Page 10 of Risk It All

Even in my senior year, I was working so that I could put money aside for after graduation.Every spare minute was spent on homework, work, or at galleries and museums in Chicago.

I kept telling myself that I would focus on dating after I finished school.I’d find a good job and get settled and then I would start dating but I’ve been in Los Angeles for a year now and all that I have to show for it is a now deactivated online dating profile.

The bathroom door opens and Anthony steps out, straightening his new clothes.He’s wearing a black t-shirt with some kind of design on the front and a pair of dark blue jeans.

“Are you ready to go?”he asks as he sits on the bed and tugs on a pair of black boots.

“Yeah, let me just grab my purse.”

We decide to walk down to the first comedy club.

“Maybe you should move here instead.It seems like it’s got a pretty big comedy scene,” I say as I spot the second comedy club that he wanted to do an open mic at across the street.

“It has gotten bigger but Los Angeles and New York will probably always be the top two.I’ve spent the last few years in Los Angeles and I think it’s time for a change.Hopefully New York will help my craft too.”

“How so?”I ask, curious about how stand-up comedy works.

“Crowds are different.Different states find different things funny.”

“So will you tailor your stand-up depending on states or regions then?”I ask as we head inside the club.

“Not necessarily tailor, but there will be some jokes that I might not necessarily do.That way I don’t piss off whole crowds and bomb.”

Anthony leads me over to a table and orders me a glass of wine from the waitress as we sit down.

“Okay, so you think the crowds in New York will help you get better as a comic.”

“Yeah, there’re comedians who only do stand-up in Los Angeles and it shows.They can’t do comedy anywhere else.”

Open mic starts and Anthony is one of the first to go up.He does a set similar to the one from last night but this time I watch the crowd, waiting to see how they react to him.

This open mic is only five minutes and it feels like it’s over way too soon.The crowd laughs, just like last night and I wonder if we’re still too close to the east coast or if he’s just that good of a comedian.

He walks off stage, that now familiar cocky swagger in his steps as he makes his way toward me.A few people stop him to tell him that he did a good job or to clap him on the back as he passes.

“Ready to go to the next one?”he asks as he picks up his glass of water and downs it in one gulp.

“Yeah, let’s go.”

He hits up three open mics that night and at every single one, I watch him walk on stage and own it.He comes alive up there, growing more confident as soon as he’s in his element.

I’m giddy and half drunk as we walk back to the hotel at the end of the night.

“That last guy was pretty funny though,” I say as we talk about a few of the other comics that we saw tonight.

“He wasn’t bad, but he’s not as good as I am.”

“Uhhh,” I say, teasing him and he gives me a playful glare.

“Say he’s not as good as me, Emerson,” Anthony says, trying to look serious but I can see the smile in his eyes.

“I mean,” I start as we walk into our hotel room.

Anthony reaches out, tickling my ribs and I giggle, darting away from him.

“He’s not as good as you!He’s not as good as you!”I say as he makes a move to tickle me again.

“I know,” he says confidently, “but it’s nice that you agree with me.”

---