"Hey, man, where are you?" "Still at Grand Central." "She there?" "She's here." "But she's with some guy." "Sorry, man." "You still coming?" "I don't know." "Okay, well..." "I'm gonna text you the address." "I really hope you come." "Oh, shit!" "Excuse me!" "Excuse me!" "No, no, no, no, no, no!" " Excuse me." " Yeah?" "Thought you might want that back." " Thank you." " I think it's broken." " Thank you very much." " Sure." "Due to Port Authority Security regulations, the station is now closing." "It will reopen at 5:30 a.m." "Um... excuse me, um, what does that mean, that "the station is closing"?" "That means you gotta leave." "No trains till the morning." "But I can't wait that long, um..." "There's a line for cabs out front." "Okay, but I don't need a cab because I missed my train, um..." "The station doors will close in five minutes." "Can I use this ticket at another station?" "It won't help." "Penn Station's closing, too." "You sure you're okay?" "I'm o..." "I'm okay." "Can I ask why you're standing outside?" "They closed the station." "You planning on standing out here all night?" "My purse was stolen." "Oh, damn." "Yeah, I was in some bar, so, now, all I have is this $13 train ticket and my broken phone." "Shit." "Sorry." "It's okay." "I'll figure something out." "I don't need your pity." "Well, I wasn't gonna offer pity." "I was gonna offer to split a cab." "You can't help me." "No, come on, let me do a nice thing." "You got your purse stolen, I got like... 80 bucks, give or take." "How far you going?" "Boston, give or take." "So, north of Harlem." "All right." "Hang on." "Excuse me." "Hey." "See this lady?" "She's got to get to Boston in a big hurry." "No." "New Haven." "New Haven..." "and she got her purse stolen." "It's an emergency." "When you get her home to New Haven, she'll cut you a big check." "You know what you're saying?" "Drive all night, half the morning." "I know." "Come on, man." "You see how she's dressed?" "What kind of purse was it?" " Prada." " It's Prada?" "Prada." "It was a Prada purse." "She's good for it, plus a big tip." "It's gonna be over a grand." "Get the..." "You serious?" "200 miles, at $2.50 a mile, is $500." "Times two, because I'm deadheading back." " Add in your Mass Pike tolls, twice." " All right." "All right, all right, all right." "I got it." "And you want me to trust her?" "No, no, no, you can't pay." "It's okay." "You'll send me a check tomorrow." "How do you know I'll send you a check?" "When have you not paid me back?" "Your card is declined." "All right." "It's all right." "Sometimes happens." "I got another one." "I never use this one." "Probably because it's expired." "You can read and add... how are you a cab driver?" "Hey, look, asshole, your girlfriend is stuck." "No New York cabbie is licensed to operate in Massachusetts." "So no one is gonna take the risk." "All right." "All right." "You know what?" "I can call a friend." "It's embarrassing." "It's dead." "Oh, my God." "Do you have anything at all that works?" "Oh, I'm sorry." "I didn't realize I was taking up all the space at the front of the line of guys trying to help you." "You know, there are other things I could be doing," " surprising as it may seem." " Okay." "Well, I'm sorry for holding you up." "Well, the feeling's mutual." "Hey, honey, sorry I'm late." "That happens, just stare straight ahead, keep walking strong." " Thank you." " Sure." "I'm sorry about back there, 'cause I was rude and I shouldn't have been rude." "It's okay." "I get it." "Shitty nights all around." "Believe it or not, this morning," "I actually had working credit cards." "So what do you want to do?" "You want to get a hotel room or something?" "Excuse me?" "No, not, not..." "Jesus." "Not for us, for you." "In case you don't have friends in the city." "I don't have friends in the city and I don't have a cell phone." "And then my I.D. and my credit cards were in that purse, so I am screwed." "Okay." "Want to go try and find your purse?" "What, like the person who took it is just gonna put it back?" "Well, no, but sometimes, they just take the cash." "Dump the purse." "You check the trash barrels at the bar?" "No." "No." "What bar?" "You remember the name?" "Um..." "Yeah, it began with an "L. "" "Um..." "I..." "I can't remember." "It was down..." "it was downtown." "Downtown." "Well, that's on my way." "It's on your way?" "Want to come with me, have a little adventure?" "Find your purse?" "Okay." "Okay." "Let's go." "Where are you going?" "Downtown is south." "Right." "Downtown." "I'm Nick, by the way." "Oh, hey, I'm..." "I'm Carrie." "Carrie." "It's nice to meet you, Carrie." "Anything?" "All right." "I got an idea." "Hasn't turned up, sorry to say." "But you never know." "Yeah, that's what the police said." "Funny, they're usually so helpful." "But then they told me about these guys that will lift purses out of certain places and that, sometimes, the bartender knows something." "I guess saying shit is easier than doing actual police work." "Right." "Right, that's true." "But, uh..." "I bet there'd be a pretty handsome gratuity in it if, uh, something popped into your brain." " Prada, you said?" "Uh-huh." "It does have sentimental value and I would pay a lot to get it back." "Give me a sec." "Sentimental value." "Nice touch." "It's true." "I appreciate you doing this." "I know that you weren't planning on spending your night rummaging through filthy garbage bathroom trash cans." "Well, I didn't plan not to." "Well, what about all the other things that you could be doing?" "Well, you didn't say trash can treasure hunts were on the menu." "I'm actually in town for an audition... tomorrow." "I was in Grand Central Station, just kinda... trying to piece together what I want to play." "So, trumpet?" "Yeah." "I don't think that I've seen anyone play trumpet since eighth grade band." "Well, we're still around." "We just don't, uh, march as much as we used to." " Jazz." " Yeah." " You listen?" " I like it." "I like jazz." "I..." "I don't know it." " I know "My Funny Valentine. "" " A classic." "I actually did it one year at summer camp." "I serenaded Jonathan Weinstein from behind a tree." "Jonathan Weinstein