Another Woman Page #3

introduced me to German poetry.

And there's a picture

of the house in the fall.

That's really nice.

Oh, there we are in the kitchen.

And there's Clara. Look how

young you were here, Clara.

You were so good to us. I can still

taste the cookies you used to bake.

You used to sit up with us when we had

those miserable colds. You were a saint.

Oh, and here I am, older. I could go up

to the spare room and paint for hours.

The time would just fly by

when I was doing a picture.

And there I am with my friend Claire.

You know, she became an actress.

We used to be so close,

but I haven't seen her in years.

And there's my mother. She loved

strolling around the grounds.

She loved all beautiful things.

She loved nature, music, poetry.

That was her whole existence.

- Paul? I'd like to discuss something.

- Yes, Dad?

I've had a talk with my brother Ben.

And he has promised me that he will find

a position for you next season in his firm.

I don't wanna work

in a cardboard box factory.

- It's paper products, Paul, not just boxes.

- But I tried it once. I go nuts.

Paul...

There are some obligations

one must accept.

This has not been a good year.

Your mother is very ill, and I

have decided to take time off

to finish my study on

the Continental Congress.

It's important that there is enough money

to see that Marion can go away to college.

I want her to take that scholarship.

She is such a brilliant girl.

But I had other plans.

I'm sure those plans included

card-playing and time-wasting.

- That's not fair.

- Paul, your grades are mediocre.

It's not because you're not smart enough,

it's simply that you don't apply yourself.

I know. And Marion's a genius.

She has the opportunity

to go to Bryn Mawr.

- Do you want to prevent her?

- No.

She's going to be something. She's got

what it takes. There are no limits for her.

If only I could stop her daydreaming in

the woods with her beloved watercolours.

(Marion) Paul?

What's wrong?

He's making me go to work

in the paper box factory.

- Well, what do you wanna do?

- I don't know.

Move out of the house, travel,

find some interesting business,

anything but work in a paper box factory.

I hate him. Both of them.

They live in their own world.

(d "Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 2")

- Is this close enough?

- Yeah, I'm meeting Scott right up here.

Why don't you come? He'd love to meet

you, and I've told him a lot about you.

Thank you, honey, but I'm really tired.

- Can I take a rain check?

- Come on, just for one beer.

It's really early, and Dad's

not gonna be home yet.

Do you see someone?

- I do.

- Who?

It's just, uh... it's an acquaintance

of mine, it's a woman I know.

All right, well, thanks a lot.

I had a terrific time.

- OK.

- OK. Bye.

I forgot half of that speech tonight.

Marion. I...

- Claire?

- It's you. It is you. It is.

- Claire? I was just talking about you.

- Yes?

I was going through old photos at my

father's house. What are you doing here?

- I'm doing a play. And it's closing, but...

- You're in a show?

Yes. I guess you don't read

the theatre section of the paper.

Well, yes, I do, but I just had no idea.

I'm sorry, what am I doing? I'm sorry.

This is my husband, this is Jack.

- Marion Post.

- Nice to meet you.

Oh, my goodness. Claire, I have

wondered about you so often.

- Well, we live in Monterey now.

- Really? Do you have time for a drink?

- Sorry, we're meeting some friends.

- No, we have time till our appointment.

- Do we?

- Oh, great. There must be a place here.

- Come on, this way. Straight ahead.

- I just...

(Marion)... Amnesty International and

ACLU. Then they were on the same day.

(Jack) Listen, you gotta be kidding me.

Are you saying that you are

a member of Amnesty International

and the American Civil Liberties Union?

Marion always had the urge

to save humanity, didn't you?

Just give me a flood or a famine. Ken too.

- Where do you find the time?

- It doesn't work out all the time.

And head of the philosophy

department. It's impossible.

I took two years of philosophy,

University of Chicago.

- They've got a great department.

- It was good, before they made me leave.

And Claire, you never told me

about this chapter in your life.

- I thought I had.

- We were so close.

- It was clear she'd be a gifted actress.

- No...

Don't you believe her.

This woman always had that flair.

Do you get to the theatre much?

I guess not with your schedule.

I do. My husband really prefers

the opera, but there's so little to see.

- I used to be a devoted Brechtian.

- I staged some Brecht.

- Did you?

- Yes. Mother Courage.

- Not the one here?

- Yes, the one here. Did you see it?

Sure I saw it. That's the most intelligent

rendering of that play I've ever seen.

- That's sweet of you.

- I had problems with the translation.

Some of the speeches

could have been a little better.

- Exactly. The translation was awkward.

- But you did a terrific job. Really terrific.

Hey, hey. Hey.

Look at me once in a while.

I'm your wife, not her.

Huh?

You've been hanging on her

every word since we sat down.

You're embarrassing me.

Jack is very impressed by certain things

which I apparently cannot give him.

Claire, take it easy.

Do you deny he's been looking

into your eyes for over an hour?

- I don't think you heard one word I said.

- You're a little drunk.

- If you'd rather be alone with her...

- Claire, stop it, this is foolish.

- We're just having a nice chat.

- Don't. Don't play innocent with me.

- This wouldn't be the first time.

- Stop this.

- What does that mean?

- Let's go, Claire. Sorry, Marion.

We've been in this situation before,

where you so innocently wound up

causing me to doubt my whole life.

Claire, you're being awfully theatrical.

I don't know what you're talking about.

We didn't just drift apart,

Marion. I withdrew.

- You're not talking about David?

- Then you do know.

- I know I never had any interest in him.

- But you knew how much I cared for him.

I had nothing to do with him. And I never

gave him a shred of encouragement.

That's not true.

Your conversations were full of subtle

flirtations, full of meaningful little looks,

and... little gambits designed to seduce.

That's so untrue.

And you've held that against me?

He couldn't see anything except

how infatuated he was with you.

We never spent a single moment alone.

I never had anything to do with him.

And I say you seduced him. You just...

you turned it on whenever he was around.

Maybe you didn't even know

that you were doing it.

Claire, let's get off the subject.

I must have seemed

very bland to him after you.

This is nonsense! To have backed off of

a close friendship because of a fantasy?

I'm sure I brought it on myself.

I was so proud of you.

You were my best friend. You were so

witty and so quick, and I was so naive.

Of course you would want David

to fall for you. He was exceptional.

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