Scene O n e:
[ Next Day. . .The Aisles. ]
[ Brian leaves the back-office area,
headed to check the progress of his
grocery assistants.
Reaching Aisle 9, he spots a zoned
out Erme, shaking his head to music
while placing cookie brands on the
shelf. ]
“Hey, I’m going to be done here
soon. Let me know where you
want me to go next.”
[ Erme checks in for good measure.
With Brian out of sight, he retreats for
a hidden corner, out of camera view.
Looking around for fellow employees,
he takes out a bottle from his pocket.
Cheesing, while taking deep swigs. ]
[ Meanwhile, near in the break room. ]
“It’s not working. And every time they
try something new there’s even less
of a chance of survival.”
MAXX: I’m sorry. So, what’s next?
SCOTT: I’m not sure. They are going
over options right now with her
parents. I'll find out tonight.
[ Maxx pats him on the shoulder. ]
MAXX: Hang in there. Just don’t give
up hope.
[ He hugs onto him. Suddenly Erme
falls through the double doors.
They separate. ]
“Hey. Is everything okay?”
[ Erme notices Scott's reddened eyes.
as he steadies himself. ]
ERME: I actually wanted to talk to
both of you.
[ Maxx grabs ahold of Scott’s shoulders
from behind, leading him to the door. ]
[ Maxx coldly states as they leave. ]
Scene T w o:
[ Around The Corner. . .TA Care. ]
[ Jenni, Jai, & Ski are in the manager’s
office. Looking over camera footage. ]
“Wait. Go back a few seconds.”
[ Jenni rewinds. Then pauses & zooms
in. ]
SKI: Right there. The guy in the light
blue dress shirt.
JENNI: He looks familiar but I can’t
quite place it.
SKI: It’s looks like Luke Bangel. Mark’s
Mirror rival.
[ Jai looks closer. ]
JAI: That is him. I’d recognize that
sleazy mustache anywhere.
SKI: Right. And in the parking lot
near Care.
JAI: Maybe he’s the one doing all
of this.
JENNI: That would be pretty dumb to
risk his job over. And didn’t Mark
hold a manager’s meeting before
he left for Maison City?
JAI: You’re right. That’s why.
So, it wasn’t Luke.
SKI: Well, someone did. And I’m
going to keep searching until I
figure it out.
We we’re fortunate that it didn’t
spread and it only affected the
system here.
JAI: There has to be some under-
lying reason that we’re not thinking
of.
[ They stand in silence, while Ski
takes over the screen. ]
Scene T h r e e:
[ Down The Hall. . .Activity Room. ]
[ Stuu & Rediki are leading a game
of dodgeball on the court.
After a fierce battle, it’s down to the
two of them. ]
[ Rediki stands in a statue stance
before hauling a purple ball toward
Stuu at the other end.
Much to his surprise. Stuu quickly
takes it but he loses grip and the
ball tumbles to the ground. ]
[ Rediki walks over to him. ]
“Good game.”
STUU: Yeah, I almost had you.
[ They shake hands. ]
STUU: So, how’s it going?
REDIKI: I’m good. At least the
lights stayed on today.
[ He follows Stuu out into the
hallway. ]
STUU: Yes, but I was referring
more to.
[ He motions toward Tiesun who is
busy at the front desk . ]
REDIKI: I appreciate everyone
giving me a chance. And letting
me work here, after you found
out I lied.
But as for Tie. I don’t think
she'll ever forgive me.
Scene F o u r:
[ Still Care. . .Break Room. ]
[ Jenni, Kaori & Jai are digging
into some Italian catering.
Discussing life. ]
JENNI: How have you been
feeling?
KAORI: Much better. Now that I
got some relief from the morning
sickness.
JENNI: Can’t wait until Saturday.
JAI: Yeah. We decided to do the
gender reveal at Dad’s.
JENNI: How big of a crowd?
JAI: About thirty people. Nothing
too big.
[ Jai sees that “Uncle Josh” is video
calling him. ]
KAORI: Who was that?
JAI: Just Josh. I’ll call him back
later.
JENNI: Speaking of. Have your
uncles made things right with
their dad yet? Or has Mark?
[ Jai shakes his head. ]
Scene Five:
[ Back Inside. . .The Aisles. ]
[ Scott is preceding to power
through his afternoon.
Fighting back attempts of being
knocked down by depression, he
instead concentrates on the task
at hand. The frozen entrees. ]
[ Erme is floundering around on
his way to the back. He sees Scott
looking sad and goes up to him.
Hugging him from behind, Scott
turns, seeing him. ]
“Get away from me. You freak!”
ERME: Freak?
Are you serious? I’m just trying to
help you.
[ Scott shuts the display door, facing
Erme. He shoves him out of his way. ]
SCOTT: I don’t need. Your help!
[ Maxx runs to them, from the back.
Pointing at Erme as he’s preparing his
fist, shaking it at Scott. ]
MAXX: You! Back to whatever it is
you we're doing.
You! Outside now.
Are you trying to lose your job?
[ He yells at them. Dragging Scott
off. Erme disappears to the storage
room. ]
Scene S i x:
[ Front Desk. . .TA Care. ]
[ Rediki gets up the courage to
speak to Tiesun. ]
“Hey.”
TIESUN: Hello.
[ She looks down at her screen. ]
REDIKI: Look, I want to start by saying
I’m sorry. Like truly.
TIESUN: You’ve told me that. Thanks.
REDIKI: I’ve really been working on
being a more honest person.
I even tried to reconnect with my
brother.
TIESUN: That’s great. I’m happy for
you. Really.
[ She stands up, gathering her belongings. ]
REDIKI: But the relationship I most want
repaired. Is ours. I miss what we we’re
building. Our friendship.
Scene S e v e n:
[ TA. . .Storage Room. ]
[ In a fit of rage, Erme litters the
empty bottles that are overflowing
his work pants.
He tries to stand up but is unable
to catch his balance.
Out of breath, he passes out. Falling
over into a pile of boxes. ]
_______________________________________
The mystery is getting interesting as we work out suspects. I hope Erme is ok
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