God Friended Me (2018) s01e09 Episode Script

Previously on "God Friended Me" Pretending that you've been friended by God.
I mean, do your followers think that's funny? I keep telling him he needs to get out and play.
Ray Nicolette.
He's a private investigator? Why don't you just tell me what this is all about? I have an empty room in my place.
I'm guessing it beats the hell out of wherever Social Services is planning on sending you.
Falken's been an urban legend for almost a decade.
Nobody know who he really is beyond being a genius coder.
Lucy and I might have made contact with someone who knows Falken.
Look it's Falken.
Cara, you got your world with Eli where you go out for dinners and have romantic evenings on rooftop gardens.
Then you have the God Account world.
You got Miles.
Oh, hey.
I'm Nia.
Hi.
And that is the latest drop from DJ Trek, also known as my friend, Nia.
Hello, hello.
So before we took a music break, you were telling me that you're agnostic.
I am many things, but agnostic is one of them, yes.
Wow, that's like the Switzerland of religion.
I didn't take you for one who'd play it safe.
How is keeping an open mind playing it safe? God or no god, in live in the question.
No need for answers.
I like the mystery.
Come on, Nia.
Everyone wants to know the truth.
And then what? What happens when you have all the answers? Take the God Account for example.
You any closer to finding the mystery person - behind it all? - Not yet, but it's only a matter of time.
Yeah, but what happens when you do? What if you stop getting Friend Suggestions? Your point? I know how much you like helping people.
Getting the truth may end your journey.
Maybe you can stand a little agnosticism when it comes to the God Account? Way to bring it back around.
Thank you so much for being my guest on the Millennial Prophet.
You can check out more tracks from DJ Trek on Soundcloud.
Sorry.
Didn't mean to put you on the spot.
No worries.
I can take it.
I was just trying to make the point that even if you get your answer one day, doesn't mean you have to stop helping people.
- I won't.
- Good.
So, how 'bout you keep that promise and come with me to the hospital this afternoon? I spin for the kids at the pediatric center.
I'll be there.
Miles, Miles, you need to see this.
Oh.
So, FIBONACCI61 sent a picture of me and Lucy at Strawberry Fields with, "Just wanted to say hello" as the message.
I mean, this is definitely Falken.
He's definitely behind the God Account.
Okay, I don't know.
Look, whoever's behind the God Account has gone through a whole lot of trouble to remain anonymous.
Why reach out now by text message to you? I don't know, Miles.
Maybe because I'm getting too close.
Yeah.
Bro, it's clear Falken's trying to back me off by intimidation.
- Guess what.
- Hmm? Nobody intimidates Rakesh Singh.
Except my mama.
She's very scary.
Hey, the God Account just liked the fan page of Graham Hastings! Uh, never heard of him.
Graham Hastings is a legendary Harlem chess player.
Everyone thought he was gonna be the next Bobby Fischer.
Then one day, he just disappeared from the public eye.
- Hmm.
- No one has seen him since.
That was ten years ago.
Wait, wait, wait, wait.
So, our first Friend Suggestion after Falken makes contact just happens to be some recluse who disappeared ten years ago? Graham's not Falken, Rakesh.
I'm I'm not saying he is, - but maybe there's a connection.
- There's a rumor going around saying that Graham's gonna be at Washington Square Park today! That must be why the God Account sent us his name.
Looks like we got our next Friend Suggestion.
Yeah, things with Eli are good.
So you keep saying.
'Cause they are.
Are you really busy with work, or are you just bothered because you saw Miles with Nia? Why would that bother me? Probably because seeing him with her made you question whether or not you made the right choice to date Eli again.
Okay, fine.
I'll admit it.
It was a little weird seeing him with someone.
And, yeah, okay.
I may have been the tiniest bit jealous of Nia, but I'm not questioning my choice to be with Eli.
So why are you avoiding Miles? I'm not.
I'm just focusing on the assignment Natalie gave me to prove to her that I'm worthy of that promotion.
If you say so.
- Ali.
- Hi.
I brought you a little souvenir from the other night.
Ohh And here I thought my cool days were behind me.
Oh, that's lovely.
