| Subject: New complete short - still untitled. |
Author:
B Otch
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Date Posted: 00:10:50 02/15/05 Tue
FADE IN:
INT. Bedroom – Morning.
An alarm clock shows 7:55 AM and is beeping incessantly.
A calendar hangs on the wall. It shows the month of February. The day of the 13th is circled with the words “Dinner at 8” written inside the space. Next to it is the printed text for the 14th, “Valentine’s Day”.
A man in his late twenties to early thirties is lying in bed. He is awake and staring at the ceiling. A person on the other side of the wall is banging and yelling, but the words are muffled and drowned by the alarm.
The man is now staring at himself in the bathroom mirror. The alarm is still going off in the other room.
He finishes brushing his teeth. He is shaving. He is putting on cologne. He is brushing his teeth again. He is dressed up and checks himself out one more time. He checks his teeth one more time. He is brushing his teeth again. He is gargling mouthwash. He rinses one last time, checks himself one final last time then walks away.
The man opens his door to leave his apartment. A stocky, elderly foreign man in his pajamas is waiting just outside. The foreigner begins to yell at the man in an unknown language, but you can make out the words “beep, beep, beep”. The man simply keeps on nodding and smiling at the foreigner as he locks the door behind him and leave. The alarm still has not stopped beeping.
INT. Bus – Later that morning.
The man is sitting at the back of the bus with a cup of hot beverage between both hands, over his lap. Two voices argue over a crackling speaker above. It is a morning radio talk show the bus is broadcasting.
MALE DEEJAY (OS)
Look. I understand it’s unseasonably hot for October; but that doesn’t give any woman the excuse to wear that outfit.
FEMALE DEEJAY (OS)
If it makes her feel comfortable, she can wear it anywhere and anytime she wants to.
MALE DEEJAY (OS)
Well, I’m not comfortable seeing her in public.
FEMALE DEEJAY (OS)
‘Cuz she’s showing a little skin?
MALE DEEJAY (OS)
She’s five feet tall and three feet wide. That’s a helluvalot of skin!
The man chuckles as he blows air into his hot drink.
FEMALE DEEJAY (OS)
Oh, that’s funny?
The man takes a very careful sip of his drink.
MALE DEEJAY (OS)
She’s talking to you, loser. Put down the low-fat latte and answer the lady.
The man looks up at the speaker box slightly confused.
FEMALE DEEJAY (OS)
Oh, will you look at that. There’s that stupid look on his face again.
MALE DEEJAY (OS)
Which look was that?
FEMALE DEEJAY (OS)
Remember? The ‘you’re dumping me on our Valentine dinner’ look?
MALE DEEJAY (OS)
That’s right. That was classic. Classic!
The man straightens his face. He looks around at the other passengers. Everyone else seems to be normally just going about their business.
FEMALE DEEJAY (OS)
It’s been what? Eight months? That’s longer than your actual relationship. You need to move on!
MALE DEEJAY (OS)
Well, in his defense, she did put out a lot.
The man agrees.
FEMALE DEEJAY (OS)
Boo hoo. Go home and whack off! Get it all out of your system.
MALE DEEJAY (OS)
Damn!
FEMALE DEEJAY (OS)
You have got to lose that lovin’ feeling, boy.
MALE DEEJAY (OS)
You’re not gonna break out to a song, are you?
MALE DEEJAY (OS)
Yes, you think you’re perfect for each other. Yes, you believe no one can love her as much as you. Yes, you will probably always care about her for as long as you live.
But she doesn’t have any of those feelings for you.
For your own sake, accept the loss and move on with your life. And if you really care about this girl, the best thing you can do is just be happy for her.
MALE DEEJAY (OS)
Here’s the bottom line, dude: you can love someone all you want; but you sure as Hell can’t make them love you back.
INT. Airport parking lot – Still later that morning.
The man is leaning against the front hood of a car. His friend is in front of him, standing at a sidewalk right at the entrance of the parking lot. His friend has an oversized bag strapped over one shoulder and a laptop bag on the other.
FRIEND
Sure you can.
MAN
Really?
FRIEND
The whole foundation of a relationship is for both parties to love one another…
Pause.
MAN
And?
FRIEND
And – what? You asked if a person you love can love you back, and the answer is ‘yes’.
The man stares blankly at his friend for more information.
FRIEND (Cont’d)
Look, I’m not going to break it down to the specifics of how, when, and what; but I’ll say this: If you truly love someone, wouldn’t you express that love in words and action towards him or her.
MAN
Her.
FRIEND
Right.
Communication? Common interest? Common hatred? Physical attributes? Sex? All these very different things come up during your time together. Some people fall in love right away and others develop it along the way. The key is, you are making an effort for that other person to get to know how you feel about her; and in turn, how she may feel about you. Understand?
MAN
What if we’ve already passed that point?
FRIEND
And she didn’t fall in love with you?
MAN
No –
FRIEND
Oh, then it’s just not meant to be. You move on.
MAN
No. She did fall for me… but then it went away.
FRIEND
Oh, Jeezus! Are you talking about that girl that fucking dumped you a year ago?
MAN
Eight months.
FRIEND
Dude, you need to fucking get over that shit.
MAN
That’s what everyone keeps telling me.
FRIEND
And everyone is right. Sometimes it just does not work.
Let me put this bag in the car.
The friend pulls the latch on the passenger door. The car alarm goes off.
MAN
That aint my car, man.
FRIEND
Shit. Where are you at?
MAN
I took the bus.
FRIEND
What? I called you a week ago to pick me up.
MAN
No, you called a week ago to meet you here.
