Across Time

[eternalsnow08]

this is not a fanfic. this one i made on my own. i am still writing, typing it, and having it edited by a friend. it will not be for the writing contest since this one is also in script form. the first two scenes might seem a little confusing but it will get clearer with each part that i add. i hope you like the first part. enjoy!

Intro
(It is four years ago, July 2006. Fourteen-year-old Ben Hall is walking down the hall of his house when he hears his mother, Paula, and his Aunt Kelly, his mother’s sister, in the living room. He stops in the hall to listen to them.)

AUNT KELLY: (serious) Hey, Paula, I just found something out and it’s not. . . good. It’s about Sylvia.
PAULA: (questioning) Who? Our sister?
AUNT KELLY: (serious) Yeah. I just got a call from the police. It seems that Sylvia’s daughter, Ann, just passed away, but Ann has a daughter around Ben’s age. Also, she and her father are moving to Clay.
PAULA: What is her name?
AUNT KELLY: Elizabeth.
PAULA: Does the father know anything about his wife’s family?
AUNT KELLY: No. He was never told anything, but the police know.
PAULA: (stunned) How would they know?
AUNT KELLY: Records. I asked them not to tell them because of what happened when we were kids. Elizabeth and her father will never find out about us.
(Ben decides that he has heard enough. He turns and walks back upstairs. On the way up, he thinks to himself.)

BEN: (thinking) What do they mean “our sister, Sylvia”? I only have one aunt. Also, what about the thing that happened to Mom and Aunt Kelly when they were kids? This is all so strange but if I ask them, they’ll know that I was eavesdropping. I guess that I’ll have to find out on my own.
(Ben reaches the top of the stairs and goes into his room.)

Act 1 Scene 1
(It is now Tuesday, September 4, 2010, the first day of school. Ben Hall is now a senior and will be graduating in the spring. Ben is walking through the halls of the school to his first class, Trig. He reaches the room and walks in. Almost all the students are already there. Most are in circles, talking to their friends. The bell rings right after he enters. The teacher, Mr. Sullivan, stands up from his desk and walks slowly to the front of the room.)

MR. SULLIVAN: (dryly) Welcome to another school year. For this school year, I will be your Trigonometry teacher. . .
(Some seniors saunter through the door. They are talking excitedly when they see the teacher and stop. The teacher throws an annoyed glare at them. Their smiles disappear quickly. )

TEACHER: (exasperatedly) Great way to start off the year. First day of school and you’re already late to school. (usual dry tone) Now, as I was saying, I will be your Trigonometry teacher, Mr. Sullivan. I will call out your name and tell you where to sit.
(Mr. Sullivan starts taking roll call. Ben is placed in the second row, first seat. After he sits down, a girl walks over and sits in the seat to the right of him. She stares off in space, not paying attention to the others. Ben reaches over and taps her on the shoulder. The girl jumps, startled, and turns around. )

BEN: (cheerful) Welcome to Clay High. Judging by the way you’re acting, you seem to be new. See, I can tell these things.
(Ben taps forehead with finger; stops talking suddenly and starts to chuckle to himself. Noticing that the girl looks hurt, Ben stops.)

BEN: (large smile) Sorry. I was laughing at myself. I totally forgot to introduce myself again. Ben Hall, at your service.
(The girl starts to laugh quietly. Ben’s smile gets bigger.)

BEN: That’s better. You shouldn’t frown. What’s your name?
(The girl stops laughing and looks down at her hands on her desk. She looks up after a second, with some confidence.)

ELIZABETH: (nervous and a little shy) Elizabeth Young.
BEN: (grinning) Nice to meet you, Elizabeth. Where are you from?
ELIZABETH: (nervous, low tone) I moved here four years ago. My dad has been homeschooling me all this time.
BEN: (a small smile) No wonder.
(Mr. Sullivan finally finishes giving out the seats. Ben and Elizabeth look at Mr. Sullivan.)

MR. SULLIVAN: (monotonously) Now, I know that you don’t want to listen to this but I have to read you the rules.
(Mr. Sullivan continues to drone on and on. Ben just blocks it out since he’s had Mr. Sullivan for math for the last three years. Ben sighs.)

BEN: (thinking; impatient) Why do I’ve to listen to this? I have heard it three times already.
(Ben glances at Elizabeth. She is watching Mr. Sullivan, paying very close attention to what he says.)

BEN: (thinking) I hope she does okay in the rest of her classes.
(Forty minutes later, the bell rings for the end of class. Ben gets up with everyone else in the class and heads out, trying not to knock into the others rushing out of the door. Once in the hall, he looks briefly behind him and sees Elizabeth walking in the other direction. He turns back around and heads off to his next class.)

[samurai89]

I thought stories were not allowed to be written in scrips?

[eternalsnow08]

i talked to either MA or whitney-chan and they said that i could do script as long as it wasn't for the contest. even if my stories were in paragraph form, they would be too long for the contest. anyway, i have two other stories up in script form and they are fanfics. one is for Magic Knight Rayearth and the other is for Inuyasha. the first one is much longer than the one for Inuyasha.

edit: i should have the next part up tomorrow or Saturday.

[eternalsnow08]

this is the next scene. enjoy!

Act 1 Scene 2
(All the kids are streaming out of the high school. Most are in groups talking about doing things later that night. Some are just going off by themselves. Ben is with a couple of his friends, Jake and Chrissy Rivera, twins. They are walking towards the doors of the school building with Ben stuck between Jake and Chrissy.)

JAKE: (looking at Ben) Do you have anything planned for tonight?
BEN: (sighs) I’ve got to do my homework and afterwards, my mom is making me clean the living room.
CHRISSY: Then I guess you aren’t allowed out tonight.
BEN: (sad) No. My mom would know if I tried to leave. She seems to have eyes in the back of her head so she’ll know if I try to leave.
JAKE: (puts a hand on Ben’s shoulder) That’s okay. Maybe if you get it done tonight, you can come out tomorrow.
BEN: (gives Jake a smile) Hopefully that will happen.
(All three of them finally reach the doors. They separate from each other to walk out the doors. Once outside, they get back together and start walking down the stairs. Many students are standing on the stairs, leaning on the walls taking to their friends. Their parents, going with their friends, or walking home by themselves or with friends, are picking some up. Ben looks around and notices Elizabeth. She is looking around, clueless, and walking down the stairs. Ben looks back at Jake.)

BEN: (in a hurry) I’m sorry but I got to go. I’ll call you later tonight on tomorrow night.
JAKE: All right. See you tomorrow.
CHRISSY: (cheerfully) Later!
(Jake and Chrissy walk down the rest of the stairs and walk to the left, heading home. Ben walks down the stairs and over to Elizabeth. He taps her on the shoulder. Elizabeth jumps, once again startled, and looks to her left. She sees Ben and gives a little smile. Ben has a smile on his face also.)

BEN: (grinning jokingly) Are you always this jumpy?
ELIZABETH: (catches the joke) No. It only happens when I’m paying to much attention to something important.
BEN: (jokingly) And is looking around important?
ELIZABETH: I was just looking to see if my dad had come to get me.
BEN: I am guessing that he hasn’t shown up yet since you keep looking around.
ELIZABETH: (sadly) Yeah. I guess I’ll walk home by myself then.
BEN: (suggestive) Well, I could walk you home. My mom doesn’t expect me to be home for about 30 minutes.
ELIZABETH: (moving her hands back and forth) That’s okay. I can get home by myself.
BEN: (insisting) That’s not right. You shouldn’t walk by yourself if you are not sure. Just let me walk you home today and I promise I won’t do it again unless you ask.
ELIZABETH: (finally gives up) All right, you can walk me home. I guess it won’t be that bad. Just follow me.
(Elizabeth walks down the rest of the stairs and heads to the right. Ben follows after her, walking beside her. They walk without talking for a while.)

BEN: (thinking) I guess I might get home a little later since my house is in the opposite direction of hers’. Oh well, I don’t care. I would get in trouble even if I showed up early thanks to arguing with Mom this morning and walking out on her.
ELIZABETH: (thinking) Why would he want to walk me home? Is it because it’s out of kindness or is it just some kind of prank?
(Ben looks at Elizabeth.)

BEN: (unsure of what to say) Well, um, you said that your father taught you. What about your mother?
(Elizabeth looks like she is about to cry. Ben stops and puts his hand on her shoulder, stopping her, once he sees tears forming at her eyes.)

BEN: (sadly) I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.
(Elizabeth wipes away her tears and looks at Ben.)

ELIZABETH: (a little sad) That’s okay. You didn’t do anything. It’s just that my mom passed away four years ago. That’s why my dad and I moved here.
BEN: (sad) I’m so sorry. I had no idea. Is there anything I can do to help?
ELIZABETH: No, there isn’t anything you can do. I will have to deal with it on my own.
BEN: Okay. Then let’s talk about something else.
(Ben starts to walk once again with Elizabeth trailing beside him. After a minute, Ben looks at Elizabeth once again.)

BEN: (normal) It’s okay if you don’t want to answer but do you have any hobbies?
(Elizabeth looks back at Ben. She seems to be normal and somewhat more open than she was at school.)

ELIZABETH: (a hint of cheerfulness) I have a few. I’ve just figured out in the past few years that I love to read.
BEN: (cheerful) I’ve never had a big interest in reading but I’ve to in order to pass school.
(Elizabeth starts to laugh lightly. Ben looks stunned.)

BEN: (confused) Why are you laughing?
ELIZABETH: (smiling) You won’t understand. Sorry if I hurt your feelings.
BEN: (smiling) It’s fine. I’m just glad that you’re cheerful now. (thinking) I didn’t think that she was so fund to hang out with. She was so down and shy at school that I was afraid that she wouldn’t open up.
ELIZABETH: (thinking) I can’t believe I can talk normally to Ben. I’ve never been able to do that before.
(Elizabeth stops walking once again. Ben also stops.)

BEN: (questioning) Why did you stop?
ELIZABETH: ‘Cause I live right here.
(She points to a house to her right. It’s a brick house and has two-stories with three windows on the first story in the front and two on the second story in the front. The upper part of the house is painted a creamy white color with the lower half being made of red bricks. Stairs that are leading up to the porch have a couple potted plants on them. The porch has a chair swing with enough room for two people at a time. The door is light brown color with a sign saying, “Welcome”. Along the sidewalk leading to the stairs, there is a bed of flowers along each side. There is also a birdbath off to the right corner of the house. Ben sees all this and looks back at Elizabeth.)

BEN: (astonished) Wow! Your house is really beautiful. It’s way better than mine.
ELIZABETH: (smiles, blushes a little) Thanks. My dad re-did the yard and house when we moved in.
BEN: (grinning) Then tell him that he did a great job for me.
ELIZABETH: (smiling) I will. I guess I’ll see you tomorrow then.
BEN: (cheerful) Yep! Bye!
(Ben heads the way they came from. Elizabeth turns and walks up the sidewalk and stairs. She opens the door and sees her dad, Lee Young, standing right there.)

LEE: (questioning) Who was that boy that you were just with?
ELIZABETH: (mad) Why? You don’t need to know about all my friends.
LEE: (impatient) Just tell who he is.
ELIZABETH: (upset) Fine. He is Ben Hall. He is in my Trigonometry class.
(Elizabeth’s father looks scared for a second before his face shows that he is mad. Elizabeth notices but doesn’t say anything.)

LEE: (upset) Stay away from that boy! I forbid you to ever talk to him again!
ELIZABETH: (mad, yelling) What!! You can’t tell me who to talk to! That is my decision! Plus, there is nothing wrong with him!
LEE: (mad, yelling) His family’s trouble! Now go to your room!
ELIZABETH: (angry, yelling) What! Why!
LEE: (angry, yelling) 'Cause you argued with me! This is your punishment. Now, upstairs young lady!
(Elizabeth, who is very mad, walks up the stairs. She heads towards her room. She walks in her room and sits down on her bed, trying to calm down.)

[sena-kun21]

Finally read this, Snow. I like it. Are you going to finish it sometime soon? Sure would like to know what happened between Ben and Elizabeth. :)

[eternalsnow08]

thanks sena but i have no idea. i am so busy at the moment. i should be able to get more in a month.

