"Recovery" by Dustin Alexander Final Draft Spec Script EXT. ELLIOT'S HOUSE - NIGHT The house is planted square in the middle of suburbia, but feels more desolate than the houses that surround it despite the greater amount of cars around it than the others. There are lights on inside and people scattered, talking. In the front yard are a few people, some talking to each other, some drinking. One of the front double doors is open - on the other is a sign informing everybody that this is the house for LILY MONTGOMERY's wake. It has a very cheerful picture of her in the center: she's a brunette, wild-eyed young woman, and despite her death, her spirit still saturates the picture. DISSOLVE TO: INT. ELLIOT'S LIVING ROOM Across the mantle of the fireplace is a row of photographs, candid and less candid pictures of Lily alone or with friends, but as they draw from the left to the center photograph, she becomes less and less pleasant and spirited, and the center photograph is very solemn and morose, detached from the rest. In many of the photographs is ELLIOT CRAWFORD, a somber young man who seemed to have seen happier days during the times those pictures were taken. Now he leans against the mantle with a drink in his hand in a plastic cup, his facial hair grizzled and his eyes sad behind his glasses. Even his hair is a bit mussed, and his clothes are wrinkled in places. He is examining the newspaper clipping next to the center photograph. INSERT - NEWSPAPER CLIPPING The headline reads "Local Girl Raped and Murdered." The subtitle reads "Assailants Shot and Killed on Scene." There is a picture of Lily on the page - the same picture - that the clipping sits next to, as well as pictures of a pair of gruff, white men with captions of their names: "JOHN CARL BUECHLER" and "RAYMOND FREDERICK." The article reads as follows... OLEMA, CA - A ranger discovered the body of Lillian Montgomery, 24, buried in a shallow grave in a nearby woodland area Tuesday morning. Montgomery had been reported missing two weeks prior by her fiancee, Elliot Crawford, 25. She appeared to have been sexually assaulted and then beaten to death. 2. Fingernails and hair samples found on the victim's body were analyzed by forensics teams and within forty-eight hours, the two men responsible - John Carl Buechler, 31, and Raymond Frederick, 29 - were found. They were shot and killed fleeing capture... BACK TO SCENE. Elliot takes a drink, and is quickly met by a TEARFUL WOMAN who wraps her arms around him, spilling his drink across part of the mantle without ever noticing. TEARFUL WOMAN I'm so sorry, Elliot. She's gone to a better place now. He doesn't reciprocate, but instead remains cold and detached. ELLIOT Sure. She hangs on a moment longer before releasing herself and veritably launching herself on another guest. Elliot sets his drink on the mantle and begins to push through and out of the crowd, but with every step it seems like nobody touches him. That is, until he's stopped yet again by a SYMPATHETIC WOMAN, who hugs him almost as fiercely as the woman before. Once again, he makes no move to reciprocate. SYMPATHETIC WOMAN She's with her family now, don't you worry about her. ELLIOT Okay. He slips away from her, and when he finally reaches the threshold of the crowd and towards the doorway, he is stopped by a WEEPING MAN who would almost seem to be in a more affected state than Elliot. He takes Elliot's hand and clutches it tightly. WEEPING MAN If you ever need anything, anything at all, you call me okay? ELLIOT No problem. Elliot slinks away from him as deftly and motionlessly as from the others and finally makes it out the front door. 3. EXT. ELLIOT'S HOUSE Elliot steps out the front door and closes it gently behind him before seating himself on the porch. The people in the yard smile politely or wave, but he doesn't notice them. Instead, he removes a cigarette pack from his pocket and taps one into his palm. He holds up the cigarette between his fingers and examines it closely, angling it this way and that, almost as if he'd never seen one before. He almost admired the little cancer stick. He sets the cigarette between his lips and stuffs the pack back in his pocket, and as he pulls out a lighter, the front door opens behind him. He cups his hand around the lighter and as he lights his cigarette, ASHLEY DADE, a pretty young lady his age, seats herself next to him. She looks at him curiously as he takes a drag off his cigarette. ASHLEY You don't smoke. ELLIOT Never too soon to start. He looks away from her and takes another drag. ASHLEY (weakly joking) You know, those things'll kill you. He lowers his eyes, then looks back up at the sky. ASHLEY (CONT'D) Listen...Elliot... ELLIOT You're wasting your time. ASHLEY I know how you feel. I remember what it was like when Garrett died. He takes another drag, and his response is toneless. ELLIOT That's different. 