Brendan?
Emily?
Yeah.
How's things?
Status quo.
Yeah? Mmm-hmm.
That's good.
What's going on, Em?
You know, it's good to see you, Brendan.
It's been some time.
Two months.
Yeah, I didn't even know your locker. I had to ask Brain.
Em, why don't we meet somewhere?
I can't.
Why not?
I screwed up real bad, you know.
I really screwed up.
Screwed up how?
Look, I did what she said with the brick. I didn't know it was bad,
but The Pin's on it now for poor Frisco, and they're playing it all on me.
Slow down, now. What?
You gotta help me, Brendan. Please.
I think Tug... Oh, no!
Brain!
Brendan, it's been awhile.
Where you been eating? Back of school.
Yeah, no one's seen you.
What's it been, a couple of months? It's been awhile.
You gave Emily my locker number?
Few days ago, was I wrong? No.
You know, it's been so long I don't know your two's stats.
Yeah, it's been awhile. Who's she been eating with?
I don't know, that's hard to keep track.
Is it?
Can be. Can be hard to keep track of those things,
because lunch is... Lunch is a lot of things. Lunch is difficult.
Uh-huh.
She hadn't been doing too good, Brendan.
Yeah, well, I'm not looking for a patch up.
Em's life is her own, but she asked for my help.
Help with what? I don't know.
I don't even care. It's not my business. I just want to know she's okay.
So I gotta find her. That's all this is.
Well, I know she's been poking in
with the Ivy-bound cheerleading elite, Laura Dannon's crowd.
Laura Dannon there on the Linc'?
And Brad Bramish.
Cream on the upper-crust.
Anyway, Em tagged after them for a bit, but it didn't work out.
She picked her way down the food chain.
Last I saw, she was with what's her name, the drama vamp.
Small-time dealer, the evil one, the one you dated.
Kara. That's my bus.
You know her locker number? Kara's?
Em's. 269.
Thanks, Brain.
Keep your specs on. Find me if she shows.
Will do.
Hello, Kara.
Hello, Brendan. Kara.
Come to see the show? No, I didn't.
Lapdog, blow. Stay.
I need words. Well, I'm listening.
About Emily Kostich.
Run and get my purse. Go on, hurry up.
Still picking your teeth with freshmen? Well, you were a freshmen once.
Way-once, sister.
You and Em tight for a bit. Who's she eating with now?
Eating with? Eating with. Lunch. Who?
You're a cutie.
Brendan.
I don't know where she is.
I know you do, so why don't you want me to find out?
Well, maybe I'm looking out for you.
Oh, I appreciate that.
Brendan.
If you're ever looking to get back into things,
I could use you.
Okay. So... Go. Say your line. Okay.
Go. So I just...
No, he's got to come in first, and then you can say your line.
Hello?
Yes, hello, ma'am, this is Tom. I'm a friend from school.
Could I speak to...
Oh, sure, Tom. Laura's here. Just a sec.
Yes?
I'm calling for details. For what?
Details about the party. Who is this?
Or I'll hang up. You don't know me. I'll save you some time.
I know everyone, and I have all the time in the world.
Folly of youth.
Ask whose invitation I've got.
What you said... Emily Kostich.
15 Busch Street, in Stockton Cove. Buzz 42 at the gate.
9:00. But who gave you...
"The sun, whose rays Are all ablaze
"With ever-living glory,
"Does not deny His majesty
"He scorns to tell a story!
"He don't exclaim,
"'I blush for shame So kindly be indulgent.'
"But, fierce and bold,
"In fiery gold His glories all effulgent!
"I mean to rule the earth As he the sky
"We really know our worth The sun and I!"
And the stupid coach, the coach won't let me play.
So, cheers.
Beautiful. I mean, I am Brad Bramish, Coach.
You gotta let me play.
How am I supposed to put in my best game
if I'm worried about whether or not I'm gonna be in there?
Hey.
Hey!
What are you doing here? Leaving.
Oh, yeah?
Brad's not the kind of guy you wanna mess with.
Fearless flyer.
Quit your yapping and fix me one.
I'll never get through all this.
Uh-huh.
So why are you here tonight? I'm looking for Emily.
Em's been AWOL for a good month. Nobody's seen her.
I saw her yesterday.
Nearly nobody.
Listen, you're scratching at the wrong door.
I didn't know Em well enough to know the details of what she was in.
I just got wind of the downfall.
If you haven't got a finger in Em's troubles, then why did her name
get me into your rather exclusive party?
