Page 20 (1/2)
He walked her back through the office "Hey, Mutt, this is our new intern, Tully Hart"
"Cool," Mutt said, not looking up from the camera equipment in his lap
At the door, Mr Ryan paused and looked at her "I hope you intend to take this job seriously, Ms Hart Or this is an experiment that will have a shorter shelf life than milk"
"You can count on me, Mr Ryan"
"Call ht AM?"
"I'll be here"
She played and replayed the encounter over and over in her head as she walked briskly down the street to the bus stop and caught a ride
She'd actually made her own internship Someday, when Phil Donahue interviewed her, she'll tell this story to show her gutsy determination
Yes, Phil It was a boldworld, and I was a girl with a was quite perfect until she shared it with Kate
This was the start of their drea of time better than any calendar Pink and full of blossoreen in the warloriously hued for the start of school; and now, bare on this Nove ht-years away froirl she'd been on arrival In her years at UW, she'd learned to direct Rush Week skits, to organize and plan a dance for three hundred people, to chug a glass of beer and shoot a raw oyster, to work the room at a frat party and be coy news stories with a hook and a splash, and to fil while it happened Her journalishly and told her repeatedly that she had a gift
The problem, it seemed, was her heart Unlike Tully, who could barrel forward and ask any question, Kate found it hard to intrude on people's grief More and more often lately, she held back on her own stories and edited Tully's instead
She didn't have what it took to be a network news producer or a first-rate reporter Every day, as she sat in her broadcast and co to herself
She drea on to law school so that she could fight the injustices she reported on, or writing novels that htor--and this was thein love But how could she tell Tully these things?
Tully, who had taken her hand all those years ago when no one else would, who'd spun the gossamer dream of their lives as partners in TV news How could she tell her best friend that she no longer shared their dreairls all those years ago when they'd chosen to embark on their tandeed so ned, Mount St Helens had blown up, and cocaine had becooers The US hockey team had pulled off a miracle win at the Olympics and a B-rate actor was president Dreams could hardly remain static in such uncertain times
She simply had to stand up to Tully, for once, and tell her the truth, say, Those are your dreams, Tully, and I'm proud of you, but I'm not fourteen anymore and I can't follow you forever
"Maybe today," she said aloud, dragging her backpack along beside her as she walked through the gray, foggy campus
If only she really had a drea to replace the twin-TV news stars Tully ue, I don't knoouldn't hold e of caed into the strea at friends as she passed the roos on the sofas and chairs and on every patch of the celery-green carpet
She tossed her backpack to the floor and found a spot on the floor between Charlotte and Mary Kay "Has it started?"
About thirty people shushed her as the General Hospital theme music started Laura's face filled the screen She looked beautiful and dewy-eyed in a gorgeous white headdress A collective sigh went around the roo suit, s at his bride-to-be
Just then, the sorority door banged open "Kate!" Tully yelled, walking into the room
"Ssshhh," everyone said at once
Tully squatted behind Kate "We need to talk"
"Shh Luke and Laura are getting ot it: congratulations--when it's over Now be quiet"
"But--"
"Shhh"