" You're off today." " Aren't you paid to be more precise?" " Sorry kid it's all I got." " How was my tempo?" "It's good." " Finger independence?" " On the money." " Strength?" "Agility?" "Forearm rotation?" " It's not your technique." "You're not letting yourself go." "You're letting the piece lead you." "Would you let a car drive you or would you drive the car?" "Neither." "I'm 15." "Let's try another one." "Schubert's "lmpromptu No. 3 Opus 90." I don't know that one." "That's cool." "You now have another 10 seconds to look at it." " Why do I only have...?" " Ten nine eight seven six..." " Dude you're freaking me out." "...five four three two one." "Good." "Now play the first page." " I can't." " Yes you can Ephram." "You're worried about getting it right and I don't want you to." "Now close your eyes see the page in your mind and play what you see." "Whatever you say Obi-Wan." "I'm trying to talk to you." "I'm trying to tell you..." "You're never home." "And when you are you don't notice me." " You don't notice any of us." " The kids are home." "They can hear us." "I don't register on your radar screen." "You tell me what I'm supposed to do." " What do you want from me?" "!" " I don't wanna live like this anymore." " I just can't." " Then leave me damn it!" "Take the kids and leave!" "I don't wanna leave you!" "You know that!" "I just want you to talk to me Andy!" "Andy please come out." "You played the whole thing." "I was wrong." "I do know this one." "You have the perfect lips." "They're so soft and kissable." "I do?" "Yeah but you have the best eyes." "No way." "You have perfectly colored eyes." "They match your face." " My eyes match my face?" " You know what I mean." "God I can't believe you were gone for 10 days." "Did I mention how glad I am that you're back?" "Not really." "Oh my God they're back." "Yeah well..." " Hi." " Hello." "How was the movie?" "Popcorn was stale." "We got stuck in the third row." "Some dimwit spilled a gallon of Mountain Dew all over..." "Actually it was very entertaining." "Only I wish someone would tell that Renée Zellweger to stop losing weight." " And what have you two been watching?" " Well just you know flipping." " Yeah there's really nothing on." " Nothing good." "I mean nothing good." "It's about time to be heading home." "It's getting pretty late." " My dad's gonna pick me up any minute." " Oh all right." "You kids enjoy your commercials." "We'll head for bed." "Or perhaps we'll join you." "I hear there's a wonderful new Gap campaign." "Maybe if we keep flipping we can catch it." "Come on Harold." " Good night." " Good night." "Night." "I think we pulled it off." " Parents are so clueless." " Yep." " You okay?" " Yeah." "I'm just a little..." "I think I'm gonna use your bathroom for a second." " Do you want me to get you anything?" " That's okay." "I'll be right back." "When do you leave again?" "End of the week." "We'll only be in New York a couple days." " There shouldn't be much mail." " Oh no it's no problem." "This will probably make me sound stupid but I have no idea what an unveiling is." "An unveiling is a Jewish custom." "A year after someone passes away family and friends gather around the gravesite to see the headstone get unveiled." "In Jewish beliefs when someone dies the immediate family says Kaddish that's the mourner's prayer three times a day every day for an entire year." "After that year is up they believe that the soul has reached heaven." "So when you unveil the stone it signifies that person is now resting in peace." "Wow." "I'm impressed Andy." " Did you minor in religious studies?" " He was on the Internet all day." " Where are you going?" " Eating in my room if that's okay." "Sure." " He's having a rough time with this trip?" " Maybe." "Feels like something else though." "He's barely looked at me all week." "It's like he slipped back into Ephram five months ago." " That Ephram was so unpleasant." " Go easy on him." " I'm sure he'll be better once this is over." " Let's hope." " Dad?" " Yes honey?" "What do you wear to an unveiling?" "You have to dunk the cookies Dad." "That's the whole point." " Wanna share?" " No thanks." "You do realize that's just battery acid for your insides eating away at your intestines?" "So things seem to be working out with you and Colin?" "Definitely." " So glad I asked." " It just feels like us again you know?" "I mean the way I remembered us only better." "More adult or something." "Before I thought I was in love with him but that was just me pretending." "But now I feel it and he feels it." "And I know he feels it..." " Amy." " Yeah?" "Perhaps we should continue this conversation when you're 30." "Okay." " Good night Dad." " Good night." "Dad?" " When's he gonna be well again?" " What do you mean honey?" "Colin's doing great better than anyone thought he would but I just hate to see him go through the side effects of the surgery." "What side effects?" "Like the normal stuff throwing up..." "Not like he does that a lot but..." "I'm sure it's the stress of everything." "I wouldn't worry about it." "Dr. Brown and the Denver team they're watching him like a hawk." "God I feel so much better now." "I think I'll actually sleep." "With all that caffeine in your system good luck." "Please." "This is like nothing." "Hey." "The point of knocking is totally eliminated when you don't wait for a response." "I just wanted to say that I know this week is gonna be very hard for you." "It's gonna be hard for all of us." "And it's okay to be in a bad mood." "Okay then." "I thought since we all screwed up on this three-times-a-day Kaddish thing I thought maybe you might want to do the Kaddish at the ceremony." "It might be nice." "What do you think?" "If you don't know it I could find it on the Net and print it up for you." "You don't have to do it if you don't want to but since you're the only one of us who can speak Hebrew I thought..." "I'll do it." "You will?" " Great." " Good night." "Good night Ephram." "What now?" " What's with the 'tude dude?" " Sorry." "I thought you were him." "And please refrain from using the word "dude."" " Should I put these away for you?" " I got it." "What you really need is more black in your wardrobe." "If it makes you happy I'll pick out colorful T-shirts tomorrow with Dad." " Maybe a nice fuchsia." " What's tomorrow with Dad?" "He's taking me suit shopping for our recital." "I thought I told you." "Your dad left for Boston this morning honey." "He did what?" "There was a convention." "He must have forgotten." "I just talked to him the other day." "He promised." " The recital's in two weeks." " I'm sure he was planning on calling you." "Look don't worry." "I'll take you tomorrow." " I can't believe him." " Trust me this is a blessing in disguise." " Your father is the worst shopper." " My father is the worst everything." "Don't." "How's this?" "You me Barneys." "We'll get the most expensive suit we can find charge it to your dad then have a fabulous lunch where I may even let you have a sip or two of my mimosa." "Well you know how much I like the hard stuff." "What do you say?" "Deal?" "Deal." " Thanks Mom." " Any time handsome." " Morning." " Morning doctor." "Yes." "Glorious." "Any particular reason for this Brady Bunch outing?" "Well Nina's helping Delia find a dress and Ephram and I..." " I'm going in." "...are gonna buy a suit." "Such a happy child." "Okay girlfriend ready to shop till we drop?" " lf we must." " We must." "So working on a Sunday?" "Got some extra paperwork to catch up on." "Rather busy week what with so many people coming down with the flu." "I understand Colin may have come down with it as well." "I wasn't aware of that." "Amy mentioned he hadn't been feeling well." "Some bouts of nausea I think she said." " He's been vomiting?" " Possibly." "I don't know." " Would that be highly irregular?" " I'll look into it." "Thanks." "Well enjoy your shopping." " What do you think of these?" " Hate them." "Do me the courtesy of looking at them before dismissing them out of hand." "What if I'd picked something in powder blue?" "You would have missed the joke." "I can do this by myself." "Why don't you give me your credit card and help Delia." " Delia's taken care of." "I'd like to help you." " Well I don't want you to." "All right." "I have to meet with the Harts anyway." "I'll see you back at the house." " Ephram what about this one?" " Now that I like." "I thought so." "Go try it on." "We'll get you fitted properly." "I'll be back with more pins." "Look at you." "You are gonna be the most handsome young man at your recital." "I'm gonna mess up the middle part again." " You're obsessing again." " I just want it to be perfect." "You're driving all the way out to Jersey for this." " What are you smiling about?" " Nothing." " You're just so like your father sometimes." " I am nothing like him." "Don't be angry with him." "He feels awful about everything." " He called you didn't he?" " Yeah but only because you told him to." "How did you know that?" "You think I don't know you sign his name on birthday cards and pick out the presents?" " When we first met he wasn't always this..." " This much of a jerk?" "I was going to say "Wasn't always this busy."" "When we first met it was very different." "Probably didn't fight as much either huh?" " Your father and I don't fight that much." " Mom." "Have you decided if you're gonna invite Gwen Stefani to the recital?" "You know her name's not really Gwen Stefani right?" "It's Katherine." "She just kind of looks like her." "And no l..." "I changed my mind." "Really?" "I thought it was a brilliant tactical maneuver on your part." " How do you figure?" " She'd be seeing you in your element." "Remember when John Augustine got the lead in your school play last