Thanks, Ali.
You're welcome.
Here.
Dad, I just wanna say I am proud of you for having the courage to find your love of music again.
Well, it's easy to be courageous with my children by my side.
Well, speaking of your children, I couldn't help but notice you and Miles talking after your set.
You guys looked like father and son again.
You know, I have to admit that I haven't felt this close to Miles since gosh, um Since he was a kid.
I can't quite put my finger on it, but he seems to have changed over the last few months.
Yeah, and it's pretty obvious what's causing it.
- Not the God Account.
- Dad Ali it's just fodder for his podcast, a story device to get attention.
No, it's not.
Look and even if it was, what does it matter? At the end of the day, he's helping people.
Same as you.
So, did Cara tell you why she can't meet us today? She's usually leading the charge when it comes to the God Account.
Said she was working on a story, but no biggie.
Hey, we got this.
Yeah.
- Whoa.
- Whoa.
Word definitely got out that Graham may resurface today, huh? My dad used to tell stories about how people would line up around the block just to get beat by Graham.
He even claims he played him once.
Well, I don't need to play him.
I just need to know what he knows about Falken.
- What? - It's Cara.
- I thought she was working.
- Yeah, me too.
Guys.
Sorry.
What are you doing here? I was gonna ask you the same thing.
Well, my boss assigned me a story about some chess-genius-turned-recluse named Graham Hastings.
- What? - Graham Hastings is our Friend Suggestion.
Yeah, y'all this is great.
We get to work on this together.
Great.
How long have you been here? Almost an hour.
Yeah, this crowd is getting restless.
Well, looks like they're giving up.
Ugh, what a bust.
All right, well, I'm gonna head back to work, keep on the Falken line.
- Okay? - Okay.
Let me know if anything happens.
You okay? Yeah.
Yeah, it's fine.
Fine.
So, how are we gonna find someone who clearly does not wanna be found? Well, if it ain't my two favorite do-gooders.
Ray? Hey.
Okay, still not a hugger.
Hey, Ray.
It's good to see you.
You too, you too.
So what dragged you two down here today? Uh, we're looking for Graham Hastings.
Now, that's a hell of a coincidence.
How so? Because someone hired me to find him.
So, how are things with Isaac? Isaac's doing great.
I got the kid enrolled in a good school.
His teachers say he's keeping up.
I gotta tell ya, I think he's adapting pretty good, considering everything he's been through.
Ah How 'bout you? - Are you adapting? - Eh.
Still working on it.
It is nice having some company around the house again.
You're a good man, Ray.
Don't tell people that.
And you still working for the God Account thing, huh? Any closer to figuring out who's behind it? Not yet, but they did send Graham Hastings our way.
So, wanna tell us who hired you? No-ho-ho can do.
What I can tell you is that Hastings is completely off the grid.
I was hoping he'd be here today, make my job a lot easier.
But as you can see, nada.
Wait a minute.
You started the rumor on that fan page about Graham playing chess here today, didn't you? Guilty as charged.
Isaac's got me using social media more.
Thought I could lure Graham out of hiding, but as you can see - Nada.
- Well, look, since we're all looking for Graham, why don't we team up? - Yeah, like old times.
- Let's not get crazy.
As fun as that sounds, we all know the sequels are never as good as the originals.
I'm off, kids.
And may the best private detective with over 20 years of law enforcement experience win.
Any thoughts on where to start? Actually, I do.
For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love - Hey.
- And of sound mind.
Miles.
Dad, I want you to meet Cara Bloom.
Oh, of course.
Cara, I have heard a lot about you.
And I'm sorry we didn't get a chance - to meet the other night.
- Yeah, yeah, me, too.
Please, sit down.
You were fantastic, by the way.
Oh, thank you.
Still working off the rust.
But I understand that you and I share a connection.
Your mother.
Yeah, yeah, that's right.
Susan was an incredible nurse.
Always there when my wife needed her when she was battling cancer.
A much-needed rock for both of us.
Anyway, how's she doing? Uh, she's great.
I'll let her know you say hello.
Please do.
So, to what do I owe the visit? Do you remember Graham Hastings? Absolutely.
