STAGESTRUCK - The Complete Series (14 page)

“Ms. Kate! Ms. Kate!” Fiona called as she ran to my side. “Did you see me? I got all of my lines right on the first try!” She beamed.

“I saw that,” I smiled at her, “you did such a good job! I’m very proud of you.”

It was early Tuesday evening and I still hadn’t heard from anyone about last week’s audition. Serena and I had been checking in with each other nonstop over the last few days; she hadn’t heard anything on her end either. I’d somehow managed to pay attention during the kid’s rehearsal, but I was relieved that class was over for the day. Parents started wandering in to retrieve their children, and I was ready for a stiff drink and a long bath.

My stomach lurched as Max walked through the door. “This isn’t your usual day.” I commented as he checked Fiona out.

“I know,” he replied. “Rachel, my sister, had an out of town meeting this week. Fiona’s staying with me for a few days.”

As much as I wanted to keep hating him, my heart melted a little at his dedication to the little girl.

“Uncle Max, I got all of my lines right the first time today!” Fiona bragged. “You know what that means!”

“Yes,” he smiled at her, “it means that I owe you an ice cream.” He smiled.

“BEFORE dinner,” Fiona added with a smile, “you promised.”

“I know, and it’s a promise I’m happy to keep. You can have a giant sundae for dinner if you want, kiddo.” He grinned.

“Uncle Max, can Ms. Kate come have ice cream with us?” Fiona asked happily. “You know she’s my FAVORITE teacher!”

“I’m sure that Ms. Kate has other plans.” Max insisted.

I opened my mouth to agree with him but Fiona spoke before I could. “She doesn’t have plans, Uncle Max.” She argued. “I heard her talking to Ms. Glory. She was just going to go home, right Ms. Kate?” She asked, beaming at me.

I looked at Max, desperate for an excuse to leave. Surely he’d come up with something.

“Well, if Ms. Kate doesn’t have other plans, she’s welcome to join us for ice cream.” Max told Fiona with a smile.

The little girl turned to me. “Can you come? Can you, please, please, PLEASE?” She squealed.

I caved. “I guess I have time for ice cream.” I agreed with a weak smile. “Just let me get my things.”

I quickly pulled on my winter coat and threw my purse over my shoulder; I was ready to eat the damn ice cream and get it over with. “Where are we going?” I asked Max as we stepped out onto the street.

“There’s a yogurt bar around the corner.” He explained. “Fiona likes it because she can make her own sundae. I like it because it’s healthier than ice cream, which makes me feel less guilty for letting her eat sweets for dinner.” He laughed.

As we walked to the yogurt bar, Fiona kept us entertained with stories about her grammar school class: a little girl named Charlotte had teased her for going to the theater group, but a little boy named Michael had defended her and made her feel better.

“Maybe next time, Michael can come for ice cream too.” Fiona said with a smile as Max held open the door of the yogurt shop.

“Slow down, princess.” Max teased. “You have plenty of time before you start worrying about having ice cream dates with boys.”

We walked into the shop and Fiona rushed off to the wall of yogurt machines. She took a large cup, filled it with vanilla frozen yogurt, and topped it with fruit and granola.

“Okay, I understand why you’re letting her have this for dinner.” I admitted as Max and I filled small cups of our own. I loaded my chocolate yogurt with cookie crumbs, malt balls, and gummy bears. He looked into my cup and laughed.

“Having a bad day?” He asked.

I studied his face before answering him. I was still hurt that he’d chosen Megan over me, but after watching him with Fiona I knew that he really was a good guy. I decided to tell him the truth.

“I had another audition last week, and I still haven’t heard anything from Marion or the theater.” I admitted. “The more time that passes, the more convinced I am that I didn’t get cast.”

“I’m sure that if that’s the case, it’s only because something better is down the road.” He assured me.

“I hope so,” I laughed.

The three of us sat and ate our yogurt silently for a few minutes and I wracked my brain for something to talk about once our cups were empty. Fortunately, Fiona started a conversation I was happy to hear.

“Uncle Max, has Megan picked up all of her silly stuff from your apartment yet?” She asked hopefully.

Max blushed and my heart fluttered in my chest. “Yes,” he told her. “She took everything home today… it won’t be in your way anymore.”

“I’m glad you’re not dating her anymore Uncle Max,” Fiona continued. “She was really silly and she talked to me like I’m a little kid… not like Ms. Kate, she treats me like I’m a grown up. You should take Ms. Kate out on a date, Uncle Max.” She added with a mischievous smile.

Max laughed. “I knew that you were up to something, ladybug.” He smiled at her. He looked at me seriously as he continued talking to her. “I’d love to take Ms. Kate out on a real date, if she’d agree to go with me.”

My stomach fluttered again and I fought the urge to smile. Megan was gone… I had won.

