THE TRAGER HOUSE
Lori's Room - Early Morning
[Everyone in the house is fast asleep. Everyone except for Kyle. He is in the hallway standing guard outside of Lori's bedroom.]
VOICEOVER
Life is full of regrets. But no matter how hard you try, you can't change the past. [He looks around into the room when Lori begins to stir in the bed.] Lori had been attacked. No one was sure who did it or why. And all I could focus on was how I wasn't able to stop it from happening.
[Lori props up on an elbow and looks down at the foot of her bed. Stephen has been sleeping on a chaise lounge in her room all night. Across the left side of her face is a long scrape and a big purple bruise.]
STEPHEN [waking up]
Hey.
LORI [sits up in bed]
Dad, you have to stop doing this. [looks over at Kyle] And you - do I speak with a British accent?
KYLE
No.
LORI
Am I wearing a crown?
KYLE
No.
LORI
Then stop guarding my door like I'm Queen freakin' Elizabeth.
KYLE
Sorry.
[Lori sighs as Kyle slowly walks away.]
STEPHEN [looking after Kyle sympathetically]
He's just worried about you.
LORI
I gathered.
STEPHEN
Sweetie, I know you're just tryin' to be strong, but what happened is a lot to deal with.
LORI
What happened is I became one with my inner liberal and got hate-crimed for it. As far as I'm concerned [points to her face], this is my badge of honor.
Stephen and Nicole's Room
[Everyone is awake now and Nicole is straightening up the room and closing the closet doors. Stephen comes into the room.]
NICOLE
How's she doin' today?
STEPHEN
Apparently, better than I am. When I look at her, it breaks my heart.
NICOLE [Josh walks into room behind her]
Yeah, I feel the same way, but we have to keep it together and make her feel safe and comfortable.
JOSH
How about whippin' up some sympathy pancakes?
[Nicole turns around and both parents look at him.]
What? She likes them and I'm in the mood.
NICOLE [smiles]
I'll be right down.
[Josh smiles, too, and heads out into the hallway towards the bathroom. Lori comes out of her room and rushes to the door to beat him to it.]
LORI
Me first.
JOSH [doesn't argue]
All yours.
[He walks off and Lori looks after him with a confused look on her face.
The phone rings as Stephen and Nicole walk out of their bedroom.]
NICOLE [putting on an earring]
I hope that's the police with news for Lori.
STEPHEN
I already spoke to them. There are no leads or eyewitnesses, and since Lori can't identify her attacker, then they're at a dead-end.
[In the hallway, Kyle walks up to them with the phone in his hand.]
KYLE
A Dr. Keel is on the phone.
STEPHEN
Dr. Keel?
KYLE
She's calling from the hospital about a patient. A William Trager. Who is he?
[Stephen and Nicole look at each other.]
STEPHEN [to Kyle, taking phone]
He's my father. [walks back into his bedroom]
[into phone] Hello. Yeah, this is his son.
KYLE [to Nicole]
I didn't know Stephen's father lived in town. How long has he been sick?
NICOLE
I don't know. They haven't spoken in years. [Kyle frowns]
It's complicated.
STEPHEN [comes back into the hallway]
[to Nicole] He had a stroke last night. Looks like he's not gonna make it.
NICOLE [rubs his arm]
I'm so sorry, Stephen.
KYLE
Is there anything I can do to help?
STEPHEN
Nah, there's nothin' to do. I said goodbye to my father years ago.
[He walks away towards the stairs]
KYLE
Are things that bad between them?
NICOLE
I always hoped they'd manage to repair things, but doesn't look like that's gonna happen.
[She follows Stephen and leaves Kyle in the hallway.]
VOICEOVER
Adam Baylin said I would touch the world. But what good is having a gift if I couldn't help the people I loved the most?
[Opening Theme]
THE HOSPITAL
Later That Morning
[Stephen and Kyle are walking down one of the corridors in the hospital. Glancing at name plaques next to the closed doors, Stephen is looking for his father's room.]
STEPHEN
You didn't have to come.
KYLE
I know you told everyone not to, but I want to meet your father.
STEPHEN [smiles]
He's in a coma, you know. He can't communicate.
KYLE [nods]
I understand.
[Stephen locates his dad's room. He stops outside the door for a moment before going in.]
STEPHEN
Been a long time since I've seen him. This wasn't how I envisioned our next meeting.
KYLE
Would you rather go in alone?
STEPHEN
No.
[He opens the door and they both go inside. An old man is lying on his back in the hospital bed. He is hooked up to a respirator and several monitors. Stephen exhales slowly when he sees him. As they watch his father in the bed, a physician comes into the room behind them.]
DOCTOR
Mr. Trager?
STEPHEN [he and Kyle turn around]
Yes.
DOCTOR
I'm Dr. Keel.
STEPHEN [they shake hands]
Hi, nice to meet you.
DR. KEEL
Hi.
