Autumn Lucy MacDonald (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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dreamlikenewyork2018-12-04 09:37 pm
autumnkisses) wrote in dreamlikenewyork2018-12-04 09:37 pm
"Baby's on ice."
Who: Autumn MacDonald and Reecy Chester-Wilson with a little from Kyan Wilson
What: Breaking the Ice
Where: Broadway, NYC
When: After this and this
Autumn was shitting bricks as she approached the Broadway theatre where Drake Productions’ Dirty Dancing was having its run. She paused outside, looking up at the name emblazoned along the front which would be up in lights later in the evening.
STARRING KYAN WILSON AND REECY CHESTER-WILSON
She drew in a deep breath and exhaled quickly, bracing herself to take that step over the threshold into the theatre. Justin had tipped her off that Reecy (and likely Kyan) would be rehearsing and training that day. Somehow seeing Reecy’s married name in writing drove everything home for her. Deep down, she knew she had closure with Kyan but that didn’t mean she didn’t still have regret about throwing away and amazing relationship with an amazing guy. Kyan had been perfect and treated her as well as any person deserved to be treated.
And she walked in right as Kyan and Reecy were up on stage starting to rehearse The Number… Time of My Life, the song Kyan had proposed to Autumn with but that she could now no longer stake a claim over. She wondered now how Kyan had proposed to Reecy. He hadn’t said. He told her a little about their wedding and showed her pictures but nothing had been said about how he popped the question.
She stayed at the back of the theatre to watch them for a little bit. She realised the song recording that was being played was actually Justin and Reecy dueting. She had no idea Justin had sung for the soundtrack of this musical. They complimented each other so well with vocals. Autumn had never been the strongest singer. It always took a lot to belt out Ariel’s solo of Holding Out for a Hero in Footloose. Reecy had the vocal power to match Justin and this cover of the classic song was fantastic.
Up on the stage, Reecy and Kyan weren’t really taking this particular rehearsal seriously. They were laughing and messing around, so clearly Kyan and Reecy and not Johnny and Baby. They had moments where they switch into serious mode, like they were test-driving some new choreography and it was pretty intimate stuff. Kyan was oozing the Johnny Castle charm at the same time as messing around with his wife and enjoying the fact he could have his hands all over her. Who could blame him? Reecy was fucking hot as hell.
The music cut for a minute or two and Reecy ran over some steps with Logan, who had appeared from Stage Left. The music started again and this time they were taking it seriously. Kyan and Reecy were gone and Johnny and Baby appeared. Autumn got a chill at how good they looked, even in rehearsal and not a costume in sight. They had a sizzling chemistry, which wasn’t a surprise. The show had received rave reviews once Reecy came on board as the female lead.
She moved down the aisle to get a closer look and it was only when they got to the highlight of the song where Johnny leapt off the stage down into the centre aisle where he would dance with the rest of the troop and prepare for the signature lift. But as soon as he got down here and danced his way up the aisle, he almost ran straight into Autumn. He stopped abruptly, throwing his hands up with a shocked, “Whoa!” The music cut again.
Autumn held her hands up in surrender. “Sorry! I didn’t mean to get in the way. I just… um…” She pointed over her shoulder with her thumb. “Justin said Reecy would be here for rehearsal and…”
Kyan raised his eyebrows, tongue resting between his lips like he was nervous and he shot a glance up at Reecy, who had come to stand at the edge of the stage to see what was going on. She was shielding her eyes from the light until they dipped, other hand resting on her hip as she was catching her breath. Kyan nodded and gave Kyan a smile. He was actually relieved Autumn was making the effort to come to talk to Reecy this soon rather than avoiding it or putting it off for too long. He went back up onto the stage and gave Reecy a soft kiss. “I’ll go do some work with Logan. Come get me when you’re done, I’ll get us some lunch. Love you.” He gently squeezed her hip and patted her ass before heading off stage.
Reecy had murmured, “Love you,” right back giving him a distracted smile. She tucked the loose strands of her hair that had escaped the hair elastic behind her ear and grabbed her water bottle for a drink. It had been a rough morning. She and Kyan had spent the past couple of days battling a - thankfully - minor brush with food poisoning or a 24-hour bug. Kyan seemed to be hit harder than she was but coming back to work for a full-on training sessions was a bit on the tough side. She was just glad Kyan seemed to be feeling better today. She was worried how he would be with all the spinning around and lifts in the dance sequences. Logan had stepped some of the choreography up and it was awesome fun but took focus. One thing she adored about Caden’s productions, though, was he allowed room for fun and goofing off. When you were working as hard as they were, it was necessary sometimes to just let your hair down and enjoy the journey.
It didn’t surprise her that Justin had somehow been involved. But the thing was, he had spoken to Autumn (as had Kyan) and he hadn’t raised any red flags. In fact, from the sounds of it, it went well enough and or he would have told her to go fuck herself. Justin had no qualms if getting rid of people in his life that he couldn’t trust. “So… we’re doing this,” she said, smirking as she recapped the bottle and started to do some warming-down stretches. “At least I know if Smooshie’s endorsing it, I don’t have a whole lot to be worried about. Having said that, he’s had his own very full plate lately. He usually doesn’t take much time out of caring for Sash when he’s migrainey, so that in itself tells me a lot.”
Now Autumn was close to the stage, she could see Reecy looked incredible. She always did but there was something more glamorous about her now. Maybe because her career had taken off with theatre big-wigs chasing her talent where Autumn had let hers tank. “I’d like to do this but we don’t have to. I want to leave the ball in your court because you don’t owe me anything. Hell, Kyan was already kind enough agreeing to meet me. Jus is, and always will be, a law unto himself. I think he just wanted to help but honestly, his head is with caring for Sash. I’m dying to meet this guy, I’ve heard incredible things about him.”
