MR. CAB DRIVER, FUCK YOU, I'M A SURVIVOR
MEL
It seemed as though they had just touched down in Tulsa when Mel was off and running to New York. "New
York?" Taylor said in protest. "But we just got home."
Mel sighed. "I have to go. I have a meeting with the committee, the caterers, the decorators--"
"Are you the ONLY one doing this party or something?"
Mel glared at him. "No, I am not the ONLY one doing this party. Are you the ONLY member of the band when you have to be in the studio upwards of 16 hours per day?"
Tay opened his mouth to speak and then closed it again. "I thought we were going to talk about the wedding?"
"Oh. NOW you want to start talking about the wedding. Unbelievable."
Tay caught Mel's arm as she started out of the kitchen. "Mel. Why are you being like this? How come every time I ask you a question it turns into--this? You're hardly ever in a good mood anymore and every word
out of your mouth is laden with hostility. I almost can't keep up anymore, it's getting exhausting."
Mel sighed. "Tay, I'm just--I understand you're just as busy with work, too, but if I laid out all the things that were heavy on my mind on paper, you'd be flabbergasted."
Tay grinned all of a sudden. "Flabbergasted. I always thought that was such a funny word."
"Seriously, Tay..."
"Okay, okay. Look. I know you're stressed. I get it. And if there's anything I could possibly do to help you relieve that stress, you know I'm here for you. Always. But, hon, you gotta let up on me a little bit. I'm not trying to work against you. I'm on YOUR side. Hey, why don't I go to New York with you?"
Mel shook her head quietly. "You'll just be bored and I'll hardly be home. I have meetings and appointments and--I wanted to try to catch up with Manuel and maybe stop by the Times."
Tay studied her face hard and Mel braced herself for what was to come. But to her surprise, he simply said, "Okay."
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Three days later, Mel smiled and breathed in a breath, taking a seat on the sofa of the New York City condo that she share with Taylor. Mel gazed at the panoramic view of the city provided by the large windows at the end of the room. She had always wanted to live on East 38th Street. She had told her first husband, before they settled into the Brownstone downtown, that if they were to ever live in a condo, it would be on East 38th. Taylor had then provided her with the home the previous summer and now it seemed that she made any excuse to visit.
The condo was small, but it was plenty room for Mel and Tay. And for the view the panoramic windows provided, she would have slept in a cramped tin can if only that view was available. She could see the entire island of Manhattan, almost in its entirety, and had a more than perfect view of the East River to the left. Tay always seemed to feel a little nervous when he stood right by the window, but when he wasn't looking, Mel would press her entire body against it, not ever getting enough of the view.
As she walked into the bedroom and prepared to unpack, her cell phone rang. She smiled, knowing that Tay would beat her to the punch if she didn't call him the second she got in. So she was surprised when Isaac's
name was on her phone. "Hey, what's up?" she answered.
"Hey, so I heard you're in New York for a few days," he said.
"Or however long it takes me to get done what I need to get done," she said.
"Right, right. So, listen, you know we have a 3CG office there, right?"
This was lost on Mel. She thought the subject had come up in passing at some point but she apparently hadn't paid attention. "Um, you do?"
"Well, we did," he corrected himself. "It's more like empty office space now, but once upon a time it briefly housed the label."
"Oh," Mel nodded into the phone. "I had no idea. Small world, huh?"
Ike chuckled. "Yeah. Anyway, I've been meaning to fly out there and check up on it and see about possibly doing something with it. I figured since you're there this week, I was wondering if maybe you wanted to
check it out with me."
Mel hesitated. She didn't want to tell him no. But she had so much going on with the event, and places she wanted to visit and..."Sure," she agreed, reluctantly. "Sounds great."
"Awesome!" She could hear the excitement in Ike's voice and she rubbed her eyes in exhaustion. And because he was such a dear friend, she even sweetened the deal. "If you want, you can stay in the spare bedroom
in the condo. I mean, it would be silly for you to get a hotel or something. Is Nikki coming?"
"No, she's not making this trip. I'm only gonna be there for a couple of days. If you're sure I'm not intruding, I'd be happy to take you up on your offer."
"You're not intruding at all. No worries."
After getting off the phone with Ike, she looked around. She had kinda wanted this to be a solo trip. Sometimes Mel just needed some space to think and just be. She couldn't think of a better place to do that than in Manhattan. Something about Tulsa sometimes had a tendency to make her feel stuffy and confined. But in Manhattan, she was open and free. She could always seem find clear air amidst the smog.
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Bright and early the next morning, Mel sat in a meeting with the event committee, neck deep in a hot and heavy discussion about entertainment and décor. Due to Mel's presence, someone threw out the name Hanson which she quickly shot down. She knew what the tone for this event was and Hanson certainly didn't fit. "I realize how easy that might seem, given the circumstances," she said. "However, I don't think the band's music quite fits the tone, or the purpose, really, of the night. Since we're doing an event for local responders, I think our entertainment should be by local artists. Local singers, local bands...I see small ensembles and standard
singers. And we're three weeks away, why wasn't this booked months ago?"
"Because the entertainment we DID book backed out last week," a member named David said from across the table.
Mel was slowly losing her cool and she fought to remember that she was not at a Hanson board meeting where she could seemingly freely loose her cool all over the place.
Unfortunately, her "cool" didn't exactly care where she was.
"Last week? Our entertainment backed out last week? Do you know how hard it is to schedule entertainment in this city?! We have three weeks to find suitable entertainment and you're telling me I've gone an entire
week without knowing anything about this?! This is crunch time, people! We are in no shape to not have anything scheduled right now! We're not organizing some damn podunk PTA meeting, this is charity to benefit
our emergency responders! They deserve better than this! Or else what the hell are we even doing here?!"
"Wow! Aren't we a little spitfire today?" a man said.
Mel's head whipped around the table. "Excuse me?"
She was met with blank stares all around the table.
Growing increasingly frustrated, she prompted further, "Um, I said excuse me. Is there something someone needs to say to me?"
Laughing. One of the men was laughing! Why the hell couldn't she catch him?
David looked across at her from behind his glasses and necktie. "Um, Mel--"
"I knew it was you. You've had a problem with me from the beginning--"
"No," he said. "I think it's your phone..."
Mel looked down at her phone and was immediately horrified. Jason appeared on her screen, in real time, losing his mind. She felt the blood drain from her face and then rise again in embarrassment. "Jason!"
she hissed. "Why are you calling me right now?"