4. ASHLEY How? ELLIOT You knew when he was dead. You didn't spend two weeks agonizing over it, wondering if he left you, wondering if he was even still alive, finding out he's not. He was dead. Period. She hangs her head. ASHLEY I'm sorry. He takes another drag. ELLIOT Forget it. He exhales. ELLIOT (CONT'D) Doesn't matter. ASHLEY Everybody's here for you, you know. They only knew her because of you. ELLIOT What a waste. She sighs. ASHLEY Would you put out that cancer stick and really talk to me for once? He takes one more drag and stubs out the cigarette. ELLIOT (detached) What would you like to talk about? ASHLEY I'd like to talk about you. I want to talk about what I can do to help you feel better. You were so fucking crazy for the past couple weeks. You may have been upset but at least you were alive. 5. ELLIOT I'm still alive. ASHLEY Not really. He pulls the pack of cigarettes out of his pocket and taps one into his palm. ASHLEY (CONT'D) You can't live like this. ELLIOT Who said anything about living? Go back inside. He starts the routine of getting the lighter and lighting the cigarette, and she has no desire to watch him anymore. Disgusted, she rises and walks to the door. ASHLEY You're giving up on everyone. She opens the door and heads back inside, then closes it. He takes a drag off of his cigarette. DISSOLVE TO: INT. ELLIOT'S LIVING ROOM - LATER The clock on the wall reads close to midnight, and everybody is absent, leaving the remnants of the wake behind. Cups of half-consumed alcohol, half-consumed cake...everything halved. Elliot walks in with his tie loose around his neck and slumps down into the recliner, examining his own cup. He leans back in the recliner and closes his eyes, sighing as he sets the cup down on a nearby table and runs his hands over his face and through his hair. A pale, sickly white hand with scrapes on it (LILY's hand) gently brushes against his shoulder, and he sits bolt upright. He looks around cautiously, then slowly rises and looks at the clock again. He calls out to the rest of the house. ELLIOT Hello? He hears a hint of Lily's soft laughter echo in the distant corners of the house, and he blinks. 6. Slowly he looks down at the cup, then shrugs and walks out of the room and up the stairs to his bedroom. FADE TO: INT. ELLIOT'S BEDROOM - MORNING Elliot tosses and turns in his sleep as daylight filters in through cracks in the blinds. His own possessions find themselves still mixed up with Lily's. For every shirt and pair of underwear he has tossed on the floor, there's one of her blouses, or a bra, or panties, or a dress, or her jeans. Even on the dresser where the CD player is, her AC/DC CD sits on top of his Sneaker Pimps CD. The computer in the corner features numerous stapled together scripts and stories...there are three cover pages credited to Elliot, the titles of which are "Dig," "Forsaken City," and "Shadow Man." The fourth is credited to Lily, and the title reads "The Last Days." The covers on the bed are messed up and none of the corners or sides are tucked in, and when he rolls over, he pulls the covers off of the other side of the bed, revealing what appears to be the imprint of a body that had slept curled up close to him. But only the impression remains there. DISSOLVE TO: INT. COFFEE SHOP - DAY Elliot sits at a table in the shop across from Ashley. While he sits over his half-drank steaming cup, she sips at hers fairly regularly. They remain in silence for a spell before she reaches across the table and tries to take his hand. When she touches him, however, he recoils and yanks his hand away, and he looks away for a second before slipping back the way he was. She understands. ASHLEY (softly) How are you holding up? ELLIOT (laughing half-heartedly) It's like she never left. ASHLEY I know. ELLIOT It's like...it's like she's still there. I can't explain it. 7. ASHLEY It was hard for me waking up to that empty bed that first night after Garrett's wake, when I knew then and there that he wouldn't be coming back. I knew it for good. ELLIOT Her clothes are still all over the floor. Her stuff is still all over the house. ASHLEY We should clean those up, Eli. You don't need to see it. ELLIOT I don't want to. He takes a sip of his coffee, and she takes a sip of hers. ASHLEY You should try writing about it. He buries his face in his hands, then lifts it up again and takes a deep breath. ELLIOT Finish your coffee. DISSOLVE TO: INT. ELLIOT'S LIVING ROOM - NIGHT The mess from the day before is barely cleaned, and added to it is a pizza box that sits on the table, opened. There's a whole slice missing from it, but that slice is on a plate next to it, and there's barely two bites taken from it. Elliot is slumped back in his recliner, watching television. He has a lit cigarette in one hand, dangling loosely between his fingers. His clothes are ruffled and he looks unkempt. What's on television isn't important and indeed, after a minute he just slinks off the recliner, putting the cigarette in the ash tray as he leaves and dumping the remote in the seat. He heads up the stairs and into the kitchen. He stops in front of the freezer, smirking lifelessly to himself as he listens to the INANE BANTER from the television set. 8. He opens the freezer door, and the banter starts to grow a bit louder, but he doesn't notice. He pulls out a chilled glass and sets it on the counter, looking at the television for a second before dropping two ice cubes into the glass. When he ducks back in the freezer, he hears STATIC click on in place of the banter. His eyebrows perk up, but he pulls out a bottle of vodka and pours it slowly into the glass. As he pours, the static changes to the sound of wet fingertips SCREECHING against glass. He screws the cap back on and puts the bottle back into the freezer, closing the door and carrying the glass towards the railing to investigate what's on the television. On the screen is a scratched up hand - Lily's scratched up hand - and her bloody fingertips pawing at the glass. Behind her hand, her face hangs low and is cut off at the nose, and a soiled bridal veil hangs in front of it. She continues to paw, and he watches in horror. She flattens her bloody hand against the inside of the screen, and lifts her face to look up at him. She smiles, and blood pours from the corners of her mouth. Her face is scarred and scratched, dirty and bloody. LILY I'm so cold. He drops the glass and it SHATTERS on the ground, and the television switches immediately back to the INANE BANTER. He stands there for a moment, watching the television and figuring things out in his mind before he notices the broken glass on the ground. ELLIOT ...fuck. He sighs and walks back towards the sink. He opens the cabinet and kneels, sticking his head inside and shuffling through the products searching for the dustpan and the hand broom. As he searches, the phone RINGS quite jarringly. He jumps, and BANGS the back of his head up under the sink, ELLIOT (CONT'D) FUCK! He yanks the pan and broom out as he jerks out of the cupboard and, in a burst of anger, flings them at the telephone, which flies off the hook and strikes the ground. 9. We close in on the telephone, and can hear Ashley's voice on the other end. ASHLEY (ON TELEPHONE) Hello? Elliot? Are you there? In the background, we can see him hang his head and bury his face in his hands. FADE TO: INT. ELLIOT'S BEDROOM - MORNING Elliot tosses and turns in his bed restlessly. The covers - like the room - are an even bigger mess than they were before. He sleeps on the edge of consciousness. Slowly, his eyes drift open, and at the foot of the bed we can see Lily from the waist down, wearing a torn, soiled, and bloody wedding gown. We can see her dirty, scratched feet and her dirty, scratched hands. DISSOLVE TO: EXT. CITY PARK - DAY Elliot sits on the bench, watching the children play on the swings and the jungle gym and the playplace at large. He thinks about Lily, about how maybe in