A Tempo
Chapter Five: America's Pastime
"You have got to be kidding me," Jer announced when he opened the door to find Finn standing there with Michael and Andrew. "Did you sign us up for some Big Brother Big Sister thing or something?"
"No," Finn grumbled as he pushed passed his friend and walked into the foyer. He was still feeling a little off after being in Rachel's apartment; not only was the place a total rat trap, but he now knew firsthand how awkward it must have been for her to see pictures of him with Audra. That place was practically a shrine to David Kutner.
Of course, he was pretty sure there was no comparison between her seeing a picture of him and his ex in the Bahamas and him seeing one of her looking so happy and beautiful on her wedding day. Or the one of her looking tired but happy, holding a baby Michael in the hospital with David grinning proudly at her side. Or that other one of her and David happily hugging the boys between them at the exact same spot that they had eaten their snow cones in the park. He felt like he had been kicked in the gut. And, damn it, David really was good looking.
"Well, what's up with the little people? And why are they wearing Giants jerseys?"
"Our mom doesn't know the difference between baseball and football," Michael said.
Jer shook his head in bewilderment. "When you asked if I wanted to go to the game with you and a couple of friends, this isn't exactly what I had in mind."
Finn sighed and placed Andrew on the floor. "I'm just helping a friend out. But you can't tell Kurt."
"I can't tell Kurt what exactly? He's here."
"You said he was taking a spa day with Mercedes!"
"Yeah," Jer laughed, "but it's only eleven fifteen. Did you honestly think he's going to get up at eight on a Saturday just for a bikini wax?" He led them to the living room and plopped down on the sofa, the remote in hand.
Finn shuddered at the mental image. "TMI," he groaned.
"Maybe that's why we work so well together," Jer said off-handedly. "He's pretty much a chick."
"Dude!" Finn hissed, pointing at Michael and Andrew. "Kids."
"Are you gay?" Michael asked and Finn felt his face go beet red.
"What the… Finn! Where did you find these kids?"
"It's okay," Michael said. "We have two gay grandpas."
Jer was speechless for a moment and opened and closed his mouth a few times before finally responding, "Well, do they at least have names?"
"Michael, Andrew, this is Jer; Jer, meet Michael and Andrew."
"Hark! Do I hear the dulcet sounds of Finn Hudson?" Kurt called from the bedroom. Finn could hear him and Mercedes talking as he got ready and saw Kurt's sweater-clad Chihuahua, Pablo, peek out around the corner.
"Wow!" Andrew exclaimed. He made a grab for Pablo, but the little dog skittered over to Jer, his tail tucked between his legs. "What kinda dog is that?"
"It's a sewer rat," Finn said, heading to the kitchen to get something to drink. He really wanted a beer right about now but he didn't know what Rachel's policy was on drinking in front of her kids, so he grabbed a bottled water instead. He had really been hoping that Kurt wasn't going to be around so he could avoid the game of 20 Questions that he knew was coming.
"He's a Chihuahua. And he's my baby, so don't be a jerk," Jer scolded, scooping Pablo up and letting him lick his face.
"Does Tank like him?"
"No," Jer said with a grin, "but Pablo likes Tank."
"That's because he spends too much time with you and Kurt," Finn commented, leaning over the bar. Pablo had a penchant for humping Tank when he was around. Tank, for the most part, seemed pretty confused by it all and steered away from the smaller dog whenever possible.
"Hey, Finn," Mercedes said, coming out of the bedroom. "Whose kids?"
"That's what I've been asking him and it's kind of starting to worry me that he hasn't answered me yet," Jer said. He turned to Michael and raised an eyebrow. "Do you know this man? Do we need to call the cops? You don't have to be afraid, just blink once for no, twice for yes."
Finn watched out of the corner of his eye, daring Michael to blink, but he just smiled and ducked his head bashfully. "Noooo."
Kurt flounced of the bedroom, stopping short when he saw the children in his living room. "See, this is why I told you not to feed strays," he said wryly, "they'll follow you home. Or in this case, to my home." Then he crossed his arms and glared at his step-brother. "Where did you get these children, Finn?" he demanded.
