So Sue Me: A Love Song straight from Maxie B's Heart

It was unexpected, horribly unexpected. Max Jay Bailystock had woken up this morning, simply a man; a man made entirely out of selfish prospects and childish manors. Yet as Max Bailystock, the greatest producer the stage of Broadway had seen this side of New York got dressed in his usual self-absorbed attire, brushed his teeth for the tenth time that morning just to make sure his breath would not disgust or offend the beautiful women he would possibly be kissing today; and last but not least sleeked back his greatly receding hairline for good measure did not expect and could not guard himself against what would happen to him that fateful day.

Max walked into the theatre, well more or less strutted into the theatre with an over confident air swelling up about him; and as he joined his counterpart Mr. Leo John Bloom at the edge of the massive stage Mr. Bailystock was in for a great surprise.

"Good morning Max." Leo said turning to his partner and sticking out his hand in his usual casually greeting.

"Morning." Max replied in a less then cordial manor.

"God how he hated when Leo did that. They had been friends for god knows how long and Leo still insisted on shaking his hand like that!...Oh well, at least he wasn't shouting at him and calling him fat. Max may not have liked how Leo greeted him every morning but he would take what he could get.

"So who have we got?" Max asked blandly, and looking at the clipboard Leo handed him.

"Miss. Haddasha Goponenkov."

"Hoddeshana Gopnonnonsov-What!"

"It's pronounced Ha-da-sha Gop-on-in-kov."

Casting his eyes upwards Max found an average looking, rather short women with Dark blue eyes and short curly hair staring back at him.

"Haddasha is the Hebrew name for Esther; and Goponenkov is Slovak."

"Max meet Miss Goponenkov, Miss Goponenkov meet Max Bailystock; Broadway producer, my partner and my friend."Leo said this all with a simple exchange of hand gestures towards each person in their due turn.

"Please to meet you Mr. Bailystock." Haddasha said politely bending down to shake Max's hand.

"So when do we get started?" Haddasha asked turning towards Leo.

"Well what do you think Max?" Leo asked friend turning towards him in turn.

Max however was not listening, he was simply listening to the greatly quickened pace of his heart as it began to fall into the long, thick and unforgivable abyss of Love.

"Max? Max?" Leo extended his hand and tapped his friend lightly on the shoulder.

"Wait-What-Oh yes, now would be fine." Max said hastily hoping neither Leo nor Miss Gop, Gop,-whatever her last name was noticed anything.

"Great, well Miss Goponenkov, if you would kindly fallow me." Leo asked motioning towards stage right.

From then on, Max spent most of the day in a haze, not really paying attention to anything around him; Well anything except for Esther.

"So, Miss Goponenov if you could just read this for me." Leo asked the women handing her a piece of paper.

Max had been lagging behind the whole time, absentmindedly acting as if he truly cared; and tried to observe Esther without really being noticed. This was a strange circumstance Max had found himself in, he felt like the main character in one of his musical's stuck in between, personal gratification of selfish reasoning and on the verge of singing his own loan and inescapable love song.

Max rarely ever had a song from his past productions fill his head so fully as this one did now; and though he tried not to think about it Max found himself only falling deeper into its clutches.

"Mmm. M. M. M. M. M. Mm. M. Mmmmm."

At first he just hummed it, but soon the words just began to roll off of his tongue and out of his mouth.

You're all the time right, and I'm all the time wrong, You're Characters right and My Chacracters wrong…"

Max was now leaning up against the wall closest to the stages curtain on the left side.

"Your brow is so high and my brow is so low, well brow shmow I'm close to you now…"

Max took a look at Esther.

"And all I can tell you is…"

"Oh" Max said this last word catching his dipping forehead in his right hand and shook his head slightly.

"That was great Miss Goponenkov, now if you would fallow me once again." Leo said smiling at the women and began to walk towards the theatres backstage.

"Coming Max?" Leo called back to his friend.

"Yeah" Max retorted quickly.

Max walked slowly and at a great deal farther behind them and continued to sing.

"Go sue me, sue me, what can you do me, I love you."

Max's chest tightened as these words but he kept on singing.

"Give a holler and hate me…"

"HATE ME!" Max bit to himself spinning around and the nearest wall with a closed fist.

"Go ahead Hate me." Max slowly turned back around and looked painfully at Esther.

"I Love you."

Haddasha smiled at Leo as she was brought up to the dressing room and shown the mirror. Max was leaning up against the staircase wall looking on impishly as Leo turned the lights on and off playfully while Ether laughed heartily. Feeling a sudden rise of irritation and misfortune Max nearly cried out the next few lines.

"Alright already I'm just a no good nick, alright already it's true, so new. So sue me, sue me, what can you do me…"

Esther glanced back at Max and smiled cheerfully.

"I love you." Max whispered smiling back at her barely.

Turning away and heading back down the stairs with Esther and Leo's laughter scratching at mind behind him Max stopped at the very end of the staircase and placing his closed fists on the wall before him began to sing again.

"Serve a paper and sue me…"

Max 's head lightly thudded as he laid his forehead up against the wall.

"Sue me what can you do me…"

Max groaned and pushed off of the wall with his arms and faced both Leo and Esther as they came carefully down the stairs.

"I love you."

"Give a holler and hate me…" Max turned both his body a face to the side as the two of them began to pass him; yet not to pass him to quickly so he could not sing.

"Hate Me."

Very quietly as the finally did pass him and headed out around the dressing room corner. Not looking where they head gone Max spit out the next few words with such a contempt for himself that he nearly became sick by them.

"Hate me, Hate me, Go ahead, Hate me."

Max turned and looked after where they had just been longingly.

"I love you."

"Alright already I'm strictly a Goniph." Max turned back around and slammed his head into the wall.

"Go the call the police babe." Max sighed heavily and swallowed thickly.

"Alright Already!" Max nearly shouted twisting back around and stomping his right foot while grabbing the sides of his head and shaking.

Max was so in his own world of self-hatred, surprise and all together confusing that he neglected to see Miss Goponenkov coming back around the corner with Mr. Bloom at hand and standing still, while watching the performance and feeling her own love song from year's forgotten Broadway musical coming flooding back to her.

"It's true too, true…." Max relaxed his muscles and let his hands fall limply to his sides.

"I L" Max was cut off by a sweet yet strong voice.

Turning his head Max found Ether walking towards him.

"I Love…."

Max was astonished to speechless, she was singing with him! And the song he surly knew couldn't know! Could she!"

"I Love…" She was standing right before him now smiling so sweetly and looking at him with those eyes of hers.

There, in that moment with the women he had only just met; and the way she was looking at him, Max Bailystock of all people and the way she was singing to him, HIS Song! With that he found the breath and power to finish.

"I Love You."

They sang it in unison, perfect unison; and as Esther reached for him, her finger tips just barely touching his clothes, Max spoke.

"H-Es-"

Chuckling lightly Haddasha placed her hands atop Max's face; and as she leaned in for a kiss replied.

"You can call me Esther or Essie, it's your choice." Haddasha said tilting her head a little to her right.

"And you can Call me Maxie" Max said drawing his fingers slowly into Haddasha's hair and smiling lovingly.

"But I think I'll just call you Haddasha Goponenkov, for now."

Haddasha's eyes widened greatly at Max's pronunciation of her name. But then smiled grandly.

"But I'm still going to call you Maxie." Haddasha retorted leaning closer.

Max laughed lightly before kiss her softly on the lips.