Fame

by Susan X Meagher

  She normally liked spending the evening alone, especially when she’d had a lot of human contact during the day, and today had been chock full of it. But having both time and the opportunity just made the prospect of calling Haley that much more ominous.

  Every instinct was to let it ride, to tell her about the job once she returned home. That was how to have a productive conversation about this—face to face. But Haley clearly wasn’t amenable to secrets, and Piper assumed that held true for this scenario. Even though she only wanted to delay the timing of the discussion, she resisted. Despite her instinct that this could mean the death knell of their fledgling relationship, she texted Haley, asking for a call back when she had time to talk.

  It took an hour, but her phone finally rang. Quickly, she put in her ear buds and said, “Hi, there.”

  “Hi,” Haley said, sounding relaxed and happy. “I hope you had as good a day as I did.”

  “Mine was okay. But tell me about yours first.”

  “Oh, there’s not a lot to say. Just that I got to spend most of the day with my maternal grandmother, who I am absolutely crazy about.”

  “Aww, I bet she’s crazy about you, too.”

  “True. We worked in her garden all day.” She laughed. “Calling it a garden doesn’t do it justice, though. She grows everything from sweet corn to watermelon, and she does all of the work herself.”

  “How old is she?”

  “Gonna be eighty,” Haley said. “The only concession she’s made to age is that she now uses a little stool when she’s weeding. Other than that, you’d think she was sixty.”

  “I hope you got those genes,” Piper said. “Mine are pretty defective. My mom’s parents were dead before I was born, and my mom didn’t even make it to forty.”

  “Poor Piper,” Haley soothed. “I wish you’d been dealt a better hand in the parent game.”

  “Yeah, it would have been nice. But I can’t complain. At least I don’t have a bunch of relatives sponging off me like some of my friends do.”

  “No,” she admitted, laughing a little. “Your sister seems like she’d go the other way. What’s the opposite of sponging?”

  “Um, exactly what she’s doing.” She cleared her throat and steeled herself. “That’s why I called, actually.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “My sister wants to throw a bunch of money at me. And even though I don’t want to take it, I’m going to.”

  “What…” Piper could hear her take in a sharp breath. “What are you getting at?”

  “She went to a meeting on the lot yesterday. A bunch of people from the studio and the production company were there, and they all started trying to get her to buckle under to do things their way.”

  “And that means?”

  “The details aren’t important. What I’m getting at is that she’s sure she needs a full-time manager—right now.”

  “And she wants you.”

  “She does,” Piper said, waiting for the explosion.

  “And you’re going to do it?”

  “Just for this movie,” she rushed to explain. “She doesn’t have time to find someone and get them up to speed, so I’m going to be on set with her. I’ll do her hair while I’m at it.”

  “You’ve never said where the movie’s shooting.”

  “Hawaii. A place I’ve always wanted to go, but not as a working hair stylist.”

  Haley sighed audibly. “Well, you can’t say no. If she needs you, you’ve got to go.”

  “I do? I mean, I do,” she said, “but…I didn’t expect you to understand. I mean, I’m not saying you’re not understanding,” she hastened to add, “just that I know you’re not interested in dating a talent manager.”

  Haley cleared her throat, then took another audible breath. “I never said that, Piper, but that’s beside the point. Are you beating around the bush trying to tell me you’re changing jobs permanently?”

  “No! Not at all. I’m going to a tropical paradise for three months, where I’m going to earn more than I normally do in a year, yet I’m kind of miserable just thinking about it. I’m one and done, Haley. I’ve made that clear to Charlie.”

  “Three months?” she said, letting out an unhappy grunt.

  “’Fraid so. I don’t think I’ll have any time to come home, either. But I could probably have a visitor…”

  “I’d love to go on vacation with you, Piper, but working on a set doesn’t resemble a vacation in any way. You’ll work long hours, and you won’t have any significant time off. Just lots of waiting around, which isn’t the same.”

  “Maybe when the shoot’s over?”

