HONEY # 2

...following on...

28 INT. JASPER'S BEDROOM. NIGHT

JASPER lies in bed. DANIEL stands by the door, his hand on the light switch. JASPER holds her arms out, beckoning.

JASPER Kiss!

DANIEL moves to Jasper’s bed, leans in to kiss her on the cheek. JASPER smiles, wraps her arms around DANIEL’S neck, tries to pull him close. DANIEL resists, tickles JASPER till she releases him in a gale of laughter. DANIEL pouts his lips, kisses JASPER on the lips.

JASPER Not a fish kiss.

DANIEL pouts his lips even more – pretends to be a fish – kisses her again. JASPER laughs.

29 INT. DANIEL AND HELEN’S BEDROOM.NIGHT

HELEN sits on the edge of the double bed. She is sad. In her hands a leaflet: IN REQUIEM written above a photo of a woman in her 60s.  Underneath, the date of her birth and death.

DANIEL stands in the doorway looking at her. HELEN does not notice him. After a long moment he walks forward, puts his had affectionately on her shoulder. She does not want to be touched. DANIEL understands.

30 INT. JASPER’S BEDROOM. NIGHT

JASPER holds her hands in prayer under her chin.

JASPER Please take good care of grandma in heaven and tell her I miss her heaps and…well, if it’s not too much to ask, a pony would be…awesome…

31 INT. DANIEL AND HELEN’S BEDROOM.NIGHT

DANIEL lie apart in the dark. HELEN stares at the ceiling. DANIEL, lying on his side, stares at HELEN. He reaches out, strokes her hair. She does not respond to his touch but, after a long moment, turns to look at DANIEL – her eyes glistening with tears.

DANIEL Hey…!

HELEN brushes the tears from her eyes dismissively, gestures with her hands: “I don’t want to talk about it.” DANIEL nods, rolls onto his back, stares at the ceiling.

32 INT. JASPER’S BEDROOM. NIGHT

JASPER reads an illustrate bible book – the double page spread in front of her, SODOM AND GOMORRAGH

33 INT. DANIEL AND HELEN’S BEDROOM.NIGHT

DANIEL stares at the ceiling, caught up in some inner turmoil. HELEN lies beside him, eyes closed. DANIEL slips out of bed, careful not to wake HELEN.

HELEN opens her eyes, watches:

DANIEL dressing. When he finishes he turns, sees HELEN looking at him. She shakes her head, smiles, holds her arms out to him beckoning him to come back to bed.

DANIEL I won’t be long.

HELEN nods, withdraws her arms. 

34 INT. JASPER'S BEDROOM. NIGHT 

JASPER, asleep, wakes as she hears a door click closed. She swings her legs out of bed, walks to the window, stands in the dark, watching: DANIEL push his Harley 20 meters down the road before kick starting it. 

35 DANIEL AND HELEN'S BEDROOM. NIGHT 

HELEN lies under a shoot, staring at the ceiling; caught up in her own inner turmoil. The sound of Daniel's Harley receding into the distance can be heard. 

JASPER (voice off) Mum? 

HELEN smiles, nods, flips back the sheet. JASPER walks up, crawls into bed, rests her head on HELEN'S breast. 

JASPER I can hear your heart going boom, boom, boom...really fast. 

HELEN strokes JASPER'S hair lovingly. 

36 EXT. KING’S CROSS. NIGHT

DANIEL drives past night clubs, strip joints and hookers in Sydney's 'red light' district.

37 EXT. KING’S CROSS BACK STREET. NIGHT

DANIEL drives past a van (a mobile ‘soup kitchen’) from which food is being dispensed to HOMELESS MEN and WOMEN. He waves. Some wave back. 

38 DANIEL AND HELEN'S BEDROOM. NIGHT

JASPER  lies with her head on HELEN'S breast.

JASPER Mum?

HELEN Mmmmm?

JASPER  Did I do something to hurt dad's feelings?

