"Carlton." "Man, you ever feel like you was being watched?" "All the time." "When you look this good, you have to get used to it." "When you talk that stupid, you have to get used to this, man:" "What is wrong with you?" "Come here." "Come here." "See that dude over there?" "He been scoping me since he got here." "I think he's a cop." "Turn yourself in, Will." "It's the only way." "You're right." "You're right." "Wait a minute, man." "I ain't do nothing." "Hey, what's up, man?" "Can I get you something?" "No, I'm fine, son." "If you need..." "So is he a cop?" "He's my father." "Will." "You don't remember me." " But..." " Yeah, I do." "Hey, what's up?" " Long time, huh?" " Fourteen years." "Uncle Lou, it's me, Carlton." " Did you bring me anything?" " Carlton?" "My goodness, haven't seen you since you were 3 years old." "I guess we all have a lot of catching up to do." "Let's see, where do I begin?" "Well, when I was 6, we all moved from the hood..." "And here I am today." "Excuse me." "Hey, you want some more coffee or something?" "That would be nice." "When did you get so tall?" "Mostly during the '80s." "Thanks." "So how'd you find me?" "Well, I..." "I talked to your mother three months ago." "I guess she didn't mention it to you." "Yeah." "Well, anyway, I was driving through L.A. On business..." "I'm a trucker now." "Got my own rig and everything." "So I thought I'd stop by and see how my boy was doing." "Hey, I'm doing fine." "I'm busy, though." "I got a lot of work and stuff I need to do." "I understand, I understand." " You take care of yourself." " Yeah." "You too, all right?" "Whoa, hold up." "Hey, you wanna stop by the crib later and have some dinner?" "Oh, well, I know you're living with Philip and Vivian." "I don't think I'd be too welcome." "You know what I'm saying?" "No, they'll be cool." "So look, I get off at 6." "It's great." "I'll pick you up then, son." "Okay." "Okay." "Good to see you again, Uncle Lou." "Wow, 14 years." "You must feel like you're on a roller coaster of emotions." "Hey, man, that ain't no big thing." "Sure." "Look, I'm here for you, my brother." "Let me hold you." "Hey, Aunt Viv." "Hi, Will." "Hi, Lou." "My God." "Vivian." "After all these years." "Still a stone cold fox." "Will, you should have told me." "You really should have told me." "I asked Geoffrey to tell you." "I thought it might be more fun this way." "And I was right." "G, I'd like you to meet..." "Lou Smith." "Show Lou to the family room, please, while Will helps me here with something." " This way, sir." "How are you doing?" "No, I'm cool, Aunt Viv." "I stopped on the way home." "I had a few drinks." "I'm kidding, I'm kidding." "I'm fine, I'm fine." "You think that Uncle Phil is gonna be cool with this?" " I think so." "Yeah." " All right." "If I can stop him from coming home." "Who is this beautiful woman?" "She's Hilary." " Hilary, this is..." " I'm Will's father." "Oh, come on." "Will's father is a deadbeat who left him and his mom flat." " Hello." " Uncle Lou!" "Well, let's just sit down and have a nice, quick visit." " Vivian." " Oh, that was fun." "Why is there a truck parked in my...?" "What are you doing here?" "Philip, can I see you in the kitchen, please?" " I should go." " Don't be silly." "Who knows if we'd ever see you again?" "Come on." "I must be an old man, because little Ashley's all grown up." "Yeah, Ashley this is your Uncle Lou." "Uncle Lou?" " You mean he's your..." " Yeah, that's right." "He's my Lou." "And this must be little Nicky." " May I?" " Sure." "Oh, yes, yes." "You know, Will, I used to hold you just like this." "Then why'd you run out on him?" "Well, Lou." "It's been a while." "How long are you in town for?" "A couple of days." "On some business." "Yeah, Uncle Phil, he owns his own trucking company now." "Well, one truck." "But I am my own boss." "And I'm making a little money." "Why didn't you send any back to the wife and child you abandoned?" " Hey, Uncle Phil, man." " You promised." "Look, if you'll excuse me, I think I'll skip dinner." "I don't have much of an appetite." "Shall I call 911?" "I ain't scared of no kiddie roller coaster ride." "Please, you was up there screaming so loud I thought I was sitting next to Patti LaBelle." "Will, I owe you an explanation." " No, you don't." " Yes, I do." "You see the day you were born was the happiest day of my life." "The first time I held you I didn't think I'd ever put you down." "So why did you?" "I just wasn't ready to be a father." "I started feeling trapped." "Well, one day I just panicked and ran." "It was selfish and cowardly but that's what I did." " I'm sorry." " Look, why are you telling me this now?" "Because you're my son and I love you." "And I'm a different man now." "I'm ready to be part of your life, if you'll let me." " Part of my life." "How?" " Yeah." "Well, for one, we can get to know one another." "And did you know your old man was All City point guard?" " Really?" " Yeah, man." "I still hold the record for the most consecutive foul shots." " You don't believe me?" " I didn't say nothing." "No, I see you don't believe me." "Hey, come here." "Come here." "Don't let this height fool you, you hear?" " I didn't say nothing." " No, you didn't have to say nothing." "Don't hurt yourself now." "I don't want to take you back broke." " Yeah." " Yeah." "Anybody can make one." "They have little girls out here that can make one." " Yeah." " Well, two ain't nothing either." "He's really good." "He's my dad." " Yeah." " He's good." "All right, give me that ball." "Listen, Vy, I told you last night, we're keeping a close eye on Will." "He's doing fine." "Everything is..." "What?" "Yeah, Lou still looks great." "Hey, I'm sorry." "He does." "Okay, fine." "He's puffed up like a blowfish and bald as an egg." "Were your ears burning, sir?" " We're back." " I have to go." "Bye-bye." "Did you have a good time?" "We rode every roller coaster in the park." "Yeah, almost threw up like three times." "That's my boy." "I'm glad you two got to spend some time together." "We just getting started, right, Daddy?" " Yep." " What do you mean?" "My dad has to hit the road tomorrow." "And I'm gonna go with him." "Why should I spend my summer wasting at the Peacock when I can hit the road with my dad?" "Hey, watch yourself, watch yourself." "It's a great way for Will to see the country." " Forget it." " Come on, Phil." "The boy could use a little adventure." "Excuse me, but this is a family discussion." " Hey, Uncle Phil." " Hey, hey, hey." "It's okay." "It's okay." "I'll wait in the pool house." "Uncle Phil, that is not cool, the way you dissing my father like that." "The hell with your father." " Philip, for God's sake." " He waltzes in here after 15 years?" " Fourteen." " Excuse me, 14 years." "And acts like nothing has happened." "Wake up, Will." "This is the same guy who didn't think enough of you to pick up the phone." "He made a mistake." "I'm sorry that everybody can't be as perfect as you, Uncle Phil." "But if I can forgive him, how come you can't?" "Because he's doing this for himself." "If you think any differently, then you're a fool." "Hey, just cool it." "Just cool down." "We can talk about this another time." "You know what, Aunt Viv ain't even nothing to talk about." "I've been waiting for this for a long time, my whole life and ain't nobody gonna stop me." "Come tomorrow, I'm out of here." " I don't think so." " Who cares what you think?" "You are not my father!" "You know, sir whenever I'm feeling blue I think of the poem my dear mum used to recite to me as a lad." "The master lives a life of ease" "While we live life upon our knees" "Waste not your tears And save your breath" "For soon he'll die a violent death" "Works for me." "Daddy, I had a little accident at the mall." "I'm okay." "But I totaled your MasterCard." "That's okay, honey." "Everybody makes mistakes." "Here, pick a card." "Well, I'll just take this pretty gold one." "Thanks, Daddy." " What's with him?" " I don't know." "He's like a genie on Valium." "Make a wish, hurry." "Daddy, there's a dance next Friday, but it's not over till midnight." "That's okay, stay out as late as you wish." "Really?" " Well, then, can l...?" " Hey, save some for me." " Say, big guy..." " Carlton am I a good father?" " Are you kidding?" "You're the best." " Oh, thank you, son." " Can I have access to my trust fund?" " Not a chance." "I hate you!" "Oh, yeah?" "Well, take a number." "Here comes Mr. Sunshine." "Shut up, Geoffrey." "Philip, stop moping." "You know Will didn't mean what he said." "Well, why'd he say it?" "For four years, I treated that boy like my own son." "Whether he needed a pat on the head or a kick in the pants, I was there for him." "I worked my ass off trying to keep him in line." "And yet, it's come back with a vengeance." "I have done everything for Will." "Suddenly, it's like none of that matters." "I can't believe he could be so selfish." "Philip, listen to yourself." "Somebody's being selfish all right, but it isn't Will." "Will, do you mind if I move your things around while you're gone?" "No, it's cool." "Knock yourself out, man." "You know, Carlton, up until a few days ago I never even thought I'd see my father again." "It was like I couldn't even think about it because I knew it wasn't gonna happen." "But I still managed to keep the fantasy." "Now it's real." "I can't believe how lucky I am." "Yeah, it's