MONSTERS OF THE AMERICAN CINEMA

_______________

Christian St. Croix

The Frankenstein Draft

8-10-22

Public Copy
[email protected]
 SYNOPSIS

When his husband dies, Remy Washington, a Black man, finds himself
both the owner of a drive-in movie theater and a caregiver to his late
husband’s straight, white teenage son, Pup. United by their love of
classic American monster movies, the two have developed a warm and
caring familial chemistry – but their relationship fractures when Remy
discovers Pup and his friends have been bullying a gay teen at his
school. Told through dueting monologue and playful dialogue, Monsters
of the American Cinema is a haunting and humorous tale about fathers
and sons, ghosts and monsters.

AWARDS

Carlo Annoni International Drama Prize, 2021

San Diego International Fringe Festival, Artists' Pick, 2019
San Diego International Fringe Festival, Cultural Exchange, 2019

DEVELOPMENT HISTORY

Reading, Urbanite Theatre, Sarasota, FL, 2021

Workshop, Prologue Theatre, Arlington, VA, 2021
Workshop, San Diego Fringe Festival, San Diego, CA, 2019
Workshop, Scripps Ranch Theatre, San Diego, CA, 2018

WORLD PREMIERE

ArtsWest Playhouse, 2022

 CHARACTERS

REMY WASHINGTON
Thirty-seven. Black. Cis male. He/him. Gay. A widower. Remy leads his two-male
household with a warm and loving sense of humor, but he knows when to drop the cool-
dad permissiveness and command respect. An activist, he's deliberately unrefined,
highly disinterested in extravagance or luxury. His working class roots should be
obvious in body and dress. He may or may not have tattoos.

PETER “PUP” MILLER

Sixteen. White. Cis male. He/him. Straight. The son of Remy's late husband. Pup's an
aspiring filmmaker, but little more than a skinny kid with a camcorder for now. At
home with Remy, he shares his late father's quippy sense of humor and fidgety nerves.
You wouldn't recognize the arrogant bully he becomes when he's around his friends,
though. He sprouts a little chin stubble.

SETTING

The action of the play takes place in three areas of a stationary two-bedroom older
model motorhome:

Motorhome Rooftop. Flat and even, often occupied. It’s accessed via a ladder, but we
might not need to see it.

Kitchen/Living Area. The area where our characters hang the most. It hosts dollar store
grade décor and kitchen items including a flashlight, a knife block and a wall mounted
coat rack. There's a worn RV-sized sofa and a dinette booth (or a small table and two
chairs) which serves as a catch-all. Two doors are visible: one leading outside of the
motorhome, the other leading to its only bathroom.

Pup's Bedroom. Small, located in the tail end of the motorhome. There's a bed and a
Creature From the Black Lagoon poster.

TIME

The Present.
High School Homecoming Season.
 NOTES

This play is performed without an intermission.

The scene titles are just markers to separate the beats in the script. The show should run
non-stop.

A slash mark ( / ) in a character's speech means the other character begins their the next
line, both lines overlap, and the two speak at the same time.

“A moment” marks short or long dramatic pauses depending on the...moment.

The duologues exist outside of the main story. They're delivered casually and non-
theatrically as if Remy and Pup are speaking to a documentary camera. Think
confessional cutaways. Neither Remy nor Pup hear the other's side of the duologue, nor
should there be pauses when they switch from one character's side of the duologue to
the other. When one stops, the other starts. Neither should freeze when the other is
talking.

“El Cajon” = El Caw-Hown.

“Filippi’s” = Fill-LEE-Peace.
 MONSTERS OF THE AMERICAN CINEMA

HORMONAL TEENAGERS CAN HAVE FRIENDS OF THE OPPOSITE SEX

Lights rise on the roof of an old model

motorhome. The sky is clear. The sun's just
going down. There's a couple of ratty and
mismatched lawn chairs, but REMY
WASHINGTON, thirty-seven, Black, isn't
bothering with either. He sits cross-legged
before a piece of poster board and two clear
plastic squeeze bottles, one half-full of red
poster paint, the other almost empty of
green poster paint. Paint brush in hand, he's
putting the finishing touches on a sign.
Near him, a pack of cigarettes and a lighter
sit on top of a radio set.

REMY
(to the audience)
We met at a rally. Transgender Equality. Have you noticed how
corporatized rallies and protests have become lately? They’re practically
sponsored. Half surprised a Red Bull blimp doesn’t fly over every last
one of them. Last rally I went to, this man had his little girl selling merch.
No shit. Cute little thing, her barrettes matched her little dress. She
walked up with a Melanin Magic T-shirt and tried to talk thirty bucks out
of me for it. I mean...she succeeded. Even threw in a tip. She was too
adorable to say no to.
(a moment, realizes he hasn't introduced himself)
Remy Washington. Age thirty-sev--four...
(a moment)
...two. Owner and proprietor of the Good Time Drive-In, here in Santee,
right outside of San Diego off the fifty-two.

Santee is...small. Population: mostly white. The, um, red kind of white.
Quiet...for the most part. This charming pair of locals--husband and wife
team--they decide to do a little shopping at a Food 4 Less grocery store,
both with large swastika designs on their matching T-shirts. Some
college kid, she sees this. Things gets hot, words are exchanged, a fight
breaks out. The wife takes a hell of a wind-up punch to the grill and lands
chin first into a bread display. One of the store clerks gets this on phone
cam, puts it on Twitter, it goes viral, and two days later, an article comes
out in the San Diego Union-Tribune telling the tale and re-introducing
the unofficial nickname of our fair suburban city: “Klan-tee.” That Food
4 Less grocery store? It's two blocks from here.

1
 REMY [CONT'D]
(a moment, looks around at his lot)
We're open six nights a week and we get a good sized crowd, all things
considered. Multiplexes play the new shit, we play the classics.
Casablanca. Psycho. Citizen Kane. We even do the old musicals: Singin'
in the Rain, The Wizard of Oz, West Side Story. Every Christmas, we play
It's a Wonderful Life. Every once in awhile, we'll even play Grease. I
mean, it came out in '78, it's not an oldie-oldie, technically, but our
clientele doesn't seem to mind that.

Our biggest nights are the Monster Movie Double Features, Fridays and
Saturdays starting at dusk. Two-for-one admission, children under four
permitted free. If dining at our lovely snack bar, we offer a limited range
of delicious snacks and beverages. Hot dogs, nachos and popcorn, also
two-for-one--!

Lights up on Pup's bedroom. There's a

Creature from the Black Lagoon poster
tacked up somewhere. PETER “PUP”
MILLER, sixteen, white, sits on his bed in
an undershirt and a pair of boxer shorts. A
dress shirt, a pair of slacks, a pair of dress
socks and a smartphone also lie on the bed.
Throughout the following, Pup begins to
dress himself in the slacks and dress shirt.

PUP
(to the audience)
Peter Miller. Everyone calls me Pup. It’s, like, a nickname...? I’m
sixteen, just turned sixteen. Um. I’m a Junior. I live in Santee, behind the
Good Time Drive-In...not a house, it's like an RV...what do they call it, a
“motorhome”...? It's pretty big though. Ummm.
(a moment)
I don't know what else to--
(a moment)
I live with...his name's Remy. He's like my guardian. He was married to
my dad. He owned the Good Time. My dad, not...

But when he died, Remy took over. He's gonna let me run it when I'm old
enough, if I want to.

Remy drops the paint brush, taking a break.

He takes a cigarette from the pack on top of
the radio and lights it.

2
 REMY
(inhaling, blowing smoke out)
So this rally. It was at a gay bar in Hillcrest. Hillcrest, that’s the “gay
friendly” neighborhood over in the city. The organizers invited some
politician to give a speech and I’m like...ehhhh. I don’t do politicians. I
think they're all bad news. So when the “suit” took the podium...
(wags the lit cigarette)
I took a smoke break. Protests, rallies, they're exhausting. It used to be
just us, the have-nots. Now, we've been joined by the “wealthy and the
guilty”--freshly scrubbed white folks from the clean and quiet side of the
tracks who suddenly want to do the right thing. They show up in their
little visors and designer blouses and luxury wedges, trynna best one
another with the most creative protest signs and get on the news.

PUP
(gestures at the poster)
Creature from the Black Lagoon. It's my favorite. I mean, I like most of
them.
(a moment)
Gill-man kills Richard Denning, then climbs up the side of the boat, and
when Richard Carlson--two Richards, right--when he's distracted by the
fallen logs, Gill-Man grabs Julie Adams and pulls her overboard into the
water. He's swimming with her to his underwater cave and the effects are
so corny, but like a good kind of “so corny.”

REMY
They'd invited a politician to speak. A politician! Look, I don’t care what
party you go for. If you’re one of them, you’re not one of us. You'll say
whatever you need to say just to get those votes.

So I'm outside of this bar, I'm smoking, and there’s, like, this guy
standing a few feet away from me on the sidewalk. Wild red hair, denim
jacket, kind of a porn-stache thing going on, totally not my type. And
he’s smoking a cigarette too. Or, I mean, I thought it was a cigarette. It
was a joint. You know I never got into weed? Tried it once at a friend’s
house, I was fourteen. I remember I crawled beneath her kitchen table
and couldn’t figure out how to crawl back out again.

PUP
And then the scene when Gill-man carries Julie Adams into the cave?
Urban legend is that the stuntman accidentally struck Julie's head against
the side of the set and she was truly unconscious for the shot they used in
the film. She'd later say it wasn't true.

3
 REMY
At that time in my life, there was nothing a white boy could do for me
but fetch my slippers. So I rolled my eyes, looked away, figured he’d get
the message and find something else to stare at. But I look up and he’s
still, like, his eyes are still on me. Then he starts to walk over and I’m
thinking, 'Fuck, I don’t want to have to cuss this white boy out.'
(entering another tangent)
White gays--? Let me tell you about white gays. I personally prefer it
when they're upfront with their sexual racism. Like, throw “BLM” in
your public bios, “No Spice, No Rice, No Chocolate, No Curry” in your
private bios, date your twin brothers and live your unseasoned love lives
happily ever after and as far away from us as possible. Easy-peasy. A-OK
with us.

It's the ones who think they're progressive unicorns that irk the hell out of
me. They treat Black men like we’re Thug Porn. They're “down”, they
“get it”, and still, it’s not uncommon for some plucky palm-colored
bottom with braids and a full nail set to walk up on us asking about the
size of our dicks before even asking our names.

Remy coughs. He returns to work on the

poster, embarrassed by his tangent.

REMY [CONT'D]
(coughs, returns to his work on the poster)
So...yeah. Denim Jacket walks over to me, and he goes, “Excuse me, are
your feet tired?” The lamest, most cliché pick-up line. He got me. He got
me with that one.

PUP
I had to be six, seven. He said I'd wake him in the middle of the night,
screaming about a monster. I think...I remember shapes. And eyes. I
couldn't see them clearly, but I know they saw me. I remember it talking
to me. It made these...noises...

REMY
So he asks if he can join me and I’m like, “Fuck it, almost done with the
smoke, politician's talking, why not?” He stands next to me and—this is
what did it—he didn’t say a word. I smoke my cigarette, he smokes his
joint, we both just...exist. I think sometimes people have to fill every
waking moment with the sound of their own voices. Like, no one just
enjoys the silence. I’m the type—you can be right there on my hip and I'll
just want to listen to the city. I like the sounds of cars and power lines
and wind, y’know? Like stay with me, but be silent. Listen, y’know?

4
 Pup, now dressed in the slacks and shirt,
begins searching around his room for a
missing item.

PUP
Dad took me to a psychiatrist once, called him a “total quack.” I
remember because I thought it was funny he'd said “quack”, like a duck, I
was a kid. He spent a lot of money just to have some dude tell him to put
me on antidepressants. Dad didn't like that idea. He didn't like the idea of
medication period because...
(a moment)
He used to say, “The world is one big ball of drugs.” His mother used to
be an addict too. I heard him telling Remy about it one night when they
thought I was sleeping.

REMY
The suit on the mike inside the bar says some fake cheerleader shit and
the crowd goes crazy. But I was outside smoking with Brian.

Remy pulls a long chain with a ring

hanging from it from the inside of his shirt.
He dangles it for the audience to see, then
cups the ring in his hand, holds it to his
chest.

REMY [CONT'D]
(a moment)
That’s his name...was his name. Brian. Together for four years, married
for two, and the first time we met is still my favorite memory.
(a moment, a smile, small and sad)
Stupid white boy.

