Screenplay by Jeff Kesterson
jeff@cafenoir.co
952-452-4471
INT. APARTMENT — NIGHT
SHE stares into the camera, standing against a blank background. The song “Pumpkin” by Tricky plays and SHE sings/lipsyncs the opening line.
CUT TO:
SHE and HE are sitting in bed, each reading silently. “Pumpkin” hollows out and plays softly now in the background. They sit for a while, reading to themselves. After a few moments she breaks the silence, turning toward him.
SHE
Hey what are we doing tomorrow?
HE
(after a pause, distracted)
Oh I don’t know. Why what are you thinking?
SHE
Well, I thought maybe we could run out and get dinner and then…
She trails off, he’s not really listening.
HE
Um, run out and? I’m sorry, I’m listening.
SHE
Yeah, I thought maybe we could grab dinner and then see who’s at first ave.
HE
Yeah.
HE (CONT’D)
We should.
Nose back in his reading material. Dissatisfied, she turns back to hers as well. After a few more moments, she looks back over at him. He appears to have been replaced by a woman we haven’t seen before, staring back at HER. Then HE is back and SHE double takes. Then this new woman reappears, and at the 2:07 mark in “Pumpkin” the music swells and resolves to extra-diegetic as she leans in and climbs on top of HER. Cut to HER against a blank wall, staring/singing into the camera in a (threatening? vulnerable? wounded?) way.
At the 2:44 mark in “Pumpkin” the music hollows back to diegetic and HE is back, sitting next to HER, lost in his reading. After a moment or two she leans over and climbs on top of him, pulling his face toward hers and kissing him aggressively, desperately. He works his hands around her waist and then up her back, underneath her shirt, the top few buttons of which are suggestively open in the front as she leans toward him.
At the 3:56 mark in “Pumpkin” her phone rings on the end table on her side of the bed, right at the worst time and out of easy reach. They try to ignore it, and after it finally stops ringing they’re trying to recapture the moment (4:12 mark). Then it starts ringing again (4:25 mark). This time she reaches over to silence it, dismounting him in order to do so. She looks at her phone. “Pumpkin” has faded completely out. “Family Business” by the Fugees fades in, again as soft diegetic background music.
SHE
God. I’ll call him back later…
SHE (CONT’D)
Hey, did you make that call yet?
HE
That call? No.
HE (CONT’D)
(With finality)
I did not.
SHE
So…that’s it? You’re not going to do anything about it?
HE
What, you think I’m not “doing anything” about it? You have no idea…
SHE
Well, you’re not going back there? You’re not going to see her again?
HE
No. God. No. Please. That sounds fucking terrible. That’s the last thing I want to do. Is that really what you want?
SHE
Yes. It is.
SHE (CONT’D)
We don’t have a lot of time…
HE
Do you know how that’s gonna go? Do you?
SHE
I know, it’s going to be horrible. I know…
SHE (CONT’D)
It’s going to be horrible no matter what. I know that. But at least this way…
HE
(Cutting her off)
At least this way…what? No. We both know that’s not gonna… I don’t want to make it even worse than it’s gotta be.
SHE
So that is it, then. You’re just going to sit here and do fucking nothing?!
“Family Business” has reached the 1:55 mark, and the music swells/resolves to extra-diegetic.
HE
(vocalized by Wyclef Jean)
Ahh, fuck that!!…
He explodes blindly out of the apartment, somewhere out into the night. Frantically twisting through alleys and into dark corners. At around the 2:20 mark in “Family Business” the credits roll.
