ANATOMY LAB
Samantha Marshall
INT.
ADMINISTRATION BUILDING
CAMERA VIEW is
a wide angle shot down a long, dimly lit hallway . . . in the distance, some
figures appear . . . ANN, LYNN, BETH, PAUL, RAE, and KRISTIAN make their way to
. . . CAMERA VIEW changes to a desk where a SECRETARY is typing. The group waits for her to acknowledge
them. The SECRETARY continues her
typing, oblivious to the others.
BETH
Excuse
me.
The SECRETARY
finally looks up, extremely annoyed.
BETH
We
are here to turn in a nomination for the Stan K. Healy Teaching Award.
The SECRETARY
picks up a form and pen.
SECRETARY
In
what college does the professor teach?
BETH
The
college of science.
SECRETARY
And
what does he or she have his or her Ph.D. in?
BETH
(beat) He doesn't have a Ph.D. He has a Master's of Science in biology.
Looking even
more annoyed, the SECRETARY puts down her form and pen, turning back to her
computer.
SECRETARY
Then
he doesn't qualify.
Reaction of
EVERYONE.
PAUL
Come
again?
SECRETARY
This
award is for Ph.D.'s only. Teaching
assistants do not qualify.
ANN
He's
not a teaching assistant. WE are HIS
teaching assistants. He teaches the
entire undergraduate human anatomy course on campus.
SECRETARY
(while
typing) If he doesn't have a Ph.D., he
doesn't qualify.
PAUL
(getting
angry) Are you listening to what we are
saying? We are saying that we would put
Tom against any Ph.D. on this campus. No
one has more dedication to teaching than he does. This is a fucking teaching award,
right?
KRISTIAN
(in
a lowered voice) Come on Paul, this isn't going to help us.
SECRETARY
You
will leave now or I will call campus police and have you removed.
EVERYONE
leaves. As they round the corner . . .
PAUL (V.O.)
You
might consider getting laid soon. It
might improve your disposition.
EXT.
UNIVERSITY CAMPUS
A thunderstorm
is brewing . . . lightning flashes across a dark blue-gray sky . . .
INT. ANATOMY
LAB
PAUL and LYNN
are sitting in chairs. RAE is standing
next to them.
LYNN
Man,
I can't believe that shit.
RAE
We
shouldn't be surprised. It's not like
this is the first time Tom has been overlooked because of his educational
background.
BETH, ANN, and
KRISTIAN enter the lab through the main door with sodas for themselves and the
others. BETH, ANN, and KRISTIAN each
throw a can at the same time and PAUL, LYNN, and RAE each catch one at the same
time.
BETH
(opening
her diet cola) Look, guys, I know you
are all disappointed . . .
PAUL
I'm
beyond disappointed . . . I'm completely pissed off . . .
BETH
.
. . but there's nothing we can do about it.
(beat) Let's just have a quick,
but productive meeting, then go to Klaus' place and watch a movie.
BETH crosses
to the front of the lab. EVERYONE sits
down.
BETH
Is
Nat going to make it?
ANN
Highly
doubtful.
BETH
Tom
should be here soon . . . (picks up a piece of paper and peruses it) . . .
let's get started . . . are we having any trouble with the apprentice TA's?
EVERYONE looks
at each other, waiting for someone to speak.
ANN and LYNN shake their heads "no."
BETH
(looking
around the room) Great . . .
PAUL
I
just have one comment. Has anyone else
noticed that Natalia's training time with her apprentices is getting shorter and
shorter? I spent 3-4 hours with mine
getting them ready for next week's lab and she was done in one.
ANN
I
only witnessed the one time, but Belissa, one of
Nat's apprentices, approached me just yesterday and asked if she could join me
when I have my apprentices go through their demos because she doesn't feel
comfortable teaching them . . . even after meeting with Nat.
BETH
(beat) Tom has too many other projects right now to
worry about this problem. We should talk
to Nat ourselves and tell her that she needs to spend more time teaching the
demos to her apprentices.
ANN
I
know Belissa would appreciate it . . . by the way, we
should think about nominating her for one of our positions when we leave next
spring . . . she's really bright and the students like her teaching . . .
