Here is the second segment of the screenplay in progress. Enjoy!
EXT. STREET – CONTINUOUS
BELLE slides the bottle clumsily into her purse and cuts into an alley, staggering to the back.
CUT TO:
EXT. REAR OF THE ALLEY – CONTINUOUS
BELLE’S POV – Shadows lengthen. Sound is drawn out, then in, like the world is breathing. The light at the end of the alley is brighter and has a greenish, otherworldly hue.
BELLE turns toward the street and works her way slowly down the wall. Sounds echo. She trails her hand on the dirty bricks, stops at the end of the alley, and glances both ways down the street. We see contorted faces, bright lights, long deep shadows. Down the block we see a bookstore. The light glittering on the glass door is suddenly brighter than anything. BELLE steps to the doorway and enters.
We hear a bell ring, and echo for a very long time. The door shuts with an extended hiss. A CLERK (forties, greasy and scowling) glances up.
CLERK
May I help you?
BELLE stands very still. She looks down the center aisle. Bookshelves rise to either side. The floor is green tile, and appears liquid.
CLERK
(half rising)
Miss? Are you alright?
Voices whisper in the background. They recite lines from books, poetry, whisper the lyrics to songs. None of this is very clear, but from BELLE’S perspective we hear recognizable snatches.
BELLE
(softly)
I’m fine.
She pushes off the wall and nearly topples a pile of used books, stumbles around and disappears into the center aisle. The CLERK watches, then resumes his seat. He glances up and we see BELLE from an odd angle in a tilted ceiling mounted mirror. From the POV of the CLERK the room shifts to a dimly lit, dusty book shop. No voices...nothing odd.
DISSOLVE TO:
INT. BOOKSTORE STACKS – CONTINUOUS
BELLE wanders along a shelf of very old books. She pulls one out randomly, pushes it back, and continues. The CLERK slowly turns up the volume on a stereo. We hear dulcimer music in the background. The light in the store is greenish. We hear footsteps.
BELLE rounds the end of the shelf and runs into a large, BALD MAN (hugely fat, sweating, nervous). She backs away. He glances up from a book he holds too close to his nose.
BALD MAN
(backing away also)
Sorry. I...sorry. Can I?...
BELLE runs into a shelf. It wobbles. From BELLE’s POV the room wavers and the dulcimer music gets louder. The BALD MAN drops his book and stumbles toward her. His sweaty face appears to her to melt.
BELLE
No! Stay away...
She reaches behind her and a book is hanging from the shelf. She grips it and starts to swing, but the BALD MAN stops. His eyes grow wide, and he backs away. He isn’t looking at BELLE but at the air behind her.
The BALD MAN backs away, nearly crashes into a bookshelf, then turns and runs, clutching his book.
BELLE
What?
She glances at the book in her hand. The cover is faded. The letters are gold gilt. The spine is leather. The book is heavy.
We hear footsteps. BELLE glances up.
From BELLE’S POV we see the CLERK turn the corner. He is glaring.
CLERK
What happened? That man, he...
BELLE stumbles past him toward the front of the store. He watches for a second, then sees the book in her hand.
CLERK
Wait! You can’t just take that.
He runs after her, and BELLE hears him too late. He grips her arm and she spins toward him. They end up close -- face to face -- she still hasn’t seen the book.
BELLE
(whispers) I’ll take it.
CLERK
But...
He glances down at the book.
CLOSE ON COVER: “The Poetical Works of Samuel Taylor Coleridge”.
The “Muzak” is suddenly extremely loud, dulcimer’s echoing.
The CLERK slips behind the counter, shaking his head. BELLE digs in her purse, pulls out the bottle...stares at it, then stuffs it back in. She reaches in again and pulls out the last bill she has. She drops it on the counter. It’s a twenty.
CLERK
It’s thirty-five.
BELLE
Thank you.
She turns and walks to the door. The clerk starts after her, then stops. BELLE slips out the door. We hear the bell above the door chime.
The CLERK suddenly turns and shuts off the stereo. We hear...nothing.
FADE TO:
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