"Sportscaster:" "Last season, a lot of people thought he was playing even better than his dad did when he first came into the minors, but lately, you know, Garrett's been in a bit of a slump." "Carlton's father, of course, retired Hall-of-Famer Kyle Garrett." "And now he's back at the plate." "Halliday sets." "And the 1-2." "High fly ball, right centerfield." "This should do it." "Jackie Liston drifts back." "And, well, the Hooks lose this one 6-0." "Corpus has now lost the series, but it's the first series the Hooks have lost since May 26th." "Son of a bitch." "Hey, Garrett, come talk to me for a minute." "What's going on with you?" "I'm just trying to figure some things out." "Figure things out?" "Yeah, you know, whatever it is that's eluding me." "No, nothing's eluding you, Garrett." "You're just stuck in your head, that's all." "And baseball players don't say things like "eluding."" "So pull it out of your ass and play some ball for me," " will you, please?" "!" " Okay, Coach." "I got to level with you." "If things don't go well this weekend, I'm thinking of making some changes." "( keys jangle )" "( sighs )" "( phone buzzing )" "( newscasters bantering )" "Hey." "Man." "She had some trouble breathing after lunch," " drove herself over." " What did they say?" "They've recommended a procedure." "It's a catheterization of some kind." "I don't know." "They've had a lot of success with it, but there's always a risk." "Now, listen, they've got her on antibiotics and they have to wait a few days, but she won't agree to sign the surgery waiver." "( huffs ) Right." "If she falls unconscious, they can do it without her consent." "Otherwise we'll need a court order and I don't know if we can get one." "Okay, Grandad, I'll talk to her." "Hey." "Hey, I was listening." "What happened to you out there tonight?" "I thought you were gonna pull that off." "Yeah, me too." "Were you wearing your thing?" "Oh." "We've been buds a long time, haven't we?" "Yes we have." "And have I asked you for much during that time?" "Have I asked you for many favors?" "No, not really." "Okay, I need to ask you for one now." "Anything, Mom." "You know that." "I need to see your father." "( stammers ) Mom." "If he's not here when I go into surgery," "I'm gonna die on that table." " Come on." " You tell him I'm crazy." "You tell him" " I don't care-- whatever you want to tell him, but I'm not signing that waiver till he gets here." "I won't." "Okay, wait a second." "Let's just calm down here." "No, I need to see him, Carlton." "And don't tell me to calm down when I'm laying here with a fucking hole in my heart!" "Mom!" "Shit, I'm scared." "Shit." "I'm scared!" "Okay, this time I am really scared and I don't know why." "So please tell me you'll do it." " If that's what you want." " That is what I want." "Okay, I'll do it." "I promise." "Thanks." "( phone beeps )" " ( line ringing ) - ( sighs )" " Woman on phone." "Hey." " Hey." "Look, I'm sorry to just call like this, but." "Wow." "Why don't you just try calling him?" "You don't know him, Lucy." "I mean, he's not exactly easy to talk to." "Ah." "If you were to ask this guy how he was doing, instead of saying "fine,"" "he would say something like" ""Better than a chigger on the back of a hound dog."" "I don't get it either." "Well, I guess you are in a pickle." "I don't know what to tell you." "I mean, I'm sorry about your mom." "I am." "This whole thing is just" "Yeah yeah, I know." "Well, I'm subbing for two classes in the morning." "You gonna be okay?" " Yeah." " You call me if you need anything, or if Katherine needs anything." "Okay." "Thanks for coming over." "Love you." "Love you too." "Did I wake you?" "No, I was just baking a fruitcake." " You want some?" " ( laughs )" "Good one." "Um, I wanted to say thanks for coming by earlier." " Did you call him?" " I got his agent." "He's at an autograph show in Ohio." "( laughs ) Can you believe the guy still doesn't have a cell phone?" "So anyway, um." "I'll go." " You will?" " But, look, I gotta be back by Wednesday," " no later." " Wednesday." "Done." " Hey." " Hey." "Yeah, so I'm thinking for this first thing or whatever, um, maybe I'll just do it on my own." "Okay." "Maybe we can have a nice dinner or something after." "Go." "Go, young man." "Face your demon." "( sportscaster speaking )" "It all boils down to this." "It's all on the shoulders of Garrett." "Oh!" " Oh my goodness." " Oh, it looks to be good!" "Are you kidding me?" "It's out of here!" " Absolutely unbelievable!" " This is amazing." "Garrett has done it." "Kyle Garrett has just won the National League pennant for the Houston Astros!" "Thanks." "He's got me swinging so damn hard" "I was spinning around in the dirt and I strike out." "Then I got to walk back to the bench with my teammates laughing their asses off." "I lose my 100 bucks, but I learned an important lesson-- you never trust a rookie." "Ever!" "( laughs )" "Okay, well, we have time for one or two more questions." " Right there." " What happened to Palmer?" "I thought he was supposed to be here." "Bob needed to be at home with his wife." "They're expecting their second child, so unfortunately he had to cancel." "What do you think about that, Lonestar?" "Well, I guess maybe Viagra does work." "Believe it or not, Kegs is even older than I am." "So when his wife got pregnant the first time," "I told him not to worry." "I'd find the bastard that did it." "And then last month when he told me she was pregnant again, well, that was quite a blow." "I realized I'd killed the wrong guy." "All right." "Well, there's the pitching contest tomorrow at 9:00 AM." "So I hope you can all make it." "And we'll be selling tickets outside." "Kyle." "All right now, who do we got next?" "What you got there for