MARK- Breathing, but not answering.
ROGER- Looking back to Mark. "You had an addiction?" Cocks his head to the left.
MARK- Looking everywhere but at Roger. "It was a while ago."
ROGER- "What was it?" Coughing. "I mean, addiction to what?"
MARK- Laughing
RODGER- "Nicotine? Alcohol? If not these, what then?"
MARK- "Gambling."
ROGER- Biting at his lower lip as if to hold back a chuckle. "Gambling."
MARK- "There's no more to it, sadly. This clinic is that of medical and psychological aide."
ROGER- "Do you know the doctor?"
MARK- "Only the one in the Psychology department. Not the medical one. But the clinic is very well. Trained staff, and free food for those who come to the meetings."
ROGER- "I could live with free food." Chuckling.
(At the door stands a Hispanic Man in his thirties, well shaved and clean.)
Dr. MARTIN: "Mark Cohen?"
MARK- Standing and shaking hands with the doctor. "Roger..." Turning to Roger. "I'm afraid I don't know his last name." Shrugging and sitting down.
ROGER- Jumping off the bed table. "Davis. Roger. Roger Davis." Crossing hands across chest and glaring daggars at the Doctor. "So, you're the doc, eh? The one who's going to put me on pills and tell me that everything will one day be okay?" Raising left eyebrow.
MARK- "Behave, Roger." Leaning forward and resting chin in his hands, which rest at the elbows at his knees.
DR. MARTIN- "Have a seat, Roger."
ROGER- Reluctantly sits cross-legged on the table, his arms still crossed at his chest.
DR. MARTIN- "Let's start at the beginning, Roger. Mark, would you mind stepping out?"
MARK- Standing.
ROGER- "He stays."
MARK- Pausing at the door.
ROGER- "He stays, or I leave."
MARK- Glancing at the Dr. to get a nod, and going to sit again.
ROGER- "I don't know where it began. My parents were always fighting. Every night ended in mom slamming the door in dad's face, only to have him curse and proceed to the bottle of alcohol he kept hidden away in my room. It's where mom would least expect to find it."
DR. MARTIN- Nodding in encouragement for Roger to continue.
ROGER- "It became painful to see him drink a whole bottle of whiskey in two minutes flat. It became hard to see him stumble to the living room couch, where he passed out, and stayed passed out for hours. The cycle would then begin again."
DR. MARTIN- "How old were you at the time?" Jotting all this down on a pad of paper.
ROGER- Eying the paper. "Sixteen, I believe."
DR. MARTIN- "And your age now..."
ROGER- "Twenty."
DR. MARTIN- "So, your addiction to the salt like substance otherwise known as crack began at sixteen, and has continued for five years?"
ROGER- "No. It began at eighteen."
MARK- "A three year addiction?" Questioning look in his eyes.
DR. MARTIN- Clearing throat.
MARK- Turning scarlet. "Sorry." Leaning back in his chair.
ROGER- "At eighteen, I was kicked out. I joined a band, and told my family that they were more important than college. My dad was furious. He always wanted me to be a Harvard child. As much as he drank his heart out, he always found the time to bitch at me for being a high school dropout."
DR. MARTIN- "And your mom?"
ROGER- Sighing. "She up and left the day I turned seventeen." Licking his lips nervously. "Look, doc, I'm not one to open up. Can't you just give me some pills or something? A needle?"
(Mark looks up at Roger at this point.)
ROGER- "A shot, I mean. A good shot."
DR. MARTIN- "Roger, the source must be found before a cure can be sought."
ROGER- "What are you expecting me to tell you? That I have an addiction to crack, that started the day my dad literally kicked me out of the house? The day I landed on my ass in front of my friends, embarassed beyond all fucking belief?" Scoffing. "There. Happy now?" Sliding off the table and heading to the door.
(Mark quickly stands and stretches himself out in front of the door.)
ROGER- "Get the hell out of my way."
MARK- "I'm not moving." Swallowing his fear.
DR. MARTIN- "Mark, if he's not ready, he can leave. It's up to him."
(Mark remains put.)
DR. MARTIN- "But his death will be slow if he does choose to leave." (Said softly.)
(At this, Roger rolls his eyes and turns back to the Doctor, a tear slipping from his left eye.)
DR. MARTIN- "There are many ways you can be helped, Roger." Walking towards Roger. "Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, for one. Then there's Cocoa Herbal Tea. There is no pill. There is no shot. There is only you. You're the cure."
ROGER- "I do hope this clinic is free for what you just told me." Sniffling.
MARK- "Are you sure, doctor?" Now in a normal standing position.
(The Dr. nods.)
DR. MARTIN- "The risk of HIV should be enough to a person to quit. Other than that..."
DR. MARTIN-
You are the cure. You're the only way to get past this.
Accept it, deny it, understand that it's the only way.
Let your heart be your mind. Let your mind be your heart.
You don't want to risk it. You don't want to depart. (Spoken.)
You want to live, I'm assuming, so listen up.
The risk of HIV is slowly rising.
With every shot you take, every shot you make, your life has a risk of ending. (Spoken: Quite Suddenly.)