year?" "He had all the girls in love with him after that." "That boy couldn't act his way out of a paper bag not to mention his dandruff." "It wasn't about his looks." "Those girls fell in love with his presence on stage his confidence." "That's what draws the women in." "And sweetheart when you play the piano you have no idea but your whole body changes." "You sit down on that bench and you forget about all your insecurities." "It's like you finally allow yourself to be who you really are." "A total piano dork?" " An unbelievably gifted musician." " Mom." " Mom the pins!" "Okay the pins!" " I'm sorry." "Sorry." " Hi." " Dr. Brown." "This is an unexpected surprise." "I thought I'd make a house call save you another trip to the office." " How are you doing Colin?" " Good." " Must be good to leave the hospital huh?" " Yeah." "Definitely." "It'll be nice when we don't have to have these checkups so frequently." " Mom I can't find my iPod." "Oh sorry." " I'll help you in a second honey." "Go." " Have a seat please." " Oh thanks." "Did the Denver doctors fill you in on your lab results?" "Yeah most of them I think." "It all sounded good right?" " It did." "How are you feeling otherwise?" " What do you mean?" "The usual stuff." "Headaches stomachaches things like that." " No I feel good." " So you haven't been throwing up lately?" "There's the occasional bout of nausea but that's normal for our family." "We have nervous stomachs." "That may be but as Colin's physician I need to know about these things." "Everything that happens anything out of the ordinary if Colin stubs his toe I wanna hear about it." "I apologize." "From now on I will keep you updated on everything." " So how persistent is the vomiting?" " Just a few times the last couple of days." " Any idea what brings it on?" " Last night I was just running around." "I wasn't feeling you know that well before anyways." " I just got the flu." " Maybe." "But to be safe I want Colin to stop by my office tomorrow for a funduscopy." " Simple eye test." "It won't take long." " But why?" "It's another test that checks for increased intercranial pressure." "It picks up things that the CT scan might not." "It's just a precaution." "You don't mind do you?" "Looks like you didn't save us that extra trip after all did you?" "What'd you get?" " What'd you get?" " Oh it's just a suit." "For your recital?" "Your recital." "I thought it was coming up." "Oh yeah no." "It's not for that." "I guess I could wear it for that too." " You're rambling again." " Oh yeah sorry." "I just..." "I got some things on my mind." "So what are you doing?" "Colin and I were supposed to see a movie but he's really late." "We'll probably have to catch the next one." " Did you want to hang out with us?" " No I should get home." "But you'll invite me to your recital right?" "I mean when it happens." "You'd want to come?" "Of course I would." "You're an awesome piano player." "Plus I've never seen you in a real suit before." "See?" "Tons of reasons to go." "Colin." "See you later." "Where have you been?" "The movie started 10 minutes ago." "We could catch the next one..." "I was with Dr. Brown my new best friend who I have to see again tomorrow." " He wants to run another test on me." " What?" "Do you blab everything that happens between us to the whole world or just the stuff about me being sick?" "I didn't." "What are you talking about?" "You're not sick." "I know." "But apparently when the doctor finds out that I've been throwing up..." " How did he?" "I didn't tell him." " You didn't tell anyone?" "Oh no." " I think I'm gonna skip this movie." " Colin wait I didn't mean to..." "I got a lot to deal with Amy." "I don't need to worry about whether I can trust you." "I just need to know that you're on my side." "Of course I'm on your side." "Yeah." "The purpose of the funduscopy is to check for hydrocephalus which is increased fluid around the brain." "The Denver doctors told us about that but they weren't worried." "The tests do indicate Colin isn't a high-risk candidate which is good." " Which is great." " But tests can be inconclusive." "Call it a gut feeling but something's not sitting well with me." " What are you trying to say?" " I'm concerned about Colin." "Right now I don't think that going to Denver once a month for a round of generic tests is enough." "I recommend that you send him somewhere where he can be monitored 24 hours a day." "You want us to send our son away again?" "For a while yes." "There are facilities I can recommend..." "We just got our son back." "We won't ship him off to some psych ward because of your gut feeling." "I understand how hard this is for you but you guys have to trust me." "All of Colin's other doctors are very positive and supportive." "That's what he needs right now not more testing." "Certainly not to be separated from family and friends just when he's starting to feel comfortable." "This would only be for a short while." "You know a mother has instincts too." "And right now mine are telling me that you may no longer be the best doctor for my son." "I'm sorry?" "We've talked about this a lot." "Back in New York you only performed surgery." " That's correct but..." " Don't get me wrong." "I'd never underestimate what you've done for my son." "I'll be eternally grateful." "But there's a difference between a surgeon and a full-time family physician." "You're still looking for problems." "We're just looking for peace." "Can you understand that?" "Yes I do understand that." "But I also understand that you don't wanna deal with the severity of what's happened to Colin." "And as your doctor and your friend I am telling you he is not out of the woods yet." "His symptoms could worsen." "We'll be mindful of that but you don't have to worry about it anymore." "We appreciate you stopping by." "Don't do this please." "You're making a big mistake." "I think it's time for you to go doctor." "Thank you for everything." "I won't forget it." " Where's Dad?" " No idea." " You're making dinner?" " Noodles and soup." "Pick a flavor." "Chicken or Oriental?" "I didn't think noodles were supposed to taste like chicken." " What's Oriental taste like?" " No idea." " Let's make them both and find out." " Good thinking." "Ephram?" "Are you scared to go back home?" " No." "Why?" "Are you?" " A little." "Sometimes I think maybe Mom's still there." "Like she didn't die except now she's mad at us." "Well why would she be mad?" "It's just when she died I used to think about her all the time." " Now you don't think about her as much?" " Not as much no." "And you think she'd be mad at you for that?" " Remember my favorite sneakers?" " The Pumas with your name all over them?" "Yeah." "Remember how I used to wear them all the time?" "They smelled so bad Mom put baby powder in them." "She even threw them away that one time." "But then she went in the garbage to get them back." "I don't wear my Pumas that much anymore." "But when I do it's extra special." "You know what I mean?" "You sure?" "All right." "Go wash up." "Dinner's ready." "I thought we were going to a nice lunch." "I was promised champagne." "Sorry but I had a hankering for a greasy cheeseburger instead." " You ready to order?" " Yeah." " Oh my God." " What's wrong?" "Her parents own the diner." "I didn't know she worked here." " Whose parents?" "Who you talking about?" " The waitress." " What about her?" " We have to go now." "Because Katherine Adams a.k. a Gwen Stefani is our waitress?" "No because..." "You set me up." "This is completely illegal mother behavior." "I know." "So are you gonna invite her to the recital or what?" "No excuses now." "How did you even know she worked here?" "You didn't even know her name." "How did you know her name?" "What are you?" "Are you CIA?" "Nope PTA." "I know everything." "Now go ask her." "Go on." " I can't." "I can't." " Yes you can." "I won't even watch." "I promise." " What if she says no?" " She won't." " How do you know?" " Because I just do." "Go." "Don't watch." "She even knows the piece I'm playing which is so unbelievably cool." " Why would she know that?" " She's obviously an intelligent girl." " She's obviously meant to be with me." " Obviously." " Did you see when we left?" "She waved." " I did." "That's right." "We waved." "Hi, it's me." "Listen, I won't be coming home tonight." "I know I said I was, but something's come up." "And I won't be able to make it." "Tell the kids I'll call them when I can." " Where is he?" " I guess he's still in Boston." "No he's not." "I called the hotel." "He's not there." "I checked." " What hotel?" " The hotel he told me he was staying at." "Where did he tell you he was staying?" "Did he bother sticking to the same lie?" "You guys have been fighting way more than usual." "Something's going on." "Nothing's going on." "He's cheating on you isn't he?" "He's cheating and you wanna protect him so I won't know what a jerk he really is?" "Sweetheart no." "This doesn't concern you." "Why don't you just leave him?" "We don't need him." "He doesn't do anything." "We could move away from here." "I could help take care of Delia." "We do need him." "I need him Ephram." "You don't understand but I love your father very much." "I couldn't imagine my life without him." "And I'm telling you this family wouldn't work without him." "You're just afraid." "You tell me that I should be brave." "You tell me that I should take risks." "What about you?" " Ephram it's not that simple." " Forget it." " It's good ham Mom." " Thank you dear." " Bright could you please pass the salt?" " I'm using it." " Well when you're done then." " I'll never be done with the salt ever." "What if I need the salt?" "Obviously you're still upset with me." "That's fine." "Still upset?" "Should I be over your total betrayal of me after only one day?" "Is that what you expected?" "Guess again because I'll never be over it." "All right." "Let's everyone just calm down." "Colin's furious at me." "Okay?" "He doesn't wanna talk to me anymore." "And you know what?" "I don't blame him." "He trusted me and like an idiot I trusted you." "But that was obviously a huge mistake." "Honey you're overreacting." "Do you understand the word "trust"?" "Because I don't think you do." "I simply inquired about Colin's health much the same way that you came to me." "I came to you in confidence like a daughter goes to a father not like a doctor goes to another doctor he doesn't even like." "I mentioned Colin in passing." "I was worried about your friend." "My boyfriend." "Boyfriend." "I can't believe I didn't see this sooner." "It's obvious what you're doing." " What are you talking about?" " You're trying to keep Colin and me apart." "You're worried that I may be growing up too fast and you don't like it." " That's just too damn bad." " That is enough." "You go to your room and stay there until I tell you to come out." "You know it's true." "If it were up to him I'd still be in pigtails and getting cootie shots every time a boy touched me." "I love Colin." "I love him more than anything else in the entire world." "And after what you did I won't be able to trust you ever again with anything!" "Amy Nicole any more of this and you won't get to talk to Colin for a week because that's how long you'll be grounded for." " Where you been?" " Out." "What the hell is your problem Ephram?" "I know going back to New York is difficult for you." " But we're all having a hard time with it." " You think that's what this is about?" "I don't know what it's about because you won't tell me." "Right before Mom died you said you were in Boston but you never went." " Where were you?" " What has this got to do...?" "Answer the question." " I don't remember." " Yes you do." "You're a liar." " You know exactly where you were." " Look." "If I told you that I went to Boston then I probably did." " I attended at least a dozen seminars..." " There was no seminar." "I checked." "All I want to know is who you were with and how can you live with yourself?" " You think I cheated on your mother?" " I know you did!" "I remember the day you left." "I remember the fight." "I was practicing for the recital the one you couldn't make it to." "I wonder why." "Were you with her that night too?" "Were you with her the night Mom died?" "You listen to me I never cheated on your mother." "You understand me?" "Never." "And if you ever say that again I swear to God I won't be responsible for what I do to you." "Well then what happened?" "I mean I know something happened." "What?" "It doesn't matter." "Yes it does." "It matters to me." "You owe it to me for every time you weren't there you didn't show up you didn't give a damn." "You owe me the truth because I'm asking for it." "I won't disappear into my room like I used to." "And Mom's not here to cover for you." "It's just you and me right now." "Tell me." "I need to know." "You're right Ephram." "I didn't go to Boston." "I was staying at a hotel in the city." "I had to get away." "Your mother and I were fighting." "That much I know." "I was just so tired." "I didn't want to fight anymore so I just left." "I didn't know what else to do." "And then I got scared." "Scared of what?" "That she would see him again." "See who?" "Your mother met someone Ephram." "I was never going to tell you." "No." "No you're lying." "You're a liar." " Listen to me." " You are a liar." "It was you." " It wasn't her fault." "I was never there." " I would've known." "She would've told me." "You can't blame her Ephram." "I was never there for her." " I was never there for all of you." " I don't believe you." "It doesn't mean anything." "Your mother is the same woman you always thought she was." "Nothing has changed." "Nothing." "No it's all different now." "Everything's different." "Coffee." "You look about as awful as I feel." "I got bad news for you." "You look about as awful as you feel." "So how's Colin?" "I wouldn't know." "I'm no longer his doctor." "In fact I'd expect a phone call pretty soon if I were you." "Normally I'd relish the opportunity to steal a patient from you doctor but I am going to pass on this one." "My daughter already hates me enough as it is." "Oh really?" "When did that happen?" "Details aren't important although I could blame you." "Go ahead." "Everyone else does." "Suffice it to say that my child won't talk to me anymore." "Apparently I've broken a sacred trust by simply voicing an honest concern." "If it makes you feel any better Ephram's not talking to me either." "Big deal." "He never talks to you." "You're used to it." " Amy and I have a special relationship." " Had." "Had a special relationship." "They don't want us to treat them like