ADDING AGONY TO INJURY
JASON
"GODDAMMIT!" Jason Kamealoha yelled after landing on the floor, his ankle in a direction he was pretty sure it shouldn't have been in.
"Hey, you were supposed to fall the other way, man!" the bit actor he was fighting with yelled.
"Cut! CUT! Fuck, Jason, what's wrong with you?" Marcus Cameron's voice boomed across the set.
"I'm fine," he responded through gritted teeth, pissed at himself for missing the mark yet again. "Let's just--let's just do it again." He then winced in pain at the attempt to move it, an expression he couldn't hide from his director.
Marcus walked up and stood over Jason, hands on his hips. "What happened?"
Jason glared up at him. "I went the wrong way. You saw it."
"How's the ankle?"
"It'll be fine."
"Judging by your face, it doesn't seem fine."
"Fuck," Jason muttered.
Marcus sighed and looked around and motioned to a couple of crew members. "Get him to the medic. Hopefully they can work miracles over there."
Minutes later, Jason was sitting in the medic's trailer as the nurse wrapped his ankle. It was embarrassing as shit. He hated injuring himself during filming. When he was working, he felt invincible. When he injured himself, it was because of his own, stupid mistakes.
As the nurse finished him up, Marcus Cameron walked in the door. "What are we looking at?"
The nurse smiled. "It's not serious. Just a twist. It would be a good idea if he stayed off of it for the rest of the day, though, just to be on the safe side. The wrap is just for good measure."
"Shit," Marcus sighed as he rubbed his head. "Okay. We'll just get the double to film it then."
"NO," Jason replied firmly. "No stunt doubles. I can do it myself, I don't need a fucking double."
"Yeah, well your double has two working feet today and I gotta get this scene finished so we can move on to the next one."
"So move on to the next one today and we can revisit this one tomorrow."
"It doesn't work like that."
"Sure it does. You're the director, make it happen."
"What's going on with you, Jason?"
Jason glared at Marcus before focusing his attention back on his ankle. "I'm fine."
"You're not. It's like your head's not in it--"
"My head's in it," he objected. "My head is always in it."
"Not lately. This is your third injury in two weeks, you're missing your cues, forgetting lines, fucking up simple fighting moves--stuff you should have down cold. I know you can do this. What I don't understand is why AREN'T you doing it?"
"What, I'm not a allowed a mistake here and there?"
"Not this many. It's concerning, Jason, it really is. So, again, I ask you, for the sake of this movie, WHAT is going on in that brain of yours?"
Jason sighed and shook his head. "Look, I haven't seen my wife since I married her last month. Three days ago, she ended up having an emergency appendectomy They've kept her hopped up on pain pills, so I haven't talked to her yet and I stay glued to my phone for updates. I don't sleep much and I call home every spare second I get. Sue me if I'm just slightly distracted."
Marcus rubbed his eyes with his thumb and forefinger. "Uh, wow. Why the hell didn't you say anything?"
"Because we have a film to shoot."
"Well, yeah, but--if that were my wife--"
"Mel understands that I have to work."
"If that were my wife," Marcus repeated. "I'd be on the first flight out."
Jason glared at his director. "Yeah, well...we can't all always get what we want, can we?"
"I can allot you maybe four days."
Surprised, Jason's eyes widened. "What?"
"I can make some scheduling adjustments. I can give you maybe four days."
"But--it's going to take at least 24 hours to take the actual trip--"
"There are flights out there where you can make it in half that. That's the best I can do. Take it or leave it."
"I'll take it." Suddenly, Jason forgot all about his twisted ankle and now focused on how brutally long the trip home would be.
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TAYLOR
Taylor Hanson sat on the side of Melody Kamealoha's bed in her Malibu home as he watched her eyes slowly crack open. She moaned slightly as she woke up and once her eyes were open, she looked at him strangely. "Tay?"
He smiled at her, unable to help himself. "Hey. How are you feeling?"
"Thirsty," she groaned out as she looked listlessly around.
He sat up and retrieved the fresh water that Martina, the housekeeper, had brought in several minutes before. Adjusting the straw, he held the glass to her mouth and watched her suck up at least half of it before she pushed it away. As he put the glass back where he got it, she seemed more awake and she looked at him, confused. "What are you doing here? Where's Jason? I want Jason."
Taylor couldn't help feeling the sting from her words as she asked for Jason. He remembered the time when she used to ask for him. But then, Jason was her husband now. Why wouldn't she ask for him? "You know Jason's working," he said gently.
She huffed lightly and then cocked her head to the side. "Well, explain you, then."
He couldn't help but chuckle a little. "We did a show in LA last night," he said, referring to himself and his brothers, who formed the band Hanson. "I decided to give you a call, see how you were, and Martina answered your cell phone, expecting Jason, I imagine. Anyway, she told me what happened to you and I thought I'd stop by and check up on you. I hope that's okay."
His heart warmed a little when a smile crept across her face. "Of course that's okay," she said. "It's sweet of you." Then she sighed and looked around. "I've been out of the hospital for two days now and I still can't seem to get out of this funk. It's like all I do is take pills and sleep. But if I don't take pills, my fucking side hurts where they rooted around in there and shit. It's a lose-lose situation."
"I'm sorry," he said gently. "Does, uh, does Jason know?"
Mel sighed. "I think so. I mean, I'm sure he does. It's been almost a week now."
"You haven't talked to him?"
"I spent three days in the hospital and I stayed on pain medication. I've been home for two days now and all I've done is eat more pills and sleep more. I want to talk to him, I just haven't been physically able to. I'm sure Martina's been keeping him updated, though, as best she can with the time difference." She sighed again and looked toward the doorway. "Poor Martina. I feel bad for her. She has family of her own. She doesn't need to be spending so much time with me, you know?"
"She's happy to do it," Taylor said. "You need someone to look out for you."
Mel scowled at him. "I'm fine, as long as I have my pain meds and some water. I can at least sleep through the night alone."
