Animate Me (34 page)

When it’s time for her to leave I walk her to her car, kiss her goodbye, then hurry back in to jump into the shower and get ready for the day.

Luckily, I’m only a few minutes late. But Joel could yell at me anyway, and it wouldn’t matter ‘cause I’m on cloud nine. It takes all of my composure not to stand in the middle of the production room and yell out “Brooke loves me!” for all the world to hear.

That afternoon when I bring Brooke her coffee she’s on her computer making reservations for Comic Con. Evidently Mojo doesn’t like to go, so I’m determined to go with Brooke. She teases me that animators aren’t supposed to go on the company dime…as if that could hold me back.

Now that we’re in love, it will be the best Comic Con ever. Never in my wildest dreams, did I ever imagine I would walk through those hallowed convention halls with a beauty like Brooke on my arm.

“By the way, if you’re planning on dressing up for Comic Con, may I suggest Cat Woman?” I tease.

“You know I addressed up like Wonder Woman at Comic Con once when I was younger.”

“You did?” She obviously doesn’t understand what that news would do to me, for she looks at me funny when she realizes that my face is flushed and my chest is rising and falling like I just leapt between two tall buildings.

God, I love this woman.

“Can you wear that for me sometime?” I ask, trying to not sound as desperate as I feel.

She looks at me with a twinkle in her eyes. “Sure,” she says. “But you have to dress up for me too.”

I’m instantly filled with dread at the idea of tights and spandex body suits. “Dress up as who?”

She grins. “I’ve always had a thing about Indiana Jones.”

I breathe a sigh of relief knowing I’m safe from spandex. “Sure,” I agree. “How about tomorrow?”

“You’re on!”

It occurs to me that I don’t have much time to figure out Indiana’s costume. Back in my office, I call Billie for a consultation.

“Billie, I need your help. I have to dress up like Indiana Jones for Brooke.”

There is a long pause. “Dress up like Indy? Oh, he’s the man. Wait, wasn’t he getting tied up a lot?”

“I think so,” I reply, starting to get nervous.

“That’s hot. I like it,” she confirms. “So shall I guess that things are on the upswing with Brooke if you’ve advanced to kinky role playing?”

I suddenly realize that no one in my life knows how things have changed radically over the course of less than twenty-four hours.

“Oh, yes, everything’s changed.”

“For the good I take it?” she teases.

“So good…Billie, you wouldn’t believe how good.”

“Glad to hear it…maybe Curtis will finally stop worrying about you.”

“He’s been worried?” I ask, a lump in my throat.

“I’ll say. For a big boy, that guy can get pretty damn emo,” she replies laughing. “But enough about Curtis. So what do you need for Indiana?”

“I need one of those safari hats and maybe a whip, and a sheathed knife to hang on my belt…or something to look rugged.”

“He doesn’t wear a safari hat!” she huffs. “It’s a busted Fedora. I have something that will work for that. And of course I have a whip you can borrow, but I need it back by Friday.”

I grin into the phone. “And where can I get one of those knives…a sporting goods store?”

“Oh, I’ve got one of those too.”

“You do?” my voice brimming with disbelief.

“Don’t ask,” she warns me.

“Believe me, I don’t want to know,” I assure her. Leave it to Billie to be the go-to-gal for all my kinky needs.

Since I’m on a roll, I decide to call Mom and give her an update. “Guess what, Mom?”

“Oh, I like the sound of your voice,” she says happily. “Do you have good news for us?”

I pause remembering our last conversation and how she encouraged me. I can’t hold back the good news. “Brooke loves me,” I state with a full heart.

“Oh my God, wait, wait…let me put your Dad on the phone too!”

I smile as I hear her yelling for Dad to get on the phone.

“Yes?” I hear him say with a concerned tone, as he picks up the line.

“She loves him, Arthur!” Mom says.

“Nathan?” he asks, still not sure what’s going on.

“She’s not going to marry him, Dad. She loves me. She told me so.”

“Oh, that’s excellent news. What did I tell you, Son? Logic and statistics don’t mean a damn thing when it comes to love. I’m so glad, Nathan. So, how did this Arnauld react?”

“He’s on a business trip this week, but before he left she told him she wouldn’t marry him. She’s going to finalize everything Monday, and then we’ll figure things out from there.”

