WHAT IF? - SEASON 2 EPISODE 26 - THEY DON´T CARE ABOUT US
Disclaimer: I don´t own Degrassi or the characters from it.
1. Int. Ashley´s Room. Evening.
Ashley and Alex are kissing on her bed and getting romantic.
Ashley:
This is nice.
Alex:
Shut up and kiss me some more!
Ashley does, but suddenly stops.
Ashley:
It´s almost nine. Can we take a five minute break to watch the news?
Alex:
Seriously?
Ashley:
I´d really like to hear what the latest developments are. Is it okay?
Alex:
You can have your five minutes. I need to pee anyway.
Alex gets off the bed and leaves the room. Ashley turns on the television and a newscaster comes on the screen.
Newscaster (voice over):
Our top story this evening. The media firestorm that has hit local tech giant Yutani Industries these past days, has now resulted in a multi million dollar lawsuit against the company. Two former employees claim that they were fired, after the they disclosed their homosexuality to the company. It has since come out, that the company seems to have had a deliberate hiring policy designed to keep people, who are members of sexual minorities from working for them. Earlier today it came out that last year, an applicant for a high level position was first told that they would be getting the job, only for the job offer to be reneged, after their sexuality was disclosed on-line. Toronto law firm Crane and Fish will be handling the case, on behalf of the plaintiffs. We spoke to the law firm, to get their statement on the case.
They cut to an interview segment with a lawyer, as Alex comes in. Ashley looks pleased.
Ashley:
They´re actually suing them! I hope, they get the bastards for all they´re worth!
Alex:
Can you turn that off, so we go back to making out?
Ashley:
This verdict could be huge in the fight against discrimination! We ...
Alex shuts her up by kissing her.
Ashley:
That´s not fair!
Ashley gives in and enjoys the kissing.
OPENING CREDITS
2. Int. Classroom. Morning.
Ashley is excited, as she´s talking about the news to Paige and Hazel.
Ashley:
There´s a demonstration in front of their headquarters tonight. Do you want to come? The more we are, the bigger of a message we´ll send.
Paige:
Sorry, Hon. I have plans.
Ashley:
What about you, Hazel?
Hazel:
Nothing personal, but I wouldn´t feel right protesting against them, when nothing is proven yet.
Ashley gets annoyed with her.
Ashley:
What more proof do you need?
Hazel:
A judge´s ruling would help.
Ashley:
These people are obviously discriminators! We can´t let them get away with it.
Paige:
Let the courts handle it. It´s what they´re there for.
Ashley:
That´s well and good, but we all know that the law moves at a snail´s pace. We need to make a stand and show them that we mean business!
Hazel:
Sorry. I can´t support you on this one.
Paige:
I would also cool it with the "Militant Martha" style, if I were you! It doesn´t become you, Hon!
Ashley:
You´re either with us or you´re part of the problem! I thought, you were my friends!
Hazel:
Haven´t you heard the term "shades of grey"? Plus, no one says that we have to agree on everything, do they?
Ashley sulks and takes her seat, as the teacher (Snake) comes in. Spinner arrives at the last second.
Spinner:
Sorry. I don´t know how I made it in time!
Snake:
Well, you did, so congratulations! Take your seat.
Spinner, who´s extremely sweaty from running takes a seat next to Ashley and takes his hoodie off. His T-Shirt underneath has huge pit stains, that make Ashley roll her eyes.
Ashley:
Haven´t you heard about an invention called deodorant?
Spinner:
Have you heard about lightening up?
She looks annoyed with him and tries to concentrate on the class.
3. Int. Hallway. Morning.
Spinner and Marco come out of the classroom with the others.
Marco:
That was a close call!
Spinner:
I ran all the way from the parking lot and hoped for the best! It took me five minutes to catch my breath!
Marco:
At least you can say, that you´ve done your daily exercise!
Jane and Mia come towards them. Her and Spinner smile at each other.
Jane:
Made it with ten seconds to go! You?
Spinner:
Two, at the most! Later!
Jane:
Later!
The two of them fist bump and go on their way.
Marco:
Or did you get enough exercise with Jane yesterday?
Spinner:
Are you still on about that? You saw us, we´re bro´s!
Marco:
Only your little "Bro-dette" has a crush on you!
Spinner:
We held a movie night and we both feel asleep halfway through the first "Lord of the Rings" movie. I blame that soft string music!
Marco:
Does Amy know, that Jane spent the night in your bed?
Spinner:
No and she doesn´t need to, because nothing happened! Except for us almost being late for school, if you want to call that something.
Marco:
I hope for your sake, that the wrong person didn´t see you, because rumors travel awfully fast around here!
Spinner:
So what, if they did? I´ll just tell them that I gave her a ride.
He seems confident that nothing more will happen.
