Three Days in August Page #6

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And even then,

you sure as hell didn't tell

anyone.

When it happened to me I was,

hmm,

I was scared and ashamed and

alone.

I wore the biggest clothes

I could find,

trying to hide it

and then when I outgrew

'em, I sewed my own.

Tryin' to hide the truth.

But you can't hide the truth.

Can you, Shannon?

You can't hide the truth.

My daddy, he screamed at me so

loud.

I thought he was gonna kill me.

And my mother,

she was so drunk,

you know, she couldn't stop

crying.

I don't think she ever looked

at me again after that.

When the nurse...

Handed me you,

I held you so tight.

I didn't want to say goodbye.

And after that, I...

I got numb for a while.

I started wonderin',

is this a dream or did it really

happen?

After that,

that moment...

I was so angry

and bitter,

and I hated myself for

what I had done to you.

- I don't hate you, Maggie.

I don't.

- I would not blame you if you

did.

- I get it.

That must have been so hard.

I am sincerely grateful for what

you did.

Well, better get back to work

if I'm gonna ever finish this.

We'll see ya outside, okay?

- That's why I'm here.

- Hello.

- Hello to you.

Can I help?

- Yeah.

Now take an end.

Put it down here in front of me.

- And this one?

- Uh-huh.

I'm gonna set it on the end.

- All right.

I just hope we don't get rained

out.

- Yeah, me too.

- Maybe we can all hold

matching umbrellas.

I think it's been done.

- You got a heck of a family,

Shannon.

- Yeah, I like 'em.

- And thanks for havin' us.

I'm really sorry about last

night.

- It's okay.

I talked to Maggie.

- Well...

Is there anything else I can do

for you?

- Gather the troops, quickly.

- No problem, I'm on it.

- Thanks, Aiden.

- Hey, mom.

Check this out.

Come on, c'mon, c'mon, c'mon.

- I'm hurrying.

- Hurry!

- Oh!

- Boom.

How ya feelin' today?

- I'm good.

- How 'bout last night?

- I am so proud of you.

How did you get your friends to

come here?

You'll never know how

much that meant to me.

Now, if we can just get

through the rest of the day.

- I'm gonna take one more.

- Ah!

Oh, jeez.

- Oh man.

You have got to be kidding me.

Give me these.

I guess I will work in the

studio

until this passes.

- Poor thing.

All those interruptions.

I don't think she's ever

gonna get it finished.

What's the matter?

Are you feelin' okay?

- Oh, I think my body's given

out on me.

I'm just gonna sit here for a

minute.

- I'm gonna go get Sam.

- No, don't bother.

Not unless he stopped bein' a

doctor

and started diggin' graves.

- Maggie, don't talk like that.

It's gonna be okay.

- You're gonna be fine.

- - Aiden.

- You're gonna speak with

Shannon today

and you're gonna ask her.

That's why we're here,

and we need to find out now.

- Well, we sure didn't

come for the conversation.

- No, but that's

exactly what we need to have,

a conversation with Shannon!

- Well, how about somethin' like

this?

"Hi, sweetie!

"I gave you up for

adoption when you were born

"because I didn't want you,

"and now I'm dyin' and I

need a liver transplant

"and I'd like you to be a

living organ donor for me!"

Hmm?

How's that, honey?

- Go ahead, joke about it,

but we have to find out if she

can help.

- Hey.

- Hello, dear.

Get it, deer?

- Will you round everyone up?

I think I can get what

I need to finish, okay?

- Sure, I'll do it for a buck.

- Oh gosh.

Go!

Hey, it's Sam.

Ah, Shannon sent me up.

She's ready to wrap things up.

Can you guys come down?

- Ah, just a second.

Um, Maggie's runnin' out of

steam.

- Is everything okay?

- Um...

- I just need to freshen up.

I'll be right down.

- Is there anything I can do?

- Everything's fine.

We'll be down in a few minutes.

- Okay.

If there is anything I can do.

- Nah, we're good.

We're good.

Uh, we'll be right down, thanks.

- Okay.

Probably.

We need to get this done

then we can go fishing.

- Are you guys talking about

fishing?

- Again.

- There he is.

Hey, Liam, what's wrong?

- Why don't you ask her?

- Liam.

- No, Aiden.

I think you should tell her.

- Aiden, let's leave.

- No, we won't.

Ask her.

Ask her right now.

- Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

What are you talking about?

- I just heard them

talkin' on the balcony.

She's dying, mom.

She needs a liver donor.

- Maggie.

- She wants you to do it.

That's the only reason they're

here.

- Oh, w-wait.

I don't

understand what's going on.

- Partial liver transplant.

- They were talkin' about

how they could drop it on mom

so that she'd agree to it.

- She's dying, Shannon.

- Oh, this is unbelievable.

- Maggie, why didn't

you just say something?

- This whole thing is my fault.

I made her come.

Don't blame it on her.

Listen, I'm not proud of a lot

of things

I've done in my life,

but I'll be damned if I'm gonna

stand here

and pretend that we weren't

hoping that Shannon could help.

If we went about this

the wrong way, I'm sorry.

If we hurt your feelings,

I'm very, very sorry.

I don't know what to do,

Shannon.

I've no right to, but I'm

begging you.

- Maggie?

- I never wanted any of this.

I wasn't supposed to be in your

life,

and you weren't

supposed to be in mine.

But that all changed when you

found me.

You grew up,

it was a good family.

You have a wonderful mother and

father.

You married a good, smart man,

kind.

Maureen, you surrounded

her with a loving family,

somethin' I couldn't offer her.

And just knowin' that,

it's given me a sense of peace

that I...

I haven't felt in a very long

time.

In a very, very long time.

- It's okay.

It's okay.

We're gonna figure this out,

okay?

Maggie and I were strangers in

many ways.

Who knows, maybe we weren't

meant to meet.

I know she didn't think

we were supposed to,

but something pushed us

together.

Whether it was me searching to

find myself

or Maggie searching for a match,

which I was not,

something forced us to connect.

Maggie thought her life was a

failure

because she made bad decisions.

But that's not true.

She had me, she put me up for

adoption.

She gave me life.

And because of that, she

gave me all the people

who taught me how to live it.

And she gave me three days in

August,

and for that, I am eternally

grateful.

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