"You shouldn't go through this alone at all."
"I'm not alone," she said, seemingly offended. "When Martina can't come, Sarah's here. And I've seen David a couple of times, too, in between dozing off. I'm not short on support here."
"But not Jason."
Now she glared at him. Taylor swallowed a lump in his throat. He'd gone too far. He was known for not thinking before he spoke sometimes. This was one of those times that he should have done just that. "Jason is working. All the way over in Europe. He can't just drop everything and run every single time I end up in the hospital."
Taylor raised an eyebrow. "Every single time?"
"Let's face it, I've spent a good bit of time in the hospital this year."
He furrowed his brow. "Once. You spent one time in the hospital back when you miscarried."
"The first time," she said, listlessly.
"Excuse me?"
Mel looked at him, her eyes widening. Then she looked out the sliding glass doors at the ocean waves crashing outside the door. "I'm on drugs. Ignore whatever I say."
"No," he pressed. "What other time are you talking about?"
"There is no other time," she said, annoyed. "Forget it."
"You're lying."
"I said it's not important."
"If it's not important, then you wouldn't be fighting me about it."
"Goddamit, Tay, fine! Okay? I had a second miscarriage. After you and I split up."
Taylor felt like he'd just been punched in the stomach. He was speechless. "It was--mine...?"
Mel continued on her tirade, oblivious to him. "I went to the doctor last week because I thought I was pregnant. In the midst of it all, I found out that there's only, like, a ten percent chance of me ever having children. Okay? So I'll probably never get pregnant again, I'll probably never give birth, and Jason doesn't fucking know yet. Okay? Are you happy now?"
Taylor broke out into a cold sweat. He was suddenly sick to his stomach. He looked over at her, his hands pressed against his mouth as his elbows rested on his knees. "How far along were you?" He asked quietly.
Mel searched his eyes for a moment, her own full of regret. She let out a breath. "I was twelve weeks along when I found out. But it turned out that I'd lost the baby at nine and didn't even know it."
He could only look at her. He was silent. She stared back at him, helplessly. Finally, she whispered, "I'm sorry."
"Twelve weeks, that's--we had--you--why wouldn't you tell me?"
"What was the point, Tay? Honestly. I mean, think about it."
"All those times we talked on the phone--you knew. You knew you were pregnant. And you didn't tell me."
"It wouldn't have changed anything, Tay. You know it wouldn't have. And then I lost it, so--I mean, really, what would have been the point?"
"Jason knew. Didn't he? He knew. About OUR child."
"He was there."
"I could have been. If you'd have told me."
Mel sighed and looked out the window again. "I wasn't even gonna tell HIM. That was an accident. For the record, he wanted me to tell you. He harped on me every day about it. But something kept telling me not to say anything. I guess maybe that was it."
"Yeah, but--"
Suddenly, there was anger in her voice. "Yeah, but what? What would you have wanted to hear? 'Hey, I was pregnant with our child, but now it's dead. Have a nice life.' Look, I'm not trying to dismiss your feelings here, but you're not the one who had to stare at our dead child on an ultrasound screen, okay? I still fucking have nightmares about it sometimes. It's not a fun experience." Then she lowered her voice. "But I can't have kids at all now, so at least I don't have to worry about going through THAT again."
Taylor was silent as he stared at the floor. He didn't know what he was supposed to think right now. Or how he was supposed to feel. This wasn't something he could just simply let roll off his back, but at the same time, what could really be done about it? It was all said and done. And she was right, she was the one ultimately having to deal with it, not him. Then there was the fact that he'd gotten her pregnant--twice--and both times she'd lost the baby. How was he supposed to feel about that? Was it an omen on their relationship? That they were doomed from the start? Well, they obviously were, since she ended up marrying Jason.
Remembering her current condition, he finally gave in, defeated. "You're right," he sighed. "You're right. I, uh, I didn't come here for that. I came here because of your appendix."
"Tay--"
"No. You're right. What good would my knowing have done? Probably would have just driven me further back into nuthouse, if we're being honest here. I probably couldn't have handled the news back then."
"And now?"
"Well, it's upsetting, but really, what can I do about it?"
Mel's face fell in shame. "I should have told you. You shouldn't have found out like this."
Letting out a breath, not really knowing where to go from there, he looked over at her. "Look, I gotta go. We gotta hit the road tonight."
"You can't stay a little longer?"
Taylor's heart melted. She had no idea how it felt to hear her say something like that to him. It didn't just tug on his heart strings, it pulled and ripped and mauled at them. He knew it would take time to get over her, but this was insane. Sadly, though, he shook his head. "I'm sorry, I really can't. I gotta get going."
"Please don't leave here mad at me," she pleaded.
He smiled a weak smile at her. "I'm not leaving here mad at you."
"Promise?"
"I promise." He stood and leaned over in the bed, hugging her as best he could, a gesture he probably should have stayed away from. "Take care of yourself, okay? Do what the doctor tells you to do. Don't try any funny stuff. I'm just a phone call away if you need me."
She smiled and nodded as he pulled away from her. "Thank you for coming by," she said in a small voice. "It really means a lot. And I'm sorry that--well, I'm sorry for--you know--"
"It'll be okay," he assured her. "I promise."
Leaving Mel's side in a time of need was one of the hardest things Taylor had ever done. However, learning that she had been nearly three months pregnant with their child and he hadn't even known it--well, that would take some time to process and that was better done as far away from her as possible.
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SARAH
Sarah Grant had to own up to the small mix of emotions she felt when she met Taylor Hanson in the middle of Mel's and Jason's courtyard. He was leaving as she was arriving with an overnight bag. At first, her heart fluttered just a little. Sarah loved her husband, a tall, gorgeous international model. But she, along with most every woman in the world, couldn't deny how beautiful Taylor Hanson was. There was just this--something about him...