"Okay, okay!" Finn cried. "They're Rachel's."
"What?" Mercedes and Kurt snapped in unison while Jer looked back and forth between them in confusion.
"Which Rachel?" he asked. "The ex-girlfriend Rachel?"
"J-Jer!" Finn sputtered when Michael's little head snapped in his direction. "Little pitchers have big ears, dude!"
"Oh my God!" Mercedes gushed. "Kurt, these are Rachel's babies. They're so cute!"
"Fascinating," Kurt drawled, looking unimpressed.
She pulled Andrew into her arms. "What's your name, sweetie?"
"Finn, kitchen," Kurt ordered and Finn rolled his eyes. It was an open floor plan, so he didn't know how much privacy Kurt expected them to have.
"What are you doing?" Kurt asked when he rounded the island.
Finn took a seat on the countertop and took a long swig from his water bottle. "I ran into Rachel at the park a couple weeks back and we've kind of been talking," he admitted. At that, Kurt raised an inquisitive brow and Finn hurried to clarify himself, "Not in that way. She's had it tough – really tough. I think even worse than me and my mom ever had it. She doesn't have anybody to help and she's all alone here."
"So you thought you'd be her knight in shining armor and do what? I don't know what you're thinking, Finn, but whatever it is, it's a bad idea."
"Look, I'm just helping her out. The lady who usually watches the boys bailed and her mother-in-law is evil or something, so I offered to take them to a game. How is that a bad thing?"
"You're becoming too involved. If it is as innocent as you say it is, what do you think is going to happen one of these days if she starts seeing someone? Or if you do? Those little boys are going to get attached to you and all you're going to end up doing is confusing them even more."
"What the hell, Kurt! You're the one who suggested I 'get some action,' or am I remembering that incorrectly?"
"Finn, you really can be dense sometimes," Kurt said but didn't elaborate. "Do what you want then, just don't end up in over your head like you did with Audra."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"I'm just saying that you're really good at playing big boy games, but when it comes to actually stepping up to the plate and manning up, you run and hide."
"I do not," Finn argued. "Besides, that was two years ago. A lot's changed since then."
"Just don't come crying to me when it blows up in your face."
"Gee, thanks Kurt. Your confidence in my ability to live my own life is overwhelming," he said sarcastically, following Kurt out of the kitchen. "Seriously, it's really heartwarming."
This conversation had put a really bad taste in his mouth. Who was Kurt to judge him, especially when he didn't even know the entire story of what happened between him and Audra? He was a lot smarter than he was in Chicago. He jerked to a stop when he realized Mercedes had the boys and Jer huddled around the coffee table and were all looking through a couple of large books. "What are you guys doing?" he asked, not really wanting to know the answer.
"Looking at Kurt's yearbooks," Mercedes said in a singsong voice.
"Great." He had no clue what Rachel had told Michael about their past relationship, but either way, he had a feeling this wasn't going to be good.
"That's your mama singing at Nationals," she pointed out. "And that's me and there's Kurt. And look! There's Finn!"
"What's he doing?" Michael asked.
"He's…" Mercedes lifted the book and turned it sideways. "Oh! He's dancing!"
Michael wrinkled his little nose and doubled over with laughter. "He looks like a chicken!" he exclaimed, much to the hilarity of Jer and Mercedes.
"Believe me, kid, it's not much prettier now," Kurt said.
"Ha ha," Finn said, pushing Pablo out of the way so he could sit on the couch.
"So what's the plan?" Jer asked.
Finn looked at his watched and shrugged. "I guess we can head over to Grand Central now if we wanted to."
"The game doesn't start until one," Jer pointed out.
"Yeah, but we've got to feed them and stuff. And that way we can get there in time for them to see the players warming up."
Jer stood up and stretched his back. "Sounds like a plan to me! And we have got to get these kids some Yankees gear. We cannot take them to a baseball game in football jerseys."
