West Coast Winter

The Sweetest Thing

I stare out of the cafe window and wonder what she's doing. I've only been away three days, but it may as well be three weeks. Gary and Michelle rattle on about actresses they think would be best for the role of Natalie. I've already given my opinion decidedly and now all that is left is for them to fight it out. I ended up having to leave a day earlier than scheduled in order to be available for auditions early Sunday morning.

The snow is falling softly outside and I can just imagine that Jaclyn and Nina are snuggled up on the couch and watching Christmas movies while chocolate chip cookies bake in the oven. Maybe Nina is drawing and painting a picture for her mom. I'm in New York, but my heart and mind are three thousand miles away.

"Charlie? Charlie!", Gary and Michelle say together in an effort to pull me out of this little dream world I've escaped to, just as I was seeing myself join my girls on the couch with a mug of coffee. Henry and Nina tackle me just as I set my cup down on the end table.

"Yeah?", I answer not fully back from 2224 Cornell St. I turn my head toward my colleagues and the dream fades into reality.

Michelle smiles and says, "Where were you? It looked like some place nice. Warm and tropical, perhaps?"

My chin rests on my hand as I answer, "Warm, yes. Not so much tropical."

"Michelle and I have decided to go with your choice Charlie. We think Noelle would be perfect for the part of Natalie. She possesses that vulnerability and equal strength for the character. Now all we need is our Ben", Gary concludes sitting back in his leather dining chair.

I sip my coffee and look at my watch. "Hannah should be here soon. She told me that she wants to be the one to choose who plays Ben. She is the writer after all. My personal opinion is that we should go with Zachary. He has this muscular strength and height that juxtaposes Natalie's small frame. He is emotionally available while also playing the clueless desperation very well."

"I was thinking the same thing." Michelle says while chewing on a bite of her salad and checking her phone.

The cafe door swings open and Hannah comes rushing in like a hurricane. Her arms are full of binders. Her dark hair is windblown with flecks of snow beginning to melt. She presses her burgundy frame glasses up on her nose. "I'm so sorry I'm late, but... we have our Ben! I was up so late last night thinking it over and over."

Hannah slips out of her black coat and sets it on the back of her chair before taking her seat. Gary clears a space for her to set down her binders and notebooks. The waitress comes over and Hannah orders a B.L.T., coffee, and a cherry coke.

"So, what did you decide, Hannah?", I prompt her.

"Oh! Right! I decided it should be Zachary. He's got the tall and broad physicality. He possesses a certain sweetness. He also has the intellectual and somewhat clueless balance about him that I really like. I also need the audience to think he's a bit of a snobbish asshole at times early on", Hannah concludes before taking a sip of her coffee the waitress has just placed on the table.

"I guess it's settled then", Gary says smiling. "Charlie literally just said the same thing."

"Well, I don't know if it was exactly the same thing, but yes. Zach is our guy", I sip my coffee and set it down.

"Well, I'll be damned! Hannah Gregory and Charlie Barber actually agree on something!", Hannah slaps her knee.

"You always refer to yourself in third person?", I say with a bit of snark to Hannah. It's kind of fun getting under her skin. She's from Georgia and fancies herself an esteemed intellectual. She is, but I like bringing her down a peg because she's also incredibly sensitive. She tries to cover it up and almost always reacts with her own snark. Sometimes I go a little too far and she reacts with outright nastiness. She has actually made fun of my shoes before.