Asleep in My Palm (2023) Movie Script
1
All right then.
Here's my version,
adapted from the film,
remastered, and
updated by yours truly.
Go.
Once upon a time, there was
this kid named Chicken Little.
OK.
He's basically the most
adorable, little chicken
you've ever fucking seen.
Mm-hmm.
He's got glasses and
a little rooster mohawk.
Imagine a little
prepubescent chicken,
homunculus hybrid creature.
OK, I got it.
I see it in my brain.
So our little
guy lives in this town
full of sentient animals.
Aren't all animal sentient?
Well done, but these
can talk and distinguish
between each other.
They bicker, have pecking
orders, go to war,
all the bullshit humans do.
But it's cats, dogs, goats,
foxes, fucking wildebeests.
Every creature you can possibly
imagine exists in this town.
OK.
So one day, Chicken
Little starts yelling,
the sky is falling!
The fucking sky is falling!
For real?
Well, that's what he says.
So of course, everybody
starts freaking out.
They're breaking
shit, running around.
It's all-out chaos.
But this one animal--
maybe he's an armadillo--
says, wait a second.
I can see the sky.
It's right where we left it.
Everything seems fine.
What the fuck is going on?
And Chicken Little says, I
was standing by this tree,
and some shit fell on
my head, something huge.
So the whole town goes
out to where Chicken
Little says the sky is falling.
And what do you know?
All they find is
a bunch of acorns.
So Chicken Little's dad, Papa
Little, of all creatures, says,
is this what fell,
you little moron?
And Chicken Little
says, no, that's not it.
That's a fucking acorn.
But everyone, including
the dad, says,
nah, this kid's full of shit.
And suddenly, the whole
town hates our little guy
because they think
he cried wolf.
But who would lie
about the sky falling?
No one, but who would
believe it, you know?
No one.
Right.
So years later, he's in school,
and he's getting seriously
bullied.
There's this little
fucker named Foxy Loxy.
And her and her friend Loosey
Goosey are habitually beating
the shit out of Chicken Little.
She's honestly a
first-rate, little fucking
bitch, a completely
merciless individual.
But years of hate and
all-around attrition
have hardened Chicken Little.
He's not the same little guy who
yelled about the sky falling.
He's not scared of shit.
None of his friends
go to school with him
because they're all older,
from the street, outcasts,
just like him.
He even fell out
with his old man
because he couldn't handle how
his dad threw him under the bus
because real dads don't
do that, you know?
No.
So our boy CL is living
in the animal town equivalent
of Paterson, New Jersey--
--with a washed-up
noise musician
and a 60-year-old bouncer.
And all he can think of
is what he saw that day
and what's coming to
every motherfucker
who didn't believe him.
Dad?
Yeah?
How does he eat?
He sells shit
like your old man.
OK.
You see, everybody's
got their breaking point.
I've got one.
You've got one.
God's got one.
And Chicken Little's
got one, too.
So one day, after years of
putting up with everyone's
shit, he rallies his pack
of marginalized badasses,
and they roll up to the
school with the intention
of laying out old Foxy
Loxy and Loosey Goosey.
But just as all the violence
is about to go down--
Keep going.
Just as they're about
to wreck those fuckers,
we hear this massive,
deafening crack,
like all the thunder
ever uttered by the sky
combined into one
monumental sound.
Everybody runs outside,
and sure enough,
the sky is cracked open.
And you bet your
ass it's falling.
Everybody is freaking
out and crying.
They're all hysterical
because death is inevitable.
But Chicken Little just looks
up with this enormous fucking
grin.
Because as far as
he's concerned,
he's been dead for years.
And the last thing he'll
see is every motherfucker
who rejected him eating shit.
End of story.
All right, go to sleep.
I'll see you in the morning.
Wait, Dad.
How did Chicken Little
know the sky was following
the first time and not
just like one of the acorns
falling from a tree?
Maybe early on, he saw
this tiny crack in the sky
that nobody else could see.
What about birds?
What birds?
You said there's
every animal imaginable.
There weren't birds
flying around that saw?
You little fucker.
It's not that they
weren't capable of seeing.
It's more that they
weren't looking.
No one was.
He saw shit that others didn't.
Well, he could have
just pointed and avoided
all the fucked shit.
Maybe he was wrong
the first time.
An animal world god
wanted to punish
the animal world town for how
they treated the little fella.
Maybe their meanness made
him right, like the town
created its own fate.
I-- I like that.
Phew.
I'm off.
Love you, Dad.
Please be safe.
I love you, too.
Sweet dreams.
Come lock it from the inside.
Hey, Joey.
What time is it?
1:50.
Nice.
Listen, I'm a
little low on cash.
You mind if I take a shit?
I promise I'll buy
something double next time.
Knock yourself out.
Thanks, man.
Home is a complicated
thing, mostly bullshit,
but it's basically
the best we get.
We build it and hate
it and then get pissed
when the world
inevitably fucks us out
of it with uninvited change.
And then we go and build
it again somewhere else.
Where did
you live before me?
Before you, my
home was loneliness.
That was my home.
And I never really destroyed
that place, you know?
You're still lonely.
Hey, man.
A couple of smokes?
Not in a bad way,
if that makes sense.
We all need a
little bit of that,
almost like we were born for it.
And then everything
we accomplish
is just a way of
beating it back.
Thanks.
No problem.
If I could give
you anything, it
would be the ability to
need no thing and no one,
to be unbreakable.
To disappear if you have to.
I don't like
talking about this.
You want a story?
Yes, please.
I ever tell you
about Chicken Little?
Hello?
Hello?
How many is that?
Six, I think.
Ain't shit.
Those chick bikes?
It's what you wanted.
Yeah, that'll fucking sell.
I'll need 200 for all of them.
Sounds good.
We can't bring the shit back
to my place this time, though.
Wait.
Why?
You remember my neighbor we
used to chill with, the dude
with the Panera hookup?
Chill with?
We hung with him twice, I think.
Yeah, whatever.
Remember how he had that old
buried school bus he was trying
to turn into a fallout shelter?
Yeah.
He forgot to
ventilate that shit.
You gotta love when
doomsday preppers
prep themselves to death, huh?
He suffocated?
Yeah, something like that.
Here's the snag, though.
It turns out that motherfucker
was deep into some shit
that I didn't really know
about 'cause the cops had been
digging up his whole place,
which basically means they've
been up in my neighborhood
for the past two days,
ripping shit up.
If reports go out
about these bikes--
that's why I gotta
dump them next day,
like the ones that don't sell.
We roll in there with
this haul, someone
will notice, for sure the
fucking guy with the lawnmower
and that kid who's always
fucking hassling me.
Was there someplace
else we can take them?
Yeah, dawg.
There's an abandoned
warehouse a few blocks
from where they do
the flea market,
way closer than my place.
I say we take them over there.
We'll load them up
into that building.
OK, fine.
Are you going to
fucking help me?
Yeah, yeah, of course.
You're my partner.
I'll do anything for you.
Fuck these bikes!
Yeah, I, uh, shaved
off all my hair, man.
Yeah, I saw.
Look, can I drop
something on you?
Because you're my homeboy.
Go.
I'm like fucking gone, man.
I don't give a shit
about anything anymore.
You can't say anything to that?
I'm just listening.
It's been two weeks.
Felt this way for
two fucking weeks.
I'm sorry.
It's not all bad.
You think it would be, but it
isn't because I could just--
I could end it any time I want.
I don't have anyone to stop me.
I don't have any parents.
I don't got no girl.
Definitely no fucking girl.
You know, you know that
song "Creep" by Radiohead?
Sure.
Yeah, that's how I was
feeling before I got real.
I went on this terrible
date with this chick.
And she told me that
was her favorite song.
I told her to fuck
right off, yeah.
Because she liked the song?
Yeah.
Girls don't get to like "Creep."
That's-- it's like
appropriation.
You're saying that
girls can't wish
they were special in
the context of a person
that floats like a feather?
Aight, don't be a dick.
I mean, fuck your women, right?
You know I have a
daughter, and I don't
like when you talk that way.
Yeah.
You know, how old is
she now at this point?
And can you ease
up on the gas?
What?
It's 7:00 in the morning.
There's nobody out here.
This is prime time for
rippin' shit up, man!
She's fucking 16.
Now, please.
All right, all right.
It's just that, you know, I feel
like it's already over for me,
you know?
You know?
I don't, actually.
Are you saying you never
felt this way before?
Not in the way
you're describing.
Well, then, how?
No offense, but I feel no need
to talk about myself with you.
Maybe Beth-Ann is just what
I need, someone pure like that.
I don't think so.
I'm just fucking
with you, man.
I know she's off-limits.
I just fuck around, you know?
You know, when was the last
time you put yourself out there?
As in dated?
Yeah.
I don't know, 15 years.
Fuck, man.
Why?
I live in a storage unit
with my daughter, man.
I'm not going to be parading
women through there.
You must be like
horny as fuck.
I don't think of myself
as a sexual person anymore.
Y'all ever get high together?
No.
That's cool.
Keeping it true.
Does Beth-Ann ever get restless?
As in how?
Just like-- oh, like looking
out and seeing other kids,
like college kids and shit.
Not that I've seen.
Maybe she is pure, you know?
It's like you did that.
I don't even know
what that means.
Like, you know, like, she--
that Beth-Ann turned
out good, and it's--
from where you how break.
I don't fucking know, man.
I'm just talking out of my ass.
It's fine, man.
Can we just have a little
silence for a while?
And it feels like
every day the tide
pushes me further from that.
Like every minute, time just
gets me further from the place
where I was happy, you know?
Uh-huh.
Like, that's what
the color gray is.
Gray is nothingness.
I am gray, the absolute
bare minimum before becoming
invisible, you know?
Like, white is what it is.
I'm not white.
White's too distinct.
Black, too.
Fuck.
My old man was gray,
happened in a year.
His skin, his teeth, his hair.
He actually shaved off
his hair, too, before he--
you know.
But he was seriously
bitter, angry and shit.
That's not me.
No way.
God damn it.
Don't worry.
I'm sure this last
one will be open.
Yeah, it's going to
be the only open door
on the entire premises.
They can't all be locked.
Yes, they fucking can.
That's why doors have locks.
What are we going to do, man?
I need to get back.
How about that, bitch?
Looks like shit's
starting to turn our way.
Yeah, life is
sorting itself out.
Now you can let
your hair grow back.
Yeah.
Sorry, man.
Hey, don't sweat it.
I'm Dark Mortius.
OK.
We're about to
set this roadkill on fire
if you guys want to join.
All right.
This is actually a
place where you could
go to get your car destroyed.
But now it's mine.
What up, friends?
I ain't your friend, bro.
Fucking hell.
Hey, turn that shit off.
Yeah, we're good.
Oh, you guys
should totally stay.
It's not like what you think.
Man, no one's
confused here, bro.
Were you the one talking
about the color gray?
Yeah.
That really
resonated with me, man.
You seem really wise and
honest and deep in it.
Well you don't know
jack shit about me, man!
I am roadkill, dude!
I know your entire head
is shaved like a god,
and I dig that journey.
Shouldn't you be lighting
kids on fire or some shit?
- Why the fuck would we do that?
- I don't know.
Ask Satan.
This is fucking poser shit, man.
That man was already dead.
What really brought you
to this door today, friend?
'Cause I think it was pain,
pain that brought you both here.
Yeah, we're just looking for
some temporary storage, is all.
I think I can allow that.
Wait, are any of y'all
students at the college?
And I graduated 10 years ago.
Varsity lacrosse.
Still in the ivory tower.
Hey, well, you know what?
Thank you for being so chill.
You're welcome.
We're going to run
and grab our stuff.
We'll be right back.
- Are you guys sure?
You want us to wait before
we blaze this roadkill?
Nah, nah, nah, you
guys do your thing.
We'll be one sec, in and out.
Because we can wait.
We're good.
Hand me the blowtorch.
Yeah.
Here you go.
Probably going to smell weird!
Hell yeah!
Light it up.
Light it up.
I hate Satanists, man.
A bunch of fucking posers.
I didn't know you'd
conducted a study.
What the fuck are we going
to do with these bikes?
Well, I don't know.
I was thinking, how would
you feel about holding
them at the storage unit?
That's where I live, man.
Ah, there's an extra
40 in it for you.
No.
Make it 50.
Dad?
It's me.
Open up.
Good morning.
Hey.
You doing all right?
I had this crazy dream.
Yeah?
I was walking in this
mansion, like the one
we broke into in Wellington,
but with these towering living
rooms and libraries
that never ended.
And I kept shouting and shouting
and shouting and shouting,
and no one was there to listen.
Where was I?
I don't think you existed.
Huh.
What do
you think it means?
It means no more
bedtime stories for you.
Now, listen.
I need you to get
up and get dressed.
Jose's outside.
OK.
Can you turn away, please?
Yeah.
Hey, what up, girl?
Long time no see!
Why?
Oh, shit, did I scare you?
No.
Just saying I got to
this place, you know?
Come on, man.
- I'm a primate, right?
- Yeah.
And it's just been
so long since the world has
seen me in my natural state.
You know what I mean?
Like, I'm not supposed to be all
covered up with this fucking--
I said enough.
I've been listening to
this shit all morning.
Help with the bikes.
Bro, I'm talking
to your daughter.
It's been a sec.
It's just like I wanted
to show society that I'm
hip to what I am, you know?
I don't understand.
You're like beautiful, right?
Don't fucking tell my
daughter she's beautiful.
It's like if the world
keeps telling me I'm ugly,
man, maybe I should fulfill
the fucking prophecy.
Show the world that
I don't give a shit.
Like God is up there chucking
prophecies like lawn darts
at sex-starved 30-year-olds.
Maybe he is.
You don't fucking know.
And it's like if I'm being
treated like I'm ugly,
I want to show the
world that I know.
Take control.
It's a fucking cop-out.
The fuck you talking about?
You're actually doing the
reverse of what you're saying.
Rather than tolerate the world
having a view of you that's
displeasing, you're determining
that view ahead of time
so that the blame
can go there, instead
of people forming
an objective opinion
of what you actually are.
What do you think, Beth-Ann?
I think I want to go
to McDonald's and poop
and brush my teeth.
Oh, you know, I'm trying
to score something to eat.
I can fuck up a couple
of egg McMuffins.
I'm trying to get my $250.
Well, both these things
can happen, you know?
Yeah, they can.
I just don't want them to.
Only the you paying me part.
Oh, shit.
Whatever, man.
You know what?
Here.
Take it all.
That's all you
fucking care about.
Look at us, Jose.
Of course it's all I
fucking care about.
Bro, you've been acting
cold to me all fucking day.
I'm sorry.
It's nothing personal.
I just haven't slept
since yesterday.
You know, maybe you should try
hanging with those Satanists.
That guy really seemed to
respond to what you're up to.
Fuck is that
supposed to mean?
He just seemed
to appreciate you.
Yeah, well, I'd
really rather die, bro.
Don't say that shit to me.
Satanists?
It just might be a
way for you to make
some new friends, is all.
You know what?
Maybe you should
reflect on your fucking
situation, how it makes you not
give a shit about anyone else.
How about that,
you fucking prick?
Some McDonald's?
Can we go to
Tiny Thai, instead?
My mind changed.
You got it, kiddo.
Avert your eyes or
behold the device
that brought you because I
don't give a shit what you see.
I know.
And just half of me.
Just half of you?
This is my favorite
time of year.
Why?
Students are all gone back to
their massive, decadent homes
in their fucked coastal cities.
Some stay, despite
their parents.
Stage some hollow display of
adulthood by not going home.
Obviously, there are
exceptions, but mostly
what we see is fabrication.
What about us?
We are what we say we are.
School, bins, or both?
Both.
School first.
Ball.
Oh!
Oh!
Here we
go, down again.
The thoughts I had
are drowned again.
Take this hand to its end.
It'll feel like wind.
Whoa.
Dad?
What's down here?
Any guesses?
A fallout shelter for nights.
Yeah.
Yeah?
How about we bring
the bolt cutters
and have a hideout/banquet
type supper down here tonight?
Wouldn't that be risky?
There's nobody around.
Besides, you need
a little adventure.
OK.
Want to get some clothes?
Yeah.
See anything you like?
Not yet.
Does it work?
I don't know.
I've never seen you wear
anything feminine like that.
Holy shit.
Check this out.
It's worth like 150
bucks and a charger.
Can I have it?
Knock yourself out.
You got that key, Joey?
You gonna buy
something this time?
Yes, I am.
Done.
Snag us a couple of Gatorades.
All right.
You think it's
going to taste like lemon,
but it fucking never does.
Can I have a sip?
Take mine.
I wasn't going to
drink it anyway.
More about keeping my word.
Spoken like a vet.
Heard it was hotter than
a motherfucker over there.
It was fine.
At least you had
schools sending
you juice boxes and shit.
No one gave a fuck about us.
Sometimes you almost
wanted to get greased.
My father fought in
World War II, you know?
Right.
I bet you like
Rage Against the Machine.
We had Creedence.
I fucking love Creedence.
Can we get our change?
Sure.
Why don't you ever talk with
him about stuff like that?
How about because
I don't want to?
But if--
It's mine.
Not his, not yours,
and not anyone else's.
Jesus.
Sorry.
Let's go.
2, 3, 4, 5,
6, 7, 8, 9, 10,
11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18.
So you guys saw Satanists?
It kind of turned
into a confrontation.
Like an argument?
More like Jose being
bitter and a little rascal.
Were they posers like he said?
Hard to say, maybe to him.
Satanism isn't so much
the worship of the devil
as it is the worship
of not God, which makes
for a pretty wide spectrum.
And there's really no
use in saying one form
is more valid than the others.
Unless, of course,
you're doing evil things,
but that's not what
actual Satanism is about.
What's it about?
In its most positive
form, expressing one's
ego or individualism in a way
that can still be ethical.
Rejecting the
Judeo-Christian notion of God
and the Abrahamic
religions as being
hypocritical and oppressive.
An American Satanist would
say, look at all the mortifying
shit that's been done
out of shame alone
in the form of God loving.
Maybe some beautiful things
can happen if we love ourselves
in the form of Satan loving.
So, yeah, if the
Abrahamic religions,
which are what again?
Christianity, Judaism, Islam.
And why Islam?
Because Ishmael was also
one of the sons of Abraham.
So if the Abrahamic
religions are about militating
against our basest
impulses, then Satanism
can be about protecting
and respecting
one's impulses while
still loving ourselves
for what we can't control.
It's not definitively
a sin to act
on impulse, that sort of thing.
Does that make sense?
Yeah.
Is that what you believe?
All religions are
just one religion
in conversation with itself.
Constant flux.
To what, I couldn't tell you.
Mostly our own
destruction probably.
Allah, Buddha, Yahweh,
fucking Jupiter--
what does it matter?
But we're human, so we
kill each other over it
and then say God created
us in his own image.
Go figure that one out.
Maybe change is all that's true.
Suddenly you don't
recognize the person
you are anymore, and not in
relation to God, but yourself,
mostly for the worse.
What do I do
when that happens?
I have no fucking idea.
Let's go.
Hey.
My daughter forgot her key.
You guys mind letting us in?
Yeah, I got you, bro.
You a freshman?
Yeah.
As she walks
in the room, scented and
tall, hesitating once more.
And as I take on myself
and the bitterness I felt,
I realize that love flows.
Wild white horses,
they will take me away.
And the tenderness I feel
will send the dark underneath.
Will I follow?
Through the glory of life,
I will scatter on the floor.
Disappointed--
You like it?
I think I do like it.
Twirl.
It must be rough
seeing your old man
pull off a dress like this
better than you could.
You're so fucking hairy.
You're fucking hairy.
Yeah, but that makes me like
a fucking outlaw girl, you know?
I'm the king of the outlaws.
That's why I can pull off this
cheap-ass Halloween dress.
All right, give it here.
They will take me away.
And the tenderness I
feel will send the dark--
Who owned this
shit, you think?
I don't know.
Mickey Rourke.
Who the fuck is that?
It's not important.
Come on, get dressed.
I want to get out of here before
the ogre gets back from dinner.
Shh.
Yo!
Open this shit up.
Come on, bro!
I can't wait--
Enough!
You're going to get us
fucking hassled again.
What?
The filth is gone.
We can take the
bikes back to mine.
Now?
Yeah, right now, bro.
I got a guy who wants all six.
Got to move them in the morning.
We were about to have dinner.
Want to come?
Ha.
Nah.
I'm good.
I don't go where I'm not wanted.
Plus, I already had a
couple Uncrustables.
What's that?
It's like a peanut
butter and jelly pouch.
I got a whole box of them.
It's like loneliness
food, you know?
In a cold world--
- OK, all right.
Enough.
We'll be right out.
All right, you're good.
No, wait!
What?
You're just going to leave me
to unload this shit by myself?
That's right.
Nah, bro.
I saw you take that 250.
You're fucking coming with.
You want $10 back?
It's not about the money.
It's about what kind
of man you are, bro.
Just go with him, Dad.
Fine, but you drive me back
to campus when we're done.
Yeah, I got you, bro.
I'll meet you in the basement
in about an hour and a half.
Remember, we got
that Beowulf dinner.
Now who's Beowulf?
Medieval dragon slayer.
I'll get the food.
You bring the bolt cutters.
Got it.
Love you, honey.
Love you, Dad.
You know, you feel like my
father sometimes, you know?
Oh, God, please.
Like, I look up to you, man.
Well, I'm not your father.
I said like.
Like my father.
Even though I pay you and shit.
That's why it hurts when you
dismiss me because I know
we both got shit on
each other, and you
could easily tip off
the filth, but you
know I'd do that shit to you.
You don't want to
lose your daughter.
You better tell me where
this is headed right now,
or I bail at the next stop sign.
Just be a little bit
nicer to me, you know.
Are you fucking
threatening me?
You think I'm a fucking idiot?
I know your deal.
I do.
Fine, I'll be nicer.
I mean, seriously, man.
Look, I didn't even recognize
Beth-Ann when I saw her.
She's growing up, dude.
Where are you going to be then?
I'll be fine.
Trust me.
I got real
smoke, Xanax boats,
won't jump the porch
without my pole.
Serving out the Texaco,
smokin' Pemex, lil Mexico.
Got big juice overflow,
Wokeisha that I'm 'bout to pour.
Hollows hit 'em in his throat.
Kill that bitch!
Yeah!
I'm gonna run your ass over.
Do it again!
Do it again, motherfucker!
Fucking low-lives.
You know Domino's won't
even deliver here anymore?
One day, I'm going to
move out of this bitch.
I swear to God.
I've been saving up.
And I always gotta
deal with this fucking
guy always taking a shit in
the back of my goddamn trailer.
Fuck it!
It just helps to unload.
It really does.
You know what I mean?
Yeah.
Oh.
Hey, you ever watched
"The Fripples?"
The what?
"The Fripples."
It's like a show.
I don't own a fucking
television, Jose.
Yeah.
Hey, let's take a
break for a sec.
I want you to
watch this with me.
Absolutely not.
Come on, please.
Please watch it.
Just a little bit with me?
No.
Come on, please.
Come on, come on, come on.
Hey, I'll tell you what.
Hey, you come
watch this with me,
and I'll drive you
home right after.
I'll finish doing
this shit myself.
- All right!
- Yeah!
That's what I'm saying!
-Fuck it.
Hey, you're going to love this.
Come on.
This is going to help
you understand what
I've been going
through, where I've
been at the last little while.
Yeah, that's great.
There's a red one
and a pink one and a blue one--
- No, I just take it really hard
when Mercury's in retrograde.
That's all.
It's a totally acceptable--
aloha.
Are you doing all right?
I'm just waiting for my dad.
Yeah, I feel
like we're all just
in a constant state of waiting
for our dads, you know?
My dad's dead.
That sucks.
We just came down to the
Cove to see if it was open.
Fuck!
It looks like the administration
fucking locked it again.
So we will leave you to
your fatherly waiting.
Come on, you
fucking dizzy goats.
Move.
I can open it.
What was that?
Yeah!
Yes!
Hey, come back.
Let's do this!
Come on come on come on.
Thank you.
Come on.
Come on.
Everybody in.
Let's light it up.
Hey, thanks again.
This was so major.
What's your fucking name again?
Beth-Ann.
That's a very American name.
Is that some shit
someone made up,
or was that your grandma's name?
I don't know.
Don't be scared.
I'm Dark Mortius.
I gave myself that name
after I killed my parents.
Building a new name is part
of getting older, you know?
You killed your parents?
Spiritually, I replaced them.
But they're still here
in the physical world.
When did you replace them?
10 years ago.
I still have some of my shit at
their place I need to pick up,
but I'll just be super sparing
with my energy when I do it
so they don't get any
of this, you know?
We're just going to be
hanging here, drinking beers,
doing some fucking kratom.
You want to join?
We got ketamine, too.
Does that entice you?
Do you guys have Gatorade?
Y'all got any Gatorade?
We got fucking White Claw.
Sorry.
But you should still stay.
The guy to chick
ratio is fucked.
I could send someone out for
you and get you some Gatorade.
No.
I'm just going to wait
for my dad upstairs.
You should stay.
I torched a raccoon
this afternoon,
so vibes are right
where they need to be!
Oh, wait.
Who am I?
What am I?
Am I myself or a
representation of myself?
Am I me?
What clothes I wear, the friends
I have, the things I like.
Am I me or a reflection
of me of what's around me?
What's real, and what's just
what we imagine to be real?
Or is nothing real?
Does the real me even exist,
or am I just this projection
of what I want others to see?
All right, hey, now
check out what this fucking
chick says right here.
Of course you exist,
you silly button.
Who you want to be is you every
bit as much as who you are.
Fuck, right?
Like, that's like me and chicks
and like people I want to be
my friend, how they see me.
Like, it's all linked up.
That's great, Jose.
Like, we're all kids, right?
We're not actually.
- I'll be right back.
- Wait.
What?
Fuck me.
These are all parts of what
make up you and everyone.
And we all make up
the Frippley world.
So love the world because
whether you like it or not,
Buster, you're a part of it.
Can we go?
I got something for you.
Why?
More like I found something
and I want to give it to you.
I don't need anything, Jose.
Hell no!
What the fuck?
- Chill.
It's all of his shit.
I don't want that man.
Put it away.
It's from the 1800s, man.
It's basically a toy.
See?
Come on, man.
I can fucking see
that shit is loaded.
I'm out of here.
- Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
No, I dug this out
of the ground, man.
It's fucking duds, all of them.
Look at this shit.
Look how rusty this is.
You know more about this
shit than anyone I know.
Which is fucking why?
How did you even find it?
With my metal detector, bro,
off the bike path last week.
Look, someone probably
used this shit
to rob a train or something.
Take me back and
leave that shit here.
All right, all right.
I'm sorry, man.
Just, you know, I thought
it would be-- you'd dig it.
Come on, man.
We watched your fucking video.
I want to get back
and eat dinner.
Nice thing like a hip
antique or something.
It's fine.
Let's just go.
Oh, whatever.
It's like so
sensitive, you know?
No matter what I do, you
just fucking find a way.
You know?
Geez, fucking dying
pleasing you, man.
You know, you can't
please you, man.
You know?
Jesus.
I told you, you stupid asshole.
You good?
God damn it.
OK.
Sorry to wake
you, Miss America.
How long has it been?
Hour and a half?
Hey, check it out.
I found him downstairs.
He was squeaking in one of
those little sticky traps.
And when I finally
cut him loose,
he had himself a little heart
attack right here in my hand,
dead.
He's bloody.
I had to use my pocket
knife to free him.
Me and the lads here are going
to ramble on to other digs.
We left one of ours in
the basement passed out.
Being that you're here
waiting for your dad,
do you think that you could
maybe check on her from time
to time, make sure she's OK?
OK.
You're a sweet lass.
What are they saying?
I just love the energy
that you get at night
when you make the light.
Mm.
Where's Mortius?
He said they were going
to ramble on to other digs.
They just fucking left?
He told me to wait with you
because I was going to be here
anyway, waiting for my dad.
Right, you're the hot
chick that broke us in.
I don't get those guys.
Couldn't they just wake me up?
My bike got stolen
earlier this week.
My life is so fucked right now.
Probably
at Rowan's house.
Rowan doesn't have a brain.
We used to fuck, but he
reminded me of Grover
from Sesame Street, which made
me like constantly disassociate
and think about my parents, who
kind of suck, so no more Rowan.
Sorry, I'm still kind
of fucked right now.
It's OK.
I love your outfit.
I would dress like that,
but all the shit my parents
buy me is stupid, and
then I feel stupid, so.
I think you--
What?
Look beautiful.
Are you a fucking freshman?
No, I don't go to school.
I just-- I just live here.
In town?
Sort of.
How old are you?
Whoa.
You look way younger.
You also look like
several ages all
meshed into this beautiful
woman-shaped thing.
You're still waiting
for your dad?
He's on his way.
He should be here,
but he's on his way.
That's really wholesome,
except the fact that he's
meeting you in this
weird dungeon, which is
a little sketchy, but whatever.
Mortius thinks we should
host an orgy here.
I'm not going to
let that happen.
We like exploring places.
Like old buildings?
One time, we stole all this
furniture from a children's
hospital outside of Pittsburgh.
It caught on fire, the
hospital, not the furniture.
So it was shut
down and stuff, so.
We didn't even need to
break anything to get in.
You like live together?
Yeah, we got bookshelves
and a hot plate, two cots,
these cool lava lamps we
found, water cooler, speakers.
Where?
I'm not really
allowed to tell anyone.
Actually?
Only one other guy
knows, but he doesn't
have any friends, so it's OK.
Is your dad like a
fucking spy or something?
He sells stuff.
Like what?
Mainly things people have
forgotten about and don't
need anymore or
sometimes don't realize
they don't need anymore.
So you guys break
in all over campus.
Kind of, yeah.
Fuck.
You probably know this
place better than I do.
I don't know about that.
Seriously, what's
the coolest place
you've ever been on campus?
Like somewhere I've never been.
Never would be allowed to go.
Do you want to see?
You got to be
fucking kidding me.
Some faggot called the cops.
Did you shoot the incel?
No!
Well, some faggot back
there called the cops!
Like they haven't
been up in our asses
all week with that
doomsday fella.
You going to shoot me, too?
I didn't-- he shot himself!
Of course he did.
See?
That dude killed the incel!
He killed the incel!
He killed the incel!
He killed the incel!
He killed the incel!
He killed the incel!
He killed the incel!
He killed the incel!
He killed the incel!
No fucking way.
Mortius would fucking
flip over this place.
So would my friend Ultra.
She would make them
turn it into a community
center or something.
I'm going to send it to her.
This is Ultra.
She's so down to Earth.
