Sometimes, when I'm driving or walking, I see a man in a corner.
He's just standing there, looking.
When he notices he's being observed, he becomes embarrassed.
On bus stops you can also see ordinary people...
just standing there, looking.
What are they thinking about? What are they looking for?
The past, maybe?
On September 26, 1998, I observed one of these men.
But this time it was different. That man was me.
It was my last moment as someone afraid to commit.
That was when I got rid of the curse and I finally grew up.
In the mid Eighties, I shared with my second girlfriend my first flat.
When she asked me... - Do you love me?
I answered...
I do.
But I wasn't sure.
Later, when my future fiancée asked...
Where were you on November 9, 1989?
I answered...
I was near the Berlin Wall!
But it wasn't true.
That night, I was in bed with a woman, watching a video.
He feels as if his muscles are relaxed and goes limp again.
Sometimes life was nice; other times, it was shitty.
A pile of shit indeed.
Somewhere along the line, I learned how to play.
I learned to fuck, to love and to lie. It was like that for years.
But now I had turned 30, and it was time.
Either I have this baby or it's over.
- You can't be serious. - I am!
I loved her. I didn't want any other. I had no reason to run away.
I even wanted to have a child.
Why was I running away?
I didn't know why.
But suddenly, I realized that...
- I need to go away for a few days. - Where to?
- I need to go to Berlin. - Berlin?
I'd like to know since when you are so afraid of commitment.
Helmut, this is serious!
I wish I knew too.
"LEARNING TO LIE" I never told this to anybody.
It all began in 1982.
I was 18,and I saw my father dancing alone in the basement.
- Where's your father? - He's coming.
- Helmut! - Hi, uncle Bertram.
Sit down.
- I'm worried about you. - About me? Why?
You know the Russians are practically on our doorstep.
They're in Thuringia, in Saxony, right under our noses.
Some youths let the Russians do whatever they want.
So, have you been to one of these demonstrations?
- No. - Good! I hope you stay that way!
What about girlfriends?
Have you got any?
- No, but I'm trying. - Great!
Dear students.
The election will be held the following way:
...two committees. Committee A... - New.
...and B. - It's worthless!
The committees will present their platforms.
Then the election will be held. It's a secret ballot.
Now that everyone is finally here...
we may begin.
Please.
Dear fellow students!
Modern civilization has the means to destroy itself 100 times.
Why doesn't the West take the first step...
towards a world without nuclear weapons...
giving up the Pershing II and Cruise missiles?
Species diversity is dropping.
Acid rain is destroying our forests.
And then there is the so-called peaceful use of nuclear power...
but Harrisburg was only the beginning.
Next time it could happen in Biblis or Krümmel.
We cannot stick our heads in the sand!
Which is, by the way, full of cadmium.
If I win the election, I'll back the formation of groups of students...
to address these problems.
But it's clear that, whatever I do...
the initiative should come from you.
- What are these? - They’re selections.
This is the first one.
- It's called "The Trip". - No, this one!
It's Kansas. "Dust In The Wind".
Exactly.
you can take that and go sit among the girls.
- Isn't that the whole idea? - Not yet. We ain't even out of town.
Too soon for that sentimental bullshit.
- Gotta build up an atmosphere. - I think it's perfect.
You'd play "When I'm 64" on your grandmother's 64th birthday.
And when we arrive in Berlin, I bet you'll play...
"Berlin", by Fischer Z!
It goes well with the occasion. That's what music's for!
Schäfer, you just don't get it!
- Hi, girls. - Hi.
- I'd like to congratulate you. - What for?
I voted for you.
You're congratulating me for that?
No. Because you won.
Thanks.
My friend would also like to congratulate you.
Hi.
Hi. Very kind of you to come here to congratulate me.
Don't mention it.
That's nice, but we're talking here. Excuse me.
Was that great or what?
What's going on between you two?
Nothing.
Liar. I saw the way she looked at you.
There's nothing going on. Honest.
We'll reach West Berlin soon, right?
Come on, guys! On the bus!
Good afternoon.
Please let me see your left ear.
