[INT. FRED'S PENTHOUSE – EARLY MORNING]
Fred stands at the doorway, arms crossed. His trusted driver, LEN, waits behind him. Harriet, now dressed in her own clothes again, stands awkwardly near the elevator.
FRED
Len will take you home.
Harriet doesn't respond at first. Just gives Fred one last unreadable glance.
HARRIET
(stiffly)
Thanks… for the hospitality.
She steps into the elevator without another word. The doors slid shut..
Fred stayed motionless, staring at the space where she'd just been.
FRED
(quietly)
You're already in deeper than you think.
[INT. COLLEGE – ART STUDIO – LATE MORNING]
The art studio buzzed with quiet life—brushstrokes, whispers, the scent of linseed oil and acrylic paints. But amid the color and sound, Harriet sat in absolute stillness.
Her eyes were fixed on the massive white canvas before her. Untouched. Empty. Like her.
The brush lay idle in her lap.
She wasn't just facing creative block—she was caught in a void, one that stretched from her chest into every corner of her mind.
Students moved around her, laughing, painting, joking—but Harriet remained frozen. A storm simmered behind her calm face.
LYRA, vibrant as ever with wild curly hair and wide, expressive eyes, bounced into the studio and spotted her instantly.
LYRA
"Hey, Van Gogh's ghost! You're staring holes into that canvas."
Harriet didn't respond.
Lyra frowned and came closer, sitting on the edge of the table.
LYRA (softer)
"Harriet. You okay?"
Harriet blinked slowly. Her voice came out like a whisper dragged from deep water.
HARRIET
"Just… tired, I guess."
KYLE, Lyra's goofy but kind boyfriend, popped his head in through the open studio door.
KYLE
"Beef steak day at the canteen, let's go! I'm starving."
Lyra nudged Harriet gently.
LYRA
"You haven't eaten anything, right? Come on, girl. You'll pass out at this rate."
Harriet stood slowly, like her limbs were filled with sand, not bones.
She followed them mechanically, but her thoughts were far from this campus.
She hadn't painted in days.
She hadn't smiled for real in longer.
She hadn't stopped thinking about Rufei.
---
[INT. RUFEI'S APARTMENT – BROMELEY – SAME TIME]
The dim light from Rufei's desk lamp cast long shadows across his room. His phone lay in front of him, screen filled with unanswered calls.
To: Harriet (22 missed calls)
Text: "Please talk to me." – Not Delivered
Rufei sat on the edge of his bed, hunched forward, hands tangled in his hair.
RUFEI
"Why… are you avoiding me?"
His younger sister, Rumei, leaned in the doorway, arms crossed.
RUMEI
"Maybe she's just moved on, Ru."
He looked up sharply, wounded.
RUMEI (gentler)
"I didn't mean it like that. But you've been calling for days. You sound desperate."
RUFEI (quietly)
"Because I am."
His voice cracked.
Then, a desperate move—he called Betta.
---
[INT. BETTA'S CAFÉ – MIDDAY]
Betta stood behind the counter, wiping a glass when her phone buzzed.
CALL: RUFEI
She answered.
BETTA
"Rufei? Hey."
RUFEI (phone)
"Do you know why Harriet's avoiding me? Please, Betta. I'm going crazy here."
Betta hesitated, glancing at the kitchen door where Harriet had quietly cried just the other night.
BETTA
"She went to Bromeley last week. She wanted to surprise you."
RUFEI
"…What?"
BETTA
"She never said what happened, but she came back… broken. You didn't see her?"
There was silence on the line. Then:
RUFEI
"I never saw her."
A pause.
Then the sound of movement, rustling, a decision made.
RUFEI
"I'm coming. I need to see her."
---
[INT. AIRPLANE – NIGHT]
Rufei sat in the aisle seat, his fingers clenched tightly around the armrest. His heart beat faster with every mile between him and Harriet closing.
A few rows behind, almost invisible beneath a hood and sunglasses, the sly girl from the rooftop watched him with amusement.
She twirled a strand of hair around her finger.
SLY GIRL (whispers)
"So the game isn't over yet."
She smiled—sharply, cruelly.
---
[INT. BETTA'S CAFÉ – EVENING]
Harriet sat at her usual window seat, tea untouched, eyes blank as glass.
She stared out at the dusk. Rainclouds gathered again, making the streetlamps shimmer.
Betta placed a fresh cup of tea in front of her and sat down.
She reached across the table, gently taking Harriet's cold hand.
BETTA
"Harriet… please. Talk to me. You're breaking my heart, watching you like this."
Harriet looked up, her eyes glossy.
And then something inside her shattered.
She dropped the cup, leaned forward, and buried her face in Betta's shoulder, her body shaking with deep, uncontrollable sobs.
HARRIET (choked)
"What am I going to do, Betta…? I tried so hard to stay strong."
BETTA (holding her)
"Let it out. You're allowed to break."
HARRIET (crying harder)
"Am I that easy to play with? First Rufei… and now…"
Her voice dissolved into sobs.
Betta just held her, stroking her hair, whispering comfort.
Outside, the rain began to fall again.
And somewhere in the sky, a plane approached—bringing with it heartbreak, answers, and a reckoning.
---
To be continued...
***