STEPHEN
So, how's he doin'?
DR. KEEL [walks up to the bed]
Well, I'm afraid there's been no improvement.
KYLE
Can he hear us?
DR. KEEL [indicates a monitor]
This machine monitors his neural patterns. The readings indicate that he can't.
[The limited patterns on the screen are very weak.]
I'll give you some time with him. [she leaves]
STEPHEN [to Kyle]
That's probably for the best that he doesn't know I'm here.
KYLE
Do you really think that?
STEPHEN
Yeah, I was a big disappointment to him. He never agreed with how I chose to live my life. Never listened. . .never cared.
[On the monitor, there is a fluctuation in his father's neural patterns. They have gone from a few weak lines to a screen filled with neural signals. At the same time, Kyle grimaces and squeezes his forehead between his eyes with his fingers. After a moment, it stops.]
STEPHEN [looking at Kyle]
Are you okay?
KYLE
Yeah. I'm fine.
[The neural patterns on the monitor have returned to the way they were.]
THE TRAGER HOUSE
Lori's Room - That Afternoon
[With her back to the bedroom door, Lori is picking up dishes off of her bed. She turns around with dishes in hand, and Jessi is standing quietly in her doorway.]
LORI [startled]
God. How long were you standing there?
JESSI
Six seconds.
LORI
I haven't seen you since you threw that hissy fit at the dance.
JESSI
I got mad at my sister.
LORI
Remind me never to cross you. [chuckles] So, what's up?
JESSI
Uh, I have a session with your mom today.
LORI
Oh, I get it. You came by for a damage report. Well...
[She turns her head from side to side. Besides the wounds on her left cheek, she has bright red scratches across her neck on the other side.]
JESSI [staring at Lori's injuries]
You look awful.
LORI
Wow. Blunt.
JESSI
Does it hurt?
LORI
Uh, looks worse than it is. I just hope the cops nail the bastard who did this.
JESSI [doesn't understand]
The police?
LORI
Mm, you know. Blue hats, shiny badges?
JESSI
Why would they be involved?
LORI
Last time I checked the statutes, assault was still a crime.
JESSI
A crime?
LORI [frowns]
Yeah. Plus, the creep who did this stole the necklace Declan gave me and I want it back.
[She touches her chest where the necklace is now missing.]
So. . .are we done with 20 Questions?
JESSI [slight smile]
I only asked four.
LORI
Right. Well. . .you don't wanna keep my mom waiting.
[Jessi turns and leaves. Lori looks after her like she's nuts.]
BASKETBALL COURT
[In the gym, Declan is playing ball with some buddies. When he finishes, Kyle is there waiting for him. Declan walks over to Kyle and he is still limping a little on his bad ankle. They start to walk off the court.]
DECLAN [out of breath]
You okay?
KYLE
I didn't sleep much last night. How are you doing?
DECLAN
You mean now that I know the whole truth about you? I'll never look at science class the same, that's for sure.
KYLE
I know it was a lot to take in.
DECLAN
You can say that again. But don't. [points finger at him]
How's Lori?
KYLE [turns around and stops]
She's dealing. You should stop by. I'm sure she'd appreciate it.
DECLAN
I want to, but what about Foss?
KYLE
We can't be sure it was him.
DECLAN
The cops cleared everyone who was at The Rack. Which can only mean one thing: your boy Foss is guilty.
KYLE
I just can't imagine he'd go so far.
DECLAN
Cause he's such a model citizen. The guy's offed how many people that we know about? So believing he could knock Lori around. . .it's not that big a stretch.
KYLE [exhales]
I should have seen it coming. I could have done something to prevent it.
DECLAN
Kyle, the guy's a frickin' psycho! You're not responsible for what he did. You haven't heard from him, have you?
KYLE
Not since he left last week. And I have no idea where to find him.
DECLAN
What are you going to do if he comes back?
KYLE [shrugs]
I have to figure that out. Meanwhile, you should check on Lori. At least for now, I think it's safe.
[Kyle leaves and heads towards the gym doors.]
THE TRAGER HOUSE
Nicole's Office
[Jessi and Nicole are in the middle of another therapy session. Jessi sits cross-legged in a chair holding a pillow on her lap. Nicole sits across from her with a notepad.]
JESSI
Lori seems fine.
NICOLE
Well, appearances can be deceiving.
JESSI
What do you mean?
NICOLE
Well, sometimes people project what they want others to see even if it's not an accurate representation of who they are.
JESSI [about herself; not Lori]
We can be different than who we appear to be.
[Nicole writes on her notepad.]
Are you writing that down?
NICOLE
Not exactly. Sometimes I record what you say. Other times, just my thoughts and impressions.
JESSI [interested]
About me?
NICOLE
Well, yes.
JESSI [smiles]
Can I read them?
