The Whole Wide World Page #6

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Fine.

Everything's fine.

So, what do you think

of my buttermilk catcher?

You remember that

Kipling yarn

you told me about?

Yes.

What was it

that girl said?

She said kissing a man

without a mustache

was like eating eggs

without salt.

You like your eggs

with salt, don't you?

No. I'll

have mine plain.

How are things at home?

Not good.

My mother's getting weaker

by the day.

I can never repay her

for all she's done for me.

Well, she's not expecting

to be repaid.

She believed in my writing

from the beginning.

She had faith.

You made her very proud, Bob,

but now you've got

to lead your own life.

I lead my own life!

Don't think for a second

I don't!

I'm thirsty.

Let's go into town.

I made some lemonade.

I want something

more substantial.

You got something better to do?

Last month,

I sold yarns

to Action Stories,

Top Notch,

and Weird Tales.

I sold a grand old

Conan yarn

to Mr. Wright.

I think it's the best

work I ever done.

Conan is after

this head-headed

warrior woman,

a real spitfire

of a girl.

They find a city that's

inhabited by two tribes.

One's ruled by

an evil sorceress.

She drains the youth

from young, nubile women

MAN:
Good heavens!

which the tribe sacrifices

[RAISING VOICE]

in an orgy-like ceremony,

stripped naked,

chained...

to a bloody altar.

I would like to go home.

Now!

Orgies and chained,

naked women?

My God, Bob.

Aw, hell, you pay

too much attention

to what people think.

They don't feed you

and put clothes

on your back,

then what they think

ain't worth a damn.

That's right! I care!

I care what

those people think.

Why did you

come here tonight?

Huh? Why?

[ENGINE STARTS]

Miss Price, imagine

meeting you here.

Hey, how about it?

Hey, girl.

Oh, God.

Jesus, girl. Wait up.

What you in

such a hurry for?

I have to be somewhere.

Well, I'll walk you home.

[CAR HORN HONKS]

Heard you and Truett

are saving lives these days.

What?

Yeah, I heard

you took some people

to the hospital

after they'd been

in an accident.

Yeah, that's true.

MAN:
Good heavens.

I also hear you

took off your jacket

so nobody

would bleed on it.

[LAUGHS]

It was my new white

pigskin jacket.

I didn't want

to ruin it.

Well, I've always said

we're really

an advancing society

when we're so willing

to save lives

we don't want to endanger

our white pigskin jacket.

You make me sound

like a monster.

I am not a mean person.

I just didn't want somebody

who wasn't really badly hurt

bleeding all over

my new white pigskin jacket.

If he was bleeding,

he was hurt.

Oh, shut up, Bob.

Just shut up.

[RINGING]

Hello, Hemphill residence.

Miss Price, please.

Bob?

Oh, it's you.

I didn't

recognize your voice.

Hi. How've you been?

Good. Good.

Hey, would you like

to see a show tonight?

Well, I've got an awful lot

of work to do tonight.

Come on. I just

took my suit out.

I'm all dressed up.

Have you shaved that mustache?

[COUGHING]

Son?

I need you in here.

[COUGHING]

How's my mama?

Okay.

All right.

Here we go. Here we go.

Come on. Come on.

Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.

Okay, I'm setting you down now.

Okay.

Okay.

Thank you.

All right.

Don't you run away.

Okay.

I'm cold.

Okay. Let's get

this wet thing off.

Okay.

All right, Mama.

Let me get this.

Arms up.

There you go.

Okay, now, you can go ahead

and lean back.

There you go.

Here you go.

Here you go.

Here you are.

Thank you.

There you go.

Are you going out with that

little Indian girl tonight?

No. What,

and leave my best gal?

I don't want to spoil

your evening.

You ain't spoiling it.

"Were I like this forever,

you'd only too little to give.

"But here tonight, we sever

for life loves life to live.

"And the higher

a man may travel,

"the lower may he fall.

"And the scheme

that I must unravel,

it was never meant

for all."

I'm going to miss you, son.

I'm going to miss you

most of all.

You ain't going nowhere.

Will you stay with me

until your father gets home?

And bring that girl

around the house sometime.

I'd like to meet her again.

Hi.

So you made it, huh?

I'm sorry.

Something came up.

We're going

to miss our show.

That's all right.

We could drive around for

a while if you want.

Okay.

That would be good.

So, what you been up to?

Same old thing.

My students have been

a little

restless lately.

Oh, yeah?

Well...

when you're young,

you feel the lust

for adventure

buried in your

subconscious.

You don't want

to be bothered

with dreary things

like school.

I see.

How's your mother?

Not well at all.

I... I can't write.

Or do anything...

except take care of her.

What do you mean,

you can't write?

My mother requires

my constant care.

She has these terrible

night sweats.

I changed her gown

three times last night.

That's not your job.

Aw, damn it, you do

what needs to be done.

I can't let her lay there

wet and uncomfortable.

Why don't you

hire a nurse?

You've got the money.

You are not required--

No, you can't--

...to give up your life!

Listen to me!

I'm required

to give up anything

and do

whatever needs to be done!

Not your work!

Not your livelihood,

Bob.

What's work?

A man can do any kind of work.

Work ain't worth a damn...

unless you do it

for somebody you love.

I'm losing her, damn it!

I know that!

I want a woman to love,

a woman to believe in me.

Is that so much to ask?

No, it's not.

It's not.

And I'm sure

you'll find one.

You're an

extraordinary man.

If you don't love me, say so.

I know you loved me once.

I believe in you, Bob.

I do. I do.

And do you love Truett?

If it's Truett you love, say so.

Say it, goddamn you.

Say it.

I don't love anyone.

I don't love anyone

at all.

I don't love anyone.

I did love you,

but you weren't ready.

You told me so

yourself.

You said,

"I can't be tied down."

You said so yourself.

Well, I didn't know what

I was talking about.

I know, but there's

other reasons too.

We have all these

differences,

and they're going

to be there.

But differences can be

overcome, can't they?

Yeah. Yeah, they can.

Tell me that you'll

change your attitude.

Tell me that

you'll get out once in a while,

and that you'll try

to let go of your mother.

Tell me that now.

Bob, tell me that now.

I'm going to Louisiana State

this summer.

I've been accepted.

You made good with your writing,

and I'm going to make good

with something too.

I'm going to teach.

Oh...

you dedicate yourself to...

kids in some small,

apathetic town.

What will you get out of it?

Not even a "thank you."

I'm not doing it to be thanked.

Well, you got a great cause.

To make life worth living,

a man or a woman,

you got to have a great love

or a great cause.

I have neither.

Don't say that. That's not true.

That's a colorful sweater

you got there.

It's an LSU sweater.

The other teachers gave it to me

so I'd be ready

when I got there.

Hell, I know

you'd be ready.

Question is, will they be ready

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