Life & Beth (2022) s02e04 Episode Script

1
[BIRDS CHIRPING]
[CLOSING THERMOS]
[SQUEAKING]
[BIRDS CONTINUE CHIRPING]
[SHOUTS] Whoa-ho! Woo!
[PEACE LIKE A RIVER
BY PAUL SIMON PLAYING]
Ahh ♪
Peace like a river
ran through the city ♪
[SPINNING]
Long past the midnight curfew ♪
We sat starry-eyed ♪
Ahoh, ahoh, we were satisfied ♪
[INSECTS CHIRPING]
[DOOR OPENS]
Johnny Bear! Aw. How you doin'?
- JOHN: Ma, I have to wash my hands.
- [GIGGLES] Go ahead.
Dinner's ready. Have a
seat when you're done.
- JOHN: Okay.
- [CLANGS]
[RUNNING WATER]
I saw you riding your
bike out the window.
- [WATER STOPS]
- You were going a million miles per hour.
I wasn't going that fast.
- ALICE: How far'd you go?
- Just to the creek.
[LAUGHS] Just to the creek?
That's almost 10 miles away.
Do you know that?
You should ride in the
Tour de France. Yes!
- Seriously?
- [SERVING]
I have never seen someone as
good as you are at your age.
- [DOOR SHUTS]
- BART: As good as what?
Just riding his bike. I was
just saying how great he is.
Yeah, I saw, uh, your bike outside.
The chain is on wrong.
Hmm. No, it's not.
Hm. Num-num.
Soup's gonna be good.
I've seen a glorious day ♪
Ahee-ee-ee-ee-eeee-ee ♪
Ee-ee-ee-ee ♪
[CHOPPING]
BETH: I kinda wanna talk
to you about something.
JOHN: Soup's gonna be good.
Alright.
- This is an early prototype.
- Whoa.
Thank you.
Okay. [SLURPS] Mm.
- It's really good.
- JOHN: Yeah? You think it's spicy?
- [DOOR KNOCKING]
- Mm-mm.
Hey, John, Beth.
- Hi.
- Hey, did you harvest that watercress?
Yes, and your boat's fine.
- It smells really good.
- JOHN: Want some soup?
It's delicious.
[SIGHS] Shit, can't.
Have to run and play some
pickleball with some friends.
You guys wanna join?
- Um, we can't. We have to
- JOHN: We can,
but we don't want to. Beth and I
both think that pickleball is stupid.
It's an embarrassment
to the game of tennis.
Uh, okay. Um, yeah.
Uh, watercress is up in
the main kitchen. Bye, guys.
- JOHN: See ya later.
- Bye.
- SKYLER: See ya.
- [DOOR SHUTS]
John.
Did you see that dogwood out
front? It's startin' to bloom.
You know, a lotta people don't
realize that its fruit is edible.
You didn't have to
say all that to Skyler.
I was gonna make
something up to be nice.
Is it nice to lie?
Sometimes.
Soup's gonna be good.
- [PHONE RINGING]
- Pharmacy department, how may I help you?
- Hey, LaVar.
- Ha, Beth!
What has you callin' me mid-shift
at this soul-crushin' chain
that threatens my
mental health every day?
What do you want?
Well, I just, ya know, wanted to
say hi and actually, um,
check in with you about
this new, uh, drug commercial.
It was for
I wanna say migraines.
It's, like, Soltrex?
That is the worst fake drug name
I've ever heard. What do you want?
Okay, well,
I know your son has Asperger's, right?
Asperger was a doctor
who was canceled for havin' Nazi ties.
The correct name is
Autism Spectrum Disorder.
ASD. Not today, Douyon.
- Well, what day then?
- No days!
Is this about John? Is
this why you callin'?
- Oh, um
- This is why I love my son.
The same reason you love John.
It's because they say
what they damn mean.
Now, quit wastin' my time,
and call my wife and
get some phone numbers.
Thank you.
[SIGHS]
- Hey, LaVar!
- LAVAR: Hey, Jen!
That was just Beth on the phone.
- Aw, that's nice.
- Oh, wow.
Another hydrocodone, huh? Is
it from that bowlin' injury?
Right? You thought I'd
be better by now, right?
- Hm.
- It's really frustrating.
- It's pretty interesting. Yeah.
- JEN: Yeah. Nice to see you, too.
- I'm gonna take a loop. [GIGGLES]
- Hey, good to see you.
- [LAUGHS]
- Always!
Okay, bye-bye.
JUDGE JUDY [ON TV]: Do you have
photographs of the damage
- SPEAKER 1 [ON TV]: Yes, he has photos.
- is my question. May I see them?
SPEAKER 1: He has photos of the damage.
I also have pictures of my
ferrets if you'd like to see them.
I don't care to see pictures.
I know what ferrets look like.
- This show is lawless.
- Mm-hm.
SPEAKER 2 [ON TV]: And Brandon here
is the one that took the pictures.
JUDGE JUDY: Listen
- [STATIC]
- Oh, shit. The cable's doing it again.
[BARELY AUDIBLE TV CHATTER]
You can basically see what's happening.
No, I'm gonna call the cable company.
I can take care of it.
- Really?
- Definitely.
It's just a poor connection.
Simple fix.
[TOOLBELT JINGLING]
Yeah, I don't know.
Well, would you rather pay somebody
to come here 10 days from now,
four hours later than they said,
and charge you $3,500 for it?
- Yeah.
- I got it.
I'm not gonna get
electrocuted or anything.
[DOOR SHUTS]
[DOOR CREAKS]
Okay. No. Nope. This doesn't feel safe.
It's not that high. I go into
higher trees all the time.
- Well, can you stop? C I
- It'll be quick.
M-May I implore you
that we just get someone over here
- that does this for their living?
- Why don't you believe in me?
[SCOFF] This is
You're not a cable guy!
[SIGHS]
- [STATIC]
- I've had Terry for five,
six months at a time.
You can at least see
what's going on now.
This guy wants joint custody
over this woman's dog or dad.
- [PEOPLE ARGUE ON TV]
- Yeah.
- [ARGUING CONTINUES]
- It's chilly in here.
You cold? You want a sweatshirt?
I'm fine.
SPEAKER [ON TV]: Larry needs
to get a new dog and a life.
- [OVERLAPPING CHATTER]
- [BUZZ, PUTS DOWN REMOTE]
May I ask you a question?
- Mm-hm.
- Okay.
And you can, like, 100% say no
- to this.
- Okay.
Okay, so, - [CLANKING SPOON]
[SIGHS] um,
what I'm wondering is
just are you interested,
or, uh, - [WATER RUNNING]
- in learning more about your brain?
- [STOPS WATER]
- Yeah, sure.
- [CLANGS]
In what way?
There are these online
tests where you can find out
if you're, like, maybe on, on the
Autism spectrum or whatever.
- [PUTS DOWN BOWL]
- Do you think I'm autistic?
Maybe. I,
I don't know. I just think it
could be helpful for us to know.
You know, for you or for us.
Like, th-there's these online tests.
They're by no means a
way of getting diagnosed.
They're just, you know,
could give us a general sense
of if we even wanna pursue it.
Cool. Okay, let's do it.
- Yeah? O-Okay. Um.
- Yeah.
Okay. Okay.
"I tend to get fixated on tasks.
Strongly agree, somewhat agree,
somewhat disagree, strongly disagree."
Is that a bad thing?
If you have something to do,
isn't it good to work hard?
Yeah. Yeah, and it's not bad or good.
It's just It's a thing. It's just
a question, you know?
"Sometimes people say I am being rude
even though I think I am being polite."
I guess. I mean.
Yeah, like the Skyler
pickleball thing, maybe.
I wasn't trying to be rude, though.
Yeah, I-I think that's sort of
the point of this question
I could just as easily say that you were
being rude because
you were going to lie.
That's fair. Oh, here. Okay.
This is asking if you have
trouble regulating temperature.
That's a strongly agree, right?
If I'm comfortable.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
U-U-Um, I'm gonna give you space.
I don't wanna influence
Just answer the questions
however you, however you want.
Ya know? Or-Or if, if you wanna,
ya know, just bail, that's cool.
W And let's Should we just
do that and shut the computer
and, like go get Skittles
and Charleston Chews or whatever?
- Just
- It's okay. I'm okay.
Okay. Okay. I love you.
- I love you.
- Okay.
[SOFT MUSIC PLAYING]
♪
♪
You want salmon for dinner?
- Sure.
- Okay.
I'll do some asparagus, too.
John, uh, what did the test say?
