The Right Man Chapter 4, a smash fanfic

Author's Note:

Sooooo not when I said I'd post, but better than my usual...Thanks for the review, alli444, much appreciated! I've had this story scripted out for a long time (almost a year, I think), and I'm slowly but surely filling in the text. The majority of my stories are completely outlined now, the hard part is finding time to write and flush it out.

My commute has been taking up 3-4 hours out of my day when I'm not able to drive, and even if I do it takes a minimum of 45 minutes (one way) unless I'm on the road before 6am. It doesn't help that during the winter biology acts against me, and if unchecked I can literally sleep the day away. So happy early summer solstice everyone! Hurray for the maximum amount of daylight and increasing sunshine for the next three solid months! Who doesn't like a little bit of vitamin D? ;)

Anyways, ranting over. I have not finished writing out the next chapter - it's about halfway there, but I'm not sure when I'll have more than an hour to devote to writing in the next two weeks. That means the next chapter for any of my stories could come in a few weeks or potentially a couple months if I'm really struggling. I'll be posting this on my profile for the poor Firefly fans who like my Simon whump! story so they don't flip out more than they already have, haha. The more encouraging reviews the more I'll feel obligated to make time in my schedule to write!

Enjoy

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After Derek and Scott left for the back office, the crew slowly migrated to occupy the back stage lounge. They sat on the couches, talking quietly amongst themselves. Karen and Sam leaned into each other, his arm still wrapped around her shoulders.

One of the girls spoke up and finally voiced what everyone was thinking.

"Should we call Kyle's parents? Offer our support...?"

A techie shook his head "We don't even know what's going on yet...and besides, no one has his parent's phone number."

"Blake?" the girl sitting next to him queried softly and reached out to touch his shoulder, but he only turned his head away and stared unseeingly into the corner.

Karen jumped at the thought of something productive to do. "Well, we can always get it – I'll go and ask Scott, he has it on file."

No one knew how much time had passed after she left, but everyone jumped at the banging of the door as Jimmy suddenly barged in.

"Jimmy...!" Anna said, beginning to rise.

"Yeah, yeah, it's me." He said bitterly. "The guy that ruined your show. Well, wrote it, then ruined it.
But who really cares about that part, right?"

He stalked over to the table across the room and begins stuffing his things into a bag. "Don't freak out. I'm just getting my stuff, and then you'll never have to see me again. I promise."

Everyone sat in shock, staring at him, and it's Anna again who voices their thoughts.

"God, you still don't know?" Now she's up on her feet, staring at him unbelievingly.

He huffed. "Know what? What, how much you guys probably hate me? Like, how disappointed Kyle is? 'Cause trust me, I know. He kicked me out. He won't answer his phone, and he wasn't home this morning. So Kyle can go screw himself, all right?"

Hearing no response, no vitriolic words at his actions, he looked up to see the mixed expressions of horror and surprise of the crew focused directly on him. "What is it now?" Jimmy demanded angrily, not understanding how such simple words would create such stunned silence.

"Kyle's in the hospital. He was almost hit by a car last night." Blake suddenly spoke up from his corner, glaring at Jimmy.

"What? Okay, come on. That's screwed up, Blake." Jimmy blurted out. He knew Blake probably hated him for what he did last night, but this...

But no one else speaks up to contradict Blake, and their silence is an affirmation that rose up against Jimmy's conscience. He looked around the room, in denial.

"Guys?"

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Jimmy's here. Come quick.

Karen rushed into the lounge. "Where is he?" she demanded to the quiet room.

Ana was still standing. "We told him, and he just left." she said bluntly.

"You let him leave?"

"What was I supposed to do, block the door? If he needs to be alone, he should be alone" Ana didn't flinch at Karen's angry expression, matching it with her own.

"No, that's exactly what he shouldn't be."

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Julia opened the door to Tom's apartment hesitantly but heard nothing, and when she and Eileen walked in it was dark except for the natural light seeping in from the windows in the living area. Eileen brushed past her, calling out as she stalked towards his bedroom.

"Tom?"

Julia looked over the living room on her way to his music study. Nothing seemed out of place...she peeked into the room. Again, nothing but empty silence, music and papers strewn across the piano in a familiar scene.

"Where IS he?"

Eileen's comment startled Julia, who hadn't heard her walk up. She turned to face the exasperated producer.

"I don't know..." Julia honestly had no idea where Tom would be. The theater was his life, and to be so absent and unreachable...and why?

"Would it have something to do with his mother? She's had some health problems before..." Eileen said out loud, thinking of different scenarios.

