Gabriel's Inferno: Part II

Beatrice.

You were my first kiss.

Beatrice, wait.

Wait! Wait!

Beatrice!

What the hell are you doing here?

Better?

- Hi, Julia. - Princeton was great.

I'm back in town, let's try to grab sushi.

Hope all is well.

I've come down with the flu and am catching up on sleep.

I'll call you when I'm feeling better.

- Julianne... Um, Julia. - It's Gabriel.

I'm standing outside your building.

I wish we could go back to this morning,

and I could tell you that I've never seen anything

more beautiful than you in my kitchen, happy.

That I'm incredibly lucky that your rescued me

and... and stayed with me all night.

That I'm an idiot,

and I don't deserve your kindness.

I should never have let you go this morning.

I should have begged you to stay.

I know I hurt you...

and I'm sorry.

Please, Julia,

we need to talk about your note.

There are things I need to explain to you.

I want to fix this.

Please. Call me.

I left something on your porch.

Did you see it?

Did you read the card?

I want to make it all up to you.

I remember kissing you. You kissed me back.

Didn't you feel it?

There is something between us.

You can't expect me to uncover your true identity

and not talk to you about it.

All I'm asking for is one conversation.

You owe me that much.

Dr. Emerson,

Stop harassing me.

I don't want you anymore. I don't even want to know you.

If you don't leave me alone,

I'll be forced to file a harassment claim against you.

I need a new thesis director.

Regards, Miss Julia. H. Mitchell.

P.S. I'll be returning the M.P. Emerson bursary.

Congratulations, Professor Abelard.

No one has ever made me feel

as cheap as you did Sunday morning.

I understand you're

angry and hurt...

and I'm the cause of your pain, but...

that bursary was given to you because you deserve it.

Don't punish me by punishing yourself.

I've found you a new advisor.

Professor Katherine Picton is a friend of mine.

She's agreed to meet you.

I'm sorry you don't want to know me anymore.

Abelard truly cared for Heloise.

He also hurt her, as I have hurt you.

But he was deeply sorry.

Read Abelard's sixth letter

and see if that alters your perception of him and me.

I'll spend the rest of my life

regretting the fact that I wasted my second chance to know you.

I will always be conscious of your absence.

I won't bother you again.

Goodbye...

Julianne.

Bastard!

Hey, gorgeous. Whoa. Didn't mean to scare you.

- What's that? - Junk mail.

Looking forward to Emerson's seminar?

- Should be good. - I don't know about that.

He's been in a foul mood for days.

I don't want a repeat of what happened last time he was like this.

I, uh, got you something from Princeton.

Please don't give it back.

I know you don't have a nice key ring, and...

I wanted you to know I was thinking of you while I was gone.

Thank you, Paul.

I missed you too.

You're welcome, Rabbit.

Maybe we can grab coffee after?

Sure, that sounds great.

Miss Mitchell.

I need to speak with you after class.

Please.

Sorry, Professor, I have an urgent meeting right after class

that I can't miss.

Of course.

Please e-mail me and set up a time.

Of course, Professor.

Another time.

Today, I will be...

Today, I will be examining

the relationship between Dante and Beatrice.

Particularly, what transpired when Dante met Beatrice

the second time and she rejected him.

Beatrice represents many things for Dante.

They meet twice.

My question is...

where was Beatrice,

and what was she doing in between her two meetings with Dante?

Dante waited years for her.

She knew where he lived.

She knew his family.

She was friendly with them.

If she cared about him,

why did she make no attempt to contact him?

I would say that the answer is obvious.

Dante cared for Beatrice,

but Beatrice cared nothing for Dante.

Their relationship was entirely one-sided.

Yes, Miss Mitchell.

This assessment of Beatrice

is really arrogant and self serving, professor.

Are you crazy?

Why blame Beatrice?

She's the victim in all of this.

Dante met her when she was under eighteen.

It wasn't possible for them to be together,

unless he's a pedophile.

Are you telling us that Dante is a pedophile, professor?

Of course not.

He had true affection for her.

If she had ever had the courage to ask him,

he would have told her that.

Everything in Dante's later life revolves around sex.

He certainly isn't sitting at home alone on a Saturday night

waiting for Beatrice.

So he must have not cared for her.

He needed companionship, Miss Mitchell.

And if it makes it any more... palatable,

those women were just helpful friends.

Friends?

More like pelvic affiliates.

Friends help each other.

They don't feed sexual addiction.

His love for Beatrice never diminished.

He simply despaired waiting for her to show up.

And that was her fault. Not his.

If that's love, I'll take hatred.

I think you've made your point, Miss Mitchell.

Oh, I don't think I have.

It's commonly known that Dante's dalliances

were anonymous and tawdry.

That doesn't sound like someone who would appeal to Beatrice.

Not to mention the fact that he has a mistress named Paulina.

Paulina? Who's Paulina?

Um, uh...

A woman in Philadelphia found evidence of that relationship.

Anyway, if Beatrice didn't want Dante and rejected him,

it was justified.

Dante was a self-absorbed, cruel, arrogant slut

who treated women like toys for his own personal amusement.

The language Dante uses

for his first meeting with Beatrice is dreamlike.

For personal reasons...

For personal reasons, he doesn't trust his senses.

He's not sure who she is.

One theory is Dante thought Beatrice was...

an angel.

Beatrice is wrong in assuming that he remembered everything

from their first meeting.

Wouldn't seeing her again jar his memory?

Or was he too drunk to try?

That's enough.

Can we get back to this Paulina mistress?

Paulina is irrelevant and has no real bearing on

today's discussion, Miss Peterson.

I disagree. She was either

his mistress or his fuck buddy.

Class is dismissed!

In my office, Miss Mitchell. Now!

If you were anyone else, I'd have you expelled.

Your disrespectful attitude is unacceptable.

On top of that, I can't even begin to express

the anger I have over what you said about Paulina.

You are never to speak about her again.

Do I make myself clear?

Do I make myself clear?

Yes.

I think you wanted me to lose my temper and make a scene,

so you'd be justified in running way.

You wanted me to behave like every other abusive asshole

that has knocked you around.

Well, I'm not an abusive asshole.

What happened today in my class will never happen again.

Understand?

I'll apologize to the class.

You will do no such thing.

That would only bring more attention to us and lead to gossip.

Gossip neither one of us wants.

Is this a game to you?

You left a bra in my mailbox.

- I thought... - Use your head!