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Colt arrives at Tom’s loft and climbs up to the patio to let himself in. He really wants to just find Tom and get out of here. No funny games or pranks. Hopefully Tom is in his right mind and not blitzed. Tom stopped doing a lot of that stuff a while back, but this could be the start of all that bullshit again. Colt announces himself as he walks down the stairs. No one answers, the place seems empty. He takes notice that there are sticky notes adhered randomly on the walls and surfaces. Okay, yeah Tom’s doing that still. Finding a control panel on the wall, Colt turns on the lights and triggers a sound system. DJ Kahlid, okay then. Whatever. The cockatoo that screeches at him gives him a bit of a startle but no big deal. With the lights on it is very typical “Tom” in here. Weird art pieces and movie memorabilia. Some stuff from Tom’s own films. A helmet held in red gloves, boxing gear, a gun. Colt checks, loaded, with blanks.
There’s also a few odd items that seem out of place. A composition notebook sitting on the coffee table, a soft cardigan draped over a chair and a candy dish sitting on the counter. Sour skittles. Definitely not a Tom choice. Colt snags a bag anyway.
With the noise and lights, if Tom was here, he probably would’ve made an appearance by now.
This is a dead end. At least there’s coffee. Finally.
There’s a yell and a sword coming at him. Try as he might he ends up spilling the coffee he just spent time making. Dammit. He manages to stop his attacker once the sword ends up embedded in the wall. It’s a prop, still dangerous if it can slice a metal spout off a sink and stab into a wall.
“So we done now?” He turns to talk to her.
“Oh yeah, just thought I’d give you a fright, Gail said you’d be coming. She has me keeping an eye on the place since Tom’s missing,” She asks. Colt looks at her judgmentally. She’s got a few screws loose. She looks up at him, “Court or something?
“Colt, Colt Seavers. I’m a stunt guy working on Metalstorm. And you’re… Iggy, right?” He points at her. He recognizes her from the whole scandal involving Ryland. Somewhere in that mess while trying to keep tabs on Ryland he saw that she was also going to be in Metalstorm. “Tom’s girlfriend?”
“Nah, that’s been done for a while now. Not that it was real or anything,” she responds, her tone uncaring.
That confirms his theory then. Colt tries to dig further anyway, “What does that mean?”
“Oh you know, it’s good PR, Gail's idea,” Iggy waves a hand at him. “Pretty sure Tom’s still got a boyfriend anyway? Not that it matters.” She shrugs. “Didn’t stop Tom from getting mixed up in some bad business. Now he’s hiding somewhere.”
The phrasing throws Colt off. Tom has a boyfriend. Still? Like has had one for a while. Does that mean Tom and Ryland are still involved? It’s not exactly clear, but it’s certainly not off the table. The couple of odd items hanging about click into slots that fit Ryland more than Tom. It’s not 100 percent confirmation though. That’s not why Colt’s here anyway. He can try to ask Ryland later, if he can actually get him to stop and talk. Right now he needs to find Tom. Priorities.
“Speaking of, you know where I can find him?”
“You could try this guy Doone at this club Tom frequents?” She gives him a look up and down. “You’re gonna need a new outfit though.”
The closet all but confirms it for Colt. Ryland has been here at some point, even if it’s not long term. He’d recognize these clothes anywhere. It's either that or someone with a very similar fashion sense. Iggy sets him up with an obnoxious neon yellow outfit and the advice to act like Tom. Easy enough, he already has the experience for that.
The club is a bust. The drink he didn’t even want gets spiked. He has to chase this Doone guy down. All ending with using his body to stop a taxi. Colt is a bit beat up. A bit high still. Seeing unicorns. What the fuck is this shit? He just wants some coffee. And a bed. Doone gives another lead to the production hotel. The guy at the front desk, Kevin. Something about a fruit platter. At least he won’t have far to go when he finally crashes.
Entering the lobby from the stairwell access, Ryland almost turns himself right back around. Standing at the front desk are Jody and Colt having what appears to be a fairly friendly conversation. He’s supposed to be meeting Jody and Gail down here to go hang out while they work on some reworks to the script for the final act. Jody insisted on getting him out of his hotel for a bit. Insisted that he not be alone. She didn’t need to, he jumped at the offer. Facing Colt is not something he’s prepared to do though.