the future, they would've had their own rugrats. But they don't, and they won't, and the memory of this causes him to draw the pack of cigarettes out of his pocket again as he remains at a distance from the children. A concerned mother shoots him a dirty look as he pulls a cigarette out of the pack and sets it between his lips, but he doesn't notice and doesn't really care anyways. Same routine: cigarette, lighter, pocket. He takes a drag and watches the children, and is startled when he hears a voice behind him. ASHLEY Happy place to spend an afternooon. ELLIOT Huh? What are you doing here? ASHLEY I thought you might be here. I was right. 10. ELLIOT Something I can do for you? ASHLEY I was wondering if maybe there was something I could do for you, Elliot. She sits down next to him, watching him smoke, watching him watch the kids. ASHLEY (CONT'D) I thought you hated children. ELLIOT I do. So did Lily. ASHLEY So why are you here? ELLIOT We wanted one. We were going to toy with the idea of having one after we got married. ASHLEY Get married, start a family, and live your life in suburbia? ELLIOT I don't know. They remain quiet, watching the children. DISSOLVE TO: INT. ELLIOT'S BATHROOM - NIGHT Elliot walks in wearing his bathrobe and turns on the shower. The bathroom still has artifacts from Lily's time scattered around it - some makeup, a box of tampons, and so on. Little things. He stares into the mirror for a moment, and starts to piece through her belongings. He opens the medicine cabinet and pulls out her compact, which he pops open and looks at his face in. Just behind him, Lily briefly swifts by. He closes it and puts it back in the cabinet, undresses, and steps into the shower. He stands beneath the stream with his head against the shower wall, letting the water wash over his body. He leans there almost limp and lifeless, until he tilts his head back and lets the shower fall upon his face and his closed eyes. 11. He runs his fingers back through his hair. We see the water swirl down the drain, but a black substance begins to cloud it and mix with it as it flows. We then see Lily's hands on his chest as she wraps her arms about him, and behind his feet we see hers rise on tiptoe, and it's clear that she's the source of the black substance. His body freezes up under her touch, and he moves his head forward so the stream grazes the top of his head and back, and his eyes burst open in horror. She brings her cheek up next to his and whispers in his ear LILY It's cold, Elliot. He shivers under her touch as she lightly drags her fingernails across his chest. LILY (CONT'D) It's so cold without you. She's toying with him, manipulating his feelings. She digs her fingernails into his chest, scratching him, letting his blood flow. LILY (CONT'D) I miss you. She scratches harder before dragging her fingernails up to his neck, lightly gliding the tips along his throat. LILY (CONT'D) (purring) Let me help you tie the rope around your neck. She laughs at him, and slinks away, and he embraces himself and slumps down against the side of the shower, sliding down before curling up and burying his face in his knees. FADE TO: INT. ASHLEY'S BEDROOM - NIGHT Ashley is asleep, curled up tightly in bed. She hears the phone RING, and drowsily turns the bed lamp on, then reaches over and picks up the receiver. ASHLEY Hello? 12. She slowly sits up. ASHLEY (concerned) Yeah. Yeah, I'll be right over. Sit tight. She hangs up the phone and dashes out of bed. EXT. ELLIOT'S HOUSE - NIGHT Elliot stands on the porch, smoking a cigarette, his hair still wet from the shower. He watches the street and waits. He looks shaken - it hasn't been more than an hour since his encounter with Lily in the shower. He can't even hold the cigarette steady even though it's supposedly calming his nerves. He checks his watch, which reads "11:07." Slowly a car pulls up in front of the house and parks, and seconds later, out pops Ashley. She looks like she'd hopped out of bed and just thrown her clothes on before she came over. She rushes up to Elliot, and he drops the cigarette and looks at her, but he maintains his distance. She looks into his eyes, worried. ASHLEY Elliot? He looks away, rattled. ELLIOT I saw her. DISSOLVE TO: INT. ELLIOT'S LIVING ROOM - NIGHT Elliot sits