Tomorrow Never Knows - Chapter Twelve
Authors: lovely_rita_mm, jenny_wren28, & pennylane_fic
Starring: The Beatles and Maggie Sue
Rating: M for language, implied sex (though none of it is explicit) & implied drug use. Characters used in this story are either our creation, or are historically-based (ie, The Beatles).
Disclaimer: We don't own any of the Beatles, this obviously never happened, and is a complete work of fiction.
Maggie Sue and Linda Eastman were both curled up on the couch in Linda's New York apartment. Linda's daughter Heather was in bed fast asleep, which gave the two women a chance to talk about grown-up things. It was hard to talk about sex and relationships in front of Linda's little girl, though coming up with euphemisms that Heather wouldn't catch on to had been amusing. However, they hadn't had much of a chance for a real talk so far – besides Heather's presence, Maggie's visit had been a whirlwind of sightseeing (1960s New York still fascinated her, though she'd given Linda the excuse that she hadn't done the touristy things when she'd actually lived here), shopping, parties, and trailing along to assist Linda with her photography gigs.
One of Linda's gigs was a shoot that Jim Morrison had arranged with her while he was in town for a show. (The show, as it turned out, was actually The Ed Sullivan Show. The performance would be legendary, with Jim controversially refusing to change the words to 'Light My Fire'.) Linda and Jim Morrison had first become friendly after she'd shot the band early in their career at a NY discotheque called the Ondine in 1966. Whenever the Doors were in town, Linda made an effort to go see them, and Jim made an effort to see her as well. Maggie couldn't blame him. Linda had a talent for making people feel at ease, and that made her a natural confidant.
Linda had decided to shoot Jim at the Cloisters. Standing on the sidelines watching Linda work, Maggie felt a little in awe of her friend. She was also, she had to admit, in awe of Linda's subject. Afterwards, Linda invited Jim to come by the apartment to have a drink and relax, an offer he gratefully accepted. Maggie was wide-eyed at how casual their relationship seemed to be.
When they got back to Linda's apartment, Jim settled down on the couch and Linda asked Maggie for help in the kitchen. As soon as they were alone, Maggie whispered, "Hey Lin, did you know you have Jim Morrison sitting in your living room?" Maggie peeked to make sure Jim couldn't hear her and then turned back to Linda. "I didn't know you could just say, 'Hey Jim Morrison, want to come hang out?' and magically have him appear in your living room like that. Jim Morrison and the Doors are icons!"
Linda turned at looked at her, surprised. "You do remember that you're engaged to a Beatle, right? To THE John Lennon? One of the biggest rock icons in the world, if not the biggest? And you're freaked out by Jim?" She laughed.
Maggie blushed. Linda was right, it was pretty silly to be shy of Jim Morrison, when she hung out with the Beatles on a regular basis. "I actually forget who John really is sometimes," Maggie said. " He's just John to me now, you know? Well, most of the time. Believe me, it was completely apparent on tour that he was really and truly a Beatle. When something happens to remind that he is THE John Lennon, it kind of scares me."
"I actually do know what you mean, though I've only had a small taste of that with Paul. Sometimes he's just this cute guy I like, and then I'll see him on TV and I think, 'Oh God, he's a Beatle, isn't he?"
Maggie smiled. It was a familiar sensation, but amplified, given that she'd witnessed nearly the Beatles whole lives. "At least you'd hung out with rock stars before. My life before John was so not Rock n' Roll," she admitted. "I'd never met anyone famous in my life. It still feels really strange to just be hanging out with music legends like it's nothing."
"Honestly, the Doors aren't anything like the Beatles. They couldn't even get arrested until recently! Light My Fire is huge, obviously, and getting on Ed Sullivan will be a big break, but icons? I don't know about that!" Linda obviously had no idea what was coming for the band. And not all of it was good, Maggie thought soberly.
"In any case," Linda said, still amused by Maggie being starstruck, "Don't think of it as Jim Morrison, of The Doors, sitting out there. Tonight he's just Jim…this cool guy who likes to talk about poetry and philosophy."
"And if he's like most rock stars, scoring with his groupies." Maggie winked at her knowingly.
"I wouldn't know anything about that," Linda laughed at her.
"Oh no?"
"No! Scoring with your photographer is completely different than scoring with your groupies." Linda grinned at Maggie, and then picked up the tray of drinks and handed it to her. "Here, go give the Rock Legend a drink."
Jim had turned out to be really nice, and Maggie was sad to know that he only had a few years left. She wasn't sure there was anything she could do – neither he nor Linda knew her secret, and she didn't think she knew him well enough to come out and warn him to stay away from heroin. He would think she was crazy. Besides, from what she remembered, the circumstances surrounding his death had been somewhat mysterious. Because of this, the evening had been bittersweet and in the end, had made her sad about Brian again. She stopped this train of thought completely before it reached the inevitable and scary destination, which was that of John's ultimate fate. It was strange to think that Linda didn't know that in Maggie's time, both Jim and John had legendary status largely because of their sudden and early deaths.
