The Sackler Trap

Tea, Yes...You, Maybe

I was settling into a routine with my new job and new friends. They never treated me as if I were "the new kid" but as if I was their equal. Even Arthur Blunt. With the possible exception of Adam who insisted on continuously calling me "kid" for some inexplicable reason, but I think that was just to annoy me. On the way to look at the new apartment he had found for me, he asked me all about my childhood in Utica and what had made me want to be an actress in the first place. 

When I agreed to sign the lease on the new place, he couldn't hide his delight. You'd have thought he was the one signing the lease.

"You're one of us now, Julie!" he said as we left the super's office and he grabbed me up before I knew what was happening and had me in a fireman's hold. 

"Adam, you crazy idiot!" I screamed, half laughing. "Put me down!"

But he didn't. At least not until we got to the subway station. His boyish enthusiasm was infectious and exhausting. Even on set no female cast or crew member was safe from having the floor suddenly disappear out from under her feet when the notion took Adam. He could be disruptive at worst but when the cameras were rolling, he was the consummate professional.

We wrapped up the first episode of the second season of The Chemist and to celebrate, Arthur wanted us to all go out together to Bergoine's, a theater district restaurant. It was an old haunt of his, he explained, and he was feeling nostalgic. 

Eve smiled at him affectionately and leaned over to whisper to me, "He's probably going to do a monologue. Bergoine's has a pianist at night, but since it's a favorite of the theater set, they're used to impromptu performances." She looked speculatively at me. "Maybe you ought to try one yourself. It wouldn't hurt to get noticed." She saw my perplexed expression. "For when we wrap the season up this August," she clarified.

"Ah," I said, nodding, my heart suddenly in my throat. 

As we left the studio, I noticed we were missing our six foot three inch shadow. 

"Where's Adam?" I asked

Eve looked strained. "Oh he, uh, got a phone call and I gathered it was going to take him a minute." She smiled brightly at me. "But he'll be along later I'm sure."

"Oh". I nodded but couldn't resist throwing a glance over my shoulder as we descended the steps down to the subway.

                                                                                       ***

Bergoine's had that old New York feel to it. It had apparently been around since 1898 and had been passed down through the generations of the same family. Black wrought iron chandeliers cast a warm glow over the small intimate tables and the sounds of Cole Porter poured from the piano in the corner. I stopped and smiled, breathing in the atmosphere. It was like stepping back in time. Eve tugged on my arm. 

"Gawk, later, Julie," she smirked.

We found out table where Arthur Blunt was holding court. He looked jovial and his cheeks were pink with laughter. He looked up at us as we approached and rose. He glanced past us.

"Don't tell me I have the good fortune of having you two beautiful ladies all to myself!" he exclaimed. "Where's our sultan?"

Eve smiled wryly. "Exorcising ghosts," she said cryptically.

I looked at her sharply but she ignored my look and continued talking.

"He'll be along shortly, I'm sure. It's nice to kick back for a bit, even if it is only for a few days. Julie here is a little in awe of your little haunt, Arthur." She winked at him.