Obsession - Part Ten

[rycolfan.livejournal.com]

Title - Obsession
Rating - NC-17
Pairing - I think you should know by now!
Summary - Ryan discovers the sinister side of fame...
Disclaimer - I only own the story...
Feedback - brightens my day!

I know you've all been waiting impatiently for the next installment! Well, here it is....hope you like it! 

*waits anxiously*

Part Ten

Ryan could feel everyone's eyes on him as he approached the front door and gently pushed it open.

"Rachel?" he called as he stepped inside. "It's me. I'm coming in ok?"

He heard a muffled sound coming from the dining room and walked forwards slowly, dreading what lay beyond the door. Remembering Paul's instructions, he called, "Are you in the dining room?" as he approached it. Taking a deep breath he pushed the door open and looked into the room which was dimly lit, the small amount of light coming through the material covering the windows.

His eyes immediately flew to Colin who was tied to a chair in the centre of it, facing him. When Colin raised his head and their eyes met, Ryan felt a surge of relief. He was still alive. He quickly assessed Colin's condition, taking in the blood on his shirt that looked like it had come from a head wound, his pale face and the tape over his mouth. He could see a mixture of relief, fear, and pain in Colin's eyes as he gazed at him.

Ryan took a step towards him but a voice stopped him abruptly.

"That's far enough Ryan."

He hadn't noticed her standing in the shadows behind Colin. She walked forwards slowly, the gun in her hand pointing directly at Colin's head, and turned on a lamp.

Ryan stared in shock at the woman who'd made his life hell for the past few days, his mind flashing back to a taping of the show about a month earlier.

*FLASHBACK*

"Okay, that's a wrap," Dan called. "Thank you everyone."

Ryan grinned at Colin as they got up and stretched. "Thank God for that, I don't think I could face another hoedown."

Colin chuckled and said, "Me neither. It's bad enough doing the doo-wop game."

"Hey, I like watching you do that game," Ryan smirked, reaching out to pinch Colin's cheeks and shake them, "your wobbling cheeks are so damn cute."

"Cut it out," Colin said, batting his hands away and trying to look cross as Ryan laughed. He wasn't fooling him though; Ryan could see the amusement in his eyes.

Drew called Colin over at that moment and Ryan smiled after him before walking towards the small group of fans standing by the stage who started screaming excitedly. This got the attention of the rest of the audience and there was a small stampede towards him, security struggling to hold them back. Ryan saw a young women get knocked to the ground by the sudden rush of people and cry out in pain. He firmly moved the other fans aside, ignoring their desperate pleas for his attention, and crouched down to help her.

"It's my ankle," she said tearfully, wincing as he examined it carefully.

"I don't think it's broken, just badly sprained. Do you think you can walk on it?" he asked gently.

"I'll try," she replied shakily and he supported her as she got up. She let out a yelp as her ankle buckled and Ryan caught her in his arms. The other fans were still pressing in on him from all sides so he carefully lifted her up and carried her to his chair onstage where they couldn't follow.

Drew, Wayne, and Colin noticed what was going on and walked over to them. The other fans looked at her jealously from behind the secuirty guards as she was surrounded by their idols.

"Hey, what happened?" Colin asked, looking concerned.

"She got knocked down by the crowd," Ryan replied, crouching in front of her and supporting her ankle. "Her ankle's badly sprained. Drew, do you think you can you find me an ice-pack?"

"Sure man, I'll see what I can do," Drew replied.

"I'll help," Wayne said and they both headed backstage.

"Is there anyone I can call for you?" Colin asked her gently.

"Just a cab," she replied, not taking her eyes off Ryan as he slipped her shoe off.

"No problem," Colin said, brushing a hand over Ryan's back and giving him a smile as he walked away. Ryan watched him go before turning back to see the woman staring at him intently.

"So," he began, attempting to make conversation, "did you enjoy the show?"

She smiled at him brightly. "It was fantastic. You make it look so easy." She sighed and said, "I wish I could do that."

"It just takes practice," Ryan replied encouragingly. "The most important thing is to listen to the other performers and let yourself go wherever the scene takes you. It's all about team work."

"Well I think you're the best," she said firmly.

"I don't know about that," Ryan grinned, "but thanks for the compliment. Hey, I've just realized I haven't even asked what your name is."

"Julie," she replied with a shy smile.

"Nice to meet you Julie," Ryan replied, returning the smile.

She looked at him and sighed. "I don't know why my parents decided to call me Julie; I've always hated it. I prefer my middle name."

"What's your middle name?" Ryan asked, looking around for any sign of Drew or Wayne coming back.

"Rachel," she replied as he spotted Drew walking towards them.

"That's pretty," he said distractedly and she beamed at him as Drew reached them. 