in the recliner, while Ashley lounges up against the side of the couch, studying him intently. They remain in silence for a moment before she says ASHLEY Are you going to tell me what happened? He lowers his eyes and looks away. 13. ELLIOT You wouldn't believe me if I told you. I'm sorry I called. She tilts her head curiously, then examines him closer. ASHLEY What happened, Elliot? ELLIOT I saw her. ASHLEY Saw who? ELLIOT Who do you think? ASHLEY That's impossible, you know that. ELLIOT I was in the shower and...she was there. ASHLEY What happened? He slowly lifts up his shirt, revealing the fresh scratches. She blinks, then looks at him. ASHLEY (CONT'D) Why did you do that? He drops his shirt. ELLIOT Do what? ASHLEY That. She points to his chest. ELLIOT I didn't do anything, Ashley, she was here! ASHLEY Do you know how you sound? He shakes his head and growls. 14. ELLIOT I should've known. ASHLEY I don't want to see you like this anymore. This isn't the way out. He turns away from her. ELLIOT You know the way out. ASHLEY (affronted) You're not being fair. ELLIOT GET OUT! She blinks, then stands slowly. ASHLEY Fine, if you don't want -- ELLIOT Get out NOW!! She turns from him, as if giving up on him, and leaves. After she leaves, he growls and slams his fist down on the table next to his chair, knocking the garbage to the floor. FADE TO: INT. ELLIOT'S BEDROOM - MORNING Elliot lays in bed staring at the ceiling, eyes open, wide awake. He turns and looks at the clock, which reads "8:55." Very little sunlight filters in through the blinds - the room is fairly dark. Slowly, he yanks the sheets off and reveals the clothes he'd been wearing the night before. He slides out of bed listlessly and walks towards the computer in the corner. As he reaches down and turns it on, he's alarmed by a bright light that outlines the door to the closet. He slowly straightens up and looks at the closet door, horrified. He can hear Lily SINGING softly, echoing quietly in his ears, and he begins to approach the closet door. 15. As he comes within a few inches of it, the door bolts open, and Lily's arms thrust out of the doorway and grab his shoulders, yanking him into the closet. The closet door slams shut behind him. INT. ELLIOT'S CLOSET The closet is pitch dark except for a faint outline of the room outside it coming through the cracks in the door. Elliot is BREATHING HARD, terrified. A light source blinks on beneath Lily, and the bottom of her face is visible, the trails of blood running down from the corners of her sickly grin that glares behind her veil. She is looking down at Elliot, and Elliot is looking up at her, kneeling before her. Her hands rest on his cheeks, and her fingernails dig lightly into his skin, not yet enough to draw blood. LILY I miss you sometimes. She leans in and kisses him, but it's grotesque. The bloody lips, the soiled veil and the dirty hair. He winces then goes limp, but she only pulls away when she's finished. LILY (CONT'D) It's cold down there, but it won't be for long, will it, love? She smiles sickening sweet. LILY (CONT'D) You always said you could never imagine a life without me, didn't you? She brushes her palm across his eyes, closing them, and the light goes out. DISSOLVE TO: INT. RESTAURANT - EVENING Elliot sits in the restaurant, eating alone, staring at his plate of pasta. He jabs at it every so often with his fork, takes a listless sip of his soda, and runs his fingers through his hair. Next to the table is his bag, and he pulls out a notepad and a pen, and he starts writing on it for a second before being interrupted by a WAITRESS coming up to his table. 16. WAITRESS Is everything all right, sir? He looks up at her and smiles weakly. ELLIOT Yeah...everything's fine. She tilts her head and looks at him curiously. WAITRESS Are you sure? He looks back down at the notepad and starts writing again, but not easily, and answers her as he writes ELLIOT Not really. I'll be okay. I'm always okay. She nods and looks at him oddly, then leaves his table. He continues writing for a moment longer, then calls to the waitress. ELLIOT (CONT'D) Actually, can I get the check please? She comes back to his table. WAITRESS Certainly. She reaches into her pocket and pulls it out, setting it on the table. WAITRESS Would you like me to box this up for you? He reaches into his own pocket and draws out his wallet. ELLIOT I guess. He flips open the wallet and as he's about to get the money to pay the check, he sees the picture of Lily...the one he kept in the front to always remind himself. He pauses, and stares at it. The waitress, about to take the plate back behind the counter to box it up, looks over his shoulder. 