However, she was also slightly confused to see him there. At how and why he ended up there. He was still good friends with Mel and she supposed it shouldn't have surprised her that he visited while she was under the weather. Still, though. With Taylor here, and Jason in Europe, Sarah still couldn't deny the awkwardness of the situation. So she vocalized it. "Uh, Taylor. Hi. Fancy meeting you here."
He smiled at her nervously. "Hey. Uh, Sarah, right? We met at the wedding."
"Yeah..." She nodded her head, her eyes narrowed. "What brings you all the way to Malibu?"
"Uh, just checking up on Mel. I was in the area and I heard about her surgery, so..."
"Right..."
"Anyway, I was just leaving. Uh, she's awake right now. She didn't take anything while I was there, so she might be awake for awhile."
"Yeah," she said knowingly. "She's been awake the past couple of nights..."
"Uh, yeah, so. It was good seeing you," he said.
"You, too. I'll lock the gate behind you."
"Yeah," he said. "Good idea."
After locking the gate and walking through the courtyard underneath the dusk sky, Sarah couldn't help but wonder what Jason would have to say about Taylor's being there. She knew Mel couldn't have possibly had anything to do with it, seeing as she'd been mostly incoherent since her surgery, but how he conveniently ended up in that place and that time was a complete mystery.
Walking in the house, she spied Martina coming from Mel's and Jason's bedroom. "Martina," Sarah hissed as she walked in the living room and laid her bags down on the sofa. "I just met Taylor Hanson in the courtyard."
"Yes, Miss Sarah."
Sarah blinked her eyes at Martina for a second. "Why?"
"I don't know," Martina replied. "I guess to see how Miss Melody is doing. He called her phone and I answered because she was sleeping. I thought it might be Mr. Jason calling from a strange number. Anyway, I told him she was sleeping but he was welcome to visit."
"You invited him."
"Mr. Jason told me to do what I felt was in Miss Melody's best interest. I thought some company might cheer her up. Taylor is her friend."
Sarah nodded. "That, he is..." Taking a deep breath, she changed the subject. "So how's she been today?"
"Sleepy. She slept almost all day long. Woke up long enough to have a short conversation with Mr. Taylor before he had to leave. She's awake now if you'd like to see her. But not for much longer, she just took another pill."
Flipping her long, red hair off of her shoulder and tying it up in a ponytail, she entered Mel's and Jason's room and smiled as Mel sat up in the bed. "Good morning, sunshine," Sarah smiled.
Mel scoffed. "Morning? Sunshine? It's fucking nine at night. I can't even keep a fucking sleeping schedule. You know, I've had surgery before, but this one is just a pain in the ass."
"I'm sorry," Sarah said as she sat on the edge of the bed.
"It's kicking my ass. All I do is take pills and sleep. This is stupid, when does the pain go away?"
"Give it another day or two," Sarah said. "It usually just depends on the surgery. Yours was a little more...extensive, I think."
"Extensive?"
"Well, honey, it's not like you had good, old fashioned appendicitis. Your appendix almost ruptured. They managed to catch it in the nick of time."
"My appendix can go to hell."
Sarah giggled. "Well, it kinda did."
"Good."
"So, uh, I saw Taylor outside..."
Mel smiled. "It was nice of him to visit, wasn't it?"
"Yeah..."
"It was weird. I just woke up and there he was."
"Indeed..."
"Why are you acting like that?"
"Like what?"
"You're acting like he did something wrong. Or maybe--you think *I* did something wrong?"
"No," Sarah said quickly. "No, not at all! It's just--it's kinda awkward seeing your ex here, you know? That's all."
Mel sighed and rested her head back against the head board. "Yeah. I can see how that would be weird. But he was cool, it's okay. I think I ran him off anyway." She looked back at Sarah. "I told him about the miscarriage."
Sarah gasped. "Mel..."
"I know. It slipped out. I was talking about being in the hospital and it slipped out. Anyway, I think it scared him off. He didn't stay but just a few more minutes after that."
"Is he mad?"
"I honestly don't know. I think he's hurt. That much I know. I mean, I KINDA feel bad, but I kinda don't. I'm sort of having a hard time sympathizing with him in this situation. You know? Does that make me an awful person?"
Sarah shook her head in thought. "I don't think so...I mean he seemed to be okay out there, so..."
"He'll be okay," Mel agreed. "But now I wonder if I should have told him after all."
"Is dwelling on the past going to make it any better?"
Mel smiled at her. "You sound like Jason right now." Then she sighed. "God, I miss him so much."
Sarah reached out and took Mel by the hand. "Have you talked to him?"
"Fuck no. I stay drugged up and I sleep. And when I'm awake, I only get his voicemail. This has been the worst week ever."
"Well, he calls every day," Sarah said. "He talks to Martina. As far as I know, it's usually when you're sleeping. He's called me twice."
Mel's eyes widened. "Why won't anyone wake me up?"
"Because he won't let us. He says if you're sleeping, let you sleep."
"But that's not fair--"
"Mel, he only wants you to get well and get through recovery as quickly as possible. Okay? Nobody's being facetious here. He cares about you."
"I know," Mel sighed. "I know. I just--I need him."
"I know."
"I wish this would have happened while he was still here."
Sarah scoffed a laugh. "I wish it hadn't happened at all."
Finally a small smile crossed Mel's face. "Yeah. You got me there."
Suddenly, both women heard a sound that neither one of them ever expected to hear. "Mel?" Jason's voice called through the house.
Sarah looked at Mel and Mel's eyes widened, her breath catching in her throat. "Jason?" She said out loud.
Turning around, Sarah spied Jason standing at the bedroom door and she was in shock. He was supposed to be in Europe. Filming. He hadn't told anyone he was coming home--and he had barely missed Taylor by at least half an hour. The irony.
However, before Sarah could speak, she witnessed Mel's face lighting up like the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree and she held her arms out to him upon sight, tears immediately streaming down her face. As Jason crossed the room and placed himself directly into her arms, Sarah took this time to quietly step away and out of the room, getting a little teary-eyed herself at the reunion.
