He's Absolutely Dreamy!

by Lauriebelle

Danny sets Keith up on a date with his girlfriend's sister -- a young woman who had a crush on Keith in junior high school.

"HE'S ABSOLUTELY DREAMY!"

Characters

PRESENT DAY:

DANNY PARTRIDGE, AGE 21, SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY SENIOR IN BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

SARAH CALDWELL, AGE 20, SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY JUNIOR IN ELEMENTARY EDUCATION, DANNY'S OCCAISONAL GIRLFRIEND

KEITH PARTRIDGE, AGE 28, DANNY'S BROTHER

HOLLY CALDWELL, AGE 24, SARAH'S SISTER

CHRIS PARTRIDGE, AGE 18, SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY FRESHMAN IN ART, DANNY'S BROTHER

FLASHBACK (ELEVEN YEARS EARLIER):

SHIRLEY PARTRIDGE, MOTHER

REUBEN KINCAID, THE PARTRIDGE FAMILY MANAGER

KEITH PARTRIDGE, AGE 17

LAURIE PARTRIDGE, AGE 16

DANNY PARTRIDGE, AGE 10

CHRIS PARTRIDGE, AGE 7

TRACY PARTRIDGE, AGE 5

SARAH CALDWELL, AGE 9, A NEIGHBOR

HOLLY CALDWELL, AGE 13, SARAH'S SISTER

FOUR OTHER GIRLS, AGES 10-14, MEMBERS OF THE SYCAMORE ROAD KEITH PARTRIDGE FAN CLUB

FADE-IN:

TIME: PRESENT, LATE APRIL

EXT. – CESAR CHAVEZ STUDENT CENTER, SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY – DAY

College students Danny Partridge and Sarah Caldwell meet for lunch. Danny appears nervous.

DANNY (looks at watch): Fifteen minutes until show time, and neither one of the principle actors is here yet. You think they're gonna blow us off?

SARAH: Not a chance! I phoned Holly this morning, and she is totally excited about meeting Keith – again. This time she's hoping for a happier ending.

DANNY (laughs): That was a pretty dirty trick I played on Keith. But I made a dollar and fifty cents on the deal.

SARAH (shakes head): Always the businessman!

DISSOLVE TO:

TIME: ELEVEN YEARS EARLIER

INT. – UPSTAIRS HALLWAY, 698 SYCAMORE ROAD, SAN PUEBLO, CALIFORNIA – DAY

Danny sneaks along the hallway. He stops in front of Keith Partridge's bedroom door and turns the knob.

Shirley Partridge, carrying an empty laundry basket, stops him.

SHIRLEY: Danny Partridge! What do you think you're doing?

DANNY: Oh. Hi, Mom. I thought I'd visit Keith. I feel sorry for the poor guy – having his tonsils taken out at his age!

SHIRLEY: Your brother is sleeping.

DANNY: Oh. Then I'll just wait for him to wake up.

SHIRLEY: Okay. You can wait for Keith to wake up while you take out the garbage and do your homework.

DANNY: Aw, Mom!

DISSOLVE TO:

INT. – LIVING ROOM – DAY

As Shirley and Danny come down to the stairs.

The doorbell rings and Laurie Partridge answers the door. Reuben Kincaid and Sarah Caldwell enter the room. Chris and Tracy Partridge, sprawled out on the floor, continue to watch cartoons on the TV.

SHIRLEY: Reuben! I wasn't expecting you until later. I certainly would have dressed better than this.

REUBEN: You look fine, Shirl. I stopped by early to see how Keith is doing. The record company is getting antsy about that canceled recording session.

SHIRLEY: Keith is sleeping, and you know he's in not ready to sing anything. He can barely speak above a whisper. The record company will just have to wait. That's all.

REUBEN: I know. That's what I told them when they phoned my office today.

Reuben points to Sarah.

REUBEN: I found this little girl on your front porch. Just between you and me, Shirl, she's a little young for Keith.

SHIRLEY: She's not here for Keith, Reuben. Are you Sarah?

SARAH: No, Mrs. Partridge.

