"Insomnia"

A Screenplay by Jared Payne

episode 4

(Camera opens to the auditorium, where Caine is giving a speech)

Caine:

[points at each member of the cast]

Useless. Useless. Useless.

(Camera points to the cast, sitting in the audience and they all look extremely sleep deprived. Ellie is shaking a coffee cup from side to side, Nathan looks unstable, and Molly is dazed, staring at the ceiling)

Caine:

[enforceful tone]

I’m in charge, so you have to do whatever I want...And don’t come crying to me because you didn’t get enough sleep over this.

(Cuts to an interview of Molly)

Molly:

[tired and spaced out]

Jill...I mean ugh…[closes eyes to think]....Jody! Concussion has Jody, thanks to us. And hospital we were at all night...so tired we are. Caine in charge now and...and..[slowly falls asleep during interview]

(cuts back to auditorium)

Caine:

Because you’re all spaced out zombies, I want you all to take a moment to think about what you’ve done.

Molly:

[raises hand and starts to speak]

But wasn’t concussion caused by you too…

Caine:

Quiet! All of us! For the next five minutes were are going to be quiet!

(Molly slowly drops her hand)

(silence, more silence, even more silence. After about 30-seconds of no sound, Nathan starts to shake his head, and looks extremely unstable)

Nathan:

[breaking the silence and staring straight ahead]

[creepy high-pitched cackle] HAHAHAHAH

(Everyone turns their head and stares at Nathan, during this random mood swing. Then his laughter stops and then turns into anger]

Nathan:

HAHAHAHAHA...[instant cold face]

I’m fine..continue!

(cuts to an interview of Caine)

Caine:

I met a lot of crazies on the streets...but I ain’t ever seen something like this. Their all got their own type of crazy’s.

(returns to auditorium)

Caine:

Guys..come on let’s keep it together. We still have to rehearse.

Ellie:

[raises both of her jittery hands]

I’ll go.

Caine:

O-kayy sure...[points to a sleeping Molly]..Ughh Molly..would you like to go..Molly. Molly!!!

Ellie:

[rapidly shaking Molly and screaming]

MOLLY WAKE UP!!!

(Molly wakes up)

Nathan:

[angry]

STOP SCREAMING!

(Molly plugging her ears, as she is stuck in between both of them)

Ellie:

WHY SHOULD I?

Nathan:

BECAUSE SOME PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO SLEEP!

Ellie:

[louder]

I’m sorry am I annoying, maybe it’s because I’m out of coffee! [throws cup and hits Nathan]..

I’M BUGGING OUT MAN!!! [pulls own hair] BUGGING OUT!

(After Nathan gets hit with the coffee cup his anger mood swing is over, and he starts a new mood swing, this time sadness)

Nathan:

[sad]

You don't have to yell.

(Nathan gets sad and runs away, through the backstage door, and there is a brief moment of silence before things pick back up)

Caine:

Okay, Molly...Ellie, just start a scene real quick so we can get this over with.

(Molly and Ellie, begin to make their way up on stage and Caine walks off the stage to watch them)

Caine:

Go..I guess.

(Ellie and Molly are standing beside each other and are about to start the scene, but something's wrong with Molly)

Molly:

[extremely tired]

Sorry Caine… but I’m starting to train my lose of thought..and I just...I just...[gently lays down on the stage] I just need some..[falls asleep].

Caine:

[confused]

[waves her hand at Ellie, then to Molly, as a way to motion that Ellie needs to wake up Molly]

Ellie:

[leans down beside Molly and speaks softly]

Molly. Hey Molly.

Molly:

[still sleeping with eyes closed]

Yeah.

Ellie:

[whisper] Hey, Molly…[screams] WAKE UP!

(Molly’s startled and jumps to her feet, and then Ellie stands back up)

Caine:

Finally, thank you.

Ellie:

[excited]

Will you reward me with coffee!

Caine:

You see what you're doing there...that talking...just stop all of that...

Just try to start the scene.

