"Good morning, New York." "Scott Zoe here at 102. 7, WNEW-FM, where rock lives." "Beautiful autumn day in the city and a great record coming your way too." "Ben!" "Ben!" "Get up, get up, get up!" "Late, late, late!" "Come on, honey." "Get up." "We're seriously late." "You may think this is funny, but this is so not funny." "I'm not kidding anymore." "You make yourself appear right this instant." "The clock is ticking, Ben!" "Come on now!" "Anna?" "Oh good, you're already up." "You forgot to wash my shirt." "Today is purple shirt day at school." "I didn't forget." "Actually, I was up half the night thinking about it." "Yeah, right." "I concluded that you are too special to look like everyone else." "So, orangey-red." "That's your colour." "Few can carry it off." "Help me find your brother." "You lost Ben?" "I didn't lose Ben." "All right, Ben, fine." "You explain to your teacher why you're late." "Your daddy said he had an important case and had to go to work early." "And he left us here to be responsible" "Shit!" "You're so not funny." "Not funny." "You're also late, and that means get dressed right now!" "Stay." "No, stay." "Ben!" "Ben!" "This is not funny!" "We've got to get you dressed." "We're running so late." "This is not a game!" "Come on." "Help me out." "Come on!" "Really, we're so late." "But I don't want to go to school." "Mommy!" "Mommy!" "Hi, sweetie!" "You look like you're having such a good time." "But we're running a little late." "You're supposed to wear purple." "She forgot to wash it." "What a hug!" "I'll handle it from here, Isabel." "I'm sure you will, Jackie." "Oh, my gosh!" "She made you a lunch?" "Okay, come on." "Mom, why are we listening to this classical stuff?" "Because I like it, and I'm driving." "When you get a car, you can pick the music." "Why does Isabel wear Daddy's underpants?" "Doesn't she have her own?" "I saw a whopping pile of laundry sitting on the washing machine." "Perhaps her underpants are there." "Right next to my purple shirt." "I'm never speaking to her again." "Never say never." "Here's your vitamins." "She's always messing up my life." "It's not fair to say "always."" "I hate her." "She's such a witch." "No name-calling." "Use your words." "I hate when you say that." "That's a beginning." "" Hate" is an acceptable word." "Just be careful to use it only when you truly detest something." "Like what?" "Well, like Uranus." "I hate that." "It's a terrible name for a planet." "Uranus!" "And the hokey-pokey." "I hate it." "Putting your foot in and out at weddings." "It's terrible." "I hate when you do that!" "I can smell your breakfast." "Point well-taken." "Ladies, let's just calm down." "She'll be here." "Isabel, where are you?" "Come on." "Any word?" "She's on her way." "She's on her way." "I promise." "Oh, really?" "How do you know?" "I'm here!" "I'm sorry I'm late." "What a crisis!" "White pants, black top?" "And the white or black bra?" "And then I picked this...." "All righty." "I'm here." "I'm lame." "You got a Froot Loop in your hair." "Get me a digital camera right now." "Russell, get this out of here, please." "Come on, boys!" "Why is she shooting this?" "Isabel, we have been waiting for an hour." "I know." "I'm sorry." "It won't happen again." "Why are you shooting this?" "Because I'm brilliant." "And I see something you don't." "So stand back and trust me, why don't you?" "I trust you." "But why are you shooting the craft service guy when I've got 5 male models in expensive suits over here?" "Thank you, ladies." "Lovely." "That's a wrap, everybody!" "No, it's not a wrap!" "She's kidding." "You were kidding, aren't you?" "I'm not kidding." "And if you meet me here in an hour I will prove to you why you hired me even though I wouldn't sleep with you." "She's got such a great sense of humor." "Wait." "Let's see if I can save both our jobs." "Interesting." "Look at that." "Wow!" "It's the little guy in the suit." "What do you think?" "I like it." "I like it." "Good work." "I like it too." "Very creative." "Thank you." "Congratulations, Duncan." "That suit takes pounds off of him." "While change is exhilarating for an adult it can be quite a challenge for a child." "I won't get that." "It's fine." "Change." "You were talking about change." "The fact that you two are remarrying obviously has Anna overjoyed." "And she's excited about the move to Switzerland." "She said we are remarrying?" "My concern is that Anna seems apathetic towards her work knowing she's leaving before this semester." "Mrs." "Franklin, we are not" "No plans on getting...." "Remarried." "There's no move" "To Switzerland." "Really?" "Really." "Well, then, my concern for Anna is that she" "Are you here?" "I'm here." "You don't seem like you're here." "I'm here." "The judge is ruling on a motion that could make or break my case." "But have I answered my beeper?" "So turn it off." "I'm wondering if anything at home could be intensifying Anna's need to create this fantasy." "I've been seeing another woman." "He's seen a number of women." "But I've been seeing one woman for the past year." "After discussing it with her and the kids, she moved in last month." "She's half his age." "Isabel's not half my age." "We're not discussing your age." "When the children visit, they want to be with their father." "They want to be a part of my life." "Isabel's part of my life." "Mr. Harrison, I hear you talking about your life, your needs." "But are you in touch with what Anna needs?" "Anna needs a safe and loving home." "What I'm trying to give her." "That's what she already had." "I'd walk through fire for Anna." "Gladly." "Any day of the week." "Except Thursday, when Isabel forgot to pick them up." "Jackie, she was 5 minutes late, for chrissakes!" "She was 5 minutes late!" "I wonder if Anna could be responding to the hostility between your girlfriend and Mrs. Harrison." "Well, of course she's responding to it." "Do you think this is easy for us?" "Do you think it's easy for Jackie to see her kids looked after by another woman?" "Not to mention, a woman who really has no experience being a mother." "Of course Jackie's going to be irrational hostile defensive." "Thank you, Luke." "Why would I say you're getting back together?" "People make up stories about things they wish would happen." "Why would I want that to happen?" "Okay, pick a card." "Any card." "Because you're upset." "Because Isabel moved in and" "I'm not upset." "I won't get myself upset over her." "Tear it in half." "Look, sweetie." "If it means" "Again." "Again." "If you want" "And again." "Time out." "If you don't want to talk about this now, you don't have to." "But don't look at me and lie." "It hurts my feelings, I get