October Kiss Page #4

---

uh, whether this was,

you know, a work thing...

If it was a work thing,

would I be flirting

so shamelessly?

So you were flirting?

It wasn't obvious?

Here, I'm going to see

if I can do it with this.

Anyone need orange?

I smooshed up this orange.

Oh!

You guys still up?

Dad! Come see.

These are the best

Halloween cookies ever.

Sorry, we got

a little bit carried away,

but these are not just

Halloween cookies,

these are educational cookies.

I see skeletons, bats,

haunted houses.

How is that educational?

This skeleton cookie?

A celebration of science.

There are 206 bones

in the human body.

What about the bats?

Recently added to

the endangered species list,

a reminder of how important it is

for us to care for

our environment.

And the haunted houses?

Okay,

these are kind of Halloween-ish.

But I prefer to think of them

as "houses with a past."

Hmm...

Yeah, I don't know

about that one, but...

Dad,

will you come to

the halloweek party

tomorrow?

Please? It's at lunch.

You hardly have to miss work.

I will, uh, I will try

my very best, sweetheart.

Yeah.

Okay, now, if you guys hurry

and get your pajamas on,

we'll have enough time

for two bedtime stories,

but that means you have to go now.

Two stories!

Go, go, go!

Go, go, go, go!

Come on, Zach.

I'll beat you upstairs.

So...

When you say,

"I will try my best,"

does that really mean "no"?

Um...

Well, I've got

a busy day tomorrow.

Okay.

Listen,

when I was little,

my parents split up,

and my mom was... is...

is this total free spirit.

Like, she always

some a new hobby

she's passionate about.

But she never came

to my soccer games,

or my sister's choir recital.

And then there was my dad,

who was really hard

to communicate with.

He was this super stoic man.

But he always showed up.

Who do you think I'm closer to?

I will be there.

Good.

I'm really glad you're here.

You got...

Sorry, you got a little flour

in your hair.

So, uh...

So...

Um...

Was it a date?

Uh, turns out it was.

So, there might be

date number two?

Maybe.

Cool.

Good.

Well, I will see you tomorrow,

at the halloweek party.

- Great.

- Great.

Thanks again.

Yeah.

You reminded dad

about the party, right?

Yes. Yes, he's coming

even though he has no time

for Halloween?

He's just forgotten

how much fun it is.

But we're going to

remind him, right?

Come on,

help me pass out these cookies

before I eat them all myself.

Oh, thank you, sweetie.

Here you go.

- This is fun.

- Way to go.

No, listen,

it's got to work flawlessly

on all platforms,

not just your phone.

It's got to work on your laptop,

it's got to work on your tablet,

any device available to you.

Ryan, they're waiting for you in

the conference room.

It's not 11:
30.

No, it's 11:
45.

I've been reminding

you since 11:
00.

Hey.

No.

Listen, I've got to call you back.

Where is he?

He's probably just stuck in traffic.

No, he said he would be here.

You're getting pretty

involved here, aren't you?

Involved? Me?

No, I'm thinking about the kids.

No, I'm not just talking

about the kids.

Don't do this again.

Do you want to be an old maid?

"Old maid," really?

Like, who says "old maid"?

Oh, you're right.

Is "spinster" better?

"Spinster" is better.

I prefer spinster.

Look, I've know Ryan

since the boys were in kindergarten.

He's a great guy.

Yeah, he is.

He's just...

"not for you."

Dating someone else.

Who?

Her name is Abigail.

They're colleagues.

Oh...

Well, that doesn't sound

like much of a threat.

They ate Italian food together.

Well, maybe a little bit

more of a threat.

She's pretty.

Actually, she's gorgeous.

Oh, you met her.

Nah, I googled her.

It means nothing.

I Google a lot of people.

Okay.

Well, then I guess

I can tell you,

I have another

blind date for you.

Does he already have

his wedding tuxedo picked out?

Stop it.

Does he live with his mother?

You know, I'm going to

get back to you on that one.

Hey, Zach!

I think I saw your name

on the "Mummy Wrap."

Really?

Yeah.

Zoe's over there,

you want to go check it out?

Yeah.

You know who else is gorgeous?

You are.

Okay, buddy, let's see

who can giftwrap a monster.

Come on, guys,

you can do it.

You can mummy me

better than that.

Go crazy.

Go faster.

Faster, faster, faster!

Go, go, go, go!

Oh, will you get my phone?

Yeah.

- It's dad.

- Is he here?

No.

It says, "tell

the kids I'm sorry,

but I can't make it."

Oh...

I'm sorry, guys.

Have you ever seen

"The Creature

from the Black Lagoon?"

It's about a creature.

From a lagoon!

Or we can watch "The Wolfman,"

which is basically a parable

for how scary dads look

when they don't shave.

Okay, I know he didn't show up,

but I bet he had

a really good reason.

He only cares about work.

That's not true.

He loves you.

He loves work more.

And he's good at it.

I think I just got an idea

of how we can get his attention.

All right, you hold this,

and bring it upstairs.

Come on, let's go.

Hey, guys.

What's, uh...

What's all this?

Please have a seat.

So, what's going on?

That's what we'd like to ask you.

Okay.

Uh, I know I missed the party.

Uh, something came up at work

and I...

we're evaluating you

in your capacity

as "Father."

Shall we begin?

While my colleague and I

feel it's clear

that you love your children,

your failure to meet them

at their Halloween function...

okay, well, you know,

I got slammed

and-and I'm not...

please don't interrupt.

Your failure to show up

after you promised you would

is just one example

of an alarming trend

in how you choose to be a father.

From our perspective,

you care about work...

And your cell phone.

And your computer.

...and your cell phone.

And then,

after all those other things,

you care about your kids.

When really,

we should be first.

Your priorities are out of...

Whark?

"Whack."

I mean "whack."

Do you want to be the dad

who breaks promises?

No, I do not.

I don't.

Then don't be.

In summation,

you should probably

make more of an effort

in the dad department.

Do you agree with our assessment?

Yes.

Yes, I do.

Here are the results

of your evaluation.

Please review.

I love you, too.

Get over here.

Thank you.

I'm good at this...

Temporarily.

All right, gang.

Since it's been brought

to my attention

that my priorities

are way out of whark...

Let's see who can find

the best pumpkin, huh?

Yes!

Go for it, guys.

I can't remember

the last time I looked at pumpkins.

Well, they're still orange.

What was it

Ferris Bueller once said?

"Life moves pretty fast.

"If you don't stop

and look around once in a while..."

"You might miss it."

Yeah.

He was a wise fictional teenager.

He was.

It's true, though.

I've missed a lot lately.

Well, you're here now.

Yeah.

Thanks to you.

Just promise me

you won't make me

dress up for Halloween.

Oh, I make no promises.

In fact,

I could see you

dressed as a smartphone.

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes