Title: Forward Progress (11/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: T for some language.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

The next day ...

No matter how hard Eric tried to downplay the attack and what it did to him, Julie, and Tim, there was no denying the tightness he woke to find in his abdomen. He could hardly get out of bed without help. He was okay standing or lying down, but getting himself in between those two positions was very painful.

Before leaving for school, Tami found her husband's release paperwork from the Emergency Room with the Aftercare Instructions, along with his bloody shirt. According to the instructions, there was no way Eric would be able to go to school today, probably not for at least the rest of the week. Tami informed him that he was sentenced to house arrest until their family doctor released him to return to work, and she later made him an appointment for Friday afternoon. She was still so upset about what happened at the prison, more so about what could have happened, that Eric decided it was best for all to do as she said.

Bored out of his mind, Eric decided to try and organize his home office, especially his game tapes onto the upper shelves. So long as he didn't have to bend, he was fine. Around lunch time, Buddy called. He wasn't a bit surprised that Eric didn't go to work and asked Eric if he could stop by. Eric, thinking that Buddy could help him with some of the lifting in the office, told him it was okay.

After a time, the doorbell rang, and Eric slowly made his way to open the door. "Hey, Buddy."

"Eric. How are you getting around today?" Buddy asked, closing the front door behind him.

Moving slower than usual, Eric explained he was fine long as he didn't have to go up and down.

"I meant to tell you this yesterday, this place ... this place is fantastic," Buddy said, taking a closer look at the house. "Your view is something else."

Eric smiled and nodded. "Yeah, it is nice here. It will be even nicer when I can walk outside and enjoy my new surroundings. I was just organizin' all the game tapes in the office when you called. Would you mind helpin' me out with something?"

"Not at all, friend," Buddy answered, following him down the hallway.

"And if you want anything to drink or eat, please help yourself," Eric said.

"How about a beer?" Buddy asked. "You want one?"

The thought of anything foamy going into his belly, made Eric wince in discomfort. "No thank you, but you go on and help yourself."

A few minutes later, Buddy joined Eric in his new home office. "This is nice," Buddy remarked, looking around. "You could put a couple of recliners in here and a mini fridge." Buddy was nodding his head and smiling, getting into it.

"We'll see about that," Eric said. "We need to recover from the new furniture Tami just had to have to go with the new house."

"I noticed," Buddy remarked. "It looks really nice. Everything here is really nice." Changing the subject, he said, "So, I called Jim Houseman last night. He got back to me this morning."

"And ...," Eric shot a look up at Buddy.

"... And I told him about Tim and what has happened to him since he's been there such a short time, and what happened to you and Julie yesterday," Buddy explained. "He assured me he'd look into the matter, and he may want to talk to you and get a statement."

"I don't have a problem givin' him a statement. I had to give a statement to the prison officials before I left the hospital." Eric shook his head. "How well do you know this Prison Board guy? He's not just tellin' you what you want to hear, is he?"

"I know him," Buddy nodded. "He's a friend of a friend of mine from my TMU days. I don't think he's yanking my chain."

"Well, that's good, because this is serious," Eric returned to placing his tapes in the shelving. "I honestly don't know how long Tim is gonna be able to make it in there."

"I know you're worried, Eric. After yesterday, I can see why," Buddy said. "Hey, do you want me put that box of tapes up on the desk? Might be easier for you to reach them?" Buddy noticed his friend was wincing at making the slightest bend.

"That'd be great," Eric responded.

"Did you ever hear from Billy Riggins last night, after I left?" Buddy placed a big box of tapes on the desk. "Here, you want to hand me the tapes you want on this upper shelf?" It was clear Eric couldn't do it.

"Thanks," Eric said, passing him a handful of tapes and directing him where to place them. "Yeah, Billie called me this mornin'. It took 12 stitches to close up that gash on his arm. Like mine, luckily it wasn't a deep cut. I mean, it didn't hit a main vein or artery or muscle or even worse, a nerve."

"Glad it wasn't his throwing arm," Buddy smiled. "Hey, even us old guys still enjoy throwing the pig skin around, and I wouldn't want Tim to ever lose that." He noticed his friend was very quiet unless spoken to today. "You know, Eric, Tim's Panther Days are the only reason Houseman is even looking into this for us."

Eric nodded. As long as he had lived in Dillon, he was still amazed at the way football and politics worked in the Great State of Texas. "I just hope your friend can do somethin' and do it fast," Eric said.

Eric went quiet again. Buddy stayed long enough to help Eric unpack and shelf all of his tapes. Then, Buddy flattened all the empty boxes and took them with him to help out his injured friend.

In the Wee Hours of Friday morning ...

Although Eric wouldn't talk about it, he had been hyper vigilant since he was attacked. Unbeknownst to him, his daughter was, too. He had a hard time falling asleep; and, for the past couple of days, he caught himself dozing during the day to make up for the sleep deficit. He was frustrated that his sleep cycle was so out of sync.

He went to bed with Tami Thursday night and pretended to sleep until he was sure Tami was. Then, he lay there in bed, unable to get up without causing himself pain, unable to shut off his racing mind. He glanced over at the clock. It read 3:15 a.m.