She's like lower than the Earth.
She's always posting about how
the college hates poor people.
What's your Instagram?
I don't have a phone.
Holy shit.
That's like-- that's
really beautiful.
I would do the same
thing, but my parents
make me have one for safety.
Guys are repulsive,
even a supposedly
woke place like this.
This is where I like to sit.
A lot of little birdies
get trapped in here.
I bet if someone
tried to attack you,
you'd fuck them
up with your bolt
cutters and your big-ass arms.
Maybe.
You don't get how
cool it is that you're
cut off from all of this?
I feel like people who have
phones turn into their phones.
Like sometimes I just
feel like a big-ass phone.
I'm guessing your
dad doesn't have one.
He saw some bad
things in the war,
and he kind of cut us off
from the material world.
Like Afghanistan?
Earlier than that.
And where's your mom?
She split before I could talk.
We don't even have
pictures of her.
Do you remember her?
Mm-mm.
Damn.
It doesn't stress you out that
he can't be reached, like,
in an emergency or something?
No.
Even on nights like tonight?
I just wait.
And what do you think about?
Sometimes I pretend
that when I blink,
time gets a little faster.
If only.
It's my dad's.
Waiting makes me feel
like a piece of clothing.
Like someone else decides
when I put on an emotion.
I hate feeling time go by.
Maybe you should try religion.
My dad says it's for people who
don't have ego, which is good.
Or a sense of
self, which is not.
Is your dad a professor?
He studied religion, I think.
And why did he go to war?
To learn about
people, he said.
Who goes to war to
learn about people?
My dad, I guess.
I don't think you have an ego.
I don't even think you
have a sense of self.
You know, what do you do,
other than worship your dad?
I look at people
like you passing by,
and I think you're all
going places I never will.
And I hate you all
for reasons I make up.
Please don't feel
shitty or lonely--
'Cause I see you guys.
I watch you when you get here.
You meet each other.
You get drunk.
You have these
lives like adults.
Trust me, you're way
more adult than any of us.
No, I'm fucking not.
I'm sorry.
I'll be OK.
Oh, my God.
Was that--
No.
Please.
Please.
I like it.
You're not 20, are you?
How old are you?
I'm 16.
OK, I think it's time I go.
You don't want to go
back and meet my dad?
Maybe some other time.
Can I kiss you again?
Please?
I-- please.
Sure.
I really need to go.
This is me.
OK.
I hope your dad is waiting
for you when you get back.
I can't help but feel like I
did something really fucked up.
And I'm sorry.
Can I come in with you?
No.
I'm sorry.
And it was like, I swear, I
was overflowing at both holes,
throwing my guts up.
And my dad had to come over.
And I was like crying out.
Like, I'm going to die.
I'm going to die.
It was like, I could've died.
And it was just something
about, like, this, like,
this strange, like, slightly
muddled white color of a toilet
bowl that was just like--
like, I felt like it
was, like, talking to me.
And I had this, like, weird,
like, metaphysical, like,
pre-conscious moment
with the toilet bowl
where, like, it was insane.
Like, it just felt, like,
horrifying, but like kind
of beautiful experience.
Oh, my bad, bro.
And it was just--
I don't even--
I don't even know.
Oh, ho, ho, what
up, little lady?
Sorry for the frontal exposure.
Millah lives in a
substance-free hall,
if you could believe that one.
So usually everyone's
asleep by 10:00 PM,
but there's not anyone
here right now anyway.
What a fucking
night, though, right?
You ever find your dad?
Not yet.
He'll turn up.
You're too much of
a little sweetheart.
He probably loves you more
than anything in the world.
That's what we're all
looking for, right?
Everything else
is a fucking lie.
You got to hold on to
what's true, you know?
I was actually-- I was just
reading this thing about how
the condoms they gave
out in World War II
were the best condoms ever
made in the history of condoms.
So I was going to try one
of my homemades on Millah,
but she wouldn't go for it.
She's too, uh, rich.
Yeah.
Hey, Millah.
She forgot to give me her ID.
Millah!
If she fell asleep while
I was in the bathroom,
I'm going to huff and
I'm going to puff until I
do something to this door.
I don't know.
Millah!
Millah, I'm out here buck naked.
Millah, if you make me go
all the way back to Kipton
with my dick out, I'll
get raped by rednecks.
Millah, are you fucking with me?
No one likes rape.
Hey!
What?
That bolt cutter chick,
she was waiting for you, so.
Paint better
be fucking water-based.
Yeah.
Hey!
Hey!
Your dad around?
Fuck off!
Answer my question, honey.
He's not!
Now fuck off!
Ease up.
It's important.
Tell your dad to come
around and see me.
No games!
Well, I haven't
fucking seen him, so you
can tell him yourself, cunt.
Fuck it.
Holy shit.
Lock the door.
Things got really, really
fucked up with Jose.
I promise I'll
explain everything.
But right now, we need to go.
I packed your things.
What's happening?
What's wrong?
Why do we have to go?
I promise I'll
explain everything,
but we need to leave
here right now.
And then what?
And then what?
Beth-Ann, we do not
have time for this.
Answer me.
We keep going, build a
new home someplace better.
America is a big place.
We'll have options.
I promise everything will be OK.
Beth-Ann, I know this is
scary, but before you know it,
we'll find someplace
extraordinary.
Let me show you something.
Look at this.
We'll be able to buy a van
like we've talked about.
I'll deck it out with
blankets and two beds.
I'll even throw a
curtain down the middle
so you can have your own space.
We'll go wherever we
want, just the two of us,
with no one to fuck
with our world.
What-- what is happening?
I feel like my
head's been pulled off,
and I'm seeing everything
all fucked and spun around.
I don't know anything
about people or anything.
All I know is that you--
Is that such a bad thing?
Haven't I done right by us?
We're invisible.
Which, trust me, is
the way you want to be.
I'm just a big, ugly,
stupid, fucking kid who
scrounges and steals and lies.
No one's going to know me.
I don't even think there's
a single picture of me.
This is the picture of you.
No one's going to remember me.
Just you.
What happens when you die?
Beth-Ann, those people
who don't notice you,
they come and go and
come and go and grow old
and forget about each other.
Pictures?
They forget about each
other before they've
even met because people don't
matter to each other anymore.
So they need pictures
and phones to convince
themselves they even exist.
They're just vehicles for
selfishness and loneliness,
things to be fucked and
shit on and pitted against
each other, commodified things.
But not us.
Because I have you,
and you have me.
You say you know isolation.
I'm telling you, you don't, not
until you've gone out and tried
to live in that merciless,
fucked capitalist matrix
they've made.
That world needs your
loneliness because the worse it
makes you feel,
the more you go out
and buy their meaningless shit.
You think we're
poor and invisible?
Then I say yes.
And we've escaped
the world's biggest
fucking monster because of it.
And I know because
I've seen it, stared
into its fire spitting mouth!
But Beth-Ann, we are
right back under its nose.
And if you want to
continue to escape it,
we need to leave here right now.
Why?
Jose is dead.
And the police are
going to come here.
And if they do, you
will never see me again.
That's a promise.
Did you kill him?
He shot himself.
It was an accident.
Is that his money?
Yes.
Did you want the
fucking cops to take it?
So you didn't do anything?
Beth-Ann, I promise I
will tell you everything,
but I am begging you, we
need to leave here right now.
Okay.
Okay.
And you're sure it's
the same guy, sir?
Yeah.
Come on and join us.
Yeah.
I haven't seen her
in a week, at least.
That's how it happens sometimes.
And I'll see one
and not the other.
Is she armed?
I doubt it.
Hello?
This ain't even locked.
It's like I said.
She's in there.
That's how they do.
Little girl!
Little lady!
I need you to remain calm.
Take this.
What do I do?
Hide it on yourself.
Just do as I fucking say.
Now listen to me.
There is no other way out.
Do you hear?
What will you do?
If there were,
I would take it.
But there is no other way.
I need you to move back
and climb on the bed.
Dad.
Just fucking do it.
Honey!
Could you open the
door and come on out?
Nobody's going to hurt you.
Now when I run out of
here, you need to follow me,
and don't look back.
You're scaring me.
Honey.
It's OK to be scared.
Just plug your ears.
Dad, no, no.
Please, Dad.
We're coming out.
Fuck, that's him!
Weapons out!
Please.
Please.
I need you
to surrender yourself.
Right away.
Please!
Please, Dad!
Get back!
Grenade!
Get down!
Call an ambulance!
Jeannie!
Jeannie!
Call for backup!
Call for backup!
3972 radio, officer down.
OK, let's go.
Stay down!
Stay down!
Don't move!
Stop!
Stop resisting.
Beth-Ann, this is
federal agent Sam Wallace.
I flew in this afternoon from
Virginia just to talk to you.
The man you call your father
is headed to a holding
facility in Illinois.
Were you aware he was keeping
explosives in the storage unit?
No.
I believe you.
That's what he said, too.
It's a miracle he's
still breathing.
He'll either recover there
in the hospital, or he won't.
I want to see him.
This is a lot of money.
How did the two of you
come to possess it?
I said I want to see him.
You're not going to see
that man again anytime soon.
Then I don't answer
any of your questions.
I've been trying to find you
two for a long time, especially
you.
I promise I'm only here to help.
You recognize those people?
No.
Not at all?
I said I don't recognize them.
Those are your grandparents.
They assumed guardianship.
My dad's parents?
Your mom's.
It's all right here.
This is a picture of
your biological parents.
The man you've been living
with is not your father.
To be frank, we
thought you were dead.
Technically speaking, this case
has been inactive for 12 years.
Both your grandparents have
also since passed, or trust me,
they'd be here.
They left you something
of an inheritance.
Not much, but something.
To find you in
Ohio, of all places.
That little girl went
missing 14 years ago.
That's you.
Your real name is Lily.
But what about my dad?
Your parents died--
My real dad.
I'm trying to tell you.
The man who raised me.
We had descriptions at
the time you were taken,
but no one's ever
been able to find
anything legally conclusive.
That said, that's
Joshua Cherkis.
He was dishonorably discharged
for desertion in 1991 following
two suicides in his unit.
Went missing, completely off
the grid couple of years later.
Became a ghost.
If you ask me, he
should be made a ghost
right now for what he did
to you, but never mind that.
So that's it?
I can understand
how this is.
Do you mind if I step
outside for a second?
After all you've been
through, you go right ahead.