Didn't I ever tell you that I played against him once? - You may have mentioned it.
- Ah.
Well, so, it was down at St.
Nicholas Park, and I'm setting up the chess pieces.
And this kid sits down in front of me and asks if I wanna play.
12 moves.
That's it took for him to beat me 12 moves.
We heard he disappeared.
Do you know what happened to him? Or where he went? Why the sudden interest? Uh, I'm writing a story for "Catapult.
" Miles is helping me.
Oh, well, if I were looking for Graham Hastings, I would start with the person that knew him the best.
- Who's that? - Aleksander Leff.
Back in the day, he and Graham were the Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier of chess.
I always wished I had a chance to watch them play.
So, they were rivals? Oh, man.
They would meet at the finals of every tournament.
Aleksander could never beat him.
Until, of course, he did.
After that, Graham Hastings retreated and was never heard from again.
That sounds like a poor sport.
Or he accomplished everything he set out to.
The truth is that nobody knows why Graham Hastings disappeared.
Sorry, Miles, you'll have to excuse me.
I have to set up for an afternoon service.
- Thanks, Dad.
- Good to see you.
- Good luck with the story.
- Thank you.
Why didn't you just tell him it was about the God Account? 'Cause he doesn't wanna know.
Oh.
- - I'm sorry, I have plans with Nia.
Can we meet back up later? It'll only take a couple hours.
Yeah, of course.
I'll try and track down an address for Aleksander Leff.
- Text you if I find anything.
- Okay.
- Thanks, Nia! - That was fun.
Thanks, Nia.
You're welcome, Matty.
High-five.
Oh, I got something for you.
Hmm Can I see your patch? Now you got tons of street cred.
What was the, uh, patch on his arm for? People wear them to fight off the nausea when they're going through chemo.
Unfortunately for me, they weren't invented till after I was cancer-free.
You were impressive with these kids.
Well, music was my lifeline when I was sick.
It's just my way of giving back.
- - I'm sorry, I have to go.
- God Account? - Yeah.
Yeah, we're trying to track down this reclusive chess prodigy.
- Hmm.
- I'll text you? - Cara.
- Hey.
'Sup? So, how did it got with Nia? It went well.
Well? Hmm.
Well, she seems really nice.
How are things with Eli? Things still going good? Yeah.
Yeah, things are good.
Oh, this is 18.
This is it.
Yeah.
Aleksander Leff? That's right.
Can I help you? I'm Miles Finer.
This is Cara Bloom.
We were hoping to ask you a few questions about Graham Hastings.
I'm sorry.
I don't give interview.
Let 'em in, otherwise they'll just stand out there all day.
Took you long enough.
So, why are you looking for Graham? I never understood why he walked away from everything.
That question has haunted me for a decade.
I heard you two had a pretty intense rivalry.
That's one way to look at it.
The truth is, we were best friends.
Had been since we were kids.
We played our first game together when we were eight.
From that moment on, our lives were tied together.
But as much as we were the same, we came from different worlds.
What do you mean? I grew up in privilege.
My father made sure I had the best teachers, that I studied day and night.
All he had was his grandfather.
Didn't have any money, any training.
Never even read a book about chess.
His talent was God-given.
I couldn't help but envy that.
Now that we're all caught up here, why don't we take this outside and have a chat about how we're gonna find this guy, huh? Hold on I mean, that was ten years ago.
Why hire Ray now? Because you're sick.
Aren't you? Pancreatic cancer.
Doctors say I only have a few months left.
I need to speak with Graham before it's too late.
I wanna find this Graham guy, close my case, and get paid.
Any thoughts? Yeah, we all work together.
If by "work together" you mean "split my fee," I must politely decline.
We're not interested in your fee.
Then by all means, proceed.
I think the God Account wants us to find Graham for the same reason you do.
To put him in front of Aleksander.
Now any idea what he wants to tell him? He didn't offer, I didn't ask.
But usually when a client wants me to track down someone from their past, it's about making amends.
Hmm.
So, what'd you find? Not a hell of a lot.
I mean, he's off the grid ten years, and it ain't hard to disappear in this city.
Yeah, but people knew him.
