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"The Watering Hole"



FADE IN:


EXT. POND – DAY

A weather-beaten pickup pulls up to the water’s edge.  The engine shuts off, and BUD climbs out of the cab.  He reaches into the bed and withdraws a tackle box and a fishing pole.    

As he is walking toward the beach, a bigger, and newer, pickup parks next to his, its HORN blasting.  Bud’s face falls.

                        BUD
            Aw, sugar.

Bud turns his head to see EARL stepping down from his cab.

                        EARL
            Hey there, boy.  What do you think of
            my new truck?  Ain’t she a beauty?  
    
                        BUD
            Yeah, I guess.

Bud turns back for the beach.  He notices a new baseball cap laying on the shoreline, but walks past it.  

Earl smirks and walks along the side of his vehicle.  He notices a smudge on the paint job, so he takes a handkerchief from his pocket and rubs it out.

Once he’s reached the water, Bud sets down his tackle box and pole.  As he’s selecting a lure, Earl drops his gear next to Bud’s.  

                        EARL
            Just picked her up yesterday.  
            Pure power, but rides like a dream.
    
Bud notices the ball cap he’d passed by is now on Earl’s head.  He grimaces and casts his line.

                        BUD
            Uh-huh.  New hat, too?
                
                        EARL
            It was just laying out here.

Earl opens a Styrofoam cooler and grabs a can of beer. He takes a swig as he unlocks his tackle box.  

                        EARL
            Only twenty-six thousand, too.  Talked
            the guy down from thirty-one.
                (beat)
            Want a beer?

Bud nods as he reels in his lure.  He takes a beer from the cooler and casts once again.  

Earl tries to bait his hook with one hand while holding his beer can in the other, but only manages to spill beer all over himself and his lure.  He grumbles and drops the can on the ground, then finishes with the lure.

                        EARL
            Nothing yet?

                        BUD
            Nope.

                        EARL
            Watch a pro, son.

Earl casts his line, and a moment later, there’s a tug.

Bud frowns as Earl draws his line back in.

                        EARL
            See there?  First cast, too.

                        BUD
            Uh-huh.

                        EARL
            I was using that one lure, with the –

They both notice the sun reflecting off the catch.

As it draws closer:

                        BUD
            It looks like a beer can.

And it is.  The hook is caught on the pull tab.

Once Earl has it reeled in:

                        EARL
            Holy cats, it’s a full one.

He pops the top and takes a drink.

Bud narrows his eyes, then draws his line in.

                        EARL
            What are you up to?

Bud takes a bigger lure from his box and after he sets it on the line, he pours a little beer over it and casts.

                        EARL
            I don’t think you’re likely to –

A sharp tug on Bud’s line.  He reels the line in, and finds a forty-ounce bottle on the other end.

                        BUD
            How about that?

Bud unscrews the bottle cap and drinks deeply.

                        BUD
            God, that’s good!  Really cold.

                        EARL
            I’ve heard about Rocky Mountain
            refreshment, but not from farm ponds.

Bud’s eyes twinkle and he attaches an even larger, more spectacular lure to the line, then pours the entire bottle on to it.

                        EARL
            What the –


                        BUD
            I just wanna see what’ll happen.

He casts the line.

Nothing happens.

                        EARL
            We probably lucked out.  Must be
            from a cooler or something somebody
            lost.

                        BUD
            Yeah, I ‘spose.

Then Bud’s line jerks forward, and he has to plant his feet firmly on the ground to avoid falling over.

                        BUD
            What the hell?

He begins to pull it in.  He fights with his pole to gain control as he works the reel.  Finally he brings a thirty-can case to the surface.

                        EARL
            Man!

Bud drags the case to the shore and falls to his knees, gasping for breath.

                        BUD
            I think I’ve caught my legal limit.

                        EARL
            So you’re wussing out now?

                        BUD
            I guess.

                        EARL
            Well, make room for the master.

Earl grabs a steel case, opens a combination lock, and retrieves a velvet bag.  He carefully unties the drawstring, and produces a lure from the bag unlike any that has been seen before.
 
He pops open a can of beer from his cooler, marinates the lure in the beer can for a moment, then attaches it to his line.

                        BUD
            Do you think there’s anything left
            to catch?

                        EARL
            What do you care?

Bud shrugs and starts carrying his catch to his truck.

Earl casts his line, and as soon as the lure hits the water, the pole is nearly ripped from his hands.

Bud doesn’t see this; he’s too busy lifting the case into his truck bed.

                        BUD
            Are you okay?

                        EARL
            I’m fine, quitter.

Earl tries to set his feet against the force pulling against him, but the soft earth prevents it and soon he is ankle-deep in the water.
    
Bud turns and notices that the other man is moving deeper and deeper into the pond.  He starts back toward the shore.

                        BUD
            Hold on!

                        EARL
            Thanks for the advice!

Bud reaches Earl, and tries to pull him out of the water, but can’t.
   
                        BUD
            Let it go!

                        EARL
            No way, man!  It’s mine!

They are both nearly waist-deep in the water now, and Earl is still holding on to the pole.

                        BUD
            C’mon, man!  Let go!

                        EARL
            Just a little longer!

Then a nasty, sudden jerk pulls the duo under!  A moment later, Bud surfaces, swimming for the shore.  Soon he reaches the shallow water near the beach, and begins to crane his neck, looking in vain for the other man.

There is silence for a moment, then Earl surfaces in the middle of the pond.  He bobs for a moment, then begins to wave his arms.

                        BUD
            I’m coming!

Bud prepares to rush into the water when he sees bubbles just behind Earl.

                        BUD
            Behind you!

Earl turns and sees a keg blast to the surface in front of him.  It floats there on the water, and Earl yelps with joy.

                        EARL
            GOTCHA!

Then the keg, under its own power, dives into the water, striking Earl and pulling him under as well.

Bud pales and high-tails it to his pickup.

INT. PICKUP – DAY

Bud revs the engine.

                        BUD
            I did not see that.  I did not see
            that.
    
He looks over at the case of beer.

EXT. PICKUP – DAY

Bud’s door opens and the case flies out.  The pickup tears away.

EXT. POND – DAY

The found cap floats to the surface, but Earl does not.
 
And just beneath the surface, the keg patiently lays in wait...   
 
                                                                                                                       FADE OUT.
                                                                                                                       THE END.


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