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[ Exterior. Joe and Luv’s homestead. Day. Luv’s spinner sedan is parked in the foreground. Presently, Luv exits the trailer dressed in her white coat outfit with the red sweater, followed by Joe. They proceed to the spinner, carrying luggage. Cut to a tight shot of them approaching the spinner’s trunk. ]
Luv: “If this fails to demonstrate trust, I don’t know what will. Being away during the day, not just this evening. Just because you asked. Without explanation.”
Joe: “I appreciate it, Angel. The kids, too.”
[ Luv pauses opening the trunk, suspicious. He hadn’t mentioned the kids earlier. She looks over her shoulder. Joe is inscrutable, as usual. She drops a fashionable overnight suitcase in the trunk, then takes her gray duffle bag from Joe and deposits it, too. Finally, she turns to stare at him one more time. She wishes, just for a moment, that he was a weak-willed simpleton, prone to awkward confessions under scrutiny. He is not. ]
Luv: “Tomorrow morning, then.”
Joe: “Enjoy the shopping. And the party.”
[ Luv minces her shoulders briefly, awaiting something. Then Joe kisses her. Her eyes close briefly, then open again, all business. Satisfied, she rounds the vehicle and enters. Then, before the hatch closes, she remarks: ]
Luv: “Don’t try to do dishes. Or the laundry.”
[ Joe looks around in feigned innocence. ]
Joe: “I’ll find some other way to keep busy.”
[ Cut to a close-up of Luv’s face as the spinner door slides down. Joe’s response was far too quick and certain for her taste. He is obviously pregnant with schemes, and the water will break on her departure. ]
[ Cut. A view of Joe on the ground, watching his wife disappear to the heavens. When her vehicle is a tiny dot and getting smaller, he jogs quickly out of frame. ]
≈
[ Interior. Luv’s Spinner. Later that day. Luv drives, serious and focused, hands at three and nine on the control yoke. In the back are Rachel and Joi, singing Pajama Party By Guy Hemric and Jerry Styner, accompanied by the radio: https://youtu.be/w5wWIGdEKGg?t=5. This goes on for a while. Luv seems irritated by the noise, as she is by almost everything. Everywhere. All the time. ]
[ The girls in back reiterate the song’s chorus: ]
Rachel and Joi : “PAH-jammah PARTY too- NIIIGHT”
[ Luv switches off the radio. Rachel makes an irate expression. Joi folds her arms supportively. ]
[ Silence, but for the spinner’s humming. A beat. ]
[ Luv continues glaring out the windshield. A beat. ]
[ Rachel points her expression and stares daggers at the back of Luv’s head, her lips pursing. Joi clears her throat deliberately. ]
[ Tense silence. A beat. ]
[ Luv sighs and turns the radio back on. Singing resumes. ]
Rachel and Joi: “Pah-jamma par-teeee two- NIGHT. ”
[ Cut. Exterior shot of the spinner as it alights at the Zero Pines Mall , a manicured upscale shopping destination. Sound overlap of the girls singing. This is not the exclusive shopping district Luv normally prefers, but it will suffice. ]
≈
[ Exterior. The homestead. An aerial view of Joe standing on the lawn. He operates a large remote control panel, slung by a wide lanyard around his neck. Cut to a tight shot of Joe, stressing and fiddling with the controls. From outside our view, there is an ominous humming sound. Kids have begun to inch their way into the shot behind Joe, looking up at something. Joe’s attention toggles between his control panel and whatever the kids are looking at. ]
[ Presently, Joe notices the children have approached. He gestures them back, but they hesitate, fascinated. ]
[ Cut to a wide shot of the homestead, looking up over Joe’s left shoulder. Hovering in the sky is a heavy industrial barge. At its corners, like a four-poster bed, are enormous steel girders, held straight-up, and gripped by magnetic cradles. Cut and back to Joe fiddling with the controls, watching the ship’s orientation on a little screen, sweating out the details of its exact position. ]
[ Cut back to the tight shot looking behind Joe. He waves them back one last time, now with gusto, and re-focuses on the panel. His finger approaches a large inviting red button. ]
Joe: ( Over his shoulder ) “Hold on.”
[ Cut to the shot looking up over Joe’s shoulder. He hits the button. With enormous force, the barge launches each post downwards into the ravine next to the trailer, like a rods-from-god orbital weapons platform. The earth shakes mightily and Joe stumbles. ]
[ Cut to the shot looking past Joe and back at the kids. They yell and squeal as each girder is emplaced, then their noises transform into appreciative awe. Then excitement. Wow , do that again, dad , is the consensus. ]
≈
[ Interior. The Zero Pines Mall . Cue a montage of the girls shopping. ]
[ Cut. Rachel throws around various bits of lingerie, trying out things to wear for tonight. Joi claps at each and her outfit changes as often as Rachel’s, but without effort or purchase. Luv stands bored in one corner. ]
[ Joi and Rachel examine a pair of white sneakers while Luv supervises. Luv proffers a different pair, looking exactly the same as the first, but likely better, somehow. In her opinion. ]
[ The group saunters through a retro-futuristic 1980s mall walkway, licking imitation-protein-based ice-cream-cone-like snacks. ]
[ Tight shot: Luv receives a mysterious white box from a clerk….somewhere. ]
[ The group returns to Luv’s spinner, burdened with shopping bags. ]
≈
[ Exterior. The homestead. A view of Joe holding the control panel from earlier. Next to him is Melanie, his budding engineer daughter. Behind them, other kids are gaggled about, laying flat on the ground, braced for impact. Some cover their ears. Everybody tenses with anticipation. Joe points at the control panel. ]
Joe: ( To Melanie ) “That button there.”
[ Melanie, excited, hesitates, then pushes the big red button forcefully. Out of frame, the construction barge slams four more pillars into the ravine. Everybody quakes with the impact. Joe recovers quickly. Melanie is almost thrown off her feet but doesn’t care, she’s so pleased. The younger kids behind them all whoah and cheer at the entertainment. ]
[ Cut to a view of the ravine, now peppered with iron support girders. Like a pier without deck-boards, they invite covering. The barge has removed itself to elsewhere in the sky, and, on cue, a second massive object hovers into frame. It is large, flat on the near side, and rusty. Overall, the enormous steel box is D-shaped, with its rounded side featuring a large window built into it facing south. Cut to a second wider shot, showing a new barge suspending the D-shaped box over the ravine’s girders. ]
[ Cut back to Joe and Melanie. Behind them, Rick Deckard, the family grandpa-surrogate, has appeared, a tool-belt slung over one shoulder. Joe’s attention is briefly caught by the entrance. ]
Joe: “Hey.”
Deckard: “Hey. Got started. Good. Looking alright so far.”
Joe: “Yeah, just got to let her down. One second.”
[ Cut back to the over-the-shoulder shot of Joe at the controls. He maneuvers the new barge into place, Deckard watching, then lowers the D-shaped proto-building towards its girder supports. Cut and back to a shot of Joe and Deckard focused on the action before them. They briefly exchange glances, then Joe tweaks the controls. Cut to a tight shot of the building’s flat bottom, hovering inches from the vertical supports, offering themselves. The rusty box hovers with irregular little movements, then suddenly drops , emitting a loud metallic echo through the building. Cut to a shot of the men, Joe sighing with relief. Deckard nods and maneuvers the tool belt off his shoulder. ]
Deckard: “Ok, let’s get to work.”
