Original subtitles

[upbeat music]

-Junior! -[Junior] Yeah?

Come here.

[Junior] I'm on the game.

I don't care. Come here.

-What? -Excuse me?

I mean, yes sir.

Now, that's more like it.

Okay, hey, what do you think

your brother will want for his birthday?

I don't know, Dad. He's a square.

Junior, do not call your brother a square.

Now, you gotta have some idea about what he wants.

I don't know.

He probably wants something stupid like a book.

Junior, a book is not stupid.

Okay, what kind of book do you think he will want?

Hmm, I don't know. Whatever book nerds like.

You are no help.

Oh, hey Miranda.

Oh, good, good, good, yeah. No, I'm here.

Wait, why won't you just come up?

No, no, no, it's fine, I promise.

Laura's not even here. Okay, cool, bye.

I hope Laura don't come up here

and catch your baby mama in here.

Junior, you know you talk too much.

Hey, I'm just saying, I'm trying to help you out.

Yeah, well stay out of grown folks' business,

-thank you. -Fine, don't listen to me.

What do I know?

You know, you are really too grown sometimes.

Hey, can I go finish my game?

Everybody's waiting for me online.

Yeah, go ahead.

-Hey. -Hey.

-Hey, Dad. -Hey, son, how was your day?

-It was good. -I'm glad to hear it.

So, tell your dad about your English class.

-I won the essay contest. -Whoa, good job, Christian.

Mm-hmm, he did so good

that Mrs. Guerin is sending his essay

to the state competition.

Whoa, Christian, your dad is super proud of you.

-Thanks, Dad. -[laughs]

Hey, what do you think he wants for his birthday?

-Well, he's not gonna get it. -Why, what does he want?

-He wants that new Z-Fone 27X. -Hell no.

What is that thing, like $1,000?

-No, $1,600. -Yeah, way too expensive.

Exactly.

And in my opinion, it's just not appropriate for a kid his age.

What, do some of the kids have them?

Well, he says that they do,

but when I talked to all the parents,

all of the parents agreed with me.

You know, it's entirely too expensive,

and especially in this craziness of this world.

Yeah, you're right.

With all the internet access that thing has, way too much.

Nope. Mm-mm.

What else are you thinking about?

I don't know. Hey, Junior, what you need?

Oh, I left my other controller.

-Christian wants to play. -Hey, Junior.

-Hey, Mom Miranda. -Hey.

Calvin, I--

Miranda.

[sighs]

Hey, Laura.

Laura, Miranda just dropped off Christian

and I asked her to come up

because we need to plan his birthday party.

Okay. It's fine. Don't let me interrupt.

You're not interrupting. I was just leaving.

-Oh, Miranda. -Yes?

Christian's birthday is this Saturday, right?

-Yes, it's Saturday. -Saturday, got it.

-You good, baby? -Yeah, I'm fine, Calvin.

I told your ass that I shouldn't come up here.

I told him too.

[Both] Shh!

Don't get mad at me, I was trying to help y'all out.

Entirely too grown for your own good.

That's what I'm saying.

Calvin. I know. Hey.

Listen, you need to go fix it, okay?

Don't you two bury the hatchet.

Hell no, we just play nice for the kids' sake.

-So you need to go make up now. -I'm sorry.

You owe me.

So, you two finished whispering?

-Oh, no, we weren't whispering. -Hm.

Look, babe, are you okay with Miranda being up here?

You already know how I feel about that, Calvin.

We discussed this.

Yes, but baby, I was not trying to disrespect you.

We just needed to plan Christian's birthday party.

Fine, Calvin. Fine.

Speaking of which,

we're hosting the party at my mom's.

[scoffs] Somehow I knew this was coming.

-I knew it. -So...?

So what, Calvin?

-Are you gonna come? -I don't know.

Come on, Laura.

You know Christian would be crushed

if you didn't come to his birthday.

Hmm.

How does Miranda feel about me coming?

How does your mom feel about me coming?

Miranda and my mom want you there.

Hmm. I don't know. What about Janine and Jazmine?

Laura, everybody wants you there.

Really? So what caused this big change?

-Big change? -[Laura] Yeah.

Just a few weeks back,

everybody was telling me to take my narrow lil' ass home.

-You still on that? -[sighs]

Laura, I thought you and my mom spoke.

You know what? I'll let it go.

I'll let it go, for the sake of Christian.

So you'll come?

-I will go, Calvin. -Oh, thank you, baby.

But I'm only going because I love your son, okay?

I know. And I appreciate that and he loves you right back.

Yeah. Okay.

[upbeat music]

Hey, what time is Christian's birthday party tomorrow?

Ahm, it's early, one o'clock.

Hayden and Jayden can't stop talking about it.

I bet you they can't.

So what are we supposed to do for it?

Well, Jazzy is gonna help decorate

and you and I are responsible for balloons and party favors.

Oh, and when are we supposed to get that?

I will pick them up in the morning, I got you.

[laughs]

-Hey, Malik. -Hey.

What's going on, y'all? Hey, Dad, you know what?

Every time I go out, it's somebody that stops me and says,

"Hey, tell your dad we appreciate him."

-That's nice. -[Malik] Yeah.

-People have been real nice. -You deserve it.

-Thank you, thank you. -You're welcome.

You know, who would have thought?

Just a few years ago,

people were really trying to crucify me.

Yeah, but you weathered the storm, Dad.

Just so happens to be another storm.

-Another storm? -Yeah.

[knocking on door]

I'll get it.

-Hey, Ms. Glo. -Hey, Chief Payne.

-[CJ] How are you? -I've been better.

By the way, sorry about that shooting downtown.

-Yeah. -You did a fine job.

Thank you, thank you. So, uh...

What can we do for you?

Did y'all get some more campaign flyers from that witch,

Mrs. Wellington?

-Hm-hm. -No, I haven't seen it.

-Actually, we did, Ms. Glo. -We did?

-Yeah. -Let me see.

-Oh, my... [laughs] -Let me see that.

-It's not for this-- -Mom.

Did she really put my mug shirt on this flyer?

Yeah, I'm afraid so, Ms. Glo.

That witch.

[soft music]

Thank you, Jazzy. Oh, Calvin.

-Yeah. -Is Laura coming?

Calvin, please tell me you told her to come.

-I did. -And?

Well, she's still in her feelings

about y'all little beef.

about y'all little beef.

So, Calvin, she is not coming to support Christian?

Well, she said she's gonna come.

Okay, I hope she does.

This is about a little boy. This is not about her.

I told her that.

Okay, well, let's keep this party going.

Please, because Curtis already wants to kill me.

[laughs] All right, Christian, baby,

come in here while your friends are eating their cake.

-You can open some presents. -I love presents.

Oh, wait. Open mine first.

-Excuse me. -Run, baby.

Let me see. Let me see.

-You're gonna like it. -Okay, here we go.

Here you go. Oh, come on. Open it.

What do you say, Christian?

Appreciate you, Jazzy.

Yeah, yeah, open it, open it, open it.

Oh, cool. Wow. I wanted this.

I know.

We were just talking about that game.

Now, let that be incentive to keep your grades up.

No video games until your homework's done.

-Right, listen to your daddy. -Okay.

[laughs]

Hey, everybody!

-Hey. -Hey, Laura.

Hello Laura!

Hey, handsome. Look at you.

-Happy birthday! -Thank you.

Laura, I was just asking about you.

Oh, I am so sorry. I'm so late.

The girl who does my hair, she's the worst with time.

-Well, it is beautiful. -Thank you.

-It is. It looks gorgeous. -Thank you.

-Hey, babe. -Hey, baby.

-Here, sit. -Oh, okay.

Well, we were just opening gifts.

Oh, perfect. Can you open mine next?

-Okay, cool. -Yay!

-It's a big bag. -Mm-hmm.

-Look at that. -I know.

Wow.

-Yeah! -No way!

Hey, the new Z-Fone 27X! Mama Laura, I love you!

This is the best gift ever!

Oh, baby. I love you, too.

[whispering] Z-Fone 27X?

Oh, baby, no, no, no. No.

No. No.

