Chapter 10: Best friends and Broadway success

Jimmy bolted upright, trying to hide the signs of his distress as Julia and Tom knocked and slipped back into Kyle's room arm in arm. Scrutinising the body language of the two men sitting in front of her, Julia said quietly "Hello, you two. Is everything okay in here?"

Glancing up at her with red-rimmed eyes, Kyle said, "We're fine, thanks Julia, just discussing the future. I think it will turn out to be pretty amazing."

Jimmy added shortly "Yeah, we're fine."

Smiling at both of them, Julia said "Great! As long as you're both fine I won't ask for the details. I guess it's time for a new topic then." Slipping her arm away from Tom's, Julia scrabbled in her handbag to whip a large blue card with "Get Well Soon" printed in block letters out. Holding it up in front of her as she spoke, she said "Kyle, honey, I have something here for you from the Manhattan Theatre Workshop. Everyone wanted to send their love and their best wishes for your health. You should know that you were sorely missed." Putting her hand over her heart, Julia declared as tears fell down her cheeks "Kyle, I was so, so very happy when Tom called me yesterday and told me you were alive and would make a full recovery. I missed you and you have so many wonderful things ahead of you." She walked over to the bed, resting the back of her hand on his forehead in the practiced motion of a parent. She then smiled gently, bending and kissing Kyle's cheek as he reached up for a one-armed hug.

Wiping away her tears, Julia opened the card and handed it to him for his perusal. Kyle's eyes flickered down each page, smiling to himself over each thoughtful and heartfelt message. It was great to hear from everyone, especially since he hadn't felt well enough to talk to them all in person. Kyle frowned as he noticed a persistent theme in several of the messages, lifting his eyes to ask the room "Why are there a few messages saying that they can't wait to start the new previews? Or for me to see the new stage and set? We already opened..." He trailed off in confusion. "Did something happen with Hit List?"

Realising that he had the been given the chance he had desperately wanted a few days ago to tell his best friend the good news about their show, Jimmy smiled widely. He then exclaimed "Jerry Rand is taking Hit List to Broadway, we did it! Our musical is going to be on Broadway, just like you always wanted!"

Kyle looked at him, completely astonished. He gasped "Oh my God" before happily repeating himself and exclaiming "Oh my God! Jimmy, that's amazing! I have so many ideas, now we can..."

Julia interrupted his excited rambling "Relax, Kyle. Deep breaths. Honey, these things take time. Right now, you need to focus your energy on getting better. You're still really pale. Jimmy, Derek and I will make sure Hit List is well taken care of in your absence. And Kyle, congratulations!" She beamed at his dazed expression and slowly widening smile.

Quickly thanking Julia, Kyle turned to look at Tom where he had stayed near the door to give Julia the opportunity to greet Kyle properly. Kyle beckoned him over as he said "Oh my God, Tom. I can't believe Hit List is going to Broadway!"

Tom grinned madly as his lover's excitement, kissing him firmly and saying warmly "Congratulations on your first Broadway musical, Kyle. You deserve it. I'm sure this will be only the first of many." Tom's heart was beating crazily, overflowing with love for the incredible man in front of him. Tom was so proud of him and so excited that Hit List was going to Broadway. It had occurred to Tom when Kyle had been reported dead that his lover would never know that he'd truly made it. If he had died that night, he would never have known the success of his work and never enjoyed watching it open on Broadway. He would have missed out on so much and Tom's heart had wrenched at that desolate knowledge. Now, Tom was just so deliriously happy that Kyle was alive to experience it all. Tom also felt incredibly privileged to have witnessed Kyle's exuberant reaction to the news.

"Thanks, Tom." Kyle pressed back into the mattress, adding "God, my head is spinning."

Julia softly interrupted "We should go and let you get some rest. We'll leave you in Tom's capable hands." Looking at her watch, Julia spoke quickly "Actually, Jimmy, we really do need to get going anyway. Everything has to be organised so it can moved over to the new theatre and Jerry wanted everyone there this morning so he can give a big speech. You need to be there to represent both you and Kyle and we need to leave right now to get there on time."