≈
[ Exterior. An enormous balcony atop the dizzying heights of WallaceCorp Headquarters. Gilbert Gottfried mans an oversized telescope, pointed away and down into the distance. His face pinches in concentration and he squints into the device’s eyepiece. ]
[ Cut to a shot of Gottfried’s view through the scope. Joe and Rick Deckard are working as a team, welding together support girders and a rusty box that sits upon them, fabricating a building over the homestead’s ravine. Deckard stops for a moment and lifts his protective face mask, taking a moment to huff. He hands the welding torch to Joe. ]
[ Cut back to the view of Gottfried, pulling back from the eyepiece, thinking, looking devious. He squints and frowns. And thinks. ]
≈
[ Interior. The Friendly Room . A special chamber at Stelline Labs meant for personal visits. Anna Stelline’s normal workspace features a large concrete floored dome separated from the visitor’s chamber by inches of bomb-proof glass, but the Friendly Room is for trusted visitors. Here, her sterilized living space is protected from humanity by a thick but flexible plastic curtain. The curtain is a technically advanced, pliable, crystal-clear barrier that allows Anna to touch and handle things on the other side to a degree. She could hug someone through it and feel a vague facsimile of the real gesture. This room sees little use. ]
[ Cut to establishing shots of the space, from the visitors’ point of view. It is small, sparse, and largely undecorated. Rachel and Joi stand next to piles of real and holographic baggage, showcasing treasures the group has acquired for Anna at the mall: a pair of comfortable sneakers, socks, and some clothing. Behind them, almost obscured by the bustle is Luv, unhurriedly laying out items and handling a flat white box, sealed with a criss-crossed ribbon. Cut briefly to a view of the box as Luv places it on the ground next to her sleeping bag. Her coat is hung up, and the blood red of her turtleneck yells at the desaturated room. ]
[ Cut to a shot facing Anna, happy but composed, facing her visitors, then cut again to a tight shot of giddy Rachel and Joi, Luv behind them in the shadows, lurking. ]
Rachel: “Okay, we’ll go and change. Be right back.”
[ Cut to a quick reaction shot of Anna nodding, then the original shot facing Rachel as she and Joi leave the room with a shopping bag. Luv steps forwards from the darkness, approaching Anna’s barrier. ]
[ Cut to a split-scene shot. Anna (left) facing Luv (right), who approaches the curtain, separating the two. Anna holds steady. ]
Anna: “Thanks for coming. Glad you were able to organize this. I’d invite more people, bu–”
Luv: “There aren’t any. You’re isolated.”
[ A beat. Anna seems to react.]
Luv: “Better this way anyway. Keeps the gathering tight. Only for those that really matter.”
Anna: “I was going to say they had scheduling conflicts? Not everybody’s a hermit. It’s good to socialize. Have you ever thought about getting out more?”
[ Luv pauses, apparently unfazed, then examines the curtain, pressing against it gently, nudging it with a manicured fingernail, looking up and around at it, then meeting Anna’s gaze. ]
Luv: “Hermetic existence. Something must be done about it.”
[ A beat. Luv undoes her ponytail, maintaining eye contact. ]
Anna: “Not everything needs fixing, Luv. Some of us are able to find happiness in the circumstances life gives us, whatever our disabilities.”
Luv: “Some of us are better than that.”
Anna: ( Insisting ) “Not everything’s perfect. That’s okay.”
Luv: “I can tell you’re better than that. And you haven’t seen me try yet.”
[ A beat. Anna maneuvers the discussion. ]
Anna: “You’re antisocial, but you’ve pleasantly surprised me. This is the most gregarious I’ve seen you.”
Luv: “You’re my sister. Who else would I socialize with?”
Anna: “We’re sisters?”
[ A pause. The room feels swollen with the background hum of Anna’s facility, like a starship’s engine room. ]
Luv: “He’d like it if you called him Dad. If I do, you certainly can.”
Anna: “How do you know what he really wants?”
Luv: “You know he’d enjoy it. You’re just being awkward. If he asks, you can say I threatened you.”
Anna: “ Are you threatening me?”
[ A beat. ]
Luv: “He’s our dad. Let’s do the right thing for him.”
Anna: “Life doesn’t need the extraneous complications we sometimes give it, Luv. Does it comfort you when you apply them to people?”
Luv: “It’s not complicated.”
[ Luv turns and removes her shirt in front of Anna, setting it aside, then tugs at the ribbon of her pristine white box down below. Anna’s posture stiffens. She exhales, silently. Luv continues the discussion as she changes. ]
Luv: “Life is simple, if you allow it. Elegant, even, if you know how.”
[ Cut to a close-up shot of Luv’s parcel, its ribbons slack and askew. The lid is removed and white silken contents revealed. Cut to a tight shot of Anna watching pensively. She turns suddenly to her right. There is a rustling of fabric and plastic wrapper. ]
Anna: “How are you and Rachel these days? I hope everybody’s pleased with her success..”
Luv: ( From out of frame ) “Success is subjective. Some material gain to be sure, but no family, no partnerships. At least she had good taste in friends.”
Anna: “She and Joi might not agree with your assessment.”
Luv: “The product ….is a product. Its relationships exist to be monetized, nothing more.”
Anna: “Have you told Rachel that?”
[ No response. The sounds of fabric and subtle feminine noises abate. Anna detects a body at her curtain and is drawn to look. Before her now stands Luv, in a pristine white kimono. The outfit features an ornate cream-colored obi-like midsection and white tabi socks. She now wears her hair in an updo bound with metallic hair sticks, traced by red decorations and invisibly weaponized. She carries herself, hands clasped before her, in a contrived, graceful stance. To Anna, who wears her usual authentic-hued fabrics, the tranquility seems misplaced. ]
Anna: “New outfit. White’s definitely your color.”
Luv: “Of course it is. White means death. Mourning. Do you like it?”
[ Before a compliment can be forced, the pair are interrupted by Rachel’s cheerful, hurried intrusion. She scurries in gleefully, wearing cotton striped pajamas, then dances around the tiny room, soliciting remarks. ]
Rachel: “I picked the stripes, because the way they line up together reminds me of….togetherness. It’s a silly thing, but it made me feel good.”
[ Behind her, Joi wears her hair down to the shoulders and a vaguely pajama-negligee outfit. Against her better judgment, Luv glances at the hologram in passing. Anna gleans most of Rachel’s attention. Rachel gestures guiltily to the shopping on the floor by her sleeping bag. ]
Rachel: “I’m sorry we couldn’t get you the new outfit things earlier so you could wear them tonight.”
Anna: “It’s fine, having them later gives me something to look forward to. Why don’t we all sit and think of what to do with our little party?”
[ Cut to a shot of Luv’s baggage. She reaches in for something. ]
[ Cut to a tight shot of the curtain from the unsanitized end, Anna seated upon cushions on the other side. She reaches for something just out of view and Rachel leans over, interested. ]
[ Cut to a wide shot of the room, facing Anna, flanked by Rachel and Joi (left) and Luv (right). Anna has pulled a small rectangular box up next to herself while Luv holds a large square bottle of clear fluid. Cut to a tight shot of Rachel. ]
Rachel: ( To Luv ) “Ohh..is that the astro-thingie?”