Despite having had fun together during Maggie's visit, Linda had sensed that Maggie wasn't her usual self. Linda had given her some space, not wanting to intrude. She could tell that Maggie was here in NY seeking a sort of refuge or escape, though from what she didn't know. After a week and a half had elapsed, Linda had decided that she'd let enough time go by. It was time now to find out what Maggie was running from.
The apartment was quiet, soft music was playing on the background, and both women were nursing glasses of wine.
"Why are you really here?" Linda asked Maggie.
Maggie knew it was time to make a confession and to get Linda's advice, but she couldn't resist teasing Linda. "Why am I here? To see you of course!"
"You left fabulous sex with a Beatle to see me?"
"Wow, when you put it that way, it does seem pretty stupid," Maggie smiled. After a second, her smile faded a bit. "Actually, I think I may have done something even stupider than that."
"What?" Linda was immediately concerned for her friend.
Maggie sighed. "It's this woman."
"A woman?" Linda didn't push, she just encouraged.
"As you no doubt know, the Beatles have a certain … reputation. I'm sure it's no secret how many women they've been with, and being married has stopped none of them in that regard. But John…" Linda waited.
"Well, John was no different. If anything, he was probably one of the worst offenders. He did some really terrible things to his first wife." Maggie played with her glass. "That doesn't sound like a sound recipe for trust in our relationship, but I do trust him. He's different now, with me." She looked up at Linda. "Did you know that he used to drink himself unconscious on tour, just so he wouldn't be tempted to cheat?"
"No! I didn't!" Linda said, surprised.
"I wouldn't ordinarily pat a man on the back for something so basic as not cheating – but…"
"Beatle," supplied Linda.
"Yep. Beatle. And even more than that, John Lennon. For him to go to such lengths – and for me. It's a big deal."
Linda nodded.
"Which is why I feel so bad about being freaked out about this one woman. But she's different. She's not a groupie, or someone he would've once fucked after a concert and then forgotten about it. He's interested in her, I can tell."
"Why? How do you know?"
Maggie sighed. "She's an avant-garde artist and he loves that crazy out-there stuff. He claims they're just friends, but I just have this feeling…" Maggie wished she could say why she had it, but she still was unsure that Linda wouldn't find her crazy. "It's totally unfair, of course, because I'm such good friends with George, and John has been remarkably un-jealous about it. And also because John has done everything in his power to reassure me that he's not interested in anyone else – but still, I just can't shake this paranoia. Even if John's not into her, she is SO into him, and she's doing her damndest to steal him away. Do you know John even put her on that stupid Magical Mystery Tour bus? It kills me to think of them together."
"What are you doing here with me then? Why aren't you over there, pulling her hair out or something?"
Maggie smiled briefly at that. "Because I was so tired of fighting. Fighting with John over Apple, over drugs, trying to dance around the subject Yoko, so I wouldn't come off like a jealous harpy. I just…I couldn't do it anymore. I had to get away from it all for a bit. Clear my mind."
"Has it helped?"
"I guess – it's been nice to have a change of scenery, to have things distract me from losing Brian. But now I just feel stupid. What was I thinking, leaving the two of them there together?" Maggie groaned. "Actually, the problem is, I wasn't thinking. I haven't been able to think clearly since Brian…" She stopped, unable to say more without summoning tears. She could probably add crying to the list of things she was tired of.
"I didn't realize you and Brian were so close," Linda said carefully, watching Maggie fight with her emotions.
"I guess I knew him about as well as anyone – it's just that … I knew he had pill problems, and I knew something could happen. I tried to help him, but it totally backfired, and now he's dead and I feel so responsible. Added to that, I feel like…if I couldn't help Brian, then I'm just powerless. I'm powerless to affect my own life. Powerless to keep Yoko away from John. So I left." Maggie looked down. "I can't control things, so I decided to just let them happen. It was easier that way."
"Oh, hon." Linda sat up and put her arms around Maggie and gave her a hug. "Well, I can't blame you for worrying. I know if it were me marrying a Beatle, I'd probably never let him out of my sight!
"I know." Maggie had to laugh at that.
"What?" Linda said a little defensively. "It's a sound strategy. If you don't want a Beatle to stray, just never let him out of your sight!"
"It's just crazy enough to work! You'll have to try that with Paul." Maggie said knowingly.
"Oh, Paul. I don't know, I don't think it's going to go anywhere with him. He's such a playboy, and he's already got a girlfriend. And I'm all the way over here, with a child to boot. It's a lot to ask of a man like Paul."
"Paul loves kids. And he loves you!"
Linda's head snapped up. "Has he said anything?"
"Well, no. But I can tell."