children." "But you talk to them like adults they act like..." " Teenagers." " Exactly." "I still blame you." "Hey can I borrow your notes from...?" " Where are you going?" " Back to boarding school." "Why?" "I just feel like I was doing so much better there." " Teachers are smarter the classes..." " Laynie..." "I can't stay here anymore." "You're sick and nobody wants to deal with it." "I don't want to make you sad but I just can't be here anymore." "I feel like everything's gonna fall apart again." "I don't want to be here when it does." "Hey nothing's gonna happen." "Everything's gonna be fine I promise." "You won't be mad at me if I go right?" "Just don't be mad at me." "Of course I won't be mad." "I just..." "I'll miss you." "So call me?" "I will." "It's getting late." "I know." "I'm just wrapping up." "I've been angry at you." "I've been hating you for a long time now." "And I was wrong." "You never deserved to be treated that way." "I'm sorry." "You don't need to apologize Ephram." "I failed you as a father for 15 years." "I was never there for you or your mother." "That's why sometimes you feel like throwing me off a cliff and that's why your mother did what she did." "But I don't blame either of you for it." "You know in the end it was me who ended up begging her for forgiveness." "I told her that things would be different that I would change but I wouldn't have." "I might have been better for a while but then..." "She loved you." "She told me that." "She told me that all the time." "She loved you too." "Very much." " Yeah but she lied to me." " No she didn't." "What happened between us had nothing to do with you." "She was right not to tell you." "I never should have." "But still I'm glad you did." "I was making her perfect in my mind and..." "Well she was perfect." "She was a perfect mother." "No she wasn't but that's okay." "I don't need her to be perfect anymore." "If you need to be angry be angry Ephram." "But then forgive her." "Tomorrow we fly home to honor your mother in a way she deserves to be honored." "Because maybe she wasn't perfect but she was damn close." "I'm gonna start packing." " We leave early tomorrow so..." " I'll be home soon." "If you came here to apologize you can forget it." "Well actually I wasn't planning on apologizing." "Honey I'm not sorry for what I did." "And if I had to do it all over again I would do exactly the same thing." "You may not agree with all of my choices and you certainly won't always like them." "But you'll have to accept them because for the time being I'm still the grownup." "So slamming doors throwing temper tantrums that's..." "Well that's just obnoxious behavior." "Quite frankly that's beneath you." "If you're angry with me about something we can discuss it rationally or we can agree to disagree." "I'll leave that choice up to you." "Are you done?" "Yes." "I believe I am." "Would you mind leaving me alone?" "Julia's son Ephram will now lead us in the Kaddish prayer." " Have you gotten to the middle part yet?" " No." "I've thought about what you said before trying to come up with an answer that might explain might satisfy you in some way or another." "But I don't think you want me to rationalize why I do what I do." "We do what we do because we have no choice." "Of course you have a choice." "When you were about 3 years old we went to Nonnie and Grandpa's house for dinner." "I think it was their anniversary." "All the grownups were in the kitchen having our coffee when suddenly I heard this music coming from the living room." "I walked out and saw you sitting on the piano bench." "You weren't banging away like a regular 3-year-old." "You were making music." " I doubt it was..." " It was music." "The whole family one by one started coming out." "Nonnie pulled out her camera and started flashing away like a maniac." "But you didn't even look up." "You just kept hitting one key after another hearing something." "And that was it Ephram." "You never stopped playing after that." "I don't know what led you to the piano that day." "I don't know what's kept you coming back day after day since then but you do it." "Do you know why?" "No." "It's because you have no choice." "Even if you quit even if you decided you were sick of spending so many hours practicing every day you'd find your way back to this bench." "Because you and your talent you're inseparable." "There isn't one without the other." "Well that's me and your father." "We don't exist without the other." "We're just one." "No matter what happens no matter how bad the fight is there's no choice." "We're together me and him and us." "This family we're a unit." "You can't question it or fight it." "You just have to give in to it." "Even when it hurts." "Does that make sense?" "Yeah." "Well keep practicing." "I don't want to bother you." "You don't have to go." "I play better when you're here." "[ENGLISH]"