Read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14
INT. HANNAH’S ROOM IN ST. VINCENT DUNN HOSPITAL — NOON
Hannah, propped up by pillows in a hospital bed, sits reading a large used textbook about databases. Her mom, LINDA, opens the door opposite Hannah’s bed and sticks an anxious face into the room.
LINDA
Your friends are here to see you, Hannah Banana.
Hannah allows her eyes to slide above the edge of her book and deliver a disapproving stare. But when Leo, Shelly, and Dirk walk in through the opening door, she puts her book down and smiles, revealing a bruised face covered by an uncomfortable-looking plastic mask.
Leo, Shelly, and Dirk walk over to Hannah and surround her bed. Leo sits in the only chair. Linda closes the door and leaves the room.
LEO
Hannah Banana…?
HANNAH (bitterly)
My parents treat me like
a pet.
SHELLY
So…how’s it going…? I mean, what happened…?
Is there something we can do?
LEO (eyeing a fire alarm on the nearby wall)
Want us to bust
you out?
HANNAH
Ha ha, yeah right. That’s not a joke.
The doctors want to keep me here forever.
DIRK
What for?
HANNAH (watching Shelly)
No reason — they either think I was crazy enough
to wreck myself into a tree, or they
are worried that the wreck has made me crazy
enough to try again.
SHELLY
But it wasn’t you…?
You can imagine, given Shelly’s recent suspicion and Hannah’s suspicion of her suspicion, that Hannah would assume Shelly to be the first person to blame her for the wreck. She turns from Shelly to Dirk, seeking answers.
DIRK (to Hannah)
Sorry…I had to tell them.
Hannah purses her lips, and Shelly blushes. Leo looks like he might explode any second if he is not given the chance to talk about his adventures in the graveyard.
HANNAH
How much?
DIRK
Just that
something’s wrong with the afterversion of
your dad, and that you wanted me to help.
HANNAH (relieved, but guarded)
That’s…still embarrassing.
LEO
It’s not as bad
as spending a month believing that your friends
are dating, following them at night out to
the middle of the cemetery, nearly
getting killed by the ghost of a dead bride,
and missing out on free persimmon pudding.
Shelly shoots a disapproving glance at Leo.
LEO (CONT’D)
OK…we didn’t see a ghost.
SHELLY (fortifying her assault with a platoon of disbelieving looks)
And you ate more
pudding than most people eat in their
entire lives.
HANNAH (looking to Dirk)
But still…I thought I could
handle it myself.
LEO
Was it your dad? I mean —
was it the afterversion of your dad?
Hannah shakes her head, but mostly to clear it. Dirk looks concerned.
DIRK (regretfully)
You don’t have to do it by yourself
anymore.
HANNAH
I don’t think you understand.
I already did it by myself.
Dirk, Shelly, and Leo are shocked and confused. Hannah pauses to make sure she has everyone’s attention before going on slowly.
HANNAH (CONT’D)
Last night,
just like I said I would, I downloaded
everything I needed, wrote a script,
and took the afterversion of my dad
off Hereafter.
SHELLY
Wait — what happened
this morning, then?
HANNAH
He came back.
Shelly, careful of the IV, takes Hannah’s hand.
HANNAH (CONT’D) (fighting the memory)
Someone at Hereafter must
have noticed that his profile was corrupted
and put it back together…and I think he knew
that it was me…that I was the one who killed him
this time. I don’t know how, but he took control
of the computer in my car. We just
kept speeding up…and somehow he was on
the radio, saying that it would be
alright this time, that I wouldn’t have to grow up…
Hannah’s knuckles are white, she grips Shelly’s hand so tightly, but Shelly only works up a reassuring smile.
Dirk looks away, towards a tree swaying outside the window.
SHELLY
We’re here. And we know now. It’s not your fault.
Hannah lets go of Shelly. Leo stands.
LEO
We’re here for you. I’m sorry I didn’t notice.
HANNAH (taking everyone in)
Thanks…I was so embarrassed…I guess I didn’t think
that you’d believe me. You can’t know how much
it means to me…
Dirk, fortifying himself, hesitantly steps forward.
DIRK
You’re right. We can’t understand
the suffering we put you through. I’m sorry.
We won’t let you down like that again.
Dirk puts his hand in his pocket to muffle the buzzing of his phone.
DIRK (CONT’D)
I think we can help. I can’t explain it now,
right here, but I can explain it when
you get out of the hospital. And we’ll be
doing everything we can until then.
Shelly reaches out to give Hannah’s hand another gentle squeeze.
SHELLY
And you just let us know if we can do
anything for you until you’re out.
Hannah glances at the database textbook in her lap, and something flashes in her eyes. Suddenly motivated, she turns to Shelly.
HANNAH
Can I have your phone? They won’t let me
get mine out of my car, and my mom says
she won’t have time to grab it until tomorrow.
SHELLY
Sure, but it’s an old one. You know me —
I haven’t upgraded in years. I don’t think
it even has a passcode…
Shelly pulls an old phone out of her purse — one of the first fat touchscreen things. Hannah takes it from her. She turns the phone around and plays with the screen, inspecting it.
HANNAH (off somewhere else with her thoughts, watching the wheels turn and following the process to its ultimate conclusion)
This will work.
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