- The Fire Still Burns -
It's Been A Long Time, But Not Long Enough
-[ Well, tonight is the night where Tomorrow Man has his first date in like 10 years. It�s still pretty amazing that he held on for so long and even more amazing that he�d hit on his own doctor. Going to Monticello�s isn�t exactly a first place for a date either. It�s more like a place where you�d propose marriage or something. So naturally, Cody is concerned about his partner�s well-being. This isn�t exactly the time to be working on a stable relationship, especially when they�ve got a Tag Team Title match coming up in a few days. Cody is waiting outside in the alleyway between Monticello�s and the bookstore next door behind a dumpster. He sits there and waits patiently, hoping to get in through the back entrance maybe. He looks at his watch. ]-
Cody: Quarter to 7. Come on.
-[ Knowing that his partner has a date at 7, Cody has shown up early to make sure he gets a good place to spy. Then finally, the back door opens and a teenage kid dressed up in his waiter outfit comes walking out the door with a bag of garbage. He opens up the dumpster, not noticing Cody, and tosses the garbage into the dumpster. As he walks back towards the door, Cody attempts to grab his attention. ]-
Cody: Pssst!
-[ The kid turns and looks around the alley to see where the noise came from. He doesn�t notice anything so he makes his way back towards the door. ]-
Cody: Pssst! Hey, kid, over here!
-[ The kid sees Cody over by the dumpster. ]-
Kid: Sorry, dude, I don�t have any spare change.
-[ Cody stands up and walks over to the kid. ]-
Cody: Man, I�m not a bum. I was wondering if you could do me a favor.
Kid: What�s that?
Cody: Can I borrow your clothes?
Kid: What?
Cody: Can I borrow your clothes?
Kid: What for? You�ve got clothes.
-[ Cody rolls his eyes and starts to get annoyed. ]-
Cody: You�re a waiter, right?
Kid: Yeah.
Cody: Well how much do you figure you�re going to make in tips tonight?
Kid: I don�t know. Maybe a hundred dollars. Why?
-[ Cody reaches into his back pocket and pulls out his wallet. ]-
Cody: I�ll give you a hundred dollars right here for your clothes.
Kid: Dude, I might make more than that tonight.
Cody: Fine, I�ll give you two hundred.
-[ The kid obviously sees what�s going on here so he decides to make the most of it. ]-
Kid: Gee, I don�t know, man. We�ve got some pretty classy customers in there tonight.
Cody: All right. I�ll give you three hundred for the night. That�s my final offer.
Kid: Well�
Cody: �hey it�s the easiest money you�re ever going to make.
Kid: All right, dude. Give me a second to change. I�ll be back out.
Cody: You don�t get paid until I get the clothes.
-[ The teenage waiter nods and heads back inside, leaving Cody standing there waiting. Meanwhile, Tomorrow Man has arrived early and is sitting alone at an empty table. He�s dressed up nicely but still is dressed casually compared to the other �high class� people dining in the room. He has his hair back in a ponytail and is wearing a white dress shirt, black dress pants, and a matching black tie. He takes a sip of water nervously as he waits for his date, Amy Campbell, to arrive. But since he�s early, he knows he has a few minutes to wait and calm himself down. ]-
-[ Then, Cody sneaks through the kitchen dressed up in the teenage waiter�s clothes. The clothes don�t exactly fit him but they�ll have to do. He peeks around the corner of the kitchen entrance and looks out into the vast dining room. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a goofy looking fake mustache just as tonight�s swing band begins to play for those dining. He pulls back the paper coving the adhesive on the mustache and drops it on the floor. He then uses one of the large shiny chrome refrigerators as a mirror and puts the mustache on as best he can. ]-
Cody: Crap.
-[ Cody notices that the black mustache doesn�t exactly match his blonde hair. Then one of the waiters grabs him by the right shoulder and turns him around. ]-
Waiter: And just what do you think you�re doing?
Cody: Um�checking to see if I have anything in my mustache.
Waiter: You�re the new guy, aren�t you?
Cody: �yes.
-[ The waiter grabs him and brings him back over to the entrance of the dining room. He points at Tomorrow Man who�s sitting all alone, waiting. ]-
Waiter: You see the guy at Table 43?
Cody: Sure.
Waiter: He looks like a cheap tipper.
-[ Cody almost laughs out loud. ]-
Cody: How can you tell?
Waiter: Just look at how he�s dressed. He sticks out like a sore thumb. You�re the new guy, so you get the cheap one.
Cody: Yes, sir!
Waiter: I like you�re attitude.
-[ The waiter hands Cody a couple menus and pushes him out the door into the dining room. Cody slowly makes his way past some crowded tables and stops about dead center of the room. He looks back at the waiter and the waiter waves him on. As Cody approaches Tomorrow Man, he gets nervous that it�s going to be obvious who he is. Nonetheless, he has to risk it so he approaches Tomorrow Man and begins to act like a stiff waiter. ]-
Cody: Menu, sir?
