Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The legs of Ty’s chair screech against the floor as he shoves away from the table, and Katie flinches, tugging her knees up to her chest in her own chair.

“So what you’re saying is,” Tyler spits, “everything you’ve taught us our whole life has been complete bullshit.”

“Tyler!” Mommy shouts, but her brother doesn’t seem to hear, eyes locked on Daddy. 

Mommy looks like she might start crying, “Katie, baby, go upstairs to your room,” she says softly, but Katie can’t make herself move.

“‘Be a man, Tyler,”’ her brother mocks, words Katie’s heard her daddy say a hundred times, ‘“Stand up for what you know is right. Take responsibility for your mistakes.”’ Katie catches Kyle’s eyes across the table. His mouth is hanging open.

“Kyle, take your sister upstairs,” Mommy orders. It takes a moment, but then Kyle is shaking himself and standing, crouching down in front of her and tugging until her arms loosen from around her knees and wrap around his neck instead.

“I am taking responsibility for my mistakes,” Daddy growls, standing up, his chair teetering dangerously, but not falling, “I’m going to have another child, and I will be responsible to them.”

Katie buries her face in Kyle’s neck as he carries her out of the room, but she can still hear the yelling.

“Like you were responsible to us? To mom?” Ty laughs bitterly, “Look at me, Dad. Am I man enough now? I know right from wrong, and this is wrong.”

“Tyler, I appreciate your anger, but I am your father, and you will not continue to speak to me this way.”

“No,” Ty snaps, “my father was someone I respected. My father was someone I wanted to grow up to be. But now? I hope to God I don’t turn out like you.”

“I don’t understand,” Katie whimpers, “Why did Daddy say he’s leaving?”

“It’s–” Kyle starts, “It’s complicated.”

Katie’s lip quivers, “But he’s coming back, right?”

Kyle shrugs, “I don’t know, Katie.”

***

She sits on the porch watching men she’s never met before carrying boxes and boxes of her Daddy’s stuff out of the house. They remind her of the lines of ants she watches on the sidewalk sometimes, an endless stream of bodies.

“Baby bean,” Mommy says, “come inside now, you’re going to be in the way.”

Katie doesn’t budge. She’s mad at her Mommy. She was letting Daddy go away. After a moment, Mommy sighs and lets her be.

Her brothers join her as the stream dwindles down to a trickle. And suddenly it’s just Daddy and the truck in the driveway. Katie thinks it’s mocking them.

“Well, guys, this is it,” Daddy says and Ty’s hand settles on her shoulder, heavy, holding her back even as Daddy crouches down in front of her, reaching up to touch her cheek, “I love you, Katiedid,”

Katie twists out of Ty’s grip and launches herself into her daddy’s arms, “Don’t go,” she pleads.

“Don’t you worry now,” Daddy drawls, “I’ll be seeing you all real soon.”

Katie doesn’t find this particularly comforting, “It won’t be the same,” she insists.

“I know,” Daddy agrees, standing so Katie’s feet dangle near his knees. She watches him nod at her brothers, “Boys,” he says, holding out his free hand, “Ty,” he offers. Her brother doesn’t take it, just crosses his arms and sticks out his chin. Daddy looks even sadder then, “Kyle?” he tries.

Kyle glances at Ty nervously, “Bye, Dad,” is all he offers.

“Okay,” Daddy says, “well, I guess I ought to be going,” he says, bending to set her feet on the ground, but Katie doesn’t let go, “Katiedid,” Daddy prompts, but all she does is tighten her grip.

After a moment, Daddy reaches up, his fingers trying to loosen her arms and Katie starts to cry. Ty’s big strong arms wrap around her waist then and tug her away. “No!” she shrieks, “No! No!”

Daddy swallows hard, “I’m sorry,” he says and then he’s turning and walking away.

“It’s not fair,” she cries, twisting in Ty’s grip and hitting at his chest with her tiny fists, “I want my daddy.”