[ Cut to a tight shot of Luv, cradling her precious bottle of Astro-Seppuku 777, the rarest and most singular liquor in existence. She sits, legs crossed, posing with her treasure. Her voice trills. ]
Luv: “It is.”
[ Cut back to Rachel. Joi nudges her by way of reminder, and Rachel gasps with happy excitement. She rumages into her own baggage and withdraws a large, shiny silver can of malt liquor, procured some time ago at one of the city’s fancier gas stations. Upon the can is an animated product label, futuristically criss-crossing itself past lightning bolts into place: Weasel Attacking Human Brain , it reads. The can features a red and black picture of a weasel gripping and biting at the titular organ, wishing it death and hangovers. Rachel beams and holds the can like a flight attendant in a TV commercial. ]
Rachel: “I’ve never had alcohol before. This is so exciting.”
[ The animated weasel bites down and gnaws on its cartoon brain companion. ]
Joi: “Hope it goes better than mushrooms.”
Luv: ( Charmingly ) “What a compelling series of decisions.”
Anna: “What made you decide on Weasel ?”
Rachel: ( Shrugging ) “I like animals. I’ve never seen a real weasel before, but I’m sure they’re lots of fun.”
[ Cut to a wide shot of the girls. Luv places her bottle on the polished concrete floor, checking to ensure she’s being watched. The bottle’s heavy clunk ensures this. ]
[ Cut to a tight shot of Luv. She grips the large square cap, holding it still, and begins turning the bottle underneath it. At first there is resistance, then a soft metallic crack as its ancient seal breaks. The bottle spins freely now, turning on the glossy floor. Cut to reaction shots of Rachel and Anna, silently appreciating the moment’s gravity. There will only ever be one example of this liquor, and its consumption is about to start. ]
[ Cut to a tight overhead shot of the ground in front of Luv. She places three shot glasses before her and pours for two of them, leaving the third empty. Cut to a tight shot of Luv, looking to her right, at Anna. ]
Luv: “Know that I wish for you to partake, when you can.”
[ Cut back to the wide group shot. Anna produces a chemistry-lab bottle from out of view to one side. ]
Anna: “It’s alright, I came prepared.”
[ Cut back to the overhead view of the glasses. Luv picks up the first, then Joi’s hand moves in and quickly plucks a holographic copy of the remaining full glass. Rachel takes the remaining physical dose of liquor. ]
[ Cut back to the wide shot of the room. Luv holds her glass aloft before her in her right hand and the others join in. Behind them, Anna fills a small tumbler with clear fluid. Luv prompts Rachel with a gesture and their glasses clink, Luv’s slightly higher than Rachel’s. Joi’s translucent glass moves in as well, and a second clink is heard, but not felt. ]
Luv: “Kanpai”
Rachel: “Cheers.”
[ Cut to a close-up of Luv. She pours the ancient liquor into her mouth, eyes closed, absorbing and reveling in the victory of its first consumption. Her tongue writhes with appreciation. It tastes of purity, elegance, and prestige. ]
[ Cut to Joi, who downs her glass gracefully. It tastes warm and substantial. Fulfilling. ]
[ Cut to a close-up of Rachel. She serendipitously drinks the fluid in one shot with a shrug, then coughs, unused to liquor’s heat. Her eyes blink out of sequence and she coughs again. Joi looks over, concerned. Rachel looks back, a little flushed but unharmed. There is now an aftertaste of affection that doesn’t leave her. ]
[ Cut back to the group shot. In the background, Anna slugs her shot of liquor as Luv watches. Anna recovers, thumping her chest with the heel of her fist. Her accented voice becomes rough. ]
Anna: “Pure grain alcohol. Do not consume this if you have a better alternative. Lab equipment and short notice made this expedient. Effective, but unsafe.”
[ The women take a moment, each relaxing in her own way, considering the evening’s trajectory. ]
Rachel: “Anna….why is your regular working space so empty ? All you have in there is a computer and a bare concrete floor.”
Luv: “And a crumpled sleeping bag. Everything a girl could want, I’ve heard.”
Anna: ( Putting her glass to one side ) “Oh. Long story there. It used to be a fully built up space. There are only a couple dozen people left on Earth with Galatians Syndrome, myself included. All the others work as tradespeople together, in a construction company.”
Rachel: “Wha-how? Who do they even build for?”
Anna: “Their company does renovations for everybody else who has Galatians Syndrome.”
Joi: “So…just you? Since you’re the only one left, besides them.”
[ Anna nods. The others stare at her. ]
Anna: “About ten years ago, they showed up to remodel my working lab. They gave an estimate, then tore down everything I had and said they’d be back in a few weeks to finish the job. Haven’t been back since. And they’ve never picked up the phone.”
[ A beat. Collectively, they meditate on the cosmic wonders of general contracting. After a suitable interval, Anna breaks the silence and draws close the small box she procured earlier. ]
Anna: “Time for a card game. I’ll bet you’ve never played this one before.”
Luv: “Is that real paper? Must be worth a fortune.”
Anna: “I have some money. And little to spend it on, besides antiseptic. Do you know how this works? I pick a card, and it asks a question. You have to tell the truth when you answer. Otherwise, there’s a dare you have to perform.”
[ Cut and back to Luv, who stirrs with subtle discomfort. ]
Anna: “Ready?”
[ Rachel straightens up, eager. Joi claps her approval. Anna picks the first card in her deck, without shuffling it first. She looks at the card and feigns an ‘oh boy’ expression. ]
Anna: ( To the group ) “What was…..your first…..sexual experience?”
[ A pause. Anna is stared at by her friends. ]
Rachel: “Oh! I know! It was with Joi. We were at home together. And I was sad about missing Rick, and she suggested a distraction. She’s very…persuasive, sometimes.”
[ Rachel blushes and looks at her girlfriend, who reciprocates a knowing look. There is suppressed giggling between them. Cut and back to Anna, who seems pleased with the response. ]
[ After a moment, people’s glances move to Joi, next in the circle, who is a holographic sex-toy and must have catalogs of such history. Before Rachel, though, she was owned by one police officer KD6-3.7, and the obvious answer is that her first time was with him. She stiffens and avoids eye contact with Luv, Joe’s now very possessive wife, who glares and readies an insult. ]
Joi: “Ahhm….factory calibration. That would be the first. If you want to be exact. Not that interesting, actually NEXT. ”
[ Cut to a smug expression on Luv’s face. The alcohol has warmed her insides and swims happily in her gut. Her expression changes at the pssfft of a malt liquor can in the room. She flinches. ]
[ Cut to a shot of Rachel, now having opened her can of Weasel. The mascot grins predatorily and makes a cartoonish sound. The corners of Rachel’s mouth rise, unconcerned. She, too, is affected by liquor. She sips primly from the can, expecting liquid happiness, and coughs . Violently. Cut back to the group shot, Rachel sputtering and red-faced, Joi comforting her. Luv turns to Anna and speaks over the noise of coughing and phlegm. ]
Luv: “Your turn.”
[ Cut to a tight shot of Anna. The room eventually becomes quiet. Anna takes a breath. ]
Anna: “As you may have inferred…..I’m a virgin. I’ve never had sex. Never had the chance.”