(Ellie and Molly get back in place and I about to stop the scene)

Molly:

Wait! Wait a second.

Caine:

WHAT!

Molly:

Sorry to interrupt, but I just need to..[starts to lay back down]...I really just need a little…

[falls back asleep]

Caine:

OKAY STOP! Ellie...just take care of this..I need to go find Nathen...then were leaving.

[angry sarcasm]

I give up!

(Caine walks out in an attempt to find Nathan, and the camera is now a closeup on stage of Ellie)

Ellie:

[shaking like she’s cold and has an evil look in her eyes]

I’ll take care of here alright…[laugh]..Then you’ll have to buy me coffee after this one.

[grabs both of Molly wrist about to drag her]

Come on Molly...Let’s take a little trip

(Camera cuts to Caine who is backstage/ upstairs still trying to find Nathan)

Caine:

Nathan? Nathan, where’d you go?

(The camera continues to follow Caine until she walks into the green room and Nathan is seen sleeping on a couch, and Caine approaches him.)

Caine:

Nathan..[creeps closer]...hey buddy…[gets even closer]..are you there..[pokes Nathan]

(Nathan then quickly wakes up and has gone from sadness back to anger, and he looks furious)

Nathan:

AGHHH..[about to jump up]

(Caine freaks and and is quickly startled, and picks up pillow, and holds it over Nathan’s face)

Caine:

[scared plus adrenaline rush]

[hold pillow over Nathan's face]

Stop it. Stop it. Stop.

[Nathan stops kicking and she lifts the pillow]

Ummm...Nathan

(She lifts the pillow and quickly checks his pulse)

Caine:

[extremely relieved]

Ogh, good, he’s still breathing. Just a little unconscious.

(Ellie’s heard walking in, and the camera turns as she enters the green room, with both of her hands at her side, looking wacked out)

Ellie:

[creepily]

Caine…

Caine:

Ellie..where’s Molly.

Ellie:

[monotone and high pitched]

I took care of her...can I have some coffee now.

Caine:

Ellie! What’d you do with Molly!

Oh, No.

(Nathan then wakes up at the perfect time, and has gone from anger, back to creepy happiness)

Nathan:

[sits up]

[evil cackle] HAHAHAHA

(Caine quickly springs up and grabs the pillow again, this time hitting him in the head with it, knocking him back unconscious)

Caine:

No more!

(she then walks over to Ellie and grabs her arm)

Caine:

[pulls her into the entrance of the dressing room]

Here, you will stay here.

[grabs a chair and sits it on it’s side, blocking Ellie’s exit]

Stay!

(The camera follows Caine and she quickly exits the green room, while Ellie’s heard in the background)

Ellie:

Do I get some coffee now.

(Cuts to an interview of Caine)

Caine:

[calls Jody, and is talking on the phone, which is set to speaker]

[nervous]

Hey Jody?!

Jody:

What’s on fire, and who’s dead?

Caine:

There's none of that..[nervous laugh].. But..[talks fastly] Ellie might of kidnapped Molly, and murdered her for coffee.

Jody:

WHAT DID YOU SAY???

Caine:

[quickly hangs up]

[then looks into camera]

I should probably fix this.

(Caine then runs downstairs, into the room that has the paint and sinks, backstage, and begins to frantically looks for Molly. A timelapse of this will be shown by having Caine look for her at every exit, the last place she looks is the fire exit)

(Caine opens the fire exit stairs, and Molly is seen lying at the bottom of the stairs in the dark, and Caine quickly approaches her)

Caine:

[shaking the unconscious Molly]

Molly! Oh man. She killed you.

Molly:

[waking up]

I’ll start the scene in a little bit I promise, just need a little…[falls back asleep]

Caine:

Molly, come on... all of you need to go home...I’m so done with this...you have no idea.

(Caine and a semi-sleeping Molly, make their way upstairs, and the camera cuts back to the green room, where Molly and Caine are entering)

(Upon entrance, Molly finds the nearest couch and lays back down and goes to sleep)

Caine: