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turning to page one
SARAH ROBERTSON is sitting in a club chair staring out the window. The coffee table in front of her has a huge spread of fruit and cheese and pastries. She is not eating. She sits and stares. Eventually the door behind her opens, and a SECURITY GUY walks in with ERIC.
SECURITY GUY
They are almost ready for you Ms.
Robertson. Couple of minutes.
SECURITY GUY leaves the room. ERIC looks over at SARAH then sits in the chair near her. Silence.
ERIC
You as well?
SARAH ROBERTSON
Yes.
ERIC
Jesus.
SARAH ROBERTSON
Yeah.
ERIC
I’m sorry.
SARAH ROBERTSON
Thank you... Sam and the rest of your
floor are gone after today as well.
ERIC
Really... and Cohen?
SARAH ROBERTSON
No... still here.
ERIC
Of course...
Long awkward pause. Eric looks around for something, anything to talk about.
ERIC (cont’d)
Are you still dating that tall guy...
from the Christmas thing?
She looks over at him with a slight smile, giving him credit for trying to break the ice.
SARAH ROBERTSON
No.
ERIC
He was very tall.
SARAH ROBERTSON
6’7’’......
ERIC
(quietly)
Wow.
Silence.
SARAH ROBERTSON
I did pass on your concerns last year...
just so you know.
ERIC
It doesn’t matter.
SARAH ROBERTSON
It does.
The door swings open and a catering person comes in rolling a cart with another large tray with more food on it. She places it on the table next to the other food. The abundance is overwhelming.
SARAH ROBERTSON (cont’d)
Thank you.
The caterer leaves. ERIC looks around.
ERIC
Have they taken all the phones out of
this room?
SARAH nods yes.
ERIC (cont’d)
Jesus. Paranoid fucks.
SARAH ROBERTSON
Yeah... I didn’t think they were going to
be able to get you back here.
ERIC stands up and goes over to the window.
ERIC
They told me they were going to drag me
through hell on everything from my
options to healthcare over the next two
years or I come back and make...
(he looks up and does a little math in his head)
$176,471.00 an hour to sit in this room
quietly... it wasn’t much of choice.
SARAH ROBERTSON
It never is.
ERIC goes back and sits in the chair.
SARAH ROBERTSON (cont’d)
Obviously looking back, the point was
expressed with insufficient urgency...
but your point was passed on... I need
you to know that.
ERIC
OK.
SARAH ROBERTSON
Eric.
ERIC
I understand, there was nothing you could
do.
Now SARAH questions herself.
SARAH ROBERTSON
I guess... at the time... it didn’t seem
like there was much of a choice.
ERIC
It never does.
They both look at each other with miniscule smiles, then out the windows onto the city, defeated. Long silence.
SARAH ROBERTSON
You have kids, yeah?
Long pause as he lets her alone.
ERIC
What is your package going to look like?
SARAH ROBERTSON
I don’t know, that’s what I’m waiting for
now.
ERIC
Should be pretty good, no?
SARAH ROBERTSON
It better be.
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