FADE IN:
---ECSTACY---
INT. EMPTHY THEATRE - NIGHT
A young man, ROYCE, sits back in a cushioned chair, his feed propped up by the row in front of him. He wears a stark white button up. A thousand empty chairs fill the background.
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A young woman, VIVIEN, sits in the row in front of his. She twists her body to face Royce, her hand rests under her chin as she stares at his face, studies him as he spaces out. She wears a gray and black shirt.
                                                    ROYCE
                                          Hmph..
                                                    VIVIEN
                                          So, Royce, how are you?
The sound of her voice pulls Royce from his trance.
She seems impatient, as though forcing herself through small talk to reach her real reason of conversation. Royce stares at her. She takes this as a sufficient response. The world is sharp and desaturated.
 .                                                  VIVIEN (CONT'D)
                                           Will you have that money you owe me by Sunday?
                                          I've got to deposit it by the end of this month.
Royce's body freezes for a slight instance, before he relaxes and nods. Warm daylight flickers and strengthens on his face from beyond the frame. It is soft, a sharp contrast against the cold lekos overhead. A breeze plays around his neck and lifts the corners of his hair.
He sits up and leans forward, producing a small leather coin purse from his pocket. He opens it, motioning with his eyes for Vivien to cup her hands. She does so, slightly confused. Coins from various countries fall into her outstretched palms in slow motion. Their clangs echo, as though originating from far off.
                                                    ROYCE
                                            Here- thanks for the loan
She is slightly surprised. Her brow furrows slightly and the corner of her mouth twitches. She smiles, her lips red, her lips glow, the world glows.
                                                  VIVIEN
                                            Hey, thanks-- anytime. What's a gal for?
She's an angel- she shoots him a sweet smile before she rises and heads out, holding her pile of metal in front of her like a beacon of light, a priestess of a divine temple.
Royce nods with foggy eyes as she smiles and exits. He leans back comfortably as the band of the door echoes through the theatre, announcing his solitariness. His shoulders loosen as though he had just recalled something wonderfully invigorating, and he murmurs cheerfully to himself, smothered in a holden haze, a God sat amongst the theater chairs.
                                                  ROYCE
                                            What a brilliant concept...
He scoffs cockily and glances around, above, and next to him.
                                                 ROYCE (CONT'D)
                                           Anywhere, anything, anyone...
Vivien leans into view, now sitting behind him, and whispers in his ear-
                                                VIVIEN
                                           You will have it, won't you?
He blinks- BAM- the world of reverie, of ecstasy is ripped away from him, once more gray and far away, painfully sharp.
Royce nods as an answer, his satisfaction falling away from his body.
                                                                                     CUT TO BLACK:
                                               ROYCE (V.O.)
.                                         We only want things for how they make us feel.
FADE IN:
INT. ABANDONED POOL- CONTINUOUS
---OVER-COMPLICATION---
A dusty gray room stands omnipotent in existence. Light from an invisible moon streams through a set of tall, imposing windows. An array of tangled shadows cut the world into fractured shards of illuminations. A neglected pool full of rocks takes up most of the floor space. Royce stands at the edge. His eyes are unfocused as he stares intensely, absent-minded, trying to discover something beyond the sharp bits of granite. The glimmer of water reflects upon his face. He stares into a pool, now, no longer full of rocks but water; then, it is once more stones and gray. Vivien leans against the wall behind him. Her attire is drab and dull.
                                               VIVIEN
                                         You're mad. Completely delusional.
Her mouth finishes moving before the worlds stop; a lag.
Royce looks slightly concerned. He begins to idly pace the perimeter of the pool as they speak, and nods in agreement.
                                               ROYCE
                                         It would seem so..
He turns on his heel to look at her, irritated, as though they have had this argument before.
                                             ROYCE (CONT'D)
                                         Haven't you read anything? Your
                                         science cannot prove the existence
                                         of your lover, your job, your money--
                                         everything! Really, tell me the difference
                                         between a scientist and a priest, if you can.
Vivien laughs at the absurdity of his suggestion. Her words are delayed.
                                              VIVIEN
                                         It's science, Royce. It's the universal
                                         law; physics, math, chemistry... it explains everything.
She is exasperated, and convinced of her standing.
                                              ROYCE
                                          And the priests argue the same argument-
                                          dammit V, where do you get your knowledge?
She rolls her eyes. Royce paces the length of the pool.
                                              VIVIEN
                                          So why aren't you sipping Pina Coladas
                                          on a sail boat in Fiji right now?
Delayed. Royce looks at a glass of yellow smoothie by his feet. There is a miniature umbrella which stands obstinately from it. The corner of his lip twitches. His eyes are wild.
                                              ROYCE
                                          You do not understand. But that is okay,
                                          this is why we live. We have endless
                                          lifetimes to die until we understand.
Vivien looks slightly worried by her friend's rambling.
                                             VIVIEN
                                          They throw folks like you in the mad house,
                                          for the things you say.
Lag. Royce grimaces in agreement.
                                             ROYCE
                                         Yes. This is why you keep your mouth shut.
Royce stops abruptly, registering his own point. He has forgotten rationality in the heat of the exchange. He looks past Vivien, into the camera.
                                            ROYCE
                                        But the echo doesn't matter, it's not the
                                        goal. Materials, success, women- it's all
                                        just a secular bridge.
Royce looks at the film crew behind the camera. Everyone has been staring intently at the monitor, previously engaged in their tasks, until realizing where the actor's gaze is. They look up at him, silent and taken aback.
                                           DIRECTOR
                                      Uhh, cut!
EXT. EMPTY PARKING LOT- CONTINUOUS
---IMPERTURBE---
Vivien stands under a streetlamp, her aura turned orange by the light. Her eyes are no longer accusatory, or full of mocking. They shine in the dark.
A faint flicker of multicolored scintillations fill the shadows. It is dreamy, like the first reverie, unreal. Crickets chirp in the background.
Metal stands with Arris and flags creep at the edge of the frame, a subtle reminder.
                                            ROYCE
                                      Hey.
She has been waiting for him. Her countenance is sly, and seductive.
                                            VIVIEN
                                      Hey.
There is no lag with this conversation. She wraps her arms around Royce as he comes to stand in front of her. He buries his face in the crook of her neck.
                                            ROYCE
                                      I'm going to travel. And I want you to come.
Vivien pulls back to look at him. She studies his face for a moment.
                                            VIVIEN
                                      So do I.
He smiles and nods.
                                            ROYCE
                                      You're wonderful--everything I 
                                      could've ever wanted.
Vivien blushes and hides her face in her hair.
                                            VIVIEN
                                      Not so bad yourself.
They stand in the orange, two pillars amid the summer night. Birds chirp in the darkness.
                                                                                FADE OUT.
THE END.
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