RAE
The
only problem with that is that she is applying to physical therapy school . . .
like me . . . and with her GPA, volunteer time, and the way she presents
herself, she'll probably be starting PT school in the fall . . .
ANN
What
about Mike . . . he’s also really bright and he’ll be around . . . he’s not
applying for medical school for another year . . .
BETH
(writing
on the paper) OK . . . Belissa or Mike for a regular position . . .
As BETH
writes, TOM enters through the main lab door.
TOM
Hi,
everyone. Sorry I'm late. (sits)
I've been talking with some of the other professors in the building
about that area they’ve been landscaping over the past semester . . . it turns out
that the administration hired a professional artist to “beautify” the place . .
. he being paid $10,000 for his art out there . . .
See EVERYONE’s reaction . . . then EVERYONE starts talking at
once, voicing their disgust . . . CAMERA VIEW CLOSES IN on PAUL and LYNN . . .
PAUL
On
one hand, good teaching at a university that goes unrecognized . . . on the
other, a fucking artist cashing in on my tuition and student fees . . .
LYNN
We
should just forget about the rest of this meeting . . . the way this day has
gone, I could sure use a beer . . .
See PAUL’s reaction . . .
EXT.
UNIVERSITY CAMPUS - daytime
Numerous
STUDENTS/SUPERNUMERARIES are walking between buildings. The ARTIST waves directions with his arms
while SUPERNUMERARIES are rolling the rocks accordingly. After a change, ARTIST stands back, studies
the area, and then starts waving directions again . . . and again . . . and
again . . .
INT. ANATOMY
LAB
ANN is at the
front of the class. SUPERNUMERARIES fill
the seats. PAUL, BETH, and MIKE are
standing in the back of the room.
KRISTIAN is standing by the closed door of the TA office.
ANN
OK,
that's the last quiz question . . . please pass your papers to the left to be
collected . . . the answers will be posted in a few minutes . . . my class of
great
anatomists,
you all have last week's quiz back and I am quite pleased with the results . .
. if you have any questions, please see me . . . we are now half way through
the semester . . .
PAUL
(from
the back) Wahoo!
Laughter from
the CLASS.
ANN
.
. . thank you, Paul . . . don't mind him . . . the doctors say his condition is
terminal . . . as I was saying, we are half way through the course and the
practicum is soon upon us . . . now, as I do not allow panic in my class, there
will be no fear . . . however, I understand the anxiety associated with this
test, so we have set up a practice practicum in the back room . . . you all can
get a feel for what it will be like . . . we will have one of these set up each
week until the final practicum . . . all right, let's break up into our groups
and get started . . .
The CLASS
begins to disperse into five groups.
CAMERA VIEW focuses on ANN at the front desk . . . KRISTIAN enters
CAMERA VIEW along with one of the students, ROBERT.
KRISTIAN
Ann,
I take it you've already met my good friend, Robert Par.
ANN
Indeed,
I have. Rob, I thought you hung out with
a better crowd . . .
KRISTIAN
Rob
is a fellow material science engineer and one of the most intelligent people I
know.
ANN
(looking
at her grade sheet) Well, he certainly is the number one student in here. You're applying to be an apprentice TA for
next quarter, I hope.
ROB
I
am . . . but I still have to do well in the class and I've heard that Beth is
setting up the practicum I'm going to take . . . word is out she makes up the
toughest practica around.
KRISTIAN
(doing
a bad cowboy imitation) That's right,
partner. Also, legend has it that from
100 yards away, she can shoot off a stallion's . . .
ANN
(interrupting)
Rob, why don't you gather our group to the brachial plexus demo and I'll be
there in a few minutes.
ROB exits
CAMERA VIEW. ANN picks up her papers and
throws KRISTIAN a disgusted look as she heads toward the TA office.
KRISTIAN
What
did I say?
INT.
TA OFFICE
NATALIA is in
the office looking out the door. ANN
enters.
NATALIA
Ann,
is this your lab?
ANN
Yeah. Why?
What's up?
NATALIA
Oh,
nothing . . .
NATALIA starts
fiddling with some papers in her TA box, not offering any more
information. ANN looks at NAT with one
raised eyebrow. ANN leaves the TA
OFFICE. NAT goes to a mirror, applies
some lipstick, shifts her breasts in a tight, low cut shirt to accentuate her
cleavage . . . then exits . . .
INT.
ANATOMY LAB
NATALIA stands
next to the TA OFFICE, she is scanning the room for someone . . . CAMERA VIEW
changes to MIKE who is teaching to a group of STUDENTS/SUPERNUMERARIES . . .
MIKE
Four
of the muscles make up the most superficial layer, if you will, of the anterior
antebrachial compartment . . .
ANN is seen
walking by behind MIKE with a spray bottle . . . she is spraying some of the
cadaver parts that are out on other tables . . . while MIKE is teaching, she
starts watching and listening . . .
MIKE
You can remember where they attach and
in what orientation by placing your thumb on the medial epicondyle
of the humerus and letting your fingers gently rest
on the antebrachium . . . see how that works . . .
now, each finger represents one of the muscles . . . and if you remember PFPF,
then you have the first letter of each muscle . . .
STUDENT
How am I going to remember that?
MIKE
Just think of the university football
team . . . punt, fumble, punt, fumble . . .
The GROUP
laughs . . . ANN is seen laughing too . . . she is about to leave to join her
group of students, but she watches MIKE for a moment longer . . . CAMERA VIEW
widens to see that NATALIA is also watching from behind the students . . . she
flashes a smile at him . . .
EXT.
UNIVERSITY CAMPUS - nighttime
INT.
ANATOMY LAB
CAMERA VIEW
includes the entire lab . . . it is full of STUDENTS/SUPERNUMERARIES. Body parts can be seen on a number of
tables. TA's are interspersed among the
students answering questions and teaching.
CAMERA VIEW CLOSES on BETH and a few STUDENTS/SUPERNUMERARIES.
BETH
.
. . now, point out the celiac trunk and its three branches . . .
Now . . . to
PAUL and a couple of STUDENTS/SUPERNUMERARIES.
PAUL
.
. . so the next thing I want you to do is trace a drop of fluid from the glomerulus to the urethra using this model . . .
Then . . . to
KRISTIAN and a couple of STUDENTS/SUPERNUMERARIES.
KRISTIAN
.
. . I'll buy a soda for the person who can name the eleven branches of the
internal iliac artery . . .
CAMERA VIEW
focuses on NATALIA who has her eyes on a MALE STUDENT/SUPERNUMERARY from a
distance. NAT has a pair of long forceps
in her hand. She makes her way toward
him without STUDENT noticing then grabs between his legs with the forceps. On STUDENT’s
reaction . . .
NATALIA
Gotta
keep you on your toes . . .
CAMERA VIEW
focuses on the background where PAUL is seen looking at NAT and STUDENT . . .
PAUL witnessed the entire event.
Later . . .
INT. ANATOMY
LAB
The lab is
empty of students . . . KRISTIAN, RAE, ANN, and LYNN are in different parts of
the lab, cleaning up parts, putting away bone boxes, etc.
INT. CADAVER
ROOM
PAUL and BETH
are at the sink, cleaning trays.
PAUL
.
. . I saw the entire thing . . .
BETH
Come
on . . . we’d better talk with the others . . .
INT.
ANATOMY LAB
BETH
and PAUL walk through the cadaver room door.
BETH
People,
we have a problem.
EVERYONE
gathers around the door of the cadaver room next to BETH and PAUL.
BETH
It
would seem that Nat took it upon herself to make moves on one of the students
during the open lab.
RAE
You’ve
got to be shitting me . . .
KRISTIAN
What
exactly happened?
PAUL
She
grabbed him between his legs with a pair of forceps . . . then said "Gotta
keep you on your toes."
ANN
Tell
me this isn't happening.
BETH
I
can’t believe she assaulted another person like that . . . and what if he
decides to press charges of sexual harassment against the lab and the
program? He has every right to . . . we
are in a buttload of trouble . . .
PAUL
Yeah,
well, that's where the story gets even more interesting. I talked to the student after the open lab
and confronted him about the incident . . . you know, to apologize for Nat's
behavior . . . and to see where he stood on this whole thing. He said he wasn't going to make any noise
because he might qualify to be an apprentice TA and he's afraid that if he
makes this into a big deal, it will ruin his chances. As far as he's concerned, it's a dead issue.