“So does she know about Dani and the comic book yet?” Mom asks cautiously.

“Not exactly, we agreed to a week of just being together, and we’re going to deal with all the hard stuff next week.”

“I see,” replies Mom, sounding unsure.

“We’re having a week of woo,” I explain.

“You followed my advice,” Dad says proudly. “Well, as we discussed, historically wooing has always been a favorable way to secure your mate. So what do you have planned for tonight?”

Damn.
I’ve been so swept up with the day that I hadn’t thought that far in advance.

“I haven’t planned anything yet,” I admit nervously. “Everything’s been happening so fast. But don’t worry; I’ll think of something.”

There’s a pause. “Arthur?” Mom says, “Can we?”

“Yes, Diana. It’s perfect…woo-ing with a capital W.”

Their shorthand talk always baffles me. “What’re you guys talking about?”

“We have tickets for the Hollywood Bowl tonight. I just finished packing our picnic dinner, complete with an excellent bottle of wine. You should take Brooke, Nathan, it’s the perfect night for it.”

I’d forgotten they always have season tickets with great box seats. The Hollywood Bowl’s an experience like none other. “But you guys already had your evening planned,” I try to persuade, half-heartedly.

“It’s Harry Connick Jr. doing the classics, Nathan. You’d be a fool to pass this up,” Mom stresses.

“Wow. That would be super woo-worthy. If you’re sure…that’d be amazing.”

“We insist,” Dad says firmly.

“Thanks. You guys are the best. This really means so much to me.”

“We know, Son. Mom and I are behind you two hundred percent. It doesn’t take a forensic scientist and inter-personal sociologist to clearly determine that you’re meant to be with this girl. We want you to have a stellar time.”

Brooke is thrilled when she gets my call.

“I love the Hollywood Bowl…and Harry Connick Jr…wow! You’re taking the wooing up a notch.”

Win!

“So, let’s leave right at six, and I’ll follow you home so you can get a jacket and something warmer to wear,” I explain.

I splurge on valet parking, and we slowly wind our way up the hillside, surrounded by happy faces and arms laden with food and wine. It’s a beautiful clear evening as we settle into our prime box seats facing the famous clamshell shaped theater.

Just the look on Brooke’s face when I unpack mom’s basket, spreading the cloth over the little fold-down table, makes everything worth it. While I uncork the wine bottle and fill our glasses, Brooke carefully opens each container and fills our plates. We even have cloth napkins and silverware. I’m so happy I can’t stop grinning as we eat and sip wine. There are berry tarts for dessert
.
The sun slowly falls behind the hill and the purple cast of twilight falls over us.

Later as Harry serenades us, Brooke curls up under my arm and I wrap the blanket around us. It feels like he’s singing just to us.

Brooke nuzzles my neck then whispers in my ear, “Thank you for tonight, Nathan. I don’t know when I’ve ever been so happy.”

“Me too, Brooke,” I reply and then gently kiss her, realizing this is one of those moments I’ll never forget.

I look up into the night sky, sprinkled with stars and as I hold my girl in my arms, the music surrounds and lifts us up, while Arnold and the weight of the last few weeks falls away. I never would have believed I could feel like this, my heart so full that it’s going to spring out of my chest in a big cartoony gesture.

We are in our own world now, my Red Hot and I. The title of the next number sums it all up perfectly…“It Had to Be You.”

“It’s my turn now and I’ve got to make it.” ~ Speed Racer
^xx

“Y
ou really outdid yourself, you know,” Brooke sighs as she curls into me. The alarm clock’s gone off but we’re doing our best to ignore it.

“Yeah, that was a great evening,” I agree. “But I have to tell you, I have a whole support group behind me; Team Woo is leading me to victory.”

She laughs. “You’re just so damn charming that everyone wants to help you. Who got you those Hollywood Bowl tickets on such short notice anyway?”

“My parents,” I admit.

“Awww,” she croons. “Remind me to thank them. That was so sweet.”

“They really like you,” I share, hoping that makes her happy.

“I like them too. I see so much of them in you.”

I pull her tighter into my arms and kiss the top of her head. She sighs happily then lifts up to face me. “So don’t forget I have a late meeting tonight.”

“That’s right,” I say. “How late do you think it will go?”