HELEN What makes you think that?

JASPER  He doesn't want to cuddle me anymore.

HELEN  Because you're a young woman now.

JASPER  But I haven't even got boobs yet!

HELEN  (laughs) You don't need boobs to beta woman.

JASPER Why's it OK to cuddle you but not dad?

HELEN When you're older you'll understand.

JASPER  When I'm a woman?

HELEN laughs, holds JASPER tight.

HELEN  When you're a woman.

JASPER  smiles.

39 EXT.BACK STREET. WOOLLOOMOOLOO. NIGHT

DANIEL drives slowly, looking for something or someone. Up ahead he sees a disheveled street person, GRANT, shuffling along the footpath pushing a supermarket trolley filled with his worldly possessions. 

DANIEL pulls over, get off his motor bike, takes the camera  slung around his neck in his hands and slinks across the road – stalking GRANT, camera at the ready, looking for a good angle. As he prepares to take a photo (framing and lighting good) a police car drives by, siren blaring. GRANT turns to look at the police car. Click.  DANIEL has captured the moment. GRANT sees DANIEL, recognizes him, waves. DANIEL smiles, raises his hand in greeting.

40 EXT. GRANT’S ’HOME’. NIGHT

DANIEL sits with GRANT – his hair matted, unwashed, his clothes dirty, on a section of pavement that is Grant’s ‘home’. DANIEL hands GRANT a post card photo of:

Grant, his eyes blazing in his ragged face, addressing the camera animatedly in a moment of intense intimacy. Across the photo are the words GRACE OF GOD and, in smaller print, INVITATION.

GRANT looks at the photo closely for a long moment, hands it back to DANIEL.

GRANT I don’t know that man.

GRANT looks intently at DANIEL.

GRANT I prefer my memories.

GRANT smiles, looks directly into DANIEL’S eyes. DANIEL nods. 

41 ANZAC BRIDGE. LATE AFTERNOON 

HONEY looks excitedly through there windscreen as she drives over the Anzac Bridge, approaching downtown Sydney. JOHN is asleep in the passenger seat, snoring. HONEY nudges him. 

HONEY  Wake up y'old codger! 

JOHN wakes, looks out the window.  

JOHN (smiles) Well here we be! Good on ya, Katie. You're a good girl. 

HONEY And you're a bad man. 

JOHN  That's the grog talking, not me. 

HONEY  Yeah, well I wish you'd tell the grog to fucking shut up. 

JOHN (laughs) I try, Katie, I try, but I'm only human. 

HONEY  That's debatable. 

JOHN (smiles) You OK? 

HONEY (nods) I want to seer the Opera House first. 

JOHN  I'm up for that. 

HONEY smiles, looks at JOHN lovingly.

42 EXT. OPERA HOUSE. SUNSET.

HONEY, backpack at her side, sits cross-legged on the ground, her journal open in front of her. She has stuck a post-card of the Opera House in it and is making a diary entry alongside it. She looks up at JOHN, some distance away, talking animatedly and angrily on his mobile. He hangs up; walks up.

JOHN Been a bit of a setback…nothing to worry about…

JOHN is not a convincing liar.

JOHN …but it’s going to be a few days before that job materializes. In the meantime…We’re going to have to be self-sufficient for a bit.

HONEY shakes her head, holds up her hands: ‘No way”

JOHN We got no choice.

HONEY (firm) No.

JOHN’S temper flares.

JOHN You want to fucken starve!?

HONEY glares at JOHN. He looks away guiltily. 

43 EXT. KINGS CROSS. NIGHT 

HONEY, her small backpack slung over her shoulder, stands at the side of the road in Kings Cross, close to THREE PROSTITUTES. JOHN stands on the other side of the road keeping an eye on her. HONEYT looks miserable. A car pulls up. SHe walks up to the passenger window, leans in, talks for a moment to the (unseen) driver. HONEY looks across the road at John watching her. Se gets into the car. It drives off. 

44 INT. BACK STREET. NIGHT

HONEY sits in the passenger seat, looking nervously at a YOUNG MAN in the driver’s seat. He is as nervous as she is.

HONEY What do you want?

The YOUNG MAN laughs nervously.

YOUNG MAN You’ll think I’m totally weird.

HONEY I don’t do…weird stuff…

YOUNG MAN It’s not that…

Tears well in his eyes.

YOUNG MAN I just…

HONEY reaches out, takes his hand.

YOUNG MAN I’m just…so lonely.

The YOUNG MAN starts to cry. So does HONEY. They look at each other crying and can’t help but laugh.

YOUNG MAN Told you I was weird.

HONEY Hey, join the club.

YOUNG MAN You wanna drink?

HONEY nods. The YOUNG MAN reaches into the back seat and produces a cask of wine.

45 INT. DANIEL’S STUDIO. NIGHT

DANIEL, an unlit cigarette in his mouth, looks through a selection of framed photos he has taken out of their packing crate. We do not see the photos; only DANIEL’S harsh critical appraisal of them.

46 INT. ‘GRANNY FLAT’. DANIEL AND HELEN’S HOUSE. NIGHT

HELEN, her cheeks streaked with tears, sits on the bed in a room in which the presence of her mother is all too evident. Nothing in the room has changed since Helen’s mother died. 

There are several vases filled with dead and wilting flowers. HELEN stands, takes a bunch of dead flowers from a vase, holds them for a moment as tears well. She wills herself not to cry, puts the dead flowers back in the vase.

47 INT. CAR. KINGS CROSS. NIGHT

HONEY, quite drunk, the cask of wine resting in her lap, indicates to the YOUNG MAN, driving, to drop her close to JOHN, standing on the pavement ahead. The YOUNG MAN slows.

HONEY No, keep driving…

HONEY slinks low in the seat as they drive past JOHN. There is a look of panic in her eyes. She sips wine from a plastic cup. The YOUNG MAN looks at her with a mixture of tenderness and confusion. 

48 INT. DANIEL'S STUDIO. NIGHT 

DANIEL looks closely at one photo: Seen earlier, it is a portrait of Grant. On an impulse DANIEL walks fast to the desk on which his computer rests, picks up the keys to his motor bike, tossing the unlit cigarette into a waste paper bin as he does so. 

49 EXT. DANIEL'S STUDIO. PARKING LOT. NIGHT

DANIEL puts on his helmet, kick started his Harley.

50 EXT. KINGS CROSS BACK STREET. NIGHT

HONEY sits in the gutter drinking wine from a plastic cup. The wine cask rests on the pavement beside her. She wipes tears dismissively from her eyes, opens her backpack, extracts John’s knife, stares at it, takes another big slug of wine.

In the background DANIEL can be seen driving through an intersection on his Harley.

51 EXT. GRANT’S ’HOME’. NIGHT

DANIEL walks from his motor bike parked in the street to Grant’s ‘home’ – his arms laden with supermarket plastic bags filled with food.

GRANT lifts his arm in greeting, smiles.

52 EXT. BUILDING SITE. NIGHT

HONEY carrying the wine cask, scales a wire mesh fence.  

HONEY walks up several flights of cement stairs of the building under construction, wine cask in hand.

53 EXT. BUILDING SITE. 10^th FLOOR. NIGHT

HONEY arrives at the 10th floor, walks to within a few feet of the edge. There is no wall. She moves closer to the edge.

54 EXT. GRANT’S ’HOME’. NIGHT

GRANT takes a packet of cigarettes from a new carton, opens it. In front of him: the food and other groceries Daniel has bought him. GRANT smiles, nods his head in thanks, pats DANIEL’S shoulder.

55 EXT. BUILDING SITE. NIGHT

HONEY stands at the edge of the building, looking down. A police car pulls up. She upends the cask of wine, opens the spigot, drinks from it. She picks up the knife, runs the tip of its blade across her heavily scarred arm. She does not break the skin; there is no blood.

