CHAPTER SEVEN

Rory was having the time of his life. His career was on the up and up and he also got married! It was all thanks to Audrey. She had been his lucky star and he really couldn't be happier.

They were now at some weird "haunted" house in the middle of nowhere to shoot some paranormal documentary. It was like some honeymoon for them since the producer was so chill. Sidney James gave them plenty of down time just to have a feel of the house. They were supposed to re-enact some weird thing and he was this bisexual guy from the past who had mental issues. At least his character was rich. He really didn't care much for the white poofy wig, though.

His character, Edward Phillippe Mott, was apparently married to this brunette lady. They had a kid, but then he also had some gay lover on the side. He really didn't mind kissing another man. It was a strange new sensation that was just quirky enough for him to like it.

Unfortunately, his role wasn't that big here. After filming all his scenes, he was free to relax in the parts of the house that wasn't being used. With Audrey's time being completely consumed by her big role, he was starting to get bored. There was absolutely nothing to do.

The television was also old and only had the most basic channels. Even they would tend to malfunction and turn to static for long minutes. Five of the five channels were news channels, so he settled on… news.

At least it was some noise to keep him from going crazy, but he really didn't care for the politics or any upcoming elections. Why was the world so dull?

"And in other news, a young woman was struck by a car earlier this morning. Twenty-five year old, Madison Harmon, was found lying on the streets at this very spot. She is now in the hospital in critical conditions.

"There was no foul play found. Witnesses say that the car had the right of way. This is a reminder that pedestrians also have to follow traffic lights. Back to you, Mike."

The screen went to a middle-aged man, but Rory had already tuned them out. His mind was racing as he recalled the small brunette who had been with him for most of his life. At one point in his life, he thought that she would be wearing his ring by now.

In high school, he finally had the courage to ask her out and he was more than thrilled that his best friend actually felt the same for him. It had been a dream come true. Who didn't want to spend an eternity with their best friend?

Everything had gone so well when they were young. Even through college and university, things couldn't have gone more smoothly. She was taking computer sciences and he was taking film and theatre. They spent all their free time together. He never thought that anything would change. The pieces had fit so perfectly together.

It wasn't until after they graduated did the problems arise, at least for him. She had immediately been snatched up by one of the biggest banks and the money poured in. They lived comfortably on her salary alone, but that had been the problem.

He had struggled looking for jobs. Everything that he heard about Hollywood was true. It was a dog eat dog world and he was at the very bottom of the pecking order. Day after day, he'd come home empty handed, but she never minded. She'd always greet him with a wide grin and kissed him in a way that made him melt. She was his everything, but she was also the reason he was teased profusely by his friends and colleagues.

She was working a man's job. She was making all the money. He was useless. He was the freeloader.

NO matter how much he tried to brush those words away, they kept coming back, echoing in his head until one day, he let it all out.

HE had kept it in for too long. T he dam burst and there was no way to stop it. His words came out like acid, they burned and they burned deep. It was meant to hurt. It was meant to last.

She took it all in strides. He knew how much she loved he job and he loved that she enjoyed it, but he had allowed his jealousy to get the better of him and of course, she had always been the more understanding of the two.

So when she came home one day, saying that she had given her two weeks' notice, he felt ashamed. What right did he have to take her passion away from her?

When he tried to talk her out of it, she merely brushed him off and smiled at him, but he could tell then and there that it was going to be something she was going to regret.

Her money lasted them for many months to come, while he was finally finding his footing and she was looking for a new career. One of his friends jokingly mentioned that she could be a model if she was taller.

He mentioned it to her and she began to look for work in that field. It was a struggle. He would watch her come home exhausted and with her self-esteem torn to shreds. It pained him to see black bags forming below her eyes and her body losing more and more weight to fit the stereotypical model figure.

This wasn't what he wanted.

Most of the time, she'd come back so tired that she'd go straight to bed and fall asleep for the entire evening before leaving at the crack of dawn for her next set of G-Sees. He rarely got to spend any more time with her and he knew it was his fault. If only he hadn't been so selfish. If only he had never opened his big, fat mouth.

