INT.  HIGH SCHOOL – CLASSROOM – DAYTIME

The camera is focused from the corner to the front of the classroom – focused on a single boy who’s facing forward.  He’s looking down, as if he’s taking a test.  Everything is silent.  THEN:
				
					MALCOLM (V.O.)
	Love has nothing to do with
	What you’re expecting to get, it’s 
	What you’re expected to give—

A beat of silence

				WARREN (V.O)
	What’s that?

Another beat of silence.

				MALCOLM (V.O.)
	Everything, I guess.

Another beat of silence.

				WARREN (V.O.)
	Huh. (beat) Who said that?

With yet another beat of silence, the boy the camera has been focusing turns around and looks straight at the camera.  He stares STRAIGHT AT US with a curious stare.  Then the screen cuts to BLACK.

				MALCOLM (V.O.)
	I don’t know.

CUT TO:

EXT.  HIGH SCHOOL PARKING LOT – DAYTIME

It’s cloudy and the tint is blue.  A single car sits in the vast blacktop parking lot that lies adjacent to the immense mid-west high school.  A TALL, BROWN HAIRED BOY is standing at his car, holding his keys and staring over at the football field.  The field lights are on and the players are out running practices on the field before spectators begin arriving.

He stares at the field, immersed in a warm melancholy that wraps him and distances him from the audience – he’s comfortable in his world.  We can see a car in the background of the shot winding around the parking lot.  It catches the boy’s attention and he turns around.  The car is bouncing around the parking lot swerving and doing several doughnuts before finally halting and then being thrown into reverse.  The car is aimed past the boy.  The driver kicks it back in to drive and the brown, battered piece of shit rolls on by him. 

He watches as the car leaves the parking lot and enters a grassy divide, running down the rusty fences and into the field.  This immediately cuts to another shot of the boy standing in the parking lot.  We can hear people shouting from the field.

				RANDOM PLAYERS (O.C.)
	You goddamned crazy motherfucker! Holy
	Shit, he hit them, he fucking hit them!
	Oh my god, I can’t believe this...	

The camera is again focused on the brown haired boy staring at the field while this shouting is going on.  The scene then cuts to black and the credits roll, announcing the title and actors.

CUT TO:

INT. MALCOLM FORESSTER’S HOUSE – KITCHEN – NIGHTTIME

The black continues running.  In the background you can hear people having a discussion.  It is the Foresster family, a small mid-western family comprised of a husband, a wife, a son, and a daughter – a nuclear family.  

					MALCOLM’S FATHER
			Crazy bastard.
				
					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			I just can’t believe someone 
			Would do that to his classmates.
			I just don’t understand it.

The black fades into a scene.  We can see a black haired boy eating his dinner at the table with the rest of his family.  A single tiffany lamp hangs over the table illuminating the room and keeping the ceiling dark.  

					MALCOLM’S SISTER
			Yeah, I know.  Crazy asshole just 
			Drove it right on to the field.  Killed
			Four of them.

She’s saying this with a matter-of-fact attitude, spiked with a morbid humor.  Upon second inspection, you can tell she’s enjoying describing the gruesome scene to her entire family.

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			Tiffany, dear, please watch the
			Language.

TIFFANY
			What?  I can say what I want, I’m
			Almost seventeen.

					MALCOLM’S FATHER
			Well, you certainly can, but not
			While you’re living in this house.

					TIFFANY
			Malcolm says worse things than
			Asshole.  I hear him at school.
					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			Tiffany, I said –

					MALCOLM’S FATHER
			He better not be saying things
			Like that.

As Malcolm’s father says this he looks over at Malcolm, who sits across from Tiffany.  Malcolm looks up from his plate of food and at his father. Then at his sister. After a beat of silence:

					MALCOLM’S FATHER
			Right?

					MALCOLM
			What?

					TIFFANY
			You do.  I’ve seen you talking
			At school.  You say some pretty 
			Bad stuff, like “shit” and “piss”
			And “f –

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			Tiffany, what did I say?

					TIFFANY
			He does, though!  And Ms. Hutchins
			Doesn’t do anything about it! He and
			Rushmore talk like that all the time.

Both Malcolm’s mother and father look at Malcolm.  

MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			Rushmore?

					MALCOLM’S FATHER
			I thought you said you weren’t
			Still hanging around that kid
			Anymore.

					MALCOLM
			I’m not.

					TIFFANY
			Yes you are.

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			Malcolm, you know what we think of
			Rushmore.  
		
					MALCOLM
			Yeah, you told me.  Look, I’m—

					MALCOLM’S FATHER
			You better not be hanging around that
			Kid.  I don’t want him getting you into
Any trouble.  Someone at work was talking
			About him and some other kids got them
			Selves into trouble up at the spillway—

Malcolm cuts in during the beginning of his father’s story.

MALCOLM (annoyed)
			Look, Dad, I’m not hanging around with
			Him.

					MALCOLM’S FATHER
			You better not.  Those kids are nothing
			But trouble.  Rushmore is the worst.

Malcolm and his father exchange a stare for a few beats of silence.  The women return to eating during this silence and then Malcolm’s father returns to eating and looks down at his plate. 

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			What a waste.  He had so much 
			Potential.

TIFFANY
			You know, I heard a funny rumor
			About Rushmore.  Julia said that
			The cops found his truck parked 
			On the side of Wilkinson street 
			Out in the country with the windows
			All fogged up—

She, again, is amused with herself for knowing this.

					TIFFANY (cont’d)
			--but apparently when they knocked
			on the windows and looked in, he was
			with another guy.

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER 
			Really.

Malcolm looks over at her, not incredibly interested but enough lead the audience into interest.

					TIFFANY
			Uh huh.  They don’t know who the 
			Guy is.  They say he’s up from Galva
			Or Geneseo.  I’m not sure though.

					MALCOLM’S FATHER
			Weirdos.  Geneseo is full of ‘em.  
Rushmore belongs there.

Malcolm is looking down at his plate but his eyes wander in the direction of his father.  A far shot shows the family eating dinner in silence.  Then the scene cuts to black.

	CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NIGHTTIME

From the black screen, we suddenly hear a light switch flick and the camera is situated in the Foresster bathroom.  Malcolm’s was the hand that threw the switch, and he walks into the bathroom.  He messes with a few things in the bathroom and then the scene suddenly cuts to him in the shower.  Obviously no nudity in the film.  We’ll establish that right now.  He isn’t exactly doing anything exciting in the shower – just kind of standing there.  He’s not washing his hair or anything you’d normally think of seeing someone doing in the shower.  His hair is wet and hangs over his face.  Motions tell us he’s washing.  

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – UPSTAIRS HALLWAY – NIGHTTIME

The camera is focused outside the bathroom door.  We can hear the noises of the shower muffled outside the door.  The camera rests for a beat and then—

					CUTS TO:

INT.  FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NIGHTTIME 

Again we see the same shot of Malcolm washing himself. He, again, is uninteresting and dull.  He doesn’t do much at all.  

A shot shows the outside of the shower curtain.  Steam pours from the top of the shower and creeps across the ceiling.  The shot is slowly zooming in on the curtain.

We see one more shot of Malcolm and then we—

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – UPSTAIRS HALLWAY – NIGHTTIME

We are outside the door once more.  We can still hear the shower sounds, but accompanied by these sounds we can hear Mr. and Mrs. Foresster laughing downstairs.  

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NIGHTTIME

We are on the same shot outside the shower curtain, zooming in still.  The shot then switches once more to Malcolm washing in the shower.  Suddenly we hear a voice softly speaking to Malcolm through the steam and noises in the bathroom.  It is a soft, yet average eighteen-year-old voice of a male.  

					VOICE (O.C.)
			Malcolm.

Malcolm stops washing.  Silence for a beat.

					VOICE (O.C.)
			Malcolm.

Malcolm looks around.  A shoot behind him shows the shower curtain.  There’s a slight shadow on the curtain.  Malcolm stares at it.  

					VOICE (O.C.)
			Malcolm.

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – UPSTAIRS HALLWAY – NIGHTTIME

Mrs. Foresster is coming upstairs.  She is laughing from the previous conversation she was just having with her husband.  She walks up and past the door.  Before the shot switches we can hear:

					VOICE (O.C.)
			Malcolm, can you help me with something?

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NIGHTTIME

The zoom up shot is continuing on into the curtain.  This time the bare back and arm of a boy have cut in from the side.  He is walking towards the shower curtain.  We can see the shadow becoming more defined on the curtain from inside the shower as he approaches.  Malcolm begins looking closer at it. The shot from outside shows the voice boy approaching – he’s even closer.  

One more inside shot reveals that the shadow is almost completely defined.  

					VOICE (O.C.)
			Malcolm, I have to ask you something.

			CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – UPSTAIRS HALLWAY – NIGHTTIME

Mrs. Foresster is walking around the upstairs hallway.  She crosses the screen and comes back with a basket full of dirty laundry.  She walks downstairs.  

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NIGHTTIME

Malcolm is standing inside the shower staring at the shadow.  He’s slowly bending forward.  Steam is excessively pouring from the shower now, and the entire bathroom is fogged up.  

					VOICE (O.C.) 
			Malcolm, I need to ask you something.
Malcolm’s hand reaches forward to the shower curtain edge.  His hand begins peeling away the shower curtain to reveal the boy who’s standing behind it.  

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – UPSTAIRS HALLWAY – NIGHTTIME

Mrs. Foresster returns up the stairs.  A separate shot breaks from above the bathroom door.  She walks right by the door and then stops.  She makes a sound as if she’s just remembering something important and then spins on her heel.  She comes back and the camera follows her.  It’s almost a close-up.  She knocks on the door and puts her ear to it.

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NIGHTTIME

The same shot shows Malcolm’s hand peeling away the shower curtain.  We can see an outlined figure, but it’s not defined.  Mrs. Foresster’s voice rings obnoxiously from the other side of the bathroom door. The shots switch between the two actors as they speak their lines.    

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			Malcolm?

Malcolm’s hand jerks backward and then the shot switches to the same shot we saw when Malcolm was doing absolutely nothing interesting at all.  He jerks upward and takes a breath.

					MALCOLM
			Yeah?

His voice sounds stressed, and cracks when he says it.

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			I’m doing the laundry.  Can you
			Take your clothes down to the 
			Basement when you’re done in the
			Shower?

					MALCOLM
			Yeah.

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			Ok, thanks dear.

					MALCOLM
			No problem.

He says this much quieter and turns off the shower water.  The shot switches to outside the shower curtain, only before the shot began to zoom up.  The steam is gone.  A green towel hangs from a small rack on the wall and Malcolm’s hand gropes around to find it.  Once he finds he pulls it in.  After the actual actor has wrapped it around himself, he pulls the shower curtain open and stands out.  The camera stays rested on the shower and then it:
CUTS TO:

EXT. FORESSTER HOUSE – EARLY MORNING

The shot is focused outside of the Foresster house.  It’s a cold morning.  The Foresster house is out in the country, on the east side of Hudson, a small mid-west town in Illinois.  It’s a clear day out, and it’s early morning.  The Foressters have to get up early to head into town.  From the side of the white farmhouse, we see Malcolm rush through the screen door and hurry down the concrete steps to a waiting car.  The car is on, and the exhaust from the tail pipe floats and swirls in the cool morning air.  

The shot switches and we see the door on the backside of the car open.  The shot watches from the front windshield and we can see that Mrs. Foresster is driving the car.  The back door opens and a back pack drops into the seat.  It shuts hard and then the side door opens.  Mrs. Foresster looks over and watches Malcolm climb into the seat.  

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			Is your sister ready yet?

					MALCOLM
			Yeah, she’s getting her coat.

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			God, she’s so slow.

Malcolm looks at his mother.  She dawns her sunglasses and looks out her window.  The shot switches and we can see Tiffany walk out much slower than Malcolm did.  
	
					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			There she is.

Mrs. Foresster switches the car into drive and Tiffany climbs into the back seat behind her mother.  She throws her pack on top of Malcolm’s.  

The shot switches to behind the Foresster car, a white Hyundai, and follows it as it pulls out of the driveway.  

CUT TO:

EXT. HUDSON HIGH SCHOOL – EARLY MORNING

The white Hyundai pulls up to the front of the high school and the two children pile out the doors.  Tiffany grabs her bag and takes off into the school, not saying a word to either her brother or her mother.  Malcolm opens the back door on his side and grabs his backpack.  He goes back to close the side door.  His mother beckons him.

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			Your father will be there after the 
			Game tonight to pick you up, ok?  I’ll
			Be back home on Sunday night, so make
			Sure your sister doesn’t drive him 
			Insane until then.

					MALCOLM
			Ok.

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			Have fun at the game.

					MALCOLM
			Ok, thanks.  See you later.

Malcolm’s mother looks at him for a while.

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			Hey.

					MALCOLM
			What?

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			You ok?  

					MALCOLM
			Yeah.

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			You haven’t been talking much. Is
			Everything going ok at school?

MALCOLM
Yeah, everything’s great.

		MALCOLM’S MOTHER
You sure?  You can tell me or
Your father anything.  We won’t
Bite.  

		MALCOLM
I know.  Everything is going fine.
Don’t worry.

		MALCOLM’S MOTHER
You sure?

		MALCOLM
Yeah.  

		MALCOLM’S MOTHER
(a beat) Ok.  I just get worried
about you.  That’s all.

		MALCOLM
Trust me, I’m fine.  

		MALCOLM’S MOTHER
Alright, I trust you.

Malcolm smiles at her.  It’s dry.

					MALCOLM
			I’ll see you on Sunday. 

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			See you then.  I love you.

					MALCOLM
			I love you too.

With these words, Malcolm climbs out of the white Hyundai and shuts the door.  As he leaves, a shot shows his mother watching him walk up to the doors.  After he enters, she looks ahead and shakes her head.  She puts on her sunglasses.  As she checks back to see if anyone is approaching her from behind, she mutters something to herself.

MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			Malcolm, why won’t you tell me
			What’s wrong.

CUT TO:

INT. HUDSON HIGH SCHOOL – EARLY MORNING

We’re behind Malcolm now as he walks down the crowded halls of his mid-western High School, Hudson high school.  People are talking and running and laughing and yelling and complaining and doing all the things that teenagers do in the halls of High School all around him.  As we move through the halls with Malcolm we pick up bits and pieces of conversations about lovers and sex and drugs and how much one girl hates another girl and we can hear words like “shit” and “fuck” and “asshole” and “bitch” and terms like “faggot” and such and so-on.  We hope to appall the audience – especially the adults.  Welcome to Malcolm’s world – a loud, swirling cess-pool full of obnoxious, spoiled brats (in the eyes of their parents) attempting their own adult lives in a place where they cannot yet fully achieve what they wish.  Drugs, sex, violence, alcohol—everything you see and hear in movies and in the media are here, in high school.  Malcolm pushes through it every day, along with several other children his age who realize what they truly are—children.  

Once in a while a group of girls will come by and say something like “Hey, Malcolm” in the sort of slutty “come-hither” voice that allures men.  Huge football players will come up and do (whatever it is they do) with him, saying things like “What’s up, Malcolm?” and such.  Perhaps we’ll know more about this if and when we film on an actual location like this.  Observation is key for a realistic appearance.

The camera continues to stay focused on Malcolm as he wades the puddles of shit that accumulate in the halls of his high school.  We follow him to his locker, after two or three minutes of wandering these crowded halls.  The yells and screams and complaints of the kids around him swell as he opens his locker and begins taking off his coat.  He looks around the halls and then at his locker.  The screams and yells continue to swell and turn into the shouting and cheering of a football game on a Friday night as some important pass is about to be made.  The scene switches.

CUT TO:

EXT.  HUSDON HIGH SCHOOL – FOOTBALL FIELD – NIGHT TIME

A football player in full uniform is running straight at us.  Several others are running after him.  He has the football in his right arm and is running like hell to score a touchdown (I’m guessing this is how football goes).  The crowd is going wild.  He only has a few yards to go when the players of the opposing team behind him begin to gain some serious distance on him.  He boosts for the last few meters in speed and makes the mistake of looking behind him to see how far behind the other players are.  His eyes widen at the sight of a large black football player bearing down on him.  He mutters the words “shit” right before the man grabs him.  The two tumble forward into the end zone and a myriad of players from both teams gather around the two.  The black player gets up, sweating profusely and breathing so hard the rasping sounds like a metal grating.  He takes his helmet off and looks down at the ball-carrying player who is still lying on the ground.  Several players, all from the same team, begin to gather around.  

A shot down at the ball carrier shows the same brown haired boy we witnessed in the parking lot at the beginning of the film.  His name is WARREN KIRCHE, and he’s in some serious pain.  His eyes are closed and he too sounds like metal grating.  The shot switches back to the surrounding players as the stare down at him.  The black player has a twisted look on his face—curious as to how this boy feels on the ground.

After several beats of silence of the players watching him on the ground, coaches begin running out on the field to see if the boy is alright.  As we look up at the players from Warren’s point-of-view, the coach butts in and looks down.  He looks over at the black player and then at the other players look down at Warren.

					COACH 
			Is he ok?

For a beat the players don’t say anything and continue looking down at Warren.  Then the black player bends down and extends his hand.  Warren looks at it hesitantly.  He sticks his own hand out and is then violently pulled up by the player.  His helmet rests in his hand as he stands, light-headed, in the center of the opposing team.  The coach looks at him and asks him a ton of questions, questions of which we can barely hear.  The yelling begins to swell again and Warren inspects the faces of the players around him.  He’s still holding the hand of the black player who helped him up.  The player has his hand on his back and is helping keep him stable.  The coach asks one final question and Warren focuses on him all of a sudden.  

					COACH
			Hey, are you alright?

Warren looks at him almost as if he’s drunk.  Then he places his hand on his head and looks straight at him.  

					WARREN
			Yeah, I’m fine.

The coach leaves and runs off, waving his arms to the others that the downed player is all right.  The opposing team stays huddles around Warren.  He shakes his head and lets go of the black players hand.  His own team is now down at the end zone he fell in and is looking for him.  They go in to get him and as he takes leave, the black player (who’s hand was situated on Warren’s back to keep him stable) pushes him.  Warren suddenly looks back at him, still keeping pace with his own team, watching the black player as he and his other teammates leave to the other side of the field, watching him with these “looks” on their faces. 

CUT TO:

EXT. FOOTBALL FIELD – BLEACHERS – NIGHTTIME  

The shot suddenly switches, and we are watching from behind Malcolm, who is sitting in the stands.  The camera is zoomed in on the players on the field who have scattered and are currently taking their places for the next punt or spike or kick-off or whatever it’s called.  Malcolm is blurred out and until we hear 

RUSHMORE (O.C.)

			Malcolm!

he remains blurred.  As Rushmore says his name, the camera quickly comes into focus and Malcolm turns and looks up.  The shot switches and we are sitting in front of Malcolm, who has an entire bleacher almost to himself, save two fat parents of a player out in the field.  

Rushmore jumps down from the top few bleachers and slips on Malcolm’s, hitting two crazed fan women who sit in front of Malcolm.  He laughs as the women look back and tell him to pay attention.

Rushmore sits next to Malcolm and Malcolm gives him a critical look.  Rushmore has a huge smile on his face.  Malcolm doesn’t.

CUT TO:

EXT. FOOTBALL FIELD – NIGHTTIME 

Down on the sidelines we join Warren again, who has been forced to sit out for a while until he feels ok again.  He walks over to a table filled with Styrofoam cups and orange jugs filled with ice water.  He sets his helmet down on the phony wood table and searches for an unused cup—to no avail.  He decides to take the least obviously used cup and fills it with water.  He limps over to a few of the other players and watches the game.  

CUT TO:

EXT. FOOTBALL FIELD – BLEACHERS – NIGHTTIME

We come in during the middle of a conversation between Rushmore and Malcolm.  It’s clear that Rushmore is directing this conversation, and Malcolm is simply running it through himself, taking in very little.

					RUSHMORE
			It’s fucking stupid.  I don’t get 
			Why my parents are always getting 
			Into that shit, you know?  Why
			Can’t they just fucking leave me
			Alone.

					MALCOLM
			Yeah, I understand what you mean.

Malcolm is staring out at the field.  Once in a while he looks up at Rushmore, but for the most part, he keeps his eyes on the field.  His tone is quiet. The two sit in a silence for a beat and a half.

					RUSHMORE
			You know, we haven’t done anything
			In forever, dude.  Why don’t you come
			Out with me and Eric sometime?  It’ll
			Be like old times.  

					MALCOLM
			Yeah.  

					RUSHMORE
			There’s gonna be a show up in Wataga
			Here pretty soon.  We’ll have to go up
			There and do something.

					MALCOLM
			Why do you keep doing that?

Rushmore looks at Malcolm with a smirking, yet curious face.

					RUSHMORE
			Doing what?

					MALCOLM
			Leaving town.  Every time I hear 
			About you you’re always off in some 
			Other town these days.  Don’t you 
			Still live here anymore?  I mean, 
			You’re always gone.

Rushmore keeps looking at him.  His smirk widens.

					RUSHMORE
			What do you mean?

					MALCOLM
			I mean, why don’t you hang around 
			Hudson anymore?  Isn’t there anything
			Left here to do?  

Rushmore looks forward.

					RUSHMORE
			No, not really.

					MALCOLM

			I dunno, it’s just you’re never
			Around here anymore.  I didn’t even
			See you at school today.  Where the
			Hell were you?

					RUSHMORE
			I’m not going to school right now.
			I’m taking some time off and coming 
			Back in the spring.  I’m going to be
			Taking some computer courses up at 
			The college in Geneseo.  

					MALCOLM
			Geneseo.  Huh.  

					RUSHMORE
			I’ll finally learn programming and then
			We can do what we always wanted.  We can
			Finally program games.

					MALCOLM
			Yeah. 

Malcolm smirks at this thought.

					MALCOLM (cont’d)
			That sounds cool, Rushmore.

					RUSHMORE
			I know, I can’t wait.

The two sit in silence for a few more beats.  The crowd suddenly swells in excitement.  People begin standing up and shouting.  Down on the field, the Hudson Dusters are making another run for a touch down.  

									CUT TO:

EXT.  FOOTBALL FIELD – NIGHTTIME

Warren is still standing and watching the field.  The same black player that chased him down is right behind the current ball carrier.  The ball carrier cuts and makes for the last few meters, dashing to the end zone.  The black player gives out and veers off, letting the ball carrier make a touch down.  The entire crowd goes wild and the cheerleaders come out and do a routine on the sidelines.  Warren is not thrilled.  

CUT TO:
EXT. FOOTBALL FIELD – BLEACHERS – NIGHTTIME

Everyone is gone, and the field lights still hang brilliant over the vast grassy field.  Sweat and condensation hang suspended in the air as a slow and ominous mist left in the wake of winning and losing.  A few cars still sit in the parking lot.  Sitting on the bleachers we can see Warren.  He is quiet and stares out at the field, pondering something.  A slow, sad song plays in the background – the first few chords of Mogwai’s “Take Me Somewhere Nice.”  Down behind the bleachers stands Malcolm.  He is smoking a cigarette and is looking up through the shafts of light at the single player who still lingers after his long game.  Malcolm puts the cigarette out and walks up under the boards that Warren sits on.  He watches him intently but does not say a word.  Warren doesn’t move.  He stares at the field in a melancholy fashion.  The lights dim and then cut out, and the entire field shuts into darkness.  

CUT TO:

INT.  FORESSTER TRUCK (MOVING) – NIGHTTIME 

Malcolm is staring out the side window as his father’s truck “glides” down the highway to their house in the dark.  The chords continue through this scene.  

After some time, the truck pulls up into the drive way and the three exit.  

CUT TO:

EXT. FOOTBALL FIELD – BLEACHERS – NIGHTTIME

We’re back at the same point when the lights went out.  The camera is focused downward on the feet of Warren.  He gets up and the music fades out as he walks down the front of the bleachers away from the camera.  Silence keeps, then darkness.  

FADE IN FROM BLACK TO:

INT. PAISLEY’S HOUSE – PAISLEY’S BASEMENT ROOM – NIGHTTIME

It’s still dark after Warren has walked off when we begin hearing two high pitched babying voices break the silence.  It’s incredibly annoying – the kind of babying your between to lovers that makes you nauseas.  

					PAISLEY
			Hey, don’t be wike dat.  You make
			Me sad.  

					NAOMI
			I’m not twying to be wike dat, I’m
			Just joking.  

					PAISLEY
			But you’w making me sad.  (sniffling
			Noise) Pweese don’t make me sad.

More sniffling noises ensue.  We fade in at this point and see a boy pushing face near a girl’s face.  They have false sad faces on and are still making those god-awful sniffling noises that make you want to kick them in the goddamned face.  The boy is rubbing his face against hers and they’re close and tight and hugging.  The boy, Paisley, opens his eyes and says:

					PAISLEY
			I wuv you.

					NAOMI
			I wuv you too.

					PAISLEY
			Weally?

					NAOMI
			Yes.

PAISLEY
			Otay.

					NAOMI
			Otay.

Dear lord, of all the most annoying things this couple could say, “otay” will top them all.  Dear lord, dear lord, dear lord.  And of course, we want the audience to feel this way.  This couple is absolutely irritating – caught in their own, isolated world where no one else around them supposedly exists.  Unfortunately, poor Warren has decided to come here tonight, to seek shelter from loneliness (melodrama and high school, eh).  He sits in the corner as the two lovebirds nestle on Paisley’s bed.  They’re on the bed, wrapped in the corners.  Warren is eyeing them with an irritating spark that you can catch from his expression.  “God, why did I come here, of ALL places?” it says.  Well, Warren – you have nowhere else to go, really.

Warren lights a cigarette and lets it hang from his mouth.  The smoke ribbons up and wraps his head, causing the light to create a halo affect around light bulbs and bright objects.  He picks up an N64 controller and unpauses the game the three were playing.  

					PAISLEY
			Hey!  Fucking idiot, we weren’t 
			Ready yet.

					WARREN
			I was.

					PAISLEY
			Well, fine, you coulda said some-
			Thin’.

					WARREN
			Eh.

Naomi just looks at Warren.  She rarely speaks to him.  She can sense his unhappiness with the two of them, and she personally wonders why he hangs around them so much if he seems so unhappy when he’s with him.  Then again, he rarely ever seems like he’s happy.  

					PAISLEY
			Dear God, you suck at this game.
					WARREN
			Don’t remind me, I’m not playing
			To win.

					PAISLEY
			Haha!  I kicked your ass royally, 
			Bitch. 

Warren drops the controller on the floor.  He’s unhappy he lost, you can tell.  He looks away from Paisley and takes a long drag off the cigarette.  The smoke wafts slowly from his mouth, masking his face in a thick white series of uncontrolled lines – so smooth like milk or satin.  

					PAISLEY
			What’s your problem?

					WARREN
			Hm?

					PAISLEY
			You, you’re acting weird.  What the
			Fuck is up with you?

					WARREN
			Nothing.

Paisley and Naomi are still locked in each other’s arms.  Naomi starts up from Paisley’s arms and over the bed.

					NAOMI 
			Awww, don’t be sad.

Paisley’s annoyed that she moved.  He stays in his spot and extends his arm so that he’s got at least one hand on her at all times.  Naomi reaches forward toward Warren.  Paisley’s annoyance grows slightly.  We’re cut when Warren’s cell phone rings.  From Naomi’s P.O.V. behind her hand we can see Warren, looking away with his cigarette, places one hand up in a ‘stop’ signal and looks at her just for a minute.  He pulls his cell phone out.

					WARREN
			Hello?

On the other end, we hear the voice of a drunken football player from Warren’s team.  In the background we can hear the sounds of other drunk, partying football players living it up after the game.  The players have obviously won and are celebrating their victory over the opposing team from up at Geneseo.  The static is hard, but we can make out what they’re saying on the other end.

					FOOTBALL PLAYER
			Warren!  Dude!  Where have you
			Been, we been waiting for you man!

					WARREN
			Uh huh.

					FOOTBALL PLAYER
			We’re down here at Ecoligian’s have
			Ourselves a fucking party, dude! We 
			Got the entire team and some of the 
			Cheerleaders over here dude, oh my 
			God its soo awesome!

					WARREN
			Uh huh.  Uh huh.  I see.

In the background, Naomi is back with Paisley.  The closeness is getting obscene.  The two begin locking lips.

					FOOTBALL PLAYER
			And, fuck, dude, that one girl
			Is looking for you.  She’s been
			Asking about her all night, dude.
			God, though, I can’t remember her 
			Fucking name... Katy?  Kathryn?

					WARREN
				Veronica, I know.

					FOOTBALL PLAYER
			Veronica?  No, not that chick.  I 
			Mean that Keyhoe chick, Katy Keyhoe!
			She’s been begging me to call you.

We can hear a girl in the background asking to talk to him.  The football player is laughing and playful complaints are being thrown.  

					FOOTBALL PLAYER (cont’d)
			Dude, she wants to talk to her.  Want
			Me to put her on for you?  

Warren looks at the two necking in the corner and then looks back down at the cigarette that rests in his hand.

					WARREN
			Sure, why not.

The phone static switches around and the laughing in the background becomes harder.  All of a sudden a girls soft, yet slutty and alluring voice comes over the phone.  It cuts the smoke and gets you.  

					KATY
			Warren?

She’s breathing into the speaking piece.  God, what a slut.

					WARREN
			Katy.

					KATY
			Hey, Warren.  Where are you?

					WARREN
			I’m in hell.

					KATY
			What?
					
					WARREN
			How are you doing these days, Katy?

					KATY
			Oh, I’m doing just fine.  I wish
			You were here though.  

She laughs.
					
					KATY (cont’d)
			You should really come down.  The 
			Team wants you here.  I saw you take
			That fall for the team tonight.  I 
			Thought it was awesome.

Warren smirks.

					WARREN
			Uh huh.  Katy, I want you to listen
			To me.

					KATY
			Wha?
						
					WARREN
			I want you to listen to me very closely
			Katy.

					KATY (concerned)
			Ok...

					WARREN (gravely)
			Katy, there’s a bomb in the house.
			
					KATY
			What?  What are you talking about?

					WARREN
			Katy, just listen to me.  There
			Is a bomb.  It’s been planted in the
			Bathroom.  It’s behind a pile of 
			Towels in the cabinets to the right
			Of the toilet.  

					KATY

			What?  Warren, you aren’t making any
			Sense.
			
					WARREN

			Katy, listen to me.  Now, I want you
			To get everyone out of that house and 
			Away from it.  If you don’t, he’ll
			Detonate the bomb and you’ll all die.

					KATY
			Who’s ‘he?’

					WARREN
			Do you remember that kid at school that
			Wore the black emo glasses that you hated
			So much?  
	
					KATY
			Oh my god!

					WARREN
			Now, Katy, don’t panic.

She begins screaming over the phone.

					KATY
			OH MY GOD, OH MY GOD THERE’S A BOMB
			IN THE HOUSE, THERE’S A BOMB IN THE 
			HOUSE!  THERE’S A BOMB IN THE FUCKING
			HOUSE!

She’s shrieking.  People begin panicking and running out of the house.  All hell has broken loose on the other end of the phone.  Warren sits and listens to it for a while.  Noone is on the other end of the phone anymore.  He shuts his phone off and sticks it back in his pocket.  The two who have been necking in the corner look over at him.  

					PAISLEY
			Who was that?

					WARREN
			Veronica, she wants me to go
			See her for a while.  She has some-
			Thing to show me.  

					PAISLEY
			Oh, can we come along?

					WARREN
			No.

Naomi makes that sniffling little crybaby face.  

NAOMI
			But...why?

PAISLEY bends over and tends to her, rubbing his face against hers.  

					PAISLEY
			Aww, don’t be sad.  It’s ok.

Naomi continues to make the annoying sniffling noises.  As the two cuddle in the corner, Warren gets up and grabs his coat.  He leaves.

					WARREN
			I’m not going to miss you.

He shuts the door and everything cuts to black again.

					CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – MALCOLM’S BEDROOM – EARLY MORNING

The black screen keeps once again, something that will happen often in this, so don’t start to complain that I black in and out a lot – it’s on purpose.  Hopefully, the movie-going audience will begin to catch on to this.  We can hear vacuuming sounds in the background.  They’re annoying – we hate vacuums and their noises, especially when we’re sleeping and don’t like to be disturbed.  We do not fade in – we cut in on a black door.  The door is hit from the other side.  In the room, a jumbled pile of blankets wrestles around.  The door bounces one more time and then the whole thing swings open.  The giant pile of blankets wrestles again.  We see a close up of the vacuum as it sucks around the floor, picking up random loose objects.  Things like pennies and coins get sucked up into the hose and create loud banging noises.  Suddenly the blankets fly over, revealing a messy Malcolm.  He’s not pleased.  When we return to the C.U. of the vacuum head it slips up and shows the face of his sister.  She’s decided to clean this morning.  

					MALCOLM
			Can you turn that off, please?

She doesn’t answer him, because she can’t hear him. After a beat:

					MALCOLM
			Tiffany, please, turn that off.

She glances up at him and then returns her stare to the floor as she moves throughout the room, cleaning the floor with the vacuum cleaner.  She has a sort of vacant stare on her face, with a human quality.  She isn’t expressing too much emotion at this point.  She just looks on as she cleans Malcolm’s floor.

					MALCOLM
			Tiffany.
She does not heed him.

					MALCOLM
			TIFFANY.

She looks up and flashes a smile.

					MALCOLM
			...

At this, Malcolm gets up out of his bed and leaves the room.  He traces the cord of the vacuum cleaner straight to the wall where it’s plugged in.  He yanks the cord out and listens to Tiffany in his room.  The clicking of the vacuum cleaner can be heard.  

					TIFFANY
			Hey, what the hell?

Malcolm returns to his bedroom and plops back into the cocoon of blankets he’s formed over the night.  Tiffany just stands there looking at him.  Malcolm rolls into the blankets and is again covered.  Tiffany leans on one hand, rested on the vacuum cleaner, and places her other on her hip.  

					TIFFANY
			Did you unplug the vacuum?

From under the blankets:

					MALCOLM
			No.

She raises her eyebrow and makes an “mmmmhmmmm” sound.  

					MALCOLM (cont’d)

			Go away.

