After Dark

A Screenplay by Jared Payne

(Mysterious music plays in the background [comfortable mystery 4] and the scene starts with an angled shot of RTP [at night] before it fades out again)

(When the camera returns it’s in the auditorium pointed at Molly who is sitting in the front row, then we see an arm creep into shot and rest on Molly’s shoulder)

Molly:

[high pitched scream]

Aghhh

(The arm pulls off of Molly and she whips her head to the right and the camera angle shifts to the left to reveal that it was just Nathan trying to get her attention)

Nathan:

[concerned laugh]

Boo? [slowly waves hands]

Happy Halloween.

(An arm now creeps and rest on Nathan’s shoulder, who reacts similar to what Molly did.)

Nathan:

[high pitched scream]

Aghhh

(the hand is lifted and we see it belonged to Ellie is is now smiling, as she was not expecting that reaction)

Ellie:

[laughing]

Nathan, it’s just me.

Nathan:

I know, that’s why I screamed.

(Ellie face goes from happy to instantly stone cold and expressionless )

(~cuts to theme song~)

(Camera comes back, and Caine is now sitting with the cast in the front row all on their phones, except for Nathan who is partially annoyed)

Nathan:

[trying to make conversation]

Did anyone else know that the theme of this play is pretty much about fruit…

Caine, Ellie, and Molly:

[not paying attention or making eye contact]

Meh, Em-ha, That’s nice Natalie, etc.

Nathan:

[confused]

Wait, Natalie? Who’s…

Ellie:

[not making eye contact]

Nobody cares

[five second pause]

[monotone, without eye contact]

Boo. says the anonymous person.

(Caine breaks her gaze on the phone and looks at Ellie confused and disappointed)

Caine:

What.

Ellie:

[realization]

Oh! I read that wrong sorry. [smile, then randomly and unexpectedly screams]

BOO!

(everyone jumps, and then looks at Ellie frustrated and confused)

Ellie:

[realizing what she just did]

Someone texted me…[laugh] and I didn’t see the exclamation point.

Molly:

[trying to get to the point]

Did they send you anything else?!?!

Ellie:

Just a video of Jody in a dark room, partially unconscious.

Nathan:

[fast]

Pa..pa, play the video!

(everyone gathers around Ellie and the camera is behind her and we see a video come up of Jody in a dark place trying to reach out to the camera, mumbling something about needing help.)

(Nathan takes a big gasp and raises his finger about to scream then faints, and the camera shortly after blacks out.)

Molly:

Nathan, Nathan wake up!

(Nathan quickly springs up and the cast is crouched beside him in front of the front row)

Nathan

[fast]

Quick! What major plot element happened when I was asleep to save runtime!

Caine:

Quick winning you’ve just fainted, it’s been like 5 seconds.

(Ellie hears a ding on her phone and checks it)

Ellie:

It’s from the mystery man.

[reads text]

“I’m coming for you.”

(Suddenly loud stomping is heard in the distance as it appears to sound like it's coming closer)

(Before you know it Molly faints)

Nathan:

[fastly and nervous and pulling hair]

What do we do! Where do we go! We gonna die, that’s it we're all dead, mama always said I’d die because of poisonous relationships like these!

Caine:

[smacks Nathan]

SNAP OUT OF IT!

(everyone becomes quiet and still)

Ellie:

[out of frame and quiet in the distance, but just loud enough to break the silence]

Snap.

Caine:

What are you doing! If you’re in a street fight you don’t just stand around. Let’s go!

(The cast begins to murmur things nervously and all try to run backstage screaming)

(cuts to an interview in front of the stage, of an unconscious Molly)

Molly:

….

(Nathan quickly comes back into shot, realizing they forgot Molly.)

Nathan:

There's no time for interviews during this one!

(tries to wake Molly)

Nathan:

Molly! MOLLY!

Owe.

[Nathan grabs the unconscious Molly’s feet and begins to drag her backstage like she’s a dead body]

(Molly then quickly wakes up, and jumps up and runs past Nathan, pushing him over, and Nathan quickly scrambles up, and the camera follows behind as they run up the stairs screaming)

Entire cast:

[flailing arms, shoving, crying, etc.]

Aghhh!

(The cast continues to run up stairs, and they run through the hall screaming, and pack into the nearest open door, which happens to be the male costume storage room, and Nathan is the last one in who quickly slams the door)

(However, the forgot about the person holding the camera, and since Nathan shut the door, the camera man runs right into the door (with camera) , and falls on the ground.)

Nathan:

[opening door]

Ogh sorry.

(The camera/camera man crawls into the room and Nathan shuts the door again)

(The cast is now against the far end wall of the costume room sitting and rocking nervously, except for Caine who has found a prop spear/ knife and is inspecting it)

(The phone is nervously sitting in Ellie’s hand, then it dings again, and Ellie is startled and throws the phone upward hitting Molly in the head, Molly slumps over)

Molly:

[rubbing head]

oww.

Ellie:

Oh my gosh are you okay?!