Attempting to calm himself down, his face still red with laughter, he said, "I didn't call you. You called me. I just happened to have a free second, I thought it was important. I answer my face time and there you are, laying the smack down on your crew there. I gotta say, it kinda got me all hot and bothered."
Mel's face met her hand as her elbow rested on the table and she managed to glance up at the table one more time. All eyes were on her. She was mortified. "Um, Jason--I'll call you later," she said quietly.
"You should see yourself right now, it's fantastic," he said, laughing once more.
"I'm hanging up now," Mel snapped.
"Suit yourself. I'll just be here by myself in my room making the most of what I just witnessed--"
"Oh my god gotta go!" she quickly ended the face time call with Jason and took a deep breath, apologizing profusely to the rest of the group.
"Well, I believe it's time we take a short recess," Joann, the committee head stated from the head of the table. Mel wanted to crawl into a hole and die.
An hour and a half later, once the meeting was over, and on her way to meet with the chosen caterer, Mel decided to try Jason back. On purpose this time. However, before she could make the call, a text came through. A picture. Mel smiled. One of hers and Jason's special things they did was picture messaging each other. Anytime they found themselves in a different city or country, they sent a picture. Jason always sent them much more frequently than Mel did. This time, though, when she received a picture of the Empire State Building, she looked at the screen in confusion. The realization then hit her after a moment.
Immediately, she placed the call. "Where are you?" she asked as soon as he answered.
"Didn't you get the picture? I mean, I actually took it earlier, but, you know..." his voice aimlessly trailed off.
"Yes, that's why I'm calling! Why didn't you tell me you were gonna be here?"
"I didn't know you were gonna be there till you sent me yours. I'm in town for a few days. I'm doing spots on a few talk shows. Tonight, Late Night, Late Show, one of those morning ones, I don't remember. A little radio..."
"Awesome, you wanna get together?"
"I was hoping so. We can start with dinner tonight?"
Mel smiled. "Perfect!" Then her heart sank when she remembered Isaac. "Oh, I just remembered. I don't know exactly how free I'm gonna be this week. Ike's coming in tomorrow. They own office space here and he wants to poke around in it."
"So what?"
"So he's staying at my condo and he wants me to look at the space with him."
"Uh-oh, you got another Hanson waiting in the wings?" Jason teased.
"It's not even close to being like that," Mel said, matter-of-factly. "He's about to become my brother, for crying out loud. Not that he isn't already. Besides I'm part owner of the company anyway. It's actually, technically...work..." The realization make her dizzy.
"It's cool, no worries. I'm here for work, too. We'll just play it by ear. Dinner tonight, though. Pick you up at eight?"
"East 38th Street. Murray Hill district. Corinthian. Ask for me at the desk, I'll come down."
"Oh, so now you don't want me in your apartment?" Jason challenged her.
"44K."
"That's more like it. See you at eight."
Smiling and shaking her head, Mel put away her phone and headed inside to her next meeting.
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An hour before she expected Jason, Mel called Taylor. She nearly dreaded telling him she was going to dinner with Jason, but her conscience was clear. She was doing absolutely nothing wrong. Jason was her best
friend. She knew that Tay was still weird about Jason, though he was good not to show it, and she was grateful for it. She knew the right thing to do was to end it with Jason altogether since her fiancée didn't approve, but she had long since decided that Tay was either going to love and accept her for who she was and everything that came with her or not at all.
They exchanged the usual niceties. How was your day, how's the cat, and such. And then Mel took a deep breath and cheerfully dropped the gauntlet. "So Jason called me today. Well, I accidentally face timed him while I was chewing out the board and it was quite humorous, actually...anyway, so we talked."
"Oh, really? What's he up to?" Tay sounded distracted. Mel silently cheered. She might escape the wrath on this one after all.
"Uh, oddly enough, he's in town."
"In Tulsa?" Now he was alert. Damn.
"No. New York."
"Really...well that's convenient."
"It's not 'convenient.' It's work. He's doing interviews. Late shows and such."
"Oh..." Tay said, knowingly. Mel liked that tone better.
"Anyway, we're getting ready to go to dinner in a little bit. I, uh, wanted to let you know. You know, in case there are pictures..."
Tay sighed and Mel prepared herself, leaning up against the wall in the condo. "Mel, I don't like this..."
"Tay--"
"No, I mean, I don't want you to feel like you have to alert me or ask my permission or whatever every time he comes around. It's not right. He's your friend, you should be able to hang out whenever."
Mel was stunned. Absolutely floored. She was so proud of Tay, she wished he was there, right there at that moment. "I miss you," she responded.
"I miss you, too," he said. She could hear the smile in his voice. "I want you to be happy. And have fun while you're out there, don't bog yourself down with work. I know how you are. You know what they say about all work and no play."
"Take your own advice," Mel giggled. "You're in the studio, aren't you?"
"How'd you guess?"
"I can tell by your tone. Are you alone?"
"Zac's here. Why, is this conversation about to get juicy?"
Mel felt the blood rise in her cheeks as she grinned through the phone. "No. Just curious. And speaking of work, did you know Ike's coming out here tomorrow?"
"Yeah, he's coming to check out our old office space."
"Right. Anyway, he's staying in the spare bedroom. I swear, I think our condo is becoming more of an office than a home. Everybody coming here to work and shit. So what's up with all the interest in New York all of a sudden?"
Mel thought she heard instruments tuning in the background as Tay spoke. "I'm sure he'll fill you in when he gets there. You know he's better with details like that than I am."
She scowled into the phone. She had apparently caught Tay in the zone so she decided to go ahead and end the call and finish getting ready for dinner. "Okay, so, I'm gonna go. I'll call you before I go to sleep tonight. Go home at a decent hour. Seriously. I love you. All work and no play and all that jazz."
Tay chuckled into the phone. "I love you, too. Talk to you later. Be safe."
Mel smiled at his words when she hung up the phone. "Be safe," he had said. She shook her head. In a lot of way, the city was safer than Tulsa sometimes.
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Mel looked at herself in the full length mirror in the bedroom and frowned, trying to picture the clothing options she had brought along. What would be good enough for the dead of winter in Manhattan? Even more important, did she even bring a hat along that wouldn't ruin her hair when she took it off? As she rifled through her clothes, she frowned. It was a no on the hat. All she brought was a white knit cap.
