7th Heaven s05e07 Episode Script
Bye
It's not easy.
If it were easy, there would be no troubled teenagers.
But there are troubled teenagers, and unfortunately yours is one of them.
Just admitting that helps, but admitting it isn't enough I mean, you have to take action, and more than that, you have to take the right action, and then you have to continue to take the right action.
How do you know if it's the right action? It works.
And if it doesn't work, you try again.
And again.
Because no matter how much experience you have as a parent, and no matter what all the books say, no matter what all the experts say, sometimes, in spite of all your informed decisions, in spite of all your best efforts and all your love and support, that kid that you love will still continue to go down the very path that you know is leading to trouble.
Because that kid is a person, and every person has a certain amount of free will.
Ar-Are you saying it's my job to straighten this kid out? Or are you saying it's her job to be responsible for herself? What I'm saying is you have to quit talking to yourself and go home and have dinner.
7th Heaven When I see their happy faces Smiling back at me 7th Heaven I know there's no greater feeling Than the love of family Where can you go When the world don't treat you right? The answer is home That's the one place that you'll find 7th Heaven Mmm, 7th Heaven 7th Heaven.
One, two, three, four What's for dinner? Oh, just another chicken.
Is that okay? Oh.
"Just another chicken" is perfect.
Are you still depressed about Mary? Yes.
I am.
And if I don't figure out where Mary got the money to pay her bills, I'm going to stay depressed.
I know.
The more I cleaned today, the nuttier I got.
I thought by now, the source of Mary's money would be revealed, so I just kept trying to let it go until that revelation.
Unfortunately, the more I tried, the nuttier I got.
I-I can't let it go.
Neither can I.
I have a feeling that wherever that money came from will will give us some huge insight about Mary.
Or I hope that, but I hope I'm not just, you know, hoping against all hope.
I don't even know when all of this started.
What's worrying me is where it's all gonna end.
And yet, you know, I'm tired of worrying.
I'm tired of being nuts.
I'm tired of being depressed.
We should lift our moods up, both of us.
Why don't I call the Hamiltons and ask them over for, you know, coffee and dessert? We could talk to them.
That always helps.
Yes.
Talking will help.
Yup.
As well as figuring out where that money came from.
Can't let it go.
Ugh.
Mm! Can't.
Just can't.
Is Mary home? No, she went out at lunchtime.
She hasn't been back.
Where, where do you think she goes? I mean, she can't possibly be looking for a job all the time.
You'll be happy to know we changed movies today.
Yeah.
Thrilled.
You need some help? I didn't mean to stay at the library so long.
I didn't realize what time it was.
I'm just so anxious to get my midterm done.
I thought you had another week? I do have another week.
I just think I write better when I let something sit for a couple of days and then go back for a final polish.
It's like when we finish a house.
Me and my Habitat friends just sit there in awe that we've done it again.
The next day, we go back and add a few things that make it special.
I just want to do my best work.
It's my senior year.
Thank you.
I forgot to ask.
Is Mary home for dinner? Oh, I haven't heard from her yet.
Mom, I'm sure she's just out there looking for a job.
Yeah, you sure? I hope.
I hope she's just out there looking for a job.
And not doing what? I don't know.
And none of you know where she got the money to catch up with her bills? The answer is still no.
She said someone owed her a pay check.
And the new job at the bookstore, what happened there? It fell through, I guess.
I'm not sure.
I don't know where she got the money, but I'm pretty sure she didn't rob a bank.
Only, pretty sure? Dad, come on.
I just, you know, find it strange that, uh, she hasn't tried to borrow from "The Bank of Simon.
" Well she may have approached me.
And? And I didn't give her any of my money.
What about you guys? Did you loan your big sister any money? What was that? Ruthie.
Did Ruthie loan her any money? Dad, you'd have to ask Ruthie.
I'm asking you! I'm sorry.
I, uh, I'm just worried about Mary.
We're all worried about Mary.
Hello.
Matt, it's Mom.
How are you? Uh, I'm fine.
I was, uh, just going out the door.
I've been calling you all week.
Well, I-I've been working and studying, an-and studying and working.
I'm on my way out to study now.
I won't keep you.
I just want to ask you a question.
Last week it looked like Mary was behind with all her bills and then suddenly she had cash.
Did you loan her any money? Where would I get any money? Well, you work.
Yes.
I work to pay bills.
And I pay my bills.
Do you think Simon loaned her the money? Simon says he didn't loan her the money.
Where could she have gotten it? Could she be telling the truth? Could someone have owed her a check from work? I doubt it.
I've already asked her former employers, and no one owed her money.
Well, it's not Matt.
It's not Lucy.
Or Simon.
You don't think she hit your dad up for money, do you? Hello? Dad, are you okay? I don't know.
I forget.
What?! Just a little Alzheimer's joke.
Honey, I'm fine.
I just jogged a couple of miles.
Really? Yes, really.
How are you? I'm fine.
You don't sound fine.
I can hear it in your voice.
Is everything okay with Eric and the kids? Uh It's Mary, isn't it? It seems like she suddenly came into some money Not a lot of money, but enough money to pay her bills, and I was just wondering if you loaned her any money.
Not that I can remember.
Dad, I'm serious.
Ginger is controlling all the finances.
So, don't you worry about my doing anything crazy like bailing Mary, Mary, quite contrary out of whatever debt she's in.
You know I'd love to help her, but not like that.
Thanks, Dad.
Let me know if there's anyth Well, it wasn't him.
You do realize you hung up on him? Oh, no, I told you I'm nuts.
Hello.
Dad, I'm sorry I hung up on you.
Who is this? Dad, it's me.
It's Annie.
I just talked to you.
Did you? Dad, yes! I know.
I know.
I just couldn't resist.
If you're going to have a diagnosis, you might as well use it for something.
Good-bye.
I love you.
Good-bye.
Love you.
I called my Dad, too.
She hit him up for money while he was here, but he didn't give it to her.
You don't think her little buddies, Frankie or Johnnie, gave it to her, do you? Nah, they can't afford it.
You know what pot costs these days? What about John? That's good.
Hello? I thought you were going to the library? Uh, I-I am.
Did you call to check? No.
I want to talk to John.
Well, he's not home, but I'll be happy to tell him that my mother called.
What? Do you think he could have loaned Mary the money? No.
Are you sure? Look, I-I'm sure John wouldn't do that.
Well, could you just ask him anyway? I will ask him anyway when he gets home.
It wasn't John.
Heather.
Maybe it was Heather.
No, I talked to her at class.
She hasn't even heard from Mary.
I want to confess.
I loaned Mary the money.
I gave her $20 and she paid me back.
Mary needed more than $20, and she would have gone to Ruthie last, not first.
Which means she did hit up the other kids.
I did it.
Satisfied? Good job, but this isn't gonna hold them for long.
They're gonna keep digging until they find out.
We were all stupid to think we could get away with this.
Calm down.
They're not gonna find out.
Have you noticed anything missing from the house? No.
And I think it's totally creepy to think that she might steal something from the house.
On the other hand, you know, it's nice to think that we have anything that's worth any money.
Aha.
