Emma.
Wake up, Emma.
Emma. Wake up.
Momma?
Yeah. Shhh.
We're going to go chase the sunrise, ok?
Ok.
But you have to be quiet.
Come on, sweetie. Up, up.
Give me your feet.
There you go.
Good girl.
Go grab your backpack.
Come here. Come here. Come here.
Put your backpack on.
Don't forget your rhino. Ok sweetie?
Come on.
Ok.
Come on up.
Here we go.
Take off your backpack.
Keep your rhino.
Where's Daddy?
It's ok, love.
It's just a girls trip, ok?
Ok.
You want to see the countryside, right?
Where Mommy grew up?
It's going to be great.
It's going to be really really great.
Alex, don't!
Give me the keys!
Come here, bug.
Come here.
Let's get you back inside and give Mommy a moment.
Shhh. You have to be quiet.
Why? What is it?
We're in the night forest where it's always nighttime.
And when it's nighttime all the bad feelings come out.
Brrr. I feel cold.
Maybe I should sing a song to keep us warm.
No. Shhh. Don't.
The bad feelings will hear you.
They're everywhere.
Quick, we gotta make it back to the castle before...
Ha ha ha!
Oh no! The Mud Witch!
I can grow anywhere!
My dress is the ground!
What were you thinking?
Stop.
Just stop.
What? And leave you alone?
Leave you alone so you can grab up everything and yank it out of my life?
Oh, like you care.
All you care about is your writing and your career.
Forest fairies, eat this dress!
Yum, yum, yum!
Are there any bugs in it?
Lots!
Delicious!
Every time I have a deadline...
Every time I have a hard burn you pull something like this.
You don't see anything I do around here?
Stop making this about you.
About me?
About me?!
You were gonna take Emma.
Emma, sweetie.
I thought you were playing.
You know you shouldn't be playing on the stairs.
But I needed space for the night forest.
Come on.
Let's get you back to bed.
Here we go.
Why was Mommy crying?
I don't know, bug.
It's complicated.
Your mother is a complicated woman.
And she has her moments.
And you have to yell at her?
I shouldn't have yelled.
But yelling isn't the only thing that makes things mean.
The important thing is that we work through it.
We clean up the mess.
That's right.
Family is work...
Just like anything.
Maybe we should get Mommy flowers.
Maybe we should get Mommy...
Like, a purple flower, or...
Some color she hasn't seen like...
A rainbow flower or a unicorn flower.
You see colors like that?
When I dream sometimes.
Wish I could dream like that.
It'd make writing my book a heck of a lot easier.
Tell you what...
Tomorrow, when you're done dreaming...
We'll go and we'll see what we can do for Mommy, ok?
Ok.
I love you, Daddy.
Love you too.
Goodnight, bug,
I'll be on the couch.
You do whatever you want to do.
The moon is big.
That's a full moon.
It doesn't happen every night.
I wish I could go there.
You can.
I could take one of the clouds.
Yeah.
But clouds drift so...
You need a way to make them go where you want them to go.
Now...
Close your eyes, love.
Close your eyes.
And float far away.
No, I can't forget this evening.
Or your face as you were leaving.
But I guess that's just the way the story goes.
You always smile but in your eyes your sorrow shows.
Yes, it shows.
Night, beauty.
I'm done now, Alex. I'm done!
Nice. Real nice, Sara.
You scream and you yell.
You poor victim!
You treat me like garbage in front of our own daughter!
You push and you push...
And I shove back and then I'm the problem?!
You're the one who wants to destroy this house.
I just want out!
You want out?
All right.
Fine! You want out?
Say goodbye to the credit cards!
Good mooch off your parents and see how far you go!
Sorry I'm such a burden to you!
Sara, with everything I've got going on...
I cannot be responsible for your feelings.
Stop saying that!
Then do something for yourself!
I just want you to listen!
Stop!
No, stop!
Emma, sweetie.
No, I'm never going to talk to you ever again!
Dispatch 17-24 to Ambulance 12-49...
What's your status?
Ambulance 12-49 to Dispatch...
We've arrived at the residence...
Confirming Y92.
One female girl, five years old, breathing but unresponsive.
Possible head trauma.
Both parents on scene.
Call number 16-0-7-5.
17-24 Dispatcher to Ambulance 4 and medic...
Engine 2 to scene.
