"GIRL ON THE BRIDGE" "Go on, Adele." "Tell us." "Well..." "I'm..." "You're twenty-two..." "No, I will be in two months." "And you dropped out of school very young to start work." "Yes, but not really to start work." "I'd met someone I wanted to be with." "That's why I dropped..." "I left home." "I preferred to live with a boy, instead of my folks so I grabbed the first available one." "Opportunity, I mean." "You needed to be free." "I don't know about free." "All I really wanted was to sleep with him." "When I was a kid, I used to think" "life starts when you make love." "Till then, you're nothing." "So I took off with the first willing guy so we could be together and my life could start." "The problem was, it wasn't a very good start." "Didn't you get along?" "Why wasn't it a good start?" "It's never good for me." "Things go from bad to worse." "I never pick the lucky number." "You know those curly, sticky flypapers?" "I'm like them." "I pick up all the crud around." "I'm like a vacuum cleaner, picking up all the dirt left behind." "I never pick the lucky number." "Everything I try goes wrong." "Everything I touch turns sour." "How do you explain that?" "You can't explain bad luck." "It's like... an ear for music." "You have it or you don't." "What happened with the boy?" "Which one?" "The first one." "The one you took off with." "Didn't it go all the way?" "Sure it went all the way." "But you were disappointed." "Not at all!" "That's the problem." "If I'd enjoyed it less, I might not be here now." "Anyhow." "Still, the first time wasn't too comfortable." "Of course." "It never is." "You were uncomfortable." "Because you were both very young." "No, we were in a gas station restroom." "It's not convenient." "Have you ever tried it?" "It's not convenient, especially on a highway." "I wanted to hitchhike." "I had this fantasy that love stories always happened at the beach." "But hitchhiking was a bad idea." "It's not surprising, though." "My ideas are almost always bad." "It's classic." "I get carried away, I don't think." "If I hadn't got picked up," "I might've jumped in front of a truck." "Who picked you up?" "I can't name him since he's married." "A psychologist." "He diagnosed I was depressed and bent over backward to cure me." "So far backward, I thought I was half pregnant." "Luckily, it was only appendicitis." "If you can call it lucky." "The anesthesiologist wasn't my lucky break." "You had trouble with the anesthesiologist?" "No, he was nice." "He seemed so much in love, I'd have followed him to China." "We got as far as Limoges." "Funny, isn't it, how people can seem madly in love when they're not?" "It must be easy to fake." "He said I went to his head like Cointreau." "I guess he got tired of Cointreau, so he went to make a phone call." "Phone who?" "I never found out." "He never came back." "The restaurant had a back door, which I didn't know, so I waited for him till closing time." "The manager lived upstairs." "His room smelled greasy." "But he had soft, gentle hands." "Hands are tricky." "They can make you believe anything." "That's how I got my first job, as a hostess at his place." "What does a hostess do?" "At first, she welcomes people and smiles at everyone." "As far as jobs go, it's a no-brainer but you know how smiles give people ideas and Limoges is so full of lonely men." "You can't imagine!" "The judge said it has the most depressed people in France." "Which judge?" "He comforted me when they closed the place because of the hostesses." "He was depressed, too." "Not that he comforted me for long." "Not even 1 5 minutes." "In a hotel room with no pillows, TV or curtains." "But he wasn't that bad." "When he saw I was crying, he gave me his hankie." "Then he left." "Maybe it's all I deserve." "It must be the law of nature." "Some people are born to be happy." "I get conned every day of my life." "I believe every promise I hear." "I've never achieved anything." "I've never been useful or precious to anyone, or happy, or even really unhappy." "I guess you're unhappy when you lose something but I've never had anything except bad luck." "How do you see your future, Adele?" "I don't know." "When I was little, all I wanted to do was grow up." "As fast as I could." "But I can't see