Excerpts From Stories I'll Never Write

A Day On Set (2) - Excerpt

I don't know who died and made me a coffee slave, but it happened. I came back from one of my usual coffee runs to everyone seeming really sad.

I handed Todrick his coffee and made our signature "coffee as black as my soul" joke, dealt drinks out to everyone else, then sat down and finished my coffee.

Halfway through my latte, James walked up to me with the probably most depressed look a human could muster. "We need to talk."

Being the anxious person I am, my heart started racing at those four simple words. What the heck was he talking about? "O-Okay." I stuttered slightly and stood up. He grabbed my hand and stood me up the rest of the way so that I didn't drop my coffee. "Thanks."

James nodded. "Let's go somewhere quieter." He pulled my hand, and we soon found ourselves in one of the vacant dressing rooms.

"What's wrong?" I asked, sipping my coffee.

"This is my last film with you guys." Tears filled his eyes. "I'm moving to L.A when it wraps. I won't even be here for the premier."

"What?"

"Love, I'm sorr--"

"No. No. No. What do you mean you're moving halfway the across the country? You can't do that to me, you can't leave me!" My hands shook, and James took the paper cup from my fingertips before I dropped it, which was probably a good idea.

James walked up and wrapped me into a hug. Only in hugs did I realize how tiny I was compared to him. "I'm sorry. I just...money's been tight, and my family's out there, and my cousin's really sick, and I can't be 2,000 miles away from them anymore. I'm sorry."

"Don't leave me." I whispered, tears beginning to slip down my cheeks.

"I wish I didn't have to." He ran his hand up and down my back, kissing the top of my head.

"What are you going to do?"

"Get a real job. My uncle still owns that restaurant. I'll probably bartend." He shrugged.

"It'll be like the Piano Man." I chuckled, making light of the whole thing.

"Yeah, we could think of it like that." He half smiled.

~~~~~

A/N: I don't ship Leather and Satin at all, but still...