NICOLE
Jessi, they're confidential. You know that. [Jessi stares at the pad] Let's talk about Emily. [Jessi looks up] Now, when she insisted that you leave the dance, is that the way she normally behaves when she's upset with you?
JESSI
I guess. I know everybody thinks she's so nice, but she's not. She just. . .appears to be.
NICOLE
What do you mean?
JESSI
Well, she's always saying that she's in control. Telling me where to go and who to be with. Sometimes, I'm just really scared around her.
[Nicole starts writing on her notepad again.]
Kyle's Room - Early Evening
[Kyle is at his desk working on another drawing. He seems consumed with it and is tapping very intensely with the chalk.]
VOICEOVER
Ever since my trip to the hospital, I felt like I was in a fog. But as my head cleared, an image appeared in my mind. I didn't know what it was or why I was drawing it. I just knew I had to get it out.
Living Room
[Stephen is sitting at the computer studying the screen. Lori and Josh walk into the living room where he is working.]
LORI
Dad?
STEPHEN [looks up]
Hey guys. What's up?
LORI [stands next to him and rubs his shoulder]
We figured you weren't feeling that great. . .
JOSH
You wanna go to a movie or somethin'? Our treat.
STEPHEN
Wait. You'll actually be seen at a movie with me?
JOSH
At a time like this, I'm willing to risk the embarrassment.
LORI
So you're really okay, then?
STEPHEN [looks at her]
Should I be asking you that?
LORI
Dad, your father's in the hospital. My face will heal.
STEPHEN [looks away]
Grandpa had a chance to be part of our lives and he chose not to be. [Josh lowers his eyes]
[Kyle comes into the living room with his drawing.]
KYLE
Do any of you recognize this?
[He holds out his picture. It is a drawing of a single-story white church with a tall steeple.]
JOSH
It's a church, dude.
STEPHEN [frowns and takes the drawing from Kyle]
That's St. Augustine.
LORI [looking at picture]
How do you know that?
STEPHEN [staring at the drawing]
My father belonged to the congregation. He wanted me and your mom to get married there. Why did you draw this?
KYLE
I don't know; it just came to me. I must have seen it recently.
STEPHEN [looks up at Kyle]
You couldn't have. This church was torn down years ago.
Nicole and Stephen's Room
[Stephen and Nicole are on the bed looking through their photograph albums. Stephen is sitting up looking through an album and Nicole is lying on her stomach.]
NICOLE [closes an album]
No St. Augustine in this one either.
STEPHEN [looking through another photo album]
Well, he had to have seen it in one of these.
[He stops at a page of photos when they were younger. In one picture, they are sitting together on a stoop; in the other, Nicole is pregnant and Stephen is holding her.]
Check it out. Our first apartment.
NICOLE
Yeah, if you can call a basement sublet with bad plumbing and mice an apartment.
STEPHEN
Hey, I loved it.
NICOLE [smiles]
I did, too.
STEPHEN [turns to a wedding picture]
Ah, you were so beautiful. I was afraid you were gonna wise up at the last minute.
NICOLE
We could've gotten married at the church, you know. I would have gone along with it.
STEPHEN
You remember how he was. He had to put his stamp on everything. If I didn't make a stand with our wedding, he would've barked religion at us for the rest of our lives.
NICOLE
Instead, he just didn't come at all.
STEPHEN
I know we both made mistakes.
NICOLE [puts hand on his shoulder]
Maybe you should try talking to him. I know he can't hear you, but saying the words might be enough.
STEPHEN
I got nothin' to say to him.
[shuts album and tosses it on the bench at foot of the bed]
[exhales] Not a single picture of the church. How the hell did Kyle draw this?
Living Room
The Next Day
[Josh and Amanda are seated and talking about Kyle's drawing.]
JOSH [to Amanda]
My grandfather sent Kyle the image.
AMANDA
But he's in a coma.
JOSH
Like that's gonna stop Kyle?
[Kyle comes into the room with a drink for Amanda and himself]
[to Kyle] Just when I'm ready to cross alien off my list, you pull another stunt and suck me back in.
KYLE [sits next to Amanda on the sofa]
I don't do stunts.
JOSH
You know what I mean. Something. . .unexplainable.
KYLE
It is explainable.
JOSH
I'm listening.
KYLE [can't think of anything]
Okay, I can't explain it. . .yet. But whatever it is, I'm sure there's a logical, scientific explanation.
AMANDA [to Kyle]
Well, don't be so sure. Maybe it's divine intervention.
JOSH [looks away]
Boring.
KYLE
Divine intervention?
AMANDA
Maybe God wants you to help Stephen make peace with his father.
KYLE
Do you really think that's possible?
AMANDA
With you, anything's possible.
Lori's Room
[Lori is looking at paint samples. She is listening to music on her ipod with headphones on, so she doesn't hear Declan come into the room. She turns, and he is standing right behind her.]
LORI (gasps)
Oh. [pulls off headphones] I really wish people would stop sneaking up on me.