  “Maybe,” she allowed. “We’ll see how it goes. If you’ve got time at the end, I might be able to take a few days and come meet you. But let’s not count on that. I’ve never seen a film wrap on time.” She paused for a second, then said, “Did you have to quit your job?”

  “No, thank god. Rada’s letting me take a leave of absence.”

  Haley let out a relieved sigh. “I’m really glad to hear that.”

  “I was, too. And I promise I can’t wait for this to be over. I want to be back in my little house as soon as possible.”

  “With me warming your bed?” She sounded a little tentative when she added, “You’re not planning on dating anyone else, are you?”

  “No! Furthest thing from my mind. I told you, I’m committed to figuring out if we’ve got something here, Haley, and I can only concentrate on one thing at a time. I have the opposite of ADD. I’ve got attention surplus, and it’s all pointed toward you.”

  Her voice was full of warmth when she said, “That was dorky, but sweet. When will you leave?”

  “Two weeks. Two weeks that I’d like to spend with you.”

  “I’d like that, Piper. I want to make you so crazy about me that you won’t even notice those beautiful Hawaiian women shaking their hips at you.”

  “I don’t think women are going to be on set doing the hula, but even if they do, I won’t notice them. Remember, I’m as loyal as a dog. As a matter of fact, I have one on my lap right now, and he misses you almost as much as I do.”

  “Just until Sunday. Then we’ll have two weeks to spend as much time as possible together.”

  “My fondest wish. And Haley?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Thanks for being so understanding about this. I know it’s not what you wanted to hear.”

  “I’m pretty flexible, Piper. As long as you’re up front with me, I can roll with the punches.”

  “No more punches. Just a bunch of kisses that I’m saving until Sunday.”

  ***

  After her friends got off work on Saturday, Piper went to Rada’s house for an impromptu goodbye party. All of her buddies from the shop came, along with a couple of stylists who’d moved on to other places. There were ten of them in total, and things got kind of wild kind of fast.

  Normally, Piper was the mature one, the one who checked on everyone else and made sure no one drank too much. But Rada had made pitchers of some fantastic frozen lemonade kind of thing and Piper didn’t even realize how blasted she was getting until she found herself leaping into Rada’s pool—fully clothed. That set off a chain-reaction, with everyone either jumping or being pushed, until they were all rough-housing in the water like they were ten-year-olds. The actual ten-year-old, Rada’s younger daughter Bella, stood on the deck and shook her head, chiding them for being so immature, which just made the whole thing even funnier.

  They cranked the music up and started to dance in the shallow end, with Piper letting loose in a way she hadn’t done since she was in high school. And she hadn’t done it often even then. But she needed to blow off some steam. She was leaving all of the people and the routines that kept her grounded, and acting a little crazy made her feel even closer to her work family. You didn’t jump into a pool and dance with people you didn’t trust.

  It was late when the neighbors appeared, red-faced and angry, to demand t
hey shut the whole thing down. Rada was usually able to summon up some righteous indignation to just about any slight, but she treated this couple with deference. In moments, the music was off and she was offering towels to her guests, hustling them all out of the pool, with everyone whispering—the loud whispering that drunk people always found so effective.

  Piper stood on the deck, shivering in the cool breeze. Instinctively reaching for her phone, she stared at it blankly when it wouldn’t light up. But when water continued to drip out of its charging and ear phone ports, it dawned on her that it might have been a good idea to have taken it out of her pocket before jumping into a pool.

  Rada hustled them all into the house, and Bella set about delivering dry t-shirts, yoga pants, sweats, and pajama bottoms to the partiers. They spread out on the family room floor, using blankets, throws, couch cushions and a few precious pillows to get as comfortable as possible. But when you were thoroughly soused, just about any horizontal surface would do.

