Strangers by 30
INT. An empty apartment in NYC – AFTERNOON
CHARLIE, a man of 31 with shaggy hair and a beard, dressed in jeans and a plain yellow t-shirt with pristine white sneakers, kneels on the floor of the living room. Pictures are scattered haphazardly around him, some of them ripped, others faded. Charlie holds one up to the light streaming in from the curtainless window in front of him. The picture shows Charlie, 21, without facial hair and wearing a backward baseball hat and dirty sneakers, linking arms with DANIEL, 21, both holding red plastic cups and smiling.
CUT TO:
EXT. A yard – NIGHT
Charlie and Daniel blink into the flash of a camera, laughing. The music from the house behind them thumps rhythmically as laser lights occasionally sweep through the yard, a result of the party. Outside is relatively quiet, but inside, a lot of noise and chatter can be heard faintly.
CHARLIE
Can you believe the turnout? I never thought we’d be those guys.
You know, known for throwing the best parties on campus.
DANIEL
I know. Cheers to us!
They CLINK glasses. The two begin walking back towards the house. Charlie stops for a second and thinks deeply before speaking. His face falls slightly.
CHARLIE
Dan?
DANIEL
Yeah?
Daniel takes a sip of his drink.
CHARLIE
What do you think about Claudia?
Daniel laughs heartily.
DANIEL
Jesus fucking Christ, Charlie. I thought you were about to ask me the meaning of life or some shit.
Lighten up, she’ll come around eventually. You just have to be the ‘cool guy’ and she’ll HAVE to go out with you.
You throw the best parties on campus, after all.
Daniel pats Charlie on the back, and Charlie smiles.
CHARLIE
Yeah, I guess you’re right.
Damn women, right?
Daniel and Charlie laugh and continue to walk up the steps of the porch and into the chaotic party inside the house.
CUT TO:
INT. An empty apartment in NYC – LATE AFTERNOON
Charlie puts the photo of Daniel and himself down and picks up another. He stares at it for a long moment, his head falling slowly into his chest before standing up and grabbing the tape from beside the box in front of him. Charlie tapes the picture to the bare wall opposite the windows. The sun casts a glare on the photo, settling just right so that the person in the photo is undistinguishable. Time moves on rapidly, and the sun begins to set. Charlie remains staring at the picture. It is of CLAUDIA, early 20s, her long blond hair falling over her shoulders, a mock-serious look on her face.
CUT TO:
INT. A scarcely furnished apartment in NYC – MIDNIGHT
The flash of the camera reflects in Claudia’s glasses. She sticks her tongue out.
CLAUDIA
Charlie! You promised you’d stop
taking unsolicited pictures of me.
CHARLIE
‘Unsolicited’? Where’d you learn that word, Clau?
Claudia pretends to laugh.
CLAUDIA
Ha-ha, very funny. I got a degree too, you know.
You’re not the only lover of the arts in this relationship.
Charlie walks over to Claudia and tucks a stray piece of hair behind her ear. Claudia looks up at Charlie.
CHARLIE
Oh, really?
CLAUDIA (whispers)
Really.
CHARLIE
What’ve you been working on lately?
Charlie sits on the couch next to Claudia as she pulls out a small green notebook. Claudia opens to a page.
CLAUDIA
It’s not finished. It’s also not very good. But I was feeling melancholy a few days ago.
CHARLIE
Nothing new there, huh?
Claudia smacks Charlie on the arm with the notebook.
CLAUDIA
It comes with the territory.
CHARLIE
Read it to me, Clau.
CLAUDIA
I hate reading the things I write out loud.
CHARLIE
I know. But I love when you read to me.
A pause.
CLAUDIA
I only do it for you. I’d do really anything for you, Charlie.
CHARLIE
I know.
Claudia clears her throat overdramatically and then begins to read. Charlie watches her closely.
CLAUDIA
“I feel content in a place I’ve always hated. Is this what growing up feels like? Or is this what complacency feels like?
There’s nothing to do and no one I want to see, but somehow, I’m okay doing nothing and seeing no one. They don’t want to see me and do nothing together anyway.