Ryland takes a deep breath. He can’t avoid him forever. Well he could certainly try, but it seems like it might be difficult. He doesn’t know if it’s worth the effort. Not when he already has what feels like a mountain of other anxieties and fears sitting on top of him. He wonders if maybe he should just rip off the bandage and get this over with. Maybe it’ll be fine. Maybe it will be terrible. At least he’ll be done with it though.
He runs a hand through his hair and walks over. He makes eye contact with Jody first then with Colt. He seems a tad unfocused. There’s a cut on his face and his outfit is oddly familiar.
“Studio wants me to contort it so it ends happily,” Jody says. “I would strongly disagree with that. It’s not realistic.”
The third act has been a point of pain for Jody. She’s been trying to push for what she considers a more realistic ending. Ryland can understand the perspective, but the studio wants that feel good, consumable ending. It’ll sell better to audiences.
Ryland can hear Gail coming a mile away. Talking loudly on her phone. They’ll have to leave shortly. He braces himself with one more deep breath. If Jody can have a reasonably friendly chat with Colt, Ryland should be able to manage. It's just Colt. He can do this.
“Oh Ryland, um let me just grab my things,” Jody steps away. Ryland appreciates the attempt to give him and Colt a bit of space.
He focuses back in on Colt. Yeah he’s definitely not completely balanced. He’s got a lop-sided grin on his face, his eyes are a bit unfocused and there's a slight sway to him. Ryland finds it hard not to scrutinize him too closely.
“Are you alright?” Ryland questions with more concern than suspicion, tilting his head and furrowing his brow. He can't help it. Colt just feels… off.
“Oh, uh, yeah yeah,” Colt starts. “I can’t believe you’re here. I have so many questions.”
“Yeah, well,” Ryland fiddles with the zipper on his hoodie. “I don’t think this is really the time for that. You look dead on your feet and I’m a bit short on time here. Maybe tomorrow would be better?”
He’s not trying to postpone. He’d much rather get this over with now. Colt just doesn’t seem to be in any condition to have this conversation though. Gail's rapid approach would interrupt the conversation as well. She’s going to whisk them away as quickly as she can.
“Okay, tomorrow,” Colt agrees. “I’ll find you.”
Gail comes around the corner on the phone and rapidly finishes her call. Jody has all her things gathered. Gail takes a moment to talk to Colt. Something about him having a hectic night. Looking at him, that checks out. Gail wraps it up quickly enough. She grabs Ryland's arm and starts steering him and Jody out the front of the hotel. Ryland gives a small wave as he stumbles a bit. Colt returns the gesture. He finds himself in the backseat of a familiar black SUV driven by a different, but still scary looking, member of Tom’s security staff.
Colt receives a call from Jody to bounce ideas.
He finds the fruit platter.
Turns out it's a dead guy on ice in the tub of the hotel room.
He drops his freshly brewed coffee, immediately sobers, maybe loses 20 minutes to the shock and subsequent freak out.
Calls Gail. Don’t call the police, she tells him.
He doesn’t need to, they find him.
The body disappears.
Colt is done with tonight. The sun is literally about to start coming up.
6 A.M. hits like a brick after a night of running around, getting drugged, stopping a vehicle with his own body and discovering a crime scene. Colt’s got work to do. And a conversation that’s way too long overdue with Ryland. He’s sore and tired, but maybe he’ll actually finally get some coffee this morning and everything will go alright. If the tone set by last night is anything to go by, it's going to be chaos. The Sydney Opera House looms at the top of the steps as he confides in Dan about some of the events of last night. Colt needs to tell Jody. Dan tries to reason with him. Colt was high. Ice baths are a thing people do. Ok Dan.
He has to tell Jody.
Except he doesn’t tell her. It gets lost immediately as she goes on about how their conversation the night previous inspired her. She’s so excited Colt can’t even get a word in anyway. Tom is still missing but she doesn’t even need Tom. He runs weird and can’t do action. Her words. All she needs is Colt. Colt can do it all. Everything except for the face. They stick dots on him so they can impose Tom over it. Colt feels absolutely ecstatic. Jody needs him. Jody wants him here. He’s got a little under 4 hours till the big one shot sequence she has planned for the day. Smaller less intense shots before that. He doesn’t want to wait any longer if he can avoid it. If he wants to talk to Ryland now is the time.