behind a tree." "What was your encore?" "A strip tease to..." "Oh, wow." "Brave." "So embarrassing!" "Brave!" "He ran away." "And... that was the end of my jazz career." "Yeah." "Well, that's a shame." "What was the next career?" " I'm an art consultant." " Really?" "I'm actually in the city buying a painting." "Oh, yeah?" "What's the piece?" "I don't know if you'd know it." "Well, that's probably true." "Um... who's your favorite painter?" "Or would I not know him, either?" "No, no." "But if I did tell you that," "I'd lose all credibility." "Oh, come on!" "You got to now." "You're stupid." "Well... we may be in luck." "Took a little persuasion." "Had to call in a favor or two." "So, I just have to go to this address and...?" " That's a shitty neighborhood." " What, you think, uh, guys on Wall Street were lifting purses?" "Well... thank you." "I hope I was helpful." "Extremely." "I think that he wants gratitude." "Group hug?" "Big kiss?" "I believe the words were "handsome gratuity. "" "Right." "You take credit cards?" "Okay, so it's-it's this way, right?" "All right, you talked me into it..." "I'm coming with you." "Thank you, but really, you have your thing and..." "It's all right." "It's late." "You're going to a shitty neighborhood." "I'm not gonna let you go alone." "Besides, it's this way." "Are you sure you don't mind?" "Positive." "Come on." "I'm sure that my husband will really appreciate your helping me." "It's incredibly generous of you." "You didn't have to do that." "What?" "The husband thing." "Well, I didn't mean to distrust you." "It's just you're being so nice." "Nice." "Well... don't mention it." "So, what was this thing that you were headed to tonight?" "Is it something to do with the audition or...?" "No, not really." "Well, kind of." "You know... you know when you can't make up your mind about whether or not you should do something?" "And you ask the universe "If I'm supposed to do this, give me a sign"?" "And is the audition the thing or the sign?" "The sign." "There's this really influential band..." "Duke Terry?" " No..." " It's all right." "He's this amazing piano player." "Lost his trumpet player about a month ago and I love the guy's music and I thought... why not?" "And... the thing?" " "The thing"?" " The thing that you needed the sign..." "Oh, the thing!" "Right, right." "That's, uh... a wedding." "Are you gonna break up a wedding?" "No." "No, it's complicated." "There's just someone I wanted to see." "The bride?" "Nope." "The groom?" "No." "But what about you?" "I'm guessing the purse was the gift from your husband?" "Think you might be missing some hardware." "I have a ring, but I'm not wearing it because it's being repaired back in Boston." "Okay." "Whatever you say." "You don't believe me?" "It's none of my business." "All right, this is it." "Jesus." "You know what?" "Let me do this." "What'd you say it was..." "a black Prada bag?" "I think we should call the police." "Yeah." "They'll be right over." "How's next Thursday?" "Anything specific about the bag?" "Yeah." "On the inside flap are the initials B.D. in kid's handwriting." ""B.D. " Why B.D.?" "My stepson wrote it." "My name is Brooke." "Brooke Dalton." "Oh, my God!" "Why'd you tell me it was Carrie?" "I don't know!" "Carrie Bradshaw!" "We're in New York, it's late, you're a stranger..." "I froze." "Well, when I get back, we really got to work on our communication, Brooke." "Two blocks that way, there's a bar called Gaffney's..." "wait for me there, all right?" "Wait!" "How much cash do you have?" "I don't know." "That's a personal question." "Maybe 40 bucks?" "You're gonna do something crazy." "Thank you for not saying "stupid. "" "That means a lot." "You're gonna grab it and run, aren't you?" "Uh..." "I don't know." "It's exciting, though, isn't it?" "Go." "You the one lost the purse?" "Yeah, and without it, my whole outfit falls apart." "Hello, Four Seasons Atlanta." "Uh, Michael Dalton's room, please." "One moment, please." "Hello?" " Hey, baby." " Hey." "What's going on?" "You okay?" "Yeah, I'm okay." "I just couldn't sleep." "And I, I just wanted to tell you that I love you." "Oh, honey, I love you, too." "How's New York?" "Did you make the buy?" "Yeah, I made the buy." "For 225." "Yeah." "It's been going on so long." "I'm just glad it finally closed, you know?" "Yeah, right." "Of course." "Well, congratulations." "Did you get my message?" " No." "What?" "My phone actually broke." " Oh, shit." "I was wondering why you called the hotel." "Well, there's a little change of plans." "And I'm gonna be on the first flight out." "So I'll be home by 8:00 and we can have a little, uh, celebration breakfast?" "That's so early." "It's 2:00 a.m." "Don't you just want to relax?" "Weren't you on a later flight?" "No, it's all right." "I can sleep on the plane." "I don't want to stay here any longer than I have to." "Baby, you work so hard." "Why don't you just stay and relax?" "And then we can have a nice breakfast later when you're rested?" "Brooke, the flight's booked." "What's going on?" "You okay?" "Yeah, yeah, yeah." "I'm just tired." "Aw, poor baby." "Well, let me let you go to sleep." "And I'll see you tomorrow." " Okay." " I love you." "All Prada." "All tonight." " Tyler said you knew the bag." " Right." "Well, the lady's credit cards would make it more helpful." "We don't do wallets, man." "Because that would be beneath you." "Let's go with this one." "Special today... $900." "What do you mean?" "That's the number I gave Tyler." "Yeah, and I paid him." "What, is this a shakedown?" "Call him." "Aw, this is great!" "You call him." "He says I didn't pay you and I get screwed!" "I'm so sorry." "I feel like an idiot." "You have your thing and now you look all..." "Homeless?" "No." "Tough?" "No, let's stick with homeless." "I'm sorry that I sent the cops in." "I..." "I just thought that..." "Thought that I couldn't get beat up all by myself." "No." "I assumed you can do that." "I just thought that you were in over your head." "What's it take to win a little trust with you, Ms. Bradshaw?" "Well, the purse is out." "What now?" "No, it does matter." "It was over when I missed that train." "What was over?" "My