SUMMER 2011
IT'S JULY. The peak of summer in the south. The sun is blazing. Tempers and temperatures are high. We hear arguments in the distance, but nothing too serious. There's the sound of a water hose, sprinklers, kids playing, stereos blaring. All the sounds of urban america.
We close in on an urban street. Nothing out of the ordinary. Pavement, corner stores, pedestrians, cyclists, and our main characters: Dakota ( young black girl, between the ages of 8 and 10), Jermaine (young black boy, between the ages of 8 and 10), and Julian ( young black boy, between the ages of 8 and 10). They walk along the sidewalk talking and joking with each other. The cars zooming by them. They have no cares. Simply enjoying the summer.
DAKOTA
Cause I got like four dollars left over from my mama and my grandma gave me ten for my birthday that I didn't spend-
JERMAINE
[jumps up and spins]
Okay and?!
I got a twenty dollar bill!
[pulls the bill out of his pocket and waves it in front of DAKOTA]
I got more than you!
JULIAN
[snatches the money from JERMAINE]
Mine now!
The three of them horseplay on the sidewalk and suddenly, JULIAN,
DAKOTA and JERMAINE step off of the curb and into the street.
The sound of screeching tires, loud impact, screams, and the sound of change hiting the ground.
SUMMER 2021
SUMMER looks different now. Masks adorn the faces of some of those who dare to venture outside. Those in their yards, don't look as happy and the kids who do see, are through the windows of their homes as they play video games and through the windows of community centers.
INT Community Center we see three kids run through the hall that look suspiciously like DAKOTA, JERMAINE, and JULIAN
INT. TEEN AREA
We see a group of 5 teens sitting at a table playing UNO while talking and looking at videos on their phones. One lone teen sits off to himself. His mouth moving and we assume he's singing along to some music as we can't see his entire head.
JASON, black male 15, slaps down two draw twos (one red and one yellow) on the table
JASON
I'm a mouseketeer baby. Cause hotdog, hotdog hot doggit-
ZAY, black male 14, puts down a green draw two effectively stopping JASON's rant
ZAY
Shut up!
DREA, black female, slides through her tik tok before looking down at the stack of cards. Counts them
DREA
Two, four, six
SHAY, black female
SHAY
Your mama suck d-
DREA
[slams down two draw fours and looks at SHAY]
SHAY
[laughs]
That's on JADA anyway
DREA
Oooh,
[tries to pick up the cards]
ZAY
Naw, nie! Ain't no pick ups! It's dead once your hand leave it. Ain't it, Mr. Micah?
MR. MICAH
Yeah
The teens holler and protest while staff watches and the loner ignores them, JADA shakes her head and starts to reach for the deck to start drawing a heap of cards. SHAY starts to record. The first card she pulls is a draw four. She slams it down.
JADA
Color blue.
ZAY
[looks at JASON]
Boy you dog water now.
A sound draws their attention to the table behind them. It's the loner, MIKE. He's laughing.
JADA
That boy crazy. I told y'all he be talking to hisself. Look!
JASON
He watching a video or something.
DREA
I'ma go see.
DREA takes a cards with her as JASON starts pulling from the deck. She walks by MIKE and doesn't see a phone or headphones. She makes the crazy sign with her hand. Mr. Micah sees her and admonishes her with a look.
ON DREA and MIKE
DREA
You wanna play UNO with us?
MIKE
Um... Can my little cousin play too?
DREA
(loudly)
Oh! Your little cousin?
EVENING.
EXT. COMMUNITY CENTER
STAFF is watching children as they are getting picked up. Other staff are getting into their cars and going home. Other children start walking off heading toward the surrounding neighborhoods. MR. MICAH calls out and asks JASON what they're waiting on.
JASON
We bout to go, bruh!
[mumbles]
Ole irra ass!
JADA
You wasn't saying that when you was begging him for another snack.
JASON
That's that man job to give me a snack
MIKE
It is his job to-
His voice trails off as he follows something nobody else can see across his path. He jumps back as if avoiding somebody stepping on his feet.
MIKE (cont'd)
Y'all need to watch where y'all going.
His friends look at him strangely.
DREA
See, I told y'all I ain't wanna hand around this weird ass nigga.
ZAY
[sighs]
[looks at JASON]
Get your dude.
JASON
[sucks his teeth]
Bruh, I told you not to do none of that weird- not weird- you know what I mean. Just be cool, bruh.
MIKE
[looks around]
You guys didn't see--
SHAY
NO! We don't never see the shit you be seeing. Never.
ZAY
[pulls sports drink out of his bag]
Can we go?
MIKE
[scratches his head]
I'm waiting on my little cousin.
JADA
[screws up her face]
What little cousin? We walked-
Y'all c'mon
JADA gathers the girls and they start walking away from the boys looking back at MIKE and we know they're talking about him by their gestures and voices
JASON
Uh-
[trying to placate MIKE]
Your cousin here now?
ZAY
[takes exaggerated sip]
"Cousin"
MIKE
[looks to his right and we see JULIAN and JERMAINE]
Yeah. Him and his friend.
JASON
Alright, then.
The boys quickly catch up to the girls. JASON takes his phone out and texts ZAY.
TEXT EXCHANGE
JASON
Ma Dukes want me to watch out fa dude cuh folkz think he crazy
ZAY
Him and his cousin all of em crazy
JASON
He cool though
ZAY
Yeah
They come to an intersection and MIKE stops and refuses to continue walking.
DREA
What?!
MIKE
My lil cousin says we should take a shortcut through here
[points to a barely visible dirt path leading behind the store]
JADA
What's your cousin name? Ja'Casper?
SHAY
Kas'per
K-a-s apostrophe per.
[they laugh]
The phone in ZAY's hand starts to vibrate. He looks down at it
INCOMING MESSAGES
SHORTCUT
SHORTCUT
SHORTCUT
SHORTCUT
ZAY
What the f-
JASON
Mike?
MIKE
He said take the shortcut
DREA
You better tell the lil voice in your head-
A twenty dollar bill appears and then disappears. Then we see four one dollar bills on the ground before something pushes the girls toward the curb. The boys try to grab them and we see DAKOTA in the back and she pushes the boys away.
DREA, JADA, and SHAY scream and scramble as they get back on the sidewalk. Something pushes the girls into the boys arms and onto the ground and when we see DAKOTA again, she looks evil and angry.
PEOPLE start to stop and stare at the teens. But they stand and start to make their way toward the shortcut as they text and try to make calls on their cellphones.
As their feet hit the path of the shortcut, the sound of a car accident jars the scene. They duck for cover. As they stand and look each over for injuries, they walk back over to the accident, but stay a good distance away. It's then they see JULIAN, JERMAINE, and DAKOTA and the three crosses dedicated to them.
ZAY looks down at his phone. There are no messages.
The scrapes that were just on DREA are no longer there. The kids walk over and all of the teens speak to them and MIKE says "I thought y'all didn't know my little cousin."