Ryland finds a spot by a boom lift and makes it his home for now. It’s close enough he can easily be located, but keeps him safely out of the way. They won’t really need this lift till they do the big fight sequence in a few hours. His semi-permanent, shadow is about 15 feet away keeping an eye on him. It’s so weird being under constant watch like this. At minimum the attention makes it difficult for him to find the privacy to have a breakdown. At least more than he has. His hotel room is still fair game for a good crying session, when things become too overwhelming. When his brain starts feeding him all sorts of troubling scenarios. It doesn’t stop him from fidgeting nervously right now. He knows he must look stressed and jittery. Tom’s phone weighing down his pocket, a constant reminder of the reason for his anxiety. For some reason he just can’t separate himself from it.
Colt approaches, already fully suited up in his costume. Trench coat billowing behind him. His strides are just as confident as the character he’s dressed as. Ryland can’t help himself from fiddling with his hands. They need to talk, but it's still distressing. It’s just been so long. Ryland wonders if they’ll even be able to have a reasonably effective conversation. This could end up just making things worse. He really doesn’t want it to. He missed Colt. Even with all the hurt and pain. Even with how hectic and crazy things have been.
“So a consultant on Metalstorm, eh?” Colt starts off with something easy. He’s takes a spot standing to the side of Ryland with a couple feet between them. They could keep it strictly professional. Impersonal. Not dig too deeply. Be estranged siblings for the rest of their lives that only see each other once in a great while.
That sounds awful.
Ryland looks over to Colt in the corner of his vision before looking away again. Down at the ground.
“Uh, yeah,” Ryland responds. “I needed something to do so I wouldn’t drive myself crazy with boredom. Jody made the offer.”
“That’s good,” Colt states. “I’m glad she was there for you.”
The fact that Colt wasn’t goes unstated. Whether he even realizes it or not.
“Yeah, she’s pretty amazing. I can see why you like her,” Ryland says. It’s so obvious even now that Colt is still pining for her. To some degree it looks like it might be mutual.
They stand silently for a moment. Ryland almost thinks this might be it. That the distance between them might never get closed. A wound that will never be fixed.
Ryland startles as Colt breaks the silence, “I’m sorry.”
Ryland looks over and their eyes meet. Colt is wearing his misery and guilt plainly on his face.
“I was terrible. A dick. I shouldn’t have said any of that to you. I let my anger and bitterness and feelings of failure take control. I hurt you.” Colt continues. He’s taking accountability.
Gosh Ryland wants to forgive him. It’d be so nice to let this all go. Is this apology enough though? He remembers mourning the loss of a relationship so important to him when he walked out the door. The misery that had followed him home and settled in his heart. The stab of despair anytime he so much as thought about Colt. Then months later the feeling of abandonment when he had tried to reach out for help. The rush of all those thoughts and feelings cause tears to start to sting in his eyes. He brings a hand to his chin as he looks away and tries to suppress the shake of his shoulders. He’s not ready yet. Saying so would be a lie to Colt and to himself.
“I… I don’t… I’m not,” Ryland stutters. He can’t get the words out around the tightness in his throat.
“You don’t have to, forgive me, that is. I’ll keep working at it,” Colt acknowledges his struggle. “Can we still talk though? I just… I’ve missed out on so much, my fault I know, but I really want to know what happened to bring you here. You don’t have to but…”
Ryland nods. Takes a shuddering breath. Colt moves to stand in front of him so that they are face to face. Ryland starts fiddling with his hands again.
He starts talking. Once he does it's all too easy to keep going. Colt listens.
“I never stopped seeing Tom, we just got better at hiding it,” he starts. Colt definitely doesn’t look surprised. Odd. He also doesn’t look particularly thrilled. Ryland knows that the ship has sailed on them getting along. That’s fine. They don’t need to be friends. Ryland presses on, “Things were going so good, I was back to work teaching. The scandal had died down, the parents and my co-workers had mostly stopped talking poorly about me and giving me dirty looks. But…”
It’s always hard to get it out. It's up there on the list of worst days of his life. Dwarfed only by the sight of Colt breaking upon the ground almost 18 months ago. Dredging it up always brings back the feelings of despair and vulnerability. The feeling of being exposed. The destruction of his safe space. It’s been a slowly healing wound. One that always feels a little raw on the occasions Ryland has talked about it.