Keep up with me now. I don't know, but it sounded like you did.
And a body's got a right to be curious.
Now I'm not so sure. Well, put that body to bed.
I don't know a damn thing about whatever troubles and that works for me.
I just want to find her.
Coffee and Pie.
Coffee and Pie, Oh My?
And you didn't hear it from me.
It's Tugger. All right.
Will you wait here for me? Sure.
You'll sit right here and wait? I'll just be five minutes.
Yes. Okay.
Why don't you say something?
I will not talk about this.
We'll talk about this right now! I won't!
I'll talk about this now!
Where's Dode?
Hey, Brendan, maybe you shouldn't be here.
Kara told me you know where Em's at.
And why you looking for Em?
She asked for my help.
Well, listen, man, I got plenty on my plate without dealing with some jilted ex.
It's not about that.
Well, whatever it's about, act smarter than you look and drop it.
Where's she at?
You better get while it's good.
Heel it now, dig?
Throw one at me if you want, hash-head. I got all five senses and I slept last night.
That puts me six-up on the lot of you.
Just easy, bro.
Where's Em?
All right! All right! All right!
Where's Em?
She's with me.
She was tight when she called you, man. Came to me freaked.
Told me to shake you if you came by.
Said you'd only make things worse.
Deal with whatever this ain't about and drop it.
Tell Em I wanna see her.
Tell her if she wants my help or not, it's her business.
But I want to hear it straight from her. She don't want...
Today! She knows where I eat lunch.
And stay out, man!
I must've sounded pretty crazy on the phone yesterday.
You just gotta forget about it.
That's how you can help me out, is just,
please, forget about it.
Brendan,
I know that you're mad at all these people,
because you think I went away from you and went to them.
But you got to start seeing it as my decision.
You know, stop getting angry just because where I wanna be at
is different from where you wanna be at, okay?
Who fed you that line, Em?
Stop picking on Dode. Okay? He's a good guy.
The Pie House rat?
He's a good friend.
So what am I?
Yeah, I mean, what are you?
Eating back here, hating everybody.
I mean, who are you judging anyone?
God I... I really loved you a lot.
I couldn't stand it.
I had to get with people. I couldn't handle life with you, anymore.
I'm sorry, Brendan. I'm sorry.
You gotta come back to me, Em. No!
You're in a spot but I can get you out of it, if you just come back to me.
No, you're not hearing me! I don't wanna be put away
and protected. Whatever befalls you, I'll deal with.
No.
Just tell me about the trouble with the brick, The Pin.
What? Are you gonna fix things, like you did with Jerr?
No. Okay?
I came here to say goodbye. Okay? For good.
Whatever you have to do to let me go, you gotta do it.
You gotta promise me, though, okay? You have to.
That you're not... You're not gonna torture yourself.
Please.
That you're... You're just gonna let me go.
Just let me go.
Do you know anything else about this? No.
Slim pickings.
Why did you let Dode fly when he went back to,
who's her name, at the theater? Kara.
It's their turf. I couldn't hear them without being seen,
and that would only biff their play.
Best to know that it's there, let it ride and see what comes of it.
Anyway. Well, if this is what I think it is,
it didn't come straight from Dode, unless he's playing out of his league.
I can only give you my best guess. Yeah.
When the upper crust does shady deeds,
they do them in different places around town.
One of them is by the pier, another one is by the bike trails in State Park.
I mean, there's a lot of them.
And the pitch is, they've got little symbols for each one.
So they can tell each other the place without word getting around.
This might be that. But Dode wouldn't know it?
No, this is the upper crust. Dode's pie-pan grease.
Call anything up?
How many places start with "A"?
Or if it's a shape, could be just a random symbol.
Even if you figure it out, what good would you do?
You said her business was none of yours.
So she's all right.
Forget it now, go home. Sleep.
Brendan, you're up early. Couldn't sleep.
Find Emily?
You all right?
Yeah. What are you here for, zero?
Forced into taking the early bus. The others don't run by my street.
So what's the word with Em?
She's gone. Can't raise her?
No, I can't.
So what now?
Now, I don't know. I guess...
I don't know.
I can't let her go, Brain.
I was set to, but I can't. I don't think I can.
Do you think you can help her?
No.
You think you can get the straight, maybe break some deserving teeth?
Yeah, I think I could.
Well...
Tell me to walk from this, Brain.
Tell me to drop it. Walk from it. Drop it.
But you're thick, Brendan.
Yes, I am.
I need you to op.
