FADE IN:

INT. Living Room - night

TIGHT ANGLE - SNOWY TV SCREEN

JACOB (V.O.)

I've never been good at accepting my fears.  When I was a kid, my Mom and Dad were the noble protectors from the bumps and creeks in the night, the conglomerate shadows of toys and dirty laundry in my closet that always managed to look like a deformed maniac waiting to kill me, and worst of all, the man under my bed who would wait for me to get up so he could reach out and grab my feet.

PULL BACK from TV SCREEN to WIDE SHOT

JACOB, a middle aged slightly sickly looking male, is slouched down in a darkened room on a sofa.

MEDIUM CLOSE UP - JACOB on COUCH

Jacob sits with his eyes barely open, arm flung over one arm of couch. His hand sits close to an empty RUM BOTTLE.

HAUNTED WHISPER (O.S.)

(in a ghostly, windy wine)

JACOB...

Jacob jumps slightly from his crouching position, taking notice of the voice, then settles back to his slouching position.

JACOB (V.O.)

Most people my age no longer have such luxuries. The imps of darkness clutch me sleepless, holding me prisoner for days. The bumps in the night, the movements in the dark seen from the corner of the eyes.

We see a strange figure appear in the WINDOW behind Jacob. It looks into the WINDOW at Jacob for a moment and then disappears back into the darkness.

JACOB (V.O.)

Oh yea, and THEM.

MEDIUM SHOT - JACOB on COUCH

Jacob sits upright, grabbing a RUM BOTTLE from the end table. He stares at the bottle.

CLOSE UP - JACOB with BOTTLE

He tilts the bottle sideways to see if there is even a drip left, but the bottle is bone dry.

MEDIUM SHOT - JACOB with BOTTLE

Jacob stands up with the BOTTLE and walks out of frame.

INT. KITCHEN PANTRY - NIGHT

MEDIUM SHOT - JACOB in PANTRY (from behind)

Jacob is looking through the KITCHEN PANTRY. He pulls out several EMPTY ALCOHOL BOTTLES.

CLOSE UP - JACOB and EMPTY ALCOHOL BOTTLE

Jacob lifts each EMPTY ALCOHOL BOTTLE over his head, looking to see if there is even a drop left in the bottle.

JACOB (V.O.)

Gone.  Drinking hasn't seemed to work for me anyway.

MEDIUM SHOT - JACOB in PANTRY (from behind)

Jacob backs out of the PANTRY and closes the PANTRY DOOR. As the PANTRY DOOR closes, a faint outline of a MOVING FIGURE can be made out in the GLASS of the PANTRY DOOR. Jacob is looking in the other direction, as to avoid the apparition.

JACOB (V.O.)

I try to ignore them but they are always there, taunting me.  Waiting for my reaction. Mocking me in reflections.  Mirrors... windows... luckily vanity isn't one of my vices.

INT. FRONT ENTRYWAY - NIGHT

OVER THE SHOULDER SHOT - JACOB and FRONT DOOR

Jacob moves to the FRONT DOOR and slowly reaches for the HANDLE. He slowly opens the FRONT DOOR.

JACOB (V.O.)

The outside seems to have been taken away. Mrs. Teetle's annoying dog who is normally barking all night, the Carson's across the street... I can't see anything... just black. Blackness that almost seems to breath.

The DARKNESS swirls with strange shapes and twists, progressively moving towards Jacob.

Jacob shuts the FRONT DOOR quickly and locks it.

JACOB (V.O.)

Better leave that outside.

INT. DINING ROOM TABLE - NIGHT

WIDE SHOT - JACOB at DINING TABLE.

Jacob sits at DINING TABLE in front of a half completed PUZZLE.

MEDIUM SHOT - JACOB working on a PUZZLE.

JACOB (V.O.)

Without the luxury of being drunk, I have to find other trivial busy-work to distract my brain...

CLOSE UP - JACOB and PUZZLE.

Jacob snaps in the final PUZZLE PIECES.