the point of it all." "Not anymore." "Getting older." "I see my future like a waiting room in a big train station, with benches and drafts." "Outside, hordes of people run by without seeing me." "They're all in a rush, taking trains and cabs..." "They have somewhere to go, someone to meet..." "And I sit there, waiting." "Waiting for what, Adele?" "For something to happen to me." "You look like a girl who's about to make a mistake." "I'm okay, thanks." "I mean it." "You look desperate." "You think so?" "What are you playing?" "Heads or tails?" "Who are you out to impress?" "Nobody." "I never impressed anyone." "I'm not going to start now." "You're too young to be so sad." "Are you terminally ill?" "Short a kidney?" "Liver?" "Leg?" "No, I'm just short of... a little guts." "I'm scared it's cold." "Of course it's cold!" "You think they heat it?" "I must not think about it." "Right." "Think happy thoughts." "They'll give you a push." "That'll be hard." "Happy thoughts aren't my specialty." "That's why I'm here, see?" "You know what I see?" "I see a waste ahead and I hate waste." "Waste of what?" "You." "You don't trash a good light bulb." "This one burned out long ago." "You're depressing me." "So bug off!" "I'm at the end of my rope, okay?" "What rope?" "Look at you." "Your rope's barely begun." "This is just a bad patch." "My whole life's a bad patch." "I'm stamped with the seal of failure." "You think it washes off?" "I bet this is your first try, right?" "Y es." "I don't live on bridges." "I do." "Doing what?" "Trying to jump?" "No, hiring people." " Hiring who?" " Assistants." "Burned-out women are my stock in trade." "I usually find them here... or on high roofs, but in the spring." "In winter they prefer bridges." " Like me." " No." "Not like you." "They're basket cases, cracked beyond repair." "What do you do to them?" "Miss them, sometimes." "It's a question of balance." "Past the age of 40, knife-throwing becomes erratic." "That's why I recruit on bridges." "I like to help." "If you really want to end it all, I can take you on a trial basis." "No thanks." "I'll manage on my own." "Sure." "You'll still be here next week, staring at your shoes." "You can't fool me with your fancy propositions." "You think a sad girl on a bridge is an easy target." "Yours for the asking!" "Excuse me!" "I never sleep with my targets." "That's your problem!" "I'm through with fairy tales." "You want to jump, jump." "Then where will you be?" "I'll soon find out." "Are you dumb or what?" "Breathe!" "I don't want to!" "Get it?" " Name?" " Count my fingers!" "Fuck your fingers!" "You have hypothermia." "I don't!" "I'm immune." " 3-42." " What?" "3 minutes 42." "Barcelona '74, European record." "Me!" "Lie down!" "Why did you jump?" "Listen to her." "She leaves her body to science." "Take no notice." "She's a joker." " You're related?" " I'm her mother." "You rescued her?" "It was so dark, it's hard to say who rescued whom." "Been here long?" "Two months." "Leave." "They're all wacko." "Which bridge were you on?" "A footbridge near the Eiffel T ower." "And you?" "Solferino." "You're schizoid?" "Manic-eccentric." "Your first jump?" "With her, yes." "T ake a look at her." "With her eyes and ass, would you drown yourself?" "I don't see the connection." "Depends on the situation." "Situation?" "Maybe for you, but look at her." "All that excess grief she's carrying." "Would it make you sick to smile now and then?" "You mean now?" "Y es, now." "You should be in a fridge with a label on your toe." "I should've known." " Known what?" " I'd flub it." "I can't even drown myself." "Story of my life!" "Here we go." "Violins and handkerchiefs..." "Keep trying." "You'll get there." "No use trying, with my lousy luck." "Goes to show." "Show what?" "What luck?" "No!" "Come with me." "Let her get warm!" "She's not well." "Luck?" "You think you catch it like a cold?" "It takes faith!" "Willpower!" "Effort!" "Go out and get it, for fuck's sake!" "Where?" "I don't even know what it looks like." "Me." "Want to see?" "Where are you going?" "Give me some sugar." "Sugar lumps!" "Three!" "Like it?" " You can win it." " How?" " Or you." "You want faith?" " In what?" "Luck!" "Do you?" "Yes or no?" "Take your pick or go home." "But I'm on