How about Hank and Julie? Maybe they loaned her money.
Hello? Hi, uh, Julie.
It's Annie.
How are you? Oh, I'm fine.
Good to hear from you.
How's Hank? Oh, Hank is fine.
Just getting ready to have dinner.
It's Annie.
Hank says hello.
No, I didn't.
Um, Erica? Oh, the baby's fine.
Did you guys loan Mary any money? No.
No.
No, we didn't.
What didn't we do? We didn't loan Mary any money.
No.
No.
They didn't.
I didn't think they did.
Annie? Did we get cut off? No, no, um you haven't noticed anything valuable missing from your house, have you? No, we haven't.
She hung up again? Are we missing anything valuable? The only thing we have of value is our daughter.
And I can hear her breathing.
Let's eat.
Has it really come to this? Interrogating family and friends to find out where our daughter is getting money? I tell you it's making me nuttier than a fruitcake.
Robbie.
He works, he has a job.
He has money.
He loaned her the money.
I don't think so.
Why don't you think so? Well, I paid him a visit and he's back with his old girlfriend and as Robbie says, "You've seen my girlfriend.
I want to live.
" But he lies.
We know he lies.
Yeah, I hate to say it, but I think he's telling the truth.
And I think that it's our lovely bunch of coconuts, here, who are lying.
All of them.
Matt, Lucy, Simon, Ruthie Sam and David would jump in if they could.
You think they're all lying, all of them? Yes, I do.
But Ruthie just ran in here and confessed.
That was a smoke screen.
That's what that was.
You're right, they're onto us.
We've only got 24 hours to get the money back in the banks.
Mom always puts it in on the same day every month.
We have to move quickly.
You really think they're that devious? I think they're that protective.
And they love Mary.
They don't want to see her in any trouble.
I love Mary, too.
As do I.
We don't want to see her in any trouble.
But, truth is, she is in trouble.
And we have to do something about it.
The question is what are we going to do? And how soon are we going to do it? Thanks for coming over.
Sorry we never got together this summer.
We kept meaning to Hey, hey, we were busy all summer, too.
So good to see you guys.
You, too.
How are the kids? Well, Lynn's doing great.
She's practically a grown woman.
She's the easiest kid we have.
Ruthie? Oh, she's not easy, but she's doing well in school.
We just transferred her to Eleanor Roosevelt.
Yeah, she seems to really love school and she's challenged by it, so It is such a joy when a kid loves to learn.
Keisha, she's taking courses at a junior college while she's finishing up her requirements for senior year of high school.
Oh, well, Lucy is determined to make her senior year the best year ever.
Yeah, she and a friend are, um, they're doing like a buddy system for applying to colleges early.
She did well on her SATs.
She's got an excellent grade point average.
And John? Well, sending him away to college that first year was the best thing we ever did.
Well, no, we didn't send him away, he maneuvered that one on his own.
Yeah, yeah, and he slipped up on his own, too.
But he came back with a vengeance.
He made up his mind he wasn't going to fail again and he hasn't.
He's been good for Matt.
And we're not really sure that Matt will actually get into med school, but we love that he's taking up the challenge.
And he finally has a goal.
And a job that he's held for more than a year.
Who would have thought? How's Nigel? Fine.
He's fine.
And Mary? Oh.
Yeah, she's Well, you know Yeah.
She's Mary.
Hello? Matt? Luce? Why did you answer the phone like that? No, I keep forgetting and picking up the phone and every time I do, it's Mom.
What's going on and why haven't you called me? You know I couldn't call there.
You could if you use your girly voice.
Really? Really.
No.
This is the first opportunity I've had.
Mom and Dad are downstairs with the Hamiltons.
Why are they with the Hamiltons? I don't know, but they never have company on a school night.
Mom made a cake, a chocolate cake, on a Monday night.
Whatever they called them for, it's something big.
Where's Mary? That's the million-dollar question.
No one knows where she is.
No one ever knows where she is.
And whenever she comes home, she just claims that she's been out looking for a job.
I thought she'd have a job by now.
In fact, I thought she'd have a paycheck by now, and I thought she would have put the money back in the baby banks by now.
At least some of it.
Look, I think they're onto us.
I don't think they know where we got the money, but I think they're onto us.
And we have to get some cash into those piggy banks and we have to do it ASAP.
Look, I don't have any cash and I'm in the middle of studying for a test.
I don't have time for this.
I don't have time for this either.
I have a paper to write! I don't know why we're yelling at each other when we should be yelling at Mary.
We can't yell at Mary.
We can't find her.
Right.
One.
You're going to see that again? Yeah, it was funny.
Do you have a problem with that? No, I was just thinking that if you're planning to see this one every day this week like the last one, you might want to give yourself Just give me the ticket.
I can't.
It's five bucks.
But I just saw it for a buck.
Yeah, that's the day rate.
At night, it's five bucks.
If it's already started, I'm going to want a refund.
I'll just put some coffee on and then we can take a peek at the boys.
I hate I've been so busy I haven't spent any time with those boys.
Doesn't it seem like time speeds up as you get older? I'm so sorry Mary's giving you such a hard time.
Eh.
Oh, honey.
Well, it helps to talk about it.
I feel better.
I really do.
I'm sure you don't want to hear this, but you know it's the truth.
You shouldn't wait to do something.
Do it now.
I know, I've said it to parents myself.
But when it comes to my own kids, it's just so hard to act because it's so unbelievable.
My girl who excelled in school for 12 years and was a champion basketball player is falling completely apart.
She may be coming undone, but she's not undone yet.
Where could she have gotten that money? I have no idea.
Oh Ooh.
Eric! Oops.
Think I just found out where Mary got the money.
You know what, we're going to let ourselves out.
This has nothing to do with Mary.
I've been taking money out of their banks for practically their whole lives.
Go on, we're listening.
I was just filling the bank up with rice, so you wouldn't notice it was empty.
And so is the other one.
I'll pay them back, I promise.
You stole $500 from your own brothers, from babies? I'm sorry.
I'm really sorry.
Punish me any way you want.
And just what did you do with the money? Uh I bought a horse.
What's going on? What does it look like? You're ten-year-old sister is lying about stealing money, so the four of you can cover up for Mary.
Is that it? Is that the truth?! No, you're wrong.
I took it.
I'm very bad.
I'm a very bad girl.
No, you're not, Ruthie.
I'm a very bad big brother for letting this happen.
Mary asked us all for money.
No one had as much as she needed, so we took it from Sam and David's banks.
Gave it to her.
She was supposed to get a job this week and start paying it back.
She's broke.
They were going to take her car.
They cancelled her insurance.
And we felt sorry for her.
Go downstairs and take a seat in the living room.
We'll be down in a minute.
This is pathetic really pathetic.
What are we going to do? We're going to talk to our children.
We're going to ask them what they know and how they feel.
And then we're all going to confront Mary when she comes home.
And then? I don't know, but I have an idea.
I think I heard a car.
Why is everyone in the living room? We're waiting on you.
Sit down.
We all have something to say to you.
And what if I don't want to sit down? What is this? One of your creepy interventions? No.
Nope, it's not an intervention.
In fact, we may be inventing something new here.
It's kind of a "prevention.
" We just want you to hear what we have to say.
No, I'm going to my room.
Mary, if you go to your room, we're all going to your room.
Because we all feel you're too close to getting into real trouble here, not to hear us out.
We're your family.
We love you.
Look, if this is about the money Sit down.
I was taught that life was a school.
And some lessons are harder than others.
What I've learned over this past year is that you aren't as strong and determined to succeed at this school of life as I thought.
And so, I haven't given you as much help as I now realize you need.
I talked to the manager of the Pool Hall.
You must have known I would.
He told me that you quit.
He told me that you were consistently late, had a bad attitude and were on the phone too much, so he had to let you go.
I talked to Pete at Pete's Pizza.
You told me business fell off and he had to let you go.
He told me that he let you go because he knew you were hanging out after work with Frankie and Johnnie, drinking beer with them.
He was afraid they were a bad influence on you and he was worried about your drinking and then driving home.
Oh, please.
I talked to Sergeant Michaels.
He told me that you were pulled over for not stopping at a stop sign.
And he said that the officer who issued you that warning ticket was worried that you'd been drinking.
He was afraid that he hadn't done you any favor.
I'm afraid he didn't do you any favor either.
None of us has.
We just kept looking the other way because I don't think we wanted to see the truth.
And the truth is, Mary, that we just love you so much.
You're a wonderful, young woman, and you have a lot to offer to the world.
You're really special.
You're really kind.
And I love the way you just love life.
But, again, life has some hard lessons to learn.
And I think I'd rather confront you tonight then continue to let you learn those lessons on your own.
Now, I know that you know your two new friends, Frankie and Johnnie smoke pot and drink.
And that they're irresponsible.
Do you also know that he hits her? They have serious problems.
And we don't want their serious problems to become your serious problems.
I'm sure you haven't forgotten that you're still on probation.
If you get arrested for drunk driving or possession of marijuana, you could go to jail.
I can't let you go to jail, Mary.
I can't, especially not because you're just mixed up about what you want to do in life.
You know, I thought if we gave you some time to figure that out, maybe you would, but I'm afraid time's up.
I think in trying to find yourself, you've actually lost yourself.
You're not the first person that's had that happen, but before you get too lost and confused, we want to help.
I was hoping that you would ask for our help, but maybe that's just too hard for you to do right now.
You must know how much I love you Mary, I really do.
I love you.
I'm, I'm sorry I haven't been around much.
You're important to me.
What happens to you is important to me.
What happens to you is important to everyone in the family.
But I've been watching you, and I really haven't been interested in being a part of what's going on in your life.
So, I've pretty much avoided you and maybe I should have cornered you and given you my take on what you're doing a lot sooner.
I see so many young women who are losers.
Mostly in the emergency rooms or checking in to the drug rehab at the hospital.
I don't want you to be a loser.
It's too easy to be the bad girl.
You're better than that.
I know I'm not perfect.
I know I don't have all the answers, but I can tell you this.
The most powerful thing I ever did for myself, was to make up my mind to become a responsible person.
And I still haven't built up to being responsible but I'm getting better at it.
And I'm hoping sharing this with you will help you to just make up your mind to become a responsible person.
If you can't do it for yourself, maybe you could consider the rest of us, and how much we need you to be responsible.
Whatever you do affects us all.
I know you know that, yet you act like you don't care.
All of us have to strive to be the best we can be.
Not because anything less is unacceptable, but because anything less is pure misery.
I can see you're miserable.
You are.
This is not the best you can be.
You can do better.
I want you to do better.
I'll do anything I can to help you do better.
You just have to make up your mind that's what you want to do, and I'm there for you.
We all are.
We love you.
I love you.
I love you, too.
This is hard.
I want to do this You're my big sister.
And I look up to you or I did.
You've always been better at school than I am.
You've always been better at everything than I am.
And that at times has made me feel inferior.
Yet most of the time it's given me something to work toward, because I wanted to be like you.
But I don't want to be like you anymore.
And I can only say that because I know that you don't want to be like you.
You don't want to get fired from one bad job after another.
You don't want to lie to Mom and Dad and the rest of us.
You don't want to have bill collectors calling trying to find you.
That's not you.
You're that tall, beautiful, smart woman with a basketball in her hands and a brain in her head.
I know you don't play basketball anymore, but maybe you could.
Or maybe you could play some other sport.
Because it seems that when the team went down, you went down with it.
Basketball has always been your identity.
And maybe having the team fall apart may have caused you to lose your identity for a while, but come on, you're more than a former high school basketball player.
You're an athlete.
And that's an identity you can use your whole life.
You need to compete.
You need to be physical.
You you need the discipline of training.
You thrive on all that stuff.
No one's locking you out of every sport in the community.
You have to get back out there, and I'm willing to help you in any way that I can.
But I think this is something you have to do on your own.
You can do it.
You've come from behind to win before.
And you still got what it takes to be a winner, ifthat's what you want, I mean.
Okay, I think that's all I wanted to say.
Wait I did say I love you, didn't I? I know I'm known as "The Bank of Simon" and you all laugh at that, but here's what I like about money.
It tells you right who you are in numbers.
Not words that can hurt your feelings or make you mad.
Numbers are undisputed facts.
And the fact is, your numbers say trouble.
It's simple, you don't make as much as you spend, and you don't make enough to meet your obligations.
You'd see that if you looked at the numbers.
But I know you don't like to do that.
But you have to.
I can help you set up a budget and a payment schedule, if you want.
But even if you don't want, take my advice Don't spend anything else until you pay off your debt, and then don't get into debt again.
And the first thing you have to pay off is your personal debt.
The money you owe Sam and David.
Now, I know a lot of people would put that off till last, and maybe a professional finance guy would tell you to pay your institutional lenders first, but I'm your brother, and I'm telling you that morally the right thing to do is to pay people first, especially relatives.
And when you see that little column of debt marks for Sam and David reaches a zero balance, that zero is going to say right who you are.
Just like I said, it's going to say that you, Mary Camden, care more about your family than anything else.
It's going to say that you keep your promises to your family more than anyone else.
And when you start seeing the rest of those little columns of debt go down week after week, the pages are going to tell the facts of your debt recovery.
It's a beautiful thing.
And I want you to have a beautiful thing, because I love you.
I must be at the wrong meeting.
I don't know where all this chummy advice and gushy stuff is coming from, because I thought we were all suppose to tell you how mad we are.
'cause I'm mad, really mad.
You're selfish.
You don't care anything about the rest of us.
So, I don't know why we're all supposed to care so much about you.
You act like you're the center of the entire Camden universe.
I'm tired of eating a cold dinner every night, because we're all hoping you'll come home and eat with us.
I'm tired of you waking me up every night when you clump up those stairs.
I'm tired of Mom and Dad fighting about you.
I'm tired of covering for you, and I'm not doing it anymore.
You made me lie to Mom and Dad.
You never came home to have pizza with me like you promised.
All you care about is you.
Matt Lucy, Simon, would you go upstairs with Ruthie? I can't take much more of this.
Yeah.
