The News Continues Part I

FADE IN FROM BLACK

HIGH SCHOOL – FALL (LUNCH TIME)

SERIES OF SHOTS

EXT. BACK OF THE HIGH SCHOOL

POV THROUGH NEWS CAMERA, CAMERA ZOOMING IN AND OUT FOR FOCUS CHECK AND WHITE BALANCE CHECK ON SCOTT’S WHITE BUTTON-UP COLLARED SHIRT.

REPORTER SCOTT TASKER, late 30's, holding a MICROPHONE in his left hand and SMALL NOTEPAD in his right.

His RIGHT SHOULDER has a BANDAGED wrapped around it. A little BLOOD is showing through the bandage and FEW SPOTS OF BLOOD are on his white button-up collared shirt.

He takes a deep breath and slowly exhales.

COME OUT OF POV

NEWS PHOTOGRAPHER ZACH HOLCOMB, early 20's, is finishing setting up the camera. He lifts his head up away from the viewfinder.

ZACH
You ready Scott?

Scott nods his head.

POV THROUGH NEWS CAMERA

He holds the microphone up at chest level.

SCOTT
Three...two...one...
A sad day has stricken this small community
with an unthinkable crime. Five students are
dead and investigators are still trying to
piece together the...in...for...mation...

Scott shakes his head and lowers the microphone.

ZACH (O.S.)
It’s ok. Take your time.

Scott turns his back to the camera and looks up at the sky for a moment then looks over at the STUDENTS who are out in the PARKING LOT.



EXT. PARKING LOT

THE PARKING LOT IS FULL OF COP CARS, NEWS VANS, AMBULANCES, STUDENTS AND PARENTS CARS'.

STUDENTS AND PARENTS are crying and comforting each other.

Some Students are sitting on the ground being helped with minor injuries by EMERGENCY WORKERS and others are walking around in a state of confusion.

SHAWN CULLEN, late teens, is sitting at a PICNIC TABLE looking down at the ground while kicking the sand around with his foot.

Sitting across from him is MARY HUSCROFT, late teens, she is looking at the POLICE OFFICERS walking around the school as they examine every little detail of the building and the grounds. She then turns her attention over to SCOTT TASKER and their eyes meet for a moment.

Mary quickly turns away from him as a few TEARS fall from her eyes and down her cheek.

SHAWN
I can’t believe this is happening.

She wipes the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand.

SHAWN
Who knew Amanda would do something like this?

MARY
I can believe it.

Mary's lip being to stammer, she tries her hardest to control herself.

MARY
And it's all my fault.

No longer control herself, Mary buries her face into her arms as puts her head down on the table.
Shawn reaches out and out his hand on top of her head to comfort her.




INT. SCHOOL CAFETERIA

CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATOR 1 is hunched over taking PICTURES of AMANDA BENNETT’S, 15 years old, lifeless body on the stage. There is a GUN SHOT WOUND TO  HER HEAD. The GUN is still in her hand.

He stands straight up and CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATOR 2 lays a WHITE SHEET down over Amanda’s body.

CRANE UP AND PULL BACK SLOWLY TO UNVEIL, THE CAFETERIA IS A MESS.

TABLES ARE KNOCKED OVER AND STREWN ABOUT THE PLACE.

FOOD AND BLOOD ARE SPLATTERED ON THE WALLS AND FLOOR.

THREE OTHER WHITE SHEETS are draped over the bodies of students lying in the middle of the cafeteria.

A FEW OTHER INVESTIGATORS are taking pictures of the bodies and of the crime scene around the cafeteria.



INT. PRINCIPAL’S OFFICE

MS. LONG, TEACHER early 30's, is sitting in front of the PRINCIPAL’S DESK, CRYING as she wipes her eyes with a TISSUE.

DETECTIVE, early 40's, is kneeling down in front of Ms. Long.

DETECTIVE
I know this is hard for you Ms. Long, but can
you please try to remember about what lead up
to this mornings chaos?

Ms. Long grips the tissue tightly in her hands. Her knuckles being to turn white.

MS. LONG
All I can remember, is Amanda pulling a gun
out in my classroom and shooting Robert Green
dead right before my eyes. It all happened
so fast, I couldn’t react to it.



EXT. BACK OF HIGH SCHOOL

POV THROUGH CAMERA

SCOTT
...Details are still sketchy at this hour.
But again we have learned that 15 year old
Amanda Bennett, the shooter in this crime
has committed suicide after killing 5 other
students. Reporting for News 12, I'm Scott Tasker.

Scott drops the microphone on the ground, turns his back to the camera, lowers his head and shakes it in disgust.


FADE TO BLACK

FADE IN WHITE LETTERS OVER A BLACK BACKGROUND - FIVE YEARS LATER

FADE OUT LETTERS TO BLACK

FADE IN FROM BLACK


INT. NEWS STATION – (THE END OF THE 6 O'CLOCK SHOW)

SCOTT, early 40's, is sitting at the NEWS DESK in the ANCHOR CHAIR.