angry...." "You're only allowed so many lies before it shows in your face and you wind up looking like...." "Like who?" "He's not President anymore, so why be petty?" "I'm sorry I said it." "I guess sometimes I just...." "Sometimes I do wish you and Daddy would...." "Well, you know." "I figured if I said it out loud, it just might come true." "Yeah, I know." "It's not that I can't cook." "It's that I choose not to cook." "There's a big difference." "You don't have to cook." "Could we save some of the wine?" "I need it for the sauce." "Too late." "Hi, honey." "You better get it." "Who's there?" "Nobody there." "I missed you today." "I missed you too." "I miss you every day." "How was your day, baby?" "It was pretty good, except I got to go back to Pittsburgh." "Yeah, I got to go tomorrow till Sunday." "But I'll have to order in." "Well, we got the kids for the weekend, so I figured that you and the kids and me could all go to Pittsburgh together." "Never going to happen." "No?" "Come on!" "We could get a great hotel room." "We could take in a baseball game or something." "What do you think?" "Pass." "All right." "Then I'll call the babysitter." "What for?" "Well, I don't expect you to handle them yourself." "What?" "Can't handle them myself." "That's what you mean, isn't it?" "No." "You don't trust me to be alone with your kids." "Yes, I do." "Of course I do." "It's just that" "What?" "They're a handful." "Luke, keeping me apart from them is like saying " Kids, this is fun." "Keep on hating her."" "They don't hate you." "Really?" "Look in their eyes." "Look in your ex-wife's eyes." "Jackie's just protecting her kids." "What do you expect?" "It's complicated." "You don't understand." "You don't have kids." "So it's just complicated for you and Jackie." "For me, it's pretty simple because I don't have kids." "I'm just trying to give you guys time to get used to living together." "All right then." "Back off just a little bit and give me a chance, okay?" "What is your problem, asshole?" "You are my problem!" "You're absolutely right, baby." "Your kids don't hate me." "I'm just paranoid." "Call your daughter." "I trust you." "Really?" "I'll give you a chance if you still want it." "I do." "Are you sure?" "Yes." "Okay." "Thank you." "You're welcome." "Don't fight with me when I'm hungry." "How long will you be out of town?" "Till Sunday morning." "I'm worried." "About what?" "About being alone with her all weekend." "What if she burns the place down?" "Just keep an eye on her and make sure the fire extinguisher's handy." "You ready to launch her?" "Let's give her a good push." "Why did she move in with you?" "Because we love each other and want to share our life together." "You already had a life with Mommy." "But Mommy and I weren't getting along very well." "And it wasn't fair to you guys, us fighting all the time." "I fight with Anna all the time." "Can I move out?" "No." "But you guys are brother and sister." "You were husband and wife." "Doesn't that mean something?" "It does." "When you get older your relationships get a lot more complicated." "All kinds of feelings are flying around." "And sometimes some of those feelings change." "But did you fall out of love with Mommy?" "Yeah." "I guess I did." "I still love your mom." "It became a different kind of love, that's all." "We're still really good friends, and we always will be." "Can you ever fall out of love with your kids?" "No." "That is impossible." "Like Mission.:" "lmpossible." "Exactly like Mission.:" "lmpossible." "Get over here." "Powdered lizard brains." "Crushed werewolf ears." "And vampire eyes." "God!" "Cool!" "Check it out." "Magic potion." "It's cocoa." "I put a spell on it." "Whoever drinks it will go to sleep for 1 000 years." "Whatever." "Spill any on my drawing I'll put you to sleep for 1 000 years." "You guys." "I have a surprise for you." "Come over to the sofa." "Please." "With a little enthusiasm." "Sit down." "All right." "And close your eyes." "Please." "Okay." "Okay, now." "Don't open them until I tell you to, okay?" "And open." "What do you think?" "Will he eat my bunny?" "Puppies don't eat bunnies." "What do you think?" "I'm allergic to dogs." "Your daddy didn't tell me that." "He doesn't know much about me." "He's never around." "Why don't we name the puppy?" "Puppy needs a name." "I know." "Isabel." "I beg your pardon?" "He smells like you." "And I'm allergic to you too." "It fits perfectly." "Why don't you name that puppy?" "I'll be right back." "Young lady, let's get one thing straight." "Don't touch my things!" "I would really like it if we could get along." "I don't have to listen to you." "Yes, you do." "No, I don't." "You're not my mother." "Thank God for that!" "What I meant, and perhaps I didn't say it well is you have a great mom." "You don't need another one." "But I would like to be treated with some respect when you are in this house." "It's my dad's house." "Well, it's my house too." "This is my room." "Treat it with respect and get out." "All right." "" Run, run, run as fast as you can." "You can't catch me, I'm the Stinky Cheese Man."" "Aren't you going to drink your cocoa?" "I made it especially for you." "Yes, of course." "The special cocoa." "Delicious." ""A little boy looked up and sniffed the air and said--"" "No, now you're cheating." "You skipped the part about the cow." "It's bedtime." "Can't we finish in the morning?" "No." "We have to start from the beginning and you have to read the whole thing." "I can't sleep otherwise." "Okay." ""Once upon a time there was a little old woman and a little old man...."" ""Who lived together in a little old house."" "You're onto something." "Why don't you read to me?" ""They were lonely." "So the little old lady decided to make a man out of stinky cheese." "She gave him a piece of bacon for a mouth and two olives for eyes...."" "Oh, my God!" "Oh, my God!" "Oh, my God!" "Oh, my God!" "Oh, my God!" "Oh, my God!" "Oh, my God!" "What's the matter?" "I killed her." "Killed her!" "Killed her!" "Killed her!" "Good morning." "It is 7:23." "You were supposed to be here at 6:30." "She missed her riding lesson." "It's Monday." "Her riding lesson's on Tuesday." "Except for the third Tuesday of the month, which switches to Monday." "And in November, when she rides on Thursdays." "It's not that difficult." "Don't you have an agenda book you can write all this down in?" "May I have a cup of coffee, please?" "We don't have coffee." "Good morning, Betty Ford." "Hey, monkey man." "Hi, sweetie." "How are you doing?" "Sweetie, go change your shirt." "What did you do to Anna?" "Could you just back off a bit?" "What happened?" "Nothing happened." "Luke was in the shower this