Finally, she pulled on a pair of skinny jeans and her trusty thigh-high boots that folded down at the tops. She wore them last time she saw Jason, but she didn't care. At the moment, she was concerned with the extra warmth on her legs. On top she wore a long, loose, black, cotton, button-down cardigan sweater with a plunging neckline. She then wrapped her long, gray pea coat around her that flared at the waist, swirled her
over-sized white scarf around her neck, and grabbed up her silver-sequined clutch. Nearly forgetting her gloves, she threw them on her hands just in time for Jason to ring the doorbell.
Opening the door was a feat in its own. "I'm sorry!" She called through the door. "I pulled my gloves on without thinking and now I have to take one off..."
After a moment of fumbling, and the removal of a glove, Mel finally managed to open the door. What stood before her made her heart stop.
Jason was grinning from ear to ear, almost as annoyingly as the Cheshire Cat. "Surprise," he said. He ran a hand over his hair as if to slick it back. "What do you think?"
Mel gaped up at him in complete shock. "Why?"
"They had to cut it for the part I was filming. I had a hard time with it at first but now I actually kinda like it." Then he frowned at her, his light goatee neatly trimmed around his chin. "You don't like it do you?"
Mel continued to gaze at him. "Tay chopped all his off too. This feels like the end of an era..."
Jason laughed sheepishly. "It's just hair. No need to be so dramatic over it."
"It's terrible..."
He looked taken aback. "It'll grow back."
Mel finally snapped out of it. "No. I mean Tay's is terrible. Seriously, Tay and short hair are NOT friends. But on you, it's...it's kind of becoming of you. Makes you a little dashing..."
Jason began to blush as he ran his hand over his hair again. His hair was gone. All of it. All of his natural, brown, shoulder-length waves were something of the past. His hair was now cropped close to his head, his subtle spikes pushed back with minimal product. Mel thought she'd never see the day that Jason would ever put product in his hair. "Dashing, huh? That's a new one."
She smirked. "Let's not get all egotistical over it. I'm hungry and it's gonna take another hour to put this glove back on..."
Jason leaned over and smiled. "A word of advice? Put it on in the hallway. You still have to lock up."
Her palm met her face, but not before she poked herself in the eye with her finger and Jason nearly died laughing. This night was NOT starting out gracefully. She always felt like she had a reputation to uphold to the city. As if the city were a living being with a list of expectations higher than its tallest skyscrapers. So far she was failing miserably.
Uncle Jack's Steakhouse was their destination and they had to walk a block or two before they even caught a cab. The bitter air pierced Mel's bare cheeks and she looked up at Jason, still getting used to the hair and completely bewildered at how he was possibly surviving without a hat. If you didn't fight the New York cold, the New York cold could crush you. Jason never once seemed phased by it.
"Do you remember the last time you and I walked down a New York City street together?" Jason asked her.
Mel fought to speed up her walking, in hopes that her body heat would rise and her teeth would eventually stop chattering. "It was definitely warmer then, that's for sure."
"Can you believe it's been so long ago? It doesn't feel like it."
"Well it hasn't been THAT long..."
"It's been almost two years."
"Really? Has it?"
"Yep," he responded.
They walked in silence for a few more moments. Despite the distracting cold, Mel remembered the last time they walked down a New York City street together as if it were yesterday. It was the night they first met. It was a blind date. Her in a sequined dress and him in a white t-shirt. Drama had ensued with Taylor that night and Natalie had been present, still his wife. So much had happened since then, it almost seemed unreal. She stole a glance up at Jason and his six foot four frame with his new hair and his black, wool trench coat with the collar turned up. It was almost as if she were walking next to a completely different person from the person she walked with nearly two years ago. She looked back on their trip to Cabo and smiled into the piercing wind, the blood warming her cheeks for a brief moment. Then her thoughts drifted to Tay and her journey with him. How they made it this far was beyond her. So much had happened within that short amount of time, including a fake pregnancy, a divorce, an engagement, a cohabitation...normal people would be on the outside looking in
calling their situation utterly hopeless and impossible. But Tay and Mel weren't normal people. All in all, Mel was perfectly content in her current situation. She went through hell to get to this moment, but it had been well worth it in the end.
Mel hadn't even realized Jason had hailed a cab until it pulled up. She must have been that deep in her thoughts and she was embarrassed by the realization. As the cab made its way to West 56th Street, Jason leaned toward her in the seat. "You're awful quiet all of a sudden."
"Huh? Oh. Sorry." She didn't want to tell him the reason for her silence. She didn't want to tell him that she sat there remembering the last time they were in a cab together. The same night as their first walk, moments after they met. He'd held her and his rich voice had caressed her ear, sending chills down her spine. She felt guilty for even remembering it now, thought she was grateful that her thoughts couldn't be heard out loud. No matter how hard she tried to fight it, Jason would forever be a sexy, attractive man. But more importantly, he would always be her best friend.
"So what's the matter?" he asked quietly.
"Uh, nothing." She pasted on a smile for him for verification.
"Something's weighing heavy on your mind. You're usually a chatterbox."
She sighed, not even wanting to mention it. "I was just...I don't know. Reminiscing, I guess."
Jason smiled and nodded knowingly, sitting back in his seat. "I get it. Say no more. Happens to me every day."
Her breath caught for a moment as she stared at him. He flashed her a wink, making it obvious that he had no intentions to elaborate and Mel was pretty sure she didn't want him to anyway.
Minutes later, they were at the host stand at Uncle Jack's, Jason attempting to be as inconspicuous as possible. The beauty of New York was that nobody really cared who you were. But poor Jason was so used to trying to hide that it seemingly came naturally to him. "We have a reservation, under Banks," he said to the host quietly.
Mel had to scoff a laugh. She couldn't help herself. He didn't want to put the reservation under his own name, yet anyone could spot his hulking frame a mile away. She found the whole situation comical.
"Ah, yes, right this way, sir," the host said.
Quickly, Jason slid a bill into the waiter's hand. "Take us somewhere quiet. Maybe even a bit private." He glanced upstairs. "Somewhere up there."
The host's eyes lit up for a split second before he regained his composure. "Yes, sir, right this way."
Then Jason caught him one more time before they began walking. "Listen, there are a few more of those guys with your name on them if the paparazzi is not outside that door when we leave this place."
The host puffed out his chest and lifted his chin in confidence. "I would be honored to make it my personal duty."
Jason smiled triumphantly at Mel. "I knew there was a reason I loved this place."
Taking off her hat, Mel smoothed her hair, tucking her head nervously as they walked through the restaurant. Nobody seemed to notice them but that didn't stop her from being in constant fear of the camera she never saw.