“I’m not sure, I’ll call as soon as I get home.”

“Okay. What would you like for breakfast?”

“Can we have Pop-Tarts?”

“Strawberry or brown sugar?

She laughs. “Both!”

On the way to work, my cell phone rings.

“Hey Dad. Thanks again for last night. It was completely perfect.”

“I’m glad, Son. We were happy to do it, and the reward is hearing it achieved the desired effect.”

“I’ll say,” I agree, remembering not just the concert, but also the rest of our night with the physical manifestation of the woo. Before my thoughts get too X-rated though, I try to focus back on the conversation.

“By the way, I just finished going over your contract for your comic books. Nathan…wait a minute, are you driving? Is your headset on? Because the statistics of accidents due to cell phone usage while conducting a vehicle are staggering.”

“Headset’s on, Dad.”

“Excellent,” he says sounding relieved. “So regarding the contract, I’m not concerned about the points you asked me about…pretty much standard legal-speak. This looks pretty solid to me.”

I breathe a sigh of relief. Knowing Dad is good with the Sharper Edge Comics deal means a lot to me.

“I do have one question though, Son. How are you going to manage these obligations for Sharper Edge, do your job at Sketch Republic justice, and have a romantic relationship all at the same time? Don’t get me wrong—you’re highly capable. But men traditionally are not multi-taskers. Evolution really left that in the hands of the female species, and their ability to excel at it convinces me that they’ll eventually rule the world.”

“I can multi-task,” I insist, imagining myself stepping out of a phone booth and ripping my shirt open to reveal the big Super N on my chest.

“You’re already under the hypnotic spell, I see. With new love, when the surge of hormones hit you, you’re so euphorically distracted and blissfully unaware of the world that your house could burn down around you and you wouldn’t notice.”

I’m so flustered that I swerve the car a bit before I regain my composure. “Dad, can we please not discuss hormones hitting me?”

“But do you understand the ramifications of my point? Sharper Edge has very high expectations for you and your comics.”

“Of course. Look, my plan is to give it my all and go without sleep for a while until B-Girl gets established and hopefully succeeds. Then I will quit my day job and devote myself to Brooke and B-Girl full time.”

“Quit your job?” he asks thoughtfully. I can tell he’s making complex financial calculations in his mind.

“Hell, Arnold may fire me before then, and I’ll get unemployment. That could work to my benefit.”

“Being fired is never a desirable option, Nathan. Your industry is small. The stigma could follow you if you wish to re-establish yourself in animation.”

I start tensing up. Thinking about fucking Mojo just does that to me. It’s a relief as I pull into the parking structure not to see his car and be reminded I won’t see his car or his hairy ass all week.

“Dad, I just arrived at work…gotta go.”

Dad is patient with the brush-off. He knows I can only take so much advice at once. “Okay, Nathan, I’ll call Walter and let him know you’ll sign the documents and get them out today. Congratulations, Son. I’m proud of you.”

I feel a thrill realizing that this is good to go. I’m going to sign that darn contract as soon as I get in my cube, and be one step closer to my dreams coming true.

• • •

At lunchtime Dani agrees to order me a sandwich so I can drop the contracts at Fed Ex, before meeting up with them to eat.

“So it’s a done deal?” She nods at the contracts on my desk as I pull money out of my wallet and hand it to her.

“Yeah, I still can’t believe it,” I admit, shaking my head. “Everything’s working out so much better than I could’ve hoped.”

“Everything?” she asks, her eyebrows raised.

“Can you and Nick keep a secret?” I know I can trust them, and I feel like I owe them the truth after what we all went through together.

“It’s on with Brooke?” She asks, smiling and looking hopeful.

“It’s so on.” I grin like a fool.

“I knew it, I knew it!” She bounces on her heels excitedly. “Nick owes me twenty! I could tell—your whole vibe was so different yesterday, even if you were trying to hide it. We have to go out for drinks soon so we can hear the whole story.”

“Okay,” I agree. “But meanwhile we have to be on the down low until the Monkey gets back and she tells him,” I explain.

“Well that’ll be an interesting day at Sketch Republic,” Dani states. “But fuck him. He’s getting just what he deserves. And even if he’s an ass and gets nasty, you have something else already lined up.”

I nod, because it feels good to hear Dani so confident about my future.