Like the fella says, we got
all the time in the world.
All right then.
Here's my version,
adapted from the film,
remastered, and
updated by yours truly.
Go.
Once upon a time, there was
this kid named Chicken Little.
OK.
He's basically the most
adorable, little chicken
you've ever fucking seen.
Mm-hmm.
He's got glasses and
a little rooster mohawk.
Imagine a little
prepubescent chicken,
homunculus hybrid creature.
OK, I got it.
I see it in my brain.
So our little
guy lives in this town
full of sentient animals.
Aren't all animal sentient?
Well done, but these
can talk and distinguish
between each other.
They bicker, have pecking
orders, go to war,
all the bullshit humans do.
But it's cats, dogs, goats,
foxes, fucking wildebeests.
Every creature you can possibly
imagine exists in this town.
OK.
So one day, Chicken
Little starts yelling,
the sky is falling!
The fucking sky is falling!
For real?
Well, that's what he says.
So of course, everybody
starts freaking out.
They're breaking
shit, running around.
It's all-out chaos.
But this one animal--
maybe he's an armadillo--
says, wait a second.
I can see the sky.
It's right where we left it.
Everything seems fine.
What the fuck is going on?
And Chicken Little says, I
was standing by this tree,
and some shit fell on
my head, something huge.
So the whole town goes
out to where Chicken
Little says the sky is falling.
And what do you know?
All they find is
a bunch of acorns.
So Chicken Little's dad, Papa
Little, of all creatures, says,
is this what fell,
you little moron?
And Chicken Little
says, no, that's not it.
That's a fucking acorn.
But everyone, including
the dad, says,
nah, this kid's full of shit.
And suddenly, the whole
town hates our little guy
because they think
he cried wolf.
But who would lie
about the sky falling?
No one, but who would
believe it, you know?
No one.
Right.
So years later, he's in school,
and he's getting seriously
bullied.
There's this little
fucker named Foxy Loxy.
And her and her friend Loosey
Goosey are habitually beating
the shit out of Chicken Little.
She's honestly a
first-rate, little fucking
bitch, a completely
merciless individual.
But years of hate and
all-around attrition
have hardened Chicken Little.
He's not the same little guy who
yelled about the sky falling.
He's not scared of shit.
None of his friends
go to school with him
because they're all older,
from the street, outcasts,
just like him.
He even fell out
with his old man
because he couldn't handle how
his dad threw him under the bus
because real dads don't
do that, you know?
No.
So our boy CL is living
in the animal town equivalent
of Paterson, New Jersey--
--with a washed-up
noise musician
and a 60-year-old bouncer.
And all he can think of
is what he saw that day
and what's coming to
every motherfucker
who didn't believe him.
Dad?
Yeah?
How does he eat?
He sells shit
like your old man.
OK.
You see, everybody's
got their breaking point.
I've got one.
You've got one.
God's got one.
And Chicken Little's
got one, too.
So one day, after years of
putting up with everyone's
shit, he rallies his pack
of marginalized badasses,
and they roll up to the
school with the intention
of laying out old Foxy
Loxy and Loosey Goosey.
But just as all the violence
is about to go down--
Keep going.
Just as they're about
to wreck those fuckers,
we hear this massive,
deafening crack,
like all the thunder
ever uttered by the sky
combined into one
monumental sound.
Everybody runs outside,
and sure enough,
the sky is cracked open.
And you bet your
ass it's falling.
Everybody is freaking
out and crying.
They're all hysterical
because death is inevitable.
But Chicken Little just looks
up with this enormous fucking
grin.
Because as far as
he's concerned,
he's been dead for years.
And the last thing he'll
see is every motherfucker
who rejected him eating shit.
End of story.
All right, go to sleep.
I'll see you in the morning.
Wait, Dad.
How did Chicken Little
know the sky was following
the first time and not
just like one of the acorns
falling from a tree?
Maybe early on, he saw
this tiny crack in the sky
that nobody else could see.
What about birds?
What birds?
You said there's
every animal imaginable.
There weren't birds
flying around that saw?
You little fucker.
It's not that they
weren't capable of seeing.
It's more that they
weren't looking.
No one was.
He saw shit that others didn't.
Well, he could have
just pointed and avoided
all the fucked shit.
Maybe he was wrong
the first time.
An animal world god
wanted to punish
the animal world town for how
they treated the little fella.
Maybe their meanness made
him right, like the town
created its own fate.
I-- I like that.
Phew.
I'm off.
Love you, Dad.
Please be safe.
I love you, too.
Sweet dreams.
Come lock it from the inside.
Hey, Joey.
What time is it?
1:50.
Nice.
Listen, I'm a
little low on cash.
You mind if I take a shit?
I promise I'll buy
something double next time.
Knock yourself out.
Thanks, man.
Home is a complicated
thing, mostly bullshit,
but it's basically
the best we get.
We build it and hate
it and then get pissed
when the world
inevitably fucks us out
of it with uninvited change.
And then we go and build
it again somewhere else.
Where did
you live before me?
Before you, my
home was loneliness.
That was my home.
And I never really destroyed
that place, you know?
You're still lonely.
Hey, man.
A couple of smokes?
Not in a bad way,
if that makes sense.
We all need a
little bit of that,
almost like we were born for it.
And then everything
we accomplish
is just a way of
beating it back.
Thanks.
No problem.
If I could give
you anything, it
would be the ability to
need no thing and no one,
to be unbreakable.
To disappear if you have to.
I don't like
talking about this.
You want a story?
Yes, please.
I ever tell you
about Chicken Little?
Hello?
Hello?
How many is that?
Six, I think.
Ain't shit.
Those chick bikes?
It's what you wanted.
Yeah, that'll fucking sell.
I'll need 200 for all of them.
Sounds good.
We can't bring the shit back
to my place this time, though.
Wait.
Why?
You remember my neighbor we
used to chill with, the dude
with the Panera hookup?
Chill with?
We hung with him twice, I think.
Yeah, whatever.
Remember how he had that old
buried school bus he was trying
to turn into a fallout shelter?
Yeah.
He forgot to
ventilate that shit.
You gotta love when
doomsday preppers
prep themselves to death, huh?
He suffocated?
Yeah, something like that.
Here's the snag, though.
It turns out that motherfucker
was deep into some shit
that I didn't really know
about 'cause the cops had been
digging up his whole place,
which basically means they've
been up in my neighborhood
for the past two days,
ripping shit up.
If reports go out
about these bikes--
that's why I gotta
dump them next day,
like the ones that don't sell.
We roll in there with
this haul, someone
will notice, for sure the
fucking guy with the lawnmower
and that kid who's always
fucking hassling me.
Was there someplace
else we can take them?
Yeah, dawg.
There's an abandoned
warehouse a few blocks
from where they do
the flea market,
way closer than my place.
I say we take them over there.
We'll load them up
into that building.
OK, fine.
Are you going to
fucking help me?
Yeah, yeah, of course.
You're my partner.
I'll do anything for you.
Fuck these bikes!
Yeah, I, uh, shaved
off all my hair, man.
Yeah, I saw.
Look, can I drop
something on you?
Because you're my homeboy.
Go.
I'm like fucking gone, man.
I don't give a shit
about anything anymore.
You can't say anything to that?
I'm just listening.
It's been two weeks.
Felt this way for
two fucking weeks.
I'm sorry.
It's not all bad.
You think it would be, but it
isn't because I could just--
I could end it any time I want.
I don't have anyone to stop me.
I don't have any parents.
I don't got no girl.
Definitely no fucking girl.
You know, you know that
song "Creep" by Radiohead?
Sure.
Yeah, that's how I was
feeling before I got real.
I went on this terrible
date with this chick.
And she told me that
was her favorite song.
I told her to fuck
right off, yeah.
Because she liked the song?
Yeah.
Girls don't get to like "Creep."
That's-- it's like
appropriation.
You're saying that
girls can't wish
they were special in
the context of a person
that floats like a feather?
Aight, don't be a dick.
I mean, fuck your women, right?
You know I have a
daughter, and I don't
like when you talk that way.
Yeah.
You know, how old is
she now at this point?
And can you ease
up on the gas?
What?
It's 7:00 in the morning.
There's nobody out here.
This is prime time for
rippin' shit up, man!
She's fucking 16.
Now, please.
All right, all right.
It's just that, you know, I feel
like it's already over for me,
you know?
You know?
I don't, actually.
Are you saying you never
felt this way before?
Not in the way
you're describing.
Well, then, how?
No offense, but I feel no need
to talk about myself with you.
Maybe Beth-Ann is just what
I need, someone pure like that.
I don't think so.
I'm just fucking
with you, man.
I know she's off-limits.
I just fuck around, you know?
You know, when was the last
time you put yourself out there?
As in dated?
Yeah.
I don't know, 15 years.
Fuck, man.
Why?
I live in a storage unit
with my daughter, man.
I'm not going to be parading
women through there.
You must be like
horny as fuck.
I don't think of myself
as a sexual person anymore.
Y'all ever get high together?
No.
That's cool.
Keeping it true.
Does Beth-Ann ever get restless?
As in how?
Just like-- oh, like looking
out and seeing other kids,
like college kids and shit.
Not that I've seen.
Maybe she is pure, you know?
It's like you did that.
I don't even know
what that means.
Like, you know, like, she--
that Beth-Ann turned
out good, and it's--
from where you how break.
I don't fucking know, man.
I'm just talking out of my ass.
It's fine, man.
Can we just have a little
silence for a while?
And it feels like
every day the tide
pushes me further from that.
Like every minute, time just
gets me further from the place
where I was happy, you know?
Uh-huh.
Like, that's what
the color gray is.
Gray is nothingness.
I am gray, the absolute
bare minimum before becoming
invisible, you know?
Like, white is what it is.
I'm not white.
White's too distinct.
Black, too.
Fuck.
My old man was gray,
happened in a year.
His skin, his teeth, his hair.
He actually shaved off
his hair, too, before he--
you know.
But he was seriously
bitter, angry and shit.
That's not me.
No way.
God damn it.
Don't worry.
I'm sure this last
one will be open.
Yeah, it's going to
be the only open door
on the entire premises.
They can't all be locked.
Yes, they fucking can.
That's why doors have locks.
What are we going to do, man?
I need to get back.
How about that, bitch?
Looks like shit's
starting to turn our way.
Yeah, life is
sorting itself out.
Now you can let
your hair grow back.
Yeah.
