It was Thursday, so after finishing some small tasks and catching a late-afternoon nap, I started getting ready for the East Village. I was certainly getting a lot of new material from my sessions with Q, but I wasn’t quite sure how to weave that into my act.

I noticed the blinking answering machine. The first was an entry-level sales pitch about reducing my electricity bill. The second was my mother. She had two Broadway tickets for the Phantom of the Opera and wasn’t going to make it. “You can come by and get them if you want,” she said, “the show is Saturday.”

I tried calling her back, but she wasn’t home. I was planning on visiting next week, so figured I would just take the Metro North tomorrow – it would be nice to get some fresh air. 

After my rant on Ludlow, I sat at the bar eating an assortment of chicken wings and drinking cold beer. I was chatting with Daniele about my recent earnings when she nodded for me to stop talking. A man sat down beside me and I recognized him immediately.

He had an aura about him. He was wearing another elegant gray suit and despite the dank smell in the bar, smelled like a men’s country club. He looked at me through a pair of spectacles and thick eyebrows as he extended his hand.

“Hello, Sam,” said Emmanuel. 

I almost choked on a hot wing. He wasn’t big or physically intimidating. In fact, he was of normal stature and had unkempt graying hair. How could someone as flawless as Q come from the same gene pool as this guy? Still, I was intimidated – knowing that his academic achievements alone were hanging above my head in an office where I was intimately engaged with his daughter and being paid an astronomical sum to talk about nothing.  For some reason, I felt like the deadbeat boyfriend who was about to get the ax from a parent. Heaven forbid I catch you near my daughter again, I will make sure that you regret meeting her. 

He ordered Belvedere on the rocks from Daniele. “I don’t know much about being a comedian,” he said, “but you were certainly better last week.” 

I was confused and wiped my mouth clean of hot sauce. “Excuse me?” I asked.

He searched for the right words. “You were more natural last week. More…unfiltered.”

“You’ve been here before?” 

 He  took a sip of his vodka. “I was here with Q last week,” he explained. 

I drew a deep breath, ready to get this off my chest. I glanced at Daniele who seemed to be saying “Don’t do it. You idiot.”

“Listen,” I said, without thinking. “I’m very sorry about everything.”

His thick eyebrows turned inwards. Now he seemed perplexed. Even if I had something to hide, I felt like this man with the ocean-blue eyes would know. 

“I’m completely inadequate for this,” I confessed, “whatever this is.”

Daniele passed by and looked at my empty glass. Without asking, Emmanuel ordered me another one of the drinks he was having. 

“Q tells me that things are going extremely well,” Emmanuel said. “In fact, she is very pleased with these first sessions. We all are. She showed me some of her bookmarks. The idea of assessing our human connection through the evolution of modern-technology.”

He paused, as if searching for the words. “It’s perfect.” 

I sighed, feeling temporarily relieved, but completely guilty.

“There is something I want to tell you, Sam,” he continued, “and I want this to stay between us.”

My drink arrived and I took a sip. It went down too smoothly and I couldn't recall the last time I drank top-shelf liquor. 

“There is a major difference between us.”

I laughed and bit my tongue. 

“I’m not talking about wealth in economic terms,” he continued as if reading my mind. This family had a pretty good habit of finishing my thoughts.

“Q is a very special person. I think we both know this. I believe you have deduced that she has some very particular conditions.”

I took another sip of my drink and almost finished it. 

“Some say she has five years, others ten. Some say two and many actually believe that she will outlive us all.” He paused for a moment, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. He looked at me intently through honest blue-marble eyes. “It is all just so unpredictable.”

I felt lousy and guilty of being inadequate again. “Such is life,” I added, not knowing what I meant. He ordered another drink from Daniele, who was nearby.

“And this is the point I’m trying to make to you, Sam,” continued Emmanuel. “Life. I have always tried to sculpt it into something that I wanted it to be. I put my entire life force into this – to the point of needing to control it. Do you understand?”

“I think so,” I replied, almost mechanically. Daniele set down another crystal glass. I didn’t even know we had crystal behind the bar. She gave me a wink. Yes, I would be sleeping with her tonight.

“I am the kind of person that never gave life the chance to embrace me,” Emmanuel said. “Until recently, I think. You see, I have always believed that I am the one who needs to guide fate – to manipulate destiny.” He took a healthy sip from the glass. “Do you know why I felt the need to do this, Sam?” 

I shook my head.

“For the fear of letting go.”

Q’s father finished his drink and stood. “Sam, you are the opposite.”

“I’m not sure this makes me feel any better,” I responded. 

He disregarded my comment and put out his hand. He had a firm grip – one that walked the line between grizzly and panda. I definitely didn’t want to feel the claws come out.

“Please, Sam – remain unfiltered. Life has enough smoke and mirrors.” 

And with that, my mysterious benefactor walked across the sticky floors towards the exit. I waited for Daniele to close the bar, and that evening we had the best sex we’ve had in our three years of performing this routine.