Heaven // Ryan Tedder

Chapter Thirty-Nine; Prodigal

Back at home, Ryan was in his living room, sitting at his piano as he let his fingers glide across the keys, deep in thought. For the past week or so, he had had some lyrics in his mind that he just couldn't get out on paper yet; he wasn't even quite sure if he liked the song, or if he truly wanted to record it, yet, the meaning behind it was important to him, just as the person it was written about was.

He let out a soft sigh, taking his hands away from the piano and looking up at the ceiling. He began to hum softly to himself, his lyrics coming back into his head as he attempted to pair them with the tune.

"Used to be that I felt so damn empty, ever since I met you, no vacancy.." he sang softly, before a smile crept up on his face.

His mind began to wander back to Janelle. He was still overjoyed to have her staying with him, yet, he still felt as if he had a burden on his shoulders. He had harboured this love for her for so long, it was hard to not just walk up and take her in his arms. He knew that he needed to be patient, but as the days went on, it was getting harder to do so.

He let out a soft sigh, before hearing his phone's ringtone. He reached over and picked it up from where it sat on the piano, turning on the screen to see that he had gotten a message from an unknown number.

He bit the inside of his cheek, before typing in his passcode, revealing the text message.

Hey! Wanna come to the bachelor party tomorrow night?

Ryan thought to himself for a moment, deciding that it was most likely Kenneth. He wondered if Janelle would be going to the bachelorette party or if she'd stay home.

Deciding to message back, he quickly typed back an answer.

I'm guessing this is Kenneth?

It wasn't long before he got a reply.

Oh, yeah. Should've mentioned that...sorry.

Ryan let out a small chuckle whilst he typed another reply.

It's cool. I'd love to come, as long as I'm not intruding.

No, you wouldn't be at all. You're a wedding guest, that gives you a free pass.

Awesome! What time?

I'll send directions. It starts at seven.

Great! See you then! Ryan Replied to Kenneth, setting his phone back down on the piano, before he resumed playing it.

Meanwhile, Brent sat in his living room beside Zach, Eddie, and Drew, who all stared at him expectantly.

"So," Eddie mumbled, messing with his hands. "Why did you call us all over, now?"

"You Said it was Important?" Zach added.

Brent shrugged. "It is." He said, before sitting back. "You can't tell Ryan I told you. He seems to want to keep it a secret."

"Just tell us already." Drew mumbled.

Brent nodded, before running a hand through his curly hair. "I was there yesterday,"

"Where?" Eddie interrupted.

"Ryan's house, jeez." Brent sighed, before continuing. "Anyway, when I walked in, there was some woman cooking food. Burning it, actually."

"Ryan got a maid?"

"Will you let him finish, Eddie?" Zach elbowed his friend in the arm.

Brent let out another sigh, before leaning forward a little. "Well, I went up to his room and asked who she was." He mumbled as if Ryan could hear him. "He said she was his girlfriend."

"Ryan has a girlfriend?" Drew Asked, a look of surprise on his face.

"Why didn't he tell us?" Zach wondered aloud.

Brent shrugged, shaking his head. "I don't know," he said. "Just...don't mention the fact that I told you."

The three of them nodded, before Drew sighed.

"Why would he want to keep a secret like that from us?" He asked. "We've been his friends for years."

"I wish I knew." Brent sighed as well. "I don't know, something about this just seems off."

Everyone looked down as the room fell silent, beginning to fidget as they thought about the entire situation. Brent wasn't sure why Ryan hadn't told them; they had been trustworthy to him, hadn't they? Plus, he had told them about his numerous girlfriends that came before, how come Janelle was different?

All Brent was sure of was that he was worried for his friend. Heaven knows what kind of situation he could be in. Perhaps she didn't want him speaking to them anymore? That would explain his distantness lately.

"So," Eddie muttered, breaking the silence. "What's her name?"

Brent looked up at him. "Janelle." He answered, causing Zach to furrow his eyebrows.

"Janelle?" He Asked. "That name sounds familiar...isn't she that waitress he was interested in?"

"Wait, you knew about this?" Drew questioned.

"I mean," Zach bit the inside of his cheek. "Ryan confided in Brent about it, and Brent confided in me.."

Drew and Eddie looked over at Brent, who bit his lower lip.

"In my defence, he said he wasn't interested in her, so I didn't mention it again." Brent looked down at his hands ashamedly. "I didn't think that they'd actually start dating."

"So, What should we do?" Drew asked curiously.

"Nothing!" Brent quickly looked up at his friend. "We can't do anything. And we shouldn't, if he wants to keep this a secret from us so much." He sighed. "Besides, you guys can't say a word. Otherwise, I'm dead."

They all nodded once again, before Eddie scratched the back of his neck.

"And what about Ryan?" He Asked. "What if it doesn't work out with her?"

Brent shook his head a little. "I'm really not sure. It seems like it's serious, I mean, they're living together and all." He muttered. "But if she leaves him, he's going to be heartbroken."

"Again." Zach added with a sigh.

Brent nodded, solemnly staring into space. All he could do was hope that Janelle wasn't bad news. He'd seen his friend have his heart broken far too many times, and he wasn't about to watch it happen to him again.