cut out for it." She was being so humble and honest, not something I was used to. Stacy was always great and down-to-earth in her interviews, but this was another level of humility. I mean, give her a script and the resources and she's literally unstoppable.
It was as if I wanted her to be so far above me since that's what my phony assumption was. There was something so surreal about having a basic conversation with a person who, without these very unique circumstances, wouldn't have ever been accessible to you. Like a book on the very top shelf—when there's no ladder to get up there.
"I'm going to run to the bathroom, okay? You two ladies keep this conversation rolling." Jack's constant smile had changed the tone of his voice. I didn't know what to expect while he was gone, but I would just have to roll with it and do my best.
"How do you like L.A.?" she asked politely.
"It's really cool so far," I said. "I've never been here before."
"It's a long trip from the East Coast. It's definitely worth it if you have a guide. How do you like Jack?"
The question actually really hit me off guard. I caught myself before I blurted out something stupid. "He's... he's great." A drink had never tasted sweeter—or comforting.
"He sure is," she said. "He's so talented, too. I definitely miss him sometimes, but our break-up was for the best. Near the end, we only saw each other like once a month or less."
"Seriously?" I asked. I hadn't realized they had become so distant. The tabloids only said so much.
"He's busy and so am I." Stacy's look became distant, her eyes casually surveying the crowd. When she was satisfied, she continued. "He goes on tour, and I'm acting in films and location scouting for my next project. When you're doing that and your schedules don't line up, you spend a lot of time alone. It's even harder when you love what you do so much that you can't give it up, even for someone you really care about."
The thought was scary. Could I deal with him being gone all the time like that? I wouldn't ever want to hamper his creative output, not when he had so much to offer the world. It was so weird to be having a conversation about my boyfriend with my favorite actor. How often did that sort of thing ever happen?
Stop, Effie.
Once again, now was not a good time to do this sort of analysis, analysis that would force me to arrive at these ostensible conclusions, given my inability to really know anything. Jack and I could communicate; I knew that already. The facts in our relationship had yet to be established. We could make it work. I knew we could...
"Stace, did Effie tell you some guy was gushing to me about Feedback at Gangadin?" Jack was back—which meant our private discussion had concluded. He slid into the booth beside me and put his arm around my back.
She let out an almost maniacal laugh. "Really? I know how much you love it when people talk about that one."
All I could do was grin and feel slightly out of place. Why had I never looked into his albums? Well, when were together, I just didn't have the time. And when I was alone or on a break, I was doing my best to not think about him. I guess my total incompetence regarding research did fit into my grander scheme, as much as it felt like, well, incompetence. Thankfully, the conversation shifted away quickly.
"Yeah." Jack smiled. "It's probably like when people talk about The Garden with you."
"Shut up! I needed the money at the time. Besides, it was an 'art' film, not smut."
I started laughing. "That movie wasn't bad at all, Stacy." She had done a nude scene in it, one that had polarized some critics—some of the more conservative ones found it to be trashy or distasteful—from what I had read. The movie was an effort by a self-indulgent director, and she was just doing what was asked of her. "I liked it."
"Jack, what did you really think about that? Me doing a nude scene?" She gave him an intense look, one that was strange but acceptable. Actually, thanks to that movie, we had both seen her naked, something unusual for sure.
Slowly but surely making his way toward an empty drink, he sipped and gave a casual pause. "It was right before we met. And so