Screenplay / After the Storm (Analysis)

After the Storm
By
Eric Wind
©2009

EXT. - SANDY BEACH - DUSK
The sun is going down and there is a couple that are rolling
around the sand, having a good time laughing. Waves come and
go as the sun sets behind storm clouds. Off in the distance,
there are faint flashes of lightning. The couple are
oblivious.

INT. - RADIO STATION (98.5 KSAS)
Shift change. The previous DJ packs her things and gets
ready to leave, while the night’s DJ preps for his show.
Sitting across from the microphone is a bluesman. The DJ and
bluesman banter for a bit while the bluesman tunes his
guitar.

EXT. - SANDY BEACH
The couple now seem to catch on that there is a storm
starting to roll inland. The lightning picks up in the
background. They both get up and wash themselves off in the
water and start to run over the dunes to the parking lot.
The boy, AARON, and girl, MARIA, playfully tag each other on
their way. They get to the car and settle in.
INT. - THE CAR
The car is an old El Camino, slightly rusted. AARON starts
the car after a few tries at the ignition.
AARON
Finally. Damn car.
MARIA
Hush. You’ll jinx it and we’ll be
stuck in the storm.
AARON throws her a look and MARIA throws a look back. They
laugh. AARON fiddles with the radio and turns the station to
98.5 on the FM. He drives out of the parking lot. The storm
starts to pick up a bit more outside.
INT. - RADIO STATION (98.5 KSAS)
The shift starts. The DJ starts his show.
DJ
Hello hello hello! Welcome to the
show that never gets old. It’s
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 2.
DJ (cont’d)
where we share the stories that are
rarely boring...the music that
never gets stale. And it is I, your
humble jester, DJ Lester, ready,
without fail, to fill your ears
with sweet aural pleasure. But
first, the weather.
DJ LESTER ruffles through his papers, grumbling, until he
finds it and has a slight ’ah-ha’ moment.
DJ LESTER
I hate to be rainin’ on everyones
parade, but that looks exactly like
what we have tonight. 70% chance of
rain (and, of course, special
marine warnings posted) with some
strong winds possible. It also
looks like we may have a tropical
storm in the Gulf. We’ll keep an
eye on that for you. Tomorrow,
it’ll be hot, muggy and wet.
INT. - EL CAMINO
The rain is now starting to come down a little bit harder
and the lightning is coming on a little bit stronger.
AARON
Damn, it’s going to suck driving to
my dad’s place in this.
MARIA
Well, you could stay in my room? I
could hide you.
MARIA gives a devilish smile.
AARON
Hah - I’d have a better chance at
living if I wrecked in a ditch,
than if your dad found me sleeping
on the floor of your room.
MARIA
He wouldn’t kill you. You would
just have to eat your food through
a straw for a few weeks...but
that’s a price I’m willing to pay.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 3.
AARON doesn’t have a come back and instead just laughs it
off and keeps his eyes to the road. They are now driving
through town and lights can be seen outside the window.
Through the rain clad windows, we can see MAGENTA, TEXAS, it
it’s glory; the old fashion turn-of-the-century buildings
that serve as a backdrop to modern stores and chain
restaurants.
INT. - RADIO STATION (98.5 KSAS)
After DJ LESTER finishes his rambling, he turns his
attention to the bluesman that sits in front of the other
mic across from the DJ’s chair.
DJ LESTER
...and tonight, we’ve got a very
special treat for everyone. One of
my favorites -- a master
storyteller, modern-day troubadour.
Dr. Son Johnson. Welcome to the
program.
SON JOHNSON smiles.
SON JOHNSON
Well, thank ya. Thank ya fer having
me on. That was a flatterin’
introduction.
DJ LESTER
My pleasure, and it’s
well-deserved, in my undeserved
opinion. What’ve you been writing
on these days?
SON JOHNSON
Oh, well, the regular stuff,
y’know? Love, love lost...love
scorned. The good stuff, right?
DJ LESTER
Right. Well, if we can, I would
like just to dive in if the water
is clear enough. Do you have one of
those sweet stories for us tonight?
SON JOHNSON
Ah, well...I sure do. I hope
everyun’ else out there enjoys it,
too.
SON JOHNSON begins to play a bluesy, up-beat lick.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 4.
SON JOHNSON
Y’know, we all diff’rent, right?
Some of us see it, some of us
don’t. Others embrace it. I’ve got
a story of two ol’ friends where
their differences would try ’em,
test ’em and rip them apart. The
weather was no joke, eith’r. Every
time the sun come out to shine on
’em, the clouds would come right
back...so, this is their story.
We’ll see if they come out alright
after the storm. Mmmmhm.
INT. - EL CAMINO
SON JOHNSON is playing through AARON’s radio, but he’s
ignoring it to keep track of the road through the rain. He
pulls into a somewhat wooded trailer park that’s on the
outer realm of the residential area of MAGENTA, TEXAS. Right
before farm land starts. A sign that reads MAGENTA SPRINGS
WELCOMES YOU, with the Spanish underneath the English. They
pull up to MARIA’s trailer and park.
MARIA
You sure you don’t want to stay the
night?
AARON
Nah. My dad will freak. Shit, he’ll
probably freak anyway, considering
I’m out this late.
MARIA
Mine too. You going to pick me up
before school, then?
AARON
I can. You might be late, though.
MARIA
Worse has happened.
AARON
Don’t let my bad influences rub off
on you. Your dad might suspect.
MARIA
Ah, let him. Just come get me for
school. That bus is hot. There’s no
AC and the bus driver is a pendejo.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 5.
AARON
You use that language around your
dad?
MARIA
Only when he acts like one. Which
he probably will if I don’t make it
in there soon. So yeah, come get
me...
AARON
Alright. I will.
They lean in to each other to kiss. They both pull back and
spit.
AARON
Yagh...I got sand in my mouth.
MARIA
Hah!
MARIA laughs and runs out of the car. She sprints to the
front door of her trailer, opens it fast and quietly slides
in.
INT. - THE TRAILER
MARIA quietly closes the door when she sees her dad, JUAN,
on the couch sleeping with the TV on the Spanish channel
that fades in and out of a white noise. The trailer is a
single-wide, one bedroom. MARIA tip toes to the bedroom,
which is hers.