DANNY: That's right, Mister Kincaid. Sarah and I have a business proposition to discuss. Okay if we go to the tree house, Mom?

SHIRLEY: Take the garbage out on your way.

Danny and Sarah exit through the kitchen.

LAURIE: Don't look so surprised, Reuben. Some of Danny's best friends are girls.

REUBEN: I'm not surprised. Just worried – what kind of business proposition can he create in a tree house?

SHIRLEY: Whatever it is, I'm not worried. Sarah is Pastor Caldwell's daughter.

DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. – PARTRIDGE FAMILY HOUSE – DAY

Danny and Sarah stand next to a trellis located directly below Keith Partridge's window.

Danny and Sarah greet Holly and the other girls, who are members of the Sycamore Road Keith Partridge Fan Club. Sarah appears upset.

HOLLY: Why so glum, Sarah?

SARAH: I lied to Mrs. Partridge, Holly. I told her I wasn't here to see Keith.

HOLLY: Technically we aren't here to see Keith. We're here to get an authentic photo of Keith recuperating from his tonsillectomy for our fan club newsletter.

SARAH: Why can't we ask Keith to pose four our photo?

DANNY (rolls his eyes): Because that would be boring! It would look staged and Keith would have time to fluff his hair.

Danny taps the trellis.

DANNY: This provides us the element of surprise, girls. Keith scaled this in ten seconds flat when he was in junior high school. And that was at night when he was out past his curfew. We have the luck of the daylight and the fact that Mom opened Keith's bedroom window for some fresh air going for us.

SARAH: I don't know, Danny. Climbing through his bedroom window? It sounds dangerous and just a little sneaky.

DANNY (grins widely): Dangerous? Maybe. Sneaky? You bet! Just think of the great photo you'll get of Keith looking sick and helpless in his bed!

HOLLY: Yeah, Sarah. Where's your sense of adventure?

Holly tosses a stopwatch to Danny and she begins to climb the trellis.

HOLLY: You said Keith scaled this in ten seconds. I bet I can do it in eight.

DISSOLVE TO:

INT. – KEITH PARTRIDGE'S BEDROOM – DAY

Holly crawls through the window. She sneaks across the room and stops short as Keith Partridge stirs in his sleep. Holly gasps.

HOLLY: He's absolutely dreamy! He's even dreamier than in Sarah's favorite photo of him!

Sarah climbs through the window. She is followed by two more girls.

Holly motions to them to be quiet as she approaches Keith's bed. Holly pulls her Kodak Instamatic Camera from her pocket and snaps a photo. The flashbulb pops and awakens Keith.

KEITH (mutters):  Aw, come on Danny! Quit fooling around!

Holly boldly aims her camera for a second photo. Sarah stops her.

SARAH (worried): Holly! You better not – we only need one photo.

HOLLY: Stop being such a stick-in-the-mud, Sarah!

Holly snaps a second photo as Danny and the last two girls climb through the window. Danny stumbles against Keith's desk and Keith springs up in his bed, startled. He sees Holly.

KEITH: You're a girl!

Keith surveys his room and draws his bed covers nearly up to his neck.

KEITH: You're all girls! What is this? What's going on here?

PAN TO:

KEITH'S BEDROOM DOOR OPENING

As Shirley and Reuben enter the room.

The six girls disperse from Keith's bedside.

SHIRLEY (sternly): Daniel Partridge, front and center!

Keith watches Danny cross the room. His eyes narrow to slits.

KEITH: I knew Danny had to be behind this!

DANNY (sheepishly): Hi, Mom.

SHIRLEY (sternly): Don't 'Hi Mom' me. Pastor Caldwell phoned and asked why my son was allowing his daughters and their friends to climb the trellis into an upstairs window. I was reasonably sure that Pastor wasn't referring to Keith or Chris. I'd like to tell me why these girls are in Keith's bedroom.

DANNY: These girls are members of the Sycamore Road Keith Partridge Fan Club and they're getting a photo for their fan club newsletter.

Holly shows Shirley her camera.

