Jack’s kitchen, Capeside.
Grams and Andie are in the kitchen, dealing with the breakfast dishes, when Jack enters, bouncing Amy in his arms.
"Oh, look at Grams. Say 'hi' to Grams," he says, catching Amy’s little hand on his and making her wave.
"Hi there, beauty!" Andie smiles at the baby as she wipes her hands. Grams just smiles at her and waves back. Amy giggles and Jack sits down.
The scene is a quiet and warm one. Jack is sitting with Amy at the table, and soon Andie joins them. The two of them play and laugh along with Amy, amazed at the little things she does as if she was the smartest kid on Earth. There is a moment, though, where Jack kisses the top of Jen´s daughter's head and then rests his cheek on it. A loud sigh escape his mouth that catches Andie and Gram’s attention, sharing a glance.
"Jack?" Grams asks tentatively. By now she knows the boy well enough to know that something’s wrong.
Jack ruffles Amy’s hair as she leans on him while sucking on a piece of bread, totally entertained by it.
"Grams, could you please come here and sit down?" Jack asks, still looking at Amy and playing with her hair.
Grams sits down and one more glance is exchanged between her and Andie before Jack starts to speak.
"I knew about this more than a week ago, but I wanted to wait till we were done with Christmas and all that stuff." He pauses, as if to collect his thoughts. It seems like this is a speech he has been thinking about. "I got a call on December 20th. It was from the social assistant. They wanted to inform me that in light of the recent events, it had been decided to take Amy away from me for a period of time. An undefined period of time, until it would be resolved wether or not I was the one right to take care of her. According to them, she had been exposed to a situation that could have had very serious consequences and despite having Jen´s will by my side, a decision needed to be made regarding the whole thing. So Amy will be leaving us after New Year's".
Silence fell upon the three adults in the kitchen as Amy handed Andie her drooled-on bread and talked to her in her usual baby rambling. Andie accepted it with a sad smile and then looked back at Jack. He still hadn’t made any eye contact with her or Grams for that matter.
"Jack…" Andie started, tentatively.
"I had thought about not telling you until New Year’s had passed, just like Christmas. But then I realized that you had the right to know, too. So you could enjoy what could be the last days of Amy with us to their full potential, just like I am doing." Amy turned up to look at him and reached her arms out, her way of asking him to put her on her feet over his knees. And so he did.
"That’s why you broke up with Doug and everything?" Andie asked, things starting to make sense to her now: Jack’s grumpy mood at times, the tension between him and Doug, the constant worry on his face that he wouldn’t want to talk about, not even with her.
For an answer, she only gets another sigh.
"I’m so sorry, Jack." Both, Jack and Andie turn to Grams to realize that she seems to be on the verge of tears.
"This is all my fault," she complains, burying her face in her hands.
"What are you talking about Grams?. This is so not…"
"Yes it is. I left the darn window open!" she explodes, and both Jack and Andie are surprised to hear her speaking like that. Cursing, no less. "I should have been more careful. But I’m getting old, and useless, and I get distracted and I didn’t realize that it was getting cold and windy outside."
Jack is about to say something, but Andie just places a hand over his, nodding her head no.
"I’m growing old. I’m not like I used to be. I am not capable of doing this again. I will only disappoint you and my beloved Jen and I won’t be able to give this angel here everything she deserves because my time has passed. I’m just an old, useless woman."
With that, she gets up the table and leaves, leaving behind an astonished Jack.
"What just happened?" he asks, and Andie squeezes his hand, releasing it after that.
"It’s very common, believe me. It happens to a lot of old people. It’s the conscience of growing old, of time passing by faster each day. It’s scary, and they start to feel as if they have nothing else to give. Some of them close themselves off from the outside word, convinced that there is nothing left out there for them to do or give, until death comes to get them."
Jack is looking at his sister terrified. "You mean that Grams is just waiting to die?"
"No. I’m saying that she is blaming herself for everything that has happened with Amy, and that is not a good thing," Andie says, understanding in her eyes. Jack closes his eyes and sighs.
"Hold Amy. I’ll be right back."
He hands the baby to Andie, who sits her on the table in front of her. Amy reaches to grab some of her locks of hair as Jack walks out of the kitchen with firm steps.
Back at "The Creek" set, Los Angeles.
Todd and Dawson are standing around a small table with coffee urns, sodas and snacks on it, in the back of the set. It is not lavish but certainly adequate. Dawson helps himself to a refill of coffee and a granola cookie. Todd is dipping a tea bag in a mug of steaming water, frowning.
"Blast, I thought we had ‘people’ to do this for us. After all, isn’t this the number one rated television show in the all-mighty target demographic? " he asks somewhat belligerently. He is clearly irritated. "Am I right or not? "
"It’s only a rehearsal," Dawson reminds him calmly. "An unscheduled, unbudgeted, extra rehearsal at that."
"Yeah…one we wouldn’t need if the powers-that-be could figure out their mouths from their asses…present company excluded." Todd grouses. Dawson gives him a sympathetic and amused glance.
"Life is harsh."
Todd’s face relaxes into a grudging smile. "You should have made me bloody dictator over this side-show," he says with some of his good humor restored. " ‘Executive producer’ may have the ring of authority to it….but tell that to the hoards of writers, not to mention censors and the other producers. " Todd’s lips quirk in a smile. "Somehow, I get the impression they aren’t too impressed with titles….or maybe it’s just me they aren’t impressed with."
"You’re the best thing that happened to this show….well, next to me," Dawson states matter of factly. "And at least I know someone is here to make sure that Sammy doesn’t turn into a stripper and Colby doesn’t run off to join a rock band."
Todd’s eyes light up. "Now that would be a ratings grabber of a show!"
"Don’t even think about it," Dawson jokingly cautions him.
The two smile at each other.
They wander back to their chairs, still talking, relaxed and at ease with each other. There is a moment of companionable silence as they stand near their chairs sipping their coffee and tea, enjoying each other’s friendship. Todd looks around the set.
"You know I’m proud of you, kid," he says sincerely. He clearly is talking about the Creek show as well as the Spielberg project.
"Thanks."
"I knew it from the moment I first saw you on my set that you were destined for greatness."
"Todd, you fired me," Dawson jokingly reminds him as he stares at him.
"Well, who said the road to greatness doesn’t have a few potholes? Besides, I think I more than made up for it. Saved your lily white ass, as I recall. A little snafu concerning your demo project with 'The Creek'. A little problem with money… equipment… manpower… talent…"
"Okay, okay. You’re forgiven for firing me. "
"That’s the spirit. Made you a better man, that’s all. A little adversity puts a little hair on the chest." Todd trails off, thinking about something else while Dawson shakes his head amused at his comment. "You didn’t mention anything to me about your plans of coming back to LA in my phone call to you the other morning....for how long, to do exactly what…" he accuses Dawson good naturedly. "I need to know these things, Leery, now that I’m almost standing in your shoes, a Leery clone as it were…… in the loop!" He eyes Dawson speculatively. "Could it be that you were with some woman….catching up on ‘old times’?" Todd asks suggestively, wriggling his eyebrows.
"About that phone call…." Dawson begins with a note of exasperation in his voice.
"Oh, yeah that. If I’d known you were with a woman…" Todd begins in an apologetic tone.
" You wouldn’t have called?" Dawson finishes hopefully.
"Nah," Todd laughs. "I would have called. I just would’ve made sure to stay on the phone longer to make it really painful for you. I do so like to make my phone calls memorable." Todd smiles brilliantly at Dawson, clearly enjoying himself.
Dawson groans, but he is smiling. Todd is incorrigible.
"So who’s the lucky shiela? Anyone I know?" Todd asks brightly.
"As a matter of fact…" Dawson seems on the verge of continuing, but he hesitates.
"Oh really, I do know her?" Todd asks surprised "Who? Your fling from last summer? Your assistant, what’s her name? Don’t tell me it's Judith, the wombat from two years ago." A look of distaste crosses Todd’s face.
"She’s not a wombat, and no, not any of those lovely ladies. As a matter of fact….it’s….Joey…if you must know," he tells Todd a little hesitant, unsure about telling his friend. "And we weren’t ‘catching up on old times’… in the way you meant it." Dawson hastens to add. He pauses, and emotions flit across his face . Almost reluctantly, he mumbles "….at least, not…yet."
Todd is clearly surprised and doesn’t say anything for a moment. Dawson is a little nervous and starts talking to lighten the mood.
"Do you have radar or something? I don’t sleep with Joey in six years, and almost the same day that I do, your ugly mug is hanging around," Dawson says with an attempt at humor, but he sounds a little testy and unsettled. Todd takes a good look at him and sees that all is not well.
"Oh ho, so that is what this is all about. The gloom and doom I caught you in. The uber-woman. The dream, the fantasy…the curse, some would say. The fairer sex. I thought that was all laid to rest long ago, in a matter of speaking."
"Apparently not."
"So what happened?"
"I’m not sure. And I don´t want to talk about it."
"Oh, come on, Leery, Who else are you going to talk to in this God forsaken wasteland they call L.A.? Give it to me straight. At least you know I’ll give it back to you straight. Which is more than I can say for most of the bloody people in this town…or anywhere else, for that matter."