INT. - EL CAMINO
AARON turns up the radio a little bit more. We still hear
SON JOHNSON on the radio. AARON pulls out of the trailer
park and back onto the road. He starts his trip home. The
trailer park is the last outpost of MAGENTA, TEXAS, before
it gets to more rural, farm-land surroundings. We see the
town drop out of the background. As a result, the street
lights fade away. The only thing lighting the road is the
lightning and AARON’s headlights, but the rain starts to
trickle away.
6.
INT. - THE TRAILER
MARIA is now in a new change of clothes and she throws
herself onto her bed. Her room is neat and tidy, with an
American flag and a Mexican flag hanging off the wall,
side-by-side. The rain can still be heard with a force
outside. MARIA picks up a leather-clad diary, opens it and
begins to read.
INT. - EL CAMINO
AARON drives along the road and finally reaches his dad’s
house. The rain has more or less quit, but thunder can still
be heard as the storm moves towards the house. As AARON
pulls in to the property, a weather advisory comes over the
radio to alert of a Flood Advisory and a Severe Thunderstorm
Warning. AARON sighs and turns the car off. The lightning is
becoming fierce. AARON takes off and runs into the house
before the storm comes. (We see that the house is on a plot,
surrounded by farm land, a few trees and a sparse amount of
houses up the road.)
INT. - AARON’S HOUSE
He shuts the door behind him and sees a faint light coming
from the kitchen. He walks to the kitchen to peek inside, to
see his dad, JOHN, in the kitchen, having a glass of water
and playing solitaire. JOHN looks up.
JOHN
Aaron...
AARON
(Whispering)
Fuck...
JOHN
We’ll talk in the morning, boy. Go
to bed.
AARON goes to his room, changes into new clothes and throws
himself on the bed. He looks out the window and observes the
lightning, listens to the thunder and notices the rain
begins to patter on his window. He closes his eyes. The
clock shows 11:45 PM.
7.
INT. - MARIA’S ROOM
MARIA tries to concentrate on reading the diary, but when a
crack of thunder sounds as if it rips through the house, she
buries herself underneath the covers. It’s 12:00 AM.
FADE TO:
INT. - MARIA’S ROOM
The clock turns to 7:00 AM and the radio kicks on with a mix
of heavy fuzz and barely audible music. JUAN is sitting next
to the bed, holding the leather clad diary and he lets out a
slight sigh. He exits the room briefly, but comes back in
after some shuffling is heard off screen. MARIA, meanwhile,
is oblivious to the clock/noise machine. JUAN starts poking
at her.
JUAN
Maria...
He keeps poking.
JUAN
Maria...
She groans, he pokes some more.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
Antonio Banderas is outside, Maria!
This seems to awaken MARIA and she looks around. JUAN laughs
and MARIA throws her pillow at him along with a dirty look.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
Who knows? Maybe it’ll be your
lucky day. But you have to go to
school to find out if it will be.
Antonio will never want to be with
a stupid girl.
MARIA
(in Spanish)
Get out. I don’t even like him that
much.
JUAN
No?
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 8.
MARIA
No.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
Then there’s some other prince
charming, no?
MARIA
No...maybe...
JUAN throws her back a ’fatherly’ look.
MARIA
No...
JUAN
(in Spanish)
As long as it’s not that one kid.
The gothy kid.
MARIA
(in Spanish)
I don’t hang around with any gothy
kids.
At this point, MARIA crawls out of bed and prepares herself
for school. She brushes her hair in the mirror.
MARIA
(in Spanish)
Though, if you want me to go to
school, I’d prefer to go in nice
clothes. Okay?
JUAN
(in Spanish)
Well, excuse me. I have to go to
work anyway. Our winter vacation
won’t pay for itself, right?
MARIA
(in Spanish)
Do we really have to go to Mexico?
JUAN
(in Spanish)
Sure, where else?
MARIA
(in Spanish)
What about Florida? They have nice
winters. The food is good in Miami.
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 9.
MARIA (cont’d)
Or Colorado. We could ski. I’ve
never seen snow and this’ll be our
first real vacation that we could
afford. Or we could go to South
Amer...
JUAN
(in Spanish)
Or we could go to Mexico and you
can meet the family you’ve never
met before.
MARIA turns and contorts her face in a "really?" kind of
fashion.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
I’ll think about it. But we’ll
never be able to go anywhere if I’m
not out there working. So I’m
going.
JUAN gets up and hugs and kisses his daughter on the
forehead.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
Love you.
MARIA
Love you, too.
JUAN heads out. Once JUAN leaves, MARIA moves to her bed to
look for the diary. As she ruffles through her bed spread,
she becomes slightly panicky.
MARIA
Shit...
EXT. - JOHN’S HOUSE - MORNING
The morning sun is out, despite the weather the previous
night. It looks warm. It looks muggy. The Texas flag is
outside and it’s dead due to lack of any discernible breeze.
10.
INT. - JOHN’S HOUSE
AARON comes walking out of his room in a new pair of clothes
right as JOHN walks out of his room with a towel wrapped
around him, evident that he just got out of the shower. They
stare each other down.
JOHN
Where were you last night?
AARON looks down at the floor, ignores the question and
walks to the kitchen. JOHN walks back into his own room.
INT. - THE KITCHEN
AARON grabs a carton of orange juice out of the fridge and
pours himself a glass. JOHN is reading the paper and having
a cup of coffee. AARON is dressed in a black shirt and
jeans, with his backpack slinged around his back - this is
in stark contrast with JOHN, who is dressed in a sheriff’s
uniform with a utility belt (including a gun.) JOHN stares
on at AARON.
JOHN
So, are you going to tell me where
you were at last night?
AARON ignores.
JOHN
Good. You don’t have to tell me. I
already know where you were and who
you were with.
AARON still pays no mind
JOHN
It’s all good and well that you’re
trying to be diverse, but you watch
you hang around with. Not only is
your ass on the line, but so is my
job.
AARON still resilient.
JOHN
You hearing me, son? I’m not going
down because you have a fling. When
you’re 18, you can do whatever the
hell you want, but you have one
year left and you’re still in my
fuckin’ home, y’hear?
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 11.
AARON
Mmmhm.
