"A kiss is a lovely thing designed by nature to stop speech when words become superfluous." -Ingrid Bergman
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The man running around stopped and came over to them. "Jared! And you brought Daphne Brando. Wonderful," he replied nervously upon seeing her standing next to him. He glanced around hurriedly, trying to figure out what to do. He reminded Daphne of the Tasmanian devil from 'Looney Toons'. Or maybe a crack user. "Hi," he said, holding his hand out to her. "Terry Richardson." She shook it with a gracious smile. "Wow, you're even more beautiful in person," he added, staring at her through his glasses.
She got the sense that she wasn't expected and she glanced at Valery, who was staring at them from the window. Daphne felt a sense of hostility from her and glanced at Jared. "Sorry, am I interrupting something?"
They had met very briefly in Toronto when she had run into her and Jared in the hallway of the hotel and their exchange hadn't been very warm.
Shannon hopped off the sofa and came over to Daphne, giving her a big hug. "Nope, Terry just thought Jay might like some company while he was here, but obviously it was unnecessary," he said, nodding his head toward Valery. Daphne got the feeling Shannon wasn't too excited at her presence, either. She smiled at him. "When did you decide to come to New York? I thought you'd be going home."
She shrugged, leaning against him as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "I took a detour. My assistant is on vacation so I'm pretty much on my own."
"Well you're welcome here," Terry said, taking her hand. "My God, you really are stunningly gorgeous."
"Stop flirting with her and come here, I need to talk to you," Jared said, yanking his arm and pulling Terry into the hallway.
Terry gave him a confused look. "Why didn't you tell me she was coming," he asked in a hushed whisper, gesturing back at his apartment door.
Jared gave him an annoyed look. "Why didn't YOU tell me SHE was coming?!" he asked.
Terry shrugged. "I didn't think it would matter. I thought you two were…you know…still…boinking," he replied, making a hand gesture.
Jared lowered his head into his hands and sighed with a laugh. "No," he said after a minute. "We aren't. We haven't spoken since the attack a few weeks ago. And I had intended to keep it that way."
Terry paled. "Oh. Are you and Daphne…boinking?"
"No," Jared replied. Even he was getting tired of the rumors. "She's just my friend. And stop using that word."
Terry laughed heartily. "I know how you treat your friends, Jay."
He shook his head. "She's different."
It dawned on Terry suddenly. "She's not a lesbian is she?"
Jared looked at him with a ridiculous look. "Not that I'm aware of," he replied. "Is Valery here for an official shoot or just because?" he asked.
"Just because. When you called, I called her, thinking you two would want to see each other again. Obviously I was mistaken," he answered, a slight blush rising in his cheeks.
Jared glared at him. "Obviously."
Terry opened the door and popped his head in the crack. Jared put his on top of Terry's and they looked into the apartment like two floating heads. Immediately on opening the door, they were met with an air of tension that was presumably rising from the two women in the room. Shannon was standing next to Daphne, talking to her quietly while Valery was getting a glass of water from the kitchen.
"What do we do with them?" Jared asked, looking at the older man.
"Let's just see how things go. They might actually like each other," Terry said hopefully.
Jared stared at him for a second before shaking his head. "No chance in hell."
He knew Daphne's personality as well as Valery's. He knew Valery was the jealous type and him showing up with Daphne on his arm, regardless of their relationship, would definitely set her off. He also knew Daphne was trained far too well how to behave with crazies, so he was sure she'd be able to handle her. At least he hoped so. They walked back into the room, Jared shutting the door behind them.
"So who wants something to drink?" Terry asked, swooping into the kitchen. "I've got water, tea, coffee, juice."
Daphne walked over to the kitchen and sat on one of the bright red bar stools at the island. "How about something stronger?"
Terry smiled at her. "That's a good girl," he said. "Anything in particular?"
Jared swore he could hear her mutter, "Whatever makes string bean go away," under her breath, but he wasn't sure. He stood near the door, unsure of what to do next.
"Jay, I haven't heard from you for weeks. How have you been?" Valery asked, walking over to him and wrapping her arms around him. He didn't hug her back.
"I've been good. You?" he asked, sliding out of her arms and onto the sofa next to Shannon.
"So good. Terry has been shooting me for a few magazines. When he told me you were coming I was so happy!" she replied, sitting on the arm of the sofa next to him. She rested her eyes on Daphne. "But I didn't know you'd be coming with someone else."