DECLAN
Sorry. How you doin'?
LORI
Fine. I never knew there were so many shades of purple.
DECLAN
You're painting your room?
LORI
Time to change it up in here.
DECLAN
Lori, seriously, are you okay?
LORI
Did you expect to find me in the fetal position?
DECLAN
I...I wouldn't blame you.
LORI
Look, some coward jumped me. I'm not gonna let him get the best of me.
DECLAN
Well, that's great, but. . .I also think you can let yourself freak out a little.
LORI [changing subject]
Are you going to Preston's party this week?
DECLAN
Thinkin' about it. Are you?
LORI
I'm sure everyone's expecting me to hide, but I'm going.
DECLAN
You sur-
LORI [turns her back on him; pretends to look at paint samples]
Maybe I'll see you there.
[Declan leaves and Lori looks guilty.]
THE HOSPITAL
[Kyle takes Amanda with him to visit Stephen's father.]
AMANDA [entering the room]
I hate hospitals. They're always so cold.
KYLE
The cooler temperature helps prevent the spread of viruses.
AMANDA [looking at Mr. Trager in the bed]
The least they could do is paint the walls. Make it feel warmer.
KYLE
Was it difficult to see your father this way?
AMANDA
How did you - ? Oh yeah. You're you.
[they look down at Mr. Trager again] Do you think he knows we're here?
KYLE
The doctor said no.
AMANDA
Well, he can't be sure, right? I mean, if you received a message.
KYLE
But did I? I want to believe I can do this, but. . .
AMANDA
Sometimes things happen that just don't make sense. You've gotta have faith that they're happening for a reason.
STEPHEN [walks into the room]
Hey. What are you two doing in here? [they turn around]
KYLE [to Stephen]
I know it sounds crazy, but when I drew that church. . . What if your father's trying to communicate something through me?
STEPHEN
And what, you're here waiting for him to communicate again?
AMANDA
I asked Kyle to try, Mr. Trager. I thought if your father's reaching out in some way -
STEPHEN
Listen. I know you two both mean well, but my father had plenty of chances to reach out and make amends.
KYLE
What if he wants one more chance?
STEPHEN
There are no more chances. At least not for us.
[Suddenly Kyle grimaces again. He looks around at the neural monitor and sees the brain wave patterns increase in frequency on the screen. No one else seems to notice.]
THE TRAGER HOUSE
Nicole's Office - That Afternoon
[Nicole sits behind her desk talking to Emily Hollander who is seated in a chair across from her.]
NICOLE [polite, sympathetic]
Thanks for taking the time. I know how hard it must be trying to balance work and raise Jessi by yourself.
HOLLANDER
Well, we manage.
NICOLE
Still, it must get stressful at times.
HOLLANDER
Nicole, what are you getting at?
NICOLE
Jessi's expressed some anxiety to me about the way you deal with her. [Emily starts to take a defensive posture] And I saw the dynamic myself when you showed up at the dance.
HOLLANDER
The dynamic.
NICOLE
You seemed to get very hostile and aggressive.
HOLLANDER
I asked her not to go; she did anyway.
NICOLE [starts to "shrink" her]
Do you always react that way when she doesn't listen?
HOLLANDER
You know, I have to say I thought that Jessi would be making more progress by now.
NICOLE
I think she is. She's finally starting to open up to me, and apparently, that makes you uncomfortable. And that makes me even more concerned.
HOLLANDER
There's no reason for concern.
[Grabs her purse and coat and stands up.]
I think I made a mistake bringing Jessi to you.
NICOLE [also stands; threatening]
I think it's vital that she continue coming. In fact, if Jessi misses even one appointment, I won't hesitate to call Social Services.
THE RACK
[Sitting at a table with a notebook and pencil, Jessi thinks back to her therapy session with Nicole.
Jessi: "We can be different than who we appear to be. Are you writing that down?"
Nicole: "Not exactly."
Jessi thinks about that moment when Nicole was writing notes on her pad; how the pencil sounded on the paper and the movement of her hand. Closing her eyes, Jessi starts writing on her paper, duplicating the movements and sounds. When she finishes, she opens her eyes, reads what she wrote down and frowns.
JESSI LACKS EMPATHY
IS SOCIALLY MANIPULATIVE
AND HAS NO REMORSE
Declan comes to the table with two mugs of coffee and sits down. Jessi closes the notebook.]
DECLAN
Hey.
JESSI
Hi.
DECLAN
Sorry it took me so long. This guy in line changed his order like 60 times.
JESSI
That's a lot of orders.
DECLAN
Yeah.
JESSI
What's wrong?
DECLAN
What do you mean?
JESSI [points to her mug]
Well, I don't think the coffee is what's bothering you.
DECLAN
It's just. . . I saw Lori earlier.
JESSI
So?
DECLAN
Seeing her all beat up like that. She's trying to convince herself it's no big deal.
