Chapter 1 (The Guys)
We open on a pen as it scribbles words onto some notebook paper...
“ Youth has an expiration date and like all good things that expire, if you hold on to it for too long, it will begin to spoil.”
EVAN FOSTER a tall, thin, “boy-next-door” type, stands staring into the eyes of a pin up girl on a poster stuck to his bathroom mirror. He’s struggling desperately to jerk off before he has to go downstairs for breakfast. He tries harder and harder to finish but there’s a knock at the door. Foster’s attention is drawn towards the closed door as his Mother’s voice booms through it letting him know his eggs are ready. He closes his eyes tightly and tries to block out her voice but she calls out again. He takes a quick break to respond telling her he’ll be down in a second. Mrs. Foster, a middle-aged woman stands just outside the bathroom looking at the door with some concern she wonders what her son is up to but thinks its best not to ask. She turns and walks down the stairs. In the bath room he’s back at it, trying to finish. He bites his lip and squeezes his eyes shut. Just as he’s about to get there; “BzzZZzzz BzzzZZZzzz.” He phones begins to vibrate beside the sink. He’s eyes snap open to see who’s calling. Its DUSTIN. Annoyed , he quickly clicks the ignore button and picks up where he left off. Before he knows it his mother is at the door again asking if he heard his phone. He can hardly believe this, can’t a guy just jerk of in peace? He dismisses her and trys to continue but the phone goes off again. He almost loses it but decides to power through this time. He comes to a pathetic excuse for a climax, cleans up, and checks his phone. Seven missed calls.
JACK, a good looking dark skinned 20 year old, slowly peels open his sleep- filled eyes. “RING... RING... RING.” Still naked and a little drunk from the night before he sits up in his bed to investigate the irritating ringing sound. He feel the weight on the bed shift and realizes that he’s sharing it with a young half naked blonde. He stares at her for a second trying to remember who she is and how she got there. “RING... RING.” He reaches down and snatches his phone up from the cluttered floor. He blinks his eyes as they focus on the small screen, It’s Dustin. Before he can answer it there’s a knock at the front door. He sits up quickly in his bed, he leans over the drunk girl to get to the window. Parting the venetian blinds with his thumb and fore finger he peers out to see his girlfriend NOELLE standing on his front step looking up at him. He lets the blinds snap shut. He shakes the girl in his bed trying to wake her but she doesn't budge. Jack jumps to he’s feet looking around, scrambling to find a way out of this . Suddenly it hits him! He starts gathering up all of the dirty clothes and things and his floor and piles them on top of the drunken teenager. When she’s covered he runs naked down the stairs and throws open the front door. He leans causally in the door way, greeting her as if he didn't just wake up beside another girl. She looks at him with a “go figure” expression on her face. She pushes past him and starts heading towards the stairs. He chases after her asking where she’s going. She came to get her strapless bra that she left there the other day. He darts up the stairs after her. Just as she walks through the bedroom door, he spins her around to face him and kisses her. She gets into it for a second then pushes him away. She turns to keep looking for her bra. Jack has to think quickly. He grabs her and pulls her into him kissing her neck. With one quick motion he shoves his hand down her pants. She lets out a small gasp. The couple falls to the floor. They make love on the floor beside the bed where the unassuming drunk girl lies buried under Jack’s dirty laundry. The phone continues to ring. We cut to...
DUSTIN, a slightly chubby faced 19 year old with curly blonde hair, sits in front of his computer with a cigarette in one hand and his cell phone in the other. He gets Jacks answering service for the fith time. He leaves Jack yet another angry message pointing out that he was supposed to be there an hour ago then shuts his phone and throws it on his bed. Dustin sits in his chair staring at the wall. He’s extremely annoyed. He shakes his head
Over at the Foster residence, Evan sits at the kitchen table and cuts his toast into sticks and uses them to push the lukewarm eggs around his plate. Mrs. Foster who’s just finishing up the dishes turns and tells him she read his column that he wrote for the local news paper. He grabs it and flips to the Youth in the Community section. Foster freelances as the youth reporter. It doesnt pay well but it’s enough to buy booze and food when he needs it. Mrs.Foster decides she’ll use this to bring up Evans lack of higher education. He graduated from high school just over a year ago now but has been dragging his feet. The topic of university has been a heated one for the last few months. Now Foster just try’s to avoid it and asks if they can not do this again Mrs. Foster throws her hands up in frustration and storms out of the kitchen. He rolls his eyes and mutters fuck under his breath.
Back in Jack’s bed room , Jack and Noelle are going at it on the floor, in the missionary position. He leans in and asks her if they can finish from behind. She smiles at the idea and flips over on to her knees. He mounts her and they start up again. Jacks looks frantically around the room for the strapless bra as he pumps away. Finally he spots it, It’s covering the drunken girl’s face! He quickly grabs it and replaces it with his own dirty boxers. Now that that’s out of the way he picks up the pace and they both climax, They lay on the floor exhausted. Jack holds up the bra playfully telling her he found it. She grabs it and hurries to get dressed, she gives him a quick kiss and heads out. Jack collapses on the messy floor and lets out a sigh.
Dustin Sits in his room staring at the clock, It’s 12:46. He looks at his cell phone to verify the time. It is 12:46, He shakes his head.
A jet black 1960 Camaro pulls up and screeches to a stop in front of the drunk girl’s split level house. He quickly drops the young girls on her front steps and then speeds away. A small black cat sits across the street watching him as if he knows what Jack’s been up too. The girl throws up all over the front door just as the car disappears around the corner.
Jack finally gets to Dustin’s house almost 2 hours late. While waiting for Dustin to come out of the house he notices something shiny on the passenger seat. It’s a necklace. He picks it up and takes a closer look. A silver charm reads “Daddy’s Little Girl.” He lets out a chuckle as Dustin hops in the car. Jack slams the car into gear and they speed towards Foster’s house.
Foster sits on his front steps waiting for the guys, carefully gluing his article into his notebook. He looks up from his work. He can hear Jack’s car coming from up the street. Closing the book he walks over to the curb. Jack flies around the corner slamming on the breaks just in time to put the passenger side door directly in front of Evan. Inside the Camaro, Dustin climbs into the back seat as Foster pulls the door open and gets in. Today is a big day for the guys. It’s the last day of high school. Although non of them actually go too school anymore this also means that the high school girls will be out and partying... It’s hunting season. They share a laugh as Jack slams on the gas and the car speeds away once more.
Chapter 2 (Thumbs)
Later that afternoon the guys sit in a booth at a 50’s style dinner, their usual hang out. It’s open 24 hours and the coffee’s not half bad, so when all else fails it’s their go-to spot. Foster doodles in his notebook while Jack rants on and on about the human condition and how the only thing that separates us from beast is our opposable thumbs. Totally ignoring the rant Foster starts to change the topic to where they’re going to party that night. After much debate the decided on Scotty B’s his parents are never around and rumor has it he’s getting a keg. Although non of them really drink beer, Jack coyly point out that high school girls do. Foster puts the final touch on his cartoon. Thumbing through the pages until he finds the beginning. He flips the pages quickly and the cartoon comes to life. A cat with the head of a young girl walks out, licks, its paw and starts to clean itself. Cross hairs appear and line up between it’s eyes. BANG! It’s head explodes and blood sprays everywhere.
Later that evening at Scotty’s the party is in full swing. The guys walk through the front door like they own the place. Jacks scans the party with his camcorder. He stops it on some girls sitting around the coffee table playing a drinking game with a deck of cards. He pans over to find two jocks helping the prettiest brunette do a keg stand. Her shirt falls over her face revealing a cute pink bra. Jack smiles and zooms in. One of Fosters old friend from high school pulls him aside to catch up. Jack notices two young girls heading into a back room and decides to follow them leaving Dustin standing alone. He decides he better get good and drunk if he’s going to get through this night.
Meanwhile Foster’s having a full on literary debate over the modern writers vs the work of authors like Kafka and Dostoyeysky. Suddenly he’s stopped in his tracks as he locks eyes with APRIL HOLIDAY a beautiful petite girl with olive skin and dark brown hair staring at him while she leans on the stove. She walks over to him with confidence and asks if he’s Even Foster. They instantly hit it off and get lost in conversation for several minutes. One of her friends calls her away, but before she goes she pull a large black marker from her pocket and writes her number in bold letter across his for arm. She walks away leaving him in awe. As soon as she’s gone Foster’s friend Explains that, she is the youngest “Holiday” sister. Foster’s very confused, he has no idea who the Holiday sisters are. His friend is floored that he doesn't know about the three sisters, they’re the stuff that small town gossip is made. April, May, and August; They’re hot, Like smoking hot. Foster looks across the party at the April as she laughs with her friends and wonders where this may lead. Dustin drunk as hell stumbles out to the Camaro and passes out in the back seat while inside Jack has his camcorder set up filming the threesome he’s having with the two girls he followed earlier. eAcross town Noelle (Jacks girlfriend) stands in the shower and lets the hot water run over her. She takes a second to breath and just feels clean. She sits on her bed in her silk bathrobe. She takes the towel from her hair and looks at the clock. It’s 2:30 am. She picks up her cell and dials Jack’s number. There’s no answer, but she lets it ring.
After all is said and the party is over the guys decide to go park by the lake for a while to sober up. On the driver’s seat of the Camaro, Jack’s phone vibrates over and over again. Dustin is still passed out in the back seat. Outside, Jack and Foster lie on the hood of the car staring up at the stars. They ramble back and forth about what summer break was like when they actually went to school. Foster addresses the fact that there whole lives is pretty much one big summer break now and its loosing its appeal. Mean while Jacks cell phone keeps going off as Noelle tries over and over again to get a hold of him.
Chapter 3 (The Dead Life)
The next day, morning light pores through the blinds into Noelle's room. Her cell phone rings and vibrates in her unmade bed but she is not there to answer it. She’s in the bath room with her face buried in the toilette.
We flash back a few years to see how Jack and noelle met, A younger teenaged Jack sits in one of the back seats talking to a few other guys his age. He looks towards the front of the bus. At the front of the bus sits a 14 year old Noelle. he was in the ninth grade. A plain girl but pretty in her own right. He could see her potential. He gets up and makes his way to the front of the bus and sits in the seat bhinf her. He says hello and She slowly turns around to see if he is talking to her. She is very unsure of the situation. He sbreaks the ice by asking how she likes the ninth grade but then he notices she’s trying to hide her braces. He tells her about his and great it felt to get them off. She lets out a huge grin. He smiles back and tells her she has a very pretty smile. And the rest is history.
Jack and Foster reconvene at the coffee shop to debrief after the party and plan for this evening. Foster Starts to tell Jack about April, Foster’s debating wether or not he should pursue this. Jack thinks its a no brainer. When a fifteen year old school girl cheerleader gives you her number you call. But Foster’s still unsure. Fifteen seems a little young to him. He starts to argue his point but is inturpted when Jack’s phone starts to ring, It’s Noelle. Jack decides he better answer it and excuses himself from the table. Now sitting alone, Foster scans the art on the walls and considers getting some more coffee. At the table behind him, two nerds are in a heated debate about Zombies and how if they were real they’d be able to survive by locking themselves in a room with tons of guns. There ignorence to the topic is to much for soster and he buts in. He apologizes for eavesdropping then go on to schoo them in the proper way to survive a zombie attack. We flash into a fantasy squence of the guys arming themselves stealing and SUV and heading for the hills. And of course picking up a few girls to repopulate the planet on the way. We nap out of the fantasy to see the two nerds jaw agape in amazement to the detail of his plan. finallly jack returns to the table and Foster leaves the nerds to marvel. Jack tels Foster he’s got to go meet up with noelle but to call him later. He offers him a ride but Foster says he would rather walk. Jack leaves and Foster pulls out his note book and opens it to a blank page. At the top he writes: How to survie a Zombie attack. A grin creeps across his face
Shortly after Jack and Noelle lie in her bed watching TV. She has something to tell him that's she’s been avoiding for a while. She goes over it in her head over and over but can’t get the nerve to say it. She tries to bring it up but as usual Jack keeps trying to make things sexual. He starts to kiss her neck and his hand moves to her belt. But before he can get into her pants she blurts it out. She got into Western. That gets his attention, he immediately stops trying to seduce her and lies back on the bed staring at the ceiling. Western is university almost 5 hours away. She try’s to tell him that they’ll still see each other on weekends but tells her he’s not interested in having a part time girl friend. He grabs his keys and walks out of the room leaving Noelle alone, crying on the bed.
At the Foster house mother and son are at each others throats again. He was in a good mood when he got home but as soon as he walked through the door she started in at him. Mrs. Foster is just fed up with he’s lackadaisical attitude towards school. Foster goes up stairs and locks him self in his room. He’s frustrated, feeling like has no where to go to escape all this nagging. He tries calling Dustin but there's no answer, he’s still sleeping off the hangover from the party. After he hangs up the phone he notices April’s number in bold black letters on his arm. He’s face lights up, he has an idea.
Back at home Jack sits on the edge of the bed with a picture of Noelle in one hand and a bottle of whiskey in the other. Although he’s a cheating lying bastard he does love her and has a strange dependance on her. He’s startled when his phone rings, Its Foster who’s so excited he can hardly get the words out. He tells Jack that he called April and that she invited him to come over and hang out. And the best part, She has a friend over so she wants him to bring Jack too.
Chapter 4 (The Girls)
A few hours later the door bell rings at the Holiday house. April swings the door open to find Jack and Foster standing on the front step. She invites them in and they make there way to the kitchen. They round the corner into the kitchen to see KORI, a beautiful young girl with green eyes and long dirty blonde hair. Jack gaze fixes on Kori, he has her in his sights. After a quick introduction the foursome decided to go down to the basement to play a board game. Moments later they sit around a large coffee table playing “dream phone” . Needles to say the guys aren't impressed. this isn't the evening they had in mind. Jack ,thinking on his feet proposes that they make this interesting by adding a drinking element. April points him to the liquor cabinet where Jack finds a bottle of Absinthe. His eyes light up, this will defiantly kick things up a notch. He assures the girls that “it only smells strong” and that it wont get them too drunk. They all hold their glasses up, take their shots and slam them back down on the table. Every one is taken aback by the strength of the alcohol. Kori chases her drink with a whole bottle of water and April covers her mouth and tries not to gag. Twenty minutes goes by like seconds and suddenly they’re all feeling the effects later music plays on an old record player in the corner. Foster sits on the sofa starring at a painting on the wall. The paint begins to melt and morph into different images. Foster’s eyes grow wide. Kori dances around Jack who lays on the floor staring at the ceiling. April sits on a bar stool with her arm on her knee and her hand supporting her heavy head, She’s not feeling so hot. She decides that she needs some air, gets up and leaves. As soon as She’s gone Kori steps over top of Jack and green fairy wings sprout from her back. She sits down on his lap. Feeling uncomfortable, Foster gets off the couch and follows April. Kori slowly leans in and looks into Jack’s eyes. As he looks up at her, he notices her eyes are glowing green. He cant take it any more he grabs her and kisses her. One thing leads to another and they start having sex, but jack doesn't realize that is her first time.
Outside April vomits into a bed of tulips. When she’s finally finishes she apologizes profusely to Foster, She’s so embarrassed. He tell her that a little vomit never hurt anyone. And offers to go inside to get her some water.
Foster walks through the sliding door into the kitchen. He notices the fridge is open. Someone is rummaging through it. The person pulls their head out of the fridge holding left over Chinese food. It’s AUGUST Holiday, Aprils nineteen years old sister. She has shoulder length brown hair and beautiful blue eyes that shine behind a thick pair of designer seeing glasses. She introduces herself and say that he must be Evan. April has been going on about him all day. He try’s to explain that everyone calls him foster but she decides that she likes Evan better. He just stares at her speechless. She cocks an eyebrow and ask’s if he was looking for something. He finally snaps out of it and explains he was getting April some water. She grabs a bottle and tosses it to him. She tells him it was nice mmeeting him, then gives him a little wink. She walks around the corner and up to her room. His eyes never leave her as she walks away. Foster stands alone in the Kitchen staring into thin air. He stands alone in the kitchen for a second and listens to the beat of his heart and the hum of the electric appliances. Foster looks towards the basement door as the soft hum is broken by the sound of Jack and Kori going at it in the basement. He turns and walks outside.
April leans against a tree in the back yard waiting for him, as he walks over to her with the water. As soon as foster walks over She grabs him and before he can do or say anything more she kisses him.
Chapter 5 (Acceptance)
The next morning Noelle stands in her bathroom in front of the mirror and looks at the pregnancy test. The corner of the frame turns into the results portion of pregnancy test. The little pink + symbol slowly materializes. Noelle’s bottom jaw quivers as a tear runs down her cheek. Her hand wraps around the test and squeezes it tightly in her fist. She punches the counter with the hand holding the strip and begins to cry uncontrollably. After she’s done crying, Noelle stands and stares blankly into her own eyes. There are no more tears.
