All language subtitles for [SubtitleTools.com] Quantum Leap (2023) - S01E12 - Let Them Play_track3_[eng]

- Quantum Leap was
an experimental

time travel program,
years away from being tested.

- Why did you leap?
- I don't remember anything.

- Your name is Dr. Ben Song.

You're a time traveler
leaping from life to life,

trying to put right
what once went wrong.

I'm Addison Augustine.

- Addison.
- You're the woman I love.

- Ben's working with someone.

- Al Calavicci's daughter,
Janis.

- What is that?
- That's the destination.

I think that Ben was trying
to leap into the future,

to a specific place,
a specific point in time.

- That shouldn't be possible.

- I remember
why I leapt the first place.

It's to save you.

- Janis is here to help us.

- I'm gonna give you a name,

the name of the person
who told Ben to leap

in the first place.

[LMFAO's
"Party Rock Anthem" playing]

[indistinct cheering]

[ball bouncing, shoes squeaking]

- [whistle blows]
- Ow.

- Ow.
- Are you okay?

- Fine.
- There you go.

- [wincing]
- You got it, come on.

- Coach!

What do we do?

[dramatic music]

- Time!

Time out! [Whistle blows]

- You love basketball.

- I do love basketball.

- Okay.
- What?

- Uh, did anyone see
what happened?

- I got the board
and passed to Amanda.

- It was a loose ball.

Amanda tried to save it
and went down.

- I just landed
on it funny, that's all.

Let's go!

- Ah!
- Ben, in 2012,

the Lions lost this game.

Marina Hills went to regionals.

- Maybe we're here to win.

- Of course we're here to win.

- Coach, you can't take her out.

Stanford is here scouting her.
This is her game.

- But look at her.
- She's no good.

- [wincing]

- Ow.
- Uh...

[buzzer blares]

Do we have anyone else?

- No.

- Everyone else is injured,
except...

- 23! Come on.

- No, Coach,
you can't take me out.

- Amanda, you play
on that ankle again,

you're out for good.

♪

23?

- Coach.

- All right. Let's go!

Gia's getting in the game!

- About damn time.

[crowd cheering]

- Are you...
- Are you sure about this?

- Well, yeah. You're a part
of the team, aren't you?

- Yeah.
- Well, all right, then.

Let's get you out there.

[whistle blows]

[LMFAO's
"Party Rock Anthem" resumes]

♪

Watch the ball, watch the ball,
watch the ball.

Okay. Let's see that screen.

Board, board, board!

Ah.

[crowd cheering]

[whistle blows]
Come on, come on, come on.

Set a screen for three.

Do it, do it, do it, do it.

That's you... ah.

It's okay, it's okay.
We'll get it back.

We'll get it back.
One stop, one stop.

- Block her!

- Backboard, backboard!

All: Eight, seven,

six, five, four,

three, two, one.

[buzzer blares]

[crowd cheering]

[triumphant music]

♪

- [laughing]

- Yes!

[crowd booing]

- Hey, that's not fair!

- Cheaters!
- That's not fair!

- Unfair! Boo!

[overlapping jeers]

- What are they booing at?

- Ben, Gia's trans.

- Gia...
- Whatever, Dad.

- Gia...

- And she's your daughter.

[intense music]

♪

[tense music]

♪

- What am I doing here, Carlos?

- I'm just saying,

I still don't think he should
have put her in.

- We won the game, Amanda.

We're one away from regionals.

- It is a little weird though,
isn't it?

Coach waits this long
to put his own kid in the game.

- She's an alternate.
- That's how alternates work.

- She's been on the team
all season.

- And you never had
an issue before.

- And I don't have an issue now.

I'm just saying,
it's a little weird.

- Well, I have an issue.

I don't think it's fair.

- Why, 'cause she's trans,

or because she took your shot?

- I don't know, both?

- [scoffs]
- Way to be a team player.

[Fun.'s "We Are Young" playing]

- Coach Carlos, a word?

