Act Four, Scene Three
Exterior: the backyard between Lucy and Eddie's house and Nate's granny unit.
Adam stands in only his diaper in the middle of the yard. He appears to be scared.
NATE
Oh, hey, what's up, Adam?
(Adam says nothing. Nate moves closer to him. Adam shrinks to the ground, whimpers.)
Adam? Hey, little guy, what's wrong?
(Adam starts crying.)
Buddy, come here.
(Nate picks up Adam and holds him in his lap.)
It's okay, buddy, it'll be okay.
ADAM
Daddy hurt Mommy!!!
NATE
Wait, what?
ADAM
He's in there, yelling at her and he hurt her.
NATE
What are you saying?
(Nate sets Adam down on the grass, heads hurriedly towards the house.)
What the hell?
Interior: Dining room/kitchen of Eddie and Lucy's house. Its a mess, food thrown about, dishes in the sink, broken glass everywhere.
Yelling spills over from the other room.
Eddie
How many times do I have to tell you...why can't you even do that right? How hard is it, Lucy, tell me how hard is it?
(A sound of something falling, breaking, Lucy screams "no".)
NATE
What the fuck? Hello?
(Sees Adam coming towards the house.)
Stay out there, Adam!
(He moves through house, Camera POV of Nate.)
Hello? Hello? Lucy? You okay?
(Lucy runs towards Nate, holding Stephen. She hands Stephen to Nate.)
LUCY
He's drunk...again. Its never been this bad, I swear. Take Stephen and Adam. Just go, please. Protect my babies.
NATE
Come with me.
LUCY
No, no, I can't.
Nate
Lucy, yes you can.
EDDIE
(from the other room)
Who are you talking to, Lucy? Is it that fairy nanny boy, Nate?
LUCY
Go. Get my babies safe, that's all I care about.
Exterior: Eddie and Lucy's house, backyard.
(Nate runs out of house, carrying Stephen. He grabs Adam's hand and runs to the granny unit.)
Interior: Granny Unit
(Nate runs in with Adam, Stephen, and Doodle. He locks the door and runs to the counter where his phone is. He dials 911, reports domestic abuse, then hangs up. He looks around frantically, then dials.)
Interior: Dining room of Kiyah's apartment.
(The four girls sitting around drinking coffee, Laura's cellphone buzzes. She looks down at it.)
LAURA
Oh, crap! It's Nate.
SAMANTHA
Guess we didn't pray hard enough?
LAURA
Should I answer it? I don't think I should answer it.
ASHLEY
Why is your ringtone a bunch of bells?
LAURA
I'll just silence it, yeah.
(She silences it.)
ASHLEY
I thought your ring tone was something different then bells.
Laura
What?
SAMANTHA
It is. She gave Nate bells for his ring tone.
ASHLEY
You gave Nate his own ring tone? I didn't even do that.
LAURA
Yeah, well.
ASHLEY
Why did you do that?
KIYAH
Yeah, why did you do that?
LAURA
Um--
SAMANTHA
Because she hears bells whenever he--
(The bells on Laura's phone starts ringing again.)
LAURA
Shit! What the hell, Nate?
(She silences cellphone again.)
ASHLEY
Yeah, what the hell? Wait, did you...do you...do you like Nate?
Laura
What? No, no, no.
ASHLEY
Then, why the bells?
LAURA
Um.
(The bells on her phone start ringing again.)
God dammit, Nate, what the hell?
ASHLEY
Just answer the damn phone already!
LAURA
Hello, Nate, what is it?
(She stands up.)
Wait, slow down, what are you saying?
Cut to:
Interior: Nate's Granny Unit
NATE
The kids are with me, and Doodle. But, Eddie was pretty harsh with Lucy and she was pretty scared. Its a mess over there. I called 911. I didn't know what else to do. I thought...of you...I thought you should know.
Cut to:
Interior: Kiyah's dining room
LAURA
Oh my fucking god. Are you fucking serious? Um, I'll be right over...what else can we do? Just call me when the police get there. Shit!
(She hangs up. All girls look at her.)
CLOSE UP:Laura's face
LAURA
Eddie's really going all at it on Lucy. I had no idea that he was, they were...that fucking bastard. I'll kill him.
KIYAH
What are you saying?
LAURA
Eddie's drunk, or something, yelling at Lucy, she's pretty scared, says Nate. He has the kids, Nate does. He also called 911, Nate did. He thought of me...thought I should know, or something like that.
SAMANTHA
I don't know about you, but I'm ready to kick a little Eddie ass.
KIYAH
Wait, let the police take the bastard in, but yeah, we should go over there, for Lucy, and the kids.
Samantha
For sure. But, for Jesus, Lucy, really?
ASHLEY
Its not her fault. I mean, look at you with Benjamin and--
LAURA
And, Laura with Scott, is what you were going to say. Yeah, we sure know how to pick them in this group, don't we?
Exterior: The front of Lucy and Eddie's house, late morning. Two police cars are pulled out in front.
(Police officer leads Eddie in handcuffs down the front walk as Kiyah and the other three girls drive up in their car. Lucy is at the front door talking to an officer.)
(Kiyah parks her car in the drive way. The four girls get out and hurry over to Lucy.)
Police officer
Excuse me, ladies.
LUCY
It's all right. I know them. They're family.