Molly:

Yeah it just…[interrupted]

(Ellie leans over and picks up her phone, which she was talking to the whole time)

Ellie:

[picking up her phone and kissing it]

It’s okay.

(Molly rubs her head again then has a realization)

Molly:

Mystery man sent you a message.

(Ellie checks her phone then looks at Molly concerned)

Ellie:

She’s right

Caine:

That phone must of hit you pretty hard, I got temporary psychic powers like that once when a bottle was hit over my head.

Ellie:

How are you alive? [changes subject] Never mind, that’s for another day.

[checks phone]

Mystery man says:

“Is the costume room really…”

Molly:

[rubs her head then finishes Ellie’s sentence}

“That safe of a place”

[silent pause before looking at the door]

He knows where we're hiding.

Nathan:

[points at the door]

Aghhh, to the door!

(The cast stands up and crowds at the door quickly trying to escape, but the door seems to have somehow been locked from the outside)

Caine:

[angry and hitting on the door with the others]

Who locked the door!

(The hitting slowly dies down and they all stop and look at Nathan who is nervous and still hitting the door, but softer know)

Nathan:

[stops hitting]

I didn’t want the kidnapper to get out if he found a way in the room.

[realizing what he did]

Ogh I get it now. We can’t get out if...but he can still get in since….sorry.

(The cast gives up and slumps down against the wall they were originally sitting at)

Ellie:

Well maybe since we’re gonna die in here, or at least today, we should all…

Share our darkest secrets, so we don’t...you know... regret anything.

(awkward silence)

Caine:

[breaking the silence]

I killed a raccoon with my own rib once.

Nathan:

You’re missing a rib?

Caine:

I’m missing a lot of things.

(More awkward silence)

Ellie:

[ignorant]

Well since no one wants to go first!!!....[interrupted]

Molly:

[getting another vision]

STOP!!!... Ellie's going to brag about a stupid lead role, and Nathan going to tell us how he used

To eat his body weight in cheerios when he was 5 and that’s why his family used to call him “Chubby Chee”!

Nathan:

[embarrassed]

Maybe this is why no one likes you.

Molly:

[another vision]

The reason no one likes you is because…[interrupted]

Nathan:

[stopping her]

That’s enough! Let’s just think about a way to get out of here

Caine:

[holding the prop spear/knife]

We could kill each other one by one until…

Molly:

[another vision]

Wait! the killer….

Ellie:

No more out of you mrs. chatty chat! [upset] I happened to take pride in my lead roles.

Molly:

No wait, guys the killer…

Nathan:

Yeah! And I had to go through 3 years of counseling to get over “Chubby Chee”

Molly:

No you don’t understand, Jody and the killer…

Caine:

[holding up prop spear/ knife]

And I didn’t get to finish my idea of entertainment.

Molly:

JUST SHUT UP AND LISTEN!

(Molly then immediately holds her mouth, realizing she screamed, and the group goes silent. Molly then takes a big gasp about to finish what she was saying. THEN SUDDENLY SOMEONE BEGINS BANGING ON THE DOOR)

(Nathan starts screaming again pointing at the door, and the rest of the cast joins in, except for Molly who actually knows what’s going on)

(The banging sound continues until the door swings open and reveals Jody standing in the doorway, who also starts screaming once Caine jumps up and is about to attack her with the prop spear/knife and the cast follows behind)

Caine:

AGHHH [instantly stops screaming] Actually it’s just Jody.

Molly:

That’s what I was trying to tell you! Jody isn’t dead! And there's no killer.

Nathan:

You could've just told us that, Ms.Physical.

Molly;

[mocking]

Well I thought I was Mrs.Chatty Chat

Jody:

[holding head in pain]

Enough!

You have no idea what I’ve been through.

First of all!

I was trying to scare you guys.

(The cast looks up and it fades into a flashback)

(The flashback shows Jody backstage texting “Boo!” as she was about to jump out and scare the cast)

Jody:

[narrating the flashback]

I heard Ellie reading the text so I was about to jump out and scare you, but then I heard Ellie scream and it freakin terrified me.

(Jody’s startled and slips, accidently getting her foot caught in a bucket, before falling down, hitting her head)

Jody:

I couldn’t hardly move, and I was all dizzy so I tried to send you a video, so you would see it and come help me.

Next thing I know I hear more screaming, so I force myself up with a twisted ankle and a bucket foot! And I stomp outside to see what’s going on.

(Jody forces herself up and harshly limps out and the camera points outside of the backstage to show a nervous Nathan dragging an unconscious Molly, out of sight)

Jody:

So I probably had a concussion and it looked like Nathan murdered Molly!

Then I hear you stomping into the costume room. And I tried!

To warn you that their were sharp props and nails in stuff sticking out of the boards.

So that Nathan didn’t drag Molly across a rusty nail, getting me sued.

So I very slowly, VERY SLOWLY make my way upstairs. And now look were I am.

(flashback ends)

Nathan:

[to Molly]

Thanks for the insight.

Ellie:

[cheesy tone]