Emma () and Will () were childhood best friends; they lost touch a long time ago—as far as she knows. She is back in their hometown, because her father is terminally ill. She has a strained relationship with her mother.
Will is a vagabond street performer (juggler). As a man and woman driving across country give hitchhiking Will a ride back home, Will tells them the story of how he fell in love with Emma and how she was with him when his parents died in a train accident when he was ten years old. Upon arrival he visits his brother Jim, a banker, who believes Will has mental problems because of the death of their parents and Will's obsession with Emma. Will then stays with his childhood friend Joe, telling him he is going to announce his love for Emma to her tomorrow.
Emma's boyfriend Aaron follows her home because he wants to reconcile, staying at a local hotel. Will finally speaks to Emma, and they spend the day together, reminiscing on times passed. She admits, to Will, her unfaithfulness to her boyfriend, who wants to marry her. Will then discloses he has been following her everywhere for years, but does not get the chance to explain his love for her, as she is distressed at his stalking behavior. She asks him to promise that he will stop following her. Will agrees to, heartbroken, and leaves town.
It is revealed that Emma's boyfriend accidentally killed the man with whom Emma was having an affair, and she is not aware of this. When her boyfriend finds out that Will has been following Emma, he calls the Los Angeles police and claims it was Will who committed the killing.
Will decides to hitchhike away from his hometown. On his way he is arrested by the highway patrol and taken to jail. Jim bails him and takes him to the airport. Will runs away to San Francisco, leaving behind money to make up for the bail his brother paid.
Emma is shaken with the news of her lover's death, and Will's implication, but then gets a letter from Will proving he wasn't in Los Angeles when the man was killed, referring her to the couple that had earlier given him the ride home. She calls them, then realizes what had really occurred and gets her boyfriend arrested.
Emma's father dies. Emma goes to Joe and asks him to tell Will that she is sorry for what she had said to him and what had happened.
Some time after Emma's father's funeral she receives a love letter, via Jim, from Will. It tells her how he believed he would always be with her, forever, and how much he loves her. She leaves for San Francisco to look for him, finding him performing on. He asks her, "Are you following me?", and they hug and laugh together.
I give it 2.9/5 stars
YOU ARE READING
THE Ultimate Rom-com list.
RomanceFor the sleepover with your girlies , for the loner having takeout alone. For a good time when you're bored, for the post breakup movie marathon with a tub of ice cream & a bucket load of tears, for the happy feeling you crave, for the loneliness yo...
