Short screenplay for the Scare Me!!! contest, April 2017.

DAY 112

FADE IN:

EXT. CITY STREETS - DAY

The sidewalks are empty.

Cars have been abandoned.

There's no sign of people.

No sign of any kind of life.

A newspaper is blown around by wind.

We catch a glimpse of a headline, END OF THE WORLD?

The newspaper moves on.

No other movement.


EXT. CROSSROADS - DAY

A MAN in a biohazard suit, kinda like a spacesuit, stands 
in the middle of the street.

Let's call him The Spaceman.  It's as good a name as any.

He waits there, motionless.

For a long time.

OVER THE STILLNESS:

An electronic BEEPING, like a slow pulse.

BEEP

BEEP

BEEP

CLOSER ON THE SPACEMAN

He holds an electronic gizmo in one hand.

Like a chunky iPhone with a direction-finder hoop attached.

BEEP

He moves the gizmo slowly to his left.

BEEP

He moves the gizmo back to in front.

BEEP

He moves the gizmo slowly to his right.

BEEP BEEP

The Spaceman frowns.

He moves the gizmo to the left again.

BEEP

He moves it to his right again.

BEEP BEEP

He quarter-turns to his right so he's facing that direction.

BEEP BEEP

His face, visible through his helmet visor, shows surprise.

He checks the gizmo, fiddles with buttons.

BEEP BEEP

He looks in that direction again.

BEEP BEEP

His curiosity is piqued.

He walks in that direction.


EXT. DESERTED STREET - DAY

They're all deserted.

A faint BEEP BEEP The spaceman steps into view around the 
corner of a building.

BEEP BEEP

He looks around.

Nothing to be seen.  Just more abandoned cars.

BEEP BEEP

He consults his gizmo.

BEEP BEEP

As if it's trying to convince him something's here.

He stares at a particular car.

Its doors lie open.

No one inside, it seems.

BEEP BEEP

But something is setting off the gizmo.

He makes his way to the car.

He pauses halfway.

Looks around.

Nothing.

Dead streets.

Dead city.

He continues to the car.

He stops at the car, bends down, peers inside.

He jerks back, horrified.

IN THE CAR

A blonde-haired kid sits in the passenger seat.

Or she used to be a kid.

She's dead now, face shriveled, eye sockets empty.

Her mouth is open in a silent scream.

The Spaceman stares at the dead little girl.

In her thin hand, a phone.

In a cute bright Pikachu/Pokemon case.

The Spaceman moves his gizmo closer to the phone.

BEEP BEEP

BEEP BEEP

He pulls the gizmo away.

He reaches in and takes hold of the phone.

But the dead little girl won't let it go!

He tugs, then tugs harder, then TUGS HARDER and pulls the 
little girl over onto her side.

But he got the phone.

He stares at it.

BEEP BEEP

He throws the phone down on the ground.

And he stamps on it.

He stamps and he stamps and he stamps.

Until the phone lies shattered.

BEEP

The Spaceman stands there, his head bowed inside his helmet.

BEEP

His shoulders shake.

BEEP

After about 30 seconds of silent sobbing, he raises his 
head.

Blinks tears from his eyes.

Lets out a long sigh.

BEEP

He takes another gadget, a recorder, from his belt.

He touches this to his helmet.

                      THE SPACEMAN (CONT'D)
          Day one hundred and twelve.  Mid 
          afternoon.

BEEP

                      THE SPACEMAN (CONT'D)
          Another contact that turned out to 
          be nothing.  A dead child's phone.  
          Battery almost exhausted.  Sending 
          out an intermittent signal.  Picked 
          it up on the scanner.

He looks around, up and down the street.

BEEP

                      THE SPACEMAN (CONT'D)
          Will continue my sweep of this 
          area.  If I don't find anyone, 
          I'll cross the bridge.  See if I 
          can find anyone alive over there.  
          There has to be someone.  They 
          can't all be dead.

BEEP

                      THE SPACEMAN (CONT'D)
          I have enough food supplies for 
          another four, five days.  It's 
          water that's the problem.  The 
          entire city's supply is toxic with 
          contamination.

BEEP

                      THE SPACEMAN (CONT'D)
          I hope to God it rains soon.  I 
          hope it rains and washes all the 
          filth away.  I hope it rains so 
          hard it cleanses the world of its 
          sins.

The Spaceman returns the recorder to his belt.

He sets off down the street.

The long, lonely, empty street.

BEEP

BEEP

BEEP getting fainter and fainter.

CUT TO BLACK:

BEEP

The End                                                   04/17