In Treatment (2008–2010): Season 1, Episode 15 - Paul and Gina: Week Three - full transcript
Previously, on "In Treatment"...
Are you saying that I pushed
Kate into this situation?
That I created this environment at home,
so that Kate could go fuck an insurance agent?
Because, really I'm in love with Laura?
I think we should just discuss the possibility
that Laura's better off
with a different therapist.
I am not sending Laura to another therapist.
End of story.
If I remember correctly, you were faced
with the same scenario yourself.
Don't forget I was the one
who referred Charlie to you.
You know that he never ever got over you?
You failed the same test yourself, Gina.
But you abandoned a patient.
- Hi, Paul.
- Hi, Gina.
- How are you, Paul?
- I'm fine.
Yes?
- Why, do I not seem fine?
- Well, you seem...
antsy.
I just keep needing to go to the bathroom.
Oh. You remember where it is?
- The door on your right --
- No, I mean, all the time.
It's a...
- a urinary thing.
- Oh, I see.
- Have you seen a doctor?
- Yeah... getting better.
But it's... still a terrible sensation. You go
to the bathroom, you stand there, you...
will it to happen -- nothing. Not a drop.
So uncomfortable...
this and the stress you're under.
What?
Jesus.
- You think it's psychosomatic?
- No, not at all.
- A symbolic urinary infection.
- Symbolic how?
My head's telling me one thing,
my body's telling me another,
my precise issue manifesting itself
as a physical malfunction of the --
Yes?
You said, it was on the right?
Excuse me for a moment.
S01E15: Paul and Gina, Week Three
There's no soap in there.
Really? I thought I saw soap.
Are you angry?
It feels like you're angry tonight.
Let's say, that's a
fairly accurate assessment.
You wanna tell me why?
Actually, I'm angry at myself...
for taking your advice...
even though... I knew better.
- My advice?
- Taking your advice like a novice,
like a naive intern...
ignoring every cell in my body,
and listening to you instead, Gina.
What happened?
I met with Laura, and, uh,
we talked about ending our sessions.
A total disaster.
Did the opposite of what you predicted.
It was just... destructive.
It sabotaged a year of therapy.
How?
Because it undermined her faith in me
and in the work that we've done together.
She asked me if I was
ending our sessions because...
I'm in love with her.
That... well, that's what she heard me say.
What she heard was:
"I'm in love with you, so...
I can't see you anymore."
How, how did you put it exactly?
Are you suggesting that I handled it badly?
No. I just want to hear what you said.
You know, I said,
"We should discuss the option of...
of ending therapy."
But you didn't just drop it on her
out of the blue?
Of course, I didn't. I, I built up to it.
She came in late.
I thought, that was important.
Like, it was her way of telling me something.
I'm not following.
I said, I thought that her being late
was her way of saying
that she was angry at me,
that she was, um...
ambivalent about her therapy.
Of course, she threw it back
and she asked if...
She does have a point, she asked
if she wasn't the first person ever
to fall in love for her therapist.
And then, she told me to "deal with it".
Meaning, you know, this is my job.
She's right.
She said, "You are a -- you are an
experienced therapist, just deal with it."
Are you surprised to the reaction?
You put it on her and she threw it back.
How was I supposed...
Gina, you hammered me about this last week.
You went on and on and on about what I --
I knew it was a bad idea.
And now, I'm coming to you
with this mess, and all you --
Paul! You're not an intern... far from it.
Don't play the intern.
If you think, something's a bad idea,
you don't do it because I suggested it.
I said, we should talk about it.
You were furious.
Like I was trying to take Laura away from you.
Two days later, you abruptly tried
to stop her treatment.
You said that ending the therapy
was the best good solution.
I said it might be necessary for her sake.
When you say "good solution", I think
you mean a solution to your problems.
- Is that what I mean?
- I'm assuming you acted hastily,
because you thought it was necessary,
that it had to be dealt with quickly.
What do you want, Gina? Do you want --
What do you want to hear?
Do you want me to talk about Laura?
Do you want us to have a "Laura" session?
What do you want me to say,
that I sit opposite her and say:
"Oh, what if?"
Well, I do.
You think I'm in denial about it?
I'm not.
Laura is...
She's attractive.
Anybody who is a therapist knows that --
Look, I know all the ways in with her,
all the doors I could open
- if I wanted to.
- Do you imagine opening these doors?
Yes, I do.
Yep, I, uh...
I fantasize...
about Laura.
Look, it's like, it's, it's like a gynecologist.
