Chapter 27 - Nadia

We walked three blocks east to a little hole-in-the-wall place with a big neon sign. Barcade. A video game and arcade bar.
“Um,” Andy said nervously. “Is this okay?”
“Oh hell yes it’s okay!”
I opened the door and darted inside. The walls were filled with every manner of pinball machine, arcade, and other carnival style games. It was exactly like the arcade I used to go to as a kid, with one important difference: there was a circular bar in the middle of the room with a wall of cocktails and beer taps.
“It’s classic style.” Andy held up the felt bag I saw him grab when we left the house. He gave it a jangle. “Everything operates on quarters. Not the silly credit card system.”
I gave the bag a sensual little squeeze from underneath. “Dude. How many quarters did you bring?”
“Enough for a first date. I figure you’re worth about $40.”
“I would’ve valued myself closer to $20, so I appreciate the compliment.” I pointed across the room. “Dude, they have Mario Kart! I grew up on that shit!”
Andy opened a tab, brought us two beers, and then we started going through his big bag of quarters. Four Mario Kart stations were set up in a row, allowing people to play against one another. Andy and I hogged two of those for close to half an hour while going through the old Nintendo 64 tracks. I played as Mushroom, while Andy chose Luigi. It suited the tall, lanky man. Eventually a line formed and we realized we were being selfish, so we refreshed our drinks and made our way over to the pinball machines.
“Best score wins,” Andy said as he shoved a quarter into a Ghostbusters pinball machine. I took the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles machine next to him and grabbed another quarter from his bag.
“You’re on.”
On the first round, he got twice as many points on his pinball machine as I did on mine. The second time was even worse. “You gave me the hard one!” I complained.
“Then let’s switch,” he said with a smile.
It turned out that Andy was just really, really good at pinball. He crushed me even after we switched machines. In fact, I think he was going easy on me because soon he was beating my score by four times, then five.
“I ought to start calling you Tommy,” I said, waving a hand in front of his eyes. I had already lost my three balls and was watching him rack up his score higher and higher.
“Oh, from that song?” Andy said. I let out an exasperated noise.
“From the Tony Award-winning musical! Come on, dude!”
“Oh. I never knew they made a musical about it,” Andy said absently while watching the pinball on his machine. “Are all the songs about playing pinball?”
“I can’t believe you’ve never seen it,” I muttered. “I’m going to find a bootleg copy of the musical and force you to watch it.”
He grinned, taking his eyes off the machine for a moment. “That can be our next date.”
I leaned back on my machine, chest out. “You’re assuming you get a second date.”
Without him paying attention, his ball clattered past the bumpers and the machine made a series of unhappy noises. “I hope so.”
I smiled back at him. “Me too.”
We spent the rest of his bag of quarters on skeeball and other classic arcade games. When we got down to one quarter, he carried it over to the claw machine.
“I always saved my last quarter for this,” he said as he began maneuvering the joystick. “One last chance to get a prize.”
“Oh, aim for that!” I pointed at a costume jewelry necklace encased in a plastic ball. “Win me the necklace!”
“Coming right up.” He positioned the crane above it, but then paused and considered it. He spent at least 30 seconds making tiny adjustments, leaning around to the left and right of the machine to see it from different angles. Finally he hit the plunger, and the crane dropped.
The three claws wrapped around the ball, lifted it into the air, and carried it to the drop box.
“Fuck yeah!” I screamed, which drew several looks. I didn’t care. I hopped up and down excitedly as Andy retrieved the necklace from the machine and opened it. The fake emerald in the middle was rectangular and the size of a cough drop, with tiny fake diamonds all around it. The whole thing was gaudy and stupid. I loved it.
“Turn around,” Andy said. When I did, he draped the necklace over my head, allowing the gem to rest in between my cleavage. I pulled up my hair so he could fasten the clasp in the back.
“It looks perfect,” Andy said. “For a piece of plastic, I mean.”
I grinned like I’d won the lottery. “This date just got notched up to an A.”
We went outside and Andy began to call for a cab. “Let’s walk,” I suggested. “It’s a beautiful night to be outside.”
“It’s a mile and a half back to the house,” Andy said.
He meant it as a reason not to go, but I chose not to hear it that way. “Exactly. Not too far at all! Besides, I want to show off my new bling.” I opened my jacket to reveal the necklace.
