"Oh, that was so embarrassing." "Mr. Suiter must think I'm a complete idiot." "Andrea, it was just an exercise." " Yeah, we all have to do it." " lt was so humiliating." "Standing there and quacking in front of the entire class." "I mean, of all the animals, why did he have to choose a duck?" "Seriously, guys, do you think it has something to do with the way I look?" "Andrea, that's not the point." "The question is, when you were up there quacking and strutting and preening your feathers, did you really feel like a duck?" "Brenda, of course not." "I felt like a fool." "Hi, guys." " What's Kelly doing here?" " She's picking me up." "We're having lunch with her mom at the beach club." "Brenda, that's doing lunch." "I thought you swore you wouldn't set foot in this hallway until fall." "Oh, I know." "How do you guys do it?" "Being here in the middle of summer totally gives me the creeps." "Are you kidding?" "It's fantastic." "It's like having the entire freeway all to yourself." " You can get used to it." " Sort of." "I couldn't." "Brenda, let's get out of here before I start having flashbacks." " Thanks for the ride, Kelly." " You're welcome." "Andrea, stay for lunch." "I'm sure my mom wouldn't mind." "Yeah, you should definitely join us." "Thanks, but I really need to talk to Brandon." "Maybe that's your problem." "Too much talk and not enough" "This may come as a shock to you, but it is possible just to be friends with a guy." "Not if he's adorable." "What?" " Hi, Mom." " Hi, sweetheart." " Hi." " Hi, Brenda." "I'm sorry, you guys." "I couldn't help myself. I was starving." "That's all right." "Dig in." "They have the world's best chicken salad here." "But go ahead, order whatever you want." "Brenda, they have a surf burger." "I wonder who they named that after." " l miss you, Bren." " l really miss you." "Brenda." "Brenda?" "Are you okay?" "Yeah." "I'm sorry, the sun's just-- lt's making me a little spacey." "Here you go, ladies." "Walsh, your sister's over there." "Table 3." " Oh, cool." " And a friend's here to see you." "What is this?" "Visitors' day?" " Thanks, Henry." " Sure enough." "What are you doing here?" "Look, I wouldn't bother you unless it was important." "I know." "You should have brought your suit, you could swim." "No, that's okay." "I don't have time to stay." "Listen, there's this really great kid at the Valley Youth Center where l'm a volunteer." "Ten years old, lives alone with his mom." "I don't know what happened to his dad" "Why do I have the feeling you're about to call on my sense of civic responsibility for one of your save-the-universe projects?" "Just hear me out, okay?" "Listening." "He had this volunteer Big Brother but the guy can't do it anymore." "It may take months till the programme can go and" "Andrea, I don't have the time." "I'm not asking you to go through the Big Brother training." "All I'm asking you, on a very informal basis, is to hang out with" "And where would I find the time for this little informal get-together?" "Come on." "One afternoon a week?" "We're not talking long-term commitment here." "The kid needs a friend, you know, an older guy that he can look up to." " Can I think about it?" " Yeah, go ahead." "Think." "I don't have to be anywhere for 20 minutes." " l told Felix all about you." " Felix?" "Yes, and he can't wait to meet you." "You should see him on a pair of skates." "He could teach you a thing or two." "Oh, you think so?" "Well, you'll never know until you meet him." "Here's his address." "He lives in Reseda." "Well, I do have tomorrow off." "Yeah, I know. I already checked your schedule with Henry." " You knew I'd fold, didn't you?" " l played a hunch." "I'll tell him you're coming by, say, 1 0 a.m.?" " Fine." " Good." " Go." " Gone." " Go." " Gone!" "What is that all about?" " High school intrigue." " Always the best kind." "Listen, somebody has got to order the grilled-chicken, red chilli-pepper pasta with goat cheese so I can have a bite." " God." " What?" "I think I broke a tooth." "Well, and how are the ladies who lunch?" " Terrible." " Why?" "What's wrong?" "I just broke a cap on a chicken bone." " Excuse me for a second." "Thanks." " Yeah." " Let me see that." " Why?" "I'm the third best oral surgeon in Los Angeles." "Who are the first two?" " Are you a celebrity?" " No." "Then, it doesn't matter, does it?" " Open up." " ls it bad?" " Get me some Krazy Glue." " Yeah, sure." "Krazy Glue?" "Are you really a