The Butterfly Effect Page #10

Her face is betrayed by a slight tick.

KAYLEIGH:

No. I emancipated myself when I was fifteen.

EVAN:

Wow. That must've taken some courage.

KAYLEIGH:

Not if you remember my dad.

EVAN:

Couldn't you have moved in with your mom?

KAYLEIGH:

(shaking her head)

She had a new family. Not enough space for me. Said I should have moved in with her when we were kids. But...whatever.

They walk in silence for a moment.

EVAN:

Actually, Kayleigh, the reason I came back to town was to talk to you.

KAYLEIGH:

(brightening)

Me? Are you kidding? Why?

EVAN:

Remember when I was a kid I had all these blackouts?

KAYLEIGH:

Of course.

EVAN:

Well, lately some of the memories have begun to come back and I'd kinds like to talk to you about one of them in particular. It'd be a big help.

KAYLEIGH:

Well, sure. I'll try to remember. Shoot.

EVAN:

When we were kids. Your dad was making a movie. Robin Hood or something?

KAYLEIGH:

(cold)

What do you want to know, Evan?

EVAN:

It's just...did he...what happened in the basement?

KAYLEIGH:

It was a long time ago.

EVAN:

I know, but...

KAYLEIGH:

(cold)

Is that why you came all the way back? To ask a lot of stupid questions about Robin Hood?

EVAN:

No, but I think something really bad might've happened to us.

Kayleigh stops walking and crushes her cigarette.

KAYLEIGH:

Is there a point to any of this?

Evan's features shift from inquisitory to tenderness. He steps closer to Kayleigh and softly strokes her face. She flinches at first, but remains in the same spot.

EVAN:

Whatever happened, it wasn't our fault. You know we couldn't have stopped it.

Kayleigh begins to tremble. Tears flow.

EVAN:

Look, Kayleigh. This may sound like bullshit coming from a guy who hasn't spoken to you in seven years...

She moves her face away from his hand.

EVAN:

But you were seven years old and there's nothing you could've done to deserve...

Her face collapses and she turns away.

KAYLEIGH:

(defeated)

Just shut up, Evan. You're wasting your breath.

EVAN:

You can't hate yourself just because your dad's a twisted freak.

KAYLEIGH:

Who are you trying to convince, Evan?! You come all the way out here to stir up my sh*t just because you had a bad memory!? You want me to cry on your shoulder and tell you that everything's all better now? Well f*** you, Evan! Nothing's gonna be all better! Okay?! Nothing ever gets better!

Kayleigh runs, stops and turns back to Evan.

KAYLEIGH:

If I was so wonderful, Evan, why didn't you ever call me? Why'd you leave me here to rot?!

She turns and runs away. Evan looks sick with guilt.

EXT. COLLEGE CAMPUS - QUAD - DAY - 2002

A few GREEKS play frisbee and talk trash. Evan, tired and depressed, sits on the lawn nearby, fingering the new burn scar on his belly. Contemplating...

INT. EVAN'S DORM - NIGHT

Evan enters his dorm. He ignores Thumper, who sits on Evan's bed sucking furiously from a gurgling bong. He chokes out a message.

THUMPER:

Some dude left a message for you.

Evan puts a towel under the door.

EVAN:

You can smell it all the way in the bathroom.

Evan hits "play" on the answering machine.

ANSWERING MACHINE

(male voice)

Hi, Evan, this is Professor Carter. Just wondered why you didn't hand in your essay this afternoon. I was a bit concerned. Call me to schedule a make-up.

BEEP. Thumper offers Evan a magnified frown of disapproval.

ANSWERING MACHINE

(male voice)

What did you say to my sister motherf***er?! Last night she cried on the phone for over an hour to me.

(enraged breathing)

She said you came and saw her last night.

Thumper coughs accidentally, tips the bong over on Evan's bed. Reacting quickly, he grabs a towel from under the door and wipes off Evan's comforter.

ANSWERING MACHINE

(Tommy; cont'd)

She...she f***ing killed herself tonight. She's dead.

(beat)

And so are you.

BEEP. Evan stares dumbstruck at the machine.

THUMPER:

Whoa, bad news, bro. I don't think this is gonna come out.

DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. CEMETERY - DAY

Evan, dressed in black, gets out of his car at the edge of the cemetery. A small cluster of friends and family gather at the grave. Evan grabs a bouquet of roses and begins walking to the grave. When he suddenly spots Mr. Miller and Tommy.

Evan's hands tense up into fists. He becomes weak in the knees and stops walking. After an uncomfortable moment of standing still, he retreats to his car and watches the ceremony from the driver's seat.

DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. CEMETERY - DAY

The last of the mourners are filing away. Evan exits his car and walks to the deserted grave. He drops the roses on the casket and turns to make sure nobody is watching.

Evan reaches into his pocket and pulls out a sheet of paper. He unfolds it and leaves it on her gravesite:

EVAN'S DIARY

I'll come back for you.

INT. EVAN'S DORM - NIGHT

He makes a weighty decision and gets up. He hastily hunts through his journals, looking for a certain book.

Evan opens his journal marked "Age 7". He plops on his bed and starts writing sideways in the margins.

EVAN (V.O.)

It's been said that a person's life is little more than the sum of his experiences. If that's true, then I'm not sure I know who I am anymore.

(beat)

I definitely never knew Kayleigh.

He turns the page and begins reading the journal. As he mouths the entry to himself, the resonance of an older man's voice seems to REVERBERATE throughout the room and the WORLD behind his head FAINTLY VIBRATES.

FLASH! SMASH CUT TO: INT. MILLER'S HOUSE - LIVING ROOM - DAY - 1989

Mr. Miller plays with his camera and the kids are excited about playing Robin Hood in a movie.

MR. MILLER

Shut up moron. Now get in your costume Evan.

Evan slowly nods and begins to strip out of his clothes. Mr. Miller takes a quick peek at him.

MR. MILLER

I've got an idea. Let's go downstairs, it'll look more like a dungeon down there.

INT. MILLER'S BASEMENT - DAY - 1989

Mr. Miller puts the camera on a tripod in the basement. Kayleigh and Evan sit on folding chairs in front of the camera. Tommy stands at the top of the basement stairs, looking down.

MR. MILLER

(to Tommy)

What did I say about keeping that door closed, stupid?

TOMMY:

But I wanna see!

MR. MILLER

You're gonna see my fist in about two seconds unless you do what I tell you.

Tommy sulks and closes the door. Mr. Miller lowers his voice and speaks to Evan and Kayleigh.

MR. MILLER

Now in this part of the story, Robin Hood just married Maid Marian and they have to kiss and stuff like grown-ups do.

Kayleigh giggles and covers her mouth with her hand. Evan looks skeptical.

MR. MILLER

So take your clothes off Kayleigh.

Kayleigh stops giggling. Evan says nothing.

MR. MILLER

Come on, like when you take a bath. Don't make a deal out of it. You too, Evan.

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