Dawson and Oliver had arranged for a rough cut of their film to be screened, at a film school in Cardiff, for a select group of film students, teachers, and critics, including one particular critic from the Cardiff Times. Dawson, Oliver and Emma met Andie at the train station, and they caught the train over together.

Dawson was feeling nervous about the screening, so he pulled Oliver aside to talk things through with him.

"I don't think we're ready" Dawson said

"Would you relax already. We'll be fine" Oliver insisted

"It's too long, the music is temp, the mix is unfinished, transfer is ugly, we still don't have a title..."

"Its a rough cut. Rough cuts get screened to critics all the time. Critics know this. Everything will be fine"

"If you say so"

"I know what will get your mind off this. Tell me how you know Andie. All the sordid details. Dish…"

"Well its a long story. But I guess it all goes back to sophomore year of high school..."

Andie and Emma had met in the course of the production of Dawson and Oliver's movie, but still didn't know each other very well. Andie decided to try and break the ice.

"So, do you know how Dawson and Oliver met?"

"Well, I'm pretty sure they met at USC summer school"

"And how did they end up here?"

"Oliver didn't get into the four year program, so he called me up one day and asked if he could stay with me, while he studied at a design school here, and I said yes. A few weeks later, he asked if someone else could join us, and I figured why not. It'll only be for a few months. Why do you ask?"

"I'm just curious"

"Because I figured you and Dawson have known each other for a while, so you'd know better than anyone how he ended up here"

"Yeah, Dawson and I go way back"

"How far back exactly?"

"We went to high school together"

"Go on..."

The four of them had arrived at the venue, and Dawson was setting things up by himself, when a woman entered the room, arguing loudly on a phone, in a thick Welsh accent. She eventually hung up angrily. Dawson didn't look up from what he was doing.

"What was that about?" Dawson asked

"That would be none of your business" she said, angrily. Then after calming down explained "My boyfriend and I just broke up, if you must know"

"I'm sorry to hear that. Who dumped who?"

"He dumped me, which is a shame, because I was just about to dump him"

"Well, at least the end result is the same"

"Let me guess, you're a film student?" the woman asked

"Yeah, so?"

"And you've just gotten into world cinema, so of course Hollywood sucks"

"Not exactly"

"Favourite movie of the last couple years? Don't even think about it. Just say it"

"Run, Lola, Run"

"No, that's the movie you say to show your friends how cool you are"

"Alright, what's yours?"

"Hardball, starring Keanu Reeves as an inner city baseball coach, who changes the lives of the kids he coaches for the better"

"Oh, now I see why your boyfriend dumped you"

"And that would be?"

"Because you have bad taste in movies"

"And who exactly are you?"

"I'm Dawson. Dawson Leery" he said, looking up, immediately recognised the woman's face, and regretting his words.

"Well, hello Dawson. I'm Amy Lloyd of the Cardiff Times, and I'm here to review your movie" she said and stormed off, angrily.

Oliver was standing out the front, when he saw Amy pass by.

"Miss Lloyd, Oliver Chirchick. We spoke on the phone" he said, shaking her hand. Upon seeing Dawson approach, he added "...and this is my partner, Dawson Leery"

"We've met" she replied, angrily

"We ran into each other in the..." Dawson trailed off, as Amy stormed off angrily.

"What happened?" Oliver asked

"I may have insulted her taste in movies" Dawson said

"So, what do we do now?"

"Now, I race after her and grovel for another chance"

"And what do I do?"

"You talk to the audience, and stall for time"

Dawson managed to chase Amy down as she was walking away from the venue.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know who you were" he said

"And if you had, you would have sucked up to me?"

"No, maybe, I don't know. I would have approached you very differently, that's for sure"

"Look, kid, you seem nice, but I don't have time for amateur hour"

"Would it matter if I said I'm a big fan of yours?"

"No, because film critics don't have fans"

"Not true. Roger Ebert and Harry Knowles both have fans"

"So, go and annoy them and leave me alone"

"You're much cuter than they are" Dawson said, which made Amy stop and smile

"Alright, lets build on that. In your review of "Almost Famous", you said it was the kind of film that reminds us why we still go to the movies"

"That was nearly a year ago"

"Like I said, I'm a fan"

"And you have a really great memory, it seems"

"I have a ritual. Every Thursday, I grab a coffee at this cafe, and they always have a copy of the Cardiff Times, and I always sit down and read your reviews"

"Really?"

"So, you can see why your opinion really matters to me, and why its really important to me that you watch this movie, and why I really, really want you to like it"

"Okay, I'll tell you what, let's head over to that cafe over there" she said, pointing "and we'll talk about your movie"

Oliver got up onto the stage, and said nervously "Hey folks. Sorry to keep you waiting. We're just having a slight technical hitch. But don't worry. We should be getting underway soon"

In the audience, Andie and Emma were sitting next to each other, wondering what was going on.

"What's going on?" Andie asked, somewhat rhetorically

"You know how theatre types love to keep people waiting, for dramatic effect. I'm sure its nothing"

"I hope so. Otherwise people might start leaving, and we might miss our train" Andie said, nervously checking her watch.

"Would you relax. You're gonna make me nervous at this rate"

"Sorry"

"While we're waiting, why don't you explain something to me"

"Sure, what is it?"

"If you got accepted into Harvard, why aren't you there?"

"Well, the short answer is, I'm avoiding everyone I knew back home"

"Except Dawson"

"Well, there's not much I can do about that. We just happened to end up in the same part of the world"

"You can still avoid someone, even if you happen to live near each other. I've done it over much shorter distances"

"I know. But if its just him, I can cope. Baby steps, you know"

"Okay, Dawson" she said, as the two of them sat down "What's this movie about?"

"Well, its a story of love, and redemption, about a girl who..."

"No, not the plot, what's it about?"

"Well, I may not be the best person to explain, since I didn't write it. But I've just had a really strange year, I dropped out of one film school, flew half way around the world to go to a much worse film school with someone I barely even like, who might just be an insane genius, whose brilliance and/or madness birthed this crazy idea of a movie, and its been the singular focus of my life for months now, and this entire year of my life is basically riding on this half finished, rough cut of a movie, so I would really love it if you could just give your professional opinion, and tell me if its any good, or if I'm just wasting my time, and I realise none of this is what the movie is about, but in a sense its entirely what its about, and I realise that I'm rambling, so I'm just going to shut up now"

"Alright, I guess I'll give it a shot. After a pitch like that, how could I refuse"

"By the way, mine is Road House... with Patrick Swayze? I've seen it, like 37 times. Every time it's on TV, I have to watch it all the way through. I own the tape. I love it. I have no idea why."

Dawson made his way up to the stage, and began addressing the impatient audience.

"Sorry for the delay everyone, but I think we're just about ready. However, please bear in mind that this is a rough cut and we don't have a title yet. That said, what you're about to see is a labour of love, for myself, Oliver, Andie, Emma and everyone else who helped out with the production. So, thank you all for coming, and let's roll."

Dear Dawson,

I'm glad things are going well for you across the pond. My own life is in a bit of a funk. I suppose it comes down to, what you were saying about managing relationships. I've never been very good at it, and now its starting to show. Its almost like I'm one person in one situation, and a completely different one in another. Which is fine until the different situations merge together, and I have to be two different people at once, and I just can't. I'm not sure there's anything I can do about this, I just needed to get it off my chest.

Good luck with your movie, and let me know when you're back in town

Sincerely

Jack McPhee

P.S. Have you spoken to Andie lately? I'm assuming that's why you wanted Aunt Georgia's number.