Lights rise on the motorhome's

kitchen/living area. A camcorder with a
playback screen lies on the table along with
a flashlight and a half-empty bag of potato
chips rolled up and pinned with a chip clip.
A dress jacket and a tie lie on the sofa. A
denim jacket hangs from a wall-mounted
coat rack above a pair of mens dress shoes
next to a backpack.

Lights stay up on Pup's room. Pup, still on

his search, enters from his bedroom. He
looks around, seeing Remy isn't there. He
opens the motorhome door and calls out:

5
 PUP
Remy!

REMY
Shit.

Remy stubs the cigarette. He takes the

poster paint bottles and the poster board in
and exits (or climbs down the ladder) with
them. A moment. Remy enters the open
motorhome door with the items, setting the
paint bottles on the dinette table.

PUP
Were you smoking again?

REMY
Nah bro, you know I quit. What's up?

PUP
I can't find my...

Remy holds the poster board up for Pup to

see. It's a sign. It reads: “GAY OWNED.”
It's very green.

PUP [CONT'D]
(the sign is hideous)
...tie.

REMY
Real thoughts, okay? And don't go easy on me just because I know where
you sleep.

PUP
Needs more green.

REMY
I'm out of all my other colors. I have green poster paint, I have red poster
paint. Thought about going with both, but red and green say “Christmas”,
Christmas sparks joy, kids think of tinsel and holly, gingerbread cookies,
Santa, elves...

PUP
Rudolph.

6
 REMY
Rudolph, Comet, Prancer, right. Not what I'm going for. I would’ve gone
with all red, but I didn’t want it to look like a threat. I mean, it is a threat,
but not a “I’m going to chainsaw massacre you” kind of threat, although I
wouldn’t say that's completely off the table. So red, bad.
(shakes sign)
Green, good.

PUP
“Gay Owned” what?

Remy hands the poster board to Pup and

gestures at him. He's gay owned.

REMY
It's for the snack bar. Mandy wore her “Eat Pussy, Not Animals” tee last
week and one of Santee's finest gave her a hard time.
(taking and laying the poster board back on the dinette table)
This is a declaration. You come to the Good Time, you are on gay-owned
land. Show some respect.

PUP
Why doesn’t Mandy just wear her uniform? You wear your uniform
when you're working the snack bar.

Pup crosses back into his bedroom. He

scans the top of his bed for his tie. He only
finds the pair of dress socks. He picks them
up.

REMY
(calling after him)
Mandy doesn't do uniforms. Plus, it gets hot behind the counter with the
hot dog roller and the popcorn machine going.

Pup crosses from his bedroom with the

socks.

REMY [CONT'D]
What were you looking for again?

PUP
My tie.

7
 REMY
(snaps his fingers)
Your tie! Right. The Case of the Missing Tie.

PUP
I can't remember where I put it.

Pup crosses into the bathroom on his

search. Remy spots the tie on the sofa. He
picks it up and crosses to the bathroom
door. Pup exits, no longer carrying the
socks. Remy throws the tie around Pup's
neck and begins to tie it for him.

PUP [CONT'D]
I can do it.

Pup takes the tie into the bathroom. Remy

stands by the door, waits knowingly. A
moment and Pup exits with the tie. He
hands it to Remy who begins to tie it on for
him, a comical pout on his face.

PUP [CONT'D]
What's that?

REMY
(deepening the pout)
Hm?

PUP
What are you doing with your face right now?

REMY
Nothing!
(a moment, then in a baby voice)
You're just my widdle man...

PUP
Stop it.

REMY
I'm, like, really feeling this shit right now. Look at you! You're all man
sized, got a little chin sprout going. And you smell like you’re about to
say “I do” to a chick I’m totally gonna hate.

8
 Remy's done with the tie. He sniffs Pup.

REMY [CONT'D]
(sniffs)
Actually, you smell like me. Are you wearing my cologne? What
happened to your smell-good? You too good for Axe body spray now?

PUP
It's Homecoming. Gotta go premium for Homecoming. You remember,
right?

REMY
You think I'd be living vicariously through you if I went to
Homecoming? Woop! That reminds me.

Remy rushes to the denim jacket on the

coat rack and pulls a box of LifeStyles
condoms from the pocket. He hands them
to Pup.

REMY [CONT'D]
Homecoming's the dance the kids go horizontal after, right? Or is it
Prom? I get my American heteronormative traditions mixed up.

PUP
(scrunches his nose at the box)
LifeStyles?

REMY
I know. Thought we'd be a Trojan household, but the liquor store
changed vendors.

PUP
(hands the box back to Remy)
I won't need these.

REMY
You're saying that because you don't see what kind they--look!
(holds condoms up)
“Ultra Sensitive.”

PUP
Mia and I are just friends.

9
 REMY
“Mia.” So she has a name. She tell you what color dress she's wearing?

PUP
She's wearing pink. Cameo pink, thank you, Google.

REMY
(winces)
Everyone can't do pink. She's bold. What color's her hair?

PUP
It's...dark. She keeps it short.

REMY
Like how short? Demi Moore Ghost? Alien 3 Sigourney?

PUP
Not like...her hair's...
(a moment)
She's Black.

REMY
Like, a Black girl? You're taking a Black girl to Homecoming? We're
renting a limo.
(no)
A horse and carriage!

PUP
Plan's already set. I'm walking over with some friends and meeting her
there.

REMY
Why didn't you tell me your date is Black?

PUP
Does it matter?

REMY
Yes!
(quickly)
No!
(a moment)
So you remember the rules then?

10
 PUP
Don't call her “exotic.” Don't call her “chocolate”, she's not a flavor.
Don't touch her hair without asking. Don't ask to touch her hair.

REMY
(fist in the air)
Stay woke!
(holds condoms up)
Just take one. Two.

PUP
Mia's just a friend. Hormonal teenagers can have friends of the opposite
sex.

Pup looks down at his feet, realizes he's not

wearing socks, looks at his hands, realizes
he's no longer holding the socks, rushes
back into his bedroom and begins
searching for them.

REMY
(calls after him)
Have I ever told you the Legend of Ross and Rachel?

PUP
(from the bedroom)
Remy.

REMY
Once upon a time--1994--in a land far far away--New York City--there
lived a humble young lad by the name of Ross. He had a “just a friend”
too, a lovely young maiden named Rachel.

Pup enters again, begins scanning the

kitchen floor.

PUP
Living Single was a way better show.

REMY
Oh my god, right?!

PUP
It starred Queen Latifah! Queen Latifah--?!

11
 They begin talking over each other
excitedly.

PUP [CONT'D] REMY

We're talking The Secret Lives of Oh, baby, you don't know the Queen!
Bees, Set It Off, Last Holiday, Actress! Producer! Talk show host!
Bringing Down the House, Role model! Pioneer of Female
Barbershop 2, Beauty Shop--! Rap-- !

PUP [CONT'D] & REMY [CONT'D]

(together, sings)
“U-N-I-T-Y! You gotta let 'em know--!”

Pup and Remy bro-shake, then Pup crawls

on his knees and checks beneath the dinette
table.

REMY [CONT'D]
What are we looking for now?

PUP
I can't find the socks.

REMY
They were on your bed with the shirt. You must've moved them.

PUP
Why would I move them? I laid them out on my bed so I wouldn't move
them. I had a system planned. Pants, shirt, tie, socks, shoes, jacket.

REMY
(crossing and exiting into the bathroom)
Wouldn't it make more sense for the socks to come before the pants?

PUP
You know how my feet sweat--

REMY'S VOICE
(from the bathroom)
Yeah, it's pretty gross.

PUP
--I was gonna put them on last.

12
 Remy enters from the bathroom with the
dress socks and holds them up as Pup turns
to him.

REMY
They were in the sink.

Remy hands the socks to Pup. He grabs the

dress shoes from by the door, sits on the
sofa and begins putting his footwear on.

REMY [CONT'D]
Speaking of hormones--
(nods back at the bathroom)
--you power wash the shower like I asked? / I was too scared to double
check.

PUP
I cleaned the shower like you asked.

REMY
Really scared to double check.

PUP
Roof to drain, and we're out of Fabuloso.

REMY
Good.

As Pup stands, crosses to the sofa, takes

and puts the dress jacket on:

REMY [CONT'D]
(a moment)
Because I was, like, my body wash is pink and Pup's is blue, so then what
are these stains on the tile? Was the kid icing a cake or something? Then I
realized it was one of the ten signs that you're living with a teenage boy--

PUP
(annoyed, embarrassed)
The shower is clean! Very clean! Super clean! You could eat sushi off of
the drain.

13
 REMY
Judgment-free zone here, I was a teenage boy too. And not even that long
ago, people confuse us for brothers all the time. But, dude, shower's
community property.

PUP
Got it. Noted. Roger. Copy that. Me and my crippling embarrassment.
(holds arms out)
I think I'm...how do I look?

A moment. Remy begins to pout again.

PUP [CONT'D]
Stop it.

REMY
If only the Suit Emporium could see you now. Stay there, just like that.

Remy takes a smartphone out of his back

pocket. Pup poses and Remy snaps a pic.

REMY [CONT'D]
Okay, now work it from the side.

Pup strikes a side pose. Another pic.

REMY [CONT'D]
Yassssss, bitch!
(crossing behind Pup)
One more for the 'gram.

Remy holds the smartphone up, selfie-

style. Both guys make silly selfie faces,
Pup with duck lips, Remy, winking with
his tongue out. Remy steps away from Pup,
checking the pictures in his camera roll. A
moment. Pup looks at the motorhome door,
then back to Remy. He runs his hands
through his hair.

PUP
W-what are you playing tonight?

REMY
Uhhh. The Little Shop of Horrors. The original, not the musical. The one
with Jack Nicholson. And the double is I Was a Teenage Werewolf.

14
 PUP
I'm gonna miss “Little Shop?”

REMY
I can throw it for you on anytime. How 'bout tomorrow night? We can do
our own double feature like in the olden days before you started growing
armpit hair. Ooh! “Little Shop” and “Black Lagoon.” That's the pair right
there. Lot'll be closed, we'll have the joint to ourselves. It's a date?

PUP
I don't know, man. Sundays are usually busy for me. I have Bible Study,
my boys wanna do a paint and sip, my book club, we're reading “Fifty
Shades”...

REMY
Come on! Where's my boy?

PUP
It's a date.

REMY
Right on! Tomorrow night. Pick me up at eight.

A moment. Pup runs his hands through his

hair again.

PUP
Who's on projector?

REMY
I'm on projector. You okay?

PUP
I'm good, I'm good. You think Mandy'll need help at the snack bar?

REMY
I gave Mandy the weekend off.
(continuing the questioning)
You sure?

PUP
Very sure. Who's working the snack bar?

REMY
Nate's coming in.

15
 PUP
Nate's in town?

REMY
Just for the weekend. He's visiting his brother. I asked him to do me a
favor.

PUP
That's nice of Nate. I like Nate. Good Guy Nate.
(strikes a bodybuilder pose)
Muscle Shirt Nate.
(makes comically sexy eyes at Remy)
Looks At You Like This Nate.

REMY
I'm sure I don't know what you're implying.

PUP
He likes you.

REMY
Nate does not “like” me. / What, are we in junior high?

PUP
Nate likes you.

REMY
He was an employee, he will be an employee tonight. Nothing more,
nothing less.

PUP
I'd be okay. Y'know, if you wanted to start dating again.

REMY
We haven't really talked about this. Is this a moment?

PUP
It's not a moment. I like Nate. He was an employee. He's not anymore. If
you two ever, like, wanted to go out for burgers and malts sometime, I'd
be cool with it. I want you to be happy.

REMY
(touched)
Awww.

16
 PUP
Of course, his family will have to pay the dowry.

REMY
I walked smooth into this.

PUP
A couple of mules and your weight in silver oughtta do it. And we’d have
to make absolutely sure he isn’t a vampire. I mean, he worked here for
years, but did we ever really get to know him? I’m thinking the Lost
Boys test. We invite him over for dinner, serve him spaghetti with extra
garlic...

REMY
Wocka wocka.

PUP
You think it'd be cool if I called him Papa Nate?

REMY
You're the only man I need in my life.

A moment. Pup begins to pace a bit. He

runs his hands through his hair.

PUP
Who's cleaning the restrooms?

REMY
(a moment as he watches Pup)
Your dad used to do that. The hair thing. I had to force his hands away
from his head the day we got married. You remember?
(Pup groans)
This isn’t gonna be one of those “I wish he could be here now to
see what a fine young man you've grown into” things. I mean, I do wish
he was here to see what a fine young man you've grown into, and to help
with the lot, and the dishes. You just remind me so much of him. He'd
only do the hair thing when he was--oh my god.