dentist?" "Absolutely." "Are you really single?" "Painfully." "There's no charge for the procedure if you let me take you out to dinner." "Open again." "Do you believe this guy?" " ls that really ethical?" " Not really." "Feel free to say no." "I'll still glue the tooth." " Say no." " l'd love to." "Good." "I couldn't find any Krazy Glue but I got this rubber cement." " lt's not" " No, I was just kidding about the glue." "I'm afraid you will have to come and see me in the office." "So, what is your name anyway?" "Mel." "Mel Silver." "I think that my son goes to school with your daughter." " Wonderful, what's his name?" " David." "Do you know David Silver?" "No." "Yeah, kind of, but not really." "Oh, I knew it." "All the pretty girls know David." "I wish I had his luck with women." "He's such a ladies' man." "Ever since he was in the 6th grade, when he started dating this 7th-grade cheerleader." "Can you believe what happened at lunch yesterday?" "It's like straight out of a David Lynch movie or something." "My mother is going out with David Silver's father." " Kelly, it's not the end of the world." " You promise you won't tell anyone?" "No, I promise I won't say a word to anybody, okay?" "Goodbye." "Kelly's mom broke a tooth at the beach club yesterday." "Forget it, you'll never understand." "Brandon, I thought today was your day off." "Yeah, it is, but I promised Andrea I'd play big brother to this kid she knows" " from the Valley Youth Center." " That's great." "Yeah, but don't spread yourself too thin, son." "Hey, don't worry about it, Dad." "I mean, I always wanted a little brother anyway, right?" " Hi, you must be Brandon." " Hi, yeah." " l'm Suzanne, Felix's mom." " Hi, Suzanne." " Come on in." " Thanks." "Brandon's here." " Nice apartment." " Oh, it's all right." "It's not Beverly Hills." "Believe it or not, I went to Beverly Hills High too." "Class of..." " Never mind." " Actually, I go to West Beverly." "Listen, thanks for doing this, Brandon." "You have no idea how much this means to Felix and to me." "Felix!" "So, what happened to Felix's dad?" "That's what I'd like to know." "Honestly, he remarried and moved to Phoenix." "And I haven't heard from him for three years." "Sends Felix 1 0 bucks every Christmas." "That's how I know he's still in Phoenix, because of the postmark." " Hey, Felix, how's it going?" " lt sucks." "Well, then, it can only get better from there, can't it?" "We'll see." "Felix, is that any way to say hello to Brandon?" " Sorry." " You behave yourself." "Give your mom a kiss." "Brandon, he's a good kid." "He really is. lt's" "But he can be a bit difficult at times." "Too difficult, I guess, for his last Big Brother." "Well, he doesn't look so scary to me." "Felix, be careful." "Hey!" "Hey, Felix." "Try to stay with me, huh, man?" "I don't wanna lose you." "You know, you don't have to do this." "I got friends, you know." "Yeah, I'm sure you do." "I thought you wanted someone a little older to hang out with." " l'm not a charity case." " Well, that's good to know." "So why are you doing this?" "I mean, don't you have anything better to do than hang out with some stupid kid?" "I guess not." "Okay, but you gotta keep up." "Working on those tan lines, ladies?" " So, Kel, I hear tonight's the big night." " What are you talking about?" "Well, your mom, David Silver's dad." "Think he'll bag her on the first date?" "Steve, you are such a swine." "Why don't you go take a hike in the ocean and drown yourself?" "Touchy." "Touchy." "What's the big deal?" "I mean, just because David's a geek, doesn't mean his dad is." "Donna, the avocado doesn't fall far from the tree." "No, you know, David's not that bad." "I kind of got to know him when we did our scene." "I don't know, he's always looking at me like I'm naked or something." "And now, he's fully bragging about this date like it's the two of us going out." "I've got to do something." "What if my mom really likes this guy?" " You can let go now." " l don't know." "You think you can stay out of trouble?" "I guess." "Hey, Stan, could you get a couple of lemonades here for me and my friend?" "Lots of ice?" "Don't go anywhere. I'll be right back." "Hello, you've reached the Zuckerman residence." "At the sound of the tone, leave your name, number and the time and the appropriate Zuckerman will get back to you promptly." "Thank you." "Andrea, thanks a lot." "I think the only reason you dumped Felix on me was to get him off your