Or at least they knew his name.
In order to really disappear he'd have to change it.
I knew I liked you.
I was on that same line of thought.
I got a buddy down at the Department of Records.
I was heading over there when you two crashed the party.
What about you? God give you any leads? Just the fan page.
I already been there.
Full of crazies.
The God Account never does anything random.
Whoever created this fan page seems to know a lot about Graham.
Maybe we can track them down.
See if they know anything.
Makes sense.
Sounds good.
You guys track down that lead, and I'll text you if I get a new name on Graham.
You mind if I go with you? It'd be nice to catch up.
Yeah, sure.
What the hell? Okay, I'll head back to IdentitySeal, see if Rakesh and I can dig up anything on this fan page.
Okay.
You really think whoever runs this crazy Facebook fan page actually knows where Graham is? It's worth a shot.
How was going to the hospital with Nia? Good.
She's actually pretty amazing.
Yeah? You gonna start seeing her? I haven't decided, but I mean, I do like her.
Well, then there's nothing holding you back.
You mean Cara? Was I that obvious? Yeah.
Look, she's with Eli and she's happy.
And I'm happy for her.
So, no.
There's nothing holding me back.
All right.
Cracked the admin.
Looks like the page is run by a guy named Larry Bartholomew.
Owner and proprietor of Chess Forum.
Oh, I know that place.
It's a chess shop in Harlem.
I used to go with my dad as a kid when I was learning how to play.
- Come on, let's go.
- Okay.
So, ten years ago, Graham Hastings changed his name to John Turner.
Kept it generic for a reason I'm guessing.
Let's see here Oh-ho, yep.
Almost 50 of 'em in New York.
Any ideas on how to narrow it down? Yeah.
One at a time.
So, Isaac keeping you busy? Oh-ho-ho-ho.
Is he a Giants fan yet? Eh, still working on that.
This season hasn't made it any easier.
Sorry, it's just my boss.
Oh, yeah.
How's the writing? - It's really good.
- Yeah? Yeah.
I'm actually up for this promotion, and I think that this story about Graham Hastings might be the one that gets it for me.
Finding a reclusive chess genius? It sounds like a Pulitzer to me.
You know, it's nice seeing you and Miles still together.
Oh, no.
We're just friends.
Not together.
You know you say that a lot? I'm just saying, it doesn't take a private detective to see the chemistry.
We both know it takes more than just chemistry.
Didn't with my wife and me.
It's just never been the right time for us.
And now I'm seeing someone.
I'm actually back together with my ex, Eli.
Things with him are good.
Well, kid, I don't know much, but I do know this: "Good" ain't great.
"Great's" what you're shooting for.
You know, when it comes to affairs of the heart, "great" is what knocks you on your ass and lets you know that you can stop looking.
Miles aside, if you're happy with this Eli guy, fine.
But if you're just buying time, waiting for "great" to come along, you should do you both a favor and keep looking.
Graham changed his name to John Turner.
- Here to play or purchase? - Actually, neither.
We're wondering about your Graham Hastings fan page.
What about it? We're trying to track Graham down.
Best of luck with that.
Look, I know it's a long shot, but if you know anything, it'd be really appreciated.
Did Graham ever play here? Of course he did.
I knew he was special from the beginning.
In fact, I gave Graham his first chess set for free since he couldn't afford one.
So, when's the last time you saw him? Same as anyone.
About ten years ago.
Wow.
Where did you get all of this stuff? Other collectors mostly.
They're all authentic if that's what you're worried about.
Judge.
Let me know if there's anything you like.
This is a dead end, bro.
Let's just go back to IdentitySeal and run "John Turner" through the database.
We don't have to.
Look at the return label.
"John Turner.
" That's why Larry has so many of Graham Hastings items for sale, because he's getting them from Graham himself.
Got it.
Can I help you? Uh you're Graham Hastings.
Look, I just wanna be left alone.
I don't know how you found me.
Wait h-hold on.
We're here because of Aleksander Leff.
Please.
Just hear us out.
So what does Aleksander want? Honestly, we don't know that.
We were kind of hoping you could tell us.
I have no idea.