That's exactly how your father and I feel.
Look, I get it, all right? I'll do better.
No, Mary.
I don't think you do get it.
See, that was the portion of the program I would rate.
"G" for General Audiences.
Now we're moving on to the adult stuff that your mother and I want to talk about with you alone.
I searched your room.
Found this.
Okay, so you found a joint.
But it hasn't been lit.
I haven't smoked any of it.
But why else would you have it, except to smoke it? And where did you get it? From Frankie and Johnnie? You're not supposed to be hanging out with Frankie and Johnnie.
And how long have you had it? Too many questions too fast? Can't think of a lie? How about Frankie must have borrowed your jacket and left it in there? Oh, but then life gets so complicated when you don't tell the truth.
I can't believe you searched my room! What, are you Communists? I have rights, you know.
I guess I just can't explain this often enough.
A right is something that can never be taken away from you.
For example, you have the right to be indignant now, and I can't take that away.
But privacy? Well, privacy is a privilege when you live with your parents.
And privileges get taken away.
Now, we knew you were headed for trouble, but we had no idea that you were this far down the road.
I'm not in trouble.
It depends on your definition of trouble, I suppose.
When Hank and Julie told us about your babysitting fiasco, they told us you had your friend's baby at their house, and there was a beer sitting on the table.
I don't know.
That sounds like trouble.
I think having a joint is trouble.
Have you tried smoking marijuana? Well, even if I did, what is so wrong with just experimenting? I mean, what's the harm in just trying it? Everyone is going to try it sometime.
First of all, not everyone.
For example, not me.
Secondly, let me see if I can answer the "What's the harm?" question.
I suppose, for some people, nothing ever comes from the fact that they tried smoking pot.
But, for other people, plenty comes from the fact that they tried smoking pot.
Lifelong, illegal habit.
The need to try other harder drugs.
Addiction to those drugs.
Arrest, conviction, jail time Those kinds of things.
The question really is, to which people do you belong? There's no way of knowing.
But experimenting to find out? That's quite a risk, don't you think? I think it is.
Especially for someone who's on probation.
Mary, we've given this a lot of thought.
We see that you don't know what to do for yourself.
And we're not surprised.
It took us a long time to come up with a plan ourselves.
A plan? I know that the Colonel offered to help you, and you turned him down.
We have decided to accept.
What are you talking about? We're talking about winter in Buffalo.
That's what we're talking about.
Your grandparents are finding that George's real father is taking up a lot of his time, and they now have enough free time to focus on you.
What? I don't know if you've noticed lately, but you have six brothers and sisters.
You've gotten more than our fair share of attention and energy.
We have to do what's best for everyone.
So what is best for everybody is to ship me off to Siberia to live with old people?! Yep.
That's basically it.
You'll live with your grandparents.
George will move into the guesthouse with his dad for the time being.
You'll work at the Community Center for the Homeless, with your first couple of paychecks going to Sam and David.
Then, starting in January, you and Grandma Ruth will take a course together at the community college there.
Okay, what are my other choices? You don't have any other choices.
We're taking you to the airport.
You're catching the red-eye to New York tonight.
What about my car? As of today, the car is in my name.
We'll keep making the payments until we decide to do something else.
And what am I going to drive in Buffalo? Well, that is the least of my worries.
Once he feels he can trust you, I'm sure the Colonel will make you a deal on driving his Impala.
It's a classic.
Yeah, and what if I say no? What if I don't want to do this? What if I am not going to do this? You tell us.
I mean, you come up with a better plan before it's time to leave for the airport, and we'll consider it.
I put two suitcases in your room.
We're pulling out of the driveway at 9:00.
I thought I told you to stay out of here.
Look, I'm going to be out soon enough, and then you can have the whole place to yourself.
Please don't leave like this.
How did you think I was going to leave? I am being sent off to live with the Colonel and Grandma Ruth in Buffalo! You know what Buffalo is like! And you know what they're like! What made you think I was going to be happy.
Huh? What? I didn't know anything about it, okay? And maybe Mom and Dad are more concerned with your safety than your happiness.
Get out! Is that how you're going to say good-bye? Yeah.
Yeah, this is how I'm going to say good-bye.
And you can tell the rest of them to stay out of here because I don't want to talk to any of you! Mary's really, really angry at us.
I know, and I don't care.
I'd rather have an angry kid than a dead kid.
Just tell me that we're doing the right thing again.
We're doing the right thing.
She needs to be somewhere safe.
She'll be somewhere safe.
The Colonel and Ruth can provide a safe environment.
And we can't? Evidently, we live close to her new friends.
And her friends work in our community.
So, it's not that safe around here.
Besides, sometimes it's easier to start fresh in a new place.
And it's not really Siberia.
You know, and they have a beautiful home with a security system.
George's dad was in the CIA, so he's probably much better at espionage than we are.
She loved going there as a kid.
But should we really push our problems off on someone else? Shouldn't we try to do this ourselves? Do what? What are we going to try that we haven't already tried? I don't know, but there must be something.
Maybe, but I feel like a surgeon who's been asked to invent a lifesaving surgery for his own daughter.
You know, it's best if someone more objective gives it a shot.
My dad is really great at working with undisciplined kids who need a stern, loving force in their lives.
Despite the fact that Mary is his own granddaughter, believe me, he can be a lot more objective than either one of us.
I know, I just needed to hear you say all of this again, and you may have to say it one more time as we drive away from the airport.
I'll say it as many times as you need to hear it.
I really do think that this is the best thing for Mary and for our family right now.
And I feel very fortunate that my parents are willing to do this, you know? Mom feels it'll be good for them, too.
They've been kind of weaning themselves off George because George and his dad are doing so well.
And the Colonel and Ruth are feeling a little less needed right now.
Well, they won't be feeling that way for long.
I'll meet you at the car! Mary wouldn't just leave without saying good-bye to her brothers and sisters, would she? Don't be surprised if she gets on the plane without even saying good-bye to us.
I hate this.
I have to say I don't.
I feel relieved that we're doing something.
And it's the right thing, Annie.
Now, in my heart of hearts, I know this is the right thing.
Then I'm with you.
Okay.
Let's go.
She's a real piece of work.
I can't believe she didn't say good-bye.
We should be back in about an hour.
Ruthie, you should go to bed.
I'll come in and check on you when we get home.
Good luck.
Yeah.
Good luck.
I'll stick around until you get back.
Okay.
Thanks.
A real piece of work.
It feels so weird.
It's like there's this big empty space in the house, and she's not even gone yet.
She might not have said good-bye, but she's gone.
It's hard to believe.
It's sad.
Really sad.
Who wants cake? You were right.
I didn't know how to get myself out of trouble.
I actually tried praying for some way to get out of the mess I was in.
If this is the answer to my prayers, then I'm never praying about anything again.
Final boarding call for flight 1326, departing for Buffalo at Gate 10.
Don't blame your father.
He didn't do this alone.
I did it, too.
' Forget it.
I know it was his idea.
It's time to go.
I love you.
Just remember what you always said.
It's better to have an angry kid than a dead kid.
This is the right thing to do.