Even though he had plenty of accumulated sick time, using it at the new house and not being able to enjoy the lake was really eating at him. He told himself all he had to do was to convince his doctor to let him return to work on Monday, even if it was on a modified schedule. Tami could drive him to and from East Dillon High until he was able to climb up and down in his rig. The stitches were scheduled to come out in a week ... all he had to do was to come up with a way to get through the next week.

Eric's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of dogs barking, off in the distance. He had been raised with dogs as a boy and recognized the barks of these dogs as the kind that signals danger or an intruder. He listened a while longer. The barking did not subside. Bracing himself for a jolt of pain, he rolled over onto his side and raised himself up into a sitting position on his side of the bed.

"So far, so good," he thought to himself. Then, he held his wounded area with one arm for support, as he steadied himself on the night stand with the other. He then stood in one, swift motion. "Ahhhhhh," he whispered, trying to stifle his moan.

"Sugar?" Tami stirred. "Are you okay?"

Steadying his breathing, he said, "I'm sorry I woke you. I can't sleep." Then, he whispered, "Go on back to sleep, Babe. I'm goin' in the other room for awhile and watch TV."

"Are you sure you're okay?" she asked, her eyes still adjusting to the dark.

"Yeah, go on back to sleep," he said softly, blowing her a kiss as he couldn't bend down to give her one, and he quietly walked out of the room. He looked over to see that she did, indeed, quickly return to slumber.

Standing upright, his abdomen felt much better. Eric could still hear the barking in the distance, and he walked over to the big picture window in their family room. The barking was coming from the direction of the East end of the lake, and it was unrelenting. He opened the blinds. It was so light outside. "Must be a full moon," he thought to himself. He could see the figure of someone at the lake, and he closely watched the figure pushing a large object into the water.

Eric continued to watch as the barking continued at a fever pitch. He wished he could see more. Then, he got the idea of walking out the front door. Very quietly, he walked to the door and went outside. It was a little better vantage point. From there, he could see the figure was a man. There was only one man. He was walking between a truck and the water. Eric carefully stepped down the step that led into their home and onto their driveway, and he slowly made his way to the end of the pavement. From there, he could see that the truck was a flatbed tow truck. He squinted his eyes in an attempt to make out more detail. "Damn," he said to himself, unable to make out the details. He knew he sometimes needed glasses but had fought getting them at his age.

At that same moment, someone walked up behind him. "Dad."

Eric jumped inside his skin, pulling his abdomen and causing a jolt of pain. "Damn, Jules!" he tried to keep his voice down.

"Sorry," she winced, quickly figuring out she startled him badly. "I heard the dogs barking. What's going on?"

Eric's continued sense of danger caused him to say, "Get back in the house."

"Dad, someone is dumping something into the lake," she said. "Oh, my God. That truck says 'Riggins' Riggs'. That's a car being dumped ... Is that Tim's brother dumping a car into the lake?"

Eric's eyes became huge upon the realization of what his daughter just saw with her pilot's vision, her seventeen-year-old eyes. "Julie, for the last time, get back in the house! C'mon."

He followed her into the house and quietly closed the door behind them. The two both stood inside the entryway and stared at one another in disbelief at what was happening down the hill from their home.

After Eric had a moment to catch his breath and his thoughts, he whispered, "You cannot say a word to anyone ... not until I figure out what I'm gonna do."

Julie quickly shook her head in agreement. Her eyes were still wide in disbelief. "I can't believe Tim's brother did this to him."

Eric, who long suspected that Billy was involved, was sickened by the prospect that he may need to become involved. It was obvious to him that this was bigger than the Riggins brothers.

"Dad, I can't go back to sleep, not after seeing that," Julie confided. "I'm going to make some herbal tea. Can I get you something?"

"I can't sleep, either," Eric shared. "Sure, I'll try some tea. It couldn't hurt." While Julie went into the kitchen to make tea, he continued to stand in front of the picture window, watching intently. The illegal dumping was still going on. He prayed someone else would see it and call the Sherriff's Office. He did not want to have to be the one to report this.

Eric knew Tim Riggins all too well. Tim would never forgive him for turning in his older brother ... never. Tim's idea of loyalty was absolute, allowing for no variance. Not that Tim's view of the world would keep him from doing the right thing, but Eric admired unwavering loyalty. Standing here, now, Eric was beginning to see that loyalty was Tim Riggins' Achilles Heel. For himself, it was pride; but for Tim, it was loyalty.

Finally, he saw Billy climb into the truck and drive away with the headlights still off. The barking momentarily intensified until the truck drove out of sight. Then, gradually, the barking ceased. The sudden quiet was nothing short of eerie. Eric glanced at the clock on the wall. It read a little after 4:00 a.m.

A few minutes later, Julie came into the room carrying two steaming mugs. "It's hot," she whispered. "Where are you going to sit?" she asked, wanting to know where to place the tea.

"If I sit, that means I have to stand up," he looked absolutely miserable. "How about on the end table by this chair?" he pointed.