morning and Anna sort of walked in without even knocking." "I don't see why that would upset her." "I mean, people in our family have taken showers before." "Well, I was in there with him." "And did either of you talk to her about it afterwards?" "No." "I thought it would be uncomfortable for her." "You mean for you." "A 1 2-year-old girl is coping with the fact that her father is never moving back in here with his family." "She sees her father naked with another woman for the first time and you think it would be better for her if everyone pretends nothing happened?" "I am so unbelievably sick of your imperious bullshit." "I'm not June fucking Cleaver." "Don't use that language." "If life hits her hard and you want to have a 1 2-hour conversation every third Tuesday of the month, go ahead, lady." "I have a life." "And I don't?" "Because I have children?" "Your problem is you are so self-involved you couldn't be a mother." "Maybe the problem here is your daughter." "And that she is a spoiled, wiseass little brat." "Get out of my house." "Get out." "Are you sure?" "I didn't see that on the schedule." "I've got your Halloween costume." "Let's see if it's the right size." "A hippie?" "Didn't you say you wanted to be a hippie?" "That was last month." "Okay, what do you want to be this month?" "Elvis." "Elvis." "What kind of Elvis?" "You mean, like, black leather jacket Elvis?" "Gold lamé Elvis." "Gold lamé Elvis." "That's pre-drugs, pre-chubby, pre-army, pre-bad movie all of that Elvis?" "Honey when Daddy was washing Isabel in the shower, what did you think that was about?" "Well, sex, of course." "Why does Isabel scream?" "Scream?" "During sex." "How do you know she screams?" "I live in the same country." "Why are you asking me?" "Just checking." "I like to talk to you about stuff." "I like talking to you about stuff too." "So since Daddy's working you want to do something on Saturday, just you and me?" "Sure, but it'll have to be in the evening." "I'm helping Bonnie Lyons move into her apartment." "So you're going to be with Isabel." "Again?" "That really sucks!" "You'll be at a professional photo shoot in Central Park." "You guys are going to have a lot of fun." "Switch your hands." "Top hand down, bottom hand up." "Dylan, can you take one step up?" "Just one big step." "Rapunzel, reach your hand out again." "Wouldn't it be cool if her hair came out of her armpits?" "Sick!" "I think we can get this finished before lunch." "We like this light." "We'll try and get this in before lunch." "Come on!" "It's been 5 hours." "We're hungry." "Yeah, we're starving." "Get yourself another ice cream." "And I'll be done soon." "I promise." "We're rich!" "Sleeping Beauty, wake up." "Where's your brother?" "I don't know." "What if he's kidnapped?" "He's not kidnapped!" "He's hiding!" "Maybe he's in the castle." "Good idea!" "Don't touch me!" "You bring bad luck." "Okay, watch very carefully." "Mommy!" "Hi, sweetie!" "Are you all right?" "I knew where I was." "We found him in the zoo." "In the zoo?" "My God!" "Hold his hand." "Don't let him out of your sight." "I am so sorry." "I'm going to say this one time, so listen carefully." "That woman is to have nothing more to do with my children." "Our children." "Do you realize what could've happened?" "How lucky we are the police found him, instead of some lunatic?" "Don't make it any worse." "Isabel feels terrible." "It could've happened to anyone." "Not to me!" "You've made mistakes." "People make mistakes." "I won't watch our children fall through the cracks of this arrangement." "Just calm down." "I won't calm down!" "I'm going to a lawyer!" "We promised we'd never do that." "We've broken a lot of promises." "Don't take this out on him." "It's my fault." "I'm so sorry." "But you're not making this easier on anybody." "It is not my job to make it easier for you." "My job is to care for the children, and they don't want to be with you!" "I'm getting a court order, and you will never be with these children again alone." "Do you understand?" "Ever!" "Mommy, it's not Isabel's fault that I ran away." "No, you're right." "That was your fault." "It's her fault for not taking care of my son as if it was a priority." "Which means, her most important job." "Isabel's job is she works." "Mommies work too." "They work very hard." "I work harder as a mommy than I ever did when I had an outside job." "Does Isabel make a lot of money?" "People who think only about themselves often do make a lot of money." "I think she's pretty." "If you like big teeth." "What, sweetie?" "If you want me to hate her, I will." "What do you want?" "Anna left her soccer stuff at the loft." "I figured she might need it." "Thanks." "Did you talk to the lawyer?" "I have an appointment for the day after tomorrow." "Don't do this." "You'll tell me not to put the kids in the middle of a war." "I'm doing this for their well-being." "Partly." "And partly you're doing it because you're mad." "You know the kids aren't in any real danger." "This is about Isabel and you know it." "She made one mistake, but she's trying." "She's learning." "Slugs have a faster learning curve." "Trees, clams...." "Give her some time, will you?" "Don't drive her away." "I'm supposed to care about her?" "You're supposed to care about me, like I care about you." "Like you cared about me when you walked out?" "You kicked me out!" "You were gone before I asked you to leave." "Don't give me this shit!" "I was working, for God's sake!" "I'm sorry." "Look, wait a second." "Please don't do this thing with the lawyers." "The kids will be okay if we're okay." "I'd do it for you." "Okay." "I'm going to give you one last chance." "Thanks." "Thanks." "Good night." "This is the one I like the best." "She's got a longing look." "She's great." "He couldn't be more flexed." "He's holding his breath." "C-1 4." "Don't you think this one is?" "The way he's leaning back?" "Kill that music, please." "That's passive." "This is dynamic." "He's going to get that girl." "You're the photographer." "You're the genius." "Anna's school is looking for Luke." "No, he's not here." "This is" "Are you sure you have the right kids?" "Because Jackie Harrison would never forget to pick up her kids." "Are you absolutely sure it's them?" "I'll be right there." "I will pick them up." "Thank you." "What?" "The clients will be here at 4:30." "I know, so I have to hurry." "Don't worry." "I'll be back." "And I will dazzle you with my punctuality." "To the button." "Isabel, don't do this!" "Hi, guys." "Barbecue." "I know they're your fave." "How could she just forget us?" "I mean...." "That's something you would do." "To tell you the truth I did." "Your mother had to help