CLAIRE FISHER'S APARTMENT
"Hi,"
Ryan repeats, awaiting some
sort of reaction from Claire.
"What are you doing here?" she finally
demands. There is an accusatory note in her voice that unnerves Ryan.
"Andy
told me about Tim," he says
gently.
No response. She just stares at him.
It is not a cold stare, and certainly not a warm one, but it isn't blank,
either.
Ryan is still trying to read it as
he adds, "I wanted to come by and offer my condolensces. I know it's probably
a little on the late side--"
"I don't want your condolensces."
Now it is Ryan's turn to be stricken
silent.
"I don't want anything from you,"
Claire spits. "Do you really think that after--after all this, that you
can just come in here and pretend we're friends? It's not going to work,
Ryan."
"I'm not trying to pretend anything,
Claire. I just want you to know that I'm sorry about your loss--"
"And what, if there's anything you
can do, I should just let you know? It's not going to be that easy."
"What are you talking about?"
"Don't pretend like you don't know
how this happened." She shakes her head bitterly. "This happened because
of you and
. You're the reason Tim is gone."
"That's not true." He balls his hands
up into fists, trying to keep himself from grabbing her and trying to shake
some sense into her. "My father and I--we had no control over what happened
at that pier. We weren't there, we didn't tell anyone to do anything ..."
"But if you'd just been honest with
me on the I-don't-know-how-many occasions when I'd asked you to tell me
the truth, Tim never would have been out on that pier. He never would have
been in danger."
Suddenly Ryan assumes a smug demeanor,
pursing his lips and holding his chin up a little higher. "You can keep
telling yourself that, Claire, but it's garbage and you know it. You're
trying to pin this on my father and me so--" He shakes off the thought.
"You know what? Nevermind. I'm not going to argue about this with you right
now."
"Good. Because it's not exactly how
I planned to spend my afternoon, either." She grips the door. "Now get
out of my home."
In an instant, the smugness is gone
and Ryan seems to be pleading. "Are you sure we can't talk? Maybe--"
"Get out."
He backs out of the apartment, never
removing his gaze from her. "I'll talk to you later," he says.
She slams the door.
And once it is closed, she leans
her back against it. She sinks to the floor as New Year's Eve replays itself
in her mind and she relives the shock that Ryan thrust upon her that night.
She's hardly had time to ponder it
-- it's only been a fleeting thought in the weeks since then, since she
realized Tim was missing. But now it hits her, almost as hard as it did
the first time, that the reality she's held onto for all these years is
gone. It was nothing but a mirage, a smokescreen, and now it's all but
faded from view entirely.
Claire crumbles to the floor, tears
clogging her throat as she tries to figure out some way to recognize this
world she's suddenly being forced to endure.
END OF EPISODE #196
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