PUP
No “oh my god.”

REMY
Oh. My. / God.

17
 PUP
No “oh my god.”

REMY
You're nervous! You are so cute.

PUP
This is trauma, okay? This is childhood trauma. This is how the Joker got
started. You're making me the Joker.

REMY
Okay, one: You're the Penguin at best. Two: We need a rap session?

PUP
We don't need a rap session.

REMY
(sits at the table)
Rap session! Sit 'er down, boy.

Pup sits at the table with Remy.

REMY [CONT'D]
Talk to Oprah.

PUP
Mia's just a friend, alright? Just a friend.

REMY
Friend, double-underlined. Got it.

PUP
But what if she, like...she wants to...?

Pup begins to move his upper body.

REMY
(realizes)
You don't know how to dance! The White Man's Burden. Your dad used
to dance like he was fire walking.
(stands)
Okay, easy fix. Dance lessons.

PUP
(stands)
Maybe a quick tutorial.

18
 Pup and Remy face each other.

REMY
(bringing Pup closer)
Bring her in, kid. Come on. Love on Remy. Okay, it's been awhile since
I've danced with a girl, or at all. But I think you'd be safest with the basic
two-step.
(demonstrating)
Step left, middle. Step right, middle. Come on.
(as Pup begins to move with him)
Left, middle. Right, middle. Left, middle. Right, middle. There it is. And
then, from here, you can kinda do your own thing with your shoulders...
(he demonstrates)
...move your hips a little bit...

Remy demonstrates. Pup tries. It's bad.

Remy watches him for a bit.

REMY [CONT'D]
And if that doesn't work, you can also fake a leg cramp and sit it out.

PUP
(fakes a leg cramp)
Like this?

REMY
Just like that. Four stars. Okay. So. Cologne, check. Pants, check. Shirt
and tie, check. Shoes and socks, check. Jacket.

PUP
(poses)
Check.

REMY
Phone?

Remy's got him. Pup rushes into his

bedroom.

REMY [CONT'D]
(calls after him)
Who forgets their--the hell kind of sixteen-year-old are you?

19
 Pup spots his phone on his bed. He grabs it,
sits, opening and thumbing through it.
Remy looks towards Pup's bedroom, his
face losing the joviality. He's worried. He
sits at the table.

REMY [CONT'D]
(to the audience)
I've done...several anti-gun marches. Mass shooting fact check? Guns are
tools for the weak. I'm completely against them, and I thought the love of
my eternal life was too...

PUP
(to the audience)
We'd chase my monster...

REMY
...but there Brian was, three in the morning, he and Pup running around
the kitchen...

PUP
...Dad and me....

REMY
...finger guns out, pointing them at nothing, shouting...

PUP & REMY [CONT'D]

...”Bang, bang, bang!”

REMY
Brian said he'd tried imaginary swords, bow-and-arrows, even
lightsabers. A finger gun was the only thing that could kill the monster.
At least, according to Pup.

PUP
(finger gun up)
Bullets were the only way to stop the Gill-man.

REMY
Brian would put Pup back to bed and he'd sleep for the rest of the night.
He'd go weeks, months even, without another nightmare.

PUP
“Bang! Bang! Bang! Die Monster Die!”

20
 REMY
It was their thing...

PUP
Sometimes I pretend the monster took him.

REMY
...well before I was in the picture. Pup had some...early behavioral issues.
He was destructive. He'd break anything he could get his little paws on.
Toys, lamps, some of Brian's tools.

His first grade classmates were terrified of him. His teacher was too. Pup
was all tantrum, very little chill. He...let's just say he had a hard time
keeping his hands to himself.

PUP
He just didn't get to his gun fast enough, or he did, but he missed.

REMY
Brian didn't believe in spanking. He tried gentle, corrective discipline.
But Pup was too clever for redirections and time-outs. Still, Brian vowed
to never raise his voice at him.

PUP
It sounds stupid.

REMY
And then, one day, he broke that vow.

Brian had trusted Pup to carry a pitcher of kool-aid from the kitchen
counter back to the fridge. As soon as it was in his hands, Pup
deliberately threw the pitcher onto the floor, it spilled everywhere,
stained the rug. For the first time in Pup's short life, his father yelled at
him.

Brain said he'd never forget the look on Pup's face. How frightened he
looked. He felt horrible.

PUP
I have to believe...

REMY
Later, middle of the night...

PUP
...he wouldn't have left us on his own.

21
 REMY
Brian felt a weight on his bed. He opened his eyes, sat up. There, just by
his feet, in the moonlight coming in from his window...his son...

PUP
I have to believe he fought to stay with us.

REMY
...Little Pup, crouching like an animal. Brian said his eyes...there was
something wrong with his eyes. He didn't know if Pup was sleepwalking,
possessed by the devil or what, but they weren't the eyes of his son.

PUP
I have to believe he tried.

Pup, unconsciously, lifts himself onto his

bed into a monster-like crouch on his bed.

REMY
Brian asked Pup if maybe he wanted a glass of water. Pup crawled on all
fours until his face was close to Brian's...those strange eyes inches away
from his own...and he whispered...

PUP & REMY [CONT'D]

(eerie whisper)
“There's a monster in my room.”

A moment. Pup, confused at what he's

doing, stands from his bed.

REMY [CONT'D]
Brian did the first thing that came to mind.

Pup and Remy both raise finger guns above

their heads.

PUP & REMY [CONT'D]

“Bang! Bang!”

REMY [CONT'D]
Pup looked at him, confused, then fell onto the bed beside him. He curled
into his chest and fell asleep. He...asked Pup about it the following
morning. He didn't remember any of it.

22
 PUP
(runs a hand through his hair)
Remy doesn't think I have the nightmares anymore.

REMY
That's when Brian made an appointment with a psychiatrist. It didn't go
well. They wanted to medicate Pup.

PUP
But I do.

REMY
That was more terrifying to Brian than his kid leaving his bed in the
middle of the night.

PUP
It still comes for me.

We hear a text tone. Pup checks his phone,

reads the text, smooths his suit. He enters
the kitchen from his bedroom.

PUP [CONT'D]
(waves the phone to show Remy he has it before pocketing it)
My friends are at the park.

Pup takes the camcorder from the table.

REMY
(to Pup)
Hey, yo! You be careful with that thing. It's worth more than both of our
lives.

PUP
You'll be okay tonight?

REMY
Go! Go meet up with Shaggy and Velma.

Pup makes a slow cross to the motorhome

door. He turns, looks at Remy, five seconds
from losing his nerve.

REMY [CONT'D]
Monsters of the American Cinema: Bandages. Thread! Go!

23
 This is a little game between them.

PUP
(quickly)
The Invisible Man!

REMY
(quickly)
The Invisible Man Returns!

PUP
The Invisible Woman!

REMY
The Invisible Agent!

PUP
Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man!

REMY
Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy!

PUP
The Mummy!

REMY
The Mummy's Curse!

PUP
The Mummy's Tomb!

REMY
The Mummy...
(he lost)
...Episode Three, Revenge of the Sith, shit! I should've went with “tomb.”
What goes with “tomb?” Ghost! Frankenstein's Ghost!

PUP
Too late, old man.

REMY
The Abbott and Costellos shouldn't count.
(a moment)
You have fun tonight. Dance for the both of us. Even if you suck at it.

24
 Pup exits the motorhome. Remy rushes to
the door after and calls out after him:

REMY [CONT'D]
Don't touch her hair!

Light out.

25
 ONIONS, CILANTRO, FANGS, FUR, STITCHES AND BLOOD

Out of the darkness, we hear crickets.

Lights slowly rise on the kitchen/living
area. Pup's bedroom remains in the dark.
It's nighttime. Remy stands at the open
motorhome door, looking outside. Pup, in
pajamas, sits at the table with his
camcorder, examining and pressing various
buttons on it. Something is off, but we can't
quite tell what it is.

PUP
(to Remy's back)
Okay, I think it’s on! No wait. Remy, a little help?
(a moment, no response from Remy)
What are you staring at?

REMY
I think we have a visitor.

PUP
I can’t get this thing--!

REMY
(shutting the door, crossing to Pup)
Need help?

PUP
Maybe a quick tutorial.

Remy takes the camcorder from Pup and

presses a button.

REMY
(hands the camcorder back)
Now it’s on. Red, bad. Green, good. Green is safe. Red means--

PUP
--it's alive, know.

REMY
You sure you want to make movies? I'm thinking locating a camera's
power button might be an important part of the system.

26
 PUP
It doesn't look like a power button. Does that look like an power button to
you?

REMY
What about bookbinding?

PUP
(scrunches nose)
Bookbinding?

REMY
See, I was like that too before I read all about it on Wikipedia. It's a
totally legitimate career.

PUP
Bookbinding.

REMY
“I believe a man lost in the mazes of his own mind may imagine that he's
anything.”

PUP
It doesn't look like a power button.
(holds up camera)
Thank you. For this. It's the one I wanted.
(a moment)
Are you sure we can afford it?

REMY
I knew you were gonna do that. Don't worry about the price tag.
(pats chest)
That's me. I do the worrying.
(nods at camcorder)
You deserve this, okay? Just remember Remy when you win your first
Oscar.

PUP
I'll bring you on stage with me.

REMY
I know just the cameo pink dress I'll wear.

PUP
(a moment)
I wish Dad could be there...when I win my Oscar.

27
 REMY
Why wouldn't he be there?

PUP
You know why.

REMY
I don't know why. I'd love to see you try and shove him into a tux. Pants,
shirt, tie, socks, shoes, jacket.

PUP
(cautiously)
Remy, Dad's dead.

The crickets stop. We hear the distant

sound of thunder.

REMY
Pup, that's not funny.

PUP
He died five years ago.

REMY
Are you okay?

Remy's smartphone rings. He takes it from

his pocket.

PUP
Dad died, Remy. You know he died.

REMY
(showing Pup the smartphone screen)
Oh yeah? His ghost must have me in his contacts then.
(turns it on, placing it to his ear, to Pup)
Twenty bucks he forgot what I asked him to get from the store.
(into the phone, a greeting)
Society of Silent Flower Observers of Southern California. How may I
direct your call?

Remy listens, then gestures at Pup. Yep, he

forgot.

28
 REMY [CONT'D]
(on the phone)
You ready? Okay, steak—flank steak, tortillas, onions, cilantro, fangs,
fur, stitches and blood. Repeat all of that back to me.

PUP
Hang up.

REMY
(on the phone)
Corn, not flour. Come on, dude. You know how we do.

PUP
Remy, that's not Dad!

REMY
(glares at Pup, still on his call)
No, Puppy's freaking out. He thinks you're dead.
(listens, laughs)
“This boy is a free police case. We're probably saving him from the gas
chamber.”
(a moment)
“Laugh all you like. I think he's fascinating.”
(a moment, looks at Pup)
Sure, yeah. He's right here.
(holding phone out to Pup)
He wants to talk to you. Tsk. Tsk. I told you red was bad.

Pup takes the phone from Remy.

PUP
Hello?

The lights turn red. We hear a cacophony

of guttural, animalistic sounds, croaks and
short yowls. They're terrifying, menacing.
A horrified look grows on Pup's face. He
drops the phone and stands, running his
hands through his hair.

REMY
(re: his dropped phone)
What the fuck?!

29
 PUP
(tugs at Remy's wrist)
We have to get out of here!

REMY
What the hell is wrong with you?

PUP
It's coming!

REMY
Pup, you're not making any--

The croaks and yowls stop abruptly. A

moment, then there's three loud THUDS on
the motorhome door. Remy walks a few
steps past Pup, eyes on the door.

REMY [CONT'D]
(calls)
Who is it?

PUP
Don't let it in.

REMY
Not by the hair on your chinny-chin-chin? Step back, little fly. “On the
water, the captain makes the decisions.”

Remy opens the motorhome door. Nothing.

He closes the door and turns back to Pup.

REMY [CONT'D]
It was nothing.

PUP
You think that's what “nothing” sounds like? Maybe you should go check
it out.

REMY
So I can die first? That trope is dead, bro.

Remy takes the flashlight from the table,

turns it on and crosses towards the door.

30
 PUP
Wait!

Pup takes a large butcher knife from the

block and hands it to Remy.

REMY
You know these are from the dollar store, right?

PUP
It's better than nothing.

REMY
You sure about that?