Sitting at the desk along side him is ANCHOR JANUS KELLEHER, early 40's, WEATHER MAN GREG PENNINGTON, late 40's, and SPORTS ANCHOR LOGAN PHIFER, early 40's.

GREG
It’s going to be a stormy night out there
folks. Look for the thunderstorms to start
moving in around mid-night tonight. But it’s
all going to clear out by sunrise tomorrow morning.

JANUS
All right. Thank you Greg for that weather
update.

NEWS MUSIC FADES IN

SCOTT
That’s all the time we have for now. Be sure to
join us again at eleven. Have a safe evening
everyone.

All the anchors sit there for a moment chatting with each other.

JIB CAM TILTS UP AND PULLS OUT SLOWLY.

FLOOR DIRECTOR
And... we’re clear guys. Thanks.

Scott gathers his SCRIPTS and gets up out of the chair. He unclips the MICROPHONE from his tie and sets it on the NEWS DESK.

He pulls the IFB out of his ear and lets it dangle on his left shoulder. Scott then exits off the set with scripts in hand.

While walking back to his own desk, among the rows of CUBICLES, NEWS DIRECTOR RONALD NORTHCUTT, early 40's, approaches Scott.

RONALD
Another damn good news cast Scott.

Scott smirks a bit while tosses the scripts in the trash and he sits down in his chair at his desk, located in a cubical. He puts is hands behind his head and leans back in his chair.

SCOTT
What do you want?

Ronald leans up against the wall of the cubicle.

RONALD
Nothing, I just came over to talk to my
two best anchors.

CUBICAL NEXT TO SCOTT, Janus sets some papers down on her desk and laughs.

JANUS
Could you please kiss my ass some more?

Scott laughs as he leans forward.

RONALD
You're a firecracker you know that.

Janus smiles a bit then and walks away from her desk.

CAMERA FOLLOW JANUS

ZACH, with his hair pulled back into a ponytail and a cigarette behind his ear, passes Janus while on his way to Scott’s desk.

ZACH
Don’t let him shit you Janus, he’s just
glad you’re helping the station stay number one
and he gets to keep his job.

JANUS
(Passes Zach)
Get a haircut Zach.

CAMERA STOPS ON ZACH

ZACH
Gosh I love her. So honest but yet so ballsy at
the same time.

He continues to walk towards Scott’s desk.

Scott unties his neck tie and lets it dangle around his neck.

SCOTT
(To Zach)
She’s right you know. You do need a hair cut.

ZACH
And you need to get some Just Five for hair.
You have that salt and pepper thing kicking.

RONALD
It’s called being distinguished and if anyone
should know that, it would be Scott.

SCOTT
That's because I'm an old fart. I've doing
this stuff way too long.

RONALD
Hell, you were probably the original backpack
reporter. Carrying your own camera around his, shoot
the stories, then bring them back to the station to
write, voice, and edit.

SCOTT
The only reason why I did all that stuff was
because no one has patients to work with.


ZACH
You’re right, I don't have patients working with
you. Not with those little ideas you have turning
in your head, then you expect me to turn it into video?
Forget you? You can do that shit yourself.

They all laugh for a moment.

RONALD
(To Scott)
You still carrying that camera with you?

SCOTT
No, I haven't done it in awhile. I kind of
retired it.

RONALD
But you still have the tape from 5 years ago?
Don't you?

Scott starts to get a little uncomfortable.

SCOTT
Yes, I still have the tape.

RONALD
Have you even looked at it?

Scott shakes his head.

SCOTT
I lived through it, there’s no need for me to
relive it.

ZACH
(To Ronald)
If he ever wants to relive that, he can just look
at the scar on his right shoulder.

Ronald and Zach laugh but Scott nervously smirks.

Zach suddenly snaps his fingers.

ZACH
Oh, the other day, I drove past Amanda Bennett’s
parent’s old house on my way back to the station
from shooting a budget cut story out that way.
Did you know they're gonna tear down that house
next week?

RONALD
I’ve read that in the paper. They tried to
sell it on the market for the past three years but
no one wanted it.

ZACH
Do you blame them? I wouldn’t want that house
either. After what they found there.



INT. TASKER HOUSE - KITCHEN/DINNING ROOM (DINNER TIME)

The kitchen and the dinning room are connected.

The DINNER TABLE is set.

CANDACE TASKER, early 40's, is standing over a STOVE COOKING SPAGHETTI. She is stirring it with a WOODEN FORK.

VANESSA TASKER, 9 years old, and HANNAH TASKER, 6 years old, come running into the kitchen.

Vanessa is chasing Hannah around the dinner table, playfully. They are laughing and giggling.

Candace turns her attention to the girls with a big grin on her face.

CANDACE
All right girls, that’s enough.



INT. TASKER HOUSE - LIVING ROOM

The front door opens and in walks SCOTT. He shuts the door behind him as he toss his suit jacket and tie on to the couch, he then proceeds into the kitchen.

CUT TO KITCHEN

Scott enters the kitchen.

Vanessa and Hannah stop chasing each other.

VANESSA
(Giggling)
Hey Dad.