a miracle." "Hold the tape measure." "Carlton, I'm only going for the summer, man." "Hi." "Can I speak to Will alone, please?" "You're not gonna talk him into staying?" " Get out." " Right." "Look Uncle Phil, I owe you an apology." "No, no, no, I'm the one." "I'm sorry." "I guess we both said some things we didn't mean." "No, I meant what I said." "I was just out of line." "Uncle Phil, man, you know I appreciate everything you've done for me." "But this ain't about you." "This is something I gotta do for me." "Yeah, I know." "I know, son." "And..." "I wish you the best." "Good luck." "I'll miss you." "Me too, man." "Hey, Uncle Phil." "I mean, you know that this is just for the summer, right?" "Where's Lou?" "He's supposed to be here an hour ago." "I knew this was gonna happen." " Maybe he got stuck in traffic." " Yeah, on his way out of town." " Mr. Smith has arrived." " Sorry, I'm late." "Business." "I talked to this guy who's got this shipment." "Gotta go from L.A. To Maine in 72 hours if I can make it." "And I can make it because I am the best." " And I'll make myself a quick five grand." " Yeah." "That's terrific." "You and Will better get a move on." "Well, now, that's the problem." "As good as I am, I can't make the deadline by myself." "So I'm gonna pick up an extra driver." "So there won't be any room for Will." " Not this trip, no." " But, you know, I'll tell you what, Lou." "I'll buy Will a plane ticket to Maine and that way you could hook up and have the summer together." "That's mighty generous of you, Philip but this job could lead to another big one and I gotta stay flexible, you know what I'm saying?" "Oh, yeah." "Yeah, I know what you're saying." "Will is gonna be crushed." "Yeah." "That's why I was thinking maybe you two should break the news to him." "Vivian, would you take Nicky upstairs, please?" "You're not gonna hit him, are you?" "Because I don't wanna miss that." "No, I'm not gonna hit him." "Lou, if you walk out of Will's life now don't you ever come back." " Sit down." " I ain't got time for no lecture." "I said, sit down, Lou." "You know, Will was doing just fine till you showed up." "But now that you're back, you have responsibilities to him." " Look, we're still gonna take the trip." " Oh, bull!" "Bull." "Will is not a coat that you hang in the closet then pick it up when you're ready to wear it." "His life goes on." "He's not supposed to be here for you." " You're supposed to be here for him." " You get off my back!" "You think I want this?" "It just happened." "Now, when Will was a baby, I was scared..." "Cut the crap, all right?" "Cut it." "Because I've been there." "But I didn't run out on my family." "I was there every day for them." "Because that's what a man does." "Fine, Philip." "You win." "You the man." "You a better man than me." "You happy?" "Now you gonna tell Will or not?" "I'm not gonna do your dirty work for you." "Fine." " I'll call him." " Yeah, do that." " Yeah, I'll do that." " Daddy-O." "What's up?" "Will." "Man, I'm glad you're here." "Some business came up I gotta handle." "So we're gonna have to put our trip on hold." "You understand?" "Yeah, that's cool." " Just for a couple of weeks." " I understand." " Maybe a little longer." " Yeah, whatever." "Whatever." "Look, I'll call you next week and we'll iron out the details." " Okay?" " Yeah, yeah." "It was great seeing you, son." "You too, Lou." "Yeah." "Yeah." " I'm sorry, Will." " Actually, this works out better for me." "The slimmies this summer come to class wearing next to nothing." " Will, it's all right to be angry." " Hey, why should I be mad?" "At least he said goodbye this time." "I just wish I hadn't wasted my money buying this stupid present." "I'm sorry." "If there was something that I..." "You know what, you ain't got to do nothing, Uncle Phil." "It ain't like I'm still 5 years old." "Ain't like I'll be sitting up every night asking my mom:" ""When's Daddy coming home?" Who needs him?" "He wasn't there to teach me how to shoot my first basket, but I learned." " And I got pretty good at it too." " Yeah." "Got through my first date without him." "I learned how to drive." "I learned how to shave." "How to fight." "I had 14 great birthdays without him." "He never even sent me a damn card." "To hell with him!" "I didn't need him then and I don't need him now." " Will..." " You know what, Uncle Phil?" "I'm gonna get through college without him." "I'll get a great job without him." "I'll marry a beautiful honey, have a bunch of kids and be a better father than he ever was." "I don't need him for that, because there ain't a thing he could ever teach me about how to love my kids." "How come he don't want me, man?"