Page 68 of The Actor: Harrison

“Well, groveling is a good start,” he points out.

“It’s not even close to what I need to make amends.”

“So, be creative.”

“I don’t know what to do. Any suggestions?” I study his face while I sip my whiskey.

“You’re asking me? I’ve never had a relationship in my entire life. I don’t even know where to start.”

“Good point. But you are the one running an empire. You have a keen eye for problem solving.” Now I’m just messing with him.

He grunts. “Let me Google it for you, Harrison.” He flips me off.

I chuckle. At least my mood improved a bit coming here.

“Listen, Harrison, I don’t know how to help you, but if I was in your shoes, I would probably start from the beginning. I would probably fix my original mistake,” he suggests.

I look at him, not really sure about his advice, but it’s worth a try to at least think about it.

“Okay, now that I’m done asking for your help, can we order pizza? I can’t drive after drinking whiskey on an empty stomach.”

“You have got to be kidding me,” he whispers, grabbing his phone.

“Well, next time give me a Diet Coke if you want me out of here sooner.”

He mumbles something I can’t discern but there’s a hint of a smile on his face. I don’t feel guilty for forcing him to take a break from his job. Sometimes I feel like he focuses so much on his companies because he doesn’t have anything else worth living for. All alone in this empty mansion, I know for a fact that sometimes working yourself to death is a better option than facing your loneliness.

***

I’m in my car driving home when my phone rings. My heart jumps in my throat hoping that maybe Sienna decided to give me a chance. My heart sinks when I see David’s name flashing on the screen. The sense of disappointment is overwhelming and when I answer I sound almost angry.

“Hey, David, what’s up?”

There’s a moment of silence. “Did I catch you in a bad moment?” He sounds puzzled.

“No, sorry. I’m driving and a dickhead just cut in front of me,” I lie. Apparently, it’s becoming easier and easier.

“Well, I don’t want you to hit someone because I’m distracting you.”

Please, David, get to the point. I don’t have all day. “No worries, I can handle two tasks at time. What’s up?” I try to sound more cheerful.

“Listen, I listened to the podcast interview you and Sienna did for that movie. I want to invest.” He gets straight to the point and I almost choke.

I always forget that David is a producer. Not a big shark like someone in Hollywood but he has good movies on his resumé. I always meet him at parties, most of the time he’s wasted, which is why it didn’t click immediately that he could be interested in investing in it. I thought he was going to invite me to a night out.

“I’m listening.”

“I have a budget sitting around I want to invest and you sound pretty sure you have a big hit on your hands. I want to hear more about this movie and why it’s so special. If you’re putting your own money in an indie movie, ithasto be good.”

The irony. What got him to decide to jump in the boat is me investing in my own movie. I want to laugh at how the universe is fucking with me right now.

“I would be happy to have a chat with you. Let me call Sienna and I’ll call you back, okay?” I don’t even know if she’ll answer my call.

“Perfect! I’ll wait for your call. Don’t hit anyone in the meanwhile.” He chuckles and I can’t stop a smile forming on my face.

“This is Los Angeles, dude. Nobody pays attention when they’re driving.”

He laughs. “I’ll wait for your call.”

---