Suddenly missing her husband, she placed herself on the living room sofa and began to text David.
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JASON
The plane ride had been brutal. His phone died during his layover in London. The payphone he finally managed to find was only good long enough to get a full mailbox on Mel's voicemail. It was agony. Sixteen hours in travel time and no way possible to contact his wife until he got home.
Now he held her tightly and kissed the top of her head as her muffled sobs soaked his shoulder with tears. "Shh," he said softly as he stroked her hair. "It's okay."
"I missed you so much," she said through her tears and into his shirt.
"I missed you, too, gorgeous. I got here as fast as I could." He pulled away and wiped her face and smoothed back her hair. "How are you feeling? Are you okay?"
She collapsed back into his chest. "Just hold me right now."
"Okay," he replied, tightening his arms around her. "Okay."
Moments later, she was sniffling and pulling away from him. She wiped her eyes and looked up at him. "You have no idea how happy I am to see you."
He smiled. "If it's anything like how I feel, then yeah, I do."
"How are you here?"
"Marcus let me off for a couple days to come home and see you."
"A couple?"
"Yeah," he nodded sadly. "I'm here for the next two days and then I have to go back."
She looked up at him, her eyes heavy. "Tay was, I have to tell you something...but I'm so sleepy..."
Her words slurred together but she'd said enough to cause alarms to go off in his head. "Taylor what, honey?"
She shook her head and whispered, "I don't know...my pill...I want to stay awake because I want to be with you, but I just...can't..."
"Jesus, Mel, what the fuck do they have you on?"
"Idunno..." Within moments, she had hunkered back down on her pillow and closed her eyes.
Jason didn't know whether to be concerned or fuming.
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SARAH
Sarah put down her phone and stood up when Jason walked in the room. He leaned against the doorway and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Look, uh, I got it from here. I'll take care of her for the next couple of days."
Sarah nodded. "Sure. Of course."
"Thanks for being there for her. For bringing her home and stuff. I really appreciate it. I appreciate you and David and Martina...I've been going insane this past week."
"I could imagine."
She was preparing to leave when he narrowed his eyes at her and his expression changed as if he wanted to say something. So she hesitated. Finally, he spoke. "So, uh, what all happened this week?"
Sarah was confused by the question. "Um...is this a trick question?"
"She said she wants to tell me something. And she mentioned Taylor. And then she fell asleep."
Sarah didn't know if her face read it or not, but her insides sure were tearing her nerves up. Apparently, it WAS written all over her face. "Sarah, what the hell is going on here?"
"Jason, it's--it's really not my place to say anything. Really."
She could see the anger all over his face. His nostrils flared as he struggled to keep his cool. "Does Taylor know it? Whatever it is?"
Sarah shook her head. "I don't know what he knows."
"Why did his name come up?"
Sarah sighed, defeated, as she dropped her overnight bag back on the sofa. "Because he was here."
"When?"
"Tonight. Right before you came home. But for the record, I'm pretty sure Mel didn't know he was coming."
The look in his eyes could have killed her, easily. He was pissed. "Who was the one who decided to keep him in the know?"
Sarah's eyes darted around, growing increasingly nervous with this sudden interrogation. "From what I understand, it came from Martina. She said that he called Mel's phone and that she answered, told him what was going on, and invited him to visit."
"Martina invited him..."
"Yes, but that's all I know."
"How long did he stay?"
"I have no idea."
Frustrated, Jason's voice raised a little. "Then how the fuck did you know he was here?"
"I met him on his way out as I was coming in," she said, her tone equally as frustrated. "I asked Martina about it and she told me the rest."
"Does what she apparently have to tell me have to do with him?"
"What?"
"She said she had something to tell me."
"Jason--don't make me--"
"Does it?" He pressed.
Sarah sighed. "No."
"Spill it."
"I am NOT going behind your wife's back and spreading her personal business!"
"I'm giving you permission."
"I don't care, I won't betray her."
"You let me take the fall for that."
"Jason--"
"NO. My wife is in there, sleeping on whatever fucking crazy narcotics those mother fuckers have her on, TRYING to talk to me, and not succeeding. I want to know what the fuck is going on in my house and I want to know NOW."
She looked back at him for a moment, tight-lipped, before she finally gave in. "Fine. Okay? Fine. She went to the doctor because she thought she was pregnant. Turns out, it was appendicitis. Apparently the two share some symptoms. Anyway, she ended up having, like, an attack or something several hours after her appointment." She paused and looked at him.
His eyes widened as he urged her on. "Okay. Is that it?"
"Come on--"
"Keep talking."
"The doctor told her she only has about a ten percent chance of ever conceiving again."
Jason looked as if he'd been punched in the gut. This was what Sarah was trying to avoid. This was why Mel should have told him, not a third party. This was horrible. Finally, he whispered. "So she can't have kids..."
"It's highly unlikely."
"So, what--I mean, what--?"
"She's had two miscarriages. She says they think it has something to do with her uterus."
"They THINK..."
"Well, then she had an emergency appendectomy and priorities took over."
Jason sighed and rubbed his hand over his face. "So how is she? How is she dealing with it?"
Sarah shook her head. "She doesn't talk much about it. Mostly she sleeps. I'm not sure she's had the opportunity to process it yet."
"Fuck," he muttered. Then he looked back at Sarah, helpless. "I can't lose her again. She can't shut down on me again."
"I really think she's okay." Sarah picked up her bag once again and headed toward the door. "Look, I'm going to leave you to it, okay? But I'm counting on you to make damn sure this doesn't come back on me. It wasn't my place to tell. You got it?"
He nodded, obvious that his mind was on other things now. "Yeah. Yeah, no problem. Thanks again. For everything."
"Anytime," she replied. "Call me if you need anything." Then she walked out the door and through the courtyard.
