uh-huh.
toby, hush. let me just.  so concentrated on her driving she doesn't even finish her sentence, she nurses the car upward. finally the car crests the hill and starts down. caroline sighs with relief. she turns to toby with a smile.
what'd you say?
oh, honey, jesus. don't start with that again.
because i'm the mother, and i get to tell you what to do every minute of your life 'til you're eighteen. seriously, we've got no money. i can't buy you the moccasins.
no talk about roy, okay? and ditto the moccasins. we, can't, afford, them.
sue me. take me to court. oh, toby, i know you're disappointed, but.
you're going to drive me to an early grave: i'm never going to make salt lake city.
fine. and you can call me.  .  jeanette. jeanette marie.
goddamn thing.
oh, that poor man. there is a pause. then toby speaks:
it makes a black light that, uh, causes uranium traces to glow.
well, it was everywhere in moab, they say -- just like gold in the gold-rush days.
well, that means we'll have the place pretty much to ourselves, huh? honey, this could be a big break for us. if this works out, oh, just think: we'll get us a house, get rid of this damn nash ambassador -- no money worries.  it'll be like heaven on a june day.
ask me how far we are from salt lake city. toby is instantly awake, excited. caroline points to a small highway sign and both she and toby yell out. caroline. toby forty-seven miles to go!
if i could have one wish right now -- only one wish -- you know what i'd like? i'd like to burn this damn nash ambassador to a crisp. i'm serious. i hate it. i hate the factory that produced it, and i hate the man who invented it.
i'd like to burn you to the ground. let's go get rich in salt lake city!
no, i came here to look for uranium.
we went there, but everybody'd beaten us there. we were too late.
don't ask.
i know. don't tell me what i already know. this thing's a bottomless pit. i don't know what to do. no matter how much money i pour into it.  suddenly a woman in pedal-pushers and a thin, inexpensive sweater stops. she's vaguely low-class, but friendly and sympathetic.
you don't have a car? you want this one?
seriously. it needs points, and it overheats constantly, but you can have it if you want it, because my hand to god, i can't look at it one more minute.
get the bags out. get the owner's slip out of the glove compartment. we're rid of this son-of-a-bitch pink and white albatross. you don't mind taking a car with a big dent in the passenger door?
oh, yes there is! toby hands the woman the owner's slip, caroline gives her the keys.
it's done. it's yours. you got yourself a nash ambassador! let's go! both of them pick up two bags apiece -- all they have in the world -- and off they go, feeling good.
 find ourselves a cheap room someplace, we'll get you into school, i'll brush up on my typing and get a job, and things'll start looking up. i feel it: the good times are coming. and at least we're rid of that damn nash ambassador!
liar.
if you care anything about me at all, you'll shut up.
look, don't you put that on my back: i can't make your father call you. i can't make your brother write you. they dumped you. yes. but it's not my fault.
my head is killing me. toby heads for his room.
what time is it?
why didn't you wake me?
hold your mother's hand.
i know you are, honey. ah, well -- it wasn't fire, and nobody bled, so i guess we're okay. the telephone rings and she answers it. when she hears the voice on the other end she once again touches her right cheekbone with a finger -- the spot where the bruise had been. she sags back against a wall.
yes.  yes.  yes, i know.  you're right.  all right, yes.  in an hour, then. caroline hangs up.
we've got a guest for dinner: it's roy. he tracked us down. toby groans and falls full-length onto the sofa.
how do you know where i work?
you followed me around? for a week? watching? roy doesn't answer. he just wiggles his eyebrows like groucho marx.
and how did you ever find me? again, roy does the groucho marx. he turns to toby.
don't point that thing at anybody or i won't teach you to shoot.
you heard me: anybody or any thing.
don't make me speak to you again.
don't. toby's still up. roy leans back, smiling, and eyes caroline.
we sure are.
i don't know. got any suggestions?
good. i was thinking of phoenix or seattle -- lots of opportunities in both those places.
not if i can help it. i looked out the window at work today, and he was parked across the street, watching.
