CYNTHIA DON_AMECHE DRYSDALE ETHAN FEMALE_AUTOMATED_VOICE FEMALE_HOST FEMALE_INFOMERCIAL_HOST JACOB JJ JJ_KEATON KEATON KEATON_NATALIA KRISTINE MALE_BUS_RIDER MALE_DRIVER MALE_LIBRARIAN MICHAEL NATALIA PEDESTRIANS SALLY_FIELD SPORTS_BROADCAST TELEVISION_BROADCAST TELEVISION_BROADCASTS VALIKA WESLEY DRYSDALE You ready to get started again, and give it another go? You there? DRYSDALE Hello? NATALIA Fine. But are we almost done here? I wanna go home. DRYSDALE That kinda depends on you, what you have to say. NATALIA Okay, fine. Let's do this. DRYSDALE This is part number two: a continuation of the interview with Natalia Grace Barnett. NATALIA November, 2013, like a year and a half after Michael and Kristine kicked me out. DRYSDALE So, what was it like for you living with the Barnetts? Were you happy there? NATALIA The food was good, they had video games. DRYSDALE Okay, but then you stopped living with them. How come? NATALIA Well, I was hiding knives. DRYSDALE You were hiding knives? NATALIA Mm-hmm. In the fridge, under my bed. DRYSDALE And where did you get these knives? NATALIA Uh, you keep knives in the kitchen. DRYSDALE And did you ever threaten the Barnetts with the knives? NATALIA Um... I'm not sure, but I would go crazy sometimes. I was lashing out, I was lying, I couldn't be trusted. DRYSDALE What does that even mean, you were lashing out? NATALIA Uh, well, I pulled my mom into an electric fence. I put poison in her coffee. Oh, and my brothers, I wanted to roll them up in a blanket and bury them in the backyard. DRYSDALE Why'd you wanna roll them in a blanket? NATALIA So they'd stay warm. DRYSDALE I think we're good. DRYSDALE This is a disaster. I thought you said she wanted to do this? CYNTHIA She does, maybe it would help if I sat in. DRYSDALE That's really not how this is done, you're not related. CYNTHIA Do you want her to talk or not? MICHAEL Try to keep to yourself. KRISTINE Don't bother people, Natalia, stay inside. NATALIA Early 2012, I think. KRISTINE Okay. NATALIA Mommy? MICHAEL Okay. KRISTINE I love you. MICHAEL I love you too. KRISTINE We're gonna be okay. MICHAEL Yeah. NATALIA Daddy? KRISTINE We're gonna be okay. MICHAEL Yeah. Okay. NATALIA Mommy. Mommy? Wait. Mommy? You guys forgot to give me my walker. Mommy, I need my walker! Wait, stop. No, Mommy, Daddy, it's too hurt-y without it. Daddy, don't leave me! Daddy, please don't leave me. Daddy, please don't leave. Daddy, don't leave. NATALIA I wanna go home. It's not fair. NATALIA I said, it's not fair! NATALIA It's not fair. NATALIA NATALIA Hercules? Ow, owie, ow. Ah. Huh. NATALIA Oh, be quiet. I'm working on it. Okay, give me something. Oh, you're kidding me. Give me something good. NATALIA Uh, no thanks. Okay. Let's see. Huh? NATALIA Hmm. Hi. Okay, okay. Ah. Yes. This makes no sense! Oh, what the...? TELEVISION BROADCASTS SALLY FIELD Chance, calm down. MICHAEL J. FOX You don't get it, do ya? The pound is where humans lock you up when they don't want you anymore. SALLY FIELD Not want me? Impossible. NATALIA Hmm. DON AMECHE Don't listen to him, he's just making it up to scare you. MICHAEL J. FOX Oh yeah? Well, you two pampered pets haven't been out in the streets like I have. I've been to the pound, remember? Don't tell me. NATALIA Come on. Come on. Ow. NATALIA Come on, come on, come on, come on, come on. NATALIA Okay. Okay. Come on, Natalia. Let's do this how Mommy did it. Why do they make them like this? Yes. NATALIA " Baby, I'm a firework Come and show 'em what I'm worth Make 'em go, oh, oh, oh I'm gonna leave 'em going, oh, oh Oh, oh, oh" NATALIA NATALIA Please help me. Please, I don't know what to do. Help, Mommy. Please, Mommy. I don't know how to take care of this. NATALIA Can somebody help me? SPORTS BROADCAST NATALIA Hello? NATALIA JJ Oh my Lord! How the heck did you get in here? NATALIA Um, the door was open. JJ Well, these apartments get so hot. Are-- Are you okay? Wait, wh-where's your mama? NATALIA Uh, probably at home. But, what do I know? I-I'm-- I'm 22, I just look young for my age. JJ Oh, I-I thought you were, uh-- I'm sorry. Uh, it's hard to tell, uh, because of your situation. Uh, what are you doing then, in my place, eating my Al-Anon donuts? Do I need to call the cops? NATALIA Oh, oh, no. Oh, no. I-I only had a little. I-I-I can stick 'em together. I bet nobody