"Merry Christmas." "Rose?" "Debbie Carmichael?" "Rose Harrison?" "Oh, my gosh." "I haven't seen you since" "High school, I'm sure." "How are ya?" "Well, you know I married Bobby Gidecki." "No." "Oh, my." "Four amazing kids." "Can you believe it?" "But enough about me." "What about you?" "Tell me everything." "I'm married." "Hal, he's a lawyer down on Wall Street." "Two girls, twins." "Aw." "Yeah." "Britney and Ashley." "And in less than- oh, my gosh- seven hours," "I've got to have Christmas Eve dinner for 35 friends and family, so I got to go." "Oh, 35." "Oh." "Yeah, well, it was nice to see you." "We should... get together." "Absolutely." "We're listed." "We're the only Gidecki in Hartford." "I bet." "Oh, incredible to see you." "Yeah." "All right, well, I got to go." "Would you like to share a cab?" "No, no, no, I'm just going down here." "Well, merry Christmas." "Same to you." "Unbelievable." "Hi, I was just wondering what time your party started." "I beg your pardon." "You know, your Christmas party." "What time does that start?" "This is an emergency room, not Radio City Music Hall." "But you usually have a Christmas party, don't you?" "Usually." "Patients only, though." "You planning on being a patient?" "You never know." "You look beautiful." "You really do." "Morning." "How ya doing?" "Guess what I brought you." "All your favourites:" "smoked salmon with capers and Arugula salad and a mousse cake for desert." "And what's the occasion, you might ask yourself." "Well, I'll tell you." "Tomorrow's Christmas." "And that means that we get to spend the whole day together, just the two of us." "How about that, huh, Mom?" "Hm?" "And you'll never guess who I ran into." "Debbie Carmichael." "Yep, oh, Debbie Gidecki now." "She married Bobby." "Surprise, surprise." "They have four kids, a house in Connecticut just filled with oodles of joy and happiness." "I could have smacked her." "Here, let's try some salmon." "Hm?" "You love salmon, remember?" "You know, you got to keep your strength up, Mom." "That means eating." "You haven't eaten anything since yesterday." "Let's give a little salmon a little try." "You don't get any dessert if you don't try your salmon." "Come on." "Okay." "All right, all right, all right." "Well, you know what?" "We'll try again later, okay?" "Look at this." "Look what I found:" "an angel for your wreath." "How beautiful, huh?" "Yep." "Oh." "Hello." "Oh, hi." "I didn't realize anybody else was here." "Just me." "I'm sorry." "I just thought maybe" "I'd cheer things up a little bit." "I felt bad 'cause he never gets any visitors." "It seems so sad." "Except you, of course, but I've never seen you before." "Not that you've never been here before." "I'm sure you have;" "it's just that I've... never seen you before." "It's an angel." "Yes, and very beautiful, a renaissance angel." "Thank you." "It's very kind." "Oh, well, it's Christmas, you know." "Merry Christmas." "Well, got to get going." "Excuse me." "Morning, Rose." "Oh, Dr. Barrow." "Good to see you." "You too." "Have you been in to see your mother?" "Oh, yes, we had a nice, long visit, and you?" "I was just on my way in." "Feeling okay this morning, I hope." "Oh, sure." "I mean, I know it looks bad, single woman over 40 at Christmastime, but I'll be fine." "Just keep me away from the kitchen knives and open windows for the next few days." "You meant my mother, didn't you?" "Yes." "Oops." "Okay, bye." "Hey." "Hey, listen." "Hey, what do you say I give you a ride?" "Come on, I'm a cop." "You can trust me." "This is where I'm having lunch." "Then let me take you round the block." "I'll bring you right back where I found you;" "I promise." "Oh, I've been around the block." "Ain't nothing I haven't seen before." "Well, then marry me." "I'll take you anywhere you want to go." "Don't tell me a man like you isn't already married." "I've been holding out." "Oh, yeah?" "For what?" "For you." "Oh." "Okay." "But let's make it fast." "I get bored easily, and I only have an hour for lunch." "Do you know how much I love you," "Ms. Nina Vasquez, about to be Mrs. Riley?" "No." "How much?" "More than you ever know." "Enough to learn how to dance with me?" "Not right now." "Please." "Not right now." "You're gonna have to dance with me at the wedding." "Morning." "Morning." "Or should I say afternoon." "Did you type up the Sulley/Seth revisions?" "Yes, I put them on your desk." "Great." "And merry Christmas." "Ooh." "If you hate it, you can return it." "I'm sure I'll love it." "I'm sure you'll return it." "Your sister called, and she can't spend Christmas Eve with you after all." "Seems it's too painful since your father died, so she's spending the next week meditating with Buddhist monks in the Catskills." "Good for her." "Also, your ex-husband called." "Wanted to know if you would like to spend tonight with him and his beautiful wife and their two perfect kids in Connecticut." "And... oh, finally, your shrink called." "She's got to cancel your session today because her husband surprised her with a fabulous trip to Paris for Christmas." "That's... all?" "It rang a couple more times, but I was scared for you, so I stopped answering it." "What's so funny?" "Oh, it just struck me as being funny that a, you know, a woman who's never had a child is editing a children's book when maybe it would be more appropriate for me to work on Cooking For One" "or, you know," "How to Survive the Holidays Alone." "Don't look at me that way." "I'm fine." "Do you want my advice?" "No." "You've been looking after your mother for... nearly ten years now, right?" "Yeah." "Before that, you were looking after your father and also your husband, who walked out on you the day your mother came to live with you, and let's not forget" "What is the point?" "It's time that you stop taking care of everybody else and start thinking about yourself." "As my nana used to say, what you need is" "I know;" "I know." "Someone to take care of me for a change." "Wrong, what you need is sex." "Good sex." "Your nana said that?" "Yes, she did." "And by the way," "Marco has been looking for you again." "Hm?" "He is so tenacious." "That guy is sexy." "He's too young for me." "Every woman in the building wants