Older Every Day

Resident assistant, open up!

I told him he'll get in trouble.

I am not taking the blame for him anymore.

Val, by school policy,

I'm not allowed to open the door.

- Come on. - So you're gonna have

to open it for me.

Stop.

Aaron, so you did decide to join us?

We got a tinny bit of a head start on you,

but that's okay.

Take them pants off and I'll deal you ahead.

Oh.

Moving past the underage drinking

and the loud music in quiet hours,

one of your professors told me he hasn't seen you

in class all semester until you waltzed in

to write your midterm.

Do you really think you are so smart

that you can write the test without first learning

the material and still ace it?

You can't, Val.

You scored 23%.

Are you paying attention, Val?

You're getting expelled.

Huh?

I should've folded.

Dad?

No need to yell. I'm right here.

Surprise.

Not really. Your school called.

They did, I thought snitching

to the parents was just a high school thing.

Apparently not.

I don't know what they told you,

but I wasn't expelled or anything.

They just suggested I take the rest of the semester off

so I come back more focused.

They didn't go into the details.

I really will go back next semester

- And in the meantime, you're gonna get a job, pay me rent.

Even better, I'm going to use this time

to finally write my novel.

You're gonna write a novel?

Yes, sir, the next great American novel.

Something mom would've really eaten up

and it'll be written in this very house.

Maybe they'll give historical tours of it one day.

You'll teach the book in school.

It'll be a mandatory read.

Can't wait.

Actually, it might be too great

to be grasped by the undeveloped middle school mind,

so it will be dissected in prestigious universities

Like the one you were kicked out of?

Exactly, except I wasn't kicked out.

- What kind of idiot hosts a boozy naked get together

with the dean's daughter in the middle of the week?

The school told you that?

- No, I have friends that teach at the university

and news travels fast.

But you're a middle school teacher.

Shockingly, I'm allowed

to have friends above my pay grade.

That's not why I was kicked,

they suggested to take the rest of the semester off.

I was skipping class and failed

a couple midterms, it's different.

Hmm, well, that's loads better.

- I kept thinking, what if one day I was walking home

from class and then, boom, I got hit by a bus.

I would've spent my last day on this planet sitting

in a circle bullshitting a pretentious opinion

on a boring book.

- (sighs) What a stupid way of looking at it.

I wanna be a writer.

Not the discusser.

I wanna make my mark.

That's the program you signed up for

And I'll learn to love it next semester.

Val, you need a degree to fall back on.

If the writing doesn't pan out, with a degree,

at least you'll be able to teach, have stability.

Your confidence in me is astounding.

- Make use of this time that's been given to you.

Set goals and achieve them.

Either that or pay me rent.

- Dad, I really am going to write that novel

and it's going to be amazing.

I'm laser focused. I'll be working on it night and day.

It'll be like my fingers are super glued to the keyboard.

Jump, jump, jump.

Double jump. Double jump.

Duck, kick, knee, jump.

Double jump, maybe that's what I should write about.

If humans could jump

and then in midair somehow jump again,

the possibilities would be endless. that's amazing.

Nah, that's stupid.

Kick him. Kick him, kick, oh!

Val!

I'm busy!

Dad, can't you see 'em writing?

There's nothing on your document.

The blank page has the most potential.

- Sure, you know, I thought you might use your mom's office.

Is there something you wanted?

It's time to pull your weight.

There's a list. 50 bucks should do it.

And I expect change back.

Are you serious?

You're interrupting my flow here.

- I'm sure you'll flow just fine in the supermarket.

Double jump, question mark?

- Are you ready? - Now, Val!

Okay, God. I'm going.

I'm coming. I'm going.

The money?

Yes.

Being an adult, boring.

Did you misplace this?

Hi, Val.

What's up, Natalie?

What are you doing here?

Grocery shopping, duh.

- Hmm. - You've got some good stuff.

- Yeah, no, I mean, what are you doing in town?

What are you, what are you doing in town?

Oh.

Uh, I'm taking the rest of the semester off.

Ooh, is everything all right?

Yeah, it's great.

Couldn't be better actually.

I'm just taking a little break

before jumping back in next term.

Mm-hmm.

- It was a mutual decision between the university and I.

And I'm using this time

to finally write my novel actually.

So all is great.

Okay, that's, that's good.