marriage." "I had to be home before him." "Oh." "He doesn't know you're in New York?" "No, it's... it's complicated." "Got it." "What is that supposed to mean?" "Well, it's not rocket science." "You're not wearing a wedding ring." "You got to get home before your husband does." "He doesn't know you're in New York." "Are you accusing me of having an affair?" "No, it's just..." "You know, I'm calling it like I see it." "It's not a problem." "It's okay." "People are human." "They make mistakes." "Okay, Einstein." "If I was having an affair, why wouldn't I just call my boyfriend and have him bail me out?" "I don't know." "Maybe he doesn't know you're married." "Oh, God!" "Wait!" "Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait!" "Wait." "What?" "What do you want?" "Look, thank you for your help, but it's over." "You can go back to whatever you were doing before I came along and I ruined your night." "Wait, please, stop!" "Stop!" "You didn't ruin my night, okay?" "I was hiding out in Grand Central trying to avoid this..." "Look." "My night was shit before you showed up." "It's gonna be shit after you leave." "But your night?" "If we can get you home and save your marriage, well, then... you know, that would make me a hero." "Not gonna pass that up, am I?" "Look, I don't mean to... pry." "But it seems to me, the issue is you got to get home tonight, right?" "Yes." "All right, let's work this out." "What time do you have to be home by?" " At the very latest, at 7:00." " Okay." "Well... that means we got to leave by 3:30, 4:00?" "We have time." "Manhattan?" "Name of business." "Carmel Car Service." "Carmel Car Service." "Hey, how much to Boston if we leave within the hour?" "That's $447." "That's the best you can do?" "Includes everything." "Okay, thank you." "What'd they say?" "$447... all in." "Can we raise that?" "Yeah, I think so." "I got a buddy at my thing." "Really?" "Because that would be amazing." "Well, don't thank me yet." "Am I dressed okay for a wedding?" "Well, it's probably just a reception by now." "I'm pretty sure my friend's still there." "Oh, thank you." "Wow." "You're actually good." "No offense." "None taken." "Is that the song you're gonna play tomorrow?" "Uh, I don't know." "Maybe." "I think you should." "I mean, if I know anything about Duke What's His Face, he's gonna like that song." "Duke Terry." "Yeah." "We'll see." "I jammed with his bass player a couple months ago in D.C." "This guy Lucas Wells." "He liked my shit." "That's wonderful." "Yeah." "Anyway... enough about me." "Your story by contrast is far more compelling." "Oh." "My turn." "Okay." "Uh..." "I'm pretty straightforward." "I'm a normal girl with one brother." "A husband who works in finance." "Who I conveniently cannot provide a photograph, 'cause my phone is broken." "Conveniently." "How'd you guys meet?" "I was in London," " um, working at Sotheby's." " Big shot." "Yeah, after a few years in London," "I started getting this..." "I don't know." "Th-The French have this word, dépaysement, um, disorientation, like the feeling of not being in your home country." "And I had... a hard time making friends in London, and..." "Aw, that's so sad." "And so my boss was like," ""Do you want to go to Boston for this show?"" "And Michael was there." "Right." "Have you ever had a feeling and just known somewhere in your bones that somebody was gonna play a major part in your life?" "Yeah." "Anyway, he... his wife had, uh, just left him for this guy that we know, and, uh... at that point, she'd taken the kids." "And so the last thing he wanted was to get involved with someone." "Well, for the record, I can't imagine you being the last thing any man would want." "Thank you." "So I, uh..." "I bought the painting that my boss wanted, and I sent it back without me, and I've not been to London since." "A lot of complications there." "Brave girl." "The funny thing is, I remain proud of it to this day that I was the girl who recognized love and jumped." "So if I know my friend, he'll be at the open bar." "Hopefully, we can get you home." "Is the person that you came to see gonna be there?" "With our luck, probably." "Is it that bad?" "What?" "Whatever's waiting for you up there." "Oh." "It's nothing." "It's an ex... ex-something." "And does the ex-something have a name?" "Hannah." "I haven't seen her in a while." "Was it a bad breakup?" "Are there any other kinds?" "Did they just have sex in here?" "It's better not to know." "But yes." "Is this it?" "Good question." "I really only know Danny and the groom." "Do you know that person?" "No." "No, I do not." "Are you sure that you're up for this?" "Yeah." "Yes, yes, yes." " Don't feel badly." " No, I don't feel badly." "I feel bad." "Did you just do that?" "Did you just correct my grammar?" "Oh, stop it, I was teasing." "Have I done that already?" "You've been dying to." "That's an interrupted verb phrase." "I've been silently correcting you all night." "Don't make that face." "Well, glad to know that we're at the point in our relationship where you feel comfortable doing it out loud." "And it's all downhill from here." "That's funny..." "I feel like I missed all the good uphill stuff." "Oh, thank you." "And what is PWC?" "Oh, shit." "Yeah, are we in the right place?" "I don't even think this is a wedding." "Jesus, it's about time." "Where's the rest of the band?" "You're an hour late." "Traffic." "I'm sorry, but I'm here." "To hold down the fort, so to speak." "What am I supposed to do with one saxophone?" " It's a trumpet." " Oh, my God." "And my singer, she's amazing." "This is bullshit, I'm not paying five grand for that." "Well, of course not, of course not." "But we will need $600 up front." "In case the rest of the boys don't show." "Out of the question." "Okay, enjoy your deejay's playlist." " Yeah." " $350... $500." "That's ten percent, that's fair." "Fine, now get up and start playing while I get the cash." "You can use 1107 as a green room if you need to store your stuff." "Great." " No, no." "Nick." " Come on." "I don't sing." "That's not what I heard." "No, there's no way I can do this." "Yes, you can." "Besides, we need vocals to sell it." "You want to get home, don't you?" "Just pretend it's a room full of Jonathan what's-his-names." "Weinsteins." "Yeah." "A room full of Jonathan Weinsteins." "Just keep your clothes on." "Nick, I can't." "All right, but if you got to take them off, save it for the finale." "I don't think they'll be able to follow that up." "Showtime, people." "The one-of-a-kind musical stylings of..." "Nick Vaughn on trumpet, Brooke Dalton on vocals." "Kicking off this set with a smoky, wistful "My Funny Valentine. "" "No, no, stop that." "Come on, let's go." "Oi, you two!" " Oh, my God, that was insane." " You were amazing." " That was crazy." " Wait, w-w-wait." "The green room." "This way." "Hello?" "Go ahead." "I got to call Danny, find out where the hell this guy is." "But your phone died." "Do you remember the number?" "What, you don't memorize all your emergency contacts?" "I don't think I get in as many emergencies as you do." "Danny, it's Nick, where the hell are you, man?" "Listen, you gave me the wrong address." "Um, this is gonna sound strange." "I need 450 bucks." "Long story, life or death." "Give me a call." "But my phone died, so just leave a message, okay?" "All right." "Do you think he'll get the message in time?" "I don't know." "I got another idea." "Should I be worried?" "Concierge, how may I help you, Mr. Childers?" "Yes, I need a car to take my guest to Boston right away." "And would you like your regular car service?" " Yes." " And how would you like to pay?" "Can we charge it to the room?" "That should not be a problem, Mr. Childers." " Oh, it's a yes." " Great." " Give me ten minutes, sir." " Thank you." "Are you crazy?" "Do you think that's gonna work?" "I don't know." "We'll find out in ten minutes." "I like your, uh, shiny trumpet." "Oh, why, thank you." "I hope it's worth enough." "For bail." "When we get arrested." "Well, should be." "I bought it with a shiny engagement ring." "So talk to me about these pieces." "Is this done by your famous London artist guy?" "Oh, well, how did you know?" "Well, you can tell you need to know quite a bit about art in order to appreciate it." "You're an asshole." "Do you know the most interesting thing about hotel art is not the actual art itself, obviously, but it's what's behind it." " What, like a safe?" " No." "Have you heard of hotel graffiti?" " No." " This comedian started it when his TV didn't work in his hotel room." "He just started doodling on, like, the back of paintings." "And it caught on from there." "So fingers crossed." "Oh, my..." "Wow." " Oh..." " What?" "How can you not appreciate that?" "It's the best one I've ever seen." ""Gotta go, the hookers are here. "" "We probably shouldn't touch anything in this room." "Hi, we ordered a car for Mr. Childers." "Oh, yes, he's just here." "We got your regular driver." "Except you're not Mr. Childers." "No, I'm Mr. Bradshaw." "I was sent down with Mr. Childers' guest." "Oh, uh, certainly, sir." "Just give me a second to ring the room." "That won't be necessary." "You know, it's not that late, and I feel like a drink." "Is that place on Halston still open?" " Yeah." " Yeah?" " Want to go?" " Yeah." " Thank you." " Thank you." "Sorry, guys." "All right, we're not dead yet..." "we still have time." "Time, but neither money nor a plan." "What we need is a time machine." "Well, we kind of have one." "A few years ago, they turned all these public pay phones into time machines." "You pick one up, dial 1993, and a New Yorker will come on and tell you exactly what was happening on that corner 20 years ago." "It was funny." "I don't even need to call that far back." "I just need to call yesterday." "Well, let's try." "What would you tell yourself?" "Brooke, it's you from the future." "She doesn't believe me." "Well, of course; you got to tell her something secret, something only you two would know." "So you know that tiny scar that you have on your forehead?" "The one that you tell everyone you got hiking in Argentina, but you actually got at a Hanson concert in college." "This is my favorite story already." "Shh." "It's collect." "So Pam made you crowd-surf, and you ended up hitting the guardrail and spending the whole night in the E.R." "Okay, oh, good, you believe me now." "Okay, so whatever you do, don't talk to any strangers in Grand Central." "Ouch." "Actually... just skip New York altogether." "Stay home, get a movie, order takeout, have a bubble bath and go to bed." "Because everything will be fine in the morning." "All right." "Yeah, but then you wouldn't have met me." "I still haven't decided if that's a good thing or a bad thing." "All right." "What else do we got?" "Let's think." "You're not gonna get off that easy." "No, no, no." "I don't mess with the physics of space and time." "Hanson." "All right." "All right." "Give it to me." "But I don't want to do yesterday;" "I want to do 2004." "Nick, hey, it's me." "You from the future." "He bought it." "Idiot." "Listen, when the Red Sox make the World Series, take all your money and put it on them to win." "Yes, I know it sounds crazy." "Do it." "Okay." "Bye." " That's it?" " That's it." "Everyone knows when you got a time machine, the first thing you do is gamble." "I wasn't aware of that." "And... that didn't work." "Oh, shit, what about a bus?" "But they don't even run at night." "No, like a Chinatown bus." "They run all night and they're cheap." "They're, like, 80 bucks." " Do we even have that much?" " No." "It's got to be easier than $500, though." "Well..." "Did our best, but we are almost out of time." "What if we just call your husband and tell him you're in New York?" "We could make up a good reason." "He already knows about New York." "Well, he doesn't need to know what you're doing here." "He knows that, too." "Well, then why do you have to beat him home?" "What?" "Is there something you got to do before he gets there?" "Look, whatever it is, he's an idiot if he can't put it past him." "And you're not the type of girl to marry an idiot." "'Cause even if there were something that I needed to do when I get back, I'm still not gonna make it back in time." "All right, so let's figure out a way to make it okay that you didn't do whatever it is