Alex & Emma Page #7

of contradicting emotions...

impossible to decipher

in all its complexity.

Yeah, an idiot.

Okay, good. Can we...

Although his feelings for Anna

were undeniable...

his feelings for Polina

were slightly more undeniable.

In the course of the summer

on Saint Charles...

he had made many acquaintances...

some more savory than others.

Do you dance the flamenco?

Well, I...

Because real men dance the flamenco.

Are we loaning money to a real man?

I have been known to flick a castanet

on occasion.

Prove it!

Stay with me, boys.

He's good.

The interest is 200 percent.

We give you $5,000.

In one year, you pay us $15,000.

Two hundred percent? That's outrageous!

Senor, you are a desperate man.

You're dancing the flamenco to get money.

This is not a strong bargaining position.

- Two hundred percent.

- I can't!

- Two hundred percent.

- You're thieves.

Take it or leave it.

Okay, 200 percent.

You pay us back in one year or we kill you.

I have $5,000.

Will the casino remove its limit

for me tonight?

As you wish, monsieur.

Place your bets, ladies and gentlemen.

For Adam, the moment had come.

He knew this time it would be different,

and it was.

Yes!

The management has asked me...

whether you might be willing to retire

for the evening?

One more bet.

My entire stake, $320,000, on black.

Very well, monsieur.

One more win and Polina would be his.

There are times in life

when for no apparent reason...

an unexplained sense of well-being

comes over you.

You're at one with the universe.

You know exactly who you are,

and your place in the world is secure.

For Adam, that sense of ultimate bliss

was destroyed by two words.

Thirty-six, red.

Just like that, it was all gone.

His money, his future with Polina...

and Adam was convinced, his life.

Please don't tell me

he's going to go running back to Anna.

I don't know.

Again, you don't know.

I'll get it.

Who the hell could that be?

It's a lady.

- I hope we're not disturbing you, baby.

- As a matter of fact, you are.

It's a figure of speech.

How are you doing, boys?

I like those shirts.

- You've got a bat.

- We're here for a reminder.

Wait a second.

I got one more day. I'm almost done.

It's good. We help you to finish.

What are you doing?

Jesus!

- No distractions.

- That's my TV! What are you guys...

It's good. You finish the book.

You get the money. You buy a flat screen.

Better picture, man.

Twenty-four hours, chico.

Not 25.

Bye, lady.

- Oh, my God.

- Are you okay?

Are you all right?

- Should we call the cops?

- I don't think that's a very good idea.

Let's finish the book.

They'll get their money.

Everything will be fine.

Wait a minute.

Those are the flamenco dancers,

aren't they?

You borrowed money to gamble?

Are you out of your mind?

- At the time, yes.

- So is everything in this book true?

No. There are things I take from real life...

- that work for the story.

- Who else is going to show up?

You've some sick grandmother

who's going to roll in here and drop dead?

Is there really a Polina?

The next time Dimwit and Lowboy

come back here...

they're not just

going to be smashing telephones and TVs.

So, please, let's just try and finish.

There are banks, you know.

Yes, I know.

If you want to take a break, I understand.

No, I'm fine.

You're the one they want to kill.

Way to bounce back. Here we go.

As Adam walked... no.

As Adam wandered

the streets of Saint Charles...

like a man

who had not only lost all his money...

but all sense of who he was...

he found himself lying under

the boardwalk, next to an old seagull.

He stared vacantly into the gull's eyes

and finally drifted off...

How are you doing?

Were you sleeping or just thinking?

I was sleep-thinking.

Maybe we should take a break.

No. We've got to keep going.

If we get a couple hours of sleep,

then we can make the final push.

Okay. Two hours.

I'll sleep on the couch. You take the bed.

Set the alarm while you're up there.

No, you should sleep in the bed.

I'll be fine on the couch.

Look at you.

You can't get any rest like that.

Neither would you, so...

All right, we'll both sleep in the bed.

- You sure?

- Yeah.

Okay.

So you want to sleep together.

You're right.

You should sleep on the couch.

I'm saying it's a rarely used meaning

of the term "sleep together"...

where there's actual sleep involved

with snoring, REM cycles and all that.

That's all I meant.

I'm setting the alarm.

Good night.

Can you say good night

if you're only sleeping for two hours?

Good night.

Apparently you can.

Good night.

So, what's his name?

What?

What's his name?

Who?

Your fiance.

I thought we were trying

to get some sleep.

I just want to know what his name is.

It's Art.

Art Greco.

Art Greco?

Art Greco, the discount dentist?

What?

The guy on all the buses?

Yeah.

He must be good

because you've got excellent teeth.

Wait a minute.

Maybe I'm being presumptuous here.

Just because he's your fiance...

and a dentist doesn't automatically

make him your dentist.

Maybe it's a conflict of interest thing...

like a doctor

that won't operate on his own family.

On the other hand,

drilling a tooth isn't exactly surgery...

although they do call it oral surgery.

So, I suppose...

All right, I lied!

I don't have a boyfriend or a fiance.

I'm not getting married.

But Art Greco is your dentist.

I'm sorry...

but if you met you the way I met you,

what would you have done?

I probably would have turned around

and walked out.

I'm glad you didn't, though.

Me, too.

I'm also glad you don't have a boyfriend.

Me, too.

He awoke early the next morning

to find the seagull sitting on his chest.

As the morning mist on the beach

and the one in his mind started to clear...

his thoughts turned once more to Polina.

Yes?

Is there a Polina?

What do you mean?

In real life.

No. Not really.

She's an amalgam.

An amalgam?

Yeah. She's a combination

of a lot of women I've known.

You've been with a lot of women like her?

No. You know, you meet people like that.

They run in a fast crowd.

You've been in these fast crowds?

No. You know what I mean.

You read about them.

They're always running off to be with...

that guy on a boat

or this guy on a private plane.

She's an amalgam.

Adam went to find Polina...

hoping against hope

there was still a chance for him.

How much did you lose?

Everything. But I can win it back.

Would you be a dear

and hand me that pumice stone?

I know it's a cliche...

to say the best things in life are free

and that money can't buy love...

but that's how they become cliches,

because they're true.

Shouldn't love trump everything?

If only we lived in a world of shoulds.

We can.

No, we should. But we can't.

Please don't deny yourself real happiness.

I'll try not to.

Could you hand me that robe over there?

There were times I just adored you.

With the vacation coming to a close...

and with the pieces of his heart scattered

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