You're the cure, Roger.
You're the cure.
You're the only one who can stop this.
(At this point, Mark joins in on the song.)
MARK & DR. MARTIN-
The cure lies within in your veins, but you've got to quit shooting up.
The cure lies within your mind and your heart...heart.
You're at the end of the line, it's now your choice, listen to your inner voice.
Listen to your friends.
Listen to your family.
MARK-
Your friends are your family.
MARK & DR. MARTIN-
You want to live, I'm assuming.
The needle is quite consuming.
But you've got let it go. Youv'e got to live your life to the fullest.
Don't be insane, you have a lot to gain.
If you continue this, you have a lot to loose, you know you don't want that.
The cure is you.
The cure is you!
MARK-
The cure is in your family and friends, and I, Roger, am a friend who cares.
I am family.
MARK & DR. MARTIN-
We are your family. We are your cure.
Yet there is you.
You are the cure. And you're not in it alone...ever again.
Throughout this song, the camera angle circles around Roger, over the shoulder to Mark and over the shoulder to Dr. Martin. It will be quite dizzying, but the effect is needed for what comes next.
ROGER- "If I'm the cure, then why am I like this in the first place?"
ROGER- (A guitar is heard.)
If I'm the cure, what the hell is going on?
If I'm the cure, why is the needle in my back pocket? Hmm?
If I'm the fucking cure...why the hell am I like this in the first place?
Find me a cure. Find me a God damned cure.
I'm not the cure. I am the vicitm. Even I have come to recognize that.
You're not the cure, Mark. You're not family. You're barely even a friend.
MARK- Looking hurt.
ROGER-
What did you think? That I took you in?
It was you, Mark. You felt sorry for me.
You are not the cure. You're just an accomplice in life.
Oh, don't give me that look. You're living wiithout strife.
I am the cure! I have to do this alone!
Without you, Mark. Without Collins. Without a doctor. Without aide!
You said you could help, Mark, but that was just a lie.
You're as alone as I am. Desperate for a friend.
My mood can change, quite often on account.
You're just a friend. Not even a friend.
This is the end.
(Guitar solo takes over as Mark looks at Roger, who is refusing to look at him. The camera angle is over the shoulder Mark.)
ROGER-
I feel alone. I must go at this alone.
ROGER- "Siyanara." Pushing past Mark and exiting the room.
Camera angle cuts to a view from the door towards Mark, still reeling at Roger's words and change of heart, and at the Dr., who only goes back to his paperwork.
Camera angle cuts to Roger, front view, leaving the building. Two seconds later, Mark comes out.
MARK- "Hey!"
ROGER- Pausing to turn towards Mark.
MARK- "What the hell is your problem? You have the mood swings of a woman on menopause."
ROGER- Shrugging.
MARK- "I may not be a friend...but I do care." Blinking back tears.
ROGER- "Mark..."
MARK- "Consider me what you want. I do not want to see you die. Call that a friend, call that an accomplice. Call it caring." (Said in snappy tone.)
ROGER- "Mark...I can't."
MARK- "Can't what? Can't survive? Bull."
ROGER- "Can't keep a friend! I am dying alone because everyone I befriend dies! I choose to be alone! I can't have a friend. Especially not one that truly cares. I cannot give to them what they give to me."
MARK- "You don't have to give! You just have to live!"
ROGER- Walking over to an alleyway.
MARK- "If you're planning to use the needle, I would rather you tell me now so I can leave you to your lonliness."
ROGER- Pulling the needle, refilled earlier, out of his back pocket
MARK- "That's it. I'm gone. You don't need me. You never did. You were never willing to sacrifice yourself to survive." Turning and heading back only to hear the needle drop from Roger's hands. Slowly turning back to Roger to find Roger looking at him through swollen bloodshot eyes.
ROGER- "I want to do this alone. I have to do this alone."
MARK- Shaking his head. "No, you don't. You have me. Collins, too."
ROGER- "Collins could never face the fact that I am dying. He is dying, too."
MARK- "We can die together."
ROGER- "You're not dying! So quit lying!"
MARK- "Who's lying? Roger, you have no one else to turn to. What the doctor said, he's right. You are the cure. But you can only be the cure if you are willing to. If you are willing to let others help you. If you don't do that, then you will die, and your life will be wasted on the guitar."
ROGER- "The therapy?"
MARK- "Therapy is only a suggestion. But it is a good way to meet people. People like you."
ROGER- "There's no one like me."
MARK- "Let me help you. Please. I'll move in. I'll be there for you, every step of the way."
ROGER- Biting at his lower lip. "Even through the depression?"
MARK- Nodding." Through everything. I'm all you've got, Roger Davis. Take me or leave me."
ROGER- "Okay, I'll bite." Takes a pause. Can you move in tonight?"
MARK- "Tonight?"
ROGER- "The first night of my withrdrawal."
MARK- Smiling. "If you're willing to help me pack." Winking.
ROGER- Slagging. "Lead the way, Marky."
MARK- Glaring at Roger. "First things first? Don't ever call me that again."