"So, how was your week, Jesse?" "Anything out of the ordinary happened?" "Yes." "We got prank-called." "It was Nate." "Do you feel like he's stalking you?" "He wanted to see where I lived." "I'm gonna call Karen." "Your birth mother?" "She owes me, I mean, she's like really owes me." "Have you spoken about her phone call to your parents?" "I'll call Marisa right now." "What is she going to say?" "She'll probably be relieved." "You know, what's hard though is, like pretending my whole life isn't just one giant mistake." "Whose are these?" "My son's." "He's headed for a world of pain." "It takes one to know one." "Jesse!" "She came," "Just like you wanted." "Mrs. D'amato." "Hello, Dr. Weston." "Jesse, why don't you come in first?" " Why?" " So that we can talk" "About how to proceed with the session." "It's cool, Paul." "I know you wanted her to come." "I'm fine with that." "Please." "So, Jesse, what..." "what happened with the...?" "He got beat up at school." "Jesse?" "Somebody beat the shit out of me." "So would you like to tell me about it?" "Not particularly." "He was jumped" "In the men's bathroom of the Whitney museum" "While they were on a class trip" "By some rich kid who doesn't even go to their school." "Marisa." "Paul has something to tell you." "The school suspended Jesse" "For defending himself from attack." "Is that not just the most absurd thing you've ever heard, doctor?" " It wasn't exactly an attack." " Don't mumble, Jesse." "I said it wasn't exactly an attack." "I'm sorry, but when a stranger" "Starts hitting you in a public bathroom" "For absolutely no reason, that is an attack." " That certainly qualifies as an attack." " I knew him." "For goodness sake, we can't hear a word you're saying." "I said I knew him." "He wasn't a stranger, okay?" "Are you getting this, Helen Keller?" "You knew him?" "You didn't tell me that." "Well, who is he?" "Nobody you know." "Was it Nate?" "My art class took a trip to the Whitney." "And Nate lives, like, right across the street," "Right on 75th." "So I just thought I'd call him" "And leave him a message, you know, because he's been" "Leaving me so many lately and, I don't know..." "He picked up." "The fucker didn't have school that day." "And he was like, "where are you?"" "And I was like, "at the Whitney."" "And he was like, "meet me in the men's room on the third floor."" "And I was like, "fine," because I didn't want" "To go back to class and spend the morning" "Staring at those Georgia O'keefe flower vaginas." "Those things give me the creeps." "She doesn't even know who Georgia O'keefe is." "So anyway, we, like, go into one of the stalls" "And we're kissing." "And he's like, "you look hot."" "And I'm like, "then suck my dick."" "What?" "So he gets down on his knees," "Which, I have to admit, was like" "The hottest thing that's ever happened to me." "And I'm, like, rock hard." "And all of a sudden he starts talking..." ""I've been thinking about you." "I've missed you." "I've been trying to call your house."" "And I'm, like, not about to have this conversation." "So I'm just like, "yeah well, I didn't get those messages" "Because we're living in a shelter for the time being."" "And he looks at me like he doesn't believe me." "And I'm like, "what?" and he's like, "nothing."" "And then he tries to suck my dick but he can't," "Because I've lost my fucking boner." "So I, like, start to pull up my pants" "And he's like, "what the fuck just happened?"" "And I'm like, "you can't suck dick for shit."" "And that's when he hit me." "He, like," "Just kept hitting me and hitting me" "Until the guards came in and took him off me." "It felt kind of good actually." " You'll only make..." " don't touch me." "If I may, doctor..." "I'm worried the school overreacted" "Because Jesse is, well..." " Gay?" " Yes." "Why can't you say the word?" "I just wonder, if he was straight" "And got caught fighting with another boy..." "Do you see what I'm getting at?" "Yes, I do." "I think it's a valid point." "No, it's not." "It's a ridiculous point." "I was fighting." "Fighting is illegal." "You get suspended for fighting." "But you weren't fighting so much, darling, as being abused" " By this older, bigger... - did you listen to a word I just said?" " I don't care..." " I said I told him to suck my dick." "I don't care if you told him to go paddle a duck." "Words are one thing." "Physical violence is something very different." " Paddle a duck?" " Come on, Jesse." "No, that's good." "I'll have to remember that one." "God, you are sick, Marisa." "I'm sick?" "You're the one who..." "Likes cock?" "It's not a fucking disease, Marisa," "No matter what they teach you iv bible study." "That is not what I was going to say." " Oh, what were you going to say then?" " I..." "You..." " Never mind." " Say it." "I don't know what I was going to say." "You are such a fucking liar!" " Jesse." " What?" "If you have to talk