Foster walks into the kitchen and goes straight to the fridge. He pokes around looking for something to eat quickly for breakfast. He grabs a bagel and some orange juice and swings the fridge shut. His mother stands in the door way with a huge smile on her face. He’s very suspicious of his moms good mood, She’s never this cheery. They have a quick exchange and then Foster figures he should end this conversation on a high note and gets up to leave. Just as he starts to walk away she pipes up again. She points at three letters sitting on the kitchen table. He drops his half eaten bagel and swipes them up, They’re acceptance letters from university. His jaw drops as he realizes what’s going on. He just glares at her and drops the unopened letters on table and walks away. She yells after him threatening that if he doesn't go to school he’ll be finding somewhere else to live. He slams the front door behind him.
Jack and Dustin sit at their table in the coffee shop as always. Dustin slowly sips on a bottle of diet coke while Jack rambles on and on about how amazing Kori. He’s interrupted by his phone as it starts to vibrate across the table. He looks at the screen, it’s foster. He’s at apple tree gas station and needs a ride. He reasures as he hangs up the phone.
At the gas station Foster walks out of the booth and sits down at an old beat up picnic table. He looks back towards the gas station as someone calls to him from the pumps. He strains to see who it is, but is blinded by the sun. He cups his hand and uses it to block out the light. It’s August. He waves to her and a smile creeps across his face. She gets in her car and drives over to him. August rolls down the passenger side window. Foster gets up and leans his head in her open window to talk. He ask’s her what she’s doing there, and she tells him she’s getting gas and that a better question is what is he doing there. Feeling a little stupid he explains the situation with his mother. She looks at him with a sarcastic smirk and tells him he’s over reacting. He tries to say she doesn't understand how bad she is but she’s not having it. She offers to give him a ride somewhere but Jack pulls in before she can even finish her sentence. He thanks her for the offer and keeping for keeping him company. With her sly smile she says it was her pleasure and she’ll see him around. She drives off leaving him in a cloud staring off at nothing in awe. There’s just something about this girl he cant put his finger on. He snaps out of the daze and gets into the Camaro. They ask who he was chatting with but the topic of conversation quickly turns to Jack’s infatuation with Kori. Foster strongly recommends he gets his head right and stick with Noelle. After all Kori is only 15, how serious can you be with a 15 year old. But Jack, being who he is ignores Fosters advice and tell him that he has plans to see her that night. Foster just shakes his head telling him he’s unbelievable. Jack just laughs as he drives away.
Chapter 6 (Words)
Set to a poem in Foster’s note book about love and confusion, This chapter is a montage of the next few weeks. The guys pretty much spend every extra moment they have at the holiday house hanging out with April and Kori. Jack becomes more and more enthralled with Kori. Her youth beauty and the devil may care attitude proves to hold Jacks attention in a way he has experienced in years. Noelle struggles with wether or not she should tell jack about they’re pregnancy or just quietly take care of it. While at the same time April is falling hard for Foster but he still cant get her older sister August out of his mind. He constantly finds himself sneaking off and finding excuse to talk to August. April is a gorgeous girl but August has a wit and sophistication that her 15 year old counterpart does not.
Chapter 7 (The Sister Switch)
After a month of admiring from afar Foster decides he cant take it anymore. He works up the courage call August and ask’s if she wants to go for a walk or coffee. She tells him a walk would be nice and they agree to meet later at the boat park.
To kill some time Foster meets up with Jack and Dustin at the coffee shop. He tells the guys about his plans with August. Jack can’t believe what he’s hearing. He tries to talk him out of it explaining that the “sister switch” can’t be done. Foster argues that he’s not really dating April. Jack point out he’s got a 15 year old school girl cheerleader that is in love with him and that going after her sister is like shooting himself in the foot... or the dick for that mater. But Foster’s mind is made up. He’s going to go for it.
Later on that evening Jack gets a call form Noelle, He’s been avoiding her for the last few days so he figures he better answer it this time. But there’s just silence on the other end. Noelle sits on the edge of her bed staring blankly out the window at some kids drawing on the side walk with chalk. They draw a giant smiley face. She closes her eyes tightly takes a deep breath and just blurts out that she’s pregnant. She waits for a response but only gets silence. He asks if she’s sure. She tells him she’s positive and asks him to come over. He agrees and hangs up the phone. Jack sits there thinking for a minute letting it all sink in. He has an idea, he gets up and walks into his mother bedroom and starts digging through . He pulls out a little black ring boxes and puts it in his pocket. He knows what he has to do.
The Camaro sits parked in the parking lot of an old church. Jack and Noelle sit inside neither one is sure what to say, they sit in silence. Noelle can’t take the tension anymore, and asks him to please say something. Her eyes well up with tears. Jack pauses deep in thought then turns to her and simple tell her he loves her. She cant hold back anymore and lets out a sob. He comforts her and wipes away her tears. He pulls out the small black box and hands it to her. Noelle’s hands shake as she takes it. She can’t believe this. She looks at the box and slowly starts to open it. Her hands are so shaky she can barely do it. She takes the ring out and just stares at it. Jack reaches out and takes the ring from her. He grabs her hand and slides it onto her finger. HE tells her they’re going to do this right. She nods her head yes afraid to say anything in case the tears start again. She grabs him in a hug and holds onto him tightly. He wraps his arms around her and tells her everything is going to be okay. They sit in the car just holding each other.
Chapter 8 (A Good Push)
Foster sits in the park on the swing looking around to see if August is there yet. He notices the jungle gym shaped like a pirate’s ship. He climbs the rope ladder and makes his way to the slide. He pauses for a second before deciding to go for it. He slides down the slide but when he lands at the bottom he is startled by August’s voice, She jokes that he’s little big for the slide. He looks up at her from the dusty ground. He kid of laughs it up and gets to his feet. They make there way to the swings and sit down. August recounts the days of recess and how she use to love to go on the swings. Foster points out how it strange how we lose things like that. How simple things like swinging don't move us the way they once did. He compares life to a headache that gets worst and worst the older we get. August just shakes her head and changes the topic to School. She asks him which school he’s picked. He admits that he hasn't actually opened the letters yet. She’s dumbfounded, She asks how he’s not even curious if he got in or not. He explains that he’s pretty happy with the way things are and why mess with a good thing. She finally gets it ,why go after lions when you can just stay at home and hunt house cats. She says with slight smirk. Foster has nothing to say back to that, She’s really given him something to think about. August jumps of her swing and starts to push Foster. He laughs an tells her it makes him feel like a little kid. She smiles and tells him that maybe he should. Foster thinks about everything she’s said while she pushes him on the swing.
Jack and Dustin sit in the Camaro parked in a field passing a bottle of whisky back and forth. Jack abruptly blurts out that he thinks Dustin has a thing for Kori. Taken a back Dustin just stumbles over his words unable to get anything out. He does think that Kori is hot but never thought of pursuing it. But jack has an indecent proposal for him. He suggest that he could help him fix things with Noelle and let Kori down gently by hooking up with her. Dustin doesn't think she’ll go for it but Jack assures him that he has all that under control. Dustin still looks unsure but Jack has devious grin.
Foster stands in his room holding one of his acceptance letters, He remembers when he was five his mother told him that he couldn't have more then one flintstone vitamins. Foster always was a bit of a rebel so one night when his mother was watching Letterman he snuck into the bathroom and ate the whole bottle. An hour later she found him unconscious in a pool of rainbow vomit. He remembers... He remembers mothers are sometimes right. He remembers that mothers often have your best interests at heart. Foster takes a deep breath and opens the letter. A smile creeps slowly across his face. He drops the letter onto his desk and reaches for another one.
Chapter 9 (With a Bang)
Noelle takes her acceptance letter from Western and reads it over one last time. She crumples it up into a little ball and throws it into the garbage beside her night stand. Looking into her vanity on the other side of the room and turns to the side. She sticks her belly out and rubs it imagining what it will be like to be pregnant. She takes a deep breath in and holds it for a second before slowly exhaling.... Is she really ready for this?