She stands where she is and doesn’t speak for a few beats.  Then:

					TIFFANY
			Your room is a mess.

Malcolm moves the blankets up and over his head.  He looks out at her with a seriously perturbed look on his face.

					MALCOLM
			You’re still here?

					TIFFANY
			Fuck you.
	
					MALCOLM
			Oh, bad language.  What are we
			Going to have to do with you?

					TIFFANY 
			(Emphasis on both words) Fuck you.

					MALCOLM
			Tsk tsk. 

					TIFFANY
			Look, Malcolm, I don’t have time to
			Put up with your shit.  Gustav is 
			Going to be over here in four minutes.

					MALCOLM
			Ecoligian?

					TIFFANY
			Yes.

					MALCOLM
			What the hell are you doing with Gustav
			Ecoligian?

TIFFANY
			I met him at the football game last 
Night.  I thought he was sweet.  I asked daddy if he could come over today. 

					MALCOLM
			And?

					TIFFANY
			And if I make the house presentable,
			Yes, he can – but you’re making that
			Kind of difficult, Malcolm. 

Malcolm is back under his blankets again, wrapped in a soft and warm world where he feels free to make satirical remarks he might not otherwise make in normal situations.  

					MALCOLM
			Well I’m sooo sorry.  Now, please, 
			Leave me alone.

					MALCOLM’S FATHER
			Malcolm.

Malcolm’s father is downstairs at the base of the steps.  He just began listening in on the conversation.

					MALCOLM’S FATHER (cont’d)
			Malcolm, you’re sister is bringing that
			Boy into this house and you’re going to
			Help her make this house presentable 
			For when he gets over here.

Malcolm throws his blankets off his body and sits up, angrily.  He looks at his sister, who has a bitchy smirk on her face.  Mr. Foresster’s voice continues booming up the hallway from the bottom of the steps.  

					MALCOLM’S FATHER (cont’d)
				So get your ass out of bed and help.

After a beat of staring at his sister in silence, Malcolm finally heeds his father and confirms with a
	
					MALCOLM
				Yes, Dad.

His sister flashes yet another bitchy smirk at him. Malcolm just sits and stares at her for a beat or two. At the bottom of the stares, the Foresster father is gone.  Malcolm sits in bed, and Tiffany is still standing at the vacuum.  Malcolm continues to stare at her unhappily.  After several moments of complete silence, Tiffany points at the hallway and says:

					TIFFANY
			It’d be nice if you plugged me in.

Malcolm stares at her for some time. Tiffany raises her eyebrows.  Malcolm says nothing and walks out into the hallway.  He passes the plug-in and walks into the bathroom.  We can see Tiffany say
			
					TIFFANY
			Hey!

as he shuts the door. She walks out into the hall, muttering to herself, and plugs the cord into the wall.  The vacuum bursts on in Malcolm’s room.  He’s taking a piss when he looks over at the door.  He can hear her vacuuming in his room, and you can’t tell he’s not thrilled that his sister has invaded his privacy.

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NOON 

The bathroom shower comes on, and we can see Malcolm getting ready to jump in.  The sun beams in through a small window in the bathroom.  He walks back and forth, preparing things.  The vacuuming has stopped in Malcolm’s room.  He thinks he can hear Tiffany in her room.  She’s talking – perhaps on the phone, or perhaps what’s-his-face showed up.  Malcolm strips and steps into the shower. 

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – TIFFANY’S ROOM – NOON

Inside Tiffany’s room, she’s sitting on her bed.  Gustav Ecoligian sits on her wicker chair in the corner of her room.  He looks on at her.  The two aren’t saying anything.  Off in the distance, down the hall, we can hear shower noises.  Suddenly, Tiffany breaks the silence.

					TIFFANY
			That was fun at the game last 
			Night.

Gustav tips his chin up and smiles.

					GUSTAV
			Yeah.  It was.

Tiffany smiles at him.  

			CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NOON 

The camera, focused outside the shower, shows that excessive fog begins pouring out of the sides and top again.  

					TIFFANY (O.S)
			Julia’s so crazy.  I don’t get 
			Her sometimes.   

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – TIFFANY’S ROOM – NOON

Gustav smiles at this.  His head goes back father and his grin widens.  His eyes are almost to slits.  Something’s up with him.  

					TIFFANY (cont’d)
			Sometimes she just gets so... I don’t 
			Know.

					GUSTAV
			Yeah, I know what you mean.  She’s 	
			Insane.

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NOON

Gustav begins speaking this line before the scene switches.  As he speaks it, we’re watching Malcolm in the shower washing, dully, not doing anything at all.  

					GUSTAV (cont’d)(O.S.)
			Sometimes when she gets with certain
			People, she does weird things.
 					
TIFFANY (O.S.)
			Yeah, she doesn’t always act her-
			Self.

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – TIFFANY’S ROOM – NOON

					GUSTAV
			But hey, perhaps we should thank 
			Her for that.

Tiffany smiles widely.  
			
					TIFFANY
			Yeah.

Gustav gets up.

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NOON

Malcolm looks up.  He again sees a shadow against the shower curtain.  In the background of the dialogue between Tiffany and Gustav, we can hear an ambient “Malcolm” being spoken in the same voice as before.  

					GUSTAV (O.S.)
			You know, I’ve seen you around school.

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – TIFFANY’S ROOM – NOON 

Gustav is walking towards Tiffany who’s sitting on her bed across the room from the Wicker chair that he’s been occupying.  He’s walking slowly, surely.  Their eyes are on each other.  

					TIFFANY 
			Yeah?

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NOON

Malcolm is still looking at the shadow on the curtain.  It hasn’t moved.  Outside, the steam is fogging up everything.  The single sunbeam from the tiny window has become an almost tangible object against the swirling white steam.  We can hear “Malcolm...” Malcolm’s eyes narrow.  

					GUSTAV (O.S.)
			I thought you were pretty.

					CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – TIFFANY’S ROOM – NOON

He’s closer now, Gustav.  Tiffany is looking up at him as he makes the final few steps across the room.  She smiles at him brightly.  You can see that Tiffany is truly a pretty girl at this point – whether bitchy or not, she is a rare beauty.  It’s amazing that boys haven’t tried to exploit her yet – yet.  

					TIFFANY
			Heh...thank you.  

					GUSTAV
			I always used to ask about you. 

Gustav sits down next to Tiffany on her bed.  A shot from behind them shows his hand small behind her.  He isn’t that close to her, but enough to cause concern for a father.  Tiffany looks down.  It’s clear that she’s looking for something in this boy, whether he’s a sleaze or not.  She likes his advances on her, and she’s welcoming him warmly.  Her hand moves behind him.  

					TIFFANY
			I, uh.  I always thought you were
			Kinda cool.  I didn’t really know
			You that well though.

Gustav smiles.  

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NOON

					GUSTAV (O.S.)
			I used to think about you a lot, as 
			Creepy as it sounds.  I was going
			To ask you to homecoming, but I got
			Nervous.

Malcolm is staring at the shadow.  It’s not moving, and the Malcolming has stopped.  Malcolm reaches forward and rips the shower curtain open, revealing no one.  He looks around.  The steam in the room has gone and he stands naked (although we can’t see anything bad) in the shower.  The water is continuing to run and he waits for a few moments before he turns of the water. 

					TIFFANY (O.S.)
			I always kinda had a thing for you.
			God, this sounds weird.  I’m so
			Sorry. 

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – TIFFANY’S ROOM – NOON

Gustav is moving closer to her. 

					GUSTAV
			No, it’s ok.  Sometimes people like
			Each other.

Gustav’s voice is getting softer.  His face is moving closer to Tiffany’s as he speaks to her.  His mouth is closer to her ear, so that his breath wafts into the inside of her ear and calms her, giving her a slightly brazen sensation that shakes her body.  Her eyes begin to shut under the influence of sensuality.  

					GUSTAV (cont’d)
			People can’t help it when they 		
			Have feelings for others.  It’s how	
			Things just work.  The hardest 
			Thing that we can do about them is 
			Not let our feelings be known.  If
			Julia hadn’t done what she did, do	
			You think we’d never have been in
			This situation?  
					TIFFANY
			I don’t know.

					GUSTAV
			I’m sure that while we might
			Not be in such a situation at the
			Moment, that at some point in time
			You and I would figure each other
			Out – that you and I were perhaps
			Made for each other.

					TIFFANY
			Yeah...

					GUSTAV
			And that we were meant to share
			These feelings, whether or not they
			Came sooner or later.  I believe in	
			That.  I believe that we’re supposed
			To be doing this, that we’re supposed
			To be here with each other.  
	
					TIFFANY 
			(barely audible) Uh...huh...

					GUSTAV
			Tiffany, I really like you.

					TIFFANY
			I like...you too...Gustav.

					GUSTAV
			(barely audible) Tiffany...
				
					TIFFANY
			(in a breath) What...

The shot switches.  Out in the hall stands Malcolm.  He’s dressed in a T-shirt and some shorts. He’s holding his towel and his dirty clothes.  He coughs and the two in Tiffany’s room are startled.  Their arms jerk from around each other.  Gustav looks away from the prying eyes of Malcolm and Tiffany jumps up right away to rip him for spying on them.

					TIFFANY
			God damn it, Malcolm!
Tiffany runs to shut the door and Malcolm continues staring at Gustav.  His eyes say “I don’t like you,” but it’s not in the sort of way one would normally see an older brother give a boy who’s courting his younger sister.  It’s a disgusted look that picks more at the nature of the two – their sexuality and their beliefs – he’s heard the conversation, and he’s appalled at the shit-talk of the over-romantic Gustav.

Tiffany swings the door shut and backs herself into it.  She sits down in front of it and screams.
	
					TIFFANY
			Malcolm, GO AWAY.

Outside in the hallway, Malcolm walks off into his room and shuts the door silently.  He drops his dirty clothes onto the floor and swings the towel over a bar on the inside of his closet door.  He reaches inside and picks out some clothes to throw on. 

Back inside Tiffany’s room, she sits still against her door and looks at Gustav.  Gustav looks at her and smiles widely.  She looks at him and cracks one, tries to suppress it by looking down, but can’t help herself and looks up one more time, finally bearing the smile.  She giggles at him and his grin widens.  

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – MALCOLM’S ROOM – NOON

Malcolm finally fits on some clothes he likes and then puts on some spray deodorant.  As he readys himself for his day, he walks over to a window where the sun shines in.  He undoes the window latches and lifts the giant warped pain of glass up over his head and holds it, because if he doesn’t, it will drop and crack.  He yells out the window to his father, working on the farm below.

					MALCOLM
			Hey, Dad!

Malcolm’s father, working down on a small orange tractor in the driveway, look up at him.

					MALCOLM
			I need to go into town today,
			Can you give me a ride?

Mr. Foresster stands up from kneeling to fix a problem in the engine of the tractor and dusts himself off.  He rolls his sleeve back and reads his watch.  He looks back up at Malcolm and replies.

					MALCOLM’S FATHER
			It’s 1:36.  I need to go into town
			To get some things at the store 
			Around 3.  Is that a good time for 
			You?

					MALCOLM
			Yeah.

					MALCOLM’S FATHER
			If I leave town, will you be able
			To get a ride back out here?
		
					MALCOLM
			Yeah.

					MALCOLM’S FATHER
			Ok.  3 it is.

					MALCOLM
			Thanks, Dad.

Malcolm promptly shuts the window of his bedroom.  Down below, Mr. Foresster returns to fixing whatever it is that ails the engine of the great orange tractor.  He seems ultimately preoccupied with the tractor and doesn’t mind anything around him.  

Back inside the house, Malcolm settles down to read a book, THE CAINE MUTINY, when the phone begins to ring.  Harrowing from down the hallway, we can hear Tiffany’s whine 

					TIFFANY
			Malcolm, get the phone!

Malcolm drops THE CAINE MUTINY beside him and slowly gets up to grab the phone off of his dresser, next to his closet.  When he finally picks up the phone,  he answers with a dull 

					MALCOLM
			Yeah?

On the other end, his mother rings happily.

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			What did I tell you about answering
			The phone like that?

					MALCOLM
			Hey, Mom.

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			Hello, son.  I can’t talk long, so
			Can you give this to your father?
		
					MALCOLM
			Yeah.

CUT TO:

EXT. FORESSTER HOUSE – OUTSIDE TRACTOR SHED – NOON

Back outside, Mr. Foresster has mounted his tractor and is trying to start it.  The tractor engine fails the first time, but with a few more tries, the engine finally catches hold and the tractor begins to shake.  Mr. Foresster lets out a cry of victory of the orange beast.  Blue smoke begins pouring up out of the pipes protruding from the back of the tractor.  Out of the screen door comes Malcolm with his phone.  He runs out to his father and begins yelling over the rumble of the tractor engine.

					MALCOLM
			Dad!

Mr. Foresster looks up from the engine at his son and smiles and points at the bright orange tractor.  He puts his hand to his mouth and says 

					MALCOLM’S FATHER
			I fixed it!

It’s barely audible.  Malcolm yells again, louder – this time holding up the phone and pointing to it.  

					MALCOLM
			Phone!  Mom!

Mr. Foresster puts his hand to his ear with a puzzled look on his face.  Malcolm, once again, yells louder holding the phone.  

					MALCOLM
			MOM!

Mr. Foresster realizes and his mouth makes an “oh” figure.  He scrambles to shut the huge piece of machinery off.  Malcolm stands patiently with the phone to his side.  His mother still waits at the other end for his father.  After some time, the roar of the monstrous engine dies.  Mt. Foresster climbs off the orange giant and takes the phone from Malcolm’s hand.  Malcolm steps back and turns around to head back into the house.  Mr. Foresster still stands next to the tractor, one hand resting on it.  

					MALCOLM’S FATHER
			Y’ello?

					MALCOLM’S MOTHER
			Hello, Reynold.

At this point we finally learn Malcolm’s father’s name, Reynold.  

					REYNOLD 
			Well, hello there, Karen.  Didn’t
			Expect a call from you so early on
			A Saturday.

Now we know Malcolm’s mother’s name as well. 

					KAREN
			Well I have a few minutes in between
			Seminars, so I thought I’d give you
			A call and check up on things.

					REYNOLD
			Uh-huh.

Karen smiles and looks down on the other end of the phone.  Even after all these years, she still finds her husband a wonderful man to marry.

					KAREN
			So... how are things going?

Reynold, who’s been wearing a hat, tips the hat up and steps away from the tractor.  He takes a good look around the farm and speaks in an “well I gotta tell ya” manner.

					REYNOLD
			Well, it would seem everything is 
			Going just fine over here.
		
					KAREN
			The farm, you mean.

					REYNOLD
			I’d imagine.

She smiles again.
				
					KAREN
			How about those kids we have?
			
					REYNOLD
			Oh, those.

Karen smiles and laughs.  

					REYNOLD (cont’d)
			They’re doing good, real good.  
			Tiffany’s got some boy friend over
			Here at the house.

					KAREN
			Boyfriend?  

					REYNOLD
			Well, a boy – friend.  I’m not sure
			There’s anything to worry about 
			Between the two or anything. He seems
			Like a nice enough fellow on his own.
			Spoke to me in the living room before 
			He went up to see Tiffany.  Turns out
			He’s the youngest of Ecoligian’s kids 
			Over there.  Name’s Gustav.  I think
			He’s Tiffany’s age.

					KAREN
			Uh-huh.  I see. 

					REYNOLD
			What?

					KAREN
			Oh, nothing.  I just would have thought
			You’d maybe act a little more 
			Protective of your little girl.  That’s
			All.

					REYNOLD
			Hey – that boy lays a hand on her and
			I’ll still kick his ass ; hear?

					KAREN
			Mmhmm.

					REYNOLD
			I can!
			
					KAREN
			I hear you, I hear you.  And how’s 
			The quiet one?
			
					REYNOLD
			Oh, that one.  What’s his name again?

Reynold takes a look up at Malcolm’s window at this point.  Malcolm crosses the window with his book.  
	
					REYNOLD (cont’d)
			He spoke today. 

					KAREN
			Wow.  We might be getting somewhere.

					REYNOLD
			Not much, though. 

					KAREN
			Baby steps.

					REYNOLD
			I’m sure.  He wants to go into town 
			Later.  I’m taking him in with me when
			I head to the store for some supplies
			And such.  I think he’s gonna head 
			Out with some friends for the night. 

					KAREN
			Ahh.  Do you think it’s Rushmore?

					REYNOLD
			Hell, I wouldn’t know anymore.  I hope
			To god it’s not that little shit.  I saw 
			His scrawny little ass when I dropped by
			To pick Malcolm up from the football
			Game.

					KAREN
			I do not understand that kid.
		
					REYNOLD
			He doesn’t seem like the type of kid
			Malcolm wants to hang around with though.
			By like I said, I wouldn’t know. He
			Never talks about anything any
			More, so for all I know he could 
			Be out doing meth or something.
			
					KAREN
			(sarcastically) You gotta watch out
			for that.  I hear meth amphetamine is
			on the rise in teenagers.
	
					REYNOLD
			Surprising.

					KAREN
			Have you no faith in the youth of 
			Today?

					REYNOLD
			Oh, I’m sure there’re some good
			Ones out there.  I just haven’t met
			Them yet.

					KAREN
			They’re still maturing.  Have patience.
					REYNOLD
			I’m a farmer.

On the other end of the line we can see a woman walk by and tell Karen that another seminar is about to begin.  She looks up and nods and then bids her husband farewell.

					KAREN
			Shit, that was Tammy.  I gotta
			Get going here in a minute.
			
					REYNOLD
			(teasing) Watch your language.

					KAREN
			Hypocrite.

					REYNOLD
			Mmmhmmm.
			
					KAREN
			Anyway, I have to get off.
			
					REYNOLD
			Alright.  When will you be home
			Tomorrow?
	
					KAREN
			It’s not for sure, but I’m
			Thinking I’ll be into town around
			Seven. 

					REYNOLD
			Alright.  Call when you get into 
			Town.
	
					KAREN
			I’ll make a note of it. 

					REYNOLD
			See you then. 
	
					KAREN
			Ok, see you then.  I love you.
		
					REYNOLD
			Love you too.  Bye.
Karen promptly hangs up the phone and Reynold lingers on the other end for just a short while more.  He pulls the phone away from his heard and searches the pad for the button to push to turn off the phone.  He turns off the phone and then makes another look up into the window of Malcolm’s room.  No one passes by the window, but the shot tends to linger on it for sometime.  Reynold turns back around and grabs some of the tools he was working on the tractor with and heads into the shed.  He leaves the tractor behind and the camera stays on his shed entry until he’s out of sight.  The shot then fades out.

				CUT TO:

INT. ISSAC’S HOUSE – LIVING ROOM – AFTER NOON 

The shot fades in on a television screen.  We can see nothing but the television screen, and hear nothing but the television screen.  The program running on the television is “Trading Spaces.”  It’s one of the episodes where the couples are not thrilled with the outcome of the room.  We fade in right in the midst of the unveiling of one of the rooms.  The couple is shocked and horrified.  The couple expresses their dislike for the room.  In the B.G. we can hear someone knocking on a door.  At this knocking, the camera quickly pans to the right, to a woman with crazy hair, crazy from years abuse from too many crappy hair products, sitting in a big reclining chair.  She has a big t-shirt on, a cancer victim walk-a-thon type shirt, and she’s wearing purple shorts.  

The knocking once again rings from the front door.  This time, the woman heeds it and wrestles herself from the armchair she so comfortably occupies.  She makes her way through the house and to the front door.  She opens it up and the shot switches directly to the door.  We can see Malcolm standing there look at her.  She looks back at him.  Then 

					MALCOLM
			Is Isaac home?

					ISAAC’S MOTHER
			Yes.

					MALCOLM
			He told me to come over.
Mrs. Statten looks by Malcolm at his father who sits in his truck, watching the two speak.  She looks back at Malcolm and then steps out of the way.

					ISAAC’S MOTHER
			He’s upstairs in his room.

					CUT TO:

INT. ISAAC’S HOUSE – ISAAC’S ROOM – AFTERNOON

Isaac is just sitting around, do absolutely nothing in his room.  He looks at paintings that hang on his wall – paintings he’s done himself.  The room is bright red and gives the impression of a New York apartment.  Not necessarily a loft, like so many people would like to think, but a relatively well-sized apartment, utilized artistically by this boy – Isaac Statten.  

We can hear opera playing in the background of the room – it’s coming from the radio.  Some candles burn at one end of the room, near a large white desk, currently harboring Isaac’s next masterpiece.  A lamp hangs over the desk, illuminating it nicely.  It’s an interestingly well-put-together room.  Isaac sits in a black, leather upholstered chair (acquired cheaply at a used furniture store) and just looks at some of the art, pondering over it.

His door opens and Malcolm pops his head in slightly.  Isaac looks over from his chair.  

					ISAAC
			Finally.

Malcolm steps in fully.  

					MALCOLM
			Sorry it took me so long.  

					ISAAC
			It’s not like I was doing anything
			Interesting.

Malcolm doesn’t say anything in return to this sly insult.  Isaac gets up from his chair and walks over to the radio.  He switches it to another station that plays more modern music (or, more popular than opera).  He takes a seat at his desk and Malcolm moves over to the chair Isaac was just sitting in.

					ISAAC
			So what’s this project about, exactly?

					MALCOLM
			Science Fiction.

					ISAAC
			Wow, you picked a good one.
			
					MALCOLM
			It sounded cool to me.

					ISAAC
			When’s it due?
	
					MALCOLM
			Next Friday, but it has to be 
			Around forty minutes in length, so I
			Thought me might as well get started
			On it so we can be sure it’ll
			Run the allotted time.

					ISAAC
			Yeah, that’s understandable.	Where do
			We begin, though?

Malcolm begins to fiddle with his backpack.  He starts pulling out books in Science Fiction and such and begins babbling his ideas off.

					MALCOLM
			I’m not sure exactly.  The women never
			Really explain what we’re supposed to do 
			On these stupid projects, you know?
			
					ISAAC
			Yeah.

					MALCOLM
			So I went down to the library while my
			Dad was at the store and I checked out
			Few books on the subject.  I’m thinking
			That we could also use the internet.
			
					ISAAC
			I don’t have the internet.

					MALCOLM
			Oh.  Well, I’ll do some research
			At my house then when I get home.

					ISAAC 
			You do that.

					MALCOLM
			How do you want to go about this?

					ISSAC
			I have a video camera.  

					MALCOLM
			You wanna shoot a movie?

					ISAAC
			We could do our own little piece of
			Science Fiction.

Isaac smiles.  He seems like a nice guy, actually.  He just makes some cruel remarks once in a while that seem to really cut down his friend.

					MALCOLM
			With just us?
	
					ISAAC
			I could get some of my friends over
			Here.

					MALCOLM
			Like who?  I haven’t gotten a chance
			To meet these new friend of yours.

					ISAAC
			Hm?

					MALCOLM
			Well, ever since Rushmore kinda fucked
			Up, the whole group’s kinda drifted
			Their own ways, wouldn’t you say?

					ISAAC
			Yeah, I’ve had this discussion.
			
					MALCOLM
			Probably.  Daniel seems to be 
			Still kind of upset about the whole
			“noone’s doing anything with anyone”
			deal.

					ISAAC
			Haha. 

					MALCOLM
			I just don’t see you often anymore, 
			So I’d think you had some other 
			Friends you’ve met.  You talk to that
			One kid, Ecoligian a lot in History 
			Class.

					ISAAC
			Yeah, he’s kind of a dumbass though.

					MALCOLM
			That’s what I hear.

					ISSAC
			But, no, I could get my friends Peter
			And Warren over here.

					MALCOLM
			Warren Kirche?
	
					ISAAC
			Yeah.  You know him?
		
					MALCOLM
			Know OF him.

					ISAAC
			He’s pretty cool.

					MALCOLM
			He’s a senior this year, isn’t he?

					ISAAC
			Yep, graduates at the end of the 
			Year though.  He’s decided to stay
			The entire year and ride it out. 	I 
			Guess that leaving high school is a 
			Bit of a freaky thing for him.
	
					MALCOLM
			Is for me.

					ISAAC
			I can’t wait to get out of this 
			Stupid-ass town.

					MALCOLM
			Honestly, I understand that.

Isaac laughs at this and then turns around in his chair.

					MALCOLM (cont’d)
			It’s rather bittersweet to think 
			About leaving high school behind.
			But what the hell, I’ve still got
			Another freakin’ year left in this
			Hell hole.  

					ISAAC
			Yeah.  Anyway, I’ll call them later.
			We can go ahead and get some of the
			Research done and then let’s say...
			Around seven I’ll call them and have 
			Them come over and we can shoot the
			Movie.
	
					MALCOLM
			Sounds good to me.

					ISAAC
			So what the fuck is Science Fiction?

CUT TO:

INT. ISAAC’S HOUSE – ISSAC’S GARAGE – NIGHTTIME

The film has change and is cut in with the film the four students are currently working on.  It’s grainy and done on DV film.  We can see the garage, dirty and untaken care of.  Isaac walks in.  He’s wearing a tacky overcoat from the seventies and high water plaid pants.  He’s sporting some brown-tinted aviator sunglasses and carries a model pistol in his right hand.  Then, over the low buzz of the camera we can hear 
		
					ISAAC
			Come out, Torg.

Off in from behind the camera, we hear another boy’s voice. It simply wails and and makes goofy noises.  Isaac repeats.

					ISAAC (cont’d)
			Torg, come out of the spaceship. 

More funky sounds.

					ISAAC (cont’d)
			Torg.

The camera spins and reveals the garage door.  Against it is the shadowed figure of a boy holding a gun.  The lights behind him are intense and do not move.  The garage door begins to recede upward on their glide-rails.  It moves slowly, giving a dramatic pause before we finally see who the boy is – his face mistakenly obscured by glare.  The lights behind him turn out to be car head lights.  He walks forward into the garage and confronts Isaac’s character.  The boy who’s walked in is identified as Warren.  

					WARREN
			You can’t stop us.

					ISAAC
			Torg, listen to me.

					WARREN
			The world belongs to us, now. 

					ISAAC
			Torg, please.  You’re doing the 
			Wrong thing here.  We weren’t the
			Ones who blew your planet up.

					WARREN
			We have traveled too far to turn
			Back now – we turn our plight on 
			The human race.  You do not deserve
			Our forgiveness in the light of
			Your sins.  We shall take your 
			Planet and reap it’s crops and harvest
			The bodies of the innocent until
			Every last resource has been 
			Diminished.  Then, we shall move on to
			The next planet.

Warren holds up his false gun into Isaac’s face.  Isaac raises his slightly.  

					WARREN
			Jason, I was never your friend.  I 
			Am not even human – this is not my
			True form.  I have taken this form
			To deceive you.

					ISAAC
			Torg, I know there’s good in you. 
			It’s somewhere deep inside you.  I 
			Know you’re capable of it – you 
			Can stop this, Torg!

Warren hesitates for a minute and then lowers his gun.  Then he holds it back up straight in Isaac’s face and once again says 

					WARREN
			I’m sorry, Jason.

We hear a pop go off from behind the camera – a bag popping or a small fire cracker exploding – and Isaac falls to the ground, dead.  Warren pulls out something – a flower or a small handkerchief, and lays it on his body.  Then he walks away.  The camera ZOOMS IN on Issac’s body and holds on it up close for a long time.  Then the screen cuts to black and we’re back to normal film again.  The blue of the small camera screen is shining on all four faces as they’re crowded in tightly to watch it.  Warren’s face moves and Malcolm looks over.  Warren walks over to the wall near Isaac’s door and turns on the lights.  Isaac shuts the screen on his camera and then flips it off. 

					PETER
			How long was that?

					ISSAC
			I think it was like 16 minutes long.
Malcolm, who has returned himself to the black leather chair in the corner of Isaac’s room, folds his arms and asks

					MALCOLM
			Do you think they’ll be mad if we
			Show the whole thing?

					ISAAC
			No.  It seems to be a rather good
			Use of the clichés and practices
			In normal science fiction. 

Warren, from the corner, comments.

					WARREN
			I thought it was pretty good.  I
			Think your class’ll enjoy it.  Besides,
			I had those two last year – they’re not
			Going to be uberly upset that you
			Let it run for that long.  It’s more
			Like a demonstration tape and they 
			Like that kind of stuff.  Don’t worry.

Malcolm looks over and smiles.

					MALCOLM
			You think?

					ISAAC
			Yeah, you’re probably right.  Jon and
			Jared showed that one tape and it ran
			For like 25 friggin’ minutes and they
			Got a B on the project.

					WARREN
			Yeah, you guys’ll be fine.

					MALCOLM
			That’s good.

					PETER
			How much do you guys have on the 
			Subject itself?
	
					MALCOLM
			About twenty minutes of stuff to 
			Present, so far.  We’ve only gotten
			Up through like the 1950s, though.  		

					ISAAC
			Yeah, and we’re hoping to go up 
			Through at least the 80s and into
			The early 90s, with perhaps us 	
			Touching on today and things like
			That crappy channel.

					WARREN
			Sci Fi.

					ISAAC (cont’d)
			Yeah.  We have somewhat of a way to
			Go, but Malcolm’s also going to be
			Looking up things on the internet.

					PETER 
			Sounds cool.

					ISAAC
			Malcolm picked the topic.

					PETER 
			Really?  
					
					MALCOLM
			It sounded cool.

					PETER
			We got the Cold War.

					WARREN
			I picked Science Fiction.

					MALCOLM
			Oh, really?

					WARREN
			Yeah, but that asshole Paisley
			Got it instead.  I got stuck with
			The abstract art movement with 
			Naomi Wells.

					MALCOLM
			Haha, I know her.
					WARREN
			What a stupid bitch.

					MALCOLM
			You think?
	
					WARREN
			I’m thinking I’ve been exposed to
			Her more often than you have.

					MALCOLM
			That might be the case.  I had
			Her in a class last year and she 
			Talked to me for a bit.  She was 
			Usually with Paisley.

					WARREN
			God, don’t even get into it.

Malcolm smiles widely.

					MALCOLM
			What, you know him too?

					WARREN
			I said don’t even get into it.

Warren walks over and sits on the seat next to Isaac’s desk and begins messing with things.

Malcolm is smiling widely.  He’s amused by this.

					ISAAC
			Yeah, I heard those two were kind 
			Of bad...
		
					WARREN
			Kind of?  

					ISAAC
			Well, you know.

					WARREN
			It’s incredibly annoying.  I’m
			The only one who hangs around them
			Anymore, and they’re about to lose
			Me.  I’m sick of it.
					MALCOLM
			Why do you still hang around them?

					WARREN
			Paisley used to be cool.

					MALCOLM
			Yeah, but it sounds like he isn’t
			Acting like much of a friend.
	
					WARREN
			I’m hoping he’ll go back to being
			Cool one of these days.

					ISAAC
			That might take a while.

					WARREN
			Yeah.

Suddenly they’re all sitting in silence, pondering over this change in Paisley.  It’s been of day of realizing how much things have changed for some of these guys – it seems to be the only thing they do once they get together.  They’re like war veterans who get together and do nothing but tell stories of the good old days at seventeen and eighteen years old.  

					MALCOLM
			Shit, what time is it?

Isaac flicks his wrist up and inspects his watch.

					ISAAC
			It’s around 10:45.

					MALCOLM
			I gotta be home by 12.

					WARREN
			Do you need a ride?
			
					MALCOLM
			Mind giving one?

					WARREN
			Where do you live?
					MALCOLM
			All the way out on a farm in the
			Middle of nowhere.

					WARREN
			Sounds good to me.  I can drive you
			Out there after I take Peter home.

					MALCOLM
			Thanks.

					WARREN
			No problem.

CUT TO:

INT.  WARREN’S CAR – NIGHTTIME

We come right in when Peter is leaving Warren’s car.  

					PETER
			Night, guys.

					WARREN
			Later, Peter.

Peter slams the door shut and runs up to the front door of his house.  Warren waits to make sure he’s gotten inside.  After Peter enters his house, Warren puts the car into drive and then takes off.  

CUT TO:

INT. WARREN’S CAR (MOVING) – HIGHWAY – NIGHTTIME  

We’re in Warren’s car speeding down the highway towards Malcolm’s house.  It’s dark outside as the corn on either side speeds around us.  The blue shine from the radio lights barely illuminate their faces.  

					MALCOLM
			Are you on the football team?

					WARREN
			(after a pause) Yes.

					MALCOLM
			I think I saw you on Friday.

					WARREN
			Oh, really.

					MALCOLM
			After the game.

					WARREN
			Oh.

					MALCOLM
			Was that the last game of the
			Season?
		
					WARREN
			Yeah.

					MALCOLM
			I thought so.

					WARREN
			Where did you see me after the 
			Game?

					MALCOLM
			In the stands.  

					WARREN
			I thought everyone was gone. 
	
					MALCOLM
			I wasn’t.

					WARREN
			I understand that now.

					MALCOLM
			What were you doing in the stands?

					WARREN
			Thinking.  How far is it to your
			House?

					MALCOLM
			It’s still up there.  Keep going.
Silence strikes the two over again they don’t talk for some time.  We accompany them in the car for a while before Warren breaks the silence on his own.

					WARREN
			Why were you still there after
			Everyone left?

					MALCOLM
			I was waiting for my Dad.
			
					WARREN
			Doesn’t he know when the games
			End?

					MALCOLM
			Only the times I tell him.

					WARREN
			I see.

					MALCOLM
			Do you enjoy football?

					WARREN
Sometimes.

		MALCOLM
Hm.

	  	WARREN
Sometimes it can be fun, sometimes
It isn’t fun at all.  It just depends
On what’s going on. 

		MALCOLM
I almost went out for football.

		WARREN
Why didn’t you?

		MALCOLM
Eh, too small.  The whole big team
Of guys thing kind of freaked me out
As well.

		WARREN
Really?

		MALCOLM
Yeah.

		WARREN
Prefer the company of women? 

		MALCOLM
Oh, I don’t know.  It’s just that
All those guys, it kind of scares
Me.  Perhaps the testosterone may 	
Be a little too high for me.

		WARREN
It’s just fine in there.  Some of 
Them are pretty smart.  It’s just 
That football goes along with some
Really stupid shit.  It can ruin 
Some people.  You wouldn’t believe
The underground we have going on 	
At this school.  You’d think high 
School had changed since the days of
Nirvana.  

