Sam leans back in her chair, crosses her arms. "But you don't know how those shots connect to how the building is supposed to work."
I pause. "I can figure it out."
"A project doesn't work just because people show up," she says. "It works because there's a reason they're there.
“It's parents at the morning daycare drop-off, or commuters shopping on their way home."
Her eyes are bright now, the way they get when she’s deep in an idea.
She taps the site plan with her index finger. "Every building here has a job," she says. “You can't photograph how the place works if you don't know the plan."
I exhale. "I can shoot all of that."
"Not without me."
Her shoulders square, spine straight, hands flat on the table.
"You have the Board deck to finalize," I say. "I'm trying to give you time to focus on that."
Her expression doesn't shift. "I'll work on it tonight. Saturday morning, we shoot together." She pauses. "Don't sideline me, Tom. I know when I need to be there."
She's not budging.
"Okay. Seven AM?"
Her hand settles briefly over mine on the table, "I'll bring coffee."
I nod. The site plan sits between us, marked with her handwritten notes in the margins.
"You're not going to bench me for that?" I ask.
"For what? Trying to be helpful?" Sam slides both hands towards me. "No. But we're partners. That means we show up for the work. Both of us."
"Let's walk through what Castellano actually needs."
She slides the site plan between us.
We lean over the same corner of the table, marking the shots Castellano wants.
Our shoulders touch again while we work.
Neither of us moves away.
***
Friday night, I'm alone in my apartment with my camera bag open on the floor.
The plan for the shoot is open on my laptop. Seventeen shots. Four different spots along the main street. Specific times of day to catch how people will move through the area.
I could do this faster alone.
I pick up my phone. Open the text thread with Sam. Type: "Actually, I can handle tomorrow solo. You focus on the deck."
My thumb hovers over send.
I stare at the message. Read it three times.
Then I set the phone down and pull my camera bag toward me. Unzip the main compartment. My hands know this routine—wide-angle lens in the padded center pocket, telephoto wrapped and nested on the left, filters in the mesh sleeve on the right. I lay them out on the hardwood floor in order of likely use.