The guys sit around there table at the coffee shop as usual talking about the same old shit. Jack goes on about all the girls he’s been with going into the gory details. Out of nowhere Foster throws a wet blanket on conversation by pointing out that they’ll all be in there twenty’s within a few months. The guy’s just stare at him like “what’s your point?” So he continues by saying asking if this is really all they have to look forward to for the rest of our lives. He feels like something is missing, like there's some big joke he’s not in on. After a few seconds of silence Jack chimes in with asking if he’s forgotten your meds today. Dustin and Jack laugh but Foster’s not amused. He simply gets up and walks away. Jack calls after him but Foster doesn't even look back. As he walks out the door Jack springs from his chair and runs after him. Dustin sits dumb struck for a second, then follows. Jack bursts out the door followed by Dustin. Jack looks around and sees Foster walking up the street. He calls after him. Foster just keeps walking. Jack chases after him. Jack catches up with Foster and grabs his shoulder. Foster spins around and throws Jack’s hand off his shoulder. Jack throws his hands up as if to say he means no harm. Jack apologizes, he didn’t realize how strongly Foster felt about the whole thing. Foster shakes his head, he’s not having it. Foster explains that it’s not that he feel any which way about it, it’s more that he hates the fact that he feel like no one, not even his friends get him anymore. Jack uses his silver tongue to smooth things over and convince Foster that if is going to be there last summer of carefree craziness then they should go out with a bang. He suggests that they should all go to the big keg party at the boat park. Foster reluctantly agrees thinking what’s the worst that can happen... he has no idea what’s about to go down.
Later that day In Jack’s room his palm corder sits hidden on the book shelf taping himself and Kori on his bed. She sits on top of Jack as they kiss. They take a quick breather, she opens her mouth and Jack gently places a blue and yellow pill on her tongue. She swallows then leans into to kiss him again but he stops her. He tells her that he thinks the fact that Dustin has a thing for her and that its coming between there friends ship. She looks at him as if to say what do you want me to do about it. He tells her that if she was to maybe just hang out with him one on one that it might help Dustin get over her. She’s really unsure and confused by this but the drugs are kicking in. She agrees that she’ll hang out with Dustin for a bit at the party. Jack lets a devilish grin creep across his face right before he gets on top of her to enjoy her one last time before he hands her off.
Noelle sits in the coffee shop across the table from her best friend CHRISTINE. She’s a thin, plain girl with brown hair. Christine hasn’t taken a sip of her coffee. She looks at Noelle in shock and asks her if she’s really ready for this. She asks her. Noelle pauses to really think about the question before answering. And the answer is no, but is anyone ever really ready she point out. They debate what a good age to have children is talking about how there mother weren't too much older when they had them. But the light chit chat is broken when Noelle starts to cry overwhelmed by the whole situation. Christine decides she needs to cheer her up and that they go out and have a good time. She suggests that they go to the party at the boat park for old time sake. Noelle at first it totally dismisses the idea but then warms up to it. Why not have one more crazy teenaged night before she becomes an teenaged mom. They decide to meet up at 9:00 and go from there.
Jack speeds down the road in his Camaro, a sly grin on his face. On the road ahead the black cat slinks onto the road. The cat freezes in the headlights. Jack spots it but doesn’t slow down. Jack’s foot moves to hit the break. He mutters to himself that If it’s to dumb to move it’s to dumb to live. Jack’s foot pushes down hard on the gas. The cat’s eyes glow as the head lights hit them. It stares death in the eye without flinching. The Camaro turns the cat into a flat puddle of guts and speeds away. Jack’s eyes are cold and black. A trail of bloody paw prints lead away from the cat’s mangled corpse. The prints grow larger and larger as they get further away. They lead into the forest.
Chapter 10 (With a Whimper)
A pen scribels furiously on a note book page, it writes.. “ It’s eerie how if you pay attention you can feel when something bad is about to happen. You can sense it. Like the air is charged with negative electrons and for a moment everything goes quiet. If you look for it you can always find the calm before the storm.”
At there respective homes the group all gets ready for the party. Foster gets out of the shower wrapping a towel around his waist. Jack leans into the mirror as he shaves his face, a trickle of blood runs down his neck. Noelle sits blow drying her hair. April brushes her teeth with an electric tooth brush while August stands at the bathroom door waiting to get in. Kori works on her make up applying some dark eye liner. Non of them notice the strange humming sound that fills the air... but Foster does he stands quietly just listening. Most people wouldn't notice the light hum but to him it sounds like an alarm screeching at him, trying to warn him of some impending danger. Dustin splashes some cold water onto his face and pats it dry. He pauses for a second looking at himself. For a moment he feels frozen, unable to move. He forces himself to snap out of it. He whispers “Go” under his breath.
Dustin comes running out his front door. Foster gets out of the car to let him into the back seat. Dustin does up his seat belt as Foster climbs back into the car. The guys sit waiting for Jack to drive, but he doesn’t move. Jack sits looking at the road ahead of them. Foster notices Jack’s in a daze “What’s wrong?” Jack looks into the rear view mirror at Dustin then over at Foster. Foster looks back at him uneasily. Jack grips the steering wheel and forces a smile. He slams the car into gear and spins his tires as the car peels away.
At the boat park the party is in full swing. There are kids everywhere drinking and smoking. A few drunken teens run back and forth on the large play boat. The guys pull into the parking lot kicking up a cloud of dust. April and Kori sit on a guard rail in the parking lot waiting for them. They get up and walk over to the Camaro as soon as they see it. Jack pulls a flask from his jacket pocket and takes a swig. He watches the girls walk towards them. “ Like angels aren't they? Like drunken fifteen year old angels.” He says then chuckels. He takes another sip just as April and Kori reach the car. Kori leans into Jack’s open window and takes the flask from Jack’s hands and has a drink. Kori takes a look around the car waiting for someone to say something. She cant take the silence anymore and piipes in with “ So are we going to sit her all night or what? Let’s get drunk!” She throws the flask onto Jack’s lap. He snickers and says “you heard the girl. Let’s do this.” The guys all move at once to get out of the car.
Noelle and Christine are on there way to the party in a small hatch back. Christine steers with one hand, as she tries to apply lip gloss with the other. Noelle just sits staring out the window. Christine finishes with her lip gloss and blows herself a little kiss then passes the gloss over to Noelle. Noelle puts on the lip gloss and sets the tube down without looking away from the window. Christine watches Noelle with concern. Christine asks her if she’s really feeling up to this. Noelle finally looks away from the window and into Christine's eyes. Noelle assures her that she wants and maybe even needs to have this night. Christine pauses to absorb what she’s said then says that they better make it count then. They sit in silence for a moment just thinking. The little car drives down the dark back road to the boat park.
The guys sit drinking in the sand of the volley ball pit with April and Kori. Dustin takes an empty beer bottle and throws it into a bush. April goes on a diatribe about how people who liter are destroying the planet. As she finishes Kori throws her bottle into the bush too and stumbles to her feet and announces with a slight slur that she has to pee. She starts to walk away but then turns back noticing that April isn't following. She gives her an “are you coming or not” look. April gets up and follows. As soon as the girls are out of earshot Foster turns to Jack and tells him that he cant take it and that he’s telling April he has feelings for August and they cant see each other anymore. Jack says he’s sick of trying talking him out of it and to do what he wants. Foster gets up and heads in the direction the girls left in. Jack turns to Dustin “Am I the only sain person anymore? I mean has every body lost their fucking minds?!” He picks up Foster’s half full beer bottle and throws it. It explodes on a huge rock spraying beer and glass everywhere.
Christine and Noelle walk down the hill into the parking lot. They walk up to a couple of guys who are standing around the trunk of a car. Christine walks up to Zach, a tall thin guy with a ratty beard. He opens his arms and give her a big hug. Christine works her magic and gets them a couple of free beers before they walk away. She opens both beers and starts chugging making up for lost time. She takes a huge gulp and as she lowers the can she notices Jacks Camaro. She points it out to Noelle who’s stomach immediately drops.
April stands on the beach and looks at the water rolling in and out from shore as Kori squats in the shadows and drops her pants. April tells her that she feels like Foster’s getting bored of her. Kori tells her that the solution to her problem is just to sleep with him. She tells her sleeping with a guys gets all the awkward getting to know you bull shit out of the way. For some reason the ridiculous logic seems to make sense to April. “Do you really think that’ll work?” She asks. Kori assures her its the only option and that she should just get it over with tonight. April’s eyes widen at the thought of this, But where she asks. Kori shrugs her shoulders sarcastically and says “look around, you’re surrounded by forest, pick a place and go for it..” April is quiet for a second unsure she can do this but Kori reassures her and they head back towards the party.
Jack and Dustin have made there way over to the giant boat shaped jungle gym. Jack gives Dustin a pep talk for his up coming rendezvous with Kori. Dustin asks Jack one more time if he’s sure about this. Slightly annoyed Jack reassures reaches into his pocket and pulls out a small bottle of pills he calls his “party mix”. He and pours a few into Dustins hand and instructs him to give her a couple blue ones because there her favorite. He pops a couple himself to calm his nerves . “That’a boy.” Says Jack, “now go wait in the Camaro, Kori will meet you there soon.” Dustin walks off towards the car. Jack calls out after him “ I want details.” Dustin just ignores him and keep walking.