to your mother like that," "You it outside my office." "Thank you." "We'll discuss what happened with Nate in a minute," "But can I ask you, Mrs. D'amato," "Why you came here with Jesse today?" "He said you asked me to." "Well, as long as you're here," "Is there anything that you would like to say to your son?" "What do you mean?" "Well, this room is a safe place," "So if there was any conversation" "That you wanted to have that might be difficult..." "Wait, isn't there something" "That you want to tell me?" "Jesse?" "How long is the suspension?" " Oh." " It's just a week." " So you'll be at home for a week?" " Yeah." "Why?" "'cause it might be an opportunity" "To discuss certain things with your parents." "What are we gonna tell your father?" " You haven't told him?" " No, not yet." "What the fuck are you...?" "I mean, why the hell...?" "Why not?" "He's been gone, Jesse." " Where is he?" " He's on some job in Trenton." " And when will he be back?" " Tomorrow." "Maybe you should call him tonight." " Yeah, not a fucking chance." " Why not?" "Because I don't want him to rip out my ballsack." "Jesse!" "Is that what you're telling him?" "Is that what he's telling you?" "Jesus, Marisa, take a fucking joke." "Roberto will be upset, of course," "But he's not violent." "He's just worried" "About Jesse getting into college." "We both are." "And now that he's suspended..." "I thought this might be the one place" "He wouldn't feel like he had to lie." "They said maybe if he came here," "If he talked to a professional person..." "Well, don't sweat it, okay?" "If he came here," "I'll be out of your hair long before all that." " Oh really?" " Yeah, really." " Where is your royal highness going?" " To Westchester." "Westchester?" "Why not Paris?" "Because Karen doesn't live in Paris." "She lives in Westchester." " Who is Karen?" " My birth mother." "She called me." "And she wants me back." "This is why you wanted me to come here today..." "To tell me this?" "You couldn't have just called me on the phone?" "I think that Jesse wanted you to come" "Because this would be a safe place..." "A safe place?" "Safe for who?" "When did she call?" "No." "You know what?" "I don't want to know." "I don't want to." " Mrs. D'amato." " No." "You two clearly have much to discuss." "This is a major psychological event for Jesse." "I'm sure you'll be very helpful, Dr. Weston." " I'd just be in the way." " Mrs. D'amato," "I'd really appreciate it if you stayed." "I'm sure Jesse would as well." "Thank you." "See?" "See what?" "I told you she doesn't give two shits about me." "That's what you just saw happening?" "Yeah, she couldn't wait to get out of here." "Is that the way you and your mother normally interact?" " What do you mean?" " I mean, that dynamic," "The conversation that just took place." "Would you say that that was normal?" "I don't normally tell her about calls from my birth mother." "No, I'm not talking about the content." "I'm more curious about the tone." " Tone?" " You were angry." "You were abusive." "No, I wasn't." "I am angry." "I mean, what the fuck?" "She can't handle anything." "Were you hoping is that I'd help her handle to the news about Karen?" "Ay?" "Dude, Ms. U. Made me bring her." "She said it was a contingent term of my suspension." "They wanted to expel me." "Why are you always on her goddamn side?" "You clearly wanted me" "To tell Marisa about Karen's phone call." "Yeah sure, but not so that you could become besties." "Okay, then why?" "Last week you were telling me about some pictures" "That you took when you were younger" "At a family reunion." "You said that you showed the pictures to your mother" "And she hated them." "What was in those pictures?" "Why?" "I'm just wondering if there's a pattern here" "In the way that your mother responds to certain things." "We had to do this family tree at school." "And the teacher said that I could do mine in pictures" "Because I had this new camera." "Where did you get the camera?" "Roberto." "For my birthday." "So yeah, anyway," "I took a bunch of pictures of, like, my cousins" "And my grandparents and shit." "And then we were all hanging out at the beach," "So I started taking pictures of other people." "And there were these two older guys" "In the lifeguard tower." "One of them was the lifeguard," "But the other one was his friend or something." "And I watched them" "Go into the water." "And I followed them." "I pretended I was taking pictures of the waves." "When they came out of the water," "I found a Rusty nail" "And I stepped on it." "You deliberately stepped on it?" "Yeah, it went right through my foot." "And the lifeguard, like, freaked out." "But the other guy was cool..." "Peter." "He had me sterilize my foot in the salt water" "And he removed the nail." "He said he was pre-med." "And then we went to the hospital together..." "Peter and me." "We spent the whole day together..." "Until