Forget and Forgive

by DoctorH

This is a Twilight Zone teleplay, just like an episode from the TV series from 1959-64. A young married couple acquires a strange crystal ball, which tells them not their future, but their past. Where could be the the harm in knowing the past? This story explores that question.

"Forget and Forgive"

(AUTHOR'S NOTE: I've seen a lot of "Zones," but I haven't seen them all. To my knowledge, Rod Serling did not explore the issues posed in the episode scripted below. Who would be good actors for the roles of Katherine and Richard? How about Tina Louise and Bill Bixby? Or Elizabeth Montgomery and James Franciscus? For the shop owner, many actors could do well, though I had Howard Da Silva in mind. The Narrator, of course, could only be one particular man.)

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ACT I

(FADE IN. ESTABLISHING SHOT OF A HOME IN MIDDLE AMERICA, MORNING. The home is in a nice neighborhood with a wide city street having trees on either side. CUT TO: INTERIOR OF THE HOME, THE KITCHEN. Mister RICHARD Bartholomew is seated at the breakfast table, drinking a cup of coffee and reading a newspaper. On the wall near the breakfast table is a telephone. RICHARD is wearing a business suit, but his jacket has been draped over the back of his chair. He wears a white shirt and dark tie. His wife, KATHERINE Bartholomew, is cleaning up. KATHERINE wears a pretty dress.)

KATHERINE
Don't forget, Richard, I'm making you a birthday dinner tonight! Don't be late!

RICHARD (engrossed in his newspaper)
I won't.

KATHERINE
We'll have chocolate cake, your favorite.

RICHARD (still engrossed in his newspaper)
That sounds nice.

(RICHARD abruptly glances at his wristwatch. Upon seeing the time, RICHARD hastily puts down the newspaper, and stands, taking a final sip of his coffee as he does so. After putting down his coffee cup on the table, RICHARD pulls his coat from the back of the chair and hastily puts it on.)

RICHARD (putting on his coat)
If I'm not careful, I'll be late for work! Oh, Katherine, for my birthday dinner tonight, make a chocolate cake, would you?

(KATHERINE smiles, and does not bother to mention that she had already said she was going to have chocolate cake.)

KATHERINE
Of course, dear, chocolate cake it is.

RICHARD (moving to the door)
And no surprise party! Just the two of us, and a quiet dinner!

KATHERINE
Of course, Richard.

(RICHARD is about to exit the home. KATHERINE follows him.)

RICHARD
And I hope you didn't get me another necktie as a present!

(KATHERINE's face falls. RICHARD understands at once that she did get him a tie.)

RICHARD
Oh, Honey, you KNOW I already have enough ties!

KATHERINE
I just thought—

(KATHERINE looks at RICHARD's expression and sees she can't talk her husband into liking another tie.)

KATHERINE (resigned)
I'll take it back.

RICHARD (smiling kindly, holding KATHERINE's shoulders)
If you really want to get me a present that I can use, get me something that tells me the future, so that I'll know what stocks I ought to buy!

(RICHARD smiles, and kisses KATHERINE. RICHARD exits. KATHERINE smiles, but immediately wonders what gift she is going to get for RICHARD. CUT TO: ESTABLISHING SHOT OF A HABERDASHERY, LATE MORNING. The haberdashery has a sign above its display window saying "Haberdashery"; the display window has an array of ties over which there is a sign that says, "Ties for all occasions!" The haberdashery is between two other businesses, neither of which can be seen at first. The front door of the haberdashery opens, and KATHERINE exits, apparently putting refund money into her purse. KATHERINE closes her purse and sighs. She looks around, and sees next to the haberdashery a shop, its sign reading "ECHO'S WIZARDING EMPORIUM." The shop has a small display window with a few curios in it; painted on the window are the words, "Adornments, Mysteries and Magical Objects!" Below that, in smaller lettering, are the words: "Love! Fortune! The Future!" Intrigued, KATHERINE approaches the shop. KATHERINE glances into the window.)

NARRATOR (V.O.)
Mrs. Katherine Bartholomew, married for just over one year to Mr. Richard Bartholomew, who today celebrates his birthday.

(KATHERINE enters the shop and disappears. FAST PAN to the NARRATOR, standing in front of another nondescript shop.)