The friends and family I left behind here aren’t the people I want to sit and do nothing with anyway. They don’t fill the silence with comfort, love, and understanding. Instead, the lapse in our conversations unveils the time between us and our lives. I don’t know them, and they don’t know me.
I want to sit at a table in a restaurant, have a drink, and smile at the people I can sit with in comfortable silence. Except we won’t choose silence at the table. We’ll laugh hard and pretend to make fun of each other’s orders and talk about anything we feel like.
Someone will get shushed for saying something raunchy. Someone will get embarrassed by an anecdote someone else is telling. Someone will laugh so hard they fear they’ll spit out the sip of drink they just took. Someone will scold another in a friendly way. Someone will be uncharacteristically quiet because they’re just soaking up the feeling of being in the then and there. Someone will feel lonely for a brief second before remembering where they are, and who they’re with, and it’ll go away for a bit.
And we won’t choose silence for a little while.
But the best part is that we could.”
Charlie exhales. He’s now lying with his feet propped over the back of the couch, his head hanging off the front end.
CLAUDIA
I know. It’s not the best. Please don’t be too harsh, oh wise and effortlessly proficient writer, Charlie.
Claudia laughs, but Charlie remains staring at the ceiling.
CLAUDIA (whispers)
Please say something, Charlie.
CHARLIE
I don’t know what to say.
CLAUDIA
What do you mean?
CHARLIE
Why do you put yourself down about what you write?
CLAUDIA
Oh. I don’t know. Insecurity, I suppose. I never feel like anything I write is worth the time it’d take for others to read it. Or listen to it.
CHARLIE
But the time you spent writing it mattered?
CLAUDIA
Yeah, it did. A lot.
CHARLIE
Then it matters to the people you wrote about.
I’m one of them, right?
Claudia smiles, and Charlie responds with his own wide smile.
CLAUDIA
You are.
CHARLIE
Which one?
CLAUDIA
Guess.
CHARLIE
Hmmmm…
Charlie puts his hand on his chin. He then spins around and sits upright on the couch, staring at Claudia.
CHARLIE
The one telling the embarrassing anecdote.
I bet it was about Lily.
CLAUDIA
Oh, absolutely. She always did the wildest shit in college. I remember the one time she broke into that mean old biology professor’s office to steal his beloved $200 red fountain pen.
The two laugh heartily. Claudia looks out the dark window into the black night. She sees her reflection looking back.
CHARLIE
Clau?
Claudia turns to look at Charlie, her expression sad as if she already knows what Charlie is going to ask.
CLAUDIA
Yeah?
CHARLIE
Which one was Scarlett?
Claudia stands and walks over to the window. She stares out.
CLAUDIA
I don’t want to talk about this anymore.
CHARLIE
We can’t ignore it forever, Claudia.
If we don’t talk about it, we’ll never be able to get over it.
Claudia whips around, tears streaming down her face, an accusatory finger pointed at Charlie.
CLAUDIA
It’s not just something we ‘get over,’ Charlie. God, I can’t believe you’d be so fucking insensitive. She was our friend. She was so important to the group!
CLAUDIA (voice breaking)
She was so important.
Claudia begins to sob. She falls slowly to the floor. Charlie remains on the couch, staring out the window where Claudia had just been standing. The lights dim and the only thing visible is Charlie’s darkened reflection in the window.
CUT TO:
INT. An empty apartment in NYC – NIGHT
Charlie is staring out the window, his reflection staring back. Charlie sinks down the wall, tears in his eyes. A picture on the other side of the room, scattered on the floor, catches his attention. Charlie crawls to the picture and picks it up with shaking hands. The only light is the full moon shining in through the window. The picture is of Daniel, Claudia, LILY, SCARLETT, and MONROE all smiling, laughing, and lounging on a deck, the ocean in the background.
CUT TO:
EXT. The deck of a big house in Rhode Island – AFTERNOON
The friends laugh as Charlie lowers a Polaroid camera and waits for the picture to print and reveal itself. He shakes the picture to make it develop faster, eager to see the outcome.
LILY
You’re not supposed to shake them, Charlie!
MONROE
Yeah! It ruins them. Shakes the ink
around or some sciencey shit like that.
