ORIGINAL FICTION: Kansas, near the end of season 2
A/N: This is a scene (or a few scenes, I suppose) from a piece I have been working on for a while. I don't have a title for it, but I think of it as "my Kansas piece"--because a character is named Kansas, not because of the state. It's about actors on a television show called (tentatively, because it's a horrible name for a show but I needed one for this scene) After the Apocalypse.
Brief summary so this scene makes sense: A.J. plays Kansas on Apocalypse; Patrick plays Quentin. Kansas and Quentin are the main characters in an "obviously going to end up together" sort of way. A.J. is single; Patrick is married with two kids. Harry is one of their co-stars.
Piece: Original fiction; Kansas
Timeline: Near the end of season 2 of Apocalypse.
Rating: PG-13 for language
Summary: Immediately after A.J. and Patrick first sleep together. The weekend with Harry.
Concrit: Please! I would love it.
She’s hovering on the edge, trying not to cry trying not to cry trying not to cry, and her car sputters and clunks and,
“Goddammit, not now. Please not now!” she shouts at it, but she’s still not crying.
You’d think after two seasons of starring in one of the most popular shows on television, she could get a car that worked. She had always felt like she had more important things to spend her money on; a once-noble feeling she was regretting now.
Her dad was a car guy, but it never quite rubbed off on her. After the sputtering and the clunking, the gas pedal does nothing, so she pulls over and pops the hood and looks, but doesn’t actually have any idea what she’s doing. She considers calling a tow truck but her chest hurts and she can’t really breathe and she calls Harry instead.
“You have a good reason for calling me past midnight, A.J.?” he picks up without preamble.
She tries to laugh, forces her most chipper voice, but the words still come out all at once. “MycarbrokedownandIwasjustwonderingifyou’dcomepickmeupplease?”
He’s silent for a moment. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, really I’m fine,” she speaks slower this time, but can’t stop a shuddering breath at the end.
She’s not going to cry she’s not going to cry she’s not going to cry.
“Where are you?”
“Addison and Cartwright.”
“Addison and-God, that’s like two blocks from Patrick, why didn’t you-” he stops abruptly and she chokes on her breath. “I’ll be there in ten minutes.”
“Harry you live more than ten-”
But he’s already hung up the phone, so she just has to hope he doesn’t get a speeding ticket on the way.
When Harry gets there, she’s called a tow truck and still hasn't cried. But he looks at her with such sympathy she bursts into tears immediately. He pulls her into a bone-crushing hug and she sobs against his shoulder.
She’s only sniffling by the time the tow truck arrives, but Harry takes care of it for her anyway. People usually recognize her more often than they recognize him, and she’s not sure she could handle that tonight.
“Thanks,” she says as she buckles into the passenger seat.
He smiles. “Shut up. I love you.”
He drives her to his place rather than hers, and insists she take the bed.
“Well then we’ll share,” she says, and it’s settled.
He never asks what happened or if she wants to talk. She starts crying again when she thinks he’s asleep, but he rolls over and holds her.
“You’re going to be okay.”
And she believes him.
*
On Saturday he’s going to see his sister and her nieces, and A.J. still looks lost, so he invites her along.
The nieces are 13 year old twins and A.J.’s a little afraid they’ll be in the apathetic stage where they hate everything, but they love her immediately.
“So you’re dating my uncle?” one asks as soon as Harry’s in a conversation with his sister.
“Oh no,” A.J. smiles. “I’ve just had a bad week and he’s taking care of me.”
The twins share a look and the other one asks, “So why aren’t you dating my uncle?”
A.J. laughs, a real laugh, and it’s good to know she can still do that.
Harry takes them all out to ice cream later. He gets whipped cream on his nose and A.J. licks it off, laughing, and wonders for a moment why she isn’t dating him. Except when he pulls back and laughs at her, she thinks family and knows he’ll always be a brother to her.
*
He makes her stay the entire weekend, and she’s fairly certain it’s just to make sure she comes to work on Monday. She hides under the blankets but he whips them off in a flourish and presents her with breakfast in bed. Real breakfast too-waffles and bacon and maple syrup. They’ve spent the entire weekend breaking their diets, and she tries not to think of what she did for Patrick when Elle was first diagnosed.
She doesn’t have a clean shirt, so she wears a black button down of his over her jeans. He says any guy would kill to have A.J. fucking Cleary wearing his clothes and she teases, “I’d love to see Harrison freaking North wearing my clothes.”