back." "I'm telling you, this kid is a royal pain in the" "Thought you wanted your lemonade." "It's pretty hot." "Thanks." "Sorry for being such a pain in the butt." "Yeah, what's with that anyway?" "is that your way of testing people or something?" " l don't know." " Look, I'm not a babysitter, all right?" "I'm with you because I thought you wanted someone older to hang with." "What is this place anyway?" "It's the Beverly Hills Beach Club." " lt's where l work." " lt's pretty cool." "Yeah, well, I figured as long as I had to work over my vacation, I might as well look at pretty girls and get a tan while I was at it." "So was I so much of a pain in the butt that you never wanna see me again?" "I'd consider hanging out with you again." "Hey, maybe I can come and see you work sometime." " Maybe." " l wouldn't get in the way. I swear." "All right, man, we'll see." " Hi, Kelly." " Hi." "So did you have a good day at the beach?" "Groovy." "I hear you and David hang out together." "No. I mean, I know who he is but I don't really know him." "Well, I've gotta tell you, Kelly." "You've got a real fan in my son." "And when David likes somebody, I mean, really likes somebody, you can be sure of one thing." " What?" " You've got a friend for life." "How lucky for me." " Hi, Mel." " Hi, Jackie." " You look great." " Thanks." "So do you." "Oh, Mel." "White tulips?" " Gorgeous." "You didn't have to do that." " Okay." "Honey, would you mind putting them in some water?" "Thanks." " You hungry?" " Famished." "I made reservations at Michael's in Santa Monica. I hope that's okay." " lt's only my favourite restaurant." " Good." "Good." "Let's go." "Good night, Kelly." "I'll be sure to say hi to David for you." "Good night, sweetheart." "Don't wait up." "Ladies, how about these chairs right here?" "Maximise your tanning potential." " Would you like a towel?" " Towel?" "Sure." " Some ice water, maybe?" " Love some." " l'll get it." " Felix, wait." " Oh, he's quite a little helper." " Yeah." "Ladies." "Walsh, could I talk to you for a minute?" "Yeah, sure." " Excuse us." " Excuse me." "What's with the kid?" "Oh, he's just some little guy I'm playing Big Brother to." "That's commendable." "Just make sure he doesn't get in the way of your doing your job." "Oh, I'm not." "He's actually helping me out." "Oh, yeah?" "Well, I just saw him helping himself to some french fries on that tray over there." "I'm sorry. I'll keep a better eye on him. I promise." "Ice water." "Ice water." "Ice water." "Yeah." "So the word is that Kelly's mom and David's dad totally hit it off." "That's wonderful, Brenda." "Kelly must be thrilled her mother's finally met somebody nice." "Thrilled?" "She's completely freaking out." "Well, she'll get over it." "Why do you say that?" "Well, because when you meet somebody you care about, things just have a way of working themselves out." "Mom, you are such a romantic." "Be careful. it runs in the family." "So, Brenda, what do you think?" "Are things gonna work out between us?" "Hey, Mom, Brenda, I want you to meet a friend of mine." "This is Felix." " Hi, Felix." "Nice to meet you." " Hey." "He was helping me out at the club today." "I thought maybe, if it was all right with his mom, he could stay for dinner." "Sounds good to me." "Listen, Felix, I was just about to start the famous Walsh french fries." " You wanna help?" " Yeah." " Boy, this house sure is great." " Thanks." "Listen, I'm gonna put this on you." "This oil's awfully hot." "This'll keep it from getting your clothes messed up." "Oh, don't worry about them." "There you go, Felix, but be careful, these are Brenda's favourite food." "After chocolate." "Okay, that oil looks ready." "All right, go ahead." "Dump them in." "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm really sorry." "Felix, it's all right." " Are you all right?" " Yeah." "Just clumsy, I guess." "Felix, why don't you go call your mother and let her know you're here?" "I don't want her to worry." "Okay." "Sorry about that." "Hey, don't worry about it, we'll make more." "Hi, Mom." "Everything's great." "I helped Brandon out at the beach club today." "Now they want me to stay for dinner." "I'm at their house. ls that okay?" "Okay." "Bye, Mom." "I love you too." " Hey, Kel." " Hi." "I heard your mom and my dad had a pretty swinging time last night." "That's not what I heard." "No, seriously." "I think they already set up another date for this week." "Look, David." "My