me, little pardner?" "A baseball card." "Well, put it on up here." "I ain't gonna bite." "Only two things you've got to worry about as far as that goes." "rattlesnakes and redheads, okay?" "You're too young for one, too far north for the other," " you know what I'm saying?" " He's growing up quick." "Okay, here's your card." "Let's take our picture." "I think you're the best, Mr. Garrett." "Nobody since Ted Williams" " can swing a bat like you, sir." " I appreciate that." "All right." "All right, you take care of this little slugger now." " Oh, yes, sir." "Thank you, sir." " All right." "See you." "I got about 15 more in me, sweetie." "All right." "Come on up now." "Hello." "What can I do for you?" "I tried to call you in Arizona." "Mike said you were here and that you still didn't have a phone, so I just flew up." "I don't know if that answers my question, but it sure is good to see you." "I need to talk to you in private." "It's important." "Sweetie, can you put some more ice in that for me?" "If I would have been able to reach you by phone," " I just" " Kyle, they changed the thing over at the pavilion." "They're gonna do it at 6:00." "Okay, I'll see you over there." "Oh hey, this is a fan of mine." "He come all the way up here from Texas." "Oh, all right." "Welcome to Ohio." " Jack Masterson." " Carlton Garrett." "Well, see you over there then?" "All right, I'll see you there." " Thank you, darlin'." " Sure thing." " You're holding up the line." " Dad." " What?" " Please." "Look, I'm staying at the same hotel you are." "I'm here with my friend Lucy." "When you're done with this, maybe you could just, I don't know, meet us at the bar or something after." "All right, this dog and pony show will be over around 8:00." "I'll see about swinging by after." "How's that?" " Thanks." " Hey, buddy." "What you got there?" "Lonestar, sir, I have to say it is an honor to meet you." "Maybe you should just call his room." " ( elevator dings )" " Let's just give him 20 minutes." " If he's not down here in 20 minutes" " A whole lot can happen in 20 minutes." "You must be Lucy." " Yeah." " Oh, I swear," "Garrett must've been born under a lucky star." "You're prettier than a spotted heifer in a pansy patch." "Well, thank you." "I got to apologize to y'all." "They got me acting like a little circus bear around here." "Had to have drinks with the programmers up there." "You know, cocktails up in my room and they just-- well, they just kept going on and on ad infinitim." "And now they got me going to this damn dinner." "Didn't even know about it." "Didn't tell me about it." "But I sure would love to have you join me." "Would you mind doing that?" "And then we could go over the private matter?" "It's really kind of serious, Dad." "Yeah, well, I know, son, but hey, if you'd given me a heads-up-- if you'd let me know you were coming," "I would've made time." "I would've canceled this whole deal." "Mom's dying." " What?" " The thing with her heart, the defect, it finally got worse and now they have to operate." "And she wants to see you." "What are you talking about?" "She wants to see you before she goes into the operating room." "That's what she asked for." "That's what we came to tell you." "Well." "you know, I'd love to come, but I'm, uh" "I'm under contract here with this thing." "I don't know if I can just drop everything and fly off." "Uh." " when's the operation?" " They want to do it as soon as possible." "Hmm." "Well, you caught me a little off guard here, but sure." "Yeah." "Of course." "So you'll fly down?" "Well, I'm not gonna walk." "Of course I'm gonna fly down." "When I check into this party, this dinner deal, and I'll tell 'em the situation." "I'll look into flights in the morning." "Okay?" "We're on the 10:00 tomorrow, so we could all go together." "As long as I can sit next to you." "Okay then." "Well, I wish the circumstances had been better," " but it sure is good to meet you." " You too." " See you in the morning." " Okay." " Call your room." " Thank you." "All right." " That seemed to go pretty well." " You're a total liar." "What are you talking about?" "Mom's dying?" "If she doesn't get the operation, she will." "Look, what are you trying to do, okay?" "He said he would go." " Can we not just be happy about that?" " Hmm." "You're the one who blushed when he called you a heifer." "That's a cow." " I know what a heifer is." " Well well." "( elevator dings )" "( elevator dings )" "Here you go, pardner." "Lonestar, I appreciate it." "#11 in your program;" "#1 in your heart." " ( laughs ) He doesn't stop." " All right." " Good morning." " Good morning." "All right then." "Let's go to Houston." "( cell phone ringing )" " Hi." " Carlton." "Hey." " Where are you?" " I'm at the airport in Columbus." "Are you-- how you feeling?" "I'm fine." "Have you talked to your dad?" "Yeah yeah, I'm looking at him right now." "He's getting his ticket." "We should be in tonight." "Mom?" "Yeah." "I didn't know if he would come." "Well, he's coming." "I'm bringing him just like you asked." "What'd he say?" "He said that if you wanted him there, he was there." "And now we're at the airport." "Tell him I said thank you." "I will and I'll call you when we get in, okay?" "Thanks, baby." "You're welcome, Mom." "Now get some rest." "I'll call you in a few hours, okay?" "Okay." "Hey." "Who's he talking to?" "Lucy." "Homeland Security." "He lost his wallet, so he doesn't have an id." "I completely understand your predicament, Tom." " Good." " And believe me," "I thank God that you boys are down here doing your jobs" " which isn't an easy one." " Thank you." "It's not like you don't know who I am." "Right?" "I mean, uh, the Lonestar ain't exactly no Arab." "Mr. Garrett, believe me, if there's anything I