JOHN
You better take this seriously. The
reason I have standing in this
county is because I protect this
county from people who shouldn’t be
here.
AARON
And you have no clue whether or not
they’re supposed to be here.
JOHN
I do. I certainly do. And I know
they’re surrounding you. But you
better watch your back. Remember
what happened to your mother.
AARON blows a fuse.
AARON
MOM has NOTHING to do with the fact
that you’re a...
JOHN starts to maneuver his way to AARON.
JOHN
You better watch the next few words
that come out of your mouth. I’m
the sheriff, but I have no problem
with whippin’ my 17-year-old.
AARON turns and walks out of the kitchen. We hear the front
door open and slam shut. JOHN sips on his coffee, puts his
paper down and starts for the front door.
EXT. - THE DRIVEWAY
AARON starts the car up and screeches out of the drive way.
JOHN is close behind. He jumps in his truck, starts it up
and drives out of the drive way.
INT. - THE EL CAMINO
AARON is about a mile down the road and notices JOHN
following him. He speeds up.
12.
INT. - JOHN’S TRUCK
JOHN tales AARON and speeds up accordingly.
INT. - THE EL CAMINO
AARON approaches the town limit, and the trailer park. He
looks back and still sees his dad’s truck tailing him. A
speed-limit sign comes up saying "45 MPH" and AARON starts
to slow down.
AARON
Motherfuck...
EXT. - OUTSIDE THE ENTRANCE OF MAGENTA SPRINGS PARK
MARIA is standing outside waiting for AARON to approach. She
stands with three of her friends as they talk among each
other. She looks down the road and sees the El Camino.
MARIA
Here he comes! I’ll ask him if he
can take all of us.
AARON gets closer. And he passes them. Their eyes follow in
astonishment at the apparent snub. JOHN’S truck tows in
close by.
INT. - THE EL CAMINO
AARON drives down the road for a mile. We see JOHN’S truck
take a turn into a neighborhood. AARON pulls up to the next
light and takes a sharp U-turn back to the trailer park. He
pulls up next to the girls.
MARIA kicks the side of the door.
MARIA
What was that?!
The other girls look at the car, unimpressed.
AARON
Can you get in and can we go? We’ll
be late for school.
MARIA
No!
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 13.
AARON
Look. My dad decided to play bumper
cars. You saw that truck that
passed after me? That was him. And
he’s going to do worst than that to
me if I’m late for school. Now,
come on!
MARIA is hesitant. She looks at her friends and looks back
at AARON.
MARIA
...alright. Can you give them a
ride, too?
AARON looks out his window. He is now unimpressed.
AARON
Alright. Come on...let’s go.
MARIA pulls forward the seat and the three girls pile in.
MARIA jumps in and they take off towards the school.
The girls gossip in Spanish and giggle in the backseat.
MARIA and AARON sit quietly, kind of awkwardly. AARON is in
a visible bad mood and MARIA is still despondent over the
diary.
MARIA
What are you doing for 2nd period?
AARON
Speech class. Why?
MARIA’S mood perks up a little.
MARIA
Let’s ditch for lunch or go see a
movie.
AARON lets off a small smile.
AARON
I am rubbing off on you.
MARIA
Oh? You think I couldn’t have
gotten that idea without you?
AARON shakes his head.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 14.
AARON
I can’t anyway. I’m failing the
class...
MARIA
How do you fail speech?
AARON
...partly because I’m not allowed
to finish a sentence. The other
part is that’s my sleeping period.
MARIA
So you wouldn’t be doing anything
anyway.
AARON
I have to try. Unless...
The car, by chance, runs over something.
AARON
...I want that to happen to me.
MARIA becomes slightly despondent again. AARON turns on the
radio to drown out the girls in the back. The weather report
comes on.
RADIO
...50% chance of showers and
thunderstorms today. High of 95.
It’ll be humid, as usual. Also, we
are tracking a strengthening
tropical storm in the gulf.
Forecasters expect it to become a
hurricane by tomorrow.
AARON AND MARIA
This is going to be a great day...
EXT. - MAGENTA HIGH SCHOOL
The high school is a brown brick building. It looks old,
dated and ugly. A virtual prison almost. The school
billboard has a countdown calendar for the Seniors (of which
MARIA and AARON are.)
The school’s student body is about mid-sized. It’s
predominately white, with few cliques. There’s a sizable
Latino and black body. We see shots of the school and it’s
students. The body mingles with each other but they also
have noticeable voluntary segregation drawn mostly on color
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 15.
lines, but also with respect to different cliques. The
sports fans in an area, the shit-kickers in another and a
small group of outsiders.
AARON, MARIA and her friends climb out of the El Camino. Her
friends take off as they hear the bell. They wave her
good-bye.
AARON
Well, shit...we’re late anyway.
MARIA
Nothing to lose now! Let’s ditch.
AARON
How about this. We’ll ditch fourth
period and take off for the Tree.
How does that sound?
MARIA looks at him and smiles.
MARIA
That sounds great to me.
AARON
Good. I like compromises.
MARIA
I’m a compromise now?
AARON
Heh. I plead the fifth.
MARIA feigns offense.
MARIA
Well then. I’m just going to have
to go to class. I’ll leave you by
yourself as punishment.
AARON
(smiling)
I’m hurt. Heart-broken, even!
MARIA blows a kiss and sprints towards the school. AARON
keeps his pace, concentrating on the sky. The warning bell
rings again.
16.
EXT. - CONSTRUCTION SITE - DAY
The school bell gives way to a break bell that’s heard on a
construction site in town. A bank is being built, but it’s
just the foundation and a wood frame so far. The site is
still surrounded by trucks and a foreman’s office that reads
JACK SMITH AND CO. Everyone is walking around and talking on
break. Most of the workers are Latino and most speak
Spanish. This is the construction company that JUAN works
for.
JUAN is sitting in the bed of his truck with his friend and
co-worker, MICHAEL. JUAN is looking across the construction
site in a contemplative way, but MICHAEL is bright and
happy. JUAN notices MICHAEL’S demeanor.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
What’s with you, man? Get a little
somethin’ this morning.
MICHAEL
(in Spanish)
Nah. Rosie and I put a payment on
our new house. Did it right after I
got my papers. It’s so nice. 3
bedrooms, y’know? 2 bathrooms.
