A Patch of Blue

Hi, Rose-Ann. It can't be that late.

You're early.

Early? I feel like I've been standing

on my feet for a week.

Cleaning up after a bunch of slobs!

Hey, what you been up to?

Where's my supper?

- I'm just gonna get it.

- "I'm just gonna get it," what?

- I'm just gonna get it, Rose-Ann.

- That's better!

I can't have some proper respect

in my own home!

- Who's been guzzling my gin?

- I don't know, Rose-Ann.

I know there was a slug or two

in the bottom of this.

The old bum! When he gets home,

I'm gonna pin his ugly ears back!

Why did you have to leave

that thing there?

And they're all loose!

Why ain't they been strung together?

Answer me!

Or would you like a slug in the puss?

Quiet, bigmouth!

Button it up for once in your life!

You no-good drunk,

you've been guzzling my gin again.

Get lost!

For crying out loud!

Could have broken my lousy neck.

- How did all that junk get on the floor?

- Ask her! Ask Lady Selina!

Come on, now! No dinner ready?

No beads strung? What's with you?

I'm sorry.

I went out today, and the time...

- You went out! Where?

- Just in the park.

The park? How in the hell

did you get yourself to the park?

Mr. Faber took me

after he come with the beads.

Faber? He's got a nerve!

Wasn't his idea.

I've been at him for ages.

You've been scheming behind my back?

Listen, you get any more big ideas

like that, and you tell me about them!

You understand?

I'm sorry, Rose-Ann.

I didn't think you'd mind.

Well, I do. I do mind, see?

- Did you see my specs anywheres?

- No, Ole Pa.

Rose-Ann?

- Rose-Ann?

- What?

If I promise to get all my work done

on time, couldn't I go again tomorrow?

Who do you think here has got time

to take you to the park?

- Old Faber don't come tomorrow.

- You could take me, Ole Pa.

- No, he can't. You ain't going.

- Please! What you got against it?

It sticks out a mile!

When will you do your beads?

I'll take them.

I'll work double-quick in the park.

If I don't do twice as much work,

I'll give up the idea. I promise.

Says you!

When will you do your work here?

I'll get up earlier

and stay up longer.

I want my supper on time,

like I'm used to.

Do you good to skip supper

once in a while, blubber belly!

- Old beer belly talking about blubber.

- Only one thing messing up your idea...

...and it ain't fatso's supper.

- What, then?

- Nobody to bring you home.

- You could. I can wait!

Many a time, I'm not on my way

until it's good and dark.

Is that all? Dark's nothing to me.

I'm always in the dark.

How about that.

So you are.

You hear that, Rose-Ann?

With her face,

I wouldn't parade around the street.

What's wrong with my face?

- Lf you could see, you'd know.

- It ain't true.

- Is there something wrong with my face?

- No. Pay no attention to her.

Her face is a mess! Now, come on,

get moving with the supper.

I got a heavy night in front of me.

And would you clean up those beads?

Forget about the park, Selina.

You got a nice, quiet life here.

No problems. Where's my purse?

Have supper on time tonight.

And as for you, try and get home

sober for once, pig face!

Go jump in the lake.

Ole Pa?

Does this look better, Ole Pa?

Will you take me if I wear this?

Okay.

Get some clothes on you, then,

and take that God-awful hat off.

You don't want none

of Rose-Ann's trappings.

You sure, Ole Pa?

I mean, if my face is so bad?

It ain't bad. It's just your eyes.

It's only that people are so nosy.

When you was a kid,

they was always at it.

"Poor little girl," they'd say.

"What happened?"

Rose-Ann used to get so mad.

Well, come on. Get a move on.

I ain't got all day!

Thank you, Ole Pa.

Thank you for being nice to me.

- Can't do this every day.

- No, just sometimes.

- It feels good, the grass.

- Come on.

Mr. Faber said it was green.

What's green like?

Green is green, stupid.

Same as the trees.

I wish I knew green. I can remember

blue. The sky's blue, ain't it?

Yeah, sometimes.

Here you are.

Now, you sit here by this tree.

And you stay put, see!

Okay.

Thanks again, Ole Pa.

And, Ole Pa, my face?

You're sure it's not too bad?

Ole Pa?

What is it?

May I help you?

Who's that?

You seem to have a problem.

Anything I can do?

There's a crawly thing down my back,

and I can't reach it.

I got it.

All right, all right.

It's a...

It's a caterpillar.

And he seems just as frightened

as you are.

- Thank you, sir.

- It's all right.

Holy mackerel, my beads!

I'm sorry.

- I'll never find them in all this.

- Here, let me.

- Sure is kind of you to help, sir.

- Nonsense. It was my fault.

- What do you do with them?

- String them.

That's clever.

Do you ever make mistakes?

Mistakes? Even a fool

couldn't make mistakes with this.

So easy, even a blind girl

could do them, right?

- Yeah, that's right.

- Never seen you here before.

I only been once before.

Do you come here much?

- Nearly every day.

- Are you out of a job, then?

No, I work. Nights.

But I live around here.

There. Every bead back in the box.

- Thank you, sir.

- Well, I hope we found them all.

So long.

You must be very tall.

- Your voice sounds tall.

- About 6 feet and a bit.

Excuse me,

is that very much taller than me?

Well, let's see.

I'd say you're about...

...5 feet 4 inches or so.

Which would make me

about 9 or 10 inches taller than you.

- Any more questions before I go?

- Sorry, I don't usually talk so much.

I gotta get moving. I promised I'd

get two days work done by tonight.

Cripes, the damn things

is all mixed-up.

Damn things are all mixed-up,

you should say.

- What?

- Are all mixed-up.

- You sound like the radio.

- I do? How's that?

Different.

kind of sure. Lots of things

is different on the radio.

- Are different on the radio.

- I'm sorry, are different.

That's better.

Like what, for instance?

Like God and Jesus

not really being swear words.

I love the church stuff,

only Rose-Ann won't have it on...

...and Ole Pa says religion's

a lot of bunk.

- Ole Pa? Is that your father?

- He's my grandfather.

He lives with us.

We never heard of my father

after I got this.

Does it look bad?

No, it doesn't look bad.

How did it happen?

It was when I was 5.

One night, after I was in bed...

...Harry, that's my father,

he come home unexpected.

He was in a war or something.

Rose-Ann, that's my mother,

she had one of her friends in.

Harry, he got mad, and he sliced up

Rose-Ann's friend to a mush.

Then Rose-Ann threw the bottle.

It was meant for Harry.

That's too bad.

I'm sorry.

Well, I gotta be going. Bye-bye.

Excuse me. I know something happened

to my face, but is it, you know...?

- Somebody said it was a bit of a mess.

- A mess? No.

You got a couple of scars

around your eyes, that's all.

- No kidding?

- No kidding.

Bye.

Bye.

Hi, there.

I brought you a present.

A present? Why should you

bring me a present?

I don't know.

Here.

Take it.

It's glasses.

Like Ole Pa wears for reading.

- Not quite. They're sunglasses.

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