Unwell Season 4/Episode 1- Hold On

by Jessica Best

Outside isn't safe

We're not gonna talk about it

We're not gonna talk about her

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Content Advisories for this episode can be found here.

Listen to the episode here.

Support Unwell and HartLife NFP on Patreon at www.patreon.com/hartlifenfp

This episode features: Clarisa Cherie Rios as Lily, Michael Turrentine as Wes, Kathleen Hoil as Abbie, Amelia Bethel as Marisol, Clint Worthington as Russel Epstien, Mark Soloff as Silas Lodge, Phoebe Judge as the Julian Animal Control Recording, Avery Trufelman as Julian Animal Control Officer, Jeffrey Nils Gardner as the Mail carrier.

Written by Jessica Best, sound design by Eli Hamada McIlveen, directed by Jeffrey Nils Gardner, theme music composed by Stephen Poon, recording engineer Mel Ruder, associate producer Ani Enghdahl, Theme performed by Stephen Poon, Lauren Kelly, Gunnar Jebsen, Travis Elfers, Mel Ruder, and Betsey Palmer, Unwell lead sound designer Eli Hamada McIlveen, Executive Producers Eleanor Hyde and Jeffrey Nils Gardner, by HartLife NFP.

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LILY’S PHONE
You have reached the offices of Julian Animal Control. Your call is

important to us. If this is an emergency, please hang up and dial

nine-one-one. Otherwise, please hold.

HOLD MUSIC

LILY
Okay, everything’s fine, everything’s cool. I’ll say, I’ll say, “Hey, just

so you know, there are a dozen wolves waiting around for

something on Main Street” and they’ll say, “Oh yeah, we’ve been

getting calls and we’re sending a...a wolf expert to come and pick

them up, not a problem, not even a--”

MARISOL
Are we sure this is the right move?

LILY
I’m not sure of anything, but we need to do something.

WES
Do you have another idea? I’m not being snarky, do you?

MARISOL
How about plan A is we make sure this is even happening.

WES
But Eugenia Hewitt said--

MARISOL
I know, I know. That was a hell of a phone call. But it’s Eugenia

Hewitt, Lily. She’s near-sighted. She’s far-sighted. She thought I

was straight.

WES
You really think she might be, well. Crying wolf?

MARISOL
Is this really the time to be doing a bit?

LILY
Hang on. Either it’s wolves and it’s serious, or it’s nothing and it’s

no big deal, you can’t have it both ways.

MARISOL
I’m not saying it’s nothing, I’m saying there’s a lot of things it could

be that aren’t the worst-case possible scenario-- (TENSE) Oh my

god, look. Right on the lawn out there.

WES
(TENSE) Oh wow.

LILY
Shit, why are they here?

WES
Guess they got tired of waiting. There’s three by the driveway.

MARISOL
Four. But are we sure they’re wolves-wolves and not, I don’t know,

stray huskies?

LILY
They look pretty big.

MARISOL
Coyotes, then.

WES
Coyotes travel in pairs.

LILY How do you--

WES
Boy scouts. I got my merit badge in fish and wildlife.

PAUSE.

LILY
They’re really in no hurry to pick up out in Julian, huh?

WES
Is there a Mount Absalom number we could try?

LILY
What are the odds Mount A’s animal control is just Chester Warren

with a butterfly net?

MARISOL
Let’s say extremely high. Again, could it be stray dogs?

LILY
Abbie? What’s your take on this?

(PAUSE)

MARISOL
I just think, before we give in to panic and say, “Holy shit, it’s

wolves,” if we don’t stop and check if it’s, I don’t know, some

tourist’s pets that got loose, we’re gonna feel like real putzes.

LILY
And I think, there’s a difference between panic and accepting

what’s almost definitely going on right in front of us, even if it’s not

best-case scenario--

MARISOL
Four wolves in the front yard is crazy, Lily. It’s a crazy thing to

happen.

LILY
Is it really any crazier than--I mean, even the rest of what went

down tonight--

WES
Are we talking about young Lily appearing? Because we need to--

LILY
Not now, Wes.