[Jammerjoint]

Interesting...and good so far. It could use a bit more thought, but it's good for a play. And I thought the father didn't know about Ben's family? Or is this something else? Thing is, I don't think a father would say "that family is trouble", because don't you think it sounds so...classic fiction scenario? Anyway, good job, keep writing.

[eternalsnow08]

Interesting...and good so far. It could use a bit more thought, but it's good for a play. And I thought the father didn't know about Ben's family? Or is this something else? Thing is, I don't think a father would say "that family is trouble", because don't you think it sounds so...classic fiction scenario? Anyway, good job, keep writing.

thanks. actually since you did bring up the father, i might as well tell you about him. he does know about the family but Elizabeth doesn't know and he doesn't know the whole story himself. this is planned for later on in the story.

[Jammerjoint]

Alright, cool. But also, if you could find the time, do you mind reading my poetry?

[eternalsnow08]

will do, jammerjoint. here is the next scene for now.

Act 1 Scene 3
(Elizabeth is standing in her room, tapping her foot. Her room is about 15 by 15 by 15 ft. with about 100 ribbons, 2 inches in length, hanging from the ceiling. About half of the ribbons are multi-colored and the other half is white. There is a window, about 5 ft tall and 2 ft. wide, right across from the door. Light blue curtains go down to the windowsill. A queen-sized bed is in the corner left of the window. It has two large fluffy pillows on the end against the wall. The bed sheet is a bluish color along with the pillows. Right across from the end of the bed, there is a chest with three huge drawers. A mirror is set on top of it. Also, hair products and some makeup is on the top. A hardwood desk is against the wall right of the window. A wicker chair is at an angle at the desk. There are school papers everywhere on the desk. A laptop is closed and underneath all the papers. There is a stand right next to the desk, on the left in the corner. A black cell phone sits on the stand. On the other side of the desk, there is a wastebasket, half full of crumbled up pieces of paper. Elizabeth’s cell begins to ring. Elizabeth walks over and picks it up, answering the cell.)

ELIZABETH: (on phone/normal) Hello? . . . Oh, yeah Anne . . . (hint of anger) I’m in my room . . . My dad said I couldn’t talk to Ben and when I asked why, he sent me to my room . . . Yeah, it is so stupid.
(There is a knock on her door.)

LEE: (other side of door/a little muffled) I have dinner ready. Come down.
ELIZABETH: (to dad/normal) I will. (to Anne) I’ve got to go. My dad just came up to get me for dinner . . . All right . . . See you tomorrow at school . . . Bye.
(Elizabeth ends the call. She puts the cell on vibrate and sets it down on the stand. She walks downstairs to the dining room. There is a plain wooden table with four chairs matching the table. There is a potted flower in the middle of the table. Once window is on the side facing the street out in front. A hanging light comes about a foot down from the ceiling in the middle of the room. Her dad is in the chair next to the window. Elizabeth sits down in the chair across from her dad. Elizabeth and her dad eat the food on their plate. Once they are done, Elizabeth and her dad start to clean up. They take their dishes into the kitchen. A window is on the left outside wall. The sink is right beneath it. A marble counter goes around the kitchen, stopping at the fridge and freezer on the other side. Cabinets are above the counter, holding the dishes. The cabinet beneath the counter holds most of the dry foods. Elizabeth grabs the dish soap bottle from the cabinet directly underneath the sink. She fills up the left part of the sink with hot, soupy water and the right side with rinse water. She begins to wash the dishes while her dad puts them where they belong.)

ELIZABETH: (washing dishes/normal) Dad, is there any other reason you can give me for not being allowed to talk to Ben?
LEE: (drying/putting away dishes/normal but stern) No. Now don’t ask me again or you’ll be grounded.
(Elizabeth decides to stay quiet. She finishes washing the dishes. She drains the sinks and grabs a rag. She soaks the rag in the water and wipes off the table. She rinses out the rag and sets it on the side of the sink to dry. Her dad walks up to his room to work. Elizabeth walks back upstairs to her room and works on organizing all the school papers she had gotten today on her desk.)