From: Robert Willers <willers@trombone.sps.mot.com>

THE CITY Mini-Update for Friday, December 1:

STORYLINE: AUDITION DAY
           (location: City Bar)
* Buck and Jacob are listening to a pathetic folk singer ("Where Have
 All the Flowers Gone?").  Jacob asks, "How many more?"  "Ten."  "OK,
 I'm going out for some razor blades.  Do you need anything?"  "Yeah.
 If you see Hank Williams, tell him that we have a spot for him."  Jacob
 gives Buck a hard time about his musical "taste" and leaves.
* A new singer, more pathetic than the last: "Now, the time is near...I
 do it my way."
[Later.]
Jacob is now back, and can't stand it any more.  "Stop!"  He thanks
 the singer, who says he has a whole Neal Sedaka act if he likes that
 better -- "I've got it in my veins."  "I'm sure you do, but no thanks."
He walks back to Buck, who says, "not bad."  "You *CAN'T* be serious."
 Buck asks Jacob what's bugging him.
* Jacob is finishing telling Buck the story about Kayla holding a gun
 on Angie.  Buck says this must be a "woman thing."  He reminds Jacob
 that she's a good woman.  Jacob says yeah, but he thinks she is getting
 in over her head this time.  Buck tells Jacob to go talk to her.
* None.  (Thank goodness.)

STORYLINE: AND KAYLA MAKES THREE?
           (location: The future clinic)
* Angie is calling another agency about Kayla.  She gets nowhere and
 hangs up.  Frank enters and quite obviously avoids a subject.  Angie
 asks what's up.
* He says nothing's wrong with him, what's up with her?  "What are you
 talking about?"  He says she has changed into an entirely different
 person.  Eventually, she twists it around and asks what's really
 bothering him.  He says, "Everything."  She says yeah, and he's not
 the only one.
* Frank says that the people at school all talk about going home for
 the holidays, but that they (he and his mom) don't have a "home" any
 more.  She says they'll have Christmas either at Grandma's or here.
 He doesn't want to have Christmas there.  She says that a house isn't
 required for a home -- just people that love you.  Then, there's Jacob.
 Frank says that she must really love him.  "He makes me happy.  He
 makes all of this make sense."  She says the last couple of days have
 been rough, though.  Why?  Because your mother has been sort of a witch
 to him lately.  [Jacob enters, behind Angie.]  But, none of this would
 mean anything if I didn't have him to share everything with.  Frank
 clears his throat, and Angie says she must sound a little corny.  Jacob
 says he likes corny.  Angie, all smiles, says, "Hi, Baby."
* Angie admits that she should have told him about Kayla.  He says she
 has a heart the size of Manhattan.  And this *is* temporary, right?
 Angie ignores him.  Jacob says the bottom line is that he is tired of
 fighting.  Did she mean what she said to Frank?  "Every word."  "Show
 me."  She grabs him by the collar and kisses him.

STORYLINE: A LITTLE BIT OF GROCERY SHOPPING
           (location: A market)
* Tony compliments Stephanie's "melons" -- the ones she's *holding*.  He
 also checks her stomach.  "Pauly," an old friend of the family, comes
 over and says "hi" and congratulates the "papa."
* None.
* Stephanie taps Tony on the shoulder.  She is frustrated that he is
 doing nothing.  Huh?  Namely, letting people assume that the baby is
 his instead of correcting them.  She asks what his family thinks of
 "this."  He says they're very happy and excited and can't wait to
 meet her.
* [Walking home.]
Stephanie says they will have to hire a moving van to get all this stuff
 home.  Tony says he can arrange that.  She asks if he can arrange to
 hire a maid to cook it.  He says Ally and Jocelyn will help.  "They're
 hardly Chef Boy-Ar-Dee."  Tony asks if she wants to know the secret to
 fine Italian cooking.  "What?"  He gives her a kiss.  "So the secret
 of Italian cooking is kissing?"  "No, the secret is love."  He assures
 her that she'll be fine if she just uses a little love.  She asks him
 to show her the secret one more time.  He does.

STORYLINE: THE HUSTLER
           (starting location: Building elevator)
* Richard and Nick cross in the hall.  Richard thinks he recognizes
 Nick, but he denies being Nick.  Richard starts to interrogate Nick,
 but he sees Zoe across the elevator and goes through, past Nick.  He
 also sees her cigar box, money included, and asks where she got it.
 She says she just got an inheritance from an old lady in the park.
 He asks her to tell the truth, for a change.
* [At the City Bar ("My Way" droning on in the background).]
Richard and Zoe are shooting pool.  She offers him a deal: he wins a
 game of pool, he gets his $600 back, she wins, he gives her another
 $100.  He knows he is a "mark," but he agrees.  "Kiss another $100
 good bye."  She breaks and sinks the 10-ball on the break.  Richard
 lets out a whimper.
* None.
* "Looks tough."  "Piece of cake."  She knocks in the 8-ball.  "So I was
 hustled.  Where'd you learn how to do that?"  "I took a correspondence
 course."  He challenges her to another game, after he has a few days to
 practice.  He asks her how much money is in her cigar box.  None of his
 business.  She can't believe he wants to play her again after she beat
 him so badly.  He says his game was off, and challenges her to another
 game on Friday.  She says she'll check with her secretary.  She leaves.

STORYLINE: OLD KEYS AND MEMORIES
           (location: Penthouse)
* Nick comes into Sydney's apartment with a rose, a peace offering.  She
 says she didn't know they were at war.  He says that what she saw in
 the bar with him and Tess didn't happen.  "I think you're confusing me
 with someone who gives a damn.  [Pause.]  But thanks for the rose."
 She takes it and leaves.
* He says he saw a twitch in her eye when Tess made it sound like they
 slept together.  She says it has been a *long* time since she has cared
 about that.  He recounts the story of when their relationship started:
 she was in the front row of one of his concerts, she got into his music
 and soon, all he could see was her face.  She then threw a rose with a
 room key attatched onto the stage.  He hands her that key.  She can't
 believe he has carried it around for all these years.  She says, "Just
 one thing: it *isn't* mine!"
* "Imagine that."  She says he must have been sitting on "his park
 bench," thinking of ways to get up to her apartment, and the old flower
 trick occurred to him.  He tells her some other things that occurred
 to him, such as bleeding on her floor, but she just had her floors
 redone.  So...he decided to return the key to the lady who saw him sing
 once.  He says that she always wanted to own this building and now she
 does.  "Are you happy?"  "Yes."  He notes that she made the correct
 choice: a multi-millionaire over a musician.  He continues, "I don't
 blame you, honey.  I never did.  But, you know, we would have had one
 *hell* of a time together."
* "...Admit it."  She says it would have been fun for a while, then it
 would have been "pure, unadulterated hell."  He goes to leave.  "Hey,
 you forgot this [the key]."  "Keep it.  It doesn't seem to work for me
 any more."  He stomps out.  She holds the key up and, for a moment,
 seems genuinely impressed that he kept the key all these years.  After
 a few moments, she drops it on the floor.  "I don't want to go down
 *that* road again."

