggled at his antics and opened the door. "Just at least go tell him that yourself."
John rolled his eyes and went towards their bedroom to use the phone in there instead. When she went to follow him, he stopped her. "Just…give me a sec, okay?"
Claire nodded her head slowly and went back to the living room. The receiver had been left on the couch, and she still 'technically' needed to hang it up. She lifted it very slowly - and as quietly as she could - and brought it to her ear for a moment.
"Bender, please…I'm not calling to fight with you. I really just need someone to talk to about this." Andy was sounding so sad and desperate now that Claire wondered if he was a fugitive on the run or something. If it were anyone other than Andy, she probably would have thought so.
"What the hell is there to talk about, Sporto? I think you know that I think you're a fucking dick…what else do you want me to say?"
There was a pause on Andy's end of the line before he sighed. "Look, you were right, okay? I'm not going to lie anymore…I did, uh, you know…you know what I did."
"I already knew that much, dickwad." What on earth could Andy have done that would cause that much tension between them? Claire put a hand over her mouth to control her breathing.
"I do love her, John. I asked her to marry me because of that. You know exactly how close we were before I left, and that hasn't changed."
She finally heard the frustration leave John's voice. "Then what? What excuse do you have?"
"None," Andy replied truthfully. "I did what I did because I was lonely and I missed her like crazy. For the first time in my life I actually felt freedom and happiness - things that I hadn't really ever felt before." There was a pause, and then he cleared his throat. "She was the one who talked me into the thought that it really was a good idea to leave everyone behind and go do something for myself. She taught me to think for myself."
"What the fuck is your point exactly?"
"My point is, while I was in Vancouver everything that was possibly good in my life was there - except for her. That hurt a lot, and not because it was her fault or anything, but just because I wish that she was there to see and do it all with me…"
"And how did that lead to…"
"I didn't have anyone to talk to like I could talk to her. I didn't have anyone to help me feel less homesick…or comfort me like she did." Andy sighed. "I just wanted her love and I couldn't have it at that time."
John growled. "Then you could've just called her, you fucking tart! You could've just came home when you were supposed to…or sent her nude pictures…or asked for nude pictures…or something! You didn't need to…"
"I know! I realize that now, and you are not helping by rubbing that mistake in my face! I know what I did was wrong, and I know that there is no excuse…but I can honestly say that going out there and doing my own thing - without her - took its toll on my head, and I wasn't exactly thinking very clearly." She heard Andy taking deep breathes on the other line. She had a gut feeling that what they were talking about was not something good at all.
"I'm telling her." John announced. "If you aren't going to do it, then I will. She has to know."
She heard a sharp intake of breath. "You don't need to. I'll do it, okay? I just need to wait until the time is right though…when she…"
John growled again. "When she what? When she's already married to you and she can't back out? Huh? Because I think right now is as perfect time as any for you to open your fucking mouth and tell her the truth."
"No, nothing like that," Andy breathed out sadly. "I'll tell her soon."
John grunted. "You've got two weeks. No bullshit, no sugar coating, no lies. If you don't I will kick your goddamned teeth in, and then tell her myself."
Andy cleared his throat. "So…where does this leave us? I don't wanna fight with…"
"It doesn't change a damn thing," John cut him off rudely. "I don't fucking condone what you did, and I still think you're a piece of scum. You're not hero-Andy to me…just remember that."
"Then can we at least just get along for everyone else's sake?" Andy asked hopefully.
"Whatever man, look, this shit is way to fuckin' mushy for me to handle. I'm fucking hanging up the phone now. I wish I could say it's been a pleasure, but you're too much of a shitbag for anything to be pleasurable." Claire bit her lip from laughing at that.
"Fair enough, but before you go…just one more thing."
Claire could almost hear John rolling his eyes at that. "What?" He asked impatiently.
"Cheating on her was the worst fucking mistake I've ever made. I want you to know that I regret it every fucking day and I only want to get on with my life and move on from it. You've been in my shoes; you should know how I feel."
John snorted. "No, when I fucked someone over they always knew about it. I may be an asshole, but I ain't no fucking liar." With that, John had hung up the phone.
A deep frown made its way to Claire's face as she let the receiver slip through her fingers and down to the cradle. She could not believe what she had just heard; after all the weeks of speculation, she had gotten a hold of the truth, and now she wished that she never knew.
Of any of the couples, Claire figured that Andy and Allison were always the perfect one that would last forever with no problems. They hardly ever fought, they adored each other's company…and they always held strong when everything around them had threatened to fall apart.
But images weren't at all how they appeared, and now she knew the truth of Andy's infidelities…and that he had betrayed her in the worst possible way she could imagine. What was she to do now with the information she had? Surely, she couldn't just tell Allison without Allison, John, and Andy all getting angry with her for butting her nose where it doesn't belong; at the same time, Claire felt she had an obligation to tell her friend.
John gave him two weeks though; John was closer to Allison than any of them were, and she figured if John could give Andy two weeks then it must be okay. She would not intentionally hurt Allison if her life depended on it, and she knew for sure that John would not either. She would only have to trust his lead.
Of course up until that point she would have trusted Andy's too…but that had all changed.
What a shitty way to start the day.
To Be Continued
(1) - The prom was chapter 37-38, and the streaking incident was a flashback type sequence in chapter 42. Both chapters of course were in 'The World through the Eyes of a Basket Case".
A/N: Hey guys! Just so you know I have some new one-shots out (again). "Invisible" stars Andy in introspect; and 'Sex with Richard Vernon' is a Monday with a sex-ed twist fic, lol. So go on ahead and give those a read (and if you're real bored you can read 'Renegade' and 'Reality Shift' as well!). Cheap plugs, bad, I know. ;)
I hope you all enjoyed the latest edition! Keep on reading, and please review!