We discussed this, did we not?

- Yeah, of course we did.

- What did you think
was gonna happen

when you put Gia in the game?

- I was kind of hoping we'd win.

- I have to keep this whole
school together, Mr. Mendez.

I have budget cuts, the PTA,
and the school board.

Don't ask me to fight

a culture war for your daughter.

Ain't nobody got time for that.

Just do your job
and get the team to regionals.

Keep your kid out of it.

[tense music]

- Mandy, Amanda, baby.
- Mom, I'm fine.

I just wrapped it to be safe.

- She could have stayed
in the game.

We had scouts out there.

- My only concern
was her safety.

You don't want your daughter
playing with an injury.

- Don't tell me
how to parent my child.

- I... I wasn't...

♪

- Hey, is Gia in there?
- Coach, you know she's not

allowed to change with us.
[door opens]

- Somebody ask for a mop?

- Okay, so everyone knew
that she was trans.

- Yeah.
- I mean, some families might not

be completely open
about their kid's transition,

which is fine, because it's
actually nobody's business.

But Gia got a lot of attention

when her dad was hired
to coach at Lakehill...

I don't know for sports,
but when Lakehill Theater

did "Miss Saigon,"
they used a real helicopter.

It was riveting.

- Wait, did you go there?

- No, I went to Rancho.

We had Model UN.

- But you knew her?

- Well, I knew ofher.

She was legendary,
at least to me.

And when she won the game,
and it was all over the news...

- Wait, wait, wait.
- The game that she just won?

- Yeah, it was iconic

before we even
called things iconic.

- Ian, Gia only played

because Ben put her in
right now.

As soon as she was on the court,

Ziggy started updating.

- I've been bested
by my own technology.

Um, okay, so then what was
the original story?

- Uh, originally,
instead of putting his daughter

in the game, Coach Carlos
played shorthanded.

They lost, and...
And Gia ran away.

- Oh, no.

- What... no, no, no.
- They won the game.

I mean, we're now
in a completely

different timeline. That's...

- I still remember
Gia running away.

No one ever heard
from her again.

- Okay. What do we do?

- Well, uh, Ziggy and I will
do some digging.

But I think what Gia needs now,

more than anything,
is an accomplice.

- Like an ally?
- No, no.

Allies, they sit in the
bleachers, they wave a flag.

An accomplice actually has
skin in the game.

- Was that a sports metaphor?

- Yeah, I know.
- I'm really trying.

- Yeah, good job. Okay.

[upbeat music playing softly]

- You sure this
is the right spot?

Doesn't seem like
Ben's kind of place.

- It isn't. According to Janis,

six months before he leapt,

someone named Dottie
reached out to Ben

and told him to meet them here.

- Where'd this come from?
- I hacked into

the closed-circuit security
video to confirm Janis' story.

- We're out of oat milk
and growlers.

- Yeah, we're looking
for Dottie.

- Who's we?
- Just some old friends.

- [chuckles] That's funny,

'cause I'm Dottie,
and we're not friends.

- Well, we're in that, uh,

"stranger is a friend
you haven't met yet" category.

- We need your help.

Do you remember meeting
with this man?

- This is from
our security cameras.

- Where'd you get this?
- That part's not important.

If you could just tell us
what you remember.

- I have no idea who that is.

- We have it
from a reliable source

that you spoke with this man,

Dr. Ben Song, right here.

- [scoffs] Well, I have it

from a reliable source
that my subversive poetry has

gotten me
on government watch lists.

So whose reliable source

do you think
I'm relying on right now?

- Subversive poetry?

- Come back tomorrow night,

if you can handle
a venti cold brew of the truth.

- Please, the date on this
photo is March 13th, 2022.

[metal clatters]

- Did you say March 13th?

[tense music]

That was the week that I, uh...

- Does that date mean
something to you?

- Who are you people?

- Tell us what you know,
we'll tell you what we can.

♪

- Look, I can't talk
about it now, all right?