  Piper fell asleep amid the jumble of her friends, like a puppy in a litter. The thought of puppies led her to Haley, whom she’d pick up at the airport the next day. They would only have two weeks together, and she couldn’t wait until they were in the new apartment, getting to know each other as thoroughly as possible in that short amount of time.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  ON SUNDAY MORNING, HALEY SAT in the backseat of her dad’s car as they drove home from church. Her parents both knew she’d given up the faith, a fact they’d accepted with a surprising amount of grace.

  If she could have chosen her battles, she would have preferred a few big blowouts over her sexual orientation or the abandonment of her religion to being the object of pity that her meltdown over Alicia had engendered. But sometimes it was nice to have your parents think you were too fragile to handle any significant criticism—even when that was no longer true.

  To pay them back for holding their tongues over her lack of faith, Haley always tagged along to services when she visited. It truly wasn’t a big sacrifice. While she no longer believed, the service always brought back happy memories of her remarkably serene childhood—long before experience had jaundiced her view of so many things.

  “What time is your flight, honey?” her father asked, always a stickler about getting to the airport with hours to spare.

  “Not until three. I connect through Las Vegas this time. Wonder if I’ll have time to play the slots? They have them in the terminal, you know.”

  While not addressing her comment directly, Haley’s mom turned to her husband and said, “Whenever I moon about our baby living in LA, I should remind myself that she could have chosen Sin City.”

  “LA’s not so bad,” Haley said, a belief that would fall on deaf ears. “Not everyone is without a soul.”

  “Just most,” her mom said, giving her a quick grin.

  After pulling into the driveway, the garage door opened and the dogs came lumbering out, tails wagging. “I think I’ll take the beasts for a walk,” Haley said.

  “Pancakes, waffles, or an omelette?” her mom asked. “I’ll have breakfast on the table when you get back.”

  Given Sunday was her “fuck it” day, she thought for a moment, then said, “Pancakes, please, along with bacon or sausage. Whatever you’re cooking.”

  “Be back in a half hour, and it’ll be piping hot.”

  “Done deal. Come on, guys. Let’s stretch our legs.” After putting their leashes on, Haley let the dogs lead her down the street. They were quite well behaved, but not as obedient as they’d have been if she were in charge. She let them do as they liked today, choosing the route and how long to stop at each pee-marked tree on their journey.

  Her phone rang, startling her. Other than wrong numbers or solicitations, it was exclusively for texts. Pulling it from her pocket, she blinked in surprise, then answered. “Hi. What’s up?” Without realizing she’d stopped, her arm jerked as the dogs tried to follow a scent. “You want me to do what?”

  The blood drained from her face as the words registered in her brain. Fighting for composure, she said, “Whose idea was this?” Even though she knew the answer before she’d asked the question, it still registered as a brutal kick to the head.

  A minute later, two doggie tongues licked at her face, and she realized she was sitting on the curb. It took a few more seconds, but she got to her feet and tried to compose herself. “Come on, fellas,” she said, wiping at her eyes. “Time to go home and act like everything’s normal. There’s no way I’m going to confess what an idiot I am to my mother’s face. There’s only so much humiliation I can stand in one day.”

  ***

  After spending the morning purchasing a new phone, Piper had a shiny new replacement. She wasn’t sure why she’d originally paid extra for the extended care, but she was darned glad she had. Insurance against her own stupidity was clearly something she needed.

  It was one o’clock when she rolled into Charlie’s, with Delta excitedly barking on the other side of the gate while she keyed in the code. “I’m coming,” she grumbled. “Hold your horses.”

  Then the gate opened and Charlie stood there, staring at her with narrowed eyes. “Where have you been? You didn’t come home, you didn’t call, you didn’t answer my texts. I’ve been worried sick about you!”

  “I’m sorry,” Piper said, closing her eyes in embarrassment. “I had too much to drink, jumped into the pool with my phone in my pocket, and couldn’t call.”

  “Use someone else’s phone!”

  Seeing she’d really upset her, Piper put her arm around her sister’s shoulders and led her toward the house. “Will you make me some coffee? I’ve got a throbbing headache and caffeine usually helps.”

