The Big Time Pt. 09

"Dogs go over well with the demographic we're shooting for," said Jen.

"Okay, that makes sense. What do you want him to do?"

"Depends on what he can do. Let's go have lunch," said Jen.

1:38 pm. Downtown Chicago.

It was crummy and cloudy. They were lucky that aside from the Wrigley Field shots most of the shooting was being done indoors."Stay right here X." Michael tied the leash to a post and nodded at the doorman. He entered the apartment building and got into the elevator. Michael had enough of the bullshit. He was amazed that Kirsten had pulled off the pseudo-silent treatment for this long and he was sick of it. As he got out of the elevator he spotted Allen standing in front of the apartment where they were shooting. "Get out of my way Allen." Allen did not budge. "Now."

"You must be joking," said Allen.

Michael tried to go around but Allen stayed in front of him. "You actually think I'm dangerous?"

"No. I think you're desperate little pussy of a man who wouldn't dare harm a hair on her head," said Allen. "But you're on my blacklist." Kirsten was inside shooting a scene with her character's father. Michael looked around him and saw that they were just wrapping up. "Time for you to go."

"I'm not leaving until I talk to her." Allen lifted Michael up by his shoulders and pushed him against the wall. Kirsten and Natalie walked out of the apartment behind Allen. Natalie stopped.

"Allen, you don't have to be that rough," said Natalie.

"Kirsten!" called Michael. "Can we please just talk?"

Kirsten tried to ignore him and pressed the elevator call button. "Come on Natalie."

"Okay," said Natalie. As she walked towards Kirsten she hesitated and turned back towards Michael. She quickly mouthed a phrase to him and then got into the elevator with Kirsten. Michael hoped he read her lips correctly.

Allen dropped him to his feet. "Have a nice day Mike." He walked towards the elevator and entered it as the doors closed.

Michael waited for half an hour before leaving the apartment building. After retrieving X he crossed the street towards the café that Natalie told him they were going to be. Allen was inside with them keeping watch. Michael made sure to keep out of sight as he waited out there lunch. For some reason he was positive people were staring at him.

A few minutes later Kirsten exited the café. "Hey."

Kirsten stopped and looked back into the café. Allen was occupied in a conversation with Natalie. "Hi," said Kirsten finally. "Hello X." X barked once and licked her hand.

"Um." Now that he had an opportunity to speak to her, he was unsure of what to say. "How are you?"

"Fine. You?" She scratched X's head.

"Been keeping busy I guess," said Michael.

"I bet you have been." Her words were obviously loaded.

"Kirsten-"

"Natalie told me how nice a guy you are. You just can't keep your hands to yourself can you?"

"All I did was show her where Buddy Guy's was. We didn't do anything."

"I'd expect Natalie to see through your bullshit and I guess she did," said Kirsten. "She's one friend you're not going to touch."

"What? I never went-" Michael looked down. "I already told you why those things happened."

"So you think I should just accept those reasons and then forgive you? Screw you. I can't ever trust you again." Kirsten looked at her watch and began walking away. Michael followed her.

"Natalie, Kiki's waiting for us, come on," said Allen. He turned around and exited the café. "Shit. Where the hell did she go?" He whipped around. "Did you see where she went?"

"No," said Natalie.

"Shit, help me look for her! Go that way, I'll go this way." Allen moved quickly north of the café while Natalie went south.

"Kirsten, all I want to do is talk." She ignored Michael. "Please." More silence. "This is childish."

She stopped and looked back at him. "You're actually accusing ME of being immature?" said Kirsten.

"I-"

"Because that makes you the biggest hypocrite the world has ever seen," interrupted Kirsten.

"Hypocrite?!" said Michael. "I never said what I did was right. But the silent treatment? You're not ten years old anymore Kirsten."

Her eyebrows narrowed. "I'm old enough to know who I like and who I hate. Guess which one you are."

Michael hoped his slight wince went unnoticed by Kirsten. "It didn't feel like you hated me under the fireworks last night."

"Then I'm an even better actress than I thought I was." She turned around to leave but Michael jumped in front of her.

"I know you felt the same way I did after that kiss," said Michael.

"Move." She pushed him out of the way and walked past him. Michael went after her. "You actually think that changed anything Mike?!" said Kirsten as she increased her pace.

"Jesus Christ Kirsten." He grasped her wrist and stopped her. "I want you back."

Kirsten ripped her hand away. "I DON'T want you back. Just stay away from me AND my friends."

