“Geez, posh, baby! They’ve got you set up in the lap of luxury, haven’t they!”
“It was in the contract—my agent negotiated it, but yeah, it’s nice. I shouldn’t get too used to it. It’s just for a few weeks. Manchester will be a bit more humble, she tells me.”
“So how’re rehearsals going, fella? And are you breaking any hearts over there?”
Kim sighed, and everything that had happened that morning came rushing back in.
“I think I’ve fucked it up royally to be honest.”
“I’m sure you haven’t. Tell me about it.”
So Kim began from the beginning, describing his arrival at the hotel and the clash he had had straight off with Dídac, the frictions, his doubts about whether the actor was right for the part. It felt strange to be telling an ex of his about this present situation, but Tony was decidedly an ex. They were more friends now than anything else. And Kim needed to get this off his chest to someone. He went on how they seemed to have found some seed of a way to work together, and even described Dídac’s confession at the press conference:
“He saw me inBoomerang.”
“No shit!Isaw you inBoomerang. You weren’t just brilliant but gorgeous. That was when I decided I wanted you.”
“Thanks, yeah, but he was just a kid.”
“And how old is he now?”
“Twenty-five.”
“Same age as you wereinBoomerang.”
“Yeah, but a bit young for me.”
“And for me. And then what happened?”
“We kissed.”
“Oh shit, Kim. You didn’t!”
“I know.”
Kim felt gutted at his own confession, but if Tony seemed scandalized, he was also chuckling.
“So it sounds like he’s all over you, puppy love and all that. You need to put the brakes on. Treat him mean. Keep him at arm’s length. And he’ll get over it… eventually. Have him the last night before you fly out if you really want him.”
“That sounds cruel. But, you’re right: I need to keep my distance from him. I’m more worried about the production. I can’t have an actor, the lead, going wobbly on me, especially in this one. It’s such a short rehearsal run.”
“Do what you do best: put on the jack boots, get strict, and whip that production into shape. If you need some R&R, go to the sauna. But don’t fuck the office.”
“You’re right.”
But the irony of Tony, world-renowned slut, telling him to put it back in his pants was not lost on him. As if to prove his point, he caught movement in the background on Tony’s screen.
“You’re not alone?”
A shirtless blond boy in his early twenties came on screen, pulled under Tony’s arm.
“This is Derek. SayHi.”
“Hypocrite!”
Tony just laughed.
“Do as I say, not as I do!”