Daphne swiveled around in the stool, holding a glass in her hand. "Jared invited me yesterday. It was kind of last minute," she said.
Immediately, Jared saw a change in Daphne. She had an air of authority about her. Even though she was only a few years older than Valery, she seemed so much more mature. He figured it was probably from all the years of working on films from an early age. But the way Valery narrowed her eyes at Daphne made him think something else was about to take place. The way women fight with each other is much more passive than the way men do. Men can get their aggression and anger out with a few punches to the face and then they're done. But women tended to go at each other with sharp, pointed words. It was no different with Daphne and Valery.
"My money's on Daphne," he heard Shannon lean over and whisper in his ear as they watched the exchange take place.
"Shhh," he said, wincing and clenching his eyes shut, biting his lip to avoid busting into laughter.
"Well how was filming?" Terry asked picking up on the tension. He walked over and sat on the sofa.
"It was good," Jared said, going over to the refrigerator and grabbing a beer. Ordinarily he didn't drink, but with Valery and Daphne in the same room, he figured he deserve a pass on this one.
"Why didn't you have me up to visit more?" Val asked in the whiney voice that he used to find cute and endearing, but now sounded annoying and immature.
"It was a closed set most days," Daphne responded, saving Jared from the awkward response he'd have had to give. "No visitors were allowed except essential people."
Jared had picked up on the small nuances in Daphne's speech patterns after listening to her for months on end. He knew when she was being patronizing. He had to bite his lips to keep the smile from coming to them. He stood next to her, leaning back against the island, and he was reminded of the time when he'd begged her to listen to him about what he wanted to do for the role of the Joker. They had spent several hours talking that day, and every day after that as well. In their conversations, they had started to drift into friendly discussions, which led them closer and closer together. He let his hand rest against the edge of the counter top and barely brushed it against the back of her arm as she sat there.
"How about you, Daphne? Was it fun for you?" Terry asked after several seconds of tense silence.
"It was an adventure, like any other project for me," she replied, well aware of Jared's fingertips against her skin.
"How many films have you done now?" Shannon asked, shifting on the sofa.
"Thirty-Three," she responded.
"That's a lot," he replied.
Another awkward silence filled the room. Valery was aware of Jared's hand now and she was setting her sights on Daphne.
"You know, I heard the strangest rumor about you, Daphne," she started, walking toward her.
"There are loads of rumors floating around out there," she replied to the younger woman.
Valery nodded, but continued. "It seems so untrue, but I just had to ask." Daphne nodded for her to continue. "Well, someone told me that the reason you've gotten so many films so easily was because you sleep with their directors. That can't be true, can it?" Valery asked in mock innocence.
Daphne's face fell. Jared winced, knowing how that must be making her feel, considering her past experiences. Her fingers gripped the glass she was holding so tightly, the tips were turning white. But she was a classy girl and knock-down, drag-outs weren't her thing. He half expected her to toss the drink at Valery and go rip her hair out of her scalp. But she didn't. Daphne simply took a deep breath, turned her gaze toward Valery, and walked toward her. He suspected there was as much acting in her delivery of words as there was truth.
"That's not true," she said. "I don't need to sleep with directors. They beg me to work with them because I have real talent." One step. "I don't need to audition because they know I have the skills." Another step. "Do you know, directors beat a path to my door on a regular basis? I have more projects lining up than I have time for." Another step. "I actually have to suggest OTHER actresses for certain roles," she laughed. Now she was directly in front of Valery, who appeared to be wilting with each step Daphne took. "But of course, I don't like to brag about my accomplishments. That's just rude."
"You get your roles because you trade on your grandfather's name," Valery said. "Not because you have any talent."
Daphne nodded, unfazed. "Really? Is that what you think? Well, I'll have to ask you then, how many Academy Awards have you won?"
Shannon let out a noise that was a mixture between a laugh, a gasp of shock, and a bit of a burp, but covered it quickly with a fake coughing fit. Jared rolled his eyes and downed a good amount of his beer. Watching the two of them face down was like watching an older lioness put a cub in its place. He almost felt bad for Valery. Almost.
"None," Valery replied, shifting on her too-tall heels.
"Really? Well, I guess that's not really fair, considering modeling and acting aren't really judged the same way," Daphne said, pacing around her. "So I'll ask you this. How many designers beg you to wear their clothes? How many designers are putting their lines on your body weeks before they're revealed to the rest of the world in the hopes that you'll bring them publicity?" Valery shook her head in silence. "None? Shame. Even Gisele and Heidi got that treatment."