PUP
Should we call the police?

REMY
He hands a Black man a knife and then asks if we should call the police.
Here.
(picks his smartphone up and hands it to Pup)
Dial nine-one. If I'm not back in two minutes, hit the other “one.” I'm just
gonna look around the lot, okay?

Remy exits the motorhome door. A long

moment as Pup waits in silence. He can't
take it. He crosses and opens the door a
crack.

PUP
(calls out)
Remy?

REMY'S VOICE
(from outside)
I'm okay! Stay inside!
(a moment, spots someone)
Hey! I see you over there! This is private property bro, you gotta go!
(a moment)
You hear me?! Hey, I have a really large dog in there with a really large
head and really large teeth, and he loves the taste of trespassers! Make
good choices!
(a moment)
Hey, are you listening to--?!

31
 We hear a YOWL. It's inhuman. The lights
begin to flicker. Music begins to play, the
score to a classic monster movie.

REMY'S VOICE [CONT'D]

Oh my god! What are you--? No! No! Stay back!
(screams as if being attacked)
AHHHH!

Pup crosses towards his bedroom as the

motorhome door flies open. Remy, sans
flashlight, enters, holding his hand over a
bleeding shoulder. He falls to his knees.

REMY [CONT'D]
It bit me...

PUP
Are you okay?

REMY
That thing bit me! I can't stop it...

PUP
(frightened, heading into his bedroom)
I have to--!

REMY
Puppy, listen! It wants to come in! Don't let it in!

PUP
(a moment)
I'm sorry.

Pup rushes into his bedroom leaving Remy

alone. We hear the croaks and yowls.
Remy slowly turns over to his back. A
large, moving shadow is cast over Remy
from outside of the door. He looks at the
unseen horror.

Remy SCREAMS as the shadow engulfs

him. Lights down on the kitchen/living
area.

32
 Lights up in Pup's bedroom. Pup suddenly
sits up in his bed, breathing hard. He looks
around wildly. We realize everything we've
just seen was his nightmare. Shaking, Pup
holds up a finger gun.

PUP
(breaking, quietly)
...bang...bang...bang...

Pup buries his face in his hands and begins

to cry.

33
DRIVE-INS AND CLASSIC MOVIES GO TOGETHER LIKE FUDGE AND SUNDAES

Lights up on the kitchen/living area. The

backpack is gone. A suit bag and Pup's
Homecoming dress shoes lie on the table.
Remy enters the motorhome door,
struggling with two large clear bags of
yellow popcorn kernels. He struggles as he
sets them both near the door. He stops, rubs
his shoulder, the one that was bleeding in
Pup's dream.

A moment. Pup enters the motorhome

door in street clothes holding the
camcorder and wearing the backpack.
Neither see the other. The two are in the
same space in different points in time –
Remy, the afternoon after Homecoming,
Pup the afternoon before.

REMY
(calls towards Pup’s bedroom)
Pup!

PUP
(calls)
Remy?

REMY
(crosses to Pup’s bedroom)
Puppy!

PUP
You here?

REMY
Eggs and bakey!

PUP
The leading man has entered the scene!

A moment. Neither get a response. Pup

spots the shoes and suit bag.

PUP [CONT'D]
No way!

34
 REMY
Time to get up!

PUP
(unzipping the suit bag and admiring the dress jacket)
Thank you, Remy! Thank you, Suit Emporium!

Pup sets the suit bag back down, picks up

and admires the shoes. He crosses and sets
them beneath the coat rack, lying his
backpack next to them--the places we'll see
them in the first scene. Pup crosses to the
table and relaxes, markedly different
without Remy around. He sits, opens his
camcorder and looks at a video on the
playback screen. Remy sits at the table
opposite him.

REMY
(to the audience)
Pup and I?

PUP
(to the audience, teasing)
You wanna know? You really, really wanna know? Say please.

REMY
We were inseparable.

PUP
I shouldn't. Okay, but...
(holds a playful finger to his lips)
Shhhh. Alright, this is what happened. Jeff got this meth-head to buy us
some beer so he could keep the change.

REMY
Brian was so jealous of how quickly we took to each other.

PUP
We went over to the park with my camera. I got some shots of Kenny on
his board.

REMY
Pup never let me out of his sight.

35
 PUP
Kenny did a heelflip--
(mimes recording Kenny with the camcorder)
Come on...come on...“Yeah, nigga!”
(back to the audience)
We called Anthony to see if he had any weed, but he said he was out. We
thought about taking the trolley downtown to Jeff's cousin's, but Kenny
said he had to do some shit with his grandma at six and we wouldn’t be
back in time. Plus, I didn’t want to take my camera on the trolley, so we
went over to Leanne’s. Mia was there, hanging out. Leanne's brother
taught her how to make margaritas, so she made some for all of us. First
time I’d ever had a margarita.

REMY
I used to catch him watching me shave in the morning. He was kinda
hard to miss. Those big, curious eyes and that huge mop of hair peeking
at me from the doorway. I remember he came to breakfast once reeking
of my cologne. Brian was pissed, made him take another shower. For his
birthday that year, I bought him a bottle of his own, taught him the
correct way to apply it.

PUP
Mia pulled me out to Leanne's backyard. She wanted me to get her
singing on camera. She's in the school choir and she's really good. I
pressed record on the camera and she began to sing. She's a really good
singer.

REMY
It was Pup who found the box of monster movies in the projector room.
Brian told him not to play in there, kid never listened. Brian's father had
the entire monster collection. Frankenstein, Dracula, The Mummy, The
Wolf Man, It Came From Outer Space. Creature of the Black Lagoon––
that's Pup's favorite. It was my idea to start doing Double Feature nights.
Brian didn't think they'd take off, but they were popular. Drive-ins and
classic movies go together like fudge and sundaes.

PUP
We don't have a lot of Black kids at my school. I mean, there's
Black kids, but the school's mostly white. Most of the guys hang together
at lunch. The girls sit together too. All except Mia. Mia kinda does her
own thing.

REMY
Brian didn't want Pup to watch the movies at first because of...y'know,
the nightmares. But they were so old and cheesy, most of them were in
black and white. Kid was ten, he could handle it. It paid off. Pup loved

36
 REMY [CONT'D]
them. Brian would turn the projector on, Pup and I would grab some junk
food and we'd all sit on the roof together. Our lives were suddenly full of
movie monsters. Vampires, mummies, werewolves, killer plants,
creatures from the Black Lagoon.

PUP
So she's singing, and I'm recording, and she starts to walk over to me.
She gets closer and closer, she's standing in front of the camera, looking
directly into it. I'm looking at her looking at me through the camera. She
says, “Peter, will you go to Homecoming with me?” First time she'd
called me Peter.

REMY
We took care of each other after Brian...made sure the other stayed
standing when we just wanted to crumble. If we both had to crumble, we
did it together. Sobbing sessions on the kitchen/living area floor followed
by ice cream. Everything still smelled like him.

Suddenly, I was all a little boy had, all a little white boy had. And that
little white boy is now a big white teenager with big white feet and a
disgusting petri dish of a bedroom that I'm always on his ass about
cleaning.

PUP
Leanne’s mom called and said she was on her way back, so we had to go.
Before I left, Mia kissed me on the cheek. We took off. Kenny left over
to his grandma’s and me and Jeff walked back through the park. That's
where we saw Randall from school sitting at one of the park tables, nail
polish out, painting his nails. Jeff wanted to fuck with him. I told him I
had shit to do, but Jeff ran over to Randall. He goes, “What up, bitch!”
And then he spit on him! Like, hawked a fat-ass loogie right on Randall's
shirt. Then Jeff took his bottle of nail polish and threw it across the grass.
Randall looked like he wanted cry and me and Jeff took off running,
laughing. Randall's a bitch!

REMY
But beneath the armpit hair and the dirty / socks...

PUP
Jeff said he tried to kiss him once in the boys’ bathroom.

REMY
... his father's scowl...

37
 PUP
He almost kicked his ass.

REMY
...this weird, smelly, funny, brilliant kid...

PUP
Weird ass faggot.

Pup takes the suit bag and opens it. It's his
Homecoming suit. He admires it, and takes
it, exiting into his bedroom taking the past
with him. We're now in the present with
Remy.

REMY
...he's still my boy.

A moment.

REMY [CONT'D]
(turns to the bedroom, calls)
Pup! Come on, man!
(a moment, rubs his shoulder again)
Okay, tried to respect your privacy! Gonna initiate the next phase!
(a moment)
I'm coming in!
(a moment)
I'm coming in without an invitation!
(a moment)
Just gonna do it! Six, five, four, three, take care of TCB!

Lights up on Pup's bedroom. Lights stay up

on the kitchen/living area. Pup, now in the
present day, is in pajamas, curled up on his
bed with a pillow, fast asleep. Remy enters.
He sits on Pup's bed and clears his throat.
Pup stirs, looks up at Remy. Remy waves.
Pup groans and buries his face in the
pillow. Remy, unfazed, continues watching
him.

PUP
(a groan from the pillow)
You still here?

38
 REMY
That's what I keep asking myself.

PUP
I'm sleeping.

REMY
Sweet dreams.

A moment. Pup knows Remy's watching

him.

PUP
You're being a creep.

REMY
That's fair.

PUP
It's Sunday.

REMY
It's also after two. What time did you get in last night?
(no answer from Pup)
Okay. Well. You get some rest.

Remy takes his smartphone from pocket,

leans back, lays on Pup's bed, using his
body as a neck pillow, and begins punching
on it.

REMY [CONT'D]
I'll just...crush some candy... here.

PUP
I will pay you to go away.

REMY
With what money, blood? I buy your underwear. Wash 'em too, and I
have some concerns, but I'm not mature enough to address them yet.

PUP
(sits up, pushing Remy off of him)
Fine! Let's do this.

39
 REMY
(sits up, rubbing hands)
You and Mia dance?

PUP
Kinda.

REMY
You do my two-step?

PUP
Tried. Mia's a really good dancer.

A moment.

REMY
And then...?

PUP
Then I faked a leg cramp.

REMY
I mean after Homecoming. You and Mia?

PUP
You're asking about LifeStyles stuff / aren't you?

REMY
I'm only asking if you talked. The rest is between you and her.

PUP
We didn't...she left.

Remy's smartphone rings.

REMY
What do you mean she left?

PUP
She left.

Remy rubs his shoulder. Pup sees this.

REMY
She just left?

40
 PUP
What's up?

REMY
That's what I'm trying to figure out.

PUP
I mean your shoulder.

REMY
I don't know. It's been throbbing all morning. Think I slept on it wrong.
Don't change the subject. Your date just left you at the dance?

PUP
My friend just left me at the dance.

Ring.

REMY
Why'd she'd leave? You weren't being a dick / were you?

PUP
No.

REMY
Why'd she leave?

Ring.

PUP
Please answer your phone.

REMY
No, you answer me.

Pup grabs Remy's phone.

PUP
(answering it)
Remy's House of Horrors.

REMY
(no he didn't)
Boy, have you lost your goddamned mind?

41
 PUP
(on the phone)
Yeah, he's right here. He'd love to speak to you.
(to Remy)
It's Papa Nate.

Remy takes the phone from Pup. Pup falls

back into his pillow.

REMY
(standing, on the phone)
Hey. Sorry about th--
(a moment as he listens)
No, I try to avoid the news. Why? What happened?
(listens)
When?
(listens)
Shit.

Remy holds the phone between his

shoulder and his ear, takes the blankets
completely off of Pup and the bed and
casually tosses them to the floor.

REMY [CONT'D]
(moves the phone away from his mouth, to Pup)
You're up. Shower. Now.

Remy exits Pup's room, crossing into the

kitchen/living area.

REMY [CONT'D]
(back into the phone)
Are they okay?

During the following, in the bedroom, out

of Remy's sight, Pup slowly rolls out of his
bed, landing next to it on all fours like an
animal. We'll call this the monster crouch
moving forward. He tilts his head, cracking
his neck. He looks around his room and
makes a croaking sound.

REMY [CONT'D]
(pacing in the kitchen)
Which one?

42
 REMY [CONT'D]
(listens)
Yeah. I can go. Okay, and I have some poster paint, if we need to make
signs.
(listens)
Okay. See you in a bit.
(hangs up, steadies himself)
Okay, Remy.

Remy opens his smartphone browser and

begins searching through it. Pup regains his
composure and stands just a Remy crosses
back into his bedroom and joins him,
sitting on the bed.

PUP
Did something happen?