Charlie quits shaking the picture and stares at the two with an accusatory stare.
CHARLIE
Then why do they do it in the movies, huh?
LILY
Because those are the MOVIES. Everything is exaggerated to keep the audience entertained. I thought you’d know that given your proclivity to binge-watching and being a self-proclaimed cinephile.
Claudia walks over to Charlie and takes the picture from his hands. She stares at it as if inspecting something under a magnifying glass.
CLAUDIA
Do I really look like that? Jesus.
CHARLIE
I think you look fine.
CLAUDIA
Of course you do. You have to.
Claudia gets on her tiptoes and kisses Charlie on the cheek. Scarlett observes the encounters silently, a faint smile on her face.
DANIEL
What’re you thinking about, Scar? You’ve
been so quiet lately. What’s all that about?
Scarlett looks up into Daniel’s looming figure and shrinks down in the chair she is sitting in.
SCARLETT
Overwhelmed, I suppose.
DANIEL
By what? The school year is finished.
Why can’t you enjoy summer? You’ve kind
of been a downer on this trip.
LILY
Daniel, that’s not fucking cool. What’s your problem? You’ve been acting more like a dick recently. What’s all that about?
DANIEL
I just don’t understand. One minute you’re laughing, and the next it’s like a switch turns on, and you barely talk or do anything with us.
Scarlett turns her head to stare at the ocean. Charlie walks over to Dan and puts his hand on his shoulder.
CHARLIE
Come on, man. It was a hard
semester for everyone. Cut her some slack.
Daniel waves his hand at Scarlett and walks into the house to get a beer. Scarlett continues to stare at the ocean. Charlie, Claudia, Monroe, and Lily look at each other.
MONROE
Who’s going to tell him he’s the downer?
You know it’s not your fault, Scar.
Daniel has never taken breakups well.
LILY
Yeah. He’ll come around eventually.
He just needs time.
Claudia walks to Scarlett and whispers in her ear.
CLAUDIA (whispers)
Do you want to walk with me to the shore?
SCARLETT (whispers)
Yes. Please.
Scarlett begins to cry lightly as the two walk to the deck stairs and down towards the faraway shore. Daniel slides the door open and watches them go as he sips on his drink.
CUT TO:
EXT. A small beach – AFTERNOON
Scarlett sits with her legs pulled up to her chest, crying in earnest. Claudia stares out at the ocean as Scarlett cries. The ocean pulls at the sand rhythmically. The wind is quiet, and faint laughter can be heard from the house’s direction.
CLAUDIA
Daniel has always had a way with words, huh?
Scarlett lets out a bitter laugh and sniffles. She wipes away her tears.
SCARLETT
Yeah. It used to be something I liked
about him. How do you and Charlie do it?
CLAUDIA
Do what?
SCARLETT
Make it work so effortlessly.
CLAUDIA
It isn’t effortless. Nothing ever is.
They both stare at the rising tide, the silence broken by the crashing waves and laughter.
SCARLETT (whispering)
I think you’re wrong.
Claudia turns to look at Scarlett, who is still staring at the ocean.
CLAUDIA
About what?
SCARLETT
I think some things can be effortless.
CLAUDIA
Like what?
SCARLETT
Like floating.
Claudia turns fully to look at Scarlett, who also turns slightly but does not meet Claudia’s concerned stare.
CLAUDIA
Have you kept up with your appointments
and medications?
SCARLETT
No. I don’t think they work, really.
CLAUDIA
Oh, Scar. You promised you’d really try
this time. You promised you’d try to be better.
Scarlett turns to look at Claudia.
SCARLETT
Claudia, sometimes I don’t want to be better.
CLAUDIA
Now, what the hell does that mean?
SCARLETT
I guess I don’t really know.
Claudia, tears rolling down her cheeks, throws her hands up and huffs a sigh.
CLAUDIA
You know, I’ve really tried.
But I can’t help someone who doesn’t want it. Scarlett, I care about you. We all do. Even Daniel. You’re important. You are so important to the group. Please. Don’t give up on us.
SCARLETT
I know, Clau. Thank you.
Would it be okay if I sat here alone for a while?