4. Int. School Library. Day.
Amy is looking over the books, trying to find the one she needs, when Alex locates her.
Alex:
There you are!
Amy:
You´re hard to hide things from! What´s up?
Alex:
You tell me. I saw your boyfriend arriving very late with his favorite female co-worker this morning. I wouldn´t have seen them, if I hadn´t been just as late, as they were!
Amy:
I´m not playing the paranoia game!
Alex:
You sound like me, back when I was in denial over Jay´s cheating.
Amy:
Comparing Spinner and Jay is like comparing apples and oranges! He probably gave her a ride.
Alex:
Ah-hah! She transferred here from Lakehurst earlier this year, right?
Amy:
Your point being?
Alex:
Wouldn´t this mean, that she lives within the Lakehurst school district? Spinner doesn´t live more than a five minute drive from here, so why would he make that kind of detour?
Amy finally gives in and looks suspicious.
Amy:
They have been hanging out after work a lot lately.
Alex:
Let me re-phrase that. Why would he make that kind of detour, unless he didn´t and she slept at his house?
Amy:
Because Jay did those things, doesn´t mean that Spinner would!
Alex:
Don´t you want to be sure?
Amy´s face can´t deny, that she does.
5. Int. Hallway. Day.
Ashley runs to catch up with Ellie. Ashley is holding a piece of paper.
Ashley:
I´m glad, I caught you! Can you do me a favor?
Ellie:
Depends on what it is.
Ashley:
Can you get this put in the "Degrassi Gazette"?
She hands Ellie the paper and they stop walking, while Ellie looks it over.
Ellie:
My immediate reaction would be no!
Ashley:
What´s wrong with it?
Ellie:
Where do I start? For one thing, it´s extremely one sided and it doesn´t even try to look at the case from both sides.
Ashley:
This is important, Ellie! Please!
Ellie:
I can´t present this to them! They´ll kick me right out the door! It also has to be school related and this is in no way school related.
Ashley:
You don´t think this concerns every gay student, who goes here?
Ellie:
I´m just trying to impress them enough, that they´ll print, what I write. If you´re looking for someone to start a revolution with, then you´re talking to the wrong girl.
Ashley looks disappointed and tears the paper to pieces, before dumping then remains in a trash can.
6. Int. Cafeteria. Day.
Ashley is sulking and picking at her lunch, when Alex comes over to sit with her.
Alex:
That lunch isn´t gonna eat itself.
Ashley:
Is everyone here so self centered, that they don´t care about the world?
Alex:
Congratulations. You´re Degrassi student number ten thousand throughout history, to ask themselves that question!
Alex takes a bite of her food and smiles at her. It cheers Ashley up a little.
Ashley:
Have teenagers always been like this?
Alex:
Most likely.
Ashley:
This is so important and it´s like none of them, can see past the tips of their own noses, to look at the big picture!
Alex:
That´s the way most people our age are. It doesn´t mean that they don´t care, they just don´t care enough to make it a priority. For most people, that doesn´t come until later.
Ashley:
Here I thought that being the first out of me, Terri and Paige to get my period, would be the last time, I was an early bloomer!
Alex:
Life is the gift, that keeps giving!
Ashley:
If we allow this company to get away with it, it´s the same as saying that it´s okay to treat us as second rate citizens, because we like someone of our own sex. No one can tell me, that´s right!
Alex:
You don´t have to convince me. I´ll have to give the demo a miss, though.
Ashley looks disappointed.
Ashley:
Not you too!
Alex:
I´d love to have gone, but my mom needs my help. I promise to come with you to the next one, if it´s any consolation.
Ashley:
I suppose, it´ll have to be!
She goes back to picking at her food.
7. Int. Hallway. Day.
Jane comes up to the classroom, where her next class is, to find Amy waiting for her.
Amy:
Hi, Jane. We need to have a girl talk.
Jane looks nervous and gulps.
Jane:
Class starts in five minutes.
Amy:
This won´t take five minutes. Unless I don´t like your answers! Come.
Jane nervously follows after her.
8. Int. Girl´s Room. Day.
Amy comes in followed by Jane. Two freshman girls are talking in there.
Amy:
You can take your conversation outside!
She looks at them in a way, that makes them run away instantly.
Jane:
Freshmen are such spazzes! What did you want to ...
Amy:
You get one chance to answer this truthfully, or you´ll be picking your teeth up off the floor. Got that?
Jane is clearly very intimidated and nods.
Jane:
Yes, Amy.
Amy:
Where did you sleep last night?
Jane:
Ehm ...
Amy:
Look me in the eyes, Jane.
Jane half reluctantly does so.
Jane:
In Spinner´s bed.
Amy looks ready to explode and Jane puts her hands up in defense.
Jane:
Don´t beat me up! We didn´t do anything!
