04x05 - Helping Is Hard

[bunniefuu]

In my younger days, I did a
lot of damage to my community,

but now that we got[ Tompkins Marcy
reopened, all that's gonna change.

What up, boy-boy?

I was gonna be helping
all sorts of people.

You strong, kid. Let's see
you get strong. [LAUGHS]

I got a young fighter off
the streets and into the ring.

Javi, you got a gift, man.

The ring is where you belong, kid.

Just keep working, man. You can
be anything God wants you to be.

Ya heard? Gold medalist, world champ.

- You really think so?
- Absolutely.

First, you gotta believe, man.

Let me see that smoke,
man. Let me see whatchu got.

I got people learning
how to make things grow.

Look. Mr. Tray, we're planting tomatoes.

That is great, Clarice. I
hope they don't end up tasting

like somebody's old stinky
feet that was in that boot last.

[BOTH LAUGH]

Most importantly,

I was finally teaching
people how to cook.

Bring this over here.

Oh, I forgot to tell
y'all, our stove is broken.

So what? You don't need a stove to cook.

You think the cavemen had a stove

when they was trying to
cook a brontosaurus burger?

No. In this kitchen, all you need is...

[SIZZLING] Heat.

- [DISTANT SHOUTING]
- Coming through, folks!

- Clear it out, folks! Coming through!
- What the...

One minute, class.

Coming through. Nothing to see here.

Just removing this homeless
guy from the bathroom.

I'm just trying to use the facilities.

Here's some information
for places for you to go,

you know, to take care of
what you need to take care of.

But, unfortunately, none of that is here

because we don't do that.

I don't need a pamphlet,
lady... I need a bathroom.

Jaybird!

Oh! What's up, Tray?

But of all the people
I thought I was going to help,

I never thought it would be a friend.

[LAUGHS]

[SIZZLING]

Mmm.

Thanks again for the burger, Tray.

Oh, there's a unique
aftertaste in there.

I can't quite put my finger on it.

Spray starch.

- [BOTH LAUGHING]
- That's what it...

I thought that's what it was.

- Yep, yep, yep.
- I thought that's what it was.

The stove was broke, so
I had to use the iron.

Oh, well, look at the Iron Chef.

You have completely
infiltrated the system.

I'm talking about working for the city,

getting consistent
checks... I dig, Tray.

Yo, I thought you was working
at that nice restaurant.

n*gga, you know the drill.

I got fired as soon as they found out

I was previously incarcerated.

You know how they do us.
You know how they do us.

As soon as I lost the job, I
had to give up on the place,

and I had to move in with my girl.

And that's when sh*t got tight-tight.

When you ain't getting that bag, man,

that put a strain on your relationship.

That, and, uh...

I was smashing her sister Katrina.

Now, before you judge me, I
was gonna move in with Katrina.

But then her hater-a*s husband

was slowing up on the process, bruh.

Wouldn't let us be happy.

Oh, Jay, you a wild-a*s boy, man.
I can't believe you on the streets.

Whoa, slow your roll, boy.

All right, look, I might
couch-surf and whatnot,

and, you know, I've crashed
in the park, but it be nice nights.

But I ain't nobody
living on the streets.

Tray, I need to file a...

No, no, no, no, no, no, no.

What are you doing in here, my friend?

We talked about this already, sweetie.

You're gonna have to go. I'm sorry.

- Veesy, he's cool. I know him. He's all right.
- You know him?

Yeah, we go back like
spinal cords and car seats.

- He good people. He goodie.
- Yeah, Veesy, I'm good people.

All right, but unfortunately, sir, I...

Actually, I'm really sorry.

You're gonna have to
vacate the premises.

You know, I was headed out anyway.

Catch up with you later, Tray.

Burger. Mm-mm.

Have a good evening, sir.

- Veesy, why you do that?
- What are you talking about?

Tray, come on, now, we have rules.

Yeah, but this is supposed
to be a community center.

Jaybird's a part of the community.

Yes, but he's also homeless,
and we are not a shelter.

He's only on the streets
'cause he can't find a job.

And don't we offer that vocational class

to help people find jobs?

Yes, but this is different.
The man's homeless.

How he supposed to get off
the streets if he can't get a job...

when you won't let him take
a class to help him get a job?

Jay to the Bird is a
good friend of mine's.

Give him one chance.

Fine, but if this sh*t goes
west, it is on your a*s.

He can be in the class,
do the interview sh*t,

and what you need to do, since
you want to be such a great friend,

- find him a place to sleep.
- Done.

Is this my...

Yo, I've been looking
for this iron everywhere.

- Mm?
- What is this crunchy sh*t on my iron?

- I don't know.
- It smells like food.

What is it? Clean it.

Acting like a f*cking kid.

What's wrong with you?
You so damn childish.

