The Wonder Years (2021) s01e16 Episode Script

1 In the 1960s, there were so many iconic duos Ike and Tina Turner, Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, Batman and Robin, and me and my best friend Cory.
That's why I was so excited to be going to his house for a sleepover this weekend with all of our friends.
This sleepover would be epic.
I'm gonna stay up all night.
I'm gonna stay up even later than that.
How? Shh.
And it's now time for the morning announcements.
You mean the morning bummer? We're excited to announce the recipient of "Student of the Week", because for the first time here at Jefferson Davis, the award will be going to a Black student.
To a Black student? Oh, bring it on, baby.
If they'd given me a heads up, I would've worn a suit.
Well, at least today's a good hair day.
Congratulations go to Cory Long.
Cory not only scored the winning basket in last night's game, but also received two A's and a B-plus on three tests this week.
Keep up the good work, Cory.
Needless to say, I wasn't expecting it to be Cory, but all that matters is that one of us got it, right? This must be how Jesse Jackson feels.
- I think it's cool.
- It is kinda cool.
I always knew you'd be the first one to get it.
Congrats, Cory.
Give me some.
Say, uh, what did you get on that history quiz on Mesopotamia? Oh, an 88.
I barely studied for that one.
Huh.
I got a 93.
Interesting.
Cory.
Student of the Week.
Man, that's outta sight.
Do you think I can interview you for the school paper? I don't know, Hampton.
A whole interview? There's not really that much to say.
You pretty much just did it.
I only get three lines under the Tornado Warning instructions.
Ah, that English paper on, um, Edgar Allan Poe.
That was a hard one.
What What did you get on that one? I don't remember.
An 88 or something like that.
Really? I got a 95 on that one, plus the bonus question.
I don't know, that one was kinda hard.
- It wasn't hard for you? - Not really.
But what matters is that Cory was recognized for his academics as well as his athleticism.
Look at that smile.
Gotta love it.
The answer to the bonus question was "Annabel Lee," by the way.
Worth four points.
Even without it, still higher than an 88.
Just saying.
Looks like we got the house to ourselves tonight.
Mm-hmm.
You know what that means.
Mr.
Williams, don't start no fires you can't put out.
There's gonna be a bottle of Burgundy calling your name later.
Ooh, and I'm gonna be listening.
We gotta put some bells on his shoes.
Aren't you supposed to getting ready for the sleepover at Cory's tonight? You guys probably heard about what happened at school today.
Why would we hear about the day-to-day happenings at your little school? We got grown folks things to talk about.
Cory got Student of the Week.
Actually, we did hear about that.
Tell him we said "congratulations" when you get over there.
Now, go on and get ready.
I didn't realize that as much as we were always trying to get out of the house, my parents loved us getting out even more.
I'm going to Brenda's for a sleepover.
'Cause it's her birthday.
We're gonna stay up late, listen to records, talk about boys, boys, boys.
Wasn't Brenda's birthday months ago? Isn't that why she's always wearing that Sagittarius necklace? Kim, we already figured you and Brenda are going to that rally - at the student union tonight.
- Rally? - Student union? - You know I work at the college.
I've gotten at least nine fliers about it already.
- Well - Just call us when you get back to Brenda's so we know we don't have to post bail money.
Looks like they plan to be alone tonight.
- Gross.
- I feel so sorry for them.
You and I get to go hang out with our friends and have fun, while Mama and Daddy are stuck in the house with nothing to do.
Ow! You touched the floor.
Boom! - That was close.
- Dang it! Ha! You're in lava! You're dead! Hey, uh, watch this.
Guys, I'mma do it, too.
- Wait! - Don't do it, Dean! - You'll hurt yourself! - And they were probably right, but for some reason, I felt the need to outdo Cory.
You know what? I'm gonna jump further than you.
Oh, come on, Dean.
Are you crazy? Come on.
If you can jump from there, then I'm sure I can jump to this one.
All right.
Ah! Uh-uh! Not in my house! Look, keep your feet off my furniture.
This stuff ain't even paid for yet.
Ah, come on, Dad.
We were just playing around a little bit.
Put this stuff back where it belongs.
Rest of y'all, call y'all parents and say good night and go to bed.
Come on, guys.
Dean, you're not bleeding on my carpet, are you? N-No, sir.
Well, good.
'Cause it ain't paid for, either.
Come in this house and y'all jumping on my stuff.
Hmm.
What could they be doing that's so important the phone's off the hook? Don't tell me you have to use the bathroom again.
I just got comfortable.
I-I'm sorry.
Just hold it in.
That's what I'm doing.
- You can die doing that.
- I hope not.
One of my biggest fears is pooping at someone else's house.
- Just move! - Ugh.
Coach Long? You're leaving? Uh, y-yeah.
Yeah, I'm I'm headed to work.
I-I thought you work with my mom during the day.
You right.
You right.
Um, I do.
I just I got a night job just to make some extra money.
Oh.
Uh, o-okay.
But do not mention this to anyone.