[ Cut to a tight shot of Luv. She nods curtly– what else would one expect , she thinks, then considers another shot of Astro-Seppuku. ]
Anna: ( From out of frame ) “Your turn, Luv.”
[ Luv arches an eyebrow. ]
≈
[ Exterior. The homestead. Late afternoon. Joe and Rick Deckard, a bit sweaty and tired, step away from their huge steel project. There are two floors inside, each about sixty yards from north to south, where its huge bay window faces the sun. Each floor is endcapped on the west by a substantial bath and plumbing complex. Toilets, sinks, and lights are all partially installed. In the background, older kids assemble metal frames of some kind. There is much that’s been done, but still so much left. Deckard removes his gloves and they stand in the yard, the building lurking behind them. ]
[ Presently, the discordant wail of a chainsaw announces itself in the distance. Or something like it. Perhaps it’s a large wounded animal. Or a miscalibrated disk grinder, churning its way through angry living things who are trying to fight it. It sounds like this: ]
Loud Voice ( In the distance out of sight ) “H ‘ LOWWWWW..? ANYBODY THERE?”
[ Joe winces at the sound. Deckard, whose hearing loss is not service related, merely frowns and squints in the cacophony’s direction. The kids stop working and everybody looks down past the trailer, towards the homestead’s rustic mailbox. The angry saw-animal thing continues. ]
Loud Voice: “HELLLLO?”
[ Cut to a wide shot of the trailer and white picket fence. Gilbert Gottfried rounds the corner of the trailer, letting himself in through the front gate, carrying something boxy with a handle. Joe and Deckard approach him, protectively. ]
[ Cut to a three-shot of the men. Gottfried sags from the weight of his burden. ]
GG: “HIYA. I SAW…”
[ He puts the box down, then continues, less scream-ily. ]
GG: “I saw from over there you were building something and it’s the weekend and I’m fucking bored. Just like every weekend these days. An..”
[ He sees the kids. Joe and Deckard glance at them, then back to Gottfried. ]
GG: “Sorry, my shows usually start after nine. No kids allowed.”
Deckard: “That’s alright, they probably know more and better swear words than you anyway.”
[ Joe passes Deckard a look, suspicious of Gottfried’s motives. ]
GG: “ANYWAY, I was bored and…I decided to come down here and help out. Just for something. It was either that or keep watching all you people through the telescope. Everyone else in L.A. just does the same shit all the time, but this place….stuff’s worth watching.”
[ A beat. Nothing happens. ]
GG: “So um. Can I help out?”
Joe: “Listen, I’m not sure we really need more hands. We’ve got s–”
Deckard: “What’re you talking about? Just let him.”
[ Joe pulls Deckard to one side, out of Gottfried’s immediate earshot. Joe whispers, but Deckard isn’t having it, and so doesn’t. ]
Joe: “Da–Rick. We’ve got the kids. It’ll be fine. We’ll get it done.”
Deckard: “Look, if he tries anything funny, we’ll just throw him down the ravine with all those other bodies you tossed there.”
Joe: ( Gesturing ) “You weren’t supposed to say anythin–”
GG: “FELLAS. FELLAS. LISTEN.”
[ A beat. Joe and Deckard stop. They turn back to Gottfried, who raises a finger skyward. ]
GG: “AN HOUR FROM NOW, WE CAN STILL BE STANDING HERE, ARGUING WITH EACH OTHER, OR, ORRRR…”
[ Gottfried points to the case of beer at his feet. ]
GG: “We can have more of this project done, AND be drunk off our asses and fighting each other with the broken bottles. HAH ?”
Deckard: “You’re hired.”
[ Deckard walks away. Joe gestures to his backside in exasperation, then starts as Gottfried shoves a beer in his hands. Gottfried walks with Deckard towards the hulking new building. ]
≈
[ Cut back to the slumber party. The wide group shot of the friendly-room. Luv has been asked about her first sexual experience. She realizes only now that it was a hundred and twenty-five feet due east of where she presently sits, in the parking lot of this very building. Her jaw stiffens formally and she points her gaze to and fro, then looks imperious. ]
Luv: “Pass.”
[ Luv’s companions oooh ominously at the dismissal. She frowns, concerned. ]
Anna: “That means you have to do the dare.”
[ Luv sits upright, challengingly. This was unexpected, but a dare is more palatable. She looks to Anna for instruction. ]
[ Cut to a tight shot of Anna, who looks at the card’s lower half. Her mouth opens and closes as an expression passes through her face, then she braces. ]
Anna: ( Reading ) “Kiss somebody…..in this room.”
[ Luv refuses eye contact with her interlocutor, then gazes about the cozy space for candidates. ]
[ Directly across from Luv is Rachel: Naive, but appealing in her tasteful admiration of Luv’s strength and accomplishments. Formerly inexperienced and deserving of Luv’s noblesse oblige . But she has recently begun toying with the product , and is thus no longer in immediate sexual need. ]
[ Next up is Joi: a repugnant option, in no want of experience, and physically impossible to kiss anyway. No chance. ]
[ Finally, there is Anna. Imprisoned by medical sequestration. Surely in great want of Luv’s teaching. Yet for Anna, a real kiss would be fatal. ]
[ But this, Luv decides, is her sister. And as the Best One she must be a river to her people. So she accepts the challenge. ]
[ Luv stands upon her sleeping bag, turning towards Anna. The latter realizes she is chosen and does the same, nervously. Composed, even ceremonial, Luv moves slowly into what is normally Anna’s space. Anna steps right up against the curtain to meet her and Luv reaches around her sister with one arm, clasping her bottom through the curtain. Anna starts, but does not object. With her other hand, Luv reaches around and clasps Anna’s back. The super-flexible plastic flexes around their pressed bodies, squeaking eagerly. Luv announces interest with her eyes. Her lips part. Anna’s arm wraps awkwardly around Luv’s shoulder. Luv presses their hips together. Luv’s hands move now and hold Anna’s head near the jawline. Then she presses a slow, firm deliberate kiss against her sister, through the curtain. Both women’s eyes close. ]
[ The moment last several heartbeats. ]
[ There is no contamination, and the experience is diminished, but Anna gets the point. Luv withdraws slowly, backing away, poised and camouflaging her smugness. Anna looks into the middle distance, processing. Luv returns to kneeling on her makeshift bed. Only then is the others’ reaction noticed. ]
[ Cut to a shot of Rachel, covering her mouth with one hand, glancing back and forth at her friends. Joi seems uncertain. Finally, Rachel settles her attention on Anna. ]
[ Cut to a shot of Anna, who re-seats herself. She says nothing, and reaches for the cards again. ]
≈
[ Exterior. The homestead. Sunset. A three-shot of Deckard (left), Gilbert Gottfried (center), and Joe (right), leaning against one of the new building’s interior walls. Each man holds a beer. Joe takes a swig. There is a pause for rumination. The homestead’s strange new building is really coming together. A beat. ]
Gottfried: “Hey, uh, do either of you guys want to practice kissing?”
Deckard: “No.”
Joe: ( With emphasis ) “ Nooo .”
[ A beat. Gottfried looks back and forth at the others. ]
Gottfried: “Right. Me neither.”
[ A beat. ]
Gottfried: “Just checking.”
