10:25
Written by
Erik Choquette
INT. SARAH’S HALLWAY - DAY
A splash of sunshine lands on a PAINTING that hangs on a dark blue wall. In it, streaks of red crash into paths of orange and yellow, all combining to form a vague likeness of a
GIRL’S EYE. Each stroke is calm and contained, but as a whole, the eye is passionate and wild.
FADE TO BLACK.
INT. SARAH’S LIVING ROOM - NIGHT
SARAH HENSON, 18, tosses aside some brown wrapping paper and a red ribbon as she sits cross-legged on the white carpeted floor, leaning back against the bottom portion of a brown leather sofa. She holds the PAINTING of the eye.
SARAH
Oh my god. Chris- It’s wonderful!
Her brown bangs fall across her face, hiding her left eye.
She sweeps them away to continue inspecting the painting.
CHRIS TAYLOR, 18, is lying on the floor across from her, stretched out on his side. His brown hoody has specks and smears of dried paint on it. So do his black jeans. One knee is shredded, and the other is just beginning to follow suit.
CHRIS
Well, it is yours. The eye, I mean.
Sarah smiles to herself as she gazes at the painting.
SARAH
It’s a bit weird though isn’t it? I mean, my eye hanging on a wall somewhere, staring at me forev-
CHRIS
I never said you had to keep it.
Sarah looks up at him, her mouth cracked in surprise, and her slim eyebrows raised. He avoids her glance by plucking at the stray white carpet fibers and then smoothing them back down.
SARAH
What?
CHRIS
I dunno. You just haven’t been all that into my stuff for a while.
For a split second, Sarah looks guilty. Chris doesn’t notice.
Then she narrows her eyes at him and smiles.
SARAH
C’mon you.
Sarah jumps up with the painting. Chris gets up and follows.
INT. SARAH’S KITCHEN - CONTINUOUS
Sarah walks over the black-and-white tile floor towards a small TOOLBOX that sits in a pantry. Her shoes CLICK.
INT. CLASSROOM - DAY
The second hand TICKS around a CLOCK that’s mounted on one of the drab yellow walls. Chris and his fellow classmates sit in the grouping of desks, taking a test. Chris TAPS his pencil.
The SECOND HAND continues to swing around. It’s 10:24.
The CLASSROOM DOOR springs open. Sarah slips in, her purse slung over her shoulder, carrying a YELLOW SLIP OF PAPER. She walks up to the front desk where a middle-aged female TEACHER sits, going through papers. They WHISPER. The class stirs.
Chris looks up at them for a second. His tapping has stopped.
All he can see is Sarah’s back. He looks back down.
The teacher takes the YELLOW SLIP OF PAPER from Sarah and then points to the back of the room. Sarah nods, turns, and heads to an empty desk that’s a few seats away from Chris.
TEACHER
Welcome to Santa Barbara, Sarah.
SARAH
Thank you.
The SECOND HAND works its way to the 12 on the clock. Just as it hits 10:25, CHRIS looks up to fully inspect the new girl.
Sarah eases into her chair, slips off her purse, and brushes away the bangs that have fallen in front of her eyes. She slides a binder out of the purse, and places it on her desk.
A pen comes rolling out, falls, and hits the floor. Sarah bends down to pick up the pen. She straightens back up.
Chris can only stare at her. Then, she glances over.
Her EYES meet Chris’s.
Everything stands still.
2.
INT. SCHOOL HALLWAY - DAY
Chris walks next to a tall, 18-year-old blonde named TESSA
ROSE who’s wearing aviator sunglasses. Tessa strides through the crowd. Chris is bumped and jostled at every possible opportunity, and fights to keep up with her.
TESSA
Sarah. Sarah Henson. She just moved here from San Diego.
CHRIS
Okay, great, but do you know if she’s going out with any-
TESSA
Oh no, I’m not doing your dirty work this time.
She opens the door that leads out to the school’s entrance.
EXT. SCHOOL ENTRANCE - CONTINUOUS
Tessa walks down a concrete path that leads to the student parking lot as Chris scampers after her.
CHRIS
Well then what do I do?
TESSA
Uh, talk to her.
CHRIS
Okay...so what do I talk about?
TESSA
Seriously? Just...I dunno, ask her how she likes it here, or if she needs help finding her way around town. You know, stuff.
CHRIS
Well what if she doesn’t want to talk or-
TESSA
For God’s sake, just do it. Grow a pair. ‘Member Allison from freshman year? CHRIS
Yeah, but I had never talked-
3.
TESSA
Or Jessica, who transferred schools before you could ask her out?
Tessa reaches her car. She whips out her keys, opens the door, and throws her stuff onto the passenger seat inside.
