An Apartment In NYC:
A light-skinned woman with short hair black hair and brown eyes is looking at her own reflection in the mirror in a steamy bathroom. A young black man in his early 20ies can be seen behind her. Through his form, the rest of the apartment can be clearly seen. His ghostly form is wearing a red running suit with a gray t-shirt. Around his neck is a gold chain with dog tags. His hair is in cornrows, slicked back over his head and joined together at the back. His hair ends at his neck.
The woman hears a phone ring and comments to herself that it’s a stupid phone. She is totally unaware of the young man in ghostly form behind her. He appears to reach toward her and she falls to the floor of the bathroom not moving or making a sound. The black man’s ghostly form leaves the bathroom and returns to his body seated in the chair in the living room. As he regains possession of his faculties, he reaches for his cell phone.
Zebra Daddy is on the other end of the phone and asks him where he is at. The young man gets up, picks up a newspaper, and leaves the apartment to make his way to the street. Bobby claims he is just visiting a friend. Zebra Daddy tells him to say his good-byes as his skills are needed elsewhere. Zebra Daddy states that he needs his “Felon”. Bobby stutters “I….I don’t know” into his cell phone as if he is unsure. Zebra Daddy assures him that all he wants to do is talk, a very important talk. With no hesitation, Bobby agrees to see Zebra Daddy very soon.
Bobby absent-mindedly drops the paper he is holding to make another call. The wind blows the paper down the street exposing the headline “L-Bo Back in town: Paparazzi smother diva at the four seasons.” The picture next to the headline matches the young woman he just left laying on the bathroom floor of the apartment he just left.
As Bobby exits the building, he speaks his name and address into the cell phone.
Abandoned Warehouse in the Bronx:
Tatiana tells Kiden to not order her to be quiet her not to be upset. She reminds Kiden that she has never experienced a day as bad as hers. Kiden tries to apologize and tells Tatiana that she understands how hard this to believe. Tatiana disagrees and finds Kiden to be completely believable. She states that she does believe that an image of Kiden’s dead father told Kiden to rescue her. She even believes Kiden can slow down time. Tatiana points to X-23 and says the razor sharp claws coming out of her hands and feet are kind of creepy. Tatiana then turns to Cameron and states that she even believes she is Kiden’s high school teacher who has been dragged into this for who knows what reason. Tatiana states that all of this is perfectly cool. Especially since she has turned into Tatiana the dog-faced girl this afternoon. Tatiana tells the group that she thinks the transformation alone makes anything Kiden says believable.
Kiden tells her to calm down. However, Tatiana continues to state that all she wants to do is go home and get some sleep. So she can wake up tomorrow and know that today was some sort of horrible dream. Kiden asks her if she seriously believes that will work? Tatiana replies, “watch me” and turns to leave group there. Kiden and X-23 just sit there and watch her go.
An of Kiden’s dead father suddenly appears, but its X-23’s voice which states “She can’t go back”. X-23 turns to Kiden to ask, “What did I say?” as Kiden covers her face with her hands in shock.
The Flatiron District.
Zebra Daddy and Bobby are sitting on a couch in Zebra Daddy’s apartment. Zebra Daddy is actually crying on Bobby’s shoulder. He is crying about a girl he loved so much that she was his life. She left suddenly without warning and never returned. Zebra Daddy claims that he has been heartbroken ever since and nothing has ever been the same. Bobby says he is very sorry to hear about this. Zebra Daddy shows Bobby a picture of X-23.
Zebra Daddy says he needs his “Felon” to bring his little girl back to him. Bobby tells him that he doesn’t do that anymore because it affects his health. Zebra pleads with Bobby by calling him “G” and says he only needs Felon one more time. Bobby explains that he gets sick, really sick in his head.
Bobby gets up to leave and Zebra Daddy asks if he is still saving up to get himself and his little brother out of town. Bobby says he is still a little short. Zebra asks “how short?”. The reply is “5 Clevelands”. Zebra tells him to find the girl and he will double that amount. Bobby stops in his tracks. Zebra repeats his offer and reminds Bobby he can leave town after this job. Bobby says he doesn’t know what to say. Zebra tells him to just say he will do it. Bobby says he and his little brother can sure use the cash. Zebra reminds him again how soon he can leave this town behind.
Bobby finally agrees with Zebra. Daddy says he can start by talking to Tonya. She works for Zebra and has said that she saw the girl hanging out with two other girls.