56 EXT. GRANT’S ’HOME’. NIGHT

Seen through the lens of Daniel’s camera:

GRANT holds a freshly opened packed of cigarettes out to DANIEL - who who takes a photo. Click. A fire engine drives by, siren wailing, lights flashing. DANIEL refuses a cigarette with a shake of his head, lowers the camera.

DANIEL  Trying to resist temptation.

57 EXT. 10^TH FLOOR. BUILDING SITE. NIGHT

Close to the edge, knife in hand, HONEY looks down to where two police cars.

58 EXT. GRANT’S ’HOME’. NIGHT

GRANT reaches for Daniel’s camera.

DANIEL What?

GRANT Want to get a photo of you trying to resist temptation.

DANIEL laughs hands GRANT his camera.

GRANT I’ve just got to press this button, right?

DANIEL nods, looks into the lens. He waits and waits.

DANIEL  What are you waiting for?

GRANT For you to look like you’re resisting temptation.

DANIEL laughs. Click. The fire engine heard earlier has pulled up out of sight but it’s flashing lights reflect in the windows of a building at the end of the street. DANIEL grabs the camera from GRANT, runs down the road.

59 EXT. 10^TH FLOOR/STREET. NIGHT

Standing precariously close to the edge HONEY’S attention is focused on the flashing red light of the fire engine. She does not register or notice DANIEL running in the frame.

The rest of this sequence is split between what takes place on 10^th floor and what DANIEL sees through his lens and records in a succession of photos.

HONEY looks from the fire engine lights to an imaginary something on her shoulder. She tries to brush it away. There is a ‘mad’ look in her eyes. She does not notice young CONSTABLE DAVID (early 20s)who has joined her on the 10^th floor. It is his soft voice that she hears first.

POLICEMAN (voice off) Hey…

HONEY swings around, stares at the POLICEMAN. More than a little drunk, Her balance at the edge is precarious.

POLICEMAN (kindly) I’m David. And you?

HONEY ignores the question. DANIEL takes photos as DAVID moves closer to HONEY. He is speaking but we do not hear what he is saying when with DANIEL in the street. HONEY holds the knife against her heart.

DAVID Life sucks and then you die, ey?

HONEY I want more than that.

DAVID  Join the club.

HONEY stares at DAVID.

HONEY Is there a joining fee?

DAVID smiles, just a couple of feet from HONEY now. He reaches out, takes the knife from her hand. HONEY falls into his arms, holds him tight. Very tight. 

60 EXT. STREET OUTSIDE BUILDING SITE. NIGHT

As DAVID leads HONEY out into the street a SECOND POLICEMAN joins him – a pair of handcuffs in his hands. HONEY’S response on seeing the handcuffs is immediate and extreme.

HONEY (screams) No

DAVID gestures to the SECOND POLICEMAN to back off, put the hand-cuffs away, but it is too late – HONEY bolts down the street, straight towards where DANIEL stands taking photos. The SECOND POLICEMAN catches HONEY quickly and roughly. HONEY puts up a fight, screams like a banchee. 

HONEY  Let me go...fucking arsehole

HONEY holds her arms out towards DANIEL: a plea for help. DANIEL takes a photo. Click.

HONEY screams as she kicks and scratches the SECOND POLICEMAN. CONSTABLE DAVID steps between them, pushing the SECOND POLICEMAN away. DANIEL keeps taking photos.

The SECOND POLICEMAN, furious now (he clearly has a short fuse) spots DANIEL taking photos, moves towards him.

SECOND POLICEMAN What the fuck!

DANIEL takes another photo as the SECOND POLICEMAN gets closer. HONEY, with DAVID now, being led to a paddy wagon, looks back over her shoulder towards DANIEL as he turns and runs – the SECOND POLICEMAN in hot pursuit.

...to be continued...