Ana and Karen exited the cab with arms full of bags. As they reached the building, Karen had never been so grateful for a doorman, "Let me get that for you Ms. Cartwright," the older gentleman said as he held the pane glass door open.
"Thanks Fred."
"Do you need help with these bags," he offered.
"No, thank you I think we got it. Do you happen to know if Derek is home?"
"I don't believe he is, I haven't seen him," he answered.
"Great it gives me time to put what I bought away," she laughed as the two women entered the elevator.
Setting the bags down Karen entered her code. "Wait, Derek lives in the penthouse?" her roommate asked.
"Yeah," Karen answered as the doors closed. Minutes later they opened again and the two women entered the foyer. Mouth agape Ana took in the views from the floor to ceiling windows.
"Karen, you know I love our humble abode; but tell me again why haven't you moved into this apartment?"
Karen laughed "I just think it's too soon. I want to prove to myself I can make it on my own," she shrugged.
Twenty minutes later after putting everything they bought in its place, they poured themselves a glass of wine and began preparing food for the evening. Music played and an aroma of herbs and spices filled the air when Derek stepped into the apartment. After he left his meeting with Julia he decided to stop at a friend's production company to ensure the equipment he had rented for tonight would be delivered on time. As he stepped out of the elevator he smiled at the subtle décor his girlfriend had added and the immediate feeling of home it gave him. Following the divine smell coming from the kitchen he stopped when he came to the picture frames now hanging on the wall. Taking them all in he found himself falling more in love with Karen. He reached to touch the picture she had chosen to hang in the middle of the others. It was a portrait of his mother he had shown her once when their friendship was just blossoming. He had shared with her the fact that it was his favorite picture because it was the only one his mother had smiled so freely in. The other pictures surrounding his mother's included one of him with Grace and another with Karen.
Lost in thought he was startled by her sweet voice, "oh hey, I hope you don't mind I found the picture."
He turned to face the brunette his eyes locking with hers, "not at all Love. Thank you," he told her before he wrapped her in his arms.
When they finally broke apart Karen grabbed his hand and led him to the kitchen counter. "Would you like a drink?"
"That would be great," he answered as he took a seat. "Hello Ana," he said with a smile. "Did you two have fun?"
"Of course," Ana answered. "There's nothing like spending someone else's money."
"I imagine not." He chuckled. "I have something for the two of you," he said as he reached into his messenger bag. He pulled out two bounded books and handed one to each of them. He remained silent as he watched them open the books and a smug grin began to form as he saw their eyes widen in excitement.
"Oh my god, Derek, this is incredible." Karen said.
"They were your ideas, Love," he responded.
"We are actually going to stage this here in your apartment?" Ana inquired.
"Yes, I rented some equipment and it should be delivered in a few minutes actually." Derek reached in his bag again and pulled out his Mac. He opened the program he was looking for and slid the laptop towards the two women. "This is what will be played behind Love, as you sing the opening number 'Rewrite This Story'. I emailed Jimmy his version last night."
"Derek, if we can pull this off there has never been anything like this on Broadway. Rent may have been close but not really," Karen commented.
"I have no doubt we can do it. In fact I am going to start staging what I have and move the piano out of the office," he replied.
"I can help," Ana offered. "Karen has things in here under control.
"That would be great," Derek answered. "I'm just going to change, I'll be right back."
Derek left the two women looking through the book. "This is surreal," Ana remarked. "Not only is the man hot, he is a genius too."
Karen nodded in agreement because having been through the process once with Derek, she knew this was just the workshop staging. She couldn't help but imagine what final blocking and staging would be like. The roommates were deep in study when the buzz of Karen's phone interrupted.
"Hi Fred, yes we were expecting a delivery. Oh, okay please let them up thanks."
"Kyle and Jimmy are here and so is the equipment," Karen informed Ana. Just as she was about to call Derek, the director came jogging down the stairs, "the boys and the equipment are here," she told him.
The first set of elevator doors opened and Kyle and Jimmy exited. "Hello," Kyle called out.
"In here," Derek replied as he moved the coffee table away from the area they would be staging.
"Wow, your apartment is just wow."
Derek smiled "Thank you. I hate to be a rude host but can you two help me move this furniture. The equipment we will be using tonight has arrived."
"Yeah sure, come on Jimmy," Kyle answered. He put their bags by the door and motioned for his partner to join them.
"Yeah alright," Jimmy answered as the second set of elevators opened.
An hour later the staging was finished, the food was in the warmers and the group was finishing a final run through. Even in its rough stage the group could sense the excitement they all felt. It was good and they knew it.
"Excellent work," Derek complimented. "Regardless of what happens tonight, trust me; I will get us to Broadway." He promised.