Management here is sus.

But come back
to the poetry slam.

We'll talk after.

♪

- We're home.

- How'd it go?

- Hi, Umma.

Don't act like your phone hasn't

been blowing up all night.

- I heard you scored
the final shot of the game.

- I guess
good news travels fast.

- Why don't you go get
washed up for dinner?

I'll call you when it's ready.

- Okay.

- And no "Angry Birds."

- [scoffs] Yes, Mom.

- Kitchen... now.

[soft dramatic music]

♪

I would have appreciated
a heads-up.

- Yeah, uh, about that...

- I can't believe
you put her in the game

without checking with me first.

- There was an injury,

and our team was down a player.

- I don't care about the team.

I care about our daughter.

We have kept her out
of the spotlight

for a reason.

- Right. Remind me
of that reasoning again.

- Oh, this isn't a joke, Carlos.

We can't let her play
in the regionals.

It's only gonna
make her a target.

- But she loves it.

You should have seen the way
she came alive out there...

- Don't do that.
- Don't make me the enemy.

You get to make her happy,

and I have to deal
with the fallout?

That is not fair.

What am I supposed to do

when she calls me
from school in tears

because she can't go
from one class to the other

without getting harassed?

Or when Amanda's mom calls

and accuses our daughter
of doping?

- She did that?
- No, "Congrats on the win."

"Too bad you had to miss
the game for work again."

No, she literally
picked up the phone

and asked about Gia's hormones,

like that's somehow normal
or okay.

- I'm, uh... I'm sorry.

I... I didn't think it would...

- That's right.

You didn't think.

And now we're all gonna have
to deal with the consequences.

I hope the win was worth it.

♪

- gettin' comfy?
- Oh.

Hardly.

There's not exactly a playbook
for this situation.

- Mm.

See what you did there, Coach.

I got some more info
on Gia's family.

- Hit me.

- Well, so Miriam, Gia's mother,

has been an advocate for Gia
since day one...

Took her
to the trans care program

at the LA Children's Hospital

when Gia came out
in the fifth grade.

Her father, Carlos... well, you...

Has been coaching
Gia's travel teams

on both sides of her transition.

You took the job
coaching at Lakehill

and moved the family
earlier this year.

Apparently, Gia is the first
out trans student

that the school has had.

- Basketball I can do,
but what do I know

about supporting a trans kid?

- Probably just about as much

as any other parent
of a trans kid,

at least at first.

[sighs]

Ben, do you remember
when the Trans Ban

came down in the military

when I first started working
at Quantum Leap?

- They banned trans people
in the military?

- I mean, it...
- It didn't hold up.

But that's not the point.

What the point is,
is that we saw it coming.

And we...

Ididn't say anything.

We lost thousands
of soldiers and officers...

Honorable people

that were discharged
basically overnight.

- But you knew.

- Yeah. They gave us

a pretty good warning.

But we just let it happen.

Look, I knew it was wrong.

But I didn't know what to do.

What could I do? It's...

It wouldn't have changed
the decisions,

but maybe
if I had fought harder,

then I could have
changed the lives

of the people
that were in my command.

And at the end of the day,
maybe that's the point.

And just because it's hard

doesn't mean
it's not worth doing.

And we can't afford to make
that same mistake with Gia.

- Why? What did Ziggy say?

- It's not good.
- When you put Gia in the game,

it put her
on a different timeline.

But she still runs away,

and they never find her.

You have to stop her
from running away, Ben,

or else she is going
to be lost forever.

♪

[soft cheerful music]

♪

- Someone needs to shave.

- You better not be
talking about me.

- Hey, women have facial hair
too, you know.

- Girl, what?

- My mother, the feminist.
- You're welcome.

- So Gia, I was thinking
after breakfast,

maybe we can go
shoot some hoops,

you know, just the two of us.

- We could...
- Dad, what am I, ten?

Besides, we have
the car wash today.

- Oh, right, the car wash.