HOLLY: That's right, Mrs. Partridge. We didn't mean any harm. I can't believe Daddy called you! He's going to ground us for life for this caper!

SARAH: Yes, Mrs. Partridge. I didn't want to do it, but Danny said that Keith climbed the trellis all the time when he was in junior high. He even charged us twenty-five cents to climb it, saying it was a piece of Keith Partridge history.

REUBEN (laughs): You're kidding! I never thought I'd see the day when Keith Partridge would be afraid of six little girls who are running his neighborhood fan club.

KEITH: It's not funny, Reuben. I suppose you would like six girls climbing through your bedroom window when you're sick?

Reuben smiles as he considers this possibility. Shirley gives him an icy stare.

REUBEN: Oh. Sorry, Shirl. It wouldn't work – I had my tonsils taken out years ago.

SHIRLEY: Danny, did you really charge these girls twenty-five cents to climb the trellis?

DANNY: Is there a chance I can plead the Fifth Amendment here?

SHIRLEY: No.

DANNY: 'Keith Partridge, Teen Idol' is big business, Mom. So I marketed the trellis as a piece of Keith Partridge history to his neighborhood fan club. Holly broke Keith's trellis record by two whole seconds! How about that?

SHIRLEY: Danny, she could have been seriously hurt! Climbing that trellis is dangerous. The last time Keith climbed it; he crawled through his window, stumbled over his basketball, and broke his ankle.

KEITH (chagrined): Mom! Whose side are you on?

DANNY: I guess I didn't think about the danger very much.

REUBEN: Why don't I escort Keith's 'fan club' downstairs, Shirl?

SHIRLEY: You read my mind, Reuben.

Sarah, Holly and the four other girls follow Reuben out of the room.

Keith bounds out of bed, pulls his robe on and glares at Danny.

KEITH: You'll need one less plate at the dinner table tonight, Mom. I'm going to kill Danny.

Danny looks imploringly at Shirley.

DANNY: Mom!

SHIRLEY: Settle down, Keith. You've been sick and you're putting undue stress on your throat.

KEITH: Settle down? I can't settle down. This dummy is charging twenty-five cents for tours of my bedroom – while I'm sick in bed! Well, I'm worth a lot more than twenty-five cents.

Keith chases Danny around the room.

DANNY: I tried to get fifty cents, Keith. But your public likes to collect those 'Partridge Family' bubble gum cards.

KEITH: Fifty cents? Fifty cents isn't high enough for the embarrassment you caused me.

SHIRLEY: Perhaps and apology from Danny will ease some of your embarrassment, Keith?

Keith sits down on the edge of his bed.

KEITH: Okay. Okay, Danny. Go ahead. Apologize.

Danny tries to look sincere.

DANNY: I'm sorry, Keith. As usual, I was putting profits and new and unusual ways to humiliate you before your feelings. I was angry at you for getting tonsillitis and screwing up our recording session. So when Sarah and Holly asked if they could take a picture of your for their fan club newsletter, I figured it was my chance to get back at you in a big way. Can you forgive me?

SHIRLEY: That was very nice, Danny.

KEITH (smiles): Yeah, Danny, I will. Who's the girl who broke my record on the trellis?

DANNY: Holly. She's Sarah's sister.

KEITH: Was she the blonde with the camera?

DANNY: Yeah. Why?

KEITH: No reason. Just curious. I'd like to see her in about five or six years. She's going to be very pretty – when she fills out.

DISSOLVE TO:

TIME: PRESENT, LATE APRIL

INT. – CESAR CHAVEZ STUDENT CENTER, SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY, PLAZA LEVEL – DAY

Danny, Sarah, and Chris sit at a table as they eat sandwiches from the Gold Coast Grill.

Sarah nudges Danny when she catches Keith and Holly flirting with each other as they pick up their order.  

SARAH:  Your brother and my sister make a cute couple, Danny.

DANNY:  I've noticed. Keith hasn't been able to take his eyes off Holly yet.

CHRIS:  That was a good idea I had – fixing Keith up with Holly.

Danny stares at Chris with surprise.

DANNY: You had?