him." "Not me." "I just want some coffee." "Coffee it is." "Please, Rose, sleep with him for me." "No." "You can tell me all the details." "I'll love it." "No." "Coffee." "Just get coffee." "Geez." "Okay, okay." "Nina, no." "No, I got to go." "I can't be late." "Listen, Dennis is waiting for me, all right?" "I got to go." "I can't be late." "I was beginning to worry." "Absent from work yesterday and apparent no-show today, thought maybe you'd run off to Tahiti and gotten married on me." "I'd never do a thing like that without checking with you first." "Of course." "So when are we going to dinner?" "Don't you have deadlines or something?" "Hey, I got to eat." "Okay." "When?" "Uh, well..." "Tonight?" "It's Christmas Eve, so I figure you must have" "No, no, no, no." "Nothing." "Okay, let's do it." "Okay." "Tonight." "Yeah." "After work." "Yeah, it's a date." "Okay." "Those earrings new?" "Yeah." "Cute, huh?" "They were a gift." "From who?" "Mr. Brenner." "Mr. Brenner?" "Is that normal, lawyers giving gifts to paralegals?" "Uh-huh." "Mm-hm." "Don't start, Mike." "What?" "You know, some women would be flattered." "Of what, that the man they were about to marry was a jealous psycho?" "Yeah." "See you at home tonight, okay?" "Okay." "Hey, I love you." "Excuse me, can I ask you for a Coke?" "Sure thing." "So anyway, so my plan is to spend Christmas in the hospital." "I know that sounds strange." "I mean, the hospital's probably the last place anybody would want to be, especially this time of year." "Thanks." "But see, the thing is, see, out of all the Christmases I've ever had, the only one that was halfway decent was the Christmas where I was 14." "I busted my nose open in this sledding accident." "They made me spend the whole day at the hospital." "That's a shame." "No, but it wasn't." "That's what I'm trying to tell you, because they threw this killer Christmas party where the nurses were dressed as elves, and they were singing songs, and they were handing out eggnog with a little bit of booze in it," "and they even made little presents, which was really cool." "That was awesome." "That was the best time I ever had." "I know." "What- I..." "I know." "I'm sorry." "You know what cup of coffee this is?" "Number four." "Where the hell you been?" "Wedding plans, you know." "Just one cup, I promise, and we're out of here." "What can I get you?" "Just coffee." "Oh, hi." "Hi." "Just coffee, and we're in a bit of a hurry." "Okay." "What was that all about?" "I don't know." "Beats me." "You know the guy?" "No, I never laid eyes on him before." "You sure?" "Yeah, I'm sure." "Because he's looking at you with that, you know, like... it's, like, weird, you know what I'm saying?" "No, what are you saying?" "Okay, here you go." "Here's your coffee." "I had a feeling you'd want it black." "Right, black." "And I got you almond butter cookies." "Almond butter cookies, those are my favourite." "I know." "Ah, he's got a thing for ya." "Come on." "Cut it out." "Come on; his eyes are all over you." "And that silly smile." "I know that smile." "I've used it." "Ah, you're crazy." "He's just one of those real nice guys." "You know." "He's like Greek or something." "They're always hugging and kissing." " Or maybe, he seems kinda slow." " No no, he's not slow Mikey." "I think the guy's got a thing for two guys in uniform." "You know what I'm saying." "Two guys?" "Nah, he was looking at me, not you." "Nah, he was looking at me too." "Nah, he wasn't looking anywhere near you." "What are you saying Mikey?" "Tha-that guys don't notice me?" "Is that what you're saying?" "Tha-that I walk down the street and guys don't turn their head to take look at me?" "No, I'm not saying that at all." "I just think the guy's interested in me and not you." "Oh." "What am I saying?" "Just... forget about it all right." "Fine he's all yours." "Come on." "Stop it." "You two gonna go furniture shopping together?" "I said forget about it!" "I'm gonna straighten this out right now." "All right, Mikey." "All right." "All right." "Calm down now." "Come on;" "come on." "Now, you're a cop, for Christ sake." "Now cut it out." "Easy with that famous temper." "Come on now." "You're a cop, okay?" "Your turkey club's up, Artie." "You got my money?" "Not yet." "Aw, come on, Jules, look, if you want to meet Arizona," "I have to get paid first." "Look, you know I'm good for it, right?" "I just got to go do this one thing, so why don't you tell me where to meet you, and I'll bring you the money." "All right, look." "Meet me at the old theatre on Avenue A at about 10:00, all right?" "But don't go in without me." "You wait for me." "Why?" "Oh, you don't want to surprise a guy like Arizona;" "that's why." "All right." "Well, Glen, you know" "I really appreciate this, right?" "It's Christmastime, man." " Can we meet later?" " What?" "I get off at 9." "Can we get together?" "I mean it's been so long." " So long since what?" " Since you and I..." " What?" " Since you..." "Now wait a minute, I don't know you." "Now you'd better cut this out..." " Mikey, Mikey, Mikey." "Wait outside." " Well you'd better straighten this out." "All right, all right, I'll handle it." "Wait outside, ok?" " Hey don't..." " Hey buddy, do you want to get locked up?" " No." " Stop hassling my friend will you please?" "You don't understand, it's been such a long time..." "Hey, hey, hey... enough!" "Ok?" "You've got the wrong guy." "Stop it!" "Ok?" "!" "He never has any visitors, not even family." "Oh, except for this one guy that was there this morning, but I've never seen him before, and I just- I don't know." "I wish there was something I could do, you know." "To be sick and alone and during the holidays, it's awful." "You know, that's what I like about you, Rose." " What?" " You care about other people." "You know, I have to say that I- I'm..." "Well, I just don't feel like I'm really your type." "I think you should let me decide that." "I'm a little uncomfortable with you, Marco, sometimes." "Let's just relax and have fun, Rose." "Okay." "Good, because that's all I really want to do is just have some fun." " Hey, me too." "Didn't I tell you?" "Best pizza in the city." "Mm, mm." "It's very good." "This place has been here