17. WAITRESS Who's she? He smiles at her sadly. ELLIOT She's my wife. WAITRESS She's pretty. ELLIOT Isn't she? He lowers his eyes to the table. WAITRESS I'll be back in a second. She takes the plate away while he remains there, staring at the picture. He lightly grazes his fingertips across the surface. FADE TO: EXT. CITY PARK - NIGHT Elliot sits on the park bench across from the childrens' playplace, but it's late and nobody's around, just him and his cigarette. He takes slow, uneven drags as he watches the playplace. He can imagine children on it - can almost see it - but it's a glimmer and it's gone, and he's alone. He leans forward and rests his elbows on his knees, taking another drag from the cigarette. He looks down at the ground, and when he looks up, he can see one of the swings SQUEAKING back and forth. He furrows his brow, but lowers his eyes again. When he looks back up, he can see Lily swinging in the SQUEAKY swing, and she looks desolate and isolated there, far away from him. But she's not wearing her messed up wedding dress and she doesn't look dead. She's wearing her jeans and t-shirt, and she looks beautiful and alive. She turns her head and looks at him, and smiles weakly. LILY (mouths the words) I can't stop. 18. He rises and walks over and sits in the swing next to her, and they swing back and forth together for a spell, but he never looks at her and she never looks at him. When he finally wells up enough courage to look over, he sees that his swing has stopped swinging and that she's vanished from hers, though the swing still SQUEAKS. DISSOLVE TO: INT. ELLIOT'S BEDROOM - NIGHT The alarm clock reads "2:43." Elliot sits at his computer, staring at the blank screen. Unable to really get anything written though he tries. He'll type a few words and then go back and delete them. Lily's pale, scraped white hand grazes the back of his neck, and he stiffens up. His hair raises. She steps behind him and rests her hands on his shoulders. LILY You're still here. He hangs his head and speaks hesitantly ELLIOT I went out today. LILY I saw you. But you're still here, Elliot. ELLIOT Where should I be? LILY You know where. She digs her fingernails into his collar until they draw blood. LILY (CONT'D) I'm getting tired of waiting for you. She drags them back, leaving shallow, bloody scratches as she draws away from him and vanishes. He looks at the screen, then finally buries his face in his hands. He can't cry. He won't cry. But he convulses a bit, trying to hold it in. FADE TO: 19. EXT. ELLIOT'S HOUSE - MORNING Elliot stands on his porch in his robe, smoking a cigarette, taking the same deliberate drags. He doesn't notice when Ashley's car pulls up. He's smoking and looking up at the sky, and he can't tell she's around until she finally pops up next to him and SNAPS her fingers. ASHLEY Elliot? He should've been startled, but he wasn't. Instead, he turns to her and takes a drag off of his cigarette. ELLIOT What are you doing here? ASHLEY I took the day off and thought I'd come by and check up on you. Annoyed, he yanks the shoulder of his robe aside and shows her the scratches. ELLIOT (sarcastically) I hurt myself again. She sighs and growls. ASHLEY I wish you wouldn't do that, Elliot. Everybody's worried sick about you, but you don't fucking care, do you? Stand there and rot! He shrugs and smokes. ELLIOT Nothing better to do. ASHLEY (frustrated) God damn it, Elliot. I wish you weren't a writer. I wish you had a real fucking job with real fucking hours so you could do something and go somewhere and not sit around this house and waste your life! He turns on her. 20. ELLIOT What the hell do you want from me? What is it you're after? She's stunned for a second, then softens and looks at him. ASHLEY I want you to get better. Nobody sees you anymore and they're all afraid for you. He tenses up and then relaxes. ELLIOT I'm taking care of it myself. ASHLEY But you're not taking care of yourself. He shrugs, and flicks the cigarette away. ELLIOT What does it even matter? ASHLEY What do you need from me to get better? He lowers his eyes. She approaches him and rests her hand on his bicep, looking up at him. ASHLEY (CONT'D) (softly) What can I do to bring you back? She rests her hand on his cheek and tilts his face towards hers and looks in his eyes. He leans in, and brushes his lips against hers, but she jerks back. He slips away from her a bit. ELLIOT I'm sorry. ASHLEY No... She steps up to him again and kisses him softly. He blinks, but closes his eyes. He lifts his hand and rests it on her hip. DISSOLVE TO: 21. INT. ELLIOT'S BEDROOM - DAY Elliot sleeps peacefully on his side of the bed, but Ashley is laying on her side with the covers bundled up around her, and her eyes are open. From her eyes, we can see that she knows she made a grievous error. So she lays there, perfectly still, staring out into space. After a moment, Elliot awakens and gently rests his hand on her shoulder. ELLIOT (softly) Ash? (nudges) Ashley? ASHLEY (choked and somber) Yeah, Elliot? ELLIOT I'm sorry. ASHLEY Me too. ELLIOT Want to go to the park? ASHLEY (she smiles sadly) Yeah. FADE TO: EXT. LAKE OVERLOOK - DAY Elliot and Ashley stand on the dock, looking out over the lake, with no one else around. They don't speak to each other, they just stare out. Words don't really need to be shared, because they already know what's coming. They enjoy their last few minutes together there. Elliot pulls away from the dock and sits down, leaning back against the railing and looking up in the sky. ELLIOT (sadly) What now? ASHLEY I think that...it might be best...to part ways here. 22. He looks up at her. ELLIOT Why? ASHLEY I just...don't feel right anymore. Around you. ELLIOT You're sorry...and I'm sorry. Why can't that be enough? ASHLEY Don't do this, Elliot. She turns away from the dock and starts down the path. ASHLEY (CONT'D) (sad and weak) Goodbye. He looks up at her, and watches her leave. He doesn't speak. FADE TO: INT. LIVING ROOM - NIGHT Elliot stands amidst the garbage and leans against the mantle, just staring at Lily's picture. Her dead white hand rests itself on his shoulder and she whispers to him LILY I thought you loved me. He lowers his eyes. ELLIOT Why don't you go away? LILY I won't go anywhere unless you come with me, Elliot. That's the deal. He turns to her. ELLIOT (defeated) It's never enough, is it? 23. LILY (angry) Do you have any idea what it's like? Or what it was like? She rakes her nails across his cheek, and he recoils, watching her, terrified. LILY (CONT'D) It's cold, Elliot! It's all fucking cold! Everything is cold! ...and it's so empty. He watches her timidly. LILY (CONT'D) And you won't come with me. You won't love me like I loved you. He steps close to her, and they stand in the middle of the room. He looks weak and frail in comparison to the tortured, bloodied wraith before him. ELLIOT (dejected) I can't give you what you want anymore. She thrusts her hand out and grasps his head, her fingers clutching it like a skullcap. She glares into his eyes. LILY (commanding) Look at me! Look at what you left me to! The room spins around him and he begins to scream as it drifts away. EXT. NOWHERE RESTAURANT - DAY (FLASHBACK) The restaurant looks set in the middle of an outskirts kind of place, and it's a little run down. Lily and Elliot walk out of the front door, looking as they did in the prior scene, watching the precedings amidst the dreamy haze. LILY You said you'd meet me here and you never made it. 24. She points to the two men, John and Ray, as they carry her - the PAST LILY from that day - kicking and screaming to their van. She struggles violently against them, but she can't escape them. Her eyes are wide open and looking to the doorway of the restaurant. ELLIOT (O.S.) (sadly) I couldn't make it in time. Ray holds her tightly, restricting her as best he can. She fights back, but can't overpower him. RAY (annoyed) Hurry the fuck up, John, she's a fiesty one. John opens the sliding door, then leans in and brings his face close to Past Lily's, and smiles, and in that smile, the promise of what they plan to do with her becomes clear. JOHN You're pretty cute. Get in the