Chapter 20

During the review of the preview the room was notably tense. Everyone was trying to act excited and happy, but it was a hard facade to put on when they knew something big was going down. At the very least they knew they just lost their male lead and now there was the definite possibility that they could lose their director and even their female lead. The preview went well, and Eileen could not stress enough that she was happy with the performance. Some changes would have to be made of course but overall things were great. The drama intertwined in the personal lives of the leads and Derek, however, was another story. As soon as Eileen was done and dismissed the cast everyone filed out quickly. While everyone was curious as to what might happen, they also didn't want to be in the warpath. After everyone left the only ones left in the room were Eileen, Derek and Karen. The three just sat in silence for a few minutes. Derek and Karen waited for Eileen to say something to break the tension just a little, but they knew not to push the issue.

"So, Derek. Just tell me. When I asked you about the night you two were going out for drinks and you said you were just friends, why did you lie to me?" Eileen asked.

Derek thought for a moment before answering so he didn't mess anything up. "Well, at the time we really were, just, friends." He replied

"Karen, is this true?" Eileen looked to Karen

"It's true. We didn't start dating until a few weeks ago which was a few weeks after that meeting, I swear." Karen said

"And you thought it would be a better idea to just keep it a secret instead of telling me?" Eileen asked the pair, sounding markedly annoyed.

"We just wanted to see where it was going, and while we do feel quite the sense of commitment to each other, we just wanted to keep it to us for a little while. Something that is just ours. We didn't mean to cause any trouble." Derek said and Karen nodded in agreement.

"Ok, so who wants to tell me what happened with David that lead us to today."

"I guess I should." Karen replied. "A couple of weeks after we started working together, David wanted to spend more and more time with me. I thought it was just because we are the leads and he thought the more we bonded the better we would be on the stage. I truly thought he just wanted to be friends until recently." Karen paused before continuing with her story. "He always wanted to go to lunch, or dinner, or drinks and if he could he would always want to go out just the two of us. I told him I was involved with someone, but I didn't tell him who, but he kept trying to get me alone." Karen relayed. Derek was the next to speak when there was a lull in Karen's explanation.

"He truly was starting to get a little to close and I could tell it was making Karen uncomfortable. He also started to get more and more defiant and snippy with me. Snapping back when I would tell him to do something and trying to interrupt when I would be talking to Karen." He said. Karen began again.

"Which is what lead us to today. He held me back from going in the room and said that he loved working with me and I guess I didn't give him the reply he wanted because then he backed me up against the wall and tried to kiss me. That's when I pushed him away and that's when Derek showed up." Karen finished and Derek picked up where she left off.

"That's when he started yelling at me, which is one thing but when he started getting nasty with Karen is when I snapped. That's when I hit him. Admittedly it wasn't my smartest move but I couldn't stand the fact that he was talking to her like that, so I punched him, and that's when you showed up."

Eileen stayed silent for a few moments taking everything in. She was trying to decide if this was really David's fault or if it was a mix. She was also trying to determine if she would have known about their relationship if it hadn't been for the incident with David. She noticed they had a close working relationship and friendship, but she wasn't sure she noticed they were in a relationship. Looking back there was certainly clues but they were subtle unless you were really looking for them. She had witnessed at least some of the yelling that took place before Derek hit David and so now, she had her decision.

"Let me start by saying that I am disappointed that you decided not to tell me about your relationship. In the future I would like full disclosure." Eileen said with a straight face. Derek was the first to speak of the couple.

"So, does that mean you are going to let us continue the show even if we are together?" Derek asked

"Yes, it does, but that comes with some caveats. I would prefer you keep your relationship on a low profile. I don't need the publicity for the show being all about that. I will make sure the cast understands as well. In addition to that, I will be keeping an eye on you and if there is anything that I think could harm the show I will make sure you are both gone from the picture. Is that clear?"

The pair smiled but their smiles quickly turned back to serious composure.

"Yes of course, Eileen." Derek said

"Yes ma'am. I completely understand." Karen replied.

"Oh, and one more thing, the two of you will be primarily responsible for finding a replacement for David. I want someone by the end of the week." Eileen said.

The pair both agreed and nodded. Eileen then smiled before speaking again.

"Also, I just want you to know that I am happy for both of you and I hope it works out. For all of our sakes."

Derek and Karen smiled as Derek took Karen's hand in his and tightened his grip. The trio began to discuss how they would go about finding the new lead and going over potential candidates to reach out to. In the mean-time, Derek would fill in during rehearsal for blocking purposes and the vocals would be from a recording. Once they had a plan of action they decided to head home for the night.

Once Derek and Karen were on the street and had some distance between them and Eileen, they visibly relaxed. Derek tugged on Karen's arm to get her to stop walking for a moment and pulled her gently to the side of the sidewalk so as to be out of the way.

"Are you ok love? I know today must not have been easy and I worry about you. That asshole assaulted you." Derek said with concern laced in his voice.

"I'll be ok. I'm a little shaken but I never felt in big danger or anything. I just want to go home and forget about the world for a bit."

"Let's go home. I'll draw you a bath and then we can watch a movie and eat dinner together. We will get everything back on track. Don't you worry love." Derek said while enveloping Karen in a hug. They took each other's hands and went home.