Julie placed the tea on a coaster so as not to mar her mother's new table.

Eric lowered himself into the chair. "Owwwww," he whispered. Sinking down into new cushy furniture with abdominal sutures was sheer torture.

Julie winced as she took a seat on the sofa, next to her Dad's chair. She watched as her father breathed through the pain. After a moment, he seemed to breathe a lot easier. "Are you okay?" she asked with concern in her eyes ... concern and fear.

Eric looked over at her. "Yeah." After a moment of sitting there, he asked her, "Are you havin' trouble sleepin' after what happened at the prison?"

Quietly, Julie looked into his eyes and nodded.

"I think we probably should tell your Momma," he said. "If it makes you feel any better, you're not the only one."

"You should tell your Momma what?" Tami said, walking unexpectedly into the room.

"Babe, did we wake you?" Eric asked.

"No," Tami shook her head. "I heard these dogs barking and barking. And then, you weren't there." She looked over at her husband.

"Mom, why don't you sit here," Julie said. "You can have this cup of tea if you want. The water's still hot, and I can make another one."

"Thanks, Sweetie. I think I will," Tami said and took Julie's freshly vacated seat, as Julie headed back for the kitchen.

"Now, let's get back to the part about what should you tell me?" Tami asked.

Eric let out a sigh. "After the attack at the prison, Julie and I both find we are havin' trouble sleepin'," he explained. "I just found out that she was havin' trouble, too. I was tellin' Julie we should tell you, when you walked in. We were goin' to tell you later today. We weren't goin' to wake you to tell you."

"Well, I'm up now, Babe." Leaning into the cushions, Tami thoughtfully said, "I'm not surprised. That was traumatic. And not only was it traumatic for both of you, it was traumatic for each of you to see the other in danger. That may have been harder than being in danger yourselves."

Eric nodded in agreement.

"I've been upset about it, as you've probably noticed," she winked. "But for you two, the incident was so much more part of your experience, a shared experience. I'm driving you to your appointment with Dr. Morgan this afternoon," she said. "Let's talk to him about this, okay?"

Julie then joined them. She took a seat next to her Mother. Tami offered her an afghan, and she covered the both of them.

"Your father was just telling me you two are having trouble sleeping," Tami put her arm around her girl. "That is perfectly understandable after what you two went through." She began to gently stroke her daughter's long, blonde tresses. "I'm taking your Dad to see Dr. Morgan this afternoon. I'm going to ask his advice as to what we should consider doing."

Like her father, Julie silently shook her head in agreement. Then, she began to sip her tea.

"There's one more thing," Eric interrupted the moment. "I just told Julie not to say a word to anyone about something we saw tonight ... but I didn't mean for her not to tell you," he said to Tami.

Julie looked up at him with wide eyes. Eric caught her concern.

"But first, you have to swear to me that you won't say a word to anyone ... that is until we figure things out. Alright?" Eric said with an uncharacteristic intensity.

"Alright," Tami said, chilled by the looks she was receiving by both her husband and her daughter.

"The dogs were barkin' because there was a crime bein' committed at the lake," he began, "illegal dumpin' of cars. And you will never guess who we saw doin' the dumpin'."

Tami looked at both of them, waiting for an answer. "It was Tim's brother," Julie said softly.

It took Tami a moment for everything to register. "Billy Riggins? Are you sure?"

"Yeah, it was him. I saw his truck, Mom," Julie went on. "It said 'Riggins' Riggs'."

"Babe," Tami turned to Eric. "We've got to tell Sherriff Clarke."

"I was prayin' that someone else around here would call," Eric looked at her, "so, we wouldn't have to."

After a moment, he continued. "Tami, you realize this chop shop stuff is bigger than the Riggins brothers don't you? Tim was just the tip of the iceberg."

"Well, Hon, you've been saying all along you didn't think Tim was doing this by himself," Tami thought she was reminding him.

"Oh, this is a whole lot bigger than Billy, too," Eric tried to draw his wife a picture. "They work for someone who is makin' a ton of money, someone who is not gonna let that money go. What I want to know from the two of you is, does Billy Riggins know we moved here?"

Tami thought for a second. "Angela knew we were moving to the lake at Christmas. So, yeah, Angela and Mindy knew."

"Oh, yeah," Eric thought. "Buddy." After a beat he continued. "But why would Billy make an illegal dump right in front of our eyes?" Eric was puzzled because it made no sense. He gave Tami a very concerned look. "I don't like this. I don't like this at all. Tim's been beaten and attacked in prison, and that boy hasn't said a word about anythin' to anyone. Why would Billy continue doin' this illegal stuff after he got off scoff free?"

"I don't know, Babe, but the police already know about this crime," Tami insisted. "It's been in the paper."

"Tami, I think Billy wanted me to see this. He knows Tim trusts us. I think he wants me to do somethin', but I don't know what," Eric said. His wife and daughter looked at him with great concern. "I know one thing. None of us are sayin' a word until I can figure this out. Agreed?"

"Agreed," both Tami and Julie nodded their heads.