The Feeling

The Feeling

(Opens on a young girl with blonde hair hiking up a mountain through the trees towards the top. When she reaches the top the light is dimming and it's almost sunset. She drops her backpack and walks to near the edge of a cliff. We never see what she's looking at but she smiles as if it was familiar. The girl with blonde hair is standing on top of a mountain, arms outstretched and eyes closed. She's wearing a hiking outfit with men's shorts, a t-shirt and sneakers. Her backpack is leaning against a tree about 10 to 15 feet away. Twisting hands in the wind and smiling. While she's narrating the sun is setting and she sits down to watch the sun set. The sun set is never shown.)

BLONDE: (narrating) It's impossible to describe….the feeling that is. The only thing I can think of that comes close is standing in rain for the first time. Or maybe seeing your newborn child's face, I wouldn't know about that of course. I'm only sixteen. But I do know a little bit about rain. Rain is different for each person depending on where you are in the world. In my hometown the best thing about rain is the smell. The most beautiful smell in the world. The first hint that the rain is on its way. It overcomes you and you find yourself unable to do anything but smile. You look up and find yourself surrounded by horrible menacing looking clouds. All black and blue and gray, almost sneering at you. As if to say "Tell me to go away, I dare you." And then a clap of thunder makes your heart jump and your body knows before your mind exactly what's going to happen next. Almost every time I've been in rain the first drop seems to land right in my eye. (chuckles) But then the real rain comes and you feel your entire body become dotted with these tiny drops of water. Cleansing you and washing away everything bad and leaving only the best. That's how I describe the feeling. Some people can accept the feeling and stand in the rain arms outstretched. Some people prefer to huddle under portals and umbrellas. And some people are even afraid of the rain and thunder and lightning. I am not one of those people.   

(Cut to two friends getting out of a car at a hiking path. One girl is the blonde and the other is a girl with long brunette hair who is clearly unhappy to be there.)

BRUNETTE: (gets out of the car and looks around unimpressed) Why'd you have to bring me here, you know I hate hiking.

BLONDE: (smiles) Trust me. You won't regret it.

(They get their backpacks out of the trunk of the car and start the hike. Cut to the two in the middle of the forest on a sharp incline. The blonde is far ahead of the brunette and not tired at all.)

BRUNETTE: (far behind, panting) How much farther?

BLONDE: (doesn't hear her) Sorry?

BRUNETTE: (sighs, frustrated, says louder) How much farther!

BLONDE: (calm and collected) About 3 miles. (looks back to see the brunette dragging along behind, laughs) Maybe you should work out more.

BRUNETTE: (laughs sarcastically, the blonde turns around and continues climbing) Deaf bitch.

(They continue climbing. Cut to the two of them sitting by a stream resting. The blonde is relaxed laying down on a rock staring at the sky, the brunette looks uncomfortable and fidgety. For the first time we notice that the brunette has a bandage around her wrist.)

BLONDE: (sits up and sees bandage) What happened to your wrist?

BRUNETTE: (embarrassed and tries to hide it) Shaving accident.

BLONDE: (unfazed) You shave your wrists? (brunette looks away embarrassed) Do you want to talk about it?

BRUNETTE: (bluntly) No.

BLONDE: (patient) Ok, whenever you want to talk (chuckles) You know where to find me.

BRUNETTE: (nods head sharply, ready to dismiss the subject, the blonde lays back down and the brunette studies the bandage)

(Cut to the two on their way again through thicker woods this time. It's a hot day and they're both sweating. The tape holding the bandage to the brunette's wrist starts to come undone. The bandage falls off and there are three somewhat deep cuts on her wrist, the brunette never notices that it has fallen off but the blonde sees the cuts and stays calm. She knows what's about to happen)

BRUNETTE: (keeping up much better now) How much farther now?

BLONDE: (happy and excited, its late afternoon and the sun is almost setting) Hey, you're keeping up. (smiles) We're just about 20 minutes away. Are you ready?

BRUNETTE: (confused) Ready for what?

BLONDE: (confidently, grinning ear to ear) Something you'll never forget.

BRUNETTE: (looks confused and wary, doesn't say anything, the blonde turns away and starts walking faster up the hill toward the orange light of the sunset and the brunette follows. For the first time she notices her bandage has fallen off and she looks around panicked for it. After realizing she must have lost it further back down the trail she jabs her hand in her jacket pocket to hide it and continues walking)

(The blonde waits until the brunette is looking elsewhere and drops her water bottle by a tree)

(The two come to the top of the hill and the blonde suddenly stops walking and the brunette almost runs into her.)

BRUNETTE: Whoa! What's the idea?

BLONDE: (says nothing and just smiles not even looking at the brunette but starting out at the landscape)

BRUNETTE: (turns to see what the blonde is smiling at)

(Cut to a beautiful landscape with the sun setting among the clouds turning them orange, purple and every color in between. The landscape is lush with a beautiful golden light falling on the leaves of the trees. The blonde sees this as familiar and you can tell she finds it the most beautiful sight in the world. The brunette walks forward with a look of shock. Her hand is still in her pocket)

BLONDE: (now behind the brunette smiling with a knowing look. You can tell she's known her for a long time, probably better than anyone, deliberately looks in backpack as a rouse) Oh whoops. I must've left my water bottle down the path a little bit. I'll be right back.

(The blonde leaves the brunette alone and goes back down the path. The brunette is standing alone staring out at the landscape. Slowly she takes her hands out of her pockets and cautiously looks behind her looking for the blonde. When she finds she is alone she slowly outstretches her arms. She turns her cut wrist towards the sun and the cool breeze as if healing it in her mind. Her eyes well up and she closes her eyes and smiles. The shot cuts between the brunette and the blonde jogging down to get the water bottle. While the blonde narrates)

BLONDE: (narrating) Some people can accept the feeling right away and let it flow through them…. like rain. Some people spend their entire lives hiding from it… huddling under their umbrellas….afraid. And some people, the most rare kind, are the kind who never know the feeling exists….unless someone could show them. Some of these people go their entire lives without witnessing it. I would never wish that on anyone. Experiencing the feeling early in life will change the rest of it. Experiencing it in the middle will make you realize you can still accomplish everything you wanted to….that it's never too late to get it all back. And experiencing it towards the end of life…..will make you realize it was all worthwhile. I experienced it early in life….so did she. Some can accept the feeling right away. I felt it right away… (the blonde gets back to the top and find the brunette arms outstretched smiling, she leans against a tree and crosses her arms, satisfied and smiles proudly and the most broad. The final shot is of the brunette smiling with her eyes closed and the blonde is seen against the tree over the brunettes shoulder in the background smiling even broader) As for her? It took some time.