The host did not disappoint. He took them straight to a table, far away from other diners, in a quiet corner of the upstairs level of the restaurant. Tensions seemed to disappear as it was clear the pair would not have to dine in fear for once. Jason sighed as they both removed their coats and scarves. "It's is so nice to actually be able to sit somewhere where nobody gives a shit about who you are. I mean, my size got me looks before, but now my face and my names gets me the kind of attention that's just fucking disturbing."
Mel pushed her sleeves up as she sat down and she tried not to pay attention as Jason's eyes bored into her. Jason never hesitated to be vocal about his feelings, it seemed. "Damn, you look fucking fantastic."
Mel blushed, her face most certainly as red as the carpet below their feet. "Uh, it's just jeans and a sweater..."
"Even jeans and a sweater makes you look like you just stepped off the pages of a magazine."
"Jason, stop," she giggled. "I need a drink."
"You and me both."
Over the next couple of hours, the wine flowed and the steaks melted in their mouths. They talked about life in general, about Jason's work and the shows he was in New York for. He seemed to enjoy the art of on-set
pranking and he loved even more to tell the stories. Mel was more than content to sit back and laugh until she cried.
When the wine was empty and they had their fill of the food, they sent their compliments to the chef, paid the bill, and made their way out the front door. As they walked outside, the host had definitely earned his extra
tip, however, they were not prepared for what they walked into. It wasn't out of the norm to snow in New York City in the least. But when the snow nearly came down in torrents, immediately blanketing everything in sight and halting traffic, well--that became a problem.
Mel and Jason glanced at each other, obvious that they both had the same thing on their minds. What the hell were they gonna do now?
"We can't walk all the way to Murray Hill in this," Mel protested. "Walking the block and a half before we caught the cab was bad enough. I didn't even know they were calling for snow."
"Neither did I," Jason responded, tightening his coat and adjusting his scarf. His black, leather hand found her white woolen one. "Come on. We need to hail any cab that's out right now.
Much to their surprise, they found themselves in the backseat of a cab within minutes. "Thanks, buddy," Jason said. "It was great of you to stop."
"Yes, yes, where to?" The Chinese cab driver was apparently to the point with his customers.
Mel and Jason looked at each other. "Uh, East 38th Street. Corinthian," Jason said.
"Okay. Meter running," the driver said as the cab began to move.
Mel and Jason both wanted to laugh but they were too grateful to have even gotten a cab in the increasingly accumulating snow. As they rode, Mel remembered Isaac and her heart raced. Whipping out her cell phone, she wasted no time calling him. Relief washed over her when he answered on the second ring. "Ike, where are you?" Mel asked hastily.
"I'm in your condo. Tay gave me the key."
"You're here already?"
"Yeah. I saw the weather report and decided to take an earlier flight to beat it."
"There was a weather report?"
Ike laughed. "Yeah, don't you keep up with the weather?"
"No," she said sheepishly. "I'm so glad you're safe. When I thought about you on the plane I freaked out."
Ike laughed. "I appreciate your concern but I'm perfectly fine. Where are you?"
"In the back of a cab with Jason headed there. Look, we're gonna have one more there tonight due to the weather--"
"No," Jason said quietly in her ear. "I'm just seeing you home then I'm going back to the hotel."
Startled by the news, Mel held the phone away from her ear. "What? In this weather? No you're not, how are you gonna get there?"
"Cab," Jason said simply. "I'm sure Chong up here will be a sport--"
"Name is Chang," the cab driver corrected in his thick accent.
"I'm sorry," Jason said graciously. "I'm sure CHANG will be a sport."
"Absolutely not," Mel objected. "You are not going back out in this tonight and that's final."
"Ah, come on, Mel. It's New York," he responded. "They're used to a little snow up here."
Mel turned her attention back to her phone. "Ike, Jason's staying over because of the weather. Is that okay with you?"
"Uh, yeah, no problem here. Looks like I'll have to delay my day tomorrow due to it, as well. You guys be careful getting here. Call me if you need me."
Ending her call with Ike, Mel looked up at Jason matter-of-factly and Jason kept his mouth shut.
Before they knew it, the cab had halted to a stop at 6th and 42nd. "Cab is stop. It go no further," the driver announced.
"What?" Mel asked. "What do you mean, no further?"
"I mean no further. Cab no go to Murray Hill."
"Hey, man, we told you where we were going," Jason objected. "Why did you agree to take us?"
"You need cab, I pick you up. I no go to Murray Hill. Ride stop here. Pay please."
"Fuck no, buddy," Jason said, his voice steadily increasing in volume. "We're paying you to drive to Murray Hill. We're not walking in this shit, that's five blocks from here. Five very large blocks."
"You look at street, Mr. Hollywood. Murray Hill bad, I live other way. I go home. Cab stop here. Pay please."
"Listen here, Hong Kong, I'm paying you to take us to the fucking Corinthian. I am not paying you to drop us here!"
"Oooh, Mr. Hollywood angry? You no pay? I call police. Is robbery. See how tabloid like THAT."
Jason leaned forward in his seat, raring to go. "By the time the police get here, you could have driven us to the fucking Corinthian! Of if you REALLY want something for the police to come to, why don't you step outside,
Hong Kong, and I'll stomp your ass into chop suey all over the pavement!"
"You threaten, Mr. Hollywood? You want me kung fu your ass? I kung fu your ass, you no know who you deal with."
'You're goddamn right I'm threatening you and I'll make good on it, too! Get your Chinese kung fu sushi ass out of the fucking car right now!"
Mel pulled Jason back by his arm, thoroughly annoyed with the entire exchange. "Jason, just give it a rest and leave it alone. Just get out of the cab and let it be."
"Yes, yes, listen to little woman. Meter still running!"
Mel fished the money out of her purse and reached it through the opening in the glass. "There's a little something extra in there for your trouble," she said quickly as she hopped out of the cab.
"You learn from Little Woman, Mr. Hollywood, you learn manner!"
It was the last thing the driver said before he drove off.
Jason was fuming and Mel could see his breath in the cold as they walked. "It's really not that bad a walk," Mel assured him. "I lived here for ten years, I've walked through worse. And farther."
"It's the fucking principle!" Jason argued. "I could have done it, you know. I would have stomped him right into the ground."
"Yes, yes, I know. But then what's the fun in picking on someone smaller than you?"
Jason did a double take at her. "What?"
"I mean, where's the challenge?" she asked, matter-of-factly.
Jason smiled and hugged her close to him, huddling against the cold. "You never cease to amaze me sometimes, you know that?"
"Yeah, well, you know..." Mel said modestly.
