A Little Help Page #4

My dad would never pull over

the car on long trips,

so holding it in is kinda

a skill from my childhood,

if you can even

call that a skill.

Can you just tell me

if I'm broke or not?

Look, Laura, you're probably

gonna be okay here.

Um, did your sister not mention anything

else that we might be discussing today?

Like what?

She didn't mention anything

at all?

Can you give me a hint?

No, I'm happy to tell you,

I just thought that she would...

Are you aware

that I'm a litigator?

Okay.

Your sister sent you to me

because I'm a litigator.

I specialize

in medical malpractice.

(Bell rings)

(Children chattering)

Hey, are you that

Matt Herschel kid?

No.

What are you, stupid?

Herschel doesn't

even go here any more.

Plus, he's not that fat.

He looks like him, man.

Here's the thing... the EKG

ruled out heart attack, right?

But as we now know, it wasn't

a heart attack, it was...

- An arrhythmia.

- An arrhythmia, right.

Good, good, which actually

is visible on an EKG,

but it's very small,

very hard to spot,

especially if you're looking

for heart attack,

which shows up like blowing,

like an earthquake.

So he just didn't see it?

Obviously not,

but more importantly,

he missed a huge clue

that it might be there.

Now, when Bob collapsed,

he was running.

Is that correct?

He was running down the street?

I assume my sister

told you that?

Uh-huh, yeah, she filled me in on

a few of the basics, you know.

What other basics,

that I was drunk

and we got in fight

and he had to chase me?

No, no, nothing, nothing, no.

Anyway, the point is,

Bob was running,

so his heart rate was elevated

at the time.

That's the thing that should have

made this schmuck's radar go up.

Now, when Bob had his fatal attack,

I'm sorry, what was he doing then?

His heart rate

was definitely elevated.

See, there you go.

What was he doing?

He was...

I was...

Doing a sex act.

Oh. Okay.

A normal one.

Nothing with like ropes or...

(Chuckles) I guess the fight

was over then, huh?

Anyway, you see what I'm saying.

The doctor could have saved Bob's

life with a proper diagnosis,

but he was negligent,

Bob died, so here we are.

Now, would you like to proceed

with the lawsuit?

I don't think so, no.

You don't think so?

It's just that, um,

lawsuits and suing people,

it's not my thing.

So, no.

Laura, I don't think

you understand...

This is an open-and-shut case.

The insurance companies will

not even let this go to trial,

we are gonna settle in the high

six figures, maybe seven.

This is what I know from

22 years of litigating.

Yeah...

No, thanks.

Look, here's the thing...

He did ask.

The doctor, he asked Bob

if he was exercising or...

having sex the other times

he got the symptoms,

and Bob said no,

that he was just at meetings.

That's possible,

an arrhythmia can happen...

What if he was lying?

- Who?

- Bob.

About his heart rate being

elevated the other times.

What if he was lying?

Why would he be lying?

Because I was standing there.

Okay.

So, if he was lying,

that changes things, right?

I mean, as far as malpractice

is concerned, right?

No.

No?

No, no.

This, this lie

is purely hypothetical,

it's unprovable.

- But, wait, wait, no...

- It's not relevant what might have...

If Bob didn't tell the doctor

the truth about...

Laura! Stop!

Please.

Look, you're obviously a very moral, honest

person, I've got nothing against that.

But, let's look at

the big picture here, okay?

You are the victim here.

You're the victim

of other people's mistakes.

That is precisely

why insurance companies exist,

to protect people like you from getting

wiped out from other people's mistakes.

Wiped out?

What do you mean wiped out?

- Well, I didn't wanna alarm you.

- You said everything was okay.

No, I said things

would probably be okay,

and quite frankly, I thought you'd

be proceeding with the lawsuit.

I just assumed that you would.

But the fact is Bob,

as we say in the legal trade,

f***ed up, okay?

He should've set up a trust

for you, he didn't.

He should have more life

insurance for you, he doesn't.

By the time you pay

your estate taxes,

you will have basically

nothing left to live on.

I have my job.

What does the dentist pay you?

Forty, fifty thousand?

Thirty-eight five.

But they are really nice

and I can get more hours.

Mm-hmm, well, unless they're

nice enough to let you

and your son live

in their office,

you have a problem.

Can I pee now?

Hey, buddy.

Don't sweat this too much.

You still got your amp out here if

you wanna come out and practice.

Just move it against the wall so

there's room for your mom's car.

That's why she's

making me stop the band?

So she could park her car

in her precious garage again?

No, no, no, we talked.

We both decided you need to

focus on school for a while.

Hey, tenth grade,

it all counts now, right?

School blows dogs.

Well, I don't know

if it blows dogs... per se.

Got a message for your wife...

She got what she wanted,

so she can go f*** herself.

Give her that message.

Okay, uh, should I have her call you

if she has any questions or...?

What's going on there?

Ah, she really wants him to stop playing

for a while so he can get his grades up.

You agreed?

Yeah, well, you know,

she does have a point.

Oh, Jesus!

(Children chattering)

Yo, guys, I gotta go, all right?

- See ya, Dennis.

- See ya, guys.

Hey, mom.

Hey, honey.

Hey, so it looks like you made

some friends after all, huh?

Yeah. Come on, let's go.

- Mrs. Pehlke?

- Yes?

Hi. I'm glad I caught you.

Hi. I'm Lilly Gallagher.

I'm Dennis'

social studies teacher.

Oh, hi, nice to meet you.

Nice to meet you.

Look, I'm sure you

need to get going,

but I just

wanted to, um...

I heard about

Dennis' father.

Oh, yeah...

I guess he told some of the other

children, and word got around.

I am so sorry.

It's tragic.

Thank you.

- I can't imagine how hard it's been for both of you.

- Yeah...

Anyway, I just wanted to say,

for whatever it's worth,

he was a true hero.

Yeah...

Who?

(Dog barking)

- You have to tell the truth!

- No!

Dennis, your father

did not die in 9/11!

I know,

but what's cooler, okay?

What's a cooler way to die,

9/11 or a u-rithma thing?

- Dennis!

- What's cooler?!

9/11 is cooler, but...

It is cooler!

Dennis!

If you don't tell the truth, I'm

gonna call the school myself!

No! You can't!

Everyone'll think I'm a freak!

You can't!

Well, I can't just let people

think that...

What do you even care,

anyway?!

The school's like

five towns away!

- It doesn't affect you!

- That's not the point!

You can't just lie

to people like that!

Oh, my God!

All you ever do is lie!

You make up all these lame excuses

to people for not being somewhere!

You lie to dad about

how many beers you had!

You say you don't smoke

but you really do!

Those are different!

Those are tiny little things!

And they don't involve

major events of world history!

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