fucking van. He punches her across the face - hard - and blood begins to trickle from the corner of her mouth. They force her into the van and slam the door shut, then quickly rush to the driver's and passenger's side doors. We see Elliot watching alone now. Lily's gone. He falls to his knees, watching them take her away. ELLIOT I'm sorry, Lily...the car wouldn't start and I wanted to come see you and I couldn't fucking make it and you're gone and I'm so lost... DISSOLVE TO: INT. JOHN AND RAY'S VAN - EVENING (FLASHBACK) Elliot sits in the back corner of the van, looking at Past Lily bound and gagged in the middle of the van. Her face expresses nothing but hopelessness and fear. The fighting spirit's gone and the victim's spirit remains. For a brief second, he and Lily lock eyes though they aren't really together there. 25. He looks around the interior van, the dirty interior, before looking up to the front seats, where he sees John - driving - and Ray CLINK their beer bottles together, LAUGHING. EXT. BACKWOODS - DUSK (FLASHBACK) Elliot stands outside the van, close to a tree, and watches as John and Ray quickly get out and come around to the sliding door. Ray yanks the door open. JOHN Get her out of there. Lily from the present creeps up beside Elliot. LILY (shaken and cold) See what they did without you there. Ray yanks Past Lily violently out of the van and tosses her into the brush. John steps up over her and grins, pulling out a Swiss Army knife. JOHN Good news, sweetie. You've got yourself a date with two fine, eligible bachelors. Ray grins and drops to his knees next to her, running just his fingertips along her curves with a kind of sickly pleasure. Her eyes are vacant and numb and submissive. He looks up at John with a vile grin. RAY Can I? JOHN It's what she's here for. Be my guest. Just don't rough her up...too much. Ray laughs as he turns back to Past Lily and begins to unfasten his jeans. We see Elliot turn away from the scene, and close his eyes. ELLIOT (weakly) Take me away from here, Lily, please. She roughly turns him to face the three. 26. LILY (commandingly) You WILL watch. We pan up to the sky and hear Elliot and Past Lily's SCREAMS together. FADE TO: INT. LIVING ROOM - NIGHT Elliot kneels on the floor, broken, blood trickling down his face. Lily stands over him. She gently runs her fingers through his hair. LILY There there, sweetie...it will all be over soon. She smiles as she kneels before him, and drags her fingertips across his clean cheek for a second before raking him, and he collapses to the floor. He lays there, submissive as she continues to scratch, rake, and claw at his body, bloodying him all over. He flashes back to a SERIES OF QUICK CUTS of John and Ray assaulting Lily as she tears him apart, but gradually his muscles begin to tense up and in one move, he darts sharply from her and slowly rises, turning to her, bloody, his clothes ragged and torn. ELLIOT I can't let you do this. She stares at him, stunned. LILY Who said you couldn't? ELLIOT You're dead, Lily! And nothing in this world is going to change it! You're so fucking lonely and so consumed with yourself and your hate that you've forgotten who you were to me! He begins to advance on her, his eyes cold as he watches her face. 27. ELLIOT (CONT'D) You died. In you, I lost everything. I lost my freedom. I lost my identity. I lost my friends. I don't have anything left but the soul I gave you willingly in life...and you can't have that in death. He reaches out and rests a bloody hand on her cheek. ELLIOT (CONT'D) I need you to leave me. She growls and bats his hand away. LILY You never loved me! ELLIOT You're dead to me! You won't have me in death, now leave me! She slowly slinks away, watching him, and her heart is broken when she realizes the truth - that she will never be with him again and that he will never be with her again. It's over now. LILY You forgot me. ELLIOT I won't ever forget you. She vanishes into the wall and he stands there in the middle of his living room, covered in his own blood. He sighs, brushes his hair back out of his face, then looks around and sees the trash strewn about. Gathering himself, he picks up plates and stacks them on each other, setting the glasses on top, and begins to clean up his home. FADE OUT.