-[ Tomorrow Man looks up and notices the dark black mustache on the blonde haired waiter but doesn�t stare at it too long. ]-
Tomorrow Man: Sure. I�m waiting for somebody though.
Cody: No problem, sir. I�ll come back when she arrives.
-[ Cody sets down two menus and begins to make his way back towards the kitchen area. Tomorrow Man sits there, perplexed at how the waiter knew he was waiting for a woman. He picks up the menu and starts to look at what he might like. Cody comes back to the kitchen where the standoffish waiter is waiting for him. ]-
Waiter: Well?
Cody: He�s waiting for somebody.
Waiter: Ah. I cannot wait to see who Billy Bob is meeting tonight.
Cody: Billy Bob?
Waiter: Yes. Isn�t it obvious? The man is trash pretending to have some class. We get one every night it seems.
Cody: I see.
Waiter: You�ll learn quickly.
-[ The waiter looks out at the dining room and sees a new couple walking to an empty table. ]-
Waiter: Ooo! Fresh meat!
-[ The waiter runs out of the kitchen, making sure to snag the classy couple. Cody stands there laughing to himself because the waiter is so queer. ]-
Cody: This is too much.
-[ Cody keeps laughing until he sees a girl walk up towards Tomorrow Man�s table. She�s wearing a black skirt that isn�t too short and a red blouse. She looks sophisticated but still quite attractive. Cody starts to make his way back to the table slowly. ]-
Cody: Helllloooo Amy.
-[ Tomorrow Man stands up from his seat and walks around the table and pulls out Amy�s chair like the gentleman that he is. He then walks back to his side of the table and sits down. ]-
Tomorrow Man: I�m glad you could make it, Amy.
Amy: Me too. This is a little classier than I figured it would be, Mark.
Tomorrow Man: Yeah, I know. It�s a little too much for a first date.
Amy: It�s all right. This will do nicely.
-[ Cody walks over to the table just in time. ]-
Cody: I see the Misses has arrived.
-[ Cody takes her right hand and kisses it. But that action almost knocks his fake mustache off, so he stands back up quickly, turns away, and fixes it. He then turns back towards them. ]-
Cody: My name is�Jeeves�and I will be your waiter tonight.
-[ Tomorrow Man notices that Cody�s name tag says �Scott� and not Jeeves so he knows something is up. Then he takes notice of the black mustache and blonde hair again. Cody whips out a notepad.]-
Cody: Are you ready to order?
Tomorrow Man: Um, no. She just got here.
Cody: Ah, very well. I shall return in a few moments, T-Ma�I mean, sir.
-[ Cody walks away and starts to make his way back towards the kitchen. He slaps himself in the forehead because he almost called his partner by his nickname, and that surely would have given the whole scheme away. Tomorrow Man watches as Cody walks towards the kitchen and disappears in the doorway. He turns to Amy, who is looking at her menu. ]-
Tomorrow Man: Please excuse me for a moment.
Amy: Ok. I�ll be right here.
-[ Tomorrow Man stands up and starts to make his way towards the kitchen area where Cody is waiting. Cody is too busy fixing his fake mustache again to notice Tomorrow Man is coming. Tomorrow Man comes up from behind him, grabs him by his right shoulder, and turns him around just like the waiter did to Cody before. Cody, surprised he�s being turned around again, sneezes. His mustache goes flying and sticks to Tomorrow Man�s shirt. Tomorrow Man looks down at the mustache. ]-
Tomorrow Man: What the hell?
Cody: Oh shit!
-[ Cody tries the grab the mustache before Tomorrow Man looks up at him but the mustache sticks better to his partner�s shirt than it does to his face. Tomorrow Man looks up to see that Jeeves, Scott, or whatever the hell his name is, is actually Cody in disguise. Tomorrow Man isn�t happy to learn this either. ]-
Tomorrow Man: What are you doing here?
Cody: Uh�hey, buddy!
Tomorrow Man: Don�t �hey buddy� me! What in the hell do you think you�re doing?
Cody: Checking up on you.
Tomorrow Man: Are you insane?!
Cody: No!�maybe�kinda.
-[ Tomorrow Man starts to pace back and forth. ]-
Tomorrow Man: I can�t believe this! You tell me to move on and I do. And then you do this! What gives? I can�t even sit down and have an honest diner with a woman without you interfering?
Cody: Sorry.
Tomorrow Man: Sorry? What are you doing here?! I mean�God!
Cody: T-Man, I was making sure you weren�t going to make a big mistake.
Tomorrow Man: What mistake?
Cody: Nobody comes here on the first date.
-[ Tomorrow Man looks around at the elegant surrounding. ]-
Tomorrow Man: Yeah, it is a bit much. What did you think, I was going to ask her to marry me or something?
Cody: Well�
Tomorrow Man: �give me some credit! I just met her. You think I�m that crazy to do something that stupid?
Cody: No, I guess not. But come on, man. You haven�t been with a woman in years and suddenly one shows up and you won�t even let me meet her or tell me anything about her? What was I supposed to think?
Tomorrow Man: You want to meet her? Fine!
-[ Tomorrow Man pushes Cody out the door and leads him back towards the table. Cody at this point pretty much knows he pissed off his mellow friend so he�s a little scared. Amy looks up from her menu and looks at Tomorrow Man. As she smiles at him she also wonders what�s going on. Tomorrow Man grabs an extra chair from the table near them and pulls it up towards his table. He then forces Cody to sit down. ]-
Tomorrow Man: Amy, I�d like you to meet my friend Cody Carmichael.
Amy: Jeeves, right?
-[ Cody nods mischievously. ]-
Tomorrow Man: Cody here was wondering who you were so he took it upon himself to pose as a waiter. Funny guy, isn�t he?
Cody: And to think, tonight�s an off night for me.
-[ Cody laughs but Tomorrow Man doesn�t share in with the laugh. ]-
Cody: Listen, Dr. Campbell, I�m sorry if I ruined your night with my friend. It�s just, I get really worried about him sometimes.
Amy: Yeah?
Cody: Yep, he hasn�t been on a date in years so I wanted to check up on him was all.
Amy: Really? It�s been years?
-[ Tomorrow Man looks at her. ]-
Tomorrow Man: I was going to tell you tonight. I haven�t been on a date in 10 years.
Amy: Why so long?
Tomorrow Man: The love of my life was killed when a bank robbery went wrong. And after that I never wanted to get involved with anybody ever again.
Amy: I�m sorry to hear that.
Cody: Yeah and now�
-[ Tomorrow Man looks at him and Cody knows he wants him to shut up. Cody quickly does and Tomorrow Man looks at Amy again. ]-
Tomorrow Man: Like he was saying. Now I�ve decided it�s time I move on with my life. And that�s why I asked you out.
Amy: Interesting.
-[ Then out of the corner of his eye, Cody notices somebody a few tables away. He taps Tomorrow Man on the shoulder and points over at the table. ]-
Cody: Look who it is.
Tomorrow Man: Kenny Atkins.
-[ It is indeed Kenny Atkins sitting a few tables away. He�s sitting with a bunch of white guys in suits, laughing it up. ]-
Amy: Who�s he?
Tomorrow Man: Our former agent.
Cody: I�m going to go say �hi�. Then I�m going to get out of here. You two have a good night.
Tomorrow Man: Thanks.
-[ Cody stands up from the table and begins to walk over towards Kenny Atkins� table. ]-
Amy: He�s a nice guy.
Tomorrow Man: Yeah, he is. He just gets himself into trouble sometimes.
-[ Cody walks around the table, making sure to sneak up on Atkins from behind so he can catch him off guard. Kenny Atkins is too busy telling some story to notice anything. ]-
Cody: Kenny Atkins!
-[ The men at the table stop laughing and Atkins turns around. Cody extends his hand but Atkins doesn�t shake it because he�s surprised to see Cody here. Atkins takes quick notice of the small waiter�s clothes Cody is wearing. ]-
Atkins: Ah, I see you�re working as a bus boy these days, Cody. It�s a thriving industry.
-[ The people at the table laugh at what Atkins just said but Cody doesn�t find it funny. ]-
Cody: If I wanted a thriving industry I would have joined your union of assholes.
-[ The men at the table stop laughing and are visibly offended. Meanwhile, Tomorrow Man is listening to Amy talk about herself. His listening is interrupted, though, as he gets preoccupied by a scene over near the front entrance. A group of four men have just pushed over the hostess and are making their way through the tables. There�s a fifth guy standing by the door with a cane. He isn�t old, maybe in his 50s and looks familiar to Tomorrow Man. The strange man has a large grin on his face and is watching what the 4 thugs are doing. Amy tries to get Tomorrow Man�s attention. ]-
Amy: Mark, are you listening to me?
-[ Atkins looks at Cody. ]-
Atkins: Can�t you see I�m busy? What do you want?
Cody: Just thought I�d say hi.
Atkins: Hi. Bye.
-[ Atkins waves him off and turns back to the men sitting at the table. They laugh with Atkins as Cody just stands there. Atkins takes a sip of his alcoholic drink and sees the four men making their way through the tables. He then sees the man standing by the door with the grin on his face. The man nods at him with a slight smirk and that sends shivers down Atkins� spine. He drops his alcoholic drink on the table and the glass breaks. Once the glass shatters, the four men reach into their black light jackets and pull out hand guns. Then they start firing on the crowd, mostly shooting in Atkins� direction. ]-
-[ The band stops playing and people start screaming and ducking for cover. Tomorrow Man jumps over the table, ignoring his left shoulder, and pushes Amy to the floor. The men Atkins is with, stand up, pulls out some weapons of their own, and start shooting back. Tomorrow Man pushes Amy under the table and huddles over her to protect her because they�re in the middle of the fire fight. Atkins attempts to run away but Cody grabs him. ]-
Cody: What the fuck is going on?!
