THE DEPENDENT CLAUSE

SUPERTITLE: 8 months earlier

FADE IN

17 EXT. VELVET'S HOUSE - DAY

ESTABLISHING SHOT

Velvet's house is a neat, two story home with a white picket fence.

JOHN (V/O): You've done what?!

18 INT. VELVET'S LOUNGE ROOM - DAY

In the fancy lounge room sites Velvet, wearing a skirt and blouse, in a chair looking bored. JOHN, Velvet's father, a distinguished greying man in his fifties, leans over her in rage. Angela sits timidly across the room.

VELVET: I dropped out.

JOHN: What on Earth possessed you to do such an immature thing?

VELVET: English Literature bores me, Dad. So I quit. There was no point staying if I didn't like it. Look on the bright side - you don't have to pay university fees anymore.

John becomes red in the face and slaps the mantle with his hand. He then looks at Angela.

JOHN: What do you think?

Angela looks surprised that she's been spoken to.

ANGELA: Well, if she didn't like her study -

John turns back to face Velvet.

JOHN: Why didn't you come to us before leaving, you stupid girl?

Velvet lazily runs her hand through her hair.

VELVET: May I remind you -

JOHN: No -

VELVET: That I wanted to study music, and you wouldn't let me? That's still what I want to do.

JOHN: You won't get anywhere studying music!

Velvet shrugs. John glares at Angela.

Well, she certainly didn't inherit my brains.

VELVET: Don't blame her.

John turns back to Velvet.

19 CLOSE UP INT. VELVET'S LOUNGE ROOM - JOHN'S FACE - DAY

JOHN: You are twenty-six years old. You've spent seven years here doing nothing. After six months of university, you're back and you're probably going to stay. You'll be uneducated. You'll be a spinster.

20 CLOSE UP INT. VELVET'S LOUNGE ROOM - VELVET'S FACE - DAY

VELVET: There's nothing wrong with being a spinster these days.

21 EXT/INT. HALLWAY - DAY

John stands in the open front doorway, still angry.

JOHN: And don't return until you're ready to go back to university!

The front door slams shut in front of him.

22 EXT. VELVET'S HOUSE - DAY

On the porch in front of the shut front door stands Velvet, holding a suitcase. She turns around and walks down the front path.

23 CONT EXT. TAXI - DAY

A taxi sits at the curb in front of the house. Velvet opens the back door, throws her suitcase in, climbs in and shuts the door. The taxi pulls away.

24 EXT/INT. TAXI - DAY

Velvet stares out the window apphensively. Houses reflect on the window.

SUPERTITLE: Credits appear in the bottom right hand corner.

Velvet leans back in her seat, staring straight ahead.

25 EXT. STREET - NIGHT

Velvet walks quickly and carefully down a dark street in London, dragging her suitcase along. The taxi drives past her, the tail-lights disappearing into the darkness. PROSTITUTES stand under street lamps, DRUNKEN MEN lie in the street. Velvet looks down at a paper in her hand.

26 EXT. PAPER - NIGHT

The paper reads 'Princess Street Hotel' with an address. A drop of water falls on the paper, smearing the word 'Princess'.

27 EXT. STREET - NIGHT

Water sprinkles on Velvet's head. She puts her hand over her head and looks up to see water dripping from a rain pipe overhead.

PETE (V/O): Are you okay?

PETE, a neat-looking man in his twenties, steps out of the shadows towards Velvet. He offers her a toothy smile. Velvet ignorantly walks towards him.

VELVET: You wouldn't happen to know where the Princess Street Hotel is, do you?

Pete points down the street.

PETE: Sure. Up two blocks, then turn right. You'll see it.

VELVET: Oh. Well, thanks.

Velvet turns to walk away, but Pete gestures towards her suitcase.

PETE: You on holiday?

VELVET: Something like that.

PETE: Not many holiday around this part of the city.

VELVET: Why?

Pete gestures around the street.

PETE: You know. Druggies, prostitutes, drunks, rapists. You're a brave girl; not many girls would walk around here on their own at this time of night. You're pretty - it'll be a pity if you got hurt because of that.

Pete smiles again while Velvet regards him warily.

VELVET: Thanks for the advice.

Pete takes a step towards her and Velvet takes a step back.

PETE: Here's an idea - why don't you let me walk you to the hotel?

VELVET: Uh. thanks, but no thanks. I'll be fine.

Pete grabs her wrist.

PETE: I insist.

VELVET: Alright. if you insist.

Pete drags Velvet quickly towards an alleyway.

I thought you said it's up the street.

