Atlanta

Sh... Sorry.

Do you got any dehydrated mango, ginger?

Jicama, perhaps?

Nah.

Hmm.

This place sucks.

How much for that hat?

And this?

Ten dollars.

Bet.

Oh. Look at you.

Hello?

Hey, yeah, um, I'm here for the pickup.

Thank you.

Wow. I should probably... yeah.

Okay.

Hello?

Hello?

Um, I'm here for the... the, uh, pick...

Was that Mr. Wonder?

In the car?

Oh, yeah.

Music of My Mind.

Masterpiece.

I love Stevie.

Yeah, me, too.

I-I like to, uh, listen to it on long drives

because, uh, his songs are long, you know?

Yes.

I'm Darius.

Apologies.

I'm Theodore Perkins.

Please... call me Teddy.

Come on. Please, come sit in the parlor.

Oh, cool. I've never been in a house with a parlor before.

Would you like a glass of water?

Yeah.

Kind of parched.

Darius would like a glass of water when you have a moment.

Would you like some?

What is that?

It's a soft-boiled ostrich egg.

It's called an owl's casket.

Nah, I'm good.

So...

you're here about the piano.

How did you hear about it?

Um...

someone posted on the biohacking message board

saying their boss had a multicolored key piano.

Trying to get rid of it. Free of charge.

Sam. Was it Sam?

My audiovisual woman.

Uh, we don't use real names on the message boards so, so maybe?

Hmm. Oops.

Are you a music lover?

Yeah. Yeah, I consider myself... yeah.

I work with a friend of mine. He's a rapper.

Rap.

There's a funny one.

I found it never quite grew out of its adolescence.

No, I wouldn't say that.

You know, we got Jay-Z. He's, like, 65.

But don't you find it insufficient as an art form?

Nah, I think, you know, every now and again,

people just want to have a good time.

Good time.

Hmm.

How long have you played?

Oh, you...

you're talking about the piano.

Uh, nah, I never studied.

I just, uh, kind of like the way it looks,

especially this one with the colored keys.

Are you a fan of Benny's?

Who?

Benny Hope.

The pianist.

He's the one who owned the piano.

He's my brother.

Oh, sh-shit! Is that Keith Jarrett?

Yes.

- Let me look at that. - Yes.

And Stevie, as well.

And Al Jarreau and Ahmad Jamal.

I think Nina's over there somewhere.

Ahmad and my brother,

they had a residency in New York together.

Hmm. That's Flames, man.

Yes. Flames.

My-my brother and Ahmad, they were staying at a-a hotel

in Brooklyn off of Bergen Street.

Eight dollars a night, if you can believe it.

He told me something I'll never forget.

He said, "Your brother...

plays pain better than anyone."

Benny just played what he knew.

Is he, uh, no longer with us?

No, he's alive.

He lives here with me.

I take care of him.

He developed a rare skin condition.

Can no longer go in the sunlight.

Yeah. You see, I keep it quite dark in here.

- Damn. - Yeah.

He must get depressed.

It's not easy.

But who knows?

Maybe one day we'll get a great album out of it.

A masterpiece.

Yeah. Righteous, brother.

Uh, your, uh, your butler or whatever,

they, um, didn't bring the water yet.

Oh, I don't have a butler.

I just use this to remember things.

Finish that hat for Dionne Warwick.

Wash your hands, immediately.

Darius would like a glass of water

when you have a moment.

Right then.

Excuse me.

This...

Yeah, I can't sit next to this. Mm-mm.

Mm.

Uh-huh.

Oh.

- Oh! - Ooh!

What are you doing up here?

Uh, I-I just heard the piano.

It sounded great, so...

Shh, shh. Benny, he... he's sleeping.

He's very tired, um...

he needs his rest.

- You know? - Okay.

- Uh-huh. Okay. - Thank you.

Um, cool.

Do you... do you still want the water?

Oh... yeah.

I can bring it to you.

Downstairs.

Bottled or tap?

Uh... bottled, I guess.

Oh. Bottled.

I'll bring it... I have Fiji, and Evian.

I'll mix it with some Poland Springs.

Maybe a Voss?

Okay.

No, I'll see you downstairs.

But I just wanted to ask...

Okay.

Why the fuck you still there?

Look, man, I really, really want this piano, man.

It's nice.

There's colored keys. And it's free.

But is you willing to die for it, though, man?

I mean, he sound like a serial killer.

And let me get a five cheese Krystal combo, no fries.

It's cheaper with fries.

No fries.

That's rich nigga shit, man.

You don't know nothing about that.

Look, man, if I leave, I'll regret it.

And I got a two regret life limit pact.

Uh, wait, wait, wait, wait.

A what?

A two regret life limit pact.

Somebody got to take me out if I go over two.

What? How would anyone know you went over two regrets?

I'd tell them.

- Look... - Oh, shit.

Paper Boi!

I mean, the dude is obviously a weirdo, man.

Look, now just play along with it,

get the piano, get the hell up out.

Yeah, but how, though, man?

I feel like...

like he stalling or something.

Like he want to keep me here.

Explain it again, man.

Is Teddy the white dude or the black dude?

You know what? I don't even think Teddy exists, bro.

I feel like Benny created Teddy to make up for the fact

that he made himself look like a ghoul.

A ghoul?

I mean, how bad is it?

It's real bad, man.

I mean, bad.

The nigga look like somebody left Sammy Sosa in the dryer.

Sammy Sosa?

Yeah. Skin bleaching?

Look, have somebody type in, um,

"Sammy Sosa hat" in Google image search.

Hey, man, look, man.

Sometimes, people come over, they want a quarter,

and they feel like they can sit and chat and shit.

But other people, you know what I'm saying, like,

they want an eighth, they pay me, and they get the hell on.

- Can I take a flick? To Laurence. - Look, man...

- Say happy birthday, Laurence. - That's how I know

- that I'm simply a conduit... - This nigga gonna stunt on me