Page 18 (1/2)

"What’s going on?" I ask Sarah when she picks up

"Where are you?" she asks "You’ve been gone forever Are you looking at that ring again?"

"No," I say, startled, and turn away from thedoes she know? "Of course not Why would I be doing that?"

"Because you o by that store on our way to Barnes & Noble so you can stand and stare at that ring, even though it’s completely out of our way Why don’t you just buy it? You do have a job, you knoo of them, as a matter of fact What do you work so ?" I laugh so nervously I sound like a hyena "It’s an engage"

"It doesn’t have to be," Sarah says "It can be whatever kind of ring you want it to be You can be the boss of the ring"

"I can also ad and not buy it," I say "Especially if it’s not practical and probably costs a fortune"

"Hoould you know? You won’t even go inside to ask how h I’ve told you aher off, "since I don’t really want it It’s not my style It’s too fancy And you never answeredon?"

"Oh," Sarah says "I got a call from Dr Jessup’s assistant over at Central It looks like they did it"

I have no idea what she’s talking about "Did what?"

"They picked the new hall director for Fischer Hall What else?"

"Holy crap!" I freeze inon the corner of Fifth Avenue and Eighteenth Street A Sex and the City double-decker tour bus is going by, taking summer tourists to see all the places where Carrie Bradshaw and the girls used to have Coslance at me, alternately concerned and annoyed New Yorkers aren’t as hardened as the media makes them out to be If I were to fall down in a dead faint on the sidewalk right now because of Sarah’s news, I’ood Samaritans would stop to call 911 and maybe even prop up my head toclean clothes and don’t appear to be intoxicated If I were drunk and covered in my own vomit, people would continue to step over me until the sht call the cops

"Are you kidding me?" I yell into the phone "Who? Who is it? Is it Si to jump in front of this bus--"

"I don’t knoho it is," Sarah says "Dr Jessup’s assistant called and said he’s coht noith some people so he can make the introduction in person and tell us so ging bra What a? I slon "Why didn’t you tell me sooner? Are you sure he said ‘make the introduction’? Because if he said that, it can’t be Simon We already know Simon Why would he introduce us to Simon?"

"Maybe he means make the introduction as in, ‘This is your new boss, Siht know him as the former director of Wasser Hall, but now he’s the director of Fischer Hall Have a nice day, losers’ "