The only good thing that happened was that his name was really starting to gain fame. He was finally able to say that he could support the both of them with his paycheque. This was also the time he met Audrey Tindall.

The older woman had showered him the ropes. He thought she was motherly at first and he welcomed her kinds. He'd accompany her to dinners and fundraisers and in return, she helped him get some of the most sought out auditions.

He really couldn't say when that platonic relationship became something more. Perhaps it was because he and Madi rarely saw each other anymore. Perhaps it was because he wanted to wash his hands of what he had done – strip an intelligent woman of her self-worth just to appease his ego. Or perhaps he had simply fallen out of love with her.

So why did it hurt so much hearing about her fall? He had been obsessed with following any news about her. The bad would often outweigh the good. She wasn't cut out for this. He had tried to explain it to her before everything blew up. He only wanted to protect her because he knew how vicious the tabloids could be… because he had often been subjected to it himself, but it had all gone wrong. He only managed to drag her further into the chaos and when she found out about his infidelity, he knew that he had broken her.

The hurt.

The betrayal.

And then, the light disappeared from her eyes.

He thought she was going to go back to her old job after he left. He thought without him, he'd be able to stop poisoning her life, but he only managed to fuck up some more. He couldn't face her after what he had done, so he followed her from afar.

Time and time again, the media had detailed how she had "once again tried to kill herself for attention because she couldn't find fame any other way." Every article pushed the dagger deeper and deeper into his heart.

So many times he had wanted to go see her.

So many times he backed out.

In fact, he had stopped outside her door several times. He'd even stand outside and watcher through the windows. He knew it was wrong. He knew if he was caught, it would only hurt them both further, but it wasn't until Audrey found out did he stop.

She scolded him before rolling her eyes and went back to reading her script. She always seemed to make him feel like a child. It wasn't just the age gap. It was just… everything.

Their sex life was good, but he found it difficult to connect with her emotionally. She was always so detached. She also didn't have the same interests as him. Sometimes, it was as if all they had was sex.

But when they went on their third Vegas trip, he filled himself with alcohol and asked her to marry him. It was a night he could vaguely remember, but he knew that she had said yes because the next morning, he had woken up with a pounding headache and the sight of his grandmother's ring on her finger. He had been saving it for Madi before, but he figured that it didn't matter anymore. It wasn't as if she would ever want to see him again.

Besides, he couldn't just divorce Audrey after a few hours. The media was going to find out. She was going to be furious and take it out on his career. What was left of his life was going to be over.

So he went along with it. He lived this new life as Rory Monahan – Tindall. It was as if he was suddenly watching this from another perspective.

He was watching this perfect actor play the perfect husband with a perfect wife in a perfect life. He convinced himself that everything was fine and dandy.

"Rory, what's wrong?" Audrey had finally finished with her scenes for the day and was now only clad in a thin robe. "Is there anything I can do to turn that frown upside down?" She opened up the robe to show him her naked body.

For a woman near her forties, she was outwardly beautiful in all the right places. In fact, she was more fit than a lot of the younger actresses he had worked with. She wasn't fat. She wasn't skinny. She was perfectly toned.

Madi had a body like that once before she lost all her weight. It was either the pressure of modelling or the stress of doing something she didn't enjoy or both. Either way, he didn't like to think about it, but found it hard keeping her from his head.

"Where has your mind gone, Rory? I'm all naked and ready for you and you're miles away!" She threw the robe away and donned on a white dress. "IF you don't want to have some fun, I'll go find my own fun elsewhere!"

"No, Audrey!" He stood up and wrapped his arms around her. "I'm sorry. I've just been a bit stressed out, lately. Why don't we have some champagne and relax a little?" He raised the bottle that Sidney had left for them. It was complimentary with the job and a cheap compensation for interrupting their honey moon. He was actually relieved when it happened. He didn't have anything planned and the regret had already settled at the bottom of his stomach, refusing to leave.