you liked him well enough last night. 'oh, roy, i just love my rifle so much! it's the bestest present ever!'
leave it.
leave it! they grab the four heavy suitcases and head out the door. both of them are laughing.
what about seattle?
 i've always had a good head for figures, and if i could get my c.p.a. license, i believe we could make a real go of it in seattle. i'll advertise for roommates, and i bet we find us a real cute house to rent.
sure. oh, honey, i feel a wind at my back: i think this is going to work out good.
 and if you cut school again i'll just wear you out -- do you hear me? i'm tired of it!
it does pick up the green, doesn't it?
yes, i think. he keeps talking about marriage, keeps saying he wants to meet toby.
i don't know if i want him -- she stops as toby enters the kitchen.
oh, it's nothing -- we were talking about dwight. i told you about dwight.
would you like coffee before we go? or a coke?
oh, he wants to be called 'jack.' it's so silly.  ever since he read jack london.
my son's decided to try to drive me into an early grave. truly.
you straighten up and be polite, you hear me? dwight takes a swallow of the coffee. his eyes widen.
i did.
well, amazing: it can sit up and talk like a normal human being. dwight, we're going to be late. she grabs her coat and they exit. as dwight leaves he kisses his hand, then throws the kiss toward marian and kathy. the instant the front door slams:
i want you to be polite to dwight this weekend.
i mean it, now.
hey, c'mon, maybe the weekend'll be fun.  maybe concrete will be pretty.
and stop that.
sometimes i could kill you as free as i could eat a bite.
please be nice. toby stops the buck-toothed thing and speaks normally.
it's pitiful. awful.
how about you guys? you like it here? they glance at each other.
i didn't know you played an instrument, dwight. what do you play?
how's the school here?
dwight, you did tell him.
wolff. caroline wolff.
well, that sign says this is an n.r.a. club, and i'm a dues-paying n.r.a. member. that gives me the right to participate in the activities of other chapters.
then you won't feel too bad about carrying it home, will you? several people laugh, and the man, bested, turns away. everyone turns quiet to watch the man shoot. he is evidently the one who's nervous, though, for after he shoots and waits, the score is raised: 95. there is an immediate stir -- caroline can win if she shoots a virtually perfect round. dwight's name is called. he takes his position, but clowns around, shooting first left-handed, then right- handed, then with both eyes closed. his score is raised: 24. there is scattered laughter, and dwight leads it -- hell, it's all a joke to him, his attitude says. caroline takes her stance. rock-steady, she shoots her ten shots and waits. and then it comes: 98. she's won. the second-place man wheels away angrily, but everyone else congratulates the laughing caroline, as an official presents her with a small trophy of a gold rifle on a pedestal, and a huge ham. in the midst of the hubbub, toby manages to get close enough to congratulate his mother. caroline glances toward dwight as she whispers to toby:
that was for you, honey.
i'm a little behind in my dues -- thirty-six years behind.
so what do you think?
some sort of infection.
they're all nice, but dwight keeps rushing me, keeps talking about marriage. and i don't really want to get married -- not now anyway.
oh, don't wish duke back on me. god.
like king midas. okay, look, we'll go back to seattle and see how things go. i've been thinking about taking a course in stenotyping. a court reporter's pay is real high. kathy got engaged, so either i find us another roommate or i've got to make some more money. and this stenotyping thing sounds just right. this could turn out good, honey.
what did he do?
can you say that in english?
did you do it? he didn't do it.
what obscene words?
that's one obscene word. mr. shippy looks stymied. there is a pause.
so what shall we do?
ever since duke and i got divorced, you're a different boy. i know he never calls you and i could kill him for it -- but that's how duke is. and gregory's in princeton now, so i guess.  so what shall we do? because this isn't working. we barely have enough money, kathy's moving out, and on top of it all, you've gone wild. you lie.
yes, you do. you steal from marian's purse -- i just can't handle you anymore, and it scares me. i don't know what to do. so, you tell me what to do.
it won't happen. it won't happen. it won't happen. things aren't going to turn out well, things aren't going to start looking up, and it's never going to be like heaven on a june day. there is no uranium. there is no stenotyping. there is no c.p.a. license. there isn't.  she stands for a few moments as if listening for a far-off sound.