Colt holds out a hand for him to grab. Ryland takes it. Colt squeezes.
“My apartment got leaked online and someone broke in,” Ryland reveals.
“What? When did this happen? You didn’t get hurt did you?” Colt interrupts. His protective streak coming out. He grips Ryland’s hand a little harder. Like he’s checking to make sure he’s actually here. That Ryland isn’t just a figment of his imagination. It’s grounding in a way Ryland didn’t know he needed.
“No, I called the police. Whoever did it was already gone,” Ryland looks at Colt and runs a hand through his own hair before letting it rest at the back of his neck. The way he grips at it, an attempt to self sooth. The concern and shock on Colt’s face ebb slightly. “I didn’t feel safe there anymore. The school put me on a sabbatical. Tom helped me. I got my affairs in order in a few weeks and I’ve been here since. This was maybe six or so months ago”
“Six months ago?” Colt asks and looks up with thought, before a look of guilt finds a home on his face. “You… You tried to call me?”
Ryland nods.
“I didn’t pick up.”
“No.”
“You needed help and I wasn’t there,” Colt looks mortified. “Shit. I’m the worst. I don’t know how I can possibly make it up to you. I don’t deserve your forgiveness.” He looks thoughtful for a moment before the shame seems to hit again. “I owe Tom big time.”
Ryland decides to release some tension. This conversation has been heavy enough. They don’t need to keep that weight going. He doesn’t need to feed Colt’s guilt either. Colt can do that all by himself, “Well when he turns back up you can tell him that to his face.”
When not if. Tom isn’t gone. He’s going to come back and everything is going to work out. Ryland has to believe that. The alternative, too painful to think about.
“Okay, okay,” Colt agrees, releasing Ryland’s hand. “You don’t know where he is?”
“No,” Ryland confirms. “There’s something bad going on though.”
A part of him really wants to tell Colt more. Give him the little details he has. Several months ago he would’ve without a doubt in his mind. The trust isn’t back yet. That and this thing with Tom is dangerous. One wrong move feels like it could have it unraveling into something terrible. The end of that isn’t something Ryland wants the fault for causing. Ryland looks over Colt’s shoulder, a PA is approaching.
“I think our time is up,” Ryland motions with his chin. Colt looks behind and nods. The PA points at him and motions for Colt to follow them. Colt gives them a thumbs up.
“I’ll catch you later, okay?”
Ryland watches as Colt runs off. Colt’s going to get a full day in if Jody follows through on her plan to have him cover for some of Tom’s parts. At least it’ll be fun to see him back in action. They aren’t back to normal yet. They can figure it all out in due time.
Colt doesn’t know how he manages everything with how little sleep he’s gotten. Even with the coffee he managed to drink he’s feeling a bit worn out. He thinks it might have something to do with seeing how thrilled Jody was the whole time. No it’s definitely that. This is what a set should feel like. Fun, energetic, collaborative. All the pieces coming together to tell a story. It was an awesome day. It just adds to his resolve to save this film. Jody deserves to be able to share her vision. Not just with Metalstorm, but future films too. She’s going to go so far. He can’t let this die.
Colt is still partially in costume, sitting on the opera house steps, when she gives him a frankly cute, rambling invite to karaoke. His reply is just as embarrassing. Come on man, finger guns?
“I saw that,” Dan says walking up from behind. Ryland walking alongside him looks at him with poorly hidden amusement.
Dan gives him a little more shit, but Colt takes it all in good faith. He can’t be mad about it. Jody invited him out.
As they continue down the steps, Dan’s arm draped over Ryland’s shoulders. Ryland half turns to wave, “Karaoke? See you later?”
“Yeah, see ya!” Colt yells back. This is going so good. The circumstances could be better, but he’s made a lot of headway with Jody and Ryland. Their willingness to let him back in after what he did is something he is going to cherish forever. They both would’ve been well within their right to tell him to fuck off. Or fudge off in Ryland’s case. He won’t be squandering this second chance.
Colt furrows his brow as he watches them go. That guy in tactical gear has been around a lot, hasn’t he? Maybe it's just a coincidence.