duty!" "Focus on this sugar as if your life depended on it." "Stand by." "Two to one." "An easy start." "So?" "It's loose." "The strap's big." "Not that." "Are you available?" "I'll say!" "I'm so available, it makes me dizzy." "I can give you 25%." "Okay?" " Thanks." " You're welcome." "25% of what?" "My fees." "They vary nightly, often with good surprises." "Any congenital ailments?" "Allergies, false limbs, deafness?" "No, I'm normal." "Only my right eye's a bit weak." "Eyes don't matter." "See less, fear less." "You know your blood type?" "AB, I think." "Why?" "Accidents." "Bleeding can be harmless if it's stopped in time." "You have your passport?" "And this one." "What's this?" "Are you moving?" "You throw those?" "What did you expect, teaspoons?" "Car 1 2." "Please don't shake the trunk." "What's wrong?" "Out of juice?" "No, it's not what I imagined." "It's not?" "Those things can kill." "So can anything." "Toothpicks, paper clips..." "Looks deceive." "That stuff gives me the creeps!" "But you're at the end of your rope!" "You don't care." " Do you?" " I don't know." "I need to think." "Look at me, frankly." "Do I scare you?" "Frankly, you come pretty close." "It depends." "On what?" "I'm thinking." "That's not a box of magic wands." "Look at this." "Does it scare you?" "Do you see it move?" "Is it shaking?" "Remember, it's not the thrower that counts." "It's the target." "Something about you tells me you have a special gift." "I mean it." "Would a demonstration reassure you?" "What's the matter?" "Stop!" "I've been hit." "Naturally." "You're too tense." "This is mediocre." "My coat's ruined." "Where I'm taking you, it's always sunny." "With knives in my stomach, I'll hardly care." "I've never hit anybody in the stomach." "Still, this is not going to work." "You have other plans?" "Another bridge?" "Valium?" "A gun?" "No, but that stuff..." "I don't have the gift." "Trust me." "Please." "With your body and my skill, we'll kill 'em." "Kill who?" "Ticket, please." "Coat." "Left pocket." "You're in the way." "And your marshmallow seats compress my spine." "It's unbreakable and waterproof to 250 meters." "You dive?" "I'm starting out." "I began last night, but not deep." "You should always go easy the first time." "T ake it gently, in stages." "Gently, in stages." " Do you believe in luck?" " Y es." "Why?" "Because you have cuddly breasts and something's going to happen." "What kind of thing?" "Something soft and warm" "like intensive care." "My pulse is racing so fast," "I'm about to faint with desire for you." " Busy!" " Doing what?" "Open up." "You're screwing up again, big-time!" "Aren't you done?" "Excuse me." "May I?" "They're not done." "Rubbers slow things down." "If she uses them, that is..." "If she uses them." " Do you?" " What?" "What do you think?" "You get dirty with a stranger, you use earplugs?" "A mouthguard?" "He's not a stranger!" "His pulse was racing." "So what?" "It was beating too fast." "I get that too." "I wanted someone to hug me." "I needed a little tenderness." "Maybe I got carried away." "I didn't think." "We didn't think." "You're a perfect fit." "Not a brain cell between you." "I started it." "I know it doesn't help, it only fills the cracks..." " Who's cracked?" " She is." "Look at her." "That'll do." "Go fill some other cracks." "Who are you?" "A fairy." "Can't you tell?" "I'm not used to it yet." "To what?" "Saying no." "I'll have to control myself." "It's like quitting smoking." "The first week is the toughest, then you get over it." "Try chewing gum." "Somehow I can't stop." "Boys attract me like beautiful clothes." "I always want to try them on." "Am I abnormal?" "Not especially." "You just need some guidance." "Where to?" "Wherever I go, I seem to take the wrong road." "There's no wrong road, only bad company." "I'll make you somebody." "Understand?" "Somebody who laughs and takes life with ease." "You'll be Cinderella, Farah Diba, Queen of the Night..." "What'll I do in the day?" "Like him?" "If you want to meet him, there's the john." "He smiled." "I'm polite." "Your kind of politeness leads straight to the sack." "You're so negative!" "Not about everything." "Please try to stand up straight." "Arch your back and jut your chin." "Look determined." "T o do