JASON
"GODDAMMIT!" Jason Kamealoha yelled after landing on the floor, his ankle in a direction he was pretty sure it shouldn't have been in.
"Hey, you were supposed to fall the other way, man!" the bit actor he was fighting with yelled.
"Cut! CUT! Fuck, Jason, what's wrong with you?" Marcus Cameron's voice boomed across the set.
"I'm fine," he responded through gritted teeth, pissed at himself for missing the mark yet again. "Let's just--let's just do it again." He then winced in pain at the attempt to move it, an expression he couldn't hide from his director.
Marcus walked up and stood over Jason, hands on his hips. "What happened?"
Jason glared up at him. "I went the wrong way. You saw it."
"How's the ankle?"
"It'll be fine."
"Judging by your face, it doesn't seem fine."
"Fuck," Jason muttered.
Marcus sighed and looked around and motioned to a couple of crew members. "Get him to the medic. Hopefully they can work miracles over there."
Minutes later, Jason was sitting in the medic's trailer as the nurse wrapped his ankle. It was embarrassing as shit. He hated injuring himself during filming. When he was working, he felt invincible. When he injured himself, it was because of his own, stupid mistakes.
As the nurse finished him up, Marcus Cameron walked in the door. "What are we looking at?"
The nurse smiled. "It's not serious. Just a twist. It would be a good idea if he stayed off of it for the rest of the day, though, just to be on the safe side. The wrap is just for good measure."
"Shit," Marcus sighed as he rubbed his head. "Okay. We'll just get the double to film it then."
"NO," Jason replied firmly. "No stunt doubles. I can do it myself, I don't need a fucking double."
"Yeah, well your double has two working feet today and I gotta get this scene finished so we can move on to the next one."
"So move on to the next one today and we can revisit this one tomorrow."
"It doesn't work like that."
"Sure it does. You're the director, make it happen."
"What's going on with you, Jason?"
Jason glared at Marcus before focusing his attention back on his ankle. "I'm fine."
"You're not. It's like your head's not in it--"
"My head's in it," he objected. "My head is always in it."
"Not lately. This is your third injury in two weeks, you're missing your cues, forgetting lines, fucking up simple fighting moves--stuff you should have down cold. I know you can do this. What I don't understand is why AREN'T you doing it?"
"What, I'm not a allowed a mistake here and there?"
"Not this many. It's concerning, Jason, it really is. So, again, I ask you, for the sake of this movie, WHAT is going on in that brain of yours?"
Jason sighed and shook his head. "Look, I haven't seen my wife since I married her last month. Three days ago, she ended up having an emergency appendectomy They've kept her hopped up on pain pills, so I haven't talked to her yet and I stay glued to my phone for updates. I don't sleep much and I call home every spare second I get. Sue me if I'm just slightly distracted."
Marcus rubbed his eyes with his thumb and forefinger. "Uh, wow. Why the hell didn't you say anything?"
"Because we have a film to shoot."
"Well, yeah, but--if that were my wife--"
"Mel understands that I have to work."
"If that were my wife," Marcus repeated. "I'd be on the first flight out."
Jason glared at his director. "Yeah, well...we can't all always get what we want, can we?"
"I can allot you maybe four days."
Surprised, Jason's eyes widened. "What?"
"I can make some scheduling adjustments. I can give you maybe four days."
"But--it's going to take at least 24 hours to take the actual trip--"
"There are flights out there where you can make it in half that. That's the best I can do. Take it or leave it."
"I'll take it." Suddenly, Jason forgot all about his twisted ankle and now focused on how brutally long the trip home would be.
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TAYLOR
Taylor Hanson sat on the side of Melody Kamealoha's bed in her Malibu home as he watched her eyes slowly crack open. She moaned slightly as she woke up and once her eyes were open, she looked at him strangely. "Tay?"
He smiled at her, unable to help himself. "Hey. How are you feeling?"
"Thirsty," she groaned out as she looked listlessly around.
He sat up and retrieved the fresh water that Martina, the housekeeper, had brought in several minutes before. Adjusting the straw, he held the glass to her mouth and watched her suck up at least half of it before she pushed it away. As he put the glass back where he got it, she seemed more awake and she looked at him, confused. "What are you doing here? Where's Jason? I want Jason."
Taylor couldn't help feeling the sting from her words as she asked for Jason. He remembered the time when she used to ask for him. But then, Jason was her husband now. Why wouldn't she ask for him? "You know Jason's working," he said gently.
She huffed lightly and then cocked her head to the side. "Well, explain you, then."
He couldn't help but chuckle a little. "We did a show in LA last night," he said, referring to himself and his brothers, who formed the band Hanson. "I decided to give you a call, see how you were, and Martina answered your cell phone, expecting Jason, I imagine. Anyway, she told me what happened to you and I thought I'd stop by and check up on you. I hope that's okay."
His heart warmed a little when a smile crept across her face. "Of course that's okay," she said. "It's sweet of you." Then she sighed and looked around. "I've been out of the hospital for two days now and I still can't seem to get out of this funk. It's like all I do is take pills and sleep. But if I don't take pills, my fucking side hurts where they rooted around in there and shit. It's a lose-lose situation."
"I'm sorry," he said gently. "Does, uh, does Jason know?"
Mel sighed. "I think so. I mean, I'm sure he does. It's been almost a week now."
"You haven't talked to him?"
"I spent three days in the hospital and I stayed on pain medication. I've been home for two days now and all I've done is eat more pills and sleep more. I want to talk to him, I just haven't been physically able to. I'm sure Martina's been keeping him updated, though, as best she can with the time difference." She sighed again and looked toward the doorway. "Poor Martina. I feel bad for her. She has family of her own. She doesn't need to be spending so much time with me, you know?"
"She's happy to do it," Taylor said. "You need someone to look out for you."
Mel scowled at him. "I'm fine, as long as I have my pain meds and some water. I can at least sleep through the night alone."