Letting Derek's words sink in, the group gathered themselves and quickly changed. By 7 o'clock the apartment was buzzing with anticipation as the group and their guests were seated for dinner. The guest list included producers Brandon Camp and his wife, Carol; Thomas Nixs and his wife, Susan; Derek's sister, Grace, and her boyfriend, Darren; and Julia and her guest, Peter Gilman. Dinner was spent in easy conversation as Kyle explained the concept of Hit List just as he and Derek had discussed. When everyone had finished eating, Derek asked the guests to move to the back corner of the apartment where screens now covered two of the floor to ceiling windows and the stairs which stood in the middle of the apartment had been transformed through the use of a scaffold to have the appearance of a bridge.
Once everyone was comfortable with drinks in hand; Derek turned off the lights and waited for the music to start before uncovering the projectors. The light emanating from the screens gave off an eerie feeling as Jimmy began to sing. Watching the audience reaction Derek could tell they were already vested in the play. When Jimmy's screen died and Karen's screen illuminated and her voice echoed in the apartment, the crowd was mesmerized. Ana's solo was also a success and despite switching on and off with Jimmy on the piano, the scenes flowed seamlessly. The final scene of the act 1, 'Heart Shaped Wreckage' was coming up and one could feel the anticipation growing. With the spotlight starting on Jimmy walking up the stairs and then shifting to Karen as she entered from behind the audience the scene oozed with intimacy. When the first act came to end on a Jimmy and Karen kiss fading to black, Derek became worried as the room was filled with a brief silence before it erupted in applause.
"That was beyond amazing!" Brandon exclaimed. "I've never experienced anything like that," Thomas declared. "It was bloody brilliant," Grace added beaming with pride. "The screens, the bridge.." they continued.
Derek looked to his young talent and smiled, "It was their idea," he motioned to the group. "Karen suggested the screens and Jimmy the bridge," he finished.
Jimmy was shocked to say the least. Aside from Kyle no one had ever given him credit for his work much less praise. It was a gesture he didn't expect from Derek, the one person he had been most offensive too. Without a thought he responded, "it may have been our idea, but you made it real," he said. Kyle, Ana and Karen looked at each other in surprise as it was the first time Jimmy had ever acknowledged Derek's ability.
"I'm in," Brandon said.
"So am I," Thomas added.
"I would like to be involved as well," Darren said.
"Great, let's talk then," Derek said as he led the men to the kitchen where he poured more drinks as they sat around the counter.
The women remained in the living room still talking about what they had just seen and what scene moved them the most. Julia had moved from the sofa and now stood in front of an uncovered window. Peter stood to the side, "hey, are you alright?"
Julia turned to face him "I've been in this business a long time and never have I been able to invoke the emotion from an audience like they did tonight," she answered. "When you and I revised bombshell, this is reaction I had hoped it would provoke but instead no one will ever see it."
"Julia, you have had great success and one of your shows is still running," he answered.
"It's not the same. My shows, including Heaven on Earth, make you feel good. They give you songs you can sing a long too but they don't push you to think. I thought Marilyn would be the show that took me to the next level but in the end, it's more of just the same. I love Tom, but he is so caught up in making catchy tunes that he loses sight of a bigger picture. For him a show is great if an audience leaves singing your songs."
"And what do you think a great show is?" Peter asked.
"This," Julia motioned to the apartment, "a show that makes you think. From the moment the first song started, I could relate to the characters. I could remember what it was like to start from the bottom with everyone telling you no. I remembered feeling lost and wanting so badly to become someone else. I felt as though Amanda was telling my story too and I couldn't wait to see it through her eyes."
"You can be a part of this or did you forget," Peter responded. "You need to ask yourself, if are you willing to risk your friendship with Tom. You're work with Bombshell is basically done; there is nothing that prevents you from doing work on your own. If this show moves you then work on it."
Derek excused himself from the men whom he left talking to Kyle and Jimmy. He had noticed Julia and Peter deep in conversation by the window and was curious as to what the writers' thoughts were. He knew he was asking a lot of her; but there really wasn't anyone else he wanted to work with. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything too serious," he said as he approached the pair.
"Not at all," Peter replied. "I just want to say, I've seen a lot of productions but I'll be honest, this has got to be if not the best then one of," he stated.
"Thank you," Derek answered. "It still needs a lot of work but I am pleased with the initial result. We still need a second act though. What about you Julia, regardless of your decision I would still like to know your thoughts on the book?"
Julia looked at Derek, "this tonight, it's so unlike any of your other works. Watching the five of you work, it was inspiring. I want to be involved. The book is solid but can be so much better and I would like to help see it reach its full potential; that is if Kyle is open to it."
A grin slowly appeared on Derek face "I promise you won't regret this. Let me get Kyle and we can discuss when and where to begin."
Derek turned and left Julia and Peter alone again. "I'm happy for you," Peter told her.
"Thank you," Julia answered. For the first time in a long time the veteran writer was excited to be a part of new project. Who would have thought eight months ago, her excitement would come at the hand of 'The' Derek Wills. She couldn't help but smile at the irony.