"Clocks"
by mermaid2bseeker

A/N: This is a script I wrote about Strange Days at Blake Holsey High. It was done for a Creative Writing assignment about character development. This takes place six years after "Strange Days Conclusions"

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1a. Blake Holsey High School: Monday. A large mansion-like building. Much like the old Blake Holsey High but still noticeably different. It is the beginning of the school day and as the bell rings, the camera zooms into the school, where students are rushing to their various classes. The camera continues its zoom up the stairs and into a girl's dorm room. The room is meant for two girls but there's only one there. She is Dani. Dani is still in bed completely covered by her sheets.

1b. Dani's Room: Assoon as the bell stops ringing, Dani flips the covers off her head.

Dani:(half moaning) "Not again." Looks at alarm, it shows 7:01 on a standard clock face. Dani rushes out of bed and, without changing out of her bed things, she grabs her school bag and exits her room. A second later, she rushes back in, slightly embarrassed, drops the bag and heads to her closet.

1c. Math classroom: All the students (minus one) are already in their seats. Professor Randall is teaching. Two kids in the back are talking to each other, Will and Amanda. The seat in front of Amanda is empty.

Will:"Where's Dani?"

Amanda: "I don't know. She wasn't at breakfast."

Will:"Can you blame her? They serve us rubber for food."

Amanda: "Tell me about it."

The door to the classroom opens and Dani comes in, looking slightly rumpled. Prof. Randall doesn't bother to turn from the problems he is writing.

Randall: (As Dani slides into her desk, in front of Amanda.) "You're late again."

Dani:"Sorry." (Gets her work out.)

Amanda" "Why are you always late?"

Dani:"I just don't hear my alarm clock."

1d. Dani's Room: Purple electricity flows over Dani's alarm clock. The yellow alarm hand splits in two. The first one moves to the 5 and the second hand moves to the 9.

1e. Math classroom: Randall is explaining some obscure Algebra II equation y k (+or -) b/a (x-h) Dani sis totally zoned out, head on desk. He finishes, then starts passing out papers.

Randall: (as he's passing out the homework) "Remember, the test is in two days. I expect you to know the material." (he places the paper on top of Dani's head.)

Dani:(looks at the paper) "Huh?"

Randall: "Unfortunately, 'huh' is not on the test."

A few students snigger, Dani gives them a dark look.

2a. Professor Zachary's science lab: In the lab, 17 students sit around lab tables, listening to his lecture. Among them are Dani, Amanda, Will, Chris and a Spanish girl Maya.

Zachary: (draws a clock on the board) "Every mammal on earth has an internal clock. This clock keeps us in sync with the earth's natural progression through the days and seasons. It's what makes more active in the day than in the night. Who here got a good night's sleep yesterday?"

No one raises their hands.

Zachary: "How many of you stayed up late last night?"

Everybody raises their hands.

Zachary: "Staying up late knocks our internal clocks out of whack. In some cases, it will cause our bodies to sleep in class in order to catch up. Just like Nathan and Bradley back there. (points to two jocks asleep on their tables.) Now I want all of you to write a 1000-word essay on the negative consequences of having an internal clock that's out of whack."

The bell rings and all the students rush out of the class.

2b. School hallway: The students are leaving science class.

Dani: (to Will) "Why does it matter if my internal clock is out of whack as long as I have an alarm clock nearby? This is so stupid."

Will:(laughs a little) "This from the person who has been quoted as saying 'I just don't hear my alarm clock'"

Dani:"So I'm late once and a while, it happens to everyone."

Will:"You passed 'once and a while' the first two weeks of school."

Dani gives him a dead stare.

2c. B.H.H. Rec. room: Groups of students are playing games, finishing homework, and watching a movie. Will and Maya are watching the movie, Amanda is finishing her homework, and Dani is playing foosball with Chris. A small crowd of kids is watching. The clock on the wall shows 8:45.

Dani:(violently turning the sticks) "You are so mine."

The ball almost goes into Chris' goal but he blocks it.