will notice. See? Good as new. JJ For Pete's sake. Chill woman. I'm not gonna call the cops over some stinking half price donuts. But seriously, what-what are you doing here? Uh, what-what do you need? NATALIA Can-- Can-- Can-- Can I-- Can I-- Can I use your phone? I just moved in, I don't have one yet. I need to call my mom. JJ NATALIA I need to tell her I-I hurt my hand. JJ You don't have a cell? NATALIA Darn thing broke, wouldn't you know? JJ Well, okay, here you go. Well, you don't know the number? See, that's the thing about these phones. You kids grew up never having to learn phone numbers. It's crazy. NATALIA JJ The whole world's gone mad. What's your mom's name? We'll look it up. NATALIA Um, Kristine Barnett. JJ Mm-hmm. Uh, "K" or "C"? NATALIA "K". JJ Uh, okay. Um, lives in Westfield? Married to Michael? NATALIA Yes, yes, that's them, that's them! JJ Alright, good. Well, here's the number. Mystery solved. NATALIA Thank you, thank you, thank you. JJ Here. KRISTINE Hi, you've reached the Barnetts, please leave a message for Kris. MICHAEL Michael. JACOB Jake. WESLEY Wes. KRISTINE Or... ETHAN Ethan. JJ You didn't wanna leave a message? NATALIA I think my mom doesn't wanna talk to me anymore, so... JJ Oh, there-there, there-there, there-there. You know, I have a daughter. She's a few years older than you and-and, uh, she's a real F-up, if you know what I mean. NATALIA Mm. JJ That's her son, my grandbaby. Isn't he handsome? NATALIA JJ Anyhoo, not that you're asking, but my advice is, don't let that gap between you and your mom get too big, you know? I mean, because in my experience, the bigger it gets, the harder it gets to fill it, you see? NATALIA Not really. JJ Well, apologizing is hard, but losing someone you love, well, that's even harder. How 'bout I bandage that hand up for you? I've got some, uh, hydrogen peroxide. NATALIA I am a robot. NATALIA I am a donut eating robot. TELEVISION BROADCAST NATALIA I love donuts. FEMALE INFOMERCIAL HOST It's a gift of help. Take advantage of this. It's yours right now. NATALIA I'm eating my donut! Hee-ow, that's a TV! KRISTINE With all kids there are challenges, setbacks, but regardless of the difficulties you may face, or if they're a little different, every child has a special gift inside them. NATALIA Mommy? KRISTINE Every child deserves to be loved. Now, some kids may be harder to reach, of course, but it's always possible. And that's what my book is about. How I learned from my family, my children, that you never, never give up on love. Do you hear me, Natalia? I would never give up on you. FEMALE HOST You can read all about it in Kristine Barnett's new book, The Spark, which is now available in bookstores and your local library. NATALIA Um, hi. Hi, excuse me. Hi. Um, h-how do I find a book? MALE LIBRARIAN Kid section's in the back. NATALIA Oh no, it's not a kids book. My mom wrote it. And it's about how all children deserve to be loved. It just came out. MALE LIBRARIAN New release is over there. NATALIA Okay. And how do I find it once-- NATALIA Fifty Shades of Grey? NATALIA Yay! Yay. NATALIA The Spark: A Mother's Story of Nurturing Genius and Autism by Kristine Barnett. NATALIA NATALIA What the ? NATALIA MALE LIBRARIAN Hey! Hey! What's going on? NATALIA Here. Here! I'm sorry. I'm sorry! MALE LIBRARIAN Not the pencil, I need the book. NATALIA But I need to read it. MALE LIBRARIAN Then have your parents come check it out. Hey. Wait, didn't you say that your mom wrote this book? So don't you have it at home? NATALIA I-I-I don't-- I don't live at home, I'm 22. I just look young for my age. MALE LIBRARIAN I'm 22, okay? There's no way that me and you are the same age. Hey, what year were you born? NATALIA Leave me alone! MALE LIBRARIAN NATALIA But I was there when we opened Jacob's Place. TELEVISION BROADCAST NATALIA I hate you! NATALIA Come back. Come back. Please, come back. Come back, don't go. No, please don't leave me. I'm sorry. Please don't leave me. NATALIA MICHAEL Oh! Dude, it fucking stinks in here, man. NATALIA Daddy? Oh, Daddy, Daddy, I missed you so much! I could hug you forever. MICHAEL Uh, okay. NATALIA Give me a hug, Daddy. MICHAEL Okay, okay, okay, okay. Natalia, I thought we said no more funny stuff? You know, you're supposed to keep to yourself. NATALIA What? MICHAEL Did you trick someone