Sorry, man.
Hey, don't sweat it.
I'm Dark Mortius.
OK.
We're about to
set this roadkill on fire
if you guys want to join.
All right.
This is actually a
place where you could
go to get your car destroyed.
But now it's mine.
What up, friends?
I ain't your friend, bro.
Fucking hell.
Hey, turn that shit off.
Yeah, we're good.
Oh, you guys
should totally stay.
It's not like what you think.
Man, no one's
confused here, bro.
Were you the one talking
about the color gray?
Yeah.
That really
resonated with me, man.
You seem really wise and
honest and deep in it.
Well you don't know
jack shit about me, man!
I am roadkill, dude!
I know your entire head
is shaved like a god,
and I dig that journey.
Shouldn't you be lighting
kids on fire or some shit?
- Why the fuck would we do that?
- I don't know.
Ask Satan.
This is fucking poser shit, man.
That man was already dead.
What really brought you
to this door today, friend?
'Cause I think it was pain,
pain that brought you both here.
Yeah, we're just looking for
some temporary storage, is all.
I think I can allow that.
Wait, are any of y'all
students at the college?
And I graduated 10 years ago.
Varsity lacrosse.
Still in the ivory tower.
Hey, well, you know what?
Thank you for being so chill.
You're welcome.
We're going to run
and grab our stuff.
We'll be right back.
- Are you guys sure?
You want us to wait before
we blaze this roadkill?
Nah, nah, nah, you
guys do your thing.
We'll be one sec, in and out.
Because we can wait.
We're good.
Hand me the blowtorch.
Yeah.
Here you go.
Probably going to smell weird!
Hell yeah!
Light it up.
Light it up.
I hate Satanists, man.
A bunch of fucking posers.
I didn't know you'd
conducted a study.
What the fuck are we going
to do with these bikes?
Well, I don't know.
I was thinking, how would
you feel about holding
them at the storage unit?
That's where I live, man.
Ah, there's an extra
40 in it for you.
No.
Make it 50.
Dad?
It's me.
Open up.
Good morning.
Hey.
You doing all right?
I had this crazy dream.
Yeah?
I was walking in this
mansion, like the one
we broke into in Wellington,
but with these towering living
rooms and libraries
that never ended.
And I kept shouting and shouting
and shouting and shouting,
and no one was there to listen.
Where was I?
I don't think you existed.
Huh.
What do
you think it means?
It means no more
bedtime stories for you.
Now, listen.
I need you to get
up and get dressed.
Jose's outside.
OK.
Can you turn away, please?
Yeah.
Hey, what up, girl?
Long time no see!
Why?
Oh, shit, did I scare you?
No.
Just saying I got to
this place, you know?
Come on, man.
- I'm a primate, right?
- Yeah.
And it's just been
so long since the world has
seen me in my natural state.
You know what I mean?
Like, I'm not supposed to be all
covered up with this fucking--
I said enough.
I've been listening to
this shit all morning.
Help with the bikes.
Bro, I'm talking
to your daughter.
It's been a sec.
It's just like I wanted
to show society that I'm
hip to what I am, you know?
I don't understand.
You're like beautiful, right?
Don't fucking tell my
daughter she's beautiful.
It's like if the world
keeps telling me I'm ugly,
man, maybe I should fulfill
the fucking prophecy.
Show the world that
I don't give a shit.
Like God is up there chucking
prophecies like lawn darts
at sex-starved 30-year-olds.
Maybe he is.
You don't fucking know.
And it's like if I'm being
treated like I'm ugly,
I want to show the
world that I know.
Take control.
It's a fucking cop-out.
The fuck you talking about?
You're actually doing the
reverse of what you're saying.
Rather than tolerate the world
having a view of you that's
displeasing, you're determining
that view ahead of time
so that the blame
can go there, instead
of people forming
an objective opinion
of what you actually are.
What do you think, Beth-Ann?
I think I want to go
to McDonald's and poop
and brush my teeth.
Oh, you know, I'm trying
to score something to eat.
I can fuck up a couple
of egg McMuffins.
I'm trying to get my $250.
Well, both these things
can happen, you know?
Yeah, they can.
I just don't want them to.
Only the you paying me part.
Oh, shit.
Whatever, man.
You know what?
Here.
Take it all.
That's all you
fucking care about.
Look at us, Jose.
Of course it's all I
fucking care about.
Bro, you've been acting
cold to me all fucking day.
I'm sorry.
It's nothing personal.
I just haven't slept
since yesterday.
You know, maybe you should try
hanging with those Satanists.
That guy really seemed to
respond to what you're up to.
Fuck is that
supposed to mean?
He just seemed
to appreciate you.
Yeah, well, I'd
really rather die, bro.
Don't say that shit to me.
Satanists?
It just might be a
way for you to make
some new friends, is all.
You know what?
Maybe you should
reflect on your fucking
situation, how it makes you not
give a shit about anyone else.
How about that,
you fucking prick?
Some McDonald's?
Can we go to
Tiny Thai, instead?
My mind changed.
You got it, kiddo.
Avert your eyes or
behold the device
that brought you because I
don't give a shit what you see.
I know.
And just half of me.
Just half of you?
This is my favorite
time of year.
Why?
Students are all gone back to
their massive, decadent homes
in their fucked coastal cities.
Some stay, despite
their parents.
Stage some hollow display of
adulthood by not going home.
Obviously, there are
exceptions, but mostly
what we see is fabrication.
What about us?
We are what we say we are.
School, bins, or both?
Both.
School first.
Ball.
Oh!
Oh!
Here we
go, down again.
The thoughts I had
are drowned again.
Take this hand to its end.
It'll feel like wind.
Whoa.
Dad?
What's down here?
Any guesses?
A fallout shelter for nights.
Yeah.
Yeah?
How about we bring
the bolt cutters
and have a hideout/banquet
type supper down here tonight?
Wouldn't that be risky?
There's nobody around.
Besides, you need
a little adventure.
OK.
Want to get some clothes?
Yeah.
See anything you like?
Not yet.
Does it work?
I don't know.
I've never seen you wear
anything feminine like that.
Holy shit.
Check this out.
It's worth like 150
bucks and a charger.
Can I have it?
Knock yourself out.
You got that key, Joey?
You gonna buy
something this time?
Yes, I am.
Done.
Snag us a couple of Gatorades.
All right.
You think it's
going to taste like lemon,
but it fucking never does.
Can I have a sip?
Take mine.
I wasn't going to
drink it anyway.
More about keeping my word.
Spoken like a vet.
Heard it was hotter than
a motherfucker over there.
It was fine.
At least you had
schools sending
you juice boxes and shit.
No one gave a fuck about us.
Sometimes you almost
wanted to get greased.
My father fought in
World War II, you know?
Right.
I bet you like
Rage Against the Machine.
We had Creedence.
I fucking love Creedence.
Can we get our change?
Sure.
Why don't you ever talk with
him about stuff like that?
How about because
I don't want to?
But if--
It's mine.
Not his, not yours,
and not anyone else's.
Jesus.
Sorry.
Let's go.
2, 3, 4, 5,
6, 7, 8, 9, 10,
11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18.
So you guys saw Satanists?
It kind of turned
into a confrontation.
Like an argument?
More like Jose being
bitter and a little rascal.
Were they posers like he said?
Hard to say, maybe to him.
Satanism isn't so much
the worship of the devil
as it is the worship
of not God, which makes
for a pretty wide spectrum.
And there's really no
use in saying one form
is more valid than the others.
Unless, of course,
you're doing evil things,
but that's not what
actual Satanism is about.
What's it about?
In its most positive
form, expressing one's
ego or individualism in a way
that can still be ethical.
Rejecting the
Judeo-Christian notion of God
and the Abrahamic
religions as being
hypocritical and oppressive.
An American Satanist would
say, look at all the mortifying
shit that's been done
out of shame alone
in the form of God loving.
Maybe some beautiful things
can happen if we love ourselves
in the form of Satan loving.
So, yeah, if the
Abrahamic religions,
which are what again?
Christianity, Judaism, Islam.
And why Islam?
Because Ishmael was also
one of the sons of Abraham.
So if the Abrahamic
religions are about militating
against our basest
impulses, then Satanism
can be about protecting
and respecting
one's impulses while
still loving ourselves
for what we can't control.
It's not definitively
a sin to act
on impulse, that sort of thing.
Does that make sense?
Yeah.
Is that what you believe?
All religions are
just one religion
in conversation with itself.
Constant flux.
To what, I couldn't tell you.
Mostly our own
destruction probably.
Allah, Buddha, Yahweh,
fucking Jupiter--
what does it matter?
But we're human, so we
kill each other over it
and then say God created
us in his own image.
Go figure that one out.
Maybe change is all that's true.
Suddenly you don't
recognize the person
you are anymore, and not in
relation to God, but yourself,
mostly for the worse.
What do I do
when that happens?
I have no fucking idea.
Let's go.
Hey.
My daughter forgot her key.
You guys mind letting us in?
Yeah, I got you, bro.
You a freshman?
Yeah.
As she walks
in the room, scented and
tall, hesitating once more.
And as I take on myself
and the bitterness I felt,
I realize that love flows.
Wild white horses,
they will take me away.
And the tenderness I feel
will send the dark underneath.
Will I follow?
Through the glory of life,
I will scatter on the floor.
Disappointed--
You like it?
I think I do like it.
Twirl.
It must be rough
seeing your old man
pull off a dress like this
better than you could.
You're so fucking hairy.
You're fucking hairy.
Yeah, but that makes me like
a fucking outlaw girl, you know?
I'm the king of the outlaws.
That's why I can pull off this
cheap-ass Halloween dress.
All right, give it here.
They will take me away.
And the tenderness I
feel will send the dark--
Who owned this
shit, you think?
I don't know.
Mickey Rourke.
Who the fuck is that?
It's not important.
Come on, get dressed.
I want to get out of here before
the ogre gets back from dinner.
Shh.
Yo!
Open this shit up.
Come on, bro!
I can't wait--
Enough!
You're going to get us
fucking hassled again.
What?
The filth is gone.
We can take the
bikes back to mine.
Now?
Yeah, right now, bro.
I got a guy who wants all six.
Got to move them in the morning.
We were about to have dinner.
Want to come?
Ha.
Nah.
I'm good.
I don't go where I'm not wanted.
Plus, I already had a
couple Uncrustables.
What's that?
