It was about an hour before sundown when the maintenance staff of Carnegie Theater began climbing on top of the façade to put the letters on the sign for tonight's event. Traffic began dispersing as day turned into night. A day in the concrete jungle had ended for some, while the nocturnal life of entertainment, speakeasies, and crime had just begun. And it was here that the gods came to join in for some mortal fun too.
Coming up the street just to the corner of the theater intersection was a woman dressed stylishly for an event. Eris, wearing a dark blue fishtail evening gown, her heels clacking as she walked, came to a halt across from the theater façade in her mortal disguise for tonight. She adjusted her long hair that was tied back as her fingers gently combed her bangs away from her eyes that ran down her cheeks. She had come early for the show to plot a perfect situation that would lead to a perfect show. A stage lighting error that would kill a bunch of people? Or a show that ended up being a comedic discourse for tomorrow's paper perhaps? Pondering so, she stretched her arm out to view the theater in her compact mirror from behind her. She adjusted her eyeliner while she schemed as the line of her eyes became darker. As she was doing this, the director for tonight's performance came out from the front entrance to inspect the sign. He began calling loudly to the workers up on the sign:
"No! You have it crooked now! Adjust it to the left. No wait! Adjust it just a little to the right. Yes! My God gentlemen, you spaced it too close now," the director said as evidence of what was shown:
Carnegie Theater Events
PRESENTS AN EVENING OF THE ROMANTICS
BY THE UNIVERSITY OF PARIS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
TONIGHT ONLY!
GUEST PERFORMANCE BY STAR PUPIL OF PROFESSOR FRANK VALENTINI
HENRYL__EON
"Never mind gentlemen. Just hurry back in. They need you inside now," he remarked after glancing at his watch. Just then, a taxi stopped in front of the theatre with a young man and an elderly woman stepping out.
"Henry! The star of the show. I'm glad you made it on time," said the director, touching the young man's shoulders.
"Professor, I'm so sorry. You said 5:30 but it's already 5:45. I was practicing at home after work and lost track of time... Oh, here are my new compositions I'm going to play," said Henry urgently, pulling his portfolio from under his arms.
"Yes, Yes. We shall be glad to hear them tonight, my boy," the director smiled, then turned his attention to the elderly lady who was adjusting the young man's tie.
"Hold still dear, you can't perform looking like you just got into a fight," she said, looking attentively at it.
"Oh no! Do I really look that bad?" The young man started buttoning his cuffs and then dusted off lint and a piece of string from his messy brown hair. He adjusted his tuxedo tail that had slipped inside his pants pocket.
"Ah, Mrs. Leon, I presume. It is an honor to meet you at last. Henry always mentions his darling mother." The director kissed her hand and smiled.
"The pleasure is mine, Professor Valentini," she replied kindly.
"Is it a full house tonight, professor?" Henry asked, looking nervously as he flipped through his portfolio to make sure that everything was there. His glasses glared at it while his slouched posture gave evidence of his nervousness.
"Yes, everyone is just dying to hear my pupil's debut. But don't worry, boy, you'll be fine. Just play as you would at my office." The director then patted Henry's shoulders.
"This night is the night," Henry commented nervously while mumbling some other words as he inspected his own work.
"Henry, please forgive me; they spaced your name too closely. I swear I can't get good help these days," the director pointed, laughing. They looked up.
"We will get it fixed before the show starts. But hurry inside to the back. You can rehearse a little bit. I shall escort your lovely mother inside." He held out his arm as Henry's mother smiled at him and took it.
"Break a leg, dear," she said lovingly as she walked inside with the director. Henry then rushed around back. Just as he did however, he unknowingly dropped pieces of his papers on the sidewalk.
While in the alleyway across from the front of the entrance, Eris smiled with glee after seeing Henry, this so-called star pianist of the show. She could recall from Eros that the name of the pianist was Henry, and he had been described as a rather awkward boy, too. She turned and was about to leave when suddenly a man pressed her to the wall and held a knife to her neck. The man was a large fellow who was nothing less than a stupid thug, to Eris' surprise.
"Do as I say lady, and you'll walk away to see another day," he said in a deep boorish voice. Eris contained her amusement as she thought about how stupid this man was. Here stood a common disgusting man who wanted to rob her and perhaps take advantage of her, a goddess, of all victims.
