As the cab drove up to Henry's apartment, Holly had to stifle a gasp. They were still on Fifth Avenue, just down the street from the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Henry's penthouse apartment occupied the entire top floor of the building they pulled up to.
Holly and Louise got out of the cab and the doorman opened up the door, smiling at Louise.
"Good day, Ms. White." He nodded respectfully at Holly. "Ma'am."
Louise walked past the doorman, pretending he wasn't there. Holly however, paused as she walked through the door.
"Thank you." She then followed Louise, but made no effort to catch up with her.
At the elevator, Louise had pushed the button when Holly got there.
"So, who was that man you were talking to at Barney's?"
"I don't really know," Holly said. "But his name is Rick umm...something that starts with an 'H'."
"Well, I think that you should be concentrating on other things, if you know what I mean, dear."
"Of course."
The bell hop opened the doors into a magnificent apartment. It was done in deep reds and chocolate browns, with thick cream carpets covering the floor. Polished wood furniture was everywhere, and Holly could just see an extravagent chandelier in the dining room around the corner.
Suddenly, Henry came around a corner. He stopped at the sight of Holly and Louise. It took Louise a few seconds to shoot off her ever running mouth.
"Henry!" she squealed in an extremely annoying, high pitched voice. "How are you?" She rushed over to him, snatched his head in her hands, and kissed both his cheeks.
When she backed off, Henry answered, "Fine, fine. How are you?"
"Wonderful, dear."
"And who's your friend?"
"Henry, this is Holly Golightly. Holly, this is Henry, my brother."
"Pleased to meet you Holly."
"The pleasure's mine. I've been looking forward to meeting you."
"I'm sure that if Louise had informed me you would be coming, I would have looked forward to it also."
"If I'm intruding or something..."
"Of course you're not, dear!" Louise chimed in. Henry's delighted to have you here. Right dear?"
"Naturally you're welcome to stay."
"Well, thank you."
"Now then," Louise decided. "Let's get Helga to cook us something delicious." Louise was clearly, very comfortable in her brother's home. She walked into the kitchen to prompt Helga for some lunch.
After Louise left, Henry was the first to break the silence. "So, Holly, what do you think of the place?"
"Oh, I think it's marvelous!" she gushed, keeping in mind the price of the apartment.
"Good. I like hearing that. So, how long have you lived in the city?"
"Nearly a year now. I got bored with my old place, and decided that New York was where the action was."
"Well, it's definitely interesting here."
Holly needed to steer the conversation towards a more...personal topic.
She lowered her voice, trying to sound more flirtatious. "How long have you lived here?"
"About five years now."
"This house looks like it's fantastic for parties. Do you have many?"
"Oh yes, all the time. Actually, I'm having one this Friday night. Would you like to come?"
Holly silently congratulated herself. "That sounds like fun. Of course I'll come."
"Bring a friend too. There might not be too many people you know there."
"Well, there's always you," Holly said, trying to sound flirtatious again.
"There sure is," Henry said. He was still looking at her when Louise walked back into the room.