Scarlett hugs Claudia and the two sit for a few seconds longer before Claudia nods and gets up to leave.
CLAUDIA
You’ll always be important to the people
who care to know you.
Scarlett laughs heartily. Claudia joins in.
SCARLETT
How very English major of you.
Claudia smiles briefly and then turns to the house. Her smile drops once she is facing the house. Scarlett’s falls once Claudia’s back is to her.
CUT TO:
INT. An empty apartment in NYC – NIGHT
Charlie rips the picture in half and then rips it again and again. He throws the pieces into the air like confetti and watches as they glide to the floor.
Charlie pulls a journal and a pen out of the box. He repositions himself so the moonlight is a makeshift lamp as he opens to a blank page and begins to write.
CHARLIE (V.O.)
Everything loses its luster after 21.
Relationships, friendships, college. Drinking.
Gambling. R-rated movies.
You can do anything, and therefore, nothing
is as pleasant as your first legal drink.
As your first try at a casino.
As the uncertainty of young, new romances.
As a billowing figure with the see-through essence of a ghost, Claudia appears next to Charlie while he writes and looks over his shoulder.
CHARLIE (V.O.)
I think somewhere I fucked it all up.
I can’t tell when or where, but
somewhere it fell apart.
CLAUDIA
Charlie, you never took responsibility for
the parts you played in other’s unhappiness.
Charlie does not react to Claudia’s memory talking to him.
CHARLIE
You never did either, Clau.
You weren’t without blame just because
you-
CLAUDIA
Tried more than the rest of you?
I know that.
CHARLIE
Well, you never acted like you knew.
It was always Daniel’s fault.
Or mine. Or Monroe’s for never making a more profound effort. You live in melancholy, Claudia. She lived in sadness. They’re different.
Claudia laughs quietly, and it echoes around the apartment.
CLAUDIA
I’m not even actually here and you’re still arguing about this?
God, Charlie. How pathetic are you?
CHARLIE
I want you to leave.
Claudia begins to fade.
CLAUDIA
You’ll always be alone, living in the same safe places you called home nine years ago. I once wrote about finding a home in other people and not some random place. I see it didn’t stick with you.
Nothing ever did.
The apartment goes silent. Charlie is staring down at the journal page, now wet with tears. They fall silently from his eyes as the sounds of the city outside slowly fade in. A car honks its horn, a dog barks, a door slams shut, someone far away yells.
Charlie begins to write again.
CHARLIE (V.O.)
I think Stephen King had it wrong in The Body. It’s not, “I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was 12 – Jesus, did you?”
I think it’s rather something like, “I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was 21 – Jesus, did anyone?”
CUT TO:
EXT. The house in Rhode Island – AFTERNOON
All the friends laugh at Lily’s overexaggerated dance moves to a popular song. Monroe hugs Lily closely as they dance together.
CUT TO:
INT. The scarcely furnished apartment in NYC – MIDNIGHT
Claudia smiles up at Charlie as he leans in to kiss her. The two fall back on the couch giggling, two glasses of wine on the coffee table. A car horn honks outside.
CUT TO:
EXT. A yard – NIGHT
Monroe, Lily, Scarlett, Claudia, Charlie, and Daniel pose in front of the house, wide smiles on their faces, cups and bottles in their hands. Daniel kisses Scarlett as Lily makes a fake disgusted face. The friends laugh. Music blasts out into the yard as the front door opens, and someone walks outside.
Charlie turns to stare at the door and catches his reflection in a window, his friends behind him smiling and drinking as they talk.
CUT TO:
INT. An empty apartment in NYC – DAWN
Charlie stands staring out the window into the brightening city beyond. His reflection is not easily seen. Eventually he turns and packs up the box and walks out the door. The picture of Claudia remains taped to the wall. The remnants of the picture on the porch lay scattered on the floor. Scarlett stares up at the ceiling. Waves are heard faintly.
CUT TO:
EXT. The Atlantic Ocean – DUSK
Scarlett floats silently further and further out towards the sunset, her eyes staring at the darkening sky as her head slowly sinks below the surface.
CUT TO:
BLACK.
The wave sounds fade.
CUT TO:
CREDITS