Reecy nodded with a smile. “Sash is one of the most special young people who will ever grace the earth with his presence, just like Smooshie. They’re kindred spirits. Put us fully grown adults to shame. They’re disgustingly adorable together. He’s the wind beneath Justin’s wings.” Which is a lot what Reecy felt about Kyan. They might share the stage together as leads in their show but he preferred being out of the spotlight. He just loved dancing so much and took to the role like a duck to water. He was definitely not Johnny Castle, though. He was Kyan Wilson, her soul mate and she was glad every day he ultimately wasn’t Autumn’s, as selfish as that sounded. She moved and sat on the edge of the stage and shrug. “What court is this ball you speak on in, then?”
Autumn took that as an invitation to stay, at least for a little while. She went up on the stage to sit down beside Reecy. They had done this countless times on the Footloose stage when they worked together, either together or with the boys, Justin, Billy, Phoenix, Kyan. “Just… I guess making amends. I know we probably can’t get back to where we were. But I’d like to shoot for something along those lines. If there’s any chance we can. I understand, though, if it’s a lost cause. Considering, well, Kyan. Nothing’s like it was before. I know you make him as happy as anyone can be. He didn’t even have to tell me that, I saw it all over his face when we met met.” Her gaze shifted to Reecy’s wedding and engagement rings. They weer blingy and prominent on her hand. She didn’t let her eyes linger there too long. “I saw pictures of Jus and Sasha online together. Talk about Smooshie having good taste. What did you think when he started dating again after the mess with Will?”
“That seems to be the theme of late. You and Jude all in a matter of weeks. It makes me wonder if it’s some higher power at play. Reminding us we get to keep Smooshie with us yet again, so we should give back some of the positives we take. The only thing slightly less painful about this latest episode thank Bondi is no one filed it on camera.” Reecy had been in Sydney, at Bondi Beach with Justin, when he just got up and walked into the dangerous surf fully clothed and into a rip. She remembered it like it was yesterday. She couldn’t remember the hoards of people there, though. She only remembered what it was like seeing him pulled out of the water limp and lifeless, seeing them trying to shock him back to life on the wet sand. She wasn’t directly there this time. It had been Sash and his friends who witnessed the worst. “Lucky for me, Kyan exorcised his demons and healed. Justin and Sash are as adorable together as you can imagine. They just fit. Sash’s gorgeous in the flesh. Very tall, expressive eyes. His curly hair is to-die for. Some of us poor sods pay a fortune to get curls like that. All anyone thought was how it was a miracle someone made him smile like that after everything. It was hardly a Disney fairytale they make it out in the tabloids, though. It was a slow progression. They were just open and honest with each other. I think that’s the biggest battles won.”
Autumn’s eyebrows shot up hearing Jude was back in the picture. He and Reecy had been having problems well before she and Kyan had any. Or more accurately, she had the problems that Kyan deserve to deal with. “Wow, that’s… how did that go? Where did he go, anyway? I think the last he heard, even Billy had fallen out with him. It sounded like he wasn’t going to come back. Then again, people probably thought that about me too. To be honest, I didn’t think Jus would want to see me, much less talk to me about anything. Knowing he’d been sick, I expected it even less. He told me in as few words as possible what happened and broke down. I’m still shocked he trusted me. It makes me feel sick. Everything he’s done and that was always there under the surface.” She smiled, pleased Justin had found his perfect match. “I saw a brief glimpse of the poor darling wiped out in bed being sick with a migraine. He looked like hell, the poor thing. Justin was always so much more wise than we were. I used to love listening to him talk when he was open. That’s not gone away at all. His personality hasn’t changed. Remember the day we both first met him? We started work on the production the same day and Caden brought us to meet him. He seemed so small. Now he’s all tall gay sex symbol and fashion icon. I take it Sash is as just as much both as Justin?” she laughed.
Reecy smiled as she took another mouthful of water. “Well, being happily married now helped, I have to admit. A lot of old wounds and emotional scars healed when things started to take a turn with Ky. Despite what the gossip rags and TMZ liked to say about us at the time, none of it was preordained. It was as much of a surprised to us as everyone else. I just didn’t have to overthink anything with him. Jude and I weren’t meant to be. We had enough false-starts to prove that. He’s not the same person anymore. He’s done amazing and I’m so proud of him for finding himself, tackling the issues head-on and healing. He finished his nursing degree and went on an assignment with Doctors Without Borders with Evan. I only just found out that was because he got raped and developed a drug addiction, which led to a HIV scare. Even if it took time, I respect that he told me the truth and had the balls to come to me to open the lines of communication. Just like I respect that you did that with Kyan and are doing that with me now. I’m not the sort to hold grudges.” She laughed too and leaned back, enjoying the timeout from rehearsal because she was feeling a little weary. “With those big blue eyes that felt like they were reading our minds? He hardly said anything to us at first. Then he just… came to life on stage. First time I heard him sing, I nearly fell out of my chair. That voice out of that quiet unassuming kid who wouldn’t make eye contact with us. But no. Sash is so totally not fashion-conscious. He’s a hoodie, jeans and snapback kind of guy. He brushes up as well as Justin when Ajay gets his hands on him. He styles them both for official events but Sash doesn’t like the spotlight. Being Ace, I think he would hate nothing more than being a sex symbol too. Smooshie’s different. You’ll see what I mean by that when you spend more time with him. Not his personality but his... essence, I suppose. He’s never pretended to be who he’s not but the traumas have changed him.”
