EXT.

HEISLER PARK - DAY

Jen walks up a beautifully gardened pathway to a charming,

bluffside GAZEBO. A sign attached to the gazebo’s entrance
reads “Friends of Heaven.”

INT. HEISLER PARK GAZEBO - CONTINUOUS

Jen, uncomfortable, heads to an underwhelming snack table as

WORN-OUT-LOOKING PEOPLE gather. She pours herself coffee,
takes a sip and spits it right back into her cup. JUDY
approaches, smiling. She exudes warmth, a touch of hippy and
just a sliver of sadness.

JEN
(to Judy)
Skip the coffee. It’s awful.

JUDY
I made it.

JEN
I’m sorry.

JUDY
I’m kidding. It’s terrible.
(extends her hand)
I’m Judy.

JEN
(hesitantly shakes it)
Jen.

JUDY
Beautiful day, right?

JEN
(over it) It always is.

JUDY
I love your blouse. It’s a good
color for you. Most people don’t
know their palate. They’ll wear a
spring when they’re a fall but you
know you’re a winter and that’s
huge.

JEN
Thanks.

JUDY
(playful)
You come to this group often?
 2.

JEN
My first time.

JUDY
Me too.
(then)
I’ll leave you alone.
(then)
But sorry, hope this isn’t weird...
you do real estate, right? I feel
like I’ve seen your picture on like
a bus bench. You and a cute gay
guy.

JEN
Yeah, that’s me. And Christopher,
who does not think he looks gay in
that picture.

JUDY
Oh, I didn’t mean it in a bad way.
Gay is a beautiful thing. Who
doesn’t want a gay real estate
agent?

JEN
Which bench did you see?

JUDY
The one where you’re like --

Judy puts her hands on her hips and fake smiles.

JEN
No, I meant, I guess I meant where
do you live?

JUDY
Sorry. Newport.

JEN
(surprised)
You live in Newport?

JUDY
Yeah, I don’t think I belong there
either.

JEN
Not belonging there is a good
thing.

Jen grabs a business card from her purse and hands it to

Judy.
 3.

JEN (CONT'D)
If you ever need a realtor.

JUDY
I might, thank you. Sorry, I hope
this isn’t weird but... can I...
hug you?

JEN
...No.

JUDY
Okay.

JEN
I don’t really like to be touched.

JUDY
That’s okay. Sorry, I’m just, I’m a
hugger and I thought you kinda look
like you need a hug.

JEN
Do I?

JUDY
Well, you’re here.

JEN
I’m really fine.

Jen and Judy sit in a circle of chairs with PASTOR WAYNE, a

kind, older man with a bad toupee, KYLE, a middle-aged
feelings-eater, YOLANDA, a religious older black woman,
WENDY, a sweet lesbian, and LINDA, dead inside.

PASTOR WAYNE
Looks like we have some new people
today.

He looks at Jen, expectantly.

JEN
That’s okay.

PASTOR WAYNE
Alright. Well, welcome to Friends
of Heaven. I’m Pastor Wayne. As
some of you know, I like to start
out our grief circle by talking
about a loss I lived through, that
got me into this work. Nice
haircut, Wendy.
 4.

Wendy smiles.

PASTOR WAYNE (CONT'D)

My aunt fell down a flight of
stairs and cracked her head open
and bled out as her five-year-old
son watched. And I was the one who
asked her to get me a soda from the
basement. So, I live with that. And
that’s a little something about me.

JUDY
Oh my god.

PASTOR WAYNE
I appreciate that. Is there a loss
you’ve had that you’d like to share
with us today?

JUDY
I... um, I lost my fiancé eight
weeks ago.
(tearing up) I’m Judy.

PASTOR WAYNE
Hi, Judy.

JUDY
Hi. It was really sudden. One
minute we were eating dinner and
then the next, he was gone.

JEN
Heart attack?

JUDY
(nods)
He was forty-nine.

JEN
That sucks.

JUDY
Thank you.

PASTOR WAYNE
Thank you for sharing that. Does
anyone else new want to share about
a loss they’re living with?

Everyone looks at Jen.

JEN
No.
 5.

PASTOR WAYNE
At your own pace. So, last week we
started talking about the “F word.”

Jen and Judy exchange a confused look.

PASTOR WAYNE (CONT'D)

Forgiveness. Forgiveness can be
very difficult, and it can take
time, even a lifetime, but it’s a
way through. Sometimes we need to
forgive the person who passed, a
doctor maybe, an EMT who arrived
too late, God, maybe ourselves.
But, no matter what the
circumstances, everyone is
deserving of forgiveness.

JUDY
You really think that?

PASTOR WAYNE
Jesus thought that.

JEN
--How do you forgive someone for
hitting your husband with their
car, then driving away and leaving
him to bleed to death on the side
of a road?

The room goes quiet as everyone looks at Jen.

JEN (CONT'D)
No, that’s it. I don’t really want
to get into it, I just -- someone
else can go.

JUDY
It feels like such a deep ache. Not
just for how much I miss him, but
for the things I won’t even get to
miss. We were three months away
from our wedding. I have my dream
dress hanging in my closet. It’s a
1950’s vintage princess scoop neck.

JEN
Oh, pretty.

JUDY
Yeah, it fits really well.
 6.

JUDY (CONT'D)
I miss his so much sometimes I
think I’ll be sick.

PASTOR WAYNE
These things take time.

JEN
(to herself)
Jesus Christ.

JUDY
Why do people have to die?

JEN
And why do we have to forgive?

PASTOR WAYNE
(uncomfortable)
Alright.

JUDY
When does the pain go away?

PASTOR WAYNE
It will.

JUDY
Or it won’t.

JEN
Is this -- I’m sorry -- is this
supposed to be making me feel
better? Because this is -- you’re
all very sad. And I’m really truly
sorry, but I have enough of my own
misery. I don’t have room for
anyone else’s.

PASTOR WAYNE
Of course, I know it can feel that
way. It's okay that you're feeling
whatever you're feeling: sad,
angry, defensive --

JEN
I’m not defensive, I’m just -- I’m
tired.

JUDY
I’m tired too.
 7.

PASTOR WAYNE
(to Jen)
Can you tell us about that?

JEN
I just haven’t been sleeping. I was
never a good sleeper, but since Ted
died, I don’t sleep. Not naturally,
anyway. And I don’t want to take
pills, I’m not a pills person. I
have two kids, two boys who need me
and I’m not gonna be one of those
Xanax Ambien Zombie Moms.

JUDY
Nights are really hard.

JEN
Yeah.

JUDY
Mornings suck too.

JEN
Yeah. Well, they’re okay for like
two seconds --

JUDY
-- But then you remember.

JEN
Exactly.

JUDY
And it’s like you’re living in a
recurring nightmare -- but you
can’t wake up, because you are
awake.

JEN
(re: Judy) She gets it.

JUDY
I get it.

Jen and Judy share her a small smile. Two peas in a sad,
tired pod.