Somewhere on the other side of the park Foster walks into a clearing and sees April and Kori walking back from the beach. He calls out to them to wait up. April turns and looks as he jogs over. Kori grabs Aprils hand whispers l “Now’s your chance.”, Then gives her a little push towards him. Kori lets them know that she’s going looking for Jack and leaves them alone. As soon as she out of sight they turn to eachother. Foster can’t quite force the words he needs to say to leave his mouth. April grabs his hands and starts pulling him into a wooded area.
Kori slowly walks up behind Jack and taps him on the shoulder. He turns and gives her a big grin. She grabs him and gives him a big kiss. He goes along with it for a second then pulls away. He tells her that Dustin is waiting for her. Her smile melts away, a tear comes to her eye. Jack wipes it away and says “ Baby, I know you can do this for me. It’s gonna be like five minutes and it would mean the world to him.”
Across the park Noelle stands staring at her boyfriend holding another girl in his arms. She’s speechless.
Jack tilts his head back to look at Kori. She pulls away enough to look back at him. He tells her that she should know that he loves her and that this isn't a big deal. He convinces her that this is the only way she wont come between him and Dustin. She finally agrees and wipes away a few more tears. Jack’s face lights up “That's my girl.” he says then hugs her again and gives her one more kiss. He hands her his flask and she takes a huge gulp of whiskey. He gives her one last squeeze. He backs away. She just stands and looks at him hoping he’ll ask her to stay there with him. All Jack say is “He’s waiting.” Kori can feel her heart break a little. She nods her head and walks towards the parking lot, He watches her walk away and he takes a sip from his flask .
In the distance Noelle slowly backs away without taking her tear soaked eyes off Jack. She turns and runs, as she passes Christine she grabs the bottle of vodka out of her hands and keeps going. Christine calls after her “Noelle?!” But she quickly loses sight of her in the crowd.
Foster follows April through a thickly wooded area. He looks around desperately trying to think of something to say to let her down easy. “where are we going?” He asks. April takes a look around as they walk into a small clearing. “Here.” She says with a nervous smile. She turns and kisses. Caught slightly off gaurd Foster says nothing. She slowly backs away from him and pulls of her shirt revealing a pink lace bra. She kisses him again as she grabs his belt and starts to unbuckle it. She kisses his chest as she unbuttons his pants. She looks up at him and tells him that she wants him to be her first. Foster almost jumps back as she slides her hand into his pants. He blurts out “I’m in love with your sister.” April just stands there in shock “what?” She asks with hurt in her voice. Foster rolls his head as he realizes he’s said it now and there’s no going back. Reality sinks in for April and she realizes she is half naked, She tries to cover herself with her arms. Foster picks her tank top off the ground and hands it to her. Aprils eyes are blood shot and full of tears. She is still completely in shock. Tears begin to stream down her cheeks, bt she doesnt blink, she just keeps staring at him as if she’s in a trance. He reaches out to try to hug her. As soon as he touches her she screams “don’t touch me!” and pushes him away. She quickly pulls her shirt over heer head. He tries to talk to her but she just shakes her head and backs away. She looks as if she might throw up. She turns and starts to walk away. He know there's nothing he can say to make this better.
In the parking lot Kori climbs into the back seat with Dustin. For a moment they just sit in awkward silence. Dustin finally brakes the silence by pulling out the pills and offering her some. She simple nods her head and holds out her hand. He drops a few blue pills into her open and and she swallows them quickly without water. The awkward silence returns.
April runs out of the bush crying. She pushes through the crowd and dissappears. a few seconds later Foster comes out of the bushes looking for her, but it’s too late, She’s already gone. He runs into the crowd to find her.
Noelle runs through the party looking for somewhere to hide. She tries christines car but the door is locked. She runs into the only other shelter she can see, an out house. She slams the door behind her. The vacant sighn swithces to occupied.
Kori and Dustin sit silently on either side of the back seat. He struggles to work ip the guys tp say something. He breaks the ice by asking if she’s feeling anything yet. She nods and simply says yes and then they’re back to silence. after a few minutes Dustin slowly slides a little closer to Kori. He stops and takes a deep breath before he makes his move. He leans in to kiss her, She turns her head slightly to meet his lips. He decides to try to go a little further and slowly slides his and up her leg. He starts to unbutton her blouse .
Jack leans against the giant boat. He looks out across the party. It feels strange, but he doesn't know why. Suddenly Foster runs up to him asking if has seen April. When Jack says no he takes off without explaining himself. Jack just shakes his head then gets up and walks down to the beach.
Noelle sits on the dirty toilet seat balling her eyes out. She is so overcome with rage she just starts screaming. She stands up and starts punching and kicking the walls.
In the Camaro Dustin is half naked and on top of Kori. The drugs are really kicking in and Kori is slipping in and out of consciousness... but Dustin doesn't notice.
Down by the lake Jack finds a rock to sit on and looks out towards the water. He notices something on the water. He squints his eyes not sure what he’s looking at. It’s the black cat. It’s walking on the water towards him.
Foster runs up the street towards the Holiday house. He knows April must have gone home, He has to get there quick and do some damage control.
Noelle Punches the walls of the out house a few more times before turning her fists on herself smashing them into her stomach screaming “Get it out of me! Get this thing the fuck out of me!”
She opens the bottle of vodka and chugs down a few hige gulps. Looking up tears streaming down her face, Noelle pleads with god “ Please, God get it out of me! Fucking get it out of me please, please, get it out! Get it out! Get it out!” But god doesn't answer. She pours more vodka down her throat trying to drown the fetus in alcohol.
Kori is now totally tripping out. Eyes rolling back in her head, drool running down her chin, Dustin hammers away at her so drunk that he still doesn't notice the state she’s in. Her eyes roll back in her head. Her eyes roll back in her head.
Jack rubs his eyes to make sure he’s not going crazy. But he’s not, the black cat is walking on the surface of the water towards him and it getting closer and closer. As it gets within a few metres of the shore it stops and stares straight into Jack’s eyes. Jack realizes that this is more than a cat, it’s a Jaguar. He’s frozen in fear. The Cat’s eyes burn like white hot embers.
Noelle, almost out of energy, punches her stomach a few last times. She slumps to the outhouse floor. She sits in a heap and sobs.
Jack and the giant cat stare into each others eyes. Paralyzed with fear Jack quickly looks away and closes his eyes. When he opens them the cat is gone. He mouth hangs open with disbelief.
Dustin finally finishes. He collapses in the back seat beside Kori’s ravaged body. He looks over at her and realizes she not really conscious. She makes a strange gurgling sound and rolls her head around a little.. She slowly peels her eyes open and looks around. Kori begins to realize what has happened, her eyes fill up with tears. She lets out a small sod. She quickly pulls her clothes and runs out of the car crying. Dustin watches her run away, a sinking feeling creeps up in the pit of his stomach. He remembers being a young boy laying in his bed. He remembers the sound of his bedroom door creaking open as his moms boyfriend crept in. He would always squeeze his eyes tight and pretend he was asleep. He would slowly rub Dustin’s stomach and he would squeezes his eyes tighter. He remembers what it’s like to be touched when you don’t want to be touched. He remembers how it is to feel violated. over come with a sick feeling he grabs the bottle of pills and downs a handful.
Back at the beach Jack sits in the wet sand stunned. He shakes his head to gather himself and slowly gets up and brushes the sand off his pants. He turns and walks back up towards the party.
Kori runs through the parking lot and into the party. Still Very out of it she bumps into people as she pushes through the crowd. Suddenly she bumps into to Jack. She grabs him and hugs him. She feels like she need to explain what’s happened to him but can’t get her words out. Before she can he pushes her aside and keeps walking telling her he can’t really talk. she calls after him but he just keeps going. Scared and lost in a drug induced world she turns and heads toward the wooded area. She stumbles into the bush, falls down and passes out in the dirt.
Foster runs up the steps of the Holiday house and knocks on the door. He tries to catch his breath, no one answers. He goes to knock again just as the door swings opne. It’s August she has a cold angry look in her eyes, she clearly know what’s happened. Foster asks if he can talk to April but she just shakes her head and tells him she doesn't want to see him. Foster desperately searches for the right words. August isn’t interested in anything he has to say. He tries to explain that he didn't want to hurt her and only wanted to be truthful. She tells him it really doesn't matter what he says, What’s done is done. In a last ditch effort to win her over he blurts out that he loves her. She pauses and looks at him like he’s a puppy about to be put down. With only a trace of pity in her voice she tells him that he fucked up and its just done then gently closes the door. Foster is left standing, heart broken, on her front porch.
