One Last Time | Short film

INT. BEDROOM - NIGHT

Stuffed animals sit atop a neatly made bed where LOLA, 17, lays flipping through a magazine. Her bedroom is a mixture of girly adolescence and young adulthood. Posters of Shawn Mendes look across the room at a signed photo of Stacey Abrams.

Her friends COLLEEN, 17, and JEREMY, 18, are trying on different wigs.

Jeremy grabs a blonde wig and pulls it over his head.

JEREMY

Like this?

COLLEEN

No, you have to turn it to the left.

Jeremy adjusts his wig so the bangs now face the front and gets up to look in the mirror.

JEREMY

I look like Sia.

LOLA

If Sia had patchy facial hair and a pension for closeted frat boys.

JEREMY

Speaking of...I invited Keith tonight.

LOLA

What? We agreed it would just be us tonight. This is our last night together before college...

JEREMY

Save the speech, please. You act like we’re never going to see each other again. We have like three classes together.

COLLEEN

He has a point. You’ve been a bit preachy lately.

LOLA

It’s our tradition.

COLLEEN

Sweetie, I hate to break it to you, but we only do this every year because you want to. Jeremy and I haven’t cared about any of this since the eighth grade.

LOLA

You never said anything.

COLLEEN

Because you’re our best friend and we love you.

JEREMY

Besides, Keith has a fake ID and I made him pick up vodka on the way. If you’re gonna make us go ghost hunting like we’re twelve, I wanna have a buzz.

Jeremy and Colleen dog pile onto Lola’s bed, wrestling and tickling each other.

EXT. PENNBROOKE THEATER - NIGHT

A padlocked chainlink fence surrounds an old, dilapidated theater. Windows shattered, holes throughout the roof, this building hasn’t been touched in decades. The sign across the fence reads: NO TRESPASSING.

Lola, Colleen, Jeremy, and Keith scale the fence and drop down on the other side. They make their way up the long driveway toward the entrance.

KEITH

Why are we here again?

JEREMY

I told you, babe. It’s a thing we used to do as kids.

LOLA

You’ve never heard of Lewis Pennbrooke?

COLLEEN

Look what you started.

KEITH

No. Who’s that?

Jeremy takes a long swig from the vodka water bottle and passes it to Keith.

JEREMY

Take a big sip. You’ll need it.

LOLA

Back in the 20’s, this theater was the main attraction for the town. Lewis Pennbrooke owned this theater and he played the piano for all the acts. Everybody loved him, especially the women in the town. Somebody got the idea in their head that Pennbrooke must be some kind of witch, casting spells on the all the women with his music.

KEITH

A male witch?

COLLEEN

Wouldn’t that be a warlock?

LOLA

Not the point. Anyway, the men of the town got together and cornered him in the theater. When they couldn’t find him, they set it on fire. It wasn’t until after the flames died out that they found Pennbrooke’s body. People still say they can hear the piano playing late at night if you listen close enough.

The group stops at the doors leading into the theater.

JEREMY

Don’t worry. We’ve never seen

anything.

LOLA

Are we ready?

Before Lola can open the door, a piece of the roof falls down behind them, barely missing Colleen.

COLLEEN

Jesus Christ! Can we get this over with please, before the entire building caves in?

INT. PENNBROOKE THEATER - LOBBY - NIGHT

A charred, skeletal remain of what it once was, the lobby stands empty with two sets of double doors leading into the main theater and hallways on either side.

KEITH

I say we split up.

COLLEEN

Are you kidding? Have you never seen a single horror movie?

JEREMY

Lighten up. Give us ten minutes and we’ll meet you in the auditorium.

LOLA

Don’t say we didn’t warn you. Jeremy and Keith walk down the hallway to the left, sipping the water bottle and giggling to each other.

COLLEEN

Who knew abandoned buildings were such a turn on?

LOLA

Boys are gross.

Lola and Colleen enter the auditorium in front of them.

INT. HALLWAY - NIGHT

Jeremy and Keith kiss along the corridor, leaning into each other against the walls.

JEREMY

Thanks again for coming. I know it’s lame, but Lola really loves doing this.

KEITH

I get it. Last night before you become adults and all that. Can’t say me and my friends did anything like this, though.

JEREMY

We all used to be really into this stuff. Our first year we thought it would be cute to bring a Ouija board with us. Try and tempt the spirit or whatever. And every year after that, Lola’s just been obsessed with coming back.

A faint PIANO KEY begins to be struck.

JEREMY (CONT'D)

Do you hear that?

KEITH

I don’t hear anything.

JEREMY

It sounds like a piano...

INT. STAGE - NIGHT

Lola and Colleen walk along the stage, when Lola spots a VAUDEVILLE HOOK leaning against the wall.

LOLA

Whoa I thought these things were just made up in cartoons.

Colleen isn’t paying attention and walks toward a hole in the stage floor.

LOLA (CONT'D)

Colleen look out!

Lola grabs the vaudeville hook and loops it around Colleen’s waist, pulling her back from the edge.

COLLEEN

Holy shit. Nice thinking.

A faint piano key beings to be played and the girls perk up.

LOLA

You hear that, too, right?

COLLEEN

Uh...yeah.

Jeremy and Keith come running up to them breathless.

JEREMY

We need to get the hell out of here. I don’t have a good feeling about this.

One final note on the piano strikes. The group looks around terrified when suddenly a sandbag falls from the ceiling, crushing Keith’s head beneath it. Jeremy, Colleen, and Lola scream and run toward the audience seats, jumping off the stage.

COLLEEN

What the hell was that?!

LOLA

Run!

Colleen’s foot catches on the warped floor and she falls down, hard. Before Jeremy can turn back to help her up, the floor opens and consumes her.

JEREMY

Colleen!

Lola grabs Jeremy by the shoulder and whirls him around, pulling him up the aisle as fast as she can.

INT. LOBBY - CONTINUOUS

Jeremy and Lola burst through the doors reaching the entrance, but it’s locked.

JEREMY

Come on, come on!

Lola stops and turns around, seeing the ghostly visage of

LEWIS PENNBROOKE standing before them.

PENNBROOKE

I thought you’d never come back.

Jeremy looks between the ghost and Lola, noticing she isn’t afraid of him.

LOLA

Hello, lover.

JEREMY

What the hell is going on? Lola, what is this?

LOLA

You know I always had a thing for you Jeremy. Even though I knew you were gay since we were five, I couldn’t help myself. But I’ve heard Lewis’s song every night since the first night we came here and he made me feel like I couldn’t finally find love. If only he had a body...

Lola steps back as the ghost jumps into Jeremy’s body. He struggles, writhing in pain until finally ceasing. When he stands up again, his eyes GLOW silver.

JEREMY

I’ve been waiting for you.

EXT. PENNBROOKE THEATER - NIGHT

The theater stands as a silent beacon. A bloodcurdling scream echoes throughout the darkness.

FADE TO BLACK.