Beautiful living room. Kitchen.
I’ll have my own kitchen. I figure
I could do it with this job, but
Rosie is making good money as a
secretary for a law office in town,
too. We started moving in
yesterday!
JUAN
(in Spanish)
Glad to hear this. I almost have my
trailer paid off. Although it’s not
a castle, it’s nice for now.
MICHAEL
(in Spanish)
Man, I know they don’t pay us
well...certainly not like the other
construction sites would...but you
could afford a house here. Why
don’t you get one? For you and
Maria? Maybe bring your wife back
here.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 17.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
I haven’t spoken with my wife in
ages. I don’t even know if she
considers us married under any eyes
except the church. Besides, I’m
getting worried about Maria. I want
her to know her roots. I want her
to be close to her family in
Mexico. I don’t know...we’re taking
a vacation down there soon, with
the money I saved up for the past
year or so. We could travel around
and I’ll show her the country and
have her meet her family. I think I
may want to move back down there,
too. Things could be looking up in
Mexico City soon.
MICHAEL
(in Spanish)
For the rich, maybe, but not for
us. You’re not rich. Not here and
not there. At least you and Maria
can survive here, right? Besides,
you worked hard to stay here. Maria
has a life here. She’d have to
adjust to Mexico.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
All of that is true. I’ll have to
talk to her about it, though. She’s
hesitant to even take a vacation in
Mexico...she wants to go to Florida
or something.
MICHAEL
(in Spanish)
We all want to go to Florida. The
food is good in Miami. In any case,
friend, it’s a good time. We have
good jobs, we have good health and
strong families. And speaking of
which, we’ll be having our first
big celebration in the house
tomorrow night. Christy’s
Quinceanera. As her Godfather, it
is your obligation to attend.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 18.
JUAN (cont’d)
I’ve been looking forward to it for
a while. But they grow up fast
don’t they?
MICHAEL
(in Spanish)
You know every parent says that.
The time is just right for me.
The break bell rings to signal time to work.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
Well, the time right now is for
work.
The boss yells at the workers off camera, telling them to
get back. JUAN and MICHAEL jump off the bed and walk back to
the site.
INT. - SHERIFF’S STATION - DAY
We’re in JOHN’S office. He has on the news and the weather
report is on. It speaks of the now hurricane in the gulf.
The weather man expects the hurricane to travel and have the
worst part miss MAGENTA, probably making a more direct hit
on HOUSTON, of which MAGENTA is west of down the coast. An
officer walks into JOHN’S office.
OFFICER
Sheriff? A couple of guys from
Homeland Security says they want to
talk to you.
JOHN signals to let them in. A couple of guys in suits walk
in and sit down in front of JOHN’S desk.
JOHN
Good morning. Homeland Security,
huh? Y’all find bin Laden out here
or something?
SUIT 1
Immigrations and Customs, actually.
We wanted to talk about the
undocumented migrant problem in
this county.
JOHN
Oh? I didn’t realize we had too
much of a problem. Not much we can
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 19.
JOHN (cont’d)
do anyway except catch them and
release them.
SUIT 2
Well, we’ve actually been watching
and the department has noticed a
growing concentration of what we
suspect are illegals here.
JOHN
Right. That’s a problem. Now what
the hell do y’all want us to do
about it? We’re just a small
station with a piss-ant budget. I
can’t barely afford to keep my
patrol cars gassed up and my
criminals locked away.
SUIT 2
We wanted to set up a sting. Your
governor is pretty stringent about
containing the problem, right? And
I’m sure the locals around here in
Magenta aren’t too happy, either.
JOHN
More or less.
SUIT 1
That would change when you get help
from the Federal government.
JOHN
Alright, well, then what do we have
to do? And when do we have to do
it?
SUIT 2
I.C.E. wants to come in the middle
of next week and do it. We also
want to control the media. You’re
far away enough from Houston and
Corpus Christi where it shouldn’t
be too much of a problem. Dropped
the ball up in Ohio and they
swarmed all over our ass.
JOHN
Right. Tearin’ dads from their
families doesn’t make for very
happy citizens, no matter if
they’re legal or illegal, I reckon.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 20.
SUIT 1
Yes.
JOHN
So, who will y’all be bustin’?
Where do you want to do it?
SUIT 1
We have a couple of places, but the
biggest one is a job-site for a
construction company that we’ve
been monitoring for a while now.
They’re building a new bank in
town...
JOHN
...yeah, I know the one you’re
talking about. Rogers and Sons.
Owners a good man. Why would I want
y’all going in there and messing up
his business, and our economy?
SUIT 2
Well, far be it from us to
interrupt the economy here, but
this is a public safety issue, we
believe, and it is in your best
interest to cooperate, don’t you
think?
JOHN
Right.
SUIT 2
Good, glad we agree.
SUIT 1
In any case, the owners of the site
have struck deals with coyotes from
Mexico. Cheap labor. They’ve been
set up with all the papers
necessary, homes -- sometimes
houses, sometimes trailer parks --
and the like.
JOHN
I know what a damn coyote is. How
is this going to go down?
SUIT 1 and 2 glance at each other. At this point, we look in
briefly from behind the shut door as the two explain it to
JOHN. The rest of the police in the station bustle along
their morning.
21.
INT. - 2ND PERIOD SPEECH CLASS - DAY
As expected, AARON is sleeping while the teacher is
explaining the assignment.
TEACHER
So now we’re going to go over the
list of fallacies that one could
come upon in a debate. The first
one is a red herr...
As she writes on the blackboard, AARON begins to snore.
Light laughter arises from the class and the teacher snaps
around.
TEACHER
Aaron!
AARON doesn’t awake.
TEACHER
AARON!
AARON is still asleep. The teacher crosses to her desk and
takes out a noise can. She walks up to AARON’S desk and
signals to everyone in the class to cover their ears. She
raises the can and lets out the first loud burst of noise.
AARON props up. Everyone lets out a collective laugh. The
TEACHER walks back to her desk and continues on with the
lesson. The girl next to AARON, LAURA, flirtatiously
looks at him.
TEACHER
If I can continue without
interruption...red herrings are the
first kind of fallacy...
She looks at the clock.