CHRIS:  Sure. You didn't witness 'The Great Dinner Fiasco' last summer when Keith brought Cassie Yates as his date. Mom hit the roof and told Keith that Cassie was not welcome in her house. That's when I figured I better find Keith a new girlfriend.

DANNY: So you asked me if I knew any nice girls for Keith.

Danny claps Chris on the back.

DANNY: And lucky for you, I did. I wonder how much profit there is in the matchmaking business?

Keith and Holly sit down at the table.

KEITH: Danny, I'm truly hurt. I thought you were doing me a big favor introducing me to Holly. And all the time you were figuring the profits.

DANNY: Don't mind him, Holly. He jumped at the chance to meet you.

SARAH: Holly was just as eager to see Keith again.

HOLLY: I still think you're dreamy, Keith.

Keith bites into his sandwich.

KEITH: Danny tells me that you still have the pictures that you took of me, Holly.

HOLLY: They're in a photo album. We never made that newsletter. Daddy grounded us for six months, and then we moved to Campbell. Daddy accepted a senior pastor position at the First Presbyterian Church.

SARAH: Is it too late to apologize, Keith?

KEITH: It's long forgotten, Sarah. In fact, I haven't thought about those photos until Danny asked me if I was interested in meeting Holly.

HOLLY: Are you still in the music business, Keith?

Danny grins mischievously.

DANNY:  In a manner of speaking. Tell Holly what you do for a living, Keith.

CHRIS: Don't you mean "Officer Partridge"?

Keith glares at Danny and Chris.

HOLLY: Officer Partridge? That almost sounds like you're a cop. I thought you were a musician.

Keith shows Holly his police badge.

KEITH: It's my cover. I'm part of an undercover unit under the direction of Detective Diego Cordelia of the Los Angeles Police Department. 

HOLLY: Oh.

Keith, Holly, Danny, Sarah and Chris finish their meals in silence. Afterwards, Keith escorts Holly to her car in a parking deck.

KEITH: I'm sorry, Holly. My music career was in the toilet when Detective Cordelia gave me the opportunity to join his new undercover unit. I couldn't pass up the chance.  I still write and perform music, and I get to bust bad guys too.

Holly unlocks her car door.

HOLLY: I'm fine with you being a cop, Keith.

KEITH: I get the feeling that you have something else on your mind.

Holly nods her head shyly.

HOLLY: I, um, owe you an apology about something that happened when your Mom and Reuben got married.

KEITH: I think I know: Muldune's Point.  

HOLLY:  I'm ashamed about my behavior that night.

Keith looks Holly in the eyes.

KEITH: Holly, you don't owe me an apology. That was eight years ago. We were two kids with raging hormones.  

HOLLY: Why didn't you take advantage of the situation? 

KEITH: The truth be told, I had a crush on you back then. I didn't want our first time to be in the back of my mother's station wagon.

Holly looks astonished.

HOLLY: You had a crush on me? That's really sweet.

Holly kisses Keith on the cheek.

HOLLY: All these years I thought it was because my father is a pastor.

KEITH: That had a lot to do with it, too. Since your dad was officiating at my mother's wedding, I think he would have taken a dim of view of me trying to…er… 'pop' his daughter at the local make-out spot.

Holly crosses her arms over her chest.

HOLLY: I'm a little curious. Where are you planning to have 'our first time,' as you put it?

KEITH: The honeymoon suite -- when we're husband and wife.

Holly snickers.

HOLLY: Sarah tells me you have quite a reputation with the ladies, Keith. I have a hard time believing you'd want to get married.  

KEITH:  It could happen. Will you at least have dinner with me?

HOLLY: Yes.

KEITH: Do you like French food?

HOLLY: I adore it.

KEITH: Great! There's a new French restaurant in Santa Monica that I'd love to take you to.

Holly is taken aback.

HOLLY: Santa Monica!

KEITH: I'm being too forward.

HOLLY: No. I have some vacation days from work, and I can't think of a nicer way to spend them than on a road trip with you, Keith.

FADE-OUT.

April 2001/March 2002