<< INSIDE - KELLY AND ERIKA'S DORM ROOM >> 

Erika walks into the room that now has no sign of blood or struggle except for Kelly's mp3 player laying on the floor. 

Erika doesn't seem to notice as she nonchalantly tosses her purse on her bed, and plops herself down into The Chair and reclines for a moment. 

Her complexion immediately looks brighter.  

She shifts her weight in The Chair, and a curious look comes over her face as if she's looking past the wall. Like a queen on her throne, back straight, hands planted firmly on the armrests, feet planted on the foot rest, she stares.  

Suddenly, a phone vibrates and buzzes from somewhere on her bed. She gets up, following the sound, and finds her cell phone under her pillow. Erika answers the phone with an eerie monotone. 

ERIKA 

“Hello?” 

Kelly's anxious voice chimes in on the line with a relieved sigh. 

KELLY (V.O. on phone) 

“Oh Erika, I got you. I was trying to call you.” 

Erika replies lightly. 

ERIKA 

“Oh hey, Kelly. Yeah, I think I must've left my phone here by accident.” 

KELLY (V.O.) 

“Erika, we need to talk. I think there's something wrong with your chair.”

A confused look comes over Erika's face.

ERIKA 

“What?”

KELLY (V.O.) 

“Oh, this is going to sound crazy, and I don't even know how to explain it, but-” 

Suddenly, Erika's cell phone begins to buzz cutting into Kelly's words. Erika looks down at the screen, which is flashing another incoming call. 

ERIKA 

“Uh, hold on Kel. Someone else's calling.” 

She presses the screen switching to the other line and listens to the person on the other end blankly. 

ERIKA 

“Hello?”  

A very upbeat girl's voice chimes in.

UPBEAT GIRL (V.O. on phone) 

“Oh Hey Erika. Um... did you get my message?”

ERIKA 

“Oh, no. I think I missed a couple messages today. What's up?” 

UPBEAT GIRL (V.O.) 

“Oh, I was wondering if you could fit me in today? I know it's last minute.” 

ERIKA 

“Sure! I'm available.”

UPBEAT GIRL (V.O.) 

“Like around five-thirty?” 

Erika takes her planner from the dresser and begins to write down the appointment. 

ERIKA 

“Oh yes, I can definitely style you today... five-thirty is fine…” 

She nods as the girl talks rapidly, but indiscernibly. 

ERIKA 

“Ok. Great. See you soon.” 

Erika switches back over to Kelly. 

ERIKA 

“Kel?”

KELLY (V.O.) 

“Yeah, I'm here.” 

The panic resurfaces in Kelly's voice as she talks quickly. 

KELLY (V.O.) 

“Listen Erika, the chair like hurt me, like held me down, and I got cut.” 

The phone buzzes again with another incoming call. 

ERIKA 

“Wait a sec, Kel.” 

Erika switches over as another cheerful girl answers. 

CHEERFUL GIRL (V.O.) 

“Hi Erika! Taneisha said you could do a wet set?” 

ERIKA 

“Yeah, I can.”

<< INSIDE - HEALTH CENTER - LOBBY >> 

Kelly leans against a wall hunched over her cell phone. 

KELLY 

“Hello? Hello?!” 

She looks at the display on her phone, which only shows the time. She huffs under her breath, slides the touch screen and presses to redial Erika again.  

After a moment, Erika's voicemail comes on. 

ERIKA (V.O.) 

“Hello. You've reached Erika. I can't come to the phone right now.” 

Kelly hangs up abruptly, and heads for the door. 

<< INSIDE - CENTREVILLE HALL - 4TH FLOOR HALLWAY >> 

Two girls walk down the hall past Erika's room talking.  Suddenly, Kelly rushes past them and stops in the doorway. 

IN THE ROOM 

Erika sprays and brushes the hair of a small chubby brown skinned girl. MIA.  

Two girls; dark-skinned and leggy, SIMONE, and bubbly Latina, NINA, sit on Erika's bed with their hair wrapped in towels, reading hair magazines and chatting with each other. 

Hovering in the doorway, Kelly crosses her arms nervously grabbing hold of the sleeves of her hooded sweatshirt at the elbows. 

KELLY 

“Erika. Uh- can I talk to you?” 