TEACHER
Great. Look, I’ll just hand out the
list and everyone can look through
the paper at home. Check the board
for your assignment.
She points to a cork board that hangs besides the door with
various papers posted.
TEACHER
You’re to pick a topic with your
partner and argue against the side
you agree with. On the hand out is
a list of topics that are
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 22.
TEACHER (cont’d)
forbidden, though, of course, I
will consider it if you put up a
good argument. Now, everyone, get
up and go check. You only have a
few minutes left in class.
Most people get up and go to the board. There are an
assortment of relieved sights but also some semi-tortured
groans. AARON is one of the ones left sitting.
TEACHER
Oh, grow up. I don’t teach
kindergarten anymore.
People linger back to their desks and start discussing among
themselves. AARON and the few others who were left sitting
get up and go to check the board. JAMES, AARON’S classmate,
checks the list after him along with his friend
JAMES
Shit...
JAMES’S FRIEND
Who’d you get?
JAMES
The cop’s kid.
AARON
Yeah, I’m standing right here. It’s
going to be great working with you,
too.
JAMES
Listen, just don’t fall asleep
during the debate and we’ll be
cool, al’right?
AARON
Yeah, sure.
The rest of the kids break and the period bell rings.
Everyone files out of the classroom.
TEACHER
We’ll start debate prep on Monday!
23.
INT. - SCHOOL HALLWAY OUTSIDE OF CLASS
LAURA catches up with AARON at his locker.
LAURA
He...hey...
AARON
Hey, what’s going on.
LAURA
Nothing much. How’s your hearing?
AARON grins
AARON
It’s fine. What’re you up to.
LAURA
Nothing...nothing much. Are you
coming to the dance at the VA
tomorrow?
AARON
Eh, that’s tomorrow? I don’t know.
Maybe.
LAURA
C’mon. What else do you have to do?
AARON
Nothing much else. Just hang out
with some people. Keep level,
y’know.
LAURA
Well...
AARON
I mean, I guess I have to go. Since
I’m the "cop’s son." Maybe, we’ll
see.
LAURA
Well, if you end up going.
LAURA hands writes her number on a piece of paper and hands
it to him.
LAURA
Let me know.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 24.
AARON
Uh...alright. I wouldn’t count on
it.
LAURA
I won’t hold my breath. I’ll see ya
later, okay?
At this point, MARIA comes down the hall towards AARON.
MARIA
Hey...Aaron!
LAURA sees MARIA and makes an exit.
LAURA
See ya later.
AARON
Later.
MARIA meets AARON at his locker and wraps his arm around
his. They start to talk and walk off down the hall.
EXT. - "THE TREE" - DAY
"The Tree" is a large Spanish moss-laden oak tree that’s
surrounded by grasslands. As is usual in the Texas summer,
the grass is dry and golden except under the tree where the
grass and vegetation is lush and green. It’s a sort of oasis
off the dirt-road and it’s AARON and MARIA’S chosen
sanctuary.
It’s fourth period and, as previously agreed, the couple
have ditched class and decided to hang out under the tree to
relax. The weather is a mix. There are storm clouds growing
in the background, which is characteristic of a late-day
thundershower, but the sun plays hide and seek behind the
clouds over The Tree for now.
AARON
How was your day?
MARIA
It’s better now. Too many
assignments from class. Has yours
been any brighter?
AARON
Well, like you said; it is now.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 25.
MARIA
What was up with this morning?
AARON
Huh?
MARIA
With the car chase. That has to be
the most exciting thing that’s ever
happened in this town...
AARON
Ah, well, I’m glad I could be of
service. My dad and I got into it
this morning. You got me in
trouble.
MARIA
Little ol’ me?
AARON
You’re a succubus.
MARIA
Psh! Did you say that or did he?
AARON
Let’s ignore that for now. Anyway,
he and I got in a fight. He
mentioned my mother and I stormed.
He followed me...and that’s that.
MARIA
Why’d he follow you? And what does
your mother have to do with it?
AARON
20 Questions?
MARIA
Well, I’m curious. I’d like to meet
this man one of these days.
AARON
No, you don’t. But, I’ll placate
you. My mom has nothing to do with
anything except in his mind. And I
suppose he suspected that I was
going to pick you up and
ditch...which...technically he was
right.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 26.
MARIA
But still. There’s no reason to
follow.
AARON
He doesn’t need reason. How did
your father react this morning?
MARIA
Not like that. But he’s getting
suspicious.
AARON
Yeah, well. Mine knows. This is
kind of complicated to keep up.
Maybe we should just come clean?
THEY look at each other for a second. And then shake their
heads.
BOTH
Bad idea.
MARIA
Well, are you doing anything for
the weekend?
AARON
I’m not sure. I suppose it depends
on the hurricane.
MARIA
Hurricane?
AARON
Ones coming.
MARIA
They said it was going to miss us
and we were just going to get some
rain.
AARON
Just watch. It’ll come towards us.
MARIA
Well, aren’t you the weatherman,
now?
AARON
Damn straight. Anyway. I just know.
It’s getting stronger, too. It’s
going to do some damage no matter
where it hits.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 27.
MARIA
Comforting. I have stuff to do
tomorrow.
AARON
It’s Thursday, right? Tomorrows
Friday. I think I have to go to the
VA.
MARIA
The dance? Sounds like fun.
AARON
Not really. I’m expected to go.
What do you have to do?
MARIA
My god sister is having her 15th
birthday party.
AARON
So?
MARIA
It’s a big cultural thing. 15 is
the passage to young womanhood. The
food is pretty good, but we have to
do a church thing and dress up. And
it’s an entire affair. I don’t want
to go.
AARON
Come to the VA with me, then.
MARIA
Yeah, that would go over well. Your
dad is going to be there, right?
AARON
We don’t have to be in there.
MARIA
It sounds like fun, but I’ll have
to pass. Don’t you have a date,
though? With Laura?
AARON
The blonde. No, she has this thing.
She knows I don’t like her. That
entire family is just...there isn’t
a trailer park big enough.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 28.
MARIA
Hey!
AARON
Present company is excluded from
those types of remarks, of course.
The winds being to pick up slightly ahead of the storm
clouds. AARON looks afar at them.
AARON
Typical. I hate this damn weather.
MARIA
Me too. We should go somewhere dry.
