Thoroughbreds Page #6

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[ERGOMETER WHIRRING]

Um...

Do you remember that stuff

you were saying to Tim

the other day?

What stuff?

The stuff about how...

his life...

- isn't worth living.

- Yeah.

Do you ever ask that question

about yourself?

Like, any of our lives?

Like, in a philosophical sense?

Like...

your life...

in particular.

I just mean like...

If you can't...

feel anything,

like, even happiness

or...

I'm so sorry. I...

I didn't mean that.

No, it's...

It's okay. I just never really

thought about it.

Stop.

I drugged it.

You what?

I put Rohypnol in it.

You roofied me.

Yeah.

Why?

LILY:
Because I...

was gonna knock you out

and then go upstairs.

And afterwards I was gonna put

the knife in your hand

to make it look like you'd...

Oh, I'm so sorry, okay? I...

I don't even know

what I was thinking. Just...

Just give me the glass

and I'll throw them both away...

Stop.

Stop it.

AMANDA:
Ooh.

What did you do?

I drank it.

I told you not to. You...

You need to go throw up.

Come on.

No, thanks.

LILY:
Do you know

what this does?

Oh, yeah. It, um...

Oh, God, you really dosed

this motherf***er up.

Why would you do that?

I live a meaningless life...

LILY:
No.

You're...

you're a great...

friend.

I'm a...

I'm a skilled imitator.

Hey.

Hey!

[INDISTINCT TV CHATTER]

[GASPS]

[BREATHES HEAVILY]

[FESTIVE MUSIC PLAYING OVER TV]

[CHATTER ON TV CONTINUES,

INDISTINCT]

SARA [OVER TV]:
Are they

going to South Africa too?

ROSE [OVER TV]:

Yes, dear.

They're going to relieve

our poor soldiers in Mafeking.

SARA:
Is there something the matter

with our soldiers in Mafeking?

ROSE:
The Boers have them

all cut off.

We were unable to break

through their lines

- and get help to them.

- [CLATTERING]

[CHATTER ON TV CONTINUES]

SARA:
Miss Rose,

my daddy's at Mafeking.

[SARA CRYING]

ROSE:

Oh, darling, I'm so sorry.

I didn't know.

SARA:

Oh, it's miserable.

ROSE:
Shh.

[SARA CONTINUES CRYING]

ROSE:

Darling, you mustn't cry.

I'm sure he'll be all right.

[ERGOMETER STOPS]

ROSE:

Good afternoon, Mr. Geoffrey.

GEOFFREY [OVER TV]: Good afternoon.

Is Miss Sara ready for her ride?

- [LOUD THUDS]

- ROSE:
Yes, she'll be down presently.

GEOFFREY:

Thanks.

Oh, are we all ready?

[LOUDER THUDS]

GEOFFREY:
The two most

beautiful ladies in the world.

Why are you not

in your riding things?

I can't go today. Ermengarde

needs extra tutoring today.

GEOFFREY:

Oh, will it take all afternoon?

ROSE:
I'm afraid so.

I have to stay with her until

she can spell Constantinople.

GEOFFREY:

Heavens, that may take months.

ROSE:

You leave that to me.

GEOFFREY:
Shall we go?

Have you been crying?

But you have, there are still

tears in your eyes.

SARA:

It's just this London fog.

GEOFFREY:
Oh, well, if that's

all, let's be off, shall we?

SARA:
Mr. Geoffrey.

Would you mind very much

if we didn't ride today?

GEOFFREY:
Not at all, dear.

But may I ask why not?

- [FOOTSTEPS APPROACHING]

- SARA:
I'd like to talk to you.

GEOFFREY:
All right.

[LILY PANTING]

[TV CHATTER CONTINUES,

INDISTINCT]

- [KNIFE THUDS]

- [LILY BREATHING HEAVILY]

[AMANDA SNORING]

[INDISTINCT TV CHATTER]

[LILY SOBS]

MAN [OVER TV]:
You take advantage of

my absence to become a riding master?

And next door to me own house?

Where's your family pride, boy?

GEOFFREY [OVER TV]:

Well, sir, one must eat,

and family pride

is a pretty thin diet.

MAN:
Oh, blackmail?

You think I'll buy you off?

GEOFFREY:
I hadn't thought of

that, but it's not a bad idea.

MAN:
I'll see you hanged,

drawn and quartered for that.

Wait till I see the woman

who runs this school.

I'll put a spoke in your wheel.

GEOFFREY:

Do! She'd love to know

my grandfather is Lord Wickham.

She'll probably

raise my salary!

[HIGH-PITCHED WHINE

DROWNS OUT ALL SOUND]

[WHINE STOPS ABRUPTLY]

[CAR APPROACHING]

[CAR DOOR OPENS]

Tim?

[EXHALES]

Moving up in the world.

What are you doing here?

Lunch meeting.

It's only weird

if you make it weird.

So, what's your meeting?

College interview, actually.

They take you out

to lunches for those?

They don't usually, but, um...

the guy interviewing me is...

was actually a friend

of my stepdad's.

I heard.

I heard about that.

I'm sorry... for your loss.

It's been a tough time

for my family.

But we're pushing through it.

Uh, I think...

this is for you.

Just so you know...

I'm glad you didn't show up.

Okay.

I wanted her to forget

all about it, but...

she...

felt differently.

Did you, uh...

talk to her after that?

She did write me

a letter, though.

About a week ago.

TIM:
What did it say?

AMANDA:
Things actually

aren't bad here.

Food's okay,

staff are generally

nice people.

The therapists

have been working with me

to fill in my memories

of those missing hours.

And it's kind

of a fun exercise.

I can tell them f***ing

anything and they'll

just write it down and nod.

In other news, the ol'

medication-of-the-month club

is back in full swing,

and the latest ones

are making me sleep

14 hours a day

and dream constantly.

You're in a lot of them.

In one of the recurring ones,

we're in your living room,

and I've just drank

your drugged screwdriver...

and you're screaming,

asking me why I did it.

Asking me why I have a horse's

head instead of my face.

And I wanna tell you

that I don't,

but I turn to you

and I open my mouth

and all that comes out is...

[HORSE NEIGHS]

AMANDA:
And then there's

this other recurring dream

that doesn't involve you

at all.

And it goes like this:

I'm Honeymooner,

and I'm dying.

And I rise out of my body,

and I'm staring down

at our whole suburb,

and time is speeding up.

And I see generations

of people coming,

and going,

and building bigger houses.

And then eventually...

the people start spending

more and more of their time

staring at their smartphones.

And soon enough,

they're forgetting to clean

their houses,

or mow their lawns,

or eat,

and eventually, all the houses

rot and collapse,

and the people disappear,

vanishing completely

into the Internet.

And then...

and this is the really

beautiful part,

the horses take over.

And the whole suburb

is just beautiful

thoroughbred stallions

with no owners

and no memory of owners

and no way of knowing

how expensive they are,

just mating and galloping

through the ruins.

What did it say?

I don't know.

I just threw it away.

[ELECTRONIC MUSIC PLAYING]

[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING]

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