Jack walks over to his car and climbs into the driver seat. He smells the air, it smells like sex. He looks into the back seat to see Dustin passed out in the back seat. He laughs to himself then picks up his ohone and dials Noelles number.
Noelle isn't Crying anymore. She sits staring blankly at the wall of the out house. Her phone starts to ring. She looks down at the screen and see’s that it’s Jack. She just looks at it for a second then drops it into the toilette. She pulls off the ring he gave her and throws it in too.
After a few rings Nolle’s answering service picks up so jack leaves her a message suggesting they should get togther and make plans for the baby, he tells her he loves her and asks her to call him back.
The cell phone and ring sink slowly into the thick sewage. The phone disappears first into the shit and piss followed shortly after by the ring.
Kori lays face first in the dirt vomiting. It’s dark and cold. She’s wandered so far off that no one even notices her as the party clears out.
Chapter 11 (The Morning After)
She wakes up the next morning to the sound of cars on a nearby street and the heat of the morning sun. She peels herself off the ground and wipes the dried vomit from her face. She searches through her bag for her phone, she pulls it out and dials in a number...
In the coffee shop Jack and Foster sit quietly drinking tea. Jack cell phone starts ringing, It’s Kori. He drops his phone back onto the table and lets it ring. Foster stares at his cup of tea that he hasn’t touched. the phone stops for a moment but soon starts ringing again. Jack pushes the silent button on his phone and slowly sets it back on the table. They both sit in anticipation.... It starts again buzzing across the table. Foster stares at the phone vibrating around on the table. All at once something inside him snaps. He yells at Jack to answer his phone and take responsibility for his actions. Jack is taken a back by Foster’s outburst. Foster continues his rant going on about how Jack hurts people and thats his oblivious to it. Completely offend Jack interjects asking where all this is coming form. And Foster tells him its been a long time coming and that he’s not going to let Jack drag him down anymore. He stands up and storms out leaving Jack sitting alone shell shocked. His phone starts to ring again he answers then quickly hangs up.
Kori sits on a park bench looking at her phone. It’s clear to her now that Jack is intentionally ignoring her. Her sad eyes harden with anger. She decides to walk home. Kori storms up the street arms crossed, head down. She has a long walk home and she’s very hung over. A car approaches from behind her then zooms by. She doesn't realize that its Nolle who’s just past her.
And inside the car Nolle doesn't realize she’s just passed the girl She saw jack with the night before. Noelle looks at the road ahead with tunnel vision. She has too much on her mind right now to care anyway. All she cares about is getting this over with...
Later on Noelle’s car sits parked in a lonely spot at the back of a parking lot. She sit’s in total silence staring at the steering wheel. She doesn’t move at all. She almost looks like she’s not breathing. Then abruptly she grabs the door and handle and gets out of the car. Noelle stands in front of the door of a building with a sign that says Women’s clinic, frightened to take the next ten steps into the front door. She holds her breath and goes for it. The automatic doors slide open and swallow her up as she walks in.
There's a crudely sketched picture of a baby in the middle of the page. It begins to disappear, as if an invisible eraser is rubbing it out. It’s gone...
Noelle walks out of the clinic crying holding her stomach, but her stomach isn’t there. We can see right through a giant hole where her uterus used to be. A piece of her is gone...
Foster sits on the edge of his bed holding his acceptance letters in his hands. He’s been reading them over and over again. He looks over at his note book sitting beside him on the bed. He picks it up and thumbs through the pages. He reads a few journal-like entries that he has jotted in over the summer. He throws the notebook into a trash can in the corner of the room. He picks up one of the acceptance letters and walks out of the room.
At Jacks house the Camaro sits parked in the driveway. All the lights in the house are off but one. The bathroom window casts a shadow out on the street. Jack stares at himself in the mirror with a totally blank expression on his face.
Foster sits in front of a glowing computer screen. He types for a moment. We can’t see what he’s writing yet, but it’s clear that he’s very focused on whatever it is. The screen is revealed. He’s filled out the online registration form for one of the universities. His right hand sits on the mouse. He scrolls over to the send icon on the screen. He hesitates for a moment, then clicks. Evan Foster will be attending university in September.
Jack leans against his Camaro in Noelle’s drive way. Noelle’s head lights blast him in the eyes as she pulls in. He shields his eyes with his hand. In the car, Noelle brakes hard as to not run into the back of Jack’s car. Noelle slams the car into to park and jumps out furious by his presence. She demands to know what he’s doing there as she storms up the drive way. Confused Jack says he’s been looking for his girlfriend. But she quickly cuts him off and tells him that she’s not his girlfriend anymore. Now he’s even more confused, but getting nervous that she might know something. He tries to calm her down and take control of the situation but she not about to back down. She tells him that she saw him with Kori at the park, Jack’s stomach sinks, He knows he’s caught. His first reaction is to deny everything but Nolle tells him not to play dumb. He switches gears and tries to play it off like she was just an old friend. But again she shots down his lame excuses telling him that it doesn't matter what he says its just over. In a last ditch attempt to talk her out of this he asks her what they're going to do about the baby than. She pauses for a second, the question stabs her in the heart like a dagger. She forces herself to choke out the words and tell him that there is no baby anymore. She turns and runs into her house leaving him stunned and alone in the drive way. He snaps out of it and runs over to his car and gets in. He sits for a moment staring at Noelle’s house. He snaps out of it and throws the car into reverse and speeds out of the driveway.
The Camaro flies down the suburban streets towards his house. Jack pulls sharply into his driveway. He throws the car into park and shuts off the engine. He looks onto the rear view mirror into his own eyes. Not sure what he’s feeling, he looks for a clue in his reflection... nothing...
He grabs his cell phone and dials Kori’s number.
Kori sits on her bed with her phone to her ear listening to Jack. She’s so angry she doesn't know where to start. She can hear Jack breathing into his phone, he asks if shes there, but she still doesn't speak. He asks if she’s there once more but this time she cuts him off. She asks him why he left her. I tries to act like he doesn't know what shes talking about but she just keeps talking. She tell him that he left her lying in the dirt.
Jack sits with the phone to his ear. He realizes that this isn’t going to go well either. He apologizes claiming he didn't see her and that he thought she was with April.
But She not falling for it she remembers seeing Jack right before she passed out. Her eyes drip with tears, she can’t believe she let someone use her like that. Jack rambles on about how he was so drunk and cant remember what went on. She tells him that he used her and threw her away like trash. Jack know what she’s saying is true. He closes his eyes and tries to think of something he can say to fix this. He tells her he loves her. She asks if that’s why he doped her up and gave her to his friend. Jack doesn’t know what to say. He sits there silently for a moment. He tries one last time to win her over but again she cuts him. She tells him that she hates him like shes never hated anyone before and that she really wishes she had never met him then gently hangs up the phone. Jack pulls his phone away from his ear and just stares at it for a second. His whole world is falling apart over night and there’s nothing he can do about it. He starts freaking out punching the windshield and the dashboard. He screams! His flailing fist hits the rear view mirror cracking it and knocking it down just enough so that it catches Dustin’s reflection. Dustin lies still in the back seat facing away from Jack. Jack spins around as he notices that Dustin is still in his car. He reaches out and taps him on the shoulder. Dustin doesn't budge. He grabs Dustin’s shoulder and pulls him over so he can see his face. As he rolls over we can see that Dustin is... DEAD... He’s overdosed. His body is stiff, eyes bugging out, dried vomit on his face. He’s been dead for some time now.
Less than an hour later Foster runs up the front steps and towards the front door of the local hospital. The automatic doors slide open just before he gets there. Out walks Jack, his face is like stone and his eyes are hard. Foster grabs his arms and demands to know what the hell is going on. Jack doesn't say anything. Jack pushes Foster and walks away without saying anything. Foster calls after him but Jack just keeps walking without so much as looking back.
Foster rushes over to a nurse sitting at a large desk and ask her if she can tell hi where he can find Dustin. She types something into her computer, a moment passes and then her face sinks. She looks up at foster and he can tell by the look on her face something isnt right. She tells Foster that he was gone before he even got there and there was nothing they could do. Foster slowly backs away, he turns and walks out the door. He stands in the cool summer air stunned. He stares off into the darkness.
Chapter 12 (Man Up)
4 days later...
Bells ring out from a large cathedral style church. Foster sits in a pew somewhere near the middle of the Cathedral. He listens to the preach drone on and on about how the lord works in mysterious ways and how we can know why he chooses to take such young promising people and blah blah blah... Non of this brings comfort to him at all. Foster tunes out and starts to look around. He doesn't see Jack. He looks to his left. There's Kori and the Holiday sisters. He looks to his right - grieving relatives. He looks behind over his shoulder. Noelle, but no Jack. He can’t believe he didn't show up. Foster grits his teeth in anger.
Jack lies in his bed in the fetal position staring at the wall. He has dark circles under his eyes. It looks like he hasn't been sleeping at all. He pulls a whisky bottle out from under the blankets. He opens it and takes a a few huge gulps. He can still hear Noelle’s voice in his head telling him there was no more baby. He shakes his head, but when he stops thinking about that he hears Kori's voice. He shakes his head, but when he stops thinking about that he hears Kori's voice telling him how much she hates him. He grabs the bottle again and finishes what’s left. Sitting up he reaches over to his night stand and grabs a pill bottle. he grabs and hand full of pills and chews them up washing them down with whiskey. He squeezes his eyes shut and waits for the whisky to numb the pain. When he opens his eyes Dustin’s corpse is standing beside his bed. Jack screams, jumps out of bed and presses his back to the opposite wall. Zombie Dustin shakes it’s head and laughs. Jack can’t believe his eyes. The corpse starts mocking Jack and blaming him for his death. Jack argues that he didn't kill Dustin but the corpse rightfully points out that although he didnt pull the trigger he did feed him a random mix of prescription drugs than left him to rot in the back of his car for almost twenty four hours. Jack shakes his head and closes his eyes trying to make this vision disappear. But it doesn't. He scream as loud as he can that it wasn't his fault. Dustin reaches his cold dead hand into his pocket and pulls out what looks like a hunk of bloody flesh. He holds it straight out at Jack telling him he has to learn how to take responsibility for his actions. Jack stares at the bloody lump and confused asks what it is. Dustin just smiles and tells him that this hunk of flesh is his dauhter. Right at that moment The fleshy hunk rolls over in Dustin’s palm revealing little arms and legs. It’s a tiny fetus. It rolls in Dustin’s hand like a new born baby. It opens its little black under developed eyes and looks at Jack and says Da da. Jack screams and runs out of the bedroom and down the stairs into the kitchen. But as he turns the corner into the kitchen he sees Dustin leaning against the counter and stops dead in his traks. Dustin smurks and tells Jack that he can’t run away from this. JAck collapses to his knees asking what he wants from him. Dustin takes a few steps forward and then kneels in front of him. He speaks softly and tells him that he has to set himself free. Jack is very confused, Dustin continues by asking jack what the one thing that separates us from the beasts. Jack pauses and thinks. Dustin looks down at Jacks hands. Jack follows his gaze. He holds out his hands and looks at them. Jack finally understands what he has to do. Wen he looks up from hi hands Dustin’s corpse is gone.
Foster sits outside on the front steps of the church staring off into nowhere. Noelle walks out the front door and sees him sitting there. She lights up a cigarette as she walks over and sits down beside him. She asks him how he’s been. Foster aswers without looking at her. He tells her thats he’s been better and asks her how she’s feeling and she simply says she’s surviving. They sit in silence for a moment. Foster turns and looks at her and asks if she’s seen Jack. She hasn’t since that night. They share another momnt of silence that foster breaks by asking what’s wrong with Jack. Noelle just shakes her head as her eyes well up with tears. Foster asks her if she’s going to be alright and she just turns to him and lloks him right in the eye and say “Are you?”... They both look back out into nowhere.
Blackness...
At the top of the stairs the basement door swings open. Jack stands in the doorway backlit by the light from upstairs. He quickly clomps down the stairs and into a dark room filled with tools. He reaches up and grabs an electrical circular buzz saw amd drops it into and empty milk create then runs back of the stairs slamming the door behind him.
In his kitchen Jack takes a black magic marker and draws a dotted line on his left hand from the webbing between his pointer and his thumb. An iron sits on the table beside him. His cell phone begins to ring. Jack picks up the phone and looks at it... It’s Foster... He throws the phone against the wall. It shatters into a million pieces. He grabs a bottle of whisky from the table and takes a few huge gulps. He positions the milk crate between his feet. He tapes the power trigger on the saw down so it is stuck on without having to hold it down. He plugs it in and the saw springs to life spinning furiously. While wedging the saw between his thighs he grabs the burning hot iron in his right hand. He’s ready. Jack takes one last look at his thumb. Taking a deep breath he braces himself for the impending pain. He thrusts his hand into the spinning blade slicing his thumb clean off. Screaming in agony he opens his legs and lets the saw drop into the milk crate as he cauterizes the wound with the iron then drops it as well. Jack falls out of his chair clenching hi amputated appendage and rolls on the floor in pain. The saw still rattles around in the milk crate.
In his bed room, Foster paces back and forth with his phone to his ear. There's one ring and then the operator tell him the customer he’s trying to reach is unavailable. He’s has a terrible feeling some things wrong but blocks it out and replaces the feeling with anger. He slams his phone shut. Foster grabs his jacket off his bed and heads for the door. Only a few moments later Foster walks down the suburban street in the cool late summer air. He shoves his hands into his pockets and picks up his pace. He has something to say to Jack and he’s going to say it if it’s the last thing he does.
Jack sits on the toilet rocking back and forth, cradling his mutilated hand. He’s sweaty and covered in blood. He reaches out and grabs the bottle of whisky from the sink and takes a huge swig. He uses a first aid kit he found under the sink to dress his hand. He can hear Dustin’s voice in his head asking if he’s really going to give up. He pleads with the voice to leave him alone but it persists. Jack jumps to his feet screaming as loud as he can at the voices in his head telling them to shut up.
Foster steps onto Jack’s driveway and looks at the house. All the lights are on and the front door is wide open. The concern he felt earlier creeps back up into the pit of his stomach. Something is definitely not right.
Jack stands in the middle of the bath room still creaming for the voices to fuck off. Dustin’s corpse materializes behind jack and tells him that he’s not going anywhere until he finishes what he started. As soon as Jack catches a glimpse of him Dustin disappears again. Jack grabs the whiskey bottle by the neck and smashes it on the sink to make a stabbing tool. He holds it out in front of him like a knife threatening to kill the ghost if it doesn't leave him alone not realizing the irony in it.
Foster hears the glass smash from outside. He runs up to the open door.
Jack looks around holding the broken bottle stretched out in front of him. Dustin voice echoes in his head again mocking his attempts to stab a figment of his imagination. Dustin appears again. Jack lunges at him with the broken bottle but he disappears again before he lands the blow.
Foster stands in Jack’s open front door and looks around... He says hello quitly sensing an erie feeling in the air. Every light in the house is on. There is a trail of blood starting in the kitchen and leading all the way up the stairs. His eye’s widen. All he can think is “oh shit!”
Dustin appears again and Jack takes another swing at him but misses once again. He has a hard time keeping his balance, He’s lost a lot of blood and his feet keep slipping in it.
Foster slowly walks towards the stairs. He calls out to Jack quietly, He’s beging to think that maybe there’s been a break in or something crazy. He follows the trail of bllood up the stairs. The whole time a he has a nagging feeling that this is a bad idea and if this was a horror movie he’d be screaming at this character to turn around and run.
Jacks still stabs furiously at the air with the broken bottle. Dustin’s face appears everywhere he looks. Jack slashes at the air harder.
Foster stands just outside the bathroom door. He looks down. a puddle of blood seeps under the door. his hand trembles as he slowly extend it towards the door knob. His fingers slowly wrap around it, He squeezes it until his knuckles turn white and slowly turns it...
The bathroom door swings open and Jack lunges at the noise. Fosters eyes widen as the broken whiskey bottle plunges deep into his stomach. Jack’s jaw drops as he realizes what he has done. Blood gurgles in the back of Foster's throat. Jack looks around franticly. He has no idea what to do. He looks up at the first aide kit by the sink and gets an idea. He grabs a gauze bandage wraps it tightly around Fosters stomach trying to control the bleeding but the dressing instantly soaks through with blood. Foster’s eyes roll around in his head. Jack grabs Foster under his arm pits and drags him out of the bathroom and down the stairs. He gets him out of the house and lifts foster into the back seat and shuts the door. Jack then jumps into the drivers seat and fires up the car.
The Camaro flies down a dark road. Jack struggles to drive with only one good hand. He looks down at his left, it’s still bleeding. He asks Foster how he’s doing but Foster only groans in pain.
In the Forest, the black jaguar walks through the trees as if stalking prey.