He pulls a face and announces it’s time to go. Panic sets in on A.J.’s face, but Harry doesn’t let it last long. He throws her over his shoulder and carries her, squealing with laughter and empty threats, to his car.
Patrick’s car pulls into the parking lot as A.J. and Harry are headed for their trailers; neither gives it a second glance.
*
She doesn’t have any more scenes with him-they filmed the Kansas-Quentin cliffhanger on Friday, which is partly what got her into this mess to begin with-so she doesn’t see him more than a fleeting glance til lunch.
She’s at a table with Faith and Amanda and Kurt and the only open seat is on her side. Her eyes follow as he gets his food, and there’s no one else eating lunch right now, he’s going to have to sit by her and she’s fairly certain she’s going to cry if he says anything to her and ohmigod he’s coming over. She pretends to be very interested in what Amanda is saying. He slides into the seat but she doesn’t look at him.
“Sorry, O’Connor,” she hears. “You snooze, you lose.”
She looks and it’s Harry next to her, not Patrick, and she smiles so big her jaw hurts.
“Had to sit next to my lady,” he says, throwing an arm around her.
“As if you didn’t get enough of me this weekend,” she flirts and he laughs.
“I was going to ask about the shirt…” Kurt says tentatively.
“My car broke down and Harry rescued me, only to sequester me all weekend.”
“Sequester you?” he scoffs. “Please. We went to the park, we went to the movies, we got ice cream. Psh. So ungrateful.”
She laughs and pretends not to notice Patrick shuffling away.
“C’mon Patrick, we can squish,” Amanda says, but he waves her off.
A.J. forces a smile. “He’s just jealous of my sweet, sweet love with Harry.”
“Hah. First I sequester you and now it’s sweet, sweet love? You are nothing if not fickle.”
She giggles and leans into him. Faith’s giving her a look she can’t quite read, but she ignores it and eats her lunch.
By the time they wrap filming on Wednesday, she’s managed the occasional small talk with Patrick, and he’s clearly wanted more, but she avoided being alone with him.
Everyone is dramatic about their goodbyes until Harry yells, “Christ, people! You’ll all see each other at my wrap party in two days!”
After that, it’s much more like the end of a regular day. Harry’s party is clearly going to be huge: cast and crew and extras too. Like all of Harry’s parties, there promises to be lots of alcohol and more than a few wandering hands.
A.J. is almost definitely not going.
Brief summary so this scene makes sense: A.J. plays Kansas on Apocalypse; Patrick plays Quentin. Kansas and Quentin are the main characters in an "obviously going to end up together" sort of way. A.J. is single; Patrick is married with two kids. Harry is one of their co-stars.
Piece: Original fiction; Kansas
Timeline: Near the end of season 2 of Apocalypse.
Rating: PG-13 for language
Summary: Immediately after A.J. and Patrick first sleep together. The weekend with Harry.
Concrit: Please! I would love it.
She’s hovering on the edge, trying not to cry trying not to cry trying not to cry, and her car sputters and clunks and,
“Goddammit, not now. Please not now!” she shouts at it, but she’s still not crying.
You’d think after two seasons of starring in one of the most popular shows on television, she could get a car that worked. She had always felt like she had more important things to spend her money on; a once-noble feeling she was regretting now.
Her dad was a car guy, but it never quite rubbed off on her. After the sputtering and the clunking, the gas pedal does nothing, so she pulls over and pops the hood and looks, but doesn’t actually have any idea what she’s doing. She considers calling a tow truck but her chest hurts and she can’t really breathe and she calls Harry instead.
“You have a good reason for calling me past midnight, A.J.?” he picks up without preamble.
She tries to laugh, forces her most chipper voice, but the words still come out all at once. “MycarbrokedownandIwasjustwonderingifyou’dcomepickmeupplease?”
He’s silent for a moment. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, really I’m fine,” she speaks slower this time, but can’t stop a shuddering breath at the end.
She’s not going to cry she’s not going to cry she’s not going to cry.
“Where are you?”
“Addison and Cartwright.”
“Addison and-God, that’s like two blocks from Patrick, why didn’t you-” he stops abruptly and she chokes on her breath. “I’ll be there in ten minutes.”
“Harry you live more than ten-”
But he’s already hung up the phone, so she just has to hope he doesn’t get a speeding ticket on the way.
