I had been thinking about this scene for a while now but I'm not really satisfied with the result. I hope you'll enjoy it anyway. And now I have to figure out what to write next... If you have any suggestions I would be glad to read them. And don't forget to review !

Eileen could see that they were not really on board with her idea and she could understand why. The musical was a big part of their life, whereas for her it was just one amongst others. Nevertheless she was particularly attached to this one and she couldn't really figure out why. Maybe it was the persons working on it, or the trust they had put in her when everybody was leaving because of her divorce, or maybe just because there was something about Marilyn that she couldn't resist... Anyway she would do anything in her power to save this musical and for that she needed to handle it in her own way.

"I would like for this conversation to remain private, if you don't mind. So, for those of you who are involved with a cast member, you can't say a word." Only Tom nodded, maybe because he was the only one in an official relationship. "Actually this is for all of you, not just Tom. I can't believe you're all involved with a cast member !"
"I'm not involved with a cast member !" Julia quickly protested. Why everyone was assuming that ?
"Come on, Julia. We're not morons !" Apparently Derek was thinking it too. Eileen nodded in agreement and Tom wasn't saying anything. So much for the support.

"Well I won't say anything if that's what you want to hear. And since there doesn't seem to be anything left to say, I will let the three of you here gossiping about something that isn't happening !" And she quickly went to the door, annoyed that nobody was believing her. Although they were probably right. Maybe she was involved with Michael, even if she hadn't act on it since her break-up with Frank, at least not to the point she would have wanted to.

While she was thinking about it, she got a text from Leo. Apparently he had forgotten his history book at the rehearsal space when she had invited him to come look at how the show was doing. She had seen a lot of him lately but she was still uncomfortable with the fact that she had no home to welcome him into. Frank had agreed that Leo would spend a week out of two with her once her apartment would be ready. She had thought that it would be difficult to convince him but he had Leo's best interests at heart, even though he was still mad at her.

She looked at her watch. 9 pm. It would probably be difficult to get into the rehearsal room but she had already done it once, that famous night, and she didn't want for Leo to get in trouble because of her. It seemed like he really needed that book.

Surprisingly it wasn't difficult at all to get in. All the doors were unlocked. As she was walking in the hallway she could hear voices and laughs from inside. When she finally opened the door to the room she had the surprise of seeing Ivy, Karen, Michael and a lot of other cast members sitting on the floor with many drinks on their side. They had apparently already drunk a lot. They all looked at her as she entered the room and greeted her with big smiles. Ivy walked to her, swaying a lot. She put her arm on Julia's shoulders and raised her drink.

"To our great lyricist who is probably out of job too !"
"To Julia !" They all raised their drinks and took big gulps.
She raised her eyebrow.
"Ivy, what are you talking about ?"
"We know they are stopping the musical."
"How did you find out ?" She couldn't see the point of lying to them, since anyway they seemed to know and, even if they didn't, they would by tomorrow morning.
"It's show business. News travel fast."
"Well, I don't know exactly what you've heard but it's only temporary and you still all have your jobs."
"We'll see... But tonight we are getting drunk !" And they all took another gulp.

She received a new text from Leo. He had found the book in his room. Apparently it was a mess and he was sorry she had gone all this way for nothing.

Ivy was holding out a bottle for her. "Do you want to join us ?"
Julia considered refusing and heading back to Tom's apartment but actually she was in a mood for some drinks. She hadn't done that in a long time. So she took the bottle and went to sit where Ivy led her, which was between Michael and Karen. Probably not the place she would have chosen but she didn't really care. After a few drinks this would look more normal to her.

She leaned towards Karen, so that nobody would hear what she wanted to say.
"Is that ok for Ivy to drink that much after the... the pill incident ?"
"Don't worry, I'm watching out for her. We can't stop her from having some fun."
"When did you two become friends ?"
"No idea, and I think we aren't really friends. But we always end up together so we learned to care for each other, I guess. But what I'm saying to you right now might just be the alcohol talking, I tend to be sentimental when I drink..."

Julia was a little reassured. Karen seemed to have the situation under control, so she didn't have to keep an eye on Ivy, even if she felt a little bit responsible of looking after her because of Tom. If something happened to Ivy he would be really miserable, and the last thing she wanted was for Tom to be miserable.

A few hours later she couldn't even remember how much she had drunk. She was now feeling totally at ease with her head resting on Michael's shoulders. She had forgotten how much fun he could be.

"I forgot to ask you, how did it go with Monica last night ?"
"It could have been better." He looked right at her and hesitated for an instant. "She thinks we are sleeping together."
"Derek and Eileen think we're sleeping together too. So does Leo... At least I think he does."
Ivy had apparently heard what they were saying because she suddenly turned to them and exclaimed : "What ? You two are not sleeping together ?". Big emphasis on the not. The few people around them turned. Apparently they were surprised too.

They both looked deeper into the other one's eyes, trying to see if they were thinking the same thing. Why should they face the consequences when they hadn't even enjoyed the act ? The reasoning and the conclusions they were drawing from it were probably due to the alcohol but at the time it seemed to make sense. Julia rose clumsily.

"I have to go to the restrooms, too many drinks for me."
She hadn't unlocked eyes with Michael and it was easy to guess what she was up too. He rose quickly and followed her. They hadn't fooled anyone but they didn't really care. When they left the room they could have heard the laughs and whistles coming from inside if they weren't so focused on one another. She took his hand and lead him to the big restrooms across the hall. They shut the door behind them and started kissing with all the passion they had amassed in the past few weeks. It felt good to finally do what they had been dreaming of for a very long time. They weren't feeling so drunk anymore.

They finally came back into the room. Julia was wearing Michael's shirt and he was bare-chested. It was late so everyone had gone home except Karen and Ivy who were leaving together. Julia blushed a little, she had thought that they would be alone. But the two girls didn't make any comment, they just smiled to the both of them and left. Now they were really alone. Alone with the empty bottles.

They were both looking around them when they noticed the couch. It would always be their couch. Michael raised his eyebrow at her, in a daring way. She smiled and took off her shirt. He lifted her up and carried her to the famous couch, remembering that night from a few months ago.

The next morning they were awakened by someone entering the room. It was Derek and he had Julia's dress in his hands. He had probably found it in the restroom. Still he probably wasn't expecting to find them both naked on the couch because he gasped in surprise.

"Jeez, Julia ! So much for not being involved with a cast member !" Now he was smirking.

She didn't even respond to that. She was looking for her clothes and blushed when she saw that Derek had her dress. Michael was also looking for his clothes but they were closer so he dressed quickly while the red-headed woman put aside what was left of her pride and walked towards Derek, who wasn't hiding the fact that he was rather enjoying it, to get her dress. Michael noticed that and snapped at Derek. "Do you mind ?"

Derek rolled his eyes. Julia grabbed her dress and quickly put it on.
The situation was already quite uncomfortable but it would have been worse if everyone had entered the room at the same time. For once she was glad that Derek was early. She knew he wasn't one to judge.

Her head was heavy and she could see that Michael wasn't really feeling good either. Hangovers were no fun. But she had no regrets about what had happened the night before.