Different Circles

Jake chuckled and then took a glance at his instrument panel. Nothing was amiss. He scanned the sky around him, seeing two airliners heading into LA but neither were in a position to be of concern to him. He turned back to the actor. “You look better than the last time I saw you.”

“Do I?”

“You do,” Jake said truthfully. “You don’t look as stressed. Did you get yourself laid?”

“Not yet,” Greg admitted. “But I do feel like I’ve been handling the situation better of late. I’m not drinking as much as I was the last few months and I’ve resumed my workouts. I’ve even gotten some feelers about upcoming auditions. Until today, it seemed my reputation was intact and the press had almost forgotten about me.”

“I wouldn’t think this whole clusterfuck about Mindy being induced will ultimately be damaging to you,” Jake suggested.

“It shouldn’t,” he said. “Still, I’ll be glad when it’s over.”

“Have you talked to Mindy since all the shit hit the fan?”

“Not a word,” he said. “She has been in seclusion and has made no attempts to contact me. Nor have I made any to contact her.”

“I bet she gives the kid a fucked-up name,” Jake prophesized.

“That is not any of my concern,” Greg said.

They flew on in silence for a few minutes, the plane making an automatic course correction as they reached one of the programmed waypoints on the route. When it rolled back to level, Greg finally spoke up.

“So ... you ... uh told me that Celia was there when you picked up the plane from South America?”

Jake nodded. “She met us in Caracas,” he said. “Showed us around for a few days and then we all flew to Barquisimeto and stayed there for a few days. It was cool. Nice place. Kind of reminds me of Heritage in a way. A medium sized city whose purpose for being is the agriculture that surrounds it. A little muggier than Heritage though.”

“You saw her family while you were there?”

“We did,” he said. “Nice, down-to-earth people. Celia stayed with them in their house. Me, Laura, and Suzie stayed in the hotel, but we had dinner with them both nights. I enjoyed talking to them. They seem very concerned about the direction their country is heading in. Inflation is out of control, wages are stagnant, everything costs more, and it all gets worse by the month.”

“Interesting,” Greg said, though he sounded far from interested in Venezuela’s economy.

“They kept talking about some dude named Hugo something-or-other,” Jake added. “They seem to think that if he would just run for the top spot there that he’ll be able to turn things around.”

“I’m sure he will,” Greg said dismissively. “You say that this Suzie, the female pilot, was there with you?”

“She was,” Jake confirmed. “I’m sure you’ve read about Suzie and C being friends. It’s been in all the papers.”

“Yes, I’ve read about it,” Greg said. “They allege that there is a sexual affair going on between the two of them—or at least there was one?”

“That’s the allegation,” Jake agreed. “They got that from Suzie’s former copilot, Njord. He didn’t play well with others and told an elaborate story about Suzie and Celia to an entertainment reporter. The rest is history. The press has been running with it ever since and Njord got fired and will probably never fly passengers again.”

“A perfectly ridiculous story,” Greg scoffed. “I’m amazed that anyone actually takes it seriously. Celia having sex with another woman? Absurd! And then suggesting that Laura is sleeping with female groupies? Even more absurd!”

“Uh ... yeah,” Jake said slowly. “Absurd. That’s what it is.”

Greg did not pick up on the tone of Jake’s voice. That was a good thing. Jake did not want him to ask if the allegations were true or not because he did not want to have to lie to the man. Though he was a much better liar than his wife, it did not mean he did it lightly.

“How is Celia?” Greg asked next. “How is she coping with everything—the divorce, the rumors, the media coverage?”

“She’s doing okay,” Jake said. “She’s been able to throw herself into her work and channel all of the negativity into putting on her performances. It’s a gift she has. It keeps her from having to think too much about what happens next.”

“She was always good at that,” Greg said. He hesitated for a moment and then: “Any ... uh ... romantic interests that she has?”

“She does not share the details of her personal life with me,” Jake answered. “And I have not been out on the road with her much. But, as far as I can determine, there has been no new man in her life since you.” Don’t ask about women in her life though, he thought.

Greg did not. He had already made his opinion on that matter clear. He nodded, trying to look somber but actually sending off a happy vibe that Jake was easily able to pick up. “I am so sorry that I screwed things up with her,” he said. “I told her that in person when we met for the divorce agreement, but if you wouldn’t mind just reiterating it to her the next time you see her?”