Wakefield Page #4

I got the chairs.

Sweetheart.

I'm coming, I'm coming.

I brought us

a go cup of coffee.

Is it just me

or is it oddly relaxing

when the wife

goes out of town?

You know, maybe it's summer

but I find I'm becoming lax

about keeping up with events.

Look at you.

Uh..

"Luckiest guy on wall street?"

Goddamn right he is.

Divorced.

Loser.

What's amazing is that

old dirk and I

ended up in the same line

of work.

Dirk morrison, junk man.

Scavenging

the remnants of what?

Pizza chains

and supermarkets?

Buying, raiding, flipping.

Exhausting.

Mm.

Take the money to him.

There you go.

Good job, sweetheart.

Do I ever worry that someone

might recognize me

on one of these

expeditions to town?

Diana.

Coming home early

from the cape.

She could show up

any moment.

Oh, believe me,

I can knock out

countless variations.

It's endlessly entertaining.

You do realize,

I hope, that none of this

is a rejection of my wife

or -- or suburban life

or any of that.

You see, I never

left my family.

I left myself.

I stepped into the wild.

Into that primal arena,

a beach vacation in Cape Cod

only pretends to supply.

But in the primal world,

there's one law.

Oh!

We are food to one another..

...or we are not.

That's it. End of story.

You know how in late summer

there's always

that first night of Autumn.

That familiar chill.

Normally, I welcome

the change of seasons.

But this time, well

I no longer

have a pair of shoes.

No, no, no, mine. Mine, hey!

Hey, hey, no, no, no!

Mine. Mine!

No. No.

- Nyet!

- Go!

Nyet! Nyet!

Come, come on.

Mm.

Herbert.

Herbert.

Emily.

Hm.

Emily and Herbert.

Howard.

Howard.

Howard.

Shoes.

Uh-huh.

Yeah, okay.

Listen.

Emily, Herbert..

...it's very important

that you don't tell anyone

that you saw me.

You understand?

Shh, shh, yes, yes.

It's a secret.

Bye.

Suppose they do

tell someone,

those two next door.

I should leave.

Diana will be

coming back soon.

My daughters

coming up the stairs

to put

their vacation gear away.

I should go sleep

in the woods.

Mm.

Those are toe shoes

for ballet.

You know, ballet?

Mm-hm.

Yeah, that's you. Look here.

You know who that is?

- Mm?

- Who is that?

Yeah.

Yes. That's Emily.

- Emily?

- Emily.

Yeah.

Oh, you know what that is?

That is a bicycle pump.

You use that to put air in

your -- in your bicycle tires.

Here, let me -- let me

show you.

You see, uh, there we go, see.

You take this part..

Have I mentioned

the loneliness?

Just like.. Feel the air?

Feel this?

Whoo! Hoo-hoo! I give up.

Let's get Emily. Come on.

Oh. Now this

is a very important

piece of equipment.

You have a hole..

When you are alone

for so long

you forget the simple

human exchange.

Snap that into place. Voila.

Listen, Herbert, Emily.

Don't come back here again

or I'll have to leave.

Okay? Do you understand?

It's our secret. Remember?

Yes. Yes.

Good, Herbert. Our secret.

Remember, Emily?

Don't tell anyone.

And I mean it.

Don't come back.

Yeah.

They'll never be able

to keep their end of it.

The sensible thing would be

to abandon this place.

Ah.

No question. I'd have

completely stranded myself.

She's taking

dance class again.

That's good.

She seems a little

tired tonight.

Well..

The kids are

running her ragged.

They're looking

more like Diana these days,

don't you think?

Hey, check this out.

I like her wearing her hair

long like that.

- Have a safe drive. Bye.

- Bye.

Uh, Taylor, gelly, I think,

um, these ninja's might

belong to you.

- Oh, hey.

- Hey.

Boys.

When did that happen?

What do you say when you knock

on the door on Halloween?

Good morning.

Good morning?

You don't say good morning.

- Trick or treat!

- Trick or treat!

There's no point denying it.

They're much happier

without me.

She's buying the cheaper

cuts of meat.

Saving her pennies.

Suppose she has to sell

the house?

How far am I willing

to let this go?

Then again,

it could end at any moment.

I could be exposed.

Christ, if I did go back

I mean, how would I begin?

How does a man

in my situation

explain himself to his wife?

She'll think

I vacated my senses.

If anything, I've come

into my senses fully.

My god, I can see it

so clearly.

I've constructed

the whole thing.

The jealousy

the resentment..

...the selfish urgency.

Howard is victim.

Howard is persecutor.

There's no one there,

Howard.

Howard has mastered

the world.

That was my prison.

That's what I've escaped.

Leaving me where now?

An outcast of cosmos.

I'll tell you this.

You can think

whatever you like.

I love my wife now as I've

never loved her before.

So I'm guessing

Thanksgiving dinner

will be at babs' house

this year.

And you know what

that means.

Zilch-o for me

in the leftovers department.

Who am I kidding?

A family of ten

could eat for weeks

off what my neighbors

throw out.

This stuff will

keep forever.

The whole attic's

like a goddamn refrigerator.

Unfortunately,

Howard Wakefield had

ignored some basic repairs.

What about

when it starts snowing?

Diana will think

she has a prowler.

Stupid. They're not home.

Go inside where it's warm.

The first catch

of the game..

He's going for another

first down.

And with our

black Friday sales

going on

throughout the entire weekend

you can find savings

for the entire family.

Ssh. Shh, shh.

Want some wine?

Here.

Just a little --

just a little sip.

Here.

"The quality of mercy

is not strained.

"It droppeth

as the gentle rain

from heaven

upon the place beneath."

Your whole life

you hear that quoted.

I never got it till now.

Mercy is not something

you ever get to request.

Not strained

means not forced.

It's given freely.

Thank you, Herbert.

Thank you, Emily.

No reason.

Just a gift drops

from the sky.

Twice blessed.

Blessing him that gives

and him that takes

if I remember correctly.

Thank you.

The giving and the taking

all in one.

Okay.

Thank you so much, Caleb.

We'll see you in June? July?

June? Okay.

Okay.

Supposed she had

recognized us.

You could have lost her

right there, pal.

Unthinkable.

I mean, the shock of it.

To look into Diana's eyes.

Her eyes that I've seen into

countless, countless times

to look and to see nothing.

I had no idea how one-sided

this relationship

had become.

Where should I dump

daddy's clothes?

Put everything in the car.

Good god.

They're emptying my closet.

I'll be right back.

Just put the oven on,

would you, please? 350.

- Alright.

- Close the door.

Am I a coward, afraid

of facing her rejection?

Or am I just resolved

to see this thing through?

And by this thing

what the hell do I even mean?

Gone is the provider

the family man, the litigator

the husband.

All that remains

is the lover.

Enduring, passionate.

I love her

because she belongs to me.

And I love her

because she doesn't.

And I know

if I come in from exile

there's every chance

I'll lose her.

On the other hand

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