KRISTIAN
I
think this has gone far enough. Natalia
hasn't been fulfilling her lab duties and she's putting the program in
jeopardy. We've go to talk to Tom.
BETH
You
know what he's going to say . . . he's too damn nice . . . he will give her a
million chances before firing her . . .
KRISTIAN
She
shows up late . . . she leaves early . . . I mean, where the fuck is she now .
. . she should be here cleaning up . . . she doesn't train her apprentices
adequately . . . she's missed two meetings . . . never volunteers to proctor exams
. . .
LYNN
I'm
sick and tired of her using the lab as her own personal hunting grounds. She picks up a check . . . we get paid the
same . . . and she does one-fifth of the work . . .
ANN
Maybe
we should all talk to Natalia . . . maybe she'll change if we put pressure on
her.
PAUL
Don't
count on it . . . what we say won't matter because she knows we can't fire her
and that Tom won't . . .
RAE
We
don't have a lot of options, do we?
LYNN
I'll
go call her. (exit toward TA office)
RAE
(calling
after LYNN) She won't be home . . . (to
the others) . . . she's never home . . .
The door to
the lab opens and NATALIA enters. A MALE
SUPERNUMERARY/APPRENTICE TA is close behind.
NAT doesn't notice the others at first.
NAT
(to
male SUPERNUMERARY) . . . then we can go to my place and . . . (she sees the
others . . . on her reaction)
BETH
Nat
. . . can we speak to you . . . privately?
NAT
(beat)
I don't know . . . I'm really busy . . .
KRISTIAN
Now.
ANN
(to
the male SUPERNUMERARY) Could you wait
in the TA office just for a sec?
Thanks. (toward the office) Lynn, Nat's here.
Male
SUPERNUMERARY goes into TA office while LYNN comes out and joins the group.
BETH
We
need to talk about something very serious.
PAUL
Oh,
let's stop with the pleasantries . . . I saw you grab a guy between the legs in
the middle of open lab . . . this behavior is not only assaultive, but also in
this day and age of everyone being hypersensitive to sexual harassment, we just
can't have this type of indiscretion . . .
NAT
I
don't know what you are talking about . . . oh, sure, I kind of brushed one of
the student's legs with my own . . . but it was a crowded open lab . . .
PAUL
You
are full of shit . . . you grabbed his dick . . . he’s a student and you are
one of his teachers . . . don’t you get it?
This act was inappropriate and jeopardizes this program . . .
KRISTIAN
.
. . a program with which I have been involved with for 3 years . . . one that
I'm proud of . . . I expect you to formally apologize to this student with me
as a witness and you will discontinue this behavior . . . you are not
allowed to hit on the students . . . have I made myself clear?
NAT
Your
attempt to intimidate me isn't working, Klaus . . . nor is this little
bit with the rest of you ganging up on me . . . you people are wasting my
valuable time . . . it's my word against Paul's that this event even took place
. . . and I reiterate that I simply brushed up against the guy, therefore,
there is no need for an apology. . . (beat) is the student making a big deal out of this . . . (no response from
others) . . . I didn't think so . . look, this inquisition is fun and all, but
I have things to do . . .
BETH
Nat,
we have some other issues to discuss . . . we're not through yet . . .
NATALIA
I
am.
NAT
goes to back of the room, picks up a skull, then goes to the door to the TA
office.
NAT
(calling
toward the office) Ready to go.
MALE
SUPERNUMERARY comes out of the office, then he and NAT exit the lab through the
main door.
LYNN
That
went well.
ANN
I
can't believe that smug bitch. I could
rip her larynx out with my own two hands.
PAUL
Ann,
Ann . . . you are forgetting the cliché of don't mutilate, get even. All we have to do is tell her boyfriend that
she is fraternizing . . .
RAE
It's
more complicated than that. Her
boyfriend doesn't like us much. He
thinks it's our fault that she doesn't spend a lot of time with him. I have a feeling he wouldn't believe us. And we are still not solving the most serious
issue . . . we can't have her doing shit like this.
KRISTIAN
We
all need to keep a closer eye on her.
Document any time that she does anything that could be interpreted as
harassment including this incident.
Maybe at least that way, we can show that she is the only one who is
involved in this type of activity and the program will be spared.
BETH
Good
idea. In the meantime, we also are going
to have to cover her lab duties as she obviously has no intention of doing them
herself.