[UPBEAT ELECTRONIC MUSIC]

♪

- Hand me the Lord.
- Yes.

Hello, Lord. [GRUNTS] All right.

You're gonna have to help me here.

I can't see, so you
tell me if it's straight.

- Okay, it's a little crooked.
- That's a little crooked?

Yeah. Uh, perfect.

- That's good?
- Perfect. Thank you, Josh.

It is my pleasure.

I mean, after all you do,

helping with the kids while Shay's
been away, it's the least I can do.

If you need anything, you let me know.

Well, you know, in
fact, there is something.

I have an appraiser coming
at the exact same time

I volunteered to work at the church.

It would be so helpful if
someone else could be here

to let the appraiser in.

- I'd be more than happy to do it.
- Oh...

- Yeah, of course.
- That's wonderful.

God bless you, Josh.

- Uh-huh.
- Thank you, baby.

And how am I gonna say
no with Him staring at me?

♪

Ruperto, I wanna thank
you for helping me

get all this equipment
for the kids in here.

All I did was ask around, Tray.

Believe it or not, lots of
dudes remember this place, man.

They was happy to donate, brother.

- Yo, what's up, Ruperto?
- What's up, Shahzad?

- Hey, Amira...
- Nothing. What's up, Dad?

What up, baby boy?

- So this is where you grew up, huh?
- Yep.

Well, it smells like y'all
haven't cleaned it since then.

Let me tell you something, young lady...
That's the smell of hard work.

- [GRUNTING]
- Ooh.

Whoa. Did y'all see that? That was fast.

- Yo, Dad, who was that?
- His name is Javi.

If he keep working hard
like that, he gonna be huge.

Javier, come down.

I want you to meet my kids, man.

This is my son, Shahzad.
This is my princess, Amira.

- Hey.
- Yo, that was crazy, man.

Thanks.

What do you think?

Oh. It was aight. [LAUGHTER]

- How are your hands?
- They're good.

You running like I told you to do?

- [DOOR CLOSES]
- Javito!

- [SPEAKING SPANISH]
- sh*t, it's my moms.

- [SPEAKING SPANISH]
- Mama.

[SPEAKING SPANISH]

[SPEAKING SPANISH]

Yo, she said that he hasn't
been to school in three days, man.

[SPEAKING SPANISH]

He doesn't want to go
back to school, man,

that he wanna be a boxer, bro.

[SPEAKING SPANISH]

She wants to know who told him that.

Yo, that's not good, bro.

El diablo.

I know what it mean,
Ruperto. I know what it mean.

[DRAMATIC MUSIC]

I do not know why Javi's
mother is so upset.

I got his best intentions at heart.

This boy got so much talent.

Oh, reminds me, Josh called.

Shahzad is in trouble at school.

- What?
- Apparently he is cutting class

so that he can hang out
with some older kids.

I don't know. You know, call Josh.

Ma, what older kids?
I will whup they a*s.

This is my son.

Well, that's exactly what
Javier's mama is thinking.

[GROANS] You know something, Ma?

- What?
- I never looked at it like that.

Well, sometimes it's good to look at it

from another angle, you know.

She don't know what your intentions are.

All she knows is her son is not
doing what he's supposed to do.

- I gotta fix this.
- Yes, you do.

- [LINE TRILLING]
- Yo, what up, kid?

- What up, Tray?
- Yo, do me a favor.

[ELECTRONIC MUSIC]

♪

Yo, this the spot, man.
I just wish I had called ahead.

Man, I'm from Brooklyn.
I don't be coming Uptown like this, man.

This here's all worth it, man,
whatchu wanna do for homeboy, man.

You looking out.

Saludo.

El diablo aquí.

I know. I'd like to apologize.

[RUPERTO SPEAKING SPANISH]

- Tienen cinco minutos.
- You got five minutes, kid.

That's all I need.

After her husband died, she was forced

to raise three kids alone
while working two jobs

and that you are a distraction
she doesn't need right now.

[SPEAKING SPANISH]

He's fighting in the streets, man.
She don't want that for Javi.

That's the reason why he should box,

to work out that aggression, okay?

The center is much more
than just about boxing.

We have so many different programs,

not only for Javi, but
for your daughters, too.

[SPEAKING SPANISH]

[SPEAKING SPANISH]

She said that Javi's
way behind on his grades.

I can get him a tutor.

As a matter of fact, let her know

that I can get my own kids to do it.

Hmm.

- [CHUCKLES]
- What's going on?

What's going on?

A Dominican background
check on your tutors.

Muchísimas gracias.

She gonna do it, but don't f*ck this up.

- [CHUCKLES]
- You smiling, and she's not.

'Cause she's Dominican, baby.

- Hey. You the appraiser?
- That's me, Howard Long.

All Borough Appraisals.