Swag.

- What?
- It's your turn to take her

to group this morning first.

- Don't forget.
- Fun, group.

- You're always happy
once we get there.

- So this... this car wash thing,

it's a basketball thing, or...

- Carlos, you know how Margie
is about the boosters.

It would be different
if anyone else were

running the fundraiser,
but if we don't help out,

I'll be the one
to never hear the end of it.

- Plus, if I don't show up,
it'll just reinforce

the idea that I'm an outsider.

[indistinct chatter]

- Hey.

- How are you?
- Good.

- Good to see you.

I heard about the game
yesterday.

Congrats on the win.

How are we feeling?

- We're okay.
- [huffs]

She's strong,

even when she shouldn't
have to be.

- Yeah, I know she is.

Well, look,
you're not in this alone.

You know the community
is here for you.

And I'm here for you too.

- I know.

- Wanna go hang out
with your friends?

- Yeah.

- Bella Swan wouldn't
stand a chance

against Katniss Everdeen.
That's all I'm saying.

Hey, Gia.

- I gave your wife
my number last week.

If you ever need to chat
outside of the group,

I'm here.

That goes for Gia too.

I know she's having a hard time.

- Yeah. Thank you.

- Bella is totally useless
without Edward and Jacob.

- Are you saying the odds
may not be ever in her favor?

- I mean,
who needs "The Hunger Games"

when you got high school,
am I right?

[laughter]

- I just wish they'd stop
talking about our son

like there's something
wrong with him.

You hear all these things,
you know.

And you look at your kid,
and you just want

to keep them safe
and see them happy.

And some of these people just
want to make that impossible.

And I'll tell you,

I bet none of them have met
an actual trans kid.

They make up this boogeyman,
you know,

like they're some danger
that has to be stopped,

when the only real danger
is us losing our children.

But if they would just
pause for a second

and get to know
some of these kids,

maybe they would see
what we see...

Our babies,
growing up and changing,

telling us who they are

and who they want to be
in the world.

Isn't that what we all want
for our kids?

Doesn't every single child
deserve the right

to become their own person,

to shine their own light?

Because I don't see
the harm in that.

But I do see the harm
in trying to block it.

[soft dramatic music]

[laughter]

♪

[audio playing softly on device]

- They are pretty great.

- [laughs]

Yeah, trans kids
are absolute magic.

I mean, once you give them
permission to just shine,

they light up a room.

The inverse is also true,

of course,
when you try to force them

to be something
that they're not.

[soft dramatic music]

- [sighs]

Want to tell me
how you're holding up?

♪

- Look, I'm, um...
- I'm gonna tell you something,

because I think
if you don't hear it from me,

then you might not notice it
in time for someone else.

When I was a... a kid,

I tried to take my own life.

- Ian.

- I mean, I was a...
- I was a child.

I wasn't even 13.

And I think on the outside,

everything just...
It seemed okay.

You know, I was a...
I was a smart kid.

Came from a loving family.

But... I was alone,

just f... floating
in this gray space,

while everybody else was
in black and white.

And when the entire world
just keeps telling you

over and over again that people
like you are not worthy,

you just... eventually,
you start to believe it.

- You are so worthy.

- [chuckles softly]

I know.

Oh, I know.

My story, uh, it just...
It isn't special.

Statistics say that one in five
trans kids attempt suicide.

I was one of the lucky ones,
you know.

I... I had a lifeline.

I had, uh, the Coding Club.

And for Gia,
that is obviously basketball.

I mean, without it, she's lost.

- But that only happens
if she runs away.

And we can stop that.

- Yeah. Well, um, running away

obviously looks different
for trans kids,

so I had to create an equation

that would factor in increased
risk of homelessness

and of suicide and hate crimes.

And that doesn't even account
for race or ability.

- Ian.

Thank you
for sharing your story.

And if things
ever get dark again,

please know that I will
be there for you,

like you have been there
for me through all of this.