As Zebra dials the combination to his safe, Bobby confirms that all he wants is the girl back with no one hurt. Zebra tells him “No questions asked” and gives him half up front. He says Bobby can just tell him where she is and leave the rest up to Zebra Daddy. Bobby takes the money and as the two men hug he tells Daddy that the Felon is back in town. Daddy assures him he won’t forget this and reminds him to be on his guard. Bobby agrees.
Bobby takes the picture and heads toward the elevator. Before he gets on the elevator he asks Zebra Daddy if the girl has a name. Daddy replies “#$% if I know” as he is dialing his cell phone.
As soon as the phone is answered, he says “Yo Diesel! ‘S Daddy. Get a crew together, my place. NOW!”
The Bronx, Tatiana’s Home:
Tatiana is relieved to be home. She puts her key in the lock and opens the door. What she sees as the door opens is her mom and Reuben on the couch in a compromising position with a sheet that barely conceals what they are doing.
Shocked, she asks he mom what she is doing. Her mom reminds her whose house it is and demands to know why she isn’t at school. Before she can answer her mom tells her to get back to school. However, the cats begin growling at her before she can close the door. Beretta, the bird, attacks her. Skeeter also begins to attack her. Her mom yells at her to get out! She also reminds Tatiana how sick she is of all the animals in the house. Tatiana turns to run from the apartment as he mom yells behind her “Are you covered in blood? What did you do?”
Tatiana is chased to the top of the stairs by cats, which have always been her friends before. In her blinding run she mis-steps and falls. As she gets to her feet she sees Kiden leaning on the handrail at the bottom of the stairs. Kiden simply states ‘It is not a dream”.
District X, Manhattan 7:35 a.m.
Bobby wakes his little brother and lifts him gently out of bed. He takes him to the kitchen table and tells him he is facing a busy day. He makes breakfast and tells his little brother that their ship has just come in. As he feeds his sibling he tells him its nothing bad, just one more job for Zebra Daddy, so they can leave this place. He tells his sibling they will move to Vegas where he can work at a casino and get his little brother into a clinic. The clinic will help him walk and talk as good as everyone else. His little brother sits there looking at him and never says a word. Bobby says he knows they have talked about him not using his skills anymore but he feels he is getting better.
Bobby tells his sibling that just last night he was sitting in bed and he could “almost remember… them, almost” as tears runs down his cheek. An older black woman with short hair knocks on the door as she enters she says “hello” and tells him the door was open.
Bobby greets her as Mrs. Aba.
On his way out the door he hands her money, tells her he is in a hurry because he has some work today. He also tells her his little brother still needs to go to the bathroom. Bobby slams the door shut leaving Mrs. Alba to care for his sibling.
Manhattan, 8:05 a.m.
Bobby walks down a crowded street in front of a cheap hotel. He sees a girl coming out the door and asks him if she is Tonya. She asks him who is asking. He tells her “Zebra Daddy.” Tonya tells Bobby she is done for the night. She digs through her purse and hands Bobby the piece of paper she found there. She tells him that this is the address she gave Zebra Daddy. Tonya assures him that one of the girls lives at this address and adds that she doesn’t know anything more about any of the girls. She says she is sorry she even mentioned it to anyone.
East 25th street 8:18 a.m.
Out on the street, it’s a bright sunny morning and people are out doing their usual morning activities. Bobby walks past them up the wooden staircase to the apartment building that matches the address he was given by Tonya earlier that morning. As he approaches the floor he is seeking, he hears a dog bark from behind an apartment door. An older woman wearing a pink jogging suit opens another apartment door. She carries a baseball bat and at her side is a small shaggy growling dog. She asks him what he wants while brandishing the baseball bat. Bobby raises his hands slightly to indicate that he is unarmed and means no harm as he apologizes and takes several steps backwards. Bobby is standing in front of an apartment covered with police tape. The woman identifies him as one of Cameron’s students and he readily agrees. She tells him that she has no idea when or if Mrs. Palmer will be returning to her apartment.
Giuliani High School 8:30 a.m.
Bobby is talking to a group of girls on the grounds of the high school. They tell him how Mrs. Palmer was shot by Hector and now Hector is in juvenile detention for the crime. Bobby tells them that he heard Mrs. Palmer was seen hanging out with two other girls. One of the girls tells him he is cute and asks why he is so curious.
Off to the side, Bobby notices Tatiana walking alone hugging her books close to her. He asks the girls who she is. One tells him she is nobody while another tells him she is one of the girls he is asking about.