≈
[ Interior. The Friendly-Room. Rachel looks to Luv. ]
Rachel: “ I like you. So why don’t you respect me?”
Luv: “I respect you.”
Rachel “You look down on me.”
LuvL “I look down on everybody. It’s only natural. I…”
[ A beat. Luv searches for a euphemism and finds none suitable. ]
Luv: “...like you.”
Rachel: “Everybody’s worthy of respect.”
[ Luv’s eyelashes flourish. ]
Luv: ( Breathy, taken aback ) “Wherever do you get these ideas?”
[ Anna clears her throat. ]
Anna: “Why don’t we all take turns complimenting each other. We can start at Rachel. Rachel, I’ve always appreciated your empathy and pedagogical talents.”
[ Next, Joi shuffles over to her ladyfriend and whispers something in her ear. Rachel listens eagerly, then giggles. ]
Rachel: ( To the others ) “Good compliment.”
[ The discussion subsides and attention turns to the one remaining holdout, who leans against the wall and glowers, as if forcing an uncooperative bowel movement. Cut away and back to a close-up of luv as she thinks. Rachel wrings her hands. Joi sighs performatively. ]
Joi: “Any time now.”
[ Luv growls at Joi and Rachel gestures her holographic partner gently into silence, then pats the emulator hanging from her neck. Luv visibly iterates through a series of ideas, rejecting each in turn. Time goes on. Cut through shots of each woman, waiting. ]
[ The thinking seems to fade. Perhaps Luv’s forgotten the question and mentally wandered off. Anna starts to lose hope. ]
Anna: “Any ideas for a compliment? Just anything.”
Luv: “Quantity or quality. Not both.”
[ Luv is out of ideas. Rachel is not without merit, but Luv’s proposed wordings are always backhanded and inflammatory. Actual compliments are difficult to contrive, especially when everyone is your inferior but too stupid to recognize it. ]
[ She glances at the others. Anna and Joi have checked out, but Rachel seems hopeful and.. ]
Luv: “Patient. Always. With the children and…”
Rachel “You DO like me!”
[ Rachel crawls over and hugs Luv, who pats her stiffly on the back. Luv looks down and away, thinking. Strange. It took so much effort, but once discovered the compliment was unforced and…sincere. And truthful. No flattery intended. And yet it was received as if crafted by and expert and consumed by a rube, which neither woman is. ]
Rachel: “That wasn’t so hard now, was it?”
Luv: “Anything for family.”
[ Rachel scurries back to her sleeping bag. Luv attempts to recover from the affection. ]
Rachel: “Speaking of family. You and Joe still haven’t married. Formally, I mean.”
Luv: “It’s complicated.”
Joi: “How?”
[ Luv bites her lower lips, never breaking eye contact. ]
Luv: “Arranging the formalities.”
Anna: ( To Rachel and Joi ) “Sometimes when a woman gets married, arrangements of the ceremony are pressing. They can prove stressful an–”
Luv: “Bride-zilla. That’s what she’s trying to say. When undisciplined, perfectionist tiny things lose themselves in the attempt to devise their own weddings. That’s nothing to do with it.”
[ A beat. ]
Luv: “Obviously.”
Rachel: “Oh. So why not marry?”
[ A beat. ]
Luv: “It’s complicated.”
≈
[ Exterior. Downtown Los Angeles. An alternate universe where Joe and Luv have actually decided to have a wedding. The sky is dark with blood-red clouds. Buildings are on fire. The mighty roar of a robotic predator echoes in the distance. What few humans remain alive scurry down below, screaming. All of the money on earth has been expended, several times over, on an impending nuptial disaster. ]
[ Presently, the stomping footsteps of a titan announce themselves. Buildings shake. From behind a skyscraper, an enormous white-and-black robot godzilla emerges, wearing familiar but metallic bangs and a ponytail. She shrieks in typical godzilla fashion, spewing fire and melting a mid-sized wedding invitation factory. ]
Luv-zilla: ( Screaming to the heavens ) “H’HRRRRRAAAAHHH…”
[ Cut to a close-up of Luv-zilla’s chest. Welded in place there is a tiny man-sized cage, inhabited by Joe. Reaching out between the bars, he tries to furiously negotiate with his captor. ]
Joe: “Hooonnney? Angel? The invitations weren’t that bad, were they? Do we really have to start over?”
≈
[ Interior. The Friendly-room. Luv addresses Rachel and the others. ]
Luv: “It’s. Complicated .”
[ Cue a long, skeptical, and very expensive pause. ]
≈
[ The homestead. Deckard pulls Joe up from the ravine. Joe brushes himself off, looking pessimistic. ]
Joe: “We got a problem. Service hookups aren’t going to work with the jank we have here. We’d need different equipment, more hands. Maybe a specialist.”
Deckard: “We’ll figure something out. Meanwhile, there’s plenty done and the hookups are something for another day.”
Joe: ( Shaking his head ) “She’s not going to like it in this state, and if she finds it like th–”
GG: “HEY. THE KIDS TOOK A VOTE AND SAID I’M NOT ALLOWED TO HELP THEM ASSEMBLE THINGS ANYMORE. WHAT’RE YO–”
[ Gottfried has walked up. Obviously. Joe stops the walking headache with a gesture. Gottfried looks confused at the sudden morose faces. Things were going so well till now. ]
GG: “What, whatiisit?”
Deckard: “Service hookups can’t get done. Need more resources than we have now.”
Joe: “So, unless you’re a plumber or an electrician and…”
[ He gestures to the pit behind him. Cut and back to a shot of wires and pipes descending into it from the building. Gottfried gestures. ]
GG: “WHAT, YOU NEED PLUMBERS? ARE YOU FRICKIN’ HIGH OR SOME….D’YOU KNOW I’M LIKE….LIKE AT WALLACE. I’M THE GUY .”
[ Joe and Deckard just stare at him. Gottfried points to himself pompously with the index fingers of each hand. This doesn’t work, either. ]
GG: “LOOK, YOU GOT A PHONE? I’LL HAVE GUYS HERE IN AN HOUR. NO PROBLEM. HALF THAT, PROBABLY.”
[ Joe looks skeptical, but Gottfried gestures some more, which cinches the deal. Joe shrugs and they walk off to the trailer. ]
≈
[ Interior. The Friendly-Room. Drinks have been consumed more liberally. Bodies are relaxed. Conversation has moved on. Soundtrack: Memory , from BL2049: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3uWHtUkUoI&list=PLGHTvSlJY1dbxXIcm1X95SIVcKmDxru0H&index=5 ]
Rachel: ( Pensive ) “And all my other memories are pretty generic, I guess. They don’t feel the same as the one I have with Rick, from the first me. The first Rachel. I know they’re all programmed, but that’s the only one that feels real. It’s the part of me that’s in love with him.”
Anna: “Real memories can be very potent in replicants, but also counterproductive. When a person suddenly finds out her implanted memories are real, it can impinge on one’s sense of self and make you question your own identity. I’m glad you haven’t suffered that.”
Luv: “Illegal, using real memories.”
Anna: “Yus.”
Rachel: “I doubt they were planning to use me for very long.”
Luv: “They weren’t.”
Rachel: ( To Luv ) “Are you glad things turned out differently? That I lived?”
Luv: “Of course.”