forever." "On the weekends, there's a line around the block." "Why don't you have a girlfriend?" "Or do you have a girlfriend?" "Well, I did, but we broke up a few months ago." "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that." "Don't be." "It was good that it happened." "Why was it good that it happened?" "Ooh, hold it." "What?" "Cheese." "Cheese?" "Yeah, on the side of your mouth." "Oh, God." "No, let me do it." "So now that I've saved you from Tony's pizza- what shall we do now?" "Um..." "You want to see a movie?" "No, not really." "Want to walk somewhere?" "Yeah, but it's getting cold." "Don't you live around here?" "Yes." "Well, we could, uh, go back to your place, maybe have a nightcap." "Um..." "Marco, I-I..." "Rose, we work together in the same building." "What's the big deal?" "You know me, and it's Christmas Eve." "I don't have any..." "real liquor." "I just have eggnog." "No, I love eggnog." "Let's do it." "Okay." "Okay." "Do you have family in the city?" "No." "My family's all down in Florida, so it's just me here." "Great place." "You live here all by yourself?" "It's my mother's house." "Well, here we are." "I'll get the eggnog." "You know, Rose." "I find you very sexy." "Thank you." "I'm gonna get the nog." "You're not attracted to me?" "No, um..." "I'm attracted to you." "But this, you know, it's going a little fast for me." "Okay." "Let's just start with a kiss." "All you have to do is say stop, and I promise I will." "Okay." "You promise?" "Yes." "Okay, stop." "All right, that was a little quick." "Yeah, I know it was, but I'm-I..." "How long has it been, Rose?" "What?" "How long it's been since you've been on a date." "Um..." "You're a very beautiful woman." "You should be with someone." "Someone like me." "You know, you work all the time." "I never see you go out, you know." "You got to live a little." "Life ain't that bad, Rose." "You just got to lighten up." "Relax." "Oh, gosh, I just, uh..." "It's just not working for me." "What did I say?" "Someone tells me to lighten up and relax," "I just tighten up and get tense." "Hey, I just thought we could have a good time." "Yeah, me too, but..." "I was just trying to make you feel better." "I know;" "I know." "It didn't, though." "I see." "I guess I better go." "Yeah." "Okay." "I'm sorry." "No, no, no, I'm sorry." "I was too forward." "I was wrong." "Oh, no, no, no, no, no." "It's not you." "It's me." "You're right, Rose." "It is you." "Merry Christmas, Rose." "Merry Christmas." "Yeah." "Hey, you okay?" "My stomach is a little nauseous." "I think I'm just stressed out." "Nina, can you please just relax?" "Look, it's the glam rock look." "Hey." "What are you doing home so early?" "You must be Mike." "Surprise." "What are you doing?" "This was for you, you idiot." "He hit my lip." "What's going on with this guy, Nina?" "You can clean up here." "What the hell is he doing in the apartment?" "You have a serious problem." "Oh, I got a problem?" "What's he doing in the apartment?" "Are you insane?" "Who is that guy, Nina?" "This guy's my friend!" "He was helping me to prepare a surprise for you." "What kind of surprise?" "He's a tree decorator!" "All right, look, I'm sorry, all right?" "I made a mistake." "You know what?" "You always make a mistake." "Last week, you started a fight on the street because you thought a guy was looking at me." "He was looking- So what!" "Men look at me." "Get over it." "All right, look, I'm sorry, all right?" "It was just a misunderstanding." "It's just driving me crazy." "I saw the two of you talking today" "Talking when?" "When I dropped you off at work today." "I dropped you off at the office, and I saw you guys." "Do you spy on me?" "No, I don't spy on you." "Listen to me." "I just-I saw the two of you talking, okay?" "And then the next thing I know, you're hugging and kissing on each other..." "It was innocent, all right, believe me, completely." "She was thanking me." "Thanking you for what?" "This is insane." "Look, I can clear everything up." "Oh, that's not the point." "I'm gay." "All right?" "Nina, look, I'm sorry." "I'm sorry." "Come on." "Mr. Calvert." "Mr. Calvert!" "Mr. Calvert, your rent is due." "Mr. Calvert, I evict you if I have to." "I evict you!" "Yeah, but she told me she was gonna stay with you." "I don't know." "Yeah, I don't know." "Look, uh..." "Look, just tell her I called, okay?" "And tell her I love her." "And, uh..." "And, uh..." "Tell her I'm sorry." "Bye." "What the hell are you doing here?" "I need to see you." "I have to talk to you." "Look, pal, you picked a bad day to mess with me." "Now, you obviously got me mixed up with somebody else." "I just need ten minutes of your time." "I'm not gonna give you ten seconds." "You beat it." " Ten minutes, that's all I ask." "I'll explain everything to you, and then I won't bother you anymore." "Look, it's Christmas Eve, all right?" "Don't you have someplace to be, family waiting for you or something?" "What do you want from me?" "Ten minutes." "Please." "All right, come on." "Ten minutes." "Let's go quick." "This is for you." "It's not much." "Just something I wanted to..." "It's a little, uh..." "Thanks." "Take a seat." "Could I have something warm to drink?" "Yeah, you want some coffee?" "Yeah, that would be very kind of you." "Thanks." "Listen," "I didn't mean to frighten you before." "I hope I didn't." "It's just I was afraid I was never gonna see you again." "Look, you know, it's obvious you got me mixed up with somebody else." "I'm just trying to figure out what's going on here." "Nothing person, uh, Mister..." "Artie." "Mm." "Almond butter cookies." "Your favourite, right?" "Right." "May I have one?" "Yeah, sure." "Emilio, ven." "Ayuda, ayuda." "Oh." "So heavy." "Thank you." "Hello, familia." "Tengo hambre." "Are you all right?" "Mm-hm." "I might be pregnant." "Oh." "Congratulations." "Thank you." "But actually, I just left my fiancé who I am supposed to marry in one week and who I love very, very much but who is a jealous psychopath who thinks that every guy wants to sleep with me" "and who drives me crazy." "You must think I'm some crazy person, blurting all this out." "Oh, no, no." "Not at all." "You know, because I'm a blurter