Autumn held out her hand to Reecy, gesturing to her left hand where her wedding rings were proudly on display. Obviously, they would come off for the show but they remained in place for training and rehearsal. “Can I see?” She had no words for how much it meant to here for Reecy to tell her she respected her reaching out and taking the first steps to making amends. She knew Reecy had never been the sort to hold grudges but she would have every right to be angry or protective of Kyan. Hearing about Jude, she shook her head. “Fucking hell. God, he could’ve ended up going completely the opposite way. Turning into a nasty cunt running around screwing up other people’s lives on top of his own. You would’ve helped him if he told you, though. I know you. Even if you couldn’t have been together romantically, you would’ve helped him. Did the others know? Renz and Clint? Hell, did Billy know? With this new Justin, do I need to know anything about interacting with him? Look, I know enough to know he’s been walking through living hell and my coming back hasn’t been the best timing. The thing is, he seems open to considering me working on his team. I never want to make anything worse for him. I want to move forward. I don’t want him to have to tell me every little thing I should know that might make things easier on him.”
Reecy hesitated but only for a moment before giving Autumn her hand. She was just mindful of the fact the ring was a family heirloom for Kyan. It had been his mother’s and something she left for him when she passed, knowing Trey was gay and even if he got married, it wouldn’t be to a woman. Even then, she had never assumed Kyan would want it to be used for an engagement ring if he ever got married but she thought if he had children of his own day, it would be something special of her to pass on to them. She knew when Kyan proposed to Autumn, he purchased a ring. He chose this route for Reecy because she shared qualifies with his mother in her nature. It was beautiful to Reecy that she had the honour of this being her engagement ring. “Maybe he did go the opposite way for awhile and that was when he realised he had to get away. I think that’s the most admirable part of it all. Plus, he’s back for his family now. Everyone makes mistakes in life. I’m hardly a saint in that area myself. But to make amends when you’ve hurt people, that’s all that matters. Clint knew. He staged a rape himself to frame the guy. Paul. The same guy who sexually harassed and wanted to assault Justin. I guess once Clint got wind of it, he would stop at nothing to take him down.” She smiled and shook her head. “You should know by now, love, that the biggest tule of Justin Club is to let him answer questions like that himself. He’ll tell you the goalposts and the boundaries. Just always bare in mind his C-PTSD is a factor in just about everything. What might be okay one day won’t be the next. Let him guide you, though. In that sense, he’s very much the same.”
Autumn admired Reecy’s engagement ring close up. It was stunning and then some. It was hugged by a wedding ring that was a halo of diamonds. Her own engagement ring she had worn so proudly for a short amount of time, she FedEx’ed back to Kyan when they broke up. Her mom had reminded her that it was the respectful thing to do but she had struggled with it, knowing losing it symbolised losing Kyan. For awhile, her ego truly let her delude herself into believing she would get him back. Once she made it to the big-time, won an Oscar, any of the other bullshit she told herself… he would realise his error and want her back. There was a lot of gossip at the time suggesting she cheated on Kyan or Kyan cheated on her. When she hit the anger phase of the grief process, she wished she had cheated on him. It was established she turned into a raging bitch before she realised that wasn’t who she ever wanted to be. When the news broke that he and Reecy were together, she wanted to believe he had cheated on her - with Reecy - and made Autumn the victim. She knew it wasn’t true. Neither of them would ever do that. Not just to her, but any person they loved.
She smiled at Reecy. “He really did well. He always had impeccable taste, though. He showed me some of the wedding photos and, girl, you were smoking. If I swung that way, I’m sure we totally would’ve had a hot girl-fling. Imagine TMZ getting their hands on that,” she joked because if there was one thing she wanted to recover in all this, it was their ability to laugh together. “Was it scary for you, seeing Jude again after all that time? Of course Clitty did that. That doesn’t surprise me at all. But fuck, what a mess.” She swung her legs lightly and wet here lips, looking out at the sprawling rows of seats in the theatre. She felt herself tearing up and let out a shaky breath. “I can’t believe his mother let her own little boy be destroyed by pedophiles. What a fucking evil cunt. Clint did that too, didn’t he? Got her murdered. I remember, his biggest abhorrence was people who harmed children.”
Reecy smiled, her nose scrunching up in fondness for her husband. “He didn’t choose it. Well, not in a sense that he went out and bought it. It’s an heirloom. It was his mom’s and he has always said I reminded him of her. This was even before we were dating and I went to Colorado with him. He visited her grave for the first time and it broke him. He told me then I reminded him of her, which was probably the best compliment I’ve ever had. He said before she was ill, she was carefree and headstrong. I tease him about that all the time, he thinks I’m stubborn. But we all know I totally am. Seeing Jude was… surprisingly easy. Awkward at first, because of us knew how we should feel but I’m proud of him. It could’ve dragged him into a very dark hole forever and he didn’t let it.” After a moment or two, she put her arms around Autumn and gave her a cuddle, tearing up herself. “There aren’t enough words to cover what a cunt his mother was. The things she let happen to him and tried to take his life with her own hands. And, well, personally I don’t doubt Clint was involved but I’m pretty sure Mark asked him to, or something along those lines. We’ll never know. It’s all very hushed. But you should know… it also came to light that Clint and Renz are actually twins. Turns out a lot of how Clitty is these days is because he went through horrible traumas himself as a kid.”
Autumn hugged Reecy back tightly, letting the tears fall at relief she might have a chance at getting her BFF back, if they could move beyond all this. Time would tell. She had so much she wanted to say to everything Reecy was saying, until that bombshell was dropped. She pulled back, looking at her in shock. “What the fuck, twins?! Are you kidding me? I… shit. I guess now you say it, I can see it but how the hell could a mother do that to twins? Like, I’m pretty sure if anyone ever tried to separate Case and Cal, they would actually die. But I… fuck, Clint wasn’t sexually abused as a kid like Justin, was he? Does that mean Renz’s mother who is in prison isn’t his real mother? Holy shit, Mark and Clint teaming up to go against Smooshie’s mom, no wonder she ended up murdered. Probably on Euan’s watch too. Nothing is more terrifying that a dad whose kid has been harmed. There could be a movie written about that dad group. My dad would have totally been front and centre on that. Yours too, I bet.”