mother's personal life is her own business." "I don't pay much attention to it." "Wouldn't it be cool if we ended up stepbrother and stepsister?" "Stepbrother and stepsister." "Stepbrother and stepsister." "Stepbrother and stepsister." "Stepbrother and stepsister." "Oh, man, I wonder how much these will bring at the annual West Beverly auction?" "Not as much as a picture of Kelly wearing it." "Oh, my God." "What are you guys--?" "Give me that." "Get out of my room." "Get out of my room now!" "She's even cuter mad." "I've gotta do something." "Mel, thanks for another wonderful evening." "I had a great time too." "I hope this isn't too forward, but how about tomorrow night?" "I'm sorry, I already have plans with my daughter." "We're trying to spend a lot of quality time together these days." "Well, so bring her. I'll bring David." "We'll make it a foursome." "We'll go someplace nice." " That sounds great." " Good." "Are you sure there's nothing weird about you?" " Something that you're hiding?" " No, why?" "I'm used to men with major liabilities." "You just seem too good to be true." "Well, give it time." "Under the surface, I'm an egomaniacal monster." "But by the time you find out the truth, it'll be too late." " You'll be in my clutches." " How frightening." " Mom, is that you?" " Yeah, hi, Kelly. I'll be up in a minute." "I'll pick you up at 7." " Good night." " Good night." " How'd it go?" " Two for two." "Mom, I thought they told you you should stay single for a while to adjust to being sober." "Kelly, please." "You can't be both my therapist and my daughter." "Which is it gonna be?" "I know, but he does not seem like your type." "Well, you can get to know him better tomorrow." "Tomorrow?" "I thought you and I were having dinner together tomorrow." "I know, but I thought we'd make it a happy foursome." "You, me, Mel and David." "Doesn't that sound fun?" "No, that sounds totally excruciating." "Well, at least we're being honest." "Good night, sweetie. I'm beat." "What if I can't make it?" "Kelly, you're going to make it." "Can I have a Coke, please?" " Name?" " Walsh." "Felix Walsh." "Felix Walsh?" "Yeah, I'm Brandon's little brother." "Walsh." " Yeah?" " We gotta talk." " What's the matter?" " This kid." "I mean, a day or two is one thing, but this can't become a habit." "Henry, I just got to work." "I didn't even know he was here." "I'll take care of it." "Good. I don't wanna hear any complaints from the members." " Right." " And Walsh, he's going around telling everybody he's your little brother." " Thanks." " Yeah." " Felix, my man." " Hey, big bro." " How'd you get down here today?" " l took the bus." "I wanted to surprise you." "I thought I could help you out again." "I'd really like that, but I gotta work alone. I'm sorry." "Oh, well. lt's all right." "Then I'll sit in the back lockers and fold towels or something." " Nobody will see." " l wish you could, buddy." "Tomorrow's my day off." "Why don't you come here tomorrow around 9 and we'll take a skate down to Venice, huh?" "Well, I could go over there by the volleyball courts" " and just sit. I won't bother anybody." " Felix, I can't." "It's a private club. I can only bring guests down on my day off." "Come on, I'll walk you out." "Hey, don't look so down." "I'll see you tomorrow." " You promise?" " Promise." "Hey, Kel, how about a few words of summer wisdom for posterity?" "Get lost." "Hey, Steve, how about you?" "What can I say?" "It's great to be young." "I wish they all could be California girls." "You know what I'm saying?" "Yeah, definitely." " See you tonight, Kel." " l'm counting the minutes." "Me too." "So to what do we owe your sunny disposition?" "How can you stand him?" "David Silver?" "Humour him." "What's the big deal?" "It's true about your mom and his dad, huh?" "We're all going to dinner tonight." "Just the four of us." "Won't that be cosy?" "They want you to get along already?" "That's quick." "What do you mean?" "Kelly, single parents never want the two sides to get together unless it's serious." "You really think so?" "I mean, they haven't slept together or anything." "Kelly, get with it." "Sex is out of the loop these days." "It all depends on how they get along personally and financially." "My mom was saying how much they had in common." "And he is rich." "Well, then this dinner can only mean one thing:" "A romantic declaration of love in front of the kids." "I think I'm gonna be sick." "Steve, what