a friend with this emergency." "So she called me to switch days." "But I got caught up at work and just forgot all about you." "My little chick!" "How are you, sweetie?" "I'm sorry you got stuck." "Were you scared?" "You must be starving." "You hungry?" "You want a good meal?" "How'd you do on your math?" "Was it hard?" "Who is it?" "It's Jackie." "May I come in?" "Sure." "I have another appointment this afternoon, and I...." "I need somebody to take the children to the park." "And have federal agents jump from the bushes and serve me with a court order?" "What's the sentence for giving second-rate care to minors?" "Whatever it is, it's not enough." "I'm on thin ice already with my boss." "When I ran out yesterday, I thought he'd fire me." "I can get somebody else." "Wait." "God!" "I'll figure something out." "I'll do it." "After-school snack." "Refrigerate, if possible." "Band-Aids, Neosporin, hand-wipes, Kleenex, Tylenol." "Why not just bring the whole pharmacy?" "Ben likes to be read to." "You know Dr. Seuss?" "Not personally." "Do you have a word limit you have to hit every day, or may I finish?" "Here's their schedule, my beeper number in case of emergency." "If not, I'll see you at 5 o'clock at the park." "All I ask is that they are alive when I get there." "Jackie, I wanted to ask you something." "There's a Pearl Jam concert on the 5th." "I'd like to take Anna." "Is that a weekday?" "I think it's a Thursday." "You want to take a 1 2-year-old to a concert on a school night?" "I thought it would be something nice we could do together." "It's ridiculous." "She's too young." "It spread?" "But I did" "I did everything right." "Everything I was supposed to do." "We found some cells in your lymph nodes." "In three of them." "But you said last time that you got it all." "If you were wrong last time, you could be wrong" "The last time was a year ago." "We found a tiny lump, we treated it." "We thought we got it all." "We were hopeful, but there were no guarantees." "But people" "We can beat it." "I mean, people beat it all the time, right?" "Every day, more and more." "So what's the plan?" "What do we do?" "Another round of radiation?" "Chemotherapy." "That's necessary?" "Let's give it our best shot." "Right." "Okay." "I got to get the kids." "We'll discuss this at your next appointment." "You should share this with your kids and ex-husband." "How would their worrying make any difference?" "Sooner than later you need to." "Think about it." "I see her." "Thanks for coming." "You're welcome." "You look pretty." "Thanks." "Listen" "I'm glad you called." "I want to tell you something too." "You go first." "Let me have a drink here." "I'm going to ask Isabel to marry me." "I know you don't think much of her." "She's a special person." "She really is, Jackie." "Why are you telling me?" "I want your okay." "You don't need my approval." "The kids do." "Good evening." "Would you and your wife care to look at the menu?" "I'm not his wife." "No, thank you." "Give me a drink though, please." "Whatever this is." "I think it's going to be hard for the kids." "I was hoping we could tell them together." "And that'd make it easier for the kids?" "Or for you?" "You can't just decide to be a "we" and " us" whenever it's convenient." "We are" "We're over." "We are over." "We are still their parents for the next 1 00 years." "Why?" "Just tell me why you think this marriage is going to work and ours didn't." "What did you want to talk to me about?" "Nothing." "It's" "I think we have quite enough to deal with just with your news." "Good morning." "Good morning, baby." "I've got something for you." "You do?" "But you have to wake up to get it." "I'm awake." "You shouldn't have?" "The first time I got married we'd been together since college." "Marriage just seemed like the next step." "It was just something that happened." "But I think for two people to really love each other to really commit to each other it has to be an act of will." "Or a decision." "And I think two people have to live that decision every day." "Even when things are hard and you feel like giving up you have to hang on to that decision that choice to love each other." "Even if it's only by a thread." "I let that thread break once." "This time, it won't." "Will you marry me?" "Yes." "Yes, I will." "Sweetheart, don't get upset." "I'm not upset." "Why would I be upset?" "No one asked me when you got a divorce." "No one asked if I wanted a new mother." "No one even asked me if I liked her." "If you don't care about keeping our family together, why should I?" "Daddy and I tried very hard." "Really, we did." "No, you didn't!" "All you did was name-call." "I heard you." "You didn't even try to use real words." "Baby, Isabel's not going to take my place as your mom." "It's just that Isabel's going to be in your life and hopefully, you can learn to accept her." "Sweetheart." "Honey." "You know, life is full of hard things." "Sometimes it isn't fair." "But you have a choice." "You can either take the hard things and make your life better or you can make it worse." "Like how?" "Like trying to see the good side of Isabel and what she brings to your father's life." "And to yours." "There comes a time in every family when you've got to be there for each other." "I'll be there for you." "How about you, buddy?" "Yeah." "You'll be there?" "Damn it!" "What's the problem?" "Nothing." "It looks good." "I can't get the trees to look real." "Mind if I try?" "I already messed it up anyway." "Let's see." "First a little brush smooshing." ""Smooshing."" "Very technical term." "Cool!" "Where'd you learn how to do that?" "I took an art class when I was at NYU." "Why don't you give it a try?" "It helps if you make that little...." "Thanks." "You're welcome." "I was thinking about what you said about Isabel." "You know, seeing the good side of her." "And you're right." "She knows all about clothes and stuff." "And she knows every rock and roll song ever written." "She's like a kid herself." "Like a big sister." "She knows the cool junk food places." "I'll bet." "Once you get to know her, she's kind of cool." "But don't tell her I told you." "It's our secret." "Thanks." "Ben, wait up!" "Did you have a good day?" "You're lucky because you get to watch a tape." "I'm going out." "Colleen's baby-sitting." "Yeah!" "Cool!" "And you are wearing makeup." "Well, no." "Isabel gave it to me." "She put it on in the car, playing around." "You don't see that color in the afternoon, except on working girls." "Anyway, wash your face, because you and I are going out." "On a school night?" "Pearl Jam?" "!" "Mom, you are the coolest!" "You only live once, right?" "Isn't my mom the coolest?" "It