"Best I could do," Drew said, handing over a towel with ice in.

Ryan carefully pressed it on her ankle and stayed with her until her cab arrived, asking her questions and keeping her mind off the pain. Everyone wished her a speedy recovery before Wayne helped him guide her to the exit where her cab was waiting. Ryan put an arm around her waist to support her as they walked, oblivious of her intense stare as he concentrated on not aggravating her injury. When they eventually reached the cab she gave Ryan a hug which he returned, kissing her cheek before helping her into the car.

"Hope you feel better soon," he called and she smiled at him happily as the cab pulled away.

*END OF FLASHBACK*

He honestly hadn't given the incident a second thought since that day. It hadn't even occurred to him that she could be the woman behind all the letters but now all the puzzle pieces clicked into place. The way she had looked at him longingly, not sparing anyone else a second glance, and her reaction when he'd hugged and kissed her goodbye. Rachel was her middle name. Why hadn't he thought of that earlier? It was obvious now that she was so desperate to be loved that she'd interpreted his actions to suit her fantasy.

He came back to the present and asked her matter of factly, "Where's Charlie?"

"Don't worry," she replied, "Charlie won't be bothering us."

Ryan knew Paul would be frustrated by her ambiguous answer. He held out his hand, maintaining eye contact with her, and said gently, "Give me the gun Julie."

"Rachel," she corrected him firmly before continuing. "Why did you have to involve the police Ryan? I'm doing this for you.....for us.....so we can finally be together."

Ryan shook his head. "You don't want to hurt anyone else do you? Just give me the gun and..."

"NO!" she shouted, cutting him off.

She took a deep breath and when she spoke again it was in a much softer tone. "You're not yourself my love," she said gently, "I understand. It's not your fault. He's trying to turn you against me." She gestured at Colin and walked around him so that she was facing him for the first time, his eyes widening as he recognized her.

"Did you think you could steal him from me?" she shouted at Colin angrily before hitting him hard across the face with the butt of the gun.

Colin let out a muffled cry of pain and Ryan had to force himself not to move, balling his hands into fists until his knuckles turned white and clenching his jaw in anger. Blood trickled down Colin's face from where the gun had cut into his cheek as he looked back at her.

"You're not gonna come between us anymore," she continued, backing away from him and raising the gun.

Colin stared at the gun then at Ryan, silently telling him how much he loved him, before closing his eyes. Ryan stood frozen as her finger tightened on the trigger, knowing he could never reach her in time and desperately trying to think what to do.

"You're right," he said loudly and she paused, looking at him questioningly. "He has been trying to turn me against you, I can see that now. Let me punish him for it."

She stared at him and deliberated as he tried to look sincere, holding his breath as he waited. After a moment she stepped back and gestured for him to come forward, keeping the gun firmly pointing at Colin who had opened his eyes and was watching them.

"Be my guest," she said softly, "I think you deserve that opportunity."

Drawing on all his skills as an actor, Ryan stepped towards Colin with an expression of anger and disgust. He knew if this was going to work he would have to be completely convincing.

"You've been trying to keep me away from her, haven't you?" he spat at Colin who immediately understood what he was trying to do and acted scared, shaking his head and shrinking back from him.

Ryan reached out and ripped the tape off Colin's mouth in one swift movement, hating himself as Colin cried out in pain. He heard Rachel laugh behind him, apparently pleased with his actions, and wanted nothing more than to turn around and strangle her with his bare hands but he had to be patient.

He grabbed hold of Colin's shirt with one hand and leant over him, finding it incredibly hard to be so close to him without pulling him into his arms and never letting go again.

"Did you honestly think you could come between us?" he said, curling his lip derisively and forcing himself to continue. "I could never love you. You disgust me."

Colin couldn't stop real tears from welling up as he listened, an expression of genuine hurt crossing his face. He knew that it was an act, that there was absolutely no truth in Ryan's words but it still felt like a knife was being plunged into his heart. He stayed silent so as not to jeopardize Ryan's plan.

Ryan saw the tears in Colin's eyes and silently cursed Rachel for making him do this, wanting nothing more than to wrap his arms around Colin and kiss all his pain away. He tried to convey his remorse with his eyes and mouthed "love you" before releasing Colin roughly and straightening up.

"Now you know the truth Colin," Rachel said smugly, moving forwards, and Ryan pulled her into a passionate kiss. He closed his eyes and tried to imagine he was kissing Colin so he wouldn't be physically sick. As Rachel melted into it, Ryan slowly slid his hand down her arm and gently eased the gun from her fingers. At the last second her grip on it tightened and she broke the kiss abruptly as they both struggled to grab it.

Everyone waiting anxiously behind the police cordon outside froze in shock as a single gunshot rang out.


To be continued....