what?" "T o move them." "The audience must fall in love with you." "That first knife must twist their guts." "Don't worry." "One look at you, they'll be twisted." "Put a dark line here." "Make yourself look anxious, tragic." "They love it." "Don't I look tragic enough already?" "Pick an elevator." "The one on the right." "You have a gift, see?" "Please sir, may I swipe your credit card?" "No swipes." "Cash, tomorrow." "Sorry sir, we..." "Seriously!" "Seriously!" "Would I sneak out with that?" "Hi, Gabor!" "How's tricks?" "Good to see you again." "Mrs. Vassiliev, born in Minsk in 1 907, had 69 multiple births." "1 6 sets of twins, 7 of triplets and 4 of quadruplets." "How do you do it?" " Where's Kusak?" " Busy." "Why?" " Who's before me?" " Who are you?" "Gabor." "Knives." "...by Leon Spinks in Chicago, Illinois." "I've no knives." "I do." "Where's my dressing room?" "Mr. Kusak!" " Did we book a knife act?" " Never." "Pardon me?" "You here?" "Nobody booked you!" "I canceled two galas in Oslo for this!" "Mr. Jarvis personally chose tonight's lineup." "No knives." "Only novelty acts." "That's why I'm here." "My act's new." "What's new about knife-throwing?" "I throw blind." "Blind?" "Blind." "He throws blind." "He agrees." "After the contortionist." "No way." "Never after a silent act." "And find me a sheet." " Got an act?" " No, I'm the target." "Gabor does it on you?" " Does what?" " His act." "Knives?" "More like acupuncture!" "Blind, especially." "You have a lovely body." "Why butcher it?" "The Statue of Liberty is 46 meters high." "No!" "7 1." "7 1 with the base, 46 without." " Head capacity?" " 40, standing." "Is that you?" "Irene?" "How come you're here?" "Nobody told me." "It's me." "You're back in France?" "You left Glasgow?" "You've changed." "Is it your eyes?" "I'm so..." "I never thought we'd meet again." "Neither did I." "I searched for you everywhere from town to town." "Even Madrid, once." "Somebody said you were on at the Victoria." "For months I'd stop men in the street who looked like you." "I took pills." "Got married twice, three times..." "I lose track." "Remember your theory of luck?" "`You don't take it, you make it.'" "Your luck arrived when I left." "How I missed your hands!" "They knew me so well." "Touch me." "To say goodbye." "Just once." "Excuse me." "What does 'blind' mean?" "It means we'll wow them." "Shoulders out." "Chin up." "Was that your wife?" "Feet apart." "Did you bring her luck?" "No, I caught her." "She was Miss Cannonball." "She flew 1 00 yards." "She fell on me." "I saved her life." "Like me." "You save everybody!" "Not like you." "Blind, do you shut your eyes?" "Stand straight, breathe deep." "Leave the rest to me." "You've done it before?" "Not completely." "I lacked the right target." "You." "What have I done to you?" "You inspire me." "I have faith in your luck." "You have it in you like a horseshoe or a four-leaf clover... but if you've lost faith, there's the exit." "I won't blame you." "Which hand?" "See what faith can do?" "Wear it." "If you have to die, do it in style." "Go on!" "Take it off." " Are you okay?" " Y es, fine." "You're pale." "From stress?" "At one point, I felt you stiff and wary." "It made me tense." "Have you ever felt great fear and pleasure, both at once?" "Y es." "T onight." "Did it feel good?" "Naturally." "Naturally!" "What?" "Nothing." "Just tell me one thing." "Would it make you sick to smile now and then?" "No checks." "Always cash." "Can you do the same thing tomorrow in San Remo with the same girl?" " Is it her or me you want?" " Both." "I was in the audience just now." "I felt my body catch fire." "I wanted you to pierce me." "You have such magnetic eyes!" "You do hypnosis?" "I'm aching to be hypnotized." "Which hand?" "That one." "Sorry." "You lost." "Everything going okay?" "Need anything?" "Drinks?" "Kleenex?" "What do you want?" "Just testing." "Give me a number." " 30." " Not you, you." " 0." " 0." "Take this." "Tonight's pay." "Put it on 0." " Now?" " Preferably." "Back in 1 5 minutes." "Can you hold out?" " How do you rate him?" " I don't." "Beware of athletes." "75% are morons with flea-dicks." "You'd be disappointed." " You're an athlete?" " I quit in time." "Build up your stake but never bet small." "If in