Powerful [TOM HOLLAND 2] [DISCONT.]

TEN

PHONECALL

"Hey, honey, how's it going? I heard about your movie this morning when your Dad was looking at the news! Why didn't you call to tell us about it sooner? That's great!"
"I'm sorry, some things just got in the way."
"Oh, are you crying? What's
wrong? Is something else going on?"
"I want to come home, Mom."
"Okay, can you tell me what's happening first, is something wrong?"
"I just really need you right now."
"Alright, please tell me when you get here. You're scaring me, Katy."
"Okay."

~

OFFSCREEN

Kate slammed the car door of the taxi she had taken to her parents' home, after a short flight from LA to Seattle, letting out a heavy breath as she looked up at the home she had lived in almost all her life. The taxi man pulled her suitcase out from the trunk and set it beside Kate's feet.

Fishing in her wallet for the money she owed him for the ride, Kate stopped as the man waved it off. "No charge, don't worry about it."

Furrowing her brows, Kate had a double-take for a moment. "What? Are you sure, I can pay, I have to." She smiled softly at the man, his kindness striking her. She needed a moment like this, one that made her feel like good things could happen or were going to happen. With her career of course, she had gone through many amazing opportunities and good luck, but outside of acting and the Hollywood life, it seemed like things had been going downhill. What, with everything that had been going on with Tom, romance wasn't exactly in her favor.

In response to her question, the man shook his head, "I can't let Kate Cross pay for a simple car ride, it's on me."

"Is there anything else I can give you? A picture? Autograph? Bragging rights for your friends?" She chuckled as he smiled widely.

He dug in his back pocket for his phone and asked, "Can I get a picture with you? If you don't mind?"

Kate nodded. "Of course you can." Taking a moment for him to get the camera ready, Kate smiled and leaned in as he snapped the photo. "Thank you so much."

Retreating back to his vehicle, the man waved goodbye to her. "You have a nice day." Waving back, Kate watched as he began to drive away.

Once the car had disappeared, she turned back to the house, and sighed. Grabbing the handle of her suitcase, she dragged it behind her on its wheels up and hoisted it up the steps. The door suddenly opened, and out came her parents rushing towards her in a mix of excitement and concern after not having seen their celebrity daughter for a while unless on the news or on television; she rarely made trips home due to her busy schedule, and the phone call her Mother had received from Kate before her arrival had brought worry to both parents.

Kate stopped with her suitcase and turned to her parents, immediately wrapping herself up in their embrace. Kate's Mother, Dahlia, hugged her tightly with a smile. "Oh, you had me worried sick. What was the phone call all about? What's going on with you? Is it about the movie?"

Rolling his eyes, Kate's Father, Alex, pulled away from their family embrace and tsked at his wife. "Leave her alone, will you? She took two steps up to the house and you're already interrogating her. I bet it's the crime tv shows I told you to stop watching, you get very investigative when you do."

Dahlia waved him off and sent her daughter a blank look, while the young Cross watched her two parents with a smile on her face. "I'm not gonna stop watching them just because you say so, what else am I supposed to do? Socialize with the new neighbors down the block? I stopped being the friendly neighbor a long time ago, they can bake their own cookies."

Alex shook his head, brushing the matter aside and picked up the suitcase sitting beside him. "We better get inside before the neighbors see us with our superstar daughter and come knocking for autographs."

Chuckling, Kate reached for her suitcase, feeling bad for letting her aging (it's no secret) Father carry her suitcase for her. "I can carry that myself, Dad."

He swatted her hands away and pulled the suitcase out of her reach. "I'll do it, I'm old but not that old."

Laughing as she watched him carry the case to her old bedroom, Kate turned back to her Mother, whose gaze was filled with sympathy. "I think I know what this is all about." Kate raised her brows slightly, waiting for Dahlia to continue. "Is it about Tom."

Her eyes drifted down at the floor at the sound of his name. Kate thought she had already cried all her tears the moment after the conversation between her and Tom had ended with them agreeing that they were not getting back together despite their feelings for each other, but she was wrong. Kate had tears streaming down her face and immediately, her Mother pulled her into a hug, rubbing her back soothingly as she cried into her shoulder. "I think I made a mistake, Mom."

Dahlia frowned as she held her child tightly, continuing to try and comfort her broken heart. "How? How did you make a mistake?"

Sobbing into her Mother's shoulder, Kate choked, "I keep hiding how I really feel, and pushing him away because I don't want to get hurt again. But I still love him, Mom, and I don't know what to do."

Pulling away from the hug to look her daughter straight in the eyes, Dahlia  wiped the tears off of Kate's face with the pad of her thumbs. "If you still love him and he loves you, nothing else matters. The fame, the fortune, none of it is as important as love. None of it is forever, only you two can outlive it. Never let anything get in the way of that. You're both still young, but life is short. Before you know it, you're gonna be old and wrinkled like me."

Kate laughed tearfully, shaking her head. "You're not old and wrinkled, Mom. You're still as beautiful as ever."

Dahlia rolled her eyes, "Whatever. But anyways, one day, you're gonna be old and it's gonna feel like just yesterday you came to your Mama asking for advice, which you never do. And here's what she said: you don't get a say in what happens in your life, but you do get to choose how you respond to it. Life is just one big test and it comes with rewards and deductions, but you just have to keep going. It's up to you to choose, so choose wisely."

With a small smile on her face, Kate processed the words through her mind carefully. "What movie did you get all that from?"

Swatting her on the arm, her Mother scoffed. "Definitely not one of yours."

Giggling as she wrapped her arms around her Mother to pull her into a hug once again. Kate sighed in content. "I love you."

Hugging her back with tears forming in her own eyes, Dahlia sighed in content. "I love you too, but save some for Tom."

Erupting in a mixture of laughing and crying, Kate and Dahlia stood in the living room of their home holding each other in their embrace.

Just then, Kate's Father came walking in, coming to a halt at the sight of his wife and only daughter having a hugging session and crying. "I go to the bathroom and miss everything. Typical."