“I know you do,” her brother murmurs, tugging her closer, “I know you do,” he repeats as she hides her face in his chest and sobs. “I know you do,” he says again. His voice sounds funny then and Katie wonders if maybe he’s crying too. The thought scares her. She’s never seen her big brother cry before.

She feels Kyle’s hand settle on her back, “Let’s go inside,” he says gruffly.

Chapter Text

Katie sits up straight in her bed. She’s meant to have been long asleep, but her brain was being too loud. And now that she’s almost certain she just heard the rumble of her biggest brother’s voice down the hall any thought of sleep has flown out the window.

“Ty?” she whispers to herself. He wasn’t supposed to be home from tour for another week, but maybe he’d come home early as a surprise. Katie would like that. She crawls out of her bed and starts creeping down the hall to investigate, careful to avoid the squeakiest floorboards on her way to Kyle’s room.

Her shoulders slump as soon as she presses her eye up to the crack of Kyle’s door and finds only one brother and a lit phone screen behind it. She huffs out a disappointed breath, and the door creaks open another half inch.

“Katie?” Kyle’s voice calls out a second later.

“Shh,” she scolds, darting across his floor and clambering up onto his bed, “we’re supposed to be asleep.”

“No, you’re supposed to be asleep,” Kyle argues, wrapping an arm around her and tugging her against his side anyway.

Katie shrugs, “I heard Ty’s voice,” she defends. 

“Hi, Katie-cat,” Ty’s voice rumbles through Kyle’s phone speaker.

“Ty!” she squeals.

“Shh,” both her brothers scold her in unison, Kyle’s hand closing over her mouth. “Listen,” he hisses, “if I’m going to let you stay up and talk to Ty then you have to not get me caught,” he warns before letting her go.

Katie grins, “Deal,” she whispers is her very best secret agent voice.

Ty’s laugh rumbles through the speakers then, “I miss you guys,” he says softly.

Katie’s stomach does a weird twisting thing then, even as Kyle says, “We miss you too.”

“But,” Katie teases, “I bet Annie misses you more,” making kissing faces at the phone even though she knows Ty can’t see her.

Kyle tugs at one of her braids, “Ty, you’ve corrupted our dear, sweet, innocent little sister.”

Katie preens, “I’m nine-and-three-quarters now,” she informs them, “I know all about how boyfriends and girlfriends work.”

Ty snorts, “Oh, you do, do you?”

“Yes,” Katie nods primly. They’re all quiet for a minute, and Katie snuggles closer to Kyle’s side. She knows, even if he doesn’t, that she’s not going back to her own bed tonight, not with her brain so full. “I have a question,” she announces.

Kyle raises his eyebrows, “Yeah?”

“I called Coach Cal Dad,” she informs her brothers.

Next to her, she can feel Kyle stiffen, “That’s not a question,” he mutters.

“Did he cry? I bet he cried," even over the phone, she can tell Ty is smiling.

Katie shrugs, “I don’t know. I didn’t see him. But–” she bites her lip anxiously, “do you think Daddy would have been mad?”

“Probably,” Ty replies.

Katie swallows, “Oh.”

“But I don’t think that should matter,” Ty continues.

“Ty!” Kyle protests and for the first time Katie worries that Kyle might be mad at her.

“No,” Ty argues, “Dad was just our father. He wasn’t – he’s been gone a long time.”

“It’s barely been a month,” Kyle mutters.

“No, it hasn’t,” Ty snaps, “It’s been a long time. For us, I mean – it’s been a long time. But Coach – he’s been here. He’s earned it. I think it’s great, Katie.”

Katie puts a hand on Kyle’s arm, “Kyle?”

Her brother won’t look at her, “It’s not that I don’t like Cal.”

“I know,” she whispers.

“Kyle,” Ty says softly.

Kyle’s eyes lift hesitantly, and he tugs at her braid again, “It’s fine Katie. You go ahead. I’ll just – just give me a minute to catch up, okay?”

“Okay,” she whispers, tucking her head against his shoulder again. “I’m staying here tonight,” she informs him. 

Kyle snorts, “Fine.”