Chris:"You were saying."

Dani:"Lucky save."

Chris:"It wasn't luck, it was skill."

Dani:"It was so luck. (hits the ball into his goal) But that was pure skill."

Chris:(puts the ball back into play) "So that's what you spend your time on? Practicing foosball?"

Dani:"Yup, pretty much. (hits it into his goal again) And that's game."

She leaves the game and sits next to Amanda.

Dani:(to Amanda) "Can I see what you've got so far on that Math assignment?"

Amanda: "Why?"

Dani:"I'm not gonna copy it if that's what you think. I just want to study off it."

Amanda: "You mean you haven't done it yet. It's due tomorrow."

Dani:"Relax. I'll have plenty of time after curfew."

Amanda: "Curfew's at 9:30. When are you planning on going to bed?"

Dani:Duh "When I'm done with my homework."

Amanda: "Look, we still have, like, 45 minutes. Why don't you bring your homework down here and I'll help you with it."

Dani:"Cool."

2d. Dani's room: She walks in, closes the door, and walks to her desk. She looks through the pile of junk there.

Dani:"Where is it?"

She searches everywhere for her homework, under her bed, in the garbage can, in the closet. The homework is nowhere to be found.

Dani:"This is not funny anymore."

The alarm clock on her nightstand ticks the last seconds before 9 pm. At the exact moment it become 9, Dani collapses on the floor, asleep.

3a. Dani's room: Tuesday. It is now the next day. As soon as the alarm clock reaches 5 a.m. Dani wakes up.

Dani looks around, a bit confused, and gets up.

Dani:(rubbing her neck) "Ow." (looks at the clock) "No way. School doesn't starts for another two hours."

Dani climbs into her bed intent on getting two more hours of sleep. A second or so later she sits up in bed, frustrated that she can't get back to sleep.

Dani:(sarcastically) "Great! Now what am I supposed to do for the next two hours."

3b. B.H.H. dining hall: breakfast time: Nearly all of the tables have students eating and chatting with their friends. In the back, Amanda, Will, Chris and Maya sit together.

Maya:"I'm telling you I saw it!"

Will:"Janitors clean things, they don't vanish into thin air."

Maya:"This one did."

Chris: "What did this janitor look like?"

Maya:"Thick glasses, spiky hair, real creepy looking." (she is of course describing 'The Janitor'.)

During this conversation, Dani has made her way to their table, breakfast in hand. She looks more groomed than yesterday. Her hair is neat and done in a cool style.

Dani:(sits next to Maya) "Anyone I know?"

Chris: (to Will) "Pinch me, I'm dreaming."

Will:"No, I see her too."

Chris: "Then we're both dreaming."

Amanda: (to Dani) "What are you doing up so early?"

Dani:"I woke up at 5 and just couldn't get back to sleep."

Amanda: "You never came back to do your homework."

Dani:"That's okay. I was up so early, I had time to do it before I came down here. And I actually understood it, too."

4a. Dani's Room: Tuesday night: Dani is in bed, the alarm clock shows 9 and she falls asleep.

4b. Dani's Room: Wednesday morning: The clock shows 5 and she wakes up.

5a. Dani's Room: Wednesday night: Dani is in bed, the alarm clock shows 9 and she falls asleep.

5b. Dani's Room: Thursday morning: The clock shows 5 and she wakes up.

6a. Dani's Room: Thursday night: Dani is in bed, the alarm clock shows 9 and she falls asleep.

6b. Dani's Room: Friday morning: The clock shows 5 and she wakes up.

7a. B.H.H. Rec room: Chris, Maya, Will, and Amanda are watching a movie and eating popcorn. The clock shows 8:30. Dani walks in, and joins them.

Dani:"What are you guys watching?"

Chris: "It's called 'Along Came A Monkey.' And it's funny as heck."

Dani:"Cool." (grabs some popcorn)

When the movie ends, it's just past nine. Of course Dani is asleep.