"Wait!" said Michael as she walked away quickly. He followed her as she ducked into a side street. Natalie caught a glimpse of them before they vanished. She jogged up to the opening of the alleyway and peeked inside. She saw Kirsten and Michael, then out of the corner of her eye she saw a homeless man pick himself out of the trash and stand up.

"What did you expect me to do?! I WATCHED you have sex with Rachael. How was what I did any different?!"

"You just don't get it do you!"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Michael and Kirsten froze in surprise. They slowly turned and saw a ragged, grimy man holding a snub nosed revolver standing about ten feet away from them. Now that he had their attention he spoke in a hard edged whisper. "Empty your fucking pockets!"

"Oh my god," said Kirsten. Natalie covered her mouth and gasped softly.

"NOW!" snapped the man. Michael dropped the leash and stared. Kirsten held out her purse.

"No," said Michael with a steady glare.

"I SAID FUCKING NOW!"

"Jesus just do it Mike," whispered Natalie to herself. She was still virtually out of sight.

A wave of anger flooded Michael's mind, the likes of which he had not felt since his second meeting with Connor. How dare this cocksucker interrupt this conversation? The first chance he had in weeks to speak with Kirsten and some asshole decides to stick his nose where it does not belong? "X. Rise," said Michael angrily. X immediately bared his teeth and growled ferociously. He spread his front paws out and lowered himself into a leaping position as he foamed at the mouth. "You even THINK of shooting us and he'll rip your throat out."

The mugger's eyes were wide with anxiety, having lost control of the situation. "Then, then I'll fucking shoot your dog!"

"Then I'LL rip your throat out." X barked loudly and the mugger flinched with every ear piercing cry. "Why don't you just turn around and get the fuck out of here."

The mugger looked around anxiously. He slowly backed away. Suddenly a car screeched to a stop behind him and he spun around. X leapt into the air as Michael dashed at Kirsten. No sooner did the mugger turn back around do two rows of jagged white teeth sink into his jugular. He screamed and flailed his arms wildly. A single shot rang out.

10:31 am. Simon's home. Los Angeles, California.

Simon was sitting at his desk reading through a contract for one of his minor clients when his phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Simon! You have to see this! Turn on the TV!"

"See what?"

"Just do it!" insisted Ada, his secretary.

He picked up the remote off of his desk and switched on his television. A banner that said "Breaking News" scrolled continuously across the bottom of the screen. He turned the volume up. "-from an NBC affiliate in Chicago, where there was a shooting in the downtown area. It has just been confirmed by witnesses that one of the victims of the shooting was the movie actress Kirsten Dunst."

"Oh my god," said Simon as his mouth dried.

"Kirsten Dunst's condition is not known at this time, but witnesses say she was taken away in an ambulance. There was also another victim, a young man whose name is not known at this time. Fortunately, he seems to have avoided injury."

"Get on the phones and find out everything about everything. Now!" said Simon.

"Right away!" She hung up.

Simon pressed the receiver down briefly and then dialed a number. "Jerry? Emergency meeting. Get everybody."

"What's going on?"

"Just do it!"

***

Chicago, Illinois.

Michael sat on a bench staring forward expressionlessly. X was sitting on the ground in front of him nuzzling his leg. The police had cordoned off the area and were busy questioning witnesses, Natalie in particular. They had gotten Michael's name and address but that was all. It was unsurprising how much commotion was centered on Natalie even though she was not even a part of what happened. Kirsten was gone. He did not know where she went.

Finally, one of the detectives made her way over to Michael to question him. "I understand you were in the alleyway?" Michael nodded. "What happened?" Michael continued to stare. "Are you deaf?" She noticed that one part of his shirt seemed to be darker than the rest of it. On closer inspection she saw a round tear in the front and an identical one on the back. "Hey! How the hell did you guys miss this?!" she yelled at the medical team.

A medic rushed over carrying a kit. "What is it?"

"Does that look like a bullet hole to you? It sure does to me!" snapped the detective.

The medic put the kit on the bench and opened it. "Sir you need to remove your shirt."

"I can't lift my arm," said Michael in a near monotone.

The medic took a pair of scissors out of the kit and cut a circle into the shirt. He slowly removed the chunk of cloth, revealing a slowly bleeding bullet hole in Michael's right shoulder. The wound was quickly disinfected and bandaged. "You'll be okay, it looks like it went through pretty clean. Can I get a stretcher over here?!" yelled out the medic. "Still have to take you to the hospital."