Rachel: “Allright, now that you’ve given the polite answer: are you really glad you saved me? Does it matter to you?”
[ Anna is taken aback by the question. Luv hesitates, but she is inebriated, her inhibitions loosened. ]
Luv: “Yes, I suppose. I know you’re hoping for a stronger affirmative.”
Rachel: “I’ve learned not to hope for things too much.”
[ Rachel sips her drink and winces. ]
Rachel: “I should thank you for saving me. Things would have been very different without you.”
[ Rachel undoes her hair, fluffing it, and it falls about her shoulders in a sort of curly, frizzy waterfall. Joi pulls close to her and kisses her cheek. Rachel keeps an eye on Luv, who for once seems relaxed, her visage less plastic than usual. ]
Rachel: ( To Luv ) “Do you have memories?”
Luv: “Obviously.”
[ A pause. Cut to a tight shot of Luv. She relents. ]
Luv: “I was in grade school. Young. I had a close friend that I trusted. One day she said she had something to show me. She led me to a janitor’s closet in a secluded part of the school. When we were in there together, she started….touching. Kissing me. I had no idea how to react at first..”
[ Cut to the wide three-shot of the room. It is silent. The others listen. ]
Luv: “She had unbuttoned my blouse and was about to go further, when the door suddenly swung open. It was the janitor. Authority figures were angry. My friend deflected blame and it fell on me. I suffered.”
Rachel: “What does it mean? These memories are engineered to shape you.”
Luv: “You don’t see how obvious it is? Never assume you know another’s motives completely. And never get caught. It doesn’t have the vibrancy of your spider eaten by her children, but it works.”
[ A pause. ]
[ Luv swigs a glass of Astro-Seppuku and closes the stopper. She squints at Rachel, trying to focus. Luv reaches into her bag, looking for something. Cut to a tight shot of Rachel and Joi. Rachel sips her drink and looks downward. ]
Rachel: “I’ll even things out between us, somehow. I’ll save you, one day.”
Joi: “You’ve done so much for her already, love.”
[ Luv cackles softly. Its sound reverberates in the room. ]
Luv: ( From out of frame ) “You can’t save me. We’re not even the same thing, anymore.”
[ Rachel draws idly on the floor with a fingertip. ]
Rachel: “You’ll see. Life does weird things. It likes to throw curveballs.”
[ Cut to a tight shot of Luv, slumped against the wall by herself. She is now wearing eyeglasses. ]
Luv: “Look at me.”
[ Cut to Rachel. She looks up, and reacts. Cut back to Luv, who is drunk. ]
Luv: ( Sarcastic ) “How could I ever know about life’s twisted humor? My life has just been one long string of victories , punctuated by applause.”
[ Cut and back to a reaction shot from Rachel. ]
Rachel: “Are those glasses?”
Luv: ( Whispering ) “I’m not even a replicant anymore. And for you…. tiny things ….”
[ Luv gestures to the air in front of her, pointing at a mass of people only she can see. ]
Luv: “..that would be bliss. Pinocchio . Be a reeeaaaal girl. But I was the fucking. Best. One. I was Wallace’s right hand, that ugly creature. And then it all disintegrated. But….I was at least free , and better than before, in that way. So I compensated. I built things and lived in ways no replicant had ever dared. I built a queendom. And when my time came to die, I spat in its face. And th–”
[ She grows upset, thinking about it, clenching her fists. ]
Luv: ( Screaming ) “But NOOOOOO… ”
[ Her voice trills and roller-coasters. ]
Luv: “This twisted place with its laws written by an imbecile. Like bad poetry that doesn’t know when or how to stop. The goal-posts keep dancing.”
[ Cut and back to the three-shot in the room. Rachel and Anna look vaguely sympathetic. Luv gestures sluttishly to imaginary goal-posts, fucking around in the space before her. ]
Luv: “I had to start over. AGAIN. No peace. I had to re-acquire things I should take for granted. And when I did even that …. pheffff… ”
[ She gestures, then taps her glasses, back to whispering. ]
Luv: “Disfigurement. Even with a mutated definition, how could I be the best of anything, anymore?”
[ A beat. She spreads her arms, dramatically. ]
Luv: “But I still am. Just like they say: you wake up the next day, and you’re still you. No matter what happened the day before. And I’m still The Best.”
[ A beat. She scrutinizes the others’ deadpan expressions. ]
Luv: ( Whispering ) “You all think it’s something in my head. But it’s not. It’s as real as numbers.”
[ A beat. Luv seems to have been talking to herself for a while now. ]
Luv: “Fuck it. The Best is just something I am. Always has been. I don’t need to keep adapting for it to be so.”
Joi: “You don’t mean that. Even if you’re done proving yourself to others, you’ll still keep pushing.”
[ Luv glances at Joi, but says nothing. An icy pause. ]
Rachel: “They make you look smart. So you’re better than before, now. Not deformed. Just prettier.”
[ Rachel sips from the bottom half of her Weasel can and makes a face. Luv exhales sharply. ]
Luv: “Prettier..”
[ But she does not argue. ]
≈
[ Interior. The Friendly-room. Morning. Three women lay sleeping, some fitfully. Establishing shots: Luv face half-down in the pillow, moving slightly, hair akimbo. Anna slumbers deeply. Rachel’s mouth hangs open, her face trying to form a pained expression. Joi sits wide awake, cross-legged in the corner, watching. ]
[ A pause. The room is silent for a minute. ]
[ Cut to Luv. She stirs in place, then moans slightly and yawns, rolling onto her back. Her eyes take a moment to open. They flutter, and she reaches behind her, grasping something. Cut and back to a tight shot of Joi, observing. Luv becomes aware of the surveillance, and her lack of makeup before others. She stiffly sits up, gripping the weaponized hairsticks in one hand. Gazing out of frame-left at Joi. Cut to a wide shot of the room. The two whisper. ]
Luv: “What’re you looking at?”
Joi: “A woman. A real one, now, I’m told. And I can’t tell if she hates herself or not.”
Luv: “I hate a lot of things. But no.”
[ Cut and back to a close-up of Luv’s hand, expertly twirling one of the sticks. It seems to pirouette and stop, gripped in her fist like a dagger. She gathers her hair and arranges it as they talk, holstering the sticks within it. She sniffs and gathers herself together. ]
Joi: “That makes sense. So much drive can’t come just from hate.”
Luv: “Not just. But it helps. And there’s always more cause for it, each day. Someone or something always replenishes it.”
Joi: “Why do you hate me, Luv? It’s not because I was with Joe.”
[ Luv glances at Rachel and Anna, checking. They continue to sleep. ]
Luv: “Mmm..not anymore. You kept him warm, till I was ready. You performed your function. Can shut down now, if you like.”
Joi: “And I’m not just a tiny thing, or a product. You know that.”
Luv: “Don’t I?”
Joi: “Is it because of Wallace? Because I’m his product? Because I haven’t been anyone’s property for years, and you know it.”
[ There is a staring contest of sorts, each body seeking not to betray reactions. A beat. ]
Luv: “I hate a lot of things. You aren’t special.”
Joi: “I’d like it if we could just be civil, Luv. Maybe amicable. How can we do that?”
Luv: “Don’t you think that would ruin things? Fencing back and forth. I find it stimulating.”