"You shouldn't go through this alone at all."
"I'm not alone," she said, seemingly offended. "When Martina can't come, Sarah's here. And I've seen David a couple of times, too, in between dozing off. I'm not short on support here."
"But not Jason."
Now she glared at him. Taylor swallowed a lump in his throat. He'd gone too far. He was known for not thinking before he spoke sometimes. This was one of those times that he should have done just that. "Jason is working. All the way over in Europe. He can't just drop everything and run every single time I end up in the hospital."
Taylor raised an eyebrow. "Every single time?"
"Let's face it, I've spent a good bit of time in the hospital this year."
He furrowed his brow. "Once. You spent one time in the hospital back when you miscarried."
"The first time," she said, listlessly.
"Excuse me?"
Mel looked at him, her eyes widening. Then she looked out the sliding glass doors at the ocean waves crashing outside the door. "I'm on drugs. Ignore whatever I say."
"No," he pressed. "What other time are you talking about?"
"There is no other time," she said, annoyed. "Forget it."
"You're lying."
"I said it's not important."
"If it's not important, then you wouldn't be fighting me about it."
"Goddamit, Tay, fine! Okay? I had a second miscarriage. After you and I split up."
Taylor felt like he'd just been punched in the stomach. He was speechless. "It was--mine...?"
Mel continued on her tirade, oblivious to him. "I went to the doctor last week because I thought I was pregnant. In the midst of it all, I found out that there's only, like, a ten percent chance of me ever having children. Okay? So I'll probably never get pregnant again, I'll probably never give birth, and Jason doesn't fucking know yet. Okay? Are you happy now?"
Taylor broke out into a cold sweat. He was suddenly sick to his stomach. He looked over at her, his hands pressed against his mouth as his elbows rested on his knees. "How far along were you?" He asked quietly.
Mel searched his eyes for a moment, her own full of regret. She let out a breath. "I was twelve weeks along when I found out. But it turned out that I'd lost the baby at nine and didn't even know it."
He could only look at her. He was silent. She stared back at him, helplessly. Finally, she whispered, "I'm sorry."
"Twelve weeks, that's--we had--you--why wouldn't you tell me?"
"What was the point, Tay? Honestly. I mean, think about it."
"All those times we talked on the phone--you knew. You knew you were pregnant. And you didn't tell me."
"It wouldn't have changed anything, Tay. You know it wouldn't have. And then I lost it, so--I mean, really, what would have been the point?"
"Jason knew. Didn't he? He knew. About OUR child."
"He was there."
"I could have been. If you'd have told me."
Mel sighed and looked out the window again. "I wasn't even gonna tell HIM. That was an accident. For the record, he wanted me to tell you. He harped on me every day about it. But something kept telling me not to say anything. I guess maybe that was it."
"Yeah, but--"
Suddenly, there was anger in her voice. "Yeah, but what? What would you have wanted to hear? 'Hey, I was pregnant with our child, but now it's dead. Have a nice life.' Look, I'm not trying to dismiss your feelings here, but you're not the one who had to stare at our dead child on an ultrasound screen, okay? I still fucking have nightmares about it sometimes. It's not a fun experience." Then she lowered her voice. "But I can't have kids at all now, so at least I don't have to worry about going through THAT again."
Taylor was silent as he stared at the floor. He didn't know what he was supposed to think right now. Or how he was supposed to feel. This wasn't something he could just simply let roll off his back, but at the same time, what could really be done about it? It was all said and done. And she was right, she was the one ultimately having to deal with it, not him. Then there was the fact that he'd gotten her pregnant--twice--and both times she'd lost the baby. How was he supposed to feel about that? Was it an omen on their relationship? That they were doomed from the start? Well, they obviously were, since she ended up marrying Jason.
Remembering her current condition, he finally gave in, defeated. "You're right," he sighed. "You're right. I, uh, I didn't come here for that. I came here because of your appendix."
"Tay--"
"No. You're right. What good would my knowing have done? Probably would have just driven me further back into nuthouse, if we're being honest here. I probably couldn't have handled the news back then."
"And now?"
"Well, it's upsetting, but really, what can I do about it?"
Mel's face fell in shame. "I should have told you. You shouldn't have found out like this."
Letting out a breath, not really knowing where to go from there, he looked over at her. "Look, I gotta go. We gotta hit the road tonight."
"You can't stay a little longer?"
Taylor's heart melted. She had no idea how it felt to hear her say something like that to him. It didn't just tug on his heart strings, it pulled and ripped and mauled at them. He knew it would take time to get over her, but this was insane. Sadly, though, he shook his head. "I'm sorry, I really can't. I gotta get going."
"Please don't leave here mad at me," she pleaded.
He smiled a weak smile at her. "I'm not leaving here mad at you."
"Promise?"
"I promise." He stood and leaned over in the bed, hugging her as best he could, a gesture he probably should have stayed away from. "Take care of yourself, okay? Do what the doctor tells you to do. Don't try any funny stuff. I'm just a phone call away if you need me."
She smiled and nodded as he pulled away from her. "Thank you for coming by," she said in a small voice. "It really means a lot. And I'm sorry that--well, I'm sorry for--you know--"
"It'll be okay," he assured her. "I promise."
Leaving Mel's side in a time of need was one of the hardest things Taylor had ever done. However, learning that she had been nearly three months pregnant with their child and he hadn't even known it--well, that would take some time to process and that was better done as far away from her as possible.
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SARAH
Sarah Grant had to own up to the small mix of emotions she felt when she met Taylor Hanson in the middle of Mel's and Jason's courtyard. He was leaving as she was arriving with an overnight bag. At first, her heart fluttered just a little. Sarah loved her husband, a tall, gorgeous international model. But she, along with most every woman in the world, couldn't deny how beautiful Taylor Hanson was. There was just this--something about him...