FRIEND
You are a dumbass.
The alarm on the car stops. The man and his friend quickly recognize an overly large, black man carrying humongous suitcases in each hand. And behind him is a tiny woman with a plastered attitude etched on her face. She is pointing her keys at the car.
BLACK MAN
What are you bitches doing in my car?
CUT TO:
INT. Restaurant – two hours later.
The man and his friend are eating lunch. The large, black man and his tiny woman are also there and are about to leave.
BLACK MAN
Yo, thanks for lunch, man.
FRIEND
Oh, no problem. Thanks for the ride.
TINY WOMAN
See you, boys.
FRIEND
Take it easy.
MAN
I don’t see how the same principle can’t apply. In fact, I should have the advantage because I was already at the driver seat prior. I know how to drive it. I know what’s wrong, and I can fix it.
FRIEND (Confused)
Excuse me?
MAN
I’m sorry. I’m just thinking out loud here. How’s the Reuben sandwich?
FRIEND
It’s good. You should have tried it.
MAN
I had it last night. I had sauerkraut stuck in my teeth when I woke up. Anyway, I was thinking about what you said earlier. You know, about getting back my ex –
The friend rolls his eyes.
MAN (Cont’d)
No, no. Here me out: why can’t the same rules apply as if I am just meeting her for the very first time? But this time it’ll be easier because I already know a lot of the things she like and doesn’t like.
FRIEND
Yeah. For example, she doesn’t like you.
MAN
Seriously! All I have to do is say and do all the things that would make her like me again. But now, because I already know what didn’t work before, I can improve on it.
It’s brilliant!
FRIEND
You are an idiot. That is one of the stupidest things I have every heard in my life. There’s no reset button here like a video game. You can’t just walk up to her and ask her out on a first date -- again.
MAN
That would be a challenge.
FRIEND
I’m done talking to you now.
WAITRESS
All right, boys. Who gets the check today?
The friend quickly points at the man.
WAITRESS (Cont’d)
Here you go, sweetie.
MAN
Thanks. Hey, let me ask you something –
FRIEND
Dude.
MAN
You’ve broken up with guys before, right?
WAITRESS
Oh, yeah. I have dated a lot of jerks.
FRIEND (to Man)
What are you doing?
MAN (to Waitress)
Of all the guys you’ve broken up with, did any one try to get back with you?
WAITRESS
There was one or two. What are you getting at?
MAN
Did you take them back?
WAITRESS
No.
MAN
Because they didn’t change, right? You were afraid they’d make the same mistake.
WAITRESS
Jerks usually tend to stay jerks, honey.
MAN
What if – what if someone you once liked did change? What if they have become the person that you have wanted all along? What do you do?
WAITRESS
Nothing.
MAN
Nothing?
WAITRESS
What would you have me do? Go after him? After I broke his heart? If I were him, I wouldn’t want me back. I obviously didn’t have the faith in him to change, and he proved me wrong. He deserves somebody better than me.
MAN
What if he made that change for you?
WAITRESS
Then I’d say he’s short sighted and delusional. Worse, he had wasted his life trying to fix something that did not need fixing. He was just working on the wrong thing. The man ponders the thought.
FRIEND (whispers)
Same shit, man. Different story teller.
WAITRESS (to Friend)
Did your friend get the “It’s not you, it’s me” speech?
FRIEND
Is there any other?
WAITRESS
That cliché gets old sometimes, but it’s usually true. The problem is that women are not clarifying it beyond the words.
FRIEND
How so?
WAITRESS
I mean I’d tell the guy exactly what it is that did not work. It could be something as simple as him falling for me hard and quick, but I’m nowhere near where he’s at. In fact, I may even feel that I was headed in the other direction.
The bottom line is, it is not going to work out, and it is not going to be worked out.
FRIEND
Harsh.
WAITRESS
Truth hurts, sweetie.
MAN
So the there’s no answer to the question: How can you make someone you love, love you back?
WAITRESS
I think you’re asking the wrong question, sweetie. WHY would you love a woman that will NOT love you back?
CUT TO:
INT. Bedroom – Morning.
An alarm clock shows 7:55 AM and is beeping incessantly.
A calendar hangs on the wall. It shows the month of February. The day of the 13th is circled with the words “Dinner at 8” written inside the space. Next to it is the printed text for the 14th, “Valentine’s Day”.
A man in his late twenties to early thirties is lying in bed. He is awake and staring at the ceiling. A person on the other side of the wall is banging and yelling, but the words are muffled and drowned by the alarm.
The man, still affixed to the ceiling, blindly presses a button on the alarm clock so the noise changes from an annoying buzzer sound to two annoying deejays on morning talk radio. The deejays are complaining about how cold it is outside.
MALE DEEJAY (OS)
I swear to God. I sneezed and all my snots froze in midair.
FEMALE DEEJAY (OS)
Oh, that was just gross.
The man is now staring at himself in the bathroom mirror as he brushes his teeth.
MALE DEEJAY (OS)
And what’s with the wind chill factor? If that’s the temperature we feel when it hits our skin, why can’t that be just the temperature? Why does it have to have its own name?
The man is dressed up and checks himself one last time in the mirror. He picks up his cell phone and keys lying next to the bed. He turns off the alarm clock. The pounding on the wall continued for a second and then it stopped.
FOREIGN VOICE (OS)
Thank you.
The man walks up to the calendar and flips the pages all the way to October. He resets the tack so it stays permanently. He leaves the apartment. The alarm clock goes off again.
FEMALE DEEJAY (OS)
This looks like the start of something new. Don’t you agree?
FADE OUT.
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