It's easier for women to believe
that their male gynecologist
doesn't have any sexual desire for them.
Of course, they want him to find
their bodies attractive as well.
- Paul!
- Don't they?
Don't even try to break down a relationship
between a woman and her gynecologist.
That's a deep end.
Anyway, last week, I, uh...
I got this...
sharp... kind of pain...
So I went to the urologist and,
on Monday, and I thought:
"Uh, this is...
this is really scary."
And then this random thought
comes into my head
because it's so cold in the room, and I think:
"My dick is shrinking", and I don't want
the doctor to think that, you know,
that's the real size.
Never mind, it was just...
Yeah.
Paul...
You know, there is no connection
between a gynecologist office and...
the intimacy between therapist and patient.
I'm curious what you think the connection is?
What I'm saying, Gina, is that,
as a male therapist, sitting across
from... a beautiful patient, I...
I know exactly...
how to engage her.
I know exactly what it would... take to...
to turn her on.
- You know what turns her on?
- Yes, I do.
- What?
- Any number of things.
But I could manipulate her
to do anything I wanted.
I know that. And I doubt if it's only
male therapists who have those thoughts.
Do you know what I'm talking about?
For example, if a male doctor performs
an examination on a female patient,
there'd be a nurse present, right?
- I mean, that's for a reason.
- Am I the nurse?
I keep you from crossing the line.
Is that why you came to me?
Let me tell you what worries me.
You have boundaries, too,
and just like you, this woman
knows how to cross them.
All I'm saying is that the temptation
is there... for any therapist.
I know what I'm doing.
I mean, if I were a gynecologist,
and I were performing an examination,
- I mean, I wouldn't accidentally start to --
- Oh, Paul, listen to yourself.
You know, you say you have
no problem discussing Laura.
And then, I bring her up,
and suddenly, it's, it's...
it's all about genitals.
Gynecologist, and urologist, and...
You know... it seems to me
that you're taking all of this
to an extremely intimate realm.
And you're saying to me:
"I'm extremely vulnerable, here.
Help me here...
where it hurts."
You know what?
What gets me is that...
I -- I lay it out for you.
All I want is for you to give me the...
the Gina treatment,,
to get in there with your cold,
analytical scalpel,
and get some perspective. Say:
"Try this, Paul! Try that!"
What I didn't expect was that...
you know, that you give up on me,
that you tell me to find her a new therapist.
Give up on you?
You suggest a course of action.
When that fails, you say to me:
"Hey, you did it! Don't come blaming me."
Do you really believe, I convinced you
to do something destructive?
Let's talk about that.
It seems like a distraction from talking
about your feelings about her,
but okay, let's start by looking
at how you're conducting her therapy,
which seems to me impulsive,
unorganized, and, if I'm honest,
very problematic.
- Really, is it now?
- Whenever I try to talk about this,
you unleash all this aggression,
to show me, this area is off limits.
- Touch this, I'll burn it down.
- All right, we'll deal with it.
Right... Right.
You remember, I was talking
about Alex, the fighter pilot?
- Oh, God, Paul, listen to yourself!
- What?
You say "Let's talk about Laura",
and then you bring up Alex,
or anything you can think of,
so long as it's no Laura.
This is about Laura.
Alex, the fighter pilot...
met Laura.
- How?
- After a session,
we had this talk about stopping therapy.
The session ended, and she wouldn't leave.
She wanted extra time, I told her I couldn't,
that I had an appointment with a...
- urologist.
- You didn't tell her that?
Of course I didn't tell her that.
I said I had an appointment.
Anyway, she stormed out and,
lo and behold, who does she meet?
Alex.
He was there and you had
a conflicting appointment?
He was a day early by mistake,
which is weird, because...
because this guy is such a military...
uh, perfectionist.
A machine. He can probably tell the time by...
triangulating the stars or something.
Anyway, he forgot what day it was.
So he comes back the next afternoon,
tells me that they met, and now...
they're dating.
You think it's funny?
Because... I don't.
No. It's not funny. It's curious, I guess.
What's so... Uh, what's so
curiously funny about it?
I, I, I don't know.
Just give me a minute and let me
figure out what I'm thinking, I....
It made me smile, I, I don't know why.
- They're dating.
- Dating?
She went out with him to get back
at me. I pushed her into it.
You don't see that?
I reject her unequivocally.
And the next minute,
she's hitting on the nearest guy.
I mean, a guy literally on my own doorstep.
That's not a reaction to me?
Why would it be?
Because... she knew Alex would tell me.
