PROOF FADE IN: INT. KARL'S ROOM - LIVING ROOM - NIGHT JERRY YOUNG (early 20's, good looking) dresses in front of the mirror. From the washroom, humming is heard. JERRY Karl! The humming is still heard. JERRY Karl! Jerry heads for the washroom and enters. INT. KARL'S ROOM - WASHROOM - NIGHT POV (Point-Of-View) - JERRY Comes into the washroom and sees KARL SHERLOCK (early 20's) using the dryer in front of the mirror. JERRY Let's go. BACK TO THE SCENE: Karl switches off the dryer and turns to Jerry. KARL Wait a minute. JERRY What the hell are you doing? KARL I'm doing my hair. JERRY We're late. Shake it up! KARL It's only ten o'clock. JERRY The big fish'll be clipped by everybody else. Hop to it. KARL Okay. I'll change my clothes. JERRY Again? KARL I don't like this shirt. JERRY It doesn't make a difference. Look at this. (points at the mirror.) See? It's how you are. Can you imagine this plug-ugly boy can look better in any clothes? Don't waste your time. Jerry leaves the washroom and heads for the door. Jerry looks into the mirror and poses with a smile. KARL Hmm, not so bad... But little room for improvement... JERRY Karl! KARL I'm coming. Karl leaves the washroom. EXT. STREET - NIGHT Jerry speaks to GIRLS and Karl stands beside them. The Girls wave their hands and leave. Jerry shouts to the girls, pointing at Karl. JERRY How about fifty bucks? Hey, we will give you this pet. You can kick him or do anything you like. The Girls leave. Jerry clicks his tongue. KARL One more push. We've missed the big fish. JERRY (irritated) What a night! You've gotta say something. Don't just stand there. KARL Yeah. But you're Goddamn good. JERRY You've gotta join us and make them feel relaxed. KARL Okay, I will. Next time. JERRY Shit! It's your idea. KARL No, I've just heard of this. It's you who suggested we try. JERRY And why not? KARL I don't believe this. Are there actually male prostitutes in this world? Girls are shy and... JERRY They are not. They are greedy for sex. As hungry as you and me. KARL Really? JERRY It's good training. Much better than your stupid acting school. That school doesn't teach you such exciting things, does it? KARL No. (beat) But they told me about male hustlers. JERRY Hmm, that's just talk. A GIRL walks up to them. Jerry notices and speaks to her. JERRY Hi. What's up? The Girl ignores Jerry and picks up speed. Jerry outpaces her and stands in front of her. JERRY Beautiful night, right? Are you alone on such a beautiful night? C'mon! You should find somebody to talk to or go out with. How about a cup of coffee with me? Jerry continues talking. Karl stops and keeps his eyes on Jerry and the Girl. The Girl just walks in silence, ignoring Jerry. Karl is disappointed and watches them walk away. Suddenly, the Girl stops and smiles at Jerry. Jerry puts his arm on her shoulder and they start walking together. KARL Oh, he did it! Jerry and Girl walk away, leaving Karl there. Karl dashes towards them and catches up with them. KARL Hi, Jerry. Where are you going? Jerry keeps walking and speaking to the Girl. KARL A coffee shop? Can I join you? JERRY Go on! We're going to a hotel. KARL (astonished) Hotel! Jerry gives Karl a scornful gaze and then smiles at the Girl. They walk away on the sidewalk together, leaving Karl there. Karl turns back and looks around the dark street. KARL Fucking bitch! Karl kicks a garbage can on the street. KARL Disgusting! This city is corrupt. Why not me? No fish any more! Go to hell! Suddenly, Karl hears a car crash behind him and turns to look. CLOSEUP - KARL Is surprised. KARL Oh my God. The tires screech and a truck drives away. Karl continues to look. BACK TO THE STAGE: Jerry and the Girl run up to Karl and pass him. JERRY Run away. The cops are coming. Karl turns back and runs away, following them. INT. COFFEE SHOP - NEXT DAY The coffee shop is crowded with patrons. Karl sits at the table, reading the paper. Jerry comes in and buys a cup of coffee. Jerry looks around and finds Karl sipping coffee. Jerry walks to his table and stands in front of Karl. Karl sips the coffee and keeps reading the newspaper. JERRY Hi, Karl. Karl keeps reading. Jerry takes the seat across the table. JERRY What's up? So, what happened last night? Did you make it? Karl keeps reading, ignoring Jerry. JERRY I got messed up. Oh, shit! Karl looks up at Jerry in amazement. Jerry smiles. JERRY Fucking streetwalker! KARL Did you go to a hotel after that? JERRY Yeah, kind of... But... (beat) Fuck! Ugly bitch! KARL Any trouble? JERRY I said one hundred for all night. She said one hundred twenty. We agreed, of course. But do you know what she said after that? (beat) Disgusting! KARL What did she say? Jerry doesn't answer Karl KARL So, what did she say? JERRY She charged me one hundred twenty. Fucking bitch. Karl is puzzled for a while and soon bursts into a laugh. KARL So, she is one of you, right? JERRY Bastard! Everybody is crazy here. KARL (laughing) So, nobody pays for a male hustler. JERRY I was just unlucky last night. That fucking accident gave me bad luck. KARL Oh, yeah. The truck left the scene. I wonder what happened to that guy he hit. JERRY I don't care about anybody else. Terrible night. It's gonna be better tonight. KARL Are you going there again? JERRY