Kelly stammers a bit as she speaks. Erika looks up blankly. 

ERIKA 

“Sure Kel. Just a minute.” 

Erika whips the smock off of Mia with a flutter. 

ERIKA 

“All done.” 

Mia stands up with a happy smile mismatching her blank stare and hands Erika some money. 

MIA

“Thanks Erika. See you next week.” 

ERIKA 

“Ok, Mia, just keep putting rollers on the ends, and wrapping it at night.”

MIA

“Ok.” 

Mia passes Kelly on the way out smiling blankly off into space.  

Erika motions to Simone. 

ERIKA 

“Have a seat Simone.” 

Simone takes a seat in The Chair. Erika places the smock gently over her. Kelly heads out into the hall. Erika gestures a hand to the girls. 

ERIKA 

“I'll be right back.” 

IN THE HALLWAY  

Kelly shuffles from one foot to the next with agitation. 

ERIKA 

“What's up?” 

Erika's face grows concerned as she looks at the worried look on Kelly's face. 

Kelly opens her mouth to talk, but stops as some guys pass by laughing and talking. 

Kelly hesitates, then blurts out the words. 

KELLY 

“Erika, I, I think there's something wrong with your chair.”

Erika looks at Kelly and turns her palms up, gesturing her confusion. Kelly exhales and continues. 

KELLY 

“When I came in today, I knocked over one of your cans. It rolled under your bed, and when I went to get it, that chair pinned me down under it.” 

Erika shakes her head in disbelief. 

ERIKA 

“Kelly, what do you mean?”

KELLY 

“Look at my back Erika.” 

Kelly lifts up the back of her sweater revealing a long rectangular bandage. She peels back the bandage showing a long jagged bloody gash.

Erika gasps under her breath with an involuntary flinch.  Kelly reseals the bandage and lowers her sweater. 

KELLY 

“It moved Erika. It moved by itself. And I couldn't breathe, and If I hadn't kicked myself free…” 

She trails off shaking her head with pleading in her eyes.  Erika looks at Kelly in shock and disbelief. 

ERIKA 

“Kelly, I'm so sorry you got hurt. But a chair can't just fall on you by itself. It's a really old antique. I didn't think it would be faulty. Let's look at the hydraulics. Something must be wrong.” 

Erika heads back into the room. 

IN THE ROOM 

Erika motions to Simone. 

ERIKA 

“Stand up for a second.” 

Simone gets up and Kelly stands in the doorway as Erika walks over to The Chair and manipulates the lever arm.  

After a little jostling, The Chair thumps down to the floor, the foot rest hitting the floor with a loud hard thud. The girls jump, startled.  

Erika looks reassuringly at Kelly. 

ERIKA 

“See? It's really old, and the lever isn't working to keep the foot rest up. Is that what happened Kel?”  

Kelly looks at Erika then at The Chair with uncertainty.  After a moment, she nods. 

KELLY 

“I guess so…”

ERIKA 

“I'm so sorry Kelly. These older chairs are made with real metal, not like the new tinfoil ones.”  

Erika turns The Chair face front again, and gestures Simone back into The Chair. She begins combing Simone's hair absentmindedly.

ERIKA 

“It can be dangerous if it's not repaired. Maybe I can get someone to fix it. I just can't afford a newer one now.”  

Kelly stares at the foot rest and then the lever arm.  

ERIKA 

“Just be careful not to come near it.” 

Kelly nods. 

KELLY 

“Ok Erika. Yeah. Thanks. I gotta go study.” 

Kelly turns to leave. 

ERIKA 

“Hey, Kel, you know Jason was here asking for you.” 

Kelly's eyes widen as she turns back and darts a glance at her bedside clock, "3:12".  

KELLY 

“Oh no, I was supposed to meet him like an hour ago.” 

She rushes to her desk and starts gathering papers into her bookbag. 

ERIKA 

“Uh huh…”

KELLY 

“What?” 

Kelly faintly blushes. 

ERIKA 

“You and Jason getting kinda close huh? What's going on lady?” 

The girls try to hide smiles and looks at Kelly. Erika works with the vintage tools, combing, and trimming the ends of Simone's hair carefully.  

Kelly drops her bag down on her bed smiling.  