“I suppose it is a nice night.”
We walked north along the street, side-by-side. The city was bustling even at this late hour, and I sighed and took in the wonderful sounds. I rarely got to enjoy living in the greatest city in the world. I was always rushing from one job to the next, or back to my apartment. It was nice to actually slow down and savor where I was.
“I can’t remember the last time I went to an arcade,” I mused as we walked along. “Probably when I was a teenager.”
“They’re a dying industry, but us hipsters are making them trendy again.”
“The one industry us millennials aren’t killing off,” I chuckled. “That and avocados.”
“You know? This is nice,” Andy said. “Tonight has helped me keep my mind off the theater.”
“Except for the fact that you just brought it up.”
“Well, aside from that, yeah,” he admitted. “But it was nice to not spend the evening worrying. That’s all I’ve done lately. The issues…”
He trailed off. Despite him saying it was good to get his mind off of it, I got the impression he wanted to talk about it now.
“Do you really think someone would sabotage the theater?” I asked gently.
He walked for a little while, hands in his coat pockets. “I’ve considered all other options, and that seems like the most likely scenario. I trust Ryan completely. He wouldn’t make mistakes. And the missing socket wrench is a giant red flag.”
“Couldn’t someone have stolen it?” I suggested. “Director Atkins forgets to lock the theater half the time.”
“Then why steal just that tool and nothing else?”
“Good point.”
We stopped at a street and waited for the light to change while cars streamed by. I didn’t feel comfortable chatting about this subject while other people were idling around us. When we finally crossed the street we resumed the discussion.
“I wonder who would want to sabotage Tatiana,” I mused. “Aside from an ambitious, talented understudy from Iowa, that is.”
Andy snorted and looked sideways at me. “Just to be certain: you didn’t do it, right?”
I moved my finger over my chest. “Cross my heart and hope to die. Tatiana is awfully annoying. Maybe she made some enemies along the way? Some old actress she beat out for the role?”
“This is her first real role, though,” Andy replied. “She hasn’t been around long enough to develop rivals.”
“Ah, right.”
“Something occurred to me today,” Andy said slowly. “Just a theory, but… Well, maybe it shouldn’t.”
I stared at him as we walked. “Oh, come on. You can’t tease me like that.”
“It’s just that…” Andy looked conflicted. “There’s someone I’m certain would benefit from Tatiana being out of the picture. Someone she’s holding back. Someone with an unfair amount of stress related to The Proposition.”
It took me a few heartbeats to realize who he meant. “No way.”
“Director Atkins has a lot of pressure on him,” Andy said quietly. “His career desperately needs this show to be a success, and Tatiana as the lead is hamstringing the entire thing.”
I shook my head. “But the only reason Vandercant is producing the show is to give her a lead role! If Tatiana gets injured, he would pull funding.”
“Would he, though?” Andy asked. A thoughtful expression was painted on his handsome face. “Everything is reasonably far along. It’s a sunk cost.”
“Maybe,” I allowed. “But it still seems unlikely.”
Andy let out a long sigh that deflated him completely. “Ultimately, I agree. I don’t think Atkins is the kind of person to intentionally harm one of his actors, even one as annoying at Tatiana. It’s just a theory I thought about after seeing him in his office today. I was surprised he didn’t fire Ryan, and that led me down a trail of conspiracy theories.”
“Let’s put a pin in it and come back if any more evidence surfaces,” I said. “Any other theories?”
“Not really. You?”
“I haven’t given it much thought,” I replied. “I’ve been trying not to think about how a huge spotlight almost killed someone.”
“Ahh, sorry. We don’t have to—”
“No, don’t apologize,” I said, wrapping my arm around his as we walked. He felt solid and warm. “I’m enjoying talking it out. Is there anyone else who would want the show to fail? Or the theater itself?”
Andy shook his head. “I doubt any of the neighboring theaters feel threatened. Besides, Vandercant has a lot of power. Trying to sabotage one of his businesses would be a mistake.”
“Huh.”
“What is it?” he asked.
My mind raced, but was slowed by the four beers I’d had. “Maybe we’re looking at this the wrong way. What if it’s someone targeting Vandercant specifically? He might have an enemy. Or a nemesis. Billionaires always have arch rivals, right?”