CHRIS
Okay, yeah, thanks for that remin-
TESSA
Oh, and don’t forget Lindsey from last summer in Colorado who you pretty much abandon-
CHRIS
Okay, Christ, thank you.
Tessa turns, lowers her glasses to the bridge of her nose, and smiles at him in an almost sultry Cheshire cat grin.
TESSA
You’ve won a shitload of painting competitions, got a full scholarship to that art school in
Chicago, and you sell your work for hundreds of dollars a pop. You can at least talk to a cute girl.
A beat.
CHRIS
‘Kay, fine, I’ll try.
Tessa smiles, gets in her car, and starts it up. She rolls down the window a bit and waves to Chris as she backs up.
CHRIS (CONT’D)
Wait! What if it’s awkward?
Tessa smiles at him through the half-opened window.
TESSA
It will be!
EXT. RESTAURANT - DAY
Chris and Sarah sit at a restaurant patio. The city chatters with the sounds of life, but they don’t say a single word.
Chris doodles on his NAPKIN with a pen. He looks up to see
Sarah staring out into the city. He toys with the pen, and then resumes his nervous sketching.
4.
Sarah turns back to Chris, surveying his anxiety. Sarah notices the napkin for the first time. It catches her.
SARAH
Wow. A minute ago that was blank.
Chris looks up to see her invested in his creation.
CHRIS
Oh...thanks. Are you an art person?
SARAH
If I am, I’m more of a bland, paintby- numbers person, you know?
Rational thought and all that meaningless crap.
Sarah smiles at Chris, hoping for a reaction.
CHRIS
Aw, I’m sorry.
Sarah catches the joke just in time and offers an encouraging laugh. Chris looks up, surprised at his own abilities.
SARAH
So...do you always just sketch, or do you paint or what?
This gets Chris talking. Sarah leans in and props her head up with her hand, staring at Chris. The streets are quieter.
DISSOLVE TO:
INT. SARAH’S HALLWAY - NIGHT
BLUE. The bare wall.
Sarah reaches up with a small nail and a hammer. She taps in the nail. She lifts up the EYE PAINTING and hangs it. She adjusts it twice, making sure it’s straight, and then steps back. Chris walks up behind her. She turns to him.
SARAH
That look good?
Chris only looks down into her EYES. She looks back into his.
CHRIS
It’s perfect. Happy Birthday.
She smiles up at him. They lean in to kiss-
5.
EXT. SANTA BARBARA MISSION - NIGHT
The SANTA BARBARA MISSION stands as a beacon, basking in the after-hours yellow display lighting, surrounded by the allencompassing black shroud of night.
Sarah runs, LAUGHING, towards the mission as Chris walks behind her. Sarah races up the stairs and waits at the top.
Chris ambles towards her, but stops at the bottom.
Sarah, who’s looking up at the bell towers, turns around to see him waiting. Hesitating. She smiles at him, and begins to descend the STEPS.
SARAH
Thanks for dinner.
Lower. Closer. Step by step by step.
CHRIS
No problem.
He smiles up at her. She’s halfway down the stairs. He surveys the MISSION’S intimidating figure, then gestures vaguely at it.
CHRIS (CONT’D)
I know it doesn’t seem like my usual subject, but-
SARAH
It’s beautiful.
With this interruption, Chris’s attention is snapped back to
Sarah. She reaches the step that puts her at eye-level with
Chris. He looks away and tries to make small talk. She smiles, grabs his hands, pulls him towards her, and they-
INT. SARAH’S HALLWAY - NIGHT
-are lip-locked in the blue, cavernous hallway. They separate. Sarah hangs her head, almost in shame. A long pause. Sarah bites her lip, and then looks up at Chris with the beginnings of tears in her eyes.
SARAH
I have to tell you something.
EXT. RESTAURANT - DAY
Sarah sits on the same restaurant patio where she and Chris went on their first date. But now Tessa sits across from her.
6.
TESSA
But you’ve been going out forever!
SARAH
I know, but- I mean, there’s just no way. He loves his art. He loves it too much. He’s sweet, but he doesn’t know what’s going on. With me, with school. With the world.
Besides, it’s not like I’m dumping him, I’m just letting him down eas-
TESSA
No. Listen to me for a sec. It’s your birthday in a few weeks, yes?
She says this as she ducks under the table to reach her purse. As she sits back up, she’s holding her PHONE. She flips it open and begins to wander through the menus.
SARAH
Yeah, but-
TESSA
No buts. Here. Look.
She turns the phone to Sarah. A text message with a picture of an incomplete version of the EYE PAINTING stares back at her. The text reads, “wat u think for her b-day?”
SARAH
Oh my god...it’s wonderful.