As it turned out, they got to the stadium with plenty of time to spare. After stopping to snap a few pictures of the boys with his phone, they made a quick stop by one of the souvenir shops and Finn bought them some overpriced jerseys and baseball mitts before going concession hunting. Of course, Jer had to poke fun at Finn when he asked the stand owner if the hot dogs they were getting were kosher.
"Hey! Rachel'll kill me if I get her sons condemned for all of eternity the first time I watch them," he said defensively.
Jer looked thoughtful for a moment. "Do they really get condemned?" he asked.
"I don't know, I never asked," Finn said with a shrug. "But I'm guessing… hey, are you guys allowed to drink pop?"
"Yes, but not too late or Andy'll wet the bed," Michael answered. Andrew looked up at Finn and nodded sagely in agreement.
"Good to know." He grabbed them a couple of sodas and led them down into the stands. Sam had really pulled through and swung them some really great seats right by the dugout. Finn sank down into his seat and smiled as the boys looked wide-eyed around the stadium.
"Pretty cool, huh?"
"I guess so," Michael allowed, although he couldn't quite keep the awe out of his voice.
He pointed out a few of the players he knew from appearances on the show and waved when he caught the eye of Sam's boyfriend, Mack Mitchum. Mack nodded in recognition and jogged over.
"Oh crap," Jer grumbled. "What are you doing? He's coming over here."
Finn ignored his friend and leaned over the railing to shake the second baseman's hand. "Hey, Mack."
"Sup, Hudson!" Mack said. "Sam said she hooked you up with some tickets. These your kids?"
He looked down at Michael and Andrew and nearly laughed at their matching star struck expressions. "Nah, they're my friend's. This is Michael and Andrew. Say hi guys." They both mumbled hello shyly and Finn turned back to Mack with a lopsided smile. "They've never been to a game before so I thought it'd be cool to bring them, you know?"
"It's y'alls first game?" Mack drawled. "You never forget your first game. Mine was to the Astros way back when the Killer Bs were still playing." He looked over to where a few fans were gathering along the railing. "Hey, let me see their mitts before it gets too crazy."
"No freaking way," Jer said as Mack ran off, whistling to the first baseman and catcher. "You lucky dogs! All the infielders are going to sign your baseball mitts!"
Sure enough, the starting lineup of the New York Yankees gathered around Mack and passed the small mitts around.
"Hey, say thanks," Finn said, gently nudging Michael when Mack returned with their mitts.
"Thanks a lot, Mack!" Andrew said, finding his voice and giving him a high five. Michael was still playing shy but managed a quick thank you and shook his hand politely.
"Thanks, Mack. We really appreciate it."
Mack grinned. "Hey anything for a few brownie points, huh?" he asked with a knowing look in Finn's direction.
"Good luck, man," Finn laughed and, after winking broadly at the boys, Mack ran off to continue warming up. A few brownie points, Finn thought, and a whole chocolate cake and some ice cream on the side.
A few minutes later, the players returned to the dugout and shortly after, the opening ceremonies began. He could tell that Michael and Andrew were having the time of their lives, and he had to wonder if he had been that over the moon about it when Burt had taken him to his first game. Of course, he was 16 at the time and hadn't jumped around wildly every time someone hit the ball like Andrew did, but he was sure it was probably a similar experience for the most part.
He had a great time himself, joking around with Jer in between explaining different rules to the boys, who both caught on quickly. "That was ball, ump!" Andrew cried after Mack struck out in the fifth inning. "What are you, blind?" This was met with cheers of agreement from the other fans in their section and Finn didn't even try to hold back his laughter as he and Jer high fived over the boys' heads.
Both Michael and Andrew had quickly taken a liking to Jer and he had them in hysterics every time he would heckle the other team, faking a thick New York accent. Michael was still not talking to Finn and would avoid meeting him in the eye when he did have to speak. He was behaving himself though, for which Finn was glad. He had been to enough baseball games where little kids got pouty and tired halfway through and totally killed the entire mood for everyone around them.
Sometime after the seventh inning stretch, Andrew and Jer conspired to go find a cotton candy vendor. "Hold on tight, spider monkey," Jer joked, letting Andrew jump onto his back. Finn rolled his eyes but didn't comment on the ridiculous movie reference. "Do you guys want anything?"
"Nah, I'm good," Finn said, reaching into his back pocket for his wallet. He took a few dollars out and tried handing them to Jer, but his friend just slapped his hand away.
"Don't be retarded," Jer muttered, making his way to the stairs. "Which flavor do you want, bro?"
Finn grinned when he heard Andrew's reply. "Blue."
He turned to Michael and held out his box of Cracker Jacks once they were gone. "Want one?"
"No, thank you," came Michael's short reply. He stared into the field, blinking quickly and not looking up at Finn.
"Having a good time?"
"Yes."
"Okay," Finn said, digging around in the box. "Just let me know if you want anything."
Michael sighed and sat all the way back in his seat. "Finn?" he finally asked.
"Yeah?"
"Were you really my mom's boyfriend?"
Finn nearly choked and looked at Michael in surprise. This kid really knew how to get to the point. If he wasn't going to be a lawyer like Rachel had said, then he would definitely make a killing as a reporter. "Well, uh," Finn muttered, trying to think of a good way around the question, "I was her friend and I was – er, am – a boy."
Michael looked up like Finn had insulted him. "I'm almost seven, Finn; I know the difference between a friend and a boyfriend. I mean did you hold hands and kiss and stuff?"
Oh boy, did they ever.
Figuring honesty was the best approach, Finn slowly replied, "Yeah… but it was a long time ago before she ever even met your dad."
Michael mulled what he said over for a minute, watching as the Mack and the first baseman made a killer double play. "Are you her boyfriend now?"
"Well… no."
"Are you going to be?"
Finn rubbed the back of his neck and looked in the direction that Jer and Andrew had disappeared, wondering absently when they would get back. "I'm not really sure," he finally said. "We're definitely friends and I know we both like it that way. And I like hanging out with you and Andrew. That's okay, right?"
Michael nodded and Finn took it as a good sign to continue. "Look, I know how hard it is when your mom starts seeing somebody new. It's your job to take care of her and it's like they're trying to take your place. But I know for a fact that will never happen. Your mom loves you more than anything."
"I know," he said quietly.
Finn shifted in his seat and leaned over so he could look at Michael in the eye. "I promise you that right now we're just friends. And if we ever do decide to be, uh, you know, boyfriend and girlfriend, then you'll be the first person to know. And only if you're okay with it. Until then… I mean, if that ever happens… no matter what, you and me, we're buds. Cool?"
He was pretty sure this was going to blow up in his face and he had no clue how Rachel would react to what he had just promised her kid, but it was a promise he was sure he could keep. And Finn Hudson was a man who kept his promises. He eyed Michael speculatively and waited for his answer.
"That's… cool," he allowed.
"Good," Finn said, awkwardly placing his hand on Michael's thin shoulder and, to his relief, the boy looked up at him and gave him a little smile.
They turned their attention back to the game for a few minutes before Michael asked again, "Finn?"
Finn gulped, wondering what else they could cover in one afternoon. "What's up, buddy?"
"Thanks for bringing us to the game."
Rachel rushed up the stairs to her apartment, belying the exhaustion she was feeling, eager to kick off her shoes and get off of her feet. It had nothing to do with the fact that Finn was up there with the boys right at that minute, she told herself.
She had been worried all day long that they would give him a hard time and scare him off, but everything seemed fine when they texted each other periodically. He even sent her a few pictures of the boys at the ballpark and she immediately set one as her background image. When she called on her break at five thirty, they were already back from the game and were playing Wii 3D and eating pizza at Kurt's apartment. What they were doing there, she had no idea, but from the ruckus in the background, it sounded as if everyone was having a ball.
She unlocked the door as quietly as she could and crept into the apartment, slipping out of her shoes as soon as she was in the door. She stopped short upon entering though, her eyes falling on the sofa, and she had to bite back a giggle. Finn was stretched out, fast asleep with Andrew on his chest, and Michael was asleep on the other end, practically on top of Finn's long legs. The lights were off save for a lamp in the boys room and the television was on, an infomercial playing quietly on the screen.
"Finn," she whispered, tiptoeing to the couch, "Finn."
He mumbled something in his sleep and put his arms around Andrew, cuddling the little boy to him like a teddy bear. She bit her lip to keep from laughing and dropped to her knees beside them, wondering how to wake him up. He always was a deep sleeper. She hesitantly raised her hand and softly stroked his hair, leaning in a little closer.
"Finn," she whispered again, just a decibel louder. She withstood the urge to run her hand along his cheek and gently tweaked his nose with her forefinger instead.
He opened his eyes and blinked up at her a few times before smiling lazily. "Hey, Rach," he said softly, his voice thick with sleep. "What time is it?"
"It's almost one," she replied. "You should have lain down in my bed."
"It's alright. We fell asleep watching The Goonies on cable."
"At least you got them in their pajamas first," she commented.
"Here, you take Andy," he said, sitting up slowly. "I'll get Michael."
She stood up and took Andrew from him, laughing softly. "You, little boy, are getting too big for this," she murmured, kissing him softly on the forehead. She made her way to their room, Finn padding quietly after her with Michael. She pulled the sheets down on Andrew's bed with one hand and gently laid him down. She tucked him in and gave him one last kiss before raising the bed rail.
"You leaving now, Finn?" she heard Michael ask sleepily behind her.
She turned to see Finn pulling the covers up to Michael's chin and sit on the edge of the bed. "Yeah, it's late."
"Can we still take Tank to the dog park tomorrow?" he asked hopefully.
"Maybe," Finn said with a smile. "It depends on what your mom has planned."
Michael looked over at her and waved. "Hi, Mama."
Rachel walked over and Finn stood up so she could take his place. "Hey, baby. Did you have a good time?"
"Yeah. The Yankees won and Finn bought us jerseys and mitts." He took the mitt off of his night stand and handed it to her. "We got to meet the second baseman and all the infielders signed our gloves for us."
"They did?" Rachel asked, looking down at the baseball mitt. Sure enough, there were several autographs scribbled inside. She looked up at Finn in shock and he smiled down at her bashfully.
"We'll have to get a special case for them so they won't get ruined," she replied, setting it back on the nightstand. "Did you tell Finn thank you?"
"Yeah, he did," Finn answered and Michael nodded.
"Well, I'm glad you had a good time today. Maybe next time we can do something special for Finn, hm?"
Michael grinned. "Yeah. Can we see him tomorrow?"
"We'll see," Rachel said, leaning over to kiss his cheeks. "It's late now, go back to sleep."
"Okay," he said, turning to his side. "Night night, Mama."
"Good night, sweetie." She turned off the lamp and walked over to where Finn was silhouetted in the doorway.
"I'll see you later, buddy," Finn called softly, his hand on the door knob.
"Night, Finn."
Rachel stepped out and he closed the door softly behind him. "Finn, I can't thank you enough for –"
Finn held up his hand before she could continue. "Rachel stop. It was no problem at all. I did it because I wanted to; you don't owe me anything." He walked over to the sofa and began putting on his shoes.
She clicked on the lamp beside the sofa and turned off the TV. "At least let me make you a cup of coffee. I'd never forgive myself if you fell asleep on the road."
He smiled. "That you can do," he agreed, following her into the kitchen.
"So the boys behaved themselves?" she asked as she prepared the coffee.
"Oh yeah, no problems at all."
She raised an eyebrow and set the creamer down on the table. "Even Michael?"
"He was quiet at first," he admitted, "but he ended up having a good time."
"I was worried about that. He's been a little difficult lately."
Finn nodded. "I believe it. I wouldn't let it bother you though; he's just threatened."
"Oh really?" Rachel smiled. "And this is your professional opinion?"
"I did take a psych class my freshman year of college," he joked. He looked up at her and grew serious again. "My mom had her fair share of boyfriends that I tried to scare off."
"It's easy to forget that you have that in common with him," she said, looking down at her hands, trying not to reflect too heavily on his use of the word 'boyfriends.' Surely he didn't mean to imply anything of that nature. "You were very well-adjusted by the time I met you."
