This was written for a drabble prompt over on Livejournal at the community nobodysbizathon. It's a pretty awesome comm, you should check it out!
Disclaimer: I don't own The Office.
Ryan takes Kelly to see Avenue Q on Broadway.
As the lights dimmed and the main theme began to play, Ryan wondered if he'd made a mistake bringing Kelly. Not that he wasn't sure she'd enjoy it—almost everyone could find something hilarious in Avenue Q, after all—but the sound of her happy squeaking and her tight hold on his arm were distracting him. Maybe he should have come alone.
She laughed when "It Sucks to be Me" came on, but he didn't. He watched Brian and Kate Monster sing about how much they hated their lives and thought about how well he could relate to them. Especially when the shimmery, giggly girl next to him whispered, "Is Gary Coleman played by a girl?" He rolled his eyes and nodded, shushing her. She frowned and turned back to the play.
She was bouncing through "Mix Tape", and then suddenly stopped and looked at him pointedly. "We are so like them. Why haven't you ever made me a mix tape, Ryan?" People around them were shushing the loud girl in the back, and he replied softly, "You don't have a cassette player, Kelly."
That seemed to satisfy her and she shut up for a while.
He cringed through the puppet sex scene, but she laughed loudly at the song. He knew she was thinking about the time her neighbors downstairs had banged on her ceilingin an effort to shut them up. She was staring at him meaningfully when Brian and Christmas Eve said their wedding vows. He pretended not to see her.
Then Princeton broke up with Kate because he was "afraid of commitment", and he could feel her stiffen just a little. He smirked a little when he realized she was right. They were so like them.
And then everyone but Kate left the stage and the lights dimmed. He was hoping that it was almost the end of Act One because he really had to pee and his throat was getting scratchy. Kate sat alone on one side of the stage and her nasally voice rang out the first note.
There's a fine, fine line between a lover and a friend; There's a fine, fine line between love
There's a fine, fine line between reality and pretend;
And you never know 'til you reach the top if it was worth the uphill climb.
And a waste of time.
His arm had slipped from Kelly's grasp somewhere along the way and he was waiting for her to grab him again and start sobbing into his shoulder about how totally sad it all was. But she didn't and he was silently grateful.
There's a fine, fine line between a fairy tale and a lie;
And there's a fine, fine line between "You're wonderful" and "Goodbye."
I guess if someone doesn't love you back it isn't such a crime,
But there's a fine, fine line between love
And a waste of your time.
The lyrics were making him uncomfortable—he was hoping that Kelly wouldn't notice him shift in his seat or that he was staring at his hands instead of the stage, and then he heard a soft gasp, and he glanced sideways at her.
She watching Kate Monster's solo intently and tears were running down her face. Her hands were clasped tightly together in her lap, and her whole body was stiff, as if her sobs were stuck inside her throat and she was forcing them down instead of out.
"Hey," he said softly. "You okay?" She didn't reply.
And I don't have the time to waste on you anymore.
I don't think that you even know what you're looking for.
For my own sanity, I've got to close the door
And walk away...
Oh...
He slid his hand toward her clasped fingers, but she slipped from his grasp.
There's a fine, fine line between together and not
And there's a fine, fine line between what you wanted and what you got.
You gotta go after the things you want while you're still in your prime...
"Hey, Kelly…" But she hushed him.
He hesitated before wrapping his arm around her shoulders and pulling her toward him, was surprised by the move himself, but she didn't pull away. Her tears were hot and wet on his neck. He shushed her softly, like a mother shushes a child who'd just lost their favorite toy.
There's a fine, fine line between love…
"It's okay," he whispered into her hair. But it wasn't and he knew it.
And a waste of time
Kate Monster stepped sadly off-stage and the lights came up. It was intermission. The audience was filing out and they were bumping into Ryan's knees and Kelly was still crying softly into his shoulder and he was saying "I'm sorry" over and over again, but he wasn't sure exactly who he was speaking to.