Jimmy said goodbye to Kyle, whispering that he loved him into his ear before headed toward the door. He stopped on the way to grab tightly onto Tom's shoulder and say in a low, threatening tone "You take care of him, do you hear me?"

Tom looked straight into Jimmy's eyes and declared quietly "I will. Jimmy, I promise you that Kyle is safe with me. I'll take care of him." He tilted his head, motioning toward the door. "You go take care of his show."

Kissing both Kyle and Tom on the cheek in farewell, Julia bustled Jimmy out of the room before spinning her head back to add "We'll be back this afternoon after rehearsal. I think we might have a few additions that want to say hi too. Bye!"

Waving as they left, Kyle beamed back up at Tom, still astonished that he had done it, succeeded in his musical making it to Broadway. Excitement frolicking through his entire body, Kyle cried out "Broadway, Tom! Broadway," shaking his head in shock before sliding his hand around the nape of Tom's neck and dragging him down to crash their lips together.

Nearly falling over at the unexpected tug, Tom quickly braced himself and kissed back enthusiastically for a moment before withdrawing with a light laugh to say "Woah, Kyle! Give me a minute to get my balance. I don't want to hurt you." Laughter dancing merrily through his eyes he broke into song, crooning "Slow down, you crazy child!" Kyle smiled in amusement and joy at the shared memory as Tom carefully climbed up onto the bed. He propped himself up on his side, resting his legs against Kyle's and ensuring that he didn't put any of his weight down onto his injured lover. Tom then commented "See? Much better" before lifting his hand to Kyle's cheek and tilting his head to capture Kyle's lips in a passionate kiss of celebration.

Groaning, Tom pulled away after a few minutes, stoking his hand up and down Kyle's chest in a featherlight caress and saying "We have to stop. I don't want to, I love kissing you, but I can hear how fast your heart is going and we're about to set off the alarm." He twisted his lips to one side in resignation and sighed. "Which would be bad. You need to stay calm."

Breathing heavily, Kyle asked teasingly "What if I don't want to stay calm?" He paused for effect, shooting Tom a molten glance and silently enjoying his stuttered attempt to reply with a grin. Kyle then sighed too, adding "I know, I know. You're right Tom. Can I get a rain check on the kissing then?" He frowned in confusion for a second before questioning "Wait, how did you even know the heart-rate monitor's alarm was about to go off? We were kissing and your eyes were closed!"

With upturned lips, Tom replied "Yes, you can have a rain check on the kissing. Anytime, just let me know. As for my eyes, yep, they were closed. But Kyle, I could still hear the beeps. I'm a composer, I've heard so many metronomes over the years that I didn't have to focus on the sound to know approximately how fast your heart was going. I didn't want to hurt you or get kicked out by the nurses, so once your heart started racing I pulled away." He grinned cheekily and murmured "It was definitely good for my ego to hear your heart respond like that when we kissed..."

Kyle interrupted with "Tom, hey, that's not fair! I want to hear how fast your heart is going too."

Tom slid his hand up from where it rested on Kyle's chest down to Kyle's right arm, caressing over his lover's fingers before lifting them to his lips. Brushing across the knuckles, Tom moved to place the hand palm first over his heart, murmuring "We can fix that. Now you have a touch-sensitive heart rate monitor."

Grinning at Tom's silliness, Kyle looked down at Tom's chest and focused on the regular beat under his hand. After a few seconds he raised his eyes to Tom's in wonder, breathing out "Tom, your heart's racing too."

Tom returned gently "So it is. It might have something to do with you being a gorgeous man in my arms who was kissing me as though his life depended on it. Or maybe not. You seem to have that affect on me by just being in the room." He brought his hand up to press to Kyle's cheek softly.

Kyle blushed and looked down in embarrassment, breaking eye contact as he remarked "Tom, I just got hit by a car. I'm pretty sure I'm far from gorgeous right now."