“Maybe,” Andy said doubtfully. “It’s kind of a dumb target, though. Vandercant owns dozens of successful bars and restaurants in Manhattan. There’s no point in sabotaging one of his few unsuccessful ventures.”
“It could be pettiness,” I brainstormed. “Or maybe it’s because of Tatiana. Damaging her career is the best way to hurt Vandercant. Making it personal.”
“Well,” Andy laughed, “they’re potentially damaging a lot more than her career. She could have died.”
“Don’t remind me.” I sighed. “So we essentially know nothing. That’s not comforting.”
“I’m certain of one thing,” Andy said.
“Yeah?”
“It’s definitely not a phantom, or ghosts, or any other nonsense.”
I made my face into a mask of skepticism. “You can’t be certain of that, Andy. Have you even checked for electromagnetic disturbances? Or ectoplasmic frequencies? Ryan made some compelling arguments the other day…”
Andy let out a long groan. “Don’t get me started! Do you know how much electromagnetism is around us all the time? Craploads of it! Especially in an old building with ancient wiring. An electric current creates an electromagnetic field, especially when appliances are turned out. The number of ghost hunters who go out and wave an EM detector around while pretending it’s science…”
I squeezed myself closer to his body as we stopped at another intersection. “Sorry for getting you wound up.”
“You haven’t even seen me wound up. When Ryan watches Seatbelt Psychic and Haunted History I have to hide in my room and put headphones on.”
“I promise never to turn any of those shows on in your presence.” I paused for a strategic amount of time. “Bigfoot is totally real though, right?”
I laughed loudly as Andy went on another tirade about how Bigfoot was a fake marketing ploy to get people to vacation in the Pacific Northwest, which segued into a rant about the Loch Ness Monster.
“The lakes in northern Scotland are the most boring in the world, but after that falsified photograph it’s one of the largest tourist spots in the United Kingdom,” Andy was saying when a peal of thunder split the night.
I glanced at the sky. “Was that…”
The sky erupted moments later in a downpour of rain. We were in an area with no public shops we could dart into, so we took off running north along with the other pedestrians caught without umbrellas. I couldn’t run very fast in my heels, and Andy was gentleman enough to stay with me even though he could’ve left me in the dust.
We made it three blocks before reaching a corner store. It was closed, but there was an overhang that protected us from most of the rain, except for an occasional flurry that blew sideways into us from the cross-draft. Both of us breathed heavily with effort.
“This is like the storms we got back in Florida. They come on suddenly, but leave just as fast.” Andy’s glasses were covered with raindrops as he turned to me. “Sorry our date ended like this.”
I considered making a joke about how my favorite dates ended with me dripping wet, but Andy didn’t seem like the kind of guy to appreciate the dirty joke. “Why are you apologizing? It was my fault for insisting we walk.”
He nodded emphatically. “I wasn’t going to be a dick about it, but it is your fault.” He stuck out his hand. “The date is officially ruined. I’d like my priceless necklace back.”
I gasped and leaned away from him, clutching my necklace protectively. He grinned.
“I think that’s the first joke I’ve heard you make,” I said, hand still on my necklace.
“I’m good for one joke every month or two.” He glanced at his Apple watch. “Better set a reminder to tell another one in eight weeks…”
He grinned, which lit up his handsome face. His eyes sparkled like the fake emerald around my neck, accentuated by the droplets on his glasses. His blond hair was dark with moisture, but that only seemed to make his cheekbones stand out.
And before I knew what I was doing, I was kissing him. It was the perfect moment because he leaned in to meet me halfway, holding me close against his warm body and wrapping his coat around me. It wasn’t the most passionate kiss, but it was warm and comforting and felt perfect in the moment. Natural, and exciting.
I was tempted to open my mouth for his tongue, but instead I slowly pulled away. “I had fun tonight,” I whispered as the rain pattered all around us.
“Me too.”
“Sorry to jump to the goodnight kiss early,” I said, still held close against his body. “It felt right.”
He chuckled, a deep vibration I felt in my chest. “Honestly, I was planning on kissing you on the cheek. This was better.”
I playfully slapped his arm. “A kiss on the cheek? Pervert.”
“You should see the hugs I give. They’re downright scandalous.”
I cocked my head to look up at him. “Why, Andy. I think that’s two jokes in one night.”
He smiled back at me. “Don’t tell the others. I’m supposed to be the serious one of the group.”