Call number 16-0-7-5.
Dispatch 17-24 to Ambulance 12-49...
What's the chief complaint and situation?
MS 12-49 to Dispatch...
Proceeding with medical.
Administering I.V. for adrenaline boost.
What did we do to our baby?
Oh god.
It's ok, baby.
It's ok.
She's going to be okay.
Is she going to be ok?
No, no...
One, two, three.
Can you please be careful with her?
Sarah.
Can you...
We just need to stabilize her neck in case there's any damage.
She could be bleeding.
Please, Ma'am, stay back.
No, no, no.
Please don't tie her down!
Sara!
Please don't tie her down!
Do not!
Alex! Can you tell them!
Mommy! Daddy! I'm here!
Stop it, Alex! Stop it!
Daddy!
I'm here!
I'm here. Mommy!
Listen to me...
Sara!
This is my baby! Stop!
Mommy!
Let them do their job, baby.
Let them do their job, ok?
Mommy.
Don't cry.
Can you put her on her side please.
I'm right here, Mommy.
She likes to sleep on her side.
Can you put her on her side please?
Alex, please tell them she likes to sleep on her side.
No!
What did we do?
Emma!
Hello?
Is anyone there?
Hey!
You're ok! You're ok!
Hey!
Momma.
There was something in the water.
Something got my leg!
Everything's ok. I'm right here, ok?
Nothing got your leg.
You're trying to stand up, bug.
Did you feel yourself trying to stand up?
What I want you to do...
I want you to kick your feet, alright?
Ok.
I want you to kick your feet through the water, alright?
Pick your feet up.
Now kick yourself through the water. Ready?
Kick your feet. Kick your feet!
Now move your arms. Move your arms too!
Move your arms!
There you go!
Yes!
Keep going!
There you go. You're doing it, Emma!
Look at that!
What? What are you doing?
You're doing it! Doing like a champ!
- Daddy! Come watch me! - Wow!
Look at you, bug!
You swimming on your own?
Yeah!
Are you holding on to her?
Not anymore.
There you go, buddy.
Want to go to Daddy?
Yeah.
Ok.
Ready?
Set!
Don't forget to kick your feet.
Go!
Don't forget to kick your feet.
Emma?
Hey little beauty.
It's ok.
Mommy's here.
Wherever you are, Emma.
Be strong.
Be brave.
It's gonna be okay.
Well, I can't forget this evening...
And your face when you were leaving...
But I guess that's just the way the story goes.
You always smile but in your eyes your sorrow shows.
Yes, it shows.
I can't live...
If living is without you.
I can't live...
I can't give anymore.
I can't live...
If living is without you.
I can't live...
I can't give anymore.
Thank you, little girl.
Again, again!
I'm afraid you'll have to wait.
Is it broken?
I'm afraid so.
Everything can't work all the time.
I wish I was home right now.
My Mommy's so sad I'm not there.
Are you lost, little girl?
I'm sorry to hear that.
Can we call them?
No, we can't call them here.
But I do know where you can.
But it's far away and high up.
How will I know where to find it?
If you listen just right...
You'll hear the signal.
You'll know it.
If you ever get lost...
Consider the future...
Imagine how you get there.
Thank you.
Uh oh.
You woke it up.
You better run, little girl.
Go. Now.
Let me see how fast you can run.
You sit up so straight when I read to you
stuffed animals and some of your toys
all kinds of things from home...
I am so sorry...
Daddy, he's been working here too
working so hard for us...
I love you, sweetie.
This way! Straight! Straight!
Alright. Straight, alright.
- Which way am I going? - This way! This way!
Why would I go over to the wall?!
Oh, my nose! My nose!
Left, left, left!
You're guiding me into the walls.
This way.
Alright, here we go.
Hop up here.
Oh, you silly goose.
You're a silly goose!
It's so dark in here.
Yeah, we're using a lot of power.
Just getting used to what we can do with the new house.
Does the house need batteries?
The house doesn't use batteries.
It has its own power it draws from the city.
Electrical power.
Like lightning.
That kind of power.
Sara?!
That do anything?!
The walls are scratching.
Maybe it's a spider.
Or maybe it's...
Grandpa's teeth.
And they're trapped in the wall...
And they're chattering around until we come find them.
It's probably just a squirrel or a raccoon.