 i talked to dwight: after christmas, he wants you to come up to concrete and live with him for a few months -- go to school there.
if you two can get along, if it works out, then i guess he and i might get married.
i can't think of anything else to do. but first i want your approval. again the two stare at each other.
i put in both your sweaters. you wear them now, the nights are so chilly up there.
you don't have to go if you don't want to, honey.
dear toby, i sure do miss you, honey -- the house is like a tomb since you left. so quiet. my only entertainment tonight was watching marian eat a whole pint of ice cream. i hope you're liking it up in concrete. i just know you'll try hard in school and be good and mind dwight. i worry about you so much, and i hope this will be just what you need. 55 c) toby rubs futilely at his yellow hands with 55 a cloth and watches norma, who is drying her hair in her bedroom. she bends over so her head is in a patch of sunlight. toby is riveted by the girl and her hair gleaming in the sunlight.
dear toby, just a note before going to bed. dwight tells me that the two of you are getting along like a house afire. i'm so glad. i wanted this to work out for you. you left your sock cap here. do you need it?
oh, i missed you!
you look good. how are you?
i said to hell with the budget and bought a roast. i made dumplings -- god, what's wrong with your hands?
i hope so. my, your hair's short.
how is it in concrete?
school?
you haven't been in any trouble? good. how're you and dwight?
stop that, honey.
well, you've got your eyes out of focus. look at me. now, are things all right?
you swear? you act odd.
well, good. i'd feel awful if it hadn't worked out. a pause.
i told dwight i'd marry him. in two weeks. i don't know what else to do. i mean, he's been helping me with the rent since kathy left. and you need a father. i think it's the best thing all the way around -- what d'you think? there is a pause as they look at each other.
i think it's the best thing, too. caroline smiles, smooths his hair, then goes into the house. toby continues to walk. suddenly, he spins around and tears out toward the house. by god, he'll tell her just what's been going on. he bangs through the front door and up the stairs.
oh! oh, i'm so sorry.  don't know what's the matter with me.  you're right.  it does look clean.  but she can't stop laughing. her laughter has just a tinge of hysteria.
oh, dwight, not like that. not this time -- not tonight.
but i want to see your face while we make love.
you mean you don't like to make love face to face?
you mean ever?
but that's grotesque.
don't.
stop it.
i won't do it, you know. i won't be a referee between the two of you.
you both do. you do. just by coming home like this you ask me to take your side when he raises hell.
well, the answer's 'no.' i'm going to make this marriage work. no fights.
 seems like this place is so ugly. seems like everywhere i look there's something.  ugly.
 not good, to tell you the truth not good at all. no, he's not mean to me.  no, he's good about that: comes home right after work every night. oh, marian, i don't know -- maybe i just got my hopes too high, although i don't think so. all i want is a little.  .  a little son-of-a-bitching sweetness. that's all. you think so, huh? you always did have an eye for dwight, didn't you? the thing is, he's out on the porch teaching jack to box right now. i keep thinking if i can hang on, things'll settle down. if i can just hang on long enough, it'll work out and my kid'll have a father. you know?
i know you may think this is silly, dwight, but it seems like.  i don't know, like an emblem or something. i want to be able to see your face when we make love. how else can we be cl -- the rest of the word is jerked out of her as dwight turns her onto her side, away from him, and proceeds to make love again in his favorite manner.
i asked him a week ago, i asked him this morning -- he wants you to keep the paper route.
he won't. he says he'll keep it for when you really need it.
you remind me of a baby bird -- you know those frantic little things with their mouths wide open, wanting, wanting.
i'm not a referee. i won't do it.
well, i'll tell you what the bride will do: the bride will get up and walk over there and slap hell out of the bride's son. now does the bride's son want his face slapped?
i don't have another 'get up and go' left in me! you understand? i'm telling you i've hit a god- damn wall. i can't run anymore. now this whole thing isn't perfect for me, either.  let me impress that on you real strong, okay? i don't wake up singing every morning. but i'm going to make this marriage work -- i won't join in any fights, you got that? i won't even raise my voice! caroline points to the sink.