"Don't make me laugh," she wanted to say. To humor him, she decided to play along and did as he asked, also acting frantic for the part. She took her necklace off slowly and was told that she had to put it inside her bag.
"That's right, put it there and then give me your purse," he demanded. Eris opened her bag and was slowly conjuring out a blunt object from beneath it as she carefully slipped the necklace in. While this was taking place, Henry came out looking for his missing papers and had found them on the ground. As he picked them up, his eyes were horrified to see what was happening before him across the alleyway. He sneaked across the isolated street and was behind the thug by the time Eris had her club ready.
"Hey! Hurry up, will you lady," the thug retorted as Eris paused to see Henry behind him. Henry jumped on the man and successfully knocked his knife away to the ground, surprising Eris.
"Run!" Henry yelled as the thug nervously tried to fight him off. Seeing this boy come to her rescue, she was caught off guard until she made the effort to beat the thug with her purse. Shielding himself from the beatings from Eris, the thug desperately tried to push Henry off his back. When he succeeded, he pushed his back onto the wall, dropping the boy. The thug then ran away, frightened of the beatings and the sight of people gathering about. Henry tried to regain his composure after hitting the ground. He was alright, nothing but minor bruises. Such an act, although brave, was something he never imagined himself doing until now. A small crowd gathered briefly, asking if they were alright. "Good teamwork!" one fellow commented. "Shall we alert the authorities?" a woman asked.
"We are fine, thank you for the concern, everyone," Eris replied, embarrassed. They soon dispersed, with Henry and Eris now alone.
"Are you alright, Miss?" Henry asked as he searched for his glasses that had fallen off and dusted himself off. Looking at this strange hero coming to her rescue, the goddess of chaos was amused by what had just occurred. Out of fun, she thought this would be a chance to seduce him.
"I am now, thanks to you, hero," she said sweetly and innocently. She found his glasses and carefully put them on him. She suddenly came very close to him and touched him briefly on the cheek. She felt his warmth in doing so.
"He didn't hurt you, did he?" she asked. Henry grew red as he nervously became uncomfortable when Eris came closer, cornering him by the wall.
"Well, that's good to hear, Miss," he uttered, slowly pulling himself away from her, "have a good day," he stifled. Quickly, he rushed back to the theatre just before a car suddenly braked in front of him. Stunned that he was almost hit, the driver yelled at him, but nevertheless he kept on moving, not looking back.
Eris was left confused. "He didn't even bother to look at me twice." She huffed, putting her hands on her hips. Suddenly, clapping noises came from down the street and Eris turned to see Eros walking up to her.
"What a show! What a show! I see you met Mister Leon. Charming young lad, isn't he?" he said. The god of love was dressed elegantly tonight too. Not only did he get an amazing tan, he also had a matching cape with his tuxedo. He even fancied a nicely trimmed mustache that curved lightly. He was really having fun with his mortal disguise.
"This is the boy you plan to poison, Mister Romero?" She came up to him, "He can't even handle a woman," she persisted playfully.
Laughing, Eros held out his arm for her to hold.
"No, because you are not a woman, but a masked siren," he joked.
She looked at him disdainfully, but took his arm.
"That may be true," she smiled. "But mystery is essential to keeping them interested."
"Perhaps, but you were not mysterious as I could witness. I believe we still have much to discuss about love. Come, people are lining up for the show already."
Eros was enjoying himself in line as he partook in conversation with a group of university students in the line. There were three females and one male in this group. Being such a flirt that he is, Eros did not mind the conversation with mortals, for he enjoyed the company of these young bloods. Eris, still holding his arm, looked blankly as she was uninterested in the things they were chatting about. She was not into small talk and had no desire to conjure something deviously fun before the show; for she was bewildered with her feelings for something else. It was Henry's awkwardness that fascinated her demoralized ego. She was still irritated he'd rejected her in the alleyway.
Since the dawn of time, Eris could always charm a man whether it was through lust, power, greed, or the whole lot of men who desired it. She was in no way afraid of Aphrodite's monopoly on desire. Perhaps she just lost touch of what it meant to please a man in the last hundred years, or maybe Eros had interfered somehow. Regardless, she was now extra excited for the show.
