Larry looked up, squinting into the sunlight, and reached up to wipe the perspiration from his forehead with the heel of his hand, adding another dirty streak to the several already on his face.

"Sorry, no," he replied, and felt immediately bad about it, knowing all too intimately the feeling of thinking you've spotted someone you know only to discover it isn't them at all. They'd all known that sinking resignation back home, and this guy had run up all expectation.

"Trust me, you don't want two of me in the world anyway," he added, his smile open and apologetic, New York still creeping in at the edges of his syllables despite all those years in L.A.