myself." "Sometimes, you know, you just have to get it out so that you can figure out what to do." "Thank you." "I'm Nina, by the way." "Nice to meet you." "Rose." "Uncle Pedro's friend from Pittsburgh, right?" "Dinner's ready." "Let's go inside." "Do I look like I've been crying?" "No, no, no, you look beautiful." "I really- I can't" "Let's go have some fun." "I have to go." "I really" "Nina, por favor." "I could use a hand inside." "Come on." "Oh, please..." "Thank you." "Cariño, pasamé ese plato." "Maria, come on." "Everyone's at the table." "Um, maybe there's somewhere I could use the bathroom?" "Oh, yeah, right behind you." "Thanks." "Thank you." "A ver, venga." "A comer." "Why not?" "Yeah, okay." "¿No es ella?" "Wait, Rose." "Rose, wait." "Oh, I'm so sorry, really." "That was so stupid." "Stay with us please." "Please stay with us." " Tell your" " Please come back inside." " Tell your family I am so sorry." " Sorry for what?" "For crashing your Christmas dinner." "For trespassing." "For breaking and entering." "For being just..." "crazy." "Please come back inside." "We'll make room." " That is so sweet, but I am..." " Please." "I don't..." "I don't fit in." "Me neither." "Not tonight." "I know a place around the corner." "Maybe we can go there and talk." "They're gonna miss you." "Yeah." "I'll come back." "Okay?" "You're crazier than I am." "Come on, it's freezing." "It's so cold." "I know he loves me, and he's a great guy with a huge heart." "Otherwise, I wouldn't be with him, but he's just so" "Controlling?" "Yes, controlling." "He doesn't have faith in what we have, how we feel." "He won't trust it." "I mean, I find myself praying that he will change, but I don't know anymore." "I mean, we're supposed to get married in one week." "This is it." "This is forever." "And I can't live like this." "But I can't picture my life without him either." "You love him very much." "Yeah, so much." "We even decided that we were gonna try to have a baby since we just got the apartment." "We both want a baby very badly." "Even though it's a long shot." "I thought you were pregnant." "Yeah." "To tell you the truth, I'm not sure." "Well, then you have to take a test and find out." "Doctors have always told me that I have a very low chance of getting pregnant, and I thought I was a few times before, and then I wasn't, so I don't want to take another test" "and be disappointed again." "Besides, I know I'm just nauseous from all the stress of everything going on." "Excuse me, ladies and gentlemen." "We're having a little impromptu contest." "Winner takes home the stunning Christmas tree on my piano." "Just step up to the mic and tell us why you hate Christmas." "Best reason wins." "All those interested, follow me." "Look, all I know is that, um... nobody's perfect, and if you find love," "I mean real love, you just don't throw it away without a hell of a fight." "Yeah." "Yes." "My wife used to do that with her coffee." "It was her one vice, if you can call it that." "It was more like a simple pleasure, really, just to put a little brandy in her evening coffee, and BB, just the way you do it." "Who are you?" "Look, you've been very, very kind to me, and I owe you an explanation." "It's just very hard for me to get the words out." "What I would like..." "Anybody home?" "Oh, he's home." "Ho ho ho." "Merry Christmas, Mikey." "What are you doing here?" "What am I doing here?" "I come to cheer you up, man." "Look, this is Holly and Mary." "Mikey, get it?" "Holly and Mary." "Come on, Christmas." "Dennis, I'm not sure this is such a good time right now." "Yeah, the girl's room is right around the corner here." "Okay, okay, we're going." "Look what I brought you." "Yeah, but, Dennis" "Mike, I get the redhead, okay?" "What's going on here, Mikey?" "That's the guy from the diner." "What's he doing here?" "I'm trying to get to the bottom of this thing." "You invited him to your apartment." "Mikey, what are you thinking?" "He could be some sort of psycho." "He's not a psycho." "Little strange maybe, but he's sweet." "Sweet?" "Mike, is there something you want to tell me?" "What are you talking about?" "I'm just trying to figure out what's going on with this guy." "I'm your partner." "You could tell me anything." "Dennis, you got to get them out of here." "Girls, Dennis, I really appreciate you coming by and your concern and everything." "Mike, I don't trust this guy, okay?" "I'm on my cell if you need me." "Nah, I'll be all right." "Mike, I'm on my cell, okay?" "I'll be fine." "What?" "I find that I'm very attracted to you." "Oh, wait a minute." " I'm not gay." " I'm not gay either." " I like women." " I love women." " No, I mean I really like women." " I love women too." "And I'm getting married." "I'm getting married really soon to a really great woman that I love very much." "I was married once to a woman that I really loved, and that woman was you." "Excuse me?" "Do you believe in reincarnation?" "How could you not?" "When I looked at you and you looked at me," "I knew it was she." "I knew it was my Angeline, my wife." "All right, that's it." "You're out of here." "No, you're out of here!" "You're my wife." "Stay away from me!" "Please, don't do this to me." "Come on in, baby." " The car's warm." " It's freezing." "What's the matter, Dennis?" "You're no fun tonight." "Give me one second, all right?" "I don't trust this guy with my partner." "Something's wrong." "Oh, nothing's wrong." "Give me a minute." "Give me a minute." "Come on, Dennis." "Son of a bitch." "I knew it." "No, no, Dennis." "My goodness, look at..." "All right, listen," "I got to straighten this guy out." "I got to." "I got to." "What I do for my friends, my God." "All right, just- I got to." "All right, listen," "I got to straighten this guy out." "Just stay here." "Stay in the car." "Oh, come on." "Dennis, wait in the car?" "Nina." "What's the matter?" "I really love you." "But your jealousy is killing me." "You hold on so tight." "I can't breathe." "That's because I love you so much, though." "Too much." "Come on, that's crazy." "No, it's not." "You have to let go, Mike." "If we're gonna make it, then you have to let go a little." "I do have another life, a career, a job where I