"Trust me, you are gorgeous." Leaning over to kiss Kyle's forehead, he added tenderly "Kyle, you are incredibly beautiful. Inside and out. Even when you're in the hospital." Tom smiled to himself as he heard Kyle heart rate accelerate again at the compliment and decided it might be wise to change the subject.

"So, before we got so pleasantly distracted, I wanted to ask if you were okay after your conversation with Jimmy. When Julia and I walked back in, you and Jimmy looked upset and it was obvious you'd been crying. Are you okay?" Shutting his eyes, Kyle winced and answered "I've been better. Jimmy and I had this incredibly draining emotional conversation and I'm so overwhelmed right now between that and Hit List's success. My brain keeps flipping back and forward between pure elation and grief shot through with hope."

"Do you want to talk about it? Tom asked gently.

Moving his fingers from Tom's chest, Kyle quietly linked their hands together and said "Yeah, I do. About Jimmy, I'm sorry about what he said to you earlier Tom. He shouldn't have accused you of that and I know it's not true."

Tilting his head and shrugging, Tom hummed "Mmm, he had some interesting comments to say about me and our relationship earlier. I won't pretend they didn't hurt me. But Kyle, you don't have to apologise for his behaviour, it's not your fault. I know you're probably used to chasing after him and apologising but you don't have to, not with me. He's responsible for his own actions."

Kyle sighed "You're right. I know that Jimmy's been a complete jerk to me recently, to everyone, actually, but somewhere under all that crap is still the guy who has been my best friend our whole lives. The guy who was always there for me when we were growing up."

Brows furrowed, Tom replied "Hey, Kyle, I'm sorry, I know he's your best friend. I've just seen how awfully he's treated you lately, how he has taken advantage of your kindness and loyalty and I know how much it upset you. You deserve better than that. However, I can also see flashes of a much stronger, more balanced friendship underneath that. So, I'm glad he knows that you're going to be fine, even if the two of you are having a fight right now and he really needs to grow up and get his life in order. He sung a heartbreakingly beautiful song for you, you know. The night you..." Tom halted, voice trembling "the night we thought you'd died, there was a performance of Hit List. Not the whole musical, but the songs, a tribute to you. He sung 'The Love I Meant to Say' for you and he clearly meant every word. Whatever else he is, he does love you."

Kyle sighed, nodding and uttering "I know he does, he just isn't very good at showing it. Or saying it, for that matter, though he did say it today. I don't know, I'm tired of constantly being the one who has to clean up after him, to patch everything up and hold us together. I've tried so hard to fix him, to help him get his life back on track but nothing I do seems to be enough. The night I was hit by that car, I just couldn't take it anymore so I kicked him out, one last effort to try and make him help himself for once." Kyle voiced raised in concert with his heart-rate monitor before he visibly deflated and finished "I just don't know what to do anymore. When I kicked him out I was starting to wonder if he even could be saved but then our conversation this morning..." he paused, shutting his eyes against the desperate hope burning in them. "I'm cautiously optimistic, more hopeful than I've been in years. He just broke down, telling me he was sorry, that he loved me and he'd do better. He's promised to change before so I know better than to take him at his word but when I said he had to prove it to me this time he agreed to try and to see a psychiatrist. I've done everything I can, but I'm not trained to know how to help him. He always refused before and I'm hopeful that we can find someone good and he can really recover this time."

Tom pressed his lips together in thought. "So he never actually dealt through his issues, just buried them? It's great he's willing to deal with them now. I've seen a few people sort through addiction issues and childhood traumas in this business and it can be done if he's ready and he has the proper support. Hey, Kyle, if you'd like, I can ask around for you, find someone who really knows what they're doing."

