Teller's Meeting

He first saw her on his way to Philadelphia's art museum. He decided that he would cut through the residential neighborhoods on his way to Center City. As he was driving through West Philly, he caught a glimpse of a woman playing basketball with about half a dozen others. Something he saw in his rearview made him stop. He backed up just a little and saw it again. She was scoring shots backwards over her left shoulder.

He pulled over and got out of his car to get a better look. As he approached the court, he got his first good look at her. She had long black hair that fell to her back just below her shoulders. There was nothing really special about her hair except for the pure white streaks over each ear. The white streaks only enhanced her apparent beauty. She had lightly tanned skin, glistening slightly with perspiration. Her muscle tone was pleasing: athletic, not too prominent, not too frail, but well defined. She was average height but her presence, even at that distance, made her seem much bigger. She was wearing black basketball shorts, white wristbands, a dark blue, loose tank top over a white T-shirt, and a pair of high-top sneakers, probably Converse.

She was heading his way, talking over her shoulder to her friends so she didn't notice him standing there until she got to the bench just a few feet from the fence. She watched him appraisingly as she bent to pick up her towel and water bottle from the bench. Without a word, she put her foot up on the bench and sipped from her bottle.

She wiped her forehead with the towel, then finally spoke. "You hold onto that fence any tighter, you'll clip a hole in the links." He finally noticed that he was grasping the chain link fence so hard that his fingers had begun to turn white. He laughed nervously, let go of the fence and concentrated on the bench. She was indeed wearing Converses.

"You play ball?" she asked casually.

"Huh? Oh, no. Sorry," he laughed, abashed. "I'm not much good at sports."

"Oh, that's cool... You look like you're baking." She raised an eyebrow slightly, making her hard expression look much friendlier and more open.

"Why do you say that?"

"You're, uh, wearing long sleeves in the middle of July." He looked down at his clothes. He was wearing a dark grey, long-sleeved dress shirt, dress pants and black half boots. When he looked up, he saw that she was smiling kindly.

"Well, I was on my way to the art museum. I just sort of got sidetracked."

"You might want to get out of this heat before your body realizes how hot it is. Silk doesn't handle sweat very well."

"Oh, yeah, I guess you're right," he replied. He looked slightly disappointed. "Well, so long."

"Hasta la vista."

He trotted back to his car. As he got behind the wheel, the woman gave him a friendly wave and went back to the game. He started his car and continued on his way to the museum. He walked through the cool museum, perusing the exhibits but not really seeing them. His thoughts were back on the court with that girl. He was remembering her quick pace as she dribbled up and down the court, weaving around other players, passing and catching the ball like it was an extension of her body, shooting the ball with incredible precision, laughing with great energy and enthusiasm.

His mind was assessing her features up close. She had clear eyes. He wasn't certain of the color, but they were dark, maybe cobalt, or dark grey, definitely gleaming with laughter and mischievous exuberance. Her nose was straight and proud. Her full lips were drawn up in one corner slightly as though she were deep in thought or close to smiling. Her slightly heavy eyebrows gave an impression of serious consideration.

He looked at his watch and groaned when he realized how late it had gotten. He had just enough time to meet his friends for a late lunch at TGI Friday's before heading over to the theater. He walked the distance from the museum to the restaurant. It wasn't too inconvenient because his rental car was parked near the restaurant anyway. Philadelphia parking. He got there and had to wait a few minutes for his table. He and his friends sat around chatting as they ate. As usual, he ordered something light. He was watching his weight.

He told his friends about the hotel at which he was staying and what he did while he was in Philly. He didn't mention the girl. He wanted to keep that to himself. Sharing it with others would take away the special quality of this ordinary casual meeting. Hell, he could dream.

He took leave of his friends, who so kindly picked up the bill. He drove to his hotel to get his things and prepare for his trip to the theater that night.

He drove to the theater and walked through the lobby. Not too many people were there yet; it was still early. He could see each person clearly. He caught a glimpse of someone who looked oddly familiar. He looked again. It was the girl from the basketball court! He tried to appear as though he was casually wandering around and happened to see her, but his heart was trip hammering and his feet wanted to run over to her. He took a deep breath and cleared his throat to get her attention.