you had to do." "Look, you may have already thought of this, but can someone else do it?" "Whatever it is?" "I'm out of coins." "Are you out of coins?" "Pick up, pick up, pick up." "Hello?" " Pam, it's Brooke." " Brooke." "I'm so sorry to call this late." "Did I wake the baby?" "No, no." "Are you okay?" "What's going on?" "I don't know how to say this, but I need a huge favor, and I need it now." "Of course, of course, anything." "Okay, so go to my house, and in the backyard there's a key in the magnet box by the pool filter." "Take the key and go in the back door." "The alarm code is 4242." "Go up to the bedroom." "On the bed is a letter." "And it's addressed to Michael." "Take it home and save it for me when I get back." "But listen, promise me that you won't read it." "Of course I won't, Brooke." "You have my word." "Okay, it's 4:00 a.m. now." "How much time do I have?" "You have three hours." "Is there any way I could use the phone after she's done?" "It's as good as done, Brooke." "I love you." "Thank you." "I love you, too." " Call me in an hour." " Okay." "Everything's gonna be okay now, I promise." "Okay." " Bye." " Bye." "You know, I think this is the first time I've seen you look genuinely happy." "Well... and for the record, this is relieved." "Happy is different." "Well, I'm glad it worked out." "And for the record, you could never cheat on anybody." "Are you the kind of guy who idealizes women, Nick?" "That's a dangerous habit." "Well, I'm a dangerous guy." "Yeah, that's why you got smashed in the nose." "Did Danny leave you a voice mail?" "Yeah." "He left me the wrong address." "His dyslexia really kicks in when he's been drinking." "Where is it?" "I don't think it matters." "I'm probably not gonna go." "I think we should just keep walking around." "I hear Central Park's really safe this time of night." "Wow." "It can't be that bad." "Has it got something to do with the ex, Hannah?" "'Cause I'm happy to offer my services." "I'm all dressed up, nowhere to go." "It's okay." "It's late." "I think that you're underestimating me." "I would make a great bodyguard." "Or spiritual advisor." "I can be your Jiminy Cricket." "She's there with somebody." "I see." "Well, I mean, you helped me." "I mean, you saved my marriage." "And that makes you kind of..." " A hero." " A hero." "And heroes are not afraid to face their exes." "Don't worry, I'll come." "We can pretend to be boyfriend and girlfriend." "That'll make her jealous." "She'll know you're not my type." "Oh, my God." "I was just brainstorming." "Maybe she'll think that I changed you." "That will drive her crazy." "Will you," "Nick Vaughn, be my..." "Carrie Bradshaw's Brooke Dalton's pretend boyfriend?" "Man." "I hope this is the right place, 'cause I only know one song." "Nick!" " Hey, man!" " Hey, man." "Hey, hey, I tried to get your money, man, but I could only get, like, 350 bucks;" "I hope it's enough." "Wow." "Hi." "Hey." "I'm Brooke." " I am Danny." " Thank you for your help, Danny." " My pleasure." " But you can keep the money." "We're okay now." "I feel bad." "We got it all squared away." "What?" "I sold a kidney to get this." "I mean, it wasn't mine, but what am I gonna tell the hooker when she wakes up?" "Danny." "Kidding!" "She's not gonna wake up." "Wow!" "We there already?" "I'm embarrassing him." "Would you like a drink, Brooke?" "Danny, you're hitting on a woman who's taken." "Oh." "I see." "Oh, no, not like that." "No, no." "It's not... it's not for us." "I'm staying in Danny's room tonight." " Do me a favor." " Mm-hmm." "Promise me you won't piss in the closet this time." "I could promise you no such thing." "In fact, I may or may not have had a lot to drink." "What I'm trying to figure out right now is if I've had too much to drink tonight." "Then I realized that if one can ask oneself that question, then the answer must definitely be no." " Right?" " Danny studied philosophy." "And my latest theory is that not all women at a wedding who are taken are actually taken." "You know what I mean?" "Oh, it depends on your definition of taken." "Hey, Brooke, are you sure I can't get you a drink?" "I'm fine, thank you, Danny." " I'm sure." " All right." "Dave!" "Dave!" "You shifty bastard." "How you doing, man?" "Your wife lost a lot of weight." "Jesus!" "Do you want me to step outside?" "Don't move." "Hi." "Wow." "Hannah Dempsey, Brooke Dalton." "Hey, nice to meet you." "Hi, so nice to meet you." "Um, traffic was so bad all the way from Philly," "I..." "I thought I had missed you." "You did?" "I mean, you did." "You did." "You did miss me." "But you're here now, so..." "Yes, yes." "I actually thought I was gonna miss you, too, um... which I did... till now." "We could keep this banter up for minutes." " Hours." " We're only this quick when we're together, though, so..." "Otherwise, I'm almost boring." "Um, so are you..." "are you working or...?" "Oh, no, this..." "Yes." "He's auditioning for Duke Terry tomorrow." "Nick!" "Well..." "That's... that's amazing." "He played with Lucas Wells in D.C., and Lucas loved his shit." "I bet he did." "Okay, spill it." "Tell me all about it." "Here you go, babe." " Oh, um..." "Cole, this is Brooke." " Hey." " Hey." " Brooke." " Good to meet you." " And this is Nick." " Nick." "Hi." "Nick is auditioning for Duke Terry tomorrow." "Oh, yeah?" "Oh!" " The jazz guy." "Yeah, yeah." " Yeah." "We saw him live in Philly a bunch of times." "That's amazing, great." "Thank you." "Um..." "Hey, I know it's getting kind of late, but would you guys want to go get a cup of coffee somewhere or...?" "Um, you know, I wish we could." "We're late for something, though." "I'm sorry." " We were just stopping in." " Right, right." "Well, I..." "we don't want to keep you." "But, um, if something frees up," "I'm at the, the Soho Grand." "Okay." "Um, it was really nice to meet you." "Nice to meet you, too." " Pleasure." " Okay." " Bye." " Bye, Cole." "I don't know why we had to run out of there." "Who's running?" "That was running." "Trust me, I know." "I'm the poster girl for running." "Running is easier." "God." "I haven't seen her in six years." "You were fine." "No, I wasn't." "That was awful." "It was