Can I have your mom?

Baby, we have discussed this. No, you cannot keep this gift.

Tell Ms. Laura thank you, but no, baby.

What's wrong?

Look, Miranda and I don't think he's ready

-for a cellphone, Laura. -What do you mean?

All the kids have cell phones these days.

Okay, not this kid.

But this is my gift to him.

Okay, but Laura, he can't have this gift.

Oh, okay.

Okay. Look, cell phones are a very sticky situation

for parents.

Yeah, it really is. Hayden and Jayden wanted one.

Whoo! Me and CJ were like, ah!

-I remember that. -It was a whole thing.

-It was a whole thing. -Yeah, girl.

-It's fine. It's fine. -[Ella chuckles]

Yeah. Ahm, right. I get it.

It's just that we discussed

this whole co-parenting thing, Miranda.

I mean, you came to my house.

You sat at my table so we can work on this

co-parenting thing together. Like, that's what we discussed.

Okay, Laura, yes.

And we should have discussed a $1,600 phone

for a child before now.

And yes, we are somewhat co-parenting.

-Somewhat? [exhales] -Okay, Laura, yes.

You do spend a lot of time with my son, but--

Okay, and so as a co-parent to you,

I mean, I just want to give him a phone.

Laura, Christian's just absolutely too young

for that expensive phone now. Come on, let's open other gifts.

Yeah, I'm sorry, Christian. Give that back to Mama Laura.

Calvin, are you kidding me right now?

-Stop it. -No, Calvin, you stop it.

Look, are you really going to make a scene

in front of my family?

Make a scene? I'm not making a scene.

I'm just trying to give Christian his gift.

We will talk about it later.

Christian, baby, I'm so sorry.

I love you. Mm. Happy birthday, okay?

Mama Laura loves you, all right?

Okay. Are you leaving?

Yeah, I'm sorry. I gotta go.

But I promise you,

we're gonna celebrate your birthday another day, okay?

-I promise. -Okay.

-Okay? -Wait, wait, wait, wait.

-Are you really about to leave? -Yeah, I think I should go.

Listen, Laura, you don't have to go.

[chuckles]

Laura, I really think Christian would like for you to stay.

Yeah. Christian would, but you want me to go, right?

-Oh, who said that? -Wow.

Nobody said that. Everybody wants you to stay

so we can celebrate Christian together, Laura.

Laura, stop, please.

Calvin, you're supposed to be supporting me right now.

No when you're acting like this.

Acting like what?!

-[nervous laughing] -That.

Yes. I'm sorry.

I'm sorry for causing a scene.

It's your family affair.

[slams door]

-What just happened? -Your fiancée just happened.

[exhales] Miss Ella, I am so mad.

-Uh. -Is Christian okay?

-He'll be okay. -It don't make it okay.

She hurt that boy's feelings. Did you see his face?

Of course I saw his face. Okay, should I have waited?

I just didn't want him to get so excited

about a phone that he couldn't keep.

Was I wrong? Should...

No, you... No, you weren't wrong.

No, she should have asked you if you were okay

with Christian having a phone. Why are you supposed to wait?

That is definitely a gift you ask a parent about beforehand.

All of this craziness on the Internet?

No. Uh-uh. Christian is too young for a phone.

She act like she don't even have the sense God gave her.

She got you good and mad, didn't she?

[sighs]

Oh, great birthday party, ladies.

-The twins had a ball. -[chuckles]

Thank you, thank you.

And thank you, Mr. Payne and Miss Ella,

for letting us host the party here.

You make Christian feel very special.

-Oh, that's my boy. -[Ella] You're welcome.

-Have you seen these? -What is that?

-Your friend, Glo. -That is Glo. A mugshot?

Yep. They're all over the neighborhood.

-Who? -Who else?

The Wellington lady.

Oh, this campaign is getting ugly.

Yeah, and everybody's talking about it.

I thought after the barbecue, you know,

Glo was gonna be a sure win.

Mm-mm. The Wellington lady is playing dirty.

Mm-mm. The Wellington lady is playing dirty.

-Oh, Glo. -Hey, Glo.

I like your hair natural like this.

