A/N: Ted Orion and Gordon Bombay taught Charlie how to be a leader and play hockey. But can they teach him how to drive?

Driver's Ed

Ted Orion wondered if he'd regret this.

He knew when the kids entered their sophomore year, they'd be taking driver's Ed. Class and would be eligible to get their licenses. With Charlie's sixteenth birthday quickly approaching, Ted wanted to help the boy get comfortable behind the wheel before he took his road test. With Casey being busy working during the day to pay for her night classes so she could earn her nursing degree, she couldn't take him.

So, Ted volunteered. He'd told Casey he taught the boy two-way hockey so he could teach him how to drive, too.

But today, he was afraid. It wasn't that Charlie was a lousy driver, per se. Gordon was in town for the boy's birthday, and he and Casey were collectively torturing themselves over how they'd keep Charlie and Connie's surprise birthday party a secret. With Charlie and Connie having birthdays only six days apart, Casey contacted Richard and Daphne Moreau and told them her idea of throwing the kids a joint Sweet Sixteen party at Goldberg's Delicatessen. Even Ted would admit he had difficulty keeping it a secret from his Varsity captain. But he swore he'd keep his mouth shut. Especially since Casey told Ted that she'd pooled her tips with several other waitresses at Mickey's Dining Car to buy Charlie a car — it wouldn't be a brand-new one, but a used one in really good condition.

But with Gordon in town, Charlie drove with Ted and Gordon. It would be his first time driving with a second passenger. Charlie was just ... new. Ted had a distinct feeling that Gordon would distract the boy. Gordon was prone to distractions. That was evident when he coached the kids in the Junior Goodwill Games, blinded by glory and fame. And their coaching styles couldn't be more different. Of course, Ted understood games should be fun, but you needed to put in the hard work before having fun. And what Ted was trying to teach Charlie was that if you wanted the nice car and an easy time driving, you needed to be willing to work.

He just hoped Gordon was on the same page.

Sitting in the abandoned parking lot that once belonged to a closed grocery store, Ted was in the passenger seat with Gordon in the back and Charlie in the driver's side.

"All right, Charlie, when you're about to pull out, what's the first thing you do?" Ted asked him.

"Check the mirrors." He watched as the boy adjusted the rearview mirror to his 1995 Ford Explorer and rolled his eyes as Charlie fixed his hair. The nerve of him! Granted, the kid was a teenage boy. But Ted wasn't going to tolerate any excuses.

"Conway, quit checking yourself out. Is there anyone behind you?"

"No, it's an abandoned lot."

"Doesn't matter, son. Others are practicing here, too," Gordon said sternly.

"Check the mirrors again," Ted ordered. "And that's another thing. You can't be distracted. If there's anyone in the car with you who is a distraction, tell them to get out. I don't care if it's Linda or any of your other friends. And you shouldn't play with the radio, either."

Charlie nodded, though Ted was not at all eased by the smile on the boy's face as Charlie rechecked the mirrors before he backed out of the parking space a little too quickly for Ted's liking.

"Slow down, slow down!" Ted yelled. "You can't go too fast pulling out! You do it slowly!"

"All right!" Charlie said, slowing the car down and pulling out of the space.

"Okay, pull out and turn the car toward the right," Ted said. "After you make that turn, you put the car into drive, so you go straight." But as Charlie did that, Ted noticed he was too close to the white paint. "Stop, stop! Okay, look what you just did. You nearly hit the car parked next to you!"

"What car?"

"The hypothetical," Gordon said, shaking his head. "You can't be lax about this. Don't be careless."

"Otherwise, Mr. Allyn won't let you take the road test. Then you'll be taking the bus to college," said Ted, watching as Charlie adjusted the car and straightened it before he shifted the gear. "Okay, now put your foot gently on the gas and go straight. And if you have to make a turn, signal. And don't roll through the stop sign, either."

Charlie nodded, though Ted was hardly comforted. He watched nervously as Charlie gently drove the car through the lot, signaling before he made the turn. They approached the stop sign, and Ted held his breath as he watched Charlie make the stop.

"Charlie, you should've signaled right before you approached the stop sign," Ted sighed, rubbing his forehead. "In this case, you can never be too careful."

"Stop! Please. Can you just let me do it?"

"But you won't learn from what you're doing wrong if no one tells you," said Gordon. "All right, you're signaled to make the turn. But look out there. See when you have the opening to go. And when you see your shot, take it and just go. Think of it like handling the puck."

Charlie nodded, making glances before turning, and Ted held his breath when another car nearly overtook them, honking hard.

"It's okay. That guy was being a dick. You did nothing wrong. Now go, come on, let's get going. Stay to the right. Keep up with the flow of the traffic."

Charlie nodded, continuing to drive along the road. Ted was just relieved the boy was staying within the speed limit. But when someone cut in front of Charlie, honking, Charlie quickly put his foot on the brake, his face visibly scared.

"Take a deep breath," said Gordon.

"This is gonna be a nightmare," Charlie said.

"No, it's not. You're gonna deal with idiots like that. Again, that's not on you. So relax," said Ted. "All right, the light is turning yellow. Do you remember what that means?"

"Speed up?" Judging from Charlie's tone, the kid was joking. But Ted shook his head in exasperation.

"Quit joking. Take this seriously. That means you slow down." Ted watched as the kid slowly put his foot on the brake and slowed the car down before bringing it to a stop as the light turned red. "Good. Okay, the light is about to turn back to green. So take your foot off the brake slowly and give it a little gas, son. Keep going straight until you reach that stop sign, and then signal right."

Ted sat there, continuing to watch. But when Charlie made the next right turn, he was a little too close to the curb.

"Hey, hey, hey! Not too close! You overturned! Fix it now!"

"Don't hit the curb!" Gordon yelled.

"Oh, my God! Stop! I already have a mom, I don't need three mother hens!" Charlie yelled.

"Quit it with that smart mouth," Ted snapped. "Okay? Enough overturning."

Charlie groaned, muttering something about having two dads, and how he imagined what it would be like having both Gordon and Ted in the house with him. And Ted shared an exasperated glance with Gordon over his shoulder.

"Did he always have this attitude?"

"He was much cuter when he was eleven."

"I'm sitting right here, you know!" Charlie snapped, making a left turn after signaling.

"All right, that was perfect, actually," Ted said, taking a deep breath to calm his racing heart. He felt a lot better knowing Charlie was getting better at this. Maybe the kid wouldn't be such a bad driver. But Ted knew he and Gordon would always worry no matter how good Charlie got at driving.