Wait For It | a Hamilton fanfiction | wattys 2017

Chapter 7

It was time to load the buses to head to Portland, Oregon. This would be their first stop. Pippa was extremely excited. She’d packed all the things she could think of that she could ever need. Even if she had forgotten something, she could always buy it somewhere. It wasn’t like they were going camping. They would still be near stores and such.

She had with her a blue Vera Bradley print backpack, and then two large suitcases. The costumes were taking a separate trailer, and the set pieces were being flown over. There were so many components to the tour- Pippa was just glad she wasn’t in charge. The stress of packing was enough.

On top of that, her cough hadn’t improved at all.

Pippa set her bags in the first storage bay and then boarded the bus. She and Jazzy had elected to sit together on the right hand side of the bus. Lin was a seat in front of them. The ensemble members all sat closer to the back. Lana was sitting across from them with Kaitlyn Knox.

Pippa got out her phone, charger, blanket, and pillow and settled in. It was going to be a long trip. She heard someone board the bus and glanced up to see who it was. It was Jazzy.

“Afternoon, Pip!” Jazzy greeted. “How are you doing?”

“I could be a lot better, honestly,” Pippa admitted as Jazzy shoved some of her belongings into the overhead compartment. Jazzy titled her head to the side.

“How so?”

“I don’t know if I’m getting better or worse.”

“I’m sorry, Pip,” Jazzy said. She sat down next to Pippa holding a bag of Goldfish crackers, her own blanket, and her phone in addition to her charger. “Sleep. Portland is a long ways away.”

Before Pippa knew it, everyone had boarded.

“Attention, cast!” Lin said over the loudspeaker. “Thank you so much for being a part of this cast. You are all lovely, talented human beings. I am so grateful that you all chose to embark on this wonderful journey around the world with me. Here’s to the Hamilton International Tour!”

Everyone clapped, and Lin sat down, beaming. The bus started and the familiar scenery began to fade away as they merged onto the highway and began their trip to Portland.

For a while, Pippa tried to study some of her lines and mentally walk herself through the blocking, but it was hard to concentrate. Staring at a page was difficult with the swaying of the bus. She’d never been that great at reading on a moving vehicle, and her headache didn’t help her at all.

She put her script away and tucked her feet up on her seat. Jazzy was talking to Anthony, while Lana and Kaitlyn seemed to be having an intense round of Sorry on their phones.

“You got the magic 12? No fair!” Kaitlyn pouted.

“Ha!” Pippa heard one of the cast members, maybe Daveed, shout from a few seats behind them. “I’m winning!”

Jazzy stopped talking to Anthony after a couple minutes. “Do you feel any better, Pippa?”

“Not really. I tried looking over some lines but it doesn’t make me feel any better,” Pippa said.

“Well, I’m going to watch some of Once Upon a Time. Tell me if you want to lay down. I won’t have a problem if you put your head on my lap or something,” Jazzy told her.

“Thanks, Jaz.”

Pippa ended up watching an episode with Jazzy while texting Renee at the same time. Renee wanted to know how her Schuyler Sisters were doing and what Lana was like. Pippa told her that Lana seemed nice but she still wasn’t anywhere close to Renee.

After that, Pippa did try to fall asleep. She put on her white beanie and leaned her head on Jazzy’s shoulder. After maybe twenty minutes, she finally fell asleep.

~~~~~~~~~~

Lin felt a sort of duty to take care of all the cast members. They were there because of him, and they were traveling across the world to perform his show. It was kind of nerve-wracking, to be honest. He hadn’t slept very well for months after he found out that they were heading the international tour. It was a lot of work. Not for him, but he still felt like he should make sure everything ran smoothly and make sure all the ensemble members bonded with the original cast members.

He turned around and looked across all the seats. It was about five hours into the drive, and it was about seven at night. They’d stopped for dinner but the bus was already starting to wind down.

Most people were listening to music or talking quietly. Occasionally someone got up to go to the bathroom, or they talked over the seats. Anthony and Jazzy were texting. Lin could tell because they were both smiling and on their phones. Pippa’s head was resting on Jazzy’s shoulder, and her blanket was tucked around her. Jazzy didn’t seem to mind.

Lin pulled out his phone.

Lin: How’s Pippa?

He saw Jazzy look up from her phone quickly and notice him.

Jazzy: i don’t think she felt well this afternoon. she said she got a headache from reading her script so she stopped and texted renee for a while. after dinner she went back to sleep. i don’t know how much she’s telling me though

Lin: We have to make sure she’s better. We both know she’ll run herself into the ground if someone doesn’t tell her to take a break.

Jazzy: TAKE A BREAK! COME AWAY WITH US FOR THE SUMMER LET’S GO UPSTATE

Lin: No Jazzy not now.

Jazzy: why not

Lin: It’s too late.

Jazzy: ugh lin it’s only seven thirty

Lin: It’s been a long day.

Jazzy: fine, old man miranda. go to sleep.

Lin laughed a little and then got out the schedule for the months to come. He really wasn’t that tired, but sometimes he didn’t want to sing Hamilton. Sometimes, he just wanted to be a normal person. Not one who wrote a huge musical.

It wasn’t that he didn’t love Hamilton. But for the times he wasn’t performing Hamilton, he didn’t want his every word to be a reference.

He turned on his phone and snapped a picture of Jazzy and Pippa and Tweeted:

@JasCephasJones @Phillipasoo En route to Portland, Oregon!