“And I want him. I've been in love with him all my life.”
Why it's great
She takes his word and answers with a lifetime, a plain confession no quip can answer.
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literary
Use it yourself
I've been in love with this city all my life.
00:00 / 03:26
00:00 / 03:26
Linus Brings Sabrina Champagne, Explained
Sabrina · 1954
Chapter 9 of 18 · 3'26"
David stands Sabrina up and sends his brother Linus up with the champagne instead. The two turn the family's plan into a joke about a Viennese operetta, but Sabrina's confession is real: "And I want him. I've been in love with him all my life."
Key moments
Start here, then watch the full scene- 0:34–1:38
Linus and Sabrina Talk Over Champagne
64s - 1:47–3:13
The Viennese Operetta Joke
85s
Linus Brings Sabrina Champagne, explained
What happens
When David can't make their date, Linus arrives at Sabrina's place with the champagne in his brother's place. Over drinks they trade barbs about how they always meet under strange circumstances. Sabrina says she has loved David her whole life, while Linus hides what his visit is really for.
What's really going on
The scene runs on two levels at once. On the surface it's a charming chat between a rich family's son and the chauffeur's daughter, full of jokes about Viennese operettas and prime ministers sent to buy a waitress off. Underneath, Sabrina is being managed: she admits she was sure the family had sent someone "to deal with me," and she isn't wrong—Linus is there to steer her away from David. Her confession lands plainly: "And I want him. I've been in love with him all my life." When Linus calls her feeling a fresh breeze through a stuffy old house, he's mocking and meaning it at the same time. He came to do a job and starts to fall for her.
Key lines & what they mean
- “And I want him. I've been in love with him all my life.”
- Sabrina states her feelings outright, with no coyness: this isn't a crush, and she's not interested in being talked out of it.
- “It's as though a window had been thrown open and a lovely breeze swept through this stuffy old house.”
- Linus's image for what Sabrina brings: fresh air and life into a rigid, wealthy household that has gone stale.
- “Either you're under eight cars looking for a missing spark plug, or you're perched up here, umpiring a tennis match between two players who aren't there.”
- Linus teases Sabrina by cataloguing their odd meetings: first she was gassed in the garage, now she's alone refereeing an empty court.
- “Even though the breeze comes from the general direction of the garage?”
- Sabrina's dry reply, needling the family's snobbery: any good she brings is still dismissed as coming from the help's quarters.
- “Tonight I wanted it to be me.”
- Sabrina admits the evening was meant to fix one old wound: the memory of David dancing that song with someone else, not her.
- “We do meet under the most peculiar circumstances, Sabrina.”
- Linus's opening line: a polite way of saying their encounters have been strange, and a hint that this one is stranger still.
Theme
- Class — Every joke about operettas and buying a waitress off is about the gap between a Larrabee and the chauffeur's daughter.
- Romance — Linus comes to manage Sabrina for the family and, mid-banter, begins to fall for her himself.
What this chapter teaches
Teaching points
Review right after watchingMy level3/8
A1–C2 is the CEFR scale. Cards above the level you pick fade, and playback will not auto-pause on them.
Language points
Click a card to jump to its moment in the videoGolden lines
A great line in its own right — why and how to use it“It's as though a window had been thrown open and a lovely breeze swept through this stuffy old house.”
Why it's great
It praises someone by describing the room changing around them, which is harder to resist than a compliment.
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literary
Use it yourself
It's as though a window had been opened when she walks in.
“Either you're under eight cars looking for a missing spark plug, or you're perched up here, umpiring a tennis match between two players who aren't there.”
Why it's great
Two absurd snapshots of how they keep meeting make the joke land without a single adverb.
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Informal
Use it yourself
Either you're in a meeting, or you're on a plane.
“Even though the breeze comes from the general direction of the garage?”
Why it's great
She takes his compliment and quietly reminds him where she comes from, and the smile never leaves.
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Neutral
Use it yourself
Even though I'm the only one without a degree?
“Tonight I wanted it to be me.”
Why it's great
One quiet sentence about a wish carries more longing than any speech about love.
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Neutral
Use it yourself
When they read the name, I wanted it to be me.
“We do meet under the most peculiar circumstances, Sabrina.”
Why it's great
It names the coincidence politely and still keeps a distance, which is exactly his style.
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Formal
Use it yourself
We do meet under the strangest circumstances lately.
Up next · 10see her for the treeThe scene: Linus Visits David in BedTakeaways
What you walk away with- Sabrina turns a compliment into a remark about her background.
- Linus keeps the whole visit polite and slightly cold.
- The opera talk is really a negotiation about money.
- Her confession is the one line he cannot match.
People also search
Questions, then the linesWhy does Linus come to Sabrina's room instead of David?
David is delayed, so Linus goes in his place with the champagne. But he's also there for the family—Sabrina guesses she's being handled, "sent by the family to deal with me."
Is Sabrina really in love with David?
She says so plainly—"I've been in love with him all my life." It's not a passing crush; the whole evening was arranged around finally being the one he dances with.
What is the Viennese operetta joke about?
Sabrina pictures the family's plan as an old operetta plot: a prince loves a waitress, and the prime minister is sent to buy her off. Linus plays along and asks how it ends.
Does Linus actually want Sabrina to leave David alone?
Officially, yes—he's the family's problem-solver. But the scene shows him softening fast, calling her a breeze through the house and staying to talk instead of leaving.