See you later.
- Hey. - Hey.
- Strange sensation, isn't it? - Yeah.
Hey, guys, listen up.
It's 3:15 now. You may do whatever you want for a while.
I'll see you guys at 6:00 at the Friedrichstrasse Station.
I'm thirsty.
Wanna drink something?
Hermes, where are you going?
We're gonna drink something. See you later.
Here is fine. Tell me...
after high school, what will you do?
I was thinking of maybe...
joining the Peace Corps. I'd like to do something significant.
- What about you? What'll you do? - Maybe I'll get into politics.
- Well... here it is. - Thanks.
1.22, please.
Let me pay.
Thank you.
Sorry, I don't have any change.
Well, then...
bring us eight more beers.
I'm paying in advance.
Cheers.
When they start doing song requests, it's a bad sign.
Lack of sensibility.
A DJ's best nights are those without any song requests.
But nobody’s dancing.
I won't play commercial songs. I'll make them dance.
Hey, play "Words"!
I'll go fetch a beer.
- "Words don't come easy". - I haven't got that one.
- Do you also like Berlin? - I like it, of course.
I wish I didn't have to go back.
I think I'll go to college here.
- And what will you major in? - Medicine.
My brother studied Medicine here.
I can't believe they want to listen to this crap!
I wanna live by the Wall.
In Kreuzberg, somewhere like that.
Something simple, in a backyard. A whole room to myself.
Can I have a sip of your beer?
Actually, I don't even like beer.
- It's very easy to talk to you. - You think so?
Excuse me a moment.
- Hey. - Hey.
I had fun this afternoon.
Me too.
We should do that again.
Days later, Helmut Kohl was elected chancellor.
For Britta, it was a tragedy.
I became a member of the same groups she went to.
The ecological, the anti-bomb and the Nicaraguan studies groups.
He's the illegitimate son of a wealthy Spanish land owner.
And one of the Sandino family’s employees.
And even though his father was wealthy...
Now you're well acquainted with the material, aren't you?
I am.
Would you help me prepare a pamphlet for Action Week?
Of course.
Then come to my house tomorrow and we'll begin to prepare it.
You mean... at your place?
Yeah. I'll write down directions. It's kinda difficult to find.
How about 4 PM?
- Hi, are you Helmut? - Exactly.
- I'm Jutta, Britta's mom. Come in. - Hi.
Britta is upstairs. In her "space".
- Turn left, it's the shortest way up. - Thanks.
Hi.
I've got something for you.
"Journey To Ixtlan", by Castañeda. You'll like it.
- You can keep it. - Really?
Of course. When you finish it, tell me what you think.
Thanks. I thought your mom's name was Jutta, not Brigitte.
Brigitte is my dad's ex-girlfriend.
My biological father's.
Does he live here too?
Of course not, silly. In San Francisco.
Sit down.
Problem is, people think...
that the Americans defeated Hitler.
Didn't they?
They did, but with the help of the Red Army. People forget.
Besides, as Ortega pointed out recently...
the USA were in bed with enemies of democracy several times.
- Could you pass me that? - Of course.
Like in Nicaragua and with Argentinean Fascists.
Are you listening to me?
Yes, I'm listening.
The USA couldn't care less about upholding democratic values.
They spring into action when...
they feel they’re losing control.
We need to get back to work.
Let's begin again.
We shouldn't go too far on our first time.
Besides, I'm having my period.
You're so cute when you blush like that.
I'm cold.
Will you keep me warm?
Good morning.
What were you thinking?
What do you mean?
Good morning.
Your father talked to you yet?
How could that happen?
What? Me talking to Dad?
Kid, we were worried sick!
You could have called.
Big deal! I was an hour late! What if some day I really do something?
- Will you send me to an orphanage? - Don't take that tone with me!
This is no joke.
You know what happened to Mrs. Heinemann's boy.
He's been unemployed since he was released from jail.
God, Mom! I haven't even finished high school yet!
Helmut!
Kid... I really would like to know what's on your mind.
Have you masturbated yet?
This is the first piece of shit I hold today!
