DEGRASSI: AFTERMATH - S03E09 - THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST
Disclaimer:: I don´t own Degrassi or the characters from it.
Author´s Note: It´s an episode a day these days! I hope you´re enjoying them.
1. Int. Auto Shop. Day.
Jay has just arrived for work. He hardly looks in a good mood this morning. On the way to the changing room, several people look at him with an annoyed look on their face. He gets to the changing room and opens his locker. Two of his co-workers, Dwayne and Leroy come over to him.
Dwayne:
What are you doing here?
Jay:
What do you think? I work here.
Leroy:
No one wants you here, Jay.
Dwayne:
Go back to your psycho girlfriend.
Jay tries to contain himself.
Jay:
You two need to watch, what you say around me.
Leroy:
Or what?
Dwayne:
Do you think anyone here except Sean, would back you up?
Leroy:
Leave and don´t come back. You don´t want to find out what happens, if you do.
Sean comes in to the locker room. Leroy and Dwayne leave.
Sean:
What was that about?
Jay just shakes his head.
OPENING CREDITS
2. Int. Maya and Lola´s Apartment. Day.
Mays is hugging her knees on the couch, while Zoe is stting in an armchair. She´s looking over Maya´s contract for the show.
Zoe:
I wish, I could give you better news.
Maya:
So, there´s nothing I can do?
Zoe:
The last clause in it allows them to use the footage as they see fit. If you´d showed this to me before you did it, I never would have recommended doing it.
Maya:
They put it in front of me right before the interview started. I didn´t read any of it, before I signed. I´m such an idiot!
Zoe:
Because you trust people? Maya, you´ve come so far over the last year. You can´t let this ruin all that.
Maya:
How hasn´t this ruined everything? No one will hire me and if I go back to school, everyone will know who I am and hate me, before they even know me.
Zoe:
You could sue for defamation, but I can´t recommend it. They probably have an army of lawyers to guard them and since you signed, there´s not much to go on.
Maya is looking very depressed and stares out in to blank air.
Zoe:
I got a Face range from Tristan this morning. He says they took everything he said out of context and he wants to make amends.
Maya:
Screw him. I hope he rots in hell.
Zoe:
You´re upset. I´m sure that in time ...
Maya:
In time, my life will still be ruined, while he can go on like nothing happened.
Zoe:
I know this must seem very unfair. You´ll just have to fight through it.
Maya is clearly having trouble being hopeful right now.
3. Ext. Park. Day.
Julie, Lisa and Jack are hanging out after school. Julie especially looks excited and does a little dance while she sings.
Julie:
I love Summer, I love Summer ...
Lisa:
I can´t believe prom is tonight. This year has just flown by.
Jack:
If only we had dates for for it.
Julie:
What are you complaining about? None of the other boys get to take two hot girls there.
Jack:
Yeah, but the other boys have the chance of getting a little nookie.
Lisa:
You´ve never heard of a threesome?
Jack gets all flustered, which Julie and Lisa find funny.
Julie:
Relax, Jackie boy. We´ll let you off easy.
Jamie and Chrissy come up to them, holding hands and looking pretty happy.
Chrissy:
This is the best moment of the year. There´s nothing like that first day of Summer vacation.
Jamie:
Are you guys ready for prom?
Lisa:
I´ve had my Stevie Nicks outfit picked out for weeks. It´s gonna be a blast!
Julie:
Me, too. I´m going as Janis Joplin.
Jack:
I´m doing it easy. David Lee Roth from Van Halen. A blonde wig, a pair of jeans and an open hawaii shirt.
Chrissy:
That could be any male rock singer from the 70´s.
Julie:
How about you guys?
Chrissy:
Farrah Fawcett. She was one of the Charlie´s Angels and this big style icon of the era.
Jamie:
I have no clue. It´s the 70´s. How should I know anything about it?