Well, first of all, isn't that
a reaction against her boyfriend,
the man she's going to marry?
Why are you the betrayed man here?
Which would be the worse situation?
If you realized that you were
the center of Laura's life,
and that she was dating
another man to get at you...
or...
if the transference simply faded,
and she was back to viewing you
as a therapist,
she thought about you
during sessions, that's it.
Do you think I'm an egomaniac?
No, I'm asking
which would be the worse situation.
Look, I don't get off on being
worshipped by my patients,
if that's what you mean.
It's not like I'm in some kind of...
- some kind of a cult.
- If her feelings were to change,
you wouldn't have a sense of loss?
Pretty clear, how you want me
to answer this, Gina.
No.
Do you, do you not get that I'm concerned
about the right and the wrong of this,
as it affects all my patients?
You're very concerned, I can tell that.
But you know...
sometimes helping a patient
view the world differently,
it's a powerful experience.
It's a little addictive.
It's a powerful experience
because it contributes...
to somebody's well-being.
It's not about an inflated sense of...
power. Do you, do you think
I'm addicted... to power?
Okay.
How...
- How does Laura see you?
- What do you mean?
When she looks at you, what does she see?
- Why?
- Bear with me.
What does she see?
She sees...
a man -- obviously...
a lot older than she is...
uh... an authoritative, strong man.
She thinks if she could get close to him,
that she could, maybe, take on
some of his strength.
At the same time, she's waiting
for him to disappoint her,
because, somewhere down the line,
inevitably, that's...
that's her story with men.
What else?
She thinks I won't be interested in her
unless she offers herself sexually.
She associates concern for her as a woman...
with sex.
For her, sex is...
a currency that she uses to pay for...
emotional protection from men.
Don't analyze, just... describe.
- Where is this going?
- No, just stay with it.
Okay, um...
She thinks I'm a coward...
which... is a bit of a turn-off.
She believes that I'm totally
in love with her, that, um...
I think all the rest of my patients
are a drag, and...
that I can't wait for her session.
I assume, she, uh...
I assume, she finds me attractive.
Otherwise, why would she...
- Isn't this enough?
- Now,
you describe her, how you see her.
I would say...
- an hysterical disorder, some sort of --
- Don't analyze, describe.
Did you mean, what does she look like?
Okay. If one had to pick her
out of a crowd, I'd say that, uh --
No, no, if you had to pick her out of a crowd.
God, you're such a stickler.
Okay. She's 30.
She's...
she's beautiful.
Great smile...
inquisitive look in her eyes; really sharp...
very smart...
she's got this great laugh that just...
just bubbles up out of her, comes
from nowhere, like... like quicksilver.
She's childish, I'd say. No, not childish,
childlike...
vulnerable.
It makes you want to...
hold her.
She's fascinated with sex.
Well, with the power of sex,
as if she were a teenager...
who's just discovered it.
Always... always makes reference to it.
Vivid, sexual experiences that,
I got to say,
are very poetic, sometimes.
She told me about a summer
after her mother died.
She was 15.
And she went to live
with this couple in San Diego,
friends of her father.
And, uh, she fell in love with this guy,
much older than her.
It was an escape, I think,
from her father who was...
really... depressed and sad...
after the death of his wife.
That can be pretty horrible, you know?
A child taking care of a parent.
Like you did after your mother's breakdown.
Nothing worse than a kid...
playing parents...
to a father, or mother.
It's unnatural. It reverses
the order of things, it's like...
kind of death, I suppose.
For you, it was after
your father ran off with his patient.
Oh, you keep coming back to that all the time, that's --
I try to find the roots
of your connection to Laura.
It's got nothing to do with my father.
Laura's the one re-enacting, not me.
Laura's re-enacting this...
escape.
Because that's what I am to her.
Escape from what? Her boyfriend, her wedding?
I've tried to explain it to her that...
She's really making me into...
another David.
N-n-not your David, but... the older guy
from that couple that took her in.
She wants me to be that guy...
again.
- You're sure?
- Well, God forbid...
I should say anything you agree with, Gina,
no matter how clearly I lay it out.
Her attraction to me,
her wanting to run away with me,
there's something bigger that's...
that's driving that impulse.
Maybe you wanna run away?
- What?
- Escape from Kate, from your work.
God, you're so fixated on your pet theories.
Everything has to...
Did I tell you that, um...
that Kate is going to Rome next week
with her insurance-agent boyfriend?
She's the one that's running, not me.