Nice to meet you. I'm sorry I'm late.

Ah, no worries.

I was just admiring
all these brownstones.

A couple of these
date back to the 1840s.

- No kidding.
- Yeah, I'm a fan of pre-w*r row houses.

Yeah.

Come on in.

Thank you.

Oh, wow.

- This is some nice place!
- Yeah.

- [CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS]
- Oh, this is strong and sturdy.

Really well cared for.

Love it. She's a strong house.

Okay.

Oh! [CHUCKLES]

My wife has that exact same pillow.

- No kidding.
- [LAUGHS]

[CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS]

I love the original wood trim.

- Yeah, it's great.
- [EXHALES DEEPLY]

You have a good-looking
family right there.

[CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS]

[SMOOTH MUSIC]

Oh. Hey, new guy.

How could you let this
happen in your presence?

♪

Okay, class, so who's ready
to change their life, huh?

That's what I'm talking about.

Tray, I'm ready to change this class.

- Just give it a chance, Jay.
- This class...

- Just give it a chance!
- So it is important

when we are doing a job interview

that we remember three things.

Maintain eye contact, be confident,

and always, always be honest, okay?

All right, who wants to start today?

Uh, Jaybird, why don't we
start with you, sweetie?

Are you ready?

Okay. All right.

[CLEARS THROAT]

Do you see this job as
a short-term opportunity

or a long-term opportunity?

Well, if I had to answer, I'mma stack

as many paychecks as I can
until your background check

sees that I was previously incarcerated.

So it could be short term, a long term,

but, ultimately, it's gonna
be on y'all's term, so I-I...

Ooh. You keeping it real?

Yes, Viola, he is
keeping it real, right?

And I said earlier that honesty
is the most important thing.

But, class, I think in this situation,

you could maybe rephrase that answer.

[SIGHS] Okay.

But when folks find out my past,
they don't want to give me a chance.

Right, baby, but the thing is
that everybody's got obstacles

- in their life, am I right?
- Yeah.

But, you know...

you gotta get over 'em, right?

Sometimes you got to get around them

and, hell, get through them.

That's the most important part.
You gotta get through them.

Easy for you to say
and do. You got a job.

My n*gga, don't get it twisted.
I worked for this sh*t.

[LAUGHS] Okay, okay, look, look, look,

I got vocational training
in the joint, all right?

I can repair cars. I can fix sh*t.

You know, do a lot of stuff,
if somebody gives me a chance.

- Y'all have a beautiful f*cking day.
- Yo, Jay, Jay,

- You have a beautiful day!
- Jay! Yo, Jay, come on, man!

This is what I'm talking about, man!

Well, I'm sorry that you
had to bear witness to th...

Actually, you know what? I'm not

sorry that you had
to bear witness to that,

because that's actually
a teachable moment

of exactly what not
to do in an interview

and, quite honestly,
what not to do in life.

So, since honesty is off the table,

I'm gonna say I have a PhD from Yale.

Mitochondria.

Uh, what does that do, again?

It's the powerhouse of the cell.

- It's like boxing.
- Oh, right.

So it breaks down fuel molecules

the same way I break somebody's jaw.

That's it. [INDISTINCT CHATTER]

Would you mind putting
it in your headphones?

We're trying to study.

What are you watching?

It's this stupid show
called "R-I-P Flip."

- She's addicted.
- It's "Rip Flip," dummy.

It's a show about a guy who flips
houses where murders took place.

I know. I love that show.

- What?
- [SCOFFS] Yeah, right.

I do, especially the
episode where he's trying

to flip this house where
there's a double m*rder

and then he finds the third body.

Yeah, it was so gross when
those bones fell out the wall.

Oh, man, let's get back to this.

♪

Which one are you watching now?

Check this out.

[CHUCKLES] Hold on.

What is happening?

♪

Yo, I'm sorry, man.

I know I let you down back there,

but you got to understand...
She just a negative person.

I can't have that in
my chakras right now.

And besides, she ain't have
a sense of humor, anyway.

Just mean-mugging and scowling
the whole g*dd*mn time.

Yeah, but it would have helped

if you'd have took it
serious, which you didn't.

So what's done is done.

I still wanna do something for you.

Figure out a way to
get you off the streets.

Ah, cool, cool, cool.

Come over your spot, score me
a couch or something, right?

You out your rabid-a*s mind.

You ain't staying at my
crib. You staying here.

n*gga, this a homeless shelter.
What the f*ck, Tray? I'm not homeless.

- I'm houseless.
- Same soup, different bowl.

I ain't trying to stay the f*ck here.
This is f*cked up, man.

I never turn my back on a friend.

You know you mean more
to me than that, okay?

Ain't nothing else I
can do for you. I can't.

Now, the first step to
solving your problem...

You got to admit you got one.