Chrissy:
Maybe you guys could help him out? I´m babysitting my brothers this afternoon and then I´m heading over to my mom´s, so she can help me with my outfit.
Julie:
We get to use Jamie as our make over doll? This is the best day ever!
Lisa:
I´m thinking we go all out George Clinton with him.
Jamie:
Thanks.
Jack:
You wouldn´t say that, if you knew what he used to look like. You´ll have me as the voice of reason there, to stop them from going too crazy.
Jamie looks less worried and Chrissy smiles widely.
4. Int. Auto Shop. Day.
Jay and Sean are eating their lunches. Everyone else is keeping a distance around them.
Sean:
You just gotta get through these next days. Everything will be back to normal before you know it.
Jay:
I´m not gonna last that long. All these people talking crap about her, just loud enough that they know, I´ll hear it.
Sean:
I need to use the can. You´ve been here for years, man. Don´t let them get to you.
Sean leaves him. He continues eating while looking sulky. Dwayne and Leroy come over to his table, laughing. He looks up at them. They´re watching a video on Leroy´s phone.
Jay:
Can´t you just leave me alone?
Dwayne:
We were just checking some of your girlfriend´s old "Greatest Hits" on PornHub.
Leroy:
Now that she´s in the media, those videos are having one hell of a renaissance!
Dwayne:
I coudn´t do it. Could you, Leroy?
Leroy:
Do what?
Dwayne:
Screw this skanky slut, we´re looking at right now. I´d be afraid of catching something, if it was me.
Jay gets up and stares Dwayne right in the eyes.
Jay:
What did you say?
Dwayne:
You heard me. How does it feel to know, that right now there´s hundreds of guys jerking off to her? Or maybe you get off on that kind of stuff.
Jay decks him with one punch and is about to give him some more, when the other mechanics restrain him. Sean comes back from the bathroom and sees what happened.
5. Int. Auto Shop. Day.
Jay comes out from the manager´s office, holding a piece of paper. Sean was waiting for him.
Sean:
How did it go?
Jay:
I´ve been fired.
Sean:
I´m sorry, man.
Jay:
I´ll get a new job. Eventually. It´s not like mechanics with a history of crime and violence are in high demand. Then when I do get a job, I have to hope that this doesn´t follow me there.
Sean:
You don´t deserve this and neither does Maya.
Jay:
Thanks for saying so. It´s a shame the entire world feels differently, than you do.
He begins to leave and Sean looks at him with sympathy as he walks out the door.
6. Int. Maya and Lola´s Apartment. Day.
Maya is hugging her knees again. This time it´s Eddy, who´s come to see her.
Eddy:
You know, it´s not something any of us want to do. They all like you a lot, but it´s pretty much all the places, we´re scheduled to play at, that don´t want you there.
Maya:
You don´t have to apologize. It´s not your fault.
Eddy:
Maybe you can rejoin, when this all dies down.
Maya:
It´s not gonna die down!
Eddy:
Trust me, it will.
Maya:
Yeah, after I change my name Mahamadudu and move to Botswana!
Eddy:
Botswana?
Maya:
It´s as good as any other place. Lola said Denmark is really nice. Maybe I should move over there.
Eddy:
Before you start packing your bags, at least give your life here another chance. You know I love you, but without people like Lola and Jay in your life, I´m afraid you´ll end up depressed again.
Maya:
You don´t think, I´m depressed now? I´ve hit some lows, but this is on a new scale all together!
Eddy:
I´ve got nothing on my schedule until tonight. What do you say I quickly drive back to my place, pick up two guitars and a six pack on the way back here. We´ll jam the afternoon away, like we used to do.
He actually managed to make her smile a tiny bit and she stops hugging her knees.
Maya:
Make it two six-packs and you´ve got a deal. Thanks, Eddy!
Eddy:
Like I was just gonna leave you here all alone, when you´re in this mood. You know me better than that. Today I´ll show you, how music is the great healer of bad moods.