		MALCOLM
Yeah?

		WARREN
It’s scary.

		MALCOLM
I’ve come to expect that from people.

		WARREN
You’re not surprised?

		MALCOLM
Slightly.  But like I’ve said, I’ve 
Come to expect that from people.  I 
Mean, how honestly amazing is it that
Kids these days are forming rings and
Undergrounds?  People have more to 
Their personal lives these days.  More
Interests.  Kids are acting more like
Adults.  Or trying to anyway.
		WARREN
I see what you’re getting at.

		MALCOLM
A lot of us can’t wait until we can 
Get to the age where our lives can 
Become complicated with petty problems. 
Problems that we view as petty when
We’re seventeen and eighteen.  Kids go
Ahead and wreck their lives because they
Enjoy it.  

		WARREN
So you’re saying that we’re a sort of
Masochistic generation?

		MALCOLM
In some ways, yeah.  

		WARREN
What about people who honestly have
Problems from the start, though.  Are
You saying that they enjoy it as well?

Malcolm doesn’t talk for a while.  Then he comes up with his answer.

					MALCOLM
			Perhaps not the problem as much as 
			Hoping to find a way to temporarily 
			Cure that problem.  If we’re kept on 
			Edge, it’s the most appealing.  Kids 
			Seem to be enjoying their problems 
			Though.  That’s just how it looks to 
			Me though.  

					WARREN
			Bittersweet.

					MALCOLM
			In ways.

The two sit in silence for a while again.  The car glides down the highway and Malcolm begins looking for his house.  He points out the window.

					MALCOLM
			There it is.

The car pulls into the driveway and up near the house.  Malcolm gets ready to leave.

					MALCOLM (cont’d)
			Thanks for the ride.

					WARREN
			My pleasure.  I didn’t think there
			Was a junior out there with a brain. 
			I think you’ve helped enlighten me
			A bit tonight.  Thank you for the 
			Discussion.

					MALCOLM
			(smiling) No problem.  See you
			later.

					WARREN
			Later.

Malcolm runs up the steps at the back of his house and fumbles in his pockets for his key.  Warren sits in his driveway and leaves the lights on the door for Malcolm.  Malcolm finally makes his way into the house and shuts the door.  The beams of light that shine through the windows dissipate as Warren’s car backs around and rolls down the driveway.  A small light shines in through from the living room.  Malcolm walks in and finds his father asleep on the sofa in front of a TV.  On television we can see an infomercial playing.  

					MALCOLM
			Dad?

Reynold jerks somewhat and then looks up at his son.

					MALCOLM (cont’d)
			Dad, I’m home.

					REYNOLD
			Oh, hey.  Did you have fun?

Reynold rolls back over to continue sleeping.  His eyes are closed the entire time.
					MALCOLM
			Yeah.

					REYNOLD
			That’s good.

					MALCOLM
			I’m gonna head to bed.

					REYNOLD
			(barely audible) Ok, have fun.

					MALCOLM
			Night, dad.

					REYNOLD
			Night, Malcolm.

Malcolm disappears up the stairs and walks into his room.  He does all of this in the dark, illuminated slightly.  He lays down on his bed and sits there for sometime.  He’s deep in thought about something.  Then he turns over and the camera fades out to black.

			CUT TO:

INT.  PAISLEY’S HOUSE – PAISLEY’S ROOM – NIGHTTIME

We’re still on black.  A title card overlay fades in, and in white text we read the quote

		“This above all; to thine own self be true.”

After this fades in, another card fades in at the bottom shortly afterward, in smaller text.  

						-William Shakespeare

We can hear Paisley speaking in the background during this.  He’s distraught. Both cards fade out at the same time.  

					PAISLEY (O.S.)

			I can’t believe she did that.  I 
			Thought everything was going Ok.  
			I just thought...

At this point we fade in.  We can see Warren sitting in the corner of the room.  He’s smoking another cigarette and leans back.  He’s peering at us through the smoke that leaks from the end of the cigarette.  Paisley keeps talking.  

					PAISLEY (O.S) (cont’d)
			I mean what did I do to deserve this?

Warren speaks from the corner of the room, through the fog of cigarette smoke.  

					WARREN
			Ah, she’s a weirdo.

					PAISLEY
			But I loved her.

Paisley is sniffling.  He’s been crying for some time. 

					WARREN
			Hey, you’ll be ok.  

Warren drags the cigarette and then puts it out in a tray off to the right of him.  

					PAISLEY
			I just...I just loved her so much.

					WARREN
			I know, I know.

					PAISLEY
			I bought her all that shit.  I 
			Spent like 200 bucks on her.  I 
			Was always there for her.  I was
			Always nice.

Warren doesn’t have much to speak about on this subject.  He simply looks at Paisley, who sits in the corner of the room on his bed with his head in his hands.  It’s a sort of pathetic thing to bring up that kind of shit – menial things that are expected in a relationship.

Warren gets up out of the chair and wades through the cigarette smoke that has accumulated and sits down next to his friend.
					WARREN
			Do you want me stay the night with
			You?

					PAISLEY
			Could you?

					WARREN
			I don’t care.

					PAISLEY
			Thanks a lot.

Warren puts his arm around paisley.  It’s the same shot we saw when Gustav sat next to Tiffany in her room.  

					WARREN
			These things happen.

					PAISLEY
			I just...
	
Warren’s hand moves up Paisley’s arm and rubs him comfortingly.  Warren is taller than Paisley and sits higher too.  Paisley leans against Warren.

					WARREN
			You’ll be just fine.

Warren gets up and moves over to turn the lights off.  A blue light shines off to the right of him.  It’s the radio that Paisley owns.  He turns the dial up and we can hear soft, depressing music playing in the background.  Warren then makes his way back to Paisley’s bed.  He sits down and takes off his shoes.  Then he and Paisley lay down together, facing each other.  Paisley reaches over and turns his fan on and then turns back to Warren.  Warren places his hand on Paisley’s back and rubs it, moving up to his head and scratching it around.  Then he moves over on top of Paisley.  We cut to a black screen.

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – MALCOLM’S ROOM – EARLY MORNING

We keep the black screen.  The silence of this is cut by the sharp sound of an alarm clock going off at somewhere around 5:45 A.M.  The screen cuts right from black to the bright red digital letters glowing in the dark.  A hand reaches out to hit the clock.  Malcolm rises like the dead from a bundle of blankets that keep him warm in a freezing farmhouse bedroom and slowly makes his way to the door of the hallway.  The lights beam brightly into it and he squints.  His parents are already up and his mother heads down the hall to his room. 

					KAREN 
			Hey, sleepyhead.  Last day of 
			School before Christmas break.

Malcolm just looks at her, eyes squinting.  He’s not a morning person at all.

					MALCOLM
			(unenthusiastically)  Yay.

					KAREN
			Come on, be a little excited.

Malcolm once more tries it.  He fails.
	
					MALCOLM
			I mean... yay.

His mother gives him a raised eyebrow and then walks on past him.  
					KAREN
			You better go ahead and jump into
			The shower.  Tiffany might get up 	
			Here in a while.  

					MALCOLM
			I thought she got up at like 6:30.
			
					KAREN
			Gustav’s coming to get her today.

					MALCOLM
			Oh.

					KAREN
			Ever since those two began going
			Out, he’s been dragging her to 
			Everything he’s involved in, and her
			Vice versa.  They’re always together. 
			He’s coming to pick her up at 6:30 to
			Take her to school for some Student
			Council things.
			
					MALCOLM
			She’s in Student Council?

					KAREN
			Haven’t you been paying attention?
	
					MALCOLM
			No.

					KAREN
			Surprise.  Your sister’s involved in
			Things. 

Malcolm just looks at her.  Malcolm’s not involved in anything at school, and he often gets shit for it.  Now that his little sister is doing things, he often hears about as an insult from his parents to him for not participating in anything extracurricular. 

					MALCOLM
			Well, I’m proud of her.

					KAREN
			You should be.

Malcolm walks down the hall and shuts the bathroom door.  He messes with some things inside and begins undressing to step into the shower when his mother knocks on the door and speaks from the other side.

					KAREN (cont’d)
			Don’t forget you have to help
			Your father before we go to school.

Malcolm lets out a sigh of “oh dear lord” to himself and then answers his mother.

					MALCOLM
			Ok.  

Malcolm steps into the shower and lets the hot water hit his face and body.  He begins washing, and then we cut.

				CUT TO:

EXT.  FORESSTER FARM – OUTSIDE THE SHED – EARLY MORNING

The sun is just beginning to rise, and the red clouds hang in a clear blue sky that slowly darkens from the horizon.  The silhouettes of barren trees stick the morning sky with their several branches and create a stark picture of a wintered mid-western America.  “Illinois can be a beautiful state,” it says.

Down in the shed, Reynold Foresster still messes around.  Malcolm runs out, wearing flannel and a winter cap.  His cheeks are red.  Clouds of condensation waft from his open mouth.  Reynold yells from the shed and waves at his son.

					REYNOLD
			Thanks for the help, Malcolm.

Malcolm turns back to his father and waves in return to him.  As he turns back around, his mother’s white Hyundai pulls up.  He runs around to the other side of the car and throws his back-pack into the other seat.  He opens the passenger side door and jumps in next to his mother.  

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HYUNDAI (MOVING) – EARLY MORNING 

Malcolm rides in silence with his mother, like usual.  They’re in town, and making their way to the high school.  Malcolm’s mother, still on the subject the two discussed this morning, asks Malcolm a question.

					KAREN
			Do you know Gustav?

					MALCOLM
			No.

					KAREN
			Ok.  I was just wondering.

					MALCOLM
			Don’t trust him?

					KAREN
			It’s not that.  It’s just, I 
			Dunno.  More like a parental 
			Thing, I guess.

					MALCOLM
			Yeah?  No, I don’t know him.  I’ve
			Heard some things about him, but 
			They’re just rumours.

					KAREN
			Like what?

					MALCOLM
			Oh, I dunno.  Just perhaps that
			You probably shouldn’t be leaving
			Them alone in Tiffany’s room.

					KAREN
			What’s that supposed to mean?

Malcolm looks at her and she at him.

					KAREN (cont’d)
			Tiffany’d never do that.  She does
			Some crazy things, I know.  She’s 
			Tiffany, but she wouldn’t do that,
			Would she?

					MALCOLM
			I dunno about her.  The rumours
			Are about Gustav.  And they’re just
			Rumours.  

					KAREN
			Hmm.

					MALCOLM
			He is an Ecoligian. 

					KAREN
			Yeah, that family is a bit of 
			A weird one.

					MALCOLM
			The older brother is the weirdest.
			
					KAREN
			He’s a senior, isn’t he?

					MALCOLM
			Yeah.

					KAREN
			I heard something about them a while
			Ago.  I guess that they thought
			Someone planted a bomb in the
			House or something some time ago.

					MALCOLM
			Yeah I heard about that.

The sit in silence for some time and then arrive at school.  As the Hyundai pulls up...

					KAREN
			Have a nice last day of school.  

					MALCOLM
			You too.

					KAREN
			And do me a favour, please.  Keep
			An eye on your sister for me, will
			You?  Ever since she met Gustav, 
			She hasn’t been talking to us much.
			Your father and I are lost on you
			Two.

Malcolm looks at his mother.  “Your father and I are lost on you two.” 

					MALCOLM
			I’ll look out for her.

					KAREN
			Thanks, Malcolm.  I love you.
					MALCOLM
			Love you, too, Mom.

Malcolm slams the door shut and then turns around to face the school, hoisting his backpack onto his shoulder.  He walks up the steps to the front doors and enters.  We can hear the noises of the hallways echoing on both sides.  It gets louder and surrounds the sound, drowning it out.  Then we hear a bell and we cut.

		CUT TO:

INT. HIGH SCHOOL – LUNCHROOM – DAYTIME 

We cut in on a kid’s face.  It’s peter.  Peter’s telling us a story and we come in right on the line 
			
					PETER
			Dude, the Mountain kicked my ass.

At this, the camera switches to an entire lunch table looking at him.  Girls and guys alike, everyone sits at this table.  We see the faces of Paisley, Warren, and Naomi along with Gustav.  Peter continues his story as some of the others return to what they were doing.

Paisley and Naomi sit side by side and Paisley is close to her.  He messes with her and keeps his arm wrapped around behind her.  Warren sits across from the two and works on a paper for his next class.  He look at the two periodically.  We can hear a conversation between the two of the lovers.  They’re again play fighting.  

Across the lunchroom sits Malcolm at a table with Isaac and Rushmore and a few other friends of Isaac’s.  Isaac is telling a joke and everyone is laughing.  Malcolm laughs and talks with some friends, but once in a while his eyes wander and he keeps his eye on Warren, who is in clear sight of him.  We can see Warren’s plain unhappiness from here.  He looks down at his paper and works on it.  Malcolm keeps watch, but divides attention so that he can keeps his friends happy as well – and unsuspecting of something.  

Rushmore looks over at Malcolm and then begins talking to him.  Malcolm looks over at him and keeps his interests divided – Rushmore, lost in his own little world, doesn’t realize anything.  He’s interested in keeping a friend, it would seem.  

					RUSHMORE
			Malcolm.

Malcolm looks over at him.

					MALCOLM
			What?

Rushmore scoots down the bench towards Malcolm and begins talking to him in a more interested tone.  

					RUSHMORE
			What are you going to be doing 
			Over break?

					MALCOLM
			Um.

Malcolm pauses and looks around.  He really doesn’t know.
	
					MALCOLM (cont’d)
			No clue, really.

					RUSHMORE
			We should get together sometime.

					MALCOLM
			Ah, I dunno.  My parents might not
			Be so happy to find out I’ve even
			Been talking to you dude.

					RUSHMORE
			Come on, I’m fixing things right,
			Here.  I’m back at school, aren’t I?
			
					MALCOLM
			Yeah, but see I’m not so sure you
			Should be doing stuff with me right	
			Away.  My parents get ideas in their
			Heads and they don’t let go of 
			Them.  Not easily anyway.

					RUSHMORE
			I understand that.  Why don’t you
			Sneak out and do something with me
			Or whatever?

Malcolm pauses.  The idea IS clear, but Malcolm himself isn’t sure he wants to hang out with this kid anymore.  While we never knew Rushmore, it’s clear that Rushmore isn’t the same kid he used to be.  

					MALCOLM
			Perhaps.

					RUSHMORE
			You mean it?

					MALCOLM
			I guess so.  I’m not into getting
			In trouble, I hope you know.

Malcolm is just making an empty promise.  It’s not like this is actually supposed to happen.  It’s not the first time he’s told Rushmore he’s going to do something with him.  Many a time it would seem that Malcolm has made these promises only to never go through with them.

Back at the peter table, we can hear peter continuing on with his The Mountain Kicked My Ass story.  Warren is still, of course, working on his paper.  He’s not happy at all.  Annoyingly, Naomi notices – and inconsiderably to Warren, she makes a remark. 

					NAOMI
			Awww, Warren looks sad.  Are you
			Ok, Warren?

Warren looks up at her from his paper.  He’s absolutely pissed that she should say something about him being in a bad mood at a lunch table full of people – the absolute inconsideration.

					WARREN
			I’m just fine.

					NAOMI
			Are you sure?

She speaks in the tone she speaks to Paisley when she acts sad or concerned – high pitched and mockingly in some nature.  It makes you wish for fingernails to grate against a chalk board so you can think of something far more serene than the irritating voice that currently speaks to you.  Warren looks back down at his paper.  Due to Paisley’s irritatingly close vicinity to his squeeze, he’s aware of Warren’s bad mood.  Paisley can’t help but make his own little injection on the open topic of Warren’s ‘bad mood.’

					PAISLEY
			He’s always in a bad mood.

Warren looks up at him from his paper.  Paisley is smiling.  His free hand that rests on the table lifts up and reaches across the table squeezes Warren’s cheek.  Warren does not move or change expression.  He just looks at Paisley, who winks at him as he takes his hand off.  Paisley does not wink in such a manner that one would think something may actually be going between the two of the boys – instead it’s simply a friendly manner.  Paisley always winks at people, and there is nothing different about this one. 

Warren just looks back down at his paper.  Paisley’s free hand returns to his girlfriend and he pulls her tight to himself.  She laughs and he buries his face against her.  Reminded that this is in the middle of the lunch room, it’s appalling these two have the gall to pull this shit in the middle of school – surrounded by dozens of people, their inappropriate actions sets them apart and certainly isolates them from the rest of the table – especially Paisley, who acts wrapped up in only his girlfriend for almost the entire time. 

Tight shots between Warren and Paisley should establish a sort of closeness, while shots of the lunch room with everyone sitting almost equally spaces and so should establish Paisley and Naomi as isolated in their world – whether it may interpreted as a good or bad thing to the audience.  

CUT TO:

INT. HIGH SCHOOL – HISTORY ROOM – DAYTIME 

The camera is set in the History room that Malcolm has third period.  His history teacher stands at the front of the class and is currently giving a lecture on some random topic normally covered in a class like history.  She’s getting very into it.  Malcolm sits all the way in the back of the class.  Malcolm sits quietly and takes notes.  A quick look at his paper shows that he’s sketching instead of a writing – a serious no-no perhaps to most, but it’s an indicator of Malcolm’s unwillingness to follow directions that he doesn’t like.  As he looks forward, he sees a boy at the front of the class looking back at him.  

We quickly recognize this shot as the shot from the beginning of the film.  It’s the same boy and everything.  Malcolm looks at him and then back at the teacher, who has been going on with her lecture the entire time.  Malcolm looks back down at his notes, and makes another glance up the row of people.  His guess proves right.  The boy is again looking at him.  As soon as their eyes meet, the boy looks back forward.  Malcolm continues looking – his face gives the expression that his interest has been somewhat piqued.  As he stares, the teacher makes a remark about a test.  She passes out test sheets and ScanTron sheets and the students pass them back.  The boy, who sits at the front, turns around to pass one back.  His eyes move up to see Malcolm and Malcolm, who has been staring the entire time, watches all of this.  The eyes meet for one second, but the boy realizes that Malcolm has been looking and he turns back around, his eyes low to the ground.  

Malcolm gets his test sheets and takes his eyes off the boy.  He takes his test – shown as a series of shots that break off and on with him flipping through the test and making answers.  After perhaps 30 to 45 seconds of this, Malcolm raises from his seat.  He walks over to the front of the class, where two stools rest.  He places the test sheet on one and the ScanTron on the other – they are the first, and we are given the indication as an audience that he is the first one done with the test.  As he places the tests on the stools, his eyes wander to his left and they barely make the boy.  The boy is looking down at his test, but his eyes are leaning in the direction of Malcolm.  Malcolm stiffens up and then walks down the row between his column of seats and the boys –right next to the boy.  He’s wondering something, and he’s pushing himself to get slight answers from the situation.  He walks back down the row and sits at his desk, his eyes resting on this boy.  His interest is piqued, and so is ours.

CUT TO:

INT.  PAUL ECOLIGIAN’S SUV (MOVING) – DUSK

A large, dark blue SUV rolls down the highway out in the middle of nowhere, later letting us know that it rolls towards Ecoligian’s house.  Inside the car are several boys and girls, including Tiffany and Gustav, the freshman lovers.  PAUL ECOLIGIAN heads the SUV with his own girlfriend sitting up front.  She’s blonde and very ditzy, and her name is KATY. JULIA SANTOS rides with them, a young boy next to her.  Another young couple also sits in the back, but rarely ever speaks, so names are never mentioned.

During the end of the last scene as Malcolm walked back in the rows, we heard the beginning of Moonlight Sonata, and it carries on into this scene, a dark scene of six around eight teenagers, shoved into an SUV, having a good time – the SUV continues to roll through the barren fields on a lone stretch of highway south of the town they previously occupied.  The Sonata plays softly in the background.  It is Dusk, and the sun is setting in the west, outlining dark purple clouds in a pink lining that gives a beautiful yet ominous frame to the idea of these reckless children, destroying their ‘lives.’ 

The camera focuses inside the car on the children who laugh and bicker and bitch amongst themselves in an almost unrealistic fashion.  They’re animated – none of them are themselves in actuality.  The interactions are limited and the range of expression is small and pathetic, giving them a stereotypical appeal like a horror film from the early 90s.  Nevertheless, they’re happy.

Paul screams and hits the steering wheel.

					PAUL
			WHOOOOO!!!  Finally, Christmas
			Fuckin’ break!  

The whole car breaks out in approving yells and shouts of the idea of winter break.  Tiffany speaks up.

					TIFFANY
			God, like it would ever come.

					KATY 
			I know what you mean.  It felt like
			The entire fucking week dragged on
			And on.  I was about to fucking
			Choke Mrs. Goutsworth.  If that 
			Stupid bitch woulda’ said one more
			Word.

Paul breaks in.
		
					PAUL
			Oh god, I hate her so much.

He laughs.

					KATY
			She’s so stupid.

Katy begins mocking the teacher we never met.

					KATY
			“Katy, please be quiet,” “Katy
			please face the front of the 
			class,”  “Katy, blah blah blah
			fuckin’ blah!”	God, what a 
			bitch.  

					PAUL
			Haha, I had her last year.  I 
			Almost strangled the bitch.

They’re all laughing and smiling through such violent speak, you’d never guess they might actually hate this teacher enough to want to kill her.  

					TIFFANY
			Whatever the fuck, we’re out of
			School for two and half fuckin’
			Weeks.

					GUSTAV
			Oh, yeah.

Pimp approvingly.
Tiffany and Gustav look at each other, lust in their eyes, not love, and kiss – an annoying, wet, noisy kiss that makes a person utterly pissed to have to endure.  

Katy turns back forward and looks at Paul.  Paul smiles and looks at her out of the corner of his eyes.  

Paul scrounges around in his backpack that lays between he and Katy and finds what he’s looking for.  

					PAUL
			I’m sure we start this vacation 
			Right, can’t we?

He holds up a small baggy of brown and green hash.  A shot of the whole car shows the kids’ faces light up at the sight of this.  It truly is a ‘great thing.’  

The car continues rolling at dusk and sun settles behind the trees.  The clouds keep rolling in the sky.  The car finds it’s destination.  A gigantic, elaborately designed house the lies near a giant oak tree, across the street from a picket fence and a large farm, one that the Ecoligians do not own.  They live out here due to extreme wealth, their father a capitalist pig who owns some large plant or business that does well.  The house is three stories tall – disgustingly gargantuan, painted blue.  The driveway up to it is long.  The house stands solemn in the dark and car lights illuminate the front as the SUV rolls up the drive.  We suddenly switch.

									CUT TO:

INT.  ECOLIGIAN ESTATE – NIGHTTIME

The Sonata switches to the more upbeat tune.  Several scenes of the children are shown in a seamless montage – the camera gliding around the house, showing the eight children running about, some with blunts in their hands, some with bottles.  Some make out, some make out even worse.  We see that there are more children here than were in the SUV, giving us a hint of more of the ‘private party’ idea than was given from the previous football romp.  Kids laugh and run – everyone’s having a good time, nobody is getting hurt – what’s the harm in anything?

CUT TO:
INT. ECOLIGIAN ESTATE – PARENT’S BEDROOM – NIGHTTIME

Tiffany and Gustav lay alone in the Ecoligian master bedroom, throne to the king and queen on the Ecoligian estate – master fuck-dungeon for the teeny-bopper hop-along generation that their spoiled children are so unfortunate to have dropped into.  Tiffany and Gustav lie in a giant bed, complete with large posts and a drape over it.  Candles burn, and it’s almost magical the way they’ve set this up – you wouldn’t believe it to be part of the film almost.  They talk so quietly and so softly, their words are hard distinguishable.  The Sonata is back to the ominous beginning.  

					TIFFANY
			Do you like me, Gustav?

Gustav is feeling her around.  His sweatshirt is off on the bed.  He wears a small shirt that fits closely to him, giving her more attraction to him physically, harnessing her hormones for his pleasure.  
  
					GUSTAV
			Of course I do, baby.

					TIFFANY
			That’s nice.

He continues feeling her.  Her eyes begin shutting.  The sensuality is strong and he takes his time with the girl.  She is not to be rushed into anything so rash as to have sex with the boy.  

					GUSTAV
			I’ve liked you ever since I saw 
			You in the halls at school.

He’s eyeing her body.

					TIFFANY
			That...makes me feel...so good.

He’s on top of her.  It’s almost soap opera-ish the way these two interplay with each other and the emotions that they display at the age of 15.

					TIFFANY
			I don’t know...what I’d do...
			Without you...Gustav.

Gustav begins kissing her neck.  The camera pans down and shows him feeling the girl up.  She does nothing back.  She’s taking everything he gives her.  She’s never felt this before, and she’s held at the reigns of what is obviously experience on Gustav’s part.  

The music keeps and we switch scenes.

	CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NIGHTTIME

Before this we see a car leave the Foresster house.  Then we cut into the bathroom of the Foresster house.  We are inside what looks like a sauna, due to so much steam.  Inside the shower, Malcolm waits.  We can see the shower curtain and nothing is cast onto it yet.  Malcolm watches it and waits patiently for the shadow to come for him.  

CUT TO:

INT. ECOLIGIAN ESTSATE – PARENT’S BEDROOM – NIGHTTIME

Tiffany and Gustav are kissing a lot now, their lips locked and tongues are probably flying like flags in the wind inside those dirty little teeny-bopper mouths.  Hands move around each other’s bodies and grab things kids shouldn’t be grabbing at 15 years of age.  They rub and bump and begin to grind as well.  

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NIGHTTIME

Malcolm continues to watch the shower curtain.  A shadow begins to form on the curtain.  He looks closer at it, and the camera slowly, SLOWLY, zooms in.  The steam continues to pour out of the shower and roll around inside the tiny bathroom, fogging up the mirror.  Droplets of water runs off the faucet and the mirror, down the sides of the toilet and on the windows.  

CUT TO:
INT. ECOLIGIAN ESTATE – PARENT’S BEDROOM – NIGHTTIME

Clothes are coming off the children as they continue their sexcapade in Gustav’s parent’s room.  Tiffany is getting serious with this boy, experiencing her own sexuality at a young age—natural but not perhaps that ethical in this time period.  

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NIGHTTIME

The steam continues to roll and the shadow is forming on the shower curtain.  Malcolm watches the shadow gain definition.  It grows closer and closer to the shower and outside, the dark silhouette of a tall boy stands in front of the shower.  Malcolm reaches out to move the shower curtain and begins peeling it away.  Sudden shots cut in showing the house and it’s rooms, each dark and unoccupied – Malcolm is entirely alone in the whole house.  

He begins peeling away the yellow curtain and the silhouette once more comes into view, unfocused and obscured by puffs of steam that rise from the shower and cloud the room.

CUT TO:

INT. ECOLIGIAN ESTATE – PARENT’S BEDROOM – NIGHTTIME

Tiffany and Gustav are completely uncovered and going at it intensely.  The soap opera look has gone, and is almost replaced with a pornographic touch that degrades the earlier feeling.  Clothes are strewn about the bed, and the two keep their underwear on.  Still kissing, Gustav begins to unhook Tiffany’s bra.

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NIGHTTIME

The shadow is still out of focus as half of the curtain remains peeled away.  Still obscured by the steam, we can begin to make out the face of the silhouette’s face.  The features begin to form and define – 

The secret becomes clear, and the face belongs to Warren.
CUT TO:

INT. ECOLIGIAN ESTATE – PARENT’S BEDROOM – NIGHTTIME

The bra comes off of Tiffany and she is bear chested.  She is not yet well developed.  She hides her self as she continues kissing Gustav.  He places a hand on her breast and the hand that held it covers his.  He begins pressing and rubbing, squeezing the breast.  The two lay back.  

	CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NIGHTTIME

Malcolm is fully clothed in the shower.  The water is running on him like normal.  Outside of the shower stands Warren, also fully clothed.  He steps into the shower, a shower-bathtub actually, filled to the brim with bathwater that is overflowing and spilling on the floor and looks at Malcolm silently.  Both are the same height.  The shower continues running and the steam continues to roll.  The water is flowing out on the floor.  Warren places his hands on Malcolm’s arms and holds them.  

CUT TO:

INT. ECOLIGIAN ESTATE – PARENT’S BEDROOM – NIGHTTIME

Tiffany and Gustav are wrapped in the blankets of Ecoligian monarchy.  They’re fucking – not making love.  They’re fucking.  It feels like pornography, and it spares nothing that Pornography wouldn’t.  The world of underaged sex is not glorified in such a light that it is ‘making love.’  Children fuck.

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NIGHTTIME

Warren and Malcolm, both the same height, look each other in the eyes.  Warren’s hands are at his sides, straight and flush with his body.  So are Malcolm’s.  Warren bends over and kisses Malcolm. The bathtub faucet explodes on and water begins pouring into the water.  As the water splashes under and winds around, washing backup and begins to geyser out in short waves, white rose petals wash up with them and begin flowing out of the tub, over the edge. The sink faucet also blows off and water bubbles up, bring with it white rose petals.  The kiss between Malcolm and Warren lasts during this moment, and then their lips separate.  The kiss isn’t anything huge.  It’s small and rather conservative in the manner it’s taken.  It is not a big lip lock tongue fight, but simply a statement of pure affection.  The return to staring at each other.

CUT TO:

INT. ECOLIGIAN ESTATE –PARENT’S BEDROOM – NIGHTTIME

Tiffany and Gustav continue to fuck.  It’s practically disturbing to the audience, the way these two children engage in such an adult act.  It’s sick.

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NIGHTTIME

An above shot shows that the bathroom is flooded.  White rose pedals float on the surface of the water gracefully and ripple when disturbed.  Warren and Malcolm are still looking at each other.  Malcolm reaches over and begins kissing Warren’s neck.  Warren’s eyes shut and he puts his arms around Malcolm.  Malcolm returns this and continues to kiss Warren’s neck.  Warren backs down and sits in the water.  Malcolm, who’s still standing, watches him.  Steam is still rolling.  Malcolm kneels down in the water, and we can see that Warren is no longer clothed.  His knees stick out of the water and his head rests on the back of the shower.  The water level is high, but Warren’s head still sticks out of the top of the water.  Malcolm makes his way on his hands and knees on top of Warren and continues kissing him.  Water begins trickling down from the walls, which begin to crack.  

CUT TO:

INT. ECOLIGIAN ESTATE – PARENT’S BEDROOM – NIGHTTIME

Gustav and Tiffany are STILL fucking.  There’s nothing else to describe anymore.  It’s an all out fuck.  The two pant and sweat and grasp and rub and do whatever their bodies tell them to.  

CUT TO:
INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NIGHTTIME

Warren and Malcolm are kissing still in the bathtub, surrounded by rose petals and a high water level.  The do this for some time, to really establish the feeling, before Warren suddenly stops kissing and says:

					WARREN
			I don’t understand.

Malcolm just looks at him.  They stare for a while.  Malcolm has such a look of realization on his face, one may mistake it for horror or shock.  The music has faded by this point.  We can hear trickling water in one part of the room, and Malcolm looks over from where he is.  In the corner of the room, a boy peeks out of the water, his eyes just barely above the white rose pedals, enough so that we can tell it’s the boy who watches Malcolm in his class.

CUT TO:

INT. ECOLIGIAN ESTATE – PARENT’S BEDROOM – NIGHTTIME

Tiffany and Gustav lay on the bed, a bed ravaged by a rabid sexcapade.  They are both winded, and lay next to each other.  They do not have their arms around each other, they do not caress silently.  Gustav sleeps, Tiffany is wide awake.  She looks around the room and then at him.  She looks guilty.  Everything is silent, save sounds that come from downstairs—from the other children who are also making mistakes with their ‘lives.’

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NIGHTTIME

We are back inside the bathroom – the bathroom is completely normal.  Nothing has burst off, no rose petals are in sight, the steam is normal, and the shower still runs.  Inside the shower, Malcolm turns off the water and grabs a towel from the rack that hangs next to the shower.  He opens up the shower curtain and steps out.  He has the towel wrapped around his waist.  He’s red in the face and his breathing harder than one should when they leave the shower.  He sits down on the toilet and puts his head in his hands.  The camera focuses on him for a while.  He sits there for a long time, before finally gathering his thoughts and getting up.  He walks over to the mirror and looks at himself in it.  He inspects his face and upper body.  He just stares at it, no more.  He doesn’t flex, he doesn’t check out his nether regions.  He just simply takes an evaluation of himself in the mirror.  He walks away from the mirror and opens the door.  The camera stays focused on the mirror.  Water from the steams keeps pouring down from the mirror—somewhat of an excess amount.

CUT TO:

INT. ECOLIGIAN’S HOUSE – EARLY DAWN

In silence, Tiffany comes stumbling out of the room she and Gustav have shared all night.  She is tired and dazed.  She walks back into the room and takes a good long look at the clock that sits next to the giant four-post bed she fucked Gustav on.  The clock reads, in giant red numbers, 4:17 A.M. and switches to 4:18 A.M. before she heads back out the door.  She walks down the hall, her hand on the banister, the other one her head.  Her hair is in a mess.  She can see light trickling up from the first floor.  There is no sound except the white noise from the big screen TV that sits in the living room – turned up to the top of the volume.  

She stumbles around and makes her way down the stairs.  At the bottom of the stairs, lay several kids.  Food and such is strung all around the house.  The entire place is in disarray.  Nobody is ‘dead’ per se, although they certainly give the feeling.  In the living room lays Paul and Katy, both naked and asleep, under a blanket on a large leather sofa.  Tiffany stumbles into the kitchen where several blunts lay, extinguished hours earlier.  Baggies that once held weed lay open, rolling paper lays out as well.  Beer bottles are strewn about, one or two broken on the linoleum floor, pieces of green glass shattered all about.

As Tiffany stumbles through the mess, she suddenly hears something at the front door of the house.  Her eyes widen and she stumbles back through the kitchen.  She can hear two voices barely.  They belong to the Ecoligian parents.  They’ve come home this morning for some reason unknown, and have stumbled upon the Generation’s Worst.  Tiffany comes in to the front foyer, and Mrs. Ecoligian stares at her.  Mr. Ecoligian comes back in and stops in his tracks, staring at Tiffany.  
CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – MALCOLM’S ROOM – EARLY DAWN

It’s almost pitch black, save the blue tint that shines in through Malcolm’s bedroom window.  His bed lay next to it, and Malcolm is almost fast asleep in his warm cocoon on linens.  A loud, frightening voice rings up from the first floor and scares the shit out of Malcolm, making him jump up out of his bed and sit at attention.  He listens to the voice, which belongs to his father.  His father is screaming at the top of his lungs – he’s pissed beyond anything some children may ever experience.  He’s red in the face and his voice booms against the walls of the old farm house.  Tiffany sits in front of him, Karen stands behind.  