Ah, I see you've heard.

Okay, what is the mugshot for, Glo?

That was years ago. I wrote a bad check.

-Did you do time? -No, no.

I had to go through this county program

about how to manage your finances.

[sighs] Oh, I guess this kills my campaign.

Oh, no. No, it doesn't.

I don't know, Malik, but Glo, people are asking what you did.

Look, just like you weathered the storm

with those first bad flyers,

you can weather this storm, too. You know what?

How about you let me manage your campaign?

I don't have any money to pay you.

No, it's fine. All right, I'll do it for free.

It'll help me sharpen my campaign management skills.

-I like that, Son. -[Malik] Yeah.

-Me, too, Malik. -Thank you.

I'm so proud of you, nephew.

Well, uh, you got a deal.

All right, now watch me work, and I promise you,

I'm gonna win this campaign, Ms. Glo.

[upbeat music]

Yeah, Daddy. I know.

Daddy, I gotta go. Calvin just walked in.

Okay. Bye.

Laura, can we talk?

I really don't want to talk to you, Calvin.

Yeah, well, we need to talk.

Look, you disrespected my son, Laura,

and why would you cause a scene at a little boy's party?

I bought a gift for your son

with money that I scraped up to buy.

A gift that was way too expensive, Laura.

And first off, why would you buy Christian a cell phone

and not discuss it with me first?

I asked Christian what he wanted for his birthday,

and he said a cell phone.

So I went out and put my money together

and bought the boy that I love, your son, a cell phone.

Crucify me!

Yeah, but you still should have discussed it with me, Laura.

And when I said no, you should have respected me

and not caused a scene at a little boy's party.

Oh, I could have caused a scene, but I didn't.

-I chose to leave instead. -Which caused a scene.

No, you, Miranda, and your mama made the scene, Calvin.

All Miranda said was that Christian was too young

for a cellphone.

And all Miranda had to do was pull me to the side

to tell me that, Calvin.

And you, my fiancé,

all you had to do was pull me to the side and tell me that.

But no, instead you chose to embarrass me

in front of all those people.

No, Laura, you embarrassed yourself.

Oh, really? So that's what happened?

Yes, it is.

You know, you make everything about you.

Today it wasn't about you. It was about Christian.

Yes, it was about Christian. It was all about Christian

until you and your family went on the attack.

-Oh, nobody attacked you. -Yes, they did, Calvin.

Oh, my God.

And then you didn't even have my back

and you joined in on the attack.

Look, if you would have respected me as a man

and listened,

none of this would have blown up.

You want me to respect you as a man,

but the same man cannot even protect me?

-Protect you? -Yes, protect me, Calvin.

You never have my back

when it comes to issues with your family.

Laura, Laura, what are you talking about?

I would always protect you if you needed protection.

[sighs] But you didn't. And you don't.

And at this point, I don't even expect you to.

Oh, no, no.

You ain't about to turn this around on me, Laura.

The way you acted today was completely unacceptable.

At the end of the day, I feel like I can't count on you.

-And I'm tired. -Hell, whatever. I'm tired.

You know, the way you acted today makes me really...

Makes you want to what? Say it, Calvin! Say it!

It makes me really think that we gotta do a lot of thinking

before we move forward with this wedding, Laura.

[dramatic music]

Well, let me help you.

So you don't have to put any more thought

into any of this any longer.

But what the hell is that supposed to mean?

I'm not marrying you, Calvin. I'm done.

Right here, right now.

You sure that's what you want?

[inhales]

Here, Calvin.

Have a nice life.

[panting]

[knocking on door]

You ready, sweetheart?

Yes, Daddy.

[soft music]

-Well, what happened? -Excuse me?

You haven't protected her.

I don't need direction about what a man is supposed to do.

Elect Gloria Champagne. She's kind and she's tough!

And our neighborhood.

That's not a slogan. That's a soliloquy.

Calvin, where was Laura?

I didn't want to say nothin',

but I was thinking the same thing.

Don't tell me Laura's

still holding on to all of that stuff, man.

-She needs to stop. -[exhales]

[music]

[music]

[music]