ACT 4, SCENE 1 INT: BUTLER HOME – KITCHEN – LATE AFTERNOON
The house is quiet. The kitchen is dirty with soaked papers and wet floor.
A phone starts to ring.
CUT TO ACT 4, SCENE 2 INT: BUTLER HOME – STAIRS – SAME
The phone ringing gets stronger upstairs. We also hear heavy sobbing.
CUT TO ACT 4, SCENE 3 INT: BUTLER HOME – BEDROOM – SAME
A phone by the bedside is ringing. LINDA just stares at it, until the ringing stops. It goes to voicemail.
SISTER (O.S.):
Hey, it’s me. I’m just checking on you. Amed…, Linda called me earlier. I think you, your brother and I should go see Rev Mac This family will stick together. Don’t let those reporters get to you. And don’t be mad at Linda. She loves you. Whenever you can, call me.
LINDA cries, but quickly wipes the tears away. She follows the crying to an adjoining bathroom.
She knocks on the door lightly.
LINDA:
Amed.
The cries behind the door get stronger.
LINDA:
I’m coming in.
CUT TO ACT 4, SCENE 4 INT: BATHROM – SAME
AMED is on the floor crying profusely. As soon as LINDA enters, he shrinks away.
AMED:
Stay away from me! I don’t want to hurt you.
LINDA:
Don’t worry. I’m not scared of you. I love you. Do you believe me?
AMED:
I’m just like my mother.
LINDA:
Hold it together, Amed. I need you to hold it together for me. For you.
LINDA sits next to him and wraps her arms around him.
AMED:
I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean it.
LINDA:
It’s ok. We’ll start over. We’ll pretend that it never happened. Alright?
She kisses his forehead and holds his face up to hers.
LINDA:
Ok?
AMED nods and kisses her back. She continues to cradle him while she looks forlornly into the distance.
ACT 4, SCENE 5 EXT: THE HEIGHTS – LATE AFTERNOON
LEIGH is slapping and hitting JAMAL across his head and back.
JAMAL:
Stop. Yo stop it!
LEIGH pauses.
LEIGH:
Why should I stop?
JAMAL:
It hurts.
LEIGH:
Good. That means you’re alive.
LEIGH resumes hitting him.
JAMAL:
Wait! People are looking. They’ll call the cops, and you don’t want that kind of smoke out here.
PAN OUT: LEIGH and JAMAL are on the sidewalk with people looking at them.
LEIGH:
I hope they call the cops, because they’re the only ones that can save you from this asswhoopin.
JAMAL:
I’m sorry, Leigh. Really.
LEIGH:
Sorry? You know how many times I called you? I thought Loco got to you. I thought you were dead.
LEIGH is tearing up.
JAMAL:
I’m alive.
LEIGH:
I see that, culo.
LEIGH is about to hit him again, but he catches her fists.
JAMAL:
I’m ok, Leigh. Look, I’m still here.
She cries.
LEIGH:
Why is all this happening to me today?
JAMAL:
We gotta talk. Come with me.
CUT TO: ACT 4, SCENE 6 EXT: AC COMMUNITY COLLEGE – CONT’D
LEIGH:
Why’re we here?
JAMAL sneaks around to a door. He makes sure the coast is clear, and removes a paper from the door jamb and opens the door.
JAMAL:
This is where I’ve been staying.
CUT TO: ACT 4, SCENE 7 INT: ACCC – STUDENT LOUNGUE – CONT’D
JAMAL and LEIGH are sitting on a couch. LEIGH shifts uncomfortably and pulls a rolled up t-shirt from her side.
LEIGH:
Is this clean?
JAMAL grabs it quickly.
JAMAL:
That’s my pillow.
LEIGH:
You took ‘stay in school’ to a whole other level.
JAMAL:
Loco ain’t steppin foot on a college campus. It’s the one place he won’t ever look for me in.
LEIGH:
You haven’t gotten caught yet?
JAMAL:
If I stay out until just after the cleaning crew comes around, I’m safe. Nobody else is here afterhours usually. Except that one time I had to pretend to be a student that over slept.
LEIGH:
Why are you doing this? Why aren’t you with the police?