"Hmm. Well, it's been a while since I've seen him. He said that maybe he'd come to visit in October or November, once the new film is done. He thought Jane might be away on another movie project then. Whether that will happen, we'll see. Oh, Maggie – I'm just afraid he's never going to break up with Jane." Linda put her head in hands, then she looked up at Maggie. "I feel awful about it, you know. Here you are telling me how worried you are about your fiancé cheating, and here I am, Paul's 'other woman'."
"It's different," Maggie said stubbornly. "You and Paul were meant to be." Then she realized what she'd said. She could justify Paul cheating on Jane with Linda because she knew Linda and Paul were destined for each other. How were John and Yoko any different? John and Yoko were meant to be in her old timeline – how did she know they weren't meant to be in this one? It always came back to that same question, over and over again. The tears welled up in her eyes at the thought that John was meant for anyone but her. She loved him so much.
"Oh hon, are you crying? What's wrong? Do you hate me for cheating with Paul?"
"No, no, it's not that. I told you, you're meant to be. I know it." Maggie sniffed. "But what if that's true of John and Yo…her." Maggie almost couldn't finish the sentence. 'John and Yoko' just rolled off the tongue so naturally. She hated that.
"It's not – I know it. I've seen you and John together. He adores you, and frankly, I think he's the one afraid of losing you. He knows you're the best thing that ever happened to him."
"You're just saying that because you're my friend."
"And because it's true." Linda said reassuringly. "I think you should go home, and fight for John. He belongs with you. Don't let anyone tell you differently."
"What if I fight and lose?" Maggie asked.
Linda was firm. "Then at least you went down fighting."
Maggie thought about Linda's words that night and finally decided that she was right. She hadn't given up fighting for Apple, why was she giving up on John? Maybe John and Yoko were destined to be together – but Maggie wouldn't let John go without a fight. She couldn't give Yoko that satisfaction. If she lost John, Maggie knew she still had something – Apple would still be hers. She still cared about the Beatles, and she would make Apple work for them. And if history repeated itself and Yoko talked John out of the bullet-proof vest, Maggie intended to take John's killer out with her bare hands if she had to. No matter what happened, she wanted John to be safe. The first time she had come here, back in 1964, she'd had no expectation of being with John, but she'd wanted to save him anyway. Even though everything was different now, there was no reason that should change. She would try to save John no matter what happened. Either way, she wasn't going to roll over and make things easy for Yoko any more. Suddenly she felt better. Her resolution to save John at all costs was logical, and she felt her sense of control returning. She might not be able to control whether John chose her in the end, but she could certainly make her own choice.
Feeling her fighting spirit coming back at long last, Maggie decided to take Linda's advice and fly home early. Now that her decision was made, Maggie knew that she didn't want to spend one more second away from John.
---
Nervously, Maggie stood in front of their house. It was lit up and clearly John was at home. Maggie just prayed that she would find him alone. What if she walked inside only to find Yoko inside wearing her bathrobe? Clearly that would obligate Maggie to pull all of Yoko's hair out, and to eject her bodily.
Maggie walked up to the door and paused quietly for a moment listening. Inside she could hear John talking. Or was it the TV? Suddenly the door was yanked open, and John stood there, phone receiver in hand, cord stretched across the room.
"Luv?" John dropped the phone and grabbed her in a hug, barraging her with questions. "I heard a car pull up – did you take a cab from the airport? Why didn't you tell me, I could have sent a driver? You came home early? I missed you, did you miss me?"
Maggie hugged John back, relieved by her reception. Over John's shoulder, she could see into the living room. It was empty. She sighed in relief.
"Sorry I didn't get to the door sooner, luv, I was on the phone. With Linda actually. She called to see if you made it safely home. Oh, hold on, she's still on the line!"
John retrieved the receiver. "Linda, luv, sorry I dropped you there! Guess who just showed up?" He was quiet, listening to Linda for a moment, and then he turned to Maggie Sue. "Linda said to tell you "Kick her ass!" whatever that means." Maggie laughed and John made a face at her, as he put the phone back up to his ear. He listened for another minute and then laughed. "Thanks, luv, I think I'll do just that." He hung up the phone and then faced Maggie, with a familiar expression on his face.
"You'll do what?" Maggie asked, eyes wide.
John reached around behind Maggie and slammed the door shut, and then grabbed her and squeezed her tightly to him. Picking her up, he backed up until he hit the sofa, and then he tipped them both onto it. "This," he whispered in her ear. He paused to nibble on her earlobe, and then kissed her neck. "And this." Rolling her under him, he undid the buttons on her blouse, his fingers fumbling a bit, but ultimately succeeding in his mission. His fingers moved gently over her skin as did his tongue and lips, all of which left Maggie wondering why she had ever left in the first place. It was good to be home.
A/N: Thanks for reading! The next update will be next Sunday! We love comments, so please tell us what you think! Sorry this one was late!