JESSI [lacking empathy]
Maybe it isn't to her.
DECLAN
How couldn't it be? Think how you'd feel if you were her. You get attacked and you don't know why or by who. [shakes his head]
JESSI [discovering remorse]
I guess I never thought about how it'd make her feel.
THE TRAGER HOUSE
Kyle's Room
[Holding the drawing of the church, Kyle paces back and forth in his room. Time passes as he tries to understand the memory.]
VOICEOVER
Adam told me that as my mind developed, new abilities would reveal themselves to me, like holographic memory. But this was different. The church wasn't my memory; it was someone else's. [sits down and flips the drawing over and over] If this was a new ability, why couldn't I control it? And if it wasn't, how could it be happening at all?
[He finally lies down in the tub holding the drawing on his stomach, and he drifts off to sleep.
Hours later, the floor of his room is covered with chalk and discarded drawings. Some of the drawings are torn or incomplete. Chalk is worn down or broken into pieces as if used in frantic activity. Kyle wakes up in the tub and rubs his eyes. His shirt and hands are smeared with the colors of the chalk. He looks down at his stained hands and then straight ahead of him. The wall in front of the tub is covered in pieces of paper, each with a separate drawing on them. Tacked up on the wall, they form a collage, a complete picture of a room inside of someone's house. Every detail is meticulously drawn and it is so real, it looks as if you could walk through the wall into the room. Kyle stares at it in astonishment. He does not remember being in a trance and creating the collage on the wall.
[Kyle has gone to find Stephen and show him what he has done.]
STEPHEN [staring at the wall in amazement]
It's my father's living room. This is incredible. It's exactly how I remember it. How did you do this?
KYLE [perplexed]
I wish I knew.
STEPHEN [faces Kyle]
There's something I want you to see.
WILLIAM TRAGER'S HOUSE
[Stephen and Kyle walk into the living room. It is the same room that Kyle drew, down to the last detail.]
KYLE
You grew up here?
STEPHEN
Yeah, sure did. [looks around] Been a long time since I've been in this house. Nothing has changed. [a clock chimes the hour]
[Walks over to the table next to a recliner, picks up an empty glass. Smells it and smiles at the memory.]
[sits down in the recliner] Every night he'd pour himself a glass of scotch and sit in this chair and read his Bible.
[sadly, looking at the Bible next to glass] Put it ahead of everything, even his family.
KYLE
Is that why you don't like religion?
STEPHEN
It's not that I don't like religion. It's just. . .that I'm a science guy. I...I need hard evidence. Proof. My father, he never understood that.
KYLE [looking at drawing of Jesus propped up on the mantle over fireplace]
It's strange how something meant to bring people together can split so many apart.
STEPHEN
I wrote him a letter after the kids were born. . .hoping he'd want to be part of our family. When I came here to give it to him, we had this huge argument. [emotionally] He tore it up right in front of me. Never even read it.
KYLE
Was that the last time you spoke?
STEPHEN [sadly]
We both said some horrible things to each other. I have always regretted the way we left it. So if he's really trying to say something. . .I'm ready to listen.
MADACORP
Ballantine's Office
[Outside of his office, Emily tries to brush past the secretary and barge into Ballantine's office. He is calmly working at his desk.]
HOLLANDER [opening the door]
I need to talk with Ballantine. I'm just going in. [heads to his desk]
Nicole Trager's threatened to call Social Services on me.
BALLANTINE [gestures to secretary to close the door]
Why would she do that?
HOLLANDER
It's Jessi. She's been willful and defiant. She must be complaining about me during her therapy sessions.
BALLANTINE [smiles and looks back to his papers]
She's a computer with a glitch. Bring her in. We'll fix her.
HOLLANDER
With all due respect, I don't think that that's a solution. [Ballantine looks up at her] You may have downloaded a history into her brain, but I have been living with that girl. And she has wants and desires and feelings like any other teenager.
BALLANTINE
She's not like any other teenager.
HOLLANDER
But you can't just reboot her every time she acts like one.
BALLANTINE [puts down his paperwork]
Miss Hollander, that's not your concern.
HOLLANDER [sarcastically]
Look. I don't think I'm the right person for this assignment.
[Heads toward the door, then turns around]
You know, you won't tell me what we're really doing here. It's taken a lot longer than you led me to believe, and I miss my little -
[She stops herself as he watches her]
I think it'd be best if I resigned.
BALLANTINE [slowly stands and walks towards her]
You're stressed out. It's a tough assignment. And now that you're so familiar with our agenda, I expect you to see it through. Take a few days to reconsider.
[opens the door behind her and she turns around] We'd hate to lose you.
[She stares at him and then leaves. Ballantine smiles smugly to himself.]
THE HOSPITAL
That Evening
[Stephen and Kyle have returned to the hospital. Stephen is holding his dad's old Bible. It is well-worn, filled with papers and held together with a rubber band.]
