The Thing He Missed the Most
Wow, how long has it been? Anyway, I'm back thanks to a lot of prompting from zuzivlas (and I mean that in the nicest way!) with this little IAG based fic! I'm really out of practice with this fandom, but I hope you guys enjoy this! Comments make me ten kinds of happy, so hit me up ^_^
Title - The Thing He Missed the Most
Rating - PG, there's like 3 swears
Pairing - RyCol friendship
Summary - Ryan swore that he was done with televised improv after WLiIA, but then he gets an offer to do a new improv show and realizes just what -- or whom -- he missed the most.
Ryan had been one of the few that was happy when Whose Line ended. He was relieved to be done with the hellish production hours, the Disney network-induced censorship, the raucous audience, and even the cold studio. He was finally free to spend more time with his wife and children, which he had wanted from the beginning. He had never wanted to be one of those fathers that missed important milestones, yet that was what Whose Line had forced him to become.
Improv had even lost its charm for him by the show's end. Yes, his early days in England had been fun. He got away with so much more then - he specifically remembered a game of Party Quirks where he had to imitate having an orgasm, that never would've happened in the American version - and the people were just different. The American version was fun too, up until it became forced due to making so many episodes. That was the complete opposite of what improv was to Ryan. He felt that it should be free, not held back by censorship or forced.
Ryan was done with any form of televised improvisation. He would do some of the shows that Drew put together for the Improv All-Stars tour, but after the very last Whose Line taping, he vowed he would never return to a televised improv show. He was done with that. Or so he thought.
2010
Ryan startled as his phone rang. He assumed that it was one of his friends calling him to catch up or something since he very rarely got any offers for work, even in a commercial. He looked at his caller ID and half-smiled. It was Drew. He was probably trying to get another All-Stars tour together or something. Ryan flipped the phone open.
“Hello?”
“Hey, Ryan! How's it going?” Drew asked.
“Good, I guess.”
“Great. Listen, I've gotten the green light to make a new improv show, and I was wondering if you'd like to be part of the cast.”
His immediate instinct was to slam the phone shut without even considering Drew's offer. He had already promised himself that he wasn't going to do any more televised improvisation. He couldn't stand the restraint, any of it. However, somewhere deep in the recesses of his brain, some little inkling told him to listen. After all, he really missed the people he had worked with on Whose Line...
“Drew, I can't. I can't go back to doing Whose Line again. Do you remember how much of a living hell that was for me?” Ryan said.
“I know, buddy, believe me. This will be different, though. It's not going to be on ABC, it's going to be on GSN,” Drew began.
“The game show channel? Hardly anyone watches that. It won't go over very well.”
“There are people out there who miss Whose Line, Ry. They want to see it back on television again, and this is our way to give that to them!”
“How else is it going to be different?” Ryan asked, interest growing despite his best efforts.
“For one, it's going to be more like an All-Stars show. No points, no me sitting behind a desk, nothing like that. We'll use some of the old games, but that's it,” Drew explained.
“I'll have to think about it,” Ryan said after a very pregnant pause.
“Okay. Just...really think about it. Don't just blow it off.”
“Okay, okay. I'll call you when I've made my choice. Bye.”
Ryan hung up without even listening to Drew's goodbye and sighed. So this new show was going to be different than Whose Line. Great. The censorship wouldn't be as rigid since it was on GSN. Even better. Did he really miss it enough to go back, though? He had to admit, it felt good to hear people laugh at something he said, even if it was completely ridiculous. Then again, he had gotten quite accustomed to spending a lot of time with his family. This new show would probably ruin that, if only temporarily. He could probably live with that though, since his children were older and there weren't as many milestones to miss.
Then, he thought back to his days as a Whose Line cast member. He had worked with some really great people during his US days. Greg, Wayne, Chip, Jeff, Brad...and Colin. Ryan hadn't seen Colin in what seemed like an eternity. They used to be the best of friends. They would bash Dan together, think of ways to mess with him onstage, trick people into thinking that they were in a relationship...everything. After Whose Line ended, their friendship kind of faded. Ryan tried to keep in touch, but Colin stayed busy with his different projects. Maybe this was his chance to rekindle the relationship...after all, Colin was the thing - person - that Ryan missed the most.
I wonder if Drew's asked him to be on this new show yet. If I knew that Colin was going to be part of it, then I'd definitely agree to do it. People would be happy to see us performing together again, too. It'd be a win-win situation. That's my one condition. Colin has to do it too, Ryan thought.
The Next Day
Ryan took a deep breath, feeling unusually nervous. He had no idea why, either. He was just signing on to do a show. No big deal.
Calm down, Stiles. There's no reason to be this fucking nervous. It's just a TV show on the game show channel, he told himself as he opened his phone and dialed Drew's number.
The phone rang once, twice, three times before Drew answered.
“Hey, Ryan,” Drew said. Ryan could tell that Drew was doing his best not to sound too eager.
“Hey, I have a question. Who all's going to be on this new improv thing of yours?”