have to talk to men." "There's nothing the matter with that." "Yeah, but all these guys want is to take you to bed." "So some of them try." "So what?" "You have to trust me." "Who?" "Who what?" "What guys try?" "No." "No, are they friends of mine?" "Do I know these guys?" "I didn't say that." "No, are they guys from your work?" "Did I ever meet them?" "Mike, did you hear a word that I said?" "What guys?" "Who are they?" "Why the hell did I come here?" "Come on." "Listen to me." "I don't want to talk to you." "Now you're starting to scare me." "You're gonna have to talk to me." "I'm sorry." "I wasn't listening." "Mikey, your friend here's waiting in the doorway hiding." "I wasn't hiding." "I wanted to be near you." "I thought you might come down again." "Not now, Artie." "Nina, please." "Come on." "Don't leave." "Get in the car." "This is all your fault." "Why do you keep doing this to me?" "You're my life." "You stay away from me." "I'm warning you." "Stay away from me!" "You understand me?" "Shit." "Mikey, what'd you do?" "I didn't do anything." "Get an ambulance." "And our last contestant, Ms. Rose Harrison." "All right, let's see." "I hate Christmas because, uh..." "Well, you know, actually," "I don't completely hate Christmas." "I, um..." "There's... quite frankly, a lot of things" "I love about Christmas:" "those little dome things that you shake" "Right, okay, sorry." "Um..." "Okay, I got pregnant the summer that I turned 25, and it wasn't something that my husband and I really planned, but, you know, we always wanted kids, so we were thrilled." "And we found out we were gonna have a little girl and we painted the room pink with little bunnies and all that." "And we named her after our maternal grandparents," "Olivia May." "And the pregnancy was great, and the delivery was great, and when she came out of me, she looked perfect." "She had just these little tiny, tiny little fingers, all of them and little toes, and she was blonde." "And you know, I don't know what colour eyes she had because, um, well, I never..." "um, I never saw her eyes... because she, um... well, she..." "her heart stopped." "It just stopped, and they told us that it was defective." "And I tried to get pregnant again after that, and it didn't happen." "And so I guess that's why I hate Christmas sometimes when I think of Olivia May." "That's a sad story, lady, but what's that got to do with Christmas?" "Oh, right." "She, um..." "Olivia May was born..." "... died on Christmas Day." "Don't you die on me, Artie." "A woman in the Bronx killed her husband and then turned the gun on herself." "The woman left a note by the scene saying just one line:" ""This is something I just wanted to do for myself. "" "On the house, lady." "We'll have details on this controversial new diet coming up when we return." "So where the hell does this guy live?" "Arizona?" "He lives wherever he can." "He's a squatter." "Moves around a lot." "Don't worry;" "you'll see what I mean." "I don't know if I like this, Glen." "Just got to trust me on this one, all right?" "This guy will take care of you." "Well, what if I change my mind?" "Well I don't give a shit what you do, I got my money." "Who's that?" "It's Glen." "Glen, welcome." " I got somebody here to see you." " Well, come on down and bring him over." " All right, you go and I'll wait here." " You're not gonna go with me?" "It's cool." "Don't worry about it." "Hi." "So what can I do for you, son?" "Well, Glen said that, um..." "Glen said what?" "Glen said that you break hands." "Yes." "That's absolutely right." "And whose hands are we talking about?" "Mine." "Oh, sheez." "I'm s-oh, oh." "I'm sorry." "I'm so- my fault." "Everything okay?" "I'm fine." "Just maybe a few too many Christmas parties, but..." "You meant me, didn't you?" "Right." "I was just checking." "Um..." "So how's Helen?" "Well, her blood pressure's still a little high, but it's much improved since this morning." " Good." " But she's still not eating." "And I'm very concerned about that." "If she doesn't eat something tonight, we're gonna have to insert a feeding tube." "Oh, don't worry about that." "She's gonna eat tonight because mother and I have big plans, don't we?" "Mother and I, we're going to sing some carols and eat some cake and sip some nog and light the Christmas tree." "Sounds fun." "It does sound like fun, doesn't it?" "What do you think mom?" "Do ya think it's going to be fun?" "I think so." "Aww, look at her." "How beautiful she was, hm?" " She still is." " Hm." "And me, I was such a timid little kid." "My first day at kindergarten," "I got one look at the Nuns and I just wouldn't go in." "And mum here she took my hand and brought me inside and said she would stay." "Sure enough when I sat a my little desk and looked out the window" "I could see her waiting there for hours leaning against her car, and I was ok 'coz" "I knew, she was there for me." "And now I'm going to be there for her." "I just don- I" "I don't know that she knows that I am though, you know." "She knows you're here though Rose." "I know that's hard to see, but she knows." "Your mother's lost her memory and her ability to recognise people." "But one thing she'll never lose is her emotion." "She can sense and she can feel." "I know that." "That's why we tell the families to touch them, talk to them." "I know I'm telling you things you already know but, you know, sometimes you forget." " Thanks." " You're welcome." "I'm gonna come back a little later and... check on her." "All right." "Let's start the celebration with some carrot cake, huh?" "Let's see." "Here we go." "Just a little nibble." "Here you go, Mom." "Come on." "Please." "Come on." "Did you hear the doctor?" "It's really important that you eat, okay?" "Let's just try, just a little nibble." "Please." "Come on." "Why won't you eat anything?" "Oh, God." "Okay, let's do the tree." "Look what I won, Mom." "Huh, nice tree?" "It'll cheer up the room." "Okay." "Let's see." "You like that, Mom, hm?" "Merry Christmas." "Oh." "Hold on." "I'll get it." "I can fix it." "Let's see." "Just a little bit of..." "What the hell's wrong with this thing?" "Ah, just get this." "I'm gonna fix it." "Don't worry." "Damn it!" "I love