AARON
Like where?
MARIA
I don’t know. El Paso, maybe.
AARON
Uh-huh. And what’s in El Paso?
MARIA
Dry weather?
AARON
And...
MARIA
...And. Maybe, my mom.
AARON
What happened to your mom?
MARIA sits in silence for a minute, mulling over the
question.
MARIA
Well. We’ve been together for a
couple of months, right?
AARON
Yeah, something like that. It’s
September now. We started talking
in June, hooked up in July. Sounds
about right.
MARIA
You comfortable with talking about
stuff like that?
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 29.
AARON
I am. Are you?
MARIA shrugs.
MARIA
Might as well be.
AARON
So, then. What happened?
MARIA
I’m not too sure, exactly. See, my
dad has this diary. And there are
fragments. But I’m trying to piece
the parts together. He has her
address in the back, which is in El
Paso. I’ve thought about writing,
but I could never do it. Anyway, I
don’t have a memory of my mom...but
I have a picture of her holding me
as a child. I think...I think what
happened was she couldn’t take
staying here. My family came across
the board. A coyote brought us here
so long ago. My mom and her family
were able to get out and go to El
Paso after a few months. They
couldn’t find any good jobs here,
and being crammed in that trailer
was too much for them to take. At
least, I suppose, if they needed to
go back, they’d be close out there.
My dad decided to stay, and for one
reason or another, I stayed, too. I
haven’t figured that part out, yet.
And now my dad is talking about
going back to Mexico. I think he
wants to move back there, but I
have no desire to do that. I’d
rather go back and see my mom, but
he keeps talking about seeing my
family down there. It doesn’t make
sense to me. When I turn 18, I’m
planning to go out there. Maybe go
to school, and look for her. I need
answers. And I need to know what
happened, because my dad will never
tell me.
AARON
Have you tried talking to him about
it?
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 30.
MARIA
A couple of times. And he gets
distracted.
AARON
Get him alone. Sooner or later,
he’ll have to tell you...you’ll
have to tell him you’re going to El
Paso.
MARIA
But I’m not sure I want to go back
there now. It sounds girly, but now
that we’re together, I kind of want
to stay here.
AARON
Well, I don’t want to stay here.
How would your mom feel about me?
MARIA
Do you know how stupid of a
question that is?
AARON
Alright, yeah.
MARIA
It’s okay. Your mind slip...
AARON
Slips. I know.
MARIA
But the leather diary. That’s all I
have to go on and it doesn’t tell
me much. A lot of it is what he did
to survive, and not much is about
my mom or her family. Or his
family, really. I think he’s just
trying to block all of that out.
AARON
Interesting state of affairs.
MARIA
Isn’t it? So, now that you’ve
committed to come to El Paso with
me, we’ve taken a giant leap into
our relationship. Let’s take the
next step -- what happened to your
mom?
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 31.
AARON
Uh...well.
AARON hesitates.
MARIA
Look. I just came clean to you. Let
me know. It’s fine.
AARON
Well, it sort of explains my dad.
Thunder can begin to be heard in the background.
AARON
When I was 13 or 14, they were
about to get a divorce. Things
weren’t going so well. Lots of
fighting...money was a big thing.
My dad was broke, but my mom came
from a wealthy family. But, I think
they were screwing around on each
other, too. It wasn’t a happy time.
They were going to counseling for
it, though, and one day they had
made, what my dad thinks was
anyway, a breakthrough. So, they
celebrated that one night. They
were coming home, late late at
night. And a drunk driver hit them.
Passenger side. T-boned them. My
dad was driving. My mom was the
unlucky one.
MARIA
Thats...that’s horrible.
AARON
Yeah, well, I’ve recovered somewhat
since then. My dad, on the other
hand, still carries it. The drunk
driver turned out to be an illegal.
MARIA
Illegal...what?
AARON
Illegal...immigrant. We found this
out later. So instead of my dad
being mad that his wife was killed
by a drunk driver, it became...she
was killed by an immigrant.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 32.
MARIA
So. What. He thinks all Latinos are
illegals now?
AARON
Not all. But he’s suspicious. He’s
tried to build that suspicion in
me. He’s just still torn up inside.
I want to sympathize with him, but
I know he’s wrong. I still get
guilted nonetheless. But that’s
what happened to my mom.
MARIA
Well, he’ll be happy to know that
I’m legal and so is my dad.
AARON
Let’s hope that goes over well at
our wedding.
MARIA
Hmmm...was that a proposal?
It begins to rain. AARON looks at his watch.
AARON
Maybe I should take you back to
your place.
MARIA
Can’t we just go back to your
house?
AARON
Or we could go to yours.
MARIA
This is such a bother.
As the rain gets harder, they decide to bail and jump in the
El Camino.
INT. - EL CAMINO
AARON starts the car and starts to the paved road.
AARON
Damn, I know he’s going to push me
into going to the VA tomorrow.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 33.
MARIA
And I don’t want to go to that
birthday.
AARON
It’s your god-sister, though.
MARIA
Yeah, but she’s really spoiled. The
VA isn’t too far away from her new
house. Maybe I’ll make an
appearance. Who else will be there.
AARON
Uh, well. Shit-kickers and the ROTC
kids mostly. I’m not even sure what
the occasion is. Something to do
with the military, I’m sure.
MARIA
But, we don’t have to be in there.
AARON
Not really.
MARIA nods and watches the rain cover the landscape outside.
They drive to MAGENTA SPRINGS.
EXT. - MARIA’S TRAILER
The trees surrounding the trailers are catching most of the
rain. MARIA gives AARON a quick kiss good-bye and runs to
the house door. JUAN’S truck is also sitting outside.
INT. - THE TRAILER
JUAN watches MARIA come out of the El Camino and come up to
the door. She walks inside and he immediately turns to her,
furious.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
Who was that?
MARIA
What? Who?
JUAN
(in Spanish)
The person in the car!
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 34.
MARIA
(in Spanish)
A friend. It’s nothing.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
You kissed him. It didn’t look like
nothing!
MARIA is silent.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
I know who he is! I know who his
father is. I’m not stupid, Maria!
MARIA
(in Spanish)
What are you freaking out about? He
can’t do anything to us.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
We don’t need to invite any
attention. Other people in this
park have reason to worry. They
don’t need the attention!