They smile at each other.
7. Montage - music: "Get The Party Started" by Pink
The kids are getting ready for their prom and are enjoying themselves. Lisa and Julie quickly find out that dressing like Stevie Nicks and dressing like Janis Joplin means you pretty much have the same outfit on. They look different enough however, that´s it´s no big deal. As you could probably guess, they look absolutely adorable dressed up like them. Jack shows off his David Lee Roth outfit and it works pretty good. He clearly feels a little silly at first, but the girls love it (especially the painted on chest hair), which makes him feel more at ease. He´s obviously pretty wowéd by Julie in her outfit and she loves the attention, he´s giving her. He makes sure to give Lisa enough praise too, that she doesn´t get jealous. Next it´s time for Jamie to try some outfits on. He comes out as Elvis, but clearly it´s not working for him at all. He then comes out as Bruce Springsteen circa 1975, which Lisa likes, but Julie nixes. He comes out in a silly disco outfit, which Julie loves, but both Jack and Lisa and he himself hates. Finally he comes out as John Travolta from "Saturday Night Fever" and everyone agrees that it works, himself included. Julie and Lisa helps him get the hair right too, Jamie clearly not enjoying that part of it, but when he sees the end product, he´s impressed with their work and the girls look happy with it too.
8. Int. The Dot. Day.
Jay is looking pretty depressed, sitting at the counter and drinking a root beer, when Paige comes in. She comes up to him.
Paige:
Hi, Jay. What are you doing here in the middle of the day?
Jay:
It´s a long story.
Paige catches Michaela´s attention as she comes out of the kitchen.
Paige:
Michaela, the usual.
Michaela:
Sure, Paige. Take a seat.
Paige:
You wanna tell me about it?
Jay looks at her with a very sulky look on his face.
Paige:
You´ve got the cheer-up machine here. Take advantage of it.
He relents and they sit down at one of the tables.
Jay:
I just got fired for punching a guy.
Paige:
He must have done something really bad for you to do that.
Jay:
He was talking crap about Maya. Have you heard about, what happened to her?
Paige:
I haven´t seen it myself, but Manny told me, it was brutal. How´s she taking it?
Jay:
She´s hiding out from the world. She has a history of depression. It was long before I got to know her, but from what she´s told me, it was about as bad as it could have been.
Paige:
No wonder that you´re worried about her. What about you? Can you find a new job, just like that?
Jay:
That´s very unlikely.
Paige:
Well, do you have a driver´s license?
Jay:
Of course I do. I´ve even got a fork lift license, not that I´ve ever used it for much.
Paige:
We always need plenty of crew members for a movie like this and we´ve just started hiring.
Jay:
So, who do I need to talk to?
Paige:
You´re looking at her.
Jay:
Can you get me a job?
Paige:
It´ll only be for the next 5 or 6 months, but it´s a start. I´ll even make sure you´ll get a regular schedule, so Maya won´t have to miss you too much.
She managed to make him smile again, which pleases her.
Jay:
Thanks a lot, Paige.
Paige:
Don´t mention it. So are you gonna try one of those grease ball burgers with me? My treat!
Jay:
What are we talking here?
Paige:
So much bacon, that it´s even pushing me to my limits!
Jay smiles and nods.
9. Int. Emma and Sean´s Apartment. Day.
Spike and Emma are waiting excitedly for Chrissy to come out of the bathroom. She comes out and is a tiny vision of beauty with her Farrah hair, bell bottom jeans and a flanel shirt tied up across her chest.
Spike/Emma:
Aww.
Chrissy:
You don´t think, I look silly?
Emma:
Not at all.
Spike:
You look amazing, honey.
Chrissy can´t help smiling.
Chrissy:
I like it too. I´m even thinking of keeping my hair like this.
Emma:
It´s something, no one else is doing right now.
Spike:
You´ll become the school style icon.
Chrissy:
I can´t wait to see how Jamie looks. What were your first proms like?