can I do to stop this thing?" "There is one thing that will totally scare off a prospective stepparent." "But it takes guts, though I'm sure you've got that." "What is it?" "You've gotta let David's father know right from the start that life with you won't be worth living." "You've gotta be the stepchild from hell." "You're gonna love this place." "It's one of my favourite restaurants." "It's gorgeous." "Mom, isn't this the place that gave Laurie food poisoning?" "I don't think so." "So, Kelly, you ever dream this would happen?" "Not in my wildest Freddy Kreuger nightmares." "Well, Kelly, I hope we're not dragging you away from your friends tonight, but Jackie and I thought that having dinner together would be fun." "Why?" "So that I could get to know David and so that you could get to know Mel." "Let me tell you something about Kelly, Mel." " To know her is not to love her." " Kelly." "Well, that's not what I hear." "Or rather see on video." "Dad, you're embarrassing me." "I hardly think that that's possible." "David, your father tells me that you're West Beverly's video historian." "Yeah, something like that." "I can hardly turn around anymore without that obnoxious video lens being stuck right in my face." " lt's nothing personal." " lt's just a little perverted." "What do you call those guys?" " Voyeurs or something?" " Kelly." "David, I forbid you to commit one more inch of videotape to that gorgeous face." "Thank you." "I thought I was gonna have to get one of those restraining orders." "Let's order." "Actually, I've lost my appetite." "You'll be missing out, Kelly, really." "This restaurant has one of the best chefs in town." "I knew there must have been some reason why you dragged us here." "Kelly, that's enough." " How about a drink to start?" " A drink?" "You want my mother to order a drink?" " l'll have water." " Whatever." "Because the last thing you do is ask a recovering alcoholic" " what she wants to drink" " Kelly!" "Why don't you just shut up?" "I think we need a little trip to the ladies' room." " Forget it. I'm out of here." " Wait a minute." "Don't you leave this restaurant, do you hear me?" "What is going on?" " Let go of me." " l will not." "I demand an explanation." "I have never seen a ruder display of bad manners in my entire life." "Now, what were you hoping to accomplish by that act?" "Aside from humiliating and embarrassing yourself, which you did extremely well, I might add." "If he's so great, why don't you just go ahead and marry him?" "Oh, Kelly, don't be ridiculous." "We just met." "He's a very sweet man but I'm not gonna marry him." "We're just dating." "Now what is the big deal?" "You know what?" "Ever since you and Dad got divorced, almost my entire life, you have either been married or drunk." "I just thought that when you finally got out of Timber Hills, you would wanna spend some time getting to know me." "What do you think I'm doing?" "Why do you think you're here?" "This is not about me." "This is about you and some guy." "Kelly, please, cut me a little slack." "Don't I have a right to be happy?" "Don't I have a right to have you all to myself just for a little while?" "We're gonna spend lots of time together. I promise." "No matter who I'm seeing." "I just don't wanna share you." "Not yet." "Not with David Silver." "Kelly." "I know." "I understand." "Do you think we can go back now?" "I don't know." "I made a pretty big fool of myself in there." "Who cares?" "Come on." "Walsh, what are you doing here?" "I thought this was your day off." "Yeah, it is." "Have you seen Felix around?" "No, I'm happy to say I have not." "I was supposed to meet him here this morning." " Kept me waiting for over an hour." " Don't you have better things to do than to be stood up by a little squirt on your day off?" "Yeah, I do." "Hey, Felix." "Oh, hi." "What's with you, man?" "I wait for you all day at the beach club." " You don't show, you don't call." " Sorry." "No wonder so many guys don't stick it out with you." "Today was my day off, Felix." "I mean, if we're gonna make this work, you gotta at least show me the" "My God, what happened to you?" "I tried to do a triple and I wiped out." "Oh, come on, man." "That's no wipe-out bruise." "What happened?" "Did you get into a fight?" "Hey, Felix." "I'm here for you, man." "You can trust me." "What happened?" "My mom hit me." " What?" " She didn't mean it." "I was really bad." "You couldn't have done something so bad to