“Squeak!” (April 14th,2002)

1 INT. BEDROOM - MORNING
ROMY swings her legs over the edge of a messy bed and sits for a second with her upper body slumped and her head in her hands. A second later, MARIANE, who was until now lying under the blanket on the other side of the bed, approaches Romy from behind and kisses her passionately on the neck. Romy gets up. She's wearing an old t-shirt. Mariane lets herself fall back into the sheets, then gets up as well and starts picking up the charcoal drawings that are scattered all over the floor.

2 INT. living room - MORNING
ROMY is busy studying from a Spanish book, when MARIANE scratches on the door.
MARIANE
Hey, you gonna come out to play?
Without looking up, Romy throws her dictionary at the half-closed door. It shuts.
MARIANE
(shouting through the closed door)
Alright then, I'm going gardening.

3 EXT. garden - MORNING
A lightly dressed MARIANE exits the house, clutching a cup of coffee. She sits down on a bench and stares at the study window, taking a first sip of coffee.

4 INT. KITCHEN - MORNING
ROMY is draining the last drops from the cafetiere as MARIANE enters.
MARIANE
Why don't we go for a walk after lunch?
ROMY
Hmmm.
Romy takes a sip of coffee and, after a quick glance at the day's headlines, makes her way back into the study. She speaks with an American accent.
ROMY (CONT'D)
I'll see how my work is going. 
Oh, and Robin will be coming back from 
his dad's tonight. That's okay, right?!
MARIANE
(mumbling to herself)
Yeah, sure. It'll be fun.
Mariane grabs the newspaper and starts filling in all four-letter spaces on the crossword with the word 'FUCK'.

5 INT. LIVING ROOM/KITCHEN - EVENING
ROMY is sitting on the floor talking on the phone.
ROMY
I don't think that's a good idea. 
... It's not his thing, Peter. ... 
Yeah, but that's only cause you're his dad. 
He wants to impress you. That's all.
As the camera moves into the adjacent kitchen, Romy's voice becomes harder to understand until it is completely replaced by the sound of the radio playing.
While MARIANE is preparing lasagna, ROBIN (a fragile 9 year-old boy) is sitting on the floor playing with his guinea pig.
Mariane notices a moth getting caught in the sauce. We can hear ROMY giggling from the living room. Mariane crushes the moth with another layer of pasta and puts the dish into the oven, then peaks around the corner into the next room.
MARIANE
(to Romy)
Dinner's almost ready.
Romy signals her to go away and continues the conversation in French. Mariane focuses her attention on Robin, who has let the guinea pig run free and is watching it run around the room, while scratching his knee. Mariane kneels down next to him. As the animal runs past, Mariane catches it and turns it over in the palm of her hand. She strokes its belly and, with her thumb and forefinger, squeezes the area between the hind legs.
MARIANE
Look, Robin. It's a boy.
Robin takes his pet back and lets it run free again.
ROBIN
I know.
He starts scratching again. In an attempt to stop him, Mariane takes his hands into hers, but Robin turns his back to her.
MARIANE
You know, I had a dog once, Nellie. 
We found her tied to a tree somewhere ... 
Abandoned. Do you know what that means?
Robin shakes his head.
MARIANE (CONT'D)
(referring to the guinea pig)
What's his name?
ROBIN
He-Man.
MARIANE
As in "Masters of the World"?
robin
It's "Masters of the Universe".

Romy walks into the room and gives Mariane a peck on the head.

6 INT. LIVING ROOM - EVENING
ROMY and MARIANE have made themselves comfortable on the couch. It seems like they have re-established some of the harmony they used to share. We can hear the sound of the television running. ROBIN comes in and squeezes himself in between the two of them.
ROBIN
I put He-Man to sleep.
Mariane gets up to leave.
ROMY
(stroking his hair)
That's great, darling.

7 INT. KITCHEN - MORNING
MARIANE is putting on the cafetiere as ROBIN walks into the room in his pyjamas to check on his guinea pig.
ROBIN
What's Mum doing?
MARIANE
Getting ready for work, I think. I'll make 
you breakfast if you want.
ROBIN
That's alright. I’ll feed He-Man first.
MARIANE
Yes, you have to look after him.
ROBIN
I do look after him.

Silence.
MARIANE
Do you know that humans and guinea pigs 
don't produce their own vitamin C?

Robin gives her a condescending look. Mariane takes a child-proof plastic container with vitamin pills out of a cupboard.
MARIANE
Here. Give that to him.
Since Robin can't open the container, Mariane does it for him and hands him a few pills. She leaves the open container on the counter and turns her back to it to pour herself a cup of coffee.
ROBIN
More?
When he does not get a reaction, Robin happily keeps on feeding He-Man the pills until he has swallowed about ten of them.
MARIANE
Why don't you go and get dressed?
Very pleased with himself for taking such good care of his pet, Robin is now happy to oblige and makes his way out of the kitchen.

8 INT. KITCHEN - MORNING
ROBIN, now fully dressed, is munching away at his cornflakes, while MARIANE is leaning against the counter drinking her coffee, all the while watching him from a distance.
ROBIN
(reads the carton)
Is there any vitamin C in my cornflakes?
MARIANE
No. But there is calcium in the milk.
Suddenly, we can hear small desperate squeaks coming from the box that the guinea pig is sitting in. Robin hurries to see what is wrong with it, then grabs the box and runs to his mother in the bedroom.