"What happened is what always happens when we’re together. We're friends…again….we have fun…again…we talk, we argue a little, things are going great….and then…and then…."
"You hit the sheets?"
"Well, not exactly…"
"Well either you slept with her or you didn’t, Leery. Which is it?"
A small smile flits across Dawson’s face. "Yeah, we slept together." Then his face hardens. "But it was a mistake. Probably a mistake," he amends, his face softening a little.
"How do you figure that, buckaroo? Seems like you two have a date with destiny and all that."
The two men sit down and settle into their chairs…ready to get a little more serious. Dawson stares off into space a moment, subdued.. At first, it seems like he isn’t going to speak, but after some hesitation, he abruptly begins talking, edgy.
"Well, first she was with this guy, Chris. Apparently he was about to ask her to marry him or something. She dumped him and then she was with Pacey, the supposed love of her life, and how long did that last? Three months?" Dawson has an edge of scorn in his voice and expression. "Whose to say that I don’t last about the same amount of time and after that new try we have definitely ruined everything?" he continues with some bitterness.
"Oh, bugger that. She’s a woman!" Todd exclaims enthusiastically. "She’s entitled to change her mind. So this Pasty guy…"
"Pacey."
"Whatever...isn’t the right man for her. Well, good for her. Now she knows. Doesn’t mean she isn’t on the right track now. Give the girl a chance, I say. It’s been five years. People do change, Leery. They grow up…come to their senses…"
Dawson glances at Todd, bemused.
"I thought you of all people would be telling me to run the other way."
"Just because I’m not one to be roped to a bird doesn’t mean you aren’t, Leery."
"But with us, it’s always so damn…difficult."
"Not always, mate. Look, even you said how great things have been going."
"Yes. As friends. What whenever we’ve tried to be more that that… It’s…. complicated."
"Rubbish!.What kind of excuse is that? Popping some bird you just meet, sharin’ a few laughs…that’s easy. So maybe this girl is the girl for you and maybe things aren’t always easy… now call me stupid, but I thought that’s what a relationship, a real tax-paying committed relationship was all about… the bad along with the good."
They both are silent for a moment, absorbing Todd’s unexpected words of wisdom.
"I think when you say complicated, Dawson, that you’re just saying the same thing as deep…involved…potentially mind-blowing. The kind of thing I run away from the second I see it. Well…maybe not the mind-blowing part but that would be in a whole other context." He pauses, enjoying the memory of some mind-blowing sexual experience. Dawson rolls his eyes, used by now to these kind of comments. Then Todd gets serious again and directs his attention back to Dawson. "You don’t want to be me, kid, now do ya? Old, shallow and cynical?"
"I think I’m a long way from being you, Todd. For one thing, I don’t think it's the height of fun to drink beer out of a woman’s shoe at four in the morning."
"You’ve got a point there. Look, I’m not going to give you some sappy go-with-your-heart- speech or whatnot, but I gotta say this...you’ve got good instincts…a feel for things. You wouldn’t have made it this far if you didn’t. And you’ve had a "thing" for this girl for a long time, one way or another. Now you tell me she has a "thing" for you. That’s a lot of "things" flying around, mate. Something’s bound to happen. Especially when you count in the "best friends since childhood part." Todd pauses. He looks a little suspiciously at Dawson. "She does have a "thing" for you, mate, doesn’t she?"
Dawson is silent a moment, and a little look of amusement or pleasure crosses his face. He is thinking about ten years ago when a 15 year old Joey Potter had a secret "thang" for him.
"Yeah, she does," he says softly.
Todd looks pleased at Dawson’s response. Todd continues enthusiastically voicing his opinions.
"The good times are always easy. The way I see it, there’s always gonna be the good times. But there’s always gonna be the crap too, Leery. That’s just the way it is. The pie-in-the sky, stars in your eyes stuff is the easy part, at least for someone not romantically challenged such as myself. Deal with a woman with PMS at four in the morning, I say!. That’s the true test of love, my friend. A test, by the way, I have-and to my utmost relief- miserably failed…and one which, I might add, I pray I will never be subject to again." Todd shakes himself to rid himself of the horror of that memory. Then he gets back to Dawson. "So the question is, who do you want to share the crap with? If it’s this Joey, then you should give it a go-round with her. Tell her!" Todd then lowers his voice a bit confidentially. "Only, I’m not sure I’d use those exact words…the ‘share the crap’ part. Maybe something a little less…."
"Scatological?" Dawson interjects, raising his brows at him.