					REYNOLD 
			WHAT THE FUCK HAVE I TOLD YOU 
			ABOUT GETTING MIXED UP IN STUPID
			ASS SHIT LIKE THAT, HUH!?  HUH??!
			TELL ME, TIFFANY, I’D REALLY LIKE
			TO FUCKIN’ KNOW.

Tiffany is sobbing in front of her father on the sofa.

					REYNOLD (cont’d)
			COME ON, TIFFANY, TELL ME.  PLEASE, 
			PLEASE TELL ME, BECAUSE I’M REALLY
			FUCKIN’ CURIOUS WHY YOU WENT AND
			DID THAT SHIT WITH THOSE KIDS.

Tiffany continues to sob.  

					REYNOLD
			I FUCKING TRUSTED THAT YOU’D MAKE THE
			RIGHT FUCKIN’ DECISIONS AND YOU LET
			ME DOWN, TIFFANY, YOU FUCKING LET
			ME DOWN.  

Tiffany struggles through her uncontrollable sobs.

					TIFFANY
			I...I...I didn’t do that stuff.

REYONOLD
			DON’T YOU LIE TO ME, DON’T YOU FUCKIN’
			LIE TO ME, TIFFANY, I AM YOUR OWN
			GOD DAMNED FATHER, SO DON’T YOU FUCKIN’
			LIE TO ME!

Tiffany begins sobbing again.

					REYNOLD (cont’d)
			SO IF YOU DIDN’T DO THAT SHIT, TIFFANY
			IF YOU DIDN’T DO THAT SHIT, THEN 
			WHY WERE YOU THERE!?

Tiffany tries to get somewhat defensive.  She yells.

					TIFFANY
			BECAUSE THEY’RE MY FRIENDS!

					REYNOLD
			OH, I SEE, THEY’RE YOUR “FRIENDS.”
			I SEE HOW IT IS, TIFFANY, YOU 
			CHOSE SOME REAL GREAT FRIENDS, HUH?

Malcolm continues to listen in on this.

					TIFFANY
I WAS JUST THEY’RE BECAUSE GUSTAV 
WAS THERE!

		REYNOLD
SO GUSTAV IS MIXED UP IN THIS SHIT?

		TIFFANY
I don’t know.

		REYNOLD
WHAT!?

		TIFFANY
I said I don’t know.

		REYNOLD
SPEAK UP!

Tiffany, once again, tries to be ‘defensive.’

TIFFANY
			I SAID I DON’T FUCKING KNOW!

At this, Reynold smacks his daughter across the face, and she hits the side of the sofa.  Karen steps forward and protests Reynold’s use of physical force on the girl.

					REYNOLD
			WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT YOU AND 
			THAT LANGUAGE!?

Tiffany simply sits on the couch and cries.  Karen stares at Reynold.  She can’t stop him – she couldn’t if she tried.  The hypocrisy is great with Reynold, however.  He paces around the living room and then sits down, putting his head in his hands and then running his fingers through his hair.  Then he sits for sometime and looks at nothing, really – deep in thought.  Then he looks at Tiffany and says in a calm tone, a tone that hides underlying rage that still needs to expression:

					REYNOLD (cont’d)
			You’re grounded.

Tiffany simply cries.  

					REYNOLD (cont’d)
			You’re not allowed to see Gustav 
			Until we know enough—

Tiffany sits up, sobbing, and begins to protest.  Reynold raises his voice slightly to keep her bound.

					REYNOLD (cont’d)
			-until we know enough about Gustav
			to trust him around you.  We can’t
			have you running around with—

Tiffany begins to protest again, with “Daddy PLEASE, Don’t”’s and such.  Reynold silences her with a single “SHUTUP” and then goes back to his normal tone.

					REYNOLD (cont’d)
			(slowly) We can’t have you running
			around with boys we know nothing about.
			We thought we could trust you enough
			To make the right decisions, and you
			Apparently don’t know how to do that. 
			Until we’re sure you can be trusted
			On your own, your mother and I are
			Going to keep you here.  You are not 
			Allowed to do anything for the entire
			Winter break and you are not allowed 
			To do anything after school.  We’d
			Have Malcolm stay and watch you, but
			We’re not sure Malcolm has been 
			Completely honest with us about you
			Either.  Your brother just spoils you,
			And it’s time you realized a few 
			Things.  

Tiffany just looks at him and continues crying.

					REYNOLD (cont’d)
			In the morning I’m going to take out
			Your Television and phone, and you’re
			Not allowed on the computer until 
			Further notice.  

Tiffany just cries still.  Reynold gets up and walks into the kitchen.  He gets a beer out of the refrigerator and sits down at the table.  He’s silent and somber, and does not give another ounce of emotion.  Tiffany gets up off the couch and goes to the stares.  She’s much quieter now, and she turns to look at her mother.  Her mother, how is looking straight, is just turned so that we know she can see her daughter out of the corner of her eye.  She doesn’t say a word to her daughter.  

Back in Malcolm’s room, Malcolm can hear Tiffany walk down the hallway and into her room.  She shuts the door softly and lays down in her bed, without taking any clothes off, without turning on a light, without doing anything, and she just lays there.  Malcolm sits still in the silence for a while and then lays back down.  The darkness envelops him and then we fade back in on Reynold, who sits by himself in the kitchen with his beer.  He stares forward and looks at the door.  His wife, Karen, walks through and leans on the frame.  Her hands are folded. Reynold looks down, wrapped in thought, and then says to her, while shaking his head:

REYNOLD
			I don’t understand.

Then the darkness keeps once more.

CUT TO:

EXT. HIGHWAY TRUCKSTOP – PARKING LOT – MIDDAY 

 The black screen still keeps, and we can hear we’ve come in on a conversation.  We can hear the noises as cars stream by on some road – there are a lot of them, and this tells us that the people in the conversation are out on the highway or the interstate.  

					WARREN (O.S.)
			It’s hilarious.

					PAISLEY (O.S.)
			Ok, ok, tell me.

The black fades into the scene.  Paisley and Warren are sitting at a rest stop off the highway.  It’s cloudy and blue, and it’s wet outside.  It’s been snowing or raining.  The two lean against Paisley’s car.  

					WARREN
			Ok ok.  My friend from Champagne told
			Me this.  Ok, I guess like a long 
			Time ago they found this guy who had
			Committed suicide, killed himself by 
			Hanging himself.  

					PAISLEY
			Oh yeah?

					WARREN
			Yeah, and so after like three or four
			Days of hanging from a rafter, he 
			Had a nylon cord around his neck.

Warren makes a sign by using his hands to form a noose.

					WARREN (cont’d)
			And the cops came into his house 
			And I guess they found all sortsa 
			Creepy shit and such, and when they 
			Finally found him, they heard this 
			Weird buzzing noise.

					PAISLEY
			Mmmhmm?

					WARREN
			And so they take ‘im down and
			They put him in a body bag and ship	
			Him off to the forensics lab place,
			The CSI or whatever
			
					PAISLEY
			Yeah.

					WARREN (cont’d)
			And they do the autopsy on him, and
			They can hear this vibrating.  So 
			They feel around and they think it 
			May be coming from his stomach, so 	
			They slice the dude open down the 
			Front and take out his intestines 
			And shit, and they start searching
			Through them.  

					PAISLEY
			Uh huh.

					WARREN
			And they get to the large intestine
			And the actual intestine is 
			Vibrating.  And they cut it open, and
			I’m sure you have a hint as to what 
			It was that the doctors found in 
			Him, don’t you?
	
					PAISLEY
			I’m guessing a Dildo.

					WARREN
			Precisely.

Paisley laughs.

					WARREN (cont’d)
			Apparently this guy, right before
			He hung himself, stuck a dildo up
			His ass.  It coulda been one of 
			Those asphyxiation masturbation things
			That some people do
					PAISLEY
			Sounds like it.

					WARREN
			But when he died, you know that
			Rigor Mortis sets in, the whole
			Muscles getting stiff thing.

					PAISLEY
			Yeah, yeah.

					WARREN
			Well, they grabbed around the 
			Shaft of the dildo, which was still
			On, and the dildo ended up crawling
			Up this dudes ass, into his intestines.

Warren quits the story and smiles at Paisley, who has an disgusted look on his face.  They’re both in goofy moods.  

					PAISLEY
			You’re serious about this?

					WARREN
			True story, I swear.

					PAISLEY
			Who told you this?

					WARREN
			Some guy up in Champagne, says it
			Happened like ten years ago.  

					PAISLEY
			That’s so fuckin’ WEIRD.

Warren smiles and laughs at him. 

					WARREN
			People are weird, aren’t they?

					PAISLEY
			I guess.

Warren just smiles.  The two sit in silence for some time.  Cars roll past on the interstate.  Finally, the doors of the restroom open, and Naomi and another girl walk out of the building.  

					PAISLEY
			There they are.

CUT TO:

INT. PAISLEY’S CAR (MOVING) – MIDDAY

We cut to a simple shot of Warren, who sits in the back of Paisley’s car.  He doesn’t looks so happy now.  Sitting next to him is a dark skinned girl named Veronica.  Veronica is talking with Naomi.  Naomi sits up front next to Paisley, who drives.  Paisley has one hand on the wheel.  The other hand is always touching Naomi, or Naomi sits and caresses it with her hands.  

She and Naomi discuss mediocre matters that do not technically affect the story.  It’s simply goofy small talk.  Every once in a while, Paisley will interject a comment (usually sexual) and the girls will laugh.  Warren does not speak much, but simply watches the three interact. 

CUT TO:

INT. DEPARTMENT STORE – AFTERNOON

We are now inside a department store.  Warren walks with Veronica in some electronic aisle.  He speaks with her, but the two are both involved in deep interests that include electronics.  Warren talks a breaking look up and way off in another aisle he can see the backs of Naomi and Paisley.  Paisley has his arm swung around Naomi.  The two move together, as if they were one.  

Veronica is still looking at the interest product and talking about it, when Warren strikes up another topic for discussion.

					WARREN
			Does that annoy you?

Veronica looks up at him.

					VERONICA
			What?
Warren points at the couple in the aisle.

					WARREN
			Those two, always doing that. 
			Doesn’t it annoy you too?

					VERONICA
			Yeah.

They stare at the two.

					VERONICA
			Why do you ask, though?
		
					WARREN
			I dunno.  I’ve been around them
			So much, it’s all I ever see 
			Anymore.  “Naomi and Paisley.”
			They’re not even like separate 
			People anymore.

					VERONICA	
			I know what you mean by that.

					WARREN
			Is that why you barely ever do 
			Anything with us anymore?

					VERONICA
			Hate to say it.

Warren doesn’t say anything for sometime, continues looking at Naomiandpaisley.

					WARREN
			Why do they ALWAYS do that?

					VERONICA
			Well, they like each other, I guess.

					WARREN
			I know that, and it’s great, I
			Guess, but why do they always have
			To be so fucking intimate when
			We’re around them?

					VERONICA
			Cause Paisley’s an asshole, and he’s 
			Turned Naomi into a bitch.  She isn’t
			The same anymore.  

					WARREN
			I guess so.

					VERONICA
			I don’t know if she enjoys it
			That much.  He usually commands
			The relationship it seems like.

					WARREN
			He’s always touching her, always...
			Shoving it in our faces, like we
			Don’t notice that ‘oh yeah, Paisley
			Loves Naomi.”

					VERONICA
			Yeah, I understand what you’re 
			Saying.  The hard part would be, 
			Warren, getting it across to 
			Paisley.

					WARREN
			You’re right on that field.  But
			Still, he needs to get the idea that
			It’s fucking ruining our times anymore.
			I don’t understand why I keep 
			Hanging around those two when all it 
			Does is ruin my fun.  I never enjoy 
			Myself. 

					VERONICA
			Well then stop hanging around them.

					WARREN
			Well, I can’t do that...

					VERONICA
			Why not?

Warren continues looking at the two.  He sits for a long time and thinks over his answer.  While we the audience have a good guess as to what the reason is, he feeds Veronica a bullshit answer to save face on his true feelings about things.

					WARREN
			I dunno.  I don’t want to just
			Ditch him.  He’s been a good friend
			To me. 

					VERONICA
			Because you’ve been a good friend 
			To him, and you still are.  He’s not
			Treating you back the way you deserve
			To be treated.  He’s being really
			Selfish about your friendship actually.

					WARREN
			Well, I dunno about that.

					VERONICA
			All he cares about is Naomi anymore.

					WARREN
			Yeah, it certainly would seem
			That way.  

					VERONICA
			He only cares about her and what she
			Does for him. 

					WARREN
			I’d like to see her dump him.

The two of them laugh.  

					VERONICA
			I’d laugh my ass off if that happened.

					WARREN
			Again.

					VERONICA
			Again.

					WARREN
			I mean, I’m sure it would be 
			Sad, somewhat.  

He smiles.

					WARREN (cont’d)
			But I’m not sure I myself wouldn’t
			Get a good laugh out of the whole
			Ordeal.  Hell, I’d laugh in front
			Of him.

					VERONICA
			Oh my god.

					WARREN
			What.

Veronica laughs.
					
					VERONICA
			That’s so horrible.

Warren smiles.

Down the aisle that Veronica and Warren occupy, we can see Paisley and Naomi walking towards them. 

From behind Naomi and Warren, the camera follows steadily.  Veronica and Warren look at them, and we can clearly hear Warren say

					WARREN
			Oh god, hear the come.

Veronica giggles at this and Paisley and Naomi meet them.  Naomi, so oblivious and naïve to everything around her, gives an enthusiastic 

					NAOMI
			Hey guys, what you looking at?

Warren is trying to save with a serious face.  

					WARREN
			Oh, uh, nothing.

					PAISLEY 
			Nothing huh?

Paisley appears serious, but oblivious at the same time – not totally aware of everything that’s going on around him.  

					WARREN
			Sure are.  

The four just look at each other and keep silent.  After several glances from person to person, we cut.

CUT TO:

INT. RESTAURANT – DUSK

The four teenagers sit around the table of a restaurant eating food.  They are silent.  Warren has taken his seat next to Paisley, and Veronica sits across from him, leaving Naomi away from Paisley’s grasp.  Naomi is just fine.  She sits and smiles and eats her food.  Paisley looks down at his food – he isn’t thrilled.  He can sense a purposeful separation of him and his girlfriend.  Veronica looks at Warren, who is eating his food with his eyes down.  He has a huge grin on his face.  He keeps trying to hide it, but every time he looks at Paisley, he begins laughing.  Veronica looks more worried than amused.  

Warren takes another look at Paisley and he cracks up.  He is seriously amused at this.  Naomi looks up at him and smiles.  Paisley is upset.  Veronica is embarrassed.  People around them look once in a while.  Warren has to spit out his food and wipe his mouth.  He laughs some more at Warren, who just stares at him.  Warren is shaking he is laughing so hard at this.  Naomi just smiles and looks at him.  Finally, after four or five minutes of this, she finally says

					NAOMI
			What?

CUT TO:

INT. PAISLEY’S CAR (MOVING) – NIGHTTIME

We are back in Paisley’s car, headed up the highway.  Warren sits in the back.  He’s smiling.  Up front, Paisley doesn’t say anything to anyone.  Naomi sits silently too.  The two do not touch each other.  Warren looks over at Veronica, who has a worried look on her face.  She looks at him and then breaks into a wide grin.  She, too, is rather amused with the situation.  

Warren returns his gaze to outside the car.

CUT TO:

INT. VERONICA’S HOUSE – ATTIC BEDROOM – NIGHTTIME

We join Veronica and Warren in the middle of conversation.  Paisley and Naomi have gone home.  Warren is on Veronica’s bed, laughing his ass off.  

					WARREN
			Did you see how pissed he was?

					VERONICA
			You really shouldn’t have done 
			That to him.  He probably hates
			Us now.

					WARREN
			Oh, but it was so worth it.

Warren stares at her.  Veronica breaks into a smile and finally admits

					VERONICA
			This is true.

					WARREN
			I mean, god, it was just worth
			The look on his face.  

					VERONICA
			I think you embarrassed him.

					WARREN
			You think?

					VERONICA
			YEAH!  People were fucking looking
			At us in there!  You caused a 
			Scene, Warren.

Warren lays on her bed and thinks this over.  After sometime, he rolls over and looks at her.  Then he mutters
					WARREN
			Awesome.

CUT TO:

INT.  PAISLEY’S CAR – NIGHTTIME

We sit inside Paisley’s car.  It is silent.  Naomi sits and looks at him.  The car is outside her house.  She looks at him and finally says

					NAOMI
			Goodnight...

					PAISLEY
			Night.

Naomi gets out of the car and runs off to her house.  Paisley sits in the car for a while and finally starts the car.  He takes off.  He, how Paisley usually is, is not happy at all with anything.  

CUT TO:

INT.  VERONICA’S HOUSE – ATTIC BEDROOM – NIGHTTIME

We’re back in the attic.  Warren is still laughing with Veronica about the events of the evening.  

					WARREN
			I dunno, I couldn’t help myself.
			I found the whole thing just so
			Goddamned funny, I had to laugh.

					VERONICA
			Yeah, I can see that, but you 
			Didn’t have to cause a scene
			Out of the whole thing, I mean
			You could have spared us the 
			Embarrassment.

					WARREN
			Where would the fun be in that
			Though?

CUT TO:

INT. PAISLEY’S CAR – NIGHTTIME

We see Paisley pull up in front of Veronica’s house.  He sits in the car, which is turned off and in park, and thinks for a while.  Silence fills everything, and then he looks up at the house.  A single light is on in the attic space.  Paisley opens the door and shoves out.  He walks up to the house.

			CUT TO:

INT. VERONICA’S HOUSE – ATTIC BEDROOM – NIGHTTIME

We’re back up in Veronica’s attic bedroom.

					WARREN
			Hey, admit it, you had fun.

Veronica sits there and smiles at him.  Then finally admits her ‘fault.’

					VERONICA
			I guess you’re right.  I had fun.

					WARREN
			Without good ‘ol Warren, noone
			Would have fun around those two.

He smiles and sits up on the bed.  He gives a feeling of false pride and is almost...’cute’ with it.

Suddenly Warren looks over.  They hear a door open at the bottom of the stairs and Paisley walks up into the attic space looking especially down and deflated.  Warren suddenly looks rather concerned about his friend.  

					WARREN
			Whoa, Paisley, you ok?

Paisley walks over to the bed and lays down next to Warren.  Warren looks over at Veronica, who has a look on her face as in “Oh lord, not again.”  Warren puts his hand on Paisley’s back and circles it around.  Paisley’s hand comes up on Warren, and Warren has to lay down.  Veronica watches the two lay there with a speculated look on her face.

CUT TO:
INT. PAISLEY’S CAR (MOVING) – NIGHTTIME

We’re now inside Paisley’s car as he speeds down urban streets to his house.  He’s taking Warren with him.  Warren sits in the passenger side seat as Paisley rants on about how much he thinks his girlfriend hates him, and about how she does this and does that and blah freakin’ blah.

					PAISLEY
			I mean she just sat there and 
			Fuckin’ smiled!  She didn’t even
			Care that we weren’t sitting next
			To each other at all!  I can’t 
			Believe she’d do that!

Warren is looking out his window and says in a low, uncaring tone with absolutely no surprise

					WARREN
			I know what you mean.

Paisley looks at Warren and stops talking.  

					PAISLEY
			And what was with you?

Warren looks away from the window?

					PAISLEY (cont’d)
			You seemed like you were having
			A fuckin’ ball.  What made you
			So jittery all of a sudden?

					WARREN
			Oh...humour, I guess.

PAISLEY
Couldn’t you tell we weren’t 	
Having a good time?  Couldn’t
You sense that something was
Wrong between Naomi and me?

		WARREN
It never really occurred to me.
I just thought you were 
Humourless, that’s all.

Paisley takes a long look at Warren.  

CUT TO:

INT. PAISLEY’S HOUSE – PAISLEY’S ROOM – NIGHTTIME

We come in on the two sitting in Paisley’s bed.  The lights are on and smoke wafts against the shafts of light that extend from the lamps.  Warren sits up against the wall and he holds Paisley’s head in his lap.  He’s scratching his head, rubbing it, making Paisley tired and comfortable at the same time.  Paisley sits and mumbles to himself, half-adrift in sleep – still anchored to reality by some amazing consciousness of his surroundings.  His words are barely distinguishable.  

We can hear him utter.

					PAISLEY
			I just love her so much...

Warren puts his hand over Paisley’s mouth and whispers

					WARREN
			Shhh.  Don’t take yourself so 
			Seriously.

Warren, after sitting there for a while, slowly gets up and walks over to the lamp.  He takes out his wallet and other belongings, and dumps them on the nightstand where the single lamp sits.  As he takes out his belongings, he sees a picture of Naomi and Paisley, both together in a cute position, although rather annoying.  They’re in front of a Christmas tree, and Naomi is over Paisley, pulling at his ears.  Perhaps it would be cute if it weren’t for so many bad experiences with the couple.  Warren takes the picture out of it’s little slip and sticks it in his wallet.  He stacks his things in a neat pile and then turns out the light.  Silence, and darkness keeps.

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NIGHTTIME

We fade in from black and we can see the boy peering at us from the rose petals in the water again.  He looks at us with strange curiosity.  There’s something about him that has not yet hit home, something that tips us off to Malcolm and his own behavior.  His head begins to go under water, when suddenly.

CUT TO:

INT. HIGH SCHOOL – HISTORY CLASSROOM – DAYTIME

We’re in Malcolm’s History class once more.  The entire Winter break has passed and the kids are once again attending school.  The children, though running around, chatting, and smiling amongst themselves, are not at all thrilled to be back at school for another wonderful slave-drive week.  But then again, the teachers don’t look so thrilled either.  

At the front of the class sits the boy who stares.  He talks to his friends, big jocks (we use the term lightly) and brutes who sport certain Braun and a lack of brain that drives the women wild.  A world that perhaps Malcolm shall never experience.  However, he has a glimpse inside perhaps, with the curiosity of this staring boy.  

The bell rings, and all the children, after a few minutes, take their seats and become silent.  The teacher begins the lesson.  She immeadiately brings up the tests of which the students took before the Winter break and begins to call names.  As she calls the names, students get up one by one and file to the front to find their test and see just how poorly they did.  As she calls the names off, we hear the name “Steiner Long” called.  At the sound of his name, the boy who stares reaches over and collects his test from the teacher.  He looks at his test and expresses happiness for the good grade he got on his test – a 73% C-.  He looks around happily, peers back and returns front facing when he glances at the prying eyes of Malcolm.  

As the tests continue to get read off, we hear “Malcolm Foresster” called.  A shot from in front of Steiner’s desk shows his hand as it twitches and pumps and fists as Malcolm leaves his seat and walks up the row.  As he walks to the front, we hear the teacher say “Here you go.”  Malcolm expresses a sigh of relief over his own fortunate grade.  He receives a 96% A on his history test.  He looks down at Steiner, who does not look at him, and does not say a word.  

Malcolm returns to his seat and sits down.  He puts the test away and then pulls out paper.  He begins writing on the paper as the teacher gives an instruction.  He continues to look down the aisle at Steiner, who, at the moment, does not turn to look at Malcolm.  However, he continually takes to a girl who sits next to him.  At times, he looks at Malcolm, and then gets close to the girl.  What he says is never known, however.  

At the front of the class, the teacher suddenly has to do something, and the class begins to talk amongst themselves.  The first thing that Steiner does is look back at Malcolm, who, prepared for this, stares wide-eyed at him.  Steiner turns around quickly and does not turn back. 

The teacher speaks from behind the desks and directs the students to get up.  They are leaving the class, and they are not to bring their books with them.  The students get up and file out of the rows and through the doors.  As Steiner walks by Malcolm’s desk, he looks down at the piece of paper.  On it, Malcolm has written something upside down.  On the sheet of paper, he has written

		I DON’T UNDERSTAND.

CUT TO:

INT. HIGH SCHOOL – HALLWAY – DAYTIME

We now join Tiffany once again, for the first time since her initial screw-up, and she is different than she first looked.  Her hair is pulled up, and the bangs are practically plastered to her shining forehead.  Her eyes glitter and are practically painted blue.  She looks more like a whore, but not quite to the point that the girls around her are.  Her friend Julia stands with her at her locker.  Tiffany talks with a gangster accent that she does not use with her parents, and Julia sounds like she’s from Chicago.  Both of them are as white as snow, but just can’t get past the fact they think they must be black at the core.  

					JULIA
			Look, hon, don’t worry about it.  
			Every girl goes through this kind
			Of stuff.  It’s just your first 
			Time, so don’t worry about it.
					TIFFANY
			Look, Jules, I’m scared.  I’m real
			Scared about it.  He doesn’t treat
			Me like he used to, he’s different.

					JULIA
			He’s a guy, what are you gonna do
			About it?  All of them are the exact
			Same.  Once you fuck ‘em, they’re 
			Through with’ ya.  

					TIFFANY
			...

					JULIA
			You gotta learn not to get to 
			Attached to ‘em.  If you just give 
			It up to them, you ain’t gonna get
			Nothin’ out of it.  You gotta learn
			To hook ‘em for a while, before you
			Finally give ‘em what they want.  
			Hell, sometimes you find one that’s
			Worth hanging onto, you never give it
To ‘em.  You only fuck ‘em when things
Are getting’ bad between you’s two, 
Understand?  It’s like saying good 
Bye, but you both enjoy it.  By lettin’
Him take ya like that, you just told
Him that you don’t care no more 
About what he says to ya.  He’s prolly
Talkin’ t’all his friends about the
Whore he just fucked.

		TIFFANY
Julia, I ain’t no whore.

		JULIA
But that’s what they call you.  It’s
Juts a label, no more, that’s it.  All
Girls is fuck to them.  They don’t 
Know the difference between you or me.
We’re just holes.  Whores is somethin’
They call us to keep us thinkin’ that’s
All we’re good for, when it’s us that
Control’s ‘em.  You think they’d be 
So cocky if they didn’t get any?

		TIFFANY
I wouldn’t know.

		JULIA
Hell no, they wouldn’t.  We give
Then the stamina they need to keep
Goin’.  Otherwise they’d be dead 
Shells, little boys still jerkin’
Off to pictures a’ Britney Spears
Or Pamela Anderson under the covers
At night.  We give ‘em something 
That’s real, and they don’t wanna
Lose it, so they call us whores and
Bitches behind our backs, like 
They the ones who own us.  You 
Gotta learn these things, or this
Place is gonna eat you alive.  You
Gotta make this place your own, 
Tiff.  Noone’s gonna do it for you,
But I can help you.  

		TIFFANY
Thanks, Jules.

		JULIA
Eh, no problem.  I never had noone
When I got here last year.  I’m 
Lucky I made it on my own, though. 
Makes ya strong.  Every day in these
God damned halls, yellin’ assholes
And guys thinkin’ they’s pimps.  

		TIFFANY
...

		JULIA
Watch yourself, Tiff.  I don’t 
Want you getting’ yourself hurt no 
More.  

		TIFFANY
Ok.

At this moment, we hear a swell of laughter from some corner of the hall.  The two girls looks over, and we can see Gustav in the centre of ‘em.  Some of the boys look over at Tiffany and smile, some laugh.  Tiffany just stares at them.  Julia puts her arm up and pushes Tiffany to go somewhere else.  

					JULIA
			Bunch’a assholes.  Come on, Tiff.
			I told you this place was fucked
			Up.

Tiffany, still staring at the group of boys who are looking at her 

					TIFFANY
			...ok...

CUT TO:

INT. HIGH SCHOOL – ECONOMICS CLASSROOM – DAYTIME

We are now situated inside a classroom.  It is loud, and students are up running around inside.  Kids throw things and yell and curse and laugh and do all things so teenagerly.  As we look over towards the door way, Tiffany enters.  She is standing with her books in the doorway and is talking to Julia, who stands outside.  They bid each other farewell, and Julia leaves to run to her class.  As she runs down the hall, a tall black boy wearing a doo rag (this is not a racist film, but we will not keep from giving honest descriptions) grabs her in the ass as she runs down the hallway.  She turns back and yells his name, laughing.  He yells back at her, and she disappears into her classroom. 

Tiffany, back in her economics classroom, finds her seat and sits down.  She doesn’t know anyone in here, so she sits quietly with her books.  She looks around at all the boys who are running around the classroom – some are looking back at her, with eyes that regard otherwise inappropriate ideas.  She looks back down at her desk, embarrassed by the thought of this, when suddenly the bell for class tones and the students, after much ushering by the teacher up front, finally sit down and shut up.  As the teacher takes attention, a tall white boy dressed in a blue and white Adidas jump suit (two sizes too big) and bright white shoes that could burn the retinas of the blind enters the classroom, late, and laughing still from the joke just told by Tiffany’s Gustav.  The teacher, not happy, makes a remark.  The boy spouts some indecipherable jargon, and is then prompted to sit in a seat directly behind Tiffany.  When he sees her, he laughs and turns around looking at the teacher, and then strolls up to the desk behind Tiffany.

Tiffany is uncomfortable at this, we can tell from her position and her eyes as the scan to the side but never back at the boy.  Who sits behind her, but bends over just to her shoulder, breathing on her.  His facial expressions are annoying – hell, his entire face and body is annoying.  Everything about this boy makes your skin crawl, making it a wonder that any child, children being pure, children being the future of mankind, could irritate you so much that perhaps you wouldn’t mind seeing him suffer some godforsaken punishment simply for being.  Tiffany is strong, though, while it may be surprising in that sense, and she holds her own, not saying a word to the boy or letting him know that she really does mind his closeness.  

The boy bends back in his chair and pulls out some paper.  He looks around annoyingly, even though nobody is looking back at him or laughing with him.  Then, after a minute or two of the front teacher talking and the entire looking around at people thing, the boy once again bends forward.  Tiffany, not being able to control herself this time, sort of lurches forward in disgust at this.  Suddenly, in her hear, the boy breathes, in an almost foreign language

					“PIMP” BOY 
			I heard somethin’ funny ‘bout you.

Tiffany slowly turns around and looks at him out of the corners of her eyes.  She looks up at the teacher, and then back at the boy.  

					TIFFANY
			You did, huh?

The boy smiles a big dopish smile with akward teeth that aren’t at all as white as his shoes.  

					TIFFANY (cont’d)
			And what would that be?

He begins to giggle.  His face turns red.  He looks around again at all the people in the classroom and begins to giggle slightly harder.  Tiffany simply stares at him in the same position she’s been talking in.  The teacher at the front stops speaking and looks back at them.  The two look forward, and the boy stops laughing.  The teacher says nothing and then returns to her lesson.  Tiffany remains watching the teacher, taking notes on the lesson that is currently being taught to her, when the boy, who is again looking around at the kids in the class, bends forward and whispers into her ear.  

					“PIMP” BOY
			Hey, hey.

Tiffany ignores him and begins putting her hand up to her face and turns red in embarrassment.  She finally raises her hand.

					ECONOMICS TEACH.
			Yes, Ms. Foresster?

					TIFFANY
			May I got to the bathroom?

CUT TO:

INT. HIGH SCHOOL – BOYS BATHROOMS – DAYTIME

We come in on the sign for the male bathrooms of the high school.  Tiffany goes to walk into the girls bathroom, in a huff and extremely emotional, when she stops and looks at the bathrooms.  She looks around and then walks slowly inside the bathroom entrance.  The entire room is a dark blue with some yellow spots.  Everything is disgusting.  She walks through, looking at everything in the bathrooms.  She walks over to the stalls.  Only two of the four stalls has doors on them.  

Tiffany, still alone, walks to the end of the stalls and shuts the door behind her.  She looks it and steps back.  The floor is wet, and sopping toilet paper is dropped in bunches near the toilet, which is plugged and has a few floating surprises in the golden, stagnant water that’s probably been sitting for days.  

What Tiffany sees is what she expected:

Student graffiti covers the walls of the stall on all sides.  Anarchy symbols, pictures, names.  The most important of which are things like “I fucked Janet Koerner” or “Katherine Bacon gives good dome” or “Lacy Sherman sucked my cock” and another hundred degrading pieces of cultural phrase that demean the female population of Hudson High School.  “Dorian Gray is a Faggot” one piece says.  Another proclaims “I’m going to kill principal Shchulz.

Inside the stall, Tiffany reads these up and down.  She stands back and sits down on the toilet seat, which she has flipped down beforehand, and buries her face into her hands and sits there.

As she sits in the bathroom stall, her face in her hands, we here footsteps as a boy scuttles into the stall next to hers and closes the door.  Tiffany takes her face out of her hands and pulls her feet up onto the stool with her.  She keeps quiet and waits until she’s sure that the boy doesn’t know she’s there.  

We can see, though, that in the stall next to her, Rushmore sits and smokes a cigarette (or a blunt) slowly.  The white smoke wafts opaque in front of his face, floating over the land features of his nose and cheeks and disappearing into the humid bathroom air, stifling warm and permeated with the blocking smell of day’s old urine.  He just sits here, doing nothing but smoking.  

Tiffany, who’s sure she can escape, gets her chance.  She gets up and opens the stall door.  In the next over, Rushmore stiffens up and freezes, his eyes moved over to the sound.  Tiffany runs out of the bathroom, Rushmore in his own stall scuttling to get the cigarette into the toilet.  He pushes his stall open right as Tiffany disappears out of the bathroom.  He looks around and then walks over to the sinks, where he looks at himself in the mirror.  

CUT TO:

INT. THE MAJESTIC BATHROOM – DAYTIME

We are looking at the back of Malcolm.  He stands, in the centre, of a large white bathroom.  Everything is around four times larger than reality dimensions actually allow them to be.  Strange, alluring, cultural music blips and squeaks in the background as he stares into a giant mirror near the top of the room, above the sink.  Malcolm begins to speak as he stares at the mirror, strange words he’s never used before.  As he speaks, a the vases on the right and left hand sides of the screen that flank the mirror gain more and more white roses.  