9 INT. bedroom - MORNING
ROMY is busy packing her computer into its case. She is now in her flight attendant uniform and wearing make-up for the first time. ROBIN storms in.
ROMY
What's wrong, darling?
But he is too upset to speak. MARIANE moves into the doorframe behind him. The guinea pig is now frantically running around in its box, producing a constant scratching noise with its tiny feet. Its squeaks become weaker and weaker by the second until they stop completely. Robin drops the box on the floor and throws his arms around his mother.
ROBIN
Was it because I gave him too 
much vitamin C?
ROMY
(glancing at Mariane)
No, of course not, darling. You did 
your best. Some guinea pigs are born 
weak, and no matter what you do, they find 
it hard to survive.
This is not much comfort to Robin. There is a long silence. Romy manages to free herself from her son's grip and starts gathering her things to go to work.

ROMY (CONT'D)
Anyway, it's time for me to go. 
I'll be back late, but I'll come in 
and see you. Okay, love?!
She picks up her handbag and is ready to leave when Mariane grabs her arm.
MARIANE
How late?
ROMY
I'll see what I can do.
Romy leans in to give Mariane a kiss and walks out.

10 EXT. CEMETERY - DAY
MARIANE and ROBIN are crouching by a tree. Robin has just finished an icecream on a stick and hands the stick to Mariane, who breaks it in half and uses a piece of chewed gum to attach it to another one, which is already stuck in the ground.
MARIANE
You're not going to cry again, 
are you? You have to finish this 
or he won't go to heaven.
ROBIN
Did he die because he was weak?
MARIANE
Maybe.
ROBIN
Am I weak?
MARIANE
(hesitates)
I don't know.
Then her mobile rings.
MARIANE (CONT'D)
Hello. ... Oh, do you want me 
to send him back to his dad's for the night?

Robin takes the knife and starts stabbing it into the ground.

MARIANE (CONT'D)
Why not? ... No, but I see more of 
him than I do of you these days. We 
really must ... Romy? ... Hello? 
... Argh, FUCK!
Realizing what she just said, she looks at Robin, then takes the knife and starts carving a perfect, deep "He-Man" into the tree. We can hear the sound of a plane flying across the sky, and Robin looks up to watch it.

11 INT. BATHROOM - NIGHT
ROBIN comes storming into the dark bathroom heading straight for the toilet to throw up.

12 INT. BEDROOM - NIGHT
MARIANE is sitting on the bed working on one of her drawings. She is still fully dressed. She jumps as the bathroom door slams shut, then gets up to see what is going on.

13 INT. KITCHEN - NIGHT
ROBIN has climbed on top of the counter and is frantically searching the cupboards when MARIANE enters. He has a rash on his neck and arms, and it is obvious that he has been scratching at it.
MARIANE
What are you doing up there?
ROBIN
I want the number.
Mariane takes a piece of paper with a phone number down from the noticeboard.
MARIANE
Here.
Robin doesn't react. Instead, he starts crying silently.
MARIANE (CONT'D)
What's wrong?
ROBIN
I want to go home.
MARIANE
That's fine by me.
She dials the number into the phone and waits for a while until somebody answers. Then suddenly her expression changes. She is obviously in shock, absolutely speechless. Very slowly she brings down the receiver and, still in a daze, starts speaking.
MARIANE (CONT'D)
Your Dad's not home, Robin. 
You'll have to stay with me.
Then the phone rings.

MARIANE (CONT'D)
Where are you? ... I know, I just rang. 
What I want to know is: 
What are you doing there? ... 
You said you couldn't come home tonight. 
Peter only lives ten miles away. 
Get him to drive you. ... Great, you're out 
getting drunk with your ex, and 
I'm stuck here with your kid.
Upon hearing this, Robin storms out.
MARIANE (CONT'D)
Just take a cab. ... Robin's here with me,
alright. So, are you coming home or what?
Mariane is trying hard to understand what is being said on the other side of the line. After a while, she hangs up.
MARIANE (CONT'D)
(shouting out the door)
Robin!
ROBIN (O.S.)
(quietly)
What?
MARIANE
Get your shoes on. We're going for a drive.

14 EXT. MOTORWAY - NIGHT
Heavy rain is falling as MARIANE and ROBIN are driving along the motorway. Robin is playing around with his seatbelt, shivering with cold. He is still in his pyjamas, only wearing a thin anorak over it.
MARIANE
Leave your seatbelt alone.
Robin stays quiet for a while as they keep on driving. He seems mesmerized by the streetlights overhead. Then he remembers.
ROBIN
This isn't the way to my house.
When he doesn't get a reaction, Robin takes her mobile and starts going through the different ring tones. Mariane abruptly pulls the car onto the hard shoulder and stops. 
MARIANE
Stop it, Robin.
He puts the phone back. They wait. Robin starts scratching his neck. She spins around to tell him off, but thinks better of it.
ROBIN
What is it? What?
Mariane turns away again and bounces her head gently off the top of the steering wheel. She checks her reflection in the mirror. There are tears in her eyes. Without warning she pulls the keys out of the ignition and gets out of the car. The rain pours down so heavily that she is soaked in seconds. Mariane circles the car and leans against the passenger door, while Robin is watching her, not knowing what he should be doing. Mariane walks back around the front of the car and stands facing the road, dropping her keys. Startled by a passing lorry, she walks backwards out of the light until she knows Robin can't see her anymore, then clambers up the muddy slope and runs.
THE END.