[Carly Rae Jepsen's
"Call Me Maybe" playing]

[indistinct chatter]

- You want us to come with you?

- Dad, gross.

- Be careful.

- Bye.

- I want to follow her.

- Don't be that dad.

- I'm gonna follow her.

- Hey!

You made it!

Mm.

Yo, come to our station.

- Oh, shoot, it's
Diana Taurasi in the flesh?

- Uh-uh!
- [laughs]

- That final shot,
it's all anyone can talk about.

- Yeah, I'm sure.
- No, for real.

You were amazing.

- Really? Thanks.

- Just make sure you bring it
to the game tomorrow,

'cause Lions got to get
to regionals!

[all cheering]

- Hey, look,
we know you got the shots,

but let's see if you can
handle these suds, all right?

- Okay.
- [laughter]

- ♪ Hey, I just met you

♪ And this is crazy

♪ But here's my number

♪ So call me maybe

♪ It's hard to look right

♪ At you, baby

♪ But here's my number

♪ So call me maybe

[tires screech]

- Hey, Gia!

You'll never be a real girl.

Forget your huevos? [Laughs]

[kids shrieking]

[laughing]

Go, go, go! Come on, drive.

- Come back and say it
to my face, jackass!

[dramatic music]

[gasps]

- What are you doing?

That is my car!

- I'm so sorry.
- I didn't mean to.

- Gia, are you okay?

- Dad, what are you doing here?
- Mom and I were

- watching from the car.
- You were what?

- We have a zero tolerance

for violence policy
on this team.

- Yeah, well, what's
your policy for bullying?

- Let's just go, please.

- We're going.
- I'm calling the principal.

She destroyed my property.

- Gia.
- Ben.

Ben, Ziggy found out
what happened to Gia.

She dies out there alone.

The police misgender her body.

That's why there was no record.

That's why her parents could
never stop looking for her.

You have to stop her
from running away,

or else she's gonna be erased.

♪

- Yes, we'll be there.

[tense music]

Principal Krager's called
an emergency meeting

after school tomorrow
to "protect girls' basketball."

- What does that even mean?

- It means I am gonna have

to find someone
to cover my shift.

I am not gonna let
her threaten either of you.

- Dad, are you gonna
lose your job?

- Gia's right, Ben.

Ziggy says
Carlos Mendez is fired.

♪

- No. We're gonna fight this.

- Damn right,
we're gonna fight this.

- Maybe I should just
quit the team.

- What? No.

- Dad, it's not worth it.

I'm not even that good.

- Hey, don't say that.

Don't you ever say that.

Gia, look, I know
high school can be tough, but...

- Papá,
what would you even know?

Mr. Star Athlete,
you were big man on campus.

- Right.

But I...

Did I ever tell you
about my friend, Ben Song?

He was this Korean kid
in a school full of white kids.

And he also felt
very different and alone.

- Dad, I bet it sucked
for Ben Song.

But I have to fight every day
just to be who I know I am,

while everyone else around me
tells me I'm someone else,

even my own reflection.

- And whenever I smell Febreze,

I think of him.

She called it loneliness,

but I called it toast.

Thank you.

- I'm surprised
you actually agreed

to come back here with me.

- Are you kidding?

I wouldn't miss this
for the world.

- My final offering this evening

is a new choreopoem
I've been devising.

And it's a work in process,

as are we all,

so thank you for your kindness.

[loudly]
I gaze into the mirror...

But my face doesn't know
who I am.

I stare into the reflection

of a future me I could never be,

and I realize, I am the other,

and the other is me.

I am another,

and the other... is we.

[applause]

- Well, are you thinking
what I'm thinking?

- I'm thinking we know
why Dottie doesn't

remember meeting Ben.

[door opens]

[soft dramatic music]

♪

- Thank you for taking the time
to meet with me.

I called you here today
because there has been

significant community concern
that Gia's participation

on the team is not fair
to the other girls.