NARRATOR
As a birthday present, Katherine had planned to give Richard a necktie. She has since returned the necktie for a refund, and is now contemplating a different gift for her husband. Richard's offhand remark, that Katherine ought to buy him something that would tell him the future, has no doubt prompted Katherine to enter a shop that purports to sell magical artifacts. Katherine is sensible and certainly recognizes that most of said artifacts are hokum. But what Katherine does not realize is that there may be a genuine article or two among the many frauds, and one of those genuine articles may impel her into the Twilight Zone.

(FADE OUT.)

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ACT II

(FADE IN. INTERIOR OF THE WIZARDING EMPORIUM. There are many odd items all about the room: stuffed animals, amulets, lucky charms, platforms, tarot cards, etc. There is a small counter with a cash register. The interior is dimly lit. SUPERIMPOSED IS THE TITLE: "Forget and Forgive." TITLE VANISHES. KATHERINE moves among the odd items, looking at them, wondering what some of them are. KATHERINE is the only person in the room. ECHO, a kindly gentleman in his early sixties, enters the room from behind a curtain, and watches KATHERINE as she examines some of the objects. KATHERINE picks up what appears to be a statue of a demon holding out his hand palm up, and examines it. ECHO smiles and softly clears his throat, making KATHERINE aware of his presence.)

ECHO
Good morning, Ma'am. I am Echo. May I help you with anything?

(KATHERINE quickly places the statue back where she got it.)

KATHERINE
Oh, I'm just, er, looking.

ECHO
For a birthday gift? For your husband?

KATHERINE (quite surprised)
How did you know that?

ECHO (smiling)
You might think it was because I am a wizard, but that is not the case. No, I merely guessed you were looking for a gift because I wouldn't expect anyone to come inside my shop looking to buy something for himself. My merchandise tends to be thought of as things given as gifts.

KATHERINE
Oh.

ECHO
And I thought you might be shopping for your husband, because you wear a wedding band.

(ECHO points to his own ring finger, which has no ring on it. KATHERINE nods in understanding.)

ECHO
But that was just a guess. You could have been shopping for a gift for your sister.

KATHERINE (uncomfortably)
I don't have a sister.

ECHO (laughing kindly)
And so you have just proven that I am not an actual wizard, since real wizards don't make mistakes like that!

(KATHERINE smiles, warming up to ECHO.)

ECHO
Now, may I be of assistance to you? Is there anything that your husband likes, any hobbies that he pursues?

KATHERINE
Well, I— (a little sheepish) I was wondering, what is this— object?

(KATHERINE picks up the statue of the demon.)

ECHO
That is the Imp of Golden Hill, a representation of a diminutive supernatural fellow. You see, you write a wish on a piece of paper, fold the paper, and place it in the Imp's hand.

KATHERINE (examining the statue)
And what? The Imp grants the wish?

ECHO
The Imp may grant the wish or not; but if he does grant it, he will cause one of your loved ones to suffer a grave misfortune as a price for your wish. Or at least, that is how the story goes.

(KATHERINE, somewhat put off by the story, puts the demon statue back. ECHO approaches KATHERINE, but not too close.)

ECHO
In reality, the Imp of Golden Hill is merely a small statue made of clay, with no supernatural power at all. Make all the wishes you want, and this statue has absolutely nothing to do with whether or not the wishes come to pass.

KATHERINE
Oh?

ECHO
I've tried it myself. I've made wishes, put them in the Imp's hand. Most never came true. For those that did come true, nothing mystical happened, and no one close to me ever suffered any misfortune as far as I knew. The Imp is quite harmless. But he does make an interesting conversation piece.

(KATHERINE picks up a large amulet on a chain.)

KATHERINE
What is this?

ECHO
It is supposed to make a person lucky in games of chance. I have tried that one as well; I took it to Las Vegas to see whether I got lucky in the casinos' games of chance. (chuckling) I didn't. This amulet is not lucky, not really. It's just a piece of molded metal on a chain. But it is a nice piece of jewelry. Though I doubt your husband would be interested in it.

KATHERINE (putting down the amulet)
No, he would never wear anything like that. He might wear something like this, though.