And I know you know, in your heart of hearts, this is the right thing to do.
If it were easy, there would be no troubled teenagers.
But there are troubled teenagers, and unfortunately yours is one of them.
Just admitting that helps, but admitting it isn't enough I mean, you have to take action, and more than that, you have to take the right action, and then you have to continue to take the right action.
How do you know if it's the right action? It works.
And if it doesn't work, you try again.
And again.
Because no matter how much experience you have as a parent, and no matter what all the books say, no matter what all the experts say, sometimes, in spite of all your informed decisions, in spite of all your best efforts and all your love and support, that kid that you love will still continue to go down the very path that you know is leading to trouble.
Because that kid is a person, and every person has a certain amount of free will.
Ar-Are you saying it's my job to straighten this kid out? Or are you saying it's her job to be responsible for herself? What I'm saying is you have to quit talking to yourself and go home and have dinner.
7th Heaven When I see their happy faces Smiling back at me 7th Heaven I know there's no greater feeling Than the love of family Where can you go When the world don't treat you right? The answer is home That's the one place that you'll find 7th Heaven Mmm, 7th Heaven 7th Heaven.
One, two, three, four What's for dinner? Oh, just another chicken.
Is that okay? Oh.
"Just another chicken" is perfect.
Are you still depressed about Mary? Yes.
I am.
And if I don't figure out where Mary got the money to pay her bills, I'm going to stay depressed.
I know.
The more I cleaned today, the nuttier I got.
I thought by now, the source of Mary's money would be revealed, so I just kept trying to let it go until that revelation.
Unfortunately, the more I tried, the nuttier I got.
I-I can't let it go.
Neither can I.
I have a feeling that wherever that money came from will will give us some huge insight about Mary.
Or I hope that, but I hope I'm not just, you know, hoping against all hope.
I don't even know when all of this started.
What's worrying me is where it's all gonna end.
And yet, you know, I'm tired of worrying.
I'm tired of being nuts.
I'm tired of being depressed.
We should lift our moods up, both of us.
Why don't I call the Hamiltons and ask them over for, you know, coffee and dessert? We could talk to them.
That always helps.
Yes.
Talking will help.
Yup.
As well as figuring out where that money came from.
Can't let it go.
Ugh.
Mm! Can't.
Just can't.
Is Mary home? No, she went out at lunchtime.
She hasn't been back.
Where, where do you think she goes? I mean, she can't possibly be looking for a job all the time.
You'll be happy to know we changed movies today.
Yeah.
Thrilled.
You need some help? I didn't mean to stay at the library so long.
I didn't realize what time it was.
I'm just so anxious to get my midterm done.
I thought you had another week? I do have another week.
I just think I write better when I let something sit for a couple of days and then go back for a final polish.
It's like when we finish a house.
Me and my Habitat friends just sit there in awe that we've done it again.
The next day, we go back and add a few things that make it special.
I just want to do my best work.
It's my senior year.
Thank you.
I forgot to ask.
Is Mary home for dinner? Oh, I haven't heard from her yet.
Mom, I'm sure she's just out there looking for a job.
Yeah, you sure? I hope.
I hope she's just out there looking for a job.
And not doing what? I don't know.
And none of you know where she got the money to catch up with her bills? The answer is still no.
She said someone owed her a pay check.
And the new job at the bookstore, what happened there? It fell through, I guess.
I'm not sure.
I don't know where she got the money, but I'm pretty sure she didn't rob a bank.
Only, pretty sure? Dad, come on.
I just, you know, find it strange that, uh, she hasn't tried to borrow from "The Bank of Simon.
" Well she may have approached me.
And? And I didn't give her any of my money.
What about you guys? Did you loan your big sister any money? What was that? Ruthie.
Did Ruthie loan her any money? Dad, you'd have to ask Ruthie.
I'm asking you! I'm sorry.
I, uh, I'm just worried about Mary.
We're all worried about Mary.
Hello.
Matt, it's Mom.
How are you? Uh, I'm fine.
I was, uh, just going out the door.
I've been calling you all week.
Well, I-I've been working and studying, an-and studying and working.
I'm on my way out to study now.
I won't keep you.
I just want to ask you a question.
Last week it looked like Mary was behind with all her bills and then suddenly she had cash.
Did you loan her any money? Where would I get any money? Well, you work.
Yes.
I work to pay bills.
And I pay my bills.
Do you think Simon loaned her the money? Simon says he didn't loan her the money.
Where could she have gotten it? Could she be telling the truth? Could someone have owed her a check from work? I doubt it.
I've already asked her former employers, and no one owed her money.
Well, it's not Matt.
It's not Lucy.
Or Simon.
You don't think she hit your dad up for money, do you? Hello? Dad, are you okay? I don't know.
I forget.
What?! Just a little Alzheimer's joke.
Honey, I'm fine.
I just jogged a couple of miles.
Really? Yes, really.
How are you? I'm fine.
You don't sound fine.
I can hear it in your voice.
Is everything okay with Eric and the kids? Uh It's Mary, isn't it? It seems like she suddenly came into some money Not a lot of money, but enough money to pay her bills, and I was just wondering if you loaned her any money.
Not that I can remember.
Dad, I'm serious.
Ginger is controlling all the finances.
So, don't you worry about my doing anything crazy like bailing Mary, Mary, quite contrary out of whatever debt she's in.
You know I'd love to help her, but not like that.
Thanks, Dad.
Let me know if there's anyth Well, it wasn't him.
You do realize you hung up on him? Oh, no, I told you I'm nuts.
Hello.
Dad, I'm sorry I hung up on you.
Who is this? Dad, it's me.
It's Annie.
I just talked to you.
Did you? Dad, yes! I know.
I know.
I just couldn't resist.
If you're going to have a diagnosis, you might as well use it for something.
Good-bye.
I love you.
Good-bye.
Love you.
I called my Dad, too.
She hit him up for money while he was here, but he didn't give it to her.
You don't think her little buddies, Frankie or Johnnie, gave it to her, do you? Nah, they can't afford it.
You know what pot costs these days? What about John? That's good.
Hello? I thought you were going to the library? Uh, I-I am.
Did you call to check? No.
I want to talk to John.
Well, he's not home, but I'll be happy to tell him that my mother called.
What? Do you think he could have loaned Mary the money? No.
Are you sure? Look, I-I'm sure John wouldn't do that.
Well, could you just ask him anyway? I will ask him anyway when he gets home.
It wasn't John.
Heather.
Maybe it was Heather.
No, I talked to her at class.
She hasn't even heard from Mary.
I want to confess.
I loaned Mary the money.
I gave her $20 and she paid me back.
Mary needed more than $20, and she would have gone to Ruthie last, not first.
Which means she did hit up the other kids.
I did it.
Satisfied? Good job, but this isn't gonna hold them for long.
They're gonna keep digging until they find out.
We were all stupid to think we could get away with this.
Calm down.
They're not gonna find out.
Have you noticed anything missing from the house? No.
And I think it's totally creepy to think that she might steal something from the house.
On the other hand, you know, it's nice to think that we have anything that's worth any money.
Aha.
How about Hank and Julie? Maybe they loaned her money.
