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MD - Chapter 18: Pilot III
🕑 Added 2024-12-17 15:30:48 +0000 UTCThe doorbell rang, and Claire stopped what she was doing and rushed to the front door. Andrew had no choice but to follow her. Leonard and Howard followed him.
"Let's see what idiot Haley is dating. Let’s scare him off right away," Howard whispered to Leonard with a mischievous grin. He had taken it upon himself to join the intimidation mission, even though Claire never asked for his help.
If he helped Andrew, they could make Haley break up with this Dylan guy sooner, and Haley would remember him as Andrew’s cool and bad friend.
'I’ve known you for years, and I have no idea where you get that confidence from,' Leonard thought, genuinely impressed. He wasn’t sure if this “confidence” was really an asset for Howard.
They arrived at the entrance again. Claire was first, followed by Andrew. At that same moment, Haley was hurrying downstairs.
She was wearing a short skirt, a black shirt covered in pretty little flowers, and a small violet jacket over it.
Howard forgot about meeting Haley’s so-called idiot boyfriend, as he had put it, and turned his gaze to his crush—or one of them, since his list of crushes was practically endless.
"Too late, cousin. You’ve got to be faster if you want to beat the paranoi… your mom," Andrew said, coughing just before he accidentally let a word slip that was better left unsaid. Luckily, Claire wasn’t paying attention.
"Andy? What are you doing here?" Haley asked, slightly surprised, momentarily forgetting that she needed to stop her mom from embarrassing her in front of Dylan.
"What do you think?" Andrew replied.
"Not this again…" Haley said, realizing Claire had called him to ‘intimidate’ her new boyfriend. It wasn’t the first time her mom had used this tactic.
In the past, when Claire couldn’t show up at school with Haley, she would assign the intimidation task to Andrew. But this was the first time Haley had brought a guy home, so her mom had to call him in—and Haley hadn’t expected her mother to stick to this stupid strategy.
However, this didn’t bother Haley; on the contrary, she liked that her mother insisted on using that tactic. Though she pretended to be indignant, she secretly enjoyed the attention Andrew gave her during these moments.
"We’re not kids anymore, Andrew. I don’t need you to do that stupid act. This time with Dylan, it’s serious," Haley said with an air of importance, secretly reveling in it.
'You’re not the only one with a couple,' she thought.
Before Andrew could say anything, Claire had already opened the door. “Hello. How are you? You must be Dylan,” Claire said, looking the tall boy in front of her up and down while extending her hand.
"Hi. Dylan. Yeah," said Dylan, shaking hands with the blonde woman in front of him. She seemed like a kindle woman. He was sure they’d get along well.
“I’m Haley’s mom,” Claire clarified.
Haley stopped paying attention to Andrew and turned to Dylan. Her top priority was to get Dylan away from her crazy mom as quickly as possible.
“Hi, come on in,” Haley said hurriedly, greeting Dylan and grabbing his hand. She began guiding him toward the stairs, walking past Claire.
Andrew observed Dylan. A tall guy with brown hair and eyes, a goatee, and dressed like a cool guy. He really didn’t want to make things hard for him.
On the show, he liked him and knew that in the end, he and Haley would get married. But this wasn’t just a show anymore—it was his life now. There could be differences.
Why make things hard for him? Dylan might be a bit dumb, but he was always kind and never said or did anything malicious.
"Go on, introduce yourself, Howard," Leonard joked quietly to Howard, who was frozen, staring at Dylan, who was easily more than a head taller than him.
"Shut up. I didn’t know she was dating someone older. I haven’t hit my growth spurt yet to take him on," Howard justified himself.
Claire quickly followed Haley. "Hold on a second," she said, grabbing Dylan by the sleeve as he was on the fourth step of the staircase.
"Dylan, are you still in high school?" Claire asked, starting her interrogation.
"Yeah, I’m starting my senior year tomorrow," Dylan replied, unfazed by the fact that Claire was gripping his wrist tightly. He didn’t seem to realize yet how paranoid and overprotective Claire could be.
"Senior year, great," Claire nodded and looked over at Andrew, widening her eyes to prompt him into action.
'Oh, right,' Andrew thought, taking a few steps forward. The drowsiness was starting to get to him.
"Andrew. Haley’s cousin," he introduced himself, trying to maintain a serious, impassive expression as he extended his hand for a handshake. His face bore the look of someone trying to appear intimidating without being overtly aggressive.
Claire, watching from the side, nodded internally, satisfied with Andrew’s performance. He wasn’t overly friendly, but he wasn’t rude either.
"Oh, Andrew Pritchett! I watched last season’s games. You were great!" Dylan said enthusiastically, shaking Andrew’s hand with a big smile.
“Huh?” murmured Andrew as his serious and ‘intimidating’ expression shifted to one of confusion.
“You watched Middle School games?” Andrew asked. It was unusual for a high schooler to watch middle school games.
“Of course! A lot of us do because of you. I’m not even a big football fan, but your plays are something else,” Dylan replied enthusiastically.
“Everyone talks about how you won the district championships two years in a row. They can’t wait to have you on the high school team,” Dylan added with a smile.
He was a member of the school band—not really his type of music since he was more into rock—but being in a club was fun, so he stayed somewhat informed about sports.
In middle school, Andrew had won two consecutive district championships, putting him in the regional spotlight. His name was known not just in his school but throughout the youth sports community.
During his last year of middle school, his skills had been so exceptional that he was interviewed by a local outlet—something almost unheard of for a student his age.
“Well… it’s a team sport, you know? It wasn’t just me,” Andrew said, scratching the back of his neck and glancing away as if suddenly finding the spotless floor incredibly interesting. Claire worked hard to keep the house immaculate, despite having three kids and a husband like Phil.
Dylan didn’t seem to notice Andrew’s discomfort and kept speaking with the same energy. “I also heard about the interview you did last year! It was great. My dad even said that if you keep this up, you could make it to the NFL. Is that true? Is that your dream?”
“Eh… well, that’d be amazing, but for now I’m just focusing on one step at a time, you know?” Andrew replied casually, though the slight blush on his cheeks betrayed how flattered he felt. Despite his efforts to maintain composure, a small, satisfied smile crept onto his face.
'Damn it, his Achilles’ heel!' Claire thought irritably as she noticed Andrew’s happy expression. Whenever someone praised him, he lost focus.
“Do you see yourself in the NFL? That’d be so cool—to say I know someone famous!” Dylan added.
“It’s a long way off…” Andrew began, feeling increasingly flattered.
Haley, who had been silently observing, rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. She knew exactly how Andrew operated. A couple of compliments were all it took for his supposed seriousness to vanish, transforming him into an adorable mess (at least, in her opinion).
“Andrew,” Claire interrupted in a stern tone, as if trying to snap him back to his mission. Her gaze was intense, clearly reminding him to stay focused.
Andrew blinked a few times, as if waking from a daydream. “Oh… yeah, yeah, of course,” he said, clearing his throat and trying to regain his serious demeanor.
“Stop siding with my mom, Andrew…” Haley said with a frown, pretending to be mad at him.
Andrew opened his mouth to respond, but just as he was about to speak, something odd happened. His eyes began to glaze over, turning white, and, to everyone’s surprise, he started snoring softly—standing upright, neither swaying nor falling.
“Andrew?” Dylan asked, stepping closer to the staircase railing.
Leonard, wearing a puzzled expression, tilted his head and examined Andrew.
“Is he… asleep? Is that biologically possible?” Howard asked, staring at Andrew and listening to his steady breathing.
“Well, technically, yes. Horses can do it thanks to a locking mechanism in their hind legs, but humans… I’m not sure we have the anatomy for that. Although, if we consider his level of athletic discipline, maybe his brain has developed an adaptive system,” Leonard said, adjusting his glasses.
Leonard could tell that Andrew’s athletic performance was on another level compared to his peers. He was already an elite youth athlete.
Claire looked at Leonard, surprised by his comment. It was exactly what she expected from a nerd, though the fact was rather impressive.
“Or maybe he’s just so tired that his body said, ‘Doesn’t matter where you are, buddy, we’re sleeping here,’” Howard added, rubbing his chin.
From the stairs, Haley let out a long sigh and rolled her eyes. “No, geniuses, it’s not evolution or horse stuff. It’s his statue mode. It’s like his weird way of sleeping standing up when he doesn’t get enough rest,” Haley explained.
Howard raised an eyebrow, intrigued. “Statue mode? Sounds like something out of a comic book. Let me guess, does he also have a ‘turbo mode’ for football games?”
“Who knows. We could be witnessing the first documented case of a teenage superhuman,” Leonard said with a small smile.
“Wait… who the hell are you guys?” Haley asked, finally noticing the two nerds in her house.
“Leonard Hofstadter.”
“Howard Wolowitz.”
Both introduced themselves, happy to be acknowledged but slightly nervous. Although witnessing Andrew’s statue mode had made them forget their initial anxiety.
Haley nodded slightly, recalling the two nerds from a few days ago at Andrew’s house when they were doing a bit of physical exercise.
Claire, who had been watching the scene with her arms crossed, sighed and rubbed her temples. Her ally had fallen in battle. Haley was ready to start heading upstairs.
Just at that moment, Phil stepped out of one of the doors, putting on a blazer as he made his way toward the front door. He had an engagement tonight. A smile formed on Claire’s face. He was her last hope.
Comments
Guido
No Haley won't be Andrew's love interest. That doesn't mean she doesn't have feelings for him, but Andrew sees her only as family.
Cajun sS
I hope not
Nik
tftc. is haley the the love interest ?
