Sling Blade Page #9

tonight. What do you think about that?

I could sure use some.

Hey, there, Karl.

Come unload a generator for me.

Karl, lift this thing down and carry it

to the back for me. It's on the blink.

Say, you want us

to help you lift that thing?

No, that Karl's strong enough to lift

a bulldozer. He can fix anything, too.

I tell you, he's mentally retarded,

but he's a whiz with small engines.

I tell you,

the Lord works in mysterious ways.

So, anyway, what I was telling you was,

he didn't just make the team,

coach says he's going

to start him at end on defense.

There's a chip off the old block,

ain't you, Steve?

Yeah, I guess so.

How's the rest of the team looking?

Pretty good. We expect to do well.

- Got a quarterback this year?

- Pretty good.

Jeff Bailey's boy, you know.

Good arm, little slow.

I watched him in junior high.

He can throw the ball.

Taller than he was then.

You gonna start at the defensive end?

Hup!

Come on, man.

Good job, Karl.

We got a touchdown.

That was a good lateral, man.

That was just like the wishbone.

Yes, sir. Well, I darn near

made me a touchdown.

Then I seen them boys bearing down,

figured I'd better give it to you there.

I seen you following me.

Yeah.

We're liable to win if we keep this up.

For somebody like you,

you sure can run fast.

- Come on, let's kick off to 'em.

- All right, then.

I know you could've

scored that touchdown by yourself

instead of just throwing it over to me.

Them boys was trying

to pull me down pretty hard.

You're strong, though.

You just threw it over to me

where I could score

that touchdown so I'd feel good.

My daddy used to do that kind of thing.

It don't matter to me about us losing.

Does it you?

No, sir.

It was fun anyhow.

I wasn't thinking about nothing else,

just like you told me I'd do.

Can we play every Saturday?

If I ain't too stove up.

I ain't like you.

I'm old and give out.

I'm proud of you.

Kick your head in 25 years ago.

You're dead, I guess.

Where'd you go to?

But oh mother that's kinda sad.

I was drunk when I did it.

I'm your boy.

I ain't got no boy.

I'm your oldest boy, name of Karl.

I ain't got no boy.

They turned me loose from

the nervous hospital, said I was well.

I got hired on to work for a Mr. Bill

Cox, fixing lawn mowers and whatnot.

That grass out there in the yard,

it's growed up quite a bit.

I figured I might cut it for you.

I told you, I ain't got no boy. Now,

you get on outta here and let me be?

You ain't no kin to me.

I learned to read some.

I read the Bible quite a bit.

I can't understand all of it, but I

reckon I understand a good deal of it.

Them stories you and Momma told me,

they ain't in there.

You ought not done that to your boy.

I've studied on killing you.

I studied about it quite a bit.

But I don't reckon

there's no need for it

if all you're gonna do

is sit there in that chair.

You'll be dead soon enough,

and the world'll be shut of you.

You ought not killed my little brother.

He ought to had a chance to growed up.

He would have had fun sometimes.

Little fella.

What the goddamn hell you doing Karl?

What the f*** you doing up

in the middle of the night?

- What do you want, hon?

- I wanna be baptized.

Well, get baptized, then.

I don't give a sh*t.

Call up a f***ing preacher, goddamnit.

We can't baptize you.

We'll call Brother Epersom. We'll see

him tomorrow and get you baptized.

It's Sunday.

You go on back to bed, now.

What are you doing

with that damn hammer?

I don't rightly know.

I just kindly woke up a-holdin' it.

- The f*** he's doing with that?

- I don't know.

Upon his profession of faith

in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,

and in obedience under his command,

and by the authority of the Church,

I indeed baptize this my brother

in the name of the Father,

and the Son, and the Holy Ghost.

Amen.

Marie, would you sing 137, please?

- Hi.

- Hi.

- So how'd the baptizing go?

- Went real good.

Yeah? Good.

I'm kinda hungry.

Ain't it about time to eat?

You know what I got a craving for?

Some of that Chicken Champ.

Why don't you

run down there and get some? I'll buy.

- Would y'all like that?

- Yeah, sure, sounds fine to me.

I'd have me a chicken leg or two.

- Get some of their coleslaw, too.

- OK. All right, y'all wanna go with me?

They don't need to go.

There's a game coming on.

- We'll just sit here and do man things.

- I'll be back in a little bit, then.

- All right. Get some extra gravy.

- OK.

Why don't y'all

sit your asses down here?

Sit down.

I wanted to get your momma out the house

for a few minutes so we could talk.

See, here's the deal, Frank.

If I'm gonna throw my life away doing

what I want to come live with y'all...

we're gonna get some sh*t straight.

See, your mommy and I

don't have no problems except for you.

Fact is, we'd never have

a bad word between us.

But since you do exist,

and I'm gonna be

the head of the household,

then you're gonna learn

to live by my rules.

And the first rule is,

you don't speak unless you're spoken to.

You got me?

Now, you stay the hell outta my way.

And do what a regular kid does.

You're a weird little sh*t,

Frank, and I don't get you.

So wake up,

and face what they call reality.

See, we're gonna be a family, Frank.

My family.

I'll be paying all the bills,

so that means you're stuck with my ass.

But I ain't your daddy.

You just act like I am.

And the other thing I say is,

your buddy Karl here's going.

We can't be no normal family

with him in the garage,

and coming in at four in the morning

carrying hammers.

Karl can stay if he wants to.

Momma said...

What did I tell you about your momma?

Mister, don't you never lay another hand

on that boy. You understand me?

Let go of my goddamn hand, you retard.

Get out there,

get your sh*t and get out.

That's a wake-up call, Frankie.

You remember what I said

about reality, Frank.

Get out, retard.

Where are you going, Karl?

Didn't you want some chicken and things?

No, ma'am.

I'm going off somewheres.

Well, OK. I got you some.

That Frank,

he went off somewheres too,

so when you go in there,

he won't be indoors.

Where'd he go? What's going on?

He just wanted to go off and play,

I reckon.

You just go in and eat your dinner with

that Doyle. Don't worry yourself none.

All right, then.

Well, I'll see you later. If you see

Frank, tell him to come on back home.

I don't get to see him all day

except Sundays. He can go play tomorrow.

- Ma'am?

- Yeah.

You a good momma to that boy.

You care for him.

You work hard to care for him.

You light him up in his eyes,

I've seen it.

That boy wouldn't know

what to do without you.

Thank you, hon.

That's real good of you to say.

I wouldn't know

what to do without him either.

You been real good to me, too.

It ain't everybody that'd make biscuits

in the middle of the night.

You and that boy

has given me a good feeling.

We sure like having you.

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