However, she was also slightly confused to see him there. At how and why he ended up there. He was still good friends with Mel and she supposed it shouldn't have surprised her that he visited while she was under the weather. Still, though. With Taylor here, and Jason in Europe, Sarah still couldn't deny the awkwardness of the situation. So she vocalized it. "Uh, Taylor. Hi. Fancy meeting you here."
He smiled at her nervously. "Hey. Uh, Sarah, right? We met at the wedding."
"Yeah..." She nodded her head, her eyes narrowed. "What brings you all the way to Malibu?"
"Uh, just checking up on Mel. I was in the area and I heard about her surgery, so..."
"Right..."
"Anyway, I was just leaving. Uh, she's awake right now. She didn't take anything while I was there, so she might be awake for awhile."
"Yeah," she said knowingly. "She's been awake the past couple of nights..."
"Uh, yeah, so. It was good seeing you," he said.
"You, too. I'll lock the gate behind you."
"Yeah," he said. "Good idea."
After locking the gate and walking through the courtyard underneath the dusk sky, Sarah couldn't help but wonder what Jason would have to say about Taylor's being there. She knew Mel couldn't have possibly had anything to do with it, seeing as she'd been mostly incoherent since her surgery, but how he conveniently ended up in that place and that time was a complete mystery.
Walking in the house, she spied Martina coming from Mel's and Jason's bedroom. "Martina," Sarah hissed as she walked in the living room and laid her bags down on the sofa. "I just met Taylor Hanson in the courtyard."
"Yes, Miss Sarah."
Sarah blinked her eyes at Martina for a second. "Why?"
"I don't know," Martina replied. "I guess to see how Miss Melody is doing. He called her phone and I answered because she was sleeping. I thought it might be Mr. Jason calling from a strange number. Anyway, I told him she was sleeping but he was welcome to visit."
"You invited him."
"Mr. Jason told me to do what I felt was in Miss Melody's best interest. I thought some company might cheer her up. Taylor is her friend."
Sarah nodded. "That, he is..." Taking a deep breath, she changed the subject. "So how's she been today?"
"Sleepy. She slept almost all day long. Woke up long enough to have a short conversation with Mr. Taylor before he had to leave. She's awake now if you'd like to see her. But not for much longer, she just took another pill."
Flipping her long, red hair off of her shoulder and tying it up in a ponytail, she entered Mel's and Jason's room and smiled as Mel sat up in the bed. "Good morning, sunshine," Sarah smiled.
Mel scoffed. "Morning? Sunshine? It's fucking nine at night. I can't even keep a fucking sleeping schedule. You know, I've had surgery before, but this one is just a pain in the ass."
"I'm sorry," Sarah said as she sat on the edge of the bed.
"It's kicking my ass. All I do is take pills and sleep. This is stupid, when does the pain go away?"
"Give it another day or two," Sarah said. "It usually just depends on the surgery. Yours was a little more...extensive, I think."
"Extensive?"
"Well, honey, it's not like you had good, old fashioned appendicitis. Your appendix almost ruptured. They managed to catch it in the nick of time."
"My appendix can go to hell."
Sarah giggled. "Well, it kinda did."
"Good."
"So, uh, I saw Taylor outside..."
Mel smiled. "It was nice of him to visit, wasn't it?"
"Yeah..."
"It was weird. I just woke up and there he was."
"Indeed..."
"Why are you acting like that?"
"Like what?"
"You're acting like he did something wrong. Or maybe--you think *I* did something wrong?"
"No," Sarah said quickly. "No, not at all! It's just--it's kinda awkward seeing your ex here, you know? That's all."
Mel sighed and rested her head back against the head board. "Yeah. I can see how that would be weird. But he was cool, it's okay. I think I ran him off anyway." She looked back at Sarah. "I told him about the miscarriage."
Sarah gasped. "Mel..."
"I know. It slipped out. I was talking about being in the hospital and it slipped out. Anyway, I think it scared him off. He didn't stay but just a few more minutes after that."
"Is he mad?"
"I honestly don't know. I think he's hurt. That much I know. I mean, I KINDA feel bad, but I kinda don't. I'm sort of having a hard time sympathizing with him in this situation. You know? Does that make me an awful person?"
Sarah shook her head in thought. "I don't think so...I mean he seemed to be okay out there, so..."
"He'll be okay," Mel agreed. "But now I wonder if I should have told him after all."
"Is dwelling on the past going to make it any better?"
Mel smiled at her. "You sound like Jason right now." Then she sighed. "God, I miss him so much."
Sarah reached out and took Mel by the hand. "Have you talked to him?"
"Fuck no. I stay drugged up and I sleep. And when I'm awake, I only get his voicemail. This has been the worst week ever."
"Well, he calls every day," Sarah said. "He talks to Martina. As far as I know, it's usually when you're sleeping. He's called me twice."
Mel's eyes widened. "Why won't anyone wake me up?"
"Because he won't let us. He says if you're sleeping, let you sleep."
"But that's not fair--"
"Mel, he only wants you to get well and get through recovery as quickly as possible. Okay? Nobody's being facetious here. He cares about you."
"I know," Mel sighed. "I know. I just--I need him."
"I know."
"I wish this would have happened while he was still here."
Sarah scoffed a laugh. "I wish it hadn't happened at all."
Finally a small smile crossed Mel's face. "Yeah. You got me there."
Suddenly, both women heard a sound that neither one of them ever expected to hear. "Mel?" Jason's voice called through the house.
Sarah looked at Mel and Mel's eyes widened, her breath catching in her throat. "Jason?" She said out loud.
Turning around, Sarah spied Jason standing at the bedroom door and she was in shock. He was supposed to be in Europe. Filming. He hadn't told anyone he was coming home--and he had barely missed Taylor by at least half an hour. The irony.
However, before Sarah could speak, she witnessed Mel's face lighting up like the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree and she held her arms out to him upon sight, tears immediately streaming down her face. As Jason crossed the room and placed himself directly into her arms, Sarah took this time to quietly step away and out of the room, getting a little teary-eyed herself at the reunion.
Suddenly missing her husband, she placed herself on the living room sofa and began to text David.
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JASON
The plane ride had been brutal. His phone died during his layover in London. The payphone he finally managed to find was only good long enough to get a full mailbox on Mel's voicemail. It was agony. Sixteen hours in travel time and no way possible to contact his wife until he got home.
Now he held her tightly and kissed the top of her head as her muffled sobs soaked his shoulder with tears. "Shh," he said softly as he stroked her hair. "It's okay."
"I missed you so much," she said through her tears and into his shirt.
"I missed you, too, gorgeous. I got here as fast as I could." He pulled away and wiped her face and smoothed back her hair. "How are you feeling? Are you okay?"
She collapsed back into his chest. "Just hold me right now."
"Okay," he replied, tightening his arms around her. "Okay."
Moments later, she was sniffling and pulling away from him. She wiped her eyes and looked up at him. "You have no idea how happy I am to see you."
He smiled. "If it's anything like how I feel, then yeah, I do."
"How are you here?"
"Marcus let me off for a couple days to come home and see you."
"A couple?"
"Yeah," he nodded sadly. "I'm here for the next two days and then I have to go back."
She looked up at him, her eyes heavy. "Tay was, I have to tell you something...but I'm so sleepy..."
Her words slurred together but she'd said enough to cause alarms to go off in his head. "Taylor what, honey?"
She shook her head and whispered, "I don't know...my pill...I want to stay awake because I want to be with you, but I just...can't..."
"Jesus, Mel, what the fuck do they have you on?"
"Idunno..." Within moments, she had hunkered back down on her pillow and closed her eyes.
Jason didn't know whether to be concerned or fuming.
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SARAH
Sarah put down her phone and stood up when Jason walked in the room. He leaned against the doorway and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Look, uh, I got it from here. I'll take care of her for the next couple of days."
Sarah nodded. "Sure. Of course."
"Thanks for being there for her. For bringing her home and stuff. I really appreciate it. I appreciate you and David and Martina...I've been going insane this past week."
"I could imagine."
She was preparing to leave when he narrowed his eyes at her and his expression changed as if he wanted to say something. So she hesitated. Finally, he spoke. "So, uh, what all happened this week?"
Sarah was confused by the question. "Um...is this a trick question?"
"She said she wants to tell me something. And she mentioned Taylor. And then she fell asleep."
Sarah didn't know if her face read it or not, but her insides sure were tearing her nerves up. Apparently, it WAS written all over her face. "Sarah, what the hell is going on here?"
"Jason, it's--it's really not my place to say anything. Really."
She could see the anger all over his face. His nostrils flared as he struggled to keep his cool. "Does Taylor know it? Whatever it is?"
Sarah shook her head. "I don't know what he knows."
"Why did his name come up?"
Sarah sighed, defeated, as she dropped her overnight bag back on the sofa. "Because he was here."
"When?"
"Tonight. Right before you came home. But for the record, I'm pretty sure Mel didn't know he was coming."
The look in his eyes could have killed her, easily. He was pissed. "Who was the one who decided to keep him in the know?"
Sarah's eyes darted around, growing increasingly nervous with this sudden interrogation. "From what I understand, it came from Martina. She said that he called Mel's phone and that she answered, told him what was going on, and invited him to visit."
"Martina invited him..."
"Yes, but that's all I know."
"How long did he stay?"
"I have no idea."
Frustrated, Jason's voice raised a little. "Then how the fuck did you know he was here?"
"I met him on his way out as I was coming in," she said, her tone equally as frustrated. "I asked Martina about it and she told me the rest."
"Does what she apparently have to tell me have to do with him?"
"What?"
"She said she had something to tell me."
"Jason--don't make me--"
"Does it?" He pressed.
Sarah sighed. "No."
"Spill it."
"I am NOT going behind your wife's back and spreading her personal business!"
"I'm giving you permission."
"I don't care, I won't betray her."
"You let me take the fall for that."
"Jason--"
"NO. My wife is in there, sleeping on whatever fucking crazy narcotics those mother fuckers have her on, TRYING to talk to me, and not succeeding. I want to know what the fuck is going on in my house and I want to know NOW."
She looked back at him for a moment, tight-lipped, before she finally gave in. "Fine. Okay? Fine. She went to the doctor because she thought she was pregnant. Turns out, it was appendicitis. Apparently the two share some symptoms. Anyway, she ended up having, like, an attack or something several hours after her appointment." She paused and looked at him.
His eyes widened as he urged her on. "Okay. Is that it?"
"Come on--"
"Keep talking."
"The doctor told her she only has about a ten percent chance of ever conceiving again."
Jason looked as if he'd been punched in the gut. This was what Sarah was trying to avoid. This was why Mel should have told him, not a third party. This was horrible. Finally, he whispered. "So she can't have kids..."
"It's highly unlikely."
"So, what--I mean, what--?"
"She's had two miscarriages. She says they think it has something to do with her uterus."
"They THINK..."
"Well, then she had an emergency appendectomy and priorities took over."
Jason sighed and rubbed his hand over his face. "So how is she? How is she dealing with it?"
Sarah shook her head. "She doesn't talk much about it. Mostly she sleeps. I'm not sure she's had the opportunity to process it yet."
"Fuck," he muttered. Then he looked back at Sarah, helpless. "I can't lose her again. She can't shut down on me again."
"I really think she's okay." Sarah picked up her bag once again and headed toward the door. "Look, I'm going to leave you to it, okay? But I'm counting on you to make damn sure this doesn't come back on me. It wasn't my place to tell. You got it?"
He nodded, obvious that his mind was on other things now. "Yeah. Yeah, no problem. Thanks again. For everything."
"Anytime," she replied. "Call me if you need anything." Then she walked out the door and through the courtyard.