STEPHEN [gently]
Brought your Bible for you dad. Thought you'd want it with you. [puts it on the end table]
[Kyle is starting down intently at the old man; Stephen looks at him]
What are you doing. . .exactly?
KYLE [eyes locked onto Stephen's father]
Trying to focus on your father.
STEPHEN
Anything?
KYLE [quietly]
Not yet.
THE TRAGER HOUSE
Lori's Room
[Lori is sitting on her bed flipping through a magazine. Her mother knocks on the door and comes inside.]
NICOLE
Hey. I was just headin' out for some coffee. I thought you might wanna come along.
LORI
Ah, thanks. I'm already pretty deep into the Lori Trager Trifecta.
NICOLE
You have a trifecta?
LORI [gesturing around her]
Trashy magazines, nail polish, Oprah reruns.
NICOLE [sitting on the bed]
Mmm. I know what you're thinking, but I'm not here to analyze.
LORI
You don't have a shrink speech prepared for this scenario?
NICOLE
I don't have a Mom speech prepared for this either. I never thought I'd have to see ya deal with anything like this. But I know you'll get through it, and I know you need time, [Josh comes in quietly, filming their conversation on his video camera] and you should know your dad and I are here for ya if you need us.
JOSH
Touching.
NICOLE [laughs]
Josh. What are you doing?
JOSH
Taking my Kyle File digital. Going to go videotape the collage he drew on his wall.
LORI
Yeah, it's pretty amazing. How do you think he did that?
[Josh zooms in on Lori's face. The ugly scrapes and bruises on her face are magnified.]
JOSH [upset]
I gotta go.
[He turns and leaves. Lori and Nicole just shrug at one another.]
Kyle's Room
[Amanda is staring at the collage on the wall of his room.]
AMANDA
Do you know what this means? [looks at Kyle] You're actually doing it. You're really communicating with him.
KYLE [sitting on edge of his tub]
But what's a church and an old room supposed to tell me?
AMANDA
Maybe there's more to the message.
KYLE
I tried and got nothing. Stephen's finally ready to listen and I'm letting him down.
AMANDA [faces him]
When my dad was alive, we used to sit in the gardens at Lancaster Park and talk for hours. He always told me I could do anything if I just believed.
KYLE
But what if I fail?
AMANDA [shakes her head]
You won't.
KYLE
How can you be so sure?
AMANDA smiles]
Because. . .I believe in you.
KYLE [stands and walks up to her]
Amanda. . .about the dance. It didn't really end the way I'd hoped.
AMANDA
I know. With Lori and everything.
KYLE
Yes. With us, too.
AMANDA
The timing wasn't right.
KYLE
When will it be?
AMANDA [she strokes his arm and holds his hand]
We'll just know.
[They smile at each other. When she leaves, Kyle looks back over at the collage.]
HOLLANDER'S APARTMENT
[Jessi is sitting in the dark on the floor of the living room with tears on her face. She doesn't turn her head when she hears a key in the door. Emily comes inside and calls out Jessi's name, but there is no answer. She turns on the lights and sees Jessi sitting on the floor.]
HOLLANDER
Jessi? What is it?
JESSI [crying]
I don't know what's wrong with me.
HOLLANDER [unsympathetic; hangs up her keys on a hook]
Nothing's wrong with you. You're just confused.
JESSI
I lack empathy. I'm socially manipulative and I have no remorse. [looks up at Emily]
HOLLANDER
Did Nicole tell you that?
JESSI [upset]
I just want things to make sense. I want to understand why I do the things I do.
HOLLANDER
You know [Jessi looks away], everyone feels that way sometimes.
JESSI
Do you?
HOLLANDER [kneeling down in front of her]
Sure.
[Emily looks at her, then tries to wipe some tears off Jessi's cheek]
Do you remember what mom used to say about tomorrow?
JESSI
Mom?
HOLLANDER
Yeah. She said, "Tomorrow's a clean slate. A chance to correct your mistakes and become a better person."
JESSI [looks at Emily]
I want that. I want to change.
[Emily nods and wipes away another tear. She kisses the top of Jessi's head.]
HOLLANDER
Don't stay up too late.
[Emily leaves towards her bedroom. Jessi opens her fist and Lori's stolen necklace dangles from her hand. She hangs her head and begins to cry again.]
THE HOSPITAL
The Next Afternoon
[Kyle is back in Mr. Trager's room again. Pieces of his collage are spread out on the overbed table at the foot of the bed. He sifts through them and watches the old man lying in the bed.]
VOICEOVER
What was I missing, not seeing? I didn't know the answer and time was running out.
KYLE [to Mr. Trager]
What are you trying to tell me?
MADACORP
Parking Garage
[Emily opens the outside door into the parking garage. She is talking on her cell phone as she heads to her car.]