"He was amusing, but he's about to see his dreams of being a concert pianist go down in laughter and embarrassment. I will crush his heart before Eros has a chance to shoot it," she assured in a conniving thought. As she thought out her scheme, which involved a possibly horrible freeze inside the theatre or instrumental failure, she snickered, and appeared wacky to Eros' entourage.
"Are you alright? Was it something amusing I said?" remarked the male university student, looking confused. Everyone was looking straight at her. This came at a bad time because he was just enlightening everyone here on the architectural interior schemes of the theatre.
"Nothing at all, fly boy! Your knowledge is just fascinating, that's all," she replied with moxie. "I'm sorry, I can't contain my excitement for fun facts from smart cookies like yourself," she recovered.
Tonight's performance was close to a full house and it looked to serve Eris' plan well. She looked around the immense crowds that were being shown to their seats. The ceiling's elegant renaissance style dome created a perfect setting for sabotaging music, all to kill its beauty.
"Name, sir?" asked a bald attendant.
"Yes, I am Alfonzo Salazar Romero! Motion picture screen writer and literary critic. I'm sure you've heard of me," Eros replied delightfully, emphasizing his accent. The attendant did not pay attention to his statement other than a tired "ah ha," as he checked his papers. Eros turned to Eris and smiled.
"And this delightful creature is my wi..." Before Eros had a chance to say wife, Eris interrupted him.
"Roxanne," she uttered, smiling. The attendant glanced up at her and he smiled lightly.
"I'm sorry sir, I don't see a Romero," the attendant said, looking back to Eros.
"What? Impossible!" Eros interjected. Before they had come in, Eris wanted to play a little trick on Eros by changing the name the seats were under.
"Try Smith," she asked confidently.
"Smith, yes, here you are Miss Smith. You and your date, please come this way."
Eris had then abandoned Eros' arm, following the attendant on her own, swaying playfully and leaving Eros looking like he was some sort of idiot. As to why Eris picked the last name "Smith," it was a random surname she thought of from somewhere.
"Here you are ma'am," the attendant gestured as Eris and Eros were shown to their seats in the balcony. Scooting down to her seat, she gave a "thank you" to the attendant.
"Such wonderful seats, darling," Eris complimented for the part, looking at her so-called- husband. The god of love sat down and brushed his thin mustache with his fingers. Eris turned to him, resting both her elbows on his armrest, her chin on her knuckles as she gazed at him with curiosity.
"So tell me Eros, what are you intending to do with my tall naïve hero tonight? Shoot him when you catch him glancing at an unexpected beauty? Or better yet, enflame his playing with passion so that no lady here can escape his charms?"
Eros giggled, hearing those statements.
"I need not to. If you'd heard his playing before you'd know he does not need my help at all. Such a talented boy really. But yes, he is not exactly my only target. It takes two to love."
"You're going to shoot some other forsaken soul tonight, eh? Sheesh, lucky girl," Eris said, widening her eyes.
"Love takes time, my dear. Simply making him fall in love at first glance tonight is too simple. It will be a distraction for him in the most part," he continued. There will be many other distractions than that, she thought.
"In any case, tonight shall be a memorable one. When the time is right, you'll see," Eros gestured sweetly.
"Gosh, you can't give me any hints, can you? You men, always with the secrecy and the logical rigidness of things," she said as she drooped in her chair, head backwards.
"And you women, always longing for immediate excitement, and those expectations," he replied, doing the same. She puffed her lips and looked at the ceiling dome until the lighting dimmed. The show had begun.
Clapping commenced as the director of the ceremony walked to the podium. After the director finished his speech, his shoes caught on his laces and he tripped off the stairs coming down. There were minor laughs.
"I'm alright!" he called out, embarrassed, while a few people helped him up. After the conductor finished his quick speech, he stepped onto the platform. The orchestra then began with Franz Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody No.2. Eros turned his gaze at the goddess, looking at her with a face of no surprise. She looked calm and uninterested at the little accident, but he may have had a sense that she was a little pleased inside.
