SOS

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EXT. BUSY STREET - DAY

Several people, from young to old, men and women, walk frantically through the street holding bags, suitcases, purses. Some of them walk in groups, talking lively and loudly. Others hold their cell-phone and speak at full volume. The rest of the people go in and out of the shops surrounding the street looking straight ahead and stepping rhythmically to the sound of the busy street, as if they knew where they were going.

Among a group of People, a small opening begins to form. In between bumps and as if they were being shoved around, a small window of air opens amid the compact mass of People.

KAT, maybe in her twenties, thirties, petit, squirms and is able to pierce through the crowd.

Holding a huge box, filled with papers, pens, pencils, office stuff, bigger than she is and hindering her vision, her eyes all red, her face with a pinkish hue, Kat collides with a LARGE WOMEN, on her forties, bags on both hands. The Large Women is roughly projected forward and looks back, to Kat that just keeps walking.

KAT

(glancing back)

Sorry! Sorry!

The Large Women nods and resumes her walking, far away from Kat.

Kat snivels. Concentrates on her walking. Snivels again. Kat shoves a CELL-PHONE LADY, about fifty, phone pressed tightly against her shoulder with her neck bent, as if the phone was already part of her body. The impact of the thrust knocks the cell-phone to the ground. Kat stops for a few seconds.

KAT

(sniveling)

Sorry! Sorry!

CELL-PHONE LADY

(picking up her phone and resuming her conversation)

Sorry doesn't exactly cut it young lady.

Kat snivels and starts walking again. Trying to hold the box against her shin and balancing it on her left arm, Kat stretches to reach her purse with her right hand. She sniffles. Kat stops. She is able to get her hand into her purse and begins to stir its content. Kat snivels.

Kat's hand finally gets out of her purse triumphantly holding a tissue. Assuredly she resumes her walk. Walking firmly, each step as an attack on the ground, Kat bumps into JOHN's back, maybe twenty-eight, very thin, tall, big wide eyes. Quickly, with the tissue still in her hand, she grabs the box with her two hands, before it falls to the ground. John, as he is thrown forward, drops the bag he was carrying on his shoulder. He picks it up.

KAT

(sniffing)

Sorry!

Without a whiff of a reaction, John puts his bag back on his shoulder and walks away as if Kat wasn't even there and her voice was nothing but maybe a gentle breeze.

Kat stares at John's back. Sniveling, with her tissue in her hand holding the box, she frowns. Kat follows John with a rapid pace. As she catches up with him, she shovels her box against John's back. He keeps walking. She does it again. He still keeps walking. Kat kicks John on his leg. John looks back, a surprised look on his face.

KAT

(sniffing and talking breathlessly and in a squeaky voice)

I said I was sorry, didn't I? What? You think I did it on purpose? Do you think my sole purpose in life is to shovel you around? You think I got out today and thought to myself "What should I do today? Oh yeah, I know! I'll just bump into that guy with the girlish purse and with a silver spoon up his ass!". I'm sooo sorry to even have touched you mister… mister… man!

John looks at Kat, his big eyes even bigger, he shakes his head left and right saying no.

KAT

The very least you could have done was to look back. To acknowledge I exist. But no… You're way too important for that. Have you any idea how my day was so far? It's ten in the morning and do you even know? No… You don't even care, do you? So go on, go on with your life and your little bag. I'm so sorry I didn't see you there because of this stupid box… what's your excuse for not seeing me you moron? Go… Just go and leave me alone, why don't you? You imbecile!

John, frozen staring at Kat, starts waving his arms. He tries to communicate with big gestures, hand signals pointing at Kat and at himself, beating his chest and waving his head "no". He keeps moving his arms and hands in a sign language type of thing, but a very exuberant and weird one.

Kat opens her eyes wide and starts shaking her head.

KAT

I'm so sorry! I didn't know you were… well… you know… I'm so sorry.

John continues to gesture almost frantically trying to communicate.

KAT

(looking at John)

I'm really sorry but I have no idea what so ever of what you are saying. Just forget it, really! I'm really sorry, it was all me… I'm sorry!

John gestures but now in a more rhythmic way pointing to himself and to Kat, shaking his head and waving his hands.

KAT

(shakes her head)

I'm sorry but I really don't understand. I don't speak sign language.

John shakes his head negatively. He gets his bag and pulls a pen out of it. On the side of the box that is facing him, he writes something. He takes his time. Kat looks at him in utter silence.

John puts his pen back in his bag, waves Kat goodbye, turns around and leaves.

Kat tries to wave goodbye to John but the best she can do is to wave her tissue a little bit. Very slowly, Kat turns the box around and around till the side on which John wrote is facing her.

On the box, in big cap letters John wrote "I too don't speak sign language."

Kat looks ahead, her jaw dropped. John disappeared.