After the hug, Reecy was back to nursing her water bottle. It gave her something to do with her hands and she was back to trying to quell the lingering stomach upset. “Renz’s mother gave birth to them both. She feared their serial rapist violent father would harm Clint because he was a sickly baby. So, their aunt - the cunt’s sister - took him and raised him as hers. I’m not entirely sure how Clint discovered the whole story. They told everyone they realised they were brothers but I think Clint kept a lot of it hushed. Renz’s mother got into an altercation in prison and died. It gave Renz such a shock, he effectively had a heart attack. Broken heart syndrome. The heart went into shock. He’s okay, he recovered without lasting damage. It wasn’t so much hearing she was dead that did it because he cut ties with her. It was just the straw that broke the camel’s back on top of a lot of trauma for him. Everyone’s good now, though. Life’s been one crazy hell of a ride for most of us. I think it’s only made us stronger. You don’t have to worry about being the only one who’s made mistakes.” She looked at Autumn, giving her a smirk. “So, joining Smooshie’s team, huh? He’ll tell you you’re a sucker for punishment. At least you know all about his diva moments.”
Autumn laughed, shaking her head. “Oh, yes. I remember those well. I also remember that those of us he was aiming it at deserved it. I’m not making any assumptions, though. He might decide it won’t work. But I’ve spoken to Aiden and Mark. Justin basically has stopped needing a PA and needs an Assistant Manager to take on more of a supportive role in his team. I’m just starting out, so it’d be a good opportunity. I’d love working with him. I just know choosing his team would never be a light decision and they’ve fully informed me how much more care he needs on multiple levels. I just hope he can trust. I hope everyone can, really. But I haven’t given anyone much reason to take my word on that. I was an utter incorrigible bitch. It all went to my head and I fell into the traps of fame. I know the business, though, and I know how unique Smooshie’s situation is. I’m pretty sure he needs a lot of help now. Do you spend a lot of time with him?”
“It’s diminished recently but only because he’s been in hospital. When they had him in the psych unit on suicide watch, it was only immediate family allowed to see him. And Sash, of course. That goes without saying. Even then, for awhile, he didn’t want his family there. You have to take him a day at a time. That’s the key of it. It’s all Sash does. Now that Smooshie’s stabilising with the intense treatment, he’s back in his sweet, kind headspace where he’s full of love for everything that gives him a reason to keep living. He comes by here a lot to hang out if Sash is at school or they both come over for dinner with us on our days off. They’re just adorable, I love them both to bits. Sash is a bit shy and might come off as reserved at first but it’s just his anxiety. He’s got as wicked a sense of humour as Jus. When he’s well, they laugh together all the time. Sash is just beautiful with his dad, too. But, you know, when Smooshie’s sick and not doing well, every time a call comes through from someone in his family, you think it’s going to be The Call… telling us he’s gone.” Reecy got teary again then and had to swallow heavily when she choked up thinking about it. The harsh reality was that a call like that could come through. Justin never hid the fact he felt suicidal, even just faintly, most of the time. You wished you could take it away for him but it was proof that you couldn’t heal mental illness with money, fame, or even love. She gave Autumn another smile, albeit a shaky one. “I think you’d be an excellent choice for the job. I really do. Just… um... never forget that every single day... could be his last. Sorry, I just--” She got up bolted backstage and even if her goal was the bathroom, she only made it as far as a nearby trashcan before she started throwing up.
Kyan had been sitting backstage chatting with Logan while they cooled down from the heavy training session. He was out of his seat in a flash as soon as he saw Reecy was sick again. They both got hit with a bug that was going around or something but it hadn’t lasted long. She seemed to bounce back quicker than he did too. He raked her hair back, catching the unruly strands sweeping her face and did his best to comb them out of her face while she was being sick. He rubbed her back and waited it out with her. “You okay, baby? Damn, I thought we shook this,” he murmured.
Autumn followed, of course. At first, she thought Reecy was rushing off because she was about to burst into tears. She hadn’t even noticed she was feeling sick. She hurried back to grab Reecy’s water bottle she had been steadily sipping from. Maybe that was a sign. It was a bit of an emotional kick seeing Kyan immediately on hand to hold her hair back and rub her back. Concern was written all over his face and Autumn hesitantly came up and offered him the water bottle for Reecy. Shit, they were so married. The matching rings right there in front of her face were yet another reality check. She yearned to have what they did one day, all those things she failed to share with Kyan when she had the chance. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
Kyan accepted the water with a grateful smile. “This is a great help already, thanks. We were just both knocked with a stomach bug this week.” He uncapped the bottle and offered it to Reecy once she seemed to come through it pretty quickly. He had his training handtowel slung over his shoulder and he wiped Reecy’s face and mouth for her. He was much taller than her, so he dipped his head to analyse her face, still softly rubbing her back. “Want to call it a day, sweetie?”
Reecy managed to stop heaving and stood up, taking the towel from Kyan to wipe her mouth again amidst a string of colourful cussing. Her eyes darted from Kyan to Autumn and then back again. “That might be a good idea, even just to down a bottle of Pepto…” When Kyan wrapped his arms around her shoulders, she gratefully leaned into him, feeling wiped out all of a sudden. It was far from the hardest training sessions they had done but the conversation with Autumn had been heavy. Even this felt somewhat awkward and she realised it would take time to mend and heal from what their friendships had gone through. She met Autumn’s gaze. “Sorry. Let me know how you get on with Smooshie? He’s not doing too bad at the moment. Just be real with him. That’s all he ever asks of anyone.”
Reecy was pale and looked a little shaky. In any other situation, Autumn would probably feel like she was getting the brush-off. She wasn’t. She was glad to have the ice broken and neither of them were acting weird, just a little awkward. Still, it was hard for her to see them together like this for the first time. It was still a healing process for her. She would get there but she was glad to have a little out for a breather. She gave Reecy’s arm a soft pat and kissed her cheek. “Feel better, okay? I’ll text you. By the way, the routine looked great. Caden couldn’t have picked a better Johnny and Baby if he tried.” She smiled and gave them both a little wave as she left. Life in New York really had changed in her absence.