					MALCOLM
			I don’t understand.
			I don’t understand.

The roses continue to increase in number.

					MALCOLM
			Why don’t I understand?  Why is this
			Happening to me when I’m not given
			Even the slightest indication of 
			The reasons as to the point of it 
			All.  

The roses still continue.

					MALCOLM
			Or am I allowed to ask these questions
			At such an age in which society deems
			Me an irresponsible agent for my own
			Well being, incapable of making the
			Decisions which are most beneficial 
			To my quality of life?

There are no roses in the vases.

					MALCOLM
			So than the asking of these questions
			Is an imperative part of my 
			Development as a competent human 
			Being?

The roses fill the vases.

					MALCOLM
			My competence.

Sitting on the toilet is a girl, Naomi to be precise, who begins to speak to Malcolm.

					NAOMI
			Don’t question.

Malcolm stands still, but looks at Naomi.
					MALCOLM
			You’re trying to trick me.

					NAOMI
			No, I am not.  I’m trying to lead
			You to a path more righteous than
			Your own.  You’re life is headed 
			Down a trail of sin and lies, and 
			Your fate is sealed within it.

					MALCOLM
			You’re a siren.
	
					NAOMI
			A muse.

					MALCOLM
			I can’t trust a woman.

					NAOMI
			That’s Warren talking.

					MALCOLM
			I don’t know Warren enough to—

					NAOMI
			Yes, you do.  

					MALCOLM
			...

The vases stand still, the white roses lessening in numbers.

					NAOMI
			You’re not asking the right questions.

					MALCOLM
			What are the right questions?

					NAOMI
			Do you consider yourself a good 
			Person?

					MALCOLM
			Yes.

					NAOMI
			I see.

					MALCOLM
			You’re just trying to confuse me.  
			None of this makes sense.  It’s all
			Just a mass of abstract and poetry
			And impressionism and expressionism
			And symbolism and realism and words
			And pictures and music.  You’re just 
			Trying to set me up in a drama, some-
			Thing that isn’t really happening.

					NAOMI
			You don’t believe that this perhaps
			Is a real thing?

					MALCOLM
			It doesn’t feel real.

					NAOMI
			Perhaps this represents high school.

Malcolm simply stares at her.  For a good 15 seconds the two just exchange glances, before Malcolm says, very solemnly.

					MALCOLM
			Perhaps I should take a way out?

					NAOMI
			A way out.

					MALCOLM
			I feel more comfortable with Suicide.

					NAOMI
			With suicide?  Don’t be so foolish.
		
					MALCOLM
			I’m going to commit suicide.

At this point, the door behind Malcolm busts open.  Standing as a Trio, all dressed up as if they were the Three Amigos (complete with sombreros) are Warren, flanked by Paisley and Steiner.

					WARREN
							(In Russian)
			It’s not worth it, Malcolm!

Malcolm is standing in the bathtub, a small pistol in one hand, a blank stare on his face.

					MALCOLM
			I really don’t get it.

Malcolm places the gun in his mouth and pulls the trigger.  An unusually large amount of blood SPRAYS from the back of his head.  His head blows back with the shot and slams hard in the tile, causing a small crater.  The back of his head is completely annihilated and he slowly slides down the tile wall into a bathtub full of red rose petals.  His entire body disappears into the tub.  Above him, his blood as sprayed all over the wall, brains dotting the tile, grotesque blood spray patterning the wall.  All three stand at the edge of the tub looking in.  

					STEINER
			...Malcolm?

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – MALCOLM’S BEDROOM – EARLY MORNING

We are standing over Malcolm, who jolts awake, doesn’t jump – just opens his eyes.  His mother is in the room.  

					KAREN
			...Malcolm?

Malcolm sits up in his bed and looks at her.

					MALCOLM
			Yeah?

					KAREN
			Time to get up, honey.

She walks out of Malcolm’s room, leaving the door open behind her.  Malcolm just sits and looks at it, then throws his blankets off of himself and gets up, walking over across his room and opening the door to his closet.  He walks in side and switches the light inside on.  The scene sits for a minute, then switches.

CUT TO:

INT. HIGH SCHOOL – LUNCH ROOM – DAYTIME

Here we are, back at the Lunch tables.  We come in straight on the table the harbors Paisley, Naomi, and the poor and unfortunate Warren.  Paisley and Naomi are back together again and doing the same-old, same-old.  Warren is again writing in his notebook.  A large chemistry book sits next to him and he is quickly finishing problems from the book before his class next period it seems.  Paisley is whispering sweet-nothings in Naomi’s ear and she sits and giggles with him as he does this.  Warren doesn’t even look up at them this time.  He has learned to tune the two of them entirely out this time.  

Across the room sits Malcolm, again looking over at Warren from the corners of his eyes as he speaks with friends of his own.  Rushmore is again hard at work on trying to get Malcolm to do something with him.  Of course, everything would seem in vain because Malcolm is only half listening, while trying to keep in several different conversations at once, and keeping his own eye on Warren.  

Back at Warren’s table, Warren is finishing up his problems and shuts his book.  He begins sticking papers back in their appropriate places when Naomi catches sight of the book’s title, CHEMISTRY.  

					NAOMI
			You took Chemistry?

Warren just looks at her.  Of course, she catches Paisley’s attention, who’s also looking at Warren at this point.  Warren keeps staring at Naomi with this “What the fuck” face on.  

					NAOMI 
			I took Physics...

Naomi begins, and as she starts talking, Warren looks around himself, his arm up on the table as if he’s ready to leave them.  As he looks around, he ironically catches a glimpse of Malcolm, currently talking to his friends.  
Warren gets up from his table, leaving Naomi mid-sentence, without even saying goodbye or even looking at the two of them and walks over to the table that harbors Malcolm and his friends.  

Back at Malcolm’s table, Malcolm looks out of the corner of his eye to find that his commonsight is gone.  Malcolm’s eyebrow arches downward slightly in a curious manner when suddenly Warren slaps his books down on the table in front of Malcolm and takes a seat.  

Malcolm, surprised by this sudden turn of events just stares at Warren, his face turning red, his eyes with a kind of “what the hell are you doing” ghastly, frightened glint to them.  

					WARREN
			You’re that smart kid who talked 
			To me in the car back a few months
			Ago, aren’t you?

					MALCOLM
			I-I believe so, yes.

					WARREN
			I’ve escaped Aushwitz and I’m 
			Looking for a place to hide for 
			The night.  Is alright if you 
			Keep me at this table for a while?

Malcolm looks over at Warren’s old table.  Naomi and Paisley are turned around staring at Malcolm and Warren, who stare back. 

					MALCOLM
			Sure, I guess.  

					WARREN
			Mistress Physics was getting on 
			My nerves.

					MALCOLM
			Who?

					WARREN
			Never mind.

					MALCOLM
			Why...why did you decide to come
			Over here?  

					WARREN
			I thought you were someone intelligent.
					
					MALCOLM
			W-well I certainly hope I am.

					WARREN
			I mean, I don’t have to worry about
			You hanging all over your girlfriend
			Or anything do I?

					MALCOLM
			Not at all.

					WARREN
			Great.  I think we’re gonna be
			Great friends.  

Malcolm just sort of looks at Warren.

					WARREN (cont’d)
			Look, I’m just in a bad mood and 
			I’m trying to make the best of it. 
			You don’t have to be so scared of 
			Me.  You seemed comfortable enough
			When you talked to me in the car 
			That I thought you wouldn’t mind 
			If I took up residence at your
			Lunch table for a while.  I’m sick
			Of feeling subjected to bullshit 
			Every day of my life.  Perhaps you
			Would be a little ounce of salvation
			In the mayhem.

					MALCOLM
			Well that sounds...awesome.

Warren gives Malcolm a questioning glance.

					MALCOLM (cont’d)
			Yeah, sounds great.

The bell rings and kids begin getting up around them all.  Malcolm remains sitting down and Warren stands up.  

					WARREN
			Look, this is strange but I need
			Someone to talk to who seems to 
			Actually sympathize with the exact
			Same way I think.  You seem to be
			That kind of person to me, and I’d
			Just like to enjoy my day a little
			More than usual.  If you don’t want 
			Me here, I can go back to my old 
			Table and you can forget I came over
			Here at all.

					MALCOLM
			No, I don’t care at all.  I don’t 
			Talk to anyone anymore anyway.

					WARREN
			You don’t seem to talk much, period.
	
					MALCOLM
			What’s there to talk about?

					WARREN
			You’re an intellectual, you can figure
			It out.

					MALCOLM
			I’ll try.

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – MALCOLM’S ROOM – NIGHTTIME 

The screen is black.  We can hear the both of them laughing in the background.  Music is playing low in the background of the talking as the two of them laugh.  

					MALCOLM
			That’s so disgusting.

					WARREN
			True story.  Friend in Champagne 
			Told it to me.

					MALCOLM
			Dildos are so goofy.

Fade in:

Malcolm sits on the floor with his back leaning against his bed.  You’d think he were high, but he’s not.  Sitting above him is Warren, on the bed, laying down.  

					WARREN
			Indeed, they are.  Once I went 
			Into the ABV.

					MALCOLM
			Really.

					WARREN
			Yep.  I went in there at 16.  I 
			Had a beard, and noone said a 
			Damned thing to me.  Just went 
			About their business just fine,
			Didn’t ask any questions at all.

					MALCOLM
			What did you see?

					WARREN
			What the fuck didn’t I see?

					MALCOLM
			Oh my god.

					WARREN
			I mean, they had an ENTIRE wall
			Of nothing but dildos as it was.

Malcolm laughs at this.

					WARREN (cont’d)
			Porn galore.  They had videos up 
			The friggin’ ying yang.  I remember
			One called “Jur ASS in the park.” 
			You wouldn’t believe that kind shit
			Actually existed.

					MALCOLM
			Buffy the Vampire Layer.
					WARREN
			They had that black leather, metal
			Studded S and M shit that people 
			Get all into too.  

					MALCOLM
			You’re shitting me.

					WARREN
			No, seriously.  They had it hanging
			Off a giant white swing rack that 
			Rotated.  They had all sorts of 
			Shit.  They even had the mouth things 
			That they use to tie people up 
			And gag them.  

					MALCOLM
			Sounds kinky.

					WARREN
			Some of it looks like the shit they
			Pedal to kids at stores like Hot 
			Topic everyday.  
			
					MALCOLM
			I don’t think I’m that surprised.
	
					WARREN
			That’s an interesting answer.

					MALCOLM
			Hah. 

Warren looks over at the clock.

					WARREN
			Shit, oh shit.

					MALCOLM
			What.

					WARREN
			It’s fucking 12.

					MALCOLM
			Gotta go.

					WARREN
			Yeah, but I’m so fuckin’ tired.
			I’ll probably crash before I make
			It to town, into some god damned
			Cow standing in the middle of the
			Road.

					MALCOLM
			You can stay here.

					WARREN
			Really?

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – MALCOLM’S ROOM – NIGHTTIME

Now it is dark, and we can barely see the outlines of the two as the fall into sleep.  Malcolm lies on the floor as Warren lies on the bed. They speak as if in a stupor, and they are soft and silent.

					WARREN
			Hey Malcolm?

					MALCOLM
			...m?

					WARREN
			Thanks.

					MALCOLM
			Mmm.

					WARREN
			I think it’s really nice of you
			To just pick up and be my friend.

					MALCOLM
			Mm?

					WARREN
			I mean, dude.

					MALCOLM
			(slight laugh) Mm.

					WARREN
			Thanks.

					MALCOLM
			Mm.

CUT TO:

INT. FORESSTER HOUSE – MALCOLM’S ROOM – EARLY DAWN

We are again in Malcolm’s room, this time it is early dawn out, and the sun is just sparking the night sky a light blue outside.  Malcolm jumps up at the sounds of his father screaming from downstairs.  Warren, not used to this at all, also jumps up from his sleep.  Malcolm gets up and walks to the door.  

From downstairs, Reynold screams at Tiffany.  Tiffany is standing in the living room, in a drunken stupor, and pours out slurred words as an excuse to her father and mother, who stand in front of her.  She’s in a mess.  We never actually hear the entire conversation between them, but we know for sure that she’s just gotten home, and she’s drunken, and probably knocked up as well.  She’s crying and slurring her words and we can’t quite make out what it is she’s trying to say to her parents.  

Back upstairs, Malcolm, who now has his door opened and has stepped slightly into the hall, walks back into his room, closing the door and backing into it.  He slides down the door.  Across the room, Warren, just waking up, questions him.

					WARREN
			What is it?

					MALCOLM
			My sister just got home.

Warren looks out the window at the pale blue horizon in the east.  

					MALCOLM (cont’d)
			She’s probably drunk or something.

					WARREN
			Wow, I’m so sorry.
					MALCOLM
			It’s ok.

Malcolm buries his face into his knees and stays sitting with his back to his door.  We can hear the parents screaming at Tiffany downstairs, Tiffany scream-slurring back in her own defense.  

Warren sits up and pats down on the bed.  Malcolm looks up at him and stares.

					WARREN
			Come here.

					MALCOLM
			Why?

					WARREN
			This is what I do with Paisley 
			When he’s upset.

Malcolm gets up and walks over to the bed, where he sits down next to Warren.  Warren lays back, pulling Malcolm with him.  Malcolm lays his head on Warrens chest and Warren begins rubbing Malcolm’s head with his hands.  Malcolm, finding this extremely relaxing, closes his eyes.  

					MALCOLM
			Who’s Paisley.

					WARREN
			Paisley is a good friend of mine.

					MALCOLM
			Really?

					WARREN
			Paisley used to be, anyway.  He 
			Seems to use me for things a lot now.

					MALCOLM
			I’m sorry.

					WARREN
			Well, I don’t think it may be all 
			His fault.  He doesn’t know every 
			Side of his situation, I guess.  I 
			Never really tell him anything.  I 
			Just let him use me for things.  It 
			Makes me feel good for a little
			While, I guess.  It’s sort of ...
			Masochistic in nature.

					MALCOLM
			Ah, the great doctor Malcolm.

The two of them laugh lightly.

					WARREN
			Perhaps I’m being selfish.

					MALCOLM
			I doubt it. 

					WARREN
			I wouldn’t know what to say to
			Him if I wanted to, either.  He
			Would probably flip out and never
			Talk to me again.

					MALCOLM
			How bad would that be?

					WARREN
			I’m not so sure it’d be a bad 
			Thing.  

					MALCOLM
			Then why not say something?

					WARREN
			Self-preservation, I’m assuming.

					MALCOLM
			Natural instincts, eh?
	
					WARREN
			There’s nothing natural or healthy
			About my situation anymore.  I’m
			In over my head in this whole thing,
			And now I’m killing myself over
How to get out of it.

		MALCOLM
I don’t think you would have
To keep with this thing forever.
You’ll have to say something 
About whatever it is that’s bothering
You sometime.  I mean, you can’t
Keep with you forever.  

		WARREN
I’m thinking you have a point 
With that one.  I’m afraid, 
Though, that I might not come 
Across how I want to come across.

		MALCOLM
I’m sure you’ll be fine.

		WARREN
I hope so.

		MALCOLM
You will.

As the two of them sit there, the entire time, softly speaking, their eyes closing, slowly drifting back into sleep, we can barely hear the last few words they utter as the are finally lost in la la land.  As we watch them, we realize that the yelling downstairs has stopped, and that everything is dead silent around them.  The scene fades out into black, and the silence keeps.

CUT TO:

INT. MAJESTIC BATHROOM – DAYTIME

We’re back in dreamland again.  Malcolm is laying in the pool of water, the bathroom is normal sized, still white, and he lays at the bottom of the water.  Everything is disgusting.  The lights are harsh, the shadows thick and black.  He wakes up and lurches out of the water.  He wears jeans and thermal shirt.  He is soaking wet.  The floor is nasty and corroded.  The lights above flicker and switch, the light hanging down in shafts through the air colour the environment around us green.  Graffiti like that from the walls of the school stalls covers the walls surrounding him.  Malcolm crawls out of the tub on all fours, coughing and choking and trying to catch his breath.  
He looks around the room and studies his surroundings, reading the graffiti.  He can hear screaming coming from somewhere from within the same building that he is currently occupying.  He walks over towards a tall, tan door that is chipping paint and puts his ear to it.  He listens to the screaming.

					VOICE (O.S)
			STOP IT STOP IT STOP IT STOP 
			FUCKING STOP IT, STOP IT I 
			FUCKING HATE YOU 

It sounds like a man being tortured.  

Malcolm puts his hand down and turns the knob.  The door swings open towards him, into a long, dirty, abandoned hallway that is unlit except for the light that spills in from a room at the end of the corridor.  The screaming is coming from that end of the hall.  Malcolm steps out of the room and the light behind him flickers violently.  He stops and looks back at it.  The light flickers on and off several times and in one we can see Tiffany, naked in the shower, with several naked boys kissing and touching her.  In another, her parents are sitting in the corner, Karen on the toilet crying, Reynold trying to comfort her.  Suddenly the light flickers out and keeps off.  In the darkness, Malcolm turns around and looks back at the door.  He stands and stares at it, listening to the screaming voice.

CUT TO:

INT. HIGH SCHOOL – HISTORY CLASSROOM – DAYTIME

We come in on a shot of the boy from the front of the class, Steiner, who stares at Malcolm.  He is currently faced away from the camera.  We can hear two girls talking in the background.  As we listen to them, the camera switches between the boy and Malcolm, who watches him with avid curiosity.  The two girls voices become louder and we come in frankly on

					GIRL ONE
			Haha, do you think he even hears us?

					GIRL TWO
			If he did, he’d have said something 
			By now.

					GIRL ONE
			Yeah.  I, uh, I’m sure he would have
			(giggling) turned around by now.

The voices quit for a while.

					GIRL TWO
			He isn’t listening at all.

					GIRL ONE
			Oh my god, he’s out of it. Malcolm?

Malcolm doesn’t heed this at first.

					GIRL TWO
			Malcolmmm?

Malcolm snaps out of his stare mode and looks up.  Two girls are standing over him, smiling.  They look at each other and begin laughing to themselves.  

					GIRL ONE
			You there, bud?

Malcolm shakes his head as if he was sleeping and looks at them with a slight smirk.
	
					MALCOLM
			Yeah.

					GIRL TWO
			Did you hear anything we were saying
			To you?

					MALCOLM
			Nope.  

The two girls giggle amongst themselves.

					GIRL ONE
			Here.

The girl hands Malcolm a note and the two of them walking off laughing.  The note is a piece of college ruled paper, folded neatly into a small square.  On the front, written in pink gel pen, Malcolm’s name is written in round, swooping letters that hurt the eyes to look at.  Malcolm opens up the letter and, in the same pink gel pen, in a teenage jargon, a small note is written.  The letter is asking Malcolm if he’ll accompany a girl to prom. 

Malcolm reads this and then stuffs the note away.  He looks up at Steiner, who is now talking to a girl next to him.  Malcolm looks off out the window next to him and looks deep in thought over his decision.  Then he looks forward at the two of them and, to his surprise, sees the girl looking at him, while Steiner looks down at the floor.

Malcolm looks down at his desk and smiles, then looks back up.

CUT TO:

INT. HIGH SCHOOL – HALLWAY – DAYTIME

Veronica stands at her locker.  Warren sits with her and talks about some meaningless crap.  As she stuffs her books in her locker, Malcolm shows up behind her.  He pokes her shoulder and she stands up.  As she turns around, Malcolm’s eyes wander over to Warren, who smiles at Malcolm.  Malcolm smiles back. Veronica asks “Yes?” as if nothing happened.

					MALCOLM
			Uh, are you the girl who wrote 
			This?

Malcolm pulls the pink letter note from his notebook and shows it to her.

					VERONICA
			Oh, yeah.  

					MALCOLM
			Oh, ok.  Well, yeah, I’ll go to
			The prom.

					VERONICA
			Thanks.  Don’t be nervous or 
			Anything.  Not to be mean but I 
			Don’t like you like that or 
			Anything.  Warren here just said
			You’d be fun to bring along with
			To something like prom.
					MALCOLM
			Oh really?

					WARREN
			Really.

Malcolm smiles at him.

					VERONICA
			I’m sure he’s pounded his annoyance
			With the love birds into your head
			Enough that you understand you’re 
			Just a last measure for the two
			Of us to actually enjoy our time 
			Out.

Malcolm smiles.
		
					MALCOLM
			Yeah, I’ve heard enough about 
			Them.  I don’t even know them and
			They annoy the shit out of me.

Warren smiles.

					WARREN
			I figured you wouldn’t mind 
			Probably going to senior prom 
			Twice.  A ton of your classmates
			Are going to be going as it is. 

					MALCOLM
			I’ve heard.

					VERONICA
			Yep, so if you get bored with us
			Then you can go play with some 
			Kiddies.

Veronica says this jokingly and smiles at him.

					MALCOLM
			I see.  Are you two...?

Veronica and Warren laugh at each other and then laugh at Malcolm for asking such a question.

					VERONICA
			That’s a good one.

					WARREN
			I thought you were smart, Malcolm.

Malcolm just smiles curiously and looks at the two of them.  He kind of laughs and then steps back to walk off.

					MALCOLM
			Right...

					VERONICA
			Prom is in a week.  I would
			Suggest getting a tuxedo rented
			While you’ve got the chance.  
			Warren here says he’s got your
			Phone number, so he’ll get a hold
			Of you sometime and tell you what
			We’re doing.

					MALCOLM
			And who all are we going to be 
			With?

					VERONICA
			You’re going to be subject to a 	
			Night with me, Warren, Paisley,
			And Naomi.

					MALCOLM
			Sounds awesome.

					WARREN
			Better damn well be.

Malcolm laughs at this and walks off.  Veronica turns back around and continues to stick her books in her locker.  

					VERONICA
			He seems nice enough.

					WARREN
			He is.  He’s really smart for a
			Fuckin’ Junior.  I’m amazed at 
			The amount of ideas that come out 
			Of him.  He doesn’t talk much until
			You get him alone and on a topic
			That seriously interests him.  
			Otherwise he’s quiet and doesn’t
			Say much on anything.  I wonder
			How much he talks to his parents.

					VERONICA
			Probably drives them crazy.  I 
			Don’t always talk an awful lot
			Around my parents and they get
			Annoyed as hell at me for it.  

					WARREN
			They seem to have their hands full
			With his sister.  

					VERONICA
			Really?  Who’s his sister?

					WARREN
			Tiffany Foresster.  

					VERONICA
			You’ve got to be shitting me. I 
			Heard she’s been changing a ton
			Since she began school here this
			Year.

					WARREN
			Freshman.  It’s amazing how much
			People honestly do change though
			When they hit high school.  

					VERONICA
			She’s really sliding downhill.  Is
			He himself, or?

					WARREN
			He seems to believe he’s sliding
			Downhill.  I don’t think it’s like
			That, though.

					VERONICA
			Yeah.  Yeah, I’ve seen his sister.
			She’s in my economics class and 
			She fights with some whigger who 
			Sits behind her in the back.  It’s
			Extremely annoying.  Of course, that’s
			When she’s actually here for school.

					WARREN
			She comes home really late at night
			A lot Malcolm says.  His parents 
			Don’t know what to do with her any
			More.  I think it’s turning on Malcolm
			A lot.  He’s tired in class a lot of 
			The time.  I don’t think his grades
			Are slipping or anything, but he’s 
			Just really hitting it hard up in
			Here.

Warren points to his head.

					WARREN (cont’d)
			A lot of the things he says seems to 
			Point at the fact that he just seems
			To think about a lot of things too 
			Much of the time.  

					VERONICA
			I know how that goes.

					WARREN
			I’m worried about him.  I know how
			He must feel about things.  

					VERONICA
			Yeah, but you can’t waster your
			Time on him.

					WARREN
			It’s a nice preoccupation. 

					VERONICA
			A break from Paisley?

Veronica closes her locker and continues to look at Warren.

					WARREN
			You could call him that.  

					VERONICA
			Well I’m glad you’re getting your
			Mind off of that asshole, but don’t 
			Go getting yourself involved in 
			Other people’s lives too much.  

					WARREN
			What?  I’m not doing anything 
			Wrong here am I?

					VERONICA
			Well don’t hurt Malcolm in any 
			Of this.

					WARREN
			Hurt Malcolm?  What do you mean 
			By that?  

Veronica just looks at Warren and shakes her head.  Warren looks at her questioningly.  

					VERONICA
			You’re not as hard as you’d like 
			To think you were, Warren.  You’re
			An easy book to read, so don’t 
			Pretend you’re some kind of enigma
			When it comes to me.  You don’t 
			Have to explain yourself.  It’s 
			People like Paisley who are too 
			Dense to understand you, and that’s
			Why you’re attracted to them.

					WARREN
			Attracted to?

					VERONICA
			I told you, you’re an easy book.

The bell rings up in the side of the hall and students in the hallways begin running to get to their last period classes.  Veronica shoulders a backpack and stares at Warren.

					VERONICA (cont’d)
			Sooner or later, you’ve got to tell
			Paisley exactly how you feel.  Do it 
			However the hell you feel like, but 
			You’ve got to let him know before this 
			Whole ordeal is over.  

Veronica turns around and walks to her classroom, leaving Warren standing against the lockers where she left him.  He just stares in front of himself and thinks over her advice.  Then he throws his head forward and jerks forth from the lockers, muttering a curse.  He walks down the hallways with his hands shoved in his pockets and the final bell for the children to get to class rings.  

CUT TO:

BLACK SCREEN

LAYER TITLE CARD:

				“It’s Prom Night”

CUT TO:

INT. WARREN’S HOUSE – WARREN’S ROOM – DAYTIME

Warren is walking around his room in a towel that’s wrapped around his waist.  As he walks around, getting ready, the phone, situated in the foreground of the shot, off to the right or the left, begins to ring.  After three or four rings, Warren picks up the phone, still in his towel.

					WARREN
			Hello?

CUT TO:

EXT. PAISLEY’S HOUSE – DAYTIME

In the rain, we are sitting on Paisley’s front porch.  In the driveway sits Warren’s car, still on.  Warren knocks on the front door and waits for someone to answer.  After a while, Paisley comes to the front door and lets Warren in.

CUT TO:

INT. PAISLEY’S HOUSE – DAYTIME

We sit inside Paisley’s house as the rain beats softly against the pane of glass in his windowsill.  He sits on his bed with Warren next to him.  Warren has his arm around Paisley while Paisley sits with his face buried in his hands.  He’s sobbing.  Warren is actually acting sympathetic, whereas even he has a heart when it comes to these kinds of situations.

					PAISLEY
			I can’t believe it.  Of all the 
			Days.  I can’t believe it.  

					WARREN
			I know, I know.  

					PAISLEY
			Why do I keep going back to her? 
			All I ever do is get hurt by that
			BITCH.

					WARREN
			They’re your own decisions, Paisley.
			
					PAISLEY
			I know. 

Paisley sits up and wipes his eyes.  He feels renewed in a sense and cleansed.  He doesn’t seem so much of a pussy at this moment.  The two of them sit in silence for sometime, tuxedoed and close together.  Paisley looks over at his friend and then suddenly makes a wild suggestion.

					PAISLEY
			I know it sounds...unorthodox.  I
			Really don’t care what people at 
			School think of me, seeing as this
			Is me senior year and all.

					WARREN
			What?

					PAISLEY
			I mean, it sound weird, but I mean,
			Why don’t we go to the prom?

					WARREN
			What?

					PAISLEY
			I mean, well, you know.  I just 
			Assume that we could and all.

					WARREN
			Yeah, I guess so, but why?

					PAISLEY
			Well, I mean, would we? 

					WARREN
			Would we?

					PAISLEY
			You now what I mean.  I mean, that
			I’m not dating Naomi, that you and 
			I would...

Warren stares at Paisley.  We as an audience perhaps have made a sudden realization at the insane theories of Paisley as a human being, believing such things would be going on.  Warren, of course, would love to go to prom with Paisley.  It’s obvious, but something inside is holding him back from accepting such an invitation.  His general attitude towards self-preservation is kicking in, but his masochistic will that works for the immediate is over powering it.

					WARREN
			I g-guess.  I mean...I dunno. 
			Yeah, I guess so.

					PAISLEY
			You want to?

Warren doesn’t speak for some time.

					WARREN
			It’s not like we fuck each other,
			Paisley.

					PAISLEY
			Yeah, I know that, but I mean, you
			Know what we do when you spend
			The night.

					WARREN
			Yeah, but I thought that was just
			Part of friendship.

We know Warren wished it was much more than this when it happened, but he’s lying through his teeth by some odd machine of nature.

					PAISLEY
			I just though that perhaps something
			Might be there.

					WARREN
			I, uh, I dunno.  I mean, yeah, we 
			Can go to Prom and all that shit.
			I don’t think they’d prevent us 
			From going, do you?

					PAISLEY
			I’ve never heard of it.

					WARREN
			You sure about this?

					PAISLEY
			Yeah.  I want to actually enjoy my
			Last dance.  

					WARREN
			Ok.

CUT TO:

EXT. PHONE BOOTH – DAYTIME – RAINING

We are with Warren who sits inside a phone booth.  He’s on the phone with what we derive to be Veronica on the other end.  The rain is drenching the booth and sheets of melting glass slide down on all sides of Warren, warping him.  His car sits some ways away.  Paisley is inside, watching him speak on the telephone.

					WARREN
			I know, I know.

He looks out at the car.

					WARREN (cont’d)
			Well what was I supposed to do?
			Tell him ‘no?’  I can’t just ditch
			Him when his girlfriend decides
			to just up and fucking leave 
			The poor bastard on fucking 
			Prom night.

Warren looks out of the warped glass over to the car where his friend sits, pondering the day’s events thus far.  

					WARREN
			Uh huh.  Uh huh.  Right. Well, 
			We cant’ do anything about it
			Now.  Things are already in 
			Place.  Go ahead and cancel 
			The reservation for Naomi and 
			Place our name in it’s absence.
			Uh huh?  Uh huh?  No, I don’t 
			Know the guys name.  No.  No. 
			Is Malcolm already with you?
			Ok.  Ok.  Uh huh.  Alright, 
			Well, we’re just outside of 
			Paisley’s house at a pay phone.
			Right.  No, his mom’s using it.
			Ok.  Well, you guys go ahead 
			And head on over to the 
			Restaurant and we’ll head that 
			Way.  We should be there in 
			About 45 minutes to an hour.  
			Ok, see ya.  

Warren hangs up the pay phone and stands with his back to the camera in silence.  He lets out a long, deep sigh as he backs into the glass that shelters him from the beating rain, pouring down on top and the sides and sheeting the glass with water.  He turns and looks out of the corner of his eye at his friend who sits oblivious in the blue automobile.  Warren looks back forward once more and wipes his brow off.  He grabs the handle on the side and opens the swinging doors of the phone booth and steps into the surging rain.

CUT TO:

INT. RESTAURANT - DINING ROOM - EVENING

With a stretch of some time we find ourselves now situated comfortably with the four remaining survivors at their warm, unusually romantic dinner at some unknown restaurant in some unknown Midwestern town.  They share an uncomfortable silence, and Veronica seems heavily out place when set against three males, all with similar problems, none who face them bravely enough to suit her own nature.  Malcolm himself seems to feel rather misplaced amongst a higher groups of individuals who don’t yet seem to accept him, and he clings to the advantage of having Warren as a closer friend than the other two.  He picks at his plate and keeps his eyes lowered, barely speaking a word.  

The only person who actually begins to speak is Paisley, still upset over the topic of the recent loss of his bitch girlfriend -- something he seems to have readily confronted, but constantly falls back on;  a vivid sign of his lack of independence and vitality.  He’s a mess, and Warren (while appearing to be bored) finds the entire ordeal incredibly irritating and would rather be spending his time reading a book or doing some other relatively boring or tedious task that one may find of an especially mediocre degree.  

					PAISLEY
			Do you know why she’d be doing
			This, Veronica?  I mean, what 
			Is that I’m doing so wrong that 
			It would cause her to act like
			This towards me?  Is it the kind
			Of things I say or do?  Is that 
			I touch her too much or don’t
			Give her enough affection?  I 
			Try my best to satisfy her in 
			Every facet possible, I mean I 
			Spend money on her all the time.

Warren takes a drink from his glass.

					WARREN
			Perhaps it’s the entire idea that 
			You’re basing your conception of 
			Her unhappiness on her own selfish
			Attitude when it would seem, to me,
			That you’re only acting the same 
			Way in return.
	
					VERONICA
			Warren..

					PAISLEY
			What?

					WARREN
			..because if you’re so worried
			Over the amount of money you 
			Spend on her than your mind is
			Obviously not focused in the right
			Goddamned places, Paisley. 
			You aren’t worried about the 
			Important thing here. 

					PAISLEY
			What’s the important thing, here?
	
Veronica just stares at Warren with Paisley.  Paisley avoids eye contact at points with the two of them and continues on with his theories.

					WARREN
			It would seem that the most 
			Imperative topic here would be 
			The happiness of your has-been 
			Girlfriend, the late Naomi.

					PAISLEY
			What are you implying with a 
			Statement like that?
	
					WARREN
			Because you’re not asking the right
			Goddamned questions, here, Paisley,
			Ok?  You’re not.  You keep saying
			“why did she dump me” and then you
			Make statements about the fucking
			Financial deficit the bitch seems 
			To cost you.  If you’re so goddamned
			Worried about your wallet, I can 
			See how she’d dump your ass.  You’re
			Not concerned about her well being.  
			What you’re concerned--

					PAISLEY
			Whoa, whoa, wait, hold on just one 
			Second.

					WARREN
			I fucking said, if you’d just 
			Listen to me for one goddamned
			Minute-- a minute, that’s all I 
			Ask of you, ok?  Just fucking 
			Listen, because you’ve been fucking
			Ignoring me for the last how many
			Months of this godforsaken friend-
			Ship, and to fuck with it, cause 
			You know what?  I’m gonna let 
			You know something about yourself.

					PAISLEY
			Well then go on, Professor, tell 
			Me this oh-so-important thing that
			I must hear.

Warren takes another swig of water from his wine glass and drinks it heavily, waiting for a while to wet his palate before he starts in.  After a while, he begins.