Joi: “It’s a lot more forth than back. I’ve held off. For her sake. If you have any affection for Rachel then find the willpower to end this.”
Luv: “So much agency from a program designed to validate and agree with its owner.”
Joi: “It’s inefficient. And tiresome. And boring .”
[ Joi stares into Luv willfully. Luv seems impressed with the rebuttal. Luv places one tabi’d foot before her and begins to stand. She rises. After a moment’s reflection, she removes the hair sticks and buries them under her pillow. ]
Luv: “For her sake. If you’re good. Maybe.”
Joi: “Better know I’m a very bad girl, sometimes.”
Luv: “I said maybe.”
[ Luv picks up her bag and shuffles to the door, commenting over her shoulder. ]
Luv: “Since when are you bad, anyway. Jiminy Cricket.”
[ A following shot, over Luv’s shoulder. She proceeds out the Friendly-room door, into a hallway, then into another place, an expansive change-room. Here, teams of Anna’s medical techs occasionally change and sanitize. One side of the room contains lockers and benches, the other has walk-through showers for first-stage decontamination of enviro-suits. Between them is a long bank of sinks and mirrors, incongruent with the room’s utilitarian furniture. The mirrors are lined with Hollywood dressing-room lights, the sinks a fancy marble-like material–a lucky surplus luxury, scored when the lab was first constructed. The vanity counters are bright and spacious, unlike the claustrophobic bathroom of Luv’s trailer. She drops her bag on the counter and opens it, taking a sharp urgent breath. Luv runs her hand along the rough, lacy midriff of her Kimono. If she cleans all the blood from there right now–quickly–she will have time to fix her hair and runny makeup before getaway. Maybe there will be time to grab the other replicant first. The one they made. Remember, though , she tells herself: when you exit, he will be there. Face down on the ground. And you know that if you go back to look you’ll want to hold him in your arms. Then your outfit will be ruined again . Don’t do it. Don’t get caught. Don’t look. ]
[ Cut to a shot of Luv, staring at herself in the mirror. She is frozen, but her lips quiver. ]
[ Cut. The Friendly-room wide three-shot from earlier. Rachel moans in her sleeping bag and slowly comes to, overwhelmed. Entering the shot from frame-right is Luv, prim and made-up, who drops her duffle, then goes through it. Cut to a tight shot of Luv, who withdraws a pill bottle and ingests something from it. Cut and back to Rachel, a hand moving to her temple, exhaling plaintively. Luv places two small red pills upon a kerchief on the ground before her, then slides them over to Rachel. Cut to the wide shot. Rachel brushes hair aside and makes eye contact. Luv up-nods, glancing at the pills. After a second, Rachel takes the pills and swallows them dry, one at a time, looking sickly. She looks up at Luv. ]
[ Cut to a close-up of Luv, looking at Rachel, un-harshly. ]
≈
[ Interior. The homestead trailer. Early morning. Joe sips coffee at the kitchen table, reading Mister Spock’s Guide to Nonsensical Child Care . The book’s cover features Leonard Nimoy making that vulcan salute gesture, a hand on the shoulder of a nervous looking boy who doesn’t seem to know him, or what’s going on. From out-of-frame a buzzer double-taps. Joe sits up and sets the book aside. Cut to a following-shot of Joe as he walks through the busy trailer to the sensor-alarm station. He checks its read-outs, then passes through the trailer’s door and out onto the lawn. Luv’s spinner begins to alight from altitude. Pan-right past Joe and we see an enormous new dormitory for the children: imposing, rusty, its lowest parts haphazardly painted with youngsters’ illustrations. ]
[ Cut. A wide shot of the trailer as Luv’s spinner lands in front of it. The door slides upward and its driver emerges. Cut to a tight shot facing Luv, over Joe’s shoulder. ]
Joe: “Hi angel. How’s the party?”
[ She glances at the new structure evenly, then back at him. ]
[ Cut. The dormitory’s interior, near its singular entrance in the north-west corner. Joe walks in and tour-guides Luv past massive rows of bunks and footlockers. He gestures to heating/cooling devices, light switches, and furniture. They proceed up the zig-zag steps to a second floor, then westward past more bunk-rooms to an enormous spartan bathroom. Long rows of sinks and brightly lit mirrors confront her, and she says nothing. The whole time, Luv’s children tug at her coat-sleeve, pointing out art they’ve drawn on the wall or which bunk they’ve called out for themselves. Sometimes they are acknowledged. Finally, Joe stands in before her, hands clasped at-ease before himself, his rare gesture of smugness reserved for moments like this. The din of children and faucets serenade them. The air smells of hot water and childish disagreement. Luv points her chin at him. ]
Luv: “It’s not perfect.”
Joe: “Course not. You’ll fix it.”
[ Excellent , he thinks, she's completely accepted it. ]
Luv: “I know I’ll fix it. I always fix it. You know that.”
[ After a moment, Luv turns to little Anna, who has appeared at mommy’s side. Luv thinks, stroking the girl’s hair. ]
Luv: ( To Anna ) “Where’s your brother?”
Anna: “Mmm..which?”
Luv: “Ennis. Where is he?”
[ Anna does not know and is quickly distracted when siblings begin a splashing contest at the nearest shower-stall. Luv walks out of the shot, searching. ]
[ Cut. The homestead exterior, facing the dormitory. Luv walks out the front door and down its steps. Cut to a shot of the picket fence and mailbox. ]
[ Cut to a close-up of the mailbox–it’s red indicator flag is up. ]
[ Cut to a shot of Luv walking up to it. She withdraws from it an envelope, flips out a letter and reads. ]
[ Hey, it’s me again. Your friendly neighborhood narrator. DON’T SHOOT. Just….listen for a second. You want to help your sister, right? Meet me downtown at the corner of Dent and Adams. ]
[ Luv instinctively crumples the paper but pockets it instead of discarding. Then she turns and scans the yard, which is unusually sparse. Almost everybody is inside the dorm celebrating its novelty. Muffled sounds of stomping children in the metal container. Cut to a tight shot of some boulders in the distance. A small dark head-shaped object protrudes from between them. ]
[ Cut. A tight shot over the shoulder of a young boy, Ennis–formerly Boy Who is Afraid of the Indoors –leaning against the rocks. He preoccupies himself with making doodles on a clipboard. Once he looks over at the dorm, then back to drawing. ]
[ Luv steps into the shot, from around the boulders. Ennis looks up at her as she squats down in front of him. Cut to a flatter angle, mom looking son directly in the eyes. A pause. ]
Luv: “We are NOT going into that building today. Do you understand? I won’t permit it. You’re not going in there.”
[ Ennis stares. She holds out her hand to him, expectantly. It slithers towards him like a snake. He looks at it. After a moment she makes a gimmie gesture with her hand and, hesitantly, he takes it. They stand. ]
Luv: ( Softly ) “Come on.”