It says I probably have it.
♪
[INAUDIBLE CHATTER]
How can I help you?
I'm here to be assessed for
possible Autism. John Wallace.
Are-Are you sure?
I have an appointment.
- Hi. John? Hi.
- Yes. Hi.
And you're just gonna fill
out this questionnaire.
- Okay.
- Okay?
- [DOOR SHUTS]
- Sorry everything is so small.
We work with children.
Uh, there is an adult-sized
chair right over there.
- That was my idea, so.
- Thank you.
- [CLEARS THROAT]
- [DOOR SHUTS]
♪
[CLATTERS]
If it was a childhood
like, assessment place,
then why did you stay?
Well, it wasn't all bad. I mean,
it was sorta like the online test,
but just maybe geared more toward kids.
They asked me about what I
like to play. I said basketball.
Lots of adults play
basketball, so that seemed fine.
- Yeah.
- They asked about family.
What'd you say about family?
I told them how my mom passed
away from cancer when I was 13
and how I slept out on the front lawn
- after she died.
- I didn't know that.
It was winter.
Why didn't anybody make you go inside?
I don't know.
It wasn't so bad. They gave
me a Spider-Man sticker.
ANN [OVER PHONE]: So,
John needs a therapist?
Yeah.
- And you're calling me about this why?
- BETH [OVER PHONE]: 'Cause I'm at work
just thinking and I know you've seen
a lot of them over the years,
and I was hoping that you
would have a recommendation.
Hello?
Yeah, I'm trying to plug in a Vornado.
Yes, as a kid, I saw a lotta therapists,
but not as an adult.
Okay, well, I'm sorry. I thought
you might be down to help.
No, I think you're under
a lotta stress lately.
I don't know what kinda
antidepressants or SSRIs you're taking.
People aren't even supposed
to be on those long-term.
- Is that true?
- ANN: Yeah.
I think you should consider a
daily microdose of mushrooms.
I've done it. It's helpful.
I think it could really
help with your mood swings
and erratic behavior.
[SCOFFS] This isn't about
me! This is about John, okay?
And if anybody has a problem
with mood swings, it's you.
You gonna say it's me?
No. My mood is always shit,
and I'm comfortable with that.
Oh, okay. Great.
- [VORNADO WHIRRING]
- Fucking eureka.
That's a great signed photo of Meg Ryan.
It's not signed.
- How do you know her?
- [SNIFFS] She's a patient.
Not of mine, but I know her issues
through a friend.
So, uh, yes. I could definitely
do an evaluation, see if you
have high-functioning autism
or as the DSM calls it now, AS
D? ASD?
Exactly.
You and I spoke on the phone.
You said you were an expert,
and that you can evaluate John
to see if he's maybe on the spectrum.
I have to be honest with you.
I am not exactly an expert yet.
Um, I'm still studying.
I really tailor my approach to meet
the needs of every single patient.
I just wanna make sure that
everyone's really feeling heard.
You know, it's like me with my party.
It's like my camp friend,
Ashley, suddenly, she's single.
My fiancée's mother, they
wanna plan the whole thing.
I mean, you ever see You've Got
Mail? I mean, that thing was a
it was incredible.
Seriously, only six hours left. And
then I'll be officially certified.
I could actually say, you know,
officially, like, this
is what you need to do.
Sleepless in Seattle and
When Harry Met Sally
were the beginning of the fall of
Western civilization, in my opinion.
And they're taking something
that's supposed to be about
someone else, the bride,
and they're making it entirely about
themselves. You know what I mean?
Yeah, I really do.
Hey, I got your text. I don't know
any therapists, but did you try Ann?
- I mean, I hope she's in therapy.
- I know, right?
- No. Thanks anyway, though.
- JESS [OVER PHONE]: But I will say this:
New Orleans did more for my mental
health than a year in therapy.
[SCOFFS] Okay, well,
I'm glad to hear that.
I'm gonna run. I'm here with Maya.
I'm awake and alert and wet.
[FACETIME RINGING]
- Uh, I-I gotta go, bye.
- Right.
- [PUTS DOWN PHONE]
- What she want?
She doesn't know any therapists.
I'm asking her for John.
- Well, she need a therapist.
- BETH: I really
[FACETIME RINGING, ANSWERS]
- BEAU [OVER PHONE]: Hey, kitten.