MARIA
(in Spanish)
That’s not my problem!
JUAN
(in Spanish)
It is! This is your community!
MARIA
(in Spanish)
I have no community! This is your
community.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
We have to keep our heads low.
MARIA
(in Spanish)
No we don’t! I don’t!
JUAN
(in Spanish)
Yes you do. Especially you.
MARIA pauses.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 35.
MARIA
(in Spanish)
And what does that mean?
JUAN pauses.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
Nothing. Nevermind. But I don’t
want you seeing him anymore.
MARIA
(in Spanish)
Do you even know his name?
JUAN
(in Spanish)
I don’t need to.
MARIA
(in Spanish)
And you have no clue about him. I
will be with whoever I want. I am
not your property.
MARIA pushes past JUAN and goes into her room. She slams the
door. JUAN looks exasperated. He goes back to his couch and
fixes his TV. The weather report is on.
WEATHER MAN
The hurricane has become stronger.
Now, it has shifted course just a
bit. Instead of going to Houston,
it looks like it will be going to
Corpus Christi. Keep in mind, these
storms are unpredictable. Their
paths can switch at any moment, but
if I were along the coast between
Houston and Corpus, I would take
all proper precautions. This looks
to be a big one. A strong one. It
has strengthened to a Category 4.
JUAN sighs with his heads in his hand. He watches the rain
outside the window.
WEATHER MAN
As far as our weather goes, we will
begin to see the outer bands of
this storm probably Saturday
morning. We still have one good day
of calm weather before anything
happens. For Friday, there’s a 30%
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 36.
WEATHER MAN (cont’d)
chance of rain. High is going to be
in the mid-90s. Humid, of course.
INT. - MARIA’S ROOM
MARIA is brushing her hair in the mirror. She looks down to
the framed picture of her mom holding her as a child. She
goes through her dresser drawer and pulls out a piece of
paper. An El Paso address is scribbled on it. She shakes it
off and puts it away.
EXT. - JOHN’S HOUSE
AARON pulls up and rushes through the rain into the house.
JOHN’S truck is in the high way.
INT. - THE HOUSE
AARON walks in. JOHN is in a recliner watching the TV. The
weather report is on. AARON stops and watches the TV.
JOHN
Looks like it’ll be a big one.
AARON
Yeah, so. What are we goin’ to do?
JOHN
Well, I have to stay here. This
house is strong. It’ll survive.
Where were you at 4th period today?
AARON
In class.
JOHN
Don’t lie. Your teacher called.
JOHN turns around and looks at AARON.
JOHN
What’s been with you? Skipping
class. You won’t graduate this year
if you keep up with this.
AARON
Stop it. You sound like an
after-school special.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 37.
JOHN
Well, I’m under the impression that
you don’t want to stay here.
AARON
Who would want to?
JOHN
Then if you fail this year, I’ll
make next year a living hell for
you.
AARON
Is that a threat? Or a promise?
JOHN
It’ll be more than a promise.
AARON
Right. Thanks for staying cryptic.
JOHN
Ok, smartass. You’re going to the
VA tomorrow.
AARON
Yeah, I know. I kind of have to,
right? The cop’s son?
JOHN
It’s an important event. We have a
returnin’ neighbor from Iraq. I
wouldn’t want to be in your shoes
if you missed it.
AARON
Right.
JOHN
I especially don’t want to see you
hanging around with that goddamned
border jumper.
AARON
What the hell are you talking
about?
JOHN
I told you this morning, I know who
you’re hangin’ around with.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 38.
AARON
Then you’d know she’s here.
Legally. As a citizen. Just like
the veteran. And just like you. And
like me.
JOHN
Of course she’ll say that to you.
AARON
Okay, KKK.
JOHN
Don’t mistake this for racism. I
keep this place safe.
AARON walks to his room.
JOHN
You better be there.
INT. - AARON’S ROOM
AARON walks in to find a nice pair of clothes laid out on
his bed.
AARON
Goddamned prick. Can’t believe I
have to wear this shit.
He drops his backpack against the wall.
INT. - MARIA’S ROOM - NIGHT
MARIA is on her bed, reading a book. Inside the book is a
letter from AARON. A knock is heard on the door.
MARIA
What?
JUAN walks in with a dress.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
I have a surprise for you.
The dress is a beautiful white dress, with a silky shine to
it. MARIA eyes it with surprise.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 39.
MARIA
(in Spanish)
Thats...that’s pretty. Is it for
me?
JUAN
(in Spanish)
Yes. It’s for your god-sister’s
party tomorrow.
JUAN hangs it in her closet.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
Look. You don’t have to do the
church thing. I’d rather you come,
especially since they’re saying
school may be closed tomorrow, but
I know you don’t want to. I do want
to see you at the reception,
though. I’ve been looking forward
to this for a while and so has your
god-sister.
MARIA
(in Spanish)
I understand. I was going to come.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
Good. I’m glad to hear that. But I
want you to stay the entire time.
MARIA is silent.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
Michael and his family would be
saddened if you didn’t stay.
MARIA
(in Spanish)
Alright. You don’t have to guilt me
into it.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
I just...I just don’t want you
around that boy. There’ll be plenty
of nice boys at the party, and
they’ll be far more interested in
you and closer to you than he could
ever hope to be.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 40.
MARIA
(in Spanish)
I’m not having this conversation
with you.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
That’s fine. I’m just letting you
know.
An awkward silence.
MARIA
(in Spanish)
Dad?
JUAN
(in Spanish)
What.
MARIA
(in Spanish)
I want to know what happened to
mom.
JUAN
(in Spanish)
Uh...well, we have time in the
future to talk about that. Right
now, you should concentrate on the
party tomorrow. Go on and try the
dress.
MARIA
(in Spanish)
...okay.
JUAN exits the room and MARIA moves to the closet.
INT. - THE VA HALL - NIGHT
It’s Friday night. The VA Hall is filled with familiar faces
from the high school. AARON is standing off to the side,
watching the dancing. People are coming up to him, and
talking. LAURA is throwing him looks from time to time.
Meanwhile, JOHN and a few other parents are sitting at a
table in the back of the hall, shooting the breeze and
having beers.