- What's gotten into you? - Nothing. Great day today.
It's a day like any other.
- Been drinking, by any chance? - Nope.
I've got Biology. See you.
Hi.
Let's go.
Hi.
- How are you? - Fine.
- Hi. - Hi.
- I like it here a lot. - Me too. I'd never been here before.
- Really? - Really.
You're probably wondering why I called you.
It was very nice last night, with you.
Last night, you know?
I know.
Have you told anyone?
About what?
About last night.
No.
Good.
I'd rather you don't, okay?
No, I really liked it.
It's just that, as student body president, I'm under scrutiny.
And I want to keep what we have only between us.
Do you understand?
Of course.
I don't want anyone talking about us.
And...
if you don't tell anyone...
there's still a lot of things I want to do with you.
Agreed?
Agreed.
We'd act like strangers at school, then get together in the afternoon.
Nobody knew about Britta and me.
Sometimes, I wanted to tell somebody, but I couldn't.
Mücke thought I was acting kinda strange, and he said...
You're acting kinda strange.
I almost didn't see him anymore. Nobody found out about us.
Are you going away for Christmas?
No, we always stay here.
I think Christmas sucks.
It's not a religious date anymore, just a consumerism festival.
Jutta and Wilfred always have some friends over...
and we throw a nice party.
You can come too, if you want.
I need to ask my parents.
They certainly won't mind.
Merry Christmas.
- Merry Christmas. - Merry Christmas.
Merry Christmas.
Is this fun or what?
I'm gonna have to go out shortly.
- What? - I'm gonna have to go out shortly.
What do you mean, you have to go out?
Some folks from the student body are giving a party and I want to go.
Tonight?
On Christmas' Eve?
But we're in the middle of a conversation here.
May I go?
It was very kind of you to ask.
Hi.
Britta?
You're crazy.
Look inside.
"To Britta, from H."
You're really crazy.
Did you like it?
Of course I liked it. Are you kidding?
But you shouldn't have done that.
Why not?
It must have costed a lot.
Money is no problem.
You're so sweet.
I'm going to the US.
I'll go with you.
No, I'm really going...
to live with my dad in San Francisco.
I'm leaving next week.
But school starts next week.
Exactly. I'll study there.
What?
For a year. I'll finish high school there.
I could save up and visit you on Easter.
- Yeah, right. - Why not?
Listen, a year is a very long time.
You'll probably meet someone.
No.
Then maybe I'll meet someone.
Do you want to meet another guy?
I didn't say that. I just said that a year is a very long time.
I think you should go away.
I won't be able to sleep now.
I'll write.
I love you, Britta.
See you.
"Darling Britta.
We haven't written to each other in a while, and maybe I changed.
Gone is the time when I'd write you five letters a week.
FOUR YEARS LATER
I stayed in West Germany...
and I'm studying German, History and Political Sciences.
Oddly enough, I kinda like it.
I've made some new friends. One of them is called...
Beck.
I was sad when I knew about your American boyfriend...
because I haven't seen you anymore...
because you stayed there and you never came back to Germany.
But I remember your arms and your legs.
I remember your hands and your eyes.
I'll never forget how we slept together...
on Christmas night, among books and candles.
- Helmut? - Yes.
Helmut Hermes. You haven't changed a bit.
I'd like to see you again. Forever yours, Helmut.
PS: I've bumped into Gisela Schmidtkowsky yesterday.
She didn't go to Berlin. She stayed and went to medical school.
Great. Doctors are always needed.
Do you keep in touch with anyone from high school?
Steffi Hanisch is my neighbor.
And I ran into Wiebke Hellers last week.
That's about it.
I was really sorry about Schäfer.
I hardly knew him, but you were very close friends, right?
What about Schäfer?
Didn't you know?
I haven't heard from anybody. Not even Mücke Kuwelko.
I don't even know where that big dope lives!
Sorry.
You've got a beautiful laughter.
My God, I've had too much wine!
You're beautiful even without wine.
I only drink a glass once in a while.
You drank from my beer in Berlin.