Yeah, it got trapped in there whenever the house was empty.
Can we fix it?
Sure.
Of course.
Every problem has a solution.
Voila.
I brought you some things.
Just toys and a few books.
I know you probably feel like you're in some far off place.
But I want you to feel like you're home.
The doctor said it's good for us to talk to you.
For you to hear our voices.
I remember when you were just a little thing.
And I would wonder how you saw me.
A blurry shapeless thing?
Was I a darkness?
I always tried to do the right thing.
For you and for your mom.
Every day I tried to take care of her.
But it's all such a mess.
You have this idea of yourself...
I'm never going to make it to you like this, Daddy.
How things are going to turn out.
And then you grow up...
And you look around and everything is different.
I loved that it was just me, you and Mom.
Maybe I never showed it the right way.
Maybe I wasn't around as much as I could have been.
You brought nothing but beauty into my life.
You were all the good things.
You are all the good things.
Life doesn't stop.
Bills don't stop.
I don't know our insurance is going to...
I'm on my way, Daddy!
Left! Left!
Now we're moving!
Mommy?
Hey sweetie.
What are you doing?
I'm celebrating.
It's my birthday today.
I didn't know it was your birthday.
You're losing all of your balloons.
I'm just watching them dance, sweetie.
You know when I was your age...
I couldn't wait for my birthday.
I looked forward to it every year.
Grandpa would set up the barbecue and...
Grandma would dress the entire yard.
Tables with glitter, ribbons and balloons...
And the backyard would just go and go and go.
We didn't even need shoes.
We just let the grass clean our feet.
You want to go get some cake and blow out candles for wishes?
You know what I wish for, love?
What?
I wish you could have what I had.
What did you have?
The fields and the woods and the open air.
You want to go somewhere?
It's okay, sweetie.
There's nowhere to go anyway.
Made you some tea.
The tea always tastes funny when you make it.
I can't even boil water right.
It's not about that.
It's about the right amount of honey.
Mine tastes good because it's made with love.
Yours tastes like you're just doing it.
So you can get back to whatever it is you care about.
I didn't create a deadline to annoy you, Sara.
No, you do your job, and I'll do mine.
Hey bug.
Take really good care of Mommy, ok?
And in those eyes...
I'd see all the things you'd do.
I figured you'd either be a rockstar or marry a rockstar.
Bring some dirtbag home...
And I'd have to put up with him.
Watch him stomp his muddy boots all over the place.
That stuff seems so far away.
Hello.
It's so dark in here.
Can you play some music, little lady?
I thought I knew you.
You're the new maid.
You'll have to clean up the mess.
Scrub-a-dub dub.
Scrub, scrub, scrub, dub.
Scrub-a-dub dub.
Scrub, scrub, scrub, scrub, scrub...
Scrub, scrub, scrub...
Scrub, scrub, scrub, scrub, scrub...
Scrub, scrub, scrub...
Scrub, scrub.
There's no immediate soft tissue damage.
At least that we can see in the imaging.
And there's no other way to tell what's going on?
Any other tests?
Unfortunately we just can't see brain function.
And her breathing is slowing?
That's correct.
If her breathing continues to deteriorate...
Her heart could literally stop.
Jesus.
She's strong enough.
I don't want one of those things over her face.
Sara. Please. Just listen to him.
There is a procedure.
An ECMO.
Essentially, we funnel out her blood.
We filter it, we oxygenate it, then we introduce it into her system.
The new reoxygenated blood could cause the brain to suddenly wake up.
Ok, well that's something.
Ok.
Think it over.
Don't do that.
Don't you dare do that.
Sara, calm down.
You want to cut her open?
Go ahead and try.
But you going to have to cut through me first.
You want to talk about it?
You want to have a rational discussion about this.
Oh, you can't be nasty here, right?
Because people might hear you?
Please.
You want me out of here?
Then you're going to have to drag me out.
You can help her.
You can help her be strong by being strong yourself.
You need to get some sleep.
Try to rest.
And then what?
Then what happens when she's all alone in the dark?
We can talk about what to do.
We can be proactive.
Consider things.
I love you.
More than there are stars in the sky.
I love you more than there are stars in the sky.
Mommy.
No.
No!
No.
Ha! Hack-a-doodle!
Hack-a-doodle, knock-a-knockin! Knock-a-doodle knock-a-knockin!
Knock-a-doodle, knock-a-knockin.
Momma, can you get up and play now?
I'm bored.
You've been sleeping for like ever.
Mommy's so tired.
Why don't you just come cuddle me, ok?
Ok.
I know a game.
But you're going to have to close your eyes for this, love.
Ok.
Ok?
Ok.
Close your eyes.
Inside your mind I want you to start to draw a picture.
I want you to imagine the most perfect day.
Let's start with the weather.
Is it warm or is it cold?
It's warm.
That's good.
And how does the air feel on your arms?
We're floating.
Perfect.
And when we're floating, what do you see when you look around?
I see a cloud boat.
Oh, that sounds magical.
And who's on the boat with you?
You and me.
And where's Daddy?
He's not there because he doesn't make you happy.
Are you ok?
You...
Don't blink.
Don't smile.
You smiled!
You're blinking!
You did it first!
- You did it first! - You did it first!
What's that?
Sara!
It's Daddy.
We gotta hide.
Go deeper and deeper in here.
We gotta hide.
Come on. Go under the blankets.
Sara!
It's almost noon. Are you still not up yet?
Yeah, I'm...
I'm here, Alex.
Come on. It's not healthy.
Get out!
Hey!
Daddy?
Are you ever going to stop working?
Emma, I told your mother not to let you down here.
I've been working all day trying to provide for you and this family.
And I have a few extra hours to work on my novel...
Which is what I really want to do.
I just need to be left alone.
So please...
Please...
Don't interrupt me.
We who are three...
We see it crimson.
We see red.
We see something.
Something different.
We see something long ago...
A sheltered young Princess...
Who knew nothing beyond her castle walls.
Birds would glide past her window and she would say...
If only I knew what it was to be so alive, so free.
Years passed slowly for the Princess.
Until her father and mother, the king and queen, were struck...
By viral intestinal tract infections from a bad poultry epidemic which...
Swept through the kingdom that summer.
Holed up in her tower, the Princess nearly went mad with loneliness.
Endless tears clouded her eyes.
Darkness filled her heart.
Her despair knew no end.
Until one day she heard something down in the courtyard.
A sound so free it shook something loose.
The sound of children.
And at once the Princess knew what would cure her loneliness.
To become a human child.
The Princess sent for her five best scouts.
Bring me the most powerful witch in all the kingdom!
The scouts roamed the land, scouring the rims of the kingdom...
Until one morning, they came across some magical great Crane.
Bah! the Crane boomed.
For years I have searched for a place where no one would find me.
Who disturbs my solitude?
The scouts dragged the magical great Crane before the Princess.
And from the Crane's severed head
perched on its dead tongue
sat a golden shimmering Witch Toad.
The Witch Toad gazed into the Princess's heart.
And knew her one true desire.
Each child in the kingdom fell silent.
Their bright, shining spirit...
Stolen.
With each passing day the Princess's hunger for children grew.
And without the singsong of children
the kingdom faded into a gray and lifeless place.
And for the first time in her life the Princess felt light,
and free.
Like a feather on the wind.
But then time passed.
First days
weeks
years.
Every night the Princess found herself sitting alone in her tallest tower...
Not daring to speak.
Instead she patiently listened for one sound of happiness
one sound of life.
It was a sound which never came.
Hey.
Can you help me?
It's ok.
Come on.
Wait here. I'm going to go get my radio.
Emma, sweetie?
I'm so sorry I couldn't...
I couldn't be there.
Everyone is trying so hard here.
All the doctors.
Everybody.
Sometimes I think he's just telling us what we want to hear.
They were hoping you would wake up.
That the procedure would work.
But the doctors are seeing any change.
I knew they wouldn't.
But I know how strong you are.
And I know deep in my bones
that as much as we do here
it's up to you.
You have to find a way out of the dark.
And when you do, I'll be here.
Come follow me.
Emma, listen to me.
Just pull yourself up.
Pull. Pull yourself up.
Don't use me. You can do it.
You can do it.
Come on. You can.
No, I can't.
I'm letting go.
No, no!
You got it. Emma.
Emma, you got it.
I'm going to let go and you're going to climb up all by yourself.
All right. I'm going to let go.
But you're gotta pull.
Ok, pull.
Use your own strength.
You're doing this all by yourself.
You can do it.