PAUL
Beth,
you and I can train her apprentices . . .
ANN
Looks
like one of them is already getting some private training . . . OK . . . I can
take care of the cadaver room myself . . .
KRISTIAN
The
rest of us can cover for her as necessary.
The sound of
the front door of the anatomy lab opening is heard . . . MIKE walks in . . .
the group greets him . . .
LYNN
Sounds
like we've got things solved . . . for now.
Come on guys. Enough of this
downer stuff. Let's go eat.
ANN
(to
MIKE) Would you like to join us?
MIKE
Sure,
I’d love to . . .
BETH
Lynn,
you are a man after my own stomach . . . and a super guy to boot . . .
LYNN
(CAMERA
VIEW focuses on LYNN taking a "Superman" stance, staring at a distant
point) That's me. Faster than a cheating student, more powerful
than the alcohol stench in the lab, able to leap cadaver tanks in a single
bound . . . Hey . . .
CAMERA VIEW
WIDENS to show LYNN by himself and the main lab door shutting. LYNN runs out of CAMERA VIEW toward the door
. . .
EXT.
DOUBLE M - nighttime
LYNN,
PAUL, KRISTIAN, RAE, BETH, MIKE, and ANN are seen walking in . . .
INT.
DOUBLE M
EVERYONE sits
down. ANN sees dried blades of grass in BETH's hair and proceeds to pick them out.
ANN
Hmmm
. . . did you and Klaus make a pit stop on the way over . . .
KRISTIAN and
BETH look at each other and each one simultaneously lifts their eyebrows. ANN slugs KRISTIAN in the arm.
ANN
Way
to not invite me!
KRISTIAN
(grabbing
ANN's arm) Come on, your turn.
ANN frees her
arm from KRISTIAN's grasp and gets the rest of the
grass out of BETH's hair.
PAUL
Well,
this is too much fun . . . (getting up)
LYNN
Hey,
man . . . where are you going?
PAUL
Gotta
call my wife . . . let her know where I am . . .
LYNN
Talk
about whipped . . .
PAUL
Yeah,
yeah . . . bite me . . .
PAUL
leaves the table.
BETH
(pulling
a book out of her black bag) Well, no sense in wasting time. Come on.
Let's do some embryology.
ANN
You've
got to be kidding. I'm so beat from our
study session last night I could sleep standing.
LYNN
Man,
embryology lab is such a fucking waste of time.
ANN
So,
Lynn, tell us how you really feel.
CAMERA VIEW
changes to another part of Double M where PAUL is on the phone . . .
PAUL
I
should be home in a couple of hours . . . (beat) yeah, I need to finish that
paper . . . I love you too . . . bye . . .
CAMERA VIEW
follows PAUL back to the group. MIKE,
RAE, and KRISTIAN are talking, but their conversation is muffled. PAUL sees ANN and BETH with their heads down
on the table with LYNN trying to ask questions from a book.
PAUL
(sitting)
God, Lynn, what did you say to them?
LYNN
I
told them that the one who was the quietest got to sit on my lap during dinner.
KRISTIAN
Well,
the one who walks the sexiest gets to sit by me at dinner.
The GROUP
erupts into conversation . . . MIKE turns to ANN . . .
MIKE
So,
is this a typical outing with you guys?
ANN
Yeah,
pretty much . . . scary, ain’t it?
MIKE
Actually,
I think that “fascinating” is a better adjective . . .
ANN
(beat)
It’s going to be so heartbreaking when we all go our separate ways . . . I’ll
lose my movie partner when Beth leaves . . . by the way, I was wondering if you
would be interested in seeing the new action flick with me that just came out
last weekend . . . Beth refuses to see it . . .
MIKE
Oh
yeah . . . that movie . . . what’s it called? . . . “Faster” . . . I’d love to
go . . . say, tomorrow?
ANN
Tomorrow
would be great . . .
On
ANN and MIKE’s reaction . . .
EXT.
UNIVERSITY CAMPUS - nighttime
The night sky
is clear with a full moon shining brightly.
ANN and MIKE are walking toward the “rock and block” garden.
MIKE
That’s
amazing . . . I can’t name off a single movie you haven’t seen . . .