MEL
It seemed as though they had just touched down in Tulsa when Mel was off and running to New York. "New
York?" Taylor said in protest. "But we just got home."
Mel sighed. "I have to go. I have a meeting with the committee, the caterers, the decorators--"
"Are you the ONLY one doing this party or something?"
Mel glared at him. "No, I am not the ONLY one doing this party. Are you the ONLY member of the band when you have to be in the studio upwards of 16 hours per day?"
Tay opened his mouth to speak and then closed it again. "I thought we were going to talk about the wedding?"
"Oh. NOW you want to start talking about the wedding. Unbelievable."
Tay caught Mel's arm as she started out of the kitchen. "Mel. Why are you being like this? How come every time I ask you a question it turns into--this? You're hardly ever in a good mood anymore and every word
out of your mouth is laden with hostility. I almost can't keep up anymore, it's getting exhausting."
Mel sighed. "Tay, I'm just--I understand you're just as busy with work, too, but if I laid out all the things that were heavy on my mind on paper, you'd be flabbergasted."
Tay grinned all of a sudden. "Flabbergasted. I always thought that was such a funny word."
"Seriously, Tay..."
"Okay, okay. Look. I know you're stressed. I get it. And if there's anything I could possibly do to help you relieve that stress, you know I'm here for you. Always. But, hon, you gotta let up on me a little bit. I'm not trying to work against you. I'm on YOUR side. Hey, why don't I go to New York with you?"
Mel shook her head quietly. "You'll just be bored and I'll hardly be home. I have meetings and appointments and--I wanted to try to catch up with Manuel and maybe stop by the Times."
Tay studied her face hard and Mel braced herself for what was to come. But to her surprise, he simply said, "Okay."
---------------------------------
Three days later, Mel smiled and breathed in a breath, taking a seat on the sofa of the New York City condo that she share with Taylor. Mel gazed at the panoramic view of the city provided by the large windows at the end of the room. She had always wanted to live on East 38th Street. She had told her first husband, before they settled into the Brownstone downtown, that if they were to ever live in a condo, it would be on East 38th. Taylor had then provided her with the home the previous summer and now it seemed that she made any excuse to visit.
The condo was small, but it was plenty room for Mel and Tay. And for the view the panoramic windows provided, she would have slept in a cramped tin can if only that view was available. She could see the entire island of Manhattan, almost in its entirety, and had a more than perfect view of the East River to the left. Tay always seemed to feel a little nervous when he stood right by the window, but when he wasn't looking, Mel would press her entire body against it, not ever getting enough of the view.
As she walked into the bedroom and prepared to unpack, her cell phone rang. She smiled, knowing that Tay would beat her to the punch if she didn't call him the second she got in. So she was surprised when Isaac's
name was on her phone. "Hey, what's up?" she answered.
"Hey, so I heard you're in New York for a few days," he said.
"Or however long it takes me to get done what I need to get done," she said.
"Right, right. So, listen, you know we have a 3CG office there, right?"
This was lost on Mel. She thought the subject had come up in passing at some point but she apparently hadn't paid attention. "Um, you do?"
"Well, we did," he corrected himself. "It's more like empty office space now, but once upon a time it briefly housed the label."
"Oh," Mel nodded into the phone. "I had no idea. Small world, huh?"
Ike chuckled. "Yeah. Anyway, I've been meaning to fly out there and check up on it and see about possibly doing something with it. I figured since you're there this week, I was wondering if maybe you wanted to
check it out with me."
Mel hesitated. She didn't want to tell him no. But she had so much going on with the event, and places she wanted to visit and..."Sure," she agreed, reluctantly. "Sounds great."
"Awesome!" She could hear the excitement in Ike's voice and she rubbed her eyes in exhaustion. And because he was such a dear friend, she even sweetened the deal. "If you want, you can stay in the spare bedroom
in the condo. I mean, it would be silly for you to get a hotel or something. Is Nikki coming?"
"No, she's not making this trip. I'm only gonna be there for a couple of days. If you're sure I'm not intruding, I'd be happy to take you up on your offer."
"You're not intruding at all. No worries."
After getting off the phone with Ike, she looked around. She had kinda wanted this to be a solo trip. Sometimes Mel just needed some space to think and just be. She couldn't think of a better place to do that than in Manhattan. Something about Tulsa sometimes had a tendency to make her feel stuffy and confined. But in Manhattan, she was open and free. She could always seem find clear air amidst the smog.
------------------------------------
Bright and early the next morning, Mel sat in a meeting with the event committee, neck deep in a hot and heavy discussion about entertainment and décor. Due to Mel's presence, someone threw out the name Hanson which she quickly shot down. She knew what the tone for this event was and Hanson certainly didn't fit. "I realize how easy that might seem, given the circumstances," she said. "However, I don't think the band's music quite fits the tone, or the purpose, really, of the night. Since we're doing an event for local responders, I think our entertainment should be by local artists. Local singers, local bands...I see small ensembles and standard
singers. And we're three weeks away, why wasn't this booked months ago?"
"Because the entertainment we DID book backed out last week," a member named David said from across the table.
Mel was slowly losing her cool and she fought to remember that she was not at a Hanson board meeting where she could seemingly freely loose her cool all over the place.
Unfortunately, her "cool" didn't exactly care where she was.
"Last week? Our entertainment backed out last week? Do you know how hard it is to schedule entertainment in this city?! We have three weeks to find suitable entertainment and you're telling me I've gone an entire
week without knowing anything about this?! This is crunch time, people! We are in no shape to not have anything scheduled right now! We're not organizing some damn podunk PTA meeting, this is charity to benefit
our emergency responders! They deserve better than this! Or else what the hell are we even doing here?!"
"Wow! Aren't we a little spitfire today?" a man said.
Mel's head whipped around the table. "Excuse me?"
She was met with blank stares all around the table.
Growing increasingly frustrated, she prompted further, "Um, I said excuse me. Is there something someone needs to say to me?"
Laughing. One of the men was laughing! Why the hell couldn't she catch him?
David looked across at her from behind his glasses and necktie. "Um, Mel--"
"I knew it was you. You've had a problem with me from the beginning--"
"No," he said. "I think it's your phone..."
Mel looked down at her phone and was immediately horrified. Jason appeared on her screen, in real time, losing his mind. She felt the blood drain from her face and then rise again in embarrassment. "Jason!"
she hissed. "Why are you calling me right now?"
