1. INT. CAR
THEA is driving, car packed with things. Her friend from
home, BETH, is in the car with her. Radio is playing,
they’re both jamming out. Thea pulls into a parking spot.
BETH
Oh my god, are we already here?
THEA
Only took us six hours and three
gas stations. Jeez, what is it, 1
a.m.?
(goes to take out key, Beth
stops her)
What?
BETH
Gotta finish the song.
THEA
You’re right.
They start belting the song lyrics.
CUT TO:
EXT. PARKING LOT
Thea and Beth unpacking the car. Jazz music is playing out
of the radio.
THEA
Can’t believe it. This is my junior
year.
BETH
My little baby Thea is growing up.
THEA
Shush and take out my comfy chair,
won’t you?
Beth starts taking out the comfy chair.
BETH
Do you think anyone from your house
can come help us?
THEA
They’re probably busy.
(beat, unpacking trunk)
Oh! I’ll text Jamie. He should be
here by now. Here, take this.
(CONTINUED)
2. CONTINUED: 2.
Thea hands Beth something, starts texting Jamie. Looks at
trunk.
THEA(CONT.)
We can take this stuff in for now
though.
Thea closes the trunk. She pats the car lovingly.
THEA
See you in a bit.
They start walking away. As we linger on the car, Sub:
August 2017. Car locks, and as we hear the beep of the
lock--
CUT TO:
INT. CAR
Thea, Delilah, and Sarah in the car. Thea’s driving. Sub:
September 2017. Delilah is fiddling with the radio.
SARAH
Thanks for taking me.
THEA
What? Oh, no problem!
DELILAH
Baby’s gotta try Dairy Bar for the
first time.
THEA
Ohhh that’s right! This will be
your first time, huh? Advice: don’t
underestimate the non-ice cream
food. Their fried dough is pretty
great.
DELILAH
Worth.
THEA
What’re you trying to find?
DELILAH
Well I have three different
stations I like, so when one’s on
commercial I just switch to the
others.
(CONTINUED)
3. CONTINUED: 3.
THEA
What if they’re all on commercial?
DELILAH
Then I hum.
THEA
You hum?
DELILAH
Like this.
She begins humming very (intentionally) badly.
DELILAH
Sarah if you want I can wake you up
every morning just like that.
She hums again.
THEA
Are you still nervous?
SARAH
Me?
THEA
Yeah.
SARAH
Oh. To. Get ice cream? Because--
THEA
No, sorry.
(laughs)
I should have been more clear. Are
you adjusting to college alright?
Last time we talked you seemed...
DELILAH
Frazzled?
THEA
That’s a good word for it.
SARAH
Oh, ha, yeah. Ah, I’m embarrassed.
Even though it was only a week ago
I already feel a lot...I guess
older? More adjusted. Yeah, I’m
adjusting alright.
(CONTINUED)
4. CONTINUED: 4.
THEA
Oh that’s good!
They arrive. Thea parks.
SARAH
Wow, this place looks so cute. I
love the color of the building. My
mom’s gonna want a picture of us.
(beat)
If that’s alright, I--
THEA
Of course!
DELILAH
Hey Sarah, I’ll pay for your first
cone.
SARAH
I can pay for my--
Delilah’s already leaving.
DELILAH(O.S.)
I hope you like vanilla!
SARAH
(laughing)
Thea, what is this?
Sarah is holding up a stuffed animal.
THEA
Oh, that’s Jamie’s.
SARAH
Aw that’s so cute. I have one back
home that looks kinda like it.
THEA
Don’t tell him I told you. He’d be
so embarrassed.
SARAH
I won’t!
They leave the car. As they shut the door:
CUT TO:
5. 5.
INT. CAR
Thea pulls into a parking space. Sub: Late September 2017.
Oz steps into view, next to her window. She rolls it down.
THEA
Hey Oz!
OZ
Hi Thea. Thanks again. For letting
me borrow your car.
THEA
No problem. Just a warning, she’s a
big ol gas guzzler. Might have to
stop somewhere on the way. Picking
up your friend from the airport,
right?
OZ
Yep. His flight’s coming in at a
weird time.
THEA
Excited to see him?!
OZ
Yeah, sure.
THEA
...You okay?
OZ
What? I’m fine.
Thea kills the engine, unlocks the doors. Gives Oz a knowing
look, but not a demanding one.
THEA
We can talk, you know.
OZ
I know.
THEA
Okay. I won’t make you.
She’s about to take out the key and give it to him.
OZ
Ah. Alright.
He gets in the backseat, leaving the door open.
(CONTINUED)
6. CONTINUED: 6.
THEA
What’s the problem?
OZ
I--
PROBLEM enters the backseat.
PROBLEM
PROBLEM’s my name! Oz is my game!
OZ
(sighs)
I, uh. I’ve been putting something
off for awhile now. And it’s
getting harder to deal with it.
THEA
Well what is it?
