Title: Under My Umbrella
By: mickeylover303
Pairing: Ryan/Greg friendship
Rating: G
Words: 1078
Summary: A young Ryan discovers sunshine comes on rainy days, too.

Ryan didn’t like the rain.
 
He pulled the hood of his blue raincoat over his head, leaving an empty seat behind him as he stood. He was careful not to slip on the aisle, his black rubber boots squeaking on the wet surface. Keeping his head up, he ignored the conversations of the other kids who were sharing seats with each other, keeping his mind on walking to the front of the bus.
 
Ryan jumped off the final step, landing in a large puddle and splashing muddied water onto his face. He tried to wipe it off, but only succeeding in smearing it further. There was a sharp pain building behind his eyes that he tried to blink away, but couldn’t. Instead, Ryan adjusted the straps of his backpack, shifting the weight on his back as he tried not to cry.
 
He was momentarily distracted when the door of the school bus closed, covering his ears with his hands. The loud screeching noise made his head hurt.
 
He held his raincoat close to his chest, trying to count how many steps until he reached his house. It was already the third day of first grade and his mom still hadn’t come to pick him up from the bus stop.
 
Ryan didn’t like this new place, this California.
 
He didn’t remember exactly where it was, but he knew it was really far away from home.
 
He wanted to go back to Florida, to Uncle Ron and his old friends. Because he already knew people at home. He didn’t have to sit by himself on the bus, it didn’t rain that much, and he always had somebody to walk with.
 
“Wait…”
 
Ryan turned abruptly at the sound of another voice, not expecting to see anybody in the neighbourhood at this time of day. He and his mom just moved here last Friday, the weekend before school started, and Ryan hadn’t gotten a chance to know anyone else.
 
Except for maybe Ms. Boa Vista and her three cats.
 
It was another boy, wearing a bright yellow raincoat that seemed to cover the majority of his body with the exception of his face. The coat was paired with matching rubber boots that went all the way up to his knees, where Ryan was able to see that he was wearing blue jeans.
 
A small hand was holding on to a hood that seemed to want to fly off his head, but Ryan caught glimpses of light brown hair, not yet wet. His other hand was holding on to a yellow umbrella.
 
“Hi,” the boy said cheerfully, stopping beside Ryan. He held his hand out, which Ryan decided to shake. “I’m Greg.”
 
“I’m Ryan,” Ryan replied, taking his hand out of the other little boy’s grasp. It was wet and dirty and he didn’t want to hold it anymore.
 
“This is my first time riding the bus home. My mom said I was big enough, now.” The little boy smiled, seemingly not deterred by the rain the poured around them. “But the bus had to turn around because I forgot this was my stop.”
 
Ryan didn’t say anything, turning away to continue his walk home. His mom told him it wasn’t safe to stand in the middle of the street, anyway.
 
“Where are you going?” Greg raised his eyebrows, running to catch up with Ryan.
 
“Home,” Ryan answered, putting his hands in his pockets as he continued to walk.
 
“Wait…I go that-”
 
Hearing a soft grunt, Ryan stopped to turn around, only to see Greg sprawled out on the concrete, his umbrella lying next to him. “Are you okay?” Careful not to repeat the other boy’s mistake, he walked quickly to where Greg lay, reaching out his hand to help him out.
 
Greg looked up with a grin, water dripping from his face. “I’m okay.” He reached for Ryan’s hand, nodding his head in gratitude as he stood. “I ran too fast, huh?” He asked as he tried to wipe away the mud from his jeans.
 
Seeing that the other boy was fine, Ryan turned back around, wondering if he would get home in time to catch Spider-Man on TV.
 
“Wait for me…” Greg pleaded, grabbing a hold of Ryan’s sleeve.
 
Ryan sighed, seeing as Greg wouldn’t leave him alone. He just wanted to go home and wait for his mom to come back from work. “Where do you live?”
 
Greg let go of Ryan’s coat, pointing in the direction Ryan was going. “I live that way…in the house next to the big tree.”

Next to me, Ryan thought as he watched Greg open his umbrella. It wouldn’t take that much longer to get home and it was almost pointless as they were both drenched, but the other boy did it anyway.
 
“I can walk with you?” Greg looked at Ryan questioningly, waiting for permission. He placed the umbrella over his head, moving closer to Ryan in an attempt to protect Ryan from the rain, as well.
 
Ryan lifted his head, peering up at the underside of the bright yellow umbrella that made his own blue raincoat look dull. He looked back at Greg when he felt something poking him in the shoulder.
 
Greg’s finger.
 
“Ryan.” Greg tilted his head as he looked at the other boy. His hood was no longer covering his head, revealing wet hair that clung to the sides of his face and fell over his eyes. He took Ryan’s hand in his own, pulling the other boy in the direction of his house. “You’re taking too long.”
 
Ryan didn’t know what to make of the expression on Greg’s face, the scrunched nose and the set determination.
 
“Come on, Ryan. My mom said she was making cookies for me, today.”
 
“Cookies?” Ryan asked. His mom rarely had time to make him anything. She was always working at the police station. And he’d never met his dad, so he didn’t have anyone else to do something like for him…except for Uncle Ron, but the last time he tried, he burned the cookies.
 
“You can come home with me.” Greg spared a quick glance to Ryan, still walking forward. “My mom says it’s nice to share with a friend.”
 
Ryan repeated last word silently, mouthing it as he allowed Greg to pull him along. He firmed his grip on Greg’s hand, holding it tightly as a barely perceptible smile appeared on his face.
 
Maybe the rain wasn’t so bad after all.