It's like a peanut
butter and jelly pouch.
I got a whole box of them.
It's like loneliness
food, you know?
In a cold world--
- OK, all right.
Enough.
We'll be right out.
All right, you're good.
No, wait!
What?
You're just going to leave me
to unload this shit by myself?
That's right.
Nah, bro.
I saw you take that 250.
You're fucking coming with.
You want $10 back?
It's not about the money.
It's about what kind
of man you are, bro.
Just go with him, Dad.
Fine, but you drive me back
to campus when we're done.
Yeah, I got you, bro.
I'll meet you in the basement
in about an hour and a half.
Remember, we got
that Beowulf dinner.
Now who's Beowulf?
Medieval dragon slayer.
I'll get the food.
You bring the bolt cutters.
Got it.
Love you, honey.
Love you, Dad.
You know, you feel like my
father sometimes, you know?
Oh, God, please.
Like, I look up to you, man.
Well, I'm not your father.
I said like.
Like my father.
Even though I pay you and shit.
That's why it hurts when you
dismiss me because I know
we both got shit on
each other, and you
could easily tip off
the filth, but you
know I'd do that shit to you.
You don't want to
lose your daughter.
You better tell me where
this is headed right now,
or I bail at the next stop sign.
Just be a little bit
nicer to me, you know.
Are you fucking
threatening me?
You think I'm a fucking idiot?
I know your deal.
I do.
Fine, I'll be nicer.
I mean, seriously, man.
Look, I didn't even recognize
Beth-Ann when I saw her.
She's growing up, dude.
Where are you going to be then?
I'll be fine.
Trust me.
I got real
smoke, Xanax boats,
won't jump the porch
without my pole.
Serving out the Texaco,
smokin' Pemex, lil Mexico.
Got big juice overflow,
Wokeisha that I'm 'bout to pour.
Hollows hit 'em in his throat.
Kill that bitch!
Yeah!
I'm gonna run your ass over.
Do it again!
Do it again, motherfucker!
Fucking low-lives.
You know Domino's won't
even deliver here anymore?
One day, I'm going to
move out of this bitch.
I swear to God.
I've been saving up.
And I always gotta
deal with this fucking
guy always taking a shit in
the back of my goddamn trailer.
Fuck it!
It just helps to unload.
It really does.
You know what I mean?
Yeah.
Oh.
Hey, you ever watched
"The Fripples?"
The what?
"The Fripples."
It's like a show.
I don't own a fucking
television, Jose.
Yeah.
Hey, let's take a
break for a sec.
I want you to
watch this with me.
Absolutely not.
Come on, please.
Please watch it.
Just a little bit with me?
No.
Come on, please.
Come on, come on, come on.
Hey, I'll tell you what.
Hey, you come
watch this with me,
and I'll drive you
home right after.
I'll finish doing
this shit myself.
- All right!
- Yeah!
That's what I'm saying!
-Fuck it.
Hey, you're going to love this.
Come on.
This is going to help
you understand what
I've been going
through, where I've
been at the last little while.
Yeah, that's great.
There's a red one
and a pink one and a blue one--
- No, I just take it really hard
when Mercury's in retrograde.
That's all.
It's a totally acceptable--
aloha.
Are you doing all right?
I'm just waiting for my dad.
Yeah, I feel
like we're all just
in a constant state of waiting
for our dads, you know?
My dad's dead.
That sucks.
We just came down to the
Cove to see if it was open.
Fuck!
It looks like the administration
fucking locked it again.
So we will leave you to
your fatherly waiting.
Come on, you
fucking dizzy goats.
Move.
I can open it.
What was that?
Yeah!
Yes!
Hey, come back.
Let's do this!
Come on come on come on.
Thank you.
Come on.
Come on.
Everybody in.
Let's light it up.
Hey, thanks again.
This was so major.
What's your fucking name again?
Beth-Ann.
That's a very American name.
Is that some shit
someone made up,
or was that your grandma's name?
I don't know.
Don't be scared.
I'm Dark Mortius.
I gave myself that name
after I killed my parents.
Building a new name is part
of getting older, you know?
You killed your parents?
Spiritually, I replaced them.
But they're still here
in the physical world.
When did you replace them?
10 years ago.
I still have some of my shit at
their place I need to pick up,
but I'll just be super sparing
with my energy when I do it
so they don't get any
of this, you know?
We're just going to be
hanging here, drinking beers,
doing some fucking kratom.
You want to join?
We got ketamine, too.
Does that entice you?
Do you guys have Gatorade?
Y'all got any Gatorade?
We got fucking White Claw.
Sorry.
But you should still stay.
The guy to chick
ratio is fucked.
I could send someone out for
you and get you some Gatorade.
No.
I'm just going to wait
for my dad upstairs.
You should stay.
I torched a raccoon
this afternoon,
so vibes are right
where they need to be!
Oh, wait.
Who am I?
What am I?
Am I myself or a
representation of myself?
Am I me?
What clothes I wear, the friends
I have, the things I like.
Am I me or a reflection
of me of what's around me?
What's real, and what's just
what we imagine to be real?
Or is nothing real?
Does the real me even exist,
or am I just this projection
of what I want others to see?
All right, hey, now
check out what this fucking
chick says right here.
Of course you exist,
you silly button.
Who you want to be is you every
bit as much as who you are.
Fuck, right?
Like, that's like me and chicks
and like people I want to be
my friend, how they see me.
Like, it's all linked up.
That's great, Jose.
Like, we're all kids, right?
We're not actually.
- I'll be right back.
- Wait.
What?
Fuck me.
These are all parts of what
make up you and everyone.
And we all make up
the Frippley world.
So love the world because
whether you like it or not,
Buster, you're a part of it.
Can we go?
I got something for you.
Why?
More like I found something
and I want to give it to you.
I don't need anything, Jose.
Hell no!
What the fuck?
- Chill.
It's all of his shit.
I don't want that man.
Put it away.
It's from the 1800s, man.
It's basically a toy.
See?
Come on, man.
I can fucking see
that shit is loaded.
I'm out of here.
- Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
No, I dug this out
of the ground, man.
It's fucking duds, all of them.
Look at this shit.
Look how rusty this is.
You know more about this
shit than anyone I know.
Which is fucking why?
How did you even find it?
With my metal detector, bro,
off the bike path last week.
Look, someone probably
used this shit
to rob a train or something.
Take me back and
leave that shit here.
All right, all right.
I'm sorry, man.
Just, you know, I thought
it would be-- you'd dig it.
Come on, man.
We watched your fucking video.
I want to get back
and eat dinner.
Nice thing like a hip
antique or something.
It's fine.
Let's just go.
Oh, whatever.
It's like so
sensitive, you know?
No matter what I do, you
just fucking find a way.
You know?
Geez, fucking dying
pleasing you, man.
You know, you can't
please you, man.
You know?
Jesus.
I told you, you stupid asshole.
You good?
God damn it.
OK.
Sorry to wake
you, Miss America.
How long has it been?
Hour and a half?
Hey, check it out.
I found him downstairs.
He was squeaking in one of
those little sticky traps.
And when I finally
cut him loose,
he had himself a little heart
attack right here in my hand,
dead.
He's bloody.
I had to use my pocket
knife to free him.
Me and the lads here are going
to ramble on to other digs.
We left one of ours in
the basement passed out.
Being that you're here
waiting for your dad,
do you think that you could
maybe check on her from time
to time, make sure she's OK?
OK.
You're a sweet lass.
What are they saying?
I just love the energy
that you get at night
when you make the light.
Mm.
Where's Mortius?
He said they were going
to ramble on to other digs.
They just fucking left?
He told me to wait with you
because I was going to be here
anyway, waiting for my dad.
Right, you're the hot
chick that broke us in.
I don't get those guys.
Couldn't they just wake me up?
My bike got stolen
earlier this week.
My life is so fucked right now.
Probably
at Rowan's house.
Rowan doesn't have a brain.
We used to fuck, but he
reminded me of Grover
from Sesame Street, which made
me like constantly disassociate
and think about my parents, who
kind of suck, so no more Rowan.
Sorry, I'm still kind
of fucked right now.
It's OK.
I love your outfit.
I would dress like that,
but all the shit my parents
buy me is stupid, and
then I feel stupid, so.
I think you--
What?
Look beautiful.
Are you a fucking freshman?
No, I don't go to school.
I just-- I just live here.
In town?
Sort of.
How old are you?
Whoa.
You look way younger.
You also look like
several ages all
meshed into this beautiful
woman-shaped thing.
You're still waiting
for your dad?
He's on his way.
He should be here,
but he's on his way.
That's really wholesome,
except the fact that he's
meeting you in this
weird dungeon, which is
a little sketchy, but whatever.
Mortius thinks we should
host an orgy here.
I'm not going to
let that happen.
We like exploring places.
Like old buildings?
One time, we stole all this
furniture from a children's
hospital outside of Pittsburgh.
It caught on fire, the
hospital, not the furniture.
So it was shut
down and stuff, so.
We didn't even need to
break anything to get in.
You like live together?
Yeah, we got bookshelves
and a hot plate, two cots,
these cool lava lamps we
found, water cooler, speakers.
Where?
I'm not really
allowed to tell anyone.
Actually?
Only one other guy
knows, but he doesn't
have any friends, so it's OK.
Is your dad like a
fucking spy or something?
He sells stuff.
Like what?
Mainly things people have
forgotten about and don't
need anymore or
sometimes don't realize
they don't need anymore.
So you guys break
in all over campus.
Kind of, yeah.
Fuck.
You probably know this
place better than I do.
I don't know about that.
Seriously, what's
the coolest place
you've ever been on campus?
Like somewhere I've never been.
Never would be allowed to go.
Do you want to see?
You got to be
fucking kidding me.
Some faggot called the cops.
Did you shoot the incel?
No!
Well, some faggot back
there called the cops!
Like they haven't
been up in our asses
all week with that
doomsday fella.
You going to shoot me, too?
I didn't-- he shot himself!
Of course he did.
See?
That dude killed the incel!
He killed the incel!
He killed the incel!
He killed the incel!
He killed the incel!
He killed the incel!
He killed the incel!
He killed the incel!
He killed the incel!
No fucking way.
Mortius would fucking
flip over this place.
So would my friend Ultra.
She would make them
turn it into a community
center or something.
I'm going to send it to her.
This is Ultra.
She's so down to Earth.
She's like lower than the Earth.