could do," "I would do it." "If I don't scan something," " I'll lose my job." " You believe this?" "May I talk to you for a minute?" "With the new security laws, they won't let you on a private flight" "I appreciate it." "I appreciate it." "Well, pal, I really don't know what happened to it." "I don't know." "See, I had a few drinks last night." "Maybe we could check the hotel." "Please tell me you're not gonna do this." " Do what?" " I just got off the phone with her." "She's counting on you." "Well, what do you want me to do, kiddo?" "Haven't you ever lost your wallet?" "Couldn't you have someone overnight your passport?" "It expired." "Besides, there's nobody to overnight it anyway." "You know, I think the Lonestar is being a pretty good guy here." "I mean, you show up out of the blue," "I haven't seen you for five years," " here I am trying to get on a plane." " No you're not." "And it's been four." "Let me try and explain something here, okay?" "Now she asked for you to be there, not for you to try to get on a plane," " but for you to be there." " Looks like I'm at the airport to me." " Without your wallet!" " What do you want me to do?" "!" "Huh." "Sorry." "Was that me?" "Yeah." "What were you gonna say?" "No, nothing." "I was just trying to internally ponder something, but the internal thing didn't really work out." "You go on, sweetheart." "Something tells me if you've got something to say, it's probably good." " What is it?" " Well," "I was just thinking-- this is entirely up to y'all, but you could always just drive." "Kyle." "You'd think a car this size would have some leg room." "Jesus God." "( grunts ) This is the most uncomfortable seat." "I don't understand this." "You asked for the biggest thing they had." "This was it." " I asked for a Lincoln." " They didn't have a Lincoln." "You know, when I was a kid, what we called "a hummer"" "was something entirely different." "It was a kid in the choir who couldn't sing." "Barbara Big Legs-- she was the one in ours." " ( all chuckle )" " Sang like a goat." " Kyle." "You okay back there?" " Lucy." "Yeah, I'm okay." " How about you?" " So I guess you two have known each other for quite a while now." "Yeah, about five years." "Hmm." "We met at a book reading." " Oh really?" "Is that right?" " Mm-hmm." "I try to read to myself every now and then, but my lips get tired." "( both chuckle )" "Carlton's actually been doing some writing-- some short stories and stuff." "Eventually, he's gonna write a book." " You're kidding me." " Hm-mm." "Huh." "He must get that from his mother's side." "I remember he used to talk about you, you know, back when." " Really?" " No, good stuff." "Good stuff." "I remember thinking his voice would always kind of sound different whenever he'd say your name." "It always brought a smile to my face." "How do you mean different?" "Oh, you know, like someone who's happy, I guess." "In love." "Well." "I think I'm gonna go in there and get some booze, get drunk." "You want anything?" "No, I'm good." "Thank you." "Okay." "( groans )" " Mmn." " ( door shuts )" "I called the school." "They kind of want me back by tomorrow." "( sighs ) Tomorrow." "Yeah." "Carlton." "Yeah, of course." "Hey." " Look." " You're welcome." " I mean it." " I know." "You didn't have to do any of this, but you did and I'm grateful." "I appreciate it." "Hey, there's something else I have to tell" "I mean, this whole thing is so strange, right?" "I mean, I look at the guy and I know he's my father, but I'm not sure he even exists anymore." "He's probably been playing the part for so long," " the real Kyle's just gone." " Did you hear what I said?" "What?" "Yeah, I'm sorry." "No, that should be fine." "I mean, I think we'll make Memphis tonight." "We'll get you a flight out in the morning." "I'm serious, Lucy." "I couldn't have done this without you." " ( door jingles )" " See you later, buddy." "God, what the hell's he doing now?" " Hey, you okay?" " Yeah." "All right, well, should probably get back in the-- right?" "Gotta try and make Memphis." "Yeah." "Right." "Darlin', would you mind doing me a favor and grabbing my bag there?" " I got some pills in there." " Yeah, sure." " Would you bring it to me?" " Sure." "Thank you." " What kind of pills?" " I don't know." "Blue ones." " What are they for?" " Well, let's say they're for my hip, they're for my leg bone, my back, some are for my ankle." "What aren't they for?" "You should never dive head-first, son." "Always slide into the base, but don't dive." " Are you gonna be all right?" " Probably." "I can't say the idea of crawling back into that oversized Tonka Toy and speeding through the night particularly lights my candle, though." "Well, if we stop now, we're not gonna make it by Friday, Dad." "We're barely gonna make it by Thursday as it is now." "We can't stop." "I'm sorry, but we just can't." "Yeah, I'll miss tomorrow night's practice, but that's it." "Yeah, I'll see you on Friday." "Thanks." "You get through to your mom?" "Yup." "And the team." "This whole thing is just-- I don't know about all this." "About what?" "The wallet, the hipbone, the neck-- whatever." "This is his thing." "This is what he does." "I told you." "He commits to something and then the idea of commitment itself starts to totally freak him out." "I know him." "He's looking for a way out." "He's just-- well, let's just say the guy has some issues." "What, commitment issues?" "Yeah, exactly." "Oh, Carlton." " Kyle." "You want a drink?" " Carlton." "No." "Lucy's waitin'." "I don't want the food to get cold." "She seems like a great girl." "You know, I've been around." "I had a chance to meet a few people." "There's not as many great ones out there as you would think." "So how come you stopped calling?" "One day we're talking and the next thing I know." "You disconnected your phone, Dad." "Well, so did you." "That was my dorm phone." "I graduated." "( laughs )" "I ever tell you about the first time I met your mother?" "No." "I was at this party." "And she just walked into the room." "( chuckles ) I wish you could've seen her." "She was 19 years old." "She had this smile that just." "( laughs ) whoo!" "Anyway, I get her number, and then I start to." "talk to this other girl, see?" "Was gonna make her jealous." "And that... is when this shoe hits me right in the head." "She hucked a shoe straight across the room-- hit me right here, drew a little blood." "But she had a hell of an arm." " Mmm!" " I guess so." "Oh, bam!" "I think it was that smile, though." "That's what got me." "Oh, that was something else." "What about you?" "You gonna marry her?" " What?" "Lucy?" " Mm-hmm." "Ah, we're just friends." "Friends?" "That girl, she's finer than the hair on a frog." "What the-- what are you thinkin'?" "Uh, well, we used to go out, but, uh, I don't know." "I guess I was too focused on the game." "How's that slump going?" "I'm working my way out of it." "Look, I'm gonna go." "We should probably leave first thing in the morning" " so try to get some rest." " Hey, uh, thanks for finding me." "Son, thanks for gettin' me." "See you in the morning." "( whispers ) Hey." " Hey." " I'm sorry." "From flying and everything." "( whispers ) I miss you." "( whistles )" "I just can't believe it." "I can't believe any of this shit." "Reeves is gonna take me out of the lineup if I don't play well on Saturday, my mom is in a hospital bed convinced she's about to die and this guys is, I don't know, just out with a barfly." "That's" "( huffs ) I mean, who does that?" "How could anybody do that?" "Hey, um, there's something that I've been trying to tell you, but it felt really weird." "What?" "Jason proposed to me." "I know it's a bad time, but I felt really weird keeping it a secret from you." "And it's one of the reasons why I have to get back on Wednesday." "What did you say?" "I told him I'd think about it." "What does that mean?" "Are you-- are you leaning in a particular direction?" "I don't know." "Jesus." "Uh. ( laughs ) well, that is news." "( laughs )" "Shit." "That's, uh-- that's great." "I mean, Jason is, uh-- he's, uh-- he's a great guy." "And, uh..." "I thought you'd." "you know." "No." "No." "( sighs )" "I know it may not seem like it sometimes, but I want you to be happy." "You know?" "I love you." " Can I get you some more coffee?" " Yeah." " You, dear?" " No, thank you." "We're just waiting on someone." "I'll see you later now." "Bye bye." "( slaps car ) Okay." " I want you to wear that mask next time." " ( woman giggles )" "All set?" "I guess that's a yes." "Kyle." "If you get tired and you want me to drive, just let me know." "Carlton." "No thanks." "I'm good." "So I hear you're working on a novel." " Nope." " That's not what I heard." "Carlton." "Well, you heard wrong." "Whatcha working' on then?" "( sighs ) One day I'd like to write a book." "Right now I just do journal entries." " Journal entries." " Yup." "What's that, like a diary?" "No, it's like a writer's notebook." "Short stories, essays-- stuff like that." "Why don't you just write the novel?" "I will." "Eventually." "Thank you." "Well, you know what Papa Garrett always used to say." ""There ain't no tomorrow quite as nice as today."" " ( sighs )" " Of course, that's just one man's opinion." "Kyle." "It sure is nice country." "Beautiful, hmm?" "Yup." "Rolaid?" "No." "Thanks." "Go on, have one." "Why would I want a Rolaid?" "Well, I don't know." "Might be for relief." "You know, I don't know where along the way you became so joyless, son, but that's probably why you can't hit the ball anymore." "You're not having fun out there, you don't stand a chance." "Hey, the guy in there said there's a lot of construction on the 65." "He said we should take this one-- the 79, I think." "Well, that sounds like a good idea." "Well." "Kyle." "That big ol' red Hummer looks like I'm about to do battle with something." "But what the heck?" "Carlton." "That did not say 79." " This is like an access road." " Lucy." "The map says it'll curve around." "Kyle." "Keep curving." "It's like a slider-- keeps heading south." "And he hit that ball so damn hard that I'm coming around like this, you know?" "'Cause you know what Dr. Pepper is, don't you?" "You know what it is?" "Carlton." "Okay, look, this is the exact same intersection we were at." " Lucy." "Take a right." " ( Kyle chuckles )" " Woman." "Operator." " Carlton." "Yeah, hi." "Operator, I'm in a phone booth somewhere, obviously, and I was-- well, I was hoping you could tell me where that might be." "Operator." "You want me to tell you where you are?" "Yeah yeah." "Yes, please." "From your little computer map there or whatever." "From my what?" "Sir, will you please speak up?" "I can't hear you." "Sir?" " ( dial tone )" " Hello?" "Hey, Dad, instead of just waving at the next car that drives by, maybe the next one you just flag 'em down and ask 'em where the hell we are." "Yeah." "Great." "A Kentucky phone booth?" "Carlton." "We kind of got off the highway." "And I can't get any cell range out here." "Now we're completely lost." "Sounds like you're on an interesting ride." "Yeah, well, I'm a little more concerned about you right now." "Yeah, well, you mustn't ever ignore the ride, honey." "Mom, okay, the truth of it is I don't know how long this is gonna take." "And I just don't think it's a good idea to wait for us." "Well, that's not your decision to make." "Mom, we could be talking about your life." "We are talking about my life." "Right." "All I'm asking is that you do your best." "Look, I'm gonna get