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“Wow.” Kevin gave him a loose salute. “You don’t screw around, man. Where’s your stage?”
“Sorry?”
“Where do they pay you to do that?”
“Um, they don’t.” Nick felt his legs start to tense. “I teach high school math.”
“Bullshit. You love this stuff too much to be a teacher.”
He hated the embarrassment tightening his muscles. “Music isn’t the most stable profession.”
“Because you wouldn’t want to be a music teacher or a choir director,” Kevin said. “You’d want to be the front man.”
He was right. Nick was a performer, just like Kevin, but he was proud to be a teacher too, and it was time to do a better job defending himself. Nick turned to look Kevin in the eye.
“You know that thing people say about artists?” he said. “Only do this if you can’t imagine doing anything else? I found something else.”
“You’re telling me you’re good just doing math.” Kevin didn’t sound convinced.
“Professionally?” Nick asked. “Absolutely. I get to talk about stuff I like and get the kids to like it too. It’s a different kind of thing.”
Kevin ambled over and sat down next to Nick. “So you get your fix at the bar, then. Hayley told me you’re a big deal there.”
Nick watched him. “I think you’re more of a junkie than I am.”
“Sure. Which is why I do it for a living instead of at parties.”
Nick didn’t reply.
“Hey, more power to you, man.” Kevin took a drag on his cigarette. “Needing to be up there, being made for it … that’ll eat at you. Take Hal, for instance.”
The old joke flashed in Nick’s head:“Take my wife. Please.”Instead ofsure,he said, “She’s looking forward to joining you up there.”
“Absolutely. And the thing is …” Kevin paused. “Look, I don’t expect you to understand, but Hal and I share a path. A vision, you know? And I think she’s hit a rough patch.”
“It’s good you’re there for her, then.”
Kevin exhaled smoke. “Actually, I was hoping you could be.”
Nick forced himself to stare at the parking lot as a jolt ran through him. “I thought that was your job,” he said carefully.
“Sure, sure.” Kevin stood up, started to pace. “You know that movieHeat?”
Nick went from uncomfortable to baffled. “Sure,” he said.
“You know that part where De Niro’s telling his crew they can either rob the bank or walk away? Sizemore says, ‘For me, the action is the juice.’”
“Doesn’t Sizemore get shot in the head?”
“I’m saying we need this like Sizemore needs the heist. She needs to be up there, and when she’s not …” Kevin stared intently at him. “Look, I know you can’t do what we can do, and I know you want to, and I’m sorry about that. But this could be a way to help.”
Nick gripped the rail of the bench to stave off the tension in his legs. Sometimes strong emotion made his spastic muscles tighten until both legs were straight out in front of him, and he didn’t want his anger to make him look silly.
“I already help the theater,” Nick said. “I work here. And I know exactly what I can and can’t do, but I have no idea what you want.”
Kevin shrugged, confused. “Just be her friend, man.”
Nick blinked, sat back. His legs relaxed. “Be her friend,” he repeated.