Hello? Hi, uh, Julie.
It's Annie.
How are you? Oh, I'm fine.
Good to hear from you.
How's Hank? Oh, Hank is fine.
Just getting ready to have dinner.
It's Annie.
Hank says hello.
No, I didn't.
Um, Erica? Oh, the baby's fine.
Did you guys loan Mary any money? No.
No.
No, we didn't.
What didn't we do? We didn't loan Mary any money.
No.
No.
They didn't.
I didn't think they did.
Annie? Did we get cut off? No, no, um you haven't noticed anything valuable missing from your house, have you? No, we haven't.
She hung up again? Are we missing anything valuable? The only thing we have of value is our daughter.
And I can hear her breathing.
Let's eat.
Has it really come to this? Interrogating family and friends to find out where our daughter is getting money? I tell you it's making me nuttier than a fruitcake.
Robbie.
He works, he has a job.
He has money.
He loaned her the money.
I don't think so.
Why don't you think so? Well, I paid him a visit and he's back with his old girlfriend and as Robbie says, "You've seen my girlfriend.
I want to live.
" But he lies.
We know he lies.
Yeah, I hate to say it, but I think he's telling the truth.
And I think that it's our lovely bunch of coconuts, here, who are lying.
All of them.
Matt, Lucy, Simon, Ruthie Sam and David would jump in if they could.
You think they're all lying, all of them? Yes, I do.
But Ruthie just ran in here and confessed.
That was a smoke screen.
That's what that was.
You're right, they're onto us.
We've only got 24 hours to get the money back in the banks.
Mom always puts it in on the same day every month.
We have to move quickly.
You really think they're that devious? I think they're that protective.
And they love Mary.
They don't want to see her in any trouble.
I love Mary, too.
As do I.
We don't want to see her in any trouble.
But, truth is, she is in trouble.
And we have to do something about it.
The question is what are we going to do? And how soon are we going to do it? Thanks for coming over.
Sorry we never got together this summer.
We kept meaning to Hey, hey, we were busy all summer, too.
So good to see you guys.
You, too.
How are the kids? Well, Lynn's doing great.
She's practically a grown woman.
She's the easiest kid we have.
Ruthie? Oh, she's not easy, but she's doing well in school.
We just transferred her to Eleanor Roosevelt.
Yeah, she seems to really love school and she's challenged by it, so It is such a joy when a kid loves to learn.
Keisha, she's taking courses at a junior college while she's finishing up her requirements for senior year of high school.
Oh, well, Lucy is determined to make her senior year the best year ever.
Yeah, she and a friend are, um, they're doing like a buddy system for applying to colleges early.
She did well on her SATs.
She's got an excellent grade point average.
And John? Well, sending him away to college that first year was the best thing we ever did.
Well, no, we didn't send him away, he maneuvered that one on his own.
Yeah, yeah, and he slipped up on his own, too.
But he came back with a vengeance.
He made up his mind he wasn't going to fail again and he hasn't.
He's been good for Matt.
And we're not really sure that Matt will actually get into med school, but we love that he's taking up the challenge.
And he finally has a goal.
And a job that he's held for more than a year.
Who would have thought? How's Nigel? Fine.
He's fine.
And Mary? Oh.
Yeah, she's Well, you know Yeah.
She's Mary.
Hello? Matt? Luce? Why did you answer the phone like that? No, I keep forgetting and picking up the phone and every time I do, it's Mom.
What's going on and why haven't you called me? You know I couldn't call there.
You could if you use your girly voice.
Really? Really.
No.
This is the first opportunity I've had.
Mom and Dad are downstairs with the Hamiltons.
Why are they with the Hamiltons? I don't know, but they never have company on a school night.
Mom made a cake, a chocolate cake, on a Monday night.
Whatever they called them for, it's something big.
Where's Mary? That's the million-dollar question.
No one knows where she is.
No one ever knows where she is.
And whenever she comes home, she just claims that she's been out looking for a job.
I thought she'd have a job by now.
In fact, I thought she'd have a paycheck by now, and I thought she would have put the money back in the baby banks by now.
At least some of it.
Look, I think they're onto us.
I don't think they know where we got the money, but I think they're onto us.
And we have to get some cash into those piggy banks and we have to do it ASAP.
Look, I don't have any cash and I'm in the middle of studying for a test.
I don't have time for this.
I don't have time for this either.
I have a paper to write! I don't know why we're yelling at each other when we should be yelling at Mary.
We can't yell at Mary.
We can't find her.
Right.
One.
You're going to see that again? Yeah, it was funny.
Do you have a problem with that? No, I was just thinking that if you're planning to see this one every day this week like the last one, you might want to give yourself Just give me the ticket.
I can't.
It's five bucks.
But I just saw it for a buck.
Yeah, that's the day rate.
At night, it's five bucks.
If it's already started, I'm going to want a refund.
I'll just put some coffee on and then we can take a peek at the boys.
I hate I've been so busy I haven't spent any time with those boys.
Doesn't it seem like time speeds up as you get older? I'm so sorry Mary's giving you such a hard time.
Eh.
Oh, honey.
Well, it helps to talk about it.
I feel better.
I really do.
I'm sure you don't want to hear this, but you know it's the truth.
You shouldn't wait to do something.
Do it now.
I know, I've said it to parents myself.
But when it comes to my own kids, it's just so hard to act because it's so unbelievable.
My girl who excelled in school for 12 years and was a champion basketball player is falling completely apart.
She may be coming undone, but she's not undone yet.
Where could she have gotten that money? I have no idea.
Oh Ooh.
Eric! Oops.
Think I just found out where Mary got the money.
You know what, we're going to let ourselves out.
This has nothing to do with Mary.
I've been taking money out of their banks for practically their whole lives.
Go on, we're listening.
I was just filling the bank up with rice, so you wouldn't notice it was empty.
And so is the other one.
I'll pay them back, I promise.
You stole $500 from your own brothers, from babies? I'm sorry.
I'm really sorry.
Punish me any way you want.
And just what did you do with the money? Uh I bought a horse.
What's going on? What does it look like? You're ten-year-old sister is lying about stealing money, so the four of you can cover up for Mary.
Is that it? Is that the truth?! No, you're wrong.
I took it.
I'm very bad.
I'm a very bad girl.
No, you're not, Ruthie.
I'm a very bad big brother for letting this happen.
Mary asked us all for money.
No one had as much as she needed, so we took it from Sam and David's banks.
Gave it to her.
She was supposed to get a job this week and start paying it back.
She's broke.
They were going to take her car.
They cancelled her insurance.
And we felt sorry for her.
Go downstairs and take a seat in the living room.
We'll be down in a minute.
This is pathetic really pathetic.
What are we going to do? We're going to talk to our children.
We're going to ask them what they know and how they feel.
And then we're all going to confront Mary when she comes home.
And then? I don't know, but I have an idea.
I think I heard a car.
Why is everyone in the living room? We're waiting on you.
Sit down.
We all have something to say to you.
And what if I don't want to sit down? What is this? One of your creepy interventions? No.
Nope, it's not an intervention.
In fact, we may be inventing something new here.