Roberto finally found me." "What do you mean, he found you?" "You didn't call him?" "I told Peter I was an orphan." "An orphan?" "Was that the first time you'd made up a story about your parents?" "Yeah, actually." "It was." "Anyway, we had to do this, like," "Show-and-tell thing at school" "And a bunch of parents came," "And I showed my pictures." "And Marisa" "Asked the teacher to take them down." "She said those men weren't a part of our family." "But that was true, wasn't it?" "I'm adopted." "Peter could have been my fucking brother." "I mean, look, they weren't, like, crotch shots or anything." "They were really fucking good... those pictures." "Even the teacher said so." " She did?" " Yeah." "When she handed them back she, like, pulled me aside" "And she was like," ""stick with this."" "Did your father ever see the pictures?" "No." "But I think Marisa told him about them." "Why do you think that?" "He changed." "In what ways did he change?" "He got really busy all of a sudden." "Um..." "He used to, like, take me to Coney island" "Almost every other weekend," "And suddenly it was too far." "He used to drive me to school every morning..." "Suddenly I was old enough to take the bus." "He hasn't really spoken to me" "In four years." "So he shut you out." "Why do you think he did that?" "Seriously?" "Do you think it had something to do" "Maybe with your sexuality?" "No, I think he got abducted by aliens." "Listen Jesse, I've never met your father," "So I'm just speculating," "But maybe you suddenly seemed very different to him." "I mean different from him." "Yeah, 'cause I'm gay." "That could have been a part of it," "But also you're clearly a very creative person." "You're an artist." "The pictures from the beach made that clear." "I know..." "I know a little about this" "Because my son" "Is an artist also." "And sometimes I..." "I don't understand him, you know?" "I feel so..." "Distant from him." "And sometimes, honestly, I feel a little intimidated by him." "Well, Roberto is not intimidated by me." "Well, like I said, I don't know your father." "And I've only spent these 20 minutes with your mother." "But from what I observed, she..." "She's defending you, Jesse." "She's trying to make sure" "You're not being discriminated against because you're gay." " It's bullshit." " You think she's pretending?" "Of course she's pretending." "She wants you think she's a good mother." "So it was a performance for me?" "She's catholic." "I mean, as far as they're concerned, I'm, like, Satan's spawn." "She hates me." "How can you not see that?" "I didn't see a woman who doesn't love her son just now." "But I did see a woman who doesn't know" "How to talk to her son." "I think your parents let you down a long time ago." "You tried to tell them something when you were 12," "When you tried to share a part of yourself" "That made you different from them," "And they..." "they reacted badly." "You felt they'd abandoned you." "Are now here you are again," "With a call from your birth mother..." "Another piece of evidence, you feel," "That separates you from Roberto and Marisa." "I think you're terrified, Jesse." "Of what?" "That the same thing is gonna happen again" "And that they're going to pull away even further." "Why are you acting like this is all in my head?" "She left." "You saw her leave." "I think you're really upset that she left." "Where do you think... where do you imagine she went?" "How the hell should I know?" "I spoke to Mrs. Usich this morning before your session." "You said she wanted your mother to join us in therapy." "But when I spoke to her, she didn't mention" "Anything about that at all." "I just want you to recognize" "That you invited Marisa to come to therapy with you." "You wanted her here." "Jesse," "What's happening in your head?" "Static." "I bet she's at church." "When I was little, she loved church." "She went every Sunday." "I would go with her and get all dressed up" "In my little jacket and clip-on tie." "I remember falling asleep against her in the pews." "She stopped going after I came out." "She was too ashamed to go back." "Is it not possible that she no longer wanted" "To support an institution" "That didn't have room for her son?" " No." " You don't think that's possible?" "She was here for 15 minutes." "You think now you know her better than I do?" "No, of course I don't." "She looks at that church every time we pass it." "It's, like, right on the corner of our block." "And we have to walk by it anytime we go anywhere." "And every time..." "Every time, she looks and she sighs." "She sighs, okay?" "I mean, I bet she went straight there." "She's, like, begging the priest" "To take her back as we speak." "Have you heard anything more from Karen?" "Have you given any thought to calling her back?" "Uh, that's all I ever think about." "Well, then we should talk about your options next week." "Whatever, Paul."