Like on Jerr, but that was cake to this, and unlike Jerr,
there's not much chance of coming out clean.
24/7 on this one.
You okay to op for me again?
So what first, tip the bulls? No.
Bulls would gum it.
They'd flash their dusty standards at the wide-eyes,
probably find some yegg to pin, probably even the right one.
But they'd trample the real tracks and scare the real players
back into their holes.
If we're doing this, I want the whole story. No cops, not for a bit.
So what's first?
I don't know.
Your mom still have that cell? In her car.
Can I borrow it for a few days? Get me the number?
Yeah. Wait for my word.
And cover for me first.
I'm gonna be a little late.
Stop it. What did you do, Brendan?
Are you crying for him? You're crying for Jerr?
Trueman went straight for him. He knew the lay!
You ratted on Jerr! Stop it now, Em!
What, you telling me it isn't true? Look at me!
You ratted him out, because you were jealous!
No, I spun on him and I bulled the two-bit toker,
'cause I know what his world would do to you!
I love you too much to see that!
You don't love me, you just wanna keep me!
You're the only thing I love!
And this is how I do it.
I wanna keep you safe.
You can't keep me safe, Brendan, all right?
I'm in a different world now.
And you can't keep me out of it, and you can't beat it.
Not if I don't want you to.
Here's the cell number. Yeah. Keep it on vibrate.
Better stop meeting me in the open, too.
I'm gonna start getting visible. I need you on the underneath.
I'll call. Trueman, the Ass. VP, wants words.
I'll bet he does. Keep him off me.
Stonewall him, he won't bite. Just keep him away from me.
I'll try. So what's first? Make Em's troubles mine.
Emily said four words I didn't know. Tell me if they catch.
Brick. No.
Or bad brick. No.
Tug? Tug.
Tug, might be a drink.
Like milk and vodka, or something.
Poor Frisco. Frisco.
Frisco Farr was a sophomore last year.
Real trash. Maybe hit a class a week.
Didn't know him then and haven't seen him around.
Pin. Pin.
The Pin? The Pin, yeah?
The Pin's kind of a local spook story. You know the kingpin.
I've heard it. Same thing.
Supposed to be old, like 26. Lives in town.
Dope runner, right? Big time.
See, The Pin pipes it from the lowest scraper to Brad Bramish himself.
Maybe. I mean, ask any dope rat where the junk sprang, and they'll say
they scraped it off that, who scored it off this, who bought it off someone.
After four or five connections, the list always end with The Pin.
But I bet you, you got every rat in town together and said show your hands
if any of them have actually seen The Pin, and you'd get a crowd of full pockets.
You think The Pin's just a tale to take whatever heat?
But what's first?
A show of hands.
Hello, Brendan, are you here for the show? No.
Well, then, could you go then, honey? 'Cause I have this headache.
Try smoking like a chimney. I've heard that helps.
Hey, isn't this Dode's brand?
You don't know Dode's brand. I do now.
I'm gonna start shaking things up.
Give me the story, you might miss the bite.
The story about what? All right.
The story about what?
I don't want to play games if you've got a headache.
Get me if you want to spill it,
but I can't guarantee safe passage after tonight.
I don't know... Tell The Pin
that Brad was my calling card, and I need words.
Brad Bramish?
Tail Kara at lunch. She's got rehearsal, but she'll blow early.
She goes home, drop her, or else wait for my call.
Will do.
I mean, am I crazy, huh?
I mean, this is all I am trying to say here!
Okay, if you put me in the game,
Brad Bramish is gonna do what needs to be done, baby.
Okay? But they don't put me in!
What needs doing, ain't gonna get done!
Huh? And then don't come crying to me.
Boo-hoo-hoo-hoo! If you don't put me in the game!
Now, am I right? Of course I'm right!
And don't come to me if you don't let me play!
Didn't. Shut up!
Hey!
What are you doing here? Just listening.
All right, you got me. I'm a scout for the Gophers.
Been watching your game for a month, but that story right there, just clenched it.
You got heart, kid. How soon can you be in Minneapolis?
Yeah?
Cold winters, but they got a great public transit system.
Yeah? Yeah.
Oh, yeah?
There's a thesaurus in the library. "Yeah" is under "Y."
Go ahead, I'll wait. You know, who invited you?
To the parking lot?
Gee, I guess I invited myself.
Maybe you wanna go somewhere more private.
With you? Sure.
If this boy knows what's good for him, he'll just beat it.
Whooping this small fry's butt ain't gonna help me none.
Sure ain't gonna help him, neither.
Come on, Brad!
Hey, was there a fight? Yeah.
You're quite a pill.
Uh-huh.
Where are you going? Home.
Why did you take a powder the other night?
Same reason I'm taking one now. Hold it!
I wanna help you. Go away.
Look, I can't trust you. You ought to be smart enough to know that.
I didn't shake up the party to get your attention,
and I'm not heeling you to hook you.
Your connections could help me, but the bad baggage they bring
could make it zero sum gain or even hurt me.
Better off coming at it clean.
I wouldn't have to lead you in by the...
I can't trust you.
Brad was a sap, you weren't.
You're with him, so you're playing him.
So you're a player.
With you behind me, I'd have to tie one eye up,
watching both of your hands. I can't spare it.
You're not Brad. No, I'm not.
You didn't call. Sorry. Kara went home though, didn't she?
Yeah, but she stopped at a payphone
and made two calls that she didn't want on her phone bill.
Get the numbers? No. Sorry.
It's all right. Me and Brad front-page news?
All the buzz. You really do that? Yeah.
Why? Is Brad The Pin? Brad is a sap.
I downed him on his field, and his crew didn't bite.
So now I know he's a sap, and anyone who acts like he isn't is profiting by it.
That's not why I roughed him, though.
For kicks? Economics.
Brad's the school's biggest jake buyer,
so if this Pin is behind all the selling, I just got his attention.
Anyway, now we've shaken the tree, let's wait and see what falls on our heads.
Will do.
So you didn't know this boy?
No sir, never seen him. And he just hit you?
Like I said, he asked for my lunch money first.
Good thing I brown-bagged it.
Okay, Brendan, I've been looking to talk to you.
And you've helped this office out before.
No, I gave you Jerr to see him eaten, not to see you fed.
Fine.
Very well put.
Accelerated English. Mrs. Kasprzyk.
Tough teacher. Tough, but fair.
Okay, we know you're clean.
And you've...
Despite your motives, you've always been an asset to this office.
And you're a good kid.
I want to run some names past you.
Hold it, we're not done here. I was done here three months ago.
I told you then I'd give you Jerr, and that was that.
I'm not your inside line, and I'm not your boy.
That's not very... You know what I'm in
if the wrong yegg saw me pulled in here?
What are you in? No.
And no more of these informal chats, either. You got a discipline issue with me,
write me up or suspend me,
and I'll see you at the parent conference. Hold on!
I could write you up for talking back to a VP
and for looking at me in that threatening way.
I would exercise a little tact, Mr. Frye.
You can't pull a stunt like that unless there's something I need you for.
So is there? Maybe.
Maybe there's something you need from me.
Maybe.
All right, I need you off my back completely for the next few weeks.
There might be some heat soon.
If it's something I can't cover, I won't go to bat for you.
If I get caught like that, it's curtains anyway.
I can't have brass cutting me favors in public.
I'm just letting you know now,
so you don't come kicking in my homeroom door once trouble starts.
Okay. Okay, here's what I can do.
I won't pin you for anything you aren't caught at.
But if anything comes up with your prints on it, I can't help you.
Also, if I get to the bottom of whatever this is,
and it gets too hot, and you don't deliver,
VP's gonna need someone to turn over, police-wise.
And I'll have you.
So there better be some meat at the end of this, like you say.
Or at least a fall guy.
Or you're it.
Nope, Dode is MIA.
I'm 9 of 10 that Kara's got him, but who knows where.
I shook, but she's not spilling.
No more job offers, so she's gotta play.
And I know enough about Kara to let that worry me.
All right, keep your specs on for him. Any other news?
Some. Laura Dannon came to me, looking for you.
She did, huh? Fourth period.
Nearly shook me upside down.
Can't say I didn't enjoy it. But why'd she come to me?
She's tapping Kara, and Kara knows you know me.
Yeah, well, she's some piece of work.
If I had known where you were, I might have told her.
That's the spirit.
Ask around for Dode. Tail Kara again at lunch.
I got knives in my eyes. I'm going home sick.
I'll call you tonight. All right.
I wanna see The Pin.
I guess you do.
You The Pin?
Yeah.
So now I'm very, very curious what you're gonna say next.
Maybe I'll just sit here and bleed at you.
Helled, if you're gonna go breaking my best clients' noses
and expect me to play sandbag.
Anyway, you've been sniffing me out before then.
Sniffing for me like a vampire bat
for a horse with a nick on its ear that he can suck on.
