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New York City was everything Tully had dreamed it would be In her first week here, with her new NBC business cards clutched in her hand, she'd walked down these busy streets like Alice in Wonderland, her face perpetually tilted upward The endless skyscrapers amazed her, as did the restaurants that never closed, the horse-drawn carriages lined up along the park, and the crowds of black-clad people who filled the streets
She'd spent teeks exploring the city, choosing a neighborhood, finding an apartate the subways It could have been a lonely tiical city like New York alone? But the truth was, she was so excited about her new job that even being solitary didn't bother her Besides, in the city that never slept, you were never really alone There were always people in the streets, even in the darkest hours
And then there was her job Fro as a reporter, she was hooked She woke everyat two-thirty so that she could be at the studio by four o'clock Although she didn't technically need to get there so early, she loved to hang around and help out She studied Jane Pauley's every moveeneral assignned bits and pieces on other people's stories At so correspondents wouldn't touch with a ten-foot pole--the biggest pu equally relevant And she couldn't wait When she'd paid her dues, she'd get a real story to cover, and when she finally got that break, she'd knock it out of the park Truthfully, when she watched people like Pauley and Bryant Guods in her eyes, and she spent every sparehow they did their jobs At ho each one on her videotapes and playing and replaying theroove and begun to feel less like a cub reporter andwootten her first honest-to-God assign The story never actually made it on air, but she'd done her job and done it well, and she'd learned a lot that trip
She would have learnedshow hadn't been in such upheaval There was a war going on on-set and the whole country knew about it Last week they'd taken a new publicity photo and Deborah Norville, the host of the early, early show had been on the couch with Jane and Bryant That one picture sent shockwaves through the network and indeed the country One article after another appeared; they all clai Pauley out
Tully kept her head down and stayed away fro to upset her chances for success Instead, she kept the focus on her job If she worked harder than anyone else, she et a replacement shot on the early, early show, NBC News at Sunrise Froet a crack at the Today news nook, and frohteen hour workdays didn't leave her much time for a personal life but she still had Katie, even with all the miles between them They spoke at least twice a week, and every Sunday Tully called Mrs M She told thes and life in Manhattan; they responded with details about the new house Kate and Johnny had bought, the trip Mr and Mrs M had planned for the spring, and--best of all--the news that Kate was pregnant again and it was going well
The days passed like cards falling from a deck, so fast that sometimes they were just a blur of sound and color But she was on her way She knew that, and the knowledge kept her going
Today, an icy cold late December one, just like each of the countless days that had come before it, she spent fourteen hours at the station, then headed tiredly home
Down on the street, she was captivated by Rockefeller Center at the holidays Even in the fading gray of an overcast evening, there were people everywhere, shopping, taking pictures of the giant Christ in the seasonal rink
She was about ready to start walking hoht, What the hell? She'd been in New York for h she had
Maybe it was the Christhed at her when she asked for the holidays off; she wasn't sure All she kneas that it was Friday night, only a few nights before Christ to her quiet apartment CNN could wait
The view fro she'd heard and reat nificence of Manhattan at night
It was still early, so there was plenty of seating at the bar and at the tables She chose a table by the , sat down, and ordered a arita
She was just about to order another one when the bar started filling up Men and woside overdressed tourists, co up three deep at the bar
"Do you mind if I join you?"
Tully looked up
A good-looking blond man in an expensive suit sh the yuppies to get a drink"
An English accent She was a sucker for that
"I'd hate to think you were going thirsty" She kicked the chair across froh for hied doaiter, ordered a scotch on the rocks for hiarita for her, then collapsed into the chair "Bloody meat market in here, isn't it? I'ave him one of hers "Tully"
"No last names Brilliant Thatof our life stories We can just have fun"
The waiter delivered the drinks and left thelass against hers "The view in here is better than I'd been led to believe" He leaned toward her "You're beautiful, but I expect you know that"
She'd heard those words all her life Usually theyto her, bounced off her like raindrops on a metal roof, but for so, the co are you in town for?"
"A week or so I work for Virgin Entertain that up?"
"No, really It's one of Richard Branson's coastore"
"I shudder to think what you sell"
"How naughty of you It's a music store, for starters anyway"
She sipped her drink, eyeing hi her to get out more, to meet people Just now, it seemed like damned fine advice "Is your hotel nearby?"
Part Three
THE NINETIES
I'm Every Woman