The Forger

Ever think back on how

you got somewhere, or why?

Well, my somewhere was an art

town on the edge of the pacific.

The name of the place didn't matter much.

I just knew I didn't belong.

II was just some loser kid

who ended up here.

IBy mistake, sort of.

IYou know, I read somewhere

that nothing is so beautiful

IThat it can't be ugly

if you look really close.

II can't remember who said it,

IBut whoever it was

got it right.

That's a good painting, kid.

Really.

Thanks.

Can't even see the numbers.

How much you, uh...

how much you want for that?

Fifty bucks.

Fifty bucks?

I would've paid double for that.

- Here.

- Hey!

You, kid!

What are you doing? What are

you doing with my painting?

Wait a minute... hey!

- What the...?

- Looks good, huh?

Yeah, Id say it looks good,

I did it.

You in there?

Are you in there?

I let you stay for more than a week.

I want you out of here, now.

Hang on!

I've got your money!

- I feel bad after kicking him out.

- Yeah.

He was here for

a whole week and never paid.

- Really?

- I never did see his mom around.

What do you think he was,

Well, that's why I called you.

Wait till you see

what he did to my room.

Hm... what a mess.

No, not that... that.

- I have a hundred point assignment due.

- Hey! Picasso!

See you later.

Got any more paintings for sale?

You're the kid who sold the

painting at the mission, right?

Yeah.

How did you hear about that?

It's a small town.

Right.

That's a nice outfit,

by the way.

Thank you.

It's required.

Thank god. I was beginning to

think your grandma dressed you.

- Really?

- Hm-Mm.

Well, I had no idea anyone still

thought heavy metal was cool, so...

No, no. See, black flag

is punk rock, okay?

- Oh.

- Yeah.

And Im supposed to take

the word of a con man, huh?

Look, Im not a con man, okay?

I painted that painting.

Well, part of it, kind of.

How old are you?

- Freshman?

- No, Im in tenth grade.

- Hm.

- Well, I should be in tenth grade. I'm...

see, Im working on that.

I don't think you can

talk your way out of this one.

Amber, what are you doing?

Didn't you hear the tardy bell?

Hm?

- Did it ring?

- Yes, it did ring.

- I didn't hear it.

- Really?

Okay, you know what,

are you being sarcastic with me?

- No.

- No. Okay, you know what, let's go.

And young man,

I don't know what you're doing,

But you should be in school.

It's after 1:
00 p. M. Okay?

- I'm going. - Yeah, you're going to

the principal's office.

- And Ill tell you why...

- Hey, hey, buddy, look.

She said she's going to class,

just give her a break.

You know what, young man? I don't

wanna have to call the police, okay?

So thank you very much.

Take care.

You know, why don't you

pick on somebody else?

What did you say?

You hang around

with trash like this?

- Okay, that's it, that's it,

we're going right now. - Ow!

- You need to listen and respect...

- Okay. You don't need to drag me.

No, I am not dragging you. You just need

to respect the school. It's very simple.

Hey!

I said cut her a break,

would you?

Hold on, son...

...over the line here.

You're out of line.

- Are you okay?

- Yeah.

- You need to leave.

- What's up, did you push her?

No, I didn't push her. This guy

grabbed her arm, he's nuts.

Get outta here, you kook!

I was just trying to

make sure she was all right.

- Well, you did that.

- Are you okay?

Yeah, Im fine.

- Get back, let's go back.

- Looks like a bum.

- Aram, come on.

- Aram...

- he looks like a homeless dude.

- Hey, let's get outta here, come on.

- Back to school...

- Get as far away as possible. Okay?

- Watch me!

- Hey!

Huh? What now? Huh?

Huh? Huh?

- Huh?

- Hey!

You've gotta stop,

we've gotta go. Come on, guys.

Who was that guy?

- I don't know.

- Let's go. Back to class.

I'm sorry!

- You all right?

- Yeah.

Hello?

Hello?

No way.

Fifteen-Year-Old juvenile, burglary.

Well, if that's all, Mr. Campbell...

check his pockets

while you got him.

See if he's got some cash

to pay for all this damage.

Everly, you have a call.

Give us a call

if you find anything else.

Believe me, you'll be

the first to hear about it.

I can't believe we got

druggies running around

- In this neighborhood.

- It's an urgent call.

All right.

Excuse us.

What did you do, Bernie?

Wasn't me.

How did this happen?

- I think it was the boy.

- The boy? Are you kidding me?

We only had half

a rough version.

The boy?

Well, it wasn't the maid.

You haven't answered

my question.

In 20 minutes.

What about the next case?

What about it?

Doesn't it deserve your

attention, too?

I give every person who walks through

that door my full attention.

So, did your mother give you any

indication where she was headed

- When she, uh... when she decided to...

- What? Leave me?

Look, she didn't even

bother to say goodbye.

Do you really think

she told me where she was going?

Joshua, are you an only child?

- What does the file say?

- It's incomplete.

Yeah, well, sounds like me.

I know you know art, but you seem

unaware of my more provocative work.

Major publications

have said my art harkens back

To the work of the original bohemian

masters who founded this community.

And that's a quote.

So what did I do

to earn this reputation?

I took what the world of art

describes as a master style

And I combined it with my own

interpretation of the intense beauty

Of the natural world around me.

The lady from child services

is on the phone.

Bernie, Im not finished.

They don't speak any English.

Geez...

I don't want to sound negative, but

as we said on the phone earlier,

You're probably wasting

your time coming down here.

- We have a whole process involved.

- I understand.

And I came here,

despite what you said,

Because I was really hoping

you might reconsider my offer.

You have a big heart,

offering your home to this kid.

You know, I wasn't... I wasn't exactly

the straightest arrow myself.

I... I think I understand

what this boy's going through.

Well... he has a record.

I'm prepared to

drop all the charges.

Well, I did talk to him this morning. I

mean, he's not a threat or anything.

He's 15 years old.

He's been through enough

as it is.

We do emergency placements, but

only in extreme circumstances.

What you're asking for is

definitely not standard procedure.

This would be almost impossible

to get past a judge.

Let me worry about that.

I've played enough rounds on pebble beach

with these local judges, you know?

Look, Ms. Reese,

Im an artist myself.

I was very much like this kid.

Scared, lost.

The only thing that stopped me

from falling into the hole

That I was rapidly digging

for myself was my talent.

It saved me.

It helped me to be somebody.

- And Joshua, he has that talent.

- I'm not gonna bend the rules.

Ms. Reese,

would you really uphold a rule,

Even when you knew it wasn't

in the boy's best interests?

You don't like lox?

Is it... is it fish?

- Bernie, get the kid some waffles.

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