KELLY 

“I don't know, a couple weeks after the mixer, we kinda met up at Hillel, and we started talking and he's really into the alternative spring break program and like building homes for the homeless and disaster relief.”

ERIKA 

“And he has a rockin' six pack…” 

Kelly pauses, biting her lip guiltily for a moment.  

KELLY 

“...and he has a rockin' six pack, and don't get me started on his butt…” 

She muffles a squeal and hides her face in her hands. All the girls break out into wild laughter. 

ERIKA 

“I'm just giving you a hard time, but he's cute girl, go get 'em!” 

The girls laugh some more. 

KELLY 

“What about you?” 

ERIKA 

“What about me, what?”

KELLY 

“Don't act all innocent, I saw you and Gennard at the Maryland Day fair.” 

She mocks Erika. 

KELLY 

"Ok, I'll see you at Mass." 

Kelly bats her eyes facetiously. 

ERIKA 

“Whatever.” 

Erika blushes. Nina talks over the magazine she's reading. 

NINA 

“I seen 'em too, Kelly. Lookin' like the Duggars. If they rub hands any harder they'll rub the skin right off!”

Erika looks back at her in shock as the girls laugh more.  

ERIKA 

“Nina!”  

She waves the comb mock threateningly at Nina. 

ERIKA 

“Ok, keep tellin' my business. I gotta do your hair in a minute. I can make you look like Redfoo and a troll doll had a fight.”

The girls laugh. Erika combs and trims. Simone chimes in. 

SIMONE 

“Girl, as fine as Gennard is, you might wanna get to more than hand holdin', and quick.” 

Nina nods in agreement, and flips through her magazine. 

NINA 

“Hm hm, right, cuz the other day I saw Brigid talkin' to him real close outside McKeldin, like she was tryna push up, and that girl is not afraid to hold more than his hands.” 

Erika shifts her stance looking physically agitated. She begins to comb and trim faster. 

SIMONE 

“Ooh, I'd kill that ho. Everyone knows Erika and Gennard are together now. She just skanky.” 

Erika combs and trims faster, and more aggressively, pursing her lips and holding her facial expression sternly, unsuccessfully attempting to look unfazed.  

ERIKA

“Ow!” 

Erika cries out as she cuts through Simone's hair in a violent stroke, slicing a deep gash into the palm of her left hand with the scissors.  

She quickly drops the tools and cups her hand, dripping thick streaks of blood onto the back of The Chair.  

KELLY 

“Erika, you ok?” 

Erika rushes over to the dresser and begins to wrap her hand with a towel. 

NINA 

“Ooh girl, be careful.” 

ERIKA 

“I'm ok, I'm ok. Just gotta pay attention.” 

No one notices as the blood rolls down the back of The Chair, then disappears, seeping into The Chair, as if inhaled by the leather. Simone gets up to help Erika. 

ERIKA 

“No, sit down, it's ok, it's just a scratch.”

Kelly shoots a furious glance at The Chair, as she hands Erika a small first aid kit. Erika sits down on the bed for a moment. She puts several large squares of gauze and medical tape on her hand, which looks a bit green. 

ERIKA 

“See, good as new.” 

She gets up with the towel and goes over to The Chair. She raises the towel to wipe off the back of The Chair, but the blood is gone. 

NINA 

“We didn't mean to get you upset, Erika. You know Gennard's a good guy. He wouldn't fall for anything like that.” 

Erika stares at The Chair where the blood used to be, confused for a moment. Then she blinks and shakes her head. She picks up the scissors from the floor and attempts to smile.  

The scissors are completely clean as well. Erika starts to comb through Simone's hair again, staring into the girl's hair as if she is looking right through her. She clicks the scissors closed then open in the air, then continues trimming. 

ERIKA 

“No, it's ok. I'm not worried about Brigid.” 

Erika's mouth slowly breaks into an eerie half grin as she continues to style the hair.  

Kelly slings her bag over her shoulder and backs away toward the door.  

She stares at the intricate three petal flower detail on the golden comb. Her eyes wander to the same pattern carved into the metal on The Chair's arms.  

Erika and the girls resume their talk as Nina mentions a style she likes in the magazine, taking little notice as Kelly slowly leaves the room, eyes fixed on the flowers.