-[ Kenny Atkins answers Cody by sucker punching him in the face and then running once he�s freed. Atkins runs towards the back kitchen and escapes through the back alley. The four gunmen start to make their way back towards the entrance, still shooting for cover. The men that were with Atkins are pretty much dead except for one lone gunman. He makes his way towards the kitchen to escape with Atkins, shooting to have some cover too. The four men get through the chaotic crowd, shooting innocent people just to get away. Then they escape with the fifth man out the door. As the mad crowd makes their way out of the restaurant, Tomorrow Man looks at Amy under the table. ]-
Tomorrow Man: Are you all right?
Amy: Uh huh.
-[ Cody sees that Tomorrow Man and Amy are all right under the table, so he runs towards the kitchen area to chase Kenny Atkins. When he gets out into the alleyway, he finds the sole remaining member of Atkins� party lying on the wet concrete, dead. He must have been shot and made it this far until he bled to death. Cody looks around the alley but doesn�t find Atkins anywhere. He runs out to the main street where the restaurant goers are running down the street terrified for their lives. He looks around but doesn�t see Atkins or any of the men. He finds Tomorrow Man and Amy leaving the restaurant though. ]-
Cody: You two all right?
Tomorrow Man: Yeah. You�re bleeding.
-[ Cody reaches up to his bottom lip that was busted open by Atkins. ]-
Cody: Atkins punched me.
Amy: What was that all about?
Cody: I have no clue.
-[ In the distance, Amy hears the sirens of police cars, fire trucks, and ambulances making their way towards the scene. ]-
Amy: We should get out of here while we still can.
Tomorrow Man: I agree.
-[ Amy points down the block. ]-
Amy: I�m parked down there. So I�m going to go.
Tomorrow Man: Ok. Is it all right if I call you later to check up on you?
Amy: Yeah. Stay safe.
-[ Amy leans over and kisses Tomorrow Man on the lips out of the blue. She then runs towards her car to drive away as police cars and fire trucks arrive on the scene. ]-
Cody: Damn, dude! She just planted one on you!
-[ Tomorrow Man leans against the restaurant wall and tries to collect what just happened. He then gets off the wall and starts walking in the opposite direction of where Amy went. Cody follows. ]-
Tomorrow Man: My, um, car is this way.
Cody: Are you going to be all right? I mean, she planted you good.
Tomorrow Man: Yeah.
Cody: So what do you think that was all about back there?
Tomorrow Man: I don�t know. Atkins said he owed some people money and I guess they tried to collect.
Cody: No doubt.
-[ Tomorrow Man reaches into his pocket and pulls out his car keys as they approach his car. ]-
Tomorrow Man: You won�t believe who I thought I saw.
Cody: Who�s that?
Tomorrow Man: I think I saw Warlock.
Cody: Couldn�t have been him. He�s dead.
Tomorrow Man: Yeah.
-[ Tomorrow Man leans on his car, thinking silently. ]-
Cody: Are you sure you�re all right?
Tomorrow Man: I�m sure.
Cody: Good, cause tomorrow we�re getting out of here and flying to Germany. Then we don�t have to worry about any of this stuff. Forget Warlock. Forget Atkins. Forget what happened tonight. Just focus on Big Poppa and Sapphire.
Tomorrow Man: Right.
Cody: Cause you know we�re going to have to be really focused to beat them, right?
-[ Tomorrow Man continues to stare off into space. ]-
Tomorrow Man: Right.
-[ Cody reaches out to his partner and grabs his shoulder. ]-
Cody: Go home and get some sleep.
Tomorrow Man: Right.
Cody: I�m parked down a couple blocks from here. You go home and take care of yourself, all right? I�ll see you tomorrow.
-[ Tomorrow Man pops out of his stupor for a moment and unlocks his car door. He gets in and drives away without a word. Cody shakes his head and looks down at what he�s wearing again. You know, the waiter�s suit that doesn�t exactly fit. ]-
Cody: I�ve gotta change out of these things.
-[ Cody walks down the street towards his car, holding his bottom lip. Meanwhile, police start to tape off the scene and take the deceased bodies out of the restaurant and to the city morgue. Back in the alleyway, a sewer cover pops up a little and Kenny Atkins looks out to see if the coast is clear. Then he leaves the manhole, grabs the gun one of the men he was with had, and starts to run away from the place as fast as he can. ]-
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