					WARREN
			You’re selfish, Paisley.  You only
			Care about yourself.  I’ve seen it.
			I’ve experienced it for god’s sake.
			You’d like to pretend that all you
			Ever think about is your goddamned
			Girlfriend when her own happiness
			Is the last thing on your twisted
			Little peanut of a mind.  Look at 
			Everything you say, Paisley.  I 
			Mean, you’re pathetic.  You still 
			Fantasize about living with this 
			Girl for the rest of your life and 
			It’s never going to happen.  And all
			You say to me when I doubt is “oh,
			Well that’s how it happened with my
			Aunt and uncle.”  In what, the fucking
			1950s?  This shit isn’t going to 
			Happen.  And it’s YOU who thinks it, 
			Noone else.  You’re just stuck in your
			Own goddamned little world where 
			Everything seems crystal clear, as 
			Long as NAOMI is around.  She’s the
			Fucking light of your life, eh?  I 
			Mean hell, who else is there to think
			About when you’ve got a fuck to hold.
			Have you even talked to her about 
			These ideals of yours?  Have you said
			A single word to her about these little
			Ideas you get about you two living 
			Together for the rest of eternity? 
			You won’t, will you?  Because your
			Too chicken shit to face the truth-- 
			That she doesn’t want to fucking live
			With you for the rest of her goddamned
			Life, that perhaps she wants to get 
			Away and search for own happiness
			And her own purpose to life, and the 
			She obviously hasn’t found it in her 
			First boyfriend, her 17 fucking year old
			Boyfriend from HIGH SCHOOL.  It does
			Not work like that, Paisley.
			The only reason she keeps coming 
			Back is because she herself is stuck
			In her own personal little bubble and 
			That high school just isn’t fitting 
			It for her-- that at 17 years old, the 
			Girl hasn’t found her fucking soul 
			Mate, and when she sees no light, she 
			Just runs back to you -- who doesn’t 
			Give a shit because it makes YOU 
			Happy, while it only gives her a scape
			Goat till the next time she thinks 
			She’s got a shot at something better
			Than you.  And you sit back and cry, 
			You CRY when she does this shit to 
			You, and you use me.  You use me, the 
			Person you completely fucking abuse 
			In every other situation involving 
			Something that grants you your own 
			‘happiness’ at the expense of others.
			When you get cut, you come running to
			Me, and every time it happens, I just
			Fall for it.  I fucking feel sorry 
			For your ass, because you’re a small 
			Child, a small spoiled fucking child 
			Who thinks everyone owes him something.
			As soon as things turn around, you 
			Just dump me back on my ass and go back
			To treating me -- and others-- like 
			Absolute shit.  You have absolutely no
			Consideration for other people at all.
			You think about noone but yourself 
			And it shows, in everything you do.  
			I’m amazed she’s still with you after
			All this time-- I’m amazed she hasn’t 
			Left you for good.

						PAISLEY
			I think she has.

						WARREN
			That’s a good thing in my eyes.  I’m 
			Sick of watching you two fuck around
			In front of me as I sit back and 
			Somehow manage to feel injured from a 
			Relationship that supposedly involves
			Two people, but tends to suck everything
			Around them in and turns it to shit 
			Like ‘that.’  

					VERONICA
			Warren, calm down.

					WARREN
			Why the fuck should I?
		
					VERONICA
			I thought we were supposed to
			Fucking enjoy tonight.  I thought 
			Tonight was supposed to be fucking 
			Fun.

					WARREN
			I am having fun.  I’m having a 
			Fucking blast, because I feel more 
			Open now than I’ve ever felt in my 
			Life.  I’m through with feeling like
			All I’m ever doing is giving myself 
			Up for other people -- hell, with 
			People like Paisley in the world, I 
			Can’t help but ask why I’d put my 
			Self forth as much as I do.  I’m 
			Having one big laugh at this entire 
			Fucking situation.  I think it’s a 
			Complete joke.

					PAISLEY
			You’re such an asshole.

					WARREN
			I am, aren’t I?  And that’s what I 
			Take pride in -- I take security in
			The validation of my existence as a 
			Complete and utter asshole, a product
			Of my enviroment and the people who 
			Surround me.  Thanks in part to you,
			Paisley, I am who I am tonight, and 
			I could care less.

					VERONICA
			Warren, calm the fuck down.

Warren acts slightly offended.

					WARREN
			What?  I am calm, I’m so fucking
			Calm.  I’m smooth.  Like silk.

					VERONICA
			Right, like silk.
					WARREN
			Like fucking silk.

Malcolm just looks up, looks at the three of them, then goes back to eating his dinner uncomfortably.  

					PAISLEY
			I can’t believe you. 

					WARREN
			No, no, oh ho ho no way, you can
			Be believe me, Paisley.  I am so
			Fucking serious in this thing.  And
			You know what?  We’re going to that
			Fucking dance.
	
					PAISLEY
			I don’t feel like it.

Warren raises his voice.

					WARREN
			We’re going to the fucking dance, 
			Paisley.  I am NOT having my god 
			Damned night ruined because of your 
			Trite little situation here.  I don’t 
			Fucking care about YOU anymore, I 
			Care about ME.  ME ME ME ME ME.  That’s 
			All it’s about anymore, myself.  I 
			Could give a shit less how you felt
			Anymore.  You’re bullshit to me.  
			You’re my toy, my possession. 

Warren takes a drink of water.

					WARREN (cont’d)
			Like a girlfriend or a bitch.  You’re
			My bitch.  You said you’d go with me 
			To the dance tonight and you’re fucking
			Going.  I’m taking you.  

					PAISLEY
			What?

					WARREN
			DON’T ACT LIKE YOU DIDN’T SAY IT,	
			PAISLEY.  You’re my god damned 
			Date to this fucking thing and you’re 
			Going, end of story.

					PAISLEY
			Why are you treating me like this?
		
					WARREN
			Because you’ve become nothing but 
			A thing to me, Paisley, an object.
			You’re just another dimension of 
			My personality that I’d like to 
			See destroyed.  I’m going to tear 
			You down before it’s all over.  
	
					PAISLEY
			Like you already haven’t.

					WARREN
			I’m going to debase you and 
			I’m going to rip you to shreds.  In 
			All honesty I’d give anything to see
			You at such lengths of depression 
			And so-called ‘desperation’ that 
			You feel towards suicide.  It makes 
			Me laugh to just think about it.  It 
			Really does, because I’ve lost all
			Sympathy for you as a human being 
			Anymore.  I really have.  I think 
			I’ve figured out the what it is to 
			Be human, and all it is is caring 
			About one’s self.  It really is.  It’s 
			All in the interest of self-preservation.
	
					PAISLEY
			What the fuck are you talking about?

					WARREN
			Animal instincts, survival.  Except 
			The blood and gore is replaced with 
			High vocabulary and a certain kind 
			Of intellectual spike to the dialogue.
			Honestly, you’re not that smart as it 
			Is.

					VERONICA
			Warren stop it, this is getting out 
			Of hand.

Warren checks his watch and then looks at Veronica.

					WARREN
			You know, you made that comment at 
			Just the right point.  Indeed we do
			Have to get going here in a few
			Minutes.

Paisley begins to dawn his coat.  

					WARREN
			Before we leave, I’d just like 
			To wish everyone a great night,
			And I hope to see you in high
			Spirits when we arrive at that
			Wonderful gymnasium.  

Paisley and Warren look at Warren, who gives an endearing smile -- evil in nature, but at first glance, a warm and caring smile.  Misleading in every facet. 

CUT TO:

EXT. HIGH SCHOOL - PARKING LOT - NIGHTTIME

Students have parked their cars in the parking lot and make their ways through the labyrinth of vehicles up to the main entrance to the school gymnasium, where the dance is currently being held. 

 A particular vehicle pulls up, and we are further led to believe that this is obviously Warren’s car, only his front passenger seat buddy is Malcolm.  The car makes a screeching halt and is cut off by Warren suddenly.  He sits still in the car and Malcolm, uncomfortable and unknowing as to what he should do in such a situation, just stares forward, occasionally sneaking glances at Warren, who appears to be heavily stressed and quite unhappy.  He places his hand over his face and sits silently for a few moments of silence.

					WARREN
			Malcolm, how are your views on life.

					MALCOLM
			What?

This is so sudden.

					WARREN
			I mean, how do things look to you 
			Right now?

					MALCOLM
			Oh god, I don’t know.

					WARREN
			You should honestly consider keeping
			Things that way.  Or perhaps that’s 
			My very own situation.  I’m just
			Now aware of everything that’s going
			On around me.  I just formed it 
			Into tangible emotions that people
			Can grab a hold of.  Do you understand
			Anything I’m saying?

					MALCOLM
			You’re very easy to read.

					WARREN
			That’s what Veronica says.

					MALCOLM
			You’re very unhappy. 

					WARREN
			Congratulations, Dr. Obvious.

					MALCOLM
			I try my best.

The two of them give a slight laugh.  

					MALCOLM (cont’d)
			Look, try to enjoy it.  Just try
			And warm back up to him, show him 
			That you can be a friend.

					WARREN
			Who, Paisley?

					MALCOLM
			Yeah.

					WARREN
			Fuck no, I don’t owe him shit.

					MALCOLM
			You sure as hell feel like you do
			Though, don’t you.

					WARREN
			How do you think you know so much
			About me.  I mean, everything can’t 
			Be this obvious, can it?
	
					MALCOLM
			It’s human emotion, it can’t
			Be helped.

					WARREN
			What is it that you’re trying to 
			Pin on me?  What the fuck are you
			Getting at?

					MALCOLM
			I’m just trying to suggest things,	
			That’s all.  

					WARREN
			Well don’t worry, because I don’t 
			Need any fucking help.  I’m just
			Fuckin’ peachy and I don’t need 
			People going and getting all soft 
			On me because they think I’m sad or 
			Something.  This is how I want things
			To go.  

					MALCOLM
			You do.  You’re reveling in the 
			Depression it’s causing you.  So you
			Know you don’t really love him then?

Warren just stops talking and stares at Malcolm, wide-eyed and open mouthed.

					WARREN
			What?

					MALCOLM
			If you are enjoying the situation, 
			Then it means that all he is to you
			Is a piece of candy.  Something to 
			Chew on that doesn’t last so long.  
			Am I wrong?  If you aren’t enjoying 
			This, then that means you really like
			Him.  That he might be meant for you?

Warren remains silent.

					WARREN
			What in the hell are you getting at?

					MALCOLM
			You know what I’m talking about.

Warren swings his door open and wriggles out of the car, slamming it behind him.  Malcolm scrambles to unbuckle his seatbelt and slide out of the car after Warren.

					MALCOLM
			You can’t deny these things.

					WARREN
			I don’t know where the FUCK 
			You’re getting off with this crazy
			Ass shit, but just stay the hell
			Away from me.  

					MALCOLM
			It’s the fucking truth, Warren.

					WARREN
			I said SHUT THE FUCK UP.

Warren walks off and leaves Malcolm alone by the car.  Malcolm stands alone by the car and watches his friend take off into the gymnasium.  He watches and says no more.  Puddles of old rain water sit on the ground and stagnate, with nowhere to go.

CUT TO:

INT. VERONICA’S CAR (moving) -- NIGHTTIME

Veronica, for some reason, has been slightly held back in driving.  Her and the earlier debated Paisley are just now entering town in Veronica’s car.  Veronica, more concerned on the driving, heeds practically no attention to whatever it is that Paisley has to say to her.

					PAISLEY
			I mean where the fuck does he 
			Get off with calling me ’selfish?’
			I’m not fucking selfish, Ok?  I 
			Do care about other people.  I’m
			Not some fucking asshole who sits
			In a fucking restaurant ordering 
			People around, telling them it’s 
			All about me.  And what’s this whole
			Deal about me using him?

					VERONICA
			I dunno, maybe he feels used. I 
			Don’t know, really.

					PAISLEY
			Don’t fucking lie to me, he’s 
			Always with you, so I know he 
			Tells you everything.  That’s what 
			He does.  He gets close to people
			And tells them everything.
		
					VERONICA
			He doesn’t’ tell me everything. 

					PAISLEY
			Yes he does, I know he does.  He
			Goes and talks to you about me 
			And Naomi behind our backs, doesn’t
			He?

					VERNONICA
			Stop being such a fucking paranoid.
			It isn’t working for you to suggest 
			Stupid bullshit like that.  You 
			Aren’t making things any easier 
			By acting like a little brat about 
			It either. 

					PAISLEY
			A brat?  You just saw the way he 
			Acted in the restaurant and you 
			Think you can call me a fucking 
			Brat?

					VERONICA
			He made a goddamned point, Paisley.
			It was obvious.  

					PAISLEY
			He acts like he’s a such a loss 
			Of everything, like the fucking 
			World is out to get him or something.
			He seems to think that he’s some 
			Fucking minority with no rights 
			At all and that all I do is abuse 
			Him.  Me and him used to be such 
			Fucking good friends and then we 
			Hit fucking high school and he 
			Changed.  The motherfucker changed
			On me, god damn it.  He went off 
			And found new friends and left me 
			All alone in the dust to figure
			Things out for myself.

					VERONICA
			Well maybe he was busy trying 
			To figure things out for himself.
			
					PAISLEY
			Well if that’s the case then why 
			Does he call me a goddamned selfish
			Asshole when he does the same kind 
			Of shit.  Why does he go off on me 
			When he’s done everything I supposedly
			Do to him--

Veronica snaps.

					VERONICA
			BECAUSE IT’S FUCKING HIPOCRISY, 
			PAISLEY, HIGH SCHOOL IS FUCKING 
			BUILT ON IT.  LOOK AT EVERYONE 
			AROUND YOU AND TELL ME THAT JUST
			ONE OF THEM IS FUCKING PERFECT.

					PAISLEY
			I didn’t say that I was perfect--
		
					VERONICA
			You’re implying it, Paisley. 
			You and Warren are like the exact
			Same fucking people and it isn’t 
			Working out for the two of you 
			At all, is it?  Don’t you ever
			Fucking realize this shit?  I’m 
			Amazed you’ve been so dense as to	
			Not have realized how Warren feels 
			About all this.  He’s made it so 
			Fucking obvious and all you do is 
			Shove it off and hide in a bubble
			With your goddamned girlfriend.
			You don’t pay any attention to him
			At all, Paisley -- none.  He’s 
			Been beating himself over this 
			For almost the last four months 
			Every fucking day and he’s been 
			Analyzing his feelings down to 
			Every last minute detail and he 
			Still didn’t get them all out to you	
			At dinner.  You’re right, Paisley,
			We do talk about you and Naomi
			Behind your backs -- if we did 
			It front of you, you’d slay us 
			With immature criticism and simple
			Blind misunderstanding on 
			The entire thing.  We discuss it
			ALL THE TIME.  What you fucking 
			Heard at dinner doesn’t even begin
			To scratch the surface of how Warren
			Truly feels about the whole subject,
			So don’t blow this off like it’ll be 
			Nothing, because I’m sure as hell 
			That’ there’s going to be more to
			Follow -- so pay close attention 
			To him, Paisley.  It’s imperative
			You realize what you’re doing to
			This guy before he goes off the 
			Goddamned deep end.

					PAISLEY
			Runs a fucking car into the football
			Field.

Veronica stares at him.

					VERONICA
			Shut the fuck up.

					PAISLEY
			What?

					VERONICA
    			SHUT THE FUCK UP! You fucking 
			Asshole, I can’t believe you have
			The gall to say that!  You know
			How he feels about that.  Don’t you
			Even say a fucking word to him
			Or I swear to god I’ll run you down
			With this car.

					PAISLEY
			Alright, god, everyone’s out to get
			Me tonight or something.

					VERONICA
			PROMISE ME, no matter what the fuck
			Happens between you two, you won’t 
			Sink to such a fucking level as to 
			Bring that up.  

					PAISLEY
			Alright, goddamned, I hear you.  

As he says this, Veronica finally pulls into the parking lot. She searches around and finds a spot, Paisley mumbling the entire time.  When she finally chooses one, we can see, looking through the windshield, that Malcolm is standing at the side of Warren’s car.  Warren is just walking away, and Malcolm doesn’t see that Veronica has pulled up yet.  They turn off the car and Veronica looks over at Paisley, who sits and sulks on his side of the car.

					VERONICA
			You’re all a bunch of assholes.

Paisley looks over at her.

					PAISLEY
			What?

Veronica just shakes her head.

PAISLEY
What?

Veronica opens her door and steps out.  She waves her hand up and catches Malcolm’s attention.  Malcolm looks over at her and waves his hand up as well.  He doesn’t smile, he just reacts.

CUT TO:

INT. HIGH SCHOOL – GYMNASIUM – NIGHTTIME

We join Warren in the foyer as he waits in line with dozens of other couples for entry into the dance hall.  He stands and worms around in his tuxedo, constantly looking back at the doors to see who’s coming through.  

He keeps watch around him self and observes the couples who attend this dance – tons of teenage couples, ranging in all shapes and sizes, come together and enjoy this single last dance of their High School year, in style and joy.  And, as we settle on all the couples, sharing their warmth and happiness with each other, we realize just how removed Warren may have become from a life that perhaps doesn’t as many wrongs as he might think.  That, in a sense, he is in turn creating his problems, problems later to be thoroughly discussed, but as of yet, still infantine and yet to be developed.  He stops squirming around and just watches people, feels isolated in a mass of twos.  
Warren moves forward in line slowly but steadily as he observes his environment and finally gives his ticket to the front deskman.  He’s given admission and then passes through two giant double door entries, decorated elaborately by the school’s art club, and into a killing ground of sorts.  

The theme of the dance is abstract art, and everything is hard lined with white and red and yellow and blue.  Splashes of paint decorate pieces of student art, the entries sporting creatively designed pieces of twisted wire and metal.  It is indeed a wonderfully executed, elaborate design by the art club, and the cold hard feelings it instills gives rise to the feelings of the students.  

Back in the foyer we come right in as the other three just enter through the doors into the school.  As they make it through line with them, we skip back and through with Warren as he wades through the dance – we STEADICAM behind him, reminding of the shot near the beginning of the film as he made his way through the halls.  This, a dressed up version of the hallways, does not stray far from it’s original version at all. 

CUT TO:

INT. HIGH SCHOOL – GYMNASIUM – NIGHTTIME

Malcolm, Paisley, and Veronica now finally enter onto the dance floor in the gymnasium.  The view from behind creates an illusion of the gym being huge, almost as if it were a concert hall or such.  Great pieces of abstract art pull the entire room apart with straight black lines and hard colours.  Music is playing, not music that normally plays at school dances.  Indie music is prevalent.  (Bjork)  

Warren has made his way all the way up to a balcony that is created by the stands when they are pushed all the way up into straight boards.  A long row of school tables sits up here and offers a variety of drinks and food to the dancing students.  Several tables harbor kids as they sit and converse over the night’s events.  

Warren stands isolated with a glass of punch and watches everyone.   

On the dance floor, the other three wade through dancing students.  Light’s dance and flicker among them, giving rise to familiar faces for only short amounts of time before delving back into the darkness.  It is warm from the body heat and the breath.  

Malcolm keeps behind Paisley who keeps behind Veronica.  Veronica is desperately trying to find Warren, who has disappeared off into nowhere in the middle of a body of about 400 students.  Veronica turns back and yells to the two men to follow her up the stairs to the second level.  They both nod and follow behind, but Paisley splits off when he spots a girl wearing white – Naomi.

Malcolm watches this but does not stop Paisley.  He only follows Naomi up the dark flight of stairs to the second level.  Some students linger right her in the hallway and make out or smoke.  Malcolm gives them looks but does not say a word or cause any confrontation.  He simply follow close behind Veronica, who knows much more about anything than he might ever be able to at his age.  

Back on the dance floor, Paisley follows after a girl in an unusually white dress.  She is probably 20 feet in front of him and keeping distance.  He makes his way through the dancing couples after her.  Not once does she look back at him.  

We join Warren back up on the second level, still ‘enjoying’ his glass of punch.  He stands at the exact end of the table, and a long shot shows the entire row of tables neatly divided up into five tables, each with a bowl of punch in the center, and a long row of cups that stand straight and even from one end of the table to another.  Warren stands completely unaware of this fact and just observes people around him.  This is when he notices Veronica come through the doorway off on the right side of the level.  Malcolm follows shortly behind her.  As they walk towards him, he sticks his cup down on the table.  An above shot shows the empty cup sitting off kilter from the entire row – it is the last cup that is needed to complete the row of full cups of red punch, but he does not set it down in the intended spot and does not complete the chain.  He walks off forward to meet Veronica and Malcolm.

					VERONICA
			Like to explain why you brought all
			This shit up at dinner, on prom
			Night of all the nights you could be
			Bring these kinds of things up?

					PAISLEY
			Oh, my mind got saturated with 
			Thought.  It just tends to overflow
			Sometimes.  That’s all.  

					VERONICA
			Well thank you very much for telling
			Him how you feel, but I don’t 
			Appreciate you doing it tonight.  I 
			Had so sit and listen to him complain
			All the way here for 45 minutes of 
			My time.  You two need to get 
			Fucking mature about this and resolve
			It.  You’re pulling Malcolm and I 
			Into it, and that’s being just as
			Selfish as Naomi and Paisley.

					WARREN
			Alright, fine, you caught me.
	
Warren places his hands up in the air.  Malcolm stands back behind Veronica, hidden in heavier darkness than she.  Warren heeds no attention to him.  

					VERONICA
			Look, I don’t want you to ruin my
			Prom night anymore than you already
			Have.

					WARREN
			What do you have to look forward
			To tonight?  What’s so special about
			This thing?
					
					VERONICA
			It’s my last dance, and I want to 
			Enjoy it.  I don’t want you destroying
			It because you’re upset with Paisley.
			You can fix that some other time, 
			But not tonight.  Tonight you are 
			Going to be calm and you’re going to 
			Be nice, and you’re going to keep 
			Your mouth shut, hear me?
					WARREN
			Yeah.

					VERONICA
			We’re going to show Malcolm a good
			Time.  

					WARREN
			...

					VERONICA 
			Alright?

					WARREN
			Yeah.

We cut from this back on to the dance floor where Paisley has lost the girl he’s chasing.  He stands in the middle of the dance floor and looks around to find her.  All he can see is the mass of spinning, dancing teenagers who continue to bump and grind while he stands, lost and confused, like a small child without his mother.  After some time, he finally yells 

					PAISLEY
			NAOMI!

As Paisley yells this, the lights dim to complete darkness.  The music stops playing, the students stop dancing, and they all stand faced away from the spotlight that shoots on from some angle in the gym.  Sitting in the middle of the spotlight, in the middle of parting dancers, is Naomi, dressed in the same dress she wore as she sat on the toilet in the grand bathroom.  

Up in the second level, Warren walks to the edge of the level and looks down at Naomi in the spotlight.  Veronica is facing away and Malcolm is still aware of what’s going on.  He walks up behind Warren who just stands and watches.  

As the two of them stare at the bright centre of the gym, Naomi looks straight into the crowd of useless souls.  Suddenly another moving body walks into the light and towards her.  It is the body of Paisley, drawn to her.  Warren’s eyes widen at this sight and he screams in the middle of the gymnasium

					WARREN
			NO!

On the dance floor, Paisley assumes dancing with Naomi in the spotlight, which follows them and keeps them in the centre at all times.  Warren bolts back and pushes through the unmoving children.  He darts down the flight of stairs and leaps into the unyielding crows of faceless children.  The shot follows close behind and it makes the gym feel huge, like a stadium, once again.  We can see the great beam of light coming down onto a section of the crowd, but we cannot make out Paisley and Naomi.  Warren struggles his hardest to get to them.  

					WARREN
			NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO
			NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO 
			NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!

Back up on the second level, we look over Malcolm’s shoulder as he witnesses this struggle from an eagle’s eye viewpoint.  He says nothing and simply witnesses.

Warren continues to fight towards the moving beam of light that splits the crowd.  He gets closer and closer to it and then finally, after what seems like forever, finally finds his way into the light, where nobody sits at all.  Naomi and Paisley are gone, and the only person who stands in the spotlight is Warren.  

At this point, the entire crowd of people makes a complete 180 turn and now stare at Warren.  All eyes are on him.  He sits in the centre, silent, and cannot do anything really.

One more spotlight flickers on and comes on Paisley and Naomi right as they leave.  Paisley stands behind Naomi, opening the door for her, and as he takes his own leave, looks straight at Warren. 

Warren yells at Paisley as Paisley disappears out the door and is left alone in the crowd.  As he stands there staring where Paisley once was, the crowd around him begins stepping forth into the light.  Warren doesn’t notice this but keeps saying Paisley’s name over to himself, quieter.  As the kids begin to step into the circle, the spotlight fades.

MONTAGE

This is where we begin a montage phase.  As the spotlight fades, a song by Bjork begins.  The spotlight fades, and darkness keeps. 

We come in on Warren, standing on the side of a highway in the middle of flat country.  He’s on a slight hill, next to a tree.  He stands in his tuxedo, alone in the dusk of a cold mid-western winter.  He looks out onto the highway and then a close shot shows him sit down.  In the background plays old audio of dialogue, crackling and old as if it were salvaged from 1979.  He places his head in his hands.  Another outside shot shows him sitting next to a tree where several nooses hanging from the branches in the tree.  The tree is old and has been spray painted on.  Warren is crying.  

We flash in with scenes of him wandering through open cornfields that have nothing in them.  The sky is clear and harsh against him.  A forward shot on him shows people following in the distance.  He stops and looks at them.  

Another shot shows a car in the middle of a parking lot.  

We come in over a section of two-lane interstate.  High school students march down the roads in one direction, under an underpass, boys and girls, arm in arm, dressed in the same dresses they were wearing at prom.  On the overpass, Malcolm stands on the edge over the kids below.  He’s smiling big and bright, naïve and unaware.  A rope is tied around his neck.  The camera follows it across the road to the other side where Steiner waits, holding it.  He smiles back.  

We cut to warren outside again on the side of train tracks.  He stands looking off into the distance where we can see barren trees cutting everything.  As he stares, a train cuts in with loud noise. 

We appear on a train, which passes through different sections of tunnel.  Warren sits in the same seat every time, but when the train passes through the tunnels, Veronica, Paisley, Naomi, Malcolm, and Isaac appear on the train.  They talk to Warren.  After each one appears.  Malcolm appears down the end of the train.  Warren looks down and sees him.  When they pass through another section of tunnel, Malcolm is sitting across from Warren.  He stares at him and shakes his head.  He begins to speak, but Russian banter comes pouring out.  The words appear painted in English on the windows behind him.  The hit another tunnel. 

We’re back on the interstate, and the high school students continue to march underneath the overpass.  All sorts of kids are hanging from the bridge by ropes.  They are just high enough the students underneath can walk through without touching them, rendering them unable to empathize with the horror above them.  

Warren gets back up from the tree, which is not longer a tree, but a stump, and runs onto the interstate.  He’s yelling and screaming at the people who are marching.  He comes across Paisley and Naomi.  As he steps on the street, he knocks over several Styrofoam cups full of punch, which line the street as far as the eye can see.  We follow his feet at street level and then move up as he walks under the overpass.  On the bottom of the overpass, we can see “ARBEIT MACHT FREI” written.  Beneath it, “-High School” is written.  

Warren mutters and runs up the side of the over pass to where the ropes are nailed into the road above.  He begins prying them up out of the concrete.  The bodies hanging begin to fall onto the kids.  When hit, the children recoil in horror and scatter off the street.  On the overpass, Steiner is walking up the hill. 

Warren begins screaming and continues to pry up the ropes from the concrete, allowing the dead to fall onto the street below.  Steiner makes his way to the top and sees Warren.  He runs over to him and tackles him.  Warren plows through a few ropes.  A far shot shows all the bodies have fallen off, save one.  A close up shows Malcolm’s face.

Steiner wrestles Warren to the ground and keeps him from getting up.  Warren gives it everything he can and fights like a bitch to get up off the ground.  All we can see is his tuxedo, but when the head bobs down into the camera’s line, it’s Paisley’s head.  Paisley lays lips on Warren’s and begins kissing him all over.  Warren continues to fight him with all his might and finally succeeds and wrestling him from on top.  As Warren stands, the music quits, and he’s all of sudden in the middle of a white apartment room.
CUT TO:

INT. WHITE APARTMENT ROOM – DAYTIME

The room is completely empty except for a single, white oscillating fan and a bare mattress on the floor.  Two windows shed light into the room, and a black door stands wide open at the back of the room, leading into a dirty hallway with no lights on. 

Warren, still in his tuxedo, sits in the silence, confused and unaware of where he is.  He looks out the window, but the light is so bright that we can’t tell what lies beyond the glass.  The oscillating fan stands still and the mattress just sits in the centre of the room.  Warren runs over to the door to walk out into the hall.  He looks into the end of the hall where a disgusting bathroom sits with the lights on.  He yells down the hall, but to no avail.  The lights quickly flicker off and nothing answers back.  Warren walks back into the white room and to the other window, where he struggles to open it.  As he does this, the grunting and panting of a couple making love breaks in out of nowhere.  As Paisley turns around, a single shot of the oscillating fan shows that it is on and blowing air.  

Warren whips around to look at the mattress.  His eyes widen, and we cannot yet see what it is he’s looking at.  He’s absolutely horrified at what he’s viewing.  A look from behind shows Paisley and Naomi, naked and fucking on the mattress.  They grunt and pant shamelessly, and do not notice the tuxedoed Warren standing in their room.  

Down the hall, the bathroom light flickers back on, and coughing noises surge from inside it.  Water splashes out of the side tub and onto the floor.  A hand reaches out.

Warren begins pacing around the mattress, watching Paisley and Naomi in utter horror.  They fuck in all kinds of positions and talk dirty and grunt and laugh and play and love and such.  Warren sticks both hands on the side of his head.  He begins muttering “Stop it stop it stop it stop it” to himself as he runs around the room.  

Back down the hall, a boy kneels on the ground, coughing and spattering on the floor.  He’s wet and cold and he stands up. 

					WARREN
			STOP IT!

Paisley and Naomi have no clue that Warren is watching them fuck.  They are completely oblivious, and totally isolated in their own little sex fantasy.  Warren still paces around the room.  

					WARREN
			STOP IT STOP IT STOP IT STOP IT
			STOP IT I FUCKING HATE YOU I HATE
			THE BOTH OF YOU!  STOP IT STOP IT
			STOP IT!

The light in the bathroom flickers off, right after we view the silhouette of the boy walking out of the bathroom.  From his P.O.V. we can see the light spilling in from the white apartment room.  We can hear Warren screaming from inside.  

Inside the room itself, Warren is crying.  He is bent over in the corner, muttering to himself.
			
					WARREN
			Stop it stop it stop it stop it 
			Please just fucking stop it, please
			I’m begging you please just stop 
			It for the love of god I’m begging 
			You, please. 

Of course, Paisley and Naomi do not heed a word that Warren says, and continue to fuck.  It’s disgusting to watch, rather irritating.  

From down the hall, we approach with the boy from the bathroom closer and closer to the door.  As he turns the corner, we can see from behind the boy, the room.  The mattress lays there, empty, and the oscillating fan is turned off.  In one corner stands Steiner.  In the other, Warren is still huddled.  

From another P.O.V. we can see only Paisley and Naomi fucking on the mattress.  Suddenly Naomi stops and gets up.  She jumps up and runs out of the room, Paisley behind her.  As she runs through the doorway, we follow in one clean slide and the black divider shows her in the bathroom of the high school.  She’s wearing her white dress again.

CUT TO:

INT. HIGH SCHOOL – GIRL’S BATHROOMS – NIGHTTIME 

Paisley runs in right behind her.  He stops and bends over, taking a breath before finally saying something to her.  She sits there, silent and seemingly omnipotent.  She is not a muse, she is a siren.  

As Paisley sits, bent over, she turns around and looks at him.  He looks up at her so he can see her just out of the top of his eyes.  She stands and smiles at him.  He smiles back, through labored breath, and says

					PAISLEY
			Where are you going?

CUT TO:

INT. HIGH SCHOOL – GYMNASIUM – NIGHTTIME

Back up on the second level, right as Veronica and Warren were speaking, we come back into the conversation.  Warren finally asks a question, something that sparked this entire abstract usage of film and art.

					WARREN
			Where’s Paisley at?

Veronica looks behind her.  The only one who stands there is Malcolm.  

					VERONICA
			I don’t...know.  Malcolm, did you
			See where Paisley disappeared off
			To?

					MALCOLM
			I think he went after Naomi.

					WARREN
			What?

Veronica and Warren both look at Malcolm.

					WARREN (cont’d)
			How do you know?
					MALCOLM
			She’s wearing a white dress, right?

Warren looks up at Veronica, who’s known about Naomi’s dress and such since months before the actual prom.

					VERONICA
			Yes.

Warren stands back, winded at this.  He puts his hands up on his forehead and runs his fingers through his thick brown hair.  He lets out a sigh.

					WARREN
			You know what?  I’m not surprised
			Anymore.  I’m not.  How did I know
			Of all things that I’d make another
			FUCKING MISTAKE tonight.

Veronica looks at Warren and moves in closer towards him.  The whites of her eyes show pale and she says in soft, calm tones with underlying anger,

					VERONICA
			Warren, keep it the fuck together.

Warren begins laughing.  Veronica steps back and looks at him as if he’s insane.  

					WARREN
			You’re right, you’re right.  Tonight
			Is my last dance.  It’s our last 
			Dance.  I shouldn’t fuck it up, 
			Should I?

					VERONICA
			Warren, I’m fucking warning you.

					WARREN
			No, no, I get it.  This entire thing
			Was a bust.

Warren walks past them laughing.  He pushes down through the kids on the dance floor.  Malcolm follows him.  Veronica yells from behind.

					VERONICA
			Where are you going!?

Warren yells from the stairs.
		
					WARREN
			This isn’t where I belong.

Warren disappears into the masses of people and Malcolm stumbles behind him.  He keeps him just in his sights and manages never to lose him. 

 As Warren makes out into the lobby, his eyes catch Paisley run into the women’s bathroom.  Warren stops and eyes the bathroom.  His face expresses pure anger.  He looks around and then begins to march toward the bathroom.  