- Okay, let's not pretend
these complaints are anonymous.

- Okay, I might be one parent,
but there are plenty of others

that just aren't brave enough
to speak up.

- Real brave, coming after
a girl your daughter's age.

- Margie, we can
reimburse you for the damage.

- It was an accident.
- This isn't about my car.

This is about keeping Lakehill...

- Have you gotten all
of your college apps in yet?

- I'm just trying to get
through high school.

So no, not really.

- You're just doubling down
on excluding her.

- When I was my daughter's age,
we didn't have girls' sports.

We had to fight for Title IX.
So I'm not gonna sit here

as you take away women's sports
because you think

there's no difference
between boys and girls.

- No one is taking
anything away from anyone.

- It's about inclusion.
- You call it inclusion,

but who is gonna protect
mydaughter?

- Margie, you have no idea

what we have been through
as parents.

Everything we have done
to keep our daughter safe...

The doctors, the therapists,

the lawyers, the church groups.

- Oh, yeah.
- What kind of church is that?

- The kind that teaches
"gather the little children"

and "do unto others as you
would have them do to you."

- Can I ask you something?

What if Shruti got scouted
for Stanford, and you didn't?

- Shruti? Yeah, right.

- I'm serious.

- I guess I would be jealous,

but, like, still proud of her.

- What if it was me?

What if I got a spot
instead of you?

- You know that's different.

What do you want me to say?

- I want you to say
that you see me

just like any other girl
on the team,

that I deserve a chance to play,

that you want me out there
on the court getting open

so we can win.

- I... I can't say all of that.

♪

- Even at practice,
when we're just playing,

do you really believe all that
"she's not one of us" stuff?

- I mean,
we are on the same team.

- Thank you.

Hear that, y'all?

Brandis and I are
on the same team.

[both laugh]

- I think it's better
for everyone

if we put Gia back on the bench.

It's not appropriate
to force the school

into this type
of political controversy.

- Force the school?
- We are talking

about a child playing a game.

- Whose decision was it
to put her

on the team in the first place?

- We discussed Gia being
on the team

when the district offered
Carlos his coaching job.

- Yes, we agreed

that she could practice
with the girls privately.

You broke that agreement
when you put your daughter

out there on the court.

- What?

- Gia, please...

- No!

I thought you had my back,
no matter what.

That's what you said.

- I do. We do.

- By making a deal with them
to keep me off the court?

- We just tried
to keep you safe.

You know how cruel
people can be.

- You know what's cruel?

Telling me to wait my turn,

knowing this whole time
my turn was never gonna happen.

- It's just
so much more complicated.

- No. It's not.

You lied to me.

I hate you!

♪

- Gia!
- Gia!

- Gia!
- Gia!

- She took the van.
- Gia!

[suspenseful music]

Do you have any idea
where she would have gone?

- No.
- Ben, Ziggy says

if she makes it out
of the city...

- I know, I know!

- What do you know?

- This is all my fault.

- Hey.

I need you to calm down

and help me find our daughter,
all right?

- All right.

Okay. [Laughs wryly]

This actually isn't
my first runaway kid, so.

[indistinctly] Yeah, yeah.

Where are her favorite places,

somewhere she likes to hang out?

- We don't let her hang out.

- Right.
- We don't let her hang out.

Uh, is there somewhere
she would go?

Anyone she would call?

Give me your phone.

♪

- Do you realize
what you're asking me to do?

- Just give me enough
for the first couple weeks.

I'll get a job,
and I'll pay you back, I swear.

- You'll get a job.
- That's your big plan?

And you'll find
a place to live too?

A 17-year-old trans girl
out there with nothing.

- That's what you did.

- Gia, I didn't have a choice.

You have parents who love you.

They may not get it right
all the time,

but they're putting in the work.

- I just want
to live my own life.

- Okay, real talk,

if you think that running
around in these streets

is the same thing
as independence,

you might want to look again
at that definition.