Amy:
You just slept? You expect me to believe that?
Jane:
Honest to God, cross my heart and hope to die. I´ve never even held hands with Spinner!
Amy starts to cool down again.
Amy:
You haven´t?
Jane looks relieved, that she isn´t getting beat up.
Jane:
No, I haven´t. He´s an amazing and special guy, but my boyfriend stealing days are over.
Amy:
I´m sorry, if I scared you. Alex got me all paranoid again!
Jane:
Can I ask you something?
Amy:
Shoot, little one.
Jane:
Why don´t you make more of an effort, to spend time with him? I´d want to hang out with him all the time, if he was my boyfriend.
Amy:
Between work and school, it´s not like I´ve had a ton of time.
Jane:
I know that it´s none of my business, but if you keep taking guys like him for granted, then you´re likely to end up losing them. If it had been me, who let a guy like him slip through my fingers, then I know, I would be kicking myself.
She smiles sadly at Amy before leaving her. Amy is left to think about what she said and clearly doesn´t completely disagree.
9. Int. Ashley´s Room. Evening.
Ashley is getting ready to go to the demonstration. Toby is with her.
Toby:
Do you actually believe, that a few hundred protesters will make a difference?
Ashley:
We won´t know, unless we try. Are you sure, you don´t want to come?
Toby:
It´s not that I think discrimination is okay, let me make that clear! Show me a petition and I´ll sign it or put it to a vote and I´ll vote to end it. I just can´t see how spending your evening yelling, at what´s probably an empty building, can change anything!
Ashley:
Fine, stay home and be a couch potato with mom and dad. Meanwhile I´ll be out creating memories, that I´ll cherish for the rest of my life!
Toby:
By going to this poor man´s Woodstock?
Ashley:
By letting my voice be heard by the world!
She looks determined and Toby doesn´t want to spoil it for her.
10. Ext. Street. Evening.
Ashley arrives to the demonstration in high spirits, but is a little disappointed to see, that there´s only around fifty people there. They´re a passionate group though, which tingles her interest. She walks over to a table where a guy and a girl in their early 20´s (Dennis and Dee) are serving coffee to the attendees.
Ashley:
Is it free?
Dee:
To anyone, who´s against discrimination. Sugar or milk?
Ashley:
Two lumps of sugar, please.
Dee hands her a cup of coffee and two lumps of sugar, that Ashley puts in her coffee and stirs it.
Dennis:
You´re almost as bad as Dee. She can´t get it sweet enough either. It´s why I call her Sweet Dee.
Dee:
You´ll have to excuse my brother Dennis. His social skills are severely lacking!
Ashley:
It´s nice to meet you. I´m Ashley.
Dee:
Are you gay?
Ashley looks a little taken aback at being asked so directly.
Ashley:
I am.
Dennis:
My sister still believes in heterosexuality, bless her heart!
Dee:
One of us has to provide mom and dad with grandchildren, don´t they?
Ashley:
What about adoption? We can still become parents, can´t we?
Dennis:
Yet another area, where we don´t get treated the same!
Dee:
It´s nice to see someone as young as you down here. The cause can always use fresh blood.
Ashley:
Is anything special happening tonight?
A woman in her late 30´s/early 40´s (Gail) comes over to them.
Gail:
Any night can be special, if you decide to make it that way.
Dee:
Ashley, meet Gail. She organized this.
Ashley and Gail smile at each other and Gail extends her hand to her. They shake.
Gail:
It´s nice to meet you, Ashley. Are you here alone?
Ashley:
I tried to get my friends to come, but it´s only me.
Gail:
My friends were the same, when I was your age. While I was rambling on about the fall of the communist block, they were more interested in discussing which guy to take to prom!
Ashley:
That sounds like my friends too.
Gail:
Today one of them is a state senator and another is a prize winning author. There´s hope for your friends too.
Ashley smiles and seems to feel at home among these people.
11. Int. The Dot. Evening.
Spinner is working behind the counter and looks up at the clock, just as Jane passes him with some dishes.
Spinner:
Almost there!
Jane:
Stay on target!
Spinner:
You´re such a nerd!
Jane:
Like you´re not?
She heads out to the back, just as Amy comes in. Spinner is glad to see her.
Spinner:
Aren´t you working tonight?
Amy:
One of the other girls is taking my shift. She can always use the money.
Spinner:
Can´t you?
Amy:
I´ve been too focused on other things than you lately. It felt like, it needed changing.
She smiles at him, as she gets up to the counter. She looks up at the clock.
Amy:
I guess, I´ll have to wait another five minutes, until I´m allowed to kiss you.
Spinner:
It´ll be okay. My boss likes me.
They kiss, as Jane comes out from the back.
Amy:
Did Jane tell you about the talk, we had?