Sure thing.
No problem.
All right.
Wait.
D-Does that include Cory? Especially Cory.
Look, I don't want him worrying about the family's finances.
You You understand? The fact that Coach Long was trusting me with a secret he couldn't tell Cory made me feel mature, special.
It almost made me forget that I am terrible at keeping secrets.
Why'd you buy paper plates? For your surprise birthday party.
Thanks, Dean.
I can't wait to see "Planet of the Apes.
" Yeah, I heard it was good.
They were on Earth all along.
W-What? I said it was good.
Look, j-just go to bed.
All right.
Coach Long telling me not to reveal his secret was like telling me not to think about pink elephants.
I was sweating so much, my jammies had pit stains.
Hey, Dean, what was up with all that tossing and turning last night? Yeah.
What was all that mumbling about last night? You sounded crazy.
Who told you? I-I don't know anything.
Hey.
We was just trying to see if you got some sleep.
W-Well, actually, Cory, uh, I ran into Dean on the way to the bathroom last night.
Ooh.
Oh, good.
Coach is coming clean and letting me off the hook.
And I made sure he was okay and we both went back to bed.
Dammit! Ain't that right, Dean? Yes, sir.
W You know what, Dean? Um how about you have the last two pancakes? Well, hope they have pancakes in Hell 'cause there ain't no way I'mma be able to keep this secret.
Um, Dean.
What are you doing home so early? Yeah, we weren't expecting you before 10:00 a.
m.
It's after 10:00.
I didn't realize it was so late.
I guess we missed our meeting at church.
I tried to call to say good night, but the phone was off the hook.
Well, maybe you dialed the wrong number.
- Yeah.
- 19 times? What were you guys doing that you didn't notice the phone was off the hook? Go outside and play.
Hey.
Hey, Dean.
You wanna hang out after practice? Uh, I-I-I don't know.
The secret is killing me! What does that mean? Uh, uh, m-my mom is actually two years older than she says she is.
What? I thought telling another secret would take the pressure off of not telling this one.
- Hey! - Nope.
I know what's going on.
Y-You do? You're acting like this because you're jealous that I got Student of the Week and you didn't.
What? No.
It's not that.
Then why have you been acting so weird with me lately? You know, everybody told me that you'd be petty, and I defended you.
Wait.
What? Who Who is everybody? Everybody.
But I guess they were right and I was wrong.
Hey, Dean, uh, let me rap with you for a second.
You all right? You, uh, haven't told our little secret to Cory, right? Uh no, no.
All right.
Um, you know what? I want you to play shortstop today.
But But Cory's at shortstop.
Cory, you're in left field.
Dean's at shortstop.
I'm gonna show you what not being petty looks like.
Great job, Dean! Maybe the next one! Eep! Try again, Dean! You got it! Oh, that's okay, Dean.
You're doing great.
Come on, why Cliff want to subject my baby to this torture when he know he can't catch? Hmm.
That's Cliff's problem.
You see, you can't tell him nothing about nothing.
Thinks he knows everything about every damn thing.
I just Cory said that you guys think I'm petty.
Is Is that true? Cory told us how you've been acting since he won Student of the Week, and this isn't the first time you've been petty and jealous.
What? Give me one other example.
You knock over the checkers board as soon as one of us starts winning.
You lick your Oreo cookie sandwiches so we won't ask for any.
You read everyone else's comics just so the pages in yours don't get folded.
The petty thing to do would be to tell Cory that I've been acting weird because his dad told me a big secret to keep from him.
But I couldn't, so I did the next best thing.
when his grandmother died.
Well, you're all petty for calling me petty! That's right.
The ol' rubber and glue defense.
Been getting kids out of losing arguments since time began.
Let me go, baby Let me go, baby What's eating at you? My friends all think I'm petty.
- Well, tell your friends - You're petty as hell, Dean.
- Bill.
- He's petty at Christmas, petty with his sister.
He was petty as a baby.
First time I changed his diaper, he was mad it wasn't you and peed in my face.
All babies are like that.
You didn't see the look in his eye when he did it.
- Petty.
- Ignore your father.
And please, tell me why this is upsetting you so much.
I-I-I guess it's okay if I tell you guys.
I saw Coach Long sneaking out of the house when I spent the night, and he he said he was headed to his second job, and he made me promise not to tell Cory, and it's been eating me up inside because I don't want to spill the beans.
But Cory thinks I'm acting jealous because he won Student of the Week and I didn't.
Uh-oh.
She knew something.
I could tell.
Well, I didn't wanna say anything, but Vivian was a little about Cliff at practice.
Viv's always a little No, this time it was more than I was uncomfortable.
It's probably nothing.
Then again, Cliff was acting a little you-know-what when I dropped Dean off at the sleepover.
Remember the last time he was acting like that? It was when that thing happened.
- Oh.
- Oh, speak English, people! No wonder he was tired at work.
He was falling asleep in his office.
You sure he wasn't tired from running his mouth all day? I'm sorry.
You're right to be worried.
I'll reach out to Cliff to make sure everything's all right.
What are you guys talking about? We're talking about how friends should be there for each other.
Thank you for trusting us with your secret.
But for now, it's very important for you to keep your word with Coach Long and don't tell Cory until he's ready to.
- You understand? - Totally.
I was so confused.
I had no idea.
- And mom said ? - Yep.
And Daddy said he noticed something strange about Coach Long.
I-I think.
So, why would Mr.
Long need a second job? He makes more money than Mom, even though he doesn't do half the work she does.
He shouldn't need a second job.
Hmm.
Unless Unless what? Unless he's been spending all their money.
W-Well, they do buy that fancy mustard.
Ooh, he must be gambling.
That's what happened to my friend Lorraine.
Her father lost their house in a card game, and they had to move to Arkansas.
I thought they wanted to move to Arkansas? Nobody wants to move to Arkansas.
They had to sell off everything furniture, jewelry, cars.
Ooh.
Gambling? This is an even bigger secret than I realized, much too big for me to keep.
It could be years before I'd be able to speak to Cory again.
You want to stop by the candy lady's house and buy some candy? I will, as long as you're paying.
Fine.
Dean, you coming? - Dean? - Unh-unh.
Not getting me.
Lock box.
I've managed to keep my mouth shut this long, I wasn't about to start blabbing now.
Are you seriously still not talking to me because of that dumb Student of the Week thing? What? No.
I-I don't care about that anymore.
From how you're acting, it seems like you do.
You know, you still have a chance to be the second Black Student of the Week.
Nobody remembers the second Black anything.
Why are you being so stupid and childish? I'm not being stupid and childish.
I don't want to talk to you because I don't want to tell you that your family's broke, your dad's a gambler, and you're probably gonna have to move to Arkansas.
I know you're jealous, man, but you don't have to make up lies.
One of y'all owes me a Snickers bar! You're more than welcome to sleep on our couch.
Trust me, I understand.
Sometimes, you gotta let things settle.
Yeah, thank you.
Man, it's been hard, sneaking out of the house, staying in motels so Cory won't find out.
I won't charge you more than half than what a motel would cost.
No new job? No gambling? I had it all wrong.
Coach Long, I am really, really, really sorry.
I-I didn't know you were sleeping at a motel, and I thought you were sneaking out to a second job because you lost all your money gambling.
What? And I accidentally told that to Cory.
Dean, it's okay.
Look, I should have never lied to you in the first place, or asked you to keep my secret.
I'm guessing you and Mrs.
Long are having some pretty big problems right now.
Well, Dean, um problems don't necessarily have to be big for married folk to have them.
You understand what I'm saying? Yeah.
N-No.
Sometimes, there's just problems in a relationship, and it's important for me to remember that I didn't make vows to never have problems.
I vowed to work through them.
Now, your folks may or may not have any problems, but if they do, me and Mrs.
Long will be there for them, too.
Your dad can sleep on our couch.
Whoa.
What makes you think it'll be me? What if Lill's in the wrong? Maybe she'll be the one on your couch.
What, you think I'm here because I'm wrong? Look, she lucky she got to my bag before I got to hers.
You understand me? Well, um, look, you know, sometimes all you can do is, uh, be there.
Come on.
Let me get you this drink.
Please.
I never knew what he and Mrs.
Long's fight was about.
It didn't matter.
After I'd been married several years myself and experienced the ups and downs, I truly came to understand what my dad and Coach Long were saying to me that day.
And thankfully, my wife and I had a guest room above our garage.
As Daddy and Coach Long commiserated over how hard husbands have it, but just low enough so Mama didn't hear, I realized I needed to be there for Cory, too.
I just found out my parents had a huge fight.
My dad's been saying at a motel this whole weekend.
They're basically separated.
A-Actually, your dad's staying at my house, and my dad already told him he won't charge him as much as a motel does.
I just don't know what's gonna happen, man.
I wanted to tell Cory not to worry, that everything would be okay.
I wanted to apologize for being jealous of him being Student of the Week, because he did earn it.
W-Wanna shoot hoops? Sure.
If you're okay with losing.
Yeah.
I'm okay with it.
You know, maybe I was jealous that you won Student of the Week and I didn't.
- Yeah? - Yeah.
I think I was scared that if you're already good at the stuff you're good at now and the stuff I'm good at, then you wouldn't need me as a friend anymore.
Man, it's your fault I got Student of the Week in the first place.
- Oh.
- Wait.
My fault? Yeah, I had to start studying more or we couldn't have stayed friends.
I never knew what you were saying with those big fancy words and what-not.
It's okay, Dean.
You'll get them next time.
So petty.
The dynamic duo were back together.
And after a couple weeks, I even got to go to Cory's for another sleepover.
This time, there were no feet in my face.
But that didn't stop Mother Nature from making her call.
Dean! Shut the door! It was pretty obvious the Longs had made up.
It was also clear Coach Long and I now had another secret.