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The next morning, Lizzie heard the soft knock on the front door and hurried to answer it. She smiled and made way for her friend to enter. After shutting the door, she grabbed her golden locks and swept them back into twist and clipped them into place. "Morning," she smiled, grabbing her blouse off the back of a chair.
Miranda smiled as she pushed a strand of black hair out of her face. "Where's Tori?"
"Still sleeping," Lizzie stated, walking into the bathroom. As with a usual morning, Miranda followed her in and sat down on the edge of the tub. "Do you know who else is sleeping upstairs?"
Miranda looked blankly up at her friend.
"David," Lizzie stated, then quickly retold the events of the previous nights. She stood there for a minute, putting in gold hoop earrings, then stopped. "I should just call off work. I mean, Tori hasn't even met him, and I can't just leave you alone with them. And I can write my article at home. I've got a few days until the deadline. I should just stay."
Miranda tilted her head. "We'll be fine, Lizzie. I've watched Tori every day that you've worked, and we've known Gordo our whole lives."
"I don't know. When Tori meets David I should-maybe I should just stay home."
"How long is he staying?" Miranda asked, using a tactic she'd perfected when Lizzie was going into this slight panic mode, getting her off the subject.
"I didn't ask. I suppose he'll start looking for a job, then go," she replied, looking in the mirror. She sighed and placed her hands on the sink. "Will you call me if Tori doesn't like him? I'll call when I get the first chance."
Miranda let out a gentle laugh and handed Lizzie a makeup compact. "We'll be fine. It's going to be a normal day for me and Tori, just with someone new for her to meet."
Lizzie took the makeup and quickly applied it. "Tori's starting to get a case of cabin fever, with it raining so much the last couple days. If you want to bundle her up and take her for a walk. She should be getting up any time now and then-"
"Lizzie!" Miranda interrupted. "I know, I really do."
She sighed and put down the tube of lipstick and looked over at her friend. "I know you do. I just feel so out of it. Why did he have to come back, Miranda? Why?" She didn't give her friend a chance to answer as she glanced down at her watch. "I've got to go or I'm going to be late. I'll call," she promised, hastening out of the bathroom, grabbing her coat and purse, then rushing out the door.
Miranda watched her go then sighed softly as she glanced up the stairs. She went into the living room then finally slid out of her coat and hung it up. She pulled her book out of her backpack and settled down to read when she heard footsteps on the stairs. She knew immediately that it wasn't Tori. The footsteps were louder. She looked up and tried not to smiled at the sight of Gordo walking down the stairs in the old blue bathrobe. He ruffled his hair, then looked into the living room. He tilted his head and smiled at Miranda.
"Hey stranger," she greeted, unfolding her legs from beneath her as she stood up. He crossed the room and wrapped his arms around her. "How are you doing?"
"All things considered, I'm good right now," he answered. sitting down in the chair beside hers. He was quiet for a moment as if considering how to say something difficult. "Miranda, why did you tell me to come to Lizzie's? You must have known she is still furious with me."
"Because, I didn't have any room in my apartment, you said your parents also moved, and I knew Lizzie had this big house," she reasoned.
"But this is nothing short of throwing me into a snake pit," he stated.
"She's not going to hurt you, Gordo."
"She hates me."
"You were a jerk," she nodded. Her comment took him by complete surprise. She knew he'd expected a refusal of the comment, but she wasn't going to give that to him. "You two had been inseparable for most of high school. Then for no reason, you just leave her with a note. A note, Gordo. She deserved more than that."
He stood up quickly. "She did fine without me."
"What did you expect her to do? Wait around every day for a call that never happened? If I hadn't told you about the wedding, you never would have known."
Gordo said nothing else, but started at her.
"How exactly did you get yourself into this finical state?" Miranda asked, putting the book back into her backpack.
Gordo sighed. "I'd been hired to direct a movie. Nothing in the standards of the Matrix or Lord of the Rings, but definitely something that would get attention. The production was going great and critics were wild about what they'd seen so far. Then we hit a bad luck streak. Things went wrong, things needed to be rebuilt. Sponsors began to pull out. Over half of it was shot, but without sponsors, we had to let people go. I tried to use some of my own money, actually, I used all of it. A very large sponsorship was supposed to be coming through, and it would have helped through post production. It never came through and we had to quit production."
"Gordo, if people were pulling out, that should have told you something," Miranda stated.
"Titanic was expected to be a very large, very over budget flop, but look at it."
"Yeah, Gordo. Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, James Cameron. Very strong people in Hollywood. No offence, but did your movie have that star pull?"
He bit down on his lip and shook his head. "I was ready for this though, Miranda. I thought I'd finally had something that would at least make it to the box office."
"Does that mean you give up?" Miranda asked.
"What?"
"Are you giving up?" She saw the look that crossed his face and sighed. "Gordo, you know you've got talent, don't let a set back, hold you down." She pulled out a magazine from her backpack and tossed it at him. "There's ads for jobs in the back. With all that you've done and everything you've studied, there's got to be something in there for you."
Miranda said nothing else but crossed the room and started up the stairs. Leaving him alone would give him time to think, and no sympathy would push him to get back on his feet quicker.
She smiled to herself. Her friends, who would have ever thought that she'd be guiding them both. Her smiled faded. What exactly was she guiding them to? She wasn't sure yet, but she had a feeling she would find out very soon.
