Laughter, remixed versions of old songs and the sound of hordes of people all mingling with each other was deafening as Harry walked into Dolby Ballroom, which felt like it was swelling up with sound as he moved through this crowd of ego-fueled sharks, all waiting to feed on one another.
As soon as they entered, Greg disappeared into the crowd. One minute he was on Harry's muttering, "I will be back in five minutes," and the next he disappeared into a mass of Fox studio execs, who were busy telling anyone who would listen about their Oscar win, and who were now, at that moment, closing in for the kill on a hapless Nolan, while half of Warner Bros was ready for their chance to feed on the "star" as well.
Harry had found the drink table and was on his fifth drink when he remembered he should be enjoying this moment.
Harry was not bitter. At least, not in a conventional sense, as he had made a pact with himself to keep his cool and not be a sore loser.
But he could not shake the feeling that he had missed something, that something was taken from him, the disappointment of watching Gangs of New York win an Oscar for best original screenplay, and all of Harvey's little kingdom celebrating again. He was thrilled for Memento to be nominated for an Academy Award, that was amazing. But still...
It would've been nice.
As he tipped his glass back, he was allowing the burn of the alcohol to wash away at least some of the irritation that was building inside of him, and he wanted the effect of the alcohol to kick in as quickly as possible.
"Are you drowning your sorrows?"
From behind Harry came the voice of a woman that was both soothing and soft and unmistakably the voice of Cate Blanchett. He turned around slowly.
Standing in front of him was Cate in a fire engine red dress that made the entire room feel darker. Whatever confusion he may have had as to why she was standing in front of him, he felt free to show that confusion on his face; in fact, he was probably not hiding his confusion well. Her mouth curled up into a smile as she saw the confusion on his face.
"Just relax," she continued. "I am not going to scold you."
Harry cleared his throat. "That is a relief. I think I've been scolded enough lately."
Cate raised her eyebrow. "By who?"
Harry merely shrugged and took another sip of beer. "Why are you here?"
Her laughter was low and somewhat disbelieving. "I came because I was invited, if that is what you wanted to know."
"You know what I was asking."
Not to be outdone, Cate began to tilt her head to the side, looking Harry over much like a match between a seasoned chess master and a new player, trying to anticipate every possible move.
Cate leaned against the table and said to Harry, "I just want to see how the young man has caused anxiety and jealousy among half the people in Hollywood."
Harry replied in a muttering voice, "That's a compliment."
Cate replied, "No, that's just telling you how the world is."
Harry rolled his eyes, maybe a little too much, and Cate was shocked as before but this time she let out another laugh, very sharp. "Well, well, well. Do you even know how obvious you are?"
Harry said, "No, and I think I would rather not know."
Cate studied him very carefully for a moment and weighed all of his attributes, youth, success, stubbornness, and yes, even alcohol-induced irritation.
"You seem to be rather displeased with me tonight," Cate said.
Harry felt a twinge of guilt. Had he been that obvious?
Harry said, "It isn't you; it's been a long night."
Cate increased the sympathy in her voice. "I understand. Mr. Nolan was nearly asleep at his feet earlier in the evening."
Harry glanced back at Nolan who was surrounded by Warner Brothers executives as if he was a newly crowned king. "He has earned everything he has. Insomnia is a hot property. I am proud of him!"
Cate hummed. "And how about you? You did extremely well. You do know that right?"
"Being nominated for an award is an honour," Harry replied dutifully, as that was what he had told reporters all night long.
Cate laughed at his lack of enthusiasm. "Oh, you sound so excited."
Harry shot her a look out of the side of his eye. "Are you always this..."
"Observant?" she interjected.
"I was going to say nosy."
Cate's interest sparkled in her eyes. "Yet you are still speaking to me instead of running," she noted. "So it would seem that you do, in fact, like all the attention."
He almost coughed on the drink he was holding.
Cate laughed again, very pleased with herself.
"That expression!" she exclaimed. "It's no wonder half of this gala is staring at you. You have an expression like someone who just isn't accepting the fact that he is the most talked about new person at this gala."
Harry could feel the heat coming up from the back of his neck.
Cate pretended not to notice this.
"You know, Harry, there's something I need you to answer for me," she said. "How much do you want me in this thing? I mean how bad do you want to put me in it?"
Her question was straight to the point and rather blunt. But the tone she used felt more like a test of his skills than an expression of romantic interest or seduction; it was less serious than that but still very sharp and focused.
Harry swallowed nervously. "I need you to show me more than just what you say."
Cate raised an eyebrow. "More than just what I say?"
Harry continued leaning forward. "I want to see your work," he replied. "I want to see how it compares to what else you've shown in the past."
There was tension between the two of them as they stared at each other. Neither of them backed away. In fact, if anything, Cate seemed to want even closer to him.
"So," she stated in a low voice, "I guess another chance for me to show you my talent is necessary."
Harry felt a shiver of excitement run down his spine as he replied with a steely voice, "Yeah."
Cate studied him thoughtfully, and after a few seconds of considering Harry, she gave him a half-smile that suggested she knew more about the situation than she was letting on.
"To truly demonstrate what you're looking for I think we're going to need to be alone together," she added. "As you said, you don't want an audience".
Harry remains still as Cate gestures toward the door. "Let's go," she whispers to him before someone else tries to make off with him.
After a brief pause while taking heed of his surroundings as well as the people, lights and cameras in the room, Harry set his glass down and followed Cate outside.
As they left the venue together, the reporters were quick to stand at the ready with cameras positioned in front of them to take their photographs. When they did, Cate had already taken the lead; Harry followed her closely behind. All of the flashes knew exactly how they would report on this incident in the morning.
What was more interesting to Harry than any of this was that he had zero interest in how they would portray him.
When Cate reached her car, she unlocked it and looked back at Harry once more. He made eye contact with her. "
Are you ready?" she asked him with a calm voice.
Harry exhaled a long sigh. "I'm ready. Let's get out of here and see what happens."
In a matter of moments, she opened the door for him to enter, aiding him into the seat, before driving off from the Academy Awards, leaving the rest of Hollywood with only enough mystery for their imagination to work conspiracy theories.