"His mother and sister are away on a cruise, he mentioned it a while back. Anyways, If it was a family emergency, he would have told his assistant..."

Eileen huffed with frustration. "Well this is a fine situation! The Tonys are coming up, Julia. This is our *chance* for Bombshell. What is going on with you two?" She demanded, temper rising.

"*I* am NOT responsible for Tom's actions, Eileen! We're not partners anymore – he and I are going down different paths, and—" Julia's phone began to ring, causing them both to look at the screen. But it wasn't Tom, it was—

"Derek? I told Scott that I wasn't coming in until eleven." Eileen pursed her lips, but was silent.

But Derek didn't continue.

"Derek? Are you still there?"

"Ah, Julia...where are you?" his voice sounded strange. She looked at Eileen, who matched her confused expression. What was going on today?

"I'm with Eileen—Tom never showed up to a meeting this morning, we thought he might have been at the apartment."

She could hear Derek take a deep breath as he continued. "Julia, I just got a call from the police, um, they..." He said softly, as if saying it quietly would soften the blow of his words. "Tom was hit by a car last night. They...they're not sure if he's going to make it."

"Oh God..." Her head roared and Julia felt her legs buckle. As she slid to the floor, stunned, Eileen reached down to grab the phone from her limp hands.

She could only watch numbly as Eileen took a few steps towards the window, demanding to know what had happened. Then Eileen too sat down heavily in one of the chairs. This was not real. This was not happening.

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Eileen couldn't hear what Derek had said, but the shocked expression on Julia's face raised bells of alarm. What was wrong? What had happened?

Derek answered her readily, the words coming out with less hesitation at the familiarity of his friend's strong command for him to repeat himself.

A million thoughts whirled as she sat down, equally stunned by his news. How...and why? "Why weren't we reached personally? Why were you contacted?" she demanded.

"Kyle Bishop was involved too...He's the one that gave them my number. They're trying to contact the families now."

"Kyle Bishop? What were he and Tom doing together?" She queried, confused.

"I don't know. I'm going to head over to the hospital now to find out more. We're canceling opening night for Hit List, no one is in any shape to perform."

Eileen swore silently. "Bombshell. I need to get a hold of Tom's assistant, Agnes...which hospital? We'll meet you there..."

Julia didn't hear any of Eileen's continued conversation with Derek. All the anger and frustration she had felt at Tom suddenly turned into regret from the fear of potentially losing the one person who had stuck by her through thick and thin...and the last thing she had done was argue with him, in front of a crowd of reporters. She hadn't even said goodbye that night, brushing off his attempt to speak with her after they had fought.

Her mind thought back to the night where her husband had angrily stalked out after lashing out in front of everyone at the party.

"What...What if I can't fix this?" The words echoed back to Julia. Mocking her.

This time there was no Tom to reassure her, like that awful night. And if he didn't make it, he never would again.

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Kyle sat curled in a chair in the hallway outside the surgery room, arm bandaged and cast. He had refused to be led into a room of his own in the hospital, instead insisting on staying as close to Tom as he could. The ambulance ride had been traumatizing. Tom had deteriorated into cardiac arrest halfway there, and as he was resuscitated his unseeing eyes had stared up, giving no confirmation that he heard Kyle's voice, pleading and frantic. Kyle had been hysterical when they finally arrived and eventually sedated when they had tried to lead him away from the ambulance where they were still offloading Tom.

The paramedics quickly wheeled Tom into surgery, and he had been moved into an examination room where the medication slowly wore off. Even so, he was exhausted, regretting his earlier protests for a room.

After getting stitches and a cast for the fracture caused by falling on his arm, he had been grilled by both an attendee and a cop for information on who to contact and details on what had happened. He couldn't even remember what he told them.

A nurse checked in with him every once in a while. She had reassured him that the surgeon would come out when they were finished and let him know if Tom was alright, but it had been so long...scratch that, he felt beyond exhausted.

Kyle felt his mind begin to drift. "What are you doing still up?"

He could still see the knowing smile on Tom's face as he had shuffled into the room. It had been so late, but an idea had woken him up after they had drifted off, and he had hurried to the sitting room to jot it down. Tom's gentle teasing never ceased to bring a smile to his face, so different from Jimmy's brash and cavalier manner.

Despite the age difference, Tom never disregarded Kyle's ideas or opinions. Even though he was dating Blake, there was something about Tom...Tom, who had looked at him with such intensity...whose relationship with Julia mirrored his own with Jimmy. If Tom didn't make it, he didn't know if he could forgive Jimmy...or forgive himself for dragging Tom into all of this.

A voice snapped him out of his flashback.

"They're done – you can go and sit with him, if you'd like."