The next morning, Lizzie heard the soft knock on the front door and hurried to answer it. She smiled and made way for her friend to enter. After shutting the door, she grabbed her golden locks and swept them back into twist and clipped them into place. "Morning," she smiled, grabbing her blouse off the back of a chair.
Miranda smiled as she pushed a strand of black hair out of her face. "Where's Tori?"
"Still sleeping," Lizzie stated, walking into the bathroom. As with a usual morning, Miranda followed her in and sat down on the edge of the tub. "Do you know who else is sleeping upstairs?"
Miranda looked blankly up at her friend.
"David," Lizzie stated, then quickly retold the events of the previous nights. She stood there for a minute, putting in gold hoop earrings, then stopped. "I should just call off work. I mean, Tori hasn't even met him, and I can't just leave you alone with them. And I can write my article at home. I've got a few days until the deadline. I should just stay."
Miranda tilted her head. "We'll be fine, Lizzie. I've watched Tori every day that you've worked, and we've known Gordo our whole lives."
"I don't know. When Tori meets David I should-maybe I should just stay home."
"How long is he staying?" Miranda asked, using a tactic she'd perfected when Lizzie was going into this slight panic mode, getting her off the subject.
"I didn't ask. I suppose he'll start looking for a job, then go," she replied, looking in the mirror. She sighed and placed her hands on the sink. "Will you call me if Tori doesn't like him? I'll call when I get the first chance."
Miranda let out a gentle laugh and handed Lizzie a makeup compact. "We'll be fine. It's going to be a normal day for me and Tori, just with someone new for her to meet."
Lizzie took the makeup and quickly applied it. "Tori's starting to get a case of cabin fever, with it raining so much the last couple days. If you want to bundle her up and take her for a walk. She should be getting up any time now and then-"
"Lizzie!" Miranda interrupted. "I know, I really do."
She sighed and put down the tube of lipstick and looked over at her friend. "I know you do. I just feel so out of it. Why did he have to come back, Miranda? Why?" She didn't give her friend a chance to answer as she glanced down at her watch. "I've got to go or I'm going to be late. I'll call," she promised, hastening out of the bathroom, grabbing her coat and purse, then rushing out the door.
Miranda watched her go then sighed softly as she glanced up the stairs. She went into the living room then finally slid out of her coat and hung it up. She pulled her book out of her backpack and settled down to read when she heard footsteps on the stairs. She knew immediately that it wasn't Tori. The footsteps were louder. She looked up and tried not to smiled at the sight of Gordo walking down the stairs in the old blue bathrobe. He ruffled his hair, then looked into the living room. He tilted his head and smiled at Miranda.
"Hey stranger," she greeted, unfolding her legs from beneath her as she stood up. He crossed the room and wrapped his arms around her. "How are you doing?"
"All things considered, I'm good right now," he answered. sitting down in the chair beside hers. He was quiet for a moment as if considering how to say something difficult. "Miranda, why did you tell me to come to Lizzie's? You must have known she is still furious with me."
"Because, I didn't have any room in my apartment, you said your parents also moved, and I knew Lizzie had this big house," she reasoned.
"But this is nothing short of throwing me into a snake pit," he stated.
"She's not going to hurt you, Gordo."
"She hates me."
"You were a jerk," she nodded. Her comment took him by complete surprise. She knew he'd expected a refusal of the comment, but she wasn't going to give that to him. "You two had been inseparable for most of high school. Then for no reason, you just leave her with a note. A note, Gordo. She deserved more than that."
He stood up quickly. "She did fine without me."
"What did you expect her to do? Wait around every day for a call that never happened? If I hadn't told you about the wedding, you never would have known."
Gordo said nothing else, but started at her.
"How exactly did you get yourself into this finical state?" Miranda asked, putting the book back into her backpack.
Gordo sighed. "I'd been hired to direct a movie. Nothing in the standards of the Matrix or Lord of the Rings, but definitely something that would get attention. The production was going great and critics were wild about what they'd seen so far. Then we hit a bad luck streak. Things went wrong, things needed to be rebuilt. Sponsors began to pull out. Over half of it was shot, but without sponsors, we had to let people go. I tried to use some of my own money, actually, I used all of it. A very large sponsorship was supposed to be coming through, and it would have helped through post production. It never came through and we had to quit production."
"Gordo, if people were pulling out, that should have told you something," Miranda stated.
"Titanic was expected to be a very large, very over budget flop, but look at it."
"Yeah, Gordo. Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, James Cameron. Very strong people in Hollywood. No offence, but did your movie have that star pull?"
He bit down on his lip and shook his head. "I was ready for this though, Miranda. I thought I'd finally had something that would at least make it to the box office."
"Does that mean you give up?" Miranda asked.
"What?"
"Are you giving up?" She saw the look that crossed his face and sighed. "Gordo, you know you've got talent, don't let a set back, hold you down." She pulled out a magazine from her backpack and tossed it at him. "There's ads for jobs in the back. With all that you've done and everything you've studied, there's got to be something in there for you."
Miranda said nothing else but crossed the room and started up the stairs. Leaving him alone would give him time to think, and no sympathy would push him to get back on his feet quicker.
She smiled to herself. Her friends, who would have ever thought that she'd be guiding them both. Her smiled faded. What exactly was she guiding them to? She wasn't sure yet, but she had a feeling she would find out very soon.