Attempting to calm himself down, his face still red with laughter, he said, "I didn't call you. You called me. I just happened to have a free second, I thought it was important. I answer my face time and there you are, laying the smack down on your crew there. I gotta say, it kinda got me all hot and bothered."
Mel's face met her hand as her elbow rested on the table and she managed to glance up at the table one more time. All eyes were on her. She was mortified. "Um, Jason--I'll call you later," she said quietly.
"You should see yourself right now, it's fantastic," he said, laughing once more.
"I'm hanging up now," Mel snapped.
"Suit yourself. I'll just be here by myself in my room making the most of what I just witnessed--"
"Oh my god gotta go!" she quickly ended the face time call with Jason and took a deep breath, apologizing profusely to the rest of the group.
"Well, I believe it's time we take a short recess," Joann, the committee head stated from the head of the table. Mel wanted to crawl into a hole and die.
An hour and a half later, once the meeting was over, and on her way to meet with the chosen caterer, Mel decided to try Jason back. On purpose this time. However, before she could make the call, a text came through. A picture. Mel smiled. One of hers and Jason's special things they did was picture messaging each other. Anytime they found themselves in a different city or country, they sent a picture. Jason always sent them much more frequently than Mel did. This time, though, when she received a picture of the Empire State Building, she looked at the screen in confusion. The realization then hit her after a moment.
Immediately, she placed the call. "Where are you?" she asked as soon as he answered.
"Didn't you get the picture? I mean, I actually took it earlier, but, you know..." his voice aimlessly trailed off.
"Yes, that's why I'm calling! Why didn't you tell me you were gonna be here?"
"I didn't know you were gonna be there till you sent me yours. I'm in town for a few days. I'm doing spots on a few talk shows. Tonight, Late Night, Late Show, one of those morning ones, I don't remember. A little radio..."
"Awesome, you wanna get together?"
"I was hoping so. We can start with dinner tonight?"
Mel smiled. "Perfect!" Then her heart sank when she remembered Isaac. "Oh, I just remembered. I don't know exactly how free I'm gonna be this week. Ike's coming in tomorrow. They own office space here and he wants to poke around in it."
"So what?"
"So he's staying at my condo and he wants me to look at the space with him."
"Uh-oh, you got another Hanson waiting in the wings?" Jason teased.
"It's not even close to being like that," Mel said, matter-of-factly. "He's about to become my brother, for crying out loud. Not that he isn't already. Besides I'm part owner of the company anyway. It's actually, technically...work..." The realization make her dizzy.
"It's cool, no worries. I'm here for work, too. We'll just play it by ear. Dinner tonight, though. Pick you up at eight?"
"East 38th Street. Murray Hill district. Corinthian. Ask for me at the desk, I'll come down."
"Oh, so now you don't want me in your apartment?" Jason challenged her.
"44K."
"That's more like it. See you at eight."
Smiling and shaking her head, Mel put away her phone and headed inside to her next meeting.
----------------------------
An hour before she expected Jason, Mel called Taylor. She nearly dreaded telling him she was going to dinner with Jason, but her conscience was clear. She was doing absolutely nothing wrong. Jason was her best
friend. She knew that Tay was still weird about Jason, though he was good not to show it, and she was grateful for it. She knew the right thing to do was to end it with Jason altogether since her fiancée didn't approve, but she had long since decided that Tay was either going to love and accept her for who she was and everything that came with her or not at all.
They exchanged the usual niceties. How was your day, how's the cat, and such. And then Mel took a deep breath and cheerfully dropped the gauntlet. "So Jason called me today. Well, I accidentally face timed him while I was chewing out the board and it was quite humorous, actually...anyway, so we talked."
"Oh, really? What's he up to?" Tay sounded distracted. Mel silently cheered. She might escape the wrath on this one after all.
"Uh, oddly enough, he's in town."
"In Tulsa?" Now he was alert. Damn.
"No. New York."
"Really...well that's convenient."
"It's not 'convenient.' It's work. He's doing interviews. Late shows and such."
"Oh..." Tay said, knowingly. Mel liked that tone better.
"Anyway, we're getting ready to go to dinner in a little bit. I, uh, wanted to let you know. You know, in case there are pictures..."
Tay sighed and Mel prepared herself, leaning up against the wall in the condo. "Mel, I don't like this..."
"Tay--"
"No, I mean, I don't want you to feel like you have to alert me or ask my permission or whatever every time he comes around. It's not right. He's your friend, you should be able to hang out whenever."
Mel was stunned. Absolutely floored. She was so proud of Tay, she wished he was there, right there at that moment. "I miss you," she responded.
"I miss you, too," he said. She could hear the smile in his voice. "I want you to be happy. And have fun while you're out there, don't bog yourself down with work. I know how you are. You know what they say about all work and no play."
"Take your own advice," Mel giggled. "You're in the studio, aren't you?"
"How'd you guess?"
"I can tell by your tone. Are you alone?"
"Zac's here. Why, is this conversation about to get juicy?"
Mel felt the blood rise in her cheeks as she grinned through the phone. "No. Just curious. And speaking of work, did you know Ike's coming out here tomorrow?"
"Yeah, he's coming to check out our old office space."
"Right. Anyway, he's staying in the spare bedroom. I swear, I think our condo is becoming more of an office than a home. Everybody coming here to work and shit. So what's up with all the interest in New York all of a sudden?"
Mel thought she heard instruments tuning in the background as Tay spoke. "I'm sure he'll fill you in when he gets there. You know he's better with details like that than I am."
She scowled into the phone. She had apparently caught Tay in the zone so she decided to go ahead and end the call and finish getting ready for dinner. "Okay, so, I'm gonna go. I'll call you before I go to sleep tonight. Go home at a decent hour. Seriously. I love you. All work and no play and all that jazz."
Tay chuckled into the phone. "I love you, too. Talk to you later. Be safe."
Mel smiled at his words when she hung up the phone. "Be safe," he had said. She shook her head. In a lot of way, the city was safer than Tulsa sometimes.
-----------------------------
Mel looked at herself in the full length mirror in the bedroom and frowned, trying to picture the clothing options she had brought along. What would be good enough for the dead of winter in Manhattan? Even more important, did she even bring a hat along that wouldn't ruin her hair when she took it off? As she rifled through her clothes, she frowned. It was a no on the hat. All she brought was a white knit cap.