ANN
Well,
there are some of the gorier ones that I try to avoid, but Beth usually ends up
dragging me to them.
MIKE
And
you don’t have a boyfriend . . .
ANN
What
does that have to do with movies?
MIKE
Nothing
. . . I was just curious . . .
ANN
I
don’t have much luck with guys . . . (she climbs onto one of the blocks)
MIKE
That’s
probably because they are intimidated by you . . . I mean, you’re smart, you’re
applying for medical school . . . (on ANN’s reaction)
you can dance and you are a movie buff . . . that’s a lot for a guy to take . .
. (he also climbs onto a block)
ANN
(beat)
Wasn’t that the greatest scene from the movie . . . when the RV made it over
that wide jump . . . (she jumps from one block to another)
MIKE
You
don’t really believe that could happen, do you . . . I mean, did you see the
angle the RV was at? (follows ANN’s lead, jumps to another block) No way it could have
made it in real life . . .
ANN
(jumping
from block to block) Hey, now . . . I go to movies to escape reality . . . I’m
going to write one someday . . .
MIKE
(also
jumping from block to block) I’ve seen you watching the others at the Friday
meetings . . . are you gathering material for a potential script . . .
ANN
Not
necessarily . . . I just like to people watch . . . (beat) it would seem that
I’m not the only one . . .
ANN and MIKE
land on the same block. They grab onto
each other to keep from falling. MIKE
brushes a lock of ANN’s hair away from her face, then
he kisses her.
INT.
ANATOMY LAB
Loud music is
heard in the background. TOM, ANN, LYNN,
PAUL, KRISTIAN, BELISSA and SUPERNUMERARIES are seen throughout the room
grading examinations. BELISSA walks over
to LYNN.
BELISSA
May
I say that this is quite an intriguing event.
LYNN
What?
BELISSA
This
"final's grading party." I
highly doubt there is anything like it on the rest of the campus.
LYNN
Oh
. . . yeah . . . hey, the best part is still to come . . .
BELISSA
What's
that?
LYNN
You'll
understand what I mean before we are done grading . . . (looking up) oh, yes, the lab mutha
provides!
RAE and BETH
enter the lab through the main door carrying food. They take it to the front table.
RAE
(with
a southern drawl) Come and get it!
Some
PEOPLE go to the front of the room to get food.
BELISSA
(to
LYNN) Is this the best part?
LYNN
Not
yet.
BETH
(standing
on the front table) OK, everyone . . .
while people are getting food, let's find out who has the most humorous answer
from a student on this semester's final . . . any entries?
PAUL
(running
from the back of the room) I've got
it! And I dare any of you to top this
one . . . (drawing the pelvic bones and femurs on the board) You know how the students are supposed to
draw the anterior thigh muscles with the proper attachments on the pelvic bones
and femurs, right? . . . well, this is the answer I got . . . (draws a square
muscle connecting the two femurs) My
friends, I present to you . . . the vastus virginalis.
Applause,
cheers, and laughs from the room.
PAUL
Thank
you, thank you . . .
ANN
That's
pretty good, Paul . . . discovering a new anatomical structure . . . I think we
should name it after you . . .
LYNN
In
that case, we'll have to call it the vastus virginalis brevis . . .
PAUL
If
that's a short joke, you're life may end up being brevis
. . .
BELISSA
(to
LYNN) Is this the best part?
LYNN
Not
yet . . . (to BETH) Hey, let's get on to the important contest!
BETH
Give
it up, Lynn. The all time champion has
never been beaten!
LYNN
But
I've been training all semester . . . let's get to it!
BETH
All
right, Lynn, you asked for it . . . (to the entire room) Fellow finals graders . . . there is a
tradition in this lab that has lasted since Tom started teaching anatomy . . .
at the end of every semester, each anatomy TA has a chance to challenge their
own anatomy in a test of endurance . . . no one is obligated to participate . .
. this is a purely voluntary event . . . if you do choose to undertake this
task, we ask that you place one dollar in a community pot . . . winner takes
all . . .
LYNN
(running
up to the front, slapping a dollar on the table) I'm in!
And THIS semester I will be world champion.
A number of
PEOPLE go up to the front, putting money on the table.
BELISSA
(yelling
over the din) Hey . . . what's the
challenge . . what do we have to do?