Jane:
I didn´t think, you´d want me to.
Spinner:
What did you talk about?
Amy:
About her sleeping in your bed last night.
Spinner looks stumped and gets nervous.
Spinner:
About that. I was gonna tell you, there just hadn´t been the right moment for it!
Amy:
Chill! She told me that nothing happened and I believe her. Not that I don´t believe in you already.
Jane:
I can run this place alone for the last minutes, if you want to get out of here.
Spinner:
Can you? You´re the best colleague, I´ve had, Jane!
Jane:
That´s exactly, what I am!
She smiles to herself.
12. Ext. Street. Evening.
Ashley is talking to Gail, while she drinks her coffee.
Gail:
Did you recently discover your sexuality?
Ashley:
Last summer. I kissed my best friend, which didn´t work out the way I wanted it to, but we´ve put it behind us and it helped me to come out. I only recently started dating my current girlfriend.
Gail:
What´s she like?
Ashley:
She´s a lot tougher than me. The first time I saw her, I was more worried about getting robbed by her, than anything else!
Gail smiles at her.
Gail:
What changed?
Ashley:
We grew up. Now we´re the same in most ways.
Gail:
It was the same with me and my first girlfriend. When I met her in kindergarten, I was the girly girl, while she only played with the boys. You couldn´t have found two little girls, who were more different. We went through school together and I don´t think we spoke five words to each other, before we reached High School. Then one day we found ourselves talking and found out, that we´d been wrong all those years.
Ashley:
How long were you together?
Gail:
From the start of grade 10 and all the way through grade 12.
Ashley:
That´s a long time at my age!
Gail:
Sure was. But I was accepted at an Ivy League school and she wasn´t. I was prepared to give it up for her, but she was the one, who convinced me to go. We broke up the day before I left.
Ashley:
That´s so sad. Are you still in touch?
Gail:
I sadly never saw her alive again. She committed suicide a few months later.
Ashley looks shocked.
Ashley:
I´m so sorry!
Gail:
A girl found out that she was gay and from there it escalated. The bullying finally became so bad, that she couldn´t take it anymore.
Ashley:
I can´t believe they did that to her, all because she liked girls.
Gail:
The worst part was that the school had been warned and did nothing about it. It was after this, that I dedicated my life to fighting discrimination.
Ashley:
It has to hurt to see, that it´s still going on.
Gail:
We will win eventually, but only if we´re willing to take things far enough.
Ashley looks taken with the charismatic Gail.
13. Int. Spinner´s Room. Evening.
Spinner and Amy are snuggling under the covers.
Amy:
Your mom had to have heard!
Spinner:
She listens in when Jane is over. Did you know that?
Amy:
Are you saying, that she´s my spy?
Spinner:
It was all kinds of weird, when we had to explain it to her this morning.
Amy:
I can imagine! What did she say?
Spinner:
At first she was mad and like "Gavin, I can´t believe you! How can you cheat on a nice girl like Amy?".
Amy giggles.
Amy:
At least she thinks that I´m nice!
Spinner:
She´s your biggest fan. It wouldn´t surprise me, if she´s already planned our wedding.
Amy:
I imagine it happening in Vegas, on a wild weekend away with our friends.
Spinner:
Ross and Rachel style?
Amy:
Absolutely!
Spinner:
Can we have an Eivis impersonator doing the honors?
Amy kisses him and smiles at him.
Amy:
We could, if we wanted to.
She plays with for a moment to see his reaction, but can´t stop herself from laughing.
Spinner:
Alright, Amy. Marry me.
Amy:
That was the worst proposal, I´ve heard in my life! I´ll pass.
Spinner:
Dammit! My mom says that it´s time, I took a wife!
Amy:
She does, does she? Who are you gonna marry, now that it won´t be me?
Spinner:
I could ask Jane.
Amy:
Don´t you dare!
They go back to passionately making out.
14. Int. Ashley´s Room. Evening.
Ashley is excitedly talking to Toby.
Ashley:
I felt like I belonged with these people instantly! You really missed out!
Toby:
Did anything exciting happen?
Ashley:
That depends on how you define exciting. I talked to some exciting people.
Toby:
Anyone I´ve heard of?
Ashley:
Probably not, but if everything was right in the world, then you would have. The organizer Gail, is the most inspiring woman, I´ve met in my life and I´m not over doing it! She´s dedicated her life to fighting discrimination and Toby, I want to be just like her, when I grow up!
Toby:
I´ll have to meet her some time.
Ashley:
This is the feeling of belonging, that I´ve been searching for my whole life. I see it now.
Toby:
Now it sounds more like you´re joining a cult!
Ashley:
It´s nothing like that. What this is, is me having found the purpose to my life.
She looks completely mesmerized with the experience, while Toby looks more sceptic.
CLOSING CREDITS