LOG, COMPLETE
What: Breaking the Ice
Where: Broadway, NYC
When: After this and this
Autumn was shitting bricks as she approached the Broadway theatre where Drake Productions’ Dirty Dancing was having its run. She paused outside, looking up at the name emblazoned along the front which would be up in lights later in the evening.
STARRING KYAN WILSON AND REECY CHESTER-WILSON
She drew in a deep breath and exhaled quickly, bracing herself to take that step over the threshold into the theatre. Justin had tipped her off that Reecy (and likely Kyan) would be rehearsing and training that day. Somehow seeing Reecy’s married name in writing drove everything home for her. Deep down, she knew she had closure with Kyan but that didn’t mean she didn’t still have regret about throwing away and amazing relationship with an amazing guy. Kyan had been perfect and treated her as well as any person deserved to be treated.
And she walked in right as Kyan and Reecy were up on stage starting to rehearse The Number… Time of My Life, the song Kyan had proposed to Autumn with but that she could now no longer stake a claim over. She wondered now how Kyan had proposed to Reecy. He hadn’t said. He told her a little about their wedding and showed her pictures but nothing had been said about how he popped the question.
She stayed at the back of the theatre to watch them for a little bit. She realised the song recording that was being played was actually Justin and Reecy dueting. She had no idea Justin had sung for the soundtrack of this musical. They complimented each other so well with vocals. Autumn had never been the strongest singer. It always took a lot to belt out Ariel’s solo of Holding Out for a Hero in Footloose. Reecy had the vocal power to match Justin and this cover of the classic song was fantastic.
Up on the stage, Reecy and Kyan weren’t really taking this particular rehearsal seriously. They were laughing and messing around, so clearly Kyan and Reecy and not Johnny and Baby. They had moments where they switch into serious mode, like they were test-driving some new choreography and it was pretty intimate stuff. Kyan was oozing the Johnny Castle charm at the same time as messing around with his wife and enjoying the fact he could have his hands all over her. Who could blame him? Reecy was fucking hot as hell.
The music cut for a minute or two and Reecy ran over some steps with Logan, who had appeared from Stage Left. The music started again and this time they were taking it seriously. Kyan and Reecy were gone and Johnny and Baby appeared. Autumn got a chill at how good they looked, even in rehearsal and not a costume in sight. They had a sizzling chemistry, which wasn’t a surprise. The show had received rave reviews once Reecy came on board as the female lead.
She moved down the aisle to get a closer look and it was only when they got to the highlight of the song where Johnny leapt off the stage down into the centre aisle where he would dance with the rest of the troop and prepare for the signature lift. But as soon as he got down here and danced his way up the aisle, he almost ran straight into Autumn. He stopped abruptly, throwing his hands up with a shocked, “Whoa!” The music cut again.
Autumn held her hands up in surrender. “Sorry! I didn’t mean to get in the way. I just… um…” She pointed over her shoulder with her thumb. “Justin said Reecy would be here for rehearsal and…”
Kyan raised his eyebrows, tongue resting between his lips like he was nervous and he shot a glance up at Reecy, who had come to stand at the edge of the stage to see what was going on. She was shielding her eyes from the light until they dipped, other hand resting on her hip as she was catching her breath. Kyan nodded and gave Kyan a smile. He was actually relieved Autumn was making the effort to come to talk to Reecy this soon rather than avoiding it or putting it off for too long. He went back up onto the stage and gave Reecy a soft kiss. “I’ll go do some work with Logan. Come get me when you’re done, I’ll get us some lunch. Love you.” He gently squeezed her hip and patted her ass before heading off stage.
Reecy had murmured, “Love you,” right back giving him a distracted smile. She tucked the loose strands of her hair that had escaped the hair elastic behind her ear and grabbed her water bottle for a drink. It had been a rough morning. She and Kyan had spent the past couple of days battling a - thankfully - minor brush with food poisoning or a 24-hour bug. Kyan seemed to be hit harder than she was but coming back to work for a full-on training sessions was a bit on the tough side. She was just glad Kyan seemed to be feeling better today. She was worried how he would be with all the spinning around and lifts in the dance sequences. Logan had stepped some of the choreography up and it was awesome fun but took focus. One thing she adored about Caden’s productions, though, was he allowed room for fun and goofing off. When you were working as hard as they were, it was necessary sometimes to just let your hair down and enjoy the journey.
It didn’t surprise her that Justin had somehow been involved. But the thing was, he had spoken to Autumn (as had Kyan) and he hadn’t raised any red flags. In fact, from the sounds of it, it went well enough and or he would have told her to go fuck herself. Justin had no qualms if getting rid of people in his life that he couldn’t trust. “So… we’re doing this,” she said, smirking as she recapped the bottle and started to do some warming-down stretches. “At least I know if Smooshie’s endorsing it, I don’t have a whole lot to be worried about. Having said that, he’s had his own very full plate lately. He usually doesn’t take much time out of caring for Sash when he’s migrainey, so that in itself tells me a lot.”
Now Autumn was close to the stage, she could see Reecy looked incredible. She always did but there was something more glamorous about her now. Maybe because her career had taken off with theatre big-wigs chasing her talent where Autumn had let hers tank. “I’d like to do this but we don’t have to. I want to leave the ball in your court because you don’t owe me anything. Hell, Kyan was already kind enough agreeing to meet me. Jus is, and always will be, a law unto himself. I think he just wanted to help but honestly, his head is with caring for Sash. I’m dying to meet this guy, I’ve heard incredible things about him.”