Spike:
I think the first one I went to was in 8th grade. I´d just found out that I was pregnant with your mom, so it´s not like there was romance in the air. I still had a fun time with my friends, from what I remember.
Emma:
Mine would have been grade 7. I don´t remember much of it, but I´m sure me and Sean danced a lot.
Chrissy:
I wonder if me and Jamie will still be together, when we´re your age. Having kids and a family and all that.
Emma:
Well, me and Sean did have that 25 year break in the middle. Right now, you´re young, you´re both in love up to both ears and you´re going to your first prom together. Just enjoy it. Let all that other stuff wait for later.
Spike:
It doesn´t get much better than this, kiddo.
Chrissy looks super excited.
10. Int. Maya and Lola´s Apartment. Evening.
Maya and Eddy are taking a break from their jamming. They´re both a little drunk and Eddy´s on the phone.
Eddy:
Manny, honey. It´s no big deal.
Manny (voice over):
Can´t you understand why I´m not too happy, that you spent all afternoon getting drunk with your ex, when we´re meeting my parents for dinner in an hour?
Eddy:
In High School, I was stoned for half my classes and the teachers never caught me. I can do this, baby!
Manny (voice over):
You better! I´m getting a cab over there. I´ll call you.
Eddy:
Alright.
He hangs up and puts the phone down.
Eddy:
Now, I´m in trouble too.
Maya:
At least your troubles are a lot easier to fix than mine.
Eddy:
I just hope, I cheered you up a little.
Maya:
You did.
They hear the door open and shut. Amy comes in.
Amy:
Hey. You´re in a much better mood, than I expected.
Maya:
I helps having friends, who are there for you.
Amy:
Thanks for cheering her up, Eddy.
Eddy:
She did most of that herself. I just had to nugde her in the right direction.
Amy sits down in the armchair.
Amy:
I have some more news, that might cheer you up. I´ve found a place to live.
Maya:
How can you afford a deposit this soon?
Amy:
Frankie´s loaning me the money.
Maya:
We´re gonna miss you, but I don´t blame you for wanting something more comfortable than that air matress to sleep on.
Amy:
It´s only one room with a joint kitchen and bathroom, but it´ll be mine. I´ve never had a place of my own.
Eddy:
Congratulations, Amy.
Amy:
Thanks. I´ve already told Lola and we´re gonna go out to celebrate with Zoe and Frankie. Maya, I have you to thank for all of this.
Maya:
I just did what anyone would do.
Amy:
Not anyone would do, what you´ve done for me. Thanks to you I have a job, friends, a place to live now. Words can´t describe how grateful I am to you. Are you coming with us tonight?
Maya:
That´s still a little too soon for me, but you guys have fun on my behalf. Jay is coming over later and I wouldn´t mind a bit of snuggly time with him.
Amy:
Snuggly time, huh? Maybe I´ll find a boy or girl to get snuggly with too.
Maya:
One thing at a time, sweetie. We can´t have you falling in to old habits again.
Amy:
Sure, MOM!
They all laugh.
11. Int. Degrassi Gymnasium. Evening.
The gymnasium has been dressed up for a 70´s party, that´s for sure! We see the various couples enter in their outfits. Chrissy looks proud to be with Jamie and obviously thinks he´s very handsome tonight. Some of the boys, who don´t have a girl to go with are jealous, when they see Jack come in with a pretty girl on each arm. Jack looks over at them and is enjoying being the "big man" for once.
We cut to the gang sitting at a table, while a slow song ("I´m Not in Love" by 10 CC) plays. Julie looks impatient.
Julie:
Come on, Jack. I didn´t come here to sit down. I wanna dance!
Jack:
It wouldn´t have anything to do with those two?
We see Simon (dressed like Johnny Rotten from The Sex Pistols) and Allison (dressed like Patti Smith) slow dancing together and kissing. Julie looks away from them as much as she can.
