Acrimony Page #4

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hard for me to study

and work, and work on this.

But I'll try.

I mean, I will. I will.

MELINDA:
For some reason,

I just smiled.

I just need

a little more time.

Okay.

- Hi, Ms. Hilderbran?

- Yes.

- My name is Robert Gayle.

- I know who you are.

Will you please stop calling

and writing letters?

That's not how this works.

It won't get you seen.

It's a lottery system

for a reason.

I know, but could you just...

(FUNK MUSIC PLAYING)

MELINDA:
Sarah helped me get a job in

her office as an office assistant.

SARAH:
They need these

by morning.

- Sorry.

- Sarah.

It's good overtime.

MELINDA:
I was actually

working two jobs.

I would leave there

and clean offices at night.

Anything I had to do

to keep from having

to ask my sisters for anything.

I just...

I just had to get through

the next year, you know?

I thought, "Just work hard,

girl, this man loves you."

- (LAUGHING)

- (MACHINE WHIRRING)

Yes!

Yes!

Yes!

- Robert.

- Baby!

Robert, you have every

light on in this house.

The light bill

was $300 last month!

Baby, this won't

run up the light bill.

This is my battery working.

It's running the whole house.

Robert, did you

talk to an electrician?

Why?

- (LIGHT BULBS POPPING)

- (BOTH YELPING)

MELINDA:
Oh, my God!

(TIMER TICKING)

- Sorry.

- (TIMER DINGS)

MELINDA:
Not only did he almost

burn down my mother's house,

he burned up all the wiring.

It almost worked.

MELINDA:

Cost to repair? $37,000.

That was it.

We were in the hole.

ROBERT:
At least I didn't

break nothing.

(AUDIENCE CHEERING)

ANNOUNCER:
Thomas Fry.

MELINDA:
But then the day came

that I had been waiting for.

ANNOUNCER:
Robert Gayle.

(CHEERING CONTINUES)

- (CAMERA CLICKS)

- MELINDA:
I was so happy.

I thought for sure that the very

next day, our lives would change.

I thought all of our troubles

were over.

I mean, he had

three job interviews.

Each started

at $150,000 a year.

I was so excited.

But...

How could all three

turn you down?

I mean, they recruited you.

When I was 15,

I was in a gang, and we

robbed a grocery store.

I got charged as an adult,

and I spent

two years in jail.

I thought I could get it

expunged off my record

since I was only 15,

but it's still there,

and no one will

hire a felon.

MELINDA:
You have no idea how much

I was looking forward to a break.

Room to breathe, you know?

To relax. Let him

take care of me for a change.

But there I was, hearing this.

A felon.

And now, he tells me?

This motherf***er

says this to me now!

The con game. You see?

Baby, it's not

the end of the world.

(LAUGHS BITTERLY)

Look, I have an idea.

I figured out all the bugs and

now it's even better than ever.

I just need to

get it to Prescott.

I know he'll

love it, okay?

I'm still sending letters.

I'm going by and I'm calling.

And I'm gonna call

his secretary.

I know we're low on money.

But I was thinking,

if we mortgage the house,

we can pay for the rest

of my research on this

and make it top notch,

a new design.

I know it'll work.

Okay.

Mel, look at me.

I know it'll work.

- No.

- Come on.

Don't stop believing

in me now.

Please trust me.

It's gonna work,

I know it will.

MELINDA:
What the hell?

I felt like my back was against the

wall and I had no choice, you know?

I couldn't keep doing this.

I couldn't keep

working like this.

Come on.

MELINDA:
So I had to

fall for the con.

I was in too deep

to stop and walk away.

So guess what

my stupid ass did.

My mama's house.

A house that was paid for,

that she left to me.

The house that she had worked

her entire life to pay for.

I mortgaged it.

ROBERT:
Melinda!

MELINDA:
Working to keep my sisters

from knowing what I had done.

And every time I would see him

sleeping in the bed

when I was headed

to one of my two jobs,

I would get mad, you know?

I would get resentful.

And this was

my routine every day.

To the bastard's credit, he did

get odd jobs from time to time.

But they...

They didn't even cover

the utilities most of the time.

How do two people live through

two decades and miss everything?

Every moment of it?

I'll tell you how.

You just feel trapped.

But f*** that.

This trap wouldn't destroy me.

Or did it?

One of the saddest parts

of our lives was that

we were just existing.

No coloring outside

of the lines, no excitement,

no birth of a child

to mark our age,

or his or her first step,

or his or her graduation.

Nothing to be a mile marker for

the years that were passing.

There were no warnings signs.

Eighteen years seemed

to pass like days.

How does that happen?

Diana.

Wow. You look great.

Robert Gayle.

How have you been?

I've been good.

God, I haven't

seen you since...

Yeah, yeah.

She destroyed your RV.

I don't blame her though.

You should have

been honest.

We were kids.

No, but you lied

to me also, Robert.

- I didn't know about her.

- Yeah, I know,

I know, I'm sorry.

Anyway, whatever

happened to her?

I married her.

Okay.

So what are you

doing here?

Yeah, well, get this.

I've been sending letters

to Prescott here for years,

telling him about

my battery.

You remember, in school,

what I was working on?

No, sorry, I don't.

Well, anyway, I've been trying

to get a meeting with him,

and I found out that

Ms. Hilderbran retired

and that you took

her place,

- and congratulations, by the way.

- Mmm-hmm.

So I figured this must be God

helping me out, you know?

No, it's not God.

I can't help you.

What? Why?

No, I can't. We have new policies

now about receiving information.

But look,

Robert, it was really...

It was nice to see you.

Can I take you for a coffee

sometime, maybe catch up?

Yeah, sure,

if you invite your wife.

Look, I do not cheat

on my wife.

I don't do that.

This is strictly

business.

I can't help you.

- Look, I know.

- I'm sorry.

I know, I understand.

I just...

I just need some

advice, that's all.

Okay, look.

Here's my card.

I usually grab

coffee at Q & A

on 52nd Street in the

mornings at about 7:00 a.m.

- If you happen to be there...

- Yeah.

Then maybe

we can talk, okay?

Okay, thanks. Maybe

I'll catch you there.

Okay.

Carly, can you get me

the file on Robert Gayle?

CARLY:
You want the file

on the psycho

who's been sending letters

here since before I was born?

That's what I said.

Sure.

Thank you.

(PHONE RINGING)

Hello?

MELVIN:
Robert Gayle?

Yeah.

My name is Melvin White.

I'm the Head of Security for

Prescott and Howard Industries.

I'm calling to inform you

that you've been put into our

system as a credible threat.

You are not to send

another letter to our office,

nor contact or visit

any one of our employees.

You're not to come within

300 yards of our campus.

If you come near the building

again, you will be arrested.

F***!

(GRUNTS)

Damn it!

(ROBERT BREATHING HEAVILY)

What happened?

They won't see me.

Prescott. They won't see me!

Okay? They won't!

All these years wasted!

(ROBERT GRUNTS)

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