him down there, okay?" " I promise you that." " You do that." "I'll call you when we get further down the road." "( sighs )" "( whistles ) Let's go." "Come on, forget the map." "We'll stop and ask at the first place we see." " I think we're on Farm Road 20." " Whatever." "Let's go." " What is your problem?" " Problem?" " Yeah!" " Problem?" "I think it's plural, Lucy." " I think I have problems." " Okay, first of all, stop calling me "Lucy." My whole life it's been "honey" or "baby" or whatever, and now all of a sudden it's "Lucy."" "And second of all, have you even stopped for a minute" " to think about why I came on this trip?" " Oh yeah, oh yeah." " You have?" " Yeah." " Really?" "Why?" " I know exactly why!" " Why?" " To rub it in." " What?" " I blew it, okay?" "!" "You were the best thing that ever happened to me and I fucked it all up!" "What else do you want me to do?" "!" "Do you want me to take this bumper and plunge it through my chest?" "!" " Yes, that would be a start!" " Fine!" "Fine!" "What are you doing?" "You look like an idiot!" "I am an idiot, okay?" "!" "Are you happy now?" "I am an idiot, okay?" "That's me." "So do you two have a favorite song?" "You know, like a couple's song?" "No." ""Que Sera, Sera."" "Oh yeah." "I remember that one." "That's a good one." "There was this singer called Jonny Ace back in the day." "He had this beautiful song called "Forever My Darling."" "It was a real dandy." "That was his mother and mine's." "( humming softly )" "¶ Forever my darling ¶" "¶ I'll always be true ¶" "¶ From now till forever ¶" "¶ I'll love only you. ¶" " ( Kyle stops singing ) - ¶ Just promise me, darling ¶" "¶ Your love in return ¶" "¶ Make this fire in my soul, dear ¶" "¶ Forever burn.¶" "Clerk." "That gonna be it?" "Maybe just some cyanide." "Uh, Advil would be fine." "My wife makes those." " How much are they?" " Five bucks." "I think she's charging too much." "I don't know, man." "Here." "I'll take two." "Let's see, that's gonna be." "$14.50." "( register dings )" " Uh, so." " Yeah." "So this is gonna be easy." "You just go straight down here to the 20 and you're gonna see that sign for the interstate." "Thank you." "( bell jingles )" " You get it all figured out?" " Yup." "Kyle." "You'd think this humdinger would have one of them sonar deals to track our course straight from the start." "You know what I'm saying?" "But then again, we could've stayed on the interstate." "( engine starts )" "Well, what the hell do I know?" "I'm just Tom and Hazel's baby boy." "I always kind of wished that I'd played ball back when they used to take trains." " ( train horn blares )" " Travel around with the boys." "Wouldn't that be something?" "The last team that did that was the Royals." "Now they-- see, they went from train to plane." "They never took a bus." "I don't know." "I guess the owner's wife must have died in a bus crash or something." "( laughs )" "Something chapped your hide?" " What, me?" " Yeah, you." "Yeah." "No." " Well, what is it then?" " Nothing." "You don't like my stories, you can just say so." "Dad, it's not that." "I just" " I'm worried about a lot of things right now." "I'm sorry if I'm a little pensive." " Pensive." " Yeah, I guess I'm just distracted." "I know what it means." "I wasn't suggesting that you didn't know what it meant." "Just because you make diary notes now, you think you're the only literate one in the family?" " Is that about right?" " What?" " Okay, what's happening here?" " I'll tell you what's happening." "You're being a pissant." " Excuse me?" " You got two good people to agree to go on this whole road trip with you." "You ain't being very nice to either of them." "Maybe you should appreciate what you've got in front of you." "My mom is waiting for you in an emergency room and you have the gall to criticize me?" "!" "You're the worst husband in the history of time!" "Hey!" "Where the hell are you going?" "!" "This whole thing is a revenge thing." " What are you talking about?" "!" " Hey, let me tell you something." "I don't owe you anything!" "Understand that." "I never have and I still don't." "Who said you owed me anything?" "!" "I don't want anything from you!" " What do you call this?" "!" " This is for Katherine!" "What part of your brain can't understand that?" "Hey hey, I don't spend my life just hanging on a coat rack." " What?" "!" " For five years, not one word?" "!" " Oh, come on!" " You don't call me" " for five years?" "!" " Nobody called me either!" " I called you last." " No you didn't!" "I left you a message two Christmasses ago." "Yeah, and I left one for you on New Year's!" "That was three New Years' ago!" "What are you doing?" " ( grunts )" " Shit." " What happened?" "Here." " Get away from me!" " Let me help you" " Get away from me!" " You okay?" " I'm fine." "I'm fi" "Man." "What the hell'd you do to him?" "( door closes )" "Hey, how's he doing?" "Well, he's pretty banged up, but I gave him a shot of cortisone." "Should do the trick." "I'll refill his prescriptions and you can pick 'em up at the pharmacy." " All right, thank you so much." " Sure thing." " Grandad." "Are you holding up okay?" " Yeah, l-- ( huffs )" "I have a bit of a snowball effect thing happening here," " but I'm fine." " Oh, you don't sound fine." "What's on your mind?" "( sigh ) I don't know, Grandad." "I guess I thought I knew what I was doing with my life and I'm starting to think I just screw everything up." "You know, I'm no one to give advice, but I can tell you this." "Life is about screwing things up, Carlton." "That's what we're here for." "It's the things you screw up and still have the courage to fight for." "Those are the things that usually matter the most." "Okay?" "Okay." "( knocks on door )" "( murmurs ) It's open." "( yells ) It's open!" "Hey, Kyle, it's me." "Oh." "Hey." "Come in." " Ol' doc took care of me." " Well, good." "I'm gonna get your prescription in a minute." "Oh, don't worry about that." "I'm gonna pick that up myself." "I just need to take a little time here." "Everything all right?" "Yeah." "Um, I was just wondering if I could talk to you for a minute." "A minute?" "Yeah, you could talk to me for a whole hour." "Come here." "Sit down." "What you got on your mind, darlin'?" "Well, remember the other day at the gas station when I got your bag for you?" "Yeah." "What are you doing out here?" "I was just thinkin'." "What were you thinking about?" "Actually, um," "I was thinking about that time in Galveston." "Do you remember that carnival in Galveston?" "There was that big fat guy who would not sell me that heart-shaped necklace you wanted." "Yeah." "He made you trade him your watch for it." "Yeah." "That's right." " ( chuckles )" " That was a fun night." "It sure was." " Do you still have it?" " What, the necklace?" "I don't know." "Yeah." "I doubt it." "Hey, l" "I don't want you to marry him." "I know that I hurt you and, ha-- and there's nothing I can do to take it back." "You just came home one day and said," ""Sorry, I'm moving to Corpus." "I need to focus on my game."" "God." "That's because I was an idiot." "Hey." "You're going through a lot right now." "I know." "It's not fair of me to have brought it up." "No." "No, it's completely fair." "It's completely fair." "( sighs )" "I just want you to know how sorry I am." "and that if you thought there was ever a chance that-- that you could forgive me." "What, for being an idiot?" "Yeah." "And for not cherishing you." "I'm gonna go." "I'm gonna go get your dad's prescription." " I'll be right back, okay?" " Okay." "( baseball commentator speaking on TV )" "( shop bell dings )" "How you holding up there, pardner?" " Not to bad." " Oh, hell." "That's better 'n most." "What can I get for you?" "Why don't you start me off with a good old cold beer?" "Lonestar if you've got one." "I know you from somewhere?" "No, I don't think so." "You're Kyle Garrett, aren't you?" "Well, to be perfectly honest, I have been called worse." "What are you doing here?" "Well, I'm drinking." "( cell phone rings )" " Lucy." "Hey." " Man on phone." "Hey." "Where are you?" "I'm still in Kentucky, but I should be back tomorrow night." "I'm gonna fly out of Memphis." "I thought you were gonna be back last night." "I don't understand any of this." "It's just something that I had to do, Jason." "It doesn't mean anything." "It doesn't mean that I don't" "I wish I just knew what was going on, you know?" "Well, I'll just have to explain it when I get back then, okay?" "Kyle. "You're supposed to do this." "You're supposed to do that,"" "and on and on, nagging." "And I turn to him and I say," ""l may not know much, but what I do know" "I know the hell out of."" "( all laugh )" "Son of a bitch docks me two days' pay!" " Man." "No!" "That son of a" " Hey, I was looking earlier for you." " Hey." " Come on in here." "This is-- Johnny, this is my son." "Welcome." "Glad you made it." " Carlton Garrett." " Nice to meet you." "He's a ballplayer like his old man, what you call a natural-born athlete." " How about getting him a Lonestar?" " All right, slugger." "Give me one of those too, would you please?" "Whoa." "Oh oh." "Time for the Lonestar to take a load off." "Let's get a table." "Come on, just the two of us." " ( groans )" " You sure it's a good idea to drink with all these painkillers and everything?" "Oh, always a good idea to drink." " Oh, thank you, Johnny." " Thank you." "Hey, I don't care what they say about you." "You're a good man." "Remember it." " Lucy got these for you." " Aww." "She's a peach, that girl." "( chuckles )" "Whew. 25." "I'd kill a man to be 25 again." "You would?" "You talk to her?" "Your mother?" "How's she doing?" "She's hanging in there." "Well, I'll tell you something." "I know this old boy, works for the airlines in Dallas" "Walter Henry Heigan." "And he's got his top guy here in Memphis." "He's gonna walk us straight through security right onto the plane." " Just show up?" " Yup." "That's it." "You don't need your id or anything?" "No, I sure don't." "Talked to him back at the motel." "That's great." "Thanks." "Don't mention it." "I figured I'd slowed us down enough already." "I know you didn't have to come on this trip." "Oh, forget about it." "I got to spend some time with my son." "Hey, I don't want to be telling you your business, but if I were you and I had a pretty little thing like that waiting for me back at the Blue Moon Motel," "I sure as hell wouldn't be sitting here with me talking." "All right." "Dad?" "I'm sorry I didn't call you for so long." " Hey." " Hey." " Guess what?" " What?" " He did it." " Did what?" "Uh, whatever." "That thing you were talking about." "He got us on a flight out of Memphis in the morning." "I guess somebody's down there waiting." "Uh, yeah, I know." "I was there when he figured it out." "He said he wanted to tell you himself, otherwise I would've said something." "Huh." "Well, this is a good development." "I must concur." "( both chuckle )" "You look good." "Thanks." " Um, did you want to talk about earlier?" " No." "Because" "I'm just gonna read." "Uh." "I'm just gonna take a-- a shower." "( mutters ) Cold shower." "Kyle." "You boys hold down the bar." " The Lonestar shall return." " ( laughter )" "( train horn blares )" "( faint singing ) ¶ ...a little girl ¶" "¶ I asked my mother ¶" "¶ What would I be ¶" "¶ Here's what she said to me ¶" "¶ Que sera, sera ¶" "( singing trails off ) ¶ Whatever will be, will be. ¶" "Hey, come on." " Where's Kyle?" " He's gonna meet us at the gate." "Why didn't he