It's kind of a "prevention.
" We just want you to hear what we have to say.
No, I'm going to my room.
Mary, if you go to your room, we're all going to your room.
Because we all feel you're too close to getting into real trouble here, not to hear us out.
We're your family.
We love you.
Look, if this is about the money Sit down.
I was taught that life was a school.
And some lessons are harder than others.
What I've learned over this past year is that you aren't as strong and determined to succeed at this school of life as I thought.
And so, I haven't given you as much help as I now realize you need.
I talked to the manager of the Pool Hall.
You must have known I would.
He told me that you quit.
He told me that you were consistently late, had a bad attitude and were on the phone too much, so he had to let you go.
I talked to Pete at Pete's Pizza.
You told me business fell off and he had to let you go.
He told me that he let you go because he knew you were hanging out after work with Frankie and Johnnie, drinking beer with them.
He was afraid they were a bad influence on you and he was worried about your drinking and then driving home.
Oh, please.
I talked to Sergeant Michaels.
He told me that you were pulled over for not stopping at a stop sign.
And he said that the officer who issued you that warning ticket was worried that you'd been drinking.
He was afraid that he hadn't done you any favor.
I'm afraid he didn't do you any favor either.
None of us has.
We just kept looking the other way because I don't think we wanted to see the truth.
And the truth is, Mary, that we just love you so much.
You're a wonderful, young woman, and you have a lot to offer to the world.
You're really special.
You're really kind.
And I love the way you just love life.
But, again, life has some hard lessons to learn.
And I think I'd rather confront you tonight then continue to let you learn those lessons on your own.
Now, I know that you know your two new friends, Frankie and Johnnie smoke pot and drink.
And that they're irresponsible.
Do you also know that he hits her? They have serious problems.
And we don't want their serious problems to become your serious problems.
I'm sure you haven't forgotten that you're still on probation.
If you get arrested for drunk driving or possession of marijuana, you could go to jail.
I can't let you go to jail, Mary.
I can't, especially not because you're just mixed up about what you want to do in life.
You know, I thought if we gave you some time to figure that out, maybe you would, but I'm afraid time's up.
I think in trying to find yourself, you've actually lost yourself.
You're not the first person that's had that happen, but before you get too lost and confused, we want to help.
I was hoping that you would ask for our help, but maybe that's just too hard for you to do right now.
You must know how much I love you Mary, I really do.
I love you.
I'm, I'm sorry I haven't been around much.
You're important to me.
What happens to you is important to me.
What happens to you is important to everyone in the family.
But I've been watching you, and I really haven't been interested in being a part of what's going on in your life.
So, I've pretty much avoided you and maybe I should have cornered you and given you my take on what you're doing a lot sooner.
I see so many young women who are losers.
Mostly in the emergency rooms or checking in to the drug rehab at the hospital.
I don't want you to be a loser.
It's too easy to be the bad girl.
You're better than that.
I know I'm not perfect.
I know I don't have all the answers, but I can tell you this.
The most powerful thing I ever did for myself, was to make up my mind to become a responsible person.
And I still haven't built up to being responsible but I'm getting better at it.
And I'm hoping sharing this with you will help you to just make up your mind to become a responsible person.
If you can't do it for yourself, maybe you could consider the rest of us, and how much we need you to be responsible.
Whatever you do affects us all.
I know you know that, yet you act like you don't care.
All of us have to strive to be the best we can be.
Not because anything less is unacceptable, but because anything less is pure misery.
I can see you're miserable.
You are.
This is not the best you can be.
You can do better.
I want you to do better.
I'll do anything I can to help you do better.
You just have to make up your mind that's what you want to do, and I'm there for you.
We all are.
We love you.
I love you.
I love you, too.
This is hard.
I want to do this You're my big sister.
And I look up to you or I did.
You've always been better at school than I am.
You've always been better at everything than I am.
And that at times has made me feel inferior.
Yet most of the time it's given me something to work toward, because I wanted to be like you.
But I don't want to be like you anymore.
And I can only say that because I know that you don't want to be like you.
You don't want to get fired from one bad job after another.
You don't want to lie to Mom and Dad and the rest of us.
You don't want to have bill collectors calling trying to find you.
That's not you.
You're that tall, beautiful, smart woman with a basketball in her hands and a brain in her head.
I know you don't play basketball anymore, but maybe you could.
Or maybe you could play some other sport.
Because it seems that when the team went down, you went down with it.
Basketball has always been your identity.
And maybe having the team fall apart may have caused you to lose your identity for a while, but come on, you're more than a former high school basketball player.
You're an athlete.
And that's an identity you can use your whole life.
You need to compete.
You need to be physical.
You you need the discipline of training.
You thrive on all that stuff.
No one's locking you out of every sport in the community.
You have to get back out there, and I'm willing to help you in any way that I can.
But I think this is something you have to do on your own.
You can do it.
You've come from behind to win before.
And you still got what it takes to be a winner, ifthat's what you want, I mean.
Okay, I think that's all I wanted to say.
Wait I did say I love you, didn't I? I know I'm known as "The Bank of Simon" and you all laugh at that, but here's what I like about money.
It tells you right who you are in numbers.
Not words that can hurt your feelings or make you mad.
Numbers are undisputed facts.
And the fact is, your numbers say trouble.
It's simple, you don't make as much as you spend, and you don't make enough to meet your obligations.
You'd see that if you looked at the numbers.
But I know you don't like to do that.
But you have to.
I can help you set up a budget and a payment schedule, if you want.
But even if you don't want, take my advice Don't spend anything else until you pay off your debt, and then don't get into debt again.
And the first thing you have to pay off is your personal debt.
The money you owe Sam and David.
Now, I know a lot of people would put that off till last, and maybe a professional finance guy would tell you to pay your institutional lenders first, but I'm your brother, and I'm telling you that morally the right thing to do is to pay people first, especially relatives.
And when you see that little column of debt marks for Sam and David reaches a zero balance, that zero is going to say right who you are.
Just like I said, it's going to say that you, Mary Camden, care more about your family than anything else.
It's going to say that you keep your promises to your family more than anyone else.
And when you start seeing the rest of those little columns of debt go down week after week, the pages are going to tell the facts of your debt recovery.
It's a beautiful thing.
And I want you to have a beautiful thing, because I love you.
I must be at the wrong meeting.
I don't know where all this chummy advice and gushy stuff is coming from, because I thought we were all suppose to tell you how mad we are.
'cause I'm mad, really mad.
You're selfish.
You don't care anything about the rest of us.
So, I don't know why we're all supposed to care so much about you.
You act like you're the center of the entire Camden universe.
I'm tired of eating a cold dinner every night, because we're all hoping you'll come home and eat with us.
I'm tired of you waking me up every night when you clump up those stairs.
I'm tired of Mom and Dad fighting about you.
I'm tired of covering for you, and I'm not doing it anymore.
You made me lie to Mom and Dad.
You never came home to have pizza with me like you promised.
All you care about is you.
Matt Lucy, Simon, would you go upstairs with Ruthie? I can't take much more of this.
Yeah.
That's exactly how your father and I feel.