JOHN
So now the storm is coming here.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 41.
PARENT 1
Yeah, we’ve done boarded up the
house and everything. Ain’t leavin’
though. I don’t think it’s going to
get that bad.
JOHN
We better hope not.
PARENT 2
You better hope not, John. Your
house is in the middle of nowhere.
JOHN
Yeah, well, it’s a strong house.
I’m pretty confident in it. Aaron
and I will be riding it out.
PARENT 1
Is he here?
JOHN
Yeah, he’s out there hanging
around. Being the fly on the wall.
PARENT 2
How’s he doing. Y’know, since
everything.
JOHN
I don’t know. Since he’s almost 18,
he’s wantin’ out. Him and I clash a
lot.
PARENT 2
Kids.
JOHN
Yep, kids. I’m not even sure if
he’s planning on college. There’s
not much we say to each other that
isn’t a bunch of yelling. And these
friends he’s hanging around
with...just don’t set right with
me.
PARENT 1
Hows things at the station? I hear
that Homeland Security is coming
in...is that true?
The other parents hem and haw, wondering if it’s a terrorist
connection.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 42.
JOHN
Damn word travels fast here, don’t
it? Unfortunately, guys, I can’t
divulge much information...but I
will tell you it’s not terrorism.
PARENT 1
Then that just leaves the
immigrants, yeah?
JOHN doesn’t respond.
PARENT 2
Well, damn, it’s about time. The
construction sites in town can
barely compete with that one that
hires all the damn Mexicans. And
you know as well as I do what kind
of shit they get themselves into.
I’ll tell you, it couldn’t be too
soon when they get them out.
JOHN
Yeah, well...who else is going to
build the stuff around here.
PARENT 1
Bring John Reilly’s company in to
finish everything. Or make that
other bastard start hiring
Americans. There’s no shortage of
people who want to work these jobs,
it’s just that they won’t work for
peanuts.
JOHN
Right, well, they also do a good
job. Reilly cuts around the edges
and all of you know that.
PARENT 2
Listen, John, it’s not going to hit
the economy here. We’re booming.
Things are growin’.
JOHN
How do you even know they’re
illegal?
PARENT 1
Can they speak any English? What
are some of them doing flying the
damn Mexican flags around here?
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 43.
JOHN
It’s not a crime to do that.
PARENT 2
John, you know what you were voted
in for. Now we’ll tell you, as
friends and citizens, you know the
right thing to do. Just do it.
Don’t let these bleedin’ heart
idiots around here and in the
cities make you think you’re some
kind of racist. You’re just
protecting the community, is all.
And our livelihoods.
JOHN doesn’t say anything in response. They continue on with
their card game.
Back out in the main VA Hall, AARON seems bored. He makes
his way outside and LAURA follows him out.
EXT. - MICHAEL’S BACKYARD
It’s MICHAEL’S daughter’s Quinceanera. Since the parents
couldn’t rent out a hall, the celebration is being held on a
make shift dance floor in MICHAEL’S backyard. It is in full
swing, with a lively backyard and around 25 or so people in
attendance. STEPHANIE, MICHAEL’S newly-turned 15 year old
daughter, is formal dancing, along with her friends, on the
dance floor. MARIA is off to the side, enjoying the music
and taking in her surroundings. A young man is paying
attention to MARIA across the dance floor. MARIA realizes
this and tries to avoid eye-contact.
MICHAEL’S windows are boarded up in preparation of the
storm. MICHAEL is having himself a great time, snapping
pictures. As the song ends, he takes the microphone.
MICHAEL
(in Spanish)
Hello everyone. I would like to
thank you for coming to Stephanie’s
celebration. If this may be kind of
out of place for me, I apologize. I
would also like to thank her
godfather, Juan and her godsister,
Maria, for coming out tonight and
to show support to Stephanie.
The crowd applauds. MARIA and JUAN smile and wave thanks.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 44.
MICHAEL
(in Spanish)
But I would most like to give my
congratulations to my daughter --
my only daughter -- Stephanie. And
I would like to let her know how
much I love her and how much I’m
proud of her, for becoming a woman
now. This is such a great time in
our lives, with Stephanie growing
up, and us in this new house, and
having everyone here is such a
great honor.
A sort of strong wind brushes through the party.
MICHAEL
(in Spanish)
And thank God for the weather
tonight!
Everyone applauds and lets out a laugh.
MICHAEL
(in Spanish)
I’d also like to say that, in light
of Stephanie’s path to womanhood,
that...there will be ups and downs
in paths. Boys will come and go.
And there may be that one who
sticks around and will love you
forever and treat you like the
special, caring person you are. But
your family, and your friends, will
always be here. And they will
always be your bond. We’ll never
forget that, and we know you’ll
never forget that. We all love you
and we are all proud of you.
STEPHANIE is wiping some tears from her eyes, while some
people "Aww" in this audience.
MICHAEL
(in Spanish)
Thank you, everyone. Now let’s
dance! And let’s not waste the
night!
Everyone cheers and the dancing continues. The YOUNG MAN
from across the yard crosses to MARIA and they introduce one
another. JUAN watches MARIA and the boy and smiles. The two
move to the dance floor and have a dance.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 45.
MARIA
So, where do you go to school?
Never seen you here before.
YOUNG MAN
Ah, I don’t live here. Visiting. I
kind of don’t want to be here, so
I’m making the best of it.
MARIA
Yeah, I know what you mean. I was
sort of dragged into this.
YOUNG MAN
But you’re the god-sister, right?
MARIA
Yeah, I am.
YOUNG MAN
Aren’t you proud?
MARIA
I am. I just don’t like these big
celebrations. Mine wasn’t too big
of a deal, and I liked it like
that.
MARIA continues to dance but becomes a little nervous as the
boy pushes himself a bit closer to him.
YOUNG MAN
Not to exciting are you?
MARIA
Not too much.
YOUNG MAN
Well, why don’t we go some where
and make things exciting?
MARIA at this point pulls away.
MARIA
Uh...I’m sorry. Not
tonight...sorry.
She turns and goes into the front yard. JUAN doesn’t notice
as he is talking to some other parents in the party. MARIA
walks into the front yard, and squeezes herself as the wind
blows a bit harder. She sees a car coming down the street
and flags it down.