MARISOL
Yes, Lily! It is crazier! It is because it’s bad. This town is full of

weird things but those things turn out to be wonderful or at least

neutral--

LILY
Hold up. Your niece disappeared in my basement--

MARISOL
And then we got her back! And she was fine! She was fine and

she’d had an adventure, and she wrote a short story about it in

English and got an A plus. This is--not that. Unless it’s just two

pairs of coyotes, or a couple of stray huskies--

LILY
Most strays are not purebreds, Marisol--

WES
Hang on!

WES VANISHES.

LILY
Wes!

MARISOL
Wes!

VERY DISTANTLY, WES REAPPEARS.

WES
(CALLING FROM THE YARD) Augh!

WES REAPPEARS.

WES
Wolves. It’s wolves.

MARISOL
Okay. It’s wolves.

LILY
It’s wolves, and they’re getting closer.

A WINDOW IS CRACKED OPEN.

MARISOL
What’re you--

LILY
They hate loud noises, right?

WES
Right.

LILY
HEY WOLVES! YEAH, YOU! GET OUT OF HERE! GO BACK TO THE WOODS!

A WOLF SNARLS LOUDLY.

LILY
Abbie, you’re being weirdly quiet. What do you think?

Abbie? Abbie!

THIS IS INTERCUT WITH AUDIO FROM

3.09:

PROPRIETOR
Abbie. AAAAAAAAA-Beeeeeee.

BACK TO PRESENT DAY:

A WOLF HOWLS

3.09 AGAIN:

PROPRIETOR
--get what’s coming to you--

PRESENT DAY:

LILY
Abbie! Are you okay?

LILY CLAPS HER HANDS TOGETHER,

WHICH ECHOES LIKE--

3.09 AGAIN

A BANG ON THE DOOR

LILY
Abbie, do you need to sit down?

BANG

PRESENT DAY:

ONE SET OF FOOTSTEPS RUN TO THE

STAIRS, UP THE STAIRS, INTO A

BEDROOM AND SLAM THE DOOR.

MARISOL
I didn’t know they were afraid of wolves.

WES
I didn’t think they were.

MARISOL
Do we go after them?

LILY
Knowing Abbie, I think they probably want space, at least for now.

We can go check in on them once we’ve dealt with the more pressing thing.

MARISOL
Yeah, what does it mean that we saw you-as-a-kid in the basement?

WES
Right. If living people can appear out of thin air in this town, does

that mean none of us are really ghosts?

MARISOL
It was so creepy, she really looked just like old photos of you.

WES
And if I’m not a ghost, where does that leave me?

LILY
Wes. I meant the wolves. The rest of it can wait.

MARISOL
Wait, wait. Lily, can we spend some time unpacking how it really

seemed like you had died?

LILY
But I didn’t.

MARISOL
Yeah, Lily, you and Wes knew that. The rest of us--we were just

out there, waiting and waiting, and then Dot started crying and this

little, this ghost-you appeared--

LILY
I’m sorry, I get that it must’ve been fucking awful, but now that

we’ve all had a chance to breathe--I mean, it couldn’t have been my ghost, right?

WES
Are we agreed on that? So then what was--

LILY
Who says it even has to make sense? Plenty of weird shit has

happened in this town and I don’t think any of us are closer to

understanding it than we were last summer.

MARISOL
Can we stop to appreciate, in the moment, how terrifying that

was? Lily, I really believed you were dead.

LILY’S PHONE
You have reached the offices of Julian Animal Control. Your call is

important to us. If this is an emergency, please hang up and dial

nine-one-one. Otherwise, please hold.

HOLD MUSIC

LILY
I’m sorry, I get that.

MARISOL
You absolutely don’t.

LILY
Hey, maybe don’t tell me how I feel.

MARISOL
Because if you got it, you wouldn’t be acting like we should all just

process your death and then unprocess it in the space of an hour,

okay? (A BEAT) Sorry. I just--I’m tired.

LILY
We’re all tired.

WES
I’m not.

LILY
And you’re right. You’re right, I don’t, because I can’t, but the point

is, I’m here now, and whatever that was--

WES
She. She’s not a “that”.

LILY
Whoever she was, she’s gone now, whereas the wolves--oh shit,

the mail!

MARISOL
What?