He laughed wryly. "Yeah right. I still had a tough time even when my mom started dating Burt. Not that I tried to scare him off, but I did feel like he was replacing my dad. Or maybe that my mom was forgetting him… I don't know. I got over it though."
She poured their coffee and took a seat across from him. "I didn't realize it was that difficult for you. I mean, I knew about the Kurt thing, but I didn't know you had a problem with Burt."
"It wasn't that big a deal. Besides, that's when you were dating Jesse." He faked a cringe and continued, "I didn't want to bother you with my problems."
Rachel laughed and leaned back in her chair. "Oh Jesse! I wonder what happened to him."
"Does it even matter?"
"No, not really, but you do have to wonder. We definitely would have heard about him if he was making it big in New York."
Finn rolled his eyes. "I'll let you know if we ever have him on the show," he replied dryly.
"Please don't!" she cried. "I'm afraid I'd have to jump into the Hudson if that happened."
They laughed together, effectively changing the subject. Finn recounted the day for her and she had to smile at Michael's blunt assessment of Jer upon meeting him. "Well, if nothing else, I have two very open-minded children. Although I still can't believe you took them to Kurt's. What did he say when he realized they were mine?"
"Oh, you know Kurt. He just asked if they were paper trained. Mercedes thought they were great though. She practically smothered poor Andrew."
"I'll have to get together with them before too long," she said, twirling a spoon in her hand.
"When do the boys leave for Nantucket?" he asked quickly.
"Ugh, next Friday," she groaned. "I've never been away from them for that long; I'm starting to get a little depressed."
"Well, how about we get together with them some time while Andrew and Michael are away? So we can all catch up. That would be fun."
Rachel stood up and placed their empty cups in the sink. She would wash them in the morning. "I'll have to let you know; my work schedule is so erratic…"
"Don't start that again!" Finn laughed. He rose and stretched his arms behind his back while Rachel tried not to notice the way his biceps flexed. Good lord, how could he still be so good looking?
"Seriously though, you've got to loosen up and start having some fun," he continued. "When you know what your schedule looks like, you'll let me know and we'll plan something. Maybe we can even do something just the two of us… for old time's sake."
"That… would be nice," she agreed. "I do have a standing day off on Sundays, but I'll let you know if anything changes."
"I'd better go," he said, looking at his watch. "It's hella late and Tank's been cooped up all day. I need to try and take him for a walk before I go to bed."
"Oh, poor Tank," she cried as they walked to the door. "He's probably destroyed your apartment."
"Nah, I left him a rawhide bone and he's kennel trained. But he's still probably not too happy with me."
"Far be it for me to keep you!" They stopped at the door and looked at each other for a moment. "I know you don't want to hear it, Finn, but I really do appreciate everything you've done for us lately."
"You'd do the same for me," he said with a shrug.
"Well, thank you regardless."
He grinned and leaned down to give her a hug, but at the last minute she lifted her face to his and gave him a swift kiss on the mouth. It was the first overture of any kind that either one of them had made besides the occasional hug, and perhaps she lingered just a nanosecond too long and maybe she felt his surprised mouth start to soften under hers, but it ended as quickly as it started and he stared down at her in shock. Later she would tell herself it was just a chaste kiss between friends, but the look on his face hinted at so much more.
He cleared his throat and straightened up, his cheeks pink. "Um… can I call you tomorrow? Maybe we can get together. I know the boys wanted to see Tank again and there's this dog park –"
"Yes," she said with a nod, interrupting him before he could start rambling. "That sounds like it would be fun."
"Great." He gave her one last crooked smile and walked out into the hallway. "Good night, Rachel," he called as he mounted the stairs.
She waved before shutting the door and locking it behind her. She stood with her back to it for a moment before sliding down to the floor. She rested her head back against the wood and stared blankly up at the ceiling. What was she getting herself into?
Author's Note: A very Finn-centric chapter for y'all; I hope you enjoyed it! Please read and review.
Disclaimer: Glee is the property of Ryan Murphy and FOX. I'm just manipulating it for my own nefarious (and strictly nonprofit) purposes.