I told her, "Fine, you know, get...
just get the hell out!
I don't wanna, I, I...
I don't want to look at you."
We don't live together, anyway.
- What do you mean?
- I sleep in the office.
During the day,
we act like everything is fine,
but at night, I'm, uh...
- I'm on the couch.
- Since when?
Last four nights.
I brought in my blankets and my clothes.
How are the kids taking this?
Rosie didn't come home on Tuesday.
Said she'd be back late, but...
in the morning, she wasn't there.
She claimed that said she slept over
at some friend's. I mean, who knows.
Ian had a week off from college.
He didn't even call, didn't come back.
Got back after work yesterday,
and Kate announced that...
you know, "Hey, I'm going out".
I said, "Fine, do whatever you want."
So...
I went to make dinner and...
There's no food in the kitchen.
I went to the fridge, I look in --
nothing. Not even an egg.
I mean, Max and I ordered pizzas,
then I put him to bed.
I was gonna sleep in the office,
and then I thought to myself:
"What if something happens?" - you know?
He's up there by himself, he's all alone. I...
couldn't bring myself
to sleep in that bedroom.
Not even for his sake.
I find that bedroom kind of...
repulsive.
I was asleep for a while,
I don't know what time it was, and...
I wake up and I hear this voice saying,
"Daddy".
And Max is there, you know,
just standing at the door.
He asked me if I could sleep with him, and...
I said, "Sure".
He hasn't done that
since he was five years old.
I guess, that's the answer to your question,
is, the kids know everything.
Anyway, she's, uh,
she's leaving in three days...
and, uh...
I guess, probably for the best, really.
How is it for the best?
It's not for the best.
It's a nightmare.
It's painful.
But, in a way, you're free...
to go through... whatever it is with Laura.
I wanted my wife to leave me for a salesman?
Maybe not, but it's convenient.
Convenient? She's flying to Rome
to fuck an insurance salesman,
for Christ's sake!
- Is that really what he is?
- I don't know what he is,
he's a... runs an employment agency
or something.
What am I supposed to do?
Chain her to the bed?
Track every move she makes,
like that guy I have in therapy, Jake?
Or Alex who, you, you know,
whose wife grinds her teeth
in her sleep and...
wakes up the next day and says,
"The marriage is over, I'm leaving".
You keep bringing patients into this.
My wife is running off, but...
apparently, it's not my wife, really,
it's me... according to you.
Since I'm my father, it must be me.
I've been trying to understand
since our first session
why you came to me -- me, specifically.
I remember, on our first visit,
you said that you felt
like you were cutting corners.
"You have no patience for your patients",
that's what you said.
And that, if they knew what you really...
thought about them... they'd stop coming.
I'm wondering if, maybe, that's
what you want, for them to stop coming.
Why would I want that, Gina?
Not literally, on an unconscious level.
Oh, "unconscious".
Maybe you want to transfer
your patients to me.
Where did that come from?
It's not a real option. It's a wish.
You could dump your patients
on me, your problems.
When I suggested that we find
another therapist for Laura,
you immediately assumed
that I would treat her.
And then, you went down the list.
You described each patient.
But isn't that what the sessions are for?
It felt like you were
preparing me, metaphorically,
for the day when you hand them over,
when you say, "Here,
their problems are not my problems.
I have to leave."
Oh, yeah, I'm gonna run off
to the Caribbean, and...
I'm gonna be sipping cocktails
with Laura, and, uh... scuba diving.
I mean, what on earth are you on about?
I just took on three more new patients.
You said, you did that to prove
to yourself that everything's okay.
That couple -- you said, you don't care
if they ever come back.
You don't like the navy pilot.
And sometimes, it seems
you're not that upset about Kate.
What?
Not always... sometimes.
Maybe all these things that...
should be bad are really okay.
And then, there's me.
You're using me as your accomplice.
Not in a practical way,
but emotionally,
to help you move on from them.
That way you're free to be with Laura.
You know, I, I, I don't even
want to say to that.
I mean... what... what are you doing?
Is this what you call help?
'Cause that's why I came here, Gina.
I came here for you to help me.
I keep saying this.
But through some misguided line of reasoning,
through some... narcissistic...
need of yours to save the day, to put
yourself at the front and the center,
we've ended up here...
in this same place...
just to confirm that you, Gina, are right!
As always.
Maybe I misjudged you, I don't know.
I thought you were better than this.
You know, I've gotta say, you really
sometimes are so infuriating.
The way you keep coming back
to your pet theories. You know, my father...
Kate...