PETE: It is. This is just a quicker way of getting there.

Pete drags Velvet into the alleyway.

28 CONT EXT. ALLEYWAY - NIGHT

Inside the alleyway, Pete quickly pushes Velvet up against the wall with his weight. Velvet struggles against him but fails. Her suitcase falls from her hand.

VELVET: What do you think you're doing?! Help!

Pete smiles coldly at her.

PETE: I warned you about the rapists, pretty one.

Pete pushes his hand up Velvet's skirt. She shudders.

VELVET: Oh, God.

PETE: No, no, you have it all wrong. You're supposed to groan, 'Oh, Pete.'

Velvet's not listening to him.

VELVET: Help!

Pete clamps a hand over Velvet's mouth. She glares at him defiantly.

PETE: Would you shut the fuck up already?

He moves his hand down her throat then suddenly rips open the top of her blouse, sending the buttons flying. Velvet whimpers.

I'll cut you a deal. You pay me and I'll be gentle.

VELVET: I won't pay you anything!

Pete smiles, shrugs and grasps Velvet around the neck.

PETE: Your choice, pretty one. You girls become more gullible every -

SFX: Gunshot

Velvet's eyes open wide at the sound. Pete suddenly pulls away, clutching his forearm in agony.

Shit!

Pete pulls his arm away to reveal blood pouring down his arm from the bullet wound. Velvet's knees give in and she slides to the ground.

MARC (V/O): Fucking hell! Joey!

Joey and Marc run down the alleyway to Pete and Velvet. Joey's holding a smoke gun, aimed at Pete, who holds his arm tightly again.

JOEY: Piss off. Leave the girl alone or you'll find another bullet in a more fragile place than your arm.

Pete takes several shaky steps backwards, glaring all the while.

PETE: You'll pay!

JOEY: I'm sure I will.

Pete turns and runs off. Joey and Marc look down at Velvet, who's distressed. She's holding the top of her blouse together to regain some dignity and is searching for the missing buttons.

MARC: Are you alright?

Velvet looks up at them.

VELVET: I can't find my buttons.

MARC: We're not perverts so the buttons are the least of your problems right now.

Marc crouches down in front of her.

Do you need any help?

Velvet looks at him untrustingly. Marc offers her his hand.

I know you have no reason to trust us, but we're not all bad.

JOEY: We just saved your ass.

MARC: Shut up, Joey.

Marc gives Velvet a warm, sympathetic smile.

Look, I'm Marc and this is my brother, Joey. Who are you?

Velvet takes Marc's hand and pulls herself up. Joey gets her suitcase and hands it to her. Velvet takes it and stares at him. Joey looks uncomfortable under her gaze and lights a cigarette, looking away. Marc notices this but dismisses it as she looks at him again.

VELVET: I'm Velvet.

MARC: You're new around here, aren't you?

JOEY: What's your story?

Marc glares at him.

MARC: You can't be sensitive, can you?

VELVET: It's okay. My father kicked me out for dropping out of university. I just wound up here.

MARC: Is that all? Hell, I dropped out of university. Waste of time.

Joey looks at him but doesn't say anything.

VELVET: What do you do now, then?

Both Joey and Velvet stare at Marc.

JOEY: Yeah, Marc, what do you do now, then?

MARC: I. run part of a business.

Joey snorts. Velvet looks at him in interest, while Marc ignores him.

So, you need any help getting somewhere?

VELVET: I was heading to the Princess Street Hotel for the night and figure out what to do in the morning, before I got sidetracked. I guess I'll go there.

Joey and Marc glance at each other.

What?

JOEY: Not a wise move, going there. If you thought what's happened already tonight was pretty bad, you wouldn't survive until morning there.

MARC: He makes it sound worse than it really is, but yeah, you ought not to go there. look, I have a room in the hostel. You can come spend the night there.

JOEY: There's hardly any room for you there, let alone her.

MARC: She going to stay in your apartment, then?

Joey shakes his head.

Right.

Velvet looks at Marc in confusion.

VELVET: You run part of a business, yet you live in a hostel?

MARC: It's not very profitable business.

Marc takes Velvet's suitcase.

Come on, we'll help you figure out what you'll do in the morning, won't we, Joey?

Joey's walked off down the alleyway. He gives a wave of his hand as he disappears.

That's a yes, coming from him.

Marc catches the look of dreaming on Velvet's face as she watches after Joey.

You coming?

Velvet looks at Marc.

VELVET: Oh, yes.

Velvet and Marc walk out of the alleyway and out onto the street.

FADE OUT