doubt, straddle." " Straddle who?" " Your number." "Focus on it like a brother, your only friend on earth." "Why don't you?" " I'm banned." " From what?" "The casino." "Also, because if you're not full of holes by now you must be good voodoo and me with you." "What's the deal?" "50-50?" "Minus the hotel bill." "Place your bets." "No more bets." "Just one glass, sir?" "You see!" "Tough luck." "Mind your own business!" "Come on." "Let's go." "Gently..." "Gently..." "We'll get there." "Yes!" "Your bill, sir." "Sorry, I'm broke." "Cleaned out." "I gave it all to her." "Cheers!" "What'll this buy me?" "A boat?" "A house?" "With your diving habit, I'd spend it on flippers." "Here's your prop back." "You're returning to Paris?" "What's this worth?" "Like that?" "Not much." "You want the truth?" "I misled you." "Luck always used to pass me by." "Other people had it." "I was always a piece short." "What piece?" "They want us in Italy tomorrow." "Interested?" " Don't miss him." " Who?" "T ootsie roll." "I told him 1 5 minutes." "Any special number?" "How about 32 for a change?" "Can you tell her to stop staring at me like that?" "We have to stick together or it won't work!" "Stick together?" "Look at the time!" "You'll win more tomorrow." "Who says our luck won't run out like it started?" "I'm scared we'll lose it." "Aren't you?" "You see!" "No." "I'm looking for a taxi." "You want to be sure it still works?" "Try this." "Raffle ticket." "What do I win?" " I underrated you." " How?" "You're a whole lucky horse!" "Is that all luck's about?" "Backing horses, winning cars, picking numbers?" "Is there nothing more to it?" "Naturally." "What is it?" "It beats me." "You're the expert, not me." "I'm no expert." "I'm a stand-in." "Luck's a matter of life or death." "Didn't you know?" "How about this?" "What are you doing?" "Fieldwork." "How do you do it?" " Place your bets!" " No more bets!" " What about corners?" " Corners?" "So?" "Are we alive?" "No." "Can't you feel we're going to heaven?" "It's not what I imagined." "Because it's late." "Everything's shut." "You found my replacement?" "He was suicidal!" "We hit it off at once." "You're not the only lucky charm!" " Who are you calling?" " Knife fans." "Got any cash?" "Gash?" "I have plenty." "Huge ones!" "People live with no knives, you know?" "No arms, no legs, no you..." "but it's less fun." "So?" "What a dumb answer!" "It's funny how you disconnect." "Can I get some privacy?" "There's plenty of room around." "Forget knives!" "Gold grows under my feet." "You're a workaholic!" "Don't you get tired?" "I owed you a watch." "Now we're even." "You owe me nothing." "Learn to lose or you'll take winning for granted." "What's 'rainbow' in Italian?" "We should make a wish." " Smile!" "We're on vacation." " No." "We're lost." "Not true!" "You're a pessimist." "Listen." "Just follow the sound of crickets." "How about dessert?" "Would you like him for dessert with a scoop of ice cream on top?" "Train to catch?" "Vacationers take trains." "The 8 :23 is good." "Good for who?" "I should let him sit here or you'll twist your head off." "No need." "I'm only looking at him." "Admit I've held back lately." "Don't be shy." "With luck he'll take you standing on a table." "Shame to miss it." "What if he asked you to go with him, now?" "Would we be happy?" "Who?" "Him and me." "I'm going to tell you a story." "Long ago, I lived on the even side of a street, at number 22." "I gazed at the houses across the street, thinking the people were happier, their rooms were sunnier, their parties more fun." "But in fact their rooms were darker and smaller and they, too, gazed across the street." "Because..." "We always think that luck is what we don't have." "I'll wait at the station." "If you don't show, I'll know you went." "Went where?" "T o see if the other side's better." "It's not better!" "I'm sorry." "Sorry, it's not you." "It's not you I'm looking for." "What's the time?" "T ails." "Heads." "What are you doing?" "Playing with trains at your age?" "For what?" "T o find the right track." "Look at me." "I believed what you said about luck." "Four leaf clovers, easy life and Farah Diba." "I trusted you!" "It's a dirty trick, discouraging other people with your pride and trains and vanishing