you." "Get him in room two." "What's going on here?" "It's a pileup on the West Side Highway." "You save him!" "He needs help!" "Sir, I'll be right with you." "Looking for my mother." "She was involved in an accident on the highway." "Her name is Evelyn Jents." "I guess there isn't gonna be a party now." "Not tonight, sweetie." "Sorry." "I'll try to scrounge up some leftover eggnog for you." "All right." "Sure wasn't like this when I was 14." "That was the best Christmas I ever had." "That's great." "Excuse me." "Excuse me, but I've been waiting for hours." "Is there any news on Artie Venezelos yet?" "You're gonna have to talk to Nurse Stein." "Excuse me." "I was hoping you could give me some news on Artie Venezelos." "Are you family?" "No, not really." "I just" "Either you are, or you're not." "I'm a friend." "I'm sorry;" "I can't give out any medical information." "He's his friend." "You know, like his friend-friend." "I don't care if he's his priest." "Okay, thank you, Nurse Ratched." "Listen." "I will find out what I can, okay?" "Oh, man, I really appreciate that." "You know, but the truth of it is, we're not even really friends." "Really?" "It's okay." "I figured that." "Can't swim." "Love to learn." "You're the guy from the hospital." "Yeah, Charlie Boyd." "You're the angel lady." "What are you doing here?" "Did you follow me?" "No, not at all." "Well, then, well, why are you here?" "I could ask you the same question." "I just want you to leave me alone." "Can't do that." "I see a woman standing alone on a pier looking over a ledge, I gotta help." "I don't want any help." "If you jump in, I'm gonna have to jump in right after you." "Who said anything about jumping in?" "But if I did jump, you'd jump in after me after you told me that you can't swim?" "Yeah, because it's the right thing to do." "And you always do the right thing?" "Yeah, I do." "It's a bad habit." "You want to tell me your sad story?" "I'm a really good listener." "I'm all ears." "Good, I'll tell you mine." "It's Christmas Eve, and I'm all alone." "That's it?" "You're all alone?" "That's the best you can do?" "There's more." "I'm a priest." "Really?" "Yeah, for 20 years." "Then last year, I left the priesthood." "Kicked the habit." "Started my life over." "Now here I am." "No more Catholic family, no personal family here, no one." "Wow." "Now you want me to guess yours?" "Take your best shot." "You're an attractive lady who forgot her hat, and your ears are very cold." "Bingo." "Hah." "Take anything off the top shelf." "Want to get a cab and get a cup of coffee, and I'll guess more of your story?" "After you." "Still my turn to guess, Rose?" "You're this amazing person, but you're too busy helping others to see it." "You take good care of your friend, right?" "Thanks." "Is he a close friend?" "What's the matter?" "Kind of a bad stomach." "Hurts." "Hope we get someplace soon." "I don't feel so good." "All right, well..." "My place is actually not far from here." "Do you want to go there?" "You sure?" "Yeah." "Driver, three lights, take a left." "Hey, you know, I really appreciate you doing this." "Aw, man, I'm glad I could help." "I know hospital policy isn't always on our side." "They can be a little stuffy." "I remember when my lover got sick" "Hey, wait, wait." "Wait a minute." "You made a mistake, uh, Randy." "Yeah, you're making the wrong assumption about Artie and I." "I appreciate you bringing me up here and all, but the truth of it is, we ain't a couple." "As a matter of fact, I just met the guy." "He's a waiter, and I ordered some coffee" "Oh, my God, that's how my parents met." "My mother waited on my father, only he ordered a tuna fish sandwich and a ginger ale." "No, now, now look." "I just, I want to make it clear that" "Don't worry." "Your secret's safe with me." "He's stable now." "Just thank God for small blessings, right?" "Let him know you're here." "I don't care what the doctors say." "Talk to him." "Tell him how you feel." "He'll hear you." "Mike, we got to talk." "Oh, hi." "Oh, my." "Who's that?" "Nah, forget about it." "What do you got?" "I went to the station." "I got some info on this guy." "Did you know your friend here served four years on a ten-year sentence for manslaughter back in '79?" "This guy?" "Yeah, that's him." "It was a domestic dispute." "This Venezelos comes home, finds his wife with another guy, right, but it's no boyfriend or nothing, just an old friend." "He goes into a rage, accuses her of being unfaithful, right?" "Him and this guy get into some words." "They start going at each other." "He throws the guy down a flight of stairs." "The guy's neck breaks." "He died in the hospital a few hours later." "Wait, it gets worse." "The wife takes off before the cops show up, right?" "She jumps in her car and speeds away." "She's doing, like, about 80 when she skids out on this icy curve and hits an oncoming car head on." "She was killed instantly." "Mike." "Whoa, Mikey, you all right?" "Yeah." "Yeah, I'm okay." "Well, at least we know who the nut is now, right?" "Naw, he's not nuts." "Yeah, all right." "Whatever." "Let's get out of here." "I'll take you home." "Nah, I'm gonna stay around here for a while." "For what?" "They can take care of him." "Come on, let's get out of here." "Dennis, listen to me." "Something's going on here." "I don't know what it is, but I'm gonna find out." "I appreciate you coming by and everything, but I got to figure this one out." "You gonna be all right?" "Yeah, I'm gonna be all right." "All right." "All right, merry Christmas, partner, huh?" "Merry Christmas." "Whoa." "I didn't see nothing." "What is it with this guy?" "You don't even want to know." "All right, later." "Take care." "This is really hot." "Be careful." "It's tea with bitters." "It's good for your stomach." "Thanks for letting me come here." "Oh, sure." "It's not right, you know." "I should be the one helping you." "Oh, no, I'm the one that always takes care of everybody, remember?" "My thing." "Must be something you need, though." "What do you mean?" "Well, what do you want most in the whole world, Rose?" "I guess just to make it through the night would be nice." "Now we're talking." "I can definitely help with that." "Did