“You’ll go out on a date with Uncle Max, won’t you Ms. Kate?” the little girl beamed. “He’s a really nice guy… and if he’s not nice to you, I’ll tell my grandma on him.” She smiled and Max and I laughed.

“Well, I guess if you’re going to watch out for me like that, I don’t have anything to lose.” I grinned. “I guess there’s no harm in one date.”

Max flashed me a happy smile. “Fiona, we need to be get going soon, I know you have homework to do before bed. Go to the bathroom and wash your hands while Ms. Kate and I have some grown-up talk.”

“Alright,” Fiona agreed reluctantly, rolling her eyes. She darted off to the bathroom, leaving Max and I alone at the table.

“So… you and Megan are over?” I asked him softly.

He nodded his head as he gazed into my eyes. “I tried… I really tried to do the right thing. But the longer I stayed with her, the more I realized that you were right… I was with Megan because I felt obligated... look, I promise that I didn’t put Fiona up to any of this, and if you don’t actually want to go out, I understand. We’ll tell her that we went to dinner, and that we just want to be friends.” He paused for a deep breath and let it out slowly. “But if you do want to go out… I’d really like that.”

I studied him carefully. “I thought you couldn’t trust me…” I reminded him.

Fiona returned to the table before he could reply.

“My hands are clean!” She smiled and held her tiny hands up to his face.

“Good job, ladybug.” He told her. “Are you ready to go back to my place?”

“Can Ms. Kate come over and help me with my homework?” She asked innocently.

Max and I burst into laughter. “You’re pushing it, kid.” He told her with a smile. “Ms. Kate is going to go to her OWN house; you are going to do your homework, take a bath, and get to bed… and we probably need to throw an actual meal in there somewhere. You’ll see Ms. Kate tomorrow.” He assured her.

“You’re uncle is right,” I told her. “We’re going to have a big day tomorrow. I need to go home and sleep so I have energy.” I said with a smile. I turned to Max. “Will you be picking her up again tomorrow?”

He nodded. “Fiona, why don’t you go pick out something from the cookie case? We’ll pack it in tomorrow’s lunch.” He handed her a five dollar bill.

“I LOVE staying with you, Uncle Max!” She beamed and rushed to the counter.

“Look, I’m sorry I said that about not trusting you.” He whispered; he kept a careful watch on Fiona as he spoke. “I was really pissed at myself… I knew that I had no business seeing Megan before I even started… I wanted you… I’ve wanted you since that first night I saw you.” He exhaled and continued. “But when I thought you weren’t an option, I decided the best way to get over you was to get involved with her… I know that sounds ridiculous.”

“It makes a little sense…” I conceded. “I didn’t handle things any better than you did. If I’d just been honest with you none of this ever would have happened.”

“So… can we have a fresh start?” He asked hopefully.

“We can have dinner, and see where it goes from there.” I offered. “When will Fiona’s mom be back in town?”

“Early Thursday morning.” He smiled. “But I’m off work until Friday.”

“Okay,” I smiled. “Thursday night it is.”

“Thank you so much for coming with me.” I told Mark as we window shopped down Fifth Avenue. I was determined to find the perfect outfit for my date with Max. I’d called Janette and asked her to go on the errand with me, but she already had plans with Paul. In a panic, I’d sent a group text to Serena, Mark, Parker, and Bridget; Mark responded within seconds saying he was on his way.

“I’m happy to!” He exclaimed. “I have to make sure that you look good tomorrow night… and I have to say, Kate, it’s nice to see you back to your old self.” He said it as if we’d known each other for years; in some ways, it felt like we had.

“Leaving Orlando’s was the best decision I’ve made since I moved here.” I told him.

“Other than being friends with me, of course,” Mark broke in with a teasing smile.

“Of course,” I laughed. “But seriously, working with the kids every day… teaching them what I love. It’s been amazing. And now everything else is falling into place too!” I beamed. “Except that I still haven’t heard about Chicago…” I added with a frown.

“I thought you were supposed to have known something by Monday.” Mark replied.

“That’s what Harrison said last week… I called Marion yesterday, she said no one’s heard anything about it, and she doesn’t know what’s holding up the casting.” I told him.

“Well, I’m sure they’re just having a hard time deciding which role to cast you in.” He said with a reassuring grin.

“Me and Serena, hopefully,” I agreed; I noticed him grimace. “What?” I asked in confusion.

“Don’t get me wrong, I hope that they put you both in the show… I just thing your chances are probably better than hers. I’ve watched all of your tapes and I’ve seen her live more times than I’d like to remember… and I know which one of you I’d pay to see again.” He added.

I sighed, knowing he was right. “She’s so determined, and she works so hard.” I told him. “And she did great during the acting portion… but she her voice went horribly sharp during the vocal part and she stumbled a little during the dance.” Saying it all out loud felt like having a weight lifted off of my shoulders. I really liked Serena, but it was hard to keep telling her she was fantastic.