acts." "You're like a schoolmarm, judging and preaching!" "Do this!" "Do that!" "Chin up!" "Stand there!" "I'm like a schoolmarm?" "A bit." "Sulk, I don't care." "This wasn't my idea." "You got me here, you can't ditch me now." "I'm getting used to being lucky, and to you." "You know what I want?" "The same thing as me?" "Right now." "Anywhere." " What did you tell them?" " We're ready." "Ready for what?" "Anything, plus an international career." "Are you ready?" "Ready!" "The Wheel of Death!" " Wheel of what?" " Death." "A small variation." "Cruise tourists get bored." "They need movement." "Right!" "Let's go." "The ship rolled." " Shall we?" " Thanks anyway." "I'm not very good." "Thank you." "Got a light?" "Here." "You found this?" "In Italy, beside the road." "Funny." "It's mine." "T.P." "Takis Papadopoulos." "That's me." "Take it back." "No, keep it." "My wife wants me to quit smoking." "I said OK to keep her happy." "She's Italian, I'm Greek." "We barely understand each other." "No point arguing." "Are you cold?" "Probably just seasick." "I brought your..." "Here." "Thanks." "There's no hurry." "Actually, there is." "What's up?" "Did you sleep badly?" "I'm going." "I'm leaving you." "For whom?" "Mr. Right." "The man I've been waiting for." "He's taking me away." "We're leaving." " It can't be true." " It is." "Not him!" "He's a newlywed." "He's depressive." "He's Greek!" "Nobody ever looked at me like he does." "Nobody asked me which side of the bed I liked, if I was hot or cold, hungry or thirsty... except you, maybe, on a good day." "No!" "I never asked you which side of the bed you liked." "Left." "You... and him are the only good things I've ever had." "That's not a lot." "You and I won't always be together." "What do we do?" "Shake hands?" "Kiss?" "Forget each other." "No promises." "I'm sorry." "No problem." "You look like a girl who's about to make a mistake." "Artist." "Cabaret artist." "I throw knives." "Whatever possessed you to go with that guy?" "Love strikes at random." "I felt he was so similar to me." "He seemed so sad." "He swore it was forever." "Forever?" "T ake a good look at your Greek shepherd." "You picked another bum, I can see." "I couldn't have known." "Known what?" "The way it would turn out." "And so soon." "As far as forever goes, it went really fast." "They took us to a Greek air base and there he changed his mind." "And then?" "Nothing." "I was given hot coffee and a smile to cheer me up." "Oh no!" "Yes." "I saw it all starting again like before." " Before what?" " Before you." "That one." "Wrong." "See?" "It's run out." "Luck comes and goes, you know." "How's it going with you?" "So-so." "Do you believe in the torn bill?" "What bill?" "The one in two halves that were worthless apart." "Do you believe in it?" "Are you there?" "Are you there?" "Y es, I'm here." "Still in showbiz?" "You bet!" "Like never before." "Are you from Paris?" "Did you come across a lost-looking blonde with a waterproof watch and a load of sadness?" "Sorry, I need it in case I get an attack of the blues." "We're all at risk." "You think I'm dumb?" "I know it looks stupid." "Clinging to trinkets." "An old lighter, a torn bill... the look in her eye on that bridge," "that night, when I was trying to jump too." "Hang in there." "All it takes is a girl on a bridge with big sad eyes." "I'll leave it on." "You never know." "She might be passing by." "The door!" "Pay what you like." "A donut, a few dates, a cucumber..." "You look like a guy who's about to make a mistake." "What are you waiting for?" "High tide?" "Not easy, is it?" "You think you can empty your mind and let go but it doesn't work like that." "Also, bridges are busy places to jump off." "There's always someone giving you second thoughts." "Did you break something?" "All sorts of things." "I need a complete overhaul but it's not worth it." "A new knife-thrower's cheaper." "What would I do with a new one?" "Are you cold?" "It's shaking." "It never shook." "You dreamed it." "Maybe we both dreamed and it wasn't so bad." "Ready to go?" "Where?" "Anywhere." "Wherever we go, you'll find a few knives to throw at me." "Anyhow, we have no choice." "If I don't jump, you do." "We can't go on like this." "Like what?" "Not being together."