Sinking
By Priscilla French
INT- DORM BEDROOM-NIGHT
SARAH, mid-twenties woman, stares contemplatively as she lies in bed beside her topless boyfriend, ANDREW. He is a lean, handsome young man seemingly deep in sleep. She turns and tosses anxiously. She looks at Andrew and quietly gets up out of the bed. Her long t-shirt gravitates downwards as she reaches into her bag for a small package in the closet. Quickly but quietly, she walks silently barefooted to the sitting room. She collapses on her chair. She takes a deep breath before opening the package. The printed words on the package indicate that it is a pregnancy test. She pulls out the pregnancy indicator and focuses on it. She then thinks about the circumstances that took her to this crucial point.
SARAH (V.O.)
I can’t believe I’m doing this. It’s been a rough two weeks…and why was it my bad luck that I bounced into Sean yesterday?
CUT TO:
INT- DORM HALLWAY-AFTERNOON
Sarah steps out of her college unit. She is dressed casually with a hat tucked firmly down over her eyes. A jacket engulfs her. She turns and locks her door. She then checks it twice to make sure it is secure. As she slowly pivots towards the hall, she spots, SEAN. She quickly turns and hides her face. Cautiously, she briefly glances to see if he has noticed her. He does not and continues to walk towards a door.
BACK:
INT-SARAH’S SITTING ROOM-NIGHT
As Sarah remembers the previous day, she looks and stares.
SARAH (V.O.)
God, that day two weeks ago, I woke up but it was like I was in a fucking nightmare.
CUT TO:
INT- BEDROOM- MORNING
Sarah, lying in her bed, suddenly opens her eyes.
SARAH (V.O.)
What day is it? Where….how did I get here? I can’t remember getting back last night.
She sits up in her bed. Her sheet falls off and she realizes that she is naked.
SARAH (V.O.)
What the….where’s my shirt that I usually wear to bed?
She motions and touches her head.
SARAH (V.O.)
Oh god, my head… it’s pounding. What the fuck happened last night? Let me see…I can’t remember shit. Did I get that wasted last night? Maybe I blacked out. I don’t remember drinking anything hard.
She reaches for her t-shirt on the back of her chair beside the bed. She slips it on quickly before she stands up. She opens her door and walks towards her bathroom. She enters the bathroom.
SARAH ( V.O. continued)
And I shouldn’t have ‘cos I’ve stopped since….since I nearly drowned in my bathtub from passing out drunk. O.k., O.K., trace it back from the beginning. I got a call from Sean two nights before. He wanted to hang out as we always do on Tuesday nights. And my main man, Andrew is training as he always does on Tuesday. So, Sean has to air the antics of his engineering class prof, Lester. Yeah, that’s what we were doing at my place…no his place.
CUT TO:
INT – SEAN’S LIVING AREA OF DORMROOM- AFTERNOON
Sarah is laughing hysterically in the couch as Sean is standing before her imitating his professor.
SARAH
I swear Lester has a serious case of manic depression and he’s in a middle of menopause!
SEAN (chuckling)
Menopause? Doesn’t that just apply to chicks?
SARAH
Yeah, but Lester still can’t stop the female hormones ever since he or she had that sex change in Venezuela!
SEAN
Makes sense, that’s why he’s always wining about being depressed. Venezuela?
SARAH
Don’t you know that they got cheap cosmetic surgery over there? That’s why they’re always winning all the stupid , brain-dead Ms. World pageants!
SEAN
True, have to love those silicone bonitas. Fuck that though, sex changes are fucked up! I could never become a woman….
BACK:
INT- SARAH’S BATHROOM- MORNING
Sarah grabs her toothbrush and begins slowly cleaning her teeth and looking into her bathroom mirror.
SARAH (V.O.)
Yeah, and I told him about that song I hate. That brain-dead, pop song by Bitchney. Oh yeah, SNL. We were laughing about that SNL skit. Ha ha. The commercial for the diaper thongs. He asked me….
CUT TO:
SEAN
Hey, do you want something to drink?
SARAH
Yeah. O.k.
SEAN
Rum and coke? I bought it from last week and you have to help me finish it.
SARAH
That must be a rhetorical question.
BACK:
INT- SARAH’S BATHROOM- MORNING
Sarah spits out the toothpaste in her sink.
SARAH (V.O.)
I don’t know why he asked, he knows I don’t do that shit again. After all my crazy antics, falling on the floor and my boobs flying out my top- accidentally. Singing that Bitchney pop song that I loathe in the stairwell. Jumping up and down in the elevators. Well, that’s typical hyperactive behaviour from me. Then he said…
CUT TO:
INT-SEAN’S LIVING ROOM-AFTERNOON
SEAH
O.k. I know. Because of that day. Good thing I was around to drive you to the hospital when you’re roommate called. I’m the kind of guy that will be there. Unlike some people, right?
Sarah gives him an indignant look.
SARAH
Andrew had an important practice the next day. He was fast asleep and he happened to turn off the phone.
SEAN
No need to explain. Just coke, then?
SARAH
I’m cutting out my energetics and so any sugar can’t fly. Healthy products only.
SEAN
O.k. I’m sure that includes all-natural water…from the tap.
Later, Sean brings her a glass of water and she drinks it.
BACK:
INT- SARAH’S BATHROOM-MORNING
Sarah begins to disrobe herself. She steps into the shower as she continues to go over the previous night’s events.
SARAH (V.O.)
I don’t know. Why can’t I remember anything? I didn’t drink. I only drank the water that he gave me. Then we were talking. We continued talking. He kept looking at me funny. I mean sometimes he does that. But he had a weird look in his eye. Or maybe it was just the way he was watching me. Letting me ramble on and on. And then, everything is a blank from there. But, obviously something must have happened between that moment and when I got back to my place and landed in my bed. I don’t know.
She grabs her sponge and starts to lather it up with her soap. She uses the sponge and washes her neck. As she reaches her arms, she notices scratches on them.
SARAH (V.O.)
Weird, why the hell do I have scratches on my arms? Did I get into some sort of fight with Sean? We were probably playing rough like we do sometimes. Or maybe we weren’t.
She continues to lather up vigorously.
SARAH
No, no. He couldn’t have. What am I thinking? There’s no way that happened. He’d never do that. It’s not like him. I mean I know he likes me. He told me one Tuesday night. I was like “You’re a great friend and I think you’re quite attractive. But, you know, I’m with Andrew…”. I had to let him down easy, I didn’t want to ruin our friendship. I’ll never figure that he would…. Oh my god, he….I can’t even say it.
Series of blurry shots of Sean carrying the semi-conscious Sarah to his bedroom. He lies her on his bed and locks the door. He rapidly undresses her as she mumbles incoherently. In the shower, Sarah starts sobbing and crying as the water cascades down her body. She uses her sponge and begins to scrub her skin fervently. She thoroughly washes her upper body and the area between her thighs. As tears pour down her face, she tries to subdue them by letting the water from the shower head fall on her face.