I guess I'd better go.
- Have a good week, Paul.
- You, too.
Are you saying that I pushed
Kate into this situation?
That I created this environment at home,
so that Kate could go fuck an insurance agent?
Because, really I'm in love with Laura?
I think we should just discuss the possibility
that Laura's better off
with a different therapist.
I am not sending Laura to another therapist.
End of story.
If I remember correctly, you were faced
with the same scenario yourself.
Don't forget I was the one
who referred Charlie to you.
You know that he never ever got over you?
You failed the same test yourself, Gina.
But you abandoned a patient.
- Hi, Paul.
- Hi, Gina.
- How are you, Paul?
- I'm fine.
Yes?
- Why, do I not seem fine?
- Well, you seem...
antsy.
I just keep needing to go to the bathroom.
Oh. You remember where it is?
- The door on your right --
- No, I mean, all the time.
It's a...
- a urinary thing.
- Oh, I see.
- Have you seen a doctor?
- Yeah... getting better.
But it's... still a terrible sensation. You go
to the bathroom, you stand there, you...
will it to happen -- nothing. Not a drop.
So uncomfortable...
this and the stress you're under.
What?
Jesus.
- You think it's psychosomatic?
- No, not at all.
- A symbolic urinary infection.
- Symbolic how?
My head's telling me one thing,
my body's telling me another,
my precise issue manifesting itself
as a physical malfunction of the --
Yes?
You said, it was on the right?
Excuse me for a moment.
S01E15: Paul and Gina, Week Three
There's no soap in there.
Really? I thought I saw soap.
Are you angry?
It feels like you're angry tonight.
Let's say, that's a
fairly accurate assessment.
You wanna tell me why?
Actually, I'm angry at myself...
for taking your advice...
even though... I knew better.
- My advice?
- Taking your advice like a novice,
like a naive intern...
ignoring every cell in my body,
and listening to you instead, Gina.
What happened?
I met with Laura, and, uh,
we talked about ending our sessions.
A total disaster.
Did the opposite of what you predicted.
It was just... destructive.
It sabotaged a year of therapy.
How?
Because it undermined her faith in me
and in the work that we've done together.
She asked me if I was
ending our sessions because...
I'm in love with her.
That... well, that's what she heard me say.
What she heard was:
"I'm in love with you, so...
I can't see you anymore."
How, how did you put it exactly?
Are you suggesting that I handled it badly?
No. I just want to hear what you said.
You know, I said,
"We should discuss the option of...
of ending therapy."
But you didn't just drop it on her
out of the blue?
Of course, I didn't. I, I built up to it.
She came in late.
I thought, that was important.
Like, it was her way of telling me something.
I'm not following.
I said, I thought that her being late
was her way of saying
that she was angry at me,
that she was, um...
ambivalent about her therapy.
Of course, she threw it back
and she asked if...
She does have a point, she asked
if she wasn't the first person ever
to fall in love for her therapist.
And then, she told me to "deal with it".
Meaning, you know, this is my job.
She's right.
She said, "You are a -- you are an
experienced therapist, just deal with it."
Are you surprised to the reaction?
You put it on her and she threw it back.
How was I supposed...
Gina, you hammered me about this last week.
You went on and on and on about what I --
I knew it was a bad idea.
And now, I'm coming to you
with this mess, and all you --
Paul! You're not an intern... far from it.
Don't play the intern.
If you think, something's a bad idea,
you don't do it because I suggested it.
I said, we should talk about it.
You were furious.
Like I was trying to take Laura away from you.
Two days later, you abruptly tried
to stop her treatment.
You said that ending the therapy
was the best good solution.
I said it might be necessary for her sake.
When you say "good solution", I think
you mean a solution to your problems.
- Is that what I mean?
- I'm assuming you acted hastily,
because you thought it was necessary,
that it had to be dealt with quickly.
What do you want, Gina? Do you want --
What do you want to hear?
Do you want me to talk about Laura?
Do you want us to have a "Laura" session?
What do you want me to say,
that I sit opposite her and say:
"Oh, what if?"
Well, I do.
You think I'm in denial about it?
I'm not.
Laura is...
She's attractive.
Anybody who is a therapist knows that --
Look, I know all the ways in with her,
all the doors I could open
- if I wanted to.
- Do you imagine opening these doors?
Yes, I do.
Yep, I, uh...
I fantasize...
about Laura.
Look, it's like, it's, it's like a gynecologist.
It's easier for women to believe
that their male gynecologist
doesn't have any sexual desire for them.