see those two roses? he picked them for me on his way home last night.
i'm trying to concentrate on the good stuff. norma appears in the kitchen door, wearing her cap and gown. she strikes a pose.
seriously: you have to concentrate on the good stuff. caroline turns her attention back to the curtains.
try to find the good stuff, honey.
oh.
oh.
oh.
oh-h-h-h!
i. will. not. referee.
what's wrong?
all right. okay, dwight. you stay here. don't come inside. toby nods. caroline heads inside, loaded for bear.
get his rifle back.
get his rifle back.
get his rifle back.
well, i did it -- and the bride didn't even raise her voice: he says he'll get the rifle back as soon as the guy who sold him the dog sends the papers. toby nods. caroline looks up at the evening sky and then shrugs.
'course, having seen that dog, i wouldn't suggest you hang by your thumbs 'til those papers come. i mean, that dog is ugly. toby gives her a dirty look, but caroline's smile makes toby grin.
that's nice -- i haven't seen a real smile out of you in a month.
'start over.' do you know how many times i've started over, sweetheart? i don't want to do it anymore. this is as far as i want to go. this place. i have to make this work somehow. we do. you're fourteen now -- you have to help me.
but me no buts, honey. i told you: i've hit a wall. and besides, it's not so bad here, if you just try to --
seriously, though: give the place a chance. give him a chance.
well, look on the bright side.  you got a dog. in spite of his disappointment over the rifle, in spite of all that caroline had said about staying with dwight, toby is happy to see caroline completely back to her old self again, joking with him. he grins and, with the palm of his hand, he gives her shoulder a gentle shove. she returns the gesture. and the two of them sit on the steps, staring into the twilight.
oh, honey, good news -- truman's going to campaign for him. i gave twenty-five dollars to his campaign office today. i've been thinking i'd like to work.  she is interrupted by dwight's voice o.s.
i heard kennedy on the news again tonight -- i don't know: i hate the democrats and the republicans, but then once in a while somebody comes along who doesn't seem like.  .  a liar.
he gives me hope.
it's true he is attractive! and it may just be those white teeth that i respond to. but i don't think so. i'm going to work for his campaign.
oh, rickyyy! oh, ricky-y-y! please let me come down and work at the club!
well, you treat me like lucy, i'll act like her. i'll be working for kennedy's campaign.
what is it?
would a prep school take you with, uh, your school record?
when are the tests?
you'll be there.
you'll be there!
how was it?
take that trash out for me, honey. toby grabs the trash and exits.
you've always got your nose pressed up against the bake shop window, don't you, dwight?
you feel like everybody else is inside, and you're stuck on the outside. it turns you mean. it turns you ugly. and one day do you hear me, dwight? one day all that ugliness is going to snap back and hit you in the face.
come help me stuff envelopes.
no, i need to take them with me.
boy, you irritate me. i think maybe you ought to.  yeah -- i think maybe you should just.
maybe that last school will come through.
don't go off without eating.
get away from him or i will kill you. toby manages to stand up, caroline speaks to both of them.
what is this?
it's not so much that you're disappointing -- it's that you're consistently disappointing.
he's just a friend.
i don't, do i?
i could leave with you, couldn't i?
i could just walk right out that door, couldn't i?
my god.  the lightness.
i'm leaving, too.
oh, dwight, why do you want me to stay? you don't even like me, not really.
look again, dwight -- i'm already gone.
man, oh man.
well, we're out.
yes. it's great. and you got the scholarship! congratulations, honey.
yeah, heaven on a june day.
oh, helen found me something in a real estate office, but.
my you've grown, haven't you. then clutches him to her fiercely. smiling, the two walk on through the sunny afternoon, singing softly to each other.
are you sure you'll be all right?
i borrowed money from everybody i know -- it's the two hundred you need for the tuition, and an extra fifty. buy yourself a blazer. oh, god. i'll miss you. i'll write you. you sure your hand's okay?