(KATHERINE picks up what appears to be a man's hat. It looks like an ordinary hat, except for a strange-looking leaf sticking out of the hatband.)

ECHO
Ah, that is hat that is said to concentrate thought. It helps the wearer be smarter and remember more.

KATHERINE
Did you try it? Did it work?

ECHO
I did try it, and, sadly, no, it did not perform as advertised. I wore it for a week, and noticed no changes in my mental abilities. But it is a fashionable chapeau, wouldn't you say?

(KATHERINE puts down the hat.)

KATHERINE (sheepish, but also curious)
Do you have anything that— supposedly— can predict the future?

ECHO
Oh, yes, quite a few things.

(ECHO motions for KATHERINE to step to a different part of the room. There are a number of books and objects on display, one of which is a crystal ball. ECHO gestures toward many of the items as he talks.)

ECHO
We have books here on reading various signs in tea leaves, clouds, and the like. We have tarot cards and prognosticating pendulums. We have fortune-telling dice and wheels that are said to reveal one's destiny. We have—

KATHERINE
Do any of them work?

ECHO (with a chuckle)
Ma'am, I have personally tested them all. Let me put it this way: As articles of entertainment, they succeed in entertaining; but as predictors of the future, they all have very limited practical value.

(KATHERINE points to the crystal ball, and walks toward it.)

KATHERINE
Now, that object is attractive, at least. Maybe it can't actually tell you the future, but it looks nice and can be a lovely decoration for a shelf or a mantle.

ECHO (suddenly serious)
That object, er, does not tell the future.

KATHERINE (thinking she knows what ECHO is about to say)
I know, you've tested it and it doesn't work.

ECHO (carefully)
Oh, it works, all right. It's one of the few things in here that DOES work. It just doesn't predict the future, is all.

KATHERINE
It's— it's a crystal ball, that DOESN'T predict the future? What, then, DOES it do?

ECHO (uncomfortably)
I don't think you or your husband would be interested in this item.

KATHERINE
What DOES it do?

ECHO
It, er, shows the past. Not the future, the past.

KATHERINE (disappointed)
Is that all? It shows the past? What good is that?

ECHO
That is a matter for debate.

KATHERINE
I don't understand. You say this crystal ball actually WORKS?

(ECHO takes a moment, and then nods.)

ECHO
Yes.

KATHERINE
How?

(ECHO sighs, then decides to explain.)

ECHO
You stare into the crystal, and after a few seconds, you will see an event from your past. It will NOT be a memory, it will NOT be an event that you can recall happening. But it will be an important event from your past.

KATHERINE
Can I select what events to view? Could I witness, say, the signing of the Declaration of Independence?

ECHO
No, you only get to see an incident from YOUR past, an event that has changed the course of your life, or that has helped make YOU who YOU are. (shrugs) And that's all that happens.

KATHERINE
And I get what, three wishes or something? Three chances to see my own past?

ECHO (uncomfortably)
No, you may stare into the crystal as many times as you like, and it will show you different events each time: you may see things that affected you that you didn't know about, or things you overlooked, or consequences of your actions of which you were unaware—

KATHERINE (admiring the crystal ball)
How much is it?

(ECHO takes a moment.)

ECHO
Ten dollars. If you are planning to use it as a decorative item or a conversation piece, that would be fine. But I would not use it for—

KATHERINE
I think it would be a nice thing for Richard's office.

ECHO
May I recommend one thing to you? (with tact) Ma'am, I suspect that, regardless of your intentions, you will want to test the crystal yourself. Usually there is no harm in one experimental use. But further uses tend to be, well, less pleasant. So after you have had your experiment, you should say to the crystal, "Show me no more!" Have you got that? "Show me no more!" And if you say that to the crystal, it will show you no more, forever. You should tell your husband the same thing. He should say to the crystal—

KATHERINE
"Show me no more."

ECHO
Yes. And then it will just become, for him, an ordinary artifact.

(ECHO picks up the crystal ball and carries it to the checkout area, setting it next to the cash register. He searches for, and finds, a box in which to put the crystal ball.)

ECHO
It is a beautiful piece. And I'm sure your husband— and you— will enjoy it, as long as you don't, er, misuse it.

(KATHERINE opens her purse.)

KATHERINE
Ten dollars, I believe you said?