Of course, they want him to find
their bodies attractive as well.
- Paul!
- Don't they?
Don't even try to break down a relationship
between a woman and her gynecologist.
That's a deep end.
Anyway, last week, I, uh...
I got this...
sharp... kind of pain...
So I went to the urologist and,
on Monday, and I thought:
"Uh, this is...
this is really scary."
And then this random thought
comes into my head
because it's so cold in the room, and I think:
"My dick is shrinking", and I don't want
the doctor to think that, you know,
that's the real size.
Never mind, it was just...
Yeah.
Paul...
You know, there is no connection
between a gynecologist office and...
the intimacy between therapist and patient.
I'm curious what you think the connection is?
What I'm saying, Gina, is that,
as a male therapist, sitting across
from... a beautiful patient, I...
I know exactly...
how to engage her.
I know exactly what it would... take to...
to turn her on.
- You know what turns her on?
- Yes, I do.
- What?
- Any number of things.
But I could manipulate her
to do anything I wanted.
I know that. And I doubt if it's only
male therapists who have those thoughts.
Do you know what I'm talking about?
For example, if a male doctor performs
an examination on a female patient,
there'd be a nurse present, right?
- I mean, that's for a reason.
- Am I the nurse?
I keep you from crossing the line.
Is that why you came to me?
Let me tell you what worries me.
You have boundaries, too,
and just like you, this woman
knows how to cross them.
All I'm saying is that the temptation
is there... for any therapist.
I know what I'm doing.
I mean, if I were a gynecologist,
and I were performing an examination,
- I mean, I wouldn't accidentally start to --
- Oh, Paul, listen to yourself.
You know, you say you have
no problem discussing Laura.
And then, I bring her up,
and suddenly, it's, it's...
it's all about genitals.
Gynecologist, and urologist, and...
You know... it seems to me
that you're taking all of this
to an extremely intimate realm.
And you're saying to me:
"I'm extremely vulnerable, here.
Help me here...
where it hurts."
You know what?
What gets me is that...
I -- I lay it out for you.
All I want is for you to give me the...
the Gina treatment,,
to get in there with your cold,
analytical scalpel,
and get some perspective. Say:
"Try this, Paul! Try that!"
What I didn't expect was that...
you know, that you give up on me,
that you tell me to find her a new therapist.
Give up on you?
You suggest a course of action.
When that fails, you say to me:
"Hey, you did it! Don't come blaming me."
Do you really believe, I convinced you
to do something destructive?
Let's talk about that.
It seems like a distraction from talking
about your feelings about her,
but okay, let's start by looking
at how you're conducting her therapy,
which seems to me impulsive,
unorganized, and, if I'm honest,
very problematic.
- Really, is it now?
- Whenever I try to talk about this,
you unleash all this aggression,
to show me, this area is off limits.
- Touch this, I'll burn it down.
- All right, we'll deal with it.
Right... Right.
You remember, I was talking
about Alex, the fighter pilot?
- Oh, God, Paul, listen to yourself!
- What?
You say "Let's talk about Laura",
and then you bring up Alex,
or anything you can think of,
so long as it's no Laura.
This is about Laura.
Alex, the fighter pilot...
met Laura.
- How?
- After a session,
we had this talk about stopping therapy.
The session ended, and she wouldn't leave.
She wanted extra time, I told her I couldn't,
that I had an appointment with a...
- urologist.
- You didn't tell her that?
Of course I didn't tell her that.
I said I had an appointment.
Anyway, she stormed out and,
lo and behold, who does she meet?
Alex.
He was there and you had
a conflicting appointment?
He was a day early by mistake,
which is weird, because...
because this guy is such a military...
uh, perfectionist.
A machine. He can probably tell the time by...
triangulating the stars or something.
Anyway, he forgot what day it was.
So he comes back the next afternoon,
tells me that they met, and now...
they're dating.
You think it's funny?
Because... I don't.
No. It's not funny. It's curious, I guess.
What's so... Uh, what's so
curiously funny about it?
I, I, I don't know.
Just give me a minute and let me
figure out what I'm thinking, I....
It made me smile, I, I don't know why.
- They're dating.
- Dating?
She went out with him to get back
at me. I pushed her into it.
You don't see that?
I reject her unequivocally.
And the next minute,
she's hitting on the nearest guy.
I mean, a guy literally on my own doorstep.
That's not a reaction to me?
Why would it be?
Because... she knew Alex would tell me.
Well, first of all, isn't that
a reaction against her boyfriend,
the man she's going to marry?