JAMAL:
They can’t protect me.
LEIGH:
And you think they’ve been protecting me…? Why did you lie to me?
JAMAL:
I should’ve never lied, but…
LEIGH:
Don’t sell me tickets. Don’t give excuses for being a dipshit.
JAMAL:
Since fifth grade, I ran with Crips. It was all I saw around me: the money, the cars, the respect. I wanted that respect no matter what. Even after I first got locked up, I still wanted that respect. I stuck with the boys, but my mom stopped showing up; stopped calling me; stopped caring. All of a sudden, Omar and you came into my life. Y’all showed me I could do something else. Be something else. Get respect another way. I started to believe it, but it’s too hard to change. I’m still a Crip, and there’s a code. I fucked up by snitching.
LEIGH:
Telling the truth about a murder isn’t snitching.
JAMAL:
They don’t see it that way.
LEIGH:
They can kiss my ass.
JAMAL:
You can’t get in the middle of this anymore. I don’t want you to get hurt.
LEIGH:
I can handle myself. Look. I’m still here.
JAMAL:
Loco won’t stop. He’s obsessed with getting back at me. We pissed him off. You should listen to the messages he keeps sending me.
LEIGH:
So what if Loco shoots up your house? Or he tries to hurt me again? Or he finally catches up with you? What then? We’re just all gonna go through it alone? Waiting for Judgement day? I know what it’s like to be alone, waiting for a day to come. It’s endless. It sucks. And you left me alone when I needed you.
JAMAL:
I’m sorry.
LEIGH:
Loco wins when you cut off the people that love you.
JAMAL:
You love me?
LEIGH:
Shut the hell up. You know what I mean.
JAMAL takes her hand. She doesn’t protest it.
JAMAL:
I missed you. I couldn’t stop thinking about you. I needed you too.
LEIGH:
What happened doesn’t just go away with sorry.
JAMAL:
I know.
LEIGH:
What are you going to do then?
JAMAL:
Shaunice still deserves justice, and I still need you to believe in me.
LEIGH:
If you ignore my call one more time, I’ll tell Loco myself where you are.
JAMAL:
Yeah, don’t do that.
LEIGH:
God, this day went from zero to kray, real quick.
JAMAL:
Facts!
ACT 4, SCENE 8 EXT: CANIFF PARK – LATE AFTERNOON
MATEO and MARIA are walking through the park.
MATEO:
I’m definitely sure we’ll get a ticket where we parked.
MARIA:
I don’t care.
MATEO:
But I do. Did you see any other cars parked there?
MARIA:
Stop it.
MATEO:
How do you know these assholes are up here anyway?
MARIA:
Stop it!
MATEO:
What?
MARIA:
Focus on why we’re here.
MATEO:
I feel like I’m the only one that is. You know if things get crazy, there’s no reception up here right?
MARIA:
Diablo, I hear your dick shriveling up into your uterus the more you speak.
MATEO:
A woman was killed by a zombie out here too. I bet you she wished her cellphone worked.
MARIA:
Zombies aren’t real.
MATEO:
I bet you she thought the same thing as she called for help on her phone that didn’t work.
MARIA:
Man up. Your cellphone isn’t the metal I’m concerned about right now.
CUT TO: ACT 4, SCENE 9 EXT: TRAP HOUSE – CONT’D
Outside the trap house, GANG OF KIDS are standing around outside. MATEO and MARIA walk up to them confidently.
MARIA:
Can anybody join the party?
GANG looks at MARIA and MATEO with suspicion.
MARIA: (whispers to MATEO)
I think they’re deaf.
MATEO:(TO THE GANG)
Where the hell are your manners? She asked you a question.
KID:
Who wants to know?
MARIA:
Someone that has business with Loco. Is he here or not?
KID:
If you up here, you should know the answer.
MARIA:
I’ll check for myself then.
She is about to cross the threshold into the house, but KID jumps in her way and is about to touch her, until MATEO steps up and twists the KID’S arm back.
MATEO:
Don’t do that.
GANG reacts angrily.
MARIA:
We can do this the easy way or the hard way. This is currently the easy way.
KID 2:
Y’all d-boys?
MARIA:
Worse.
MATEO flashes a gun from his hip.
KID:
Shit!
MARIA:
Go home children. Kid’s play is over.
MATEO tosses KID and GANG freezes unsure what to do.
MARIA:
They clearly don’t give a damn about their lives. Why should we? Shot ‘um.
GANG runs before MATEO can whip out his gun.
MARIA turns and keeps walking into the TRAP HOUSE. MATEO pockets the gun and follows her.
MATEO:
We’re lucky they didn’t pack any heat on them. They might come back with one.
MARIA:
We should be done by then.
ACT 4, SCENE 10 INT: TRAP HOUSE – CONT’D
MATEO:
This place is creepy.
MURAL OF GOATMAN, but GOATMAN is significantly closer, right at the border of the wall as if to cross over.
MATEO:
Very creepy.
MARIA enters the hall of a bunch of boys smoking and drinking. MATEO follows behind.
MATEO:
And this music is trash.
KID:
Who ordered the stripper?
RICKY:
Bro, she’s old enough to be my abuela.
MARIA:
Y’all are too cute. I’m looking for Loco. Where’s he?
RICKY steps forward.
RICKY:
Yeah.
MARIA takes one look.
MARIA:
Seriously?
RICKY:
What do you want?
MARIA:
Back up, boy. You still got breast milk on your breath.
RICKY:
I’ll slap the shit out you bitch. I don’t give a damn how old you are.
MATEO fires a shot into the air. RICKY drops to the ground, and some of the GANG runs away.
MATEO:
Chivalry is officially lost on this generation. You don’t know it’s rude to keep a lady waiting? Quit playing and show us Loco.
LOCO rises up from the floor laughing.
LOCO:
Y’all scared of a bb-gun?
MATEO:
BB-Gun? Why don’t you come closer, Payaso, and see for yourself?
LOCO: (Sarcastically)
Oh I’m scared.
LOCO starts to step boldly forward.
MARIA:
Stop. What, you got a death wish?
LOCO:
Sometimes you got to shut up and close your eyes.
MARIA:(TO MATEO)
Oh yea, this is definitely him.
LOCO:
I don’t see badges, and y‘all too clean to be fiends.
MARIA:
No, I’m one pissed off mother with a gun.
LOCO:
I bet your kid deserved it then.
MARIA:
My daughter, Leigh Suarez, whatever beef you got, don’t involve her anymore. In fact, forget she even exists. This is your first and last warning, because if anything happens to her, my Uptown boys will wipe the floor with you so bad they’ll call you Piso.
LOCO:
That’s your threat?
MATEO cocks his gun and points it at LOCO.
RICKY:
Loco, chill.
LOCO:
Did yall come here to talk, or yall actually gonna move?
LOCO pulls out his box cutter and extends the blade.
RICKY eyes the gun and blade repeatedly.
RICKY:
Bro, what’s that shit gonna do?
MARIA:
No, he’s right.
MATEO pauses and then lowers the gun. RICKY is shocked.
MARIA:
Why would we do something that the police are gonna do to you anyway?
LOCO:
I ain’t scared of police. They ain’t gonna do shit to me.
MARIA:(laughs)
I’m not talking about fear. I’m talking about brains. See that’s the problem with you comeups. You got your heads so far up your own asses you can’t smell your own shit.
LOCO:
Say that to my face.
MARIA:
You think I came here to challenge you, boy? None of yall had a piece on you. I could’ve easily rubbed three of yall out.
LOCO:
So what? You think you’re better?
MARIA:
I know I am, and I don’t have to be machismo and loco to prove it. So let me share some knowledge with you.
RICKY:
We don’t need…
MATEO:
Shut the fuck up and listen.
MARIA:
I bet you all got the same story. Your fathers are disappearing acts, and your mothers are hoes. So The Bricks and Crips became your family, but they only tolerate you, because they know you’ll crash hard just like all the others before you. You’re crash dummies, and nobody cries over a crash dummy. The moral of the story: knuckle up or buckle up. You’re in for a bumpy ride…dummy.
MARIA and MATEO turns to walk away.
RICKY:
We gonna get up outta here, right?
LOCO is smiling and hearing a haunting breeze only he can hear.
END OF ACT 4