embarrassing." "I'm sorry you had to see that." "You'd think after six years of rehearsing that moment," "I'd have something more interesting to say." "I don't think she noticed." "And she probably rehearsed it, too." "Six years?" "How'd you guys meet?" "Sophomore year." "Georgetown." "I was pre-med if you can believe that." "I don't." "But I have a good imagination." "Oh, my heart was never really in it." "Spent all my free time playing music and going to shows." "Hannah was the first one to recognize that." "Made me stay true to it." "Good girl." "And she got into..." "graphic design." "Which was the first thing that she really loved." "Well, she loved you, too, right?" "Sometimes I wonder about that part." "But rarely more than 50 times a day." "So, what happened?" "She got a job offer." "In Philly." "And being the pre-med genius that I was," "I thought it was the perfect time to... you know." "Oh, no." "So I bought a ring." "Cost me a fortune." "I was clutching this thing all day." "My hand was cramping." "We got home to our apartment in D.C." "And my heart was pounding." "It was beating out of my chest." "I was sweating." "It wasn't nerves, you know." "It was... excitement." "I was really excited." "I was really..." "I was really happy." "And I walked in and I saw her and..." "I just knew something was... different." "I think it's like that French word of yours." " Dépaysement." " Yeah." "She said... she thought it was a good time for a break." "That's terrible." "What did you do?" "What could I do?" "Beg?" "Cry?" "Didn't." "Didn't do any of it." "Just... sat there." "Devastated." "God, I was so completely..." "Blindsided." "Yeah." "That was it." "Till tonight." "It's funny." "I got to the city at noon and I just couldn't leave the station." "I just couldn't do it." "Stuck in the middle till you got stuck with me?" "Am I stuck with you?" "Sorry to tell you." "Sounds bad when you put it like that." "I'm sorry." "For what?" "For letting you sit out here and talk about it for so long and not making you go back." "Oh, no." "No, that's not happening." "You didn't come all the way to New York for a sign to do nothing." "Yeah, well, I thought she'd be alone." "Not like in a depressing way." "In like a romantic way." "A girl like that is never alone." "So you can't use that for an excuse." "And there was something between you." "You saw it and I saw it." "That doesn't mean anything." "It means something." "It means you have a chance." "For what... to get slammed?" "Haven't you felt slammed every day since the ring thing?" "And you don't know the odds." "Could be one in a trillion." "It could be one in two." "Anyway, this is about regret." "And those odds are always 100%." "There was a spark, Nick." "And that guy she was with?" "Cole?" "I've seen that guy all my life." "You're worth a thousand Coles." "What happened to a trillion?" "He was tall." "She might not even be with him!" "She said, "I am staying at the Soho Grand. "" "You're not gonna ask her to marry you." "What if I ask her to get married by mistake?" "God." "Why is it that any one decision always seems too small to be the biggest decision of your life?" "I don't know." "But sometimes you have to just make the choice and jump." "You're right." "You're right." "I'll do it." "Oh, God." "Are you planning on holding my hand the whole time?" "No." "Give me your trumpet." "So?" "She's happy I came back." "We're going to lunch tomorrow." " See?" " The three of us." "She invited that guy?" "Of course not." "She invited me?" "Nope." "Nick, will you stop and talk to me?" "She's pregnant." "But it's good, though, you know why?" "You know what she said?" "She said she's happy I'm auditioning for Duke 'cause she always believed in me." "I'm so sorry." "Sorry you're an idiot?" "Well, me, too." "Are you okay?" "Well, because if you're not, I really don't know what I'll do with the guilt." "Well, then I'm miserable." "It's probably the most okay I've been since she's left." "Because at least I know something concrete, you know?" "Instead of having years of fantasies and... possibilities..." "I know it's over." "So... thank you for that." "Okay." "I'm still waiting for the other shoe to drop." "She said she's never been so happy." "But I guess I got to be grown up." "Got to be okay with not being okay." "Which completely sucks." "So... thank you for that, too." "Well... what do you want to do now?" "We've covered every crucial topic in our lives." "What's left?" "Small talk." "Come on." "It's past my bedtime." "I think we're both running on fumes at this point." "I know and I feel bad!" "You have your audition tomorrow." "I feel like you should be sleeping" " or practicing or..." " Nah." "I don't think it matters anymore." "What does that mean?" "I don't think I'm gonna go." "But that's why you came to New York." "To ask the stars for a sign or whatever," " and the audition was your sign." " I know." "But the girl was the thing." "No, I'm not gonna let you get away with that." "I heard you play, and you loved it." "Remember?" "Kind of feel like it doesn't love me back." "Let's do it." "Come on, we've talked about our past." "Let's talk about our future." "We can get a sign for your sign." "Come on, you don't take this seriously, do you?" "It's a scam." "They tell you something vague." "Your brain fills in the rest." "Well, I don't expect the psychic to solve both our problems." "I think you're taking it too seriously." "Well, then what's the point?" "The point is, so what?" "I don't need to know my future." "I'm gonna live it anyway." "You don't have to believe it for it to make an impact." "All right." "Okay." "Are they even open?" "Oh!" "Hello." "You're good." "Did you know we were coming?" "What?" "Oh!" "Oh, no." "No, it's trash day." "Do you want a reading?" "We don't have any money." "I know." "I had trouble sleeping." "So I can use some company." "Come on in." "All right." "He knows?" "Should I be impressed or offended?" "Okay." "Who wants to go first?" "Don't you use tarot cards or a crystal ball or something?" "Oh, I used to." "My wife thought it made the customers more comfortable if they saw me actually doing something." "But the truth is, all I really do is look at you." "Tell you what I see." "Where's your wife now?" "She passed." "Oh." "I'm sorry to hear that." "It's all right." "Okay, who's first?" " Oh, him fir..." " Start with her." "Okay, I'm seeing... a trumpet!" "You're a musician of some kind!" "Your gift is truly staggering." "Works every time." "Even the skeptics." "All right... young lady." "What are we going to do with you?" "You're at a crossroads, my dear." "You think you know exactly... what your problem is, and you're exactly wrong." "Why is that?" "You think you're trapped by what's happening to you." "Actually, you've got choices." "You're just afraid to look at them." "Okay." "What are they?" "You could walk away." "From what?" "I don't know." "But you do." "We can always walk away." "And sometimes you should." "You could have a future with our boy, here." "And no, I don't say that to every couple who walks in." "Nick is a terrific guy, but I'm actually married to somebody else." "You asked me about your choices." "I stand by what I see." "But what if the things that... really matter... what if those choices aren't up to me?" "You know the most important thing I learned, after all my years of marriage?" "After an entire life with one person?" "What's that?" "That you can't allow the people you love to determine how you love." "Easier said than done." "Sorry." "No refunds." "Would you mind if I used your phone?" "Oh, well, there's... there's a phone in the room down the hall." "Might give you a little more privacy." "Okay, thank you." "Give Nick and I a moment to chat." "Picking up any Powerball numbers?" "I don't do races, roulette, or Powerballs." " This your wife?" " Yes." "She's beautiful." "Where was this taken?" "We danced our way through something else." "Hello." "Hey." "It's me." "Oh, my God, Brooke." "I've been trying to call you." "I couldn't get the letter." "There was no key." "What?" "!" "It's in the magnetized box, by the pool filter." "No, it wasn't." "I went over there, and I found the box, but there was no key inside." "Someone must've taken it and not put it back." "Um..." "Uh, you can break it;" "break in." "I know!" "That's what I tried to do." "I went to the back door, where I thought no one could see, and I found a rock, and I broke the back window, but the alarm went off." "I panicked." "I'm so sorry, Brooke, but I panicked and ran." "Okay, okay." "It's okay, honey." "You tried." "I'm so sorry." "It's okay." "It's okay." "It's already 5:00 a.m., so why don't you just get some sleep?" "All right." "Okay." "Bye." "Believe me, I'd sure try, if she was around." "I was at this party, just after college, and the music came on." "It was "Moon River. "" "And then... here comes this girl... the most beautiful girl I had ever seen!" "She comes up to me... and just drags me right out onto the dance floor." "I tried to..." "I had no idea how to dance." "But it didn't matter." "I would've made an absolute fool out of myself just to spend one minute with her." "And I did." "And it all started... with a song." "Wow." "You guys seemed perfect." "Well, Nick... there is no perfect." "There will always be struggle." "You just have to pick who you want to struggle with." "You okay?" "He's only clairvoyant." "What does he know?" "I feel so marginalized." "He didn't even talk about my future." "I don't suppose you want to take a crack at it, do you?" "I know that you're trying to cheer me up, and I appreciate it." "But this is a huge tangled mess, and I'm sorry I dragged you into it." "So would that be a no?" "You really want to know your future?" "Maybe not." "You're a working musician until your lips fall off." "You're revered." "You have a..." " Maserati?" " A dog... functioning credit cards..." "Fall in love with a woman who deserves you." "And she trusts you." "Well, if I ever got that lucky," "I probably wouldn't plan on letting her down." "My anniversary with Michael is August 17." "And this year, I decided impulsively to surprise him." "He was in Atlanta." "So I open his computer to check when his last meeting will be, and... this e-mail pops up... flagged urgent," ""tonight. "" "It was about a meeting, all right." "It was the Ritz-Carlton, room 1216, at midnight, signed "L. "" "And over the months that followed... he would address her as Lynn and she would sign back..." ""Linny. "" " What'd you do?" " Nothing." "I just read the e-mails over and over, like a novel." "He would tell her things from the heart." "Things..." "Worries..." "Funny things." "Things that you tell someone that you love." "And your marriage?" "It was seemingly unchanged." "Except that... every look, every joke... every time we made love became lies." "And I was paralyzed." "I couldn't confront him, you know?" "This is my life." "It's my marriage." "This is my world and this is my one chance at love." "But then it stopped." "He said he felt guilty." "So maybe he chose me." "And then, two days ago, he goes to Atlanta." "And I open the computer and there it was... there was an e-mail from her saying..." ""I hear you're gonna be in town." "Are you free tomorrow night?"" "And I went crazy, and I wanted to tear out his eyes." "So I wrote him a letter." "I told him everything I knew and all the lovey things he wrote to her and... all the mean things I wanted to say to him." "I mean, I dreamed of writing that letter for months." "And then, the grand finale, I took my engagement ring, my wedding ring and I put them in the... envelope, and I left it on the bed, on the pillow." "Only, now, he's coming home instead of going to see her." "When I was sitting in that bar..." "I suddenly realize that I love Michael and... all these moments came flooding back to me." "You know, all the moments we shared." "And... the lifetime of moments that lay ahead and..." "I realized that I'd thrown it all away." "I don't think you've thrown anything away." "I did." "You haven't seen the letter." "There's no coming back from it." "I could've talked to him or forgiven him or worked it out." "But I can't come back from that venom and that hatred and that ugliness." "And so..." "I knew I had to get back home, so I could destroy the evidence." "And I jump