(CUT TO: THE HOME IN MIDDLE AMERICA, MID-DAY. CUT TO: INTERIOR OF THE HOME. KATHERINE enters the front door, carrying the box in which the crystal ball sits. KATHERINE enters the kitchen and places the box on a table. KATHERINE starts to assemble cake pans and ingredients for a cake, but she looks at box and her attention lingers there. She looks at the kitchen clock then back at the box.)

KATHERINE
It shows you your past! But not a memory? How could that be?

(KATHERINE goes to the table, opens the box, removes some tissue paper from the box, and extracts the crystal ball, placing it on the table. KATHERINE looks at the crystal ball for a second or two, and then sits in a chair next to the crystal ball.)

KATHERINE
It works, does it? (imitating ECHO) "It's one of the few things in here that DOES work." (in her normal voice) All right. Let's see how well it works.

(KATHERINE exhales. Her breath clouds the crystal momentarily. KATHERINE stares at the crystal. Nothing happens. KATHERINE furrows her brow and stares at the crystal.)

KATHERINE
I'm waiting—!

(In the crystal, there is a very small change. A shadow moves, or a blur seems to come and go. KATHERINE's brow unfurls, and her eyebrows rise. The image in the crystal slowly comes into focus. The image resolves into a small house in a different neighborhood. The house has a small front yard next to a busy city street. A SMALL GIRL, certainly younger than two years old, is toddling in the yard. An OLDER WOMAN and an OLDER MAN, both in their 20s, are in the yard, engaged in conversation. The woman is smoking a cigarette. The man takes a pack of cigarettes from his shirt breast pocket, but fumbles the pack and it flies off and falls near the house. The OLDER WOMAN and OLDER MAN both chase the pack, and while their attention is diverted, the SMALL GIRL toddles into the street. A car is coming down the street. The OLDER WOMAN is still trying to get the pack of cigarettes when the OLDER MAN realizes that the SMALL GIRL is wandering into the street. The OLDER MAN shouts something, but his shout is unheard, and he charges after the SMALL GIRL. The SMALL GIRL is in the street, and the oncoming driver does not see her. The OLDER MAN runs into the street and dives, pushing the SMALL GIRL out of the path of the car. Immediately after that, the DRIVER of the car sees what is happening; his foot jams on the car's brakes. Smoke is generated by the car's skidding tires. But the action is apparently too late. The OLDER MAN's body rolls in the street. The SMALL GIRL, pushed to safety, cries. The OLDER WOMAN comes running. The DRIVER gets out of his now-stopped car and tries to attend to the OLDER MAN, who is dead. The SMALL GIRL cries, and is picked up by the OLDER WOMAN, who tries to comfort the SMALL CHILD awhile staring in horror at the body of the OLDER MAN in the street. KATHERINE's head springs backwards, her eyes wide, her face horrified. It takes her moments to recover.)

KATHERINE (blankly)
Uncle Joel! That was my home! And that was my Mother, and my Uncle Joel! And me!

(KATHERINE is badly shaken. She looks around for a moment. Her gaze locks on the telephone mounted to the wall near the table. KATHERINE picks up the receiver, listens for a dial tone, and then dials seven digits.)

KATHERINE (voice shaky)
Hello, Mom? It's Katherine. (pause) I'm fine, Mom, just fine. (awkwardly) How are you? (pause) That's good. Say, Mom, I was just wondering about— about Uncle Joel. (pause) Because I saw a picture of him, and it reminded me, and well, you know, you told me that Uncle Joel died when he had an accident at the factory. (pause) Well, I was just wondering: did he REALLY die in front of our home? Did he get hit by a car? (pause) Nobody told me! I'm just wondering! (pause) Mom, I'm a grown woman! I want to know the truth! (adamantly) Did Uncle Joel die by pushing ME out of the way of an oncoming car? (pause) Did he?

(There is a longer pause. KATHERINE begins to cry.)

KATHERINE
No, it's all right, Mom. I had to know the truth. Thank you for telling me. Good-bye, Mom. I love you.