CUT TO:

INT. HIGH SCHOOL – GIRL’S BATHROOM – NIGHTTIME

We are back on Paisley, bent over, looking up at Naomi.  He’s smiling, when suddenly the door behind him opens up.  He jumps forward, expecting it to be a girl, when Warren’s head pops through.  Paisley steps backward, Naomi behind him, and places his hands up in front of himself.

					PAISLEY
			Warren...
		
Warren just stares through the door before he finally bursts completely forth.

					WARREN
			You pathetic piece of shit...

As Warren marches towards Paisley, he raises a hand, but Malcolm grabs around his waist and pulls back.  Warren fights with him, but Malcolm keeps a good grip on him.  

					MALCOLM
			Warren, stop it!

					WARREN
			LET THE FUCK GO OF ME!

Malcolm does not release his grip.  He continues to hold back Warren, while Paisley and Naomi just stand back and watch.  

After a tough fight, Warren frees himself from Malcolm’s grip.  He stares at Paisley and Naomi.

					WARREN
			Son of a bitch.  You’re in hell,
			And the two of you are going to 
			Die in hell with the rest of these
			Pieces of shit. 

Warren grabs the bathroom door and swings out of the room, right as two girls are about to enter.  They are offended by this and recoil in horror at his bluntness.  

Back in the bathroom, Malcolm looks at the two of them and then says

					MALCOLM
			He’s right, you know.

Malcolm leaves the bathroom.  Naomi and Paisley just stand there, silent and unprovoked. 

CUT TO:

EXT. HIGH SCHOOL – PARKING LOT – NIGHTTIME

Malcolm exits the school doors and runs into the parking lot.  He searches for Warren’s car.  When he finally finds the car, he sees Warren crouched down with his back to the car.  He has a hand over his eyes, and he’s crying.  Malcolm just stands there and watches, unaware of what he should do in a situation like this.  

Warren looks over at Malcolm and tries his best to hide the fact that he’s crying.

					WARREN
			Please go away.

Malcolm just stands there, watching Warren.

					MALCOLM
			I need to know more about you.

					WARREN
			Why?

					MALCOLM
			Because I think I like you a lot, 
			And I’d like to know more about 
			You.

Warren looks over at Malcolm through the blurred vision of his tears.

					WARREN
			W-what?

					MALCOLM
			You heard what I said.  Believe it 
			Or not, it’s the goddamned truth.
			Now you can help me out in this,
			Or you can shove me off.  If you 
			Don’t want to go back in there, then
			We can stay out here.

Warren waits a beat or two before he finally answers.

					WARREN
			Ok.  Ok.

CUT TO:

EXT. RAMADA INN HOTEL – NIGHTTIME

We settle outside the town’s hotel, the Ramada Inn, where a car pulls into the parking lot and turns off abruptly.  We can see Paisley and Naomi jump out.  They walk up to the front doors, kissing, arms around each other.  The enter the giant, sliding, glass double doors into the hotel lobby, where they meet an attendant at the reception desk.

CUT TO:

INT. RAMADA INN HOTEL – HOTEL ROOM – NIGHTTIME 

The camera finds itself situated inside bathroom of the hotel room belonging now to Naomi and paisley.  It is dark, and we can’t see anything.  Suddenly the door outside opens up, shedding bright light in on the room as Naomi and Paisley fall in, kissing passionately.  They struggle with each other as Paisley shuts the door.  They walk over to the beds where Naomi begins to undo her prom dress.  Paisley, standing near the desk, taking off his own Tuxedo, turns on the lamp.

					NAOMI
			No, no!  Turn the lights back off.

Paisley flips the lamp back off and, with his tuxedo shirt off, runs over the bed and collapses onto it with Naomi, the two of them kissing rabidly, still trying to get their clothes off.  Paisley works to get his shirt off and Naomi’s legs are already far up into the air.  Their breathing is loud and obnoxious, and the white frills of Naomi’s dress stand lining in the faint light that shines in from the hotel windows, to which a single street light sits outside.  

Paisley has his shirt off and is working on his pants, burying his neck into Naomi’s, when he suddenly spouts:

					PAISLEY
			Oh god, I love you so much.

Naomi, eyes closed, legs spread, feet in the air, answers back to Paisley.

					NAOMI
			Yes, yes.

Paisley how has his pants off, and his boxers are down around his feet.  He’s humping Naomi rabidly.  We revisit the same feelings we found when Gustav exploited Tiffany.  

					PAISLEY
			I want...to Marry you.

Naomi stops breathing and looks at Paisley.  He continues humping her.

					NAOMI
			What?

					PAISLEY
			I said I want to Marry you. 

Naomi just stares at Paisley, shocked.

Paisley smiles, and then, to catch himself,

					NAOMI
			I’m just kidding.  It’s Ok.

Naomi continues to stare and then, letting in the cold comfort, smiles back.  Paisley goes back to his job with Naomi.  

CUT TO:

INT. WARREN’S CAR – EARLY DAWN

It’s still dark, but a faint blue envelops the scene as we view Malcolm and Warren, asleep in the car.  Malcolm sleeps in the back, Warren in the front, and the two of them are peaceful and sound.  It’s cloudy today, in turn of the rain.  

Outside we can see that Warren’s car is the only vehicle in the vast High School parking lot. Everything stands deftly still.  It’s silent, but a low, stern clap of thunder rolls in the background.  

In the car, we look straight at Warren, who’s eyes open as he lays in the front seat of his car.  He does nothing but lay.  He sits up slowly and looks over into the back seat, where Malcolm lays, still asleep.  He looks out the window and can see that no other cars sit on the black top.  He lays back down and just sits in the silence.

CUT TO: 

INT. RAMADA INN HOTEL – HOTEL ROOM – EARLY DAWN

An above shot shows Paisley behind Naomi, both stark naked, uncovered, shining in the dark blue light of the Early morning.  Naomi is asleep, but Paisley is still awake.  He holds her and caresses her and touches her and then, once again, begins making love to her, even when she is asleep.  He’s obsessed with her. 

CUT TO:

EXT. WARREN’S CAR – EARLY DAWN

We sit outside the car, looking over the vast blacktop parking lot that sits adjacent the High School.  About 20 feet from the car, Warren sits, crouched, with a yellow raincoat on over his tuxedo.  The hood is pulled over just so that the hood hides his eyes, like the Norman Rockwell painting with the fisher in the rain.  As we stay situated on him, we hear a car door open and shut off screen, when Malcolm walks up behind Warren.  He crouches down next to Warren, who has a cigarette in hand.

					MALCOLM
			I didn’t know that you smoked.

					WARREN
			Yeah.  I shouldn’t.

Malcolm takes Warren’s cigarette and drags from it, long and hard, before handing it back to Warren.

MALCOLM
Neither should I.  

We then situate behind the two, crouched.  The High School looms huge in front of them, a giant landmark that over takes all else.  HUDSON HIGH SCHOOL is printed large, in silver letters, right on the side.  Right before the shot ends, the beginning strums of Jeff Mueller’s “FORMED IN ATOMS” cut in.

CUT TO:

EXT.  RAMADA INN HOTEL – MORNING 

Still blue toned, due to the clouds, we watch Paisley and Naomi leave the hotel.  Each looks like shit.  As we watch them leave the hotel, we can hear Warren and Malcolm talking in the background.

					MALCOLM (V.O.)
			Why do you like him so much?

					WARREN (V.O.)
			I don’t know.  I just came to 
			Start liking him I guess.  There
			Never really was a beginning, I 
			Think.

					CUT TO:

INT. WARREN’S CAR – MORNING

Now we’re back in Warren’s car.  The two of them sit in their respective parts of the car.  It’s raining outside of the car, and water beads down the windows of the car.  It’s blue.

					MALCOLM
			There has to have been something 
			To spark this entire fiasco.  I 
			Mean, it can’t just arise out of 
			Absolutely nowhere.

					WARREN 
			Well, Paisley has always been a 
			Friend.  Now, not that great, I 
			Guess.  Now that I look back at 
			It, it’s not like he and I were 
			Always with each other.  There 
			Are friends, and then there are
			Friends.  The kind of people you
			Always hang around with.

					MALCOLM
			Yeah.

					WARREN
			I dunno.  Paisley and I were 
			Good friends through from the 
			Seventh grade.  When we hit high 
			School, though, he seemed to just 
			Break off and go do his own thing.
			I didn’t really mind.  I didn’t
			Find he and I to be that great of
			Friends.  He had his own things 
			To do, and me mine.  

					MALCOLM
			Mm.

					WARREN
			And then, last year, around 
			Halloween, I remember Naomi, who 
			Lives out on a farm, like you, 
			Hosted this Halloween part thing.
			A whole ton of people came to it.
			Paisley came, and he and I hadn’t
			Spoken in ages.  It was really
			Awkward at first.  I felt like I
			Didn’t know him as well as I used 
			To, but he was definitely a real
			Interesting person at the time.  
			We talked all night, about everything.
			You know how things get when you
			Have some huge discussion when 
			You’re at a place like a party or 
			In a classroom with someone and 
			Everything around suddenly becomes 
			Totally blocked out—you’re so 
			Interested in everything that you’re 
			Talking about that your surroundings
			Suddenly become obsolete, and you	
			Couldn’t care less where you were.

					MALCOLM
			I love those kinds of discussions.

					WARREN
			And we joked a lot.  By the end of the
			Night, he and I were goofing around,
			Acting like we were boyfriends or 
			Something stupid like that.  It was
			So stupid, and people just stared 
			At us, like “what the hell?” and he
			Thought it was the funniest shit 
			Ever.  He didn’t care at all what
			They thought of him.  Other people 
			Didn’t matter at all.  And I guess,
			That just came back to bite me in 
			The ass.  Turns out that’s just a 
			Great and obvious sign that someone 
			Is selfish and a real jackass in the
			Endall.

					MALCOLM
			Was he dating Naomi at this point?

					WARREN
			Yes, but they weren’t on good terms 
			When this happened.  She wasn’t even
			Ever around the entire night, and 
			Looking back, I regret that she might
			Not have been.  As much as I reproach
			The wench’s presence, she might’ve 
			Helped ground me right then and there. 
			Perhaps then I might not be in such a 
			Tough situation.  It was that night 
			That I saw something in Paisley that I 
			Wanted so much to be with.  

					MALCOLM
			Enlightening.

					WARREN
			On everything, including how you tend
			To view yourself.  A 17 year old jock
			Ass football player isn’t supposed to 
			Be finding “something” in his friends.
			He’s supposed to be out drinking and 
			Partying and being popular with the 
			Girls.

					MALCOLM
			You don’t exactly give the essence
			Of a jock-ass football player, though.
			The way you speak and carry yourself,
			You set apart from the others, and		
			Its really obvious.  You’re only a 
			Focal point of queer interest.  People
			See something in you that they don’t 
			Normally see in kids our age.  

					WARREN
			You think?

					MALCOLM
			Perhaps Paisley would take heed of 
			You if only he were so infatuated 
			With Naomi.  Unfortunately you got 
			Stuck on the shit end of the straw,
			And no matter how much you wish, 
			You probably won’t get your way.

					WARREN
			You’re probably right.

					MALCOLM
			This is falling to earth.

					WARREN
			I’m falling to Earth?  

					MALCOLM
			Well, you’re making important 
			Realizations about everything.
			You’re starting to understand 
			How things are.  Not to say that
			You’re going to gain a clear 
			And thorough understanding of 
			Everything through just this one
			Occurrence.  I’m sure there are 
			Going to be dozens of other 
			Things that help you grow up.  
			You’re benefiting from this in 
			One manner or another.  

					WARREN
			I wish Paisley would do a little
			Falling to Earth.

					MALCOLM
			He will in due time.  But do you
			Honestly wish it on him so bad?
			
					WARREN
			Yeah.  Why?

					MALCOLM
			Well, if you think you honestly
			Love him, then you’d only wish 
			For his happiness in this, right?

					WARREN
			Love isn’t for high schoolers.

					MALCOLM
			But you can’t help what he does 
			To you.  How he makes you feel.

					WARREN
			True.

					MALCOLM
			Love has nothing to do with what
			You’re expecting to get, it’s 
			What you’re expected to give—

					WARREN
			What’s that?

					MALCOLM
			Everything, I guess.

					WARREN
			Huh.  Who said that?

					MALCOLM
			I don’t know.

The two sit in silence for a while. 

					WARREN
			Where did you hear that from?

					MALCOLM
			I don’t know.  It makes sense 
			Though.

					WARREN
			It’s ironic.

					MALCOLM
			To achieve a state of selflessness
			For someone you love, you have to 
			Put yourself aside, including the 
			Fact that you indeed love them.  
			It’s all for them.  If you wreck them
			For yourself, then you really love 
			Them.  

					WARREN
			You think that’s how Paisley treats
			Naomi?

					MALCOLM
			No, I think it’s how Naomi treats
			Paisley, and how Gustav Ecoligian
			Treats my sister.

CUT TO:

EXT. PHONE BOOTH – DAYTIME

We join Malcolm inside a phone booth, where he talks on the phone with his father.

					MALCOLM
			No, I don’t have any homework.  Yes.
			He has clothes that I can wear.  
			Ok.  I’m sorry.  No, it’ll be alright.
			I’ll see you guys tomorrow night 
			Then?  Ok, thanks.  Yeah.  Thanks. 
			I love you.  Bye.

Malcolm hangs up the phone and then places his face in his hands, running them up his face through his hair and then exiting the phone booth.  

CUT TO:

INT. WARREN’S CAR – DAYTIME

We’re back in the parking lot.  Warren and Malcolm both have new clothes on, and their hair is wet, seeing as the two have taken showers already.  They sit, and Warren has his stolen picture of Naomi and Paisley out of his wallet.  He sits and stares at it in the car.  The rain continues to pour lightly outside on the car.  Malcolm sits in the back, reading a book, perhaps “GONE WITH THE WIND” or “WAR AND PEACE”, something long that exceeds into the range of 1000 or more pages.  

					WARREN
			I wouldn’t want that kind of 
			Lifestyle.

Malcolm looks up from his book in the direction of Warren.  Malcolm lays in the back, and Warren sits in the front, so neither can look directly at the other. 

					MALCOLM
			What?

					WARREN
			What Paisley wants.  A life with
			A woman.  

					MALCOLM
			Yeah?

					WARREN
			Yeah.  That American Dream, sitcom
			Kind of family.  You know what I 
			Mean?

					MALCOLM
			I think I get your drift.  

					WARREN
			I have nothing but disgust for 
			That lifestyle.  I hate it, and I 
			Don’t want anything to do with it.

					MALCOLM
			You’re strong in your emotion.

Warren sits for a few beats of silence in the car, looking at the picture.  He rolls down the side window and throws his picture out the window into the pouring rain.  He starts up the car.

					WARREN
			I’m cold.

					MALCOLM
			Where’re we going?

					WARREN
			Fabric store.

CUT TO:

INT. FABRIC STORE – AFTERNOON

We join Malcolm inside the bright fabric store.  He walks slowly down the aisles, looks at everything the store has to offer, flanked on all sides with different types and stocks of all kinds of material.  Old women browse the aisles for craft materials, followed by middle-aged women, followed by their own daughters.  Malcolm and Warren are the only male presence in the store, and their clothes, slightly bright and offset from the darker colours worn by the women, helps to distinguish them from the crowd.

As Malcolm continues to browse this, he is caught by surprise when Warren walks by with a huge rolls of thick flannel.

					WARREN
			I found the perfect one.

Malcolm laughs at him, and Warren stops.

					WARREN (cont’d)
			What?

					MALCOLM
			Flannel?

					WARREN
			Of course.

He’s acting goofy with Malcolm.  

					MALCOLM
			Are we going to the woods or 
			Something?

					WARREN
			We’re camping out, aren’t we?

					MALCOLM
			I guess so.

Warren smiles and waves his head towards the registers in a 
”C’mon” manner.  Malcolm runs after him and they run to the front register where the register woman checks them out.  

CUT TO:

INT. WARREN’S CAR – AFTERNOON

The sky is darkening back to its black-blue hue, and we join Warren and Malcolm back in the parking lot.  The radio in Warren’s car is on, giving the turquoise tint to everything near it.  The radio is on so low that we can barely understand what song might be on it.  Warren and Malcolm lay in the back of the car, getting the flannel over themselves. 

					MALCOLM
			God, you’re right, it’s fucking
			Freezing.

					WARREN
			I’m a thinker.

They finally get the flannel completely over themselves, and find themselves uncomfortably close to one another.  They lay side by side in the back seat, with barely enough room.  Warren then moves Malcolm up a slight bit, letting Malcolm rest on his chest, and then sticking his arm up a slight bit, because, as he claims, the weight is crushing it.  They sit there, close, uncomfortably close, when suddenly a cell phone ring begins.  

They start up wrestling with the flannel once more, crawling and sitting and pulling for things.  Warren makes the comment

					WARREN
			I knew I shouldn’t have brought
			This from home.

He finally pulls out the cell phone and flips it open.  Malcolm just watches as he talks on the phone.

					WARREN
			Hello?  Oh, hey.  Yeah?  Did
			It?  That’s great.  Yeah?  Oh,
			No, I’m not doing anything at 
			All... yeah?  Well, I won’t be 
			Out for late.  I’m tired.

Warren looks at Malcolm, who just looks back.

MALCOLM
Who is it?

Warren reaches his hand up to shush Malcolm, while mouthing the word “VERONICA”.  

					WARREN
			No, I don’t mind.  Yeah.  Ok.

Warren hangs up the phone and then pockets it.  He and Malcolm sit in silence for a while.  Warren then looks at Malcolm.

					WARREN
			Do you have a friend you can 
			Visit for a while tonight.

					MALCOLM
			Yeah, probably.

					WARREN
			That was Veronica.  She wants
			Me to come over to her house 
			For a little while.  

					MALCOLM
			Where am I gonna go?

					WARREN
			It’ll just be for a while.  I 
			Don’t plan on staying there 
			Forever.  Paisley and Naomi are
			Gonna be there.

					MALCOLM
			Oh.  Well, no, I have friends.

					WARREN
			Ok.  Well I gotta go over 
			There right now.  Can I just 
			Drop you off at your friend’s 
			House?

					MALCOLM
			Yeah, just drop me at Isaacs.

					WARREN
			Ahh, ok.

From outside the car, we see Warren get out of the car and walk to the driver’s side door.  He turns on the car and then pulls it out of the High School parking lot once again.

CUT TO:

EXT. VERONICA’S HOUSE – EVENING

Outside Veronica’s house, we already see one car sit, Paisley’s car, as well as Veronica’s car.  Paisley’s car sits on the curb, leaving room for Warren room to pull his own vehicle into the driveway.  

Right as the camera pulls down, letting us see all of this, Warrens’ car comes barreling into the driveway.  It comes to a halt and Warren shuts the car off immeadiately.  He stares at the house from the car for a while before finally getting out of the car.  

CUT TO:

INT. VERONICA’S HOUSE – ATTIC ROOM – EVENING 

As we sit, situated inside Veronica’s room, the attic room, we have a solid view of the steps to which one must walk up in order to enter the attic room.  We can hear people in the background, namely Paisley and Naomi and Veronica, laughing and talking.  There are around five or six people in the room.

Finally, Warren climbs the stairs and walks into the room.  Everyone greets him warmly with a nice “WARREN!”

CUT TO:
INT. ISAAC’S HOUSE – ISAAC’S ROOM – EVENING

We come in on Malcolm, a complete and only shot of him as he stares over at something of screen.  A phone cord stretches in the corner of the shot and we can hear Isaac speaking in off screen to a friend over the phone.

					ISAAC
			Uh-huh.  Ok, no problem.

Isaac stays on the phone a little while longer before finally telling the person on the other end good-bye and hanging up.  Then he sits up and grabs his coat and looks over at Malcolm.

					ISAAC
			Rushmore and Paul Ecoligian are
			Going out tonight, and they’re 
			Having me come with.  I take it 
			That you haven’t seen Rushmore in
			Ages.  Want to come with?

Malcolm begins in an answer.

					ISAAC (cont’d)
			Well you got to, I guess.  I 
			Can’t just leave you here with me 
			Mo-

All of a sudden, Isaac’s mother screams up from the steps below in the hallway.

					ISAAC’S MOTHER 
			ISAAC WILLIAM STAATEN, GET THE FUCK
			DOWN HERE RIGHT NOW!

The both of them fall silent.

					ISAAC
			--the crazy bitch.  Come on, we
			better leave before things go 
			to shit.

CUT TO:

INT. VERONICA’S HOUSE – ATTIC ROOM – NIGHTTIME

Six kids sit around with friends as each of them are exchanging stories from prom.  Currently, a girl tells some strange prom story about her leaving with another couple to go to a hotel.

					GIRL
			It was so insane.  I didn’t
			Even know the two that well.  

Some guy perks up in the conversation.

					GUY
			When’d you guys leave prom?
		
					GIRL 
			Oh god, somewhere around 10.

We can see Paisley and Naomi amongst themselves, familiarly upset, but not so obvious.  She pushes away from him during the conversation.  Warren watches them.

					VERONICA
			I can’t believe people at our 
			School are actually like that.  I 
			Mean, who’d think that someone 
			Would just ASK for that kind of 
			Thing.

					WARREN
			People are different.

Paisley gets up and takes a leave.

					PAISLEY
			Hey, I’m gonna go outside for a 
			Bit and get some air. 

Everyone bids Paisley bye, save Warren and Naomi.  Paisley leaves and Warren keeps watching Naomi, who’s still quiet.  

CUT TO:

EXT. VERONICA’S HOUSE – NIGHTTIME

A shot outside the house shows Paisley walk out and sit down on the steps.  He holds his head in his hands and sits silently.  An orange light hanging from Veronica’s garage illuminates everything brightly in a warm, orange glow that cuts shadows from figures.  

CUT TO:

INT. VERONICA’S HOUSE – ATTIC ROOM – NIGHTTIME

Back up in the attic room, Veronica breaks out some alcohol, everyone excited and laughing about it.  Warren takes some and drinks as well.  We’re aware of his own little problem in high school, all viewed as relatively meager in the light of how a high school student views his own life – there are much bigger problems than booze and cigarettes.

Naomi doesn’t drink anything.  When offered something to drink, she’s quite in denying it, and sparks up people’s interest.  Everyone asks “what’s wrong,” save Warren, who couldn’t give a shit less what her problems were.

CUT TO:

INT. ISAAC’S HOUSE – KITCHEN – NIGHTTIME

We come in right in the middle of a fight between Isaac and his mother, Malcolm standing back uncomfortably.  Isaac’s mother is screaming at him about his grades.

					ISAAC’S MOTHER
			I mean a D!? YOU’RE GETTING A D?

					ISAAC
			It’s a fucking MID-TERM, mother 
			I can change it.  

					ISAAC’S MOTHER
			Don’t you use that language, you 
			Listen to me, or I swear to god 
			I’ll keep you cooped in this house
			So long you’ll never see the light 
			Of day.

Malcolm just stands back and watches.

					ISAAC
			Try me. 

					ISAAC’S MOTHER
			WHAT?

					ISAAC
			There are for more complex things
			Happening in my life right now
			That I don’t need to be worrying 
			About you and my god damned grades.
	
					ISAAC’S MOTHER
			Oh, so you know it all?

					ISAAC
			NO, but that’ what all this high	
			School shit is about, isn’t it?

					ISAAC’S MOTHER 
			Don’t you get smart with me, Isaac,
			Don’t you get smart.  You don’t 
			Know anything, little mister, you
			Know NOTHING AT ALL, so don’t you 
			Dare take that tone with me like 
			You think you know it all, because 
			Let me tell you, Isaac—

Isaac stands up and begins to leave.  His mother SCREAMS after him when he does this.

					ISAAC’S MOTHER (cont’d)
			DON’T YOU GET UP AND WALK AWAY FROM
			ME WHEN I’M TALKING TO YOU, YOU SIT 
			RIGHT BACK DOWN AND YOU WILL LISTEN
			TO WHAT I HAVE TO SAY LIKE IT OR NOT

Isaac cuts in on her.

					ISAAC
			NO, I WILL NOT.  Leave me the hell
			Alone.  I’m going out.

					ISAAC’S MOTHER
			NO YOU ARE NOT, YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED
			TO LEAVE TONIGHT.  MALCOLM HAS TO 
			LEAVE RIGHT NOW, YOU AND I ARE NOT 
			FINISHED.

Malcolm steps back uncomfortably.  He does not want to be in this kind of situation tonight.

					ISAAC
			Shut up.  You have no right to tell
			Me what to do.  You can sit back and
			Tell me all this shit about how I 
			Need to get my grades up and blah blah
			Blah but you know next to shit about 
			How I am.  I’m going out tonight, so
			I’ll be back tomorrow after school.

					ISAAC’S MOTHER
			IF YOU LEAVE TONIGHT THEN I SWEAR TO	
			GOD THAT I WILL NEVER LET YOU BACK 
			IN THIS GOD DAMNED HOUSE AS LONG AS 
			I LIVE, DO YOU HEAR ME?  YOU LEAVE 
			NOW AND YOU WILL NEVER EVER COME 
			BACK INTO THIS HOUSE AS LONG AS YOU 
			ARE ALIVE, ISAAC STAATEN.

Isaac continues to walk away from his screaming mother.  He opens the door and walks out right as she finished the sentence.  Malcolm still stands uncomfortably, looking at the insane old woman.

						ISAAC
YOU GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY HOUSE! 
GET THE FUCK OUT RIGHT NOW, YOU 
LITTLE SHIT, I DON’T TRUST YOU, I 
DON’T FUCKING TRUST YOU AT ALL, 
YOU, ALL OF YOU, YOU’RE ALL THE 
SAME, YOU SELFISH LITTLE SHITS, 
YOU DON’T CARE ABOUT ANYONE BUT 
YOURSELVES, YOU THINK YOU KNOW IT 
ALL AND YOU FUCKING DON’T KNOW 
SHIT, GET OUT!!! GET THE FUCK OUT 
	OF MY LIFE!!!

Malcolm finally takes leave of the over emotional woman.  Even after he leaves, the door still standing wide open, the woman still screams the same kind of things and begins to sob hysterically.  She sits in the dirty kitchen, crying out loud, moaning, over her the alleged loss of her 17 year old son, who, even though he will return to the house tomorrow, in most ways, never will.  We focus on the woman’s sorrow for at least a minute, showing the degeneration of an adult in the light of the teenage world.  

Before we make a cut in, we can hear the kids at Veronica’s house talking.  It’s Naomi.

					NAOMI (O.S.) 
			I didn’t understand it all.  I 
			Mean, out of nowhere, he just 
			Springs it on me.  Caught by 
			Complete surprise.  

CUT TO:

INT. VERONICA’S HOUSE – ATTIC ROOM – NIGHTTIME

We’re back with the kids, all listening to Naomi’s story.  She’s seriously perturbed by what Paisley has said to her.  Warren still drinks rather heavily, but he isn’t being so seriously affected by the alcohol as he is his emotion.

					GIRL
			When did he say this to you?

					NAOMI
			Last after the dance, when he 
			Dropped me off at my house.  
			We were sitting in the car and 
			He was like, “Naomi, I love you
			So much, I want to marry you.” 
			It freaked me out.  I didn’t 
			Know what to say.

Warren looks over at her.  All the people around Naomi show affection, but Warren shows none.  He gets up and stretches, bottle in hand, and takes leave of the group.  Nobody seems to notice.  

CUT TO:

EXT. VERONICA’S HOUSE – NIGHTTIME

Outside sits Paisley, still with his head laying in his hands.  The screen door opens behind him and Warren steps out, still with his bottle of alcohol, and acts surprised to find his friend sitting on the steps.  Paisley looks up at him, and Warren, who looks down, drinking from the bottle, finally asks Paisley the question.

					WARREN
			What’s wrong?

					PAISLEY
			Nothing.

Warren laughs.

					WARREN
			Awwww, ha ha ha.  Don’t be like
			That.  You don’t leave your 
			Bitch’s side unless something’s 
			Wrong.  Tell, me, Paswee, what’s
			Wong?

Warren baby’s his face up and mocks the way that Paisley and Naomi used to act together.

					PAISLEY
			Warren, go away, I’m not in the 
			Mood to hear this shit from you 
			Again.  None of this is your 
			Business so just stay the fuck 
			Out of it, PLEASE.  

					WARREN
			“So just stay the fuck out 
			of it PLEASE.”  

Warren mocks Paisley’s voice.

					WARREN (cont’d)
			You’d be right to conjecture that 
			A relationship between two people 
			Is their own damned business, but 
			You’ve dragged me into to far too
			Many of your stupid little quarrels
			With your stupid little bitch that
			I can’t help but want to know just
			What it is that ails you, Paisley, 
			My dear.

					PAISLEY
			PLEASE, Warren.  I don’t want
			To talk about anything, just leave
			Me alone.

Warren sits still for a while.

					WARREN
			She doesn’t know what to say to it.

					PAISLEY
			I didn’t mean to say it, it just 
			Came out.

					WARREN
			You don’t think she will?

					PAISLEY
			I didn’t ask her, I just didn’t
			Mean to say it.  It just came out, 
			That’s all.  We were fucking, it 
			Was just fucking, I’d never lost
			My virginity, I just said it. 

Paisley is bawling now.  He’s been on the verge of tears the entire time, but with this last statement he falls into a state that reminds one of a small child.  

The statement about fucking however has made Warren go rigid and lose colour.  He’s lost all of what little sympathy he had in his voice, sympathy perhaps gained by the words of Malcolm, when he realizes what it is that makes him go so insane.  He takes a drink from the bottle of alcohol.
					WARREN
			She probably won’t marry you.

Paisley is, of course, bawling.

					PAISLEY
			Warren, please, GO AWAY.

Warren smashes the bottle he’s been holding against his car.  It shatters into a thousand tiny brown glass fragments that clink around all over the driveway concrete.  They shimmer in the light of the illuminating streetlight that hangs over the garage.  
					WARREN
			Welcome to the World of
			Disappointment.  

Paisley continues to sob.

					WARREN (cont’d)
			Paisley, do actually believe that 
			If this girl never stays with you,
			That if she fucking leaves your 
			Ass this instant, because of what
			You’ve said to her, that your life,
			As you know it, will be lost forever?

Paisley doesn’t answer.  He just continues to sob.

					WARREN (cont’d)
			That tomorrow wouldn’t be another
			Day.  That life isn’t worth living
			If the center is lost forever, in 
			Words, Naomi?  

Paisley just sobs.

					WARREN (cont’d)
			Do you even believe that she ever 
			Actually loved you?

					PAISLEY
			SHUT UP!

					WARREN
			That she doesn’t care?

					PAISLEY
			Warren, please, shut the fuck
			Up, PLEASE.

					WARREN
			No, I refuse.  Paisley, now, I 
			Know that it’s unorthodox, but 
			Frankly I don’t care.  Do you 
			Ever take a look around you to
			See the affect you might have on
			Others?

PAISLEY
			WARREN-- 

					
					WARREN
			I mean me.  ME ME ME ME ME.  You
			Know the term well enough that I 
			Don’t think I have to reiterate it 
			Enough.  It’s a simply suggestion 
			That you stick yourself aside and 
			Perhaps concern yourself with other
			People and how they feel.

Paisley goes back to sobbing.

					WARREN (cont’d)
			Its time you took up the fact that 
			You know, for certain, you’ve been
			Fucking with me, and that it’s been
			Fucking me up.  Royally.  You know 
			I like you, Warren.  Don’t deny it. 
			By now, it has to be apparent.  You
			Even asked me to go to the fucking
			Prom with you.  I’ve told you how 
			I feel a million times over, and you
			Constantly set me out in the rain 
			Because I just somehow don’t seem 
			Important enough to be dealt with. 

					PAISLEY
			What?

Warren walks over to his car and opens the trunk.  He begins rummaging around inside the trunk.  As he’s in there, he keeps talking.

					WARREN
			Paisley, I don’t hate you.  I don’t
			Love you, though, either.  Something
			In you attracts me to you, but I can’t	
			Have it, and it’s selfish, but I hate
			You for that.  I hate you so dearly, 
			My friend, that there’s no way in 
			Hell that this will ever reverse itself.
			I’m set for life on you. 
From the trunk of his car, Warren salvages a driver for golf – a long, silver club that gleams in the light of the street lamp.  He slams the trunk shut and then walks back over to Paisley with the club in one hand, slung over his shoulder. 

					WARREN (Cont’d)
			You are weak and pathetic, as where 
			I am strong and goodly independent 
			About things.  Admitting that I may 
			Somewhat have points in which I need
			Another’s help is only proof of my 
			Strength.  I am proud and, for the 
			Most part, honest.  I’m not perfect,
			And I know that.  I take security in
			Who I am, and I don’t need you to 
			Make me feel good about myself.  I 
			Am not a pacifist, however.  If 
			Given the chance, I will use absolute
			Force and violent means to get my 
			Point across.  It’s the only way that 
			I as an 18 year old can truly express
			My feelings.  

Paisley looks up.

					WARREN (cont’d)
			Paisley, I want, more than anything,
			To see you completely debased.  That 
			Is as a person.  That’s because I hate
			You.  But there’s something in me that 
			Also wants you.  The child yearns for 
			Its mother when it’s completely alone 
			For periods of time.  I’ve come to the
			Fact that I think I’m in love with you
			And, that while I have nothing but a 
			Prevalent disgust for you and your way
			Of life, that for just one minute, I’d 
			Like to feel as if you felt the same 
			Way about me.  The point is, though,
			That you show me nothing.  I open up 
			For you, where you close up and give 
			Nothing in return.  Everything you do 
			Is for absolute personal gain, and you’ll
			Do it at the cost of anyone.

Paisley is still bawling in realization.
					WARREN (cont’d)
			I’d like to think that, even at this
			Point, telling you how I feel would
			Make things better.  But it doesn’t.
			It doesn’t make things better at all.
			It makes everything go to absolute 
			Shit.  Telling you how I feel is a 
			Totally selfish act, I believe.  Now
			You know what you do to me, and it 
			Shows that demand you to give me the
			Attention and the affection I crave
			From a lover.  You’ll never give it 
			Though.  I’m allowed to be selfish
			In that light that you were.  It’s 
			Complete hypocrisy, I know it.  I 
			Don’t care, though.  I don’t care, 
			Because you don’t care.  You haven’t
			Cared for the last two years, why 
			Should you start now?  I just want 
			To impress on you how I feel.  I want
			You to know what happens to people.
			