Daphne was circling Valery like a lioness circles its prey, not taking her eyes of the younger girl. Jared knew it was purely for intimidation purposes. She'd never hurt her. But it was still incredible to watch. And kind of sexy, to be honest.
"Let me explain one thing to you, Valery," Daphne said, looking the girl directly in the eye. "I worked my ass off to get where I am now. I never have time off because I never take it. I could stop acting today and I would never have to work again in my life. Ever. And neither would my children, or their children for that matter. I have earned every role and proven, time and time again, that I was the right choice. And when someone suggests that I got the role I played in some other manner, I don't take too kindly to it."
Several seconds of silence passed as they stared each other down. Jared prayed silently that Val would just shut up and sit down so she could be spared any further embarrassment, but she didn't. She was obviously stupid enough to hop into the ring against a heavyweight like Daphne, so he had no hope for her being smart enough to know when to shut her mouth all together.
"I heard you're a whore," Valery replied, staring her down. Jared's eyes widened and he thought for sure that was it, that there'd be a catfight right then and there. "I heard you sleep with all of your co-stars, even the married ones."
Daphne let out a laugh that surprised everyone, even Valery. "See, that's where you're really wrong. I might be a whore," she said, taking a sip of her drink and leaning in close to Valery's face. "But I'm a whore with morals. At least I waited until AFTER Jared was done with you to fuck him. Ta." With that, she gave Valery her prize-winning smile and walked past the younger woman onto Terry's balcony, leaving her fuming and glaring at Jared.
He shifted uncomfortably on his feet under glare. He could see Daphne through the glass door and all he wanted to do was go out and comfort her. The look on Valery's face stopped him though. "Shannon," he started, trying to get his brother to take care of Valery. After her display with Daphne, he had no need to talk to her ever again.
"Got it," he said, taking Valery's hand and pulling her to the door. She was unceremoniously dumped on the doorstep. "We'll call you," he added before slamming the door in her face.
Meanwhile, Terry was giving Jared a knowing look. "Is she good?"
Jared gave him an incredulous look. "We haven't fucked yet, she just said it finish Val off."
Terry's face fell in disappointment. "Is it odd that I'm slightly turned on by her right now?"
Jared laughed and shook his head. "Absolutely not." He glanced outside and Terry gave him a nod before he sank into the sofa. "I'm going to go talk to her," he said, walking outside.
Daphne was facing away from the door, nursing her drink. He cleared his throat to let her know he was there before stepping onto the large balcony. She didn't move, only kept staring out at the skyline. He walked over and leaned his back against the wooden railing, sticking his hands in his pockets and turning his head to face her. The sounds of the city drifted up to them.
"I didn't know she was going to be here," he said quietly.
"It didn't sound like Terry knew I was coming, either," she replied, without looking at him.
"I'm sorry about Valery and all of this," he said quietly. He looked up, leaning his head back, out over the open air in front of them. "But it was kinda sexy to see you two fight over me."
She laughed and turned her head to face him. "I wasn't fighting her for you. I was putting her in her place because she needs to learn respect."
"Either way, it was still sexy," he said with a sexy grin.
She brought a hand up to his freshly-dyed hair. He had rushed to get it back to his normal hair color immediately after they wrapped. He didn't want to keep walking around looking a neon sign. It was back to his regular dark brown, but it would be several months before it was completely grown out.
"I like you better as a brunette," she said softly. "It suits you more."
He smiled and nodded toward her hair, which was also free of green dye. Hers had only been temporary streaks put in every other week and she'd gotten rid of them as quickly as she could. She was back to her natural black hair color. "I like yours better."
She chuckled softly. "So what are we going to do with ourselves, now that we don't have to spend every day together?" she asked.
He smiled again. "Well, you have to go to Las Vegas and I have to get back to Los Angeles. But that doesn't mean we can't talk like we do now."
She sighed. "That's usually how it goes. You talk for a few weeks, maybe a month, and then you move on and reconnect doing publicity."
"Well," he said softly. "I don't want to reconnect doing publicity." She gave him a confused look. "I don't want to reconnect at all. I don't want to drift away from you."
And in that moment, with the setting sun backlighting them, Terry captured the kiss of two figures on his balcony. It was a truly stunning image: two figures stood opposite one another, the light of the setting sun casting a halo around both of them. You couldn't tell who it was, just a male and a female outlined by the sunlight.