in the library into calling CPS on us? NATALIA No, no, I-I didn't. MICHAEL Do you know what the C and CPS stands for? Because while you, my dear, might be one type of C, you are definitely not a child. NATALIA What kind of C am I? MICHAEL Natalia, I am a gentleman. But let's not pretend you don't know who you are. Come on. NATALIA Is Mommy here too? MICHAEL No, the Kristine is on a book tour. And honestly, you should be glad that she is because she would be through the roof if she saw this sty you're living in. I mean, come on woman, take out the trash every now and then, you know? Also, what is that God awful smell? It's like a turd came to life and died in here. NATALIA Oh, probably the fridge 'cause the power went out, and then it went all dark and everything like that. MICHAEL Hmm. So you did go to the library? NATALIA Yeah, but I-I didn't talk to anybody. I just wanted to read Mommy's book. MICHAEL You're such a terrible liar. What the fuck, Natalia? What is this? I-Is this like a hit list or something? NATALIA No, no, no, I was sad because you guys left me out of it. But then I missed you, so then I tried-- MICHAEL Hi. Yes, this is-- this is he. Oh great, yeah. Hold on one second. Yeah, it is account number: E85G, as in girl, 9274. Yeah, it's not on yet. It's, um-- Yeah, I-I'm so sorry about that. It was just a whoopsie, you know, I forgot about it, but I paid the late fee and everything. Um, no, it is still not on. Oh, there. TELEVISION BROADCAST NATALIA Oh, wow, thank you Daddy. MICHAEL Okay. Alright, great. Yeah, that's it. That's all we need. Thank you so much. Great. Okay. NATALIA Daddy? Daddy? MICHAEL Good grief, Natalia, have you not cleaned once since the last time I was here? NATALIA You mean like a minute ago? MICHAEL Whatever, let's see how you're doing on food. Ooh, it's a little messy in here too, but... MICHAEL Huh? Looks like you got plenty to eat. You're well taken care of. Let's check the bathroom. Okay. You got shampoo, right? Great. So, looks like you've got everything you need, right, Natalia? Right, Natalia? NATALIA Oh, yeah, right, everything I need. MICHAEL Okay, great. You have some frozen dinners and you have some milk in those bags. You can put them in the fridge if you want. I'm not opening that because that looks really foul. Um, I don't know. I don't know what else to say. I think that's, uh, that's it, so... It was good to see you, I guess. And I'll-- I'll just-- I'll see you later. NATALIA With Mommy? MICHAEL Uh, probably not. NATALIA Daddy, please. Daddy, please wait. Daddy, Daddy, in Mommy's book, she-she said that all kids are special. So, how come she left me out of it? MICHAEL Because you're not a kid, are you Natalia? NATALIA I know you guys said that, but I would remember all the other ages, right? I-I-- MICHAEL Natalia, you're not a kid. Stop it. NATALIA Daddy, please, can I go home with you? Daddy, please, please, I just wanna go home. MICHAEL No, you cannot. No, you're staying here. You're staying here, Natalia. NATALIA Daddy, please. I just wanna go home. MICHAEL No! NATALIA Daddy, please. MICHAEL Natalia, don't do that. Don't do that. That's not fair! Natalia, stop! NATALIA You said... I remember, you said you loved me for me. No matter what. MICHAEL NATALIA Do you not love me? MICHAEL Natalia. Natalia. NATALIA Please. MICHAEL Look at me. Look at me. You know what Mommy would say if she was here, right? She would say, "Clean yourself up, and get your act together, and behave." Okay? If you had done that in the first place, we wouldn't be here! MICHAEL I have to go pick up Ethan from basketball, okay? Uh, I can't be late. NATALIA "Everything your father and I provide you with is a privilege. You have to earn these privileges with good behavior. Every day you will be responsible for a set of chores. Today is cleaning the living room." NATALIA "Today is cleaning the kitchen." NATALIA "Taking out the trash." NATALIA "Improving personal hygiene." NATALIA NATALIA "If you cannot do these things, there will be no privileges. So it's up to you, Natalia." NATALIA "Do you wanna do better or not? Because if you don't straighten up, get your act together, there will be no place for you in this family. You have to earn our love." NATALIA Okay? Is JJ home? KEATON Nana. Are you here for play date? NATALIA JJ Oh, hush. Baby, Natalia is 22, she just looks very young for her age. NATALIA Yeah. JJ Hi, Natalia. NATALIA Hi! JJ Come on-- Come on in. That lipstick looks nice. NATALIA Thank you. JJ This is Keaton, I was telling you about. He's been staying with me. NATALIA Hi. JJ Makes me very happy. KEATON Do you like my mustache? NATALIA Wow. Do you like mine? Mm. JJ KEATON JJ Okay, Natalia, what do you need? Because, uh, I'm just coming off a double shift and if I don't meet my bed in the next three minutes, you don't wanna know. NATALIA Okay, well, um, can I use your phone again? I need to call my mom. JJ What kinda person doesn't have a phone? Okay, here you go. Alright. Just go to "Barnett", I-I saved it for you. NATALIA Really? JJ Yeah. NATALIA Thank you. JJ Be quick now. Ooh, my back. Ooh. KEATON You okay? JJ Yeah, I just... KEATON Want some? FEMALE AUTOMATED VOICE We're sorry, you have reached a number that has been disconnected or is no longer in service. JJ Oh. All right, you're right. KEATON JJ I couldn't resist, thank you. Did you get 'em? NATALIA The answering machine didn't ring, is that-- is that weird to you? JJ Oh, no, no, no, those things go on the fritz all the time. All right, I can't keep my eyes open, so you be good, please. Um, I'll be up in time for Dancing with the Stars. Love you. NATALIA KEATON Wait, you sure you can't hang out? It's so boring here. I wanna go home! NATALIA Me too. But my mom and me had a fight. She wants me to get my act together, so that's why I was calling her 'cause now I have. Mm. KEATON Your hair is weird, but you're basically okay. NATALIA Oh. KEATON I guess. If your phone's broke, why don't you just go over there then? NATALIA I don't have a car. KEATON My mom doesn't either anymore, 'cause of her license. So we take the bus, I can show you if you want. NATALIA Really? KEATON Totes McGotes, I just have to be back by 8:00 for my program. NATALIA Okay. Yeah, let's go! KEATON Come on! NATALIA Does this bus go to Williamson Drive? MALE DRIVER Yep, I'll give you kids a holler when we get close. NATALIA KEATON He thought you were a kid. NATALIA I know, happens all the time. So dumb. KEATON Come on. KEATON NATALIA KEATON Hey, you ever play Mush? NATALIA Uh, how do you play? NATALIA MALE BUS RIDER What the fuck you think you're doing? KEATON NATALIA NATALIA KEATON Oh, my God. That was insane. NATALIA I know, did you see his face? KEATON NATALIA NATALIA So, why is it called Mush anyway? KEATON I don't know, my mom taught it to me. That's just what she calls it. Which games did you use to play with your mom? NATALIA Well, when I lived with them, my mom played with my brothers more. I was usually in trouble. KEATON All the time? NATALIA Yeah, basically. KEATON Your mom sounds mean. NATALIA No. No, no, she's not. She's-- She's so nice, I-I was just a bad kid. I-I-I didn't behave myself. KEATON You seem okay to me. NATALIA Let's play another game. Do you like I Spy? KEATON Do I look like a baby? NATALIA Okay. KEATON You ever play Two Truths and a Lie? NATALIA Mm-mm. KEATON It's the funniest. You just come up with two true things and one lie thing, and then say them all. And the other person picks which one is the lie thing. Got it? NATALIA Okay, okay, I got a good one. I was born in a different country. I'm allergic to bananas, and I'm not really 22. Name the lie. KEATON Well, that's not really how the game works. My nana already told me how old you are, so you shouldn't use that one. NATALIA Nope, the lie was bananas. Truth is, I'm only eight. KEATON Really? MALE DRIVER Hey kids, this is you. NATALIA Let's go. KEATON Which way? Is it close? I'm starving? NATALIA Uh... KEATON Whoa, we're lost? NATALIA No, no, no, no, no, no, we're fine. We're fine. KEATON Oh my God, you freaking moron. NATALIA What? What? KEATON This is North Williamson. Your stupid stop is South Williamson. We have to go all the way back. Ugh, we better get back soon or my nana's gonna be mad. PEDESTRIANS KEATON This is so stupid. NATALIA NATALIA That's it. That's the place, my house. Stop, stop, that's it. Come on. Come on. We here. Come on, come on. NATALIA We have Xbox, Dunkaroos, and my dad is like, basically a rock star. NATALIA You're gonna love it KEATON Uh, what's up with that? KEATON Your family's moving? Does this mean no Dunkaroos? NATALIA No, no, they're