I broke the 5th episode into 2 chapters. Here's the last part. Enjoy!
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Karen
After putting the food away, I head to the piano to make sure we have all the music. Jimmy comes to stand by me and leans over my shoulder to see what I'm doing. "We've got it all, right?" he asks me. His nearness threatens to distract me, but I ignore it.
I'm look through the music on top of the piano, but I still don't see what I'm looking for. "No, you're missing "Voice in a Dream"."
"I'll get it. I should probably start getting this place ready anyway." He grabs beer bottles off the piano.
"I can help you," I offer.
He looks at me steadily and smiles, "No, stay where you are- where I can see you."
What does that mean?
That Death Cab for Cutie song, "Some Boys" pops into my head as I watch him tidy up the apartment, change out of his hoodie into yet another flannel shirt and retrieve the music from his room.
The lines "joylessly flinging with the girls that they're bringing to their rooms" and "some boys don't know how to love" seem especially appropriate today.
He returns to the piano and places the music on the stand. He leans down beside me again.
It's now or never. I take a deep breath. "Jimmy…" He looks at me curiously.
The doorbell buzzes.
"I'll get it," he says, his hand brushes my arm as he leaves.
'Never' it is, I guess. I sigh as I place the music in the pile with the rest.
Our readers have arrived.
/
Ana and Kyle get back just after two o'clock.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Ana standing just behind me, watching me organize music for Jimmy. "Hey, there you are- we've been waiting for you."
"Did you talk to Jimmy?"
"No, but it's ok. I'm fine." Kyle comes over to take the scripts from Ana.
"Karen…" She sighs exasperatedly.
"Really." I smile to prove it.
Jimmy ends the roommate guilt trip for me. "Hey everyone, uh, thank you so much for coming. Uh, there is beer and water in the kitchen. Hard copies of the script are being passed out to you now and when it comes to the music- Karen, Ana, Kyle and I will take care of that at the piano here." He seems a little nervous.
He walks over to me to retrieve his music.
"So I have it all set up for you," I tell him.
"You do?" He sounds surprised.
"Yeah, so you can just…"
He smiles at me. "You did that for me?" I smile back, shrugging. It's not like it was a big deal…
We take our places- I resist the urge to sit on the bench with Jimmy, instead sitting on the rolling steps which are nearest the piano. I don't feel quite right sitting on the piano bench with him after this morning. Apparently, that's not my place anymore.
I hate all the mixed signals. A week ago he was asking me to stay and to sit beside him and today… well. There was a mostly naked girl parading about his apartment. What the heck?
Kyle reads the first stage directions and I force myself to focus.
My focus doesn't last long. We get to "Voice in a Dream" and my mind wanders.
I watch him play and sing. I can't stop thinking about our kiss in the alley. I imagine his lips on mine as he sings about love and the obstacles it overcomes and the pain it can cause. It really hits home today.
I've tried to keep my face composed, but I'm sure the longing I feel is evident to everyone in the room. Maybe they'll chalk it up to my character.
I've caught him looking at me a few times as well. He seems pensive. Both of those could be because of his character, so it's hard to say. I don't know what to think anymore. As soon as I think I have Jimmy figured out, he does something completely different.
/
Jimmy
Everything has gone well. Kyle's book was even better than the last time I read it. Those writing classes helped.
I'm playing and singing the last song in Act 1- "Caught in the Storm".
I remember a month ago, in this same room, Karen singing this song to me at the party. I can't stop myself from looking at her during the line "When you love someone…" I don't mean to, but I can't help it.
I look up at her again as I play the last notes. I know there's a wistful look on my face. As the day has gone on, I can't seem to hide it anymore.
She's watching me play. Maybe it's the emotion of the song, or the show, but her face seems to mirror what I imagine mine looks like.
Kyle reads the final stage directions, ending the act. I turn around on the bench to face the group.
The room is silent for a few moments. "Well, what did you think?" I prompt. The silence is killing me.