And to be honest, I don't care.
You can tell Aleksander I have no interest in reliving the past.
He's sick.
He doesn't have much time.
I'm sorry to hear that.
I really am, but it doesn't change anything.
You won't even talk to him? I know how hard that loss was.
Everyone does.
You think you understand what happened that day? No, no.
I don't.
Please, explain it to me.
To most people, chess is just a game.
But to a few of us, it means something so much more.
My grandfather raised me.
Man never graduated high school, but he knew the game.
And when he saw what I could do, he knew it was my ticket to a better life.
Chess doesn't care about the color of your skin or how much money you have.
All it cares about is how good you are.
The more people told me how good I was, that I was unbeatable, the more I believed them.
And then when I lost to Aleksander, that all changed.
But it was just one loss.
You don't get it.
Since I was a kid, people told me I was the next Bobby Fischer.
You hear it so long, you start to believe it.
But after I lost, that's all anyone wanted to talk about.
Shattered my confidence.
I thought if I played in a few local tournaments under assumed names, played in a park with people who didn't recognize me You could get it back.
But I kept losing.
I realized I lost more than confidence.
I lost my love for the game.
So, yes, I walked away.
Never looked back.
Maybe talking to Aleksander will bring you some peace.
How? I don't blame him for what happened.
Maybe he does.
He went to a whole lot of trouble to try to find you.
All you have to do is listen.
You were his best friend.
Tell him to come over tonight.
We will.
Sorry, sorry.
One more super quick thing.
You wouldn't happen to know the name Falken, would you? Falken? No, sorry.
You know, I'm glad you found him and all, but you should have called me.
- Us.
- Us right.
We were working on this together.
It's kind of a breach of the private detective code of conduct, to be honest.
I'm sorry, okay? It all happened so fast.
As soon as we saw the name on that return address, we just raced over there.
The private detective code of conduct? You are making that up, aren't you? - What gave it away? - What's up, guys? Oh, Ali, this is Ray.
Ray, this is my sister, Ali.
- Pleasure.
- Ray's a PI.
We helped him on a case a while back, though I doubt he would admit that.
Yeah, yeah.
Fine, you know what? As a thank you, why don't I buy us a round? Assuming that it's happy hour prices? I think I can ring up a family and friends discount.
Ray Nicolette.
Yeah.
Ah, damn.
Are you okay? Yeah, I understand.
That was Aleksander's wife.
He's in the hospital.
Is he okay? She says he's stable, but he's not in any shape to meet Graham.
At least not at his house Okay, well, we'll bring Graham to him.
Good idea.
- Miles.
- Dad.
- This is Ray Nicolette.
- Hi, I'm Arthur.
Pleasure.
Is this like a family bar, or? Cara and I were just heading out.
We found Graham Hastings.
- You're kidding.
- No.
We're heading to reunite him with Aleksander Leff.
All right.
So, tomorrow, chess.
You tell me all about it.
- I'll be there.
- All right.
Are you kidding? I just opened three beers.
That's not gonna be a problem.
- Hey, darling.
- Hi, Dad.
Hey, beer Arthur? Thank you.
Don't mind if I do.
So, how do you and Miles know each other? That is one hell of a story actually.
Well, isn't that why people come to a bar, to hear a good story? My wife Abby died a year ago, and for reasons that sound absolutely insane when you say it out loud I think she sent your son to help me through it.
Oh.
Oh, does this have something to do with the God Account? Mm-hmm.
Yep.
A couple months ago they sent him my name.
Now Graham's.
Apparently a hell of a lot of people in between.
You know, I don't know who's behind it all.
I don't know why they chose your son.
But I do know this: that kid's making a hell of a difference.
Huh.
I'm sorry to interrupt, but there's someone here to see you.
Hello, Aleksander.
Been a while.
I'm sorry it took something like this for me to finally reach out.
How you feeling? Been better.
There's something you need to know about our last game.
I so desperately wanted to beat you.
I'm not sure I'm following.
I was there that day, remember? You beat me, fair and square.
No, I didn't.
A couple days before our match, I came across your chess journals.
You read my journals? I knew that you recorded every game you played, every move of your opponent.
