Love of Her Life (10 page)

It's all interpretation.  A lie. 

Harmonia swallows and breathes like a bull ready to charge. 

CHIEKO

Cut the crap, drama queen.  You're

scared to let yourself love again. 

So is he. 

HARMONIA

That's no excuse to lie.  I admitted

I was scared, a long time ago.  He

kept pretending. 

CHIEKO

You're lying right now. 

HARMONIA

How am I lying?

CHIEKO

You said you could forgive him

anything. 

Harmonia takes this in. 

HARMONIA

Yes I said that.  And I won't. 

CHIEKO

So you're full of shit.  Why would I

want you? 

Chieko walks away.  Harmonia watches her go. 

HARMONIA

Exactly.  Why would anyone?

Mike passes Chieko and joins Harmonia. 

HARMONIA

Leave me alone. 

She walks away. 

INT.  HARMONIA'S CABIN G319 - DAY

Harmonia hugs the pillow. 

HARMONIA'S FANTASY:

EXT.  WOODS - DAY

OLD HARMONIA wanders alone.  Something moves toward her.  She glimpses a mountain lion and stands still.  The cry of the mountain lion fills the forest.  She holds up her hands,  in which she clutches raw bacon.  She closes her eyes and surrenders to being mauled to death. 

END FANTASY

BACK TO HARMONIA'S CABIN G319

Eyes closed, a tear streams down her temple. 

EXT.  PORT OF NEW ORLEANS - DAY

The Delta Queen docks at the port.  Passengers disembark

with their luggage.  The Captain bids them farewell. 

Harmonia approaches the Captain. 

CAPTAIN

Best wishes to you, Miss Theakos. 

She wheels her luggage past him. 

Chieko presses through the crowd and catches Harmonia. 

CHIEKO

That's how you are?  Leave, not a

word? 

Harmonia keeps walking. 

CHIEKO

Your choice. 

Harmonia turns. 

HARMONIA

No, Chieko.  It's not my choice.  I

wasn't given a choice.  Nobody is. 

There's no free will.  We're born

the way we are.  We're machines. 

Life is one big illusion.  Tell me

it isn't. 

She walks away. 

CHIEKO

We don't need a friend?

Harmonia keeps walking. 

Orion comes along behind Chieko. 

ORION

Worse than I expected. 

Chieko looks at him with scorn. 

CHIEKO

Really bad decision.  You're the

only one who can clean up this mess. 

Orion watches Harmonia walk into a liquor store. 

INT.  LIQUOR STORE - MOMENTS LATER

Harmonia pays for a bottle of peppermint liqueur at the counter.  Orion comes up behind her with a box of hot cocoa

and a can of whipped cream. 

ORION

You forgot something. 

Harmonia takes the paper bag and walks out.  He leaves the

stuff on the counter and follows her. 

ORION

We have to talk. 

HARMONIA

About what?

She walks toward a coffee shop. 

ORION

Us. 

HARMONIA

I don't know who you are.  The man I

fell in love with couldn't do what

you did. 

ORION

Friends forever? 

Harmonia stops and hangs her head. 

HARMONIA

Ri. 

He takes the paper bag from her. 

ORION

This isn't what you need. 

HARMONIA

What do you think I need?

He sets the bag down. 

ORION

You need what every human being needs. 

HARMONIA

Love?  What is love? 

ORION

A friend. 

She looks at him, hurt. 

HARMONIA

Friends trust each other.  Friends

don't let friends spend two thousand

dollars on a special birthday present

and then twist it into an ugly prank. 

ORION

I didn't ask for anything. 

HARMONIA

That's right.  You didn't need

anything more than chit-chat on the

phone.  As long as I was happy when

you called, that's all you needed. 

I needed to touch you, smell you--

ORION

I understand. 

HARMONIA

It's too late.  You've gone too far. 

ORION

The unforgivable?

HARMONIA

Yes. 

ORION

You never told me yours. 

She stares at her toes. 

HARMONIA

You're looking at it. 

She spreads her toes.  He looks at her toes.  She squeezes

them together, wiggles them. 

ORION

What am I supposed to see?

HARMONIA

I'm a flake, Ri.  I say one thing

and do another.  I can wiggle out of

anything.  No vow, no piece of paper,

no amount of gold can hold me.  I'm

going break your heart. 

ORION

I'd like to decide what risks I have

the courage to take. 

She picks up the paper bag.  She looks at him. 

He reaches to wrap his arms around her waist.  She flinches, but lets him. 

HARMONIA

You scare me. 

He pulls her close and kisses her forehead. 

ORION

You scare me. 

He guides her toward a line of taxis with his arm around her shoulder.  She drops the paper bag in a dumpster. 

TITLE ON BLACK:  "PAIR OF QUEENS"

INT.  CHIEKO'S CABIN G339 - FLASHBACK

Chieko and Harmonia lay in each other's arms, fully clothed.  Peace in their faces and bodies. 

CHIEKO

If I never taste it again, I would

not miss it. 

HARMONIA

I would. 

CHIEKO

You would. 

HARMONIA

I like the exotic, pungent flavor. 

Especially the blend, both juices,

mingled. 

CHIEKO

You lick your lips afterward and can

still taste it. 

HARMONIA

Nothing else has that flavor.  Like

cilantro - I would miss that. 

CHIEKO

I would miss cilantro. 

HARMONIA

And the feel of a man. 

CHIEKO

The texture. 

HARMONIA

Yes.  The skin is different.  Whether

it is hairy or not, a man's skin is

different. 

CHIEKO

Even if he is thin, small, there is

still something distinctly masculine. 

HARMONIA

Yes.  I like masculinity.  It's not

the same when a woman acts masculine. 

CHIEKO

We definitely could not be gay, not

even for each other. 

HARMONIA

We'd make a lovely sandwich, with

Orion between us. 

CHIEKO

Double the meat, my Orion, too. 

HARMONIA

Mmm, men.  Yummy men. 

FADE OUT

TITLE ON BLACK:  "ACE, QUEEN HIGH"

HARMONIA'S FANTASY:

INT.  CASINO

Harmonia loses her last chip at a Blackjack table. 

Fantasy Orion appears at her side, he's in a wheelchair.  He

places a chip on the table in front of her. 

FANTASY ORION

Don't give up on yourself. 

The dealer deals.  The Ace of Hearts is showing.  She looks

at the face-down card.  It's the Queen of Hearts. 

Fantasy Orion squeezes her hand.  They smile at each other. 

END FLASH FORWARD

BACK TO PORT OF NEW ORLEANS - PRESENT DAY

Orion guides Harmonia toward a limo parked near the line of

taxis.  Behind them, Chieko watches while passengers disembark

from the Delta Queen. 

Mike joins Chieko.  Together, they watch Orion and Harmonia. 

A chauffeur opens the door to the limo. 

INT.  LIMOUSINE - DAY

DAVIS sits in the back seat.  A folded wheelchair is strapped to the side.  He looks about the same age as Harmonia. 

Harmonia sees the familiar face and reacts -- it's "Fantasy Orion" -- the man she expected to meet in the first place. 

ORION

(to Harmonia)

I'd like you to meet my brother. 

DAVIS

Hello Harmonia. 

He reaches to help her inside the limo. 

HARMONIA

Hi.  My goodness, you're strong.