Paisley, through sobs...

					PAISLEY
			Warren, I’m sorry.  I really am.

Warren looks at Paisley with contempt.  He takes the driver from over his shoulder and rests it on the ground.  Paisley continues to pour out grievances over this.  

Warren finally becomes fed up with the bullshit and, using the driver, begins to beat the side of his car in.  Glass cracks and bows, spider webbing and denting into metallic pulp, denting the car severely.

After a while he stops.  

					WARREN
						(breathing hard)
			I hope you’re happy, Paisley.

Warren walks around to the front of the car and stands in front of it.  The car is nice.  Not top of the line, but it’s a damn good car.  The hood gleams with the smooth curve and the light reflects cleanly off of it.  

					WARREN
			Here’s one for your life someday.

Warren smacks a giant dent into the front of the car with the golf club.  

Paisley still sobs, only louder at this.  

					PAISLEY
			Warren, don’t do this.

					WARREN
			No, Paisley, it’s for you.  I’m
			Doing it for you.

He takes another swing into the car.

					WARREN (cont’d)
			Why don’t we give it a big ‘ol
			Dent for last night, huh?  What 
			Do you say?  Here’s one for losing
			Your virginity to that bitch, for
			Fucking her BRAINS OUT.

Warren comes down on the car twice with this one.  Paisley continues to sob.  Warren laughs as if he’s having a good time.  

					WARREN (cont’d)
			How many times did you bang her, 
			Paisley?  Four?  Five?  I can hit
			It again.

Warren goes back to beating the car.  Paisley shouts in response 

					PAISLEY
			WARREN STOP IT

He’s bawling his eyes out.  He’s such a wreck at this point, we don’t recognize him as the annoying Paisley anymore.  Warren has transformed him.  

					WARREN
			Oh, I know, here’s one to you and
			Your lovely wife, the miss Naomi
			Wells.
Warren beats the windshield in.  

					WARREN (cont’d)
			God, you two make a great couple.
			
Paisley is exasperated from all the emotion.  He’s taking in deep breathes from all the crying, but he can’t stop.  

					WARREN
			I hope everything goes great in 
			Life for you, Paisley, I really do.
			I hope you can live like all those 
			Actors do in the sitcoms on TV.  I 
			Hope every day is another episode 
			Where you solve some stupid problem
			And then everyone learns some 
			Valuable lesson and then you can 
			Cuddle up in bed at the end of the 
			Night with your beautiful wife.  

He hits the car while he says all this. 

					WARREN (cont’d) 

			I hope you have a million children 
			With your wife, all of ‘em growing 
			Up to be football players or hi-paid
			Company executives so that they can
			Put you through retirement, so you 
			And Naomi can live happily until 
			You die at the golden age of 110.

He’s beating the damned thing to a fucking pulp by now.

					WARREN
			I hope you can invite all your 
			Work buddies from the plant over 
			To your house on Sunday to watch 
			The Super Bowl on your big ass 
			Mother fuckin’ widescreen TV, while
			Naomi and all the women sit in the 
			Fucking kitchen and baking or playing
			Cards, anything to keep women from
			Moving up in the fucking world.

What’s there left to beat at this point?

Paisley is pleading him at this point.  

					PAISLEY
			Warren, stop, just stop, please, 
			Warren, please, just fucking stop.

The club, which is bent into the a rounded shape, is thrown into the bushes next to the driveway.  Warren wipes his hands off and then searches himself for a cigarette.  Paisley, still bawling, attempts to regain some stature in the critical eyes of Warren.  Warren, now smoking a cigarette, leans on the front of the trunk and looks in thought.  Then he gets up from the trunk and looks gives Paisley a direct looks straight in the eyes.  

					WARREN
			I hope that everything is great in 
			My absence.  

					PAISLEY
			Where are you going?

					WARREN
			Tell Naomi I hate her too.

Warren slams his door shut and ignites the car’s engine.  He pulls slowly out of the driveway, leaving Paisley standing alone and useless in the prying light of the over hanging streetlamp. 

CUT TO:

INT. ISAAC’S CAR (MOVING) – NIGHTTIME

We join Isaac and Malcolm in Isaac’s car as it speeds down the road in the middle of nowhere.  The two of them comfortably share the silence before Isaac breaks the ice.

					ISAAC
			Have you ever even met Paul? 

					MALCOLM
			No.

					ISAAC
			You know Gustav, though, don’t you?
					MALCOLM
			Yeah.

					ISAAC
			Gustav isn’t so cool.  Paul is 
			Though.

					MALCOLM
			I don’t like Gustav.  

					ISAAC
			You’ll like Paul, though.  I’m sure.

Malcolm never even looks at Isaac.  They just go back to sharing silence before Isaac pulls into the driveway of Ecoligian estate. 

					ISAAC
			Here we are.

				CUT TO:

INT. ECOLIGIAN ESTATE – KITCHEN – NIGHTTIME 

It’s amazing that the Ecoligian parents leave their children alone STILL, as it is that once again, their children are throwing a huge party.  This time, the oldest Ecoligian, is back from College.  David Ecoligian speaks to Malcolm and Isaac in the kitchen.

					DAVID
			It’s crazy at college, dude.  
			Everyone’s fucking and getting high.
			It’s so amazing.

					ISAAC
			Sounds intellectual and highly 
			Esteemed.

David just looks at Isaac.

					DAVID
			Yeah...it’s awesome.

					ISAAC
			Where’s Rushmore and the rest?

					DAVID
			Oh, I think that they’re upstairs.

Isaac and Malcolm take leave of David immeadiatley, who takes offense first, but who is then met by some slutty high school chick who wants some action it would seem.  

Isaac and Malcolm wade through the incessant bullshit that has accumulated in the Ecoligian estate and both pile on up the stairs to the second floor.  They look through several rooms before finding the one that contains Rushmore.

					CUT TO:

INT. ECOLIGIAN ESTATE – BOOK ROOM – NIGHTTIME

As the two enter, Rushmore and Peter, as well as a band of other boys, all smoking Marijuana or cigarettes, greets the two warmly.  Isaac walks over and begins to roll himself a fat joint, using dope from one of the few baggies that litter the desk that has been pulled into the middle of the room. 

Rushmore walks over to Malcolm.

					RUSHMORE
			Oh my god, Malcolm! MALCOLM! You 
			Fuckin’ came, man, dude that’s so
			Awesome.

Malcolm just stares at the ring of boys who are smoking blunts.

					MALCOLM
			W-what’s going on here?

					RUSHMORE
			Oh, we’re just havin’ a party, dude
			That’s all.

The boys look up at Malcolm. 

CUT TO:

INT. ECOLIGIAN HOUSE – LIVING ROOM – NIGHTTIME

From the back screen doors that lead into the living room, we can see Gustav and Tiffany enter from outside.  They walk, hand in hand, through the mess of teenagers that has accumulated throughout the entire night.  As we STEADICAM BEHIND THEM, we watch them walk to the upstairs, but we stop right as we get to the stairs, and as they turn up wards, we follow Paul into the foyer, where he opens up the front door, revealing Steiner.  

CUT TO:

INT. ECOLIGIAN ESTATE – BOOK ROOM – NIGHTTIME 

We’re back right where we cut from the same exact scene last time.  The boys are still looking at Malcolm. 

					MALCOLM
			I don’t party.

					RUSHMORE
			Oh come on, Malcolm, it won’t hurt 
			You.

Malcolm looks at Rushmore.

					MALCOLM
			Rushmore, what happened to you?

					RUSHMORE 
			What?

					MALCOLM		
			Rushmore, you never did this kind 
			Of shit before, and now you’re here?

					RUSHMORE
			Well, people change, Malcolm.
	
					MALCOLM
			I mean, we’ve got fucking school
			Tomorrow and it’s what, 11 o’ clock 
			At night?  What’re you going to do in
			Class tomorrow, sleep?

					RUSHMORE
			Well, you’re here too. 

					MALCOLM
			That doesn’t matter, I’m not supposed
			To be here right now, Rushmore.  Are
			You here at these kinds of things 	
			Every night?

					RUSHMORE
			This doesn’t happen here every night.

					MALCOLM
			No, I mean do you go to these kinds 
			Of things every night?

					RUSHMORE
			More or less, yeah.  I’m just 
			Having a good time.  

					MALCOLM
			It’s a fucking problem, Rushmore.

					RUSHMORE
			No it’s not.

One of the boys calls up to Rushmore from the circle.

					BOY
			Don’t waste your time on him, 
			Rushmore, its not like the Nark is
			Worth your time.

Rushmore heeds no attention.

					RUSHMORE
			Look, Malcolm, I’ve just got some
			Problems and sometimes I Need to 
			Get rid of them. 

					MALCOLM
			Do you have sex with men?

Rushmore looks at Malcolm oddly.

					RUSHMORE
			What?

					MALCOLM
			I’ve been told interesting things
			About you, Rushmore.  I want to 
			Know what the truths about you are,
			And why you resolve your problems 
			Like this.

Rushmore walks out of the room and Malcolm follows him.  As the two leave the room, we STEADICAM behind them.  Right as they pass the stairs, the camera stops.  We can see the two of them go to the end of the hallway and duck inside of a closet.  Right as they shut the door, Tiffany and Gustav walks up the stairs and into shot.  As they walk towards us, we STEADICAM backwards and watch them as they whisper to each other, loving sentiments.  

As they get to a wall, Tiffany leans against it and Gustav pushes his face into hers, kissing her wetly with annoying smacking noises that make your skin crawl.  Tiffany pushes him slightly away and then looks Gustav sternly in the eyes.

					TIFFANY
			Gustav, do you love me?

					GUSTAV
			Yeah, baby, why would you say
			A thing like that?

					TIFFANY
			You don’t just do all this so	
			You can have sex with me, do you?

					GUSTAV
			NO!  Not at all.  

					TIFFANY
			Jules says that you are.

					GUSTAV
			What does Jules know about us?

Gustav goes back to trying to kiss Tiffany, but she pushes him away once more and tries to continue conversation.

					TIFFANY
			No, really, Gus, I’m trying to be 
			Serious here, do you really, truly
			Love me, or am I just some whore 
			To you?

					GUSTAV
			Baby, you’re not a whore to me, 
			You’re my girl, you’ll always be my
			Girl.

					TIFFANY
			Then how come when I’m walking down
			The hall, all your friends is always
			Laughing at me when they see me?  

					GUSTAV
			What?

					TIFFANY
			One of ‘em’s in my economics class,
			Always laughing at me and making 
			Fun of me.  He’s so mean, Gustav, 
			He makes that class like hell for me.
			Gustav, what’re you saying about me
			To make all those guys think its
			So funny that I’m with you?

					GUSTAV
			Tiffany I don’t know what you’re 
			Talkin’ about, baby.  I don’t say
			Nothin’ that’s bad about you, baby.
			I only tell my guys the good stuff 
			About you, the good stuff.  They’s 
			All happy for me cause I found me 
			A good girl.  They just being 
			Playful with you, that’s all, just 
			Playful.  They do it to every girl 
			In the hallway.  

					TIFFANY
			You think?

					GUSTAV
			I know, Baby, I know.  It’s 
			How things work out, baby.  

					TIFFANY
			Do you love me?

					GUSTAV
			YES!

					TIFFANY
			Really?

Tiffany smiles widely and allows Gustav to press closer to her once again.  The two kiss.

					GUSTAV
			Really.

They begin kissing more and more.

CUT TO:

INT. ECOLIGIAN ESTATE – CLOSET – NIGHTTIME 

We join in the closet right in the darkness.  We can’t see anything right before Malcolm’s hand reaches up and yanks the chain to turn the light on.  The two of them stand facing each other, a profile shot.  Malcolm just stares at Rushmore for a little while, before he finally breaks in.

					MALCOLM
			So what, Rushmore?  What’s been
			Happening to you?

					RUSHMORE
			I don’t know.

					MALCOLM
			Nobody seems to know why they
			Change when they get to high 
			School.  There has to be some 
			Kind of tentative reason that 
			You changed into a different 
			Person almost as soon as you got 
			To high school, Rushmore.  You 
			Were slipping the summer before 
			Ninth grade, and then you just 
			Vanished.

					RUSHMORE
			I dunno.  I just had problems, I 
			Don’t know why.  This isn’t a 
			Problem.  It’s a way to cope with
			Them, I guess.

					MALCOLM
			THIS is a way to cope with your 
			Problems?

					RUSHMORE
			It takes the edge off of things.  
			I just want to have some fun, 
			Malcolm.  Everything in high school
			Is so serious.  I can’t hack it 
			Right now.  

					MALCOLM
			You’re just causing bigger problems
			For yourself, though, you’re just
			Digging a deeper hole for yourself.

					RUSHMORE
			No I’m not, I just do this for fun.

					MALCOLM
			Why do you go up to Geneseo all
			The time?

					RUSHMORE
			What?

					MALCOLM
			You said that there’s nothing to 
			Do here, so you always drive up to 
			Geneseo and Galva.  Why?  What is
			Up there that’s so good that you 
			Leave Hudson for days at a time?

					RUSHMORE
			I don’t know...it’s just better.

					MALCOLM
			There has to be a reason why you 
			Always go up there, Rushmore.  

					RUSHMORE
I-- there are people up there who
I know.  They’re just friends, I 
Just go up there when things get 
Rough down here and Hudson.

		MALCOLM
How old are these people?

		RUSHMORE
I dunno...20, 23 maybe.

		MALCOLM
Rushmore, if you have problems, why
Do take care of them like this? 

		RUSHMORE
I told you, it takes the edge off.

		MALCOLM
I don’t mean THIS (motions to the
Hallway), I mean going up and 
Staying with grown men, men far 
Too old for you.

		RUSHMORE
W-what?

		MALCOLM
Rushmore, I know you’ve had several
Girlfriends in the past.  And you’ve
Truly felt for them, probably, I’m 
Sure of it, but I’ve been hearing 
Things about you.  You’re obviously 
A romantic.  But it sounds like you 
Fall in love with everyone you see,
And it bothers you.  Do you go up 
And, you know, with these men?

		RUSHMORE
What?

		MALCOLM
Sleep with them.

		RUSHMORE
WHAT?

		MALCOLM
Rushmore, I’ve heard things about
You, and—

		RUSHMORE
You’re fucking insane, Malcolm.

Rushmore hurries to leave the closet.

					MALCOLM
			No, wait, Rushmore it’s just a 
			Rumour.  

					RUSHMORE
			Who the fuck told you these kinds
			Of things?  Who?  My parents?  The 
			Police?  Was it fucking Scarlett, 
			I swear to God I don’t understand
			Why that bitch hates me so –

					MALCOLM
			No, it was Tiffany, she said she
			Heard it from her friend Julia.  
			She talked about it after that kid
			Crashed his car on the football field
			Last August.

					RUSHMORE
			That was a generated lie by the 
			Police.  

					MALCOLM
			I heard that one of the guys you 
			Were with was the one who wrecked 
			The car.  

					RUSHMORE
			No, I didn’t know anybody up there 
			Who did it. 

					MALCOLM
			Oh.

Rushmore goes to leave the closet.

					MALCOLM (cont’d)
			Did you know anybody who did it?

					RUSHMORE
			No.

Rushmore leaves the closet and Malcolm behind.  Malcolm just stands there, and then he finally leaves.  The camera stays focused on him and then cuts.

CUT TO:

INT. ECOLIGIAN ESTATE – LIVING ROOM – NIGHTTIME

We’re back in the Ecoligian living room, where several kids, all with bottles of liquor, sit around.  They tell stories about times before and all laugh about it.  Steiner is one of the few, although he does not have anything to drink.  We may assume, however, that if he has taken part in the festivities, he doesn’t show any signs. 

He gets up from the couch where he has been sitting and we STEADICAM behind him.  He walks through the kitchen and up near the stairs where we stop.  He veers off in the opposite direction, into the foyer area, and Malcolm comes back down the stairs.  Malcolm walks towards us, into the kitchen, and begins looking around for something in the kitchen area, but seeming not to find what he’s looking for, walks back to the stairs into the foyer.  We STEADICAM behind him as he walks into the foyer.  He looks around inside this room, his back turned to the rest, and as he turns around, he sees right then that Steiner has passed him and is walking back up the stairs.  He walks back near the camera and as we turn to face his back, we again STEADICAM right behind him up the stairs.  He looks into several rooms down the hallway and he gets to the point at which we saw Tiffany and Gustav have been making out.  As we follow behind him, he goes to open one of the doors – the bathroom.  We can just barely see through the door that Tiffany and Gustav are inside, doing the unmentionable.

CUT TO:

 EXT. WARREN’S CAR – NIGHTTIME

We are outside Warren’s car.  He stands against the battered vehicle with his cell phone to his ear.  We can hear the phone ringing, and nobody answers. He sits for sometime and mutters 

					WARREN
			Shit.

CUT TO:

INT. ECOLIGIAN ESTATE – BOOK ROOM – NIGHTTIME

We’re back at the circle of fools who are gathered around a table of weed.  Isaac is telling his story and Rushmore enters.  

					ISAAC
			I mean, she’s so fucking stupid.  
			She comes home, just now, at like 
			Fucking 9 at night, and begins 
			Yelling at me.  

					RUSHMORE
			What he hell is up with Malcolm?

					ISAAC
			What?

					RUSHMORE
			Malcolm isn’t acting at all like 
			He used to.  He’s so different 
			Now.  

					ISAAC
			I know.  I don’t understand him 
			At all.  He’s always quiet and 
			Fucking secluded in everything 
			He does anymore. 

					RUSHMORE 
			It’s so sad.  He’s not the same 
			Kid he used to be, man.  We used	
			To hang out all the time and shit.

					ISAAC
			Shit, man, I wouldn’t know, I was
			Never there.  

					RUSHMORE
			Yeah, but you know what I’m talking
			About, don’t you?  Those like few 
			Friends you always hang out with?  
			The kind that could be your brother
			Or something?

					ISAAC
			Yeah.

					RUSHMORE
			We were always like that, man.  He 
			And I did things together all the 
			Time.  And now he’s never around.  
			He always tells me he’s going to do 
			Something with me, and now that he’s 
			Finally gotten here, he acts all
			Weird, asking me these shit questions
			That I don’t know the answers to.

BOY
			Hey, forget him.  People change
			All the time, dude.  He’s lost,
			Now, and you’ll never fucking have
			Him back.  

					RUSHMORE
			Guess you’re right.

Rushmore takes up a cigarette and lights it in his mouth.

CUT TO:

EXT. ISAAC’S HOUSE – NIGHTTIME

We follow behind Warren in a NOTSOSTEADICAM way as he walks up onto Isaac’s front porch.  He gets up onto the porch and proceeds to knock.  Finally, after what seems like forever, he goes to leave when Isaac’s mother opens the front door.  She gets the first word in as a quiet “Get away.”

					WARREN
			Is Malcolm Foresster here?

She goes to close the door.

					ISAAC’S MOTHER
			Go away, you stupid shit.

					WARREN
			What?

					ISAAC’S MOTHER
			He isn’t here, neither of ‘em are
			Here, they’re never coming back, so
			Go away and leave me alone.

The woman shuts the door, leaving Warren to just sit there, wondering why she should react like that.  

	CUT TO:

INT. ECOLIGIAN ESTATE – HALLWAY – NIGHTTIME

We’re back at the same frame we left Malcolm on as he has opened the door to the bathroom on.  We can see Tiffany and Gustav inside, do, as we said before, the ‘unmentionable’ as Malcolm looks on.  He then shuts the door and presses himself against it.  He has a ghosted look on his face as he tries to register what he’s just seen.  He breathes slowly and the camera gets into his face and turns as if it were a paparazzi camera trying to get his emotions capture perfectly on tape.  As we move to one side, he takes from the door and walks down the hallway, towards us, as we are not in STEADICAM anymore, but simply walking backwards.  Malcolm is speaking to himself in muttered tones and we aren’t quite able to distinguish everything he’s saying.  

After a while of walking down the hall, he turns back and goes to the bathroom.  He shoves the door open, and completely fucking loses it.  

CUT TO:

EXT. HIGH SCHOOL – PARKING LOT – NIGHTTIME

As we sit alone in the high school parking lot, late, VERY late at night, we can see a single car come driving down the lane adjacent the high school and the parking lot.  It shimmers in the light of the street lamps and pulls into the parking lot without even signaling.  It pulls slowly in and then takes its parking spot right in front of the camera.  As it flicks off, Warren exits the driver’s side door and walks to the back seat, where he gets in.  We sit and watch him for sometime.

CUT TO:

INT. ECOLIGIAN ESTATE – FOYER – NIGHTTIME 

Malcolm comes barreling down the stairs, contained but with tones of extreme rage that can’t be kept.  He flies into the foyer, and behind come several people.  

Malcolm shoves the door open and walks out into the cool night air, no jacket on whatsoever.  Out of the door behind comes Tiffany and Gustav, struggling to get their clothes on.  Several people come barreling out of the house behind him and watch the spectacle.

					TIFFANY
			Malcolm, wait, I can explain.

MALCOLM
			I don’t car, Tiffany, I don’t care.

					TIFFANY
			Malcolm, why are you here?

					MALCOLM
			Roads back to our house are washed
			Out due to the rain, I thought you	
			Were home with them!

					TIFFANY
			I was.

					MALCOLM
			Then how did you get out here?

					TIFFANY
			I ran away.

Malcolm stops and stares at her on the front lawn.

					MALCOLM
			You ran away?

Tiffany nods.

					TIFFANY
			I couldn’t take mom and dad anymore.

					MALCOLM
			You what?
		
					TIFFANY
			Look, Malcolm, I’m sorry.  I 
			Didn’t want you to see me like this,
			I love you, I just can’t take it at
			Home anymore—

					MALCOLM
			You don’t love me, and you don’t 
			Love our parents either.  You’re not 
			Showing it very well if you do.

					TIFFANY
			What?

					MALCOLM
			Tiffany, go back in the house.  Go
			Back to running away, go back to 
			Whatever.

					TIFFANY
			Malcolm, mom and dad are worried 
			About you.  

					MALCOLM
			Worried about me? 

					TIFFANY
			Malcolm, you’ve become different.

					MALCOLM
			And you’re the same exact person 
			You were last year?

					TIFFANY
			Malcolm, you don’t talk anymore.  
			
					MALCOLM
			Shut up.

Malcolm turns to walk away again.  Tiffany begins crying.  More people gather to watch the spectacle.

					TIFFANY
			Malcolm, wait, please, this isn’t 
			Like you at all!

					MALCOLM
			Go back inside, Tiffany, I don’t 
			Want to hear it.  Just go back 
			To them, go to back to all of 
			Them, I don’t care anymore.  
		
					TIFFANY
			MALCOLM, WAIT.

Malcolm stops and turns around to face Tiffany.  Behind her stands dozens of people.

					MALCOLM
			You’re all fucking insane.  None 
			Of you is doing any of this for 
			Anyone else.  You’re all selfish 
			And insane, and you’re all in hell.
			You’re not in hell because of your
			Parents, you’re in hell because 
			You made it for yourselves, and 
			There’s no one to blame but yourselves
			For it.  I’m different, because I 
			Made it for myself.  We’re all 
			Different because we made it for
			Ourselves.  You’re all fucked up 
			Because it was your own fucking 
			Decisions and no one else’s. 

Malcolm turns around and walks off.  Everyone stands on the lawn watching him as he walks onto the road and back to town. 

Isaac runs out down the lawn and up to Malcolm.

					ISAAC
			Malcolm, hold up, where the fuck 
			Are you going?

					MALCOLM
			Leave me alone, Isaac, I’m having 
			Nothing to do with you anymore.  
			
					ISAAC
			What?

					MALCOLM
			I’m walking home.  Go back to just 
			Fucking up.

Isaac stops on the lawn and Malcolm continues to walk off.  Back in the crowd, Steiner just stands and watches.  People begin to pile back inside.  Steiner watches, but goes to join to pile who heads back in.  Tiffany and Isaac stay out on the lawn, Gustav trying to push Tiffany back in. 

CUT TO:

INT.  WARREN’S CAR – MORNING

It’s now early morning.  Cars have already begun taking up the parking lot.  The sun begins to rise brightly on the horizon in the east and colours the sky light blues and greens.  We can see that the trees are beginning to gain leaves and buds.  The rain water still puddles in the parking lot and reflects perfectly the sky above it.  Warren lays inside the car on the back seat, under the thick material flannel that he bought last night.  He’s asleep.  

From outside, we can see someone walking up, reflected in the glass.  This piece is slightly spider webbed, but not so bad.  He knocks on the window.  

Inside the car, Warren comes to wake and his head pokes out of the flannel.  He looks up and sees the silhouette standing outside.  As goes to open the door, and from inside, we can see that the person is Malcolm.

					MALCOLM
			I think I love you.

Warren looks up at him, sleep squinting his eyes.

					WARREN
			You do?

					MALCOLM
			Yeah.

Malcolm is slightly embarrassed.

					WARREN
			Do you want to get in?

					MALCOLM
			Do you mind?

We can see Malcolm’s breath.

					WARREN
			No, no, come on.

Malcolm climbs into the car, on top of Warren, and shuts the door behind himself.  As he lays down on top of Warren, Warren sticks his arms out and around him.  Warren’s face lays to the side, his eyes closed, still half asleep. 

					MALCOLM
			It’s so cold out there.
					WARREN
			I know, that’s why I chose flannel.

Malcolm laughs.

					WARREN
			Where were you?

					MALCOLM 
			The Ecoligian house.  

					WARREN
			Wow.  How’d you get here?

					MALCOLM
			Walked.  

Warren hugs him tighter and rubs a bit, to warm up Malcolm. 

					WARREN
			Shit, you’re freezing. 

Malcolm looks over at the clock in the car.  It reads 5:32 a.m.  

					MALCOLM
			We have another hour or so before 
			School starts.  

					WARREN
			Mmkay...

Warren’s already drifting into sleep.

					MALCOLM
			Warren?

Warren can barely answer.

					WARREN
			Mm?

					MALCOLM
			Thanks a lot.

					WARREN
			Mm.
The two of them sit in the blue for a while.  The sun continues to rise and cars continue to invade the parking lot.  As we go back to the two, they’ve fallen asleep.  

Warren jerks awake, his eyes opening widely.  Malcolm is gone.  

CUT TO:

INT.  HIGH SCHOOL – LUNCH ROOM – MORNING

Warren walks into the high school once more, everything around him stirring and alive.  He walks into the lunch room, where he looks around at all the people eating breakfast before school starts.  

As he looks over to the table that normally harbors Malcolm, we can see that Malcolm is talking with Steiner.  The two of them are laughing.  Warren walks over to the two and sits down.  

Steiner moves over to allow Malcolm some room. 

					WARREN
			Who’s this?

					MALCOLM
			Steiner Mace.  Kid from my history
			Class.  

As Warren looks over at Steiner, a girl comes up to Steiner and sits down with him.  She puts her arms around him, and the two entangle lovingly.  

Malcolm looks at Warren, no expression.

After while, Steiner leaves Malcolm and Warren alone.  Malcolm speaks.

					MALCOLM
			I feel so foolish.  

					WARREN
			Mm, you should get used to it.

					MALCOLM
			I don’t understand people at all.
					WARREN
			People are weird, they make no
			Sense at all.  

					MALCOLM
			Yeah.

Malcolm’s significantly depressed.

					WARREN
			I have to go to my locker here in
			A minute.  

					MALCOLM
			Do you know that person who crashed
			Their car last year?  

Warren waits a minute to answer.

					WARREN
			Yes, why?

					MALCOLM
			Why’d he crash his car into the
			Football field?

					WARREN
			I think he was heartbroken over 
			His girlfriend.  

					MALCOLM
			Really?

					WARREN
			It’s never really anything more
			Than that when it comes to high 
			School.  

Malcolm waits a while.

					MALCOLM
			Yeah, I guess so.

					WARREN
			I have to go.

					MALCOLM
			Where are you going after High
			School?

					WARREN
			Oh, College, I guess.  I think
			Perhaps I’ll go to Utah state.

					MALCOLM
			Sounds cool.

Warren just looks at Malcolm for a minute.

					WARREN
			Look, things’ll be fine.  

					MALCOLM
			Yeah.  I can’t say these things
			Without impunity myself, it seems.

Warren smiles.

					WARREN
			I’ll talk to you later.

Warren gets up and walks off.  Malcolm utters a “bye” and watches as Warren leaves the lunch room.  Everyone in the lunch room is gone.  

CUT TO:

BLACK SCREEN 

OVERLAY TITLE CARD W/ WHITE TEXT

“In the wake of our Graduation...the Class of 2006”

FADE OUT

FADE INTO:

INT. PAISLEY’S HOUSE – PAISLEY’S ROOM – DAYTIME

We fade in on Paisley, sitting on the phone.  He’s talking to a girl, we can tell by the sound of the voice.  It’s probably Naomi.  As he speaks, his mother passes by the door.  
					PAISLEY
			Uh huh.  I love you too.  Tee hee.

Oh no.

					PAISLEY
			Bye bye.

Paisley hangs the phone up on the hook and smiles to himself as he goes back to writing on some papers.

His mother walks by after some time and pokes her head in. 

					PAISLEY’S MOTHER
			Paisley, someone’s here to see you.

					PAISLEY
			Ok, just send him up.

After a while, Warren enters the room.  Paisley looks up at him with a smile and says, good naturedly, 

					PAISLEY
			Hey, Warren.

Warren smiles and puts his hand up. 

					WARREN
			How’s it going?

					PAISLEY
			Great.

Warren stands next to the bed.

					WARREN
			Well that’s good.

Paisley smiles.  This is strange.

					WARREN
			Hey, I know that I haven’t talked
			To you in some time.  I’ve been a 
			Real ass to you, and I know I’m 
			Wrong for it, but – 

The Phone begins ringing once more.
					PAISLEY
			Hold on.

Warren stops talking and just watches.  He uses this chance to look around the room at all the pictures of Paisley and Naomi that have been put up. 

					PAISLEY
			Mmmhmm?  Well, we have to get the 
			Loan first.  No.  No.  Yeah, we’ve
			Made sure of it.  They accepted us 
			Both.  Well, we’ll worry about that
			When we get there.

Warren watches Paisley.

					PAISLEY (Cont’d)
			No.  No.  Actually, why don’t you 	
			Call here concerning that.  Her 
			Number is 3-4-6-4-8-8-9.  Ok.  Ok.
			Alright.

Paisley hangs up the phone.

					WARREN
			Look, I just wanted to say that I’m 
			Sorr-

					PAISLEY
			I have something to tell you.

Warren just looks at Paisley.

					PAISLEY (cont’d)
			I told you that last month, I lost
			My virginity to Naomi, right?

Warren swallows.

					WARREN
			Yeah?

					PAISLEY
			Well, we found out that she’s 
			Pregnant.

The colour DRAINS from Warren’s face.  He doesn’t speak.
					PAISLEY (cont’d)
			I’m going to be a father.

Warren says nothing to Paisley.  We’d expect him to flip out, but he remains calm.  

					WARREN
			That, uh, that’s – awesome, 
			Paisley, it really is.

Paisley is bursting with pride.

					PAISLEY
			Isn’t it?  And guess what’s even
			Better.

					WARREN
			What’s that?

					PAISLEY
			Naomi and I are getting married.

Warren forces a smile.

					WARREN
			That’s so – cool.

					PAISLEY
			What did I tell you, Warren?  I 
			Told you it could happen, I told
			It could.  

Paisley is smiling so widely now.  We can see he’s honestly an extremely happy person.  

					WARREN
			I’m real happy for you, Paisley.
			I really am.  

Warren forces a wider smile, but we can see he’s incredibly let down by the news.

					PAISLEY
			What did you want to say?

					WARREN
			Oh, nothing.  
					PAISLEY
			You sure?

					WARREN
			No, yeah, I can’t remember. 

					PAISLEY
			I’m sorry, I’m just so excited.
			She and I got into the same 
			College.  We’re going to the 
			University of Illinois, isn’t 
			That awesome?

					WARREN
			Sounds terrific.

Paisley just looks at Warren for a while, a wide smile on his face.  He honestly can’t see how Warren actually feels. 

					PAISLEY
			I’m so glad that you’re happy for
			Me.  I thought you’d be mad at me.

Warren shakes his head.

					WARREN
			No, no.  I, uh, I’ve grown up a bit.
			I’m happy for you, Paisley, I wish 
			You the, uh, the best of luck with
			Your new life.  I honestly do.

					PAISLEY
			Thank you.

Warren turns to walk out of the room.

					PAISLEY (cont’d)
			Hey Warren.

Warren stops and turns slowly.

					WARREN
			What?

					PAISLEY
			Did you ever get that car of yours
			Fixed?
Warren just stares at Paisley.  This is the final straw of incredulity.  Warren just looks at Paisley and calmly says 
		
					WARREN
			Yeah.

Paisley smiles at Warren, and Warren goes back to leaving the house.  

As he leaves the front door, we STEADICAM in front of him, SLOWLY.  He looks around himself as he walks down the cement path that cuts through the grassy lawn.  The sun is shining brightly, and we are given the hint that perhaps even in the light of what you may feel as incredibly heartbreak, something good can come of it. 

We return to normal speed and Warren gets into his car.  As he buckles his seat belt and ignites the engine, he sits there for a while.  

He begins driving and tears do begin forming in his eyes, but his expression, dead and unforgiving, doesn’t not change.  We can see the house behind him in the distance.  As he drives, we hear Malcolm’s voice ring from behind us. 

					MALCOLM (V.O.)
			This is falling to Earth. 

WARREN (V.O.)
			I’m falling to Earth?  

					MALCOLM (V.O.)
			Well, you’re making important 
			Realizations.

CUT TO:

INT.FORESSTER HOUSE – BATHROOM – NIGHTTIME 

While these voice-overs continue to play, we see Malcolm sitting in his bathtub.  The rose pedals float on the surface of the water as the level rises.  Nobody else occupies the bathroom.  Malcolm is completely alone.

FADE TO BLACK

THE END