Look, I get it, all right? I'll do better.
No, Mary.
I don't think you do get it.
See, that was the portion of the program I would rate.
"G" for General Audiences.
Now we're moving on to the adult stuff that your mother and I want to talk about with you alone.
I searched your room.
Found this.
Okay, so you found a joint.
But it hasn't been lit.
I haven't smoked any of it.
But why else would you have it, except to smoke it? And where did you get it? From Frankie and Johnnie? You're not supposed to be hanging out with Frankie and Johnnie.
And how long have you had it? Too many questions too fast? Can't think of a lie? How about Frankie must have borrowed your jacket and left it in there? Oh, but then life gets so complicated when you don't tell the truth.
I can't believe you searched my room! What, are you Communists? I have rights, you know.
I guess I just can't explain this often enough.
A right is something that can never be taken away from you.
For example, you have the right to be indignant now, and I can't take that away.
But privacy? Well, privacy is a privilege when you live with your parents.
And privileges get taken away.
Now, we knew you were headed for trouble, but we had no idea that you were this far down the road.
I'm not in trouble.
It depends on your definition of trouble, I suppose.
When Hank and Julie told us about your babysitting fiasco, they told us you had your friend's baby at their house, and there was a beer sitting on the table.
I don't know.
That sounds like trouble.
I think having a joint is trouble.
Have you tried smoking marijuana? Well, even if I did, what is so wrong with just experimenting? I mean, what's the harm in just trying it? Everyone is going to try it sometime.
First of all, not everyone.
For example, not me.
Secondly, let me see if I can answer the "What's the harm?" question.
I suppose, for some people, nothing ever comes from the fact that they tried smoking pot.
But, for other people, plenty comes from the fact that they tried smoking pot.
Lifelong, illegal habit.
The need to try other harder drugs.
Addiction to those drugs.
Arrest, conviction, jail time Those kinds of things.
The question really is, to which people do you belong? There's no way of knowing.
But experimenting to find out? That's quite a risk, don't you think? I think it is.
Especially for someone who's on probation.
Mary, we've given this a lot of thought.
We see that you don't know what to do for yourself.
And we're not surprised.
It took us a long time to come up with a plan ourselves.
A plan? I know that the Colonel offered to help you, and you turned him down.
We have decided to accept.
What are you talking about? We're talking about winter in Buffalo.
That's what we're talking about.
Your grandparents are finding that George's real father is taking up a lot of his time, and they now have enough free time to focus on you.
What? I don't know if you've noticed lately, but you have six brothers and sisters.
You've gotten more than our fair share of attention and energy.
We have to do what's best for everyone.
So what is best for everybody is to ship me off to Siberia to live with old people?! Yep.
That's basically it.
You'll live with your grandparents.
George will move into the guesthouse with his dad for the time being.
You'll work at the Community Center for the Homeless, with your first couple of paychecks going to Sam and David.
Then, starting in January, you and Grandma Ruth will take a course together at the community college there.
Okay, what are my other choices? You don't have any other choices.
We're taking you to the airport.
You're catching the red-eye to New York tonight.
What about my car? As of today, the car is in my name.
We'll keep making the payments until we decide to do something else.
And what am I going to drive in Buffalo? Well, that is the least of my worries.
Once he feels he can trust you, I'm sure the Colonel will make you a deal on driving his Impala.
It's a classic.
Yeah, and what if I say no? What if I don't want to do this? What if I am not going to do this? You tell us.
I mean, you come up with a better plan before it's time to leave for the airport, and we'll consider it.
I put two suitcases in your room.
We're pulling out of the driveway at 9:00.
I thought I told you to stay out of here.
Look, I'm going to be out soon enough, and then you can have the whole place to yourself.
Please don't leave like this.
How did you think I was going to leave? I am being sent off to live with the Colonel and Grandma Ruth in Buffalo! You know what Buffalo is like! And you know what they're like! What made you think I was going to be happy.
Huh? What? I didn't know anything about it, okay? And maybe Mom and Dad are more concerned with your safety than your happiness.
Get out! Is that how you're going to say good-bye? Yeah.
Yeah, this is how I'm going to say good-bye.
And you can tell the rest of them to stay out of here because I don't want to talk to any of you! Mary's really, really angry at us.
I know, and I don't care.
I'd rather have an angry kid than a dead kid.
Just tell me that we're doing the right thing again.
We're doing the right thing.
She needs to be somewhere safe.
She'll be somewhere safe.
The Colonel and Ruth can provide a safe environment.
And we can't? Evidently, we live close to her new friends.
And her friends work in our community.
So, it's not that safe around here.
Besides, sometimes it's easier to start fresh in a new place.
And it's not really Siberia.
You know, and they have a beautiful home with a security system.
George's dad was in the CIA, so he's probably much better at espionage than we are.
She loved going there as a kid.
But should we really push our problems off on someone else? Shouldn't we try to do this ourselves? Do what? What are we going to try that we haven't already tried? I don't know, but there must be something.
Maybe, but I feel like a surgeon who's been asked to invent a lifesaving surgery for his own daughter.
You know, it's best if someone more objective gives it a shot.
My dad is really great at working with undisciplined kids who need a stern, loving force in their lives.
Despite the fact that Mary is his own granddaughter, believe me, he can be a lot more objective than either one of us.
I know, I just needed to hear you say all of this again, and you may have to say it one more time as we drive away from the airport.
I'll say it as many times as you need to hear it.
I really do think that this is the best thing for Mary and for our family right now.
And I feel very fortunate that my parents are willing to do this, you know? Mom feels it'll be good for them, too.
They've been kind of weaning themselves off George because George and his dad are doing so well.
And the Colonel and Ruth are feeling a little less needed right now.
Well, they won't be feeling that way for long.
I'll meet you at the car! Mary wouldn't just leave without saying good-bye to her brothers and sisters, would she? Don't be surprised if she gets on the plane without even saying good-bye to us.
I hate this.
I have to say I don't.
I feel relieved that we're doing something.
And it's the right thing, Annie.
Now, in my heart of hearts, I know this is the right thing.
Then I'm with you.
Okay.
Let's go.
She's a real piece of work.
I can't believe she didn't say good-bye.
We should be back in about an hour.
Ruthie, you should go to bed.
I'll come in and check on you when we get home.
Good luck.
Yeah.
Good luck.
I'll stick around until you get back.
Okay.
Thanks.
A real piece of work.
It feels so weird.
It's like there's this big empty space in the house, and she's not even gone yet.
She might not have said good-bye, but she's gone.
It's hard to believe.
It's sad.
Really sad.
Who wants cake? You were right.
I didn't know how to get myself out of trouble.
I actually tried praying for some way to get out of the mess I was in.
If this is the answer to my prayers, then I'm never praying about anything again.
Final boarding call for flight 1326, departing for Buffalo at Gate 10.
Don't blame your father.
He didn't do this alone.
I did it, too.
' Forget it.
I know it was his idea.
It's time to go.
I love you.
Just remember what you always said.
It's better to have an angry kid than a dead kid.
This is the right thing to do.
And I know you know, in your heart of hearts, this is the right thing to do.