deserve that." "I told her I would call." "I should've called and I forgot." "is that the only one?" " Felix, has this happened before?" " No." "I told you she didn't mean it." "She didn't mean it." "Promise you won't tell?" "It's gonna be okay, Felix." "That's about all I can promise you." "It's gonna be okay." "Andrea." "Brandon, to what do I owe this honour?" "There's a really big problem with Felix." "I know. I know. I got your message." "I know he can be difficult." "I didn't wanna say anything, I thought it would prejudice you." "I think he's a great kid" "No, no, it's not that, Andrea." "I mean, Felix is a great kid, once you get past his walls anyways." "Well, then, what is it?" "Have you ever noticed all the bruises Felix gets from skating?" "Or how he never takes his shirt off, even on the hottest day?" "Brandon, what are you talking about?" "Felix's mother beats him." "Brandon, that's a really serious accusation." " l mean, are you sure?" " Yeah, totally." "I can't believe I let him go home." "I should have taken him with me" " That would have been kidnapping." " Well, I gotta do something." "Brandon, are you sure it's his mother?" "I mean, maybe it's another kid." "You know, some neighbourhood bully or something" " and he's too embarrassed to say." " He wouldn't lie." "Not about this." "You know, if we report this, he'd be yanked out of his house, put into foster care." "Maybe he has a grandmother, an aunt or anybody." " Maybe not." " So, what do you say we do?" "Just let him stay at home, let his mom keep beating him up?" "No, that's not what I'm saying." " l don't know. I'm not an expert." " l know. I'm sorry." "Look, there's a social worker who used to work at the centre." "I think we've gotta talk to a professional person about this." "I think I'd better talk to my parents first." "Thanks." "So, what happened when you went back to the table?" "Well, I had to apologise, of course." "David's dad was very cool, but I could tell he thought I was a total nutcase." "Well, you are, Kelly." "It needs more garlic." "So anyway, the whole thing totally backfired and it brought them even closer together." "Well, Kelly, if it's meant to be, it's meant to be." "I mean, true love is kind of like a locomotive." "It tends to flatten anything that gets in its way." "Tell me about it. I feel like Gumby." "Gumby." "He's flat." "I'll get it." "Hello?" "Oh, there's that voice I miss so much." "Dylan?" "You guys, it's Dylan." "Hi, Dylan." "There's the most incredible storm happening right now." "The sky's exploding in all these bizarre colours and I just wanted to share it with somebody." "So you decided to call me." "Well, I tried to call my other girlfriends, but their lines were either busy or disconnected." " Thanks, Dylan." " Bren, one more thing." " What?" " l still" "Dylan?" "Hello?" "Dylan, you still what?" "Dylan?" " What?" "What happened?" " Who was that?" "Dylan." "We got divinely disconnected." "Thank God." " Hey, everybody." " Oh, hi, Brandon." " Hey, there." " You spent a long day with that boy." "No, not really." " What's the matter?" "You look beat." " No, Dad. I'm not." "But I know someone who is." "Brandon, what are you talking about?" "Felix, the little kid who we all thought was so cute?" "He's being beat up at home." " Are you sure?" " Wait a minute." "Who's Felix?" "This kid that Brandon was playing Big Brother to." "He came over for dinner and he had a french-fry freak-out." "Brenda, that's because I went to pat him on the back and he flinched." "That's where his mom hits him." "Brandon, these are very serious charges." "How can you be sure about this?" "I've seen the bruises and the welts." "You wouldn't believe that a parent could do that." "Oh, my God." "He said this was the first time it's happened, but I don't know if I can believe it." "It doesn't make any difference." "Once is one time too many." "Yeah, I know, so I talked to Andrea, and we're gonna go see a social worker tomorrow." "But the thing is, do I report it or not?" " Brandon, you have to." " But it's not that simple, Bren." "Sometimes these kids get yanked out of their homes right away and put into foster care." "And I don't know if Felix could take it." "He feels abandoned as it is." "His father walked out on him when he was 3." "Well, maybe he has a relative or a friend he could stay with." "Could he stay with us?" "Brandon, that's a very generous idea, but I don't think" "Dad, you can't turn your