The Soloist Page #2

He likes his pre-gay roommate.

You should call him.

- I call him.

- Is a lie.

I call him. He doesn't call me back.

- He calls me back.

- Mary...

- Just try again.

- Yes, Mary.

- Yes, Mary.

- Yes. Yes, Steve.

- I gotta take this call.

- Great.

- Because I don't have a story. Hello?

- Call him.

I'm sorry, we have no record

of a Nathaniel Anthony Ayers

ever attending Juilliard.

Really?

But then I don't have a story.

Thanks for checking.

I'm not doing the blood thing.

I got too many other good ideas.

My dad is gonna freak

when he finds out I met you.

He loves your column.

What about you?

- Well, I don't really read the newspaper.

- Sure.

But when I do...

Hey! Those aren't all for me, are they?

I'm also going to need a clump of hair

and some urine.

That's easy.

- All right.

- Okay.

Make a fist for me.

Come on.

Crap.

- Lopez.

- Mr. Lopez?

Yeah, can you just hold on one second?

I'm having a little

technical difficulty here.

This is Rosie Delgado

from the Juilliard School.

Mr. Lopez?

Yes. Please continue.

After we spoke yesterday, I realized

I only checked our graduates.

So I looked in our matriculates,

and there he was.

Nathaniel Anthony Ayers

enrolled in 1970

and he dropped out toward the end

of his second year.

Thank you.

"Points West" by Steve Lopez.

Nathaniel was shy in our first encounter.

He stepped back... He backed away.

He... Nathaniel is... Is what?

Nathaniel is...

A great column is what Nathaniel is.

Nathaniel is missing.

Son of a b*tch.

- Raccoons.

- Oh, yeah?

- That's the culprit.

- Oh, boy.

What are they doing?

They eat the grass?

No, they eat the worms in the grass.

They eat the worms in the grass?

Yeah, we had them.

It's a God-awful mess.

- Wanna know how I got rid of them?

- Yes.

Coyote urine.

- Wow. Coyote urine?

- Seriously. In powdered form.

- Remarkable.

- It's a whole industry, you know.

Funny.

- Hey, I'm Neil, by the way.

- Okay.

Anxiety, restlessness, euphoria.

If you're experiencing...

I would spend every night tossing

and turning...

Wow. Okay, and what is the proper

method of application?

Should I sprinkle it in the yard?

First, you wanna dilute

the urine powder in water.

- Wait, I want to?

- Well, maybe I should say "have to."

And then you're gonna have to hang

the liquid from trees in plastic bags.

So, people are doing this

all over Southern California?

Oh, yes, sir.

Last month, I sold some to Paula Abdul.

But no Simon Cowell?

'Cause that would be exciting. Figure?

I'm gonna call you back a little later.

Hey.

Hey, Nathaniel.

Remember me?

Sorry.

Maybe have a minute when you're done?

Let me know.

I just saw you, so I...

Nothing.

Mr. Steve Lopez, Los Angeles Times,

Los Angeles, California.

Hey, Nathaniel.

I've been searching for Mr. Beethoven,

but he's slipping away like a dream.

I'm trying to get back into shape,

but I don't have any sheet music.

Beethoven's String Quartet,

Opus 59, Number 1,

Violin Concerto, Opus 61 in D,

Fifth Concerto, Opus 73 in E Flat,

red car, green car,

there goes a police car, and God is right

on the other side of that wall.

I had to dig a hole

to bury some human defecation.

But they didn't have

the human decency...

I was looking for you.

... to use the proper facilities.

- I noticed that you've moved.

Well, it's beautiful here,

because you can play music

and have pigeons clapping

as they take off,

and right there

is The Los Angeles Times Building.

- Right, that's where I work.

- Mr. Steve Lopez, staff writer.

New York, Cleveland, it doesn't matter.

All I have to do is

look up at that building

and I know exactly where I am.

I was thinking about...

I'm in Los Angeles,

Los Angeles, California,

- Los Angeles Lakers.

...writing about you

for the paper.

Magic Johnson,

Magic Johnson Theaters.

Magic Johnson is a basketball player,

but he's also a big, black man.

What if I were to wanna write a story

about you for the newspaper?

Los Angeles Times,

Los Angeles newspaper.

- Staff writer, Mr. Steve Lopez.

- Yeah. Yeah, that's me.

Do you mind if I record this?

And I wanna write a story about you.

A column about how a guy like you

winds up on the street.

- What do you think of that?

- Mr. Lopez needs to do

what Mr. Lopez needs to do.

No one could ever stop Mr. Lopez

from doing what he wants to do.

Are you flying that plane?

No. No, I'm right here.

I don't know how God works.

I called Juilliard, and they said

you went there, but you didn't finish.

I bombed right out of there.

I bombed out of Juilliard.

- Yeah, what happened?

- I just... It didn't happen.

I don't know.

I don't know what happened.

Anyone I could contact? Family?

Family? Miss Floria Ayers, my mom.

She's a beautician.

Beauty is art. Music is beauty.

I don't do hair. I do my own hair,

but obviously, my mom does

everybody's hair in the community.

They would come for her.

She's quite a woman.

But I don't know how you're gonna talk

to her, though, because she passed.

Okay. Sorry to hear that.

Who could I call?

Whose number's that?

You know,

it's a dream out here, Mr. Lopez.

The sun is shining.

The nights are cool and serene,

and I notice that everyone is smiling.

- Delivered just hours before...

- Americans are asking...

Hi, I'm calling for Jennifer Ayers-Moore.

How will we finally win this war?

Hello?

Hi, this is Steve Lopez

from the LA Times.

I spoke with your aunt, I believe, earlier.

She suggested I give you a call.

- About what?

- About your brother, Nathaniel.

Is he dead?

What? No, no, no, he's alive.

Is he all right?

He's... Yeah. He's homeless.

I don't know if you're aware of that.

But he seems very bright, and...

May I record this?

And talented, obviously.

Juilliard and all.

I'm, I'm... I'm sorry.

- Your name again, please?

- Steve Lopez.

Mr. Lopez, why are you calling?

I'm gonna write

a column about Nathaniel.

Why?

Because that's what I do. Everyone has

a story, and it's interesting,

you know, that a Juilliard alum

is now homeless.

But he seems smart

and kind, and... And...

And spends his days filling the city air

with violin music, and I just...

He plays the violin now?

He's... Yeah. Why?

He used to play something else?

Bye, Mama.

- Good morning, Nathaniel.

- Morning, Miss Little John.

So, what do you want to play for me?

I'm going to play some Beethoven, sir.

I'm crazy about Beethoven.

He was younger than me

when he started playing piano,

and I wanted to play the piano,

but so many kids played it,

and there's only one at school,

so it's hard to get practice time in.

So, I chose the cello. Hardly anyone

at school wanted to play the cello.

And Beethoven was composing

when he was only 11,

and I'm already older than that,

so I figure I got a lot of

catching up to do.

Let's hear you play.

He had the talent, that's for sure.

I called his mother that night.

I told her that I thought he was

the most gifted kid I've ever met.

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