"Hello. I didn't expect to see you here," he said as calmly as he could manage. He couldn't get over how different she looked. She was now wearing a black silk shirt, a charcoal grey vest, black Dockers and black shoes with white accents. Her hair was now glistening with mousse and pulled back into a ponytail with a part on the left. She looked surprisingly feminine in those men's clothes.

She smiled. He was stunned by the beauty and simplicity of that smile. "I didn't expect to see me here either. I work here and my boss thought that since I have the day off, I should get to see this show. He gave me crappy seats though. I'm thinking of giving my ticket to my friend and cutting out of here." She looked longingly at the door.

"Well, I invited my friends, but one of them couldn't make it, so I'm stuck with an extra ticket. It's near the front. Would you like to have it?" He studied her face hopefully.

"I don't know."

"I hear this show is really good and I'd hate for you to miss it just because you have crappy seats."

"If you insist." She reluctantly took the ticket. "Thank you."

"No problem. Oh, hey, I've got to get out of here. I have to go find my other friends. Hope you enjoy the show."

"Thanks a lot. See you later, I guess."

"I hope so." He trotted away through the growing crowd. Back in the dressing room, he got a visit from his partner.

"Hey, Teller, what took you so long? It's not like you to be late. We only have an hour to go over the blocking before the audience gets to their seats.

"Just a second Penn. Let me fix my belt and we can run through it." Teller fastened his belt and led Penn out onto the stage. Teller led Penn through all of the blocking and showed him where each prop would be located. Penn and Teller got everything ready and went to finish dressing.

In his dressing room, Teller began to imagine his mysterious lady friend sitting in the audience, watching him, finally realizing who he was. He was hoping that she would have a good time. He smiled as he finished brushing his hair and applying his stage makeup. He got the standard five minute warning. Suddenly he got nervous. What if she thought the show sucked? Small loss really, but that might ruin any chances he had of getting to know her a little better before he had to leave town.

Finally it was show time. He crossed the stage amidst the tumultuous applause. He went through his bit without any mishap. The first time he got a chance to look out into the audience, he searched for her. The lights were bright, but he finally found her. She was laughing and seemed to be having fun. That boosted his morale.

At intermission, Teller walked out into the lobby to do the standard intermission bit. He caught a glimpse of his girl getting hot chocolate and Twizzlers. She turned around and saw him. She smiled at him and walked off to drink her hot chocolate. She was definitely having a good time. He felt good, like he could do anything. It was moments like this that sometimes made this job more than worth while.

As he continued through the show, he made sure he did everything perfectly. She may be an interesting girl, but the show, the show he worked so hard on, needed his full attention. He couldn't botch it all and leave his partner high and dry.

When the show was over, Penn and Teller were in the lobby, hanging out with fans. She walked over to them. When he saw her, Teller smiled guiltily. "I guess you figured it out huh?"

"What? That you're a performer or that you really aren't mute? I mean, there are worse things."

"Actually, I'm just vain. So, did you have fun?"

"Umm, yeah, except for that part where I was forced to volunteer." Teller laughed at this. "I know who you are, but I bet you want to know who I am."

"That would be nice."

"My name's Amanda. Everybody calls me Manny. If you say one word..." she warned, looking at Penn.

"No, I won't tease you. Besides, you like more like a skunk than anything else," Penn said. She looked at him coldly for a few seconds. "Hey, I couldn't help it."

"Right," she said. "Hey, I gotta get going. I've got an early day tomorrow."

"Wait. Can I get a picture with you before you go? Just to remember the next WNBA sensation," he said quickly.

"Umm, sure. I guess that'd be okay."

"I just happen to have a camera with me." He pulled a disposable camera out of his pocket and gave it to a fan. "Could you take a picture of us?"

The fan lifted the camera to his face and took a picture of Manny and Teller together. "Just one more," Teller said. The fan caught the next picture. It was a picture of Teller planting a kiss on Manny's cheek. "Blackmail pictures for when you get famous. Wouldn't want these floating around would you?"

"Not really," she laughed. "I had fun. Thanks. Oh, do you think you could sign my T-shirt? Who knows? In ten years, it might be worth 50 cents." She held up a white Penn and Teller tee. Penn and Teller both signed it. The crowd pressed around to ask Penn and Teller questions, get autographs and take pictures. As the crowd gathered, Manny disappeared. That was the last he saw of her. He signed autographs and went on as usual, but he couldn't help but wonder if their paths would cross again. After all, this is a small world.