“I've asked a lot of people. Greg, Jonathan, Chip, Jeff, Brad, and I'm trying to get Wayne to do a few shows,” Drew answered. “Oh, and Colin agreed to do it this morning.
Ryan smiled. His best friend, the one person he missed more than anyone from the US cast, was going to do the show. He took a deep breath and gave Drew his answer. Hopefully he didn't sound too excited at the prospect of seeing Colin again.
“Colin's doing it too? That's great...I made my choice last night. It took a hell of a lot of thinking, but yeah, I'll do it. I've gotta be fucking crazy...” Ryan said.
“Thanks! Ryan, this is going to be awesome. People are going to love this. I'll see you at the first show.”
Drew gave Ryan the details and hung up once Ryan told him that he had them. MGM Grand in Las Vegas. That definitely sounded better than that stupid, freezing studio in Hollywood. Seriously, how could somewhere in California be so cold? Maybe this wouldn't be so bad...and there was Colin. Somewhere deep down in his heart, he was actually looking forward to this in his normal, cynical way.
The First Taping
Ryan arrived at the MGM Grand and looked around. This was nice. The stage was huge, and the audience area wasn't shabby either. Where was everyone else, though? Was he too early? He could've sworn that he read the time correctly, but his messy handwriting combined with declining vision gave him a shadow of a doubt. He sighed and continued to look around until a familiar voice called his name.
“Ryan?”
He turned and felt his heart skip a tiny beat when he saw its owner. It was Colin. Yes, time had whitened his hair to the color of snow and put some weight on him, but it was still Colin. His best friend. If he knew it wouldn't look completely and utterly ridiculous, Ryan would've run over to him. Instead, he settled for meeting him halfway.
“So you signed on to do this too, huh?” Colin asked. “At least Dan isn't here.”
“Yeah, I did once I knew that you were going to do it,” Ryan explained.
“Really?”
“Yeah. Col, I know this probably sounds stupid coming from someone like me, but I missed you. I missed our friendship.”
Colin stood there for a moment, speechless. He didn't think Ryan was capable of spilling his heart out like this, but there it was, out in the open. Ryan smiled at him, and he couldn't help but return it.
“I...uh, I missed you too. I'm sorry I haven't been the best at keeping in touch,” Colin began.
“It's fine, you've been busy. You are People Canada's Sexiest Man Alive,” Ryan teased, bringing up the memory of Drew's old jokes.
“Don't remind me!” the white-haired man groaned. “Listen, how about we catch up over some drinks once this thing is done? It'll be good.”
“Yeah, yeah it will. Count me in.”
They stood there for a few moments before exchanging a hug. They didn't care if their castmates saw them. This, this friendship with Colin was the thing he missed the most.
Title - The Thing He Missed the Most
Rating - PG, there's like 3 swears
Pairing - RyCol friendship
Summary - Ryan swore that he was done with televised improv after WLiIA, but then he gets an offer to do a new improv show and realizes just what -- or whom -- he missed the most.
Ryan had been one of the few that was happy when Whose Line ended. He was relieved to be done with the hellish production hours, the Disney network-induced censorship, the raucous audience, and even the cold studio. He was finally free to spend more time with his wife and children, which he had wanted from the beginning. He had never wanted to be one of those fathers that missed important milestones, yet that was what Whose Line had forced him to become.
Improv had even lost its charm for him by the show's end. Yes, his early days in England had been fun. He got away with so much more then - he specifically remembered a game of Party Quirks where he had to imitate having an orgasm, that never would've happened in the American version - and the people were just different. The American version was fun too, up until it became forced due to making so many episodes. That was the complete opposite of what improv was to Ryan. He felt that it should be free, not held back by censorship or forced.
Ryan was done with any form of televised improvisation. He would do some of the shows that Drew put together for the Improv All-Stars tour, but after the very last Whose Line taping, he vowed he would never return to a televised improv show. He was done with that. Or so he thought.
2010
Ryan startled as his phone rang. He assumed that it was one of his friends calling him to catch up or something since he very rarely got any offers for work, even in a commercial. He looked at his caller ID and half-smiled. It was Drew. He was probably trying to get another All-Stars tour together or something. Ryan flipped the phone open.
“Hello?”
“Hey, Ryan! How's it going?” Drew asked.
“Good, I guess.”
“Great. Listen, I've gotten the green light to make a new improv show, and I was wondering if you'd like to be part of the cast.”
His immediate instinct was to slam the phone shut without even considering Drew's offer. He had already promised himself that he wasn't going to do any more televised improvisation. He couldn't stand the restraint, any of it. However, somewhere deep in the recesses of his brain, some little inkling told him to listen. After all, he really missed the people he had worked with on Whose Line...
“Drew, I can't. I can't go back to doing Whose Line again. Do you remember how much of a living hell that was for me?” Ryan said.
“I know, buddy, believe me. This will be different, though. It's not going to be on ABC, it's going to be on GSN,” Drew began.
“The game show channel? Hardly anyone watches that. It won't go over very well.”
