The Book of Love Page #4

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Uh, the raft. Uh,

I'm building a raft...

Well, I'm helping

to build a raft.

I don't... what raft?

And... and the best things

about rafts

is that they can break apart,

a-and they still float,

especially if we use garbage

like the girl wants us to.

All right, son, there's

an old Japanese saying.

"When the noble carp

has lost its hatchling..."

Wendell, thank you.

I'm gonna get started

on this right away.

Bye.

Henry, Henry,

you didn't hear

the end of carp. Ah...

God damn it.

Hey, guys.

Hey.

Fellas, we've got a new project.

Oh. This, uh...

What is the name?

It's garbage.

No. It's a raft.

Come on.

Let's go.

Hey, check it out.

What the frick is that?

I traded the Volvo in for it.

Pretty cool, huh?

Who are they?

I'm dumbass.

Yeah.

Hop in.

No way.

Ah, come on.

Don't be a chickenshit.

Where are we going?

Now what?

Ta-da!

What are we doing here?

We're shopping.

You gotta get

that raft in the water

before storm season, right?

Well, it gives us a few weeks.

And what kills

most of your time?

I'll tell you. Gathering

up all the junk.

So I figure why not do it

all in one fell swoop?

Let's go.

Let's split up. Pascal,

you come with me.

Sorry about

the flare gun the other day.

Ah, that's all right.

So Mr. Herschel say

you building a raft.

Yup.

Never built one of those before.

Can I ask you something?

What do you make of Henry?

No, give it!

He for real?

What you mean?

I don't know.

He's just weird,

like he ain't all there,

you know?

It's probably on account of he

lost his wife last month and all.

Car accident.

She's a artist or something,

made us beignets for breakfast

every morning. Heh.

Had a fire about her,

the kind you see on people...

She... she kind of

like you.

You know, like a hurricane.

A hurricane?

So why they call you dumbass?

Well, that's just

what my pop calls me.

He was in the Navy, got a medal.

Compared to him, I ain't done

a thimble full of pig sh*t.

That's bullshit.

Sounds like a dick to me.

Ah, it's just my pop.

Family.

Couldn't choose him.

He couldn't choose me.

Hey, guys, over here!

What are those?

Those are pontoons.

Every good raft starts

with good flotation, yeah?

I think we found it.

Do we just wait till

the tide washes them in?

No, I...I think they're pinned

underneath that barge there.

I think we should maybe

grab some of this rope,

maybe attach it

to the dingy over there,

and we'll just

try to drag 'em in.

Whoa!

Hey, Millie, what are you doing?

I'm getting the damn poles.

Now, where that chien going?

Oh, just give me a second.

I know I got stuff

in here you could use.

Uh...

Where is that box?

I just saw it.

Why don't I just wear

some of these?

Oh, no, no, no! Um...

It's, uh... no.

No, you don't...

You don't want that.

Trust me. I've got something

a lot Bett... oh, here...

For you. Yeah.

You doing all right in there?

I look like a douche.

What? No. Come on.

I'm sure it's not that bad.

Hey, look at you.

All right. That's great.

You know, that was my, uh...

That was

my Halloween costume in...

Uh, I think, like, fifth grade.

It's awful.

Well, anyway, I mean, it's dry.

Do you even play baseball?

Yeah. I mean, sort of.

I played tee-ball

when I was a little guy.

I was catcher.

You was the catcher?

At tee-ball?

Yeah.

I like your crib.

Oh, thanks.

Did you, like, design it?

Well, no, we...

We were, uh, remodeling.

Uh, so, you didn't

have any other,

like, clothes you could

bring from home, huh?

That ain't my home.

Hmm.

It's my uncle's.

And there wasn't really

too much to bring.

Yeah. Um, but where

are your... your parents?

Uh, you know, it's... it's really,

uh, cold out there tonight,

so if you wanted to use

the spare room, you're...

No, that's cool.

Um...

Thanks for the threads.

Yeah.

Stupid.

What do you want?

Sorry I lied about

the marshmallows.

This is all I had.

I didn't know that at the time.

I promise.

It's all right.

The charms are cool.

Yeah. My wife, she, um...

Was one of her cravings.

Yeah.

Um...

The Azores.

What?

It's where I'm going.

Oh.

Oh.

Tell anybody, and I swear...

Uh, why the Azores?

Why not?

Now that's a non-answer.

That's a non-answer.

Yeah.

I'm... I'm only asking

because that's really far away,

and you're, like...

What, 13?

I'm 16.

Oh, sorry.

Amelia Earhart

was younger than me

when she started flying.

Yeah,

but, you know, she,

uh, was lost at sea.

Whatever.

Flying is a lot harder

than floating.

Okay. You're right.

Besides, haven't you ever wanted

to do something extraordinary?

But you'll be alone out there.

Doesn't that scare you?

I've been alone most of my life.

Does being alone scare you?

Yeah.

Yeah, it does.

But you're a p*ssy, so...

Was it a boy or a girl?

I don't know.

We were waiting.

But I could totally

see her asking...

And then finding out

and just not telling me.

Oh, that wouldn't

surprise me at all.

Oh.

I hope she did.

Thanks for the hot chocolate.

Of course.

The story goes

that David Pearlman,

an insurance something-or-other

from New Orleans,

was getting a Mars bar

for his daughter

the moment his wife died.

Or maybe it was a butterfinger.

His daughter was with him

the day he went to spread

her ashes and say goodbye...

But he wouldn't say it.

David was drawn to the sea.

This one day

while walking along the shore

with his little girl...

He found a bottle that had

washed up from the water

and, inside it,

a familiar journal

that would change the course

of both of their lives.

You promise me,

when you're older,

you come find me.

I'll be here.

She was there the day he left.

But she wasn't there

that night her daddy

met the devil

out over the deep blue sea.

No one was.

But that's okay.

Death ain't about the people

who died anyway.

It's about the ones

who have the sh*t luck

of having to go along

without 'em.

Some people try to hold on

to their memories.

Others try to forget.

Neither works.

And after enough time passes by,

you find you ain't

the same as you used to be.

Julia.

What are you doing here?

Oh, Henry.

Oh.

Well, you are a sight.

You've been hiding

for three weeks.

What have you been doing?

Well, Wendell is none too happy.

He was gonna fire you,

but I reminded him

of how the firm got the bid

in the first place.

He said something

about building a boat.

No, I never said

anything about a boat.

Oh, good. Good.

Because he was going

on and on about...

No, it's a raft, actually.

I'm, uh, building

a raft currently.

Probably what he meant.

Are you on the drugs?

What? No! No, the...

No, they would be

out of my system by now.

Henry, I'm concerned about you.

What was that?

What was...

I didn't hear anything.

No, I heard somebody.

Do you mind coming back

a little later?

I...I feel, like,

a little bit, um...

What the hell is that?

This is that raft

you were talking about?

Yeah.

No, that's it, yeah.

You are not right,

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