- Hi. [GIGGLES]
- You're lookin' cozy.
- Guess who I was just thinking about?
- Uh, who?
- You.
[LAUGHS] That's so lit.
Ya know, Beth, I gotta apologize.
I gave you a lotta shit for goin'
down to New Orleans, you know?
Oh. That's fine.
But I got to stay a
little bit of extra time
and have a good time with my family.
[RESTAURANT CHATTER]
- Good. Good.
- Yeah.
And as a "sorry," my
cousin got me two tickets
to see Isabel Wilkerson,
and I want you to come with me.
- Wow. Who
- Yeah.
Oh! Oh, is that that
author? She wrote, um
- Caste. Yeah.
- Caste. That book.
Yes. Oh, that's amazing.
Kinda get that Black experience
I was tellin' you about.
Yeah. I'd love to. I'll
definitely be there.
- Great. That's great.
- Yeah, and you know what?
I wanted to ask you if you, uh,
by any chance, know of a
therapist? I don't know.
- Just thinkin' for John. I'm assuming no.
- Um.
I've never heard you
talk about therapy, but.
Personally, I mean, I ain't
tellin' nobody my business.
- So, you know, Black people don't do that.
- Right.
We still goin' to God. "Talk to God."
Oh, yeah. I don't think
God's in my network, but.
NARRATOR [ON TV]: A robotic lawn mower!
- [DOOR OPENS]
- JOHN: Hey.
Oh, it's doing it again.
- [STATIC, CHATTER]
- Yeah. Uh, it's fine.
I can fix it.
Okay.
I know what I did wrong.
I'm, like, not even watching it, but.
Um,
so, Cole is throwing,
like, an event this week
at this, like, famous painter's
house to bring in more business.
We'll go? Cool?
Yeah.
I remember my first day of high school.
Look at this place. So big!
Paul says they have two full-size gyms
and a field that takes 10
minutes to even walk across.
What? [LAUGHS] That's crazy!
Think of all the friends
you're gonna make. [SIGHS]
I hope I can make the basketball team.
Are you kidding?
Gonna be varsity freshman
year. [SHIFTS INTO PARK]
- Blow 'em all outta the water. Come here.
- [LAUGHS]
Oh, sweetie. I love you.
- Go! Don't be late.
- Okay.
Oh, don't forget your lunch.
- JOHN: Oh, thanks.
- Okay, bye!
[STUDENT CHATTER]
Hi, I'm John.
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
Hi, I'm John. I'm from Marisport.
[SIGHS]
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
Cool bikes. Do you guys ride to school?
[SNARKY LAUGHTER]
Oh, my God! Anyway, dude.
[MELANCHOLY MUSIC PLAYING]
[BELL RINGING]
- BETH: Are you hungry? Do you want?
- Yeah. I was thinking of putting
- a little plate together. The brie.
- BETH: Oh, yeah.
- I want some of that.
- Maybe you could put a little spread
- on a slice of the baguette.
- Okay, I'll make a plate.
Are you friends with the artist?
- Um
- Oh! Aurora, yes?
This is Jean Louise's gallery manager.
- Oh, you own that little space in Nolita.
- It's precious.
That's That Uh, no.
I don't own any gallery.
I-I work for Cole.
You work at Kohl's?
- [PHONE BUZZING]
- Uh, will you excuse me?
Do you, uh, get good
discounts at Kohl's?
No.
Hey.
I found someone for you.
- I'm married.
- No, for John.
She specializes in Autism.
- [PARTY CHATTER]
- Oh, my God, Annie, are you serious?
- Really? Thank you so much.
- ANN [OVER PHONE]: Don't thank me.
You know, I do have a story, um,
and it involves me and Ina Garten
- MORGAN: What is that?
- and you'll never
No, I-I can't tell you.
It's been really confusing.
[OVER PHONE] We've had so
many false starts and, like
- [MOUTHING]
- [HANGS UP]
- Hello? [SIGHS]
- [PHONE BEEPING]
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
Hi! Sorry about that. [LAUGHS]
Anybody seen my husband?
Well, he left in the middle
of Angelo's best story.
- [TAPPING GLASS]
- MORGAN/BETH: Oh.
[CHATTER STOPS]
What is paint if
not a squirt of color?
- Word.
- COLE: Well, that's actually pretty good.
Squirt. You don't hear
that a lot anymore, do you?
- Will you write that down?
- What?
"Make me squirt." Um, what was I saying?
[STREET NOISE]
[JAZZ MUSIC PLAYING]
DR. MORRIS: Yeah, so,
uh, have-have a seat.
Make yourself comfortable.
I'm just gonna ask you a
bunch of questions first
- to get to know you a little.
- Great.
Why don't you tell me
about, um, where you grew up?
I grew up in, uh, North Fork, and, um,
- on a big farm.
- Uh-huh.
- It's a vineyard now, and
- Oh.
I still live there and work.
[CLAIR DE LUNE BY CLAUDE
DEBUSSY PLAYING ON PIANO]
Oh, wow. So, you're still in
the home that you grew up in?
Yes.
Who was there with you?
[CONTINUES PLAYING PIANO]
- Do you mind if I take my jacket off?
- No!
I want you to be comfortable.
Please. [MOUTHING]
ALICE: Mm-hm. Keep this light.
♪
[INAUDIBLE]
[LEAVES CRUNCHING]
♪
[GIGGLES]
♪
[PIANO PLAYING ENDS]
[WIND RUSTLING]
Well, in order to diagnose ASD,
we need to see
challenges in three areas.
Uh, communication, socialization,
and intense interests or
repetitive behaviors over time.
So, that's why we
focused on your history
in addition to any current
social communication issues
and intense interests.
Uh, John, my evaluation shows
that you would be classified
as someone living with high-functioning
Autism Spectrum Disorder level one.
So, I'm sure as you both know
that there are some difficulties
in living with Autism.
Uh, challenges with, uh,
picking up social cues,
uh, a tendency to fixate on things.
- Yes, yeah.
- DR. MORRIS: But
there are so many positives as well.
There's so many qualities that John has.
His great discipline,
his ability to stay focused,
to commit to a difficult
task until mastery.
These are all excellent traits
that have served him
well throughout his life.
Yeah.
I mean, he's the greatest
person in the whole world.
DR. MORRIS: Yeah, and those
are qualities that are great
for many people in many areas.
For example, to name one,
karate.
I-I'm sorry. Did you say karate?
- I did.
- Like, you do karate?
- I am a purple belt.
- BETH: Oh.
Yeah, I don't, I don't
really know the belts, but,
you know, that sounds high up.
But I-I'd like to
focus on, on, on John.
- Yeah.
- So, John, I wanna hear from you.
No, I think it's impressive
and it is high up, I think.
It's green, then purple.
And I'm seeing you differently
now, knowing that. I didn't
Oh, I'm sorry. Uh, I
wanna know your feeling.
Yeah. Um.
Well, I think I-I've
always kind of known
that my brain works
differently from other people.
Um, sometimes I react differently
- from than-than other people. And
- BETH: Mm-hm.
I spent a lot of
time alone as a kid.
Right, I understand. I
remember you told me that.
Yeah, but, um, yeah.
Those are some of my happiest memories.
Time alone fosters
creativity, and that's great.
You're a very creative person, John.
But, yeah, I feel okay. And, uh
- yeah.
- Beth, are you okay?
[CRIES] I just feel bad that people,
like, misunderstood him all those years,
ya know? Like, [SNIFFLES]
like, it's just unfair.
JOHN: Yeah, I never really
got why people seemed mad at me,
ya know, or-or didn't believe in me.
Well, there's a quote that I love.
"The secret of change is
to focus all of your energy
not on fighting the old,
but on building the new."
That's beautiful.
I think I kind of need a hug.
From Dr. Morris?
She-She needs a hug from you.
Actually, would you get
in here, too, Dr. Morris?
Oh.
♪
- Thank you. Thank you.
- DR. MORRIS: Yeah, thank you.
[BIKES RATTLING]
[THIRTEEN BY BIG STAR PLAYING]
Won't you let me walk
you home from school? ♪
Won't let you let me
meet you at the pool? ♪
Maybe Friday ♪
I can ♪
Get tickets for the dance ♪
And I'll taaake you ♪
Ooh-ooh ♪
Won't you tell your
dad get off my back? ♪
Would you be an
outlaw for my looove? ♪
If it's so, well, let me know ♪
If it's no, well, I can go ♪
I won't maaake you ♪
Ooh-ooh ♪
It's so easy.