just wait for us?" "I don't know." "Maybe they had to walk him through security or something." "Yeah, tell her we'll be in around 7:00." "Okay." "Bye." "We should board." "You ready?" "Okay." " What are you drinking?" " Tasty beverage." "So your friend took care of your ticket then, huh?" " Yeah. ( sighs )" " That was nice of him." "Yeah, well, that's old Walter for you." "He even walked me through security." "I thought you said Walter was based in Dallas." "He is." "There are two Walters." "His son's actually based here-- Walter Jr." "Walter Jr." "Uh, yeah." "He's a good one." "Heart as big as all outdoors" " Walter Jr." "I'm gonna go find Lucy." "I'll be right back." " ( clears throat )" " Time to go?" "What?" " I'd like to know what's going on." " What do you mean?" "I'm trying as hard as I can to be honest with you." "Okay?" "I'm trying as hard as I can to forgive my father for being dishonest his entire life." "And I don't know." "I have this sneaking suspicion that everyone involved has been lying to me." "It's not like that." "It just seemed pointless to tell you." "Tell me what?" "Well, when I helped your dad with his bag," "I noticed his wallet in there." "When I asked him about it, he said it'd be pointless to tell you because there's no way you'd believe he'd hide it there intentionally." "Okay, so he made up this whole story about his airline friend." "And, look, he didn't tell you 'cause he didn't want to upset you." "He didn't want to upset me." "What was I supposed to do?" "He's here, isn't he?" "You were supposed to tell me the truth!" "I was stuck, okay?" "I was stuck in between." "You got him his bag at the gas station." " That was two days ago." " What difference does it make?" "We could've flown out of Louisville." " We could've been there already." " No, we couldn't have." "Hey, my mom has been in the hospital the entire time." "What the hell is wrong with you?" "Will you wait a second, Carlton?" "You don't understand." " Where the hell is he?" " Can we talk about this, please?" "Just stop, okay?" "( huffs ) He's not in there." "Calm down." "He probably got onboard already." "Why would he board without us?" "I can't believe this." "You don't even care, do you?" "No, Carlton." "I don't care." "That's why I came on this trip and canceled a week of classes and alienated my fiancé." "Oh, so now he's your fiancé." "Well, I didn't know you had accepted." "I'm gonna go try to find him, okay?" "If I'm not back in 10 minutes, will you-- meet me out front." "P.A:" "This is the final boarding call for flight 580 to Houston." "Ladies and gentlemen, the cabin doors are now closed." "The captain has turned on the Fasten Seat Belt sign." "Please make sure your seat backs and tray tables are in their upright and locked position." " Katherine." "Where are you now?" " Carlton." "Memphis." "I'm afraid I got some bad news." "Did I ever tell you what I did for the first 18 years of your life?" " Mom, come on." " Sleep deprivation for five years." "Uh, PTA meetings." "I fit in real well there." " Mom." " Ju-juice-jit" " Jujitsu." " Jujitsu." "Um, every time you would leave the house," "I prayed to Jesus, Buddha, whoever would listen, that you would come back in one piece." "I don't regret it." "I'm not saying I regret a second of it, Carlton, but if you're gonna tell me it was all for nothing, and now when I need you the most you're not there, then who do I have?" " Who do I have, Carlton?" " Mom!" "If I don't have you, who do I have?" "Would you stop this stuff, please?" "Look, I love you." "I love you and I'd do anything for you, but-- but he's gone." "He left me here at the airport." "Okay, I'm gonna tell you something real important." "Sometimes in our life, some of us anyway, we really only get one person." "No matter how much we try, no matter who else we meet, we're not ever gonna love anybody else as much as we love them." "What do you want me to do?" "Um." "well, there's an old hotel downtown" "I guess it's still there-- called The Peabody." "If your dad's still in Memphis," "I bet that's where he'll be." "Actually, if you just want to keep the same car, it'll be cheaper that way." "Good evening." "How may I help you?" "( sighs ) I'm trying to find someone." "Last name?" "Garrett." "No." "No one by that name has checked in yet." "No reservation." "Nothing." " Afraid not." " All right." "I'll take a room if you have one." " Just for the one night?" " Just for the one night." "( phone beeping )" "( line ringing )" "Machine." "Hi, this is Lucy." "Leave a message and I'll get back to you." "( machine beeps )" " You doing all right?" " Oh yeah." "What brings you to this neck of the woods?" "You here on business?" "Uh, sort of." "What do you do, if you don't mind my asking?" "Well, uh" "I'm" " I'm a writer." "A writer." "No kidding." "What kind of stuff you write?" "Short stories and stuff like that, but I think that I've come up with an idea for a book." "Well, that sounds good." "So you know what it's gonna be about?" "Actually, I don't know how it all ends yet, but I guess you could say it's mainly about, uh, an idiot." " An idiot?" " Yeah." "( both chuckle )" " You got a title picked out?" " No." "I guess I should work on that." "I'm gonna probably set it on the road." "An idiot on the road." "( laughs ) Yeah." " Exactly." " I'll keep my eyes peeled." "Great." "Well, I should probably call it a night." "Sure thing." "I can put that on your room if you like." "Oh, okay." "Last name's Garrett." "Oh, so you're here with Kyle." "What?" "Are you Kyle's son?" " Yeah." " That's funny." "He was just in here earlier." "And he was actually talking about you." "But I thought he said you were a ballplayer." "Did he sign for his drinks," " put 'em under a room?" " Yeah." "Yeah, it's