“There are people out there who miss Whose Line, Ry. They want to see it back on television again, and this is our way to give that to them!”
“How else is it going to be different?” Ryan asked, interest growing despite his best efforts.
“For one, it's going to be more like an All-Stars show. No points, no me sitting behind a desk, nothing like that. We'll use some of the old games, but that's it,” Drew explained.
“I'll have to think about it,” Ryan said after a very pregnant pause.
“Okay. Just...really think about it. Don't just blow it off.”
“Okay, okay. I'll call you when I've made my choice. Bye.”
Ryan hung up without even listening to Drew's goodbye and sighed. So this new show was going to be different than Whose Line. Great. The censorship wouldn't be as rigid since it was on GSN. Even better. Did he really miss it enough to go back, though? He had to admit, it felt good to hear people laugh at something he said, even if it was completely ridiculous. Then again, he had gotten quite accustomed to spending a lot of time with his family. This new show would probably ruin that, if only temporarily. He could probably live with that though, since his children were older and there weren't as many milestones to miss.
Then, he thought back to his days as a Whose Line cast member. He had worked with some really great people during his US days. Greg, Wayne, Chip, Jeff, Brad...and Colin. Ryan hadn't seen Colin in what seemed like an eternity. They used to be the best of friends. They would bash Dan together, think of ways to mess with him onstage, trick people into thinking that they were in a relationship...everything. After Whose Line ended, their friendship kind of faded. Ryan tried to keep in touch, but Colin stayed busy with his different projects. Maybe this was his chance to rekindle the relationship...after all, Colin was the thing - person - that Ryan missed the most.
I wonder if Drew's asked him to be on this new show yet. If I knew that Colin was going to be part of it, then I'd definitely agree to do it. People would be happy to see us performing together again, too. It'd be a win-win situation. That's my one condition. Colin has to do it too, Ryan thought.
The Next Day
Ryan took a deep breath, feeling unusually nervous. He had no idea why, either. He was just signing on to do a show. No big deal.
Calm down, Stiles. There's no reason to be this fucking nervous. It's just a TV show on the game show channel, he told himself as he opened his phone and dialed Drew's number.
The phone rang once, twice, three times before Drew answered.
“Hey, Ryan,” Drew said. Ryan could tell that Drew was doing his best not to sound too eager.
“Hey, I have a question. Who all's going to be on this new improv thing of yours?”
“I've asked a lot of people. Greg, Jonathan, Chip, Jeff, Brad, and I'm trying to get Wayne to do a few shows,” Drew answered. “Oh, and Colin agreed to do it this morning.
Ryan smiled. His best friend, the one person he missed more than anyone from the US cast, was going to do the show. He took a deep breath and gave Drew his answer. Hopefully he didn't sound too excited at the prospect of seeing Colin again.
“Colin's doing it too? That's great...I made my choice last night. It took a hell of a lot of thinking, but yeah, I'll do it. I've gotta be fucking crazy...” Ryan said.
“Thanks! Ryan, this is going to be awesome. People are going to love this. I'll see you at the first show.”
Drew gave Ryan the details and hung up once Ryan told him that he had them. MGM Grand in Las Vegas. That definitely sounded better than that stupid, freezing studio in Hollywood. Seriously, how could somewhere in California be so cold? Maybe this wouldn't be so bad...and there was Colin. Somewhere deep down in his heart, he was actually looking forward to this in his normal, cynical way.
The First Taping
Ryan arrived at the MGM Grand and looked around. This was nice. The stage was huge, and the audience area wasn't shabby either. Where was everyone else, though? Was he too early? He could've sworn that he read the time correctly, but his messy handwriting combined with declining vision gave him a shadow of a doubt. He sighed and continued to look around until a familiar voice called his name.
“Ryan?”
He turned and felt his heart skip a tiny beat when he saw its owner. It was Colin. Yes, time had whitened his hair to the color of snow and put some weight on him, but it was still Colin. His best friend. If he knew it wouldn't look completely and utterly ridiculous, Ryan would've run over to him. Instead, he settled for meeting him halfway.
“So you signed on to do this too, huh?” Colin asked. “At least Dan isn't here.”
“Yeah, I did once I knew that you were going to do it,” Ryan explained.
“Really?”
“Yeah. Col, I know this probably sounds stupid coming from someone like me, but I missed you. I missed our friendship.”
Colin stood there for a moment, speechless. He didn't think Ryan was capable of spilling his heart out like this, but there it was, out in the open. Ryan smiled at him, and he couldn't help but return it.
“I...uh, I missed you too. I'm sorry I haven't been the best at keeping in touch,” Colin began.
“It's fine, you've been busy. You are People Canada's Sexiest Man Alive,” Ryan teased, bringing up the memory of Drew's old jokes.
“Don't remind me!” the white-haired man groaned. “Listen, how about we catch up over some drinks once this thing is done? It'll be good.”
“Yeah, yeah it will. Count me in.”
They stood there for a few moments before exchanging a hug. They didn't care if their castmates saw them. This, this friendship with Colin was the thing he missed the most.