He’s gotta get out of this costume and do some paperwork before he can leave for the day. Per diem is a pain in the ass, but it's part of the gig. Plus he worked through one of his designated meal breaks for that big sequence. He’s not going to push too hard on the penalty for that, but normally they’d have to pay him out for it.
Gail walks up as he’s having that exact discussion. A ticket to go home left in his hands with a ride waiting. No thank you.
The site of Alma gives him an idea though.
Not a second after she tells him that Tom’s phone is in Ryland’s possession does he find himself suddenly chasing after a garbage skid truck with his new companion in tow. Jean-Claude is incredibly helpful and adept. It’s still a huge mess with more close calls than Colt would like. He walks away a little worse off than Alma, but they are both okay. She opens her phone to call Gail as she walks away.
He needs to find Ryland. Now.
Gripping Jean-Claude’s leash, he runs to the karaoke bar.
“What the fuck is Gail doing?” Tom wonders aloud as he paces in the yacht docked by his loft.
This doesn’t sound like what he and Gail had agreed upon. He doesn’t know if he’s meant to be aware of it, but once Iggy had told him about some of the details of her interaction with Colt it was too easy to follow up with Doone and start drawing some conclusions. What would be the purpose of drugging Colt if the goal was to frame him? All they need to do is get his face on the video or place him at the scene somehow. Okay, it's more complicated than that, but still. Gail is proceeding as if…
No.
She said she wouldn’t. But…
The pieces are lining up.
Tom stops. Processing. Iggy and Doone are going along with this? That seems so crazy. What do they possibly have to gain from it? Does it even matter? Gail is great at getting people to move the way she wishes. For all he knows, she’s got some dirt on them.
He grabs the burner phone that Gail had delivered and calls her. He’s gotta get this under control right now, before someone (else) loses their life.
She answers with no pleasantries. It makes sense.
“Iggy and Doone just told me some things I found rather interesting, Gail.” Tom questions keeping his voice low and level. Deadly serious. In the back of his mind he thinks about Ryland. Gail’s got a stacked deck here. All the same, he can’t let her keep pushing this plan forward, but he’s in a bind here. At least he can find out just how serious she is about it and maybe make a plan of his own. He can’t just wait and do nothing at this point.
“Listen…” She starts.
Tom doesn’t want to listen. “We can’t do this. You agreed. No one is to die,” he interrupts.
“Oh, Tom. We can’t leave any loose ends here. The plan is already in motion. You can’t stop it,” She says. “If you try you know what happens.”
“How do I know you’re not bluffing? You’ve already lied about this, so why should I believe you?” Tom argues. He needs evidence that her threats aren't empty.
A series of pings sound from his phone. He pulls it away from his ear to check. Various photos at several different times and locations of Ryland being tailed by one of his own security staff. Tom feels panic begin to rise. He can't let it take over. He pushes it back. He can panic after this is all said and done. He returns the phone to his ear.
“Gail…”
“All I have to do is send a text or make a call,” Gail says with venom dripping. “Stay in your lane. Let me handle this. If you don’t, you won’t like what happens.”
He already doesn’t like it. Ryland being in close proximity to danger makes it worse. Tom doesn’t fully understand why Gail is pushing so hard. He could turn himself in and this could be done, but she is insistent. Is Metalstorm really that big of a deal?
Tom concedes. That doesn’t mean he’s going to give up. He looks over at his loft from the lower deck of the yacht. He could sneak in if needed. At least have a go-bag ready to get Ryland and run. Leaving Colt to fend for himself isn’t his goal, but given the choice he knows already who he is picking. It's going to leave him in a constant state of stress, but it's a small price. Mind settled. It's not a lot but it's what he can do for now.
Tom is hardly an expert on what would be essential and he lacks most of what he would like to have in the backpack he finds buried in his closet. A change of clothes for both himself and Ryland and a first aid kit is at least a start. He finds Ryland's spare pair of glasses and tucks them carefully in a pocket on the front of the bag. While here he finds his most comfortable but sturdy outfit. Jeans, t-shirt, jacket, boots. Good enough to make a run for it if the time arises. He doesn’t want to jump the gun and cause chaos, but being prepared is better than nothing.
Returning to the yacht, Tom waits for Gail’s next move.