"The same one that Kirsten went to?" asked Michael.

"Probably. Come on, need help?" Michael sat on the stretcher and lay down.

"HEY! LET ME IN!" Michael looked over and saw Allen pushing to the front of the crowd. Three policemen immediately rushed to the barrier and told him to leave. "What happened?! Where is she?!"

"Sir you're causing a disturbance. It's best if you-"

"Tell me where Kirsten Dunst is! I'm her bodyguard I have to see her!"

"We're not allowed to divulge that information sir. Now please, get back."

"What kind of bodyguard are you man?" said a civilian standing behind Allen.

"You shut your fucking mouth!" He spun around and raised his fist but the three cops immediately restrained him.

"You wanna fucking go to jail fuckhead?!" yelled a cop into his ear.

"Alrightalrightalright!" said Allen as he opened his hands and calmed down.

"Why don't you go home and cool off. This has nothing to do with you."

Knowing full well the kind of position he was in, Allen backed off. He made brief eye contact with Michael who was looking at him as they wheeled him towards the ambulance. Allen decided to find Kirsten a different way.

They loaded Michael into the back of the ambulance. "What about my dog?"

"Animal Control is coming to pick him up. You'll be able to get him later," said the medic. Moments later the ambulance drove away.

"That's everything?" asked the detective questioning Natalie.

"Yes," said Natalie.

"Here's my card in case you've forgotten anything. I may have to talk to you again, so stick around the city." The detective walked away.

Natalie looked around at the steadily dissipating crowd. X was pacing back and forth worriedly, no one he recognized anywhere around. She walked towards the bench and knelt down near X. "So you're Mike's dog?" X turned towards her and she jumped back in fright. The fur around his mouth and jaw were matted maroon with blood. X, confused and scared, barked up a storm before Animal Control was able to wrangle him into a cage.

4:59 pm. Room 481. St. Joseph Hospital.

Thomas opened the door and walked into the room. "Hey man, how you feeling?"

"Bring my stuff?" asked Michael, staring out the window at the pouring rain. It was excessively appropriate weather.

"Yeah." He tossed a shirt and cap to Michael. "What'd the doctor say?"

"Don't know." Michael fanned out the shirt. "I said a button down shirt. How the hell am I supposed to put a t-shirt on?"

The doctor knocked and walked in. "Hi Michael. I've got bad news. The bullet didn't go through as cleanly as we thought."

"Meaning what?" asked Michael.

"Well, a major league career definitely isn't in your future," said the doctor. "Some cartilage was ripped up and you're gonna have to go easy on it for a while. You'll have to use a sling for a few weeks."

"No wonder it hurts like hell."

"You got shot. You thought it WOULDN'T hurt like hell?" said Thomas.

"I'll prescribe some medi-"

"No, forget the painkillers. I've had enough of those," said Michael as he climbed off the bed. He tried to put the t-shirt on and almost doubled over.

"Whoa! Don't do that!" said the doctor. "You have to stick to button down shirts until the wound heals. A nurse will come by with one and the sling. Relax and wait here." The doctor left the room.

"Goddamnit," said Michael through gritted teeth. "Tom, can you do me a favor?"

"Sure, man, anything."

"Find out what happened to X. The detective I talked to didn't know shit. I'm worried about him."

"Alright."

Michael looked at him. "Can you do it now? I wanna be alone."

"Okay. I'll see you back at the house then?" Thomas walked out of the room. Elisha was waiting outside.

"How is he?"

"His usual dynamic self. Come on, let's go find out what happened to X," said Thomas.

"Wait. I have something to say to him," said Elisha as she stepped towards the door.

Thomas grabbed her arm and held her back. "He's not in any condition alright?"

"I don't care Tom," said Elisha. She yanked her arm away and entered the room. "See what you've done to her?!" Michael did not look her.

"Elisha come on," urged Thomas.

"No!" She got right into Michael's face. "You almost killed her you son of a bitch." Michael stared out the window with his back to her. "Don't have anything so say you fucking prick?"

"Why are you here yelling at me when you could be with Kirsten?"

"Fuck you Mike. I'm gonna get you for this." Elisha spun on her heel and left.

"Hey man, I'm sorry, I tried to keep her out."

"It doesn't matter," said Michael. "Just get X back."

"I will." Thomas left the room. Elisha had disappeared. He sighed and began looking for her.