Reecy nodded with a smile. “Sash is one of the most special young people who will ever grace the earth with his presence, just like Smooshie. They’re kindred spirits. Put us fully grown adults to shame. They’re disgustingly adorable together. He’s the wind beneath Justin’s wings.” Which is a lot what Reecy felt about Kyan. They might share the stage together as leads in their show but he preferred being out of the spotlight. He just loved dancing so much and took to the role like a duck to water. He was definitely not Johnny Castle, though. He was Kyan Wilson, her soul mate and she was glad every day he ultimately wasn’t Autumn’s, as selfish as that sounded. She moved and sat on the edge of the stage and shrug. “What court is this ball you speak on in, then?”
Autumn took that as an invitation to stay, at least for a little while. She went up on the stage to sit down beside Reecy. They had done this countless times on the Footloose stage when they worked together, either together or with the boys, Justin, Billy, Phoenix, Kyan. “Just… I guess making amends. I know we probably can’t get back to where we were. But I’d like to shoot for something along those lines. If there’s any chance we can. I understand, though, if it’s a lost cause. Considering, well, Kyan. Nothing’s like it was before. I know you make him as happy as anyone can be. He didn’t even have to tell me that, I saw it all over his face when we met met.” Her gaze shifted to Reecy’s wedding and engagement rings. They weer blingy and prominent on her hand. She didn’t let her eyes linger there too long. “I saw pictures of Jus and Sasha online together. Talk about Smooshie having good taste. What did you think when he started dating again after the mess with Will?”
“That seems to be the theme of late. You and Jude all in a matter of weeks. It makes me wonder if it’s some higher power at play. Reminding us we get to keep Smooshie with us yet again, so we should give back some of the positives we take. The only thing slightly less painful about this latest episode thank Bondi is no one filed it on camera.” Reecy had been in Sydney, at Bondi Beach with Justin, when he just got up and walked into the dangerous surf fully clothed and into a rip. She remembered it like it was yesterday. She couldn’t remember the hoards of people there, though. She only remembered what it was like seeing him pulled out of the water limp and lifeless, seeing them trying to shock him back to life on the wet sand. She wasn’t directly there this time. It had been Sash and his friends who witnessed the worst. “Lucky for me, Kyan exorcised his demons and healed. Justin and Sash are as adorable together as you can imagine. They just fit. Sash’s gorgeous in the flesh. Very tall, expressive eyes. His curly hair is to-die for. Some of us poor sods pay a fortune to get curls like that. All anyone thought was how it was a miracle someone made him smile like that after everything. It was hardly a Disney fairytale they make it out in the tabloids, though. It was a slow progression. They were just open and honest with each other. I think that’s the biggest battles won.”
Autumn’s eyebrows shot up hearing Jude was back in the picture. He and Reecy had been having problems well before she and Kyan had any. Or more accurately, she had the problems that Kyan deserve to deal with. “Wow, that’s… how did that go? Where did he go, anyway? I think the last he heard, even Billy had fallen out with him. It sounded like he wasn’t going to come back. Then again, people probably thought that about me too. To be honest, I didn’t think Jus would want to see me, much less talk to me about anything. Knowing he’d been sick, I expected it even less. He told me in as few words as possible what happened and broke down. I’m still shocked he trusted me. It makes me feel sick. Everything he’s done and that was always there under the surface.” She smiled, pleased Justin had found his perfect match. “I saw a brief glimpse of the poor darling wiped out in bed being sick with a migraine. He looked like hell, the poor thing. Justin was always so much more wise than we were. I used to love listening to him talk when he was open. That’s not gone away at all. His personality hasn’t changed. Remember the day we both first met him? We started work on the production the same day and Caden brought us to meet him. He seemed so small. Now he’s all tall gay sex symbol and fashion icon. I take it Sash is as just as much both as Justin?” she laughed.
Reecy smiled as she took another mouthful of water. “Well, being happily married now helped, I have to admit. A lot of old wounds and emotional scars healed when things started to take a turn with Ky. Despite what the gossip rags and TMZ liked to say about us at the time, none of it was preordained. It was as much of a surprised to us as everyone else. I just didn’t have to overthink anything with him. Jude and I weren’t meant to be. We had enough false-starts to prove that. He’s not the same person anymore. He’s done amazing and I’m so proud of him for finding himself, tackling the issues head-on and healing. He finished his nursing degree and went on an assignment with Doctors Without Borders with Evan. I only just found out that was because he got raped and developed a drug addiction, which led to a HIV scare. Even if it took time, I respect that he told me the truth and had the balls to come to me to open the lines of communication. Just like I respect that you did that with Kyan and are doing that with me now. I’m not the sort to hold grudges.” She laughed too and leaned back, enjoying the timeout from rehearsal because she was feeling a little weary. “With those big blue eyes that felt like they were reading our minds? He hardly said anything to us at first. Then he just… came to life on stage. First time I heard him sing, I nearly fell out of my chair. That voice out of that quiet unassuming kid who wouldn’t make eye contact with us. But no. Sash is so totally not fashion-conscious. He’s a hoodie, jeans and snapback kind of guy. He brushes up as well as Justin when Ajay gets his hands on him. He styles them both for official events but Sash doesn’t like the spotlight. Being Ace, I think he would hate nothing more than being a sex symbol too. Smooshie’s different. You’ll see what I mean by that when you spend more time with him. Not his personality but his... essence, I suppose. He’s never pretended to be who he’s not but the traumas have changed him.”
Autumn held out her hand to Reecy, gesturing to her left hand where her wedding rings were proudly on display. Obviously, they would come off for the show but they remained in place for training and rehearsal. “Can I see?” She had no words for how much it meant to here for Reecy to tell her she respected her reaching out and taking the first steps to making amends. She knew Reecy had never been the sort to hold grudges but she would have every right to be angry or protective of Kyan. Hearing about Jude, she shook her head. “Fucking hell. God, he could’ve ended up going completely the opposite way. Turning into a nasty cunt running around screwing up other people’s lives on top of his own. You would’ve helped him if he told you, though. I know you. Even if you couldn’t have been together romantically, you would’ve helped him. Did the others know? Renz and Clint? Hell, did Billy know? With this new Justin, do I need to know anything about interacting with him? Look, I know enough to know he’s been walking through living hell and my coming back hasn’t been the best timing. The thing is, he seems open to considering me working on his team. I never want to make anything worse for him. I want to move forward. I don’t want him to have to tell me every little thing I should know that might make things easier on him.”