was a great idea." "Thanks." "Have fun." "Chemotherapy." "There's a day's dose stored here." "This is a portable IV." "Feel it." "It's pretty light." "Nice and slim." "You can wear it everywhere, play tennis, jogging...." "You can hide it under your clothes." "That's cool." "Side effects?" "Some days you'll experience drowsiness, nausea and other days you'll feel perfectly fine." "Am I going to lose my hair?" "Maybe." "Maybe not." "It varies with each person." "Let's do it." "Good." "When?" "I'm available tomorrow evening." "Tomorrow's bad." "Spaghetti and meatball night." "Ben really looks forward" "Okay, tomorrow's good." "Fine." "Hi, honey." "How you doing?" "Mom, I've been waiting for your call." "You won't believe it." "What?" "I'm telepathetic." "You mean telepathic." "That's what I said." "I just discovered it today." "I can read minds." "No way." "I just tried it with Dad and Isabel, and guess what." "What?" "I always knew exactly what they were thinking." "That is incredible." "Want me to read yours?" "Absolutely." "Think real hard about something." "I'm thinking." "Close your eyes." "Concentrate." "I am concentrating." "You're thinking about me!" "That is amazing." "What else?" "You're wishing you were here instead of where you are." "That's for sure." "Where are you, anyway?" "I'm in bed, with the flu." "And I'm green and barfing." "I knew that." "You're wishing you were here making me spaghetti so I wouldn't have to eat Daddy's sucky lamb chop." "You're right about that." "See?" "I'm pathatelic." "Telepathic." "That's what I said." "When am I going to see you?" "Tomorrow after school." "I was wishing I'd see you tonight." "We'll have to have one of our dream dates and meet somewhere special." "In our dreams." "Where haven't we been in a while?" "How about Disneyland?" "Last time, the lines were too long." "The beach." "On a hot summer day." "With gigantic waves." "And boogie boards." "And corn dogs." "Awesome." "Cool!" "All right, don't forget to put on your sunblock, okay?" "It's a dream." "You don't need sunblock." "That's right." "I forgot." "Mommy, you still there?" "Ben?" "Time for dinner." "I got to go." "See you tonight, okay?" "All right." "I'll see you in my dreams." "I love you." "She doesn't have that killer instinct." "Defense, fall back!" "You feeling all right?" "Yeah, I'm fine." "I'm great." "You look a little tired." "I hate when people say that." "It's a polite way to say you look like shit." "I didn't mean it like that." "I just have some things on my mind." "You've been really busy lately." "Are you seeing somebody?" "No." "I wish that was the reason I was tired." "I've been spending time with my old boss trying to decide whether I'll go back to Random House." "Really?" "That would be great." "Oh, Ben." "Easy, easy, easy." "Ben, Ben, be careful." "You're a dead man, Captain Blood!" "That was cool." "Sweetie, can you move your leg?" "Does it hurt?" "Are you okay?" "Yeah." "Can I still go to Tucker's party tomorrow?" "Probably." "But we must have somebody look at it." "We'll go to the emergency room." "Five stitches." "Is he okay?" "He's fine." "He's not crying?" "Can I see my son now?" "I need your insurance information." "I'll do this." "He's in 1 52." "I don't see any broken bones." "You don't have any." "I'm very proud of you." "You were awfully brave today." "It didn't hurt that bad." "Besides, it'll be cool to show my friends." "Would you do me a favor?" "Maybe." "Depends what it is." "Will you ask Dad to give me a white dove for Christmas?" "We'll see." "Come on!" "Every magician needs a white dove." "A real one." "They do." "That's a long way off." "I think we should talk to your mom and just see, okay?" "Does it hurt again?" "Lay back." "Take a deep breath." "Will you sing me a song?" "My mom always sings to me when I get hurt." "Hard to think of a song on the spot." "If I needed you" "Would you come to me" "Would you come to me" "And ease my pain?" "If you needed me" "I would come to you" "I would swim the sea" "For to ease your pain" "Feel better?" "A little bit?" "It puts a girl on the spot." "Hi." "It's Jackie." "I just got a call from Random House." "They want me to meet an editor this afternoon." "But I won't get back in time to pick up Ben at Tucker's party." "Good." "Great." "Ben will be happy too." "That you'll pick him up." "It's 4:30." "At 22 Williams Road." "Great." "Thanks." "How hard can this be?" "It's going to be okay." "Directory assistance." "What city?" "Manhattan." "What listing?" "The number for Random House." "May I speak with Jackie Harrison?" "Mrs. Harrison's not here." "She has a meeting with the editor." "I'm picking up Benjamin from a party and I lost the address." "I need to speak to her a second." "I'm the senior editor." "I haven't seen Mrs. Harrison since she left Random House  eleven years ago." "Okay." "Thanks anyway." "Balloons." "I beg your pardon?" "Look for a house with balloons." "It never fails." "The kids will be there." "Thanks very much." "Look at you." "Come here." "Can you see me?" "You had a good time?" "Let's clean your shirt." "How was Tucker's party?" "Good." "Did he like the present?" "Yeah." "Did they have the snake guy or the magician?" "Snake guy." "It bit Tucker." "It bit Tucker?" "Did it eat him?" "Did you have trouble finding the place?" "No." "Well, thanks." "I know your secret." "I saw the tickets and note from your new boss." "You're not working at Random House in New York." "I talked to them." "You're taking the kids and moving to Los Angeles." "What the hell are you doing, reading my mail?" "Snooping around like some little dishonest" "Dishonest?" "!" "I wouldn't have to snoop around if you were honest with Luke." "I'd have thought this answered your prayers." "You lose the witch and her two little brats in one swoop." "Simplifies everything." "You get your life back." "There's lots of publishing houses." "Surely you can get a job in New York." "I'm supposed to rearrange my life to accommodate your schedules?" "If you're concerned, why don't you get a new career?" "Why don't you and Luke move to Los Angeles?" "You can rearrange everyone's life without consulting us." "Bi-coastal parenting." "People do it all the time." "Luke gets the kids one month during the summer and every other holiday." "It's not ideal but it works." "No, you can't do that." "You can't take the kids away from him." "We can't live like that!" "We?" "!" "Luke has a problem, tell him to talk to me." "This is not about you." "This is not your problem." "It is my problem." "Why's that?" "Because I'm marrying him." "We're going to share our life together." "I love him." "His kids are everything to him, and he would be