(Kiyah, Laura, Samantha, and Ashley hurry over to Lucy.)
KIYAH
What the fuck happened?
LAURA
You okay, Lucy?
ASHLEY
Yeah, anything we can do--
SAMANTHA
How are the kids?
LUCY
Kids are fine, I guess. They are in the back with Nate. Another officer is back there, talking to him, and them. I'm...I don't know...
KIYAH
How long has this been going on?
LUCY
For awhile now....since...I don't know, like we married what four years ago, so like four years.
ASHLEY
And, you stayed with him that long?
LUCY
It wasn't always like this!
LAURA
Come on, let's get you inside, Lucy. Come on, girls.
(They enter front door and into house.)
Interior: Lucy's living room, still a mess from the earlier altercation.
LUCY
They asked if I wanted to press charges.
KIYAH
And did you?
LUCY
I just don't know...what about the kids?
KIYAH
Better without him.
LUCY
What about me? What will I do?
KIYAH
Better without him, hon. Come on now, cup of coffee?
LUCY
Sure, yeah. Yeah, let me get that for you--
KIYAH
No, no, you go sit. We've got this.
LUCY
I should clean this place up. What will the kids say and the neighbors---
SAMANTHA
Who gives a fuck about the neighbors? Just sit right there and let us take care of it. Take care of you.
(Lucy and Laura sit. Ashley and Samantha begin cleaning up the place. Kiyah crosses into kitchen and starts making the coffee.)
LAURA
You should have pressed charges, Luc?
LUCY
Should I?
LAURA
You still can. And, a retraining order!
LUCY
You think I should?
LAURA
Look at this room, this house. And, look at you. Your eye!
LUCY
I can't see...myself.
(She begins to cry.)
How did I let this happen? How did I become this? I can't believe it...I just really can't. Not even. Oh my god, the kids. I can't let them see this. What will I say to them? What will I say, Laura? What can I say? Tell me. God, I should call my mom. Grandma can take them for a few days. My phone!
(She grabs the phone on nearby coffee table. She picks it up, looks at it.)
I can't do it. Can't call her. Can you? I know that makes me such a wimp but...she'll only say I told you so about Eddie and all that.
(Kiyah enters with tray with five cups of coffee on it.)
KIYAH
Tell you what now?
LUCY
My mom always told me Eddie was a loser.
KIYAH
Well, yeah, he is.
LUCY
I can't call her.
KIYAH
Why do you need to?
LUCY
So, she can take the kids, maybe, for a few days, until I can figure things out...so they can be safe.
KIYAH
I'll call her. Give me your phone.
(She sets tray on coffee table, takes a mug for herself, and grabs Lucy's phone. She turns away and dials.)
Hello Mrs. Beasley, I have some bad news.
Exterior: Lucy's front porch, later that day.
(Laura sits on the front porch, holding a glass of red wine. Nate approaches and sits next to her.)
Nate
Hey there.
LAURA
Hey yourself.
Nate
Lucy okay?
LAURA
She will be.
NATE
Um, did I do something wrong?
LAURA
Ha. I don't know, did you?
NATE
Did Ashley say something?
LAURA
So, how's Jessica?
NATE
What about her?
LAURA
Yeah, how is your girlfriend?
NATE
She's not...
LAURA
According to who? You or her? Because she told Ashley she was.
NATE
Son of a bitch. That's why she was so pissed. No, Jess and I broke up before I moved here. Yeah. She cheated on me. So.
LAURA
Really?
NATE
Yeah, really?
LAURA
So, you and Ashley?
NATE
What about us?
LAURA
You gonna try and make up with her or--?
Nate
I actually don't know,I mean, it was never anything serious. She even said so.
LAURA
Yeah, but do you like her? Ashley's just a major commitment phobe. Trust me.
NATE
Yeah, I don't know. I don't think so. There is...someone else...
Laura
Someone else? Already?
NATE
Remember how we met? On the side of the road when my car broke down? You came up to my window to see if I needed help and...Laura...I heard, like, a bell ringing.
LAURA
A bell? Really? A bell?
NATE
Well, not like a real bell, like I don't hear voices and things, but like every time I'm around you, there's like an alarm going off...in my head, telling me to pay attention.
LAURA
A bell.
NATE
Yeah, and the only way it seems to quiet itself is when we're together---
LAURA
Is this some kind of a joke? Did Samantha put you to this? Why would she--
Nate
Yeah, why would she? How would she? No, Laura, she didn't.
LAURA
A bell. So, what are you saying, Nate?
NATE
I know this isn't the right time but...Laura, I like you, a lot. I really really do.
(Silence. Laura stares at Nate, Nate stares at Laura.)
LAURA
You have some nerve, you know that? After what happened today, and everything with Ashley, and whatever...and everything we all have been through, me, Samantha, now Lucy...do you think that you can just waltz in and proclaim your love and that I will just fall all over your feet or something? What, Nate, what do you want?
(Nate is silent, unsure of what to say. Laura starts pacing.)
You think you are the only one hearing bells? No, I mean, whatever. No, this isn't happening. Not now. Not ever. I can't let this thing...be a thing. Not after...no. Ashley means too much to me, and Kiyah, and Samantha, and everyone. Dammit, Nate, do you know how long I've been fighting...Fuck love, fuck it all. So not--
(Nate stops Laura, pulls her towards him, kisses her passionately.)
worth it.