SCOTT
Hey you two.

Scott walks over to the refrigerator and opens it. He takes out a bottle of water.

SCOTT
You two been good today and not causing
any trouble for your mom?

VANESSA
Oh no sir, no trouble here. We’ve been good.

Hannah nods her head a few times.

HANNAH
Yeah, we've been good.

Hannah looks over at Vanessa and they both start to giggle.

Scott walks over to them and bends down.

SCOTT
(Looking at Vanessa)
Good.
(Sifts his eyes over to Hannah)
Now go wash up for dinner.

Both girls rush out of the kitchen, chasing each other again. Their laughter fades away as they leave the kitchen.

Once the girls are gone, Scott walks over to Candace and gives her a big hug from behind.
Candace turns around and they kiss each other on the lips.

CANDACE
I guess work went well for you today.

SCOTT
No, not really.

Scott stops hugging Candace, he leans up against the kitchen counter and opens the bottle of water. He takes a drink.

SCOTT (Cont’d)
It was tiring as usual and I am not looking
forward to the eleven o’clock show tonight.


CANDACE
You’ll be fine. You’re always fine.

Scott smirks.

SCOTT
Some days.

Scott takes another drink.

Candace laughs.

CANDACE
Go wash up, dinner will be ready in a few minutes.

Scott smiles at Candace.

SCOTT
Yes ma’am.



INT. MASTER BEDROOM - BATHROOM

SCOTT is standing over a sink washing his face.

He looks up into the MIRROR with water dripping down from his face, he then reaches for a HAND TOWEL hanging on the RACK, close to the sink.

Drying his face off with the towel, he walks into the bedroom.

THE BEDROOM IS DARK. ONLY THE LIGHT FROM THE BATHROOM AND HALLWAY IS ILLUMINATING IT.

He lowers the towel slowly from his face and notices his CAMERA BAG sitting on the DRESSER with SOME CLOTHES piled up on top of it.

Scott stares at it intensely while he continues drying his hands off with the towel.

Toss the towel into the LAUNDRY BASKET, Scott starts to walk out of the bedroom but he stops at the door way.

He then looks back at the camera sitting on the dresser.




INT. KITCHEN

CANDACE, VANESSA, AND HANNAH are sitting at the DINNER TABLE waiting for Scott.

HANNAH
(To Candace)
Is dad going to eat dinner with us?

Candace bites down on her bottom lip.

CANDACE
Let me go check on him.

Candace gets up from the table.

CANDACE (Cont’d)
Don’t eat anything while I’m gone.



INT. MASTER BEDROOM

THE TV SCREEN IS OUT OF FOCUS.

SCOTT is sitting on the edge of the BED in the DARK, right in front of the TV holding the CAMERA in his hands.

The camera is hooked directly into the TV.

SOUNDS OF SCREAMING, GUN SHOTS, AND PANIC ARE COMING FROM THE TV.

Scott keeps rewinding the tape inside the camera and hitting play over and over again.

CANDACE enters the bedroom. Standing at the door way, she realizes what Scott is watching. She closes her eyes and shakes her head in sadness.

CANDACE
Watching the tape again, Scott?

Scott stops the tape and the screen on the TV turns BLUE. He looks down at the floor.
Candace walks into the room and sits down on the bed, to the RIGHT of him.


CANDACE
It’s ok hun, I understand. I was scared
to death when I heard what happened to you.

Candace smooths back Scott’s hair on the side of his head with her hand a few times.

SCOTT
(Still looking down at the floor)
When it happened, I was scared too.
(Looks up at Candace)
I was scared I wasn’t going to see Vanessa,
Hannah, or you again.

Scott gazes deeply into Candace eyes.

Candace stops smoothing back his hair and rests her hand on Scott's RIGHT SHOULDER but Scott grabs her hand quickly and holds it.

SCOTT
But what’s really been bothering me is that
I did the story right after it happened. Once
Ronald found out I was going to be ok,
he calls me on my cell phone to tell me to
do the story. I didn’t want too but he
insisted that I do it or be fired. I should
have told him to fire me because I never felt
so heartless in my life after that.

CANDACE
You never told me about that. Why didn’t
you tell him to fire you? I would have
understood.

SCOTT
I didn’t want to put the family through that
Candace.

CANDACE
If it would have saved you the heartache.
I think the girls and I could have dealt
with it.

SCOTT
Would you’ve?

CANDACE
Scott, you know me better than that.

Scott grins slightly and then gives Candace a kiss on the cheek.

He looks up at the CLOCK sitting on top of the TV. 7:37 P.M. it reads.

SCOTT
I have to get back to the station.

CANDACE
You’re going to skip out on dinner?

SCOTT
There’s a package I need to write and track
for the eleven o’clock show. But I promise
I’ll eat when I get home tonight.

CANDACE
Well I don’t want you to go to work on an
empty stomach.

SCOTT
I’ll be fine, I'll just get some trail-mix out
of the vending machine.

Candace gets up from the bed and heads toward the door.

CANDACE
No, I’ll fix you a small lunch to take with
you. Something to hold you over until then.