Lisa:
So much for him saying that he wasn´t ready to date yet, huh?
Chrissy:
She´s just his rebound. They´re not gonna last.
Julie:
Like that´s supposed to make it better! That just means, he´d rather be with anyone except me! Why does she have to be so pretty?
Jack:
She´s not anywhere near as pretty as you are.
Julie:
Do you mean that?
Jack:
Of course, I do. What about you, Jamie?
Jamie:
She doesn´t hold a candle to you.
Lisa:
There you go! You guys go out there and show them.
Jack:
Are you sure it´s okay?
Lisa:
Of course it is! It´s not like you´ll be dancing all night!
Julie takes Jack´s hand and they head out on the dance floor.
We cut to later in the evening. Lisa is sitting alone at the table, looking a little bored, while the rest are out dancing to "Hot Stuff" by Donna Summer. Suey (dressed as Bruce Lee in a Gi) comes over to the table. She´s all smiles as usual.
Suey:
Why aren´t you dancing?
Lisa:
It turns out a three way date wasn´t the best idea.
We see Jack and Julie dancing and having fun. His dance moves aren´t the most gracious, but she thinks it´s adorable and it´s pretty obvious that the two of them are starting to like each other, given how much they keep smiling at each other.
Lisa:
Right now, it´s pretty obvious that we´re one too many people on this date.
Suey sits down next to her and takes her hand.
Suey:
You´re not one of those girls, who lets a boy spoil their fun.
Lisa:
I´va had a crush on him since the start of the schoolyear and got nowhere with him. They´ve just started becoming friends and look at them.
Suey:
That´s because being friends and being boyfriend/girlfriend are two different things.
Lisa:
Have you had a boyfriend?
Suey:
No, but I know plenty of girls who have. There´s not any boys I like right now.
Lisa:
Not one?
Suey:
Nah. I´ve only really had one crush and I´m not even sure, it was the real thing.
Lisa:
Do you think, I need to get over him and move on?
Suey:
If you´ve been trying all year and he´s still not interested, then yeah. I´d probably give it up, if I was you.
Lisa looks over at Jack and Julie, dancing much closer than they have to.
Lisa:
They are annoyingly adorable, aren´t they?
"Rapper´s Delight" by The Sugar Hill Gang comes on.
Suey:
Well, if they won´t dance with you, I will. Come on.
Lisa:
Don´t you have a date to attend to?
Suey:
I came here with Simon and Allison. It´s not like they´ve had time for me either.
Lisa and Suey head out to the dance floor and quickly start enjoying themselves. Suey does some silly dance moves, that make Lisa laugh so Lisa does the same to make Suey laugh. Kids around them stare, but they couldn´t care less. Chrissy and Jamie are having a blast as well and are completely lost in one another.
12. Int. Lola´s Bedroom. Evening.
Maya and Jay are under the covers on Lola´s bed, after having just had sex. Maya has a very happy post-sex smile on her face and is snuggled up his arms.
Maya:
You know, when I woke up this morning, I didn´t feel like my life could be any worse.
Jay:
It´s not too bad right now is it?
Maya:
Ah, ah!
They kiss and she snuggles back in to her favorite spot.
Jay:
This was some day, huh? I get fired, then I get a new job like an hour later.
Maya:
I get fired from the band, then Amy says she´s moving out.
Jay:
She´s getting her own place?
Maya:
Yeah, it´s just a room, but it´s a good place for her to start.
Jay:
Not that I don´t like Amy, but it´s nice for us.
Maya:
How´s that?
Jay:
The chances that we´ll get caught using Lola´s bed are much smaller.
Maya:
We must have used it at least 50 times. I´m sure she´s connected the dots by now.
Jay:
It is nice, that I don´t have to get up early tomorrow. We could spend the entire day together for once.
Maya:
You always see the silver lining, don´t you?
They kiss again as we pan out.
CLOSING CREDITS
