She turned around and looked up. In the dim light she could just make out a dark figure crouched on top of the garage roof. Her stomach dropped for a second before she recognized something familiar.
"…Ryan?"
"Kirsten", the dark figured answered reluctantly
Moving towards the garage door activated its outside lights. The area became surrounded in a dull orange glow.
Sure enough, there was Ryan squatting at the top of the garage roof, clutching Seth's window sill and… shaking it?
" Ryan, you get down from there right now before you fall and break your neck!" Kirsten exclaimed
Ryan dropped his forehead onto the window and groaned in response.
"Uh, Mom?" Seth leaned in to whisper, "Could we maybe not mention 'ieing – day' to 'yan-Ray' right now?"
Kirsten's heart jumped and she moved closer to get a better look at her blonde son.
"Ryan, are you okay? You aren't hurt, are you?"
With his back towards them, Ryan shook his head and mumbled something
"What was that?" Kirsten asked
"Can't get down", he said a little louder
Kirsten frowned. "What do you mean you can't?"
"Actually, he can get down." Seth whispered rather loudly, "He's just afraid to"
"Shut up, Seth" Ryan growled
The boy had since stopped shaking the window sill but was still gripping it like a lifeline.
Kirsten bit her bottom lip in worry. Kirsten knew that Ryan had a fear of heights and she definitely didn't like the idea of him being so high up.
"How did you get stuck up there?", She asked but got no response.
Instead, Seth shook his head. "I don't get it. He was just fine on the Ferris Wheel last year"
"So?" Ryan retorted with his face pressed to the glass, his voice managing to be both shaky and indignant at the same time, "The Ferris Wheel had seat belts. And handle bars"
"Yeah, but the garage is closer to the ground. I'm just saying this is a weird time for your acrophobia to suddenly kick in -"
"Ryan, did you try going back through Seth's window?" Kirsten interrupted
"I tried" Ryan sounded slightly panicked, "It's stuck"
Seth frowned and scratched his head "Dude, are you sure?"
"Yes, Seth. Positive." Ryan snapped
Kirsten swallowed a sigh. She felt more than a little nervous about what she was going to say next but she didn't see any other option and she couldn't let Ryan notice.
"Ryan. I guess you're going to have to climb down."
If anything Ryan's posture became tenser.
"I tried that already", he all but whined, his hands still holding the window in a vice grip
"It's true, Mom" Seth piped up "The only thing he managed to do was kick off one of his sneakers. Since then he hasn't moved from that spot. For a while there I thought he was going to throw up"
"Seth. Don't say 'up' " Ryan barked
"Just relax, Ryan." Kirsten soothed, "We're going to take it nice and slow. Everything's going to be fine… Yes, it will. You're going to be alright. See that tree to your right? Slowly make your way towards it "
Ryan didn't move. "I'm fine, thanks"
"Ryan" Kirsten tried
Her foster son just shook his head.
"Nice try, Mom, but I already told him to climb down the tree and he wasn't having it" Seth said
Kirsten paused. She'd never seen Ryan this scared before. Of anything. It was surprising and bewildering. Most of all it was troublesome.
"Seth, why didn't you come to me when this first happened?" Kirsten turned to him and scolded
"It just happened, Mom. Besides, I've been kind of busy trying to convince him that he's not going to splatter." Seth griped
Ryan gave a small whimper at the word 'splatter'.
Kirsten glared at Seth before turning back to her younger child.
"Ryan, could you at least turn around and face me so I can see that you're all right?"
Kirsten watched the back of Ryan's head shake 'no'
"Please?"
"I can't"
"He doesn't want to look." Seth interjected "Should we call the fire department?"
She didn't want to admit it to the boys but she was beginning to panic a bit.
Kirsten shook her head "No. Let's not overreact. Ryan, Ryan I'm going to go get Sandy, okay? But I'll be right back. Just stay put"
If nothing else Sandy's presence would keep Ryan calm until they could get him to the ground.
"Don't worry, Mom." Seth looked up at his brother with a devilish grin "We won't go anywhere. Isn't that right, Ryan?"
By the time Kirsten explained the situation to a sleepy Sandy and dragged him around to the garage, Seth had managed to get Ryan to turn around. The boy was sitting next to the window, arms wrapped around his legs and head resting on his knees.
"I got him to stop hugging the window" Seth whispered "but it's time to tag in, Dad"
Sandy blinked his tired eyes up at their trapped child with a mixture of both concern and confusion.
"Ryan? You alright, kid?"
"I'm fine" came a muffled reply
"That's good. How about moving a bit towards us so we can see you better, huh?"
Ryan didn't answer and he didn't move from his spot either.
"Come on, Ryan" Seth said, "You don't want Mom and Dad to really call the fire department, do ya? Which reminds me, can you see it from there, the fire department, I mean?"
"Seth," Ryan growled "When I get down from here, remind me to kill you."
"That's if you get down from there, Buddy", Seth quipped
Sandy shot Seth a look that quickly shut him up.
"Don't worry, kid." Sandy said, "We'll get you down from there. Maybe the window only opens from the inside?"
"It usually opens from the outside" Seth mumbled absently
Kirsten knew Sandy shared her suspicions when he asked,
"Seth, how did Ryan get stuck outside of your window in the first place?"
"He told me they were star gazing" Kirsten said, but the look she gave Sandy told him she didn't believe it for a second.
"I'm going to go upstairs and try to open the window."Sandy gave their son a look "And I expect some damn good answers when I get back. You hang tight, Ryan. We'll have you down in a jiffy"
Sandy went at a half jog back to the main entrance. The tense silence and squirming from Seth lasted for a few moments before Kirsten asked,
"Why aren't the two of you inside the house doing your homework?"
Neither boy answered and Kirsten's patience was quickly diminishing. Even underneath all the fear and worry for Ryan was a mother furious at her sons for getting themselves into this mess in the first place.
A rattling noise came from the other side of the window making Ryan jump.
"Ryan" Kirsten demanded
Ryan looked up briefly to send a glare to his brother before sinking his head back into his knees
"Ask Seth"
Kirsten turned to her eldest
"Well, Mom… Would you believe me if I told you that Ryan and I were reenacting a scene from 'Fiddler on the Roof'?"
"Seth, you'd better start talking or I'm going to start reenacting 'Psycho'" She snapped.
Before the interrogation could go any further, Sandy came hustling towards them.
"The window won't budge." Her husband huffed, "I think maybe Archie got a hold of it"
"That explains it" Seth nodded
Kirsten saw Sandy's eyes flicker before he addressed his dark haired son
"It's funny though." He mused "Because it was working fine when you guys climbed out of it earlier, right Seth?"
Uh Oh :)