“What the fuck wasthat?” said Dani the second AJ stepped off camera. Noah was already changing for his next sketch.
AJ bowed her head, ashen. “I’m so sorry,” she said. “I had no idea that was coming.”
Dani shook her head. “That nepotistic chode,” she said. “He’s lucky you went up there. Andyou’relucky he didn’t do anything super problematic.”
The rest of the show passed in a blur. Noah was in the zone. After the cold open, he stayed strictly on book and delivered a bravura performance in every sketch. “The Club” was third in the lineup and got a decent response from the crowd, but “Scrooge McDrew” stole the show.
As the audience roared at joke after joke about the Drew legacy, AJ watched Dani’s expression darken.Nepotistic chode.That was how Noah’s behavior appeared: Noah, the dauphin of America’s greatest acting dynasty, had gone onSNLand, in the height of privileged arrogance, decided the rules didn’t apply to him.
But what if he hadn’t done it out of arrogance? What if he hadn’t done it on purpose?
Some nights when AJ missed Noah, likereallymissed him, she would go online and surf the forums for Huntington’s patients and their caregivers. Which is how she knew that impulsivity was one of the most prevalent early changes in HD patients.
Noah had always had an impulsive streak—the fire he’d set when he was a teenager, kissing AJ when he’d gotten his diagnosis. But those had been reactions to extreme situations. Tonight was different. It was like he had seen AJ, and his self-control had just…vanished.
I was so scared I lost you.
AJ didn’t know what to think. Was this normal, or was this the disease? Was it hot or was it sad?
Possibly both.
She looked to Eudora to gauge her response. The grande dame seemed amused enough at “Scrooge McDrew,” but AJ could detect an air of unease. What must she think of all this?
You have no idea how much I missed you.
At that moment, Eudora caught AJ’s eye and winked. AJ’s mouth went dry.
After the show ended and the houselights rose, AJ gathered her courage and made her way over to her old mentor. Eudora stood on the riser to greet her.
“AJ,” she said, her voice reedier than AJ remembered. “It’s good to see you.”
“You too,” said AJ, the scent of Eudora’s rich floral perfume unsealing a cache of memory.
She was looking past AJ at the stage, watching the NBCU interns strike the sets. “Noah did well tonight, didn’t he?”
“Very well.”
“And you wereexcellent,my dear,” said Eudora. “Not that you should set store by what I say. I’m often…in the wrong.” She took AJ’s hand in both of hers and bowed her head in contrition.
AJ felt a lump in her throat. “I’m here because of you.”
Tears glinted in Eudora’s eyes, so like Noah’s. She squeezed AJ’s fingers, her expression grave. “He shouldn’t have gone off script like that,” she murmured.
She was speaking to AJ now as the only other person who knew Noah’s diagnosis. AJ nodded in response, astonished by the immediacy of this understanding. Such was the depth of both of their love for Noah.
AJ felt a large hand on her shoulder and looked up to see him, fresh from backstage, sweat at his temples. He seemed perfectly in command of himself as he placed his other hand on Eudora’s shoulder and smiled.
A weighty moment passed as the three of them stood together amid the celebratory atmosphere from a very good show. Noah closed his eyes, and AJ could see that he was enjoying the pleasure of having them both in one place.
“It’s tremendous to see you two playing together after all these years,” said Eudora, placing her hand on his arm.
His eyes opened. “Shall I get you back to your hotel?”
Eudora nodded. “Please.”
As she gathered her things, Noah turned to AJ and grasped her shoulder. “I’ll see you at the after-party.”
Noah looked like he could walk through fire. AJ supposed he already had. She wouldn’t be surprised if this turned out to be their best show of the season. She felt her earlier concern melt away, replaced byannoyance. He was fine. Fucking up with NBC, and totally, irritatingly fine.