HOLLANDER [on phone]
Hi, it's Emily Hollander. I thought I'd come by and surprise Paige. Has my mother picked her up yet? [digs keys out of her purse]
WOMAN FROM SCHOOL
Miss Hollander, the gentleman from your office picked Paige up early.
HOLLANDER [stops in her tracks]
What?
WOMAN FROM SCHOOL
Yes, they left about half an hour ago.
HOLLANDER [upset]
What gentleman? Wha- Who authorized that?
WOMAN FROM SCHOOL
You did.
MRS. HOLLANDER'S HOUSE
[An SUV screeches up to the curb in front of a house. Emily gets out of the car and runs up the steps and through the front door, calling out as she opens the door.]
HOLLANDER
Paige?! Mom -
[Her mother gets up off of the sofa and goes into the foyer.]
MOTHER
Emily, what's wrong?
HOLLANDER [scared]
Someone picked up Paige from school.
MOTHER
I know that. She's here.
[A little girl runs in from the next room and straight into Emily's arms.]
PAIGE
Mommy, you're home!
HOLLANDER [picks her up; holds her tightly]
Oh God, sweetie, Paige! Oh, you're okay. Oh!
[turns to her mother] Mom, how did she get here?
MOTHER [smiling]
Nice young man from Madacorp dropped her off. And he said to tell you that Madacorp always has your family in mind.
[Oblivious, the smiling mother pats the little girl. But Emily looks frightened and holds onto the child with both arms.]
THE TRAGER HOUSE
Lori's Room - Early Evening
[Lori is getting ready for Preston's party. Looking in a mirror, she tries to cover up the bruises and scratches on her face with makeup. It doesn't work and she looks sadly at herself. She turns around, picks up her phone and texts a message to Declan: "Bailing. Have fun." Dropping the phone on the bed, she lies down and pulls her hair down off the top of her head. Her phone rings; she looks at it and she has a text message back from Declan: "Open the window." Smiling, she looks up and Declan is outside of her closed window. Smiling at him, she opens the sash and he climbs into her bedroom.]
LORI
Back to your old tricks, huh?
DECLAN
Thought you might get a kick out of it.
[looks around] So. . .you're not painting.
LORI
I decided I like it the way it is.
DECLAN [smiles]
Me, too.
LORI
What are you doing here?
DECLAN
I had a feeling you might not be up to going. [hands her a couple of movies] Major chick flicks.
LORI [smiling, she take the movies from him]
You didn't have to.
DECLAN
I wanted to. Just don't tell anyone you saw me with those.
[pauses] Well, um, I guess I'll leave you to your Kleenex.
[He starts to turn back towards the window.]
LORI
Actually. . .would you mind stickin' around for a while?
DECLAN [looks at her guitar]
Only if [picks it up]. . .I can finally hear your song.
[Smiling, she takes the guitar from him. Together they sit on the bed and she begins to play her song.]
THE HOSPITAL
[Kyle is sitting in a chair at the foot of the bed watching Mr. Trager and waiting. Stephen comes in and sees him still there.]
STEPHEN
You never give up, do you?
KYLE
I don't want to, but I'm starting to think we'll never know what he's trying to tell us.
STEPHEN
It's certainly not from lack of effort. [pats him on the shoulder]
[He looks at the overbed table and sees a pad sitting on top of Kyle's drawings. The numbers 15 and 11 are written in large print at the top of the pad.]
Hey, what's that?
KYLE [looks at the pad]
I keep seeing the number 15 and 11 in my head. Those are all things associated with them: dates, formulas, elements of the Periodic Table.
STEPHEN
15 and 11.
KYLE
Do those numbers mean anything to you?
STEPHEN [nodding]
Yeah, Luke 15, verse 11. The Prodigal Son. It's my dad's favorite passage in the Bible.
[Kyle looks over at the Bible on the bedside table. Getting up, he goes to the table, picks up the old Bible and starts to thumb through it looking for the Book of Luke. Stopping at the chapter, he finds an old piece of paper folded between the pages. He looks at Stephen.]
STEPHEN
What? What is it?
[Stephen takes the paper from him and opens it. It is an old letter, taped together and addressed to Dad.]
[whispers] It's my letter. He read it.
[Happy and relieved, he turns to Kyle]
You really did it. This is what he's been trying to tell me. [Kyle smiles at him]
[Stephen sits down on the edge of the bed and puts his hand on his father's chest.]
I heard you, Dad.
THE TRAGER HOUSE
The Kitchen - The Next Morning
[Stephen is up early, sitting at the counter and looking through some papers. Kyle comes into the kitchen.]
STEPHEN [looking up]
Hey.
KYLE
Nicole told me. I'm sorry.
STEPHEN [quietly]
Yeah, he died late last night. You know, I was thinkin' about the last time I spoke to him [exhales], how angry we both were. When I realized somewhere along the way that . . .I wasn't angry anymore. I was afraid.
KYLE
Of what?
STEPHEN
That he didn't care.
KYLE [smiles]
But he did.