Squeezing his hand tightly, Kyle responded shakily "Yes, thank you Tom. That would be wonderful. I wouldn't know where to start and I know Jimmy. If he hates the psychiatrist or doesn't feel like he can trust them then he might be discouraged enough not to continue with his therapy. I want to capitalise on his good intentions right now while they're probably the strongest they're going to get. It really rattled him when he thought I'd died and I feel awful about that but maybe some good can come from it if it gives him the push he needs to get better. It's going to take time but I think he'll be okay if he can sort through why he acts as he does and get some help to stop using. He's a completely different man when he's not self-destructing and high on anything he can get his hands on."

Tom observed "I think he might already started on that himself, getting clean and sober. He wasn't drinking the night when we dimmed the Lily Hayes marquee. I actually saw him refuse a drink when Ana offered him one. I presume that's unusual for him?"

Looking at him with eyebrows raised in surprise, Kyle replied "Yeah, it is." Shaking his head, he continued "Very unusual. Thanks for letting me know Tom. Hopefully that's a sign of good things to come."

"You're welcome. I hope Jimmy can sort himself out too. His music is amazing, he's the real deal. He's far too talented and far too young to throw his life away. Kyle, please let me know if I can do anything else to help you or Jimmy. I know he's your best friend and you love him, so seeing him go through this hurts you deeply too. So, please remember that I'm here whenever you want to talk." He squeezed Kyle's hand firmly in affirmation of his promise. "I care about you and I want to help you, whatever you need, okay?

Kyle looked at Tom with tears in his eyes and murmured "Thank you, Tom. That means a lot. It's just been me fighting for him for so long and I think I really needed someone to worry about me for a change." With a watery smile, Kyle wiped away his tears, shutting his eyes and taking a deep breath to compose himself. "Now, enough about me and my best friend. What happened with you and yours? I noticed that my parents must have gone somewhere so I presume you and Julia had a little time to talk. You seemed happier when you walked back in together."

"Yes, your parents went to the hotel to freshen up, I think they also wanted to make some calls to update your family and friends on how you're doing."

"Right, that makes sense. So you and Julia had coffee alone?" Kyle asked.

Tom demurred "Well, I had coffee. She had tea. But yes, we did chat."

"And?" Kyle prompted him expectantly. "What's the future of Houston and Levitt, my favourite musical writing team?"

Face breaking out into a huge grin, Tom answered "We're going to do Gatsby together."

Sliding his hand into Tom's hair, Kyle breathed out, "Oh Tom, that's wonderful. I know how much you wanted to work on Gatsby and how upset you were that you had to break up the partnership so that she could work on it by herself. I remember how upset you were that you were going to have to do that and that you were fighting about it. So, you're doing it as a musical then?"

Shaking his head Tom replied "Nope. I'm directing. So she can still do it as a play, which is what she really wanted, and I can focus on my directing, which is what I really wanted. I'll still get to compose for it too, Julia asked me to write the score. And we didn't even have to break up to do it, so it's the best of both worlds."

"I'm so happy for you. I can't wait to see it!" Kyle stopped talking suddenly as a wide yawn split over his happy grin. Sinking back into the mattress, he murmured "Sorry, I think the crazy morning has caught up with me all of a sudden. I need a nap."

Tom smiled at him tenderly, softly asking "Do you want me to stay?"

Eyelids fluttering as Kyle fought to keep them open, he mumbled "Yes. Stay. You're pretty comfy."

Tom grinned in warm amusement as his voice lilted over the words "Comfy, am I?" and he turned them slowly so Kyle lay on Tom's chest, ensconced in his arms as he had been the night before. Kyle muttered something indistinguishable against his chest as he nestled in close. Heart overflowing with affection, Tom brushed his hand gently over Kyle's cheek and down to stroke soothingly down Kyle's back as he tenderly whispered "Shhh, whatever it is you can tell me later. Go to sleep, sweetheart. I'll be right here when you wake up." Tom smiled softly as Kyle's breathing evened out in sleep, focusing his full attention on his lover's warm and content form circled in his arms. Tom lay quietly for a long moment, just breathing Kyle in before realising that he too was exhausted after the stressful events of last couple of days. With a final caress down his lover's back, Tom stilled his arms and settled down to join Kyle for a well-deserved rest.