Amanda: "Hey, Dani, wake up. The movie's over."

Despite all their efforts to wake Dani up, she stays asleep.

Maya:"Why isn't she waking up?"

Amanda: "I don't know."

Will: "Is she okay?"

Chris: "Yeah, she's just sleeping?"

Will:"Didn't Professor Z. talk about sleeping or something?"

Maya: "I'll get him."

7b. B.H.H. Rec room: Professor Zachary has arrived.

Zachary: "Has anything unusual happened to her in the past few days?"

Amanda: "Besides her waking up extremely early? No."

Zachary: "Did she talk about sleeping problems?"

Chris: "No."

Will: "She always said she never heard her alarm in the morning."

Maya: "Maybe she got a louder one."

Zachary: "Does anyone know where her room is?"

Amanda raises her hand.

Zachary: "I want you to get her alarm clock and meet us in my office."

Amanda: "Right."

7c. Zachary's office: Dani is sleeping on the couch, and the others are waiting for Amanda to arrive with the clock. Amanda opens the door and walks in, she hands the clock to Zachary. He looks it over, then looks at Dani asleep on the couch.

Zachary: "This clock has two alarm hands. Which would make sense in this case. One hand shows what time she falls asleep, and one hand shows when she wakes up. If I'm right..." (he turns the little knob on the back and the minute hand moves backward. He keeps turning it until the hour hand has gone back past the nine.)

Immediately, Dani wakes up.

Dani:"What happened? Why are you all looking at me like that?"

Zachary: "Somehow, this alarm clock has become your internal clock."

Dani:"What? Why?"

Will:"That would explain why she's been getting up early."

Amanda: "I knew there had to be a reason behind it. She wouldn't just get up that early by herself"

Dani:"Hey, I resent that."

Dani falls sideways onto the couch, asleep.

Maya:"What happened?"

Zachary: (looks at the clock, it shows 9) "The clock went past nine." (he turns the minute hand forward until the hour hand goes past the five.)

As soon as the hour hand hits 5, Dani wakes up again.

Chris: (takes clock from Zachary) "What if we just took the batteries out of this thing?" (flips it over)

Zachary: "Her internal clock would stop ticking."

Chris: "Okay, bad idea."

Will:"What about when the batteries run out?"

Everyone's silent; implying, possibly, death.

Dani:"You've gotta be kidding me.

Amanda: There has to be some way to fix this."

The door opens and The Janitor walks in, wheeling a giant garbage can.

Janitor: "As long as you learn something at the end of the day, everything will resolve themselves in the morning. Everything happens for a reason, remember that." As he says this he walks over to the desk, grabs the garbage can, takes the bag out, throws the bag into the bigger garbage can, takes a new bag out of his pocket, rebags the little can and sets it down by the desk. Then he leaves.

Maya:"That's him, that's the janitor I saw disappear."

Will:(to Maya) "You were right. He is creepy-looking."

Zachary: "He may be creepy, but he's usually right about these things."

Dani:"You're going to trust a janitor."

Zachary: "I've had experience with him before. Trust him. He always has a solution for problems at this school, no matter how cryptic he sounds."

Amanda: "So, Dani. What have you learned?"

Dani:"Seriously? I learned that I really love waking up early. I get to do so much. I can finish homework that I didn't finish the night before. I have time to experiment with my hair and makeup. I'm more alert in class; I actually understand the material for once. Most importantly, I get to spend time with my friends at breakfast. Even if we do figure out how to fix the clock, I'm still gonna go to bed early on school nights. I used to think that my lateness was funny, but it was really just sad."

Chris: "Did it work? Or do we have to continue with this after school special?"

Zachary takes the clock and turns the hands so that they go past nine once, then go past it again. Dani doesn't fall asleep either time.

Zachary: "Yeah, I think it did work."

Chris: "Great. So we can all go to bed now."

Will:"Yes, we can go to bed now." (rolls eyes)

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A/N:
Please review. This was my first ever script.

A/N:Please review. This was my first ever script.