I just invite myself to spend the night?" "Sort of." "Maybe I should go." "No." "Stay." "You sure?" "Yeah." "On condition that you tell me what it is that you want." "That's fair." "I don't want to be alone when I die." "Is that too much?" "No." "No." "No." "You sure that's him?" "Doctor, believe me." "He was just here this morning." "So you think that it was self-inflicted." "Absolutely." "Well, if that's the case, we can hold him for up to 24 hours for observation if we think he's a danger to himself." "Have the resident psychiatrist have a talk to him before we decide to let him go." "Okay." "Look, if there's not gonna be a party," "I want to go now." "Can't leave right now." "Why?" "You have to speak to another doctor." "For what?" "Those are the rules." "Look, you can't just keep me here." "I can't, but he can." "Now sit down." "Charlie, I hope you don't mind my asking, but..." "Why did you leave the priesthood after 20 years?" "I lost my faith." "And I began to question the existence of God." "If you're a priest, that's not good." "So here I am." "I'm sorry." "It's all right." "What about you?" "What about me?" "How's your faith?" "Oh, it's pretty shaky." "Really?" "Why?" "Well, my mom's been sick for a long time with Alzheimer's, and she was always the glue that kind of kept the family together." "Now she can't even bathe herself." "And I keep trying to reconnect with her." "How do you do that with someone who's not there?" "Well, I put..." "I put pictures of the family all around the room, and I bring her her favourite foods." "I play her favourite music." "You know, I'm just trying to find her just even for, like, a second, just to have some kind of moment of clarity, you know, so that I know she's still there." "Does it work?" "No." "Do you pray?" "No, not anymore." "Yeah, I know how that is." "Only five more hours to go." "Till what?" "Till you make it through the night." "This is mesmerizing." "Not for five hours." "No." "We should put another tape on." "How you doing?" "Look, I want to go home now!" "All right?" "This is all wrong." "This is not the way it's supposed to be!" "Calm down, Mr. Calvert." "Oh, you want me to calm down." "Calm down, Mr. Calvert." "Calm down." "I can calm down." "That calm enough for you?" "What about that?" "Get him on the other side." "What are you doing?" "I got a broken hand." "Put me" "I didn't do anything wrong." "Orderly!" "Let me go." "Come on." "Come on." "You know, Artie, I got to tell you," "I feel really bad about what happened at the apartment today, and I want you to know that, you know, I wasn't mad at you." "See, I was..." "I was mad..." "Man, Artie," "I really screwed things up between Nina and me." "You have no idea." "Actually, you probably do, don't you?" "Hey, Artie." "I got to know." "That stuff you were saying today, about you and me, you know, about your wife, that was just crazy, right?" "Just some big misunderstanding, right?" "Who are you?" "I'm a friend." "I've never met you before." "Paul Venezelos." "Hi." "Michael Reilly." "I'm the guy that took him here." "I'm a cop." "Oh, thank you." "Yeah." "So how's he doing?" "He's stable." "All right." "Well, thanks for sitting with him." "It was good to meet you." "Yeah, of course." "Mike." "Yeah?" "He didn't give you some cockamamy story about you being my reincarnated mother, did he?" "He did, didn't he?" "He's been doing that to some poor unsuspecting chump every Christmas since she died." "Well, look," "I promise I'll let him know that you were here when he wakes up, all right?" "Yeah." "I appreciate it." "Can't believe you're still here." "So he likes to tell people they're your reincarnated mother, huh?" "Yeah." "Always around Christmas." "Look, I'm sorry about your mother and all that happened." "He told you what happened?" "Yeah, a little." "You know, he mentioned it once." "Wow." "My father never talked about that." "Anyhow, I'm sorry." "Pop, you know, he just can't seem to forget it." "It's the past that holds onto him." "We don't count." "No matter what we do, no matter how much we try to be there for him, we just can't reach him." "I can't reach him." "Do you know he still keeps that glass angel by his bed?" "I swear he sees her face in it." "Glass angel?" "Yeah, my mother had it blown out of glass to put on top of the tree." "It was a surprise for Pop." "Sounds like they loved each other very much." "They did." "All my father's looking for is a little forgiveness." "Where's the harm in that?" "Forgiveness from who?" "From her." "He screwed up, and he's sorry." "He just never got a chance to tell her." "I got to take a walk." "I'll be right back." "Keep an eye on him." "Yeah, you got it." "Morning." "Morning." "How you feeling?" "Rose." "Charlie, if you have to leave," "I understand, really." "It's fine." "Look, I made it through the night, didn't I?" "Yes, you have." "But is that what you really wanted?" "Just to make it through the night and that's all?" "Well, I suppose I'd like to think that my life matters." "Oh, your life matters." "You've touched other people's lives in ways you don't even realize." "How do you know that?" "Because you touched my life." "You're just being nice, Charlie." "No, Rose, I'm not." "It's more than that." "You saved me, Rose." "I was wondering where God was, and the next thing you know, there you are at the bedside of a complete stranger telling him you love him with such meaning." "And then I knew God was there in that room with you." "You were there?" "Yeah." "Why did you do that, Rose?" "I..." "Because he was just so alone, and..." "I guess I know what it feels like." "I know." "That's why your mother wants you to let go and live a life." "What?" "Your mother wants you to live your life, Rose." "You don't know my mother." "She knows you love her and you're there for her." "Why are you doing this?" "Because she told me to tell you." "That's not funny." "And you're scaring me." "No, Rose, listen." "I don't have much time." "Charlie, please." "I don't want to listen." "Please listen to what I have to say." "Get out of the house." "I don't want you here anymore." "I'm not gonna leave till you hear what I have to say." "She spoke to me last night." "All right, I'm