OZ
Well I might lose my scholarship.
THEA
...Seriously?
OZ
Yeah. And every time I think about
it, the less I think I can do
anything about it.
PROBLEM
(holding up stuffed animal)
What is this?
THEA
Wait, why might you lose your
scholarship?
OZ takes a deep breath. Closes his eyes.
THEA(CONT.)
Take your time, okay? There’s no
rush.
OZ
Thanks, Thea. Well...
CUT TO:
7. 7.
INT. CAR
Delilah on a walk with some guy. As they walk, he
effortlessly transitions them into a kiss. They kiss, kiss,
when suddenly the car starts beeping beyond all hell. They
separate in a shock.
CUT TO:
INT. CAR
Delilah, Jamie, and Sarah. Delilah’s driving, Charlie’s in
shotgun. Sub: Early October, 2017.
SARAH
Thanks. I was just really craving a
milkshake.
DELILAH
No problem. I love driving Thea’s
car. Real smooth.
JAMIE
You gettin fries? You gotta dip em
if you do.
SARAH
What?
JAMIE
Fries and shake? Classic combo. And
FatCat too? Perfect fry meets
perfect shake.
Delilah makes some sound of disgust.
SARAH
Alright, I’m game.
JAMIE
Hear that D? Not everyone thinks
it’s gross, like you do.
DELILAH
You’re just strange.
CUT TO:
8. 8.
INT. CAR
Everyone in the car, some trash pop song playing, everyone
singing along enthusiastically.
CUT TO:
INT. CAR
Jamie going through the car. Sub: Mid October 2017. He’s not
finding what he’s looking for. Puts the key in, turns the
car on. Radio comes to life--jazz is playing. He turns the
lights on in the car. Eventually, he finds it: his stuffed
animal.He gets out, calls someone. It goes to voicemail.
JAMIE
Hi. I got it from your car. Thanks
for lending me your keys. Turns out
he was under the driver’s seat.
(Pause)
Yeah. If you find anything else
that’s mine in your car, just, uh.
Just let me know. And I’ll get it.
Or you can give it to me, whatever
you want. I’ll leave your keys in
your room. Or your mailb--y’know
what, no, your room makes more
sense. Okay. Thanks. Bye.
Jamie hangs up. Jazz is still playing. He gets in shotgun to
take the keys out. But then he stops. He turns up the radio
a little bit. He just sits there, and listens.
CUT TO:
INT. CAR
Charlie pulls by a spot. Beat. Oz comes into shotgun,
wearing only underwear.
CHARLIE
...W--
OZ
Don’t ask.
Charlie puts it into Drive.
CUT TO:
9. 9.
INT. CAR
Thea kills the engine. Quietly, she starts crying to
herself. She hits the horn. She hugs her knees. The car is
quiet, save for her sobbing.
CUT TO:
INT. CAR
Charlie driving, Sarah in shotgun. Sarah opens the glove
department, takes out ___.
SARAH
Woah. Car’s got character.
CUT TO:
INT. CAR
Delilah, Oz, and Sarah in the car, having just hotboxed it.
They’re all in Halloween costumes. They all slowly and
contently chew on some FatCat burgers and fries, smiling and
laughing.
CUT TO:
EXT. PARKING LOT
Outside the car Delilah and Oz are having a big fight. Sub:
October 2017. Car’s still on. Radio’s on--jazz is playing.
She’s on the offensive.
DELILAH
You don’t get to choose what I tell
you!
OZ
Tell me something! All I can ever
do is guess because you never tell
me anything Delilah! We say we’re
friends, but I don’t really know
you.
DELILAH
Fine! My mom’s dead, okay? She died
October, our freshman year. And I
don’t tell people because it’s none
of their fucking business.
OZ
...Why didn’t you tell me?
(CONTINUED)
10. CONTINUED: 10.
Delilah, upset, storms off. He thinks about going after her.
He doesn’t. He sits on the hood of the car. Lights a
cigarette. Smokes. Jazz is still playing.
CUT TO:
INT. CAR
Everyone’s packed into the car. They’re decked out with
popcorn, snacks, blankets, etc. They’re at a drive-in movie
theatre. Movie hasn’t started yet.
CHARLIE
Oz move your giant head!
OZ
I’m behind you!
CHARLIE
I know, you’re blocking my view of
Jamie’s chiseled jaw.
JAMIE
Why do I have to watch from the
trunk again?
DELILAH
Who’s got the popcorn?
Sarah passes it to her.
THEA
If you make a mess in my old gal,
please clean it up later.
SARAH
Yes ma’am. Oh, I’ve been meaning to
ask. You always call your car a
she. Does it have a name?
THEA
Yep! Her name’s Daisy. Oh, movie’s
about to start.
Radio turns on. Jazz is playing for a few moments before it
abruptly cuts to the movie audio. We look at the car from
the front: headlights, and through the front window, a car
full of friends all together in one place. Then, end.