But only because it was yours.
Well...
what about Schäfer?
He died.
What?
He died in a car accident two years ago.
I thought you knew.
I never knew.
- Shall we ask for our check? - Yes, better.
The check, please.
- What? - Do you hear that?
Schäfer still rules.
I'll pay.
- Good evening. - Good evening.
Hi.
This is Rüdiger and Barbara. They live here with me.
- My name is Helmut. - Good evening.
Do you want a coffee?
Good night.
- Well... good night, then. - Good night.
Good night.
Good morning, Chief.
Don't try to socialize.
You've been here for weeks doing nothing. It's your turn at the sink.
Okay.
- I need a job. - Anything in particular?
Whatever.
- You got something for me? - We'll see.
I became a parking clerk.
They didn't pay me a lot, but it was easy.
I spent the whole day sitting in the booth, not doing much.
I began to study in earnest out of pure boredom.
With Gisela, everything was fine.
I liked to look at her and I liked it when she'd stroke me.
We didn't fight and, most of the time, we had the same opinion.
In bed, she was different from Britta.
She didn't mind trying new things...
but she didn't have any ideas of her own.
However, Gisela had definite ideas about other things.
I'm looking forward to our first Christmas together.
On the 24th, we're gonna visit your parents.
Then we'll introduce you to mine and we'll have dinner with them.
On the 25th, we're gonna visit my aunt Annie.
She's dying to meet you.
On the 26th, we'll go to the nursing home to see my uncle Zikowicz.
He's not my real uncle.
He's a friend of my grandpa's who used to take care of me.
And the afternoon of the 26th is all ours, just to ourselves.
But we're gonna have to prepare some things.
I've invited a few people over for dinner.
You can bring someone too. Maybe that guy Beck.
Do you guys really skin corpses?
We skin them so we can see the muscles.
Each one of us is assigned a different body part.
Last time, I got a penis.
Must've been interesting.
I'd like to work for the District Attorney.
My God.
Who are those revolting people?
Friends of Gisela's.
Let's hide in here.
Is this Gisela's room?
No, this is Barbara's. Her roommate.
She's away for Christmas.
- Are you a pervert? - Why?
You're going through a stranger's drawers.
- Not a stranger. She lives here. - Oh, that changes everything.
- Let's go somewhere else. - We're entertaining.
Gisela is entertaining.
Two more!
And two beers. I'll be right back.
Tell me, Uwe, do you remember that girl?
What girl?
The one who was the student body president.
Blonde. She lived far away, in a farmhouse.
I think her stepfather was a sculptor.
- What was her name? - I think it was Britta.
Yes, Britta. She vanished. Have you got news about her?
No, that's why I'm asking.
Last thing I knew, she moved to Berlin. But it was a long time ago.
She was cute.
See?
Every Christmas, he gets drunk at that table.
15 years ago, he had a great night over there with his first girlfriend.
This place is full of people like him.
But he got it all wrong. It wasn't about the girl.
What was it about, then?
- God. - What?
When he was there with his first girlfriend...
on that Christmas, 15 years ago...
he had a divine moment.
They happen. They don't happen very often, but they happen.
Everything was perfect.
It was just his moment. The girl just happened to be there.
He didn't understand that.
Tragic, but men are like that.
It's all about them.
Where did we stop?
- Cheers. - Cheers, man.
I heard you come in.
Shit.
- What's the deal with the panties? - What panties?
You had a pair of Barbara's panties wrapped around your penis.
What are you talking about?
Excuse me, gotta use the bathroom!
Thanks.
Good morning.
Good morning, Barbara. Are you back already?
One day’s vacation is enough.
Presents, cookies, children with their eyes sparkling.
All that makes me sick.
I'm going downstairs.
- Have you got laundry? - I do, hang on.
- What were you thinking? - I was drunk.
You still working at the theater?
I am.
And what's that like?
Okay.
Gisela and I soon made up.
But we almost didn't fuck anymore.
Sometimes my mom asked me to bring "that nice girlfriend of mine" over.
But I never told that to Gisela.
I began to bump into Barbara.