I'm not spoiled like you. I'd grab something for myself. You'd just stick to the school and wait until they give you something. KARL But the cops may be there. JERRY I'll find somewhere else, then. KARL We'd better go to the police. JERRY What for? KARL We saw the accident. JERRY Shit! Can you tell them what you were doing there? KARL No. JERRY Forget it, then. Jerry sips the coffee. EXT. STREET - MORNING The same street as the last time. Karl runs on the sidewalk, carrying his bag on his shoulder. The traffic light turns red and he waits there. He checks his wristwatch. KARL I'm late! He looks up and finds a sign nearby. He reads it in surprise. INSERT - SIGN Reads: "Around 12:00 pm, March 31, a pedestrian was run over and was injured at this intersection. We are looking for information on this accident." BACK TO SCENE: Karl seriously reads this sign. The traffic light turns green. The cars start driving. Karl still reads the sign. INT. CLASS ROOM - DAY The INSTRUCTOR speaks. While listening to him, the students pass the prints after taking one. INSTRUCTOR Who'll audition tomorrow? Some students raise their hands. Karl is among them. INSTRUCTOR Okay. Got the print? This is the draft you should read. You don't need to remember it all. But don't forget the empathy. Imagine how your characters feel. You'd send the message of characters to the audience. It's the checkpoint. Karl receives the print and looks at it with a smile. The smile disappears from his face while reading it. EXT. STREET - NIGHT Karl and Jerry emotionally discuss something. KARL But we saw it. JERRY Doesn't matter. Keep your mouth closed. Nobody was watching us. KARL But I feel guilty. JERRY Oh, smart apple. It's the worst to get cold feet. Let it slide. It is gonna ruin you. KARL I don't care what you say. I'll go there by myself if you don't want to go with me. JERRY (outraged) Quit it. He means nothing to us. KARL But I can't overlook the fact that he is in trouble. JERRY Will you tell the cops what I did with that girl? KARL Don't worry. The law doesn't prohibit male prostitution. JERRY I jumped her bones just for the hell of it. KARL What! JERRY Why not? That bitch told me to pay for the hotel. I knocked her block off and picked up sixty from her wallet. I won't go to pig heaven? KARL Sorry, but I've got to go. I won't tell them about you, I swear. JERRY The cops suck. They'll sandbag you into telling everything. They'll never trust you unless you come clean. KARL I'm still going. JERRY (yells out) Cut the crap! I will kill you. KARL I don't have a choice. INT. POLICE DEPARTMENT - ENTRANCE - DAY POV - KARL Walks down the staircases and heads for the door. The people there, including uniformed police, clear the way for him. POLICEMAN (V.O.) He is still sleeping. The doctor said he'd recover. But he has a money problem. He is an immigrant from China. The door automatically opens and Karl goes out. EXT. STREET - POLICE DEPARTMENT - DAY Karl walks along the sidewalk. Various people walk past. POLICEMAN (V.O.) After five years' stay, he's at last got his citizenship. Now he can legally work and send money to his family in his country as he wants. Poor guy. EXT. STREET - IN FRONT OF SCHOOL - DAY Many students smoke and talk in front of the building. POLICEMAN (V.O.) Thank you for your information. We can charge this company for his hospital bill. Karl enters the building. INT. SCHOOL - DAY Karl enters the building and walks down the hallway. POLICEMAN (V.O.) After he recovers, he cannot go back to work for a couple of months. But now he can demand compensation from the company responsible for the accident. This has been a big help for him. You've saved him. Thanks again. We really appreciate your courage. Karl opens the door and enters. INT. SCHOOL - ROOM - DAY The students are waiting for their auditions. They are silently surprised as they look at Karl. INT. COFFEE SHOP - DAY BACK TO THE SCENE: There are some customers in the shop. Karl sits at the table, keeping his face down. INSTRUCTOR (V.O.) The proof of a good actor is not the career, performance or looks. It's the passion; the involvement with your character. Without empathy, an actor can't be the medium of spirits the character is fighting for in your story. Share the mission with your character. You can never play a hero and move the audience if you disregard the wrongdoings in your daily life. Karl raises his face to reveal big bruises around his eye, etc. He is too serious to play the role in the drama. Karl, first slowly and then passionately, speaks his lines. He stands up while speaking. KARL Legitimacy is the spine of our society. As our bodies demand the food, our spirits call for the justice. It's the lighthouse in the midst of a dark ocean. If it dims, we would lose ourselves and stand in despair. Justice must not be changed for a specific interest. It must be the part of permanent system that we can firmly trust and depend on for our basic rights. To the best of our ability, we are expected to do justice whether or not anybody witnesses us. The customers just look at him in amazement and fear from a distance. He sits down with a sad expression on his face. The customers whisper to each other, giving Karl a scared look. FADE OUT: