A/N: One of the relationships I found the most intriguing on "One Life to Live" (which, naturally, the show didn't explore nearly enough) was the one between Kyle Lewis and Schuyler Joplin. Not really friends, not really enemies, I always thought their scenes together crackled. I also, in turn, thought Schuyler's exit from the show (cutting short a potentially great storyline with Roxy, propping Rex and Gigi to the high heavens, etc.) was absolute bullshit. So this one-shot kinda kills two birds with one stone for me. It takes place roughly a month after Sky's last appearance on 4/9/10. Hope you enjoy! And feedback please!
"The Sky-shank Redemption"
Kyle Lewis drummed his fingers nervously on the metal table in front of him as he waited. He wasn't sure why he was so anxious. He had been to Statesville Penitentiary plenty of times, volunteering at the infirmary unit, dealing with men much scarier and more prone to violence than the prisoner he was there to see.
Maybe it was because he'd never known an inmate personally. Maybe it was because, if not for a few lucky breaks, it could have been him serving jail time for mistakes he had made. Or maybe it was because he wasn't sure how well his visit was going to be received.
"Incoming!" a guard standing in the corner of the room gruffly called out. The heavy door beside him buzzed loudly as it swung open and out into the visiting area stepped Schuyler Joplin, clad in a gray jumpsuit with his hands shackled in front of him. His eyes widened in surprise at seeing Kyle, but at the guard's prompting, he shuffled across the room towards him.
It had been about a month since Schuyler had pled guilty at his arraignment hearing and was remanded to Statesville. The cuts and scrapes from his last brawl with Rex had healed in that time, but as Sky approached him, Kyle noticed a fresh bruise swelling his right eye.
"Kyle…what the hell are you doing here? Did something happen to Roxy?" Schuyler inquired with urgency in his voice as he slid into the seat opposite him. Roxy, like clockwork, had been coming to see Schuyler every Wednesday and Saturday afternoon since his incarceration. Her absence, and Kyle's appearance in her place, no doubt had him alarmed.
"Don't worry, she's fine. Just a bad flu." That almost hadn't been enough to keep Roxy from her newfound son. It had taken a considerable amount of Kyle's charm, plus a solemn promise on Morris that he would go in her stead, to get the sickly woman back into bed. Sky let out a sigh of relief, but he was still regarding Kyle warily.
"Well…I'm sorry you had to waste a day off coming out here. Sure you're not getting too many of those nowadays." He was right. Between the winding down of medical school and the daily demands of an infant, Kyle's free time was few and far between. But seeing Schuyler in this awful place put all that in perspective.
"No big deal. I mean, I probably should have come by sooner…" The words died on Kyle's lips. They rang hollow in his ears and, he was sure, in Sky's too. He and Schuyler Joplin had been on opposite sides of the same scam, worked in the same hospital, reluctantly shared the same secret, and cared for the same child. But one thing they had never been was friends.
What was different now, Kyle wondered as an awkward silence fell between them. Was it pity? Was it gratitude for stepping up when Oliver hadn't been able to? Was it because he was now the son of the closest thing he had to a mother?
"How'd you get that shiner?" Kyle finally spoke. The doctor in him taking over, he leaned over the table and extended a hand to examine Schuyler's face, but the patient, on instinct clearly developed over the past few weeks, lurched out of reach. Kyle fell back in his seat, awed by how just a short time behind bars had changed and damaged Sky.
"You…can't touch me…" Schuyler, his voice barely a whisper, grappled to explain, nodding over his shoulder to the guard by the door. "Besides, I'm fine. New transfer yesterday thought he'd make a name for himself. Didn't realize he was sucker punching the devil's kid."
Thinking about Mitch Laurence and all the misery the deluded preacher had rained down on the people he loved and Llanview as a whole made Kyle's blood boil. Mayor Lord has assured the community that Mitch had been placed in solitary confinement following his last breakout attempt, but Kyle was sure he had ways of getting to Schuyler if he wanted to.
"Mitch…he hasn't tried to reach out to you, has he?" A mixture of anger and fear danced in Schuyler's eyes at the mention of his father's name. He glanced around the near-empty room for anyone who might be listening before answering.
"No…not yet, anyway. Dunno if he warned the other inmates off me or if they're just scared he'll retaliate. Either way, not really planning on sending him a Father's Day card." Kyle smiled slightly at Sky's quip, then began racking his brain for a subject to steer the conversation towards.
"So…how is she?" Schuyler surprised Kyle by piping up first.
"Roxy? I told you, man, it's just the flu. She'll be good as new by Saturday," Kyle replied, confused by the question.
"No…I meant…Sierra Rose. How is she?" Ah, Kyle thought, the adorable pink elephant in the room. Just the thought of her lightened his mood. She had woven her way into his heart so fast; he could barely remember what life had been like before her. And he could only imagine the pain and heartbreak Schuyler had felt when he'd found out she wasn't his.
"She's great, getting bigger every day. Oliver's…such a natural with her and, you know, I think I'm doing an okay job. And Roxy's been a huge help…" Sky gave him a melancholy smile. Kyle hoped his rattling on hadn't made him feel worse.
"That's all I ever wanted, was for her to be happy, safe. You and Oliver…I know you're giving Sierra the kind of life, the kind of family, she deserves." Kyle nodded his head in agreement. An idea suddenly springing to mind, he reached under the table for his messenger bag.
"Do you want to see pictures of her?" he asked Schuyler as he dug through his bag. "I just got a bunch printed. Wasn't sure you'd want to talk about Sierra with me, let alone look at snapshots, but…" Sky responded to Kyle's suggestion with a good-natured grin.
"Such a dad already, Lewis. Yeah, definitely, let's see 'em." Finally locating them, Kyle dropped a stack of photos on the table. Sky picked up the first one, his restraints clanging as he did so. It was from the day Oliver and Sierra had moved in with Kyle. In the image, Sierra was asleep in her crib, her favorite baby blanket wrapped around her.
"You kept that?" Schuyler asked, indicating the blanket with a tap of his finger.
"Like we had a choice," Kyle laughed. "She loves that thing. Gets so upset when we have to wash it, goes crazy when we give it back to her. Where did you get it anyway?"
"It was my mom's…not Roxy, obviously, Leah Joplin," Schuyler reminisced wistfully as he set the photo down. "My friend Rachel embroidered Sierra's name onto it as a surprise. I'm glad she still likes it."
Kyle watched as Sky thumbed through the rest of the pictures. One of Kyle laughing as Sierra splashed him during his first attempt at giving her a bath. One of Sierra sacked out against Oliver's chest after a feeding. One of Sierra and Roxy in the park, both wearing bubble gum pink leather jackets. One of…
"Shit, sorry…" Kyle moved to grab the last print, but Schuyler's grip on it tightened and he yanked it away from him. It was a picture of Gigi holding Sierra in front of the carriage house, Shane standing by their side. And visible, in the background, was Rex. Kyle had promised Gigi a copy; he'd forgotten it was in this batch of photos. A cloud seemed to settle over Sky as he gazed at it.
"Roxy won't tell me anything about them. So…she's back with him, huh?" Kyle sprang forward and ripped the image out of Sky's hands. He then hurriedly tucked it back into his bag.
"I honestly have no idea. All I know is that she's been helping Rex track down his birth parents." Kyle was taken aback by how infatuated with Gigi Schuyler still seemed to be, after everything that had happened, after everything it had cost him. Not that Kyle should judge; the hurt Oliver had caused him in college hadn't stopped Kyle from pining for him.
"She looked happy…" Schuyler muttered, mostly to himself, clearly lost in thought. "It's like it never happened…like I never even existed…" Kyle couldn't help himself. The question he'd been biting his tongue to hold in since Roxy had told him what Sky had done during his court appearance came spilling out.
"Is that why you're sitting in here, Joplin? To prove something to Gigi, to impress her, to get her back?" Kyle's outburst caught Sky off-guard. He started to speak, but Kyle cut him off.
"That day…with everything that happened with Allison Perkins and Mitch and Sierra…nobody really thinks you were in your right mind when you shot Commissioner Buchanan. You haven't been sentenced yet! Téa Delgado can still work her magic, it's not too late!" Sky jumped out of his seat, which made Kyle realize he was standing too.
"You don't know what you're talking about!" Schuyler shouted, his face growing red with anger. But Kyle didn't care, he pressed on anyway.
"You're throwing away time you could be spending with Roxy! Don't you know how much it's killing her to see you in here? And Sierra…I want her to know her Uncle Schuyler, the guy who protected her, who saved her when her dads couldn't…" Kyle fanned the remaining photos out on the table for emphasis. "You can still be a part of this, Sky."
"Shit, Kyle," Schuyler hollered, slamming his first down on the table, "you think you're the first person to tell me that?" Kyle, out of breath from yelling, struggled to calm down and let Schuyler speak his peace. "I've heard it from Roxy. From Téa. Hell, Rachel flew here from Chicago to scream at me in person."
"Look," Schuyler continued as they stared each other down, "I appreciate what you said, what you were trying to do. I know nobody understands why I'm doing this…fuck, some days I don't even get it…but I just know it's something I need to do. Okay?"
"It's your life, Joplin," Kyle conceded. From the corner of his eye, he could see the guard from the door approaching their table.
"Everything okay over here?" the guard asked, swinging his gaze back-and-forth between the two men.
"We're good. Right, Kyle?" Schuyler looked over at Kyle for confirmation. Kyle felt a smile cracking his lips. He hated to admit it, but part of him actually missed getting into screaming matches with Sky.
"Yeah, we're good." The guard, looking a little bewildered, put his hand on Schuyler's shoulder as he went to sit back down.
"Alright, well, time's up anyway." Schuyler nodded his acknowledgement while Kyle took a second to scoop up the pictures and drop them back into his bag.
"Dang it…I heard some good gossip about our old pal Kim I wanted to tell you," Kyle remarked as he slung the strap of his bag over his head. "Guess I'll save it for next time." A look of relief and gratitude washed over Schuyler's face.
"Next time…thanks, Kyle." Schuyler made to shake Kyle's hand, but the cuffs on his wrists and a grunt from the guard reminded them both where they were.
"Don't mention it. Take care of yourself, Schuyler." He watched as Schuyler was led away back into the bowels of the prison. Kyle then exited the room through the opposite door, eager to get home to his family.