Sep 23, 2015 - grasshopper. EMILY. (serious). Don't do that. PETER. I'm sorry. (lightening the mood). I'm going to the A
SWEATER WEATHER by Kara Cutruzzula
09.23.15
EXT. NEW YORK STREET - NIGHT Heavy foot traffic in a busy section of midtown. EMILY (30) self-consciously dodges pedestrians while wearing heels. EMILY (hopping over a dog leash) So sorry! (walking through a couple holding hands) Oops, my bad. Distracted, she runs smack into a well-dressed man who grabs her shoulders and rights her. This is PETER (45). Oh. Hello.
PETER
EMILY Hi, stranger. PETER I see you haven’t gotten any better at looking up when you walk. EMILY (not amused) I see you’re as endearing as ever. PETER Been awhile. EMILY Not long enough, you think? PETER I do think, of you. Often. (beat) A drink then? INT. BAR - LATER Emily and Peter sit at a long, dark-paneled bar with two drinks. Emily raises her glass to take a sip. PETER Your hands. They’re white. EMILY (looking down) They do that now. When I’m cold.
2. PETER They look like they’re dipped in paint. Eggshell or dove or-(taking her hand in his) --ivory with a touch of salmon. EMILY Salmon is good. Salmon means the feeling is coming back. She takes back her hand. I’m sorry.
PETER
EMILY (ignoring this) It’s fall. Did you realize? Today’s the first day. PETER Al Roker did inform me of that this morning. EMILY Fall always reminds me of... (she trails off) Mostly dinners. And red wine. PETER Red wine. (laughs) You didn’t know any of them. EMILY I ordered what you ordered. PETER I thought it was charming. Infantile. Charming.
EMILY PETER
EMILY Cotton-brained. PETER (insistent) Charming.
3. EMILY Fine. Uncle. (remembering) You actually called yourself avuncular. Did I?
PETER
EMILY I didn’t even know what that meant. I looked it up at 4 a.m. After...
PETER
EMILY After you told me how much you wished I could stay but-(mimicking) So sorry dear, the maid is coming in the morning. Maid?
PETER
EMILY Did you even have one? PETER (sheepish, trying to play this off) Ah. Not since I was eight. EMILY Thought so. CUT TO: INT. BAR - LATER Emily and Peter are more comfortable now. She’s removed her sweater, his hair is raked through. More drinks. EMILY And so this is it. There’s something strangely comforting about being a bookend to your dating life. (a light laugh) How nice to be shelved.
4. PETER You are not a bookend. EMILY (downing her drink) I saw you on the street once. PETER Oh, really? I saw you much more than once. EMILY Figures. You always were the best at spotting people. Celebrities. Strangers with funny hats. PETER Which are you? EMILY Last I checked I’m not a Kardashian, and I left my beret at home. So, just a plain stranger? (beat) You never said hello. No.
PETER
EMILY I guess, what is there to say? PETER Nothing. Everything. Let’s sidestep the dramatics. EMILY But “much more than once” and you never stopped. PETER You were always the one rushing about. EMILY Glad to know my aura of extreme focus, procrastination, and badly controlled anxiety is still glowing brightly. PETER Don’t do that.
5. EMILY I was kidding. PETER Your sarcasm runs deep, young grasshopper. EMILY (serious) Don’t do that. PETER I’m sorry. (lightening the mood) I’m going to the Alps next week. To test drive a new Rolls Royce. EMILY You hate driving. PETER (beat) I do hate driving. Feels so--
EMILY
PETER Purposeless. EMILY Exactly. I know people love that wide open road but I always want a-PETER Destination. Always.
EMILY
A long, comfortable pause. Then Emily takes a breath. EMILY (CONT’D) Know what fall really makes me think of? Honestly? An unraveled sweater. A heap of yarn on the ground. (beat) I was something you knit, that you stitched together and pulled over to warm yourself. And when you were done, you unraveled me. (pause) That’s a pretty good line.
6. PETER You were always good with a line. EMILY Only when it’s the truth. They look at each other. CUT TO: INT. EMILY’S APARTMENT - LATER THAT NIGHT Emily opens the door into a small, well-appointed living room, a step above IKEA. Perfect boyfriend HENRY (30) halfhunk, half-hipster, watches TV on the couch. HENRY Hi, darlin’. How was your night? Emily looks at him. EMILY I saw a ghost. FADE TO BLACK.