Though no matter how the music was provocative to everyone else, it was of no interest to Eris. Eros was enjoying it, but then, he usually enjoyed anything that provokes passion of some kind. Being the odd one among these avid listeners, Eris flipped through the event program and searched for Henry's name. He was the last act, after intermission. Bored, she began looking around the theater, trying to find interesting people to interrupt.
Already ten minutes into the performance, the door entrance slowly opened, and an attendant stepped in. He held the door for a young lady that was late. Eris noticed her as she came down the aisles discreetly and gracefully, following the attendant to her seat. At first glance, there was something about this young lady that made Eris attracted to her. Perhaps it was her outfit that complemented her petite body. Eris admired her white smock that had a Peter Pan collar and its long bow. Being shown to a seat that was a column across from the right of Eris, she entered the row and smiled at the attendant as she sat down, adjusting her long blue skirt.
Eros turned his head and glanced at the young lady for a quick second. "Ah, not a moment too late," he commented, then continued watching the orchestra. Upon hearing his comment, Eris was now curious. She continued eyeing the lady, concluding that this was Eros' other star of the show tonight. The young lady took off her cloche hat and unveiled her short bouncy flaxen hair. At that instant, Eris knew why she had been so drawn to her.
"That goody-good girl from the park today," she said to herself. Despite the darkness of the theater and seeing only a part of her face, Eris was certain it was her. Without her coat, it was her poised movements and that innocent smile that was distinctive enough to identify her. Eris looked forward onto the stage and thought to herself that she might want to have a little fun with her when Eros was not looking. Eros eyed the goddess of discord with a face that read, "this is going to be a delightful night. What devious plan is she concocting?" The immortals smiled separately, both going unnoticed by the other.
Intermission out in the foyer was a relief for the audience after reliving the coldness of winter during the performance. Throughout the performance, Eris had been hesitant to play tricks on the orchestra in part because they were too solemn to pick on, making her less creative. It was also because she did not want the crowd to depart before she had a chance to ruin Henry's chance of performing horribly among the orchestra. She did, however, created a harsh atmosphere for the musicians, by making the theatre hellishly cold.
With her right arm out holding a cigarette attached to a holder held in her lotus-like fingers, and her other arm on her hip, she blew out puffs of smoke with her head held high, eyes devilishly searching for the girl on the crowded marbled stairway. Eris was in Eros' crowd, still unimpressed by their comments on the compositions that had been played. In the light, she could see the girl with ease now. She was talking to the director, her gray eyes widened with warmness as she smiled and listened to what he had to say. Everything about her made Eris feel she was one of those pure girls. She had soft facial features. Her skin was white as snow, yet her face was not perfect like hers, for she had a few freckles under her eyes. But her complexion was radiant, comparable to a sunflower. She had a plum face with cheeks that dimpled and seemed to blush even though there were no instances that would provoke her to. Her makeup was gentle, but nothing too provocative, like most flappers. And of course, her petite frame completed this image of her charming youth.
"You sure know how to pick them, Mister Romero," Eris interrupted Eros.
"Yes, I am quite a connoisseur when it comes to the classics," he replied.
"No, dear, I mean our little friend over there," she nodded her head in the girl's direction.
Eros looked and smiled. "Ah, so you've spotted her. Just what are you planning to do, Discordia?" he whispered to her, his mouth close to her ears.
"As you said, love takes time. We are merely here to study and examine our patients," she whispered back to him.
"I'm so glad you've finally taken interest in it. Ah, time to go back. Shall we?" said Eros.
Back in their seats, Eris noticed that the young lady did not come back to her seat by the time the theater darkened and the clapping commenced when the curtain opened. In fact, she reappeared on the floor seats just a few rows away from the front. "How did that happen?" she thought. Eros suddenly grabbed Eris' hand and kissed it. She looked at him as he smiled. "Why you little..." she wanted to say, but she simply smiled back. She asked the attendant when he passed by how the girl was able to change seats.
By some chance, she learned the young lady's change of seating had come because the director was the one who recommended her to sit there after she had commented how hard it was to listen in her section, and that he had a vacant seat behind him where she could feel more comfortable. But was it Eros who had prompted a missing person that initiated this change? Eris knew it to be so. Whatever it was to her, the show was about to start again with the director's last lines at the podium.