Tessa hands the phone to Sarah as she takes a closer look.
TESSA
He’s been working on that for weeks, wanting to get it perfect for you. If you do this now, it’ll crush him. As someone who really cares about him, I’m asking you to wait. Please.
SARAH
But we can still be friends if-
TESSA
He won’t do that. You’re the only real girlfriend he’s had. Ever. He won’t just let that go. Please.
Sarah stares into Tessa’s phone. She sits, contemplating. She closes the phone with a-
7.
EXT. SARAH’S HOUSE - NIGHT
-BANG. The front door swings open. Chris paces out, his face rock-solid, and distant. He reaches his CAR.
SARAH (O.C.)
Chris, wait!
He unlocks the door and gets in, triggering the car’s interior lights. Sarah runs up to the passenger window and knocks. Chris buckles his seat belt and sits for a second, ignoring the knocking sound next to him. Then he looks over.
Sarah’s crying outside.
The interior lights dim, leaving Chris in the darkness. He starts the car and pulls away. Sarah stands on the empty street. Chris’s CAR races away into the night. Alone.
FADE TO BLACK.
EXT. SANTA BARBARA MISSION - DAY
Chris sits on the grass with a small easel propped up next to him. His paint lies close by. The PAINTING on the easel is not the mission during the day, but at night. In it, two silhouettes stand on the mission steps, facing each other.
Chris lies back and takes a break, looking up into the cloudless blue sky. A BIRD glides by. Cars HUM by in the background. A faint breeze brushes his hair. He breathes.
SARAH (O.C.)
Chris?
Chris tries to look behind himself, and finding it futile, stands up. He finds Sarah standing behind him, nervous.
CHRIS
Hey, Sarah. How are you?
SARAH
Fine. You?
CHRIS
I’m doing good, thanks.
He smiles at her. It’s returned, but not in equal measure.
SARAH
So...when do you leave for Chicago?
8.
CHRIS
A couple weeks. Enjoying everything here while I still can.
Sarah lets a shy grin escape. A long pause.
SARAH
Chris? I’m sorry. Really, I’m sor-
Chris laughs, relieved.
CHRIS
Please, Sarah, don’t. You didn’t do anything wrong. Besides, it’s been, like, what, four or five months?
A beat as Sarah looks down, smiling. She seems relieved. But the PAINTING suddenly catches her eye.
SARAH
Are you sure you’re okay?
Chris follows her gaze. He laughs, turning a bit red.
DANIELLE (O.C.)
Chris?
DANIELLE GEORGETTE, an 18-year-old brunette, walks up beside
Chris. She looks at Sarah with curiosity, then back at Chris.
CHRIS
Danielle, this is Sarah. Henson.
DANIELLE
Hi Sarah. Nice to meet you.
SARAH
You too.
An awkward pause as they give each other a nervous smile.
Danielle ends it by turning back to Chris.
DANIELLE
I’m gonna start bringing stuff back to the car. You ready to go?
CHRIS
Yep. I’ll, uh, be there in a sec.
Danielle fidgets, then kisses Chris. Sarah’s uncomfortable, but the lovers couldn’t care less. They separate. Danielle picks up Chris’s easel and painting. She starts the trek back towards CHRIS’S CAR. Chris turns to watch her go as Sarah steps closer, her eyes also following Danielle. A beat.
9.
SARAH
How’d she like it here at night?
Chris gives her a mock glare as she stifles a laugh.
SARAH (CONT’D)
Really, how did you guys...
CHRIS
An art show. She saw one of my paintings, and we started talking.
Well, she started talking.
Sarah shoots him a glance of sly acknowledgement. Chris doesn’t notice. Sarah turns back to watching Danielle.
SARAH
You guys seem happy.
He says nothing, but a slight smile of contentment creeps across his face. He turns back and starts collecting the rest of his art supplies, his attention returning to Sarah.
CHRIS
Hey, good luck next year with UCLA.
Rational thought, and all that meaningless crap, right?
SARAH
(Laughing)
Yeah, I guess so.
CHRIS
Take care! Maybe I’ll see you around sometime!
SARAH
Yeah...maybe.
Chris runs to his car and throws his stuff into the trunk. He offers one last wave to Sarah and then gets in with Danielle.
Sarah waves back, and then watches as they leave. She turns back to the MISSION. She sits down on the grass, clutching her knees and gazing up at the structure. CHRIS’S CAR drives by behind her, with MUSIC and a girl’s LAUGHTER drifting out.
Sarah sits in the shadow of the MISSION, thoughtful.
CHRIS drives off into the sun-streaked city, euphoric.
Life goes on. As usual, it’s a little bit brighter for some, but also a little bit darker for others.
10.