(KATHERINE hangs up. She weeps, and as she does so, she looks at the crystal ball. KATHERINE is mesmerized as an image starts to form in the crystal. The image solidifies into an image of YOUNG KATHERINE, as a teenager, at home. YOUNGER KATHERINE has the same color of hair as KATHERINE, and a similar hair style as well. KATHERINE stops weeping as she watches the image of her younger self. YOUNG KATHERINE is looking over a desk, which is covered with important-looking papers. A close-up of one of the papers shows them to be legal documents with language like "Whereas" and "The Party of the First Part" being legible. On the desk, perched on a book, is a full cup of coffee. There is an empty swivel chair near the desk. YOUNG KATHERINE doesn't touch anything, but turns to leave, and as she leaves, she carelessly brushes the chair. YOUNG KATHERINE does not look back. PAN to the swivel chair, which strikes the book, which upsets the coffee cup, which spills coffee all over the important papers. Moments later, a man's hand is seen near the papers. Pulling back, it can be seen that the hand belongs to KATHERINE'S FATHER, who is distressed by the scene. He pulls sheets from his desk and finds they are all stained by coffee. KATHERINE'S FATHER holds an open briefcase, into which he was planning to put these documents, but he doesn't see how he can do that with them wet with coffee. KATHERINE pulls her head away from the crystal ball. She is surprised by what she has seen.)

KATHERINE
It was me? Daddy was fired from his job because of ME?

(FADE OUT.)

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ACT III

(FADE IN. ESTABLISHING SHOT OF THE HOME IN MIDDLE AMERICA, LATE AFTERNOON. CUT TO: INTERIOR OF THE HOME, THE DINING ROOM. The dining room is arranged for dinner; the table is set. There is a banner on the wall that reads "Happy Birthday"; and there is a single balloon next to the banner. On the dining room table are a chocolate cake with unlit birthday candles, and a wrapped package the same size and shape as the boxed crystal ball. PAN TO: THE KITCHEN. KATHERINE is preparing an evening meal. There is a sound of the front door opening [SFX]; KATHERINE looks up from her cooking. CUT TO: HOME ENTRYWAY, where RICHARD is entering. RICHARD looks tired, but otherwise happy. RICHARD takes off his jacket and heads to the kitchen. KATHERINE comes to greet him, and they kiss. KATHERINE is neutral, not especially happy, but clearly not sad or weepy as she was earlier.)

KATHERINE (with little emotion)
Happy birthday. How was your day?

(RICHARD tosses his jacket over a chair.)

RICHARD (with good humor)
Rough. Old Man Walters is on the warpath again, and we spent all day trying to make him happy.

(RICHARD looks into the dining room and sees the present and the cake.)

RICHARD (delighted)
That cake sure looks good!

(RICHARD is intrigued by the wrapped present; he goes over and picks up the present, giving it a gentle shake, not enough to hurt anything.)

RICHARD (good-naturedly)
What is this, I wonder? One thing's for sure, it's not a necktie!

(KATHERINE comes into the dining room, carrying a platter of meat slices and potatoes. KATHERINE places the platter on the table. RICHARD sits and moves the platter toward himself. Something is on KATHERINE's mind, and it can't wait.)

KATHERINE
Richard, I know it is your birthday, and I know that it is supposed to be a happy time, but I learned some things today that have been— well, bothersome to me.

(RICHARD takes a fork in hand and prepares to help himself to the food.)

RICHARD
Oh?

KATHERINE (trying to be cheerful, but clearly not)
I wonder whether we could talk about them now.

(RICHARD spears a piece of meat with his fork. RICHARD is still in a good mood, but is wondering what is up.)

RICHARD
All right, Honey, what did you learn today, that's so "bothersome?"

KATHERINE
I learned that, when I was a baby, I was responsible for the death of my Uncle Joel.

(RICHARD drops his fork in surprise. His good nature evaporates, but he is not angry.)

RICHARD
Who told you that?

KATHERINE (shaking her head)
After I found out, I called my mother and asked whether it was true. (takes a swallow) Mom confirmed that it WAS true.

RICHARD
Wait, who told you that you were responsible for the death of your uncle in the first place?

KATHERINE
No one told me.

RICHARD (puzzled)
I don't understand. How did you find—?

(KATHERINE pushes the present toward RICHARD.)

KATHERINE
Open it.

(RICHARD is perplexed.)

RICHARD
I don't understand.

KATHERINE
Open it.

(Still perplexed, RICHARD opens the package and pulls out some paper and the crystal ball. He places the crystal ball on the table. Not sure what to think, he smiles, then chuckles.)

RICHARD
I asked you to get me something that would help me see the future, and you did! You got me a crystal ball.

KATHERINE
Except it doesn't show you the future. It shows you things from the past that have affected your life. Things you didn't know, things you'd forgotten.

(RICHARD is perplexed again.)

KATHERINE (adamantly)
It showed me my uncle sacrificing himself to save my life. That's how I knew.

RICHARD (not sure what to think)
Oh, Katherine! How—?

KATHERINE
I saw my childhood home in the crystal ball. And I saw myself, as a little, little girl. And I saw my mother as a young woman, and I saw a man who I recognized as my Uncle Joel. I never knew my Uncle Joel; Mother told me that he died in a factory accident before I turned two. But this wasn't true. This crystal ball showed me that Uncle Joel pushed me out of the way of an oncoming car. He sacrificed his own life to save my life! I wouldn't be here if it were not for him!

(KATHERINE begins to weep again. RICHARD comforts KATHERINE by holding her hand. KATHERINE'S sobs quickly stop.)

KATHERINE
I called Mom. Mom didn't know how I knew, but she confessed that Uncle Joel had given up his life to save me.

RICHARD
Well!

KATHERINE
Mom said that she never told me the truth, because she didn't want me to feel any guilt in my life for it. You know what? She was right. Ever since I learned the truth, I HAVE felt an enormous burden of guilt! I have been blaming myself! I don't know how I'll ever be able to deal with causing Uncle Joel's death!

RICHARD (empathetic)
I'm certain that feeling will pass! You were a child when it happened! A baby! However it happened, you were not responsible!

KATHERINE
I'm feeling guilty about something else, though. I saw something else in the crystal ball. I learned that, when I was about fourteen years old, I was responsible for getting my father fired from his job. I accidentally ruined Dad's contracts, which was what got him fired. (pointing) The crystal ball showed me.

RICHARD
Well, how do you know that what is showed you was true?

KATHERINE
I remember looking at some important papers on my father's desk, and I remember that that very afternoon, he got fired. But I never knew why! Now I do— it was my fault!

(RICHARD is skeptical.)

RICHARD
You SAW these things, in that crystal ball?

KATHERINE
You do believe me, don't you?

RICHARD (unconvincingly)
Of course I do.

KATHERINE
Do you want to try it? You can see for yourself.

(RICHARD is not sure what to think. RICHARD eventually lets go of KATHERINE'S hand and sits up straight in front of the crystal ball.)

RICHARD
What do I do?

KATHERINE
Just look into the crystal ball.

(RICHARD nods subtly, and then looks at the crystal ball. What he sees is a mystery, but the expressions on his face change from neutral, to surprise, to wonder, to amazement, to shock, to revulsion, to mild anger, to disbelief. RICHARD looks away from the crystal, obviously affected by what he saw. KATHERINE is intensely curious about what RICHARD saw.)

RICHARD
My best friend from ninth grade! Todd! My best friend! He was the one who squealed on me! He is the one who told the teacher that I was cheating in school! He was the one who got me transferred into Mr. Preston's class! I suspected someone had squealed, but I would NEVER have guessed that it was Todd! That double-crosser! After all that I did for him!

(KATHERINE listens intently.)

RICHARD
Todd stabbed me in the back! That rat!

(RICHARD's attitude abruptly softens.)

RICHARD
Although I have to admit, that if he hadn't exposed me as a cheat, then I never would have met Mr. Preston. Mr. Preston put me through the wringer, but he also helped me turn my life around. And if I hadn't turned my life around, I'd never have gone to college! And if I'd never gone to college, I wouldn't have met you, and I wouldn't have my job, and I wouldn't be a success in business!

KATHERINE
And the all these good things that happened to you—

RICHARD
— Resulted from something awful: Todd's betrayal of our friendship!

KATHERINE
And I owe my life to something horrible: Uncle Joel sacrificed his life to save me. (with a stunning realization) And when my father got fired, that was horrible, too; although it turned out to be one of the best things that ever happened to our family! Dad hated that job, and after getting fired, he got a new job, which he loved, and a big increase in pay!

RICHARD (slightly awed)
These dreadful events— so terrible at the time— actually had positive consequences for us. Not positive consequences for others, perhaps, like your Uncle Joel— but positive for us.

KATHERINE
Oh, my!

RICHARD (intrigued)
I must— I must look again!

KATHERINE
Richard!

(RICHARD stares at the crystal, and so does KATHERINE. We do not see what they see, but their facial expressions change, eventually expressing shock by whatever they see. They simultaneously break away from gazing at the crystal.)

KATHERINE
You STOLE my wedding ring?

(RICHARD is at a loss for words.)

KATHERINE (more forcefully)
I saw it! You STOLE my wedding ring?

RICHARD (fumbling)
It was the ring you wanted! I couldn't afford it, but I wanted to make you happy! Remember how happy it made you when I gave it to you? Would you have even married me, if it had been another ring?

KATHERINE
But you STOLE it! You distracted the clerk, reached into the display case, and stole it! You thief!

RICHARD (suddenly defensive)
I'm a thief? We'll you're a CHEATER! You cheated on me! I saw you, kissing that Bobby Thompson!

(KATHERINE is now at a loss for words.)

RICHARD
I saw you kissing him while wearing that very wedding ring, meaning we were married at the time! Unfaithful!

KATHERINE (fumbling)
But— there was nothing to it! Bobby wanted to marry me, you know that! But I didn't want to marry him; I didn't even like him!

RICHARD
Oh, you DIDN'T like Bobby, eh? That's not how it looked to me!

KATHERINE
But he told me he was going to make life miserable for both of us! And he promised me that he would leave us alone if I would just kiss him one last time. So I did!

RICHARD
You admit it! You kissed him!

KATHERINE
Yes, I kissed him! And because I did, he kept his word, he's left us both alone!

RICHARD
You hid that from me!

KATHERINE
I didn't want to tell you because you'd be upset!

RICHARD
You're darn right I'm upset!

KATHERINE (angrily)
But because I kissed him, Bobby hasn't bothered us; and because he's left us alone, we can live happily ever after!

(KATHERINE and RICHARD look at one another, their expressions a mixture of anger and mistrust.)

RICHARD
Happily ever after? Are we happy?

KATHERINE (softening)
We were. (nodding to the crystal ball) At least, we were before I bought this thing.

(RICHARD glances at the crystal but deliberately avoids looking into it.)

RICHARD
I wish I'd never known. I wish I'd never known who betrayed me; I wish I'd never known that you kissed Bobby. Even if good consequences did result from these bad events, I'm going to have mistrust and guilt and ill feelings to carry around for the rest of my life— feelings I never would have had, if I hadn't known.

KATHERINE
And I wish I'd never known: about my uncle, about my Dad's job, about— my ring.

(KATHERINE remembers. KATHERINE grabs the crystal ball with both hands and looks deep into it.)

RICHARD (aghast)
What are you doing?

KATHERINE (to the crystal ball)
Show me no more.

(The crystal ball flashes briefly, and not brightly. KATHERINE continues to look deep into the crystal ball. After a few seconds, she is satisfied. She moves the crystal ball toward RICHARD.)

KATHERINE
Now you. Tell it, "Show me no more."

(After a moment, RICHARD takes the crystal ball and stares into it.)

RICHARD
Show me no more.

(Again, the crystal ball flashes briefly, and not brightly. RICHARD continues to look deep into the crystal ball.)

RICHARD
It doesn't work anymore.

KATHERINE
No, it doesn't.

(RICHARD and KATHERINE sit for a moment, and then RICHARD carefully reaches out to KATHERINE.)

RICHARD
Can you forgive me?

KATHERINE
Yes. Can YOU forgive ME?

RICHARD
Yes. Now, can WE forgive ourselves? Can we forgive, and now that we know, can we forget?

(The question goes unanswered.)

NARRATOR (V.O.)
George Santayana once said, "Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it." Santayana assumed that the past is always worth remembering, and that misfortune always follows when the past is forgotten. But there are some events in our past that beget good fortune rather than ill, and these events bring happiness only if they are lost to history. Tonight's lesson in metaphysics, as taught in the Twilight Zone.

(FADE OUT.)

THE END