back on someone you know needs your help." "You let Dylan stay here." "Sweetheart, it's a completely different thing." "I mean, Felix is a child." "He needs constant care." "Besides, I'm not sure it would do him any good to be here." "What he needs is a safe, permanent place." "Brandon, have you confronted his mother?" "No. I mean, what would I say to her?" "She'll never admit it to me." "Besides, Felix made me promise not to tell." "Well, you've just got to do what's best for Felix, honey." "I know." "Don't worry. lt's off." "Can I buy you a soda?" "No, thanks." "Listen, David, I'm-- l'm really sorry about being such a bitch the other night." "You think because you're Kelly Taylor, I'm thrilled about our parents seeing each other, don't you?" "Well, yeah, sort of." "Maybe for a second." "But the bottom line is your mom's been divorced forever." "And my parents, their divorce isn't even final yet." "So?" "So while it's cool that my dad likes your mom, I just wish he'd like my own mom more." " l don't know. lt's stupid." " lt's not stupid, David." "I mean, I can totally remember I used to hope for the same things." "It's really hard when you realise that's not gonna happen." "That sounds like something my therapist would say." "My mom's therapist." "She made me see him once." "Trust me. I know how it is." "So I guess my mom really likes your dad." "And vice versa." "What are we gonna do?" "I mean, I guess what's important is that they're happy together." "Yeah, I guess so." "Truce?" "Sweetheart, this could be the start of a beautiful friendship." " Hi, Brandon." " Hi, is Felix here?" "No, he's down at the Valley Youth Center." "But I appreciate all the time you've been spending with him." " Yeah, well, he's a special kid." " Yeah, he sure is." "Suzanne, can I talk to you for a second?" "Sure, come in." "So can I get you a soda or something?" "No." "No, thanks." "So, what's up?" "Well, what's up is..." " Suzanne, I know." " You know what?" "I've seen the bruises." "I know you beat Felix." "What are you talking about?" "I can't even believe what I'm hearing." " Look, I'm not a social worker" " No, you're not, so why don't you get the hell out of my house?" " Suzanne" " How could you even suggest that I could hurt my own child?" "Well, it seems pretty unbelievable to me too." "My parents never laid a hand on me when I was a child." "But Felix has bruises all over his back!" " What did that boy say to you?" " Nothing." "He defends you." "He thinks it's his fault." "He thinks he deserves it." "Oh, God." "I had a little too much to drink and I hit him, but not hard." " And he didn't deserve it." " So why'd you do it?" "Things got tough, and I took it out on him." "It'll never happen again." "Maybe you should get help with these problems of yours so you don't take them out on Felix." "How am I gonna be able to afford that?" "I don't know." "There must be some free community social services-- lt's not for me." "Then maybe you should do it for Felix." "Look, Suzanne." "I talked to my parents about this." "They didn't think I should come here and talk to you." "They said I should call a social worker and report the incident." "They did?" "Maybe they were right." "Well, maybe..." "Maybe there is somebody I could call." "A social worker or someone." "Oh, God." "I am so sorry." "I'm so ashamed." "You don't understand." "I am not that kind of a mother." "Really, I'm not." "I know, Suzanne." "I know." "Come on, you guys, let's go see if lunch is ready." "Hey, Felix." " What are you doing here?" " l came by to see you." "Well, maybe I don't wanna see you." "I guess you're pretty mad at me, huh?" "You promised." "You promised you wouldn't tell." " Felix, I know it's hard." " l miss my mom." "I've been in here over a week." "When am I gonna go home?" "Soon, I hope." "But Felix, your mom wanted you to come here so she could get some help." "So when you do go home, you won't have to be afraid anymore." "You know, I thought you dumped me." " Just forgot all about me." " No." "I just thought you needed some space." "Some time to cool off." "I guess you're right." "Do I look like the kind of guy who would bail on a brother?" "No." "Thanks, Brandon." "Anytime, Felix." "Come on, let's go get some lunch, huh?" " Sure." " Cool." " So, what have you been up to lately?" " Oh, not much." "You wanna go to the Kings' game next week?" "Yeah, that'd be great." "So tell me something, Felix, what's the food like in here?"