- I just want everyone to stop
hovering over me all the time,

making decisions for me
about everything!

- I get it. It's rough.

I know.

But at the same time, doll,

I have to tell you,
a lot of these kids out here,

they don't have this luxury.

[sighs]

I talked to your parents.

- [huffs, scoffs]

[tense music]

♪

- I told them I'd wait with you

till they get here,
if that's okay.

- Am I gonna get in trouble?

- I think everybody's just glad
you came here first.

I know I am.

- Were you out in high school?

- Uh, those are two
different questions.

Was I out?

Oh, yeah.

Couldn't hide me. [Chuckles]

Uh, was I in school?

No.

That wasn't a path
that seemed available to me.

- What did you do?

- I did what we all did
back then,

relied on my trans sisters,

and some aunties and guncles
along the way.

No sugar daddies though,
unfortunately.

- [chuckles]

Were you part
of a ballroom house?

- Oh, yeah, I was.

- What was it like?
- Well, it wasn't

all "Drag Race" or anything,
I'll tell you that much.

We, uh, took care of each other.

It was mostly trans folk
kicked out from their homes,

surviving on pennies
and voguing on down.

But we also had a plague
to deal with, so.

- How'd you do it?

- You just get through
the hard times

with the family that you got

or the family that you make
along the way.

[soft dramatic music]

- Or maybe both?

- Absolutely both.

♪

[car approaching]

- Gia!

I am so sorry, honey.

I am so, so sorry.

- Umma.

- I... I didn't realize
we were making things worse.

We were just trying
to protect you.

- You said when the time
was right, but you knew.

- Well, maybe the time
was right, kiddo.

- You wouldn't have put me in
if you didn't have to.

- Gia, n-no. Maybe we might have

made some mistakes,
but your mom and I,

we were just trying
to keep you safe.

- But you make the rules,

you and Principal Krager

and Amanda's mom
and everyone else.

Why can't you grown-ups
just figure out

how to make school safe
for everyone?

- Listen, we don't want you

to have to carry this burden
on your own.

- Hey, look,

maybe if you stop seeing
her transness as a burden,

then she won't
feel like one, okay?

You've raised a loving
and joyful child who's known

what it's like to walk
in somebody else's shoes

from a very young age.

And you don't keep
your gorgeous trans child safe

by hiding them away.

You keep her safe by telling
her that you love her

and by reassuring her that
you're gonna have her back,

no matter what.

- And by letting her play.

I need you to start
letting me live my life,

to play basketball and
to hang out with my friends,

to stay out too late
and make mistakes.

I know you're scared,

and I'm sorry it's so scary
being parents of a trans kid.

But you've got to get over it,

because your fear is not
my responsibility.

Thank you for letting me
be myself.

But now you just have
to let me be a kid.

♪

- I'm sorry.

Okay. All right.

We will.

And I believe we have
a basketball game to get to,

if you're up for it.

- But what about your job?

- Being your parents is
the most important job we have.

- Come on.

[hopeful music]

♪

- We've got you, girl.

Let's go.

- 'Ey, you're done going into
that janitor's closet, Mendez.

Girls' locker room is
for all girls, period.

- Mm-hmm.
- What about your mom?

- I told her she should let
us decide who we change with.

- And I told her
the alternative is making

the school nurse give us all
blood tests and strip searches.

- Yo! They would do that to us?

- They do it to Black women
all the time.

- Adults are so weird, I swear.

[all chuckle and agree]

- So what I want to know is,

are we a team?

- Not without Gia.

- [all cheer]
- Ooh! I like that.

'Ey! Are we a team?

All: Not without Gia!

[chanting] Not without Gia!

Not without Gia!
Not without Gia!

Not without Gia!

Not without Gia!

- Coach, you got
your starting order?

- Yeah, right here.

- [exhales] You sure about this?

- Oh, yeah.

- Right on.

[dramatic music]

- You're really gonna put your
job on the line for this stunt?

- You might not be willing
to stand up for my daughter,

but I've got a locker room
full of screaming girls

who aren't playing this game
without her.

- What exactly do you think

you're going to achieve
with this?

- Well, ma'am,

I think we're about
to go to regionals.

♪

[crowd cheering]

♪

[whistle blows]

[whistle blows]

[crowd cheering]

[dramatic music]

- Agh.

- Wake up, Gia, wake up.

- Get under.
- It's okay, draw it out.

Draw it out.

- Ugh.
- Come on, Gia.

Where's your head at?

♪

Gia, go. Hustle around!

- Ugh!

- All right. Time out, time out!

[whistle blows]
Circle up, Lions.

Gia, what's wrong?

- Why did they let
those people in here?

- [crowd jeering]
- Don't worry about them.

Just a few haters
out of how many?

Look how many people are here
cheering for you.

[crowd cheering]

[inspirational music]

♪

Listen, you've earned
your spot on this team,

all of you.

And no matter what happens
from this point out,

win or lose, regionals or not,

I want you to give it
everything you've got.

Basketball is no different
from the rest of your life.

You define the game
by how you choose to play it.

So show up.
Put your whole heart into it.

Try and work hard as a team,

but do not back down,

especially when you know
what's right.

♪

[crowd cheering]

Now, what do Lions do?

- We roar!

- I said, what do Lions do?

All: We roar!

- Get open. I'll pass it to you.

Show them what you can do.

[whistle blows]

♪

- Whoo!

[cheers and applause]

- Hey.

You wanna watch the game?

- Are you...
- Are you serious right now?

- Come on.
- This is so against the rules.

- Hey, I am just
holding a door open.

- Accomplice.

You're an accomplice.

♪

- Yes, yes! There you go!

- Let's go, Gia!

- Is that your daughter?
- Yes!

- She's awesome.

- She really is.

- This is incredible.

- Yeah.

- The principal wanted me
to come tell you

to pull your daughter,
but I can't do that.

School sports are meant
to teach students life skills,

to build their confidence,
and show them

how to work together as a team.

I never want to keep any child
from that experience.

- Thank you.

- Also, I'm the union rep.

They try and fire you,
we got your back...

And Gia's.

- ♪ You just gotta
ignite the light ♪

♪ And let it shine

- Yes!
- ♪ Just own the night

♪ Like the Fourth of July

♪ 'Cause baby,
you're a firework ♪

♪ Come on,
let your colors burst ♪

♪ Make 'em go, ah, ah, ah

♪ You're gonna leave 'em all
in awe, awe, awe ♪

♪ Boom, boom, boom

♪ Even brighter
than the moon, moon, moon ♪

- Go, Gia!

♪

- ♪ Boom, boom, boom

♪ Even brighter than the moon ♪

- Nice assist!

♪

- ♪ Boom, boom, boom

♪ Even brighter
than the moon, moon, moon ♪

♪

- Ah!

[crowd cheering]

[tense music]

♪

- Those feelings
you describe in your poem,

that face you kept seeing,

I had an experience
like that too.

- I lost time.

The week you say
that photo was taken,

I just don't remember.

- Wow. What if I told you,

you were right about a secret
government conspiracy,

something you were
all wrapped up in,

but didn't even know about?

- I'd tell you, I told you so.

- Let's say you did
lose time for a week.

To everyone else,
you were still Dottie,

doing everything Dottie does.

But did you ever stop to think

about who was behind the wheel,

who was driving you
like a bus the whole time?

- Are you kidding?

I can't get them out of my head.

I just, uh...

I just keep drawing them.

♪

- This is the person
you see in your dreams?

- That's the person
who was behind the wheel

when I lost time.

♪

[indistinct chatter,
dishes clattering]

[sounds amplified]

[bell dings]

- Great, thank you.

- [humming]

- Where are the pakoras?

- Finishing now.
- [bell dings]

- Dining room's ready.
- Almost 11:30.

We're opening. Let's go.

- Awesome.