Mark nodded. “She’s great when all she has to do is act… it’s the singing and dancing that trips her up. But those are the kinds of shows she wants to be in.”

“Maybe we should gently… push her in the direction of other plays.” I suggested.

“Believe me, we’ve tried.” Mark laughed. “But by all means, give it a shot.”

“Mark, what am I supposed to do if I get a part and she doesn’t?” I asked. I paused in front of H&M to admire a dress that hung in their window.

“That would look fantastic on you.” Mark insisted. He drug me into the store. “It’s simple, Kate. If you get a role, you accept it. Don’t even ask who else got cast. If Serena doesn’t get one, then she’ll just have to deal with it. Don’t sacrifice your success for her feelings.” He found the dress in my size and held it up in front of me.

“I don’t know… it’s pretty cold outside, maybe I should wear pants.” I suggested.

“Kate, when you saw Max this afternoon, he said he was planning the perfect, romantic New York night.” He reminded me. “You are not wearing pants. What you need is a full length dress coat; every sophisticated New York woman should have one.”

I took the dress from him and turned to a mirror. The turquoise fabric set my eyes off perfectly and I knew the cut would hug my curves. “I guess I could try it on…”

“Yes!” Mark insisted. “I’ll go look for accessories. Come find me once you’ve got it on.” He disappeared before I could protest. The last thing I felt like doing was traipsing through the store in a semi-formal dress and my fluffy socks, but I knew I didn’t have a choice. If I didn’t show Mark the dress, he’d just make me try it on again. I stripped off my clothes and pulled the dress over my head. It fit me perfectly and screamed sophistication. I took a deep breath and opened the door; to my great relief, Mark was waiting for me on a nearby sofa.

“You look fantastic, this is defiantly what you have to wear.” He insisted. “I didn’t find the right kind of coat here, but I know where to go. Put your clothes back on, we’ll buy the dress, grab dinner, and then keep shopping… agreed?”

“Agreed,” I nodded. I was happy to have someone else around to give me some direction. I changed, paid for the dress, and then we set off for a nearby deli. When we walked past Bergdorf Goodman, I stopped again.

“Look at that.” I said, pointing to a purple paisley shirt in the window. “Parker would love that! Do you want to go in and see how much it costs?”

“No, let Parker buy his own damn shirts… as he likes to constantly remind me, he’s the one who makes all of the money.” Mark ranted.

“Mark, did something happen?” I asked. “Did you two have a fight? Why are you just now saying something?”

“I’m sorry,” Mark said as we continued down the street. “I wasn’t going to bring it up at all… things are going so good for you and I didn’t want to be a downer.”

We arrived at the deli, walked in, and stepped up to the counter. We each ordered pastrami on rye, a cup of matzo ball soup, and steaming mugs of coffee. When our orders were up, we took seats at a small table and continued our conversation.

“You could never be a downer, Mark.” I assured him. “And I love you. If you’re upset, I want you to talk to me about it.”

“I love you too.” He sighed. “And I love Parker… but all he does these days is work! He was promoted after he landed that last big deal and now he’s at the office twelve and fourteen hours a day. And when I have the nerve to complain about not getting to see him, he points out that he makes twice as much money as me.”

“When did the two of you fight?” I asked.

“About an hour before you sent that text.” He replied. “It was over the phone… because he was still at the office.”

“I like Parker, but throwing money in your face is completely unfair.” I insisted. “I mean, when Parker does well at his job, companies sell more product. When you do well, kids’ lives are changed.” I reminded him. Like me, Mark worked with kids; unlike me, he worked with incredibly underprivileged kids. He was a guidance councilor at one of the most destitute middle schools in the city.

“I know… and I know that I should be thankful that Parker works so hard… We do live well on what he makes, and it allows me to do what I love… I just wish like he didn’t act like such a fucking martyr all of the time.” He said.

I had an idea. “Mark, what if instead of telling Parker how much you miss him, you show him?” I suggested. “When’s the last time the two of you had a romantic night together?”

He snorted. “I can’t even remember, and I doubt that he’d be interested.”

“How do you know that unless you try?” I argued. “Do you still love him? Do you want to be with him?”

“Yes,” he sighed.

“And do you want things to stay the way they are now, or do you want them to get better?” I continued.

“Okay, I get your point.” He relented. “What do you suggest I do?”

“Well, do the two of you have any special places or traditions?” I asked.

“We both love the Met.” He said with a smile. “When we first started dating, we went to every show they had.”

“Well then, take him there. Go on a Sunday if you have to… rekindle those feelings that you had in the beginning, then go home and act on them.” I advised with a grin.

“I guess that might work.” He replied with a smile. “You know, Kate, I’m so happy that you moved to the city. You’re already my favorite person in the world… girl person, that is.” He added with a laugh. “Now, let’s get to Saks and find the perfect coat to go with that fantastic dress.”