BETH
You'll
see Belissa.
BELISSA sees
ANN grading papers and eating food and crosses to her.
BELISSA
Aren't
you going to participate?
ANN
I
can't . . . my dentist said I completely wrecked my jaw last time . . . she
told me not to participate anymore if I want to continue chewing . . . besides,
it's my turn to hand out the ice packs . . .
BELISSA
Your
jaw? . . . And ice packs? . . . is everyone going to box each other or
something . . . and the last one standing gets the money . . .
ANN
Not
exactly . . .
BETH, RAE,
TOM, LYNN, and some SUPERNUMERARIES are seen with the entire ends of soda cans
in their mouths. One SUPERNUMERARY takes
the can out of his mouth, lets out a gasp, and rubs his jaw. ANN walks over.
ANN
(hands
SUPERNUMERARY an ice pack) Good job . .
. you lasted longer than most . . .
BETH takes the
can out of her mouth then looks at her watch while rubbing her jaw.
ANN
You
did it Beth! You beat your best time!
BETH
tries to smile, but ends up wincing in pain.
More time
passes and TA’s/SUPERNUMERARIES are seen taking the cans out of their mouths
until there are only 2 left . . . TOM and LYNN.
LYNN is seen rubbing his jaw and sweating.
BETH
You'll
never beat him, Lynn . . . Tom could sit there like that until next term and it
wouldn't bother him . . . he's got the jaw of a snake!
LYNN is seen
scowling. LYNN stands up, walks around,
looking agitated. After a short time, he
starts jumping up and down, then finally, takes the can out of his mouth. Cheers and applause are heard.
TOM goes to
the front of the room, picks up a pile of money, and finally takes the can out
of his mouth. ANN hands an ice pack to
TOM . . . ANN then takes two ice packs to LYNN who immediately puts them on
either side of his face.
ANN
You
put up a good fight, Lynn . . . Tom just can't be beaten . . .
On
LYNN’s reaction . . .
CAMERA VIEW
follows ANN as she goes back to her desk to continue grading papers. BETH joins her.
BETH
Come
on, Ann . . . how did your date with Mike go?
ANN
It
wasn’t a date, per se . . . we just went to see a movie . . .
PAUL (V.O.)
Did
he kiss you good-night?
PAUL
and KRISTIAN sit on either side of ANN.
ANN
Does
it really matter if . . .
KRISTIAN
More
importantly, did he give you any tongue?
BETH
Klaus!
ANN
Do
you mind? Look . . . you know my track
record with guys . . . I like him a lot, but I don’t want to get my hopes up,
OK?
PAUL
Sorry,
Ann . . .
KRISTIAN
Me,
too . . .
ANN
It’s
OK . . .
KRISTIAN
So
about the tongue thing . . .
In
exasperation, ANN puts her head in her hands.
BETH slugs KRISTIAN in the arm.
KRISTIAN shrugs.
INT.
ANATOMY LAB
Christmas
decorations adorn the lab walls. RAE is
taking down the decorations. LYNN is
mopping/sweeping the floor. TOM,
KRISTIAN, and PAUL are surrounding an open cadaver tank. KRISTIAN is at one end of the tank, holding
the bar that lifts the body. PAUL is at
the other end, doing the same. TOM is
standing behind the tank.
TOM
(looks
at PAUL) Ready, Paul?
PAUL
I'm
ready.
TOM
(looks
at KRISTIAN) Ready, Kristian?
KRISTIAN
Aye,
aye, captain. (to PAUL) Hoist away!
They each push
the bars down, the body comes up, revealing BETH lying on the platform.
KRISTIAN
Looks
like the cables are strong enough.
PAUL
Klaus,
we do good work . . . our repairs make lifting the platform a hell of a lot
easier.
TOM
And,
if it's clean enough for Beth to lie in, it's clean enough for use next
semester.
BETH
Nothing
is ever clean enough for me . . . by the way, do you have this in a larger
size? It's a little cramped in here.
PAUL
Well,
ma'am, we could custom make one for ya, but that will
cost ya extra.
Plus it will take a few weeks to have it delivered from the factory . .
. I really think this is you . . .
BETH
Mmmmm . . . All right . . . I'll take it . .
. but I want it in black.