Reecy hesitated but only for a moment before giving Autumn her hand. She was just mindful of the fact the ring was a family heirloom for Kyan. It had been his mother’s and something she left for him when she passed, knowing Trey was gay and even if he got married, it wouldn’t be to a woman. Even then, she had never assumed Kyan would want it to be used for an engagement ring if he ever got married but she thought if he had children of his own day, it would be something special of her to pass on to them. She knew when Kyan proposed to Autumn, he purchased a ring. He chose this route for Reecy because she shared qualifies with his mother in her nature. It was beautiful to Reecy that she had the honour of this being her engagement ring. “Maybe he did go the opposite way for awhile and that was when he realised he had to get away. I think that’s the most admirable part of it all. Plus, he’s back for his family now. Everyone makes mistakes in life. I’m hardly a saint in that area myself. But to make amends when you’ve hurt people, that’s all that matters. Clint knew. He staged a rape himself to frame the guy. Paul. The same guy who sexually harassed and wanted to assault Justin. I guess once Clint got wind of it, he would stop at nothing to take him down.” She smiled and shook her head. “You should know by now, love, that the biggest tule of Justin Club is to let him answer questions like that himself. He’ll tell you the goalposts and the boundaries. Just always bare in mind his C-PTSD is a factor in just about everything. What might be okay one day won’t be the next. Let him guide you, though. In that sense, he’s very much the same.”
Autumn admired Reecy’s engagement ring close up. It was stunning and then some. It was hugged by a wedding ring that was a halo of diamonds. Her own engagement ring she had worn so proudly for a short amount of time, she FedEx’ed back to Kyan when they broke up. Her mom had reminded her that it was the respectful thing to do but she had struggled with it, knowing losing it symbolised losing Kyan. For awhile, her ego truly let her delude herself into believing she would get him back. Once she made it to the big-time, won an Oscar, any of the other bullshit she told herself… he would realise his error and want her back. There was a lot of gossip at the time suggesting she cheated on Kyan or Kyan cheated on her. When she hit the anger phase of the grief process, she wished she had cheated on him. It was established she turned into a raging bitch before she realised that wasn’t who she ever wanted to be. When the news broke that he and Reecy were together, she wanted to believe he had cheated on her - with Reecy - and made Autumn the victim. She knew it wasn’t true. Neither of them would ever do that. Not just to her, but any person they loved.
She smiled at Reecy. “He really did well. He always had impeccable taste, though. He showed me some of the wedding photos and, girl, you were smoking. If I swung that way, I’m sure we totally would’ve had a hot girl-fling. Imagine TMZ getting their hands on that,” she joked because if there was one thing she wanted to recover in all this, it was their ability to laugh together. “Was it scary for you, seeing Jude again after all that time? Of course Clitty did that. That doesn’t surprise me at all. But fuck, what a mess.” She swung her legs lightly and wet here lips, looking out at the sprawling rows of seats in the theatre. She felt herself tearing up and let out a shaky breath. “I can’t believe his mother let her own little boy be destroyed by pedophiles. What a fucking evil cunt. Clint did that too, didn’t he? Got her murdered. I remember, his biggest abhorrence was people who harmed children.”
Reecy smiled, her nose scrunching up in fondness for her husband. “He didn’t choose it. Well, not in a sense that he went out and bought it. It’s an heirloom. It was his mom’s and he has always said I reminded him of her. This was even before we were dating and I went to Colorado with him. He visited her grave for the first time and it broke him. He told me then I reminded him of her, which was probably the best compliment I’ve ever had. He said before she was ill, she was carefree and headstrong. I tease him about that all the time, he thinks I’m stubborn. But we all know I totally am. Seeing Jude was… surprisingly easy. Awkward at first, because of us knew how we should feel but I’m proud of him. It could’ve dragged him into a very dark hole forever and he didn’t let it.” After a moment or two, she put her arms around Autumn and gave her a cuddle, tearing up herself. “There aren’t enough words to cover what a cunt his mother was. The things she let happen to him and tried to take his life with her own hands. And, well, personally I don’t doubt Clint was involved but I’m pretty sure Mark asked him to, or something along those lines. We’ll never know. It’s all very hushed. But you should know… it also came to light that Clint and Renz are actually twins. Turns out a lot of how Clitty is these days is because he went through horrible traumas himself as a kid.”
Autumn hugged Reecy back tightly, letting the tears fall at relief she might have a chance at getting her BFF back, if they could move beyond all this. Time would tell. She had so much she wanted to say to everything Reecy was saying, until that bombshell was dropped. She pulled back, looking at her in shock. “What the fuck, twins?! Are you kidding me? I… shit. I guess now you say it, I can see it but how the hell could a mother do that to twins? Like, I’m pretty sure if anyone ever tried to separate Case and Cal, they would actually die. But I… fuck, Clint wasn’t sexually abused as a kid like Justin, was he? Does that mean Renz’s mother who is in prison isn’t his real mother? Holy shit, Mark and Clint teaming up to go against Smooshie’s mom, no wonder she ended up murdered. Probably on Euan’s watch too. Nothing is more terrifying that a dad whose kid has been harmed. There could be a movie written about that dad group. My dad would have totally been front and centre on that. Yours too, I bet.”