You can do it. That's it.
You've got it.
Pull.
That's it.
So good.
Keep pulling.
You did it!
I see you.
I see you. You did it.
All by yourself.
Ok. Ready? Ok?
I got you. You did so good.
So strong.
That's you.
I know you can hear me, beauty.
Across the stars.
My voice will carry...
I miss my Mommy and Daddy.
Where are they?
I'm trying to call them.
But we're floating the other way.
I don't think I'm ever going to see them again.
Ever, ever again.
You know...
After all the voices in my kingdom went quiet,
and whenever I would get sad or feel lonely...
I would lock myself in my room.
And I would stay very still.
And I would think about what friends would be like
if I had them.
What their names would be.
The jokes they would tell.
What their laugh would be like.
I wanted so much to be loved by others.
That I never learned to love anyone but myself.
I never learned how my love could bring people closer to me.
I wish I knew more when I was young.
I wish I had known more when I was young.
I wish I had known that the world was bigger than how I felt.
I wish I had known that the world was bigger
than how I felt.
Then there would still be beauty.
There would still be magic.
Well, I suppose if you...
Yeah.
I mean, it's only been two months, but...
It's a really interesting experience.
Really?
Yeah.
That's what you're calling it?
Yeah.
Interesting. Very interesting...
Yeah, well...
It was such an interesting moment. Between us.
Thanks for coming. I really appreciate that.
Yeah, I would've been there sooner
I know you are. But you've done it before and...
Can you lift me?
Of course.
No, I...
Can't forget this evening.
Or your face as you were leaving.
But I guess that's just the way the story goes.
You always smile but in your eyes your sorrows shows.
Yes, it shows.
No, I can't forget tomorrow.
When I think of all my sorrow.
When I had you there...
But then I let you go.
And now it's only fair that I should let you know...
What you should know.
Mommy.
I hear you.
My love.
I'm here.
Emma?
Mommy.
My love.
Hey, stay with me. I'm right here.
It's ok.
Come on, come on, come on.
Come on, Emma.
I want to go home.
It's ok, Emma.
Hey, I need your help.
I need your help.
I want you to imagine
the most perfect day.
Can you do that for me?
What does it look like?
What does it look like, Emma?
Emma?
There you go.
Stay with it.
How does it feel?
The most perfect day.
Can you picture it?
See it for what it is.
You're just all empty.
Emma?
I know you can still hear me.
Focus on the details.
The moment.
Picture it.
Clear as a memory.
Clear as today.
Now
tell me the story
of your perfect day.
I'm still in my PJs.
We get up really, really early
before the sun is up.
Momma?
Yeah. Shhh.
We're gonna go chase the sunrise, ok?
We have to be extra quiet because we're the only ones awake.
Come on up.
Here you go.
Take off your backpack.
Keep your rhino.
We get our best things and our favorite toys,
so we can play all day.
What?
I look outside,
and I can see the whole sky,
and the full moon.
There is a face in it smiling at me.
The face is happy.
So I hum a song.
And all the stars start dancing.
Then the moon and stars shine on the water.
Twinkling like lightning bugs.
It smells like soggy shoes.
But that's okay cause we're outside...
And it's suppose to smell like soggy shoes and things.
We find a spot under a big tree.
And we grow a house out of the mud.
You're making blueberry tea and ice cream stones...
While me and Daddy play.
He never has to work.
So we play all the time.
And then Daddy skips a rock all the way across the water.
Until it hits a toad in the mouth.
And it burps again and again without saying excuse me.
And no one can find us because we're so far in the forest.
And no one knows we're there.
Mommy's in!
There's nothing but magic.
And you and Daddy
can't stop smiling because you're both so happy.
And then the nighttime knows it's over.
So it rolls on its side and...
Yawns itself to sleep.
But then the sun peeks out.
A perfect morning
to a perfect day.
No, I...
Can't forget this evening.
Or your face as you were leaving.
But I guess that's just the way the story goes.
You always smile but in your eyes your sorrow shows.
Yes, it shows.
No, I can't forget tomorrow when I think of all my sorrow.
When I had you there but then I let you go.
And now it's only fair that I should let you know...
What you should know.
I can't live if living is without you.
I can't live.
I can't give anymore.
I can't live if living is without you.
I can't live.
I can't give anymore.
No, I...
I can't give anymore.