devastated not to be near them." "You guessed the wrong secret." "Charlie Drummond is a colleague of mine from Random House in New York." "She moved to the West Coast office." "I'll crash with her while I get protein injections that are recommended by my oncologist." "You can only get them in Los Angeles." "Oncologist?" "Life's a tradeoff." "It's finally legal to smoke dope, but you got to have cancer." "Are you dying?" "Not today." "We'll beat it." "It's a walk in the park." "Thanks for the "we."" "You're not alone in this, you know." "You don't have to go through this alone." "You know that." "You understand what I'm saying?" "What will we tell the kids?" "We should tell them the truth." "They can handle it." "It should've been me instead of you." "I'll go along with that." "Look out." "You didn't see." "Gotcha!" "Did he beat you?" "Here, 35 marshmallows." "35." "Your sister put them in." "What's going on?" "Who's marrying who this time?" "Mommy's marrying Isabel." "So cute." "Guys, Mommy's sick." "You still have the flu?" "I have cancer." "Do you know what that is?" "It's what Aunt Mary died from." "Aunt Mary had a different kind." "There's different kinds." "Hers was very very bad." "Is yours bad?" "I've been working with a doctor and she says we have every reason to hope that I'm going to be fine." "Check this out." "Look at this." "So cool." "It's okay." "Look at this." "I don't have to go to the hospital for medicine." "It looks like Game Boy." "It kind of is." "It'll make me strong, so I can fight the disease." "Cool." "Can I catch cancer?" "No, sweetie." "It's not contagious." "So you've known about this for a long time." "Yeah." "And you never told me." "Sweetheart your mom wanted to wait until the right time." "Guys, I'm sorry." "Look, I just...." "I know how scared I get when you're sick." "I thought it would be best to wait until it got smaller." "So you lied." "You lied when you never told me." "Maybe you're lying now." "I can never believe you again!" "I made a mistake." "People make mistakes." "Where's Isabel?" "What?" "It's Thursday." "She should've picked us up." "I'd rather be with Mommy." "Well, she's dying." "Isabel's your mother now." "Don't say that." "Don't run out on your mother." "No, that's your job." "I'm sorry you're sick." "What?" "I said I'm sorry you're sick." "I can't hear you." "Turn down the music!" "What?" "I said I'm sorry you're sick." "That's what I thought you said." "So what are you guys doing?" "Marvin and I are getting our act together, right?" "Right, Tammi." "That's one of Isabel's songs." "Isabel might know the words, babe, but I invented the moves." "Right, Marvin?" "Right, Tammi." "In fact we're looking for somebody to do backup with us." "Right, Marvin?" "Yeah, Tammi!" "Oh, my God!" "Cool!" "Sing it!" "This land is your land" "This land is my land" "From California" "To the New York islands" "From the redwood forests" "To the Gulf Stream waters" "This land was made for you and me" "As I was walking That ribbon of highway" "I saw above me" "That endless skyway" "I saw below me" "That golden valley" "This land was made For you and me" "You look great!" "Your dad's meeting's running late so I came to watch." "I have to tell you something." "You're having Michael Jackson's baby." "That, and Anna is over her head for Brad "The Flame" Kovitsky." "No way!" "I can't believe she would...." "After how he was with all the girls in class!" "I didn't know anything about this." "She was afraid you'd make a big deal." "They've been going out for 2 weeks." "Which, in the 6th grade, doesn't mean anything." "They don't "go" anywhere." "It's just their declaration" "I know." "I had kids of my own once." "Anyway, today, in the lunchyard he announces publicly that he's breaking up with her." "In front of everybody?" "That little shit!" "Not you." "Just go." "That's the point of going out." "So one of them can dump the other and they can act out this passionate adult soap opera tragedy." "She must be devastated." "She cried in the girls' room." "You think you've got problems." "This is serious." "So, my point." "I pick her up from school." "She tells me the whole story and asks me what to do." "What did you say?" "" Beats me." "Ask your mom."" "So she's going to." "Tomorrow." "Be ready." "I'm ready." "I'm ready." "What is this?" "Thanksgiving dinner." "These are the Clintons." "We're having dinner." "That is my son the turkey." "Did they...?" "Yeah." "They killed him." "But he does it so great." "But did you really think, at 1 2 you'd meet someone you'd want to spend your life with?" "No." "Every time I'm on the lunchyard and he's with 1 0 of his butt-kissing little weasels" "You don't like his friends." "They yell, "There goes the Virgin Queen" or "The lce Princess"  or some clever cut like that." "Like it hurts me." "You didn't let him kiss you." "Not with my mouth open." "That's my girl." "Good for you." "Does that mean you let him kiss you with your mouth shut?" "Sorry." "Okay." "Right." "What do you say to him when he says something like that?" "I call him a fart-face or a pervert or something equally lame." "Sweetheart, you have to just ignore him." "He doesn't exist." "You don't see him, you don't hear him." "He's just nothing." "He's not there." "You are too much of a woman to even bother with such a little boy as him." "You're kidding." "No." "I mean, all he wants is the attention." "Once he doesn't get it, he might try harder but then he'll get frustrated and give up." "So I ignore him." "Keep my mouth shut." "You think Isabel would do that?" "It's just, she's younger." "Maybe she remembers how to do this." "So this will work?" "Sweetie." "What's wrong?" "Nothing." "Is it time for you to go to L.A.?" "No, it's still nighttime." "And it's snowing." "I got a babysitter for Ben." "Do you want to go someplace special with me?" "Right now?" "Yes." "Okay." "Just you and me." "I'm never going to forget this." "Never say never." "Well there's a loophole." "You can say " never, never"  if you mean it enough to say it twice." "I'll remember always, always." "Promise, promise?" "Move that carriage to the end of the street and start again." "Everybody keep moving." "Go back to the starting point." "1 :45." "Want a lens?" "Thanks, everybody!" "That's a wrap!" "Thank you for a great day, folks." "It's 1 :45." "I told you, I have to pick up Anna and Benjamin." "You have to finish." "I've got it in the can." "Coop can wrap the equipment." "This is my star account." "These clients need choices." "They need variety." "I shot it 20 different angles." "They'll have variety." "Trust me." "I don't." "What are you saying?" "I'm saying that you're the best I've got." "Probably