Finally, she pulled on a pair of skinny jeans and her trusty thigh-high boots that folded down at the tops. She wore them last time she saw Jason, but she didn't care. At the moment, she was concerned with the extra warmth on her legs. On top she wore a long, loose, black, cotton, button-down cardigan sweater with a plunging neckline. She then wrapped her long, gray pea coat around her that flared at the waist, swirled her
over-sized white scarf around her neck, and grabbed up her silver-sequined clutch. Nearly forgetting her gloves, she threw them on her hands just in time for Jason to ring the doorbell.
Opening the door was a feat in its own. "I'm sorry!" She called through the door. "I pulled my gloves on without thinking and now I have to take one off..."
After a moment of fumbling, and the removal of a glove, Mel finally managed to open the door. What stood before her made her heart stop.
Jason was grinning from ear to ear, almost as annoyingly as the Cheshire Cat. "Surprise," he said. He ran a hand over his hair as if to slick it back. "What do you think?"
Mel gaped up at him in complete shock. "Why?"
"They had to cut it for the part I was filming. I had a hard time with it at first but now I actually kinda like it." Then he frowned at her, his light goatee neatly trimmed around his chin. "You don't like it do you?"
Mel continued to gaze at him. "Tay chopped all his off too. This feels like the end of an era..."
Jason laughed sheepishly. "It's just hair. No need to be so dramatic over it."
"It's terrible..."
He looked taken aback. "It'll grow back."
Mel finally snapped out of it. "No. I mean Tay's is terrible. Seriously, Tay and short hair are NOT friends. But on you, it's...it's kind of becoming of you. Makes you a little dashing..."
Jason began to blush as he ran his hand over his hair again. His hair was gone. All of it. All of his natural, brown, shoulder-length waves were something of the past. His hair was now cropped close to his head, his subtle spikes pushed back with minimal product. Mel thought she'd never see the day that Jason would ever put product in his hair. "Dashing, huh? That's a new one."
She smirked. "Let's not get all egotistical over it. I'm hungry and it's gonna take another hour to put this glove back on..."
Jason leaned over and smiled. "A word of advice? Put it on in the hallway. You still have to lock up."
Her palm met her face, but not before she poked herself in the eye with her finger and Jason nearly died laughing. This night was NOT starting out gracefully. She always felt like she had a reputation to uphold to the city. As if the city were a living being with a list of expectations higher than its tallest skyscrapers. So far she was failing miserably.
Uncle Jack's Steakhouse was their destination and they had to walk a block or two before they even caught a cab. The bitter air pierced Mel's bare cheeks and she looked up at Jason, still getting used to the hair and completely bewildered at how he was possibly surviving without a hat. If you didn't fight the New York cold, the New York cold could crush you. Jason never once seemed phased by it.
"Do you remember the last time you and I walked down a New York City street together?" Jason asked her.
Mel fought to speed up her walking, in hopes that her body heat would rise and her teeth would eventually stop chattering. "It was definitely warmer then, that's for sure."
"Can you believe it's been so long ago? It doesn't feel like it."
"Well it hasn't been THAT long..."
"It's been almost two years."
"Really? Has it?"
"Yep," he responded.
They walked in silence for a few more moments. Despite the distracting cold, Mel remembered the last time they walked down a New York City street together as if it were yesterday. It was the night they first met. It was a blind date. Her in a sequined dress and him in a white t-shirt. Drama had ensued with Taylor that night and Natalie had been present, still his wife. So much had happened since then, it almost seemed unreal. She stole a glance up at Jason and his six foot four frame with his new hair and his black, wool trench coat with the collar turned up. It was almost as if she were walking next to a completely different person from the person she walked with nearly two years ago. She looked back on their trip to Cabo and smiled into the piercing wind, the blood warming her cheeks for a brief moment. Then her thoughts drifted to Tay and her journey with him. How they made it this far was beyond her. So much had happened within that short amount of time, including a fake pregnancy, a divorce, an engagement, a cohabitation...normal people would be on the outside looking in
calling their situation utterly hopeless and impossible. But Tay and Mel weren't normal people. All in all, Mel was perfectly content in her current situation. She went through hell to get to this moment, but it had been well worth it in the end.
Mel hadn't even realized Jason had hailed a cab until it pulled up. She must have been that deep in her thoughts and she was embarrassed by the realization. As the cab made its way to West 56th Street, Jason leaned toward her in the seat. "You're awful quiet all of a sudden."
"Huh? Oh. Sorry." She didn't want to tell him the reason for her silence. She didn't want to tell him that she sat there remembering the last time they were in a cab together. The same night as their first walk, moments after they met. He'd held her and his rich voice had caressed her ear, sending chills down her spine. She felt guilty for even remembering it now, thought she was grateful that her thoughts couldn't be heard out loud. No matter how hard she tried to fight it, Jason would forever be a sexy, attractive man. But more importantly, he would always be her best friend.
"So what's the matter?" he asked quietly.
"Uh, nothing." She pasted on a smile for him for verification.
"Something's weighing heavy on your mind. You're usually a chatterbox."
She sighed, not even wanting to mention it. "I was just...I don't know. Reminiscing, I guess."
Jason smiled and nodded knowingly, sitting back in his seat. "I get it. Say no more. Happens to me every day."
Her breath caught for a moment as she stared at him. He flashed her a wink, making it obvious that he had no intentions to elaborate and Mel was pretty sure she didn't want him to anyway.
Minutes later, they were at the host stand at Uncle Jack's, Jason attempting to be as inconspicuous as possible. The beauty of New York was that nobody really cared who you were. But poor Jason was so used to trying to hide that it seemingly came naturally to him. "We have a reservation, under Banks," he said to the host quietly.
Mel had to scoff a laugh. She couldn't help herself. He didn't want to put the reservation under his own name, yet anyone could spot his hulking frame a mile away. She found the whole situation comical.
"Ah, yes, right this way, sir," the host said.
Quickly, Jason slid a bill into the waiter's hand. "Take us somewhere quiet. Maybe even a bit private." He glanced upstairs. "Somewhere up there."
The host's eyes lit up for a split second before he regained his composure. "Yes, sir, right this way."
Then Jason caught him one more time before they began walking. "Listen, there are a few more of those guys with your name on them if the paparazzi is not outside that door when we leave this place."
The host puffed out his chest and lifted his chin in confidence. "I would be honored to make it my personal duty."
Jason smiled triumphantly at Mel. "I knew there was a reason I loved this place."
Taking off her hat, Mel smoothed her hair, tucking her head nervously as they walked through the restaurant. Nobody seemed to notice them but that didn't stop her from being in constant fear of the camera she never saw.