Barbara!
Wanna have a coffee?
- I think what you do is really cool. - How would you know?
I imagine it is.
It's a load of shit.
A huge load of shit.
Then why do you work there?
- That's what I always ask myself. - What's so bad about it?
Everything. The stress, the lies.
- It looks interesting to me. - Not if you're on the inside.
- Who's the whiskey for? - For me.
Here you go.
I want to sleep with you.
Now?
In the weekend, when Gisela isn't home.
Saturday I'll have time. In the afternoon.
Okay.
The check, please.
Yes?
Hi.
What is it?
Well, are you still up for it?
Our fuck. You said you'd have time today.
Now?
Yeah.
Okay.
Whenever Gisela wasn't home, Barbara and I would have sex.
I can't say I enjoyed it.
It wasn't great, but we didn't care.
That's it. That's what I liked about it.
Now I knew the difference between making love and fucking.
Fucking is like a box fight gone out of control.
You bleed. It's repulsive. It should be stopped.
But it 's exciting. And totally irrelevant.
This is the 1st German Network with the news.
Good evening, ladies and gentlemen.
The polls confirmed the coalition government headed by Helmut Kohl.
After four difficult years...
the constituents renewed our coalition government's mandate.
Hi!
Helmut, are you there?
Helmut?
Have you seen Helmut...?
Why did you do it?
We'd better split up.
If you think so.
That's all you have to say?
What do you want me to say?
- Maybe you'd care to explain. - Explain what?
How could that happen.
It just happened.
- Do you love her? - No.
What about me?
- I don't know. - Nothing else?
Is that all?
I don't want you here even for one night more.
I found a little apartment.
I spent a whole year holed up in there, just watching TV.
The diplomatic mission from West Germany...
was rushed today by several East Berliners...
seeking permission to go to the West Side. They waited in vain.
We're closed right now. Seek information in the media.
East Berlin manifested its hope for a stable relationship.
- Haven't you got any change? - I don't, I'm sorry.
I don't have change for this.
You could say "keep the change".
Should I stay here until I've used up 500 marks...
or shall we have a coffee?
Doing nothing. That's the secret.
That's how you meet the most incredible women.
- What do you do for a living? - I'm a sports writer.
- Cool. - I'm Gloria. Tell me about you.
- Tell you what? - Everything.
Britta would be impressed seeing me with someone like her.
- Hello? - Helmut!
- Something awful happened! - What?
What was your uncle like?
He was a smelly, inconvenient bastard.
A hypocritical, oppressive son of a bitch.
- But it was your uncle. - Great-uncle. Still, he was a jerk.
- Have you ever told him that? - Of course not.
That's a shame.
So you're our son's girlfriend.
What's your profession?
I'm a sports writer.
Right.
- A cognac, please. - Yes, ma'am.
Are you serious?
I need cognac to get me through funerals.
- But it isn't even noon yet! - So what?
Double, please.
What exactly does that mean?
What?
Excuse me.
How dare she show up dressed like that?
Uncle Bertram would have approved, the leery bastard.
- Don't talk about him like that! - Don't talk...
- And on his funeral! ...about my girlfriend like that!
Kid, sometimes...
Sometimes you could know what I want for a change, right?
You've changed, son. I almost don't recognize you.
Are you waiting to be interviewed by Professor Mutter?
What is history?
Describing what has really happened.
That's historiography. At least according to L. Von Ranke...
whose work you should know by heart.
You, with the skirt, what do you say?
History is... the facts.
Even grammatically that's nonsense.
Now you.
History is... the representation...
no, the course...
...of past events. - Are you serious?
- What've you got to say about that? - Nothing.
Why?
You can't explain in a sentence what others couldn't explain in volumes.
Besides, I find theoretical discussions tiresome.
The job is yours. The others may go.
Fascist.
The Eighties were coming to an end.
On that autumn, it looked like nothing was ever gonna change.
Lift your head up, like that. You'll feel more free.
As if nothing relevant was ever gonna happen.
What's got into you today?
What do you mean?
You barely have opened your mouth all day.