up... to grab my bag, and I turn around..." "Only it wasn't there." "Sometimes I think about her skin." "I think about if it's softer than mine." "Brooke, don't do that." "I hate him for that." "But you love him." "What if he loves her more?" "I'd say that's a long shot." "It's possible, isn't it?" "It's possible that you could meet somebody who's perfect for you, even though you're committed to somebody else." "No." "No." "See, I think if you're committed to somebody, you don't allow yourself to find perfection in someone else." "You're just telling me what I want to hear." "Well, if it's what you want to hear," "I think you already made up your mind." "I think he's gonna find that letter and call you immediately." "Well, what if you're wrong?" "Well, then you face the music." "But at least you were brave." "You didn't run." "You held up your end of the bargain." "I think he's gonna be begging you to forgive him." "I think he made a mistake." "And I think he knows it." "We love who we love." "Sucks." "Uh, I'll be right back." "Uh, is-is there a bathroom back here?" "Yeah." "Taxi!" "What, I don't get a letter?" " I have to go." " Where?" "Are you people getting in, or what?" " This woman doesn't have" " He doesn't get out, any money, she's gonna stiff you." "call the police." "Give me one second," "I will handle this." "I'm gonna go to JFK, and then" "I'm gonna wake up my mom in Indianapolis, and I'm gonna stay there for a while, and I don't know." "I'll figure something out from there." "Maybe London." "London?" "What are you talking about, Brooke?" "How are you gonna fly?" "You don't have an I.D., you don't have money." " I don't know." " I'm out of here." "Oh, great, thank you." " I'm not gonna let you run." " Why you?" " Because I think I know who you are." " And who's that?" "You're the girl who recognized true love" " and jumped for it." " I can still be that girl." "But maybe I picked the wrong guy." "Nobody said I was smart." "Yeah, well, five minutes ago, you said you loved him." "Five minutes ago, you said I loved him." "I haven't said it for a half hour." "There's got to be a better way to do this." "What is it?" "You got any bright ideas?" "You got another one of your fucking bright ideas?" "No, I don't, I don't." "But right now, I'm the best advice you have." "Well, if that doesn't tell you everything you need to know." "Meaning?" "Meaning if all I've got is life advice from a stranger that I met four hours ago, then I'm in big trouble." "You quit med school to be a musician, right?" "And now you're willing to blow off the biggest audition of your life because the girl you loved didn't choose you?" "See, it hurts, doesn't it, Nick?" "Who needs to face the music now?" "The only thing that is stopping you from being the biggest loser in New York is the fact that I haven't left town yet." "Okay." "Okay." "Look, I hate when people use this expression, so I'm sorry I'm about to, but can we just breathe?" "Can we just breathe?" "It's been a long night." "We got a couple hours before we got to get you on your train." "I think I know somewhere warm we can go unwind." "Danny?" "Where do you think he is?" "He's probably passed out somewhere." "You can go first." "Thank you." "I'm gonna order room service." "You hungry?" "I'm starving." "What can we afford?" "Well, I was gonna charge it to the room." "I think we have a $300 budget." "Okay." "Surprise me?" "Nick?" "Yeah." "I'm sorry about all those things that I said earlier." "I guess I got a little defensive." "Define "defensive. "" "Um..." "Abusive?" "Cruel?" "Complex." "Okay." "Sorry." "What are you doing?" "I can't." "I'm sorry..." "I'm sorry." "At least you waited a few hours." "That way, I don't feel like a rebound." "Did I mention that you were charming?" "You phrased it differently." "What was that?" ""Biggest loser in New York"?" "Sorry." " I got an idea." " Okay." ""Thank you for your stay, please help us improve. "" ""Appearance. "" "Fair." "Not the... fair." "Blonde." "Light-skinned, fair." ""Cleanliness. "" "Much improved." ""Decor. "" "Well, the art needed some work, but we fixed that shit." ""Would you be likely to return?"" "Let's leave that one blank." "Good idea." ""How would you rate your overall stay?"" "Exceeds expectations." "How can one of the worst nights of my life also be one of the best?" "I don't know." "I feel that we met in Grand Central for a reason." "I think that we were meant to find each other." "Want to know the real reason" "I stuck with music all those years?" "'Cause Hannah wanted you to?" "Not really." "I dreamt that one day, I'd be playing with someone like Duke, and Hannah would walk in..." "And she'd see what she lost." "No." "She'd want to try again." "I think we both had some things we've been putting off for way too long." "Say what's in your head." "I want to see if I'm good enough." "But not for her, for me." "Say what's in your head." "I want to smash him." "Good." "Deserves it." "But you love him." "But I love him." "I do feel like I have to go back and see what we're willing to do about that." "Because I would never forgive myself if I didn't fight for it." "It's time to stop running, but for now, let's enjoy this for a little while longer." "Nick." "It's you again." "Listen, I want to give you one more piece of advice." "You're gonna be playing one night..." "Grand Central... thinking of every reason in the world to not go see the girl that broke your heart." "Then you're gonna meet somebody." "And now at first, she's gonna seem... icy." "You're gonna know right away she's trouble." "She's gonna take all your money." "You're probably gonna get punched in the face." "But, uh... stay with her." "You're gonna need her a lot more than she needs you." "And at the end of the night, you're gonna want to say some things, but don't." "Don't ruin it." "It's nothing she doesn't already know." "Just give her a kiss." "Wish her good luck." "And, uh... thank her." "Thank her for showing you that you can love more than one person in this life." "Oh, wait!" "Um, Nick?" "It's Brooke." "Don't pay your credit card bill that month." "Okay." "He said he wasn't planning on it." "Good luck." "Thank you, Nick."