If this was how he felt now, he wondered how long he was going to last.

He downed the bubbly quickly, feeling the alcohol diffuse through his empty stomach and into his bloodstream. Once he was properly inebriated, he pulled her towards him and gave her a sloppy kiss.

She giggled back at him, stroking his red head and pulling at his shirt. "You're so pretty, Rory. Aren't you glad I plucked you away from that bony girl?"

He closed his eyes, willing the alcohol to dull away the pain. "Don't talk about her. Let me think of only you."

She had no problem with that and he allowed himself to fall back into his comfort zone. He liked sex. Sex was good. All he had to do was close his eyes and just feel.

A secret he would never tell anyone – a secret that he would even refuse to admit to himself – was that he'd often imagine the tiny brunette, but she would still have the life of a young woman full of passion before he had taken it all away.

…

In a blink of an eye, the season was done. It was only five episodes long and he actually found himself missing the quiet house. With the television off, he was able to pull himself away from the media and clear his mind.

The moment he returned home, however, he went on his computer and searched for her name. There had been no updates and he shouldn't have been surprised. She wasn't particularly well known. The media was already raving about My Roanoke Nightmare. The only thing remaining of her was in reference to him.

He felt as if he should've been happy that he had a better career than her, now. Wasn't that what drove them apart? Wasn't that what drove her to give up her own lifestyle to accommodate him? But it didn't make him feel any better. He felt like scum.

No matter how his "friends" congratulated him with his success, he felt as if he had left the best parts of his life behind, leaving only an actor to play the part. That was exactly what he did. He gave up everything to pursue this dream, but it was really turning out to be a nightmare.

He wasn't happy.

This wasn't what he wanted.

For the next few months, he laid low, feeling more exhausted than he had been for a while. The five-part documentary had been an absolute success. He had brought in interviews after interviews – most with Audrey, some without.

The days blended together, until he began to ignore his phone. Every time it rang, there was a sort of dread that made him quickly turn it off, but then, he'd turn it back on.

A part of him was hoping that she would one day ring him. He never changed his phone number, but he noticed that she did. Clearly, she wanted nothing more to do with him, but he still hoped.

HE just never thought he was ever going to see her, again.

"Hey, man. The documentary was a success! They want a sequel! I've faxed over the new script. Give it a read and then, we'll be heading off to film in a week! See you there, buddy!" Sidney's voice message was straight to the point, just as it always was.

"I'm in New York, right now! Just have a few more things to do and then, I'll meet you back at the creepy house, alright? Ta!" Audrey sounded as if she was having the time of her life without him. Sometimes, he wondered if she only married him to make herself feel younger.

With a shake of his head, he went to read the script.

And before he knew it, the taxi was bringing him back to the country side.

He knocked on the door, tapping his feet impatiently.

When the door opened, he stared wide-eyed at the brunette who greeted him with a familiar smile. "Hello, there! You're the second one here!"

"M-Madi?!"

AUTHOR'S NOTE

Thank you Mystery Angle, WickedlyMinx, guests (Guest, anonymouscsifan, Guest) for reviewing!

Guest: Welcome back! It's so nice to hear from you here! In terms of this story, it's separate from Hotel for the most part. It should at least be enough to make this a standalone story.

In terms of the first part of the story with Edward, well… That's up to you. It's possible. Anything's possible in AHS :P Hehe…

Mystery Angle: Muahahahaha!

anonymouscsifan: I've been saving the episodes so far for Apocalypse and rewatching Roanoke, trying to find inspiration xD. I totally agree about leaving Madison out. Urk… Season 6 is my least favourite season of all in the AHS series, so you're not alone there! I hope I won't disappoint you with what I have planned!

Guest: Thank you!

WickedlyMinx: I hope this chapter cleared it up a little!

Thank you as well to everyone who has favourited and followed this story.

Please, leave a review if you enjoyed this!

Edit: Thanks anonymouscsifan for pointing out the spelling mistakes!