Jack’s eye are feeling heavy, He’s losing way to much blood. The car starts to drift off the road but he snaps out of it and straightens the wheel. Foster mumbles something in the back seat. Jack turns his head to try to make out what he's saying.
The giant cat walks over to a clearing... it’s the road.
Foster writes in pain, He’s trying to tell Jack to call 911, he forces the words out as loud as he can. Jack finally understands and reaches for his phone but realizes he smashed it earlier.
The panther walks out into the middle of the street and sits down. It stares down the road into the night.
Foster tries to reach into his pocket for his phone. He grits his teeth in pain. Jack tells him to hold on cause they're almost there even though there's still a ways to the hospital. The car speeds faster and faster down the street. Foster takes a deep breath grits his teeth again and pulls his phone from his pocket. In so much pain he can hardly speak he forces him self to tell Jack to take his phone. Jack reaches back and grabs it from Foster. He flings it open with his good hand while trying too steer with the other. He mucks up the keypad with his blood caked fingers as he begins to dial. 9... He checks the road then his attentions back down on the phone, 1... He looks up again quickly then to the phone. 1... it starts ringing so he holds the phone to his ear. But eyes his Eyes meet the road he see’s dozens of cats of all different shapes and sizes suddenly fill the street. In the center of the bunch staring Jack dead in the eyes is the black cat . Just as he heres a womans voice pick up on the other end he swerves to avoid the cats. The Camaro flies through a ditch and vilontly smashes into a tree sending Jack flying through the wind sheild still clenching the cell phone in his hand. He lands about fifteen feet form the car.
Chapter 13 (Rewind)
Twenty minutes later Jack slowly lifts his face out of the dirt and looks around. He can barely see, There’s so much blood in his eyes. Rolling over very carefully he looks up at the sky and calls out to Foster to see if he’s alright. But Foster doesn't respond. Jack becomes increasingly concerned. He musters the energy to prop himself up against a nearby tree. He looks himself over and discovers he has a bone jutting out of his flesh jus below his knee cap. His skin seems to be torn almost everywhere from broken glass. When he looks down at his right hand he notices that he’s still gripping Fosters phone. He slowly opens his fist and looks at it. It covered in blood. He flips it open and just looks at it for a moment. He uses his thumb to dial a number. With some difficulty he raises the phone to his ear. It’s ringing...
Back at Noelle’s house the phone in her bed room starts to ring. She glances down at the call display , it says Evan Foster so she doesn't think twice about answering it. But when she hears Jack’s voice a wave of anger washes over her. Jack quickly asks her not to hang up because he’s in trouble. He anger quickly shifts to concern. She asks what happened and he tells her he thinks he fell asleep and hit a tree. She asks if he’s ok.
He looks down at himself, blood is pooling underneath of him. He laughs as tears fill his eyes. He tells her he doesn't think so.
Noelle’s eyes also fill with tears, She wants him to tell her where he is so she can call an ambulance but he begs her not to hang up the phone.
Jack leans against the tree. The puddle of blood he is sitting is getting larger. He starts to talk about the bus Noelle and Him took when they were both in high school.
Noelle stands in the middle of her room not sure what to do. She doesn't follow, she doesn't understand what he’s getting at. She tries again to get him to tell her where he is but he just keeps talking about that bus. Another tear streams from her eye.
Jack tries to explain himself . He tells her he just wants to remember. He tells her how nervous was when they first me how he wanted to talk to her so badly but didn't know what to say. He cant hold back his tears. He squeezes his eyes shut to try to fight it.
Noelle is full out balling now. She begs him to let her call for help but he cuts her off. He asks if she remembers. She nods her head yes and let out a small sob. He asks again and she finally forces the words to leave her lips, Yes I remember.
He begins to slump a little more. He tells her how much he loved her and that he wishes he could go back. Things were so real then. He tells her that he never wants to forget that day then he goes quite.
Almost in a panic Nolle tells everything is be ok she tells Jack she’ll cal an ambulance and they’ll find him and make him better. And after that they’ll work things out and be together again... But still Jack doesn't responde.
He slumps a little more against the tree, He’s no longer holding the phone to his ear. His voice gets weaker and weaker as mumbles to himself that he just wants to remember. Suddenly his whole life flash in his mind like a movie being rewound. He remembers what it is to be alive. Noelle’s voice comes out of the speaker but Jack can’t hear her. He’s gone...
Chapter 14 (...)
3 days later. Unsure of where he is or what going on Foster slowly peels his eyes open and takes a look around. Machines beep and hum, there are tubes and wires running into him from all directions. He’s in a hospital room. He recognizes his mothers voice coming from down the hall. She’s demanding hat a doctor attend to him immediately. He works up the energy to call for his mother. In the hallway Mrs.Foster spins around delighted to hear her son’s voice . She ruses to his side, Foster asks her what’s going on and where Jack is. Mrs. Foster shakes her head with regret. She explains she that they were in an accident and that Jack didn't make it. He just stares for a moment then looks away. He asks if can have a minute. Mrs.Foster agrees and continues her search for a doctor. Foster eyes a package wrapped in brown paper sitting on his bed side table. He stops him mom before she can make it out the door asking what it is. She tells him some girl dropped it off the day before. With weak hands Foster opens the card on top of the package, it’s a home made get well soon card. He opens it and see’s it from August. It says: Hey Evan, I just want you to know that I’m thinking about you. I was hoping maybe when you get out of the hospital we could talk. Maybe we can go to the park again?And this time you can push me. I got you a little something to help you pass the time while you’re bed ridden. Do what you do best Evan Foster. Love August.
Foster puts down the card and unwrapps the package. It’s a brand new note book and a silver fountain pen. He just looks at them for a second but then a smile creeps across his face. He opens the book to the first page. He takes the pen and places to the paper. There’s only a slight pause before he begins to write. as he finishes his first sentance we can see that its the line our book started with. “Youth has an expiration date and like all good things that expire, if you hold on to it for too long, it will begin to spoil.”
For the next two weeks in the hospital he writes and writes. Not to pass the time but because he feel like he needs to get it out. He writes about everything. He tells the entire story from the beginning. But as he reaches the point where he wakes up in the hospital he realizes it doesn't have an ending. But he knows what he has to do.
Shortly after being realised from the hospital Foster makes his way over to the holiday house. He slowly limps up the steps to there front porch. For a second his nerves get the best of him as he remembers the last time he was in this position. He reaches out and knocks on the door. A moment later he greeted by August with a huge smile on her face. She’s so happy to see him she practically knocks him to the ground with a giant hug.
Shortly after we find them in the boat park again. Foster pushes august on the swing. She swings higher and higher as they laugh and talk. things are going to be alright.
The Epilogue.
Just over a year later a slightly older looking foster returns home for the summer from his first year of university. the first year of university flew by for him and before he knew it he was heading home for the first time since that summer. He thinks about how quickly he had adjusted to his new life. It’s like all he needed to do was flick a switch in his head and he was born again. He imagined that thatts what Christians must feel like when they said they found Jesus. Within a few days of being home a strange feeling came over him. He felt misplaced - like he didnt fit anymore.
He decides to go exploring at the old high school but as he looks around everything smaller. The lockers the hallways the students. This only amplifies his feeling of being out of place so he decides to walk around town. He thinks that its funny that a place you know so well can seem so different even though it hasn’t changed at all. He makes his way to the boat park as he thinks. The adults still turned a blind eye to what their kids where doing. And kids still pretend they’re adults, deep into things beyond there years. They still drink and fuck and party at the boat park. He sits down on the swing and a cold shill runs up his spine as he has a moment of clarity. These things don’t change. They never have and they most likely never will. Kids really will be kids. He really thought that just because his world changed the summer before that the whole world had changed. Truth was that his experience was by no means unique. As long as there are teenagers there will be coming of age stories.
Later on Foster works up the guts to go visit the coffee shop where the guys use to hang out. As he walks in he takes a slow look around really drinking it all in. He looks over to there old table to See Jack and Dustin sitting there Although dead to him they were both very much alive, around the third chapter of our book we began to slip slowly away from the true story and into fantasy. Wrtting the book was Fosters way of killing off his friends in his mind so he could break out of the rut he was in and move on with his life. He walks over to the table to say hello. The first few moments are a little awkward. But Jack craks a smile and says hi. Foster simple answers with a Hey. Jack’s asks hows he’s been. Foster tells him he’s been good. Jack smiles and says... good.
Over at a table three kids sit sipping coffee, talking, laughing, being teenagers.
We end on a quote from James M. Barrie, The final line from Peter Pan.
“And so it will go on, as long as children are gay, innocent, and heartless.”