MEDIUM SHOT - JACOB looking at PUZZLE.

Jacob looks pleased at the accomplishment.

JACOB (V.O.)

Funny how the slightest victories take on new meaning in the deranged wake of delusions... Build it up, take it down. The puzzle now acts surrogate to the visions..

Jacob flails about with the puzzle pieces, tossing them this way and that way with a devious look on his face. Then he stops and surveys his wrath.

JACOB (V.O.)

That was a fun bit of madness.

NEW ANGLE - JACOB looking at PUZZLE.

Jacob rounds up the puzzle pieces and places them back in the PUZZLE BOX.

He looks around, as for something else to do...

WIDE SHOT - JACOB at DINING TABLE.

Jacob stands up and leaves DINING TABLE.

INT. MASTER BEDROOM - NIGHT

OVER THE SHOULDER - JACOB looking at BED.

Jacob enters the MASTER BEDROOM. He looks toward the BED.

JACOB (V.O.)

The bed does me no good. Nothing like the flip-flop of a person with insomnia.

An OFF SCREEN THUMP is heard, followed by faint CLAWING SOUNDS.

NEW ANGLE - JACOB looking at MASTER BEDROOM CURTAINS.

Jacob walks carefully toward MASTER BEDROOM CURTAINS.

TIGHT ANGLE - JACOB and CURTAINS.

Jacob reaches for the thin slit that separates the CURTAINS. He grabs the edges and whips them open quickly.

MEDIUM SHOT - JACOB and OPEN CURTAINS.

In the opening, we see an APPARITION staring in at Jacob. In one quick movement, the APPARITION lifts it's arm, pointing OFFSTAGE while moving into the MASTER BEDROOM.

WIDE SHOT - JACOB and OPEN CURTAINS.

Jacob stumbles backward, fleeing the APPARITION, only to fall flat on his back.

APPARITION #1

(in a whispering voice)

Garage...

The APPARITION quickly VANISHES.

JACOB (V.O.)

I thought they couldn't get in. I guess I was wrong. If this is my mind playing tricks on me, best not humor myself...

More APPARITIONS peek into the room from around the CURTAINS. A few of them make it a foot or two into the room. The word "garage" is heard faintly over the whispers.

JACOB (V.O.)

Remind me to keep the curtains closed... starting with these...

Jacob stumbles to his feet. He cautiously approaches the CURTAINS.

Quickly Jacob reaches up and swipes the CURTAINS closed, stumbling back quickly.

MEDIUM SHOT - JACOB and BED.

Jacob sits down on the edge of the BED.

JACOB (V.O.)

I could really use a drink...

INT. READING ROOM - NIGHT

CLOSE UP - JACOB in LARGE CHAIR.

We pull out to reveal Jacob as he sits in a LARGE CHAIR reading a BOOK.

JACOB (V.O.)

Reading, one of my favorite past times.  I get to be whoever I want on cue and stop just as easily...

OVER THE SHOULDER - JACOB in CHAIR and BACK DOOR covered by CURTAINS.

The curtains, seen in the background but unrealistically dark, slowly move back and forth in front of the closed doorway. Jacob looks up and notices the strange behavior.

JACOB (V.O.)

...It's getting hard for me focus. I can stare at these pages for hours, but I don't know what I'm reading. Usually I'm only fighting with sleep-deprivation and these tormentors living in my peripherals.  But now something's different.

WIDE OVER THE SHOULDER - JACOB in CHAIR and BACK DOOR covered by CURTAINS.

Jacob stands up cautiously, as to keep his escape options open...

JACOB (V.O.)

If these "things" can move curtains, I don't feel like sticking around to find out what else they can move. They're closing in on me, and I don't have any way out.

The CURTAIN sways back and fourth a little more, and comes to a resting stop. Then, the CURTAINS start to open...

JACOB (V.O.)

At this point I have two options: run around in circles a few times and curl up in the fetal position and hope for the best...

The curtain continues to open. A FIGURE slowly appears in the closed DOORWAY. The FIGURE slowly floats into the room.

JACOB (V.O.)

...or face them head on and see what they want from me...

The FIGURE raises it's arm and points OFFSTAGE...

FIGURE

(in a whispering voice)

Garage...

JACOB (V.O.)

The garage. I don't know why, but the garage seems to scare me more than facing off these apparitions. The hallway to the garage door never feels warm - just cold, dark, and foreboding. And I don't really feel like playing right into their hand...

More APPARITIONS join the first one. All whispering the same chant... garage, garage...

JACOB (V.O.)

Too much for a rational decision. It's all in my head. I have to pull it together...

MULTIPLE MONTAGE SHOT - JACOB and APPARITIONS

Jacob closes his eyes and covers his ears as he backs away from the ghostly mob.

The scene goes black...

CUT TO:

INT. DOORWAY TO GARAGE - NIGHT

NARROW HALLWAY SHOT - JACOB and DOORWAY TO GARAGE from HOUSE INTERIOR.

Jacob's eyes are still closed and his hands are over his ears as he is startled as he backs right into a closed DOORWAY. His eyes open and he realizes that he has ended up at the place he fears most...

JACOB (V.O.)

Like most bad dreams, no matter how far you run in any direction, you end up right at the place you were running from.

Jacob turns to the door trembling.

JACOB (V.O.)

I'm out of options. The madness has taken over the house. That leaves me here...

Jacob slowly reaches for the DOOR HANDLE...

JACOB (V.O.)

To face that fear of the unknown - the fear you had when you were young when the closet door was a portal from some deep abyss that mysteriously opened when the lights went out. A portal that any moment would unleash some horrendous child eating monster...

INSERT SHOT - JACOB'S HAND and DOOR HANDLE

...slowly turns the DOOR HANDLE...

(beat)

...and opens the DOORWAY TO GARAGE:

CUT TO:

INT. GARAGE - NIGHT

MEDIUM SHOT - DOORWAY TO GARAGE from GARAGE INTERIOR.

The GARAGE is dimly lit with ATMOSPHERIC FOG visible in NARROW LIGHT RAYS.

The DOORWAY TO GARAGE opens slowly. Jacob slowly peeks into the garage. Reluctantly, he steps over the THRESHOLD. The DOORWAY TO GARAGE closes behind him. Jacob turns to look at the DOORWAY TO GARAGE, pauses, and returns his thoughts to the DARKENED GARAGE...

We follow JACOB as he slowly searches the GARAGE.

JACOB (V.O.)

Something *bad* lingers in these shadows. Something far worse than that monster from the closet.

MEDIUM SHOT - JACOB kneeling by some BOXES in the GARAGE.

Jacob mulls over BOXES stacked in the GARAGE. Over his shoulder, we can see a VEHICLE parked in the shadows.

Jacob turns his head toward the VEHICLE.

JACOB (V.O.)

It's something real. I feel it's even more substantial than my own being...  

OVER THE SHOULDER - JACOB and VEHICLE

Jacob approaches PASSENGER SIDE of VEHICLE.

JACOB (V.O.)

A dark, sinister secret...

His hand, trembling wildly, reaches for the VEHICLE DOOR HANDLE. He opens the PASSENGER SIDE DOOR. He obscures  our VIEW of the VEHICLES interior.

REVERSE ANGLE - CLOSE UP - JACOB'S FACE

Jacob's eyes open wide is horror. He stumbles back.

OVER THE SHOULDER - JACOB and VEHICLE

As he stumbles back, he reveals a DEAD JACOB sitting in VEHICLE with HOSE sticking in DRIVER'S SIDE WINDOW.

JACOB (V.O.)

Or maybe, the truth...

INT. Living Room - night

TIGHT ANGLE - SNOWY TV SCREEN

JACOB (V.O.)

Like I said... I've never been good at accepting my fears. I guess I never learned how to accept reality.

FADE OUT

THE END