The host did not disappoint. He took them straight to a table, far away from other diners, in a quiet corner of the upstairs level of the restaurant. Tensions seemed to disappear as it was clear the pair would not have to dine in fear for once. Jason sighed as they both removed their coats and scarves. "It's is so nice to actually be able to sit somewhere where nobody gives a shit about who you are. I mean, my size got me looks before, but now my face and my names gets me the kind of attention that's just fucking disturbing."
Mel pushed her sleeves up as she sat down and she tried not to pay attention as Jason's eyes bored into her. Jason never hesitated to be vocal about his feelings, it seemed. "Damn, you look fucking fantastic."
Mel blushed, her face most certainly as red as the carpet below their feet. "Uh, it's just jeans and a sweater..."
"Even jeans and a sweater makes you look like you just stepped off the pages of a magazine."
"Jason, stop," she giggled. "I need a drink."
"You and me both."
Over the next couple of hours, the wine flowed and the steaks melted in their mouths. They talked about life in general, about Jason's work and the shows he was in New York for. He seemed to enjoy the art of on-set
pranking and he loved even more to tell the stories. Mel was more than content to sit back and laugh until she cried.
When the wine was empty and they had their fill of the food, they sent their compliments to the chef, paid the bill, and made their way out the front door. As they walked outside, the host had definitely earned his extra
tip, however, they were not prepared for what they walked into. It wasn't out of the norm to snow in New York City in the least. But when the snow nearly came down in torrents, immediately blanketing everything in sight and halting traffic, well--that became a problem.
Mel and Jason glanced at each other, obvious that they both had the same thing on their minds. What the hell were they gonna do now?
"We can't walk all the way to Murray Hill in this," Mel protested. "Walking the block and a half before we caught the cab was bad enough. I didn't even know they were calling for snow."
"Neither did I," Jason responded, tightening his coat and adjusting his scarf. His black, leather hand found her white woolen one. "Come on. We need to hail any cab that's out right now.
Much to their surprise, they found themselves in the backseat of a cab within minutes. "Thanks, buddy," Jason said. "It was great of you to stop."
"Yes, yes, where to?" The Chinese cab driver was apparently to the point with his customers.
Mel and Jason looked at each other. "Uh, East 38th Street. Corinthian," Jason said.
"Okay. Meter running," the driver said as the cab began to move.
Mel and Jason both wanted to laugh but they were too grateful to have even gotten a cab in the increasingly accumulating snow. As they rode, Mel remembered Isaac and her heart raced. Whipping out her cell phone, she wasted no time calling him. Relief washed over her when he answered on the second ring. "Ike, where are you?" Mel asked hastily.
"I'm in your condo. Tay gave me the key."
"You're here already?"
"Yeah. I saw the weather report and decided to take an earlier flight to beat it."
"There was a weather report?"
Ike laughed. "Yeah, don't you keep up with the weather?"
"No," she said sheepishly. "I'm so glad you're safe. When I thought about you on the plane I freaked out."
Ike laughed. "I appreciate your concern but I'm perfectly fine. Where are you?"
"In the back of a cab with Jason headed there. Look, we're gonna have one more there tonight due to the weather--"
"No," Jason said quietly in her ear. "I'm just seeing you home then I'm going back to the hotel."
Startled by the news, Mel held the phone away from her ear. "What? In this weather? No you're not, how are you gonna get there?"
"Cab," Jason said simply. "I'm sure Chong up here will be a sport--"
"Name is Chang," the cab driver corrected in his thick accent.
"I'm sorry," Jason said graciously. "I'm sure CHANG will be a sport."
"Absolutely not," Mel objected. "You are not going back out in this tonight and that's final."
"Ah, come on, Mel. It's New York," he responded. "They're used to a little snow up here."
Mel turned her attention back to her phone. "Ike, Jason's staying over because of the weather. Is that okay with you?"
"Uh, yeah, no problem here. Looks like I'll have to delay my day tomorrow due to it, as well. You guys be careful getting here. Call me if you need me."
Ending her call with Ike, Mel looked up at Jason matter-of-factly and Jason kept his mouth shut.
Before they knew it, the cab had halted to a stop at 6th and 42nd. "Cab is stop. It go no further," the driver announced.
"What?" Mel asked. "What do you mean, no further?"
"I mean no further. Cab no go to Murray Hill."
"Hey, man, we told you where we were going," Jason objected. "Why did you agree to take us?"
"You need cab, I pick you up. I no go to Murray Hill. Ride stop here. Pay please."
"Fuck no, buddy," Jason said, his voice steadily increasing in volume. "We're paying you to drive to Murray Hill. We're not walking in this shit, that's five blocks from here. Five very large blocks."
"You look at street, Mr. Hollywood. Murray Hill bad, I live other way. I go home. Cab stop here. Pay please."
"Listen here, Hong Kong, I'm paying you to take us to the fucking Corinthian. I am not paying you to drop us here!"
"Oooh, Mr. Hollywood angry? You no pay? I call police. Is robbery. See how tabloid like THAT."
Jason leaned forward in his seat, raring to go. "By the time the police get here, you could have driven us to the fucking Corinthian! Of if you REALLY want something for the police to come to, why don't you step outside,
Hong Kong, and I'll stomp your ass into chop suey all over the pavement!"
"You threaten, Mr. Hollywood? You want me kung fu your ass? I kung fu your ass, you no know who you deal with."
'You're goddamn right I'm threatening you and I'll make good on it, too! Get your Chinese kung fu sushi ass out of the fucking car right now!"
Mel pulled Jason back by his arm, thoroughly annoyed with the entire exchange. "Jason, just give it a rest and leave it alone. Just get out of the cab and let it be."
"Yes, yes, listen to little woman. Meter still running!"
Mel fished the money out of her purse and reached it through the opening in the glass. "There's a little something extra in there for your trouble," she said quickly as she hopped out of the cab.
"You learn from Little Woman, Mr. Hollywood, you learn manner!"
It was the last thing the driver said before he drove off.
Jason was fuming and Mel could see his breath in the cold as they walked. "It's really not that bad a walk," Mel assured him. "I lived here for ten years, I've walked through worse. And farther."
"It's the fucking principle!" Jason argued. "I could have done it, you know. I would have stomped him right into the ground."
"Yes, yes, I know. But then what's the fun in picking on someone smaller than you?"
Jason did a double take at her. "What?"
"I mean, where's the challenge?" she asked, matter-of-factly.
Jason smiled and hugged her close to him, huddling against the cold. "You never cease to amaze me sometimes, you know that?"
"Yeah, well, you know..." Mel said modestly.