calling the police." "I know it's hard to believe." "I mean it, Charlie." "Get out!" "That's what she wants." "I know that would make her happy." "Happy?" "Happy." "My mother doesn't even know she's my mother." "She doesn't hear me." "She doesn't see me." "Do you understand what I'm saying?" "When you look in her eyes, you see absolutely nothing." "She's not there, do you understand?" "I'm watching my mother die bit by bit." "So don't you tell me about my mother." "Get out of here!" "Just go!" "I love you, Rose." "Did you do that to yourself, Jules?" "No." "Well, there are some people here at the hospital that think you might have." "Hey, look, this is bull have to go through with this?" "If you want to leave, yes." "All right." "Fine." "I'll play this game." "My dad died when I was real young." "My mother married some guy with quick hands who didn't have time for me." "So he hit you?" "Yes." "A lot?" "When he felt like it." "They still married?" "I heard he died years ago, which made me very happy." "When was the last time you spoke to your mother?" "I told you, I don't have a mother." "I want to help you, Jules, but unless you tell me the truth," "I can't." "So tell me, did you do that to your hand?" "Yes." "Why?" "By the time I was 14," "I was taking a beating every day." "And once, it got so bad, he even threw my mother halfway across the room." "And that's when I told him to stop." "That's all I said." ""Stop it. "" "And you know what he did?" "He broke my nose in three places and then threw me out of the house." "And after they fixed me up, the hospital called my mother, and she never showed." "Never even picked me up." "If she'd just given me a little hint." "That she wanted me to stay." "That she cared... something." "Then I would've stayed." "But you know what, I felt she choose him over me." "I wasn't going to stick around for that." "Maybe she was scared, Jules." "Maybe she was just as scared as you when she allowed those things to happen to you." "She might have been happy when you ran away because she knew he couldn't hurt you anymore." "Maybe she loved you that much." "Why don't you call her?" "I'm sure she'd love to hear from you." "I can't." "It's just a phone call, Jules." "No one should be stuck in an emergency room on Christmas if they don't want to be." "Be back in a few minutes." "I thought I was never gonna see you again." "Hey." "Long time no see." "Should I get the nurse?" "No." "What are you still doing here?" "I was waiting for you to wake up." "Thanks so much for helping me out." "I'm very- very grateful." "You're welcome." "Artie, listen to me." "I want you to know something." "I forgive you." "You understand?" "It's over." "I forgive you for everything." "Looks like there's somebody ok to see you." "Hello, son." "Hey, Pop." "You okay?" "Nina, dear." "I'll be right there." "Ay, Nina." "Come and see what I see." "What are you doing here?" "Listen, I've been thinking about what you said last night, about being scared." "I shouldn't have said it like that." "No, I know what you meant." "But you're wrong." "I'm the one that's scared, not you." "Look, it's not that I don't trust you, Nina." "I don't trust who I am, you know?" "What you see in me." "You know, I'm just a cop, you know?" "I..." "I don't have a fancy suit or a fancy degree on the wall." "I don't have the words to make all the things I did go away." "I wish I did, but I don't." "I just know I want to spend the rest of my life with you." "Michael..." "Look, if you don't want to get married, it's fine." "You don't want to see me anymore, all right." "You don't even know if you love me anymore... well, I'll just have to accept that, because you're more important to me than us." "But if you give me one more chance" "I know I've said this before, but this time, this is for life" "I won't let you down." "I won't- I won't let you down." "You have to believe me." "I've changed." "I'm not the same anymore." "Mike." "You don't have to say anything right now." "I want you to think about what I just told you." "You know, it's like you used to tell me." "I mean, this is it." "This is forever, and I want you to be sure." "Okay?" "All right." "Hey, you know, one more thing." "Whatever you decide, be happy, because that's more important to me than anything." "Excuse me, nurse." "Have you seen the gentleman that visits this patient?" "No one comes to visit him." "I've never seen anyone." "His friend's name is Charlie Boyd, and I saw him here myself yesterday morning." "You're mistaken, ma'am." "This is Charles Boyd, and no one has ever come to see him." "Excuse me." "I have rounds to make." "Charlie." "Oh, my God." "It is you." "Hey, Charlie." "Charlie." "Hi." "It's okay." "I'm here now, Charlie." "You can leave now." "It's okay to let go." "Look what you forgot." "Thank you, Charlie." "Hi." "Hi." "Can I come in?" "Yeah, come on in." "I thought I'd come by and... give you your gift." "Where is it?" "It's right here." "Merry Christmas, Mike." "Really?" "Really?" "Yeah." "Oh, I love you." "I love you." "So will you marry me now?" "Yeah." "Let's get married." "Oh, my God." "I missed you." "I love you so much." "So, Helen, do you think your daughter would go out to dinner with me?" "You know, I was hoping you might put in a good word for me." "What do you think?" "I'm a nice" "She's eating." "Mom, you're eating." "That's so great." "Congratulations." "I was just" "You're talking, I know that." "She's a great listener." "Yes, she is." "I suppose I should continue my rounds." "Oh, Doctor." "What's your first name?" "Matthew." "That's Matthew, Mom." "I'm sorry about what you heard when I was talking to your mother." "You know, as a doctor, you say things to your patients that" "You don't really mean." "No, no, it's just that sometimes" "You don't... you don't want to take me to dinner." "No." "I mean yes." "I would like to take you to dinner." "Oh." "Well, good, because, uh..." "Well, I think, I think that's a good idea." "Really?" "Yes." "That's great." "I would really like that." "Me too." "Merry Christmas, Rose." "Merry Christmas, Matthew." "You too, Helen." "He seems like a good guy." "What do you think, Mother?" "Do you like him?" "Merry Christmas, Mom."