I'm tired. I've been real busy this week.
Press "pause".
Then my friend Mücke called from Berlin to say...
- They've opened the border! - What?
And then he went on...
I saw Britta! I met her at a party last night!
The Brandenburg Gate, the symbol of Berlin's division...
Bad news?
- No, why? - You're all white.
- They tore down the Wall. ... November 9th...
So I've heard.
The DDR has declared the border open to anyone.
The gates are open.
- More melon? - Yes.
Helmut, you rascal!
I don't believe it! Come in! What are you doing here?
Tell me about her tits.
- Tell you what? She's got two. - But what do they look like?
Do they sag to her knees, or what?
She's 41. Therefore, it's a plausible question.
- Here you go. - Thanks. Bye.
- Yes? - Two kebabs, please.
- With sauce? - With everything. Spice them up.
- Not too spicy for me. - Are you gay?
Put spice on both, we want everything you've got.
Right away.
- Why have you come to Berlin? - The Army.
So they wouldn't recruit me. You?
I've been transferred.
So?
I don't have any idea.
I thought you'd dodge the draft.
Why?
You were so bent on all that peace bullshit.
And I thought you were eager to be in the war.
You were wrong.
But a little crossfire could've been fun.
However, obeying orders all the time... No, thanks.
Why haven't you gone against it?
To clean up weirdo’s' asses isn't exactly my dream.
Thanks.
Thanks. And now?
Do you work with car sales?
But not the way you're thinking. I'm a respectable salesman.
In a suit and a tie.
Actually, I'm quite good at it.
Have you seen Britta?
I knew you'd ask about her.
It's not that serious. You got her phone number?
No. We just exchanged a few words.
But it shouldn't be difficult to find her.
- In a city this size? - No.
I know where she'll be tonight.
Well, where she'll probably be.
- Hi, Helmut. - Hi, Britta.
- Did you come here by yourself? - No, I'm with Mücke.
- Mücke is here too? - He is.
But I seem to have lost him.
Let's go outside for a while.
Let's go.
I'm going.
I'm sick and tired of your rude bullshit. I'm through.
Let me go.
- Was that your boyfriend? - He's an asshole.
What have you been up to, all these years?
I've been to bed early.
And I've been working at college. For Professor Mutter.
- What about you? - I'm living in Berlin.
- Have you got a job? - Of course.
What kind of a job?
- Why do you want to know all that? - No reason.
Do you know of any place where I can sleep tonight?
Mücke's gone, and I don't know anyone else here.
Get up.
I'll open the wine.
Is this your home?
- Something wrong? - No, I just thought that...
- It's not a farmhouse. - More or less.
I grew tired of those old farmhouses.
I never wanna see another damn farmhouse in my life.
Here.
Cheers. Welcome to Berlin.
It's exciting here, isn't it?
Mücke has changed a lot.
I've lost contact with everybody from our old gang.
What about you?
I'm tired.
- Tomorrow we'll talk more. - Okay.
Have you still got that ring?
What ring?
The one I gave you for Christmas once.
You did?
Why didn't you get in touch?
- What about you? You did? - Yes. No.
But I know where she'll be tonight.
You haven't got the hots for her still, have you?
- No, I'm fine. - You don't fool me.
She was the love of your life.
And your first fuck. You don't forget something like that. I didn't.
- How do you know? - She told me.
We had something going at the time too.
Britta was a little fox. God!
What do you mean?
You know I fucked her too, don't you?
What?
You didn't think she was in love with you, did you?
Shit, I thought you already knew.
No.
I went straight home and I tried to forget Britta.
THE NINETIES The Nineties came, and she vanished.
I didn't have a lot of girlfriends in the 4 or 5 following years.
I had occasional sex, of course.
Sometimes, things even looked promising.
But I got tired of the same old game.
To feign interest, to make clever remarks...
about women's personalities...
to know how to listen, to be charming without being insistent.
To tell the same old jokes about the mess in my apartment.
I couldn't take it anymore. For me, it was enough.
I wanted someone who was independent, who challenged me...
someone unimpressed by transparent lies.