“No fair,” Ty complains, “you guys get to have a slumber party.”

Katie giggles. “Shh,” her brothers hiss in unison. Katie bites down on her tongue, hiding her face in Kyle’s shoulder.

“You’re coming home soon, right?” she murmurs, her eyes already drifting closed.

“Yeah, I’ll be home soon,” Ty promises.

***

“Come on,” Kyle grabs her hand, tugging her towards the stairs, “You too, rockstar,” he orders when Ty doesn’t automatically fall into line. Ty rolls his eyes, clomping up the stairs after them.

“What’s going on?” Katie giggles, skipping a little to keep up with Kyle’s quick steps.

“Yeah, man,” Ty says, snatching her up around the waist and tucking her under his arm, carrying her like a sack of potatoes towards Kyle’s room.

“Ty!” she shrieks in protest.

“Tyler!” echoes their mother’s voice warningly from downstairs.

Her brother ignores them both, still eyeing Kyle, “You’re being weird,” he informs him, finally setting Katie down next to Kyle’s bed. She glares up at him, but he ignores her, tugging her against his chest. She can feel his collar bone pressing against the back of her head and realizes that the top of her head reaches his shoulder now.

“So, I have this idea,” Kyle says, closing his bedroom door behind himself.

Katie tips her head back to find Ty grinning, “Why does that make me nervous?” he teases, “I’ve heard your ideas have been getting you into some trouble.”

“Shut up,” Kyle complains, throwing a balled-up sock at Ty’s head, Katie ducks out of the way at the last moment, launching herself onto Kyle’s bed. She didn’t need to worry, Ty catches the sock, because of course he does. “You’re going to like this one,” Kyle promises them, digging around in his sock drawer for a moment and pulling something out.

He hands it to Ty first and Katie watches with barely constrained curiosity as her oldest brother’s eyes go wide, “You sure about this, dude?”

Kyle shrugs, smiling, “Yeah, I think I am.”

“Sure about what?” she whines, bouncing enough to make the mattress springs squeak. Ty laughs, handing the thing to her.

Katie’s eyes go wide too, “Oh! Oh! Can we give it to him? Now? Now! Now!” she insists, leaping to her feet.

Kyle laughs, “Hang on a second, Katie,” he says, hands on her shoulders, “I told you. I have a plan.”

“But, Ky-le,” she pouts.

Her brother grins, “Just go put on your dress for the party, okay? Then we’ll do it. I promise.”

Katie sighs, “Fine,” she mutters, stomping out of the room. But then she pauses outside the door just long enough to hear Ty ask, “What made you change your mind, man?”

“Just – I realized. He shows up, doesn’t he? And he tries. He always has.”

***

“And who’s idea was all that exactly?” their mom asks, twisting to smile at them, squished three in a row in the backseat.

“Kyle’s,” Katie replies at the same time that Kyle says, “Katie’s.”

Ty puts his hands up, “And what we have clearly established here is that I had absolutely nothing to do with it,” grinning around at them.

“That’s not true!” Katie protests, “You’re the one who said it would be okay, even if –” she cuts herself off when Ty shoots her a look.

Mommy raises her eyebrows, “So, you three have been talking about this? For how long?”

Kyle shrugs, “Awhile.”

“Listen, guys,” Dad says, “If you’re not ready, I’d completely –”

“No!” all three of them shout in unison.

“We’re ready,” Ty insists, “We promise.”

Dad’s quiet for a minute, carefully turning into a parking space near the spa, before he turns around to look at them. He’s smiling, but Katie swears his eyes look wet, “Then nothing in the world would make me happier.”

They all just sit there for a moment, smiling at each other. “Um, Dad?” Katie says finally.

“What?” he says, eyes crinkling around the corners.

“We’re going to be late for our own party,” she tells him.

Her brothers laugh and Kyle sticks a finger into her side, making her shriek, “Way to ruin the moment,” he complains lightly.

Katie shrugs, looking around at her family’s smiling faces. She doesn’t think she’d ruined the moment at all.