When Harry gets there, she’s called a tow truck and still hasn't cried. But he looks at her with such sympathy she bursts into tears immediately. He pulls her into a bone-crushing hug and she sobs against his shoulder.
She’s only sniffling by the time the tow truck arrives, but Harry takes care of it for her anyway. People usually recognize her more often than they recognize him, and she’s not sure she could handle that tonight.
“Thanks,” she says as she buckles into the passenger seat.
He smiles. “Shut up. I love you.”
He drives her to his place rather than hers, and insists she take the bed.
“Well then we’ll share,” she says, and it’s settled.
He never asks what happened or if she wants to talk. She starts crying again when she thinks he’s asleep, but he rolls over and holds her.
“You’re going to be okay.”
And she believes him.
*
On Saturday he’s going to see his sister and her nieces, and A.J. still looks lost, so he invites her along.
The nieces are 13 year old twins and A.J.’s a little afraid they’ll be in the apathetic stage where they hate everything, but they love her immediately.
“So you’re dating my uncle?” one asks as soon as Harry’s in a conversation with his sister.
“Oh no,” A.J. smiles. “I’ve just had a bad week and he’s taking care of me.”
The twins share a look and the other one asks, “So why aren’t you dating my uncle?”
A.J. laughs, a real laugh, and it’s good to know she can still do that.
Harry takes them all out to ice cream later. He gets whipped cream on his nose and A.J. licks it off, laughing, and wonders for a moment why she isn’t dating him. Except when he pulls back and laughs at her, she thinks family and knows he’ll always be a brother to her.
*
He makes her stay the entire weekend, and she’s fairly certain it’s just to make sure she comes to work on Monday. She hides under the blankets but he whips them off in a flourish and presents her with breakfast in bed. Real breakfast too-waffles and bacon and maple syrup. They’ve spent the entire weekend breaking their diets, and she tries not to think of what she did for Patrick when Elle was first diagnosed.
She doesn’t have a clean shirt, so she wears a black button down of his over her jeans. He says any guy would kill to have A.J. fucking Cleary wearing his clothes and she teases, “I’d love to see Harrison freaking North wearing my clothes.”
He pulls a face and announces it’s time to go. Panic sets in on A.J.’s face, but Harry doesn’t let it last long. He throws her over his shoulder and carries her, squealing with laughter and empty threats, to his car.
Patrick’s car pulls into the parking lot as A.J. and Harry are headed for their trailers; neither gives it a second glance.
*
She doesn’t have any more scenes with him-they filmed the Kansas-Quentin cliffhanger on Friday, which is partly what got her into this mess to begin with-so she doesn’t see him more than a fleeting glance til lunch.
She’s at a table with Faith and Amanda and Kurt and the only open seat is on her side. Her eyes follow as he gets his food, and there’s no one else eating lunch right now, he’s going to have to sit by her and she’s fairly certain she’s going to cry if he says anything to her and ohmigod he’s coming over. She pretends to be very interested in what Amanda is saying. He slides into the seat but she doesn’t look at him.
“Sorry, O’Connor,” she hears. “You snooze, you lose.”
She looks and it’s Harry next to her, not Patrick, and she smiles so big her jaw hurts.
“Had to sit next to my lady,” he says, throwing an arm around her.
“As if you didn’t get enough of me this weekend,” she flirts and he laughs.
“I was going to ask about the shirt…” Kurt says tentatively.
“My car broke down and Harry rescued me, only to sequester me all weekend.”
“Sequester you?” he scoffs. “Please. We went to the park, we went to the movies, we got ice cream. Psh. So ungrateful.”
She laughs and pretends not to notice Patrick shuffling away.
“C’mon Patrick, we can squish,” Amanda says, but he waves her off.
A.J. forces a smile. “He’s just jealous of my sweet, sweet love with Harry.”
“Hah. First I sequester you and now it’s sweet, sweet love? You are nothing if not fickle.”
She giggles and leans into him. Faith’s giving her a look she can’t quite read, but she ignores it and eats her lunch.
By the time they wrap filming on Wednesday, she’s managed the occasional small talk with Patrick, and he’s clearly wanted more, but she avoided being alone with him.
Everyone is dramatic about their goodbyes until Harry yells, “Christ, people! You’ll all see each other at my wrap party in two days!”
After that, it’s much more like the end of a regular day. Harry’s party is clearly going to be huge: cast and crew and extras too. Like all of Harry’s parties, there promises to be lots of alcohol and more than a few wandering hands.
A.J. is almost definitely not going.