the best I've ever worked with." "But these last couple of months, your work is slipping." "It's still fine, but you've lost your edge." "Your focus." "Your dedication." "And your attitude is very disappointing." "You're making a career decision here." "If you walk now, I'll have to let you go." "I'm sorry you feel that way." "Damn." "It's okay." "Don't worry." "It's going to be fine." "Hey, guys." "Sorry I'm late." "Why don't you go sit in the car, buddy?" "Don't drive away." "I won't." "What happened?" "You know that boy I was telling you about, Brad Kovitsky?" "He's been a real jerk lately, and my mom told me to ignore him." "So today I did." "You know what he called me?" "He called me " Frosty the Snow-bitch." ln front of everyone." "Men can be scum." "Yes, they can." "Is that little bastard here?" "I'll kick his ass." "No, his mother's always on time." "I have an idea." "No, thanks." "I don't need advice from a stepmother." "I can see how sitting out here in the cold and snow, crying seems like a far superior idea to listening to a stepmother." "But for kicks, let's lose the title." "Seems to me you have a choice:" "You can pretend to be an adult or you can actually be one." "So sit here in the cold, crying by yourself or do something about it together." "Crying." "Do something." "What's it going to be?" "Do something." "Can we start by covering up my stepmother wart?" "Because it must be showing." "Punk." "It's cold." "Let's go." "Benjamin will drive us home." "Okay, come on!" "Come on!" "Come on!" "Next week, after school you walk up to him with attitude." "You hear me?" "And you say:" "" Listen up, limp-dick because I'll only say this once:" "As far as your pitiful knowledge of what a woman really wants goes I am not going to waste my time with some loser who doesn't even know what snowblowing is."" "What is it?" "It's a disgusting and not even remotely sexy thing I heard described in a movie I'd never take you to." "But it is real." "Now the clincher:" "You walk away then you whip around and say:" ""The guy I see is in high school and it has to be said he laughs his ass off whenever we talk about you."" "I don't know anyone in high school." "There will be a suitable boy outside your school on Monday at 2:30 with a very expensive bike." "And he will be a stone fox, even if I have to call an escort service." "I've had the worst day." "Until now." "Me too." "United Airlines announces the arrival of Flight 86 service from Los Angeles." "Deplaning passengers may be met at gate number 12." "I'll get your bags." "The taxis are just over there." "Surprise!" "Why is she in a wheelchair?" "She's traveled a long way." "She's tired." "Give her a hug." "Be gentle." "Look at this guy." "Let's go home." "Welcome back." "Thanks." "What a great surprise." "Hey, let me out!" "Your brother's got to get out." "Sorry." "I'm in the family too, you know." "What's up?" "We have a surprise for you." "No way." "What is it?" "We can't tell you." "It's a surprise." "Come on, tell me." "Ben, tell me." "No way!" "Come on." "Tell me." "No way." "Close your eyes." "Step." "You're almost there." "Don't open your eyes." "Just a little peek?" "Gosh!" "Come in!" "Come in!" "All right, ready?" "One, two, three open!" "Isn't it great?" "Isabel did it." "I'm working on a Christmas project for Ben and Anna and there aren't any recent photos of me with the kids." "I was just wondering if you'd take some." "Sure." "Love to." "Thanks." "Hey, guys, wait up." "Wait up for me!" "Stop there for a second." "Great!" "Perfect." "Benjamin, that's a dazzling display of horsemanship." "Come on, you lazy horse, get up!" ""One day, five men came in funny hats to pick the biggest, fastest, roughest bull to fight in the bullfights in Madrid."" "Hi, Mom!" "Are you okay?" "There we go." "Almost." "Well, almost not falling." "That was the first time he fell." "Awesome fall." "Are you going to try it again?" "One over here." "Everybody." "Cheese!" "Are you going back?" "More?" "All right!" "Go for it." "I'm watching." "Ben was born in 2 hours, went to the breast and camped there for the next four days." "Always with this mischievous look on his face." "Like he had a secret or something." "And his blanket always looked like a cape." "Even the nurses said so." "He loves hearing that story over and over." "About how he was born a magician." "And her?" "Twenty-eight hours." "The doctors wanted to go in and get her." "But I knew she'd come in her own time." "That's just the way she is." "Can't let anybody rush her." "I'll keep that in mind." "It didn't work, did it?" "I'm sorry." "You did everything you could." "There are still options." "There's a treatment in Paris, one in Switzerland, both recommended" "Thanks, but I think I want to spend my time at home with my family." "Christmas will be here before you know it." "I thought you might need one of these." "I do." "It looks great." "A little more." "A little more." "Okay." "I think that's fine." "Stop." "Perfect." "Smells great too." "Thanks." "What are we supposed to do without you?" "You'll be fine." "You're a great father." "I just never really...." "I didn't give you the chance to realize it." "Thank you." "Merry Christmas." "As for your pitiful knowledge of what a woman really wants I'm not wasting my time on some loser who doesn't even know what snowblowing is." "Good one." "And the guy I see is in high school, and it has to be said that every time we talk about you, he laughs his ass off." "Yeah, right." "You don't believe me?" "He's standing right over there." "No way." "Well, believe it." "You rule, Anna!" "You rule!" "You blew it!" "Loser!" "What are you doing here?" "Picking up my kids from school." "Who is that?" "He looks like that guy in his underwear for Calvin Klein." "Fully dressed for Ralph Lauren." "He's such a loser!" "Moron!" "It worked, it worked, it worked!" "Did you see the look on Brad's face?" "Thank you so much!" "Okay. "Limp-dick" I know." "What exactly is "snowblowing"?" "It doesn't matter." "I didn't explain it." "But I'll have to explain it to the 20 or 30 parents who call in the next half-hour." "Give them my number." "I think they'll want to talk to Anna's mother." "What are you worried about?" "Looking bad at the PTA?" "You defend what you did?" "Right to the ground." "You put filth in my child's mouth." "You had her lie about that model." "And it worked like a charm." "And you became a hero, and I became I schmuck." "Basically, you taught my child that I am a loser who doesn't care about her pain." "That's not what I tried to do." "That's what you did." "Did you think I didn't have some dirty words for that little putz?" "That I couldn't figure out some low