The silence is broken by Karen's friend Jessica, "It was awesome! The songs, the story, the characters, everything." The room agrees. I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding.
Kyle interrupts. "Thanks, but seriously guys, you have to have some notes. I mean, we want to make this better."
Karen's friend Bobby pipes up, "Well, I did have one thought- what if instead of "Caught in the Storm" as the last song in Act 1, what if you make "Heart Shaped Wreckage" the last song? Then there's a little resolution to the show and at the same time, a cliffhanger to lead into Act 2. Do they make it work? Where do they go from here?"
Even I have to agree that sounds like a good idea. Kyle writes it down. "Ok, anything else?"
They make a few other suggestions, some dialogue changes, and they suggest moving one other scene. Kyle and I will discuss that one later.
But overall, the feedback is positive. We put the scripts aside and the atmosphere becomes more like a party. Everyone hangs out and has a few beers.
I find Kyle talking to Ana. He's still grinning. I put my arm around his shoulder and pat him on the back, clinking his beer with mine. "Great job!"
"Well, it wouldn't have been possible without you encouraging me and working extra shifts too to help pay for those classes." He turns to give me a hug. He pulls away and holds my shoulders at arm's length, grinning at me. "We're going to Fringe! Can you believe it?" He's practically levitating off the floor. I laugh with him.
Bobby comes over and pulls Kyle away to get another drink.
I smile as I watch him celebrate. Ana looks over at me. "You're really proud of Kyle, aren't you?" She studies me closely- making me feel a bit self conscious, "You really care about him."
I shrug, "He's my family," I tell her simply. He's my only family.
She looks at me for a moment, considering. "You know, you're not as bad a guy as you try to seem."
"Thanks?" I think? This is a strange conversation.
She's not done. "But even if you're just a little bad, could you maybe leave Karen out of it?"
I turn to her. "Excuse me?" My good mood is dissipating quickly.
"She's a really special person and she's been through a lot this year. So, work together, sure, but don't toy with her, ok?" She gives me a hard look to drive in her point and then walks away.
What?! What did I do? How can you toy with someone who has a boyfriend? I mean, I guess she could be talking about what happened at Ronnie's concert- but I've hardly spoken to Karen since.
I stand in the kitchen trying to make sense of my conversation with Ana.
/
Karen
I sit on the stairs of the loft and watch Jimmy and Kyle celebrate.
Eventually everyone heads home and Kyle, Jimmy, Ana and I take our beer to the roof to enjoy the sunset. It's unusually warm today for this time of year. We may as well enjoy it, it'll probably snow tomorrow.
My phone rings. It's Derek.
Crap. In all the excitement I forgot to send him the script. I walk to the far side of the roof to take the call.
"Derek, hey. Sorry, I haven't sent you the script yet…"
"Karen," he stops me. "That's not why I'm calling. We just finished the "Bombshell" reading. It was amazing."
"Really?" I can't keep the excitement out of my voice.
"Yup. Get ready darling, if we get this right you're going to win every award in town. "Hit List" can wait. We should focus on "Bombshell" now." I hear Jerry's voice in the background. "I've got to go." We disconnect.
I turn around to see the group staring at me. Apparently they heard.
Jimmy puts the pieces together and breaks the silence. "It's over isn't it?" He says flatly.
I stare at him helplessly. I don't know what to say.
He gets up, agitated.
A thought occurs to me. "But it doesn't mean that we can't still do Fringe- I mean, Derek won't be there to direct, but WE can put something together."
"Without Derek?" Kyle sounds skeptical.
Ana comes to my aid. "Sure! I mean, it's Fringe- it doesn't have to be perfect. Between the four of us we can stage one act."
"And I'm sure some of the others will help too. They loved the show." I reassure them.
Surprisingly, Jimmy gets on board first. "I think it could work. What do you think, Kyle?"
"Well," Kyle says slowly. He shrugs. "Why not? Let's go to Fringe!" He smiles.
