Free I’m Losing You by Bruce Wagner

reaction to fish. She was hyperventilating and badly mottled. He shot her up with Benadryl and right away she could breathe again. Any intern could have done it, but Streisand thought he was God. She invited him to her home for a troubled-youth charity hoedown. Les didn’t know a soul yet there he was, bonding with Larry Hagman and Ray Stark, Ann-Margret andShirley MacLaine.
That’s
when he had the vision, more like a religious exfoliation: skin as the Comer, hotter than plastic surgery. O Pioneers! Now, after all these years, they wanted to drag him from penthouse to pillory and march him down Wilshire to the hillock of Via Rodeo, for all the Big and Little Stars—and the nothings—to see.

    â€œHow are you?”
    Obie tucked herself into the chair, hunched in a fetal position. “It’s been a real shitty week.”
    â€œWhat happened?”
    â€œStuff with Cat. Career shit.
Bull
shit.”
    She was going to cancel, but had canceled the last three sessions already. She blew her nose and Calliope pushed some Kleenex.
    â€œAre you sick? You don’t look like you’re feeling well.”
    â€œI think I have a—this sinus infection. And there’s…this drug thing, so
stupid
. With Les. It’s more a pain in the ass than anything else. Have you read about it?”
    â€œI saw something in the paper.”
    â€œIt’s like,
enough
. It’s so
ridiculous
. Poor Les—he’s
really
upset, he’s like,
shaken
. You know, he’s concerned about his career.”
    â€œAs he should be.”
    â€œHas he talked to you about it?”
    â€œYou know I wouldn’t share something like that.”
    â€œNothing’s going to happen.”
    â€œThere are no guarantees. And it can’t be much fun.”
    â€œI know—I’m not in denial, I’m not saying it’s
nothing
. It’s just, I’m so used to—
he’s
not. He’s never been in the
glare
of the whole whatever. But there’s no
way
, that would be
insane
. I mean, for them to—
I’m
the one, if anyone. And it’s such a
victimless
crime, if a crime at all. I mean, don’t these people have better things to do? I want to talk about something else.”
    â€œDid you take anything today, Oberon?”
    â€œWhat?”
    â€œDid you take anything today?”
    â€œNo! Why?”
    â€œYou’re slurring some of your words.”
    â€œI
am
?”
    â€œYes.”
    â€œIt’s the Zoloft.”
    â€œZoloft doesn’t make you slur.”
    Obie blew her nose again, then closed her eyes. “There’s something I really need to talk about.”
    â€œIn a moment,” she said, sternly. “I don’t want to see you in here under the influence.”
    â€œI’m
not
—”
    â€œThat’s a rule, Oberon.”
    â€œI haven’t slept in two days and I have this sinus thing that I took some—what’s it called, Atarax?—it’s like
unbelievable
, they’re like
reds
. I haven’t felt this good since high school. I’m kidding. I mean, I could barely drive over here.”
    â€œJust so we’re clear on the rule.”
    â€œWe’re clear on the rule.”
    â€œIf you can’t drive, we’ll call your assistant to pick you up.”
    â€œThere’s an idea. It’s just I’ve been sneezing for, like,
forty-eight hours
and this is the first time I’ve stopped. I was freaking out ‘cause I read somewhere about someone who had to be hospitalized because he couldn’t stop sneezing and then he
died
.”
    â€œWhat did you want to talk about?”
    â€œI’ve been offered this really interesting role. A remake, for no money. Italian film. Pasolini. But
really
interesting. And I did something—I think—I
know
it was connected to the part and some of it was the
drugs
, which I’ve now stopped. But I feel weird about it and wanted to