Chapter Text
BLUE VALLEY - WINTER, 2023
It never occurred to Rick how serious he was about dating until Grant Emerson pissed him off about it. First Mike and Jakeem, then Todd, Cameron, Sandy, and eventually Grant rounded out the JSA table, tipping the hero-to-heroine ratio in favour of testosterone. He’d be the first to admit it took a while to adjust. Two months into senior year, just as Rick was settling in with the fact Cameron wasn’t going anywhere with Courtney’s Icicle Jr. reformation agenda and Sandy and Todd were established in New York with Jennie, The Shade dropped Grant off on Pat’s doorstep on a gloomy morning citing irreconcilable differences.
In Courtney’s recount, she said it was to give Grant some stability while he finished high school that apparently New York City couldn’t offer, but to Rick, it seemed a lot like taking out the trash and making Grant their problem.
At first, he chalked up the instantaneous one-sided friction to a misunderstanding. Grant was still new and they hadn’t started on the right foot–Exploding half of West Farms would do that. Yolanda claimed Rick just worked better with girls, and there wasn’t any shame in that, but even Mahkent agreed with Rick that Grant’s explosive nature caused…damage.
“I heard Beth chewed you out this morning.” Grant straddled one of the chairs from the table scattered with tools for Mike’s latest STRIPE 1.5 gauntlet at the Pit Stop. The girls knew the loft was Rick’s space to chill when he wanted to be alone. Grant clearly didn’t get the memo. This wasn’t his fault, but it didn’t escape aggravating Rick’s nerves on a day he was already in a bad mood.
Rick lowered his dad’s notebook, the leathery cover soft from use in his hands. “I heard you need a haircut.”
Grant ran a hand through his choppy chin-length hair with a grimace as if someone—likely Barbara— already commented on it. “Whatever. So what happened?”
“It’s not your business.”
“It should be.” Grant leaned over the chair, grabbing one of the screwdrivers on the table. He messed with it in his hands, rubbing the flat edge against his thumb. “It’s important if we’re on the same team, I’m not going to get myself killed because of drama.”
Rick eyed Grant warily. “We’re arguing.” Of all people, he wasn’t going to spill his guts to Grant about relationship problems. The draft from the window pane made the room cold. Rick zipped up the sweater of his hoodie. “It’s normal.”
He was still mad at Beth for hovering over him on his project, but he detested the knots in his stomach whenever they were at odds. He’d snapped at her to leave him alone and she snapped right back about his short fuse. Deep down, Rick knew she kept pestering him about helping with his assignment because she cared, not because she thought he’s not smart. It was still hard to let that thought roll off his back, the way people in town talked about him, assuming he couldn’t make anything of himself. They were still learning how to navigate the balance between being supportive and overbearing—He knew he was guilty of it himself in their suits, following her around as if her goggles couldn’t identify threats on their own. He’d talk to Beth tomorrow and they’d figure it out but for now he’ll stew in it for the sake of waning his temper.
“Doesn’t mean I want to break up with her.”
"Why not?”
“Why not what?”
“Break up.”
“What?”
“It’s not like there aren’t other options. Yolanda, Courtney, Artemis, Cindy...”
“I know their names,” Rick deadpanned. “You’re being gross. I like Beth. I don’t want to date anyone else,” Rick explained tersely.
Grant raised both his hands defensively. “Sounds stupid to me.”
“Excuse me?”
“You’ve only ever been with her and now you’re arguing, avoiding all your friends.”
“So?”
Grant scoffed. “So, you need to play the field to figure out if it’s worth it.”
What field? Rick’s face contorted, fed up. The JSA wasn’t some dating playground. Courtney and Yolanda were his family. Cindy and Artemis, not so much, but he respected them. Who was he to think he had some God-given right to expect any of them to want to be his girlfriend? Was that Grant’s approach? To just try them all out until he got tired and move on to the next one? No wonder Jennie kicked him to the curb. He didn’t understand girls at all. “I’m not breaking up with Beth to date Yolanda!”
Grant rose both eyebrows above the mop on his head. “So it is Yolanda. Nice.”
“Go fuck yourself,” Rick snapped, gathering his things. If Grant was going to twist his words, he wasn’t going to breathe the same air as him.
Grant leaned his elbow against the chair, almost pleased he was offended. “I’m just telling you what everyone at school is saying.”
He would throw his notebook at Grant if he didn’t care so much about it. “Jennie ditched you, so I knew you had to be awful, but I was civil. Trust me. I tried. But then you blew up my neighbourhood–Now you’re telling me to dump my girlfriend to date her best friends?”
“That was an accident.”
“Was it?”
“You said you hated living there,” Grant pointed out with a shrug. As if that house wasn’t full of the only tangible stuff Rick ever had of his parents–Obliterated. “You practically live at your girlfriend’s house. Relax. I’m just throwing a lifeboat, man. We’re supposed to be 18, not married.”
Grant saw he caught Rick off guard.
There is nothing wrong with how much you like her, he told himself, refusing to let that barb burn. He hadn’t expected the harsh words to prompt a squeeze in his chest. Rick liked his relationship with Beth. He liked being close to the Chapels. He wanted more of it, to be honest. For Grant to mock that like it was a bad thing…Rick tried to hide the fact he’d been caught off-guard but Grant must’ve noticed he’d hit him somewhere tender, one-upping him and that just wouldn’t do.
Rick leaned into Grant’s space, tipping his chair forward, the two back legs in the air. If Rick dropped him, he’d fall face forward onto the floor, maybe even over the railing of the loft. He couldn’t say the idea wasn’t enticing. “Fuck off,” he fumed. Who does Grant think he is? He let go of the chair and Grant went careening back to the ground.
“Oh shit, it is like that.” Grant cocked his head, brows shooting sky-high faking concern or maybe showing actual surprise, gripping the table behind him for some balance. “You think it’s possible? A whole life with one girl? You’re naive as fuck.”
“And you’re a terrible person.”
Rick stormed out, but Grant’s words still stuck in his head.