While claps opened Henry's entrance toward the piano, both Eris' and Eros' eyes widened with mutual interests. The young man appeared clean now since being dirtied in Eris' daring rescue. He adjusted his gelled brown hair backward revealing his rather noticeable long ears and swished the tail of his jacket sitting down. His face was blank, but concentrated. He showed a bit of nervousness as he adjusted his tie lightly. The conductor initiated the orchestra to play Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 1 Op.11. When it was Henry's turn to begin his accompaniment, Eris had planned to strike him with a technical error on his piano. However, just before acting, she paused. Slowly she was drawn into the music and for some reason she couldn't explain, did not act, and instead decided to let him play a little more. Turning to look at the young lady down below, Eris thought it would be better to be closer to them both. She discreetly got out of her seat and made her way down the aisles.
Eris sat on the row behind the young lady after deliberately forcing her way through the seated rows that had one empty seat in the middle. She looked on at Henry, still so concentrated in his playing. When the first movement of the piece had ended, she knew it was time to act. He was indeed very talented, she thought, but her task must be done regardless of this magically attained respect for him. But what shall she do? As she gazed at the piano, she was ready to manipulate the strings inside. Before she was about to, however, something calmed her down by the time the second movement of the piece came into play. Her eyes shifted to Henry's face and his flowing motion. His hands played softly, every articulation in the mechanics of his fingers had feeling and passion in them. Eris continued to listen and stare attentively. It was like no experience before for her. What was it that compelled her to stop and listen? Was it this new melody? No, even after hearing him playing in the beginning, she seemed drawn to his playing throughout it. It came to her then that interrupting him would have to wait. Watching his face reflected on the polished surface of the piano, created a mood of tranquility for her. He did not have his glasses on this time, perhaps forgetting them when he had come on stage. Although he was not the most handsome fella around, his posture and dedicated composure made him look memorable, at least. He had a thin face that had sharp features that made him look noble. Like most pianists who perform a Chopin piece, they were immersed into a dreamlike state Chopin had created for them. It was a charming sound, so delicate, yet so passionately sharp. Eris continued to listen, and at times, closed her eyes, not because of fatigue or boredom, but captivation.
Unknowingly to her, she had forgotten her plans to ruin the orchestra and Henry's performance. Applause filled the theatre after the third movement finished. Henry took a bow, and the director came back on stage.
"Now, ladies and gentlemen, Mister Leon is pleased to showcase some of his compositions to end the night. Henry..." the director said, nodding to him.
After putting his papers in front of him, he began. The crowd was surprised and amused as the music shifted to a jazz performance. Yet it still had a classic atmosphere, however. His compositions not only provoked a new sense of shift; it took to a complementing light to where his Chopin performance ended. Indeed, the audience could feel that maybe the great George Gershwin wrote his composition. The theater felt like a place for dinner with smuggled wine and romantic chatter. Eris looked on, being part of the audience.
When the show ended, following the crowds out, Eris had forgotten she came with Eros. She stood outside the theatre waiting on the sidewalk as people passed her. While waiting for her taxi, Eros had found her and came beside her.
"Quite a performance, wasn't it? I told you you'd have fun," he said, smiling with that devious mouth of his. She yawned uncontrollably and tried to cover it with her hands.
"Fun I cannot say, it was compelling however. Thanks for tonight. I'm going to hit the hay," Eris yawned, having been snapped out of that trance, and wanting to go home.
"Why goddess, the night is still young! Let's dance the night away. I know many places we can go for some drinks and of course, many new people to meet."
Eris was truly tired for the first time. Chaos and fun at parties across this city would be enjoyable, yet she had had enough for tonight for some odd reason.
"Another time, lover boy. I'm heading home to catch up on my beauty sleep." Eris waved for the taxi as it pulled up.
"Then let us slumber together," he replied to her. Eris merely giggled, not looking at him as she entered the car and closed the door in his face before Eros had a chance to go in with her.
"Ta ta," she mouthed, waving in the window as the car drove off through the flickering lights.
In a still lively street, the moon shined in the starry night. Eros, amused by her rejection, walked away. He pulled a pencil and that envelope he had this morning out from his front coat pocket. He then scribbled something on it. Soon, the god of love quietly disappeared through an alley as easily as he'd come.