STEPHEN
Yeah, he did.
[looks at Kyle] I want to thank you. What you did. . . You've made such a difference in my life. I'm very happy that you're here.
KYLE
Me, too.
BEACHWOOD HIGH SCHOOL
Hallway
[Lori is at her locker and looks up when Josh walks past her in the hallway. He avoids eye contact with her and tries to walk by without saying a word.]
LORI [to his back]
Okay, what's your problem?
JOSH [stops and turns]
Don't have one.
LORI
You've been avoiding me all week.
JOSH
No, I haven't.
LORI
Seriously, you haven't made one snarky, wise-ass comment to me in days.
JOSH
I'm coming up with some new material, and. . .I'm not ready to launch it.
LORI
Please, as if you have a self-editing bone in your body.
JOSH [sighs]
Okay. I'm gonna talk about my feelings here, so bear with me if I am a little less articulate than usual. I'm not really into the whole touchy-feely movement.
LORI
That's more like it.
JOSH
It's just. . . Every time I look at your eye, the bruises, I get so mad. All I want to do is find the guy who did this to you and beat the hell out of him! It's my job as your brother to protect you. It's one thing if I push you around, but no one else can. Not if I have anything to say about it. [shakes his head] That make any sense?
LORI [gets teary and starts to put her arms around him]
Josh. . .
JOSH [steps back]
Whoa. Not in public.
[He walks off, but turns around again] Oh, and. . .one other thing. Hillary Duff called. She wants her shirt back.
[Lori laughs and smiles at him as he walks away. Turning around to her locker again, she sees Declan coming up to her in the hallway.]
LORI
Hey.
DECLAN
Trager.
LORI
Oh, so we're back to that, huh?
DECLAN [winks at her]
For old time's sake. [she smiles happily] It's good to see you with a smile on your face.
LORI
I've been told it suits me.
DECLAN
Hey, you headin' to Miller's class?
LORI
Yeah. Just let me put my stuff in my locker.
[She opens her locker and discovers her necklace hanging from the shelf. Panicked, she looks around the hallway and then back at the necklace.]
This is totally not funny.
DECLAN [not noticing the necklace]
What is it?
LORI
It's my necklace that was stolen.
[They both stare at it hanging in her locker.]
MADACORP
Late Afternoon
[Jessi follows Emily down a hallway at Madacorp.]
JESSI [confused]
Why did we come to your office?
HOLLANDER [moves her hands nervously]
To get you some help.
JESSI
Nicole's here?
HOLLANDER [puts hand on Jessi's back; leads her to a door]
I don't think she's been a good match for you.
You remember Mr. Ballantine?
[He is standing in the open doorway waiting for them; an assistant is behind him in the room.]
JESSI
Hi.
BALLANTINE
Hello Jessi. Nice to see you again.
JESSI [turns to Emily]
What's this about?
[Emily reaches to assure her.]
BALLANTINE [to Jessi]
I'll explain everything to you. Please.
[He gestures her inside the room. Jessi goes inside but looks back over her shoulder at Emily.
HOLLANDER
It's okay, Jessi. I'll be right here.
[She tries to look reassuring as the assistant leads Jessi away.]
BALLANTINE [to Emily]
You made the right choice. Don't worry, we'll take good care of her. It's time for you to concentrate on Stephen Trager.
[He goes into the room and shuts the door behind him.]
LANCASTER PARK
[Amanda is sitting on a bench watching a fountain in the middle of a flower garden. Kyle walks through the garden and finds her.]
KYLE [standing behind her]
It's beautiful.
AMANDA [looks up]
How'd you know I was here?
KYLE
It's where you used to come with your father.
[He walks around the bench and sits down next to her.]
AMANDA
I heard what happened to Stephen's dad. I'm sorry.
KYLE
I couldn't have helped him without you.
AMANDA [nods her head]
Yes, you could.
KYLE
You wouldn't let me give up. And I'm glad you didn't.
AMANDA
You did a great thing. You gave Stephen a chance to say goodbye. A lot of people never get that.
KYLE [looks at her]
Like you.
AMANDA [nods]
When my dad first got sick, I thought everything would be fine. That he'd get through it. I just couldn't imagine a world without him in it. By the time I got the courage to go see him at the hospital, he was so out of it, they said he couldn't hear me. And I believed them. [smiles] But after seeing what you did. . .I know they were wrong. He could hear me.
[They both look back at the fountain] So did you ever solve how you did it?
KYLE
Not really. I thought about what you said, that some things science can't explain. And what I realized was that. . .it doesn't matter how it happened or even why. What matters is that it did.
[He turns his head to find her smiling at him again.] What's that look?
AMANDA
You're the mind reader. You tell me.
[They look at each other for a moment. The time is finally right. Slowly leaning their heads together, they share a soft kiss. They smile, and then continue to kiss each other again and again in the middle of the garden.]
Ecrit par floflo1972