LILY
Look out the window, the mail truck’s coming. What are the odds

the wolves are gonna be cool about this?

WES
Where are they? I don’t see them.

MARISOL
Over there. Crouched down. As in, lying in wait.

WES
Hang on, I have a thought.

WES DISAPPEARS.

LILY
Wes! I don’t see him--

MARISOL
I don’t think he’s outside this time.

WES REAPPEARS.

LILY
What?

WES
Fireworks, from your mom’s secret stash. Open the window a little more.

WINDOW CRANKS OPEN.

LILY
(REALIZING) Wolves hate loud noises…

WES
Right. I just need--matches!

MARISOL
Wes, wait! Here.

A LIGHTER IS FLICKED OPEN.

WES
You carry a lighter?

MARISOL
Concerts. Are you ready?

WES
Let’s do this.

LILY
Aim it at the sky.

WES
I know. 3, 2, 1…

A SMALL FIREWORK IS LIT. IT TAKES OFF AND

EXPLODES.

A WOLF HOWLS DEFIANTLY.

MAIL CARRIER
(VERY DISTANTLY) Oh shit!

THE MAIL TRUCK PULLS AWAY, TIRES SCREECHING

WES
(WORRIED ABOUT THE DANGER) The wolves aren’t budging.

MARISOL
The mail truck sure is.

WES
That works too.

LILY
Not totally sure how any of us are ever gonna leave the house again, but--

MARISOL
Well then, Lily, I guess you’ll just have to stick around. (A BEAT)

Sorry, that was the sleep deprivation talking. I’m really not trying to

pressure you into staying, it’s totally your call and I know Mount

Absalom wasn’t what you planned, so--

LILY
It’s okay. It’s okay. Uh, I think. I think I’m staying.

MARISOL
Are you sure?

LILY
Yeah. I am.

MARISOL
(GIDDY) Seriously, you decide that now? Just when things are

really reaching brand-new levels of weird and possibly dangerous,

you’re like “I’m in”? What is your timing?

LILY
I know how it sounds, but. Every place I’ve left, I left because it

was too easy. I could just glide along, getting by, and so I’d glide

until I got bored and someplace else seemed more exciting. But

here, Mount Absalom keeps you on your toes, you know. I don’t

think I can get bored here. And I know I’ve got some baggage

about this place, but when I see it through your eyes, through

Mom’s eyes and Wes’s eyes and even Abbie’s eyes, I think, “I

could build something here. I could be needed here.” And I dunno,

I like that thought.

WES
That’s really neat, and I’m happy for you, but can we get back to--

LILY
Sorry, of course.

MARISOL
Wait. First, can you, uh, say it one more time?

LILY
I’m staying. I’m staying in Mount Absalom. I don’t care if there’s

forty wolves, this is where I wanna try for something.

MARISOL
Thank you.

WES
What are you gonna do, Marisol?

MARISOL
What?

WES
If we can’t get rid of the wolves, coming and going from the house will be a task.

LILY
You’re welcome to stay here.

WES
Do we think Rudy’s coming back?

LILY
I don’t know.

WES
Because I mean, if he isn’t, that’s awful, but it does mean we’ve got a spare room.

LILY
Wes, this isn’t “I Love Lucy”, she and I can share a bed.

WES
(EMBARRASSED) Of course. Yes.

MARISOL
Is Rudy coming back?

LILY
Dunno. Haven’t seen him for days and I don’t think his car’s been here.

WES
What’d he do, anyway? Abbie bristles whenever he comes up.

LILY
Abbie thinks he’s with the Delphics now.

WES
Why?

LILY
Because he kind of is.

WES
No, I mean why would he work with Chester and Hazel and everyone? What’s his reason?

MARISOL
We don’t really know.

WES
Do we think maybe he’s just faking it? Like a double agent?

LILY
I don’t think we think that, Wes.

WES
I really liked him.

LILY
Me too. Just--be careful around him.

LILY’S PHONE
You have reached the offices of Julian Animal Control. Your call is

important to us. If this is an emergency, please hang up and dial

nine-one-one. Otherwise, please hold.

MARISOL
Hmm.

LILY
What?

MARISOL
It’s just, my meds are back at my place. Obviously I don’t mind

sharing a room and in a pinch, I can borrow some of your clothes,

but tomorrow I’m gonna need my Mirtazapine.

WES
So, we still need a way to sneak past the wolves.

MARISOL
I--yeah.

WES
Right now?

LILY
In the morning feels better than doing this at night.

WES
Do we have any meat?

FOOTSTEPS AWAY FROM THE WINDOW.

LILY
Pretty sure...we do.

WES
I think I saw leftover meatloaf in the fridge.

LILY
We made that with pea protein, so Abbie could have some.

FOOTSTEPS ACROSS A TILE KITCHEN FLOOR.

WES
I don’t think wild animals are picky.

MARISOL
They might be able to tell the difference, though, like how sharks can smell blood?

A REFRIGERATOR DOOR OPENS.

LILY
Turkey! Half a package of turkey.

CRINKLE OF THE BAG OF TURKEY.

REFRIGERATOR DOOR CLOSES.

WES
Alright, so we divide it into fours...

LILY
Maybe we keep it in one chunk so they’ll tussle with each other, buy us more time.

MARISOL
Good thinking.

FOOTSTEPS ACROSS THE FLOOR AND TOWARDS THE DOOR.

WES
So, who wants to do the honors?

LILY
What?

WES
Throw the turkey.

MARISOL
Lily, didn’t you coach an amateur softball team for a while?

LILY
I’m better at catching.

MARISOL
Lily, Wes is a ghost--

WES
Or something--

MARISOL
--or something, and I’m a music nerd with all the coordination of a muppet. It’s down to you.

LILY
Alright. Uh, keys.

KEYS ARE RETRIEVED FROM A HOOK.

DOOR OPENS.

WES
Throw it as far as you can from the car.

LILY
I know.

WES
Then why aren’t you--

LILY
We only get one shot at this.

(DEEP BREATH)

LILY
Come and get it!

A VERY DISTANT PLOP OF MEAT HITTING GRASS.

FOUR WOLVES RUN OVER AND BEGIN TO TUSSLE OVER THE HAM, YIPPING.

LILY
Now!

THREE SETS OF FOOTPRINTS BOLT DOWN THE DRIVEWAY. CAR IS

UNLOCKED. THREE CAR DOORS OPEN, THREE PEOPLE CLIMB INSIDE THE CAR,

THREE CAR DOORS CLOSE. LILY SETS HER PHONE IN THE CUPHOLDER.

SEATBELTS.

WES
Phew.

MARISOL
Yeah.

CAR STARTS.

LILY
Shit.

MARISOL
What?

LILY
I threw all the turkey. What are we gonna do on the way back?

MARISOL
We’ll have to go shopping.

LILY
It’s just after five in the morning; nothing in town’s gonna be open.

MARISOL
Nothing’s open right now.

WES
What’re you doing?

MARISOL
Pulling up Russell Epstein’s phone number.

(PAUSE)

RING

RUSSELL
(THROUGH SPEAKER) Marisol! Have you heard, then?

MARISOL
About the wolves? Yeah.

RUSSELL
(SPEAKER) Freaky, right?

MARISOL
I know the store doesn’t open til nine, but as long as you’re up,

would you mind letting us in so we can buy some meat? It’s kind of an emergency.

RUSSELL
(SPEAKER) Sure thing.

MARISOL
Thanks, Russell. I totally owe you one.

RUSSELL
Not like I’d be able to get to sleep after hearing the news.

MARISOL
We’ve got four in our yard.

RUSSELL
Maureen says the other five are out by Town Hall. Nobody’s been hurt yet, but it’s early days.

MARISOL
Hang on. Eugenia said she saw twelve of them. Where are the other three?

(PAUSE)

LILY’S PHONE
You have reached the offices of Julian Animal Control. Your call is

important to us. If this is an emergency, please hang up and--

TRANSITION

A CAR PULLS INTO A PARKING LOT. CAR DOORS SLAM AS LILY, WES, AND

MARISOL EXIT AND RUSH OUT.

RUSSELL
(CALLING) Everyone okay?

LILY
We’re fine, Russell.

RUSSELL
Let me get the lock for ya.