blows?" "You weren't passing them out." "I believe, in a crisis, you have an opportunity to learn something." "That's deep." "It was a lie." "Winning without dignity or grace is not winning." "She has to figure out who she is, so she can stand up to peer pressure and steer her own course." "She wasn't steering her own course." "She was steering yours." "That's what parenting is all about, little girl." "They are pleading for you to tell them how to do the right thing." "Sure as hell, that's what you've done." "The next time something happens, and the stakes are high she'll look back and remember how easy it was and how good it felt." "And she'll stand up for herself." "Dear God, what have I done?" "You have turned her into you." "That's what this is about." "That's all it's about." "How would you know what this is about?" "You haven't been here from the beginning worrying every day that the decisions you're making will shape the people they're going to be." "And you are not what I want my children to be." "I don't want that, either." "This isn't about me or you." "It's about them." "And believe it or not, I am trying." "And I do have their very best interests at heart." "Would you like a drink?" "Patrón, please." "Double." "What's up?" "Last year, I lost Ben." "What?" "In the supermarket." "You're lying." "It's true." "That's impossible." "You could never lose that kid for one second." "I did." "Ben never mentioned it." "He just remembers I found him." "Why didn't you tell me?" "You know why." "I never wanted to be a mom." "Well, sharing it with you is one thing." "Carrying it alone the rest of my life always being compared to you...." "You're perfect." "They worship you." "I just don't want to be looking over my shoulder for 20 years knowing that someone else would've done it right." "Done it better." "The way that I can't." "What do I have that you don't?" "You're Mother Earth incarnate." "You're hip and fresh." "You ride with Anna." "You'll learn." "You know every story." "Every wound." "Every memory." "Their whole life's happiness is wrapped up in you." "Every single moment." "Don't you get it?" "Look down the road to her wedding." "I'm in a room alone with her." "Fitting her veil." "Fluffing her dress." "Telling her no woman has ever looked that beautiful." "And my fear is that she'll be thinking:" "" I wish my mom was here."" "And mine is she won't." "But the truth is she doesn't have to choose." "She can have us both." "Love us both." "And she will be a better person because of me and because of you." "I have their past and you can have their future." "Guys, it's Christmas!" "Wake up!" "I hope there's a white dove." "There has to be a white dove." "Hark, I hear the gentle sounds of Benjamin." "We better get out there before he opens all the presents." "Have a little patience." "Can I open my presents now?" "Your mom wants you to go upstairs and open presents with her first." "Then we'll open presents down here, okay?" "Okay." "Me first." "Merry Christmas." "Sweetie, I think this has your name on it." "A real magician's cape." "Awesome!" "Come here, I'll help you with it." "What does it have all over it?" "Could you see?" "Pictures of me and you." "And this one right here?" "See that one?" "That's our first official photo of you and me as a couple." "See that?" "Did you know I was good-looking right away?" "Everybody in the hospital talked about it." "Are you kidding?" "But this good-looking was beyond my imagination." "Are you dying?" "What do you think?" "Yes." "Then I won't see you anymore." "Well, you won't see my body, but...." "You know how a caterpillar becomes something else?" "A butterfly." "You just have to think of me as off flying somewhere." "And, of course, the magician knows the secret that just because you don't see something doesn't mean it's not there." "So even though it might seem like I'm gone the magician knows better." "So where will you be?" "Right here." "Right here, inside the magician." "Can I talk to you when you're there?" "Always." "You won't hear my voice but deep inside you'll know what I'm saying." "It's not good enough." "Of course it isn't, because it isn't everything." "And we want everything, don't we?" "But we still have one thing." "One of our greatest things we'll always have." "You know what that is?" "Our dreams." "We can still meet in our dreams." "We can talk to each other there and go for walks together in the summer and in the winter, and in the rain and in the sun and I can come and pick you up and we can go flying." "Nobody's loved you like I do." "Nobody ever will." "I brought you some tea." "Merry Christmas, baby." "Merry Christmas." "Look what Mom made me." "I'll go show Dad and Isabel." "Here." "Thank you, sweetheart." "Will you make sure Dad knows how to double-knot my sneakers for school in the morning?" "Yes." "Thanks." "That's yours." "It's a quilt." "And it has our pictures on it." "Put it here." "It's like a scrapbook you can keep warm with." "It's so beautiful." "I've never seen anything like it." "See the horse?" "And your medals that you got?" "Remember this dress you wouldn't take off in Pre-K for 3 weeks?" "Remember that?" "Your first step." "Look at your foot." "Look at that little chubby-cheeked thing." "Look at you." "Are you scared?" "A little." "Mostly, I was scared for you but I'm not anymore because I know you'll be okay." "I don't want to say goodbye." "I'm going to miss you so much." "It's okay." "My sweetie." "It's okay." "It's okay to miss me." "It's okay." "You can miss me and you can take me with you." "You can." "And when you're in trouble I'll be there." "When you fall in love, I'll be there." "You can." "I mean, that's how people go on forever." "Because somebody takes them along." "On your graduation and your wedding and when you have your babies." "Take me along, will you?" "Always, always and always." "You have made my life so wonderful." "Take that with you too, okay?" "Wow, Mom!" "It's so cool!" "See what you got there, Ben." "What's the matter?" "You look disappointed." "No, everything is great, Mom." "I love my presents." "Hey, guys!" "Looks like we forgot one." "It's got your name on it, buddy." "Abracadabra!" "What a beautiful cage." "It's empty." "Let's try it again." "I think maybe this time you should say the magic words." "Abracadabra!" "Allakazam!" "Allakazoom." "Boom!" "It worked!" "Why doesn't everybody get on the sofa for a picture?" "Baby, can you put that birdcage on the floor?" "And I'll set up here." "On the count of 3, I want to see big Christmas smiles." "One two three." "Excellent." "Good one." "Now let's get one with the whole family." "Okay." "Let me just reset this." "Get ready."