They do that.
So now you got Tugger to bring you in,
which he never does.
And you got me listening.
So I'm very curious
what you have to say that better be really, really good.
Why don't you call Ms. Dannon in from the hall first? She ought to hear this.
No dice, soldier.
Would've been a neat trick, though.
I was just gonna come up with some bit of information
or set up some phony deal, anything. She'd let me walk.
Then I was gonna go to the Vice Principal and spill him the street address
of the biggest dope port in the burgh.
He knows zippo.
1250 Vista Blanca, the ink blotter on the desk, in the den,
in the basement of the house with the tacky mailbox.
You gonna do what now?
No good, soldier.
All right, Tugger, enough.
Tug!
Tug, stop!
My glasses?
The hell with you then. Which wall is the door in?
Sorry about this, kid.
But what the hell with what you said before?
Where you were at, with all of us and Tug a fist away.
You gotta use your nut.
Allay the situation.
So, yeah, you're not scared of me.
I got it.
But I'm also thinking you're a little nuts, now.
So you've got that tradeoff with your situation.
But nuts isn't all bad,
so maybe it was a good play.
I don't know.
So Laura talked me down.
Why don't we take you upstairs, back with the living?
I thought we had orange juice, Brendan. I'm sorry.
How about some Tang?
No, that's more like soda, isn't it? Water's fine, ma'am. Thanks.
Wait a minute, we have apple juice here, if you'd like that.
Or we've got milk, but you're having that on your corn flakes.
Apple juice sounds terrific.
It's country style.
That's perfect.
And I'll even give it to you in a little country glass.
How about that?
Boys? I'm fine, Mrs. M.
Thanks, Mom.
Okay, well,
I'm gonna go do something in the other room.
So how abouts we take another snap at hearing your tale?
I don't know. It starts out same as before. I mean, this floor ain't carpeted.
We're cooled off.
Your muscle seemed pretty cool putting his fist in my head.
I want him out.
Looky, soldier... The ape blows or I clam.
So clam!
What've you got I can't beat out of you back in the basement?
Give us a few minutes, Tug.
I'll call you if whatever.
So?
About a year ago, I had a small-time dealing partnership with Jerr Madison.
Know him? Till he took the fall for you.
Yeah, well.
I didn't ask him to, but he was a straight player,
and I got out clean, almost.
Nothing on my official record, but the VPs play it like I owe them one.
When I made it clear I wasn't gonna be playing their hound dog,
well, they didn't like it.
They keep badgering me, calling me in.
Gee, that's tough. I don't like being told whose side I'm on.
So now they think I'm on your trail.
I'm in a nice spot to know their movements,
feed them yours.
I got you. You haven't got me, yet.
What? Price?
Considering the benefits my services could yield,
I don't think that's unreasonable.
And what are your services exactly?
So I can be specific on the invoice.
Whatever serves your interests.
Fair enough.
I'll have my boys check your tale,
and seeing how it stretches, we'll either rub or hire you.
You'll know which by the end of the day tomorrow.
We're done.
I'll drive you back.
Just drop me at school.
How long was I out? Half an hour.
It took all of it for me to cool The Pin down.
Thanks.
You trust me now?
Less now than when I didn't trust you before.
Maybe if you can tell me your angle in all this, I could.
Emily tried to get with Brad and I about three months ago.
Three months ago. And you stonewalled her.
Oh, all right. If you've already got the world's address...
Three months ago.
And I liked her, but she wasn't us and it didn't work.
And when she left, she took some souvenirs with her.
Dirty habits she wasn't strong enough to control
and a connection to The Pin to keep them going.
A few months pass, and the next I hear,
The Pin's raging over a certain situation with the junk Em's partial to.
And it's all coming down on her head.
You're saying Em scraped the junk off The Pin?
I don't care how hard she was hooked, I don't buy that.
You weren't there. She wasn't herself. It had dug deep.
It was awful.
And whether she scraped or copped
or just ran her tab around the world and into her own back,
it must've been grand.
I've never seen The Pin so hot.
And when he thought his precious, his bricks of whatever it was,
when one of them was missing,
he scared me.
Why are you telling me all this? What's your play?
You think nobody sees you.
Eating lunch behind the portables.
Loving some girl like she's all there is, anywhere, to you.
I always seen you.
Or maybe I liked Emily.
Maybe I see what you're trying to do for her,
trying to help her,
and I don't know anybody who would do that for me.
Now you are dangerous.