A LARGE PADLOCK IS UNLOCKED. A GROCERY STORE DOOR IS OPENED.

RUSSELL
After you.

THREE SETS OF FOOTSTEPS HURRY INTO

THE GROCERY STORE, RUSSELL FOLLOWING CLOSE BEHIND.

MARISOL
Thanks again for doing this, we really can’t thank you enough.

RUSSELL
Don’t worry about it. I doubt you’ll be the last people clamoring for wolf snacks today.

The butcher counter isn’t open, obviously, but let me know what you need

and I can hop back and get it for you. In the meantime, mind if I go turn on

the lights? It’s a little uncanny in here without ‘em.

LILY
Go ahead.

ONE SET OF FOOTPRINTS HEAD AWAY ON TILE.

WES
What do wolves eat?

MARISOL
I’ll look it up. Let’s see.

TYPING ON PHONE.

MARISOL
Apparently...they prefer big hooved animals. Deer, bison, elk, moose.

They’ll hunt beavers, rodents, or hares too, they’re not picky. They can

eat up to twenty pounds of meat in one meal, that’s good.

WES
How is it--

LILY
It means they’ll still be hungry when we get back.

WES
(WEAKLY) Right. Yeah. Good news.

LIGHTS ARE SWITCHED ON. THEY HUM.

RUSSELL’S FOOTSTEPS HEAD BACK TO OUR GANG.

RUSSELL
Alright, what’ll it be?

WES
Venison?

RUSSELL
Sorry, we can’t carry it here. There’s laws against stocking wild game.

LILY
How about bison? Bison steaks or bison burgers?

RUSSELL
That I should be able to do for you.

MARISOL
Thank you so much, Russell.

RUSSELL
Not a problem.

RUSSELL’S FOOTSTEPS HEAD TO THE BACK ROOM.

LILY
So, how do we think--

MARISOL’S PHONE RINGS.

MARISOL
It’s Maureen, I’ve got a feeling I should take this.

LILY
Yeah, go ahead.

MARISOL
Hey, there. (A BEAT) Uh, yeah, we’ve got four at Fenwood house, too. No

injuries by us. Is everyone okay so far in town? (PAUSE) Well, that’s

something, so far so good. Let me know if that changes? Maybe we

should set up a phone tree, in case people need rides to the emergency

room. (A BEAT) Yeah, that’s kind of what I was thinking.

We’re, uh, working on a plan. Russell’s is open, too, by the way, if you can

get out and you want a lot of raw meat.

RUSSELL
(CALLING FROM THE BACK) Tell her all meat is 75% off for as long as the situation stands.

MARISOL
Russell says--Russell, you can’t do that, meat’s expensive, you’ll lose so much money.

RUSSELL
If you had a type of music at your store that was the only thing that made

people feel safe, would you make it harder to get, or would you lower the

bar a little?

MARISOL
Fair point. Russell says all meat is 75 percent off today.

RUSSELL
(CALLING TO MAUREEN) 75 percent off til this is over. (WITH DETERMINATION) I’m making a sign.

MARISOL
You don’t know how long that’s gonna--

RUSSELL
(EMERGING FROM THE BACK ROOM) I’ve got savings, I can make this work.

MARISOL
Maureen, did you get all that? Yeah. Thank you. (A BEAT) Thanks. Good luck to you, too.

RUSSELL
Let’s see, what else can I--?

WES
Loud noises are supposed to scare them away.

RUSSELL
I’ll put in an order for airhorns. And in the meantime, (WRITING

ANOTHER SIGN) large jars of popping corn are two for the price of one.

(TO WES) The next best thing to noisemakers. My mom--she sang

sometimes, she used to use a jar of corn if she couldn’t find the egg shaker.

WES
She was really something.

RUSSELL
What?

WES
(HURRIEDLY) It sounds like she was.

LILY’S PHONE
You have reached the offices of Julian Animal Control. Your call is

important to us. If this is an emergency, please hang up and dial

nine-one-one. Otherwise, please hold.

RUSSELL
Yeah. I’ll have to check the baking aisle, see if we still have any pots and

pans, they’re probably better than corn. Do me a favor?

LILY
Yeah?

RUSSELL
Spread the word. Meat and the noisiest housewares I can find. Free for families with small children.

MARISOL
Russell, that’s...

RUSSELL
Rule one of business. No, rule zero. Rule one is “Serve your community.”

Rule zero is “Make sure you’ve still got a community to serve.”

WES
Yeah.

RUSSELL
Good to see you around again, Wes.

WES
Thanks. Good to be around again. Even with, y’know...

RUSSELL
Well, as Dot would say, if it’s not one (LOWERS VOICE SLIGHTLY) damn

(REGULAR VOICE) thing, it’s another. Where is she?

LILY
She’s back at the house.

RUSSELL
Well, tell her I said hi, and to be thinking about our next book club pick.

We were gonna do Call of the Wild, but what with everything...I’ll check

with Maureen and Mary Lou but I’ve got a feeling we’re leaning towards

maybe more of a...city book?

LILY
How long has she been in a book group?

RUSSELL
Couple of years. We’ve been on hold since Maureen started renovating

De Souza’s, but that’s done as of yesterday. She’s got a full coffee and

latte bar now, very European.

LILY
(A LITTLE LOST) Yeah. Sorry, I’m stuck on “book club”?

RUSSELL
Oh, if it helps you picture it, between you and me, I think she almost never

actually reads the book. That’s not what we invite her for.

LILY
I’ll pass that along about Call of the Wild.

RUSSELL
Thanks, and good luck out there. Let me go ring you up.

TRANSITION: A CAR DOOR OPENS. WE’RE IN THE CAR

LILY
Got everything?

MARISOL
Enough meds and deodorant to last for at least a month.

LILY
Great.

CAR DOOR SHUTS. SEATBELT BUCKLES.

MARISOL
Lily?

LILY
Yeah?

MARISOL
Are we, uh.
Moving in together?

LILY
Oh, I don’t think so, we’re just. Moving your stuff. Into my place. So that you can stay--

WES
It sounds like you’re moving in together.

LILY
Marisol, if you’re having second thoughts, I totally understand it. My mom

is--a lot, and Abbie--is also a lot, and I, let’s be real, I am also frequently a lot--

MARISOL
I’m not. I mean, if you’re okay with it--

LILY
I am fine with it. This feels like a much better solution than spending

however long leaning on wolf bribes every time you come over.

MARISOL
“Wolf Bribes.”

WES
We should tell Abbie, in case they need a band name. (A BEAT) We

should probably go check on them, huh?

LILY
(DISTRACTED) In a sec.

WES
What?

LILY
Back in front of De Souza’s. Is that Silas Lodge?

MARISOL
Well, this seems like a great day to steer clear of--we’re going closer, aren’t we?

LILY
Sorry.

MARISOL
Why is it always this guy?

CAR DRIVES.

LILY
He’s gotta have something to do with this, right?

WES
What are the odds he gives us a straight answer?

MARISOL
At least if he summons more wolves, we’ve got our getaway meat.

CAR ROLLS TO A STOP. WINDOW ROLLS DOWN. A LIGHT RAIN IS FALLING.

SILAS
(THROUGH THE WINDOW) Lovely morning.

LILY
It’s gray, it’s raining, and oh yeah, there’s twelve wolves in town who weren’t here yesterday.

SILAS
There’s more than one kind of beauty in this world. (TAKES A SIP OF

COFFEE.) You know, Mauren DeSouza’s coffee is something. You’d think

an ice cream shop wouldn’t know how to brew a proper cup, that they’d

make it too sweet or too light, but it really is just right. Dark as dreams and

strong as lies.

LILY
Never seen you around this part of downtown. Or in any part.

SILAS
Yes, well. Situations change. I live here now. In Mount Absalom.

LILY
That’s funny. Me, too.

SILAS
In that case: hello, neighbor.

LILY
I have to say, I was hoping for a better welcome wagon than a bunch of wolves.

SILAS
Oh, you believe I invited our new friends?

LILY
It does seem like your style.

SILAS
Does it? I think I’ll take that as a compliment.

LILY
Take it however you want. Where did they come from, Silas? And no

riddles. If I wanted a puzzle, I’d go pick up one of Mom’s crosswords.