She's always posting about how
the college hates poor people.
What's your Instagram?
I don't have a phone.
Holy shit.
That's like-- that's
really beautiful.
I would do the same
thing, but my parents
make me have one for safety.
Guys are repulsive,
even a supposedly
woke place like this.
This is where I like to sit.
A lot of little birdies
get trapped in here.
I bet if someone
tried to attack you,
you'd fuck them
up with your bolt
cutters and your big-ass arms.
Maybe.
You don't get how
cool it is that you're
cut off from all of this?
I feel like people who have
phones turn into their phones.
Like sometimes I just
feel like a big-ass phone.
I'm guessing your
dad doesn't have one.
He saw some bad
things in the war,
and he kind of cut us off
from the material world.
Like Afghanistan?
Earlier than that.
And where's your mom?
She split before I could talk.
We don't even have
pictures of her.
Do you remember her?
Mm-mm.
Damn.
It doesn't stress you out that
he can't be reached, like,
in an emergency or something?
No.
Even on nights like tonight?
I just wait.
And what do you think about?
Sometimes I pretend
that when I blink,
time gets a little faster.
If only.
It's my dad's.
Waiting makes me feel
like a piece of clothing.
Like someone else decides
when I put on an emotion.
I hate feeling time go by.
Maybe you should try religion.
My dad says it's for people who
don't have ego, which is good.
Or a sense of
self, which is not.
Is your dad a professor?
He studied religion, I think.
And why did he go to war?
To learn about
people, he said.
Who goes to war to
learn about people?
My dad, I guess.
I don't think you have an ego.
I don't even think you
have a sense of self.
You know, what do you do,
other than worship your dad?
I look at people
like you passing by,
and I think you're all
going places I never will.
And I hate you all
for reasons I make up.
Please don't feel
shitty or lonely--
'Cause I see you guys.
I watch you when you get here.
You meet each other.
You get drunk.
You have these
lives like adults.
Trust me, you're way
more adult than any of us.
No, I'm fucking not.
I'm sorry.
I'll be OK.
Oh, my God.
Was that--
No.
Please.
Please.
I like it.
You're not 20, are you?
How old are you?
I'm 16.
OK, I think it's time I go.
You don't want to go
back and meet my dad?
Maybe some other time.
Can I kiss you again?
Please?
I-- please.
Sure.
I really need to go.
This is me.
OK.
I hope your dad is waiting
for you when you get back.
I can't help but feel like I
did something really fucked up.
And I'm sorry.
Can I come in with you?
No.
I'm sorry.
And it was like, I swear, I
was overflowing at both holes,
throwing my guts up.
And my dad had to come over.
And I was like crying out.
Like, I'm going to die.
I'm going to die.
It was like, I could've died.
And it was just something
about, like, this, like,
this strange, like, slightly
muddled white color of a toilet
bowl that was just like--
like, I felt like it
was, like, talking to me.
And I had this, like, weird,
like, metaphysical, like,
pre-conscious moment
with the toilet bowl
where, like, it was insane.
Like, it just felt, like,
horrifying, but like kind
of beautiful experience.
Oh, my bad, bro.
And it was just--
I don't even--
I don't even know.
Oh, ho, ho, what
up, little lady?
Sorry for the frontal exposure.
Millah lives in a
substance-free hall,
if you could believe that one.
So usually everyone's
asleep by 10:00 PM,
but there's not anyone
here right now anyway.
What a fucking
night, though, right?
You ever find your dad?
Not yet.
He'll turn up.
You're too much of
a little sweetheart.
He probably loves you more
than anything in the world.
That's what we're all
looking for, right?
Everything else
is a fucking lie.
You got to hold on to
what's true, you know?
I was actually-- I was just
reading this thing about how
the condoms they gave
out in World War II
were the best condoms ever
made in the history of condoms.
So I was going to try one
of my homemades on Millah,
but she wouldn't go for it.
She's too, uh, rich.
Yeah.
Hey, Millah.
She forgot to give me her ID.
Millah!
If she fell asleep while
I was in the bathroom,
I'm going to huff and
I'm going to puff until I
do something to this door.
I don't know.
Millah!
Millah, I'm out here buck naked.
Millah, if you make me go
all the way back to Kipton
with my dick out, I'll
get raped by rednecks.
Millah, are you fucking with me?
No one likes rape.
Hey!
What?
That bolt cutter chick,
she was waiting for you, so.
Paint better
be fucking water-based.
Yeah.
Hey!
Hey!
Your dad around?
Fuck off!
Answer my question, honey.
He's not!
Now fuck off!
Ease up.
It's important.
Tell your dad to come
around and see me.
No games!
Well, I haven't
fucking seen him, so you
can tell him yourself, cunt.
Fuck it.
Holy shit.
Lock the door.
Things got really, really
fucked up with Jose.
I promise I'll
explain everything.
But right now, we need to go.
I packed your things.
What's happening?
What's wrong?
Why do we have to go?
I promise I'll
explain everything,
but we need to leave
here right now.
And then what?
And then what?
Beth-Ann, we do not
have time for this.
Answer me.
We keep going, build a
new home someplace better.
America is a big place.
We'll have options.
I promise everything will be OK.
Beth-Ann, I know this is
scary, but before you know it,
we'll find someplace
extraordinary.
Let me show you something.
Look at this.
We'll be able to buy a van
like we've talked about.
I'll deck it out with
blankets and two beds.
I'll even throw a
curtain down the middle
so you can have your own space.
We'll go wherever we
want, just the two of us,
with no one to fuck
with our world.
What-- what is happening?
I feel like my
head's been pulled off,
and I'm seeing everything
all fucked and spun around.
I don't know anything
about people or anything.
All I know is that you--
Is that such a bad thing?
Haven't I done right by us?
We're invisible.
Which, trust me, is
the way you want to be.
I'm just a big, ugly,
stupid, fucking kid who
scrounges and steals and lies.
No one's going to know me.
I don't even think there's
a single picture of me.
This is the picture of you.
No one's going to remember me.
Just you.
What happens when you die?
Beth-Ann, those people
who don't notice you,
they come and go and
come and go and grow old
and forget about each other.
Pictures?
They forget about each
other before they've
even met because people don't
matter to each other anymore.
So they need pictures
and phones to convince
themselves they even exist.
They're just vehicles for
selfishness and loneliness,
things to be fucked and
shit on and pitted against
each other, commodified things.
But not us.
Because I have you,
and you have me.
You say you know isolation.
I'm telling you, you don't, not
until you've gone out and tried
to live in that merciless,
fucked capitalist matrix
they've made.
That world needs your
loneliness because the worse it
makes you feel,
the more you go out
and buy their meaningless shit.
You think we're
poor and invisible?
Then I say yes.
And we've escaped
the world's biggest
fucking monster because of it.
And I know because
I've seen it, stared
into its fire spitting mouth!
But Beth-Ann, we are
right back under its nose.
And if you want to
continue to escape it,
we need to leave here right now.
Why?
Jose is dead.
And the police are
going to come here.
And if they do, you
will never see me again.
That's a promise.
Did you kill him?
He shot himself.
It was an accident.
Is that his money?
Yes.
Did you want the
fucking cops to take it?
So you didn't do anything?
Beth-Ann, I promise I
will tell you everything,
but I am begging you, we
need to leave here right now.
Okay.
Okay.
And you're sure it's
the same guy, sir?
Yeah.
Come on and join us.
Yeah.
I haven't seen her
in a week, at least.
That's how it happens sometimes.
And I'll see one
and not the other.
Is she armed?
I doubt it.
Hello?
This ain't even locked.
It's like I said.
She's in there.
That's how they do.
Little girl!
Little lady!
I need you to remain calm.
Take this.
What do I do?
Hide it on yourself.
Just do as I fucking say.
Now listen to me.
There is no other way out.
Do you hear?
What will you do?
If there were,
I would take it.
But there is no other way.
I need you to move back
and climb on the bed.
Dad.
Just fucking do it.
Honey!
Could you open the
door and come on out?
Nobody's going to hurt you.
Now when I run out of
here, you need to follow me,
and don't look back.
You're scaring me.
Honey.
It's OK to be scared.
Just plug your ears.
Dad, no, no.
Please, Dad.
We're coming out.
Fuck, that's him!
Weapons out!
Please.
Please.
I need you
to surrender yourself.
Right away.
Please!
Please, Dad!
Get back!
Grenade!
Get down!
Call an ambulance!
Jeannie!
Jeannie!
Call for backup!
Call for backup!
3972 radio, officer down.
OK, let's go.
Stay down!
Stay down!
Don't move!
Stop!
Stop resisting.
Beth-Ann, this is
federal agent Sam Wallace.
I flew in this afternoon from
Virginia just to talk to you.
The man you call your father
is headed to a holding
facility in Illinois.
Were you aware he was keeping
explosives in the storage unit?
No.
I believe you.
That's what he said, too.
It's a miracle he's
still breathing.
He'll either recover there
in the hospital, or he won't.
I want to see him.
This is a lot of money.
How did the two of you
come to possess it?
I said I want to see him.
You're not going to see
that man again anytime soon.
Then I don't answer
any of your questions.
I've been trying to find you
two for a long time, especially
you.
I promise I'm only here to help.
You recognize those people?
No.
Not at all?
I said I don't recognize them.
Those are your grandparents.
They assumed guardianship.
My dad's parents?
Your mom's.
It's all right here.
This is a picture of
your biological parents.
The man you've been living
with is not your father.
To be frank, we
thought you were dead.
Technically speaking, this case
has been inactive for 12 years.
Both your grandparents have
also since passed, or trust me,
they'd be here.
They left you something
of an inheritance.
Not much, but something.
To find you in
Ohio, of all places.
That little girl went
missing 14 years ago.
That's you.
Your real name is Lily.
But what about my dad?
Your parents died--
My real dad.
I'm trying to tell you.
The man who raised me.
We had descriptions at
the time you were taken,
but no one's ever
been able to find
anything legally conclusive.
That said, that's
Joshua Cherkis.
He was dishonorably discharged
for desertion in 1991 following
two suicides in his unit.
Went missing, completely off
the grid couple of years later.
Became a ghost.
If you ask me, he
should be made a ghost
right now for what he did
to you, but never mind that.
So that's it?
I can understand
how this is.
Do you mind if I step
outside for a second?
After all you've been
through, you go right ahead.
Like the fella says, we got
all the time in the world.