Bobby turns and runs after Tatiana, yelling at her to wait for him. He catches up to her and slows his pace to walk with her. He asks her where she is rushing to. She asks him if she knows him. He tells her not yet but she wants to know him. Tatiana stops dead in her tracks, looks him right in the eye and asks him if he came to threaten her because the other girls asked him to. Bobby assures her that he just wants to ask some questions regarding Mrs. Palmer. She tells him he has the wrong girl and turns to leave. Bobby reaches out to touch her while angling his body against the fence. He says “I was afraid.” and Tatiana finishes his sentence with “you’d say that”. Bobby explains to her that he is in complete control of her. He says that unless she tells him what he wants to know, he will walk her over to the biggest girl in the group, slap her face, and leave Tatiana on her own to deal with the outcome.
Alleyway in the Bronx
Kiden is busily going through a dumpster, looking for food or anything she can use. Mrs. Palmer sits on the trunk of an abandoned vehicle nearby. Tatiana is talking to Kiden while she forages. She tells Kiden that she used to have fantasies of what it would be like to live on the street. However, she has learned that it really sucks. She complains that she is “cold and hungry and…” She is interrupted by Kiden handing her a sandwich she found in the garbage and saying “Bon appetit..” Tatiana reacts with a look of disgust on her face.
Mrs. Palmer just sits there with a smile on her face. Tatiana asks her what she is smiling at. Kiden asks Mrs. Palmer if she is ok. After all, she has been sitting here since she woke up this morning. She tells Kiden that just a short few days ago she was resting at home. She had a home. And look at her condition now. Kiden agrees that their life has been crazy lately. She tells Kiden that her comment has been misunderstood. What she meant to say is that as much as she tries to tell herself that he is responsible or the way she is currently living, she can’t escape the conclusion that Kiden is the one who is really responsible for all of this. She tells Kiden that she believes in her powers, her visions, but this does not give Kiden the right to destroy her life, not once, but twice.
Kiden apologizes to Mrs. Palmer and explains that it is as if someone else is controlling their situation. Mrs. Palmer tells her to cut the crap. She claims that there has never been any “us in all of this”. She tells Kiden that this all about her and her Daddy fixation. Somehow, she feels she has been drawn into it and is now stuck in it. She tells Kiden that she finally understands why Kiden’s mom’s life got so much better after Kiden left. Kiden covers her face with her hand and turns away from her teacher.
Essex street:
Bobby is talking to Zebra Daddy, updating him on his girl’s activities. He tells Daddy that the girls is hanging out with a local named Kiden Nixon who has a mom and three brothers in Alphabet city. He tells Daddy the other girl is Cameron Palmer, a high school teacher. He reminds Daddy that no one is supposed to get hurt, but his gang destroyed Cameron’s apartment. Daddy claims that the signals got mixed and it was an accident. All he wants to know is where the girls are. Bobby tells him that they can be anywhere as they are currently living on the streets. Daddy tells him he is disappointed to receive this information from someone as reliable as Bobby. Bobby reminds him that they are probably planning on leaving town and will eventually return to the apartment to get the rest of the stuff they need before they leave. He suggests that Daddy station a couple of guys outside the apartment and wait. Zebra Daddy says he will do that but he doesn’t want Bobby leaving till after this job is done. Bobby asks what he means by “done”? Daddy tells him done as when he gets the rest of the money and the girl is back where she belongs.
Zebra Daddy asks Bobby how he knows they won’t go back to the neighborhood girls’ home instead. Bobby tells him that there is no way she is ever going back to her family. Bobby leaps from the white guy’s body he has possessed and back into his own. The white guy slums to the sidewalk. He takes the cell phone from him and punches him in the jaw to make sure he stays down. Bobby walks off down the sidewalk as if nothing has happened.
Alleyway in the Bronx
As Kiden walks away from Mrs. Palmer to continue dumpster diving, Tatiana asks if they are just going to wait around until Kiden sees her dead father or are they going to come up with a plan. After all, all Kiden has been doing is digging through a dumpster all morning. As Tatiana finishes her sentence, Kiden pulls a day planner from the trash. She opens it to discover drugs in small bags and an envelope pinned to the front cover.
District X, Manhattan 7:35 a.m.
Bobby is making an attempt to feed his little brother alphabet soup. He tells his sibling that he knows he worries when he comes home late. Bobby assures him he would never forget to come home. He tells his little brother that he had to use his gift a bunch of times today. He hangs his head and says he just can’t bring himself to lie to the child. Suddenly, the figure of Kiden’s dead father appears behind his little brother. Bobby drops the soupspoon and puts his hands up to protect himself from the horrific vision.