Kyle volunteers to get more beer so we can discuss staging and make lists of what we'll need.
Jimmy watches Kyle leave and then looks at Ana. He seems to make a decision. He turns to me, "Hey, can I talk to you about something?"
I nod. Ana looks knowingly at me and decides to see if Kyle needs help.
Jimmy and I walk to the edge of the roof overlooking the river and lean against the half wall.
Jimmy takes a deep breath. "Uh, I need to talk to you about what happened at Ronnie's concert."
I try to brush it off. "You don't have to say anything."
But he's determined to do this. "I know, but I want to." He pauses and looks at me for a long moment. "I'm sorry," he says sincerely. "I shouldn't have done that, especially now that we're working together." He looks off into the distance, but then he returns his gaze to me, "You know?" he says softly.
I nod and try to look convincing. "Yeah..." I nod again. "I think that's a good idea." That's what Ana tells me anyway…
He continues, "Kyle told me about your 'situation'-sorry, I didn't know." He looks away again, into the sunset.
Wait, what? "My situation?" I say blankly.
He doesn't seem to notice my confusion. He's choosing his next words slowly, carefully. "It's just that I usually don't… like a lot of people," he looks back at me again with a half laugh, "and you're… pretty cool, so..." He smiles at me. "Just don't let me down, ok?"
I nod and smile back. "I won't," I promise.
I'm reminded of the morning he gave me his flash drive, or when he asked me to stay to help him write. He's clearly not used to opening up- to making himself vulnerable to another person. If he's willing to do that with me when he won't with anyone else, why did he have that other girl here this morning?!
The moment stretches between us. I don't know what he's thinking, but my thoughts are of how the sun is slanting across his eyes, making their hazel a vibrant green, and how the wind is ruffling his hair, making me want to run my fingers through it- and of the rain check from the alley. Unconsciously, we lean closer to each other.
He looks down breaking the spell. "Uh… friends?" he offers.
He holds out his hand. I stare at it uncomprehendingly before I finally take it. "Sure…" Yeah, that's what I was hoping for.
We shake on it. "…Friends" I repeat, trying out the word. You know, I have that kind of sexual tension with all my friends.
Is this really what he wants?
The handshake lasts longer than normal. In fact, he's just holding onto my hand now- and staring intently at them, like he's trying to imprint the image in his mind. When he finally turns to leave he strokes the back of my hand with his finger, sending tingles down my spine.
He looks up at me gives me a sad smile. He walks away, but holds onto my hand until the distance causes it to fall from his.
He joins Kyle and Ana who have returned with more beer.
Ana immediately comes over. "You ok?"
"Umm, yeah. Sure… I guess. We're going to be… friends." I look at her and smile, trying to convince her I'm happy with the decision.
What 'situation' was he talking about?
She sees the truth in my eyes and gives me a quick hug. We stand there a moment before rejoining the guys.
/
Jimmy
I take a beer from Kyle as I replay the last few moments with Karen in my head. For someone with a boyfriend she didn't seem to be in any hurry to let go of my hand. And her gaze searching mine didn't seem simply… friendly.
I ask Kyle again, "You sure she's dating Derek? I still don't get that vibe."
Kyle barely looks at me as he replies, "He dates all his leading ladies. You know that." That reason seems flimsier every time he says it.
I watch Karen and Ana across the roof. It looks like Ana is consoling Karen.
I shake my head. What a strange day. Between Ana and Karen the pieces aren't adding up to the story I'm getting.
/
I liked the idea of Kyle as an equal in the writing partnership- and that he'd have actually worked toward his dream (taken classes, etc), not just hoped he'd be a natural. That seemed weird to me. If you want something as badly as he seemed to, then you work at it.
Anyway, I think the positive feedback he got from the group will give him confidence on the professional side of his partnership with Jimmy and that will lead him to stand up to Jimmy more- who desperately needs to be put in his place sometimes.