You can't help nobody that
don't want to be helped.

- I'm trying, man!
- Alright, maybe I got a little one, man.

What's little about it, Jay?

The next person to help you

got to be you, man.

- [SNIFFS]
- It got to be you.

Billy C is in there right now, my dude.

I just hope you don't f*ck this up, man.

You're my man.

But, Tray, I ain't homeless, man.

I'm not homeless, cuz. I'm not.

I'm not homeless, Tray. Yo!

I remember saying that exact
same thing when I was homeless.

Come on, why don't you come inside?

We'll get you a meal. It's all good.

It'll be okay. Come on.

[SERIOUS MUSIC]

♪

[INDISTINCT CHATTER ON TV]

[DOORBELL RINGS]

Oh, hi, Josh.

Come on in.

[DOOR BUZZES]

[DOOR OPENS, CLOSES]

- How are you?
- Good.

Oh, good. You having a good day?

Mm-hmm.

Good, good, good,
good, good, good, good.

So, uh, you want to tell me
what the hell happened yesterday

and when I became the father
in a very pale Nordic family?

I didn't say that that was your family.

I can't help what that man thought.

I'm just glad he thought it. Ha ha!

What? What are you talking about?

Listen, I knew I was gonna get

a better interest rate
on my mortgage refi

if he thought you owned the house.

No. No, no, no, no. That's crazy.

Then how come it
appraised for 30% higher

than when I had the
Black Jesus on the wall?

- I don't...
- Open your eyes, Josh.

[CHATTER CONTINUES ON TV]

Oh. Oh, wow.

Don't feel bad, okay? You're a gift.

A white boy in my
family... Why not use him?

You know what? We're gonna
write a letter to the bank.

We might even sue them.

I don't want to spend
my money on legal fees.

No, I just want a lower interest rate.

All right, well, you're welcome.

Glad I could help.

- We just got started.
- What?

You and me make a good team.

Wait till next week when
the insurance man comes.

You and your Nordic
family are gonna get me

that white-privilege discount.

- Mm! Mm!
- No, no, no, no, no.

[BOTH LAUGHING]

All right, Javi, I finished
grading your practice test.

- Javi.
- Look at that. [LAUGHS]

Javi.

Javi!

- [LAUGHS] That's insane.
- Okay.

Okay.

Wow.

[CELL PHONE RINGING]

- Tray, answer that phone!
- I'm trying. I can't find it.

You want me to call it?

Somebody's already calling it, Ma.

[CELL PHONE CONTINUES RINGING]

Tray, we caught Jaybird
breaking in at the center.

- What?
- Get down here now.

Oh, sh*t! I'll be right there.

[CELL PHONE RINGING]

That's me calling! Did you find it?

Oh!

Tray! Don't ignore me.

- Just listen a minute!
- Shut up! Shut up before I have you Tased!

Tray, the alarm went off,

and this security guard
found this fool in here.

- The police is on its way.
- Jaybird, this ain't you.

What's going on?

- I was trying to hook y'all up.
- By breaking in?

- No, thank you, my dude. We good.
- Just check the stove.

[STOVE CLICKING]

- He fixed the stove.
- And the oven.

And the hinge to the microwave.

And the Foreman grill.

I was trying to say thank you

for getting me that bed at
the shelter the other night.

When I was asleep there, I
realized I needed some help,

and you was trying to help
me... The both of y'all were.

But I was just wasting your time.

- And I'm sorry.
- [SIGHS]

Jay, you really be working my nerves.

You wanna do that interview thing again?

sh**t, queen.

[CLEARS THROAT]

Mister Bird, what jobs have you had?

I've been a handyman,
done some house painting...

And I might be the world's worst waiter.

You know, the service industry's
just not my strong suit.

sh*t, I don't even wear a suit.

Do you know how to
fix a hot-water heater?

Why, yes, ma'am. That's light work.

Mm. That's really crazy,
because, you know, we actually...

We're looking for a maintenance man.

[CHUCKLES] So whatchu
saying... I was right about him?

See, you always put too much on it.

Whatchu can do right now is work on this

now-working oven and
make us some breakfast.

That's her way of saying
I was right about you, kid.

Hey, look, who's hungry, man?

I'm gonna make some
Crunch Berry fritters,

prison style. [CELL PHONE RINGING]

Oh, my phone's ringing.

Yeah, Mommy, I found it.
Uh-huh. Yeah...

I'm sorry. Mm-hmm. Yes, ma'am.

[MUZAK PLAYING]

♪

Excuse me.

Ma'am, have you paid for those chips?

♪

Josh.

Oh, we'll pay on the way out.

Great.

Thanks for shopping.

♪

Hmm.

You wanna see how my people do grapes?

- Okay.
- You're gonna love it.

Lead the way.

♪