not moving, they're... Uh, hi, excuse me, Miss Val? Hi. VALIKA What the hell are you doing here? NATALIA Huh? Well, I was looking for my mom and dad. Do you know where they are? VALIKA Well, I don't think they consider themselves your mom and dad, but I assume Kris and Mike are halfway to Canada by now. So you can drop the little kid act with me. KEATON Wait, this isn't your parents' house? VALIKA Who's this? NATALIA Oh, uh, this is my friend. We-- KEATON We are not friends. She tricked me. She said if I came to her parents' house with her, there would be snacks. She said she was a kid. NATALIA What? No, he volunteered. I-I-I didn't trick him. I swear. You-- You wanted to. VALIKA Holy shit. Thank God I was here. Hey, sweetie, you poor thing. You must have been really scared, huh? I am so sorry. I'm gonna make sure that you get home okay, all right? Okay. You know, if you ask me, Kris was far too Christian with you. If it were up to me, I would have let you rot in jail. Come on, sweetheart, we're gonna figure it out. It's okay. NATALIA NATALIA I know I'm bad. I'm a kid. I don't mean to be. I don't wanna be. I know you're not supposed to swear. But I swear, I swear, I never meant to hurt anybody. And I'm so sorry. Really. JJ What the hell is wrong with you? How could you do that to him? Do you have any idea what that boy has been through? NATALIA I'm sorry. I-I'm so sorry. JJ Oh, shut up, you twisted fuck. NATALIA I know I don't deserve to be forgiven, but please, please help me change who I am. Please, God. Please help me be what they want me to be. I'll do anything. Please. NATALIA I just wanna go home. I just want my family back. Please. Please, please, please. Please, please, please. Please, please. KRISTINE Natalia. Natalia, wake up. NATALIA M-Mommy, did you come to get me? Are we moving? KRISTINE Well, you are. You got kicked out of this place. Let's go. I said, move it! KRISTINE That's your grocery. There's your school where you're gonna get your GED and finally stop living off us. So you'll go to school, come home. That's it. No more nonsense. And, here we are. Home sweet home. KRISTINE You know I had to turn around and come back to Indiana to bail you out of this mess? And I had to convince your neighbor and Val not to call the cops on you, not to turn you in. NATALIA Thank you. KRISTINE Keep moving. NATALIA KRISTINE Okay, I'll get it. NATALIA Thank you. KRISTINE But this is the last time, I'm not doing this again. NATALIA KRISTINE The next time something like this happens, I will tell them all the truth. That you're an adult. That you went crazy, and lashed out, and threatened my family with knives, with poison, with electric fences. I know you told that poor boy you were a kid. And I know you talked to the librarian. And maybe you can fool people for a while, but the kinda darkness that's in your soul, you can't hide that for long. The next time you lie or trick innocent people, you're gonna pay. Do you understand that? NATALIA Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yes. Yes, ma'am, I-I-I'm sorry. KRISTINE I don't want apologies, Natalia. I wanna know what you are gonna tell people when they ask you who you are? NATALIA Everything you want. I'll say that I was lashing out. I go crazy a-and I can't-- I can't be trusted. KRISTINE What else? What about the poison? NATALIA That I wanted to poison you? KRISTINE What about the blanket? NATALIA I don't know. I don't know. KRISTINE What you told Michael you wanna do to my boys. You want to kill them and bury them outside in a blanket? NATALIA Oh. Yeah, th-th-that's-- that's right. I-I wanted to kill the boys, roll them in a blanket, and bury them outside. KRISTINE I wish I could believe you. NATALIA No, you can. You can. I promise you can believe me. You can. I-I-I-I'll say I'm 22, that I-I'm a liar, and I can't be trusted. I'll say what you want. KRISTINE I want you to say the truth. And I want you to understand what will happen if you don't tell the truth. What'll happen if you lie again! NATALIA Mommy! KRISTINE I'm not your mommy. NATALIA NATALIA GED personal essay assignment, "In Invisible Man the main character says, when I discover who I am, I'll be free. With that in mind, write about yourself. Tell us a story of who you are." KRISTINE Nobody is gonna believe you, Natalia.