Apt Pupil Page #14

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DUSSANDER:

Will this do?

Todd grabs the pencil. Dussander turns toward the window. He

thinks for a moment.

DUSSANDER (CONT'D)

Tell me, does this French know your parents

in a social way?

TODD:

Him? F***, no. They wouldn't mix with a

geek like him.

DUSSANDER:

How about professionally? Has he ever called

them before?

TODD:

No. I've never needed it. Why?

DUSSANDER:

I have an idea. It will require you to make

one phone call.

INT. HIGH SCHOOL - OFFICE WAITING AREA - DAY

Kurt Dussander, a.k.a. Arthur Denker, a.k.a. Victor Bowden,

Todd's grandfather, sits outside an office marked, "Edward

French - Guidance." Dussander looks the best he has ever

looked. His hair is clean and combed. His face is shaved. And

he is smartly dressed in his best blue suit. As he waits, he

glances down at a piece of paper. We see that it is a "crib-

sheet" of Todd's family tree. Several names appear on the

sheet, connected to other names by lines and arrows. By each

name is one or two word description, such as "dead: cancer,

1981" or "divorced, Dallas, Tex." The door opens up. Dussander

pockets the note. EDWARD FRENCH, 40's, stands in the doorway.

He wears a turtle neck under his sportcoat.

FRENCH:

Mr. Bowden?

DUSSANDER:

Mr. French, a pleasure.

There is a bit of hesitation on French's part, but they shake

hands. Dussander notices the shoes on French's feet, bright red

converse high-tops.

DUSSANDER (CONT'D)

My, those are some... colorful shoes.

INT. HIGH SCHOOL - FRENCH'S OFFICE - DAY

French makes his way around his desk. Dussander stands by the

door.

FRENCH:

To you, sir, I'm sure they seem quite out of

the ordinary. But when it is your job to get

confused sixteen year-olds to open up to you,

you take whatever steps you need. Please

have a seat.

They both sit.

DUSSANDER:

And the shoes work?

FRENCH:

They seem to help, believe it or not. Well,

I thank you for coming down, Mr. Bowden, but

I'll be frank with you...

DUSSANDER:

Yes, please do.

FRENCH:

The fact that you're here and not Todd's

parents tells me a great deal.

DUSSANDER:

I'm sure. My son and his wife asked me to

come in and discuss this sorry business with

you, Mr. French. Todd is a good boy, believe

me. This trouble with his grades is only

temporary.

Dussander pulls out his cigarettes and then, thinking twice,

puts them back.

FRENCH:

It's all right.

(pulls an ashtray from desk

drawer)

There's no smoking on school grounds, but if

it will make you more comfortable, I'll never

tell.

DUSSANDER:

A terrible habit, but thank you.

(lights up)

I suppose I should begin by informing you

that my son and my daughter-in-law are having

troubles at home. Rather bad troubles, I

should think.

FRENCH:

I appreciate your candor.

DUSSANDER:

(leaning in)

The mother drinks.

FRENCH:

Oh.

DUSSANDER:

Yes. The boy has told me that he has come

home on two occasions and has found her

sprawled out on the kitchen table. He knows

how my son feels about her drinking and so on

these occasions he has put dinner in the oven

himself and forced enough black coffee down

his mother's throat so that she will at least

be awake when Richard gets home.

FRENCH:

That's bad. Has Mrs. Bowden thought about

getting professional help for her problem?

DUSSANDER:

The boy has tried to persuade her, but she is

far too ashamed, I think. If she was given a

little time... You understand?

FRENCH:

Of course. Your son... Todd's father...

DUSSANDER:

He is not without blame, believe me. The

hours he works. The meals he has missed.

They take a toll on a family. I was raised

to believe that a man's family came before

his work or anything else. I tried to teach

my son that... but --

FRENCH:

There's only so much we can teach our kids,

Mr. Bowden. ...What about Monica's mother or

father? Couldn't they talk to her?

DUSSANDER:

Her mother, Sabrina, lives in a nursing home

in Florida. I'm afraid after her husband

died she lost her will to live.

FRENCH:

Probably not the best person for Monica to

speak to.

DUSSANDER:

Indeed.

FRENCH:

Mr. Bowden, I don't have to remind you, I'm

sure, of Todd's stellar academic record.

National Merit Scholar finalist, Academic

All-Stars.

DUSSANDER:

Yes. I keep his certificates on the wall of

my store. I run a small bookstore in San

Remo.

A hint of skepticism crosses French's eyes.

FRENCH:

(glancing at folder on desk)

Yes, I see that. Anyway, Todd is, and I hate

to phrase it this way, but he's one of the

ones worth fighting for. He's a special kid,

we both know that. But If Todd's grades

don't improve drastically and quickly...

he'll be opening a real nasty can of worms.

Summer school would just be the beginning.

His whole college acceptance schedule would

be thrown way off course. The good schools

won't know what to make of him. I'm sure

he'd hate that and so would you.

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