REMY
(still in his phone)
There was a gay bashing in Hillcrest last night. A group of drunk off-duty
soldiers attacked a couple in a parking garage.
(reads)
“Allegedly”, so that means most definitely. They've all been arrested.

PUP
They did this in Hillcrest?

REMY
Right? Hillcrest! Village of the Gays. That's like pissing on the emperor
at his heavily guarded birthday party.
(finds the article, scanning it)
...they haven't released the victims' names yet...one is 29, the other's 32...
“gay slurs were used during the attack”, shocker...one is in critical
condition...

PUP
(small croak, clears his throat)
But they're alive, right? They didn't kill them.

REMY
Sounds like they tried. There's a group meeting up at the parking garage
where it happened. I guess they're gonna say some words, or whatever.
It's not a protest, don't worry, it's just a meetup. Nate's gonna pick me up.
There's food in the fridge. Think you handle breakfast?

43
 REMY [CONT'D]
(checks time on phone)
Brunch.

PUP
Yeah.

REMY
(a moment)
Those coward ass bullies.

Remy's eyes fall on the Creature from the

Black Lagoon poster. He rubs his sore
shoulder again.

REMY [CONT'D]
Fucking monsters.

Remy exits the bedroom. He pauses in the

kitchen/living area, makes sure Pup isn't
following him, then takes a pack of
cigarettes from his pocket and exits the
front door. Pup takes the blankets from the
floor and puts them back on his bed. He
sits, runs his hands through his hair.

PUP
(to the audience, he's been asked a question)
I'm sorry, could you--?
(listens again)
Oh.

Lights up on the roof. Remy enters with the

pack of cigarettes, paces a bit.

REMY
(to the audience)
...say again?

REMY [CONT'D]
(a moment, hears the question)
So we've come to that, huh?

PUP
Um.

44
 REMY
You want to know how Brian...?

PUP
Drugs. Meth. Like, really hardcore.

REMY
He said he was going to pick Pup up from school.

PUP
They met in rehab.

REMY
Slid his shoes on, grabbed the keys...

PUP
Dad was an addict. He got into it when...

REMY
...asked if I needed him to stop and get anything for dinner on the way
back.

PUP
He was on the streets after his dad--my grandfather, I guess--kicked him
out. He never talked much about it. His dad had found some gay porn or
something in his bedroom and it got bad. He left, found a job, crashed
with some friends until he could afford his own place. They were into it.
Heroin. He didn’t return to the lot until after his dad died.

I don’t know how he felt about it. I don’t know if he was sad or anything.

I wonder if she knew.

My mother.

REMY
Couple of hours later, I get a call from Pup's school. Brian never showed.
He had the car, so I had to take a cab there. We took another home, I
made Pup dinner, night came around. Nothing from Brian. No call,
nothing. I thought maybe he just needed time to his self. Maybe he drove
out to the beach or something. He worked his ass off for the drive-in,
gave all of his energy to Pup and I. I told myself he just went for a drive.
He'd be home any minute. And then I could cuss his ass out for scaring
me.

45
 PUP
Her name’s Billie, like with an I.E., like Billie Jean? I have two pictures
of her. One, when she was thirteen. It’s one of those weird older
pictures where the photographer makes you look up and to the corner at
an angle. She had braces and bangs, freckles.

And then, the other picture, my dad took it with one of those old school
disposable cameras. She’s standing in front of a brick wall. Dad didn't
remember where. She’s wearing this huge dark green sweatshirt, nothing
on it. He’d said something to make her laugh right before he took
the pic and she has this huge grin on her face, and her eyes are closed.
Her hair’s short, dyed blonde. She kept the bangs. I don’t think she looks
like me, but Remy says he can see it.

REMY
By midnight, I'd thrown waiting out of the window. I must've called him
hundreds of time, back-to-back dialing, they all went to voicemail. I
didn't have a car, didn't have a sitter for Pup even if I could borrow one.

I devised a plan. When day broke, I'd call another cab to drop Pup
off at school and then empty out the rest of our savings having them to
drive me around San Diego. I thought I'd remembered some of the spots
Brian used to visit. I was going to find my husband, and we'd be there
ready and smiling when it was time to pick Pup up again.

I wouldn't have to wait until daybreak. I'd just put Pup to bed. I saw
headlights through the front blinds. I jumped up, thinking it was Brian.

It wasn't Brian.

PUP
Dad told me she’d been into drugs on and off, since she was nineteen. It
got bad. He wouldn’t tell me how bad. He, um, was really...he didn’t
want me to think bad about her. Dad asked her to stop when he found out
she was pregnant with me. She did. Stopped for nine whole months.
Didn't even smoke a cigarette. As soon as we left the hospital, she split.
Dad said he heard she hitchhiked to Indiana.

At least she'd given me nine months.

Nine whole months.

REMY
Brian taught me about addiction. Addiction has teeth and claws. And
once they sink 'em in, they never let go.

46
 REMY [CONT'D]
They found him in North Park, off of El Cajon. Car parked, windows
rolled all the way up...a needle sticking out of his...

PUP
Guess that was all the love she could manage.

Lights dim on the both of them.

47
 I'M A TEENAGE DREAM AND YOU KNOW IT

Hours after the previous scene. Lights up

on the kitchen/living area. Amongst other
discarded clothes, a muscle shirt lies on the
floor. Pup enters the motorhome door. He's
in his bare feet. He doesn't notice the
clothes. He stops, sniffs the air as an
animal might. His nose finds the scent of
something. He crosses to the table, grabs
the bag of chips, removes the chip clip, and
sniffs inside the open bag. There it is. He
crawls up on one of the chairs in the
monster crouch and begins beast-eating the
chips, scooping handfuls at a time. Remy
enters from the bathroom in a robe. He
stops, startled when he sees Pup.

REMY
What? Whoa! Hey! Hey, kiddo!

PUP
(mouth full of chips)
Whaddup?
(looks up at Remy)
You take a shower? Kinda early.

REMY
It's never too early for grooming and personal hygiene. I got your text
earlier. I thought you'd be out with your friends a little while longer.

PUP
Jeff had to babysit his little sister, Kenny's hanging out with his
grandma.

REMY
Kid 'hangs out' with his grandma?

PUP
(another handful of chips)
Yeah, she's really old. I think she's dying or something. His mom makes
him visit her every day.

REMY
That's sweet. I could tell Kenny how sweet that is, y’know, if you ever
brought him by. I'd like to meet him.

48
 PUP
How'd your thing go? The meetup?

REMY
A lot of people are angry.

PUP
Is there anymore news about the guys who were hurt?

REMY
Nothing yet.

Pup goes for another handful. Remy now

notices wild way he's eating. He crosses,
takes the bag out of his hands and rolls it
up, clamping the chip clip back on it.

REMY [CONT'D]
You hungry, bro? I am--ouch--I am famished! Why don’t you take
twenty from the snack bar, run down to Filippi’s and grab us a pizza? My
treat!

PUP
It's right down the street. We can just order.

REMY
Okay, look, I didn’t want to tell you this, but you could use the exercise.

Pup moves from the crouch to a sitting

position. He flexes a muscle.

PUP
I’m a teenage dream and you know it.

REMY
(a moment)
You can get anchovies! I hate 'em, they taste like ass, but--
(now noticing)
Where are your shoes?

PUP
What?

REMY
Your shoes.

49
 Pup looks down at his feet, only himself
now realizing he's not wearing shoes. He
tilts his head to the side and cracks his
neck.

PUP
(croak)
I...must have left them at the park...

REMY
You walked all the way from the park without shoes? / What in the
redneck hillbilly Huckleberry caveman Flintstone?

PUP
(absently)
You know my feet sweat.

Pup, looking to change the subject,

searches the motorhome floor, spots the
muscle shirt. He picks it up.

PUP [CONT'D]
I thought we didn't leave our clothes in the kitchen.

REMY
Double anchovies!

PUP
(examining the shirt)
Since when do you dress like The Rock?

REMY
And pineapple!

PUP
(realizes)
You don't dress like The Rock! Muscle Shirt Nate dresses like The Rock!

REMY
(rushes to Pup, hushing him)
Shhhh!

PUP
Is he here?

50
 REMY
He's...not-not here...

Pup looks down at the muscle shirt, then

back to Remy.

PUP
(pointing at Remy)
You were having sex!

REMY
Shhhh! I was entertaining a gentleman caller / yes.

PUP
With Muscle Shirt Nate!

REMY
Hey! That's Papa Nate!

Pup tosses the muscle shirt to Remy who

catches it.

PUP
This isn't happening. Is this happening? This isn't happening.

REMY
(quickly, rambling)
Nate followed me back from the meetup, and we were talking outside,
and he said he was super thirsty, so I invited him in for a nice refreshing
glass of tap water before his drive back to Vista, and he was in his muscle
shirt, and my shoulder is still throbbing, like it really hurts, right? So he
asked if I'd like for him to rub it, and I said, “Okay, as long as we're safe
and responsible.” So he started rubbing my shoulder and his hands were
mad strong, and my lady parts got warm and his lady parts got warm, and
it's been, like, years--do I have to tell you the rest?

PUP
(grossed out)
You didn't have to tell me that much.
(a moment)
No really. Take some of it back.

REMY
(a moment)
It was just...all of those people...what those guys did to...I just needed to
be...

51
 REMY [CONT'D]
(takes a breath)
Look, we can talk about this later, I'm sure it'll be a thrill for the both of
us, but right now, I need you to leave before he gets out of the sho...
(fuck)
...wer.

PUP
He's in the shower?!

REMY
Will you keep your voice down?

PUP
I thought the shower was community property!

REMY
Nate and I are a community, we're the gay community!

PUP
(croak)
This isn't happening.

REMY
You said it'd be okay with you if I started dating again.

PUP
Dating, not co-showering! How is there even room for two people in
there? The shower's so tiny, you'd have to stand inside someone just to--!
(realizes how it's possible)
Mental image. Mental image. I just got a mental image.

Pup crosses into his bedroom.

REMY
Look. Go! Get a pizza, get some burgers, get some tacos, some baby
back ribs. Give me twenty minutes to get Nate dressed and out of here,
okay?

Pup exits his bedroom with the box of

condoms from Homecoming night. He
hands them to Remy.

REMY [CONT'D]
You know, teenagers who think they're funny disappear every day. No
trace of them left behind. It's a thing, I promise.

52
 Pup is visibly upset, his jealousy taking
over. He heads towards the motorhome
door.

REMY [CONT'D]
Hey.

PUP
(crossing back near the table)
I thought I was ready for this. I mean, not this-this, but I didn't think you
were!

REMY
Okay. We can talk about--

PUP
(suddenly pounds the table hard with both fists)
NO!

A moment as Pup backs away, looks at his

own hands in disbelief.

PUP [CONT'D]
(calming himself)
Just get Nate and his stupid shirt out of my dad's house.

REMY
(a moment)
Okay.

PUP
(a moment, croak)
You still miss Dad, right?

REMY
Of course I do.

PUP
You should. You should miss him every day. What do you think he
would say right now?

REMY
Pup--

53
 PUP
Is it because Nate's Black? Is that why you like him? Because he's like
you?

REMY
(a moment, he's had enough now)
You're right. We shouldn't talk about this ever again.

A moment.

PUP
(exiting the motorhome door)
You're cleaning the shower this time.

REMY
(calling after him)
Hey, go find your shoes! And we still have a movie date tonight, don't
for--!

Pup exits, slamming the motorhome door.

54
I'M KING KONG AT THE TOP OF THE EMPIRE STATE BUILDING

Lights up on the roof. We're in the past. It's

nighttime. Pup and Remy sit in the lawn
chairs, surrounded by bags and boxes of
junk food. Both are in jackets, Remy in the
denim jacket from the coat rack. They're
watching a film on the drive-in screen. The
radio set sits by their feet. From it, we hear
the sounds of a classic monster movie.
Both Remy and Pup look happy, together.

PUP
Monsters of the American Cinema: Giant Creatures, two seconds, one
shot. Go!

REMY & PUP [CONT'D]

Tarantula!

PUP [CONT'D]
Wash! Go!

PUP [CONT'D] REMY

It Came From Beneath the Sea! Attack of the 50 Foot Woman!

PUP [CONT'D]
Attack of the 50 Foot Woman?

REMY
You said giant creature.

PUP
Yeah, but she's not a creature. She's just a really pissed off, really large
woman.

REMY
--who kills people.

PUP
But she's human.

REMY
Humans are the worst monsters. A wolf man or a gill-man? You see them
coming. They wear their nature as skin. But human beings, people?