  Charlie glared at her for another few seconds, then walked ahead, muttering, “You should have called.”

  “I know,” Piper said. “But I don’t have your number memorized.”

  In the kitchen, Piper sat on a stool and bent over to pick up the dog, a move she regretted as soon as her head got past horizontal. Headaches got much worse in a stunningly short amount of time when you bent over. “Goddamn,” she moaned. “If I didn’t have to go to the airport, I’d go right back to bed.”

  “What’s up with getting drunk?” Charlie asked, standing behind Piper to wrap her in a hug. “That’s not like you.”

  “I know. But I guess I was down about leaving my friends. We started doing shots and…” She shrugged. “It was morning.”

  Charlie squeezed her tightly, then ran her fingers through Piper’s hair. “At least you had the sense to stay at Rada’s.”

  “Bella wouldn’t let anyone leave,” she admitted. “Ten years old, and clearly the most mature person in the whole place. But I was the only doofus who ruined her phone, so at least everyone else could call home.”

  “Not like you to be the dumbest one in a crowd, Pip. Not like you at all.” Charlie poured a cup of coffee when it was ready, and set it in front of Piper, along with some milk. “Hope that helps,” she said.

  “Thanks.” Taking the cup in hand, she sipped at it, trying to concoct a mental image of her blood vessels opening up to allow some of the pain to dissipate. “I haven’t heard from Haley yet. I’d better text her.” She sent a quick one, but it stayed in the “unread” category. After finishing her coffee, they all went outside, and Piper put her phone on the table by a chaise. “I’m going to go take a shower. If I get a reply from Haley, come get me if I’ve got to leave soon, okay?”

  Charlie blinked up at her. “You don’t know when her flight is?”

  “She told me, but I forgot. I should have made a note, but I assumed we’d text a bunch of times…”

  “Go shower,” Charlie said. “I’ll babysit your phone.”

  As soon as she took a step, Delta was behind her, trying to figure out where they were going. He eagerly begged to be carried upstairs, hopping on his little back legs like a bunny, so she picked him up and carried him like the little prince he’d become.


  After getting clean and scrubbing her teeth, Piper took the time to give Delta’s a brush too. He wasn’t crazy about it, but Haley had assured her his teeth would be in much better shape if they were brushed on a daily basis. Piper was sure Charlie didn’t bother, but when she was in charge, the little guy was going to have gleaming white choppers.

  Hair clean and dry, body washed, legs shaved, Piper felt more like herself when she reappeared by the pool.

  “Cute shorts,” Charlie said. “You got all dressed up.”

  “Not very. I just ironed a shirt and put a crease in my shorts. Thanks to your decorator, I have a much nicer iron here than I do at home.” She picked up her phone, seeing the text still hadn’t been read. So she dialed Haley’s number, puzzled when it went to voicemail immediately. “That’s weird. It usually rings a few times before it kicks over.”

  Idly parsing through her phone, she saw a new email notification, and as she began to read, she muttered a quiet, “Holy fuck.”

  Piper,

  I would tell you where I’m being sent, but you already know—since you’re the mastermind behind the bomb that just exploded my life. Despite knowing I’m happily settled in my job, Spike told me to get packed and leave by tomorrow—or find a new line of work. It must thrill you to know you’re powerful enough after just four days as a manager to throw your weight around.

  You know, I was damn sure I’d gotten better at judging character, but I haven’t. Even when I’m as careful as humanly possible, a charming narcissist like you can sneak by.

  I don’t think you’re an awful person. You’re just not a person I will ever have anything to do with again. We’ll obviously run into each other in Hawaii, but I’d appreciate it if you’d leave me alone. There isn’t an excuse I will ever buy for your behavior, so don’t make things worse by harassing me.

  I know people like you don’t have much empathy for others, but we’re not all tiny pawns in your chess game. We have feelings and desires and wishes just like you do. Of course, all of the ones I had for us are now destroyed.