And then I found her.
Where were you on November 9, 1989?
I was near the Berlin Wall!
Come on, don't lie to me!
Tina was the first who made me think about going steady in a long time.
After 2 years, we moved in together. Soon, we began talking about kids.
- Who got her pregnant this time? - Another guy.
That Dieter dude. He went to the movies with us.
- The idiot? - Yes.
I told her.
He's such a huge bastard. A phony.
A painter without a shred of artistic value. Can't she see that?
She agreed with you, didn't she?
Yes, but she didn't mind.
How could she not mind?
They’re not even together.
But what can I say? She wants to have a kid so much.
What do you think about kids?
I know they exist, and I know how you make them.
Can you imagine yourself having your own kids some day?
With you, yes.
Must be quite a surprise.
Your mother has met someone else.
Your father understands that it's all over.
Your father will live here for a while. Your mother is going to move.
Was this "Candid Camera"?
- When? - Tomorrow.
It never went through my head...
that "mother and father" could mean people with a life of their own.
People with their own passions and desires.
What was ever the same was now changed.
That scared me. Things, all of a sudden, seemed serious.
Hi! Guess what! I saved a porcupine.
It was all tangled up in the middle of the road.
I almost couldn't avoid hitting it.
It was so scared. I wasn't the only one who almost killed it, I bet.
Then I stopped.
I took off my jacket, I walked towards it...
and I gently picked it up and put it on the grass.
Near the graveyard.
I hadn't seen a porcupine since I was a kid.
What's the matter with you?
My parents are getting a divorce.
- What? - It's true.
You gotta decide about our relationship.
Either I have this baby or it's over.
- You can't be serious. - I am!
I loved her. I didn't want any other.
I had no reason to run away. I even wanted to have a child.
Why was I running away?
I didn't know why.
But suddenly, I realized that I had a last thing to do.
Right away.
- Hello. - Hi, Britta.
Helmut, it’s been ages!
Why don't we get together?
How about tomorrow, 9 PM, at the Letzten Instanz?
I'm sorry, the terrace is closed. Would you like to come in?
- What'll it be? - Eight beers, please.
- All at once? - If possible.
Well...
Your eight beers.
- Enjoy. - Thanks.
You've reached Britta Prinz. Leave your...
Thanks.
Excuse me, sir. Can you take a picture of us?
You haven't changed a bit.
I've already ordered.
I'm sorry I'm so late.
If I had your number, I would have called you.
- I left my cell phone at home. - Right.
It was stupid of me, but it's nice not being bothered for a whole day.
And we did just fine without it, right?
That's true.
- White wine, dry. - Okay.
Well, so?
Are you married? Any kids?
Me? No, I...
- But you've got a girlfriend, right? - No.
Yes. I mean...
...I’m not sure. - Seems complicated.
Well, it is.
What's the matter? You don't love her anymore?
I do! That's not it.
I think I'm the problem.
Why?
I was an asshole.
So she doesn't love you anymore.
You think so?
I don't know her, but an asshole is not what women look for.
Do I know her?
I don't think so. Tina Kallmann?
She's a tax consultant. Self-employed.
Doesn't sound very exciting.
But actually...
actually, she's very...
- Exciting. - Yes.
Among other things.
Sometimes she looks down as if she was saying...
"I know how you feel. I felt lost too, here."
Or when I say something stupid, she doesn't frown, she indulges me.
She's got a beautiful laughter.
She's not particularly different, but...
sincere. She's not fake.
I think that's it, she's not fake.
And I screwed it all up.
What did you do?
I ran away and I came here.
I thought I needed to see you again.
And then you came through that door...
and I looked at you, and...
well...
you're just like any other person.
Excuse me.
It was nice seeing you.
Can you pay that for me?
Tina?
Tina, I had to tell you the whole story.
In that moment, all of a sudden, everything became clear.
I didn't have any doubts, there was only you.
I know I've screwed up.
But I want this chance...
because of one thing...
I am certain.
I love you, Tina.
You are really something, Helmut.
THE END by Distanásia