A few minutes later a nurse came around with a tattered flannel shirt and a blue sling. "As soon as you're ready to leave come to the nurse's station." Michael struggled to put the shirt on. Buttoning it with his non-dominant hand proved surprisingly difficult.

"Need a little help?"

Michael turned around. "I'm fine Natalie." He continued to fiddle with the buttons on his shirt with his left hand.

"What's the prognosis?"

"I'll be fine." The last strand holding a button on ripped. "Damnit," muttered Michael.

"Let me," said Natalie. Michael looked away as Natalie buttoned the shirt. She took the sling from his hand, adjusted it and helped him put it on. "Is that okay?"

"Yeah." He put the tattered old Bears cap that Thomas had given him and began walking out of the room.

"Are you going to see Kirsten?"

"No."

Puzzled, Natalie followed Michael to the nurse's station where he was filling out paperwork. "No?" With his left hand Michael scribbled something that did not nearly resemble his signature. "Where are you going?" Michael walked to the elevator. "Are you okay?" He did not answer. "Don't you want to see her?" asked Natalie.

"No," said Michael as he shook his head.

"It's still visiting hours, come on."

Michael pulled the bill of the cap lower. "No." The doors opened and he walked in. He pressed the lobby button but Natalie stopped the doors from closing with her hand.

"She's going to be fine-"

"I know. They told me alright?" said Michael testily. He removed her hand from the door. Instead of stopping them from closing this time, Natalie stepped inside.

"Then why don't you go be with her? She's going to need support." The lights ticked off one by one as the elevator went down. The doors opened and Michael went right past her. "Wait!" said Natalie.

Michael jammed his left hand in his pocket as the rain poured down. Natalie rushed out of the hospital after him. "What do you want Natalie?!"

The pounding of the water on the pavement was so loud that Natalie nearly had to yell just to be heard. "You have to be there for her."

"No I don't."

"She needs every friend she can get!" said Natalie as she grabbed Michael's shirt.

"What makes you think I'm her friend?!" snapped Michael angrily.

She was startled by his fury. "Kirsten made me think that, okay?" said Natalie. "She told me about you."

Michael scoffed and muttered to himself. "So what? Just because she told you how much she hates me doesn't change a goddamn thing. You don't know shit."

"I know that seeing you-"

Michael whipped around. "How can I face her?! How can I ever look her in the eye again?!"

"But why, what do you mean?" Her hair was soaked and a long clump was stuck to the side of her face, tracing its way down her cheek and under her chin.

"I'm the one who pulled the trigger!" said Michael. "Don't you see?! I did it!"

Natalie rushed up to him and grabbed him. "You didn't know what was going to happen Mike. You didn't do this to her!" He ripped his shoulder away.

"Yes I did!" Michael was yelling at the top of his lungs. "You said you saw it all, you know I'm the one who nearly killed her!" He ripped the sling of his arm and threw it to the ground angrily. Michael swore and clutched his shoulder in pain. He turned his back on Natalie and stumbled away.

She darted in front of him. "Yes, I was there, I did see it all." He looked away but she grasped his head and forced him to look into her eyes. "Listen to me, there's no way you could have known what was going to happen." Michael tried to pull away but Natalie held him close. "It's not your fault." He shook his head and tried to push her away. "It's not your fault." His eyes slowly closed as his emotions found an outlet. "It's not your fault." He leaned forward until his forehead was touching Natalie's, the cap getting pushed off of his head and splashing into a puddle.

Rivulets of rainwater were streaming down his face. Natalie could not see them but she knew that tears were coming down just as hard. She whispered the same phrase over and over, until, in the midst of the deluge of rain, their lips found themselves in a gentle caress. She could feel the anger but it was unfocused and wild. Natalie reached around his neck and held him.

Michael's good arm crept around Natalie and settled on her back. He knew why he was kissing her. He knew what he was doing was wrong. But he had no desire for anything but solace and Natalie's warmth was an oasis in that cold rain.

No words were exchanged as the kiss gradually dissipated. For a brief moment they could see into each other's eyes without a sheet of raindrops separating them. Natalie bent over and picked up the cap and sling. Shivering, they huddled together as they walked down the street towards Michael's home. It was not far from the hospital.

5:27 pm.

The house was quiet, the water dripping off of their clothes providing a pitter patter that seemed to coincide with the drops falling outside. Their shoes squeaked as they entered his bedroom. "Where are the towels?" asked Natalie. Michael pointed at his closet. She retrieved a pair of towels and tossed one of them onto the bed. "I'll be right back."