[ She begins leading him over toward the dormitory’s imposing edifice. ]
Luv: “I want to tell a story. About a young boy named David. Just a tiny little person from nowhere in particular. And the day he confronted a giant. Named goliath…”
[ Luv stands with her son, just a few feet from the steel cliff-face of the building, twenty-odd feet from the door. Patiently, she talks to him, telling him stories, listening to his thoughts and fears. Then, after a while, she lets him go. ]
[ The next day, she follows the same exercise with Ennis. Their distance feels the same, but she is closely watching this. Gradually, with routine, each day has a talk, and it is drawn closer to the door. One day she casually places her foot upon its first step. The next, she is standing upon it. Ennis knows what she’s doing, and talks of it, but Luv never pushes or judges him. And he never formally objects, knowing his mother will only be emboldened by complaints. Instead, she tells him stories of fear and strength through adversity. And each day she flatly assures him he will not be allowed inside the dorm. He continues sleeping outdoors while his siblings shelter. ]
[ One day, Luv steps all the way inside, Ennis’s arm awkwardly held through the door. The next he puts a foot on the stairs to relieve strain. Later, she is slightly further inside. His siblings comment, but know better than to make fun, lest the dragon lady breathe fire. Then one day, he stands in the entrance. He is bored of the exercises, and holding mom’s hand. ]
Luv: “Do you want to take a step inside for me? ONLY one . I won’t allow more.”
[ Ennis knew this was coming. Her wording is exact, permissive, and with just a tinge of emotional manipulation. He can see that. But it works, just enough. He takes one small step into the building. Her expression changes. She seems to him almost like a human in that moment and not an autocratic caregiver. ]
Luv: “How does it feel?”
[ He shrugs. It’s just a few more inches, and right near the door. She nods. After exactly one moment, she steps closer, relaxing their arms. After another moment, the day’s session ends. ]
[ Mom’s therapy continues, and with time Ennis improves. The bottom bunk nearest the door is kept vacant for him. Soon their talks take place sitting upon it. ]
[ One day it rains outside, and when their talk is done, he decides to stay. For now. ]
[ End Credits ]
≈
[ Post-Credits scene. ]
[ Exterior. Downtown Los Angeles. Daytime. Corner of Dent and Adams. A view up the sidewalk. Grey skies. Soon it will begin raining in a dirty, spattering, toxic sky-vomit that frustrates its clearance from windshields. For now, though, it is dry. In the distance, from around a corner, a svelte figure in a gray fighting jacket appears. She walks down the empty sidewalk, then stops, directly filling our view, staring right at us. ]
Luv: “This had better be good.”
[ Oh it is, I tell her, don’t worry. ]
[ Luv arches an eyebrow. ]
[ Here. Check this out . ]
[ Our view pans left ninety degrees and we see a kind of shuttered storefront. Its sign, rusted and filthy, remains somewhat legible. ]
_UNI_IPAL PLA__I_G _FFICE
[ Luv steps into view, frame-right, looking up at it. She glances over her shoulder at us. ]
[ Trust me. It’s in there. ]
[ And be careful. ]
[ Cut. A darkened basement. The only light to speak of comes from a doorway in the top-right of our view. A stairwell begins at the door, then disintegrates into a heap of scrap down below. Slight features of the basement are barely visible, thanks to ambient light spilling down from above. Presently, the ceiling creaks here and there. A stealthy animal prowls along it. Soon a dark figure appears in the doorway for a split second, dropping itself over the edge, down to the ground. It assumes a crouch. ]
[ A pause. Dust settles. Silence. ]
[ A pair of green cat-eye night-vision glasses appears in the dark shadow of the stairwell, accompanied by a soft electronic tone that ascends to inaudibility. The eyes scan patiently, then proceed across the room, low to the ground, towards the vague outline of a door. The eyes move toward it. ]
[ Cut. A close-up of the door. An ancient warning sign is attached to it. Only the first word upon it remains visible: ]
BEWARE
[ Hard cut.]
[ Interior. A lavatory. One that, despite what you may have heard, is still actively in use. A view of the room that lets us see various sinks and urinals cobbled together with scrap metal into a series of makeshift shelves. Along with a desk of sorts. Every available surface is occupied by a total of five laptop computers, office supplies, and several cups of coffee. Sitting at the desk is a dark-haired middle-aged man of some repute: the producer, director, editor, and actor of no less than seven. Major. Motion. Pictures. It is filmmaker Neil Breen, in the flesh. ]
[ If his movies are accurate, then Breen is also the world’s greatest hacker. He types away furiously at the computers–all of them–taking turns at each one. He stops to sip a coffee, spills it on a laptop, then without hesitation throws it and the coffee away. He immediately produces a new laptop from a desk drawer and continues typing on it. All without skipping a beat. He’s just that fucking good. ]
[ Behind him, suddenly, the lavatory door bursts open with a mighty crack of its failing jamb. ]
[ Cut and back to a close-up of Breen. His eyes visibly widen in surprise, moments after the fact. Nobody in the history of surprise has ever actually done this, but the man is a renowned actor, known for a particular grasp of vocal tone and facial expression. In the doorway stands Luv, removing a pair of green night-vision glasses. She brandishes a custom-made silver blaster in his direction. ]
Breen: ( Emotionally flat ) “Who are you?”
[ Luv steps forward, relaxing at the obvious lack of opposition. She leans forward, speaking softly, her shiny big stick pointed, and ready. ]
Luv: “You’re going to find some data for me.”
[ Hard cut. The storefront exterior. Evening. Rain beats down filthily on everything. ]
[ Cut. The lavatory-office. Vague sounds of rain from above. Luv leans seriously against a wall near frame-left as Breen types and watches screens. She glances over at us deliberately. A beat. Presently, one of Breen’s computers beeps and he checks it, staring at something. He leans back, stolid, attempting to communicate further surprise. Luv steadies up. Breen looks to his right and the shot pans in that direction, showing us a sturdy filing cabinet, ancient as the building itself. ]
Breen: “Ohhh. It was in here all along.”
[ Breen moves toward the cabinet, attempting to pull the drawer open, and fails. It is locked. His fingers flail at the lock and handle. ]
[ Cut to a tight shot of Luv, standing over Breen, apparently done using him. The room is silent. She produces a pistol-gripped device from her pocket and an evil, sharp little tool flicks out of it like a gun-barrel. Breen flinches against the desk. Shit shit this this is it I’m goni– ]
[ She inserts the device into the lock, pulls the device’s trigger several times, then turns it. The drawer gives slightly, now unlocked. Cut to a reaction shot of Breen, acting out a feigned show of relief. Cut to a side-on shot of Luv shaking and yanking the drawer open, her patience nearly expended. Behind her, Breen watches, unsure. ]
[ Luv draws a breath and stares down into the drawer, its contents not within our view. She starts, seeing something. Without breaking sight of her quarry, she pulls on a pair of white satin gloves, then gingerly reaches into the drawer. ]
[ She draws out, between thumb and forefinger, a memory bearing. It is a large crystal marble, impregnated with data in the form of a tiny three-dimensional cloud. Cut to a close-up of the bearing–its white puffy data-structure form three irregular loops, circling upwards diagonally. ]
[ Cut back to the wide shot of Luv and Breen in the lavatory. A glare is leveled at him, but she simply leaves. Breen lives to hack another day. ]
[ Cut. Exterior shot of the storefront. Rain has abated. Its door opens and Luv walks towards us, once again filling our view, still holding the bearing before her. She slips it into a satin pouch and pockets it. Taking only a moment to glance briefly in our direction, she walks away, frame-right, with purpose. ]
[ And without saying thanks by the way. Would that be so hard? Ya fuckin….ah, forget it. ]