After the hug, Reecy was back to nursing her water bottle. It gave her something to do with her hands and she was back to trying to quell the lingering stomach upset. “Renz’s mother gave birth to them both. She feared their serial rapist violent father would harm Clint because he was a sickly baby. So, their aunt - the cunt’s sister - took him and raised him as hers. I’m not entirely sure how Clint discovered the whole story. They told everyone they realised they were brothers but I think Clint kept a lot of it hushed. Renz’s mother got into an altercation in prison and died. It gave Renz such a shock, he effectively had a heart attack. Broken heart syndrome. The heart went into shock. He’s okay, he recovered without lasting damage. It wasn’t so much hearing she was dead that did it because he cut ties with her. It was just the straw that broke the camel’s back on top of a lot of trauma for him. Everyone’s good now, though. Life’s been one crazy hell of a ride for most of us. I think it’s only made us stronger. You don’t have to worry about being the only one who’s made mistakes.” She looked at Autumn, giving her a smirk. “So, joining Smooshie’s team, huh? He’ll tell you you’re a sucker for punishment. At least you know all about his diva moments.”
Autumn laughed, shaking her head. “Oh, yes. I remember those well. I also remember that those of us he was aiming it at deserved it. I’m not making any assumptions, though. He might decide it won’t work. But I’ve spoken to Aiden and Mark. Justin basically has stopped needing a PA and needs an Assistant Manager to take on more of a supportive role in his team. I’m just starting out, so it’d be a good opportunity. I’d love working with him. I just know choosing his team would never be a light decision and they’ve fully informed me how much more care he needs on multiple levels. I just hope he can trust. I hope everyone can, really. But I haven’t given anyone much reason to take my word on that. I was an utter incorrigible bitch. It all went to my head and I fell into the traps of fame. I know the business, though, and I know how unique Smooshie’s situation is. I’m pretty sure he needs a lot of help now. Do you spend a lot of time with him?”
“It’s diminished recently but only because he’s been in hospital. When they had him in the psych unit on suicide watch, it was only immediate family allowed to see him. And Sash, of course. That goes without saying. Even then, for awhile, he didn’t want his family there. You have to take him a day at a time. That’s the key of it. It’s all Sash does. Now that Smooshie’s stabilising with the intense treatment, he’s back in his sweet, kind headspace where he’s full of love for everything that gives him a reason to keep living. He comes by here a lot to hang out if Sash is at school or they both come over for dinner with us on our days off. They’re just adorable, I love them both to bits. Sash is a bit shy and might come off as reserved at first but it’s just his anxiety. He’s got as wicked a sense of humour as Jus. When he’s well, they laugh together all the time. Sash is just beautiful with his dad, too. But, you know, when Smooshie’s sick and not doing well, every time a call comes through from someone in his family, you think it’s going to be The Call… telling us he’s gone.” Reecy got teary again then and had to swallow heavily when she choked up thinking about it. The harsh reality was that a call like that could come through. Justin never hid the fact he felt suicidal, even just faintly, most of the time. You wished you could take it away for him but it was proof that you couldn’t heal mental illness with money, fame, or even love. She gave Autumn another smile, albeit a shaky one. “I think you’d be an excellent choice for the job. I really do. Just… um... never forget that every single day... could be his last. Sorry, I just--” She got up bolted backstage and even if her goal was the bathroom, she only made it as far as a nearby trashcan before she started throwing up.
Kyan had been sitting backstage chatting with Logan while they cooled down from the heavy training session. He was out of his seat in a flash as soon as he saw Reecy was sick again. They both got hit with a bug that was going around or something but it hadn’t lasted long. She seemed to bounce back quicker than he did too. He raked her hair back, catching the unruly strands sweeping her face and did his best to comb them out of her face while she was being sick. He rubbed her back and waited it out with her. “You okay, baby? Damn, I thought we shook this,” he murmured.
Autumn followed, of course. At first, she thought Reecy was rushing off because she was about to burst into tears. She hadn’t even noticed she was feeling sick. She hurried back to grab Reecy’s water bottle she had been steadily sipping from. Maybe that was a sign. It was a bit of an emotional kick seeing Kyan immediately on hand to hold her hair back and rub her back. Concern was written all over his face and Autumn hesitantly came up and offered him the water bottle for Reecy. Shit, they were so married. The matching rings right there in front of her face were yet another reality check. She yearned to have what they did one day, all those things she failed to share with Kyan when she had the chance. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
Kyan accepted the water with a grateful smile. “This is a great help already, thanks. We were just both knocked with a stomach bug this week.” He uncapped the bottle and offered it to Reecy once she seemed to come through it pretty quickly. He had his training handtowel slung over his shoulder and he wiped Reecy’s face and mouth for her. He was much taller than her, so he dipped his head to analyse her face, still softly rubbing her back. “Want to call it a day, sweetie?”
Reecy managed to stop heaving and stood up, taking the towel from Kyan to wipe her mouth again amidst a string of colourful cussing. Her eyes darted from Kyan to Autumn and then back again. “That might be a good idea, even just to down a bottle of Pepto…” When Kyan wrapped his arms around her shoulders, she gratefully leaned into him, feeling wiped out all of a sudden. It was far from the hardest training sessions they had done but the conversation with Autumn had been heavy. Even this felt somewhat awkward and she realised it would take time to mend and heal from what their friendships had gone through. She met Autumn’s gaze. “Sorry. Let me know how you get on with Smooshie? He’s not doing too bad at the moment. Just be real with him. That’s all he ever asks of anyone.”
Reecy was pale and looked a little shaky. In any other situation, Autumn would probably feel like she was getting the brush-off. She wasn’t. She was glad to have the ice broken and neither of them were acting weird, just a little awkward. Still, it was hard for her to see them together like this for the first time. It was still a healing process for her. She would get there but she was glad to have a little out for a breather. She gave Reecy’s arm a soft pat and kissed her cheek. “Feel better, okay? I’ll text you. By the way, the routine looked great. Caden couldn’t have picked a better Johnny and Baby if he tried.” She smiled and gave them both a little wave as she left. Life in New York really had changed in her absence.
LOG, COMPLETE