“I’m sorry about this circus, Jasper,” I say quietly.
“It’s fine, I enjoy a circus,” he says, then he leans over and picks up three apples from a perfectly styled fruit bowl and starts juggling with them while pretending to walk an imaginary tight rope. “I was born for the circus!”
Saul laughs, Dionne claps, and even Suki smiles in approval. I can tell they all like him; he’s very easy to like. I think of all the How Did You Meet? couples I’ve interviewed this year, and wonder if any of them ever had doubts they didn’t vocalize at the time. I wonder how many of those couples are still together.
* * *
*
Twenty minutes later, my hair has been styled to within an inch of its life. I’m wearing what feels like a cement mixer’s worth of makeup, highlighter, contouring cream, and who knows what else. Looking in the mirror, I think, Well, at least no one will recognize me.
“Right.” Suki claps her hands. “New plan. Laura, we’re going to broadcast a little interview live from the website, to trail the full write-up to come. The Travella marketing team loved the idea of a live How Did You Meet? with you both. So, we’ll knock that off first, then move on to the stills shots. Oh, and when you’re telling the story about the bag, you must make sure you mention the brand name—Travella. There are a few other brand partnerships I’ve added in there too—if you could say how much you love the smell of Colton Rouge products, Jasper’s preferred toiletry brand, plus socks from Greeves—“Where the discerning gentleman buys his footwear.”
She’s throwing this on me at the last minute, so I don’t have time to object that my genuine How Did You Meet? story is being turned into some kind of shopping channel infomercial. She pushes the case full of products in front of us, and then starts counting down to live while Saul mans the camera phone on a tripod.
Jasper whispers in my ear, “You look gorgeous by the way.”
“Good afternoon to all you romantics out there.” Suki beams to the camera. “Now, our regular viewers will be used to hearing Laura Le Quesne’s voice hosting these interviews—she’s tracked down some of the most romantic meet-cutes out there. But today’s live broadcast is a little different—because this time, Laura finds herself on the other side of the camera. Laura, Jasper, tell us”—Suki leaves a dramatic pause—“how did you meet?”
Before I can speak, Jasper jumps in.
“Well, it all started when our eyes met across a crowded concourse at Gatwick Airport. I saw this beautiful creature, and I just knew.”
I frown, then try to stop frowning, aware of the camera picking up every expression I make. Jasper’s not telling it right. The whole reason it’s a great story is because I found the suitcase first, that the contents led me to him, not that our “eyes met across a crowded concourse.”
“Of course, being British, I didn’t know how to ask her out at the time, but destiny wasn’t going to let my reserve get the better of us.” Jasper shoots a smoldering look to the camera and smooths down his T-shirt to make sure the lettering of his website is fully visible.
“Right, yes, but really the story began when I picked up the wrong suitcase at the airport,” I say, attempting to get the narrative back on track. “I only realized it wasn’t mine when I got to my hotel room. At first, I was annoyed I didn’t have my case. But then I found all these things in the bag, these possessions that spoke to me. I thought it had to be a sign.”
Why did I agree to this? I thought it was going to be a few photos; speaking to a camera feels like much more of a commitment.
“What was in the Travella case, Laura?” asks Suki, wide-eyed, willing me to keep performing.
“Well, there was a book of piano music—Phil Collins, I’ve always loved Phil—and—”
Jasper starts singing “In the Air Tonight.” Out of frame, Suki flaps her hands at him angrily but says lightly, “Ha-ha, I don’t think we have clearance for song lyrics, Jasper. What else was in the case, Laura, tell us about the Colton Rouge?”
Saul is making a face at me from behind the camera, as though he’s watching his favorite cashmere jumper get tumble-dried. Dionne is leaning against the wall, watching Jasper as though he’s a box full of newborn puppies.
“Oh right.” My heart sinks down into a puddle inside of me, where it finds my soul squatting like a miserably deflated balloon animal. “I just love the smell of Colton Rouge, and I knew any man who had such great taste in toiletries had to be the man for me.”