under another name though." "You want me to put it on that one?" "Hey, Dad." "Hey!" " Hey." " Move your foot." " No." " Move your foot!" "I can't!" "You've got it pinned." "Hey." "Get out!" "Get the f" "( Kyle yells )" "Carlton." "Get off!" "Get off of me!" "Get off of me!" "Why didn't you love us?" "I did." "I just loved myself more." "We're leaving first thing in the morning." "All right." "( marching band playing )" "Man." "Ladies and gentlemen, please give a warm welcome to the Peabody ducks." "The march of the Peabody ducks is a time-honored tradition dating back to 1933." "General manager Frank Schutt and his friend returned from a weekend hunting trip, decided to slip their live duck decoys into the hotel's lobby fountain as a practical joke." "Hey." "Hi there." "Attendant." "You all right, Mr. Garrett?" "Oh, this." "My son bashed my head into a towel rack, but I'm fine." " Thanks for asking, though." " My pleasure." "I've always been a huge fan, sir." "Ah. #11 in the program;" "#1 in your heart." " Have a good day." " ( engine starts )" "You too." "What's the deal with the ducks?" "I don't know." "Some kind of custom they have here." "I guess they live up on the roof." "Huh." "Reminds me of something." "Yeah, well, you've seen 'em before." "Your mother and I, we used to bring you here back-- back when we was a family." "( sighs )" "Here you go, babe." "Kyle. .back up in Memphis and he's rented the exact same Hummer." "Say, uh, is he some kind of a big deal or something?" "Baseball player." "Oh, baseball." "Now there's an exciting sport." "I think I'd rather watch the grass grow." "Thanks." "( phone vibrates )" "Hey." "All right, there you boys go." "Hey." "She got an infection." "They had to take her in." " What?" " They took Katherine into surgery." " They're right over there, sir." " Oh." " Thank you." " Sure." " Hey there, Amon." " Hey." " Kyle, how you doing, buddy?" " All right." " How you doing?" "Virg'." " Kyle." "Uh, I just got through talking to the chief of staff." "He was telling me that this surgeon that they got for her is one of the top in the country." "They say he's highly regarded." "Yeah." "So, uh." "she's gonna be fine." "( elevator dings )" " ( elevator dings )" " Lucy." "Hey, how is she?" "She's, uh, still in the operating room." "Doctors won't tell us anything." "But I think it's taking longer than we expected." "So." " Hey, look" " I'm not" " I'm not mad at you." "I understand." "( softly ) Well, we're still waiting, so." "Doctor." "Hey there, folks." "Okay, well, we're gonna keep her here for about 10 days, watch her progress, but I think she's gonna be all right." "Oh." "But the truth is it's never gonna be the same." "I will say if she takes care of herself, if the patch doesn't break down, then I think she has a real good chance." "Amon." "Well, thank you, Doctor." "Thanks for saving my girl." "Yes, sir." "They'll move her into recovery and then I'll have the nurse show you where she is" " so y'all can get her settled." " Sure appreciate it, Doc." " Have we met before?" " No, but I sure am glad to know you now." "All right." "Here you go." " Thank you." " Mm-hmm." "( Katherine gasps )" "I was having this dream." "Yeah?" "What was it about?" "I don't know." "We were both in it." "I remember that." "And that was nice." "Well, you know how that goes." "You're gonna get up, you're gonna have your coffee and then as the day goes on you're gonna start to see little clues." "Yeah." "I love how that happens." "Little clues." "Life was so new and exciting." "( choked ) Yeah, it was." "I talked to the doctors." "They said you're gonna be fine." "How's our son?" "Our son was raised by an amazing woman." "I think he's gonna be fine too." "( sighs ) After 82 years of hanging around, there's one thing I've figured out, one thing I know for sure." "Yeah?" "What's that?" "I can't tell you." "What?" "I want to, I really do, but I can't put it into words right now." " ( sighs )" " Any reason you would bring it up at all then?" "Just felt like talking." "( laughs )" "Ahh." " Hey." " Hey." "Carlton, there's something I have to tell you." "I'm not gonna play baseball anymore." "What are you talking about?" "I don't think I ever really liked it." " It's been your whole life." " I know, but I don't want it to be." "Not anymore." "What are you gonna do?" "Get "The Gazette" to hire me to write for sports." "Maybe I could work on my book." "So you're gonna be a writer." "Ah, maybe." "Carlton, he's not my fiancé." "I don't know why I ever called him that." "Look." "I know that I'm gonna screw things up every now and then, and I know things won't be perfect." "but if you give me one chance." "I swear to God I'll never hurt you again." "( singing with radio ) ¶ Love is like a dying ember ¶" "¶ And all the memories remain ¶" "¶ Through the ages, I'll remember ¶" "¶ Blue eyes crying in the rain. ¶" "Kyle." "Looks like a good day to fly." "No storm." "( groans )" " You got your wallet?" " Got it." "Oh, yeah, almost forgot." "I don't know if you want this." " Oh." " I found that in the bathroom." "Yeah." "Thanks." "I don't know if you'd be interested, but maybe one of these days you could come out there to Arizona." "We could do Christmas or something." "I'd like that." "Maybe you could come here for New Year's." "I'll be here." "I'll be here for New Year's." "I'll see you at Christmas then." "All right." "¶ I want you to be my love ¶" "¶ I want you to be my love ¶" "¶ 'Neath the moon and the stars above ¶" "¶ I want you to be my love ¶" "¶ Break a promise, make a vow ¶" "¶ I know you want me now ¶" "¶ Like I want you ¶" "¶ Like I want you ¶" "¶ 'Cause I want you ¶" "¶ 'Cause I want you ¶" "¶ I know all you ¶" "¶ I know all you ¶" "¶ All you've been through ¶" "¶ Yeah. ¶"