Thirst

By
Jacob Hogue

2012

INT. APARTMENT LIVING ROOM-MORNING

The apartment is empty, save for Jack (mid 20s), who is
sitting upright, asleep, on the COUCH. BEER BOTTLES, empty
RED PLASTIC CUPS, and various PLASTIC FOOD WRAPPINGS litter
the room. A party was clearly had, but all of its
participants have left, leaving Jack alone. The sun shines
through his window, hitting his eyes, causing him to wake.
He looks around blearily, and the expression on his face
clearly tells us that he has one hell of a hangover.
Scanning the room, his eyes come to rest on his BONG. The
bowl is freshly loaded, and a DISPOSABLE LIGHTER is sitting
right next to it on his COFFEE TABLE. Jack shrugs,
appreciating the thoughtfulness of his drunk self. He takes
the bong and lighter and pulls out a huge hit. He lifts his
head and, after holding his breath for a few seconds, lets
out a billow of thick white smoke. He sets the bong back on
the coffee table and heads for the kitchen.
INT. APARTMENT KITCHEN-MORNING
Opening a cupboard, Jack is met with a distressing sight.
The only food the cupboard holds is a large unopened BAG OF
SPAGHETTI NOODLES and a half empty sleeve of SALTINE
CRACKERS. Sighing, Jack grabs the saltines pulling a good
sized stack out of the sleeve and cramming them into his
mouth. He chews and swallows, pausing in the center of the
kitchen. He licks his lips, and they are dry as sandpaper.
He grabs an EMPTY CUP off the counter and swings the
REFRIGERATOR DOOR open. Inside is a FILTER PITCHER, dry as a
bone. The only other things in the fridge are three OPEN
BOTTLES OF BEER and four HALF EMPTY KETCHUP CONTAINERS.
Annoyed, Jack grabs the pitcher and walks over to the sink,
popping the top off of the pitcher. Pulling the FAUCET
HANDLE, Jack is met with nothing but the groaning noises of
uncooperative pipes. Confused, Jack heads for the door.
EXT. APARTMENT COMPLEX-DAY
Outside, Jack is met with the site of his landlord (mid 50s)
speaking with a plumber.
JACK
Hey Marcy!?
Jacks landlord turns her head towards Jack
JACK
Whats wrong with the water?

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

2.

MARCY
(Irritated)
Damn water softener blew up last
night, now this guys telling me
were gonna be without water for at
least the next three hours.
Jack licks his lips again, they are as dry as they were
before, if not more so. A look of distress flashes across
his face, and he heads back inside his house.
INT. APARTMENT HALLWAY
Jack closes the door behind him and heads in a straight line
for his FISH BOWL. He reaches in to scoop out the fish, but
pauses, as his imagination flares up.
EXT. CEMETERY, JACKS IMAGINATION-DAY
We see a small handful of people wearing black, standing
around a VERY TINY CASKET, adorned by a VERY TINY BOUQUET. A
priest stands at the head of the casket, reading from an
OPEN BIBLE.
INT. APARTMENT HALLWAY
Jack looks at the fishbowl longingly, pulling his hand out.
Still looking for water, he heads for the bathroom.
INT. APARTMENT BATHROOM
Jack pulls the lid off of the toilet tank, only to find that
the water has been contaminated by a SLOW-DISSOLVE FRESHENER
PUCK. With frustration, Jack replaces the tank lid and opens
the seat, lowering his face to bowl-level. He closes his
eyes and lowers his face even more, but once again, pauses.
INT. APARTMENT BATHROOM, JACKS IMAGINATION-MONTAGE
Jacks roommate sits on the toilet with a NEWSPAPER
A party-goer vomits into the toilet
Another guest scoops a WAD OF CHEWING TOBACCO from his mouth
and dumps it in the toilet
Two frisky party-goers enter the bathroom. The girl sits on
the toilet while the guy rips open a CONDOM WRAPPER.

3.

We end with a top down view of the toilet flushing. A USED

CONDOM circles the bowl.
INT. APARTMENT BATHROOM
Jack jerks his head back from the toilet bowl, and rushes
out of the apartment.
EXT./INT. CONVENIENCE STORE-DAY
Jack walks into the convenience store towards the
refrigerated beverages. He grabs a LARGE BOTTLE OF WATER and
brings it to the register. The cashier rings up the bottle.
CASHIER
Five dollars.
JACK
(incredulous)
Five bucks!?
CASHIER
Five dollars.
Jack, grumbling, pulls out his WALLET and opens it. Nothing
can be seen other than a thick stack of RECEIPTS. Removing
these, Jack reveals two DIMES and a three PENNIES. Licking
his dry lips again, jack slowly reaches for the bottle,
preparing to run, but the cashier simply shakes his head,
pulling a BASEBALL BAT from a shelf under the register and
placing it on the counter.
INT. JAIL CELL, JACKS IMAGINATION
Jack sits in a plain jail-cell wearing an ORANGE JUMPSUIT,
HANDCUFFS, and a NECK BRACE.
EXT./INT. CONVENIENCE STORE-DAY
Defeated, Jack walks out, leaving the water bottle with the
armed cashier.
EXT. CONVENIENCE STORE PARKING LOT-DAY
Jack exits the convenience store and sees an runner pass by
with a RACE NUMBER pinned on his chest, then two more.
Following them with his eyes, he sees a group of bystanders
holding out WATER BOTTLES for runners. The first three
(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

4.

runners that passed Jack grab their bottles, leaving one

remaining, A final runner passes Jack, who puts two and two
together, and runs after the marathoner. He soon catches up
to him, much to the runners perplexion. The runner looks at
Jack and quickens his pace, which Jack swiftly matches, and
then surpasses with a smug look on his face. The look
quickly vanishes as the runner ups the ante, breaking into a
sprint. Jacks face fills with concentration as he bursts
into an explosive sprint, passing the runner at the last
second, swiping the water bottle from the bystanders
outstretched hand.