SILAS
I don’t know where they came from, but isn’t it a blessing how they’re

here? As I said, there’s more than one type of beauty in the world.

I suppose time will tell what brought them here, and what becomes of it.

On a day like this, it is easy to believe everyone might yet get what they deserve.

LILY
Is that a threat?

SILAS
Merely a hope.

WES
Lily, can we go?

SILAS
I see you decided to stick around, young man. May you not regret your decision.

That’s not a threat either, it’s just a comment from an old man enjoying a

coffee on a beautiful day. (SIP OF COFFEE.) Think I’m gonna see about

getting a refill. Be seeing you.

FOOTSTEPS TO THE SHOP DOOR, WHICH DINGS AS IT OPENS.

TRANSITION.

FENWOOD DOOR OPENS. THREE SETS OF FOOTSTEPS QUICKLY PASS THROUGH.

WOLVES CAN BE HEARD SCUFFLING WITH EACH OTHER IN THE BACKGROUND. DOOR

CLOSES. KEYS HUNG ON A HOOK.

LILY
Alright, wolves zero, Fenwood crew two. And we’re still on hold.

Marisol, Wes? You were pretty quiet the whole way here.

MARISOL
If the girl we saw in the basement wasn’t you, who was she?

LILY
(DUBIOUSLY) Someone else’s ghost? (DISMISSING THIS) Although I

would’ve definitely remembered meeting someone else who dressed like

me and looked like me.

MARISOL
She said she was you.

LILY
No offense but I think I get to be the expert on whether or not someone is

me. Like, if it was, wouldn’t I be able to look back at my childhood and

remember, “Oh yeah, that time I appeared in the basement out of

nowhere and I saw my mom and myself from the future”?

MARISOL
I’m saying, at the very least, I think she thinks she’s you.

LILY
Man, it is way too early in the morning to wonder if everyone in Mount A

secretly has an evil kid-twin.

WES
Not evil.

LILY
Wes?

WES
We have no proof at all she was evil. All she did was show up, say she’s

you, and disappear. Nothing about that says that she’s evil, she could be--

LILY
I didn’t mean, I was only saying--

WES
--just trying to live her life, she didn’t ask for this--

MARISOL
Maybe we should talk about this later.

WES
I want to talk about it now. You don’t--it is such a, a specific feeling, not to

know who you are, or what you are, or how you got here.

She can’t be a ghost, because she never really existed, is that--are you

sure? She just thinks she existed? Does that mean--everything I think I

remember, everything I’ve been getting back--

LILY
Wes…

WES
No, forget it. Forget it! You have no idea what it’s like to have everything

in your past completely up for grabs. I was just, I was just starting to

understand who I am and why I am, and now I don’t know anything, and

you keep changing the subject or putting it off, like it’s an annoyance! Like

it’s nothing! It’s my life, Lily, it’s my entire life! I have done so much for you

and your family, and you won’t even do this one thing for me!

Well fine, if you won’t do it, I’ll go talk to someone who understands what

it is to be a ghost, or a not-ghost, or whatever the Hell it is I am!

LILY
Wes, where are you--

WES
I’m going to go see Norah.

WES DISAPPEARS.

LILY
I definitely could’ve handled that better.

MARISOL
Yeah, but how? It’s uncharted territory. You learn by trying and failing and hopefully doing better next time.

LILY
And just hoping the failures don’t--

WES REAPPEARS.

WES
I…

LILY
Wes, what happened?

WES
Norah wasn’t at the observatory. What was there--

LILY
(KNOWING) Oh no.

WES
Yeah. Three wolves. Just sitting by the door, watching me.

LILY’S PHONE
You have reached the offices of Julian Animal Control. Your call is--

PHONE RINGS

LILY’S PHONE
Hello, Julian Animal Control? How may I help you? (PAUSE) Hello?

LILY
I think, uh, it’s--uh. (LILY SIGHS, NOW FOR THE FIRST TIME

ACCEPTING THAT JULIAN ANIMAL CONTROL IS NOT EVEN

SLIGHTLY EQUIPPED TO DEAL WITH THIS.) Never mind.

LILY HANGS UP. THE LINE GOES DEAD.

END.