Chapter 72

Jesse

When the two had rinsed off and at last gotten out of the shower, Jesse headed straight for the guest bedroom, her towel wrapped around her hair to soak up some of the water. Upon arriving in the guest room, Jesse walked over to the dresser, where her clothes were.

She smiled to herself as she selected a cotton tank top and a pair of shorts. Since it was raining and they wouldn’t be going out, she saw no reason to dress for any intense outdoor activities. She slipped on a pair of her socks, just so that she wasn’t too cold inside.

When she had dressed, she took hold of the towel and unwrapped it from her hair, using it to rough her hair up and catch any lingering moisture there. When she was done, she entered the en suite bathroom and found a comb, which she used to untangle her hair.

Jesse then began the process of working it into a braid so that it would stay out of the way but also remain untangled throughout the day as it dried. As she was working at this, she saw Hal slip into her view of the mirror, and he lingered there, leaning on the doorframe. She smiled at him and saw his return smile in the reflection.

Jesse quickly finished up her braid and then turned to lean against the sink and look at Hal. He had dressed in an earthy green T-shirt and a pair of shorts. His hair was still damp from the shower, and Jesse could smell the scent of his soap rolling off of him.

Jesse regarded him silently, and he did the same to her. Jesse figured it was because neither of them really had anything to say. It seemed that they were both largely content to remain in silence. At length, Hal held out his hand to her, and she took it.

They made their way back into the living room and both resumed their places on the couch. With her hair still wet, Jesse felt a chill go down her spine at the temperature of the room, and Hal wasted no time in gathering a throw blanket from the back of the couch and draping it over her.

Jesse smiled up at him and then pressed herself closer into his side. Hal smiled down at her in return and wrapped his arm around her, drawing her close to him. He leaned his head down and pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

“So now what do we do?” he asked her softly.

Jesse shrugged.

“I don’t know,” she answered quietly. “What else can we do here?”

“Well,” Hal sighed and rubbed at his chin. “We can’t go outside. So … why don’t we put on a movie?”

“That sounds like a good idea.” Jesse smiled up at him in approval.

“Okay, great.” Hal smiled and stood up. Jesse watched him cross the room to stand in front of the entertainment center that contained the TV and open a door on the side to reveal a large collection of DVDs.

“What do you want to watch?” Hal turned to ask her.

“I don’t care.” Jesse shrugged.

Hal laughed and rolled his eyes. Keeping his eyes locked on her, he reached into the shelf and withdrew a random DVD. He opened the box and turned on the TV and DVD Player. Jesse watched as he slid the disc into the machine and then returned to join her on the couch.

From there, Hal picked up the remote and navigated through the menu until the movie started. Jesse had never seen it before. It was some crass comedy that she had seen advertisements for but had never bothered to actually watch.

“Do you like this movie?” Jesse asked him.

“It’s alright.” Hal shrugged. “Not very artistic if you ask me.”

Jesse couldn’t help laughing.

“What’s so funny?” Hal raised his brow and looked down at her.

“I mean,” Jesse started, still laughing a little as she spoke. “I guess coming from the king of artistry himself, nothing is ever quite as artistic as you are.”

“Well, that’s not true,” Hal said with a shrug. “There are plenty of people more artistic than I am.”

“Oh, yeah?” Jesse prodded. “Like who?”

“Just to name one,” Hal said easily, “Quentin Tarantino. He makes incredible movies.”

Jesse was a little surprised by that answer.

“I didn’t peg you as a Tarantino kind of guy,” Jesse noted, more than a little surprised.

“I guess we’ve never talked about it before.” Hal shrugged. “But come on. His movies are really undeniably ingenious.”

“I guess so.” Jesse shrugged in return. “I’ve never really seen one, so …”

“What?” Hal said suddenly, freezing beside her. “Not one?”

Jesse blinked, a little surprised by his outrage.

“No,” Jesse shook her head. “I guess I never really had any interest.”

Hal gaped at her for a moment before abruptly standing up and going back to the shelf. Jesse watched as he went immediately to a particular section and began browsing through the titles there. He finally selected one and proceeded to replace the disc that was already in the machine with the new one.

When he was finished and had returned the other movie to its place on the shelf, he strode back across the room to Jesse and sat back down beside her with a heavy sigh.

“And now we begin the supplemental course on Quentin Tarantino movies,” Hal said, and Jesse was amused by the gleam in his eyes.

No sooner had the movie, Inglourious Basterds begun than Hal was narrating for her, relaying the details of the movie that impressed him and some that he simply enjoyed, perhaps most notably the tendencies of particular actors.

Jesse nodded, smiled and pretended to watch the movie for his sake. For the most part, though, she was completely taken by the clear excitement in his eyes as he explained various aspects of the life on set during the filming of the movie. She could tell he knew a great deal about the subject, and Jesse noted that this was really the first time he had ever even talked to her about his field outside of an interview, even if it was in a roundabout way.

Jesse vaguely wished that the movie would never end. She loved the light in Hal’s eyes as he went on and on about the entire process of making the film. She wondered if he went into this much detail studying every movie he watched. It was not very far out of the realm of possibility. This was, after all, his profession.

Jesse stayed quiet and observant all through watching the movie with Hal, and when it was finally over, he stood up to place the movie back into the box and then back on the shelf. He then returned to sit beside her on the couch.

“Well, I wouldn’t say you’ve reached proficiency yet.” Hal sighed teasingly. “But I’d say this was a good start in your education.

Jesse couldn’t help laughing, and she snuggled up closer to him on the couch. On one hand, she was amused, but on the other, she was in serious thought.

Seeing the excitement and sparkle in his eyes as he described every aspect of the movie they had just watched, she was quiet as she contemplated these things. Hal had said he was ready to drop the business, but she was beginning to wonder if he had even started to accomplish what he wanted to attain.

Unable to wonder about it in silence any longer, Jesse shifted her position to look up at Hal.

“Do you think you’ll ever direct another movie?” she asked him.

Jesse saw his face darken and felt his body stiffen beside her. She suddenly wondered if it was a topic she shouldn’t have brought up.