Why are you the betrayed man here?
Which would be the worse situation?
If you realized that you were
the center of Laura's life,
and that she was dating
another man to get at you...
or...
if the transference simply faded,
and she was back to viewing you
as a therapist,
she thought about you
during sessions, that's it.
Do you think I'm an egomaniac?
No, I'm asking
which would be the worse situation.
Look, I don't get off on being
worshipped by my patients,
if that's what you mean.
It's not like I'm in some kind of...
- some kind of a cult.
- If her feelings were to change,
you wouldn't have a sense of loss?
Pretty clear, how you want me
to answer this, Gina.
No.
Do you, do you not get that I'm concerned
about the right and the wrong of this,
as it affects all my patients?
You're very concerned, I can tell that.
But you know...
sometimes helping a patient
view the world differently,
it's a powerful experience.
It's a little addictive.
It's a powerful experience
because it contributes...
to somebody's well-being.
It's not about an inflated sense of...
power. Do you, do you think
I'm addicted... to power?
Okay.
How...
- How does Laura see you?
- What do you mean?
When she looks at you, what does she see?
- Why?
- Bear with me.
What does she see?
She sees...
a man -- obviously...
a lot older than she is...
uh... an authoritative, strong man.
She thinks if she could get close to him,
that she could, maybe, take on
some of his strength.
At the same time, she's waiting
for him to disappoint her,
because, somewhere down the line,
inevitably, that's...
that's her story with men.
What else?
She thinks I won't be interested in her
unless she offers herself sexually.
She associates concern for her as a woman...
with sex.
For her, sex is...
a currency that she uses to pay for...
emotional protection from men.
Don't analyze, just... describe.
- Where is this going?
- No, just stay with it.
Okay, um...
She thinks I'm a coward...
which... is a bit of a turn-off.
She believes that I'm totally
in love with her, that, um...
I think all the rest of my patients
are a drag, and...
that I can't wait for her session.
I assume, she, uh...
I assume, she finds me attractive.
Otherwise, why would she...
- Isn't this enough?
- Now,
you describe her, how you see her.
I would say...
- an hysterical disorder, some sort of --
- Don't analyze, describe.
Did you mean, what does she look like?
Okay. If one had to pick her
out of a crowd, I'd say that, uh --
No, no, if you had to pick her out of a crowd.
God, you're such a stickler.
Okay. She's 30.
She's...
she's beautiful.
Great smile...
inquisitive look in her eyes; really sharp...
very smart...
she's got this great laugh that just...
just bubbles up out of her, comes
from nowhere, like... like quicksilver.
She's childish, I'd say. No, not childish,
childlike...
vulnerable.
It makes you want to...
hold her.
She's fascinated with sex.
Well, with the power of sex,
as if she were a teenager...
who's just discovered it.
Always... always makes reference to it.
Vivid, sexual experiences that,
I got to say,
are very poetic, sometimes.
She told me about a summer
after her mother died.
She was 15.
And she went to live
with this couple in San Diego,
friends of her father.
And, uh, she fell in love with this guy,
much older than her.
It was an escape, I think,
from her father who was...
really... depressed and sad...
after the death of his wife.
That can be pretty horrible, you know?
A child taking care of a parent.
Like you did after your mother's breakdown.
Nothing worse than a kid...
playing parents...
to a father, or mother.
It's unnatural. It reverses
the order of things, it's like...
kind of death, I suppose.
For you, it was after
your father ran off with his patient.
Oh, you keep coming back to that all the time, that's --
I try to find the roots
of your connection to Laura.
It's got nothing to do with my father.
Laura's the one re-enacting, not me.
Laura's re-enacting this...
escape.
Because that's what I am to her.
Escape from what? Her boyfriend, her wedding?
I've tried to explain it to her that...
She's really making me into...
another David.
N-n-not your David, but... the older guy
from that couple that took her in.
She wants me to be that guy...
again.
- You're sure?
- Well, God forbid...
I should say anything you agree with, Gina,
no matter how clearly I lay it out.
Her attraction to me,
her wanting to run away with me,
there's something bigger that's...
that's driving that impulse.
Maybe you wanna run away?
- What?
- Escape from Kate, from your work.
God, you're so fixated on your pet theories.
Everything has to...
Did I tell you that, um...
that Kate is going to Rome next week
with her insurance-agent boyfriend?
She's the one that's running, not me.
I told her, "Fine, you know, get...
just get the hell out!
I don't wanna, I, I...
I don't want to look at you."
We don't live together, anyway.
- What do you mean?
- I sleep in the office.
During the day,
we act like everything is fine,
but at night, I'm, uh...
- I'm on the couch.
- Since when?
Last four nights.
I brought in my blankets and my clothes.
How are the kids taking this?
Rosie didn't come home on Tuesday.
Said she'd be back late, but...
in the morning, she wasn't there.
She claimed that said she slept over
at some friend's. I mean, who knows.
Ian had a week off from college.
He didn't even call, didn't come back.
Got back after work yesterday,
and Kate announced that...
you know, "Hey, I'm going out".
I said, "Fine, do whatever you want."
So...
I went to make dinner and...
There's no food in the kitchen.
I went to the fridge, I look in --
nothing. Not even an egg.
I mean, Max and I ordered pizzas,
then I put him to bed.
I was gonna sleep in the office,
and then I thought to myself:
"What if something happens?" - you know?
He's up there by himself, he's all alone. I...
couldn't bring myself
to sleep in that bedroom.
Not even for his sake.
I find that bedroom kind of...
repulsive.
I was asleep for a while,
I don't know what time it was, and...
I wake up and I hear this voice saying,
"Daddy".
And Max is there, you know,
just standing at the door.
He asked me if I could sleep with him, and...
I said, "Sure".
He hasn't done that
since he was five years old.
I guess, that's the answer to your question,
is, the kids know everything.
Anyway, she's, uh,
she's leaving in three days...
and, uh...
I guess, probably for the best, really.
How is it for the best?
It's not for the best.
It's a nightmare.
It's painful.
But, in a way, you're free...
to go through... whatever it is with Laura.
I wanted my wife to leave me for a salesman?
Maybe not, but it's convenient.
Convenient? She's flying to Rome
to fuck an insurance salesman,
for Christ's sake!
- Is that really what he is?
- I don't know what he is,
he's a... runs an employment agency
or something.
What am I supposed to do?
Chain her to the bed?
Track every move she makes,
like that guy I have in therapy, Jake?
Or Alex who, you, you know,
whose wife grinds her teeth
in her sleep and...
wakes up the next day and says,
"The marriage is over, I'm leaving".
You keep bringing patients into this.
My wife is running off, but...
apparently, it's not my wife, really,
it's me... according to you.
Since I'm my father, it must be me.
I've been trying to understand
since our first session
why you came to me -- me, specifically.
I remember, on our first visit,
you said that you felt
like you were cutting corners.
"You have no patience for your patients",
that's what you said.
And that, if they knew what you really...
thought about them... they'd stop coming.
I'm wondering if, maybe, that's
what you want, for them to stop coming.
Why would I want that, Gina?
Not literally, on an unconscious level.
Oh, "unconscious".
Maybe you want to transfer
your patients to me.
Where did that come from?
It's not a real option. It's a wish.
You could dump your patients
on me, your problems.
When I suggested that we find
another therapist for Laura,
you immediately assumed
that I would treat her.
And then, you went down the list.
You described each patient.
But isn't that what the sessions are for?
It felt like you were
preparing me, metaphorically,
for the day when you hand them over,
when you say, "Here,
their problems are not my problems.
I have to leave."
Oh, yeah, I'm gonna run off
to the Caribbean, and...
I'm gonna be sipping cocktails
with Laura, and, uh... scuba diving.
I mean, what on earth are you on about?
I just took on three more new patients.
You said, you did that to prove
to yourself that everything's okay.
That couple -- you said, you don't care
if they ever come back.
You don't like the navy pilot.
And sometimes, it seems
you're not that upset about Kate.
What?
Not always... sometimes.
Maybe all these things that...
should be bad are really okay.
And then, there's me.
You're using me as your accomplice.
Not in a practical way,
but emotionally,
to help you move on from them.
That way you're free to be with Laura.
You know, I, I, I don't even
want to say to that.
I mean... what... what are you doing?
Is this what you call help?
'Cause that's why I came here, Gina.
I came here for you to help me.
I keep saying this.
But through some misguided line of reasoning,
through some... narcissistic...
need of yours to save the day, to put
yourself at the front and the center,
we've ended up here...
in this same place...
just to confirm that you, Gina, are right!
As always.
Maybe I misjudged you, I don't know.
I thought you were better than this.
You know, I've gotta say, you really
sometimes are so infuriating.
The way you keep coming back
to your pet theories. You know, my father...
Kate...
I guess I'd better go.
- Have a good week, Paul.
- You, too.