I came across your notes on a game we'd recently played.
You'd made a note that I had missed a move, one that would have set me up to beat you.
You recreated the game.
The only reason I won that day, was because you showed me how.
You were my only friend.
You knew more than anyone I had nothing but chess.
- Nothing.
- Look, I'm sorry.
I never thought losing one game would do that to you.
You took away the one thing I loved most.
You took it all away.
If you're looking for absolution, I won't give it to you.
Graham.
Graham wait.
Please.
Wait.
- Graham - There's nothing more to say here.
There is so much more to say.
You haven't even given him a chance.
Why do I need to give him a chance? He's the one who stole the last ten years of my life from me.
I get that.
I do.
But maybe his apology is a way for you to get chess back.
You said you couldn't understand how he beat you.
And not knowing made you question everything you thought you knew to be true.
About you.
About the game.
Now you have your answer.
You have the truth.
Why not use this to reclaim what you lost? It's too late.
That truth doesn't change what happened.
But it could change what will happen.
If you don't at least try to forgive him, it might be a bigger mistake than the one he made.
I'm sorry.
I can't.
I just can't.
Damn it.
You're really gonna leave your rook out there like that? It's part of my plan.
You have a plan? Is that a challenge? No, I haven't played in a while.
I could take it easy on you.
Thanks.
Check.
- Who taught you how to play? - My dad.
Is there anything we can do for you before we go? Thank you, no.
You've already done so much.
Annabelle, where have you been? She was playing chess with me.
Come on, sweetheart.
Let's give Daddy and his friends a moment.
Is she part of the reason you were searching for me? Partly, yes.
Her love of the game.
Her passion.
Her God-given talent.
I know what I stole, and I know I can never give it back to you.
But I'm hoping that maybe she can.
What are you talking about? She's going to need a teacher.
You're the only one I trust to pass on the game that we both once loved.
That I know you could love again.
I don't know.
It's gonna be hard work getting Annabelle to lose all those bad habits you taught you.
But I'll do my best.
I'm just gonna need one thing in return.
What's that? A rematch.
Miles, Cara.
I wanted to thank you.
If you hadn't shown up today, who knows what the next ten years would have looked like.
I'm glad we could be of some help.
Yeah, if there's anything I can do for you, just ask.
Actually, there's one thing.
I was kinda hoping to score an interview.
I think people wanna hear your story.
I guess it's time to tell it.
Come by the apartment tomorrow.
We'll talk.
Oh, one last thing.
Earlier, your friend asked if I knew Falken.
I do or at least I did.
I didn't tell you before, because I didn't know you.
We met at a tournament 15 years ago.
He approached me and said he was building a special kind of computer.
Wanted me to play chess against it.
I was intrigued, so I did.
Beat the damn thing every time.
Though, it did get better.
After a few months, he thanked me and I never saw or heard from him again.
Of course, when I met him, he was still going by his given name.
The "Falken" thing came later.
Wait, you know Falken's real name? What was it? Henry Chase.
Hope that helps.
Thanks.
Whew.
What until we tell Rakesh.
Yeah, his mind is going to explode.
We live our lives thinking we need to leave something behind before we die.
But a person's legacy can mean so many different things.
It's the shared experiences we all go through that binds us together, paving the way for new relationships.
Hey.
What are you doing here? I just wanted to come by and see you.
Huh.
Hey, uh, look, I like you.
I think you like me, too.
But if there's something that you're holding back While also reminding us it's never too late to mend the past.
And hope for the future.
If we're going to play this game, then let's call each other by our first names.
Nice to meet you, Henry.
Hey there, Annabelle.
Do you see what your father just did? He lost his queen.
I did not.
Maybe not yet, but in four moves you will.
And if we're lucky enough, We get to see the lessons of our life passed down to those we love most.
Is it everything you hoped for? Better.
That's the thing about legacy.
It's never too late to change it or make it better.
You just have to know where to start.
- Dad, hey.
- Hey.
- Is everything all right? - Uh, yeah.
No, everything is fine.
I was just hoping we could talk.
I'd like to know a little bit more about this God Account of yours.
Come on in.