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On her second afternoon, while looking at videos on YouTube, Lola caown attacking a round was a white limousine—apparently, the car had broken down, and the bride was taking it out on the driver “Philip?” Lola said, peeking into his office

Philip was hunched over his co over his forehead “Huh?” he said, looking up and brushing back the hair

“I think I’ve found soht help you”

“The address of Peartree’s?”

“So better” She showed him the video

“Wow,” Philip said “Is that real?”

“Of course” They listened to the bride screa back in her little chair, “is authenticity”

“Are there more of these?” Philip asked

“There are probably hundreds,” Lola replied

“Good work,” Philip said, impressed

Philip, Lola decided, was book-smart, but despite his desire for authenticity, he didn’t seem to know a lot about real life On the other hand, her own real life in New York wasn’t exactly shaping up to be what she’d hoped

On Saturday night, she’d gone clubbing with the two girls she’d h Lola considered theirls she knew in New York Clubbing in the Meatpacking District had been both an exciting and depressing adventure At the beginning of the evening, they were turned away from two clubs but found a third where they could wait in line to get in For forty-five minutes, they’d stood behind a police barricade while people in Town Cars and SUVs pulled up to the entrance and were ad not to be athe wait, they saw six genuine celebrities enter The line would begin buzzing like a rattlesnake’s tail, and then all of a sudden, everyone was using their phones, trying to get a photo of the celebrity Inside the club, there was more separation of the Somebodies and the Wannabes The Sone at tables in roped-off tiers protected by enoruards, while the Nobodies were forced to cluster in front of the bar like part of a et a drink, which you clutched protectively like a baby, not knohen you’d be able to get another

This was no way to live Lola needed to find a way to break into New York’s glamorous inner circle

The second Wednesday of Lola’s employ rooone to the library to write, leaving her alone in his apart the draft of his script, looking for typos “Don’t you have spell-check?” she’d asked when he handed her the script “I don’t trust it,” he’d said Lola started reading the script but then reazines ca aside the script, she went out to the newsstand on University She loved going in and out of One Fifth, and when she passed the doorive them a little nod, as if she lived there

But the tabloids were dull that week—no ained (or lost) several pounds or stolen soazines aside, bored Looking around Philip’s apartto do: snoop