"Right-o" Todd says cheerfully. "Now you’ve got it. You’re good at the flowery stuff, Dawson. I have faith in you."
"That’s an awful lot of advice coming from someone who’s never had a sustainable relationship for more than two weeks, Mr. Zippy Pants."
"Mr. Zippy Pants? "
"Yeah, some of the grips call you that. Zippy, for short."
"Oh, yeah? Who? Tell me their names and I’ll fire them on the spot."
"Not a chance."
"Yeah, well, I guess that isn’t so far off the mark. But continuing with the present conversation dealing with the entire future and future happiness of my ex-protégé, I can only tell you this. Sometimes people on the outside have a clearer look into the inside than the people who are standing inside. I don’t gotta be standing inside the room to know that you two have something special, even I could see that. And maybe it’ll last and maybe it won’t, but how can you not give it a go? It’s been five years since the last go-round. You might be surprised. But hey, don’t listen to me. What do I know? Just do your own thing. Forget about her, and be solo maybe for the rest of your life, living a miserable lonely existence, filled with regrets and endless periods of unabated angst. Become a dark and tortured director, haunted by his past," Todd says only half-joking.
Dawson just looks at him, pensive.
Jack’s porch, Capeside.
("Everybody hurts", by R.E.M starts playing in the background)
When the day is long and the night, the night is yours alone,
when you're sure you've had enough of this life, well hang on.
Don't let yourself go, everybody cries and everybody hurts sometimes.
Jack finds Grams just where he knew she would be. She always loved to sit there, wether it was in her old house, or in Boston … and now back in Capeside. She is staring off into space. Jack sits by her side silently and for a moment, the two of them stay there, just looking to the creek.
Then Jack turns his head to her, his eyes tearing up.
Sometimes everything is wrong.
Now it's time to sing along.
"I love you, Grams. It so was not your fault."
Such a simple statement makes Grams start to cry silently. Jack just keep talking, reaching for one of her old hands.
When your day is night alone,
(hold on, hold on) if you feel like letting go,
(hold on)when you think you've had too much of this life, well hang on.
"I should have put warmer pajamas on her. I should have checked the window before I left. I could have called you to do so while I was in school, and the list go on and on. It happened, and it wasn't anyone’s fault."
Grams looks at him and squeezes his hand.
Everybody hurts.
Take comfort in your friends.
Everybody hurts.
Don't throw your hand.
Oh, no.
Don't throw your hand.
"If you ever thought for a moment that I was blaming you for it, if I ever gave you that impression…"
"Oh no, no. You never did," she interrupts, wiping her tears, but Jack keeps going on.
"… I’m sorry. I’ve just been worried. Since I found out they were taking Amy away, I’ve hardly had any sleep. I have made some decisions, and taken some resolutions, and… and I haven’t been in the best of the moods, I guess. But just seeing you each day has made me feel better,"
"Oh," Grams exclaims faintly and she puts her arm around Jack, who now leans without shame in the shoulder of this woman, who has given him so many things in his life.
If you feel like you're alone, no, no, no, you are not alone
If you're on your own in this life,
The days and nights are long,
When you think you've had too much of this life to hang on.
Well, everybody hurts sometimes, everybody cries.
"Every morning when I enter the kitchen and you’re there pouring some coffee, knowing I would have to go in a rush. Or every evening when I come back home. You gave me something I hadn’t had in years. Since the moment my brother died, my family crumbled down and fell to pieces. Not even Andie could resist it. But I found you and Jen. And now Jen is gone...but I still have you. And I can say without a doubt that you are, along Andie and Amy, the most important person in my life." He states, holding back his tears and smiling at Grams. "You are my family. And don’t you ever think you’re not important in this house, or that I could make it without you. Amy and I would have been a disaster!" and they both laugh.
Grams pats his hand softly.
"Don’t be silly, Jackers. You would have done it just as well. You will, one day, when I’m not here."
They smile at each other.
"You’re such a great young man, Jack. And you’ll make a great father. Don’t let anyone convince you otherwise."
And everybody hurts sometimes.
And everybody hurts sometimes.
So, hold on, hold on.
"We’ll get her back." Grams simply states. "That’s what my Jen wanted, and that’s what will happen."
Jack kisses her cheek as a silent thank you. We see Andie contemplating the scene from the inside of the house, a sleeping Amy in her arms, rocking her gently, a smile on her face. She lowers her head to kiss the baby and walks away.
Hold on, hold on. Hold on, hold on. Hold on, hold on.
(Everybody hurts. You are not alone.)
We see Jack and Grams still sitting outside, just enjoying each other’s company and being there for a while.