55
 REMY [CONT'D]
They fool you. That's what monster movies are about, Pup. Frankenstein.
King Kong. They're all about the people.

Pup thinks on this as Remy turns to the

audience.

REMY [CONT'D]
(to the audience)
This was before Brian died.

PUP
(pointing at the screen)
“It's alive!”

REMY
We'd grab a bunch of blankets and Pup's old radio set, some of the
concessions and we'd watch them from the roof. The three of us.

PUP
“It's alive!”

REMY
Me and my boys.

PUP
"Do you have to open graves to find girls to fall in love with?"

REMY
I'd sit with my back to Brian's chest.

PUP
“Flies? Flies? Who wants to eat flies?”

REMY
(touches his own shoulder)
Brian would kiss my shoulder.

PUP
“Not when I get nice, fat spiders!”

REMY
I like to think he's still up there on the roof.

56
 PUP
(stands, arms raised)
I'm King Kong at the top of the Empire State building...!

REMY
Not like an angel, more like a dream.

PUP
Frankenstein at the top of the mill!
(sits next to Remy again)
I'm gonna make monster movies.

REMY
My little dream.

PUP
My own nightmares.

REMY
(a moment)
We were just gonna go down to the Justice of the Peace...

PUP
(to the audience)
We didn't have a funeral.

REMY
...get the certificate, grab some Mickey D's on the way back....

PUP
We didn’t have the money or the people for something like that.

REMY
Neither of us were the wedding types. Some dream of big weddings. We
dreamt small. Brian and I...we were about making it to another day. Bow
ties and rice were for different types of gay men. We didn't have dreams.
We had jobs. We didn’t know enough people between the both of us to
have, like, a full-on wedding anyway. Both of our parents were dead,
neither of us had friends. Pup and Mandy weren't having it, though. It
was Pup’s idea to do it at the drive-in. He was more excited about it than
the both of us.

PUP
This was before Remy hired Nate. Mandy made us a casserole. Remy
arranged for his body to be sent to...I don't know what to call it...a
cremation...place...? I don't know. I think they felt sorry for us. They said

57
 PUP [CONT'D]
we could come in to “view” him before they...but when we got there...I
couldn’t see him like that. I couldn’t...

REMY
Mandy wanted to marry us. She's been with the drive-in since before I
met Brian. I think she was the closest to family he had. So she got one of
those certificates over the internet. We didn't want some long, drawn out
engagement, neither of us were with the fuss. We drove down to San
Diego, bought a couple of cheap rings from some pawn shop. I don't...I
never wear mine on my hand. It always felt weird on my finger, I don't
know. I keep it here.

Remy pulls the ring necklace from the

inside of his shirt.

PUP
There was a bench just outside of the front door. I told Remy I'd wait for
him while he went in to see Dad. He wanted to. I could tell he wanted to,
maybe even needed to. But he wouldn't go in without me. He sat next to
me on the bench.

REMY
(gestures at the ring)
I'm not attached to this. The straights, they share their wedding rings--
hell, their wedding clothes--from generation to generation. They give
them so much worth.
(holds up ring)
This is shiny and heavy, and when I wear it beneath my shirt, I can feel it
pressing against my skin...

PUP
We didn't say a word.

REMY
...but it's not him. He's not here in this.

PUP
We just...existed.

Pup sits, enjoying the silence throughout

the following.

58
 REMY
(putting the chain back into his shirt)
We didn't bother with the suits or the shoes. Suits? Fuck that. Brian and I
too school for cool. We'd decided to wear the same clothes we were
wearing the day we met instead.
(pulls the denim jacket around himself)
Brian loved his denim jacket.

We did it right there in the lot, right in front of our screen. I kept taking
Brian's hands away from his hair. Mandy actually wore a dress, if you
can believe that. Here Brian and I are, in jeans and sneakers, and the
Queen of Jeans and Sneakers actually has a dress on. Pup wanted to be
the ring bearer. He did this little bit where he pretended like he'd
forgotten to put them in his pocket.

I repeated after Mandy:

"I, Remy,
take you, Brian,
for my lawfully wedded husband.
To have and to hold
from this day forward,
for better or for worse,
for richer or poorer,
in sickness and in health...
'til death do us...”

59
 NEXT TIME, SAY STRAIGHT GUYS

Immediately after the previous scene. The

sound of the film warps as Remy and Pup
shift into new positions, moving from the
past into the present. We're still on the roof,
but now in the night after Homecoming,
hours after Pup walked in on Remy and
Nate. A new film plays.

Remy is actively engaged in the film. Pup

is on his smartphone. It's a bit windy.

REMY
(trying to direct Pup to the film)
This is your favorite part.
(no response from Pup, gestures to the screen)
I can shut this off.

PUP
(doesn't look up)
I'm watching.

A moment as Pup texts something. Text

tone sounds as he gets a text back, laughs a
little.

REMY
I think Gill-man's about to kidnap Julie Adams.

PUP
(eyes still on the phone)
Oh no, watch out, Julie.

REMY
(trying to jog a conversation)
Hey, did I tell you about that time your dad took me to the beach and--?

PUP
(no emotion, in one breath)
He talked you into going into the ocean, piece of seaweed brushed your
leg, you thought it was a shark, made him carry you out of the water, you
haven’t gone back since.

A moment.

60
 REMY
You texting Mia?

PUP
What?

REMY
Did you and Mia...get into a fight...or...?

PUP
(curt, annoyed)
Mia’s just a friend. I told you that.

A moment.

REMY
(he's trying)
Monsters of the American Cinema: Leading Ladies. Character names,
first only.

Pup doesn't respond.

REMY [CONT'D]
Okay. I'll go first. Mina. From Dracula.
(a moment)
Pup.

PUP
Huh?

REMY
Leading Ladies. Character names, first only.

PUP
Oh. Mina.

REMY
I already used Mina.

PUP
Ummm.

REMY
Where's my boy? Think quick.

61
 PUP
(quick glance at the screen, gestures at it)
Kay Lawrence.

REMY
First names only.

PUP
If I'd just said “Kay”, you'd have thought I meant the letter “K”, text
abbreviation for “okay.” We've been here before.

REMY
My turn then. Elizabeth.
(no response from Pup, growing frustrated)
Elizabeth...from Frankenstein. Elizabeth Olsen. Elizabeth Banks.
Elizabeth Taylor. Elizabeth Warren. Queen Elizabeth.
(snaps at Pup)
Who are you texting?

PUP
Jeff.

REMY
Jeff. Which one's Jeff?

PUP
You haven't met him.

REMY
(grabs Pup's phone)
Well, let me get an introduction!

PUP
(grabbing for his phone)
Remy! Remy, give it back!

REMY
(laughing, reading the screen)
“Leanne has some big...”
(stops laughing, his face falls)
“...I want to lay her face down and...”
(covers his mouth)
Oh my god. Who is this kid?

62
 PUP
(taking his phone back)
He's just a friend from school.

REMY
Is he the one with the grandma?

PUP
No, that’s Kenny.

REMY
So then what is that?

PUP
It’s guy talk.

REMY
Fairly certain I’ve been a quote-unquote guy longer than you have, and I
don’t remember me and my “guy” friends talking / like that.

PUP
Well, this is how regular guys talk.

A moment.

REMY
“Regular guys?”

PUP
You know what I mean.

REMY
What the hell is a “regular guy?”

PUP
I mean straight guys.

REMY
Well then, next time, say straight guys.

A moment.

REMY [CONT'D]
I don't want you hanging out with that kid. And I hope you're not down at
that school, embarrassing me, talking like that--

63
 PUP
I'm not.

REMY
--because that's not what your dad taught you.

PUP
Yeah, well, my dad's not here. But you already know that, don't you?

A moment.

PUP [CONT'D]
(stands)
Can I go to the park?

REMY PUP
We're watching “Black Lagoon!” Please?
And I think it's gonna rain.

REMY [CONT'D]
Your friends' parents let them hang out at the park this time of night?

PUP
I'll be back by curfew. Or if it starts raining.

A moment.

REMY
Don't make me say yes, just go.

Pup turns to exit.

REMY [CONT'D]
Hey.
(Pup turns back)
I don't want you talking like that.

Pup salutes and begins to exit.

REMY [CONT'D]
Hey.

PUP
(turns back, annoyed)
Yes.

64
 REMY
Text when you get there so I know you made it.

PUP
Okay.

Pup exits.

REMY
Hey!

Pup 's gone.

65
 THE FIRST THUMBNAIL WAS TITLED HOMECOMING

Minutes after the previous scene. Lights up

on the kitchen/living area. Remy enters the
front door with some of the junk food, the
two lawn chairs and the radio from the
roof. During the following, he sets the lawn
chairs near the motorhome door and dumps
the rest of the stuff on the table. He takes
the denim jacket off and hangs it on the
coat rack.

REMY
(to the audience)
I wish I could tell you I came out here with a plan in mind, but that
wouldn't be true. I had a little job at a gas station, saving up to go
somewhere, anywhere. Customer came in and we got to talking. Tourist.
She told me she was from California. San Diego. Said I'd like the
weather.

I don't regret it. Leaving Alabama. There was nothing for me there. Not
anymore.

I lost my mother early, when I was six. Breast cancer. I don’t remember
anything about her, but my father hung one of their wedding pics on the
wall above the TV. She’s standing next to him, pretty white dress, no
wedding veil. My father’s in the picture holding a plate of the wedding
cake. He didn’t know there was a camera on him. She did though. She
was looking right into it, right at me. They loved each other. That’s what
my Aunt Janet said. She passed away too, about a year after I left.

Remy crosses and sits at the table.

Lights up on the now-empty roof. A blue-

ish, flickering light suggesting video, rises
on Pup standing there. He wears his
Homecoming suit.

PUP
(to the audience)
Jeff and Kenny, in their Homecoming suits. Jeff’s just wearing a jacket
over a plaid shirt. Kenny went full-on Zoot Suit. Purple and pinstripes,
matching fedora, shiny shoes. Jeff calls him a “typical Mexican”, and we
laugh. Kenny’s laugh isn’t as loud as ours though. We walk to the school,
get to the school gym. Kenny texts Mercedes and lets her know we’re
outside. She comes out with Mia and Leanne. They look good. Mia’s

66
 PUP [CONT'D]
wearing this dress, really low off of her shoulders. “Cameo Pink.” She
looks like a Disney Princess.

Lights down on Pup.

REMY
My father was a preacher. He had a small church. He was a big man.
Strong. Round chest. Caught the eye of many woman in his
congregation, but he never took to them. I don't think he ever got over
my mother.
(a moment)
You name it, I did it: Wednesday night services, Friday night services,
Sunday School. I was part of the Youth Usher program, Sister Andrea
used to lead it. We greeted church members for the Sunday service and
helped them find seating. We wore matching blue vests and these white
gloves. I felt so important. Sister Andrea once told my father I was the
best usher she had. He was so proud. He made my favorite meal for
dinner that night. Smothered pork chops and mashed potatoes.

Lights up on Pup. A new video clip.

PUP
Jeff stole a pint of vodka from his brother and snuck it in. We’re in the
boys' bathroom, pouring some in our cups of school punch. Jeff hands the
bottle to Kenny and he pours a little too much into his. Jeff gets mad and
starts talking shit to Kenny. I’m like, “Chill, nigga. He ain’t pour that
much!”

We go back out to the gym, music's up, everybody’s going crazy. Leanne
and Mercedes are dancing. Close up on Mrs. Loveman’s face. She’s one
of the chaperones. She doesn’t look happy. Probably jealous cuz her ass
looks like Santa's bag of gifts. I turn the camera to my face and say that.
Jeff 's gonna love--

Lights down on Pup.

REMY
He had this old silver pocket watch. Aunt Janet told me my grandfather
had given it to their grandmother before he took off. She was supposed to
sell it for money. His way of at least trying to take care of his
responsibility, I guess. She kept it, gave it to my father. He kept it on the
mantle above the fireplace.

67
 REMY [CONT'D]
Y'all should've seen him when he was preaching. My father had a gift.
His words, the way he delivered them. You couldn't have told me he
didn't know how call down an angel himself with that voice. I wanted to
be just like him. I wanted to be strong, to speak like honey.

“Members of the congregation,” he'd say. “Come and be delivered unto

to the Lord.”

Lights up on Pup. A new video clip.

PUP
I try to dance with Mia, but damn, she’s good. My two-step can’t keep
up, so she’s dancing with Leanne. I zoom in on her smile. Mia has a nice
smile.

Lights down on Pup.

REMY
Everyone in the church would line up in the aisle, and they'd come to my
father, one by one. He'd lay a hand on their heads, and he'd said, “I
receive you.” I couldn't wait until my turn. I couldn't wait to be received.

My father was love. I knew he'd be love. I knew he'd receive me, hold me
up, pray with me. And when I told him I thought I was gay, at sixteen,
he'd tell me, “I know what the Book say, but you mine. I receive you.”

Lights up on Pup. A new video clip.

PUP
Jeff's dancing with Leanne. I point the camera at him and ask if he has
anything to say to the kids. He goes, “Find my nigga, Dory!” I’m a little
buzzed from the vodka. Mia comes off the dance floor and asks if we can
talk outside in the courtyard. I tell her I'll meet her there, and go to grab
my jacket. That's when I hear Jeff say, “Holy shit!” Pan over to the
entrance of the gymnasium. Randall just walked in.
(a moment)
This...faggot is wearing a full-on dress with makeup on and everything.
Oh my god! He looks like a clown! I can’t believe this—!

Lights down on Pup.

REMY
First, it was a slap. Simple slap. No big, right? Then he put his hands––
the hands that I loved so much––he put them around my neck. I managed
to push him off, but he rushed into me with his full body, knocked me

68
 REMY [CONT'D]
against my bedroom wall. I fell to the ground and he began to...kick me.
The kicks turned to stomps, one right in my face. I tasted pennies. My
mouth filled with blood.

The words he was saying...I’d never heard my father speak like that.
Most of it was run-of-the-mill, but I was able to make out the word:
“faggot.” He left me there on the floor.

I packed my bags that night and ran all the way to Aunt Janet’s. I never
saw my father again. That pocket watch. I took that pocket watch of his
too.

I do that a lot. I justify my bad decisions. It used to drive Brian crazy. I

was always making excuses for why I went over budget for groceries or
bought a new work boots when the light bill was due.

When I pawned my father’s pocket watch to buy Pup the camcorder for
his birthday, I told myself it was something good I could do for my
Puppy, but I think it was really because...I had to get rid of him.

My father was a monster. My husband is a ghost. I don’t have the mind

for more than one.

Remy picks Pup's camcorder up. Outside of

the motorhome, it begins to rain.

REMY [CONT'D]
(opens the playback screen and watches)
And when I started going through Pup's video clips, I told myself it was
because I was being a responsible adult, seeing what he was up to when I
wasn’t around, but that wasn’t it.

Remy presses a button on the camcorder.

Lights up on Pup. A new video clip.

PUP
(hearty laugh)
Jeff just—!
(another laugh)
Jeff just fucking tripped Randall! He held his foot out and Randall
tripped over his heels and fell face first to the fucking ground! He's on
the ground, trying to figure out how to stand in a dress, and I call him a
fucking faggot. We’re kinda drunk, so we all just start chanting, “Sil-ly
Ran-dall, dicks are for chicks! Sil-ly Ran-dall, dicks are for chicks! Sil-ly
Ran-dall, dicks are for chicks!”

69
 PUP [CONT'D]
(a moment, quietly)
Pan to the right and I see Mia. Her face. She's just...standing there
looking at me. She heard me. She heard the whole thing. I...I was
supposed to meet her in the courtyard...
(a moment)
Leanne calls Jeff an asshole. Mia helps Randall up and takes him out of
the gym. I don’t see her for the rest of the--

Lights down on Pup. He exits the roof.

REMY
The first thumbnail was titled “Homecoming”.

Remy watches for a few more seconds.

From the camcorder's speakers, we hear the
sounds of Homecoming, teenagers
laughing, maybe a few of the phrases Pup
mentioned in his half of the duologue.

Then the final incident. Teens laughing.

Voices. Sil-ly Ran-dall, dicks are for
chicks!” Remy covers his mouth in
disbelief.

Pup enters the motorhome door, back in his

clothes from the previous scene, wet from
the rain. He takes his jacket off and hangs it
up on the coat rack.

PUP
It started raining, I came back. Did I pass the trust exercise?

He turns to Remy and sees him with the

camcorder. He crosses and snatches it out
of Remy's hands.

PUP [CONT'D]
(grabs the camcorder from Remy)
What the hell? You're going through--?

REMY
(gestures at Pup)
“--through my stuff?”

70
 REMY [CONT'D]
(gestures at himself)
Oh my, you totally caught me, kid.
(Pup)
“How could you? I've never felt more betrayed in my life.”
(himself)
You're right. It was an invasion. I'm invasive. I'm an invader even though
you pay zero bills in this damn house. I promise to try and respect your
privacy in the future.
(Pup)
“Thank you. You know, you probably wouldn't have gone through my
stuff if I'd just talk to you once in awhile.”
(himself)
What? How mature of you. Well, no time like the present! Why don't we
grab a coffee and talk about what I just saw on your camera? You and
your knucklehead ass friends calling each other “nigga”, bullying this
Randall kid?

PUP
We weren't bullying--

REMY
(reaches for camcorder)
Word? Let's play the clip again--

PUP
Stop it.

REMY
(a moment)
Is this kid...gay, queer? Trans?

PUP
He paints his nails sometimes. He was wearing a dress...

REMY
That doesn't mean shit and you know it. And “they” were wearing a
dress. We've talked about that too. If you don't know, it's “they” until you
do.
(a moment)
Do your friends know about me? Do they know about your dad?
(no answer from Pup)
Oh, I see. You don't want them to know you live with a faggot.

PUP
Don't say that.

71
 REMY
“Faggot” too real for you? How 'bout “nigga?” Am I your nigga, Pup?

A moment. Remy steps closer to him.

REMY [CONT'D]
Am I your nigga?

A moment. Pup looks away, too ashamed

to respond.

REMY [CONT'D]
I thought I taught you better than that. I know your dad taught you better
than that.

PUP
Dad's not here.

REMY
We're playing the dead dad card again. Twice in one night, huh?

Pup opens his mouth. Remy's too ready.

REMY [CONT'D]
And this where you deflect and bring up Nate.

Pup closes his mouth, his Plan B thwarted.

REMY [CONT'D]
(a moment)
Do you know how...embarrassed this kid must have felt, how humiliated
they--?
(a moment)
You are going to apologize to “Randall”--
(Pup opens his mouth to protest)
--if I have to go to school with you and walk you up to them myself. And
you're gonna find new friends. Immediately.

PUP
That's bullshit!

72
 REMY PUP [CONT'D]
What did you just
say? That's bullshit!
I get good grades,

You're also drinking

and being a bully, I don't get in trouble!
making fun of your I'm not your
teacher, saying “nigga”, puppy anymore!

you're lucky You're not even

I don't break my dad! We didn't
that damn camera! hurt Randall so--

PUP [CONT'D]
--STOP BEING A FAG ABOUT IT!

A moment.

REMY
Wow.

PUP
I didn't mean to.

REMY
Wow.

PUP
I didn't mean to! I'm sorry!

REMY
No. I'm sorry. I’m sorry I still have a headache despite taking aspirin an
hour ago because I know it means stress and I'm fairly committed to this
journey of true health and mental wellness. I’m sorry I paid the bills this
morning. I'm sorry you need a new jacket. Phone.

Remy holds his hand out. A moment. Pup

takes his phone out of his pocket and hands
it to Remy who pockets it.

REMY [CONT'D]
You need a new fucking jacket because that old rag you think is so damn
cool? Uh-uh, baby. It's ugly. You know better than to walk outside like
that. I’m sorry the cabinet door beneath the sink in the bathroom needs
replacing. Camera.

73
 Remy holds his hand out again. Pup hands
him his camcorder.

REMY [CONT'D]
I’m sorry I found three more gray hairs on my chest this morning to add
to the collection.
(a moment)
I’m sorry you feel alone sometimes, I’m sorry I feel alone sometimes.
I’m sorry you’re sorry right now because I really love you, kid.
(trying hard not to break)
I'm sorry I don't know who you are. You really had me fooled, Puppy.
You really had me fucking fooled.
(a moment)
Now get your ass in your room.

Pup goes to head into his bedroom, stops.

PUP
(suddenly and quickly, without looking at Remy)
I stole a pack of your cigarettes once. You thought they'd fallen out of
your pocket somewhere, but you'd left them on the roof. I stole them and
I hid them in my pillow case. Smoked two in a row the next morning, on
the way to school, one after the other. Got real sick in second period.
That’s why I threw up in the hallway; why the school called you and Dad
to pick me up.

A moment as Remy stares at Pup. Pup exits

into his bedroom.

74
 GAY GREEN GOOD

Lights up on the kitchen/living area, its

state in an exact recreation of the
Homecoming scene. Remy sits at the table
behind a piece of poster board and bottles
of poster paint. The mood is way off. The
shadows are deep.

PUP
(offstage)
Remy?

Pup enters from his bedroom, in his

Homecoming suit. He wears a band of
stitches across his forehead like the
creature in the film, Frankenstein. One of
his feet are scaly, webbed and taloned like
the Gill-man's in Creature from the Black
Lagoon. Neither he nor Remy seem to
notice these things.

PUP [CONT'D]
Remy, I can't can't find my tie!

Remy stands with the poster board up.

Gone is the green. Written crudely and
dripping in blood red is one word: “RUN.”

REMY
Thoughts?
(wiggles the sign)
“Beef is better than veal. Master would like more fat.”

PUP
(a moment)
My tie. I just had it.

REMY
(hops up)
The Case of the Missing Tie.

Remy puts the poster board back onto the

table and exits into the bathroom closing
the door behind him. A moment.

75
 PUP
(calling)
Is it in there?

Remy exits the bathroom, wearing his

bathrobe. He stops, startled when he sees
Pup and quickly closes the bathroom door
behind him.

PUP [CONT'D]
You find it?

REMY
(guarding the bathroom door)
Hey, Pup. Why don’t you run down to Filippi’s and grab us a pizza?

PUP
(eyes on the bathroom)
Is someone in there?

REMY
You're the only man I need in my life.

We hear three loud THUDS from behind

the bathroom door.

REMY [CONT'D]
(nervously)
Look. Go! Get a pizza, get some burgers, get some…
(crossing into Pup’s bedroom)
“…rats! “Rats! Rats! Thousands! Millions of them!”

A moment as Pup waits for Remy to return

to the kitchen. Pup slowly walks towards
his bedroom.

PUP
Remy....?

Lights lower on the kitchen/living area and

rise on Pup's bedroom as he enters it. Remy
stands there, now in street clothes.

PUP [CONT'D]
Remy, I think...

76
 REMY
I know. It's coming.
(a creepy smile)
The world is one big ball of drugs.

PUP
We should hide.

REMY
Why are you wearing your suit?

PUP
I was going to the dance.

REMY
The dance is over.

PUP
(confused)
No...I'm...I'm meeting my friends at the park.

REMY
(reaches for the jacket)
Well, you're not getting blood on this.

Remy takes Pup's jacket off. Beneath, Pup's

arms are wrapped in filthy mummy
bandages.

PUP
But Mia's waiting for me.

REMY
Mina? I already used Mina.

A noise from the darkened kitchen/living

area.

REMY [CONT'D]
(hushed, a hint of wicked teasing)
Uh-oh. What in the world was that? I think we should make a run for it.
I'll go out first, see if the coast is clear, then I'll whistle and you just
follow me out, okay?

Remy exits Pup's bedroom. A moment.

We hear the whispers, then Remy's whistle.

77
 Pup exits his bedroom.

Lights rise on the kitchen/living area and

lower on Pup's bedroom. Remy sits at the
table. He's been crying.

REMY [CONT'D]
Hey, Puppy.

A moment.

PUP
No. No. I can't do / this again.

REMY
We need to talk. Can you...? Come here. Sit down.

Pup sits across from Remy.

REMY [CONT'D]
(a moment)
They found your father.

PUP
Please don't say it.

REMY
(lowers his head in sobs)
He's gone, Pup. He's gone.

We hear the croaks and yowls. The lights

suddenly turn red and classic monster
movie music begins to play. Remy's sobs
turn to amused, menacing chuckles. It's
horrible, evil.

PUP
(stands, backing away from the table)
Who are you?

Remy hops onto the kitchen table in the

monster crouch. Throughout the following,
he speaks in a deep and primal voice,
punctuated with the croaks and yowls
we've heard previously--the voice of Pup's
monster.

78
 REMY / THE MONSTER
...you know me...let me in...friend...
(croaks)
”monster in my room”...

A moment. Remy twists his head, cracking

his neck.

REMY / THE MONSTER [CONT'D]

...you...hurt remy...hm?
(croak, yowls)
...really...had him...fooled...

PUP
I want to wake up now.

REMY / THE MONSTER [CONT'D]

(examining his own limbs, his arm is:)
...meat...
(his other arm is:)
…meat...
(feels his chest, croaks)
...blood...meat...
(turns his attention back to Pup)
...come...love on remy...

Pup holds up a finger gun and points it at

Remy.

PUP
Bang!

Remy reacts as if he's hit. Remy falls from

the table. He rises, yowling at Pup.

PUP [CONT'D]
Bang!

Remy is hit again, his head slumps, but he

doesn't fall. They hold like this a bit. Pup,
finger gun out, approaches Remy
cautiously. Remy suddenly springs to life,
standing before Pup. A jump scare.

PUP [CONT'D]
How--?

79
 REMY / THE MONSTER
(strokes Pup's cheek)
...daddy...brian…
(yowl)
...no guns…

PUP
(realizing)
He hated guns. Dad didn’t like guns. I didn’t know as a kid, but now--?

REMY / THE MONSTER

(chuckles)
…no bang…

PUP
It was you! It’s always been you. You made me say those things to
Remy! You made me hurt Randall!

REMY / THE MONSTER

(confused)
…”silly randall?”
(chuckles)
...gay, green…good…gay, good...
(croaks)
...you…fang, stitches, fur…blood...
(points at Pup)
…scared, mad, jealous... you, red…

…i, camera….you, button…

…i, ghost…YOU, monster...

Remy reaches out and grabs Pup by his

throat with one hand. Pup uses both of his
hands, tries to pry it away, but Remy's too
strong. Remy brings Pup to his face.

REMY / THE MONSTER [CONT'D]

...you let me in...now...let me out...
(a moment, grins)
...where's my boy?...

Remy releases Pup and falls into the

monster crouch. He points at the
motorhome door. Pup, sad and exhausted,

80
 slowly crosses to the door and opens it.

REMY / THE MONSTER [CONT'D]

...who...working...snack bar...?

Lights slowly dim on the two of them.

81
 NO PUP

Late night, after Pup's dream. Lights up on

the kitchen/living area. We hear heavy rain
from outside of the mobile home. Remy
lies on the sofa, sleeping. He tosses and
turns uncomfortably in his sleep, signs of a
nightmare. A moment as we watch him,
and then Pup slowly emerges from his
bedroom. He's barefoot, shirtless, in his
pajama bottoms, he walks in an animalistic
style, crudely, on all fours. Eyes wide open,
still half asleep, the monster has taken him
over. He sniffs at the air.

The roll of thunder. Pup creeps over to

him. He sniffs him, raises a hand to touch
him, but pulls it back.

Pup crosses to the table. He climbs on top

of it, sniffs at the bags and boxes of junk
food. His eyes find Remy's bottles of poster
paint. He grabs the color red and squeezes
paint out of it all over the table. He studies
the mess for a bit, then dips both hands in
it. He rubs one paint-drenched hand across
his face and the other across his chest. He
looks down at his hands. They now look
like they're stained with blood. This upsets
him and he sweeps all of the contents off of
the table.

Remy sits up suddenly with a croak and a

gasp, waking from his nightmare. He feels
his own body and arms. Looks over to
discover Pup.

REMY
(startled)
Pup!
(hand to chest, calming himself)
Oh man...I had this crazy dream…but it wasn’t a dream, it was a place…
and you were there…but Hunk and Zeke were MIA…

Remy stands, taking Pup in.

82
 REMY [CONT’D]
(watching Pup cautiously)
…some of it wasn't very nice…most of it…
(a moment as he studies:)
Puppy?

Remy stands, takes a few cautious steps

towards Pup. Pup doesn't move a muscle.
His eyes stay on Remy with every step.

REMY [CONT'D]
Pup?

Pup speaks in the style of the monster, the

same Remy used in his nightmare.

PUP / THE MONSTER

(croak)
...no pup...

REMY [CONT'D]
Oh my god.

PUP / THE MONSTER

…no oh my god…no pup…

Pup yowls.

REMY
(realizes)
You're still asleep.

PUP / THE MONSTER

(croak, yowl)
...green...good...red...bad...

REMY
Pup, you're still asleep.

PUP / THE MONSTER

...no pup...

REMY
I need you to come down, okay? Come on.
(demonstrates)
One foot on the floor, okay? Like this.

83
 Pup slowly lowers a foot to the floor.

REMY [CONT'D]
Now the other.

Pup lowers his other foot and climbs off of

the table, landing in the monster crouch.
Remy sits on the ground a few feet away
from him.

REMY [CONT'D]
Now come here. Come to me.

Pup begins to move towards him. Remy

holds his hand out and Pup studies it.

REMY [CONT'D]
That's right. Come to me. Come on, Pup.

PUP / THE MONSTER

...NO PUP!...

Pup suddenly rushes at Remy, pouncing on

and straddling him. He raises a hand,
fingers curled into a claw to strike.

REMY
Take it easy...take it easy...

PUP / THE MONSTER

(a moment, croak, grins)
...you...scared...?

REMY
Yes. You're scaring me.

A flicker in Pup's eyes, something close to

shame. He wasn't expecting that. He
croaks, then forces his body off and away
from Remy, running for the motorhome
door on all fours. He throws it open and
exits.

REMY [CONT'D]
(sits up)
Wait!

84
 Remy jumps to his feet and grabs the
flashlight. He runs out of the motorhome
door after Pup. Lights down on the
kitchen/living area.

Lights up on the roof. We're in a full-on

thunder storm. Rain is pouring, the wind
roars. Pup as the monster enters. Remy
enters behind him with the flashlight.

REMY [CONT'D]
Hey!

Remy points the flashlight in Pup's

direction. Pup YOWLS, shielding his eyes,
and backs away from Remy, towards the
edge of the roof.

REMY [CONT'D]
I'm putting it down! I'm putting it down. See?

Remy places the flashlight on the ground in

front of Pup. Remy slowly crosses towards
Pup who doesn't move. Remy holds a
finger gun up.

REMY [CONT'D]
Let's kill the monster! Wanna help? Come on! Die, monster! Bang!
Bang!

PUP / THE MONSTER

(croak)
...no bang...

REMY
(he doesn't understand)
Where's my boy? Come on! Bang! Bang!

This agitates Pup. He pounds the roof.

PUP / THE MONSTER

...no bang!...no bang!...

REMY
(he gets it)
Okay. Okay.

85
 Remy takes a helpless moment. Thinks.
Then...

REMY [CONT'D]
(to himself)
“Green, good”...
(to Pup)
Monsters of the American Cinema!

PUP
...monsters... / cinema...

REMY
Monsters of the American Cinema! Wanna play?

Pup grins and yowls, clapping his hands.

He's in.

REMY [CONT'D]
Okay! The Color Green, go!

Pup thinks really hard. He's at a loss.

REMY [CONT'D]
I'll go first. “Green!” Frankenstein!

A moment. Pup takes a step towards Remy.

REMY [CONT'D]
Frankenstein! That's one!

PUP / THE MONSTER

(another step)
“...deadly...
(yowl)
...mantisssss...”

REMY
Uhh...The Little Shop of Horrors! Jack Nicholson!

PUP / THE MONSTER

“...monster...green hell...”

86
 REMY
(a moment, this is deliberate)
I can't think of anymore, buddy. I'm drawing blanks here. “Green.” Is
there one I'm forgetting?

PUP / THE MONSTER

(monster voice fading)
“Creature...”

REMY
(encouraging him)
Where's my boy?

PUP / THE MONSTER

“Creature...from the...Black...”

REMY
Come on, Pup.

Pup yowls, reverting back into his monster

form.

PUP / THE MONSTER

...NO PUP!...

Throughout the following, Pup rises,

visibly preparing himself to attack Remy.

PUP / THE MONSTER [CONT'D]

(croak)
...pup...left you...

REMY
I didn't leave / him!

PUP / THE MONSTER

(growing angry)
...no Pup!...

REMY
I'll never leave him! Wake up, Puppy!

PUP / THE MONSTER

(the latter losing its grip on Pup)
...meat...blood...

87
 REMY
(growing angry)
Where's my boy?

PUP / THE MONSTER

(pounds his own chest)
“It's alive!”

REMY
Where's my boy?!

PUP / THE MONSTER

...NO / PUP...!

REMY
WHERE IS MY SON?!

Pup rushes at Remy. Remy catches him in

his arms. Pup bucks and thrashes wildly,
but Remy holds tight.

REMY [CONT'D]
I won't leave you. I won't leave you. I won't leave you.

Pup croaks, yowls, it's weak. He begins to

melt, the monster fading. He slowly lifts
his arms and throws them around Remy in
a desperate cling, croaks fading into deep,
heartbreaking sobs. Remy holds his son as
the lights fade.

88
 I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY LIKE CATS

Minutes after the previous scene. Lights up

on the kitchen/living area. We watch the
set, still and quiet for a bit. Then, the
motorhome door opens. Remy and Pup
enter, wet, exhausted, spent. Pup sits at the
table. Remy plops down on the sofa. A
moment.

PUP
Wanna watch a movie?

REMY
Like I can sleep tonight.

PUP
(a moment)
I'm sorry...what I said to you. It was really messed up. I'm sorry.

Remy opens his mouth to say something

comforting, decides against it.

REMY
I accept your apology. I think you have some more to make.

PUP
Booked myself on a world tour.

REMY
Go put a shirt on. That's enough freeing of the nipple.

Lights up on Pup's bedroom as Pup enters

it. He finds a monster movie T-shirt and
puts it on, sits on his bed.

During the following, Remy stands and

crosses to the denim jacket on the wall. He
takes it off, holds it to his chest.

REMY [CONT'D]
(to the audience)
I’d been dating this guy for a few months.

89
 PUP
(to the audience)
Tomorrow, at school...

REMY
Things were getting pretty serious, so we'd decided it was finally time for
me to meet his son.

PUP
Most of the guys will hang together at lunch. The girls will sit together
too.

REMY
We met up at a country kitchen, one of those breakfast spots with really
good hash browns and sausage slices so big you thought they might be
Brontosaurus backs.

PUP
All except Mia and Randall. They'll do their own thing. They'll sit
together the day after, and the day after, weeks, months, just Mia and
Randall. New best friends. Inseparable since the…
(a moment)
And I'll watch them together in the cafeteria. I'll notice that Randall has
the most awesome smile. They won't...neither of them will look my way.
They'll avoid me in the halls. I'll think about, maybe, trying to talk to one
of them...
(a moment)
Maybe someday, I'll get a chance to say sorry. Maybe not. Some wounds
never close.

REMY
This kid--he’s about eight years old. Big, curious eyes, a huge mop of
hair. I walk in, and he’s sitting in a booth next to his dad. I take the seat
across from them and I say to the kid, “Hi, my name’s Remy. It’s a
pleasure to meet you.” And this kid says...

PUP & REMY [CONT'D]

“My name’s Peter. But everyone calls me Pup.”

PUP [CONT'D]
(back to the audience)
I'll stop hanging out with Jeff. Kenny and I both will. Kenny will tell me
he never really liked him. I don’t think I did either. Leanne won't even
talk to him anymore. He'll start hanging out with the football team. I'll
see them in the cafeteria too. He won't talk so much anymore. They’re
all bigger than him.

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 REMY
I say, “Pup? Like Puppy? That’s a cool nickname. Why does everyone
call you Pup?” And this kid looks at me for a second, then he looks at his
father, then he looks at me again. And he goes:

PUP & REMY [CONT'D]

“Because I really, really, really like cats.”

REMY [CONT'D]
(chuckles)
He got me with that one.

Remy takes the jacket back to the sofa and

spreads it over his lap. Pup enters again.

REMY [CONT'D]
(sees Pup's T-shirt)
Interesting choice.

PUP
(sitting next to Remy on the sofa)
What are we gonna watch?

REMY
A comedy.

PUP
A romantic comedy.

REMY
A musical.
(gets an idea)
Musicals of the American Cinema. Go.

PUP
Grease.

REMY
Singin' in the Rain.

PUP
West Side Story.

91
 A moment. The opening chords of the
Little Shop of Horrors musical prologue
may or may not begin to play here.

PUP [CONT'D]
(realizes what Remy's gonna say next, groans)
Dude, don't. This is so / lazy.

REMY
Little Shop of --!

Lights out.

END PLAY

92