Time Travel: Episode Two

3 YEARS LATER

Denise walks in the employee entrance of Long John Silver’s and continues through the kitchen.

DENISE: “Irene.”

IRENE: “Denise”

Irene (Long John Silver’s worker) and Denise nod at each other and immediately turn their heads over to Elsa (other Long John Silver’s worker) who has been crying for the last thirty minutes after spilling ketchup on her new white shoes.

IRENE: “She’s been crying for the last thirty minutes.”

DENISE: “Jesus…really? Because of the ketchup?”

Denise looks down at the giant blotch of ketchup on Elsa’s new white Reeboks and shakes her head.

DENISE: “Ouch. That’s pretty bad…”

IRENE: “Oh yeah….tell me about it. I don’t know if we can let this fly much longer Denise. I’ve told her to leave three times already but she won’t budge. Javier and Masimo haven’t finished one batch of onion rings for the last thirty minutes because they don’t wanna dip them in the fry batter…”

Irene points at the fry batter sign above Elsa’s head as she is rolled up in a ball crying on the ground in front of it.

DENISE: “There’s no way to get it out huh?”

IRENE: “We tried just about everything…the ketchup’s not coming out anytime soon……….listen Denise….”

Irene puts her hand on Denise’s shoulder and whispers and her ear.

IRENE: “I was thinking we could maybe use some of your ……services…”

Irene slyly slips a $50 bill in Denise’s hand similar to a drug deal.

DENISE: “Just this last time Irene…. Just because I use the back for my office doesn’t mean I can keep giving you my services for half price.”

Denise walks up to Elsa and holds out her hand. Elsa slowly stops her crying and looks up to Denise. She extends her hand back to Denise as Denise yanks her up. Elsa tries to resist as Denise pulls her to her back office and Elsa begins to cry again.

DENISE: “Ugh. Oh my god Elsa…. LET IT GO.”  

Denise drags Elsa in to her back office and shuts the door behind them. She points to a couch.

DENISE: “Take a seat right here.”

Denise walks away into a small section of the room through dark red curtains. Elsa sits down. Telletubbies is playing on the Television. Elsa is startled as small shovel flies past her at the television almost hitting her in the head on the way.

Penelope who is sitting in a small sandbox behind her, screams…

PENELOPE: “Every time they slurp the custard, I cringe. Honestly, I cringe…. how is this an appropriate show for a kid my age?! Why? MOM CAN YOU PLEASE TURN THE CHANNEL?!”

Elsa turns around on the couch to look back at Penelope.

PENELOPE: “What are you lookin at Blondie?”

ELSA: “I….I just…”

PENELOPE: “Mom! What’s the cashier lady doing here?!”

Denise walks back out through the red curtains and to the Penelope in the sandbox. She kneels down and runs her fingers through Penelope’s hair. Elsa turns back around and looks at the television. Denise speaks quietly to Penelope.

DENISE: “Don’t worry honey…this will be the last time we help them…We’ll have our own place soon enough….This is the last time…”

PENELOPE: “Okay momma. Fine. One last time…you promise?”

DENISE: “I promise.”

Denise stands up and walks over to Elsa. She looks down at Elsa who seems to be trying to wash off the ketchup from her shoes with her own spit.

DENISE: “Elsa. Leave the shoes alone. Let it go.”

Elsa looks up at Denise and puts her hands in her lap.

ELSA: “I’m sorry ….it’s just…”

Elsa is on the verge of tears once again. Penelope stands next to Denise while eating a Baby Bottle Pop.

PENELOPE: “SUCK IT UP BLONDIE. I know this is a big deal to you but we’re going to fix it, okay?”

ELSA: “How are you going to fix it? We tried everything. The ketchup’s not coming out and since when is this place back here? I’ve worked here for 4 months and I’ve never seen this room. What’s that all about?”

Elsa once again begins to cry. Penelope walks closer to Elsa and pours the rest of her Baby Bottle Pop sugar on Elsa’s shoes. Elsa is now in shock.

ELSA: “What did you just do that for?! WHY!? WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT TO ME!?”

DENISE: “Penelope can dirty your shoes as much as she wants Elsa….but she is about to fix it all for you. By the time she’s done, your shoes will be bright white again like none of this ever happened. You need to trust her.”

Penelope folds her arms and gives Elsa a sassy “Told ya so” type of look.

ELSA: “You’re telling me…. this 3 year old shovel throwing toddler is going to make my shoes go back to normal…? Are you kidding me right now?”

Elsa puts her head in her hands as she loses hope and shakes her head.

Penelope looks at Denise as Denise gives her the nod of approval. Penelope nods back and extends her pinky to Elsa.

PENELOPE: “Here hold my pinky.”

Elsa looks up.

PENELOPE: “You heard me Blondie. I said hold my pinky so you hold my pinky. Got it?”

Elsa lets out a huge sigh and looks over at Denise. Denise nods and motions her to go ahead.  Elsa holds on to Penelope’s Pinky.

ELSA: “I really don’t understand why we’re….”

All of the sudden, they all go back in time to an hour ago.

ONE HOUR AGO

Penelope, Elsa and Denise are all standing by the fry batter station looking at Elsa from an hour ago who is watching Javier impatiently as he fries a batch of onion rings.

ELSA FROM AN HOUR AGO: “Are you almost done there Javier?”

JAVIER: “Oh yeah just gimme a few seconds and they should be just about ready.”

Elsa, Denise and Penelope watch Elsa from an hour ago and Javier uncomfortably interact as they wait for the onion rings to be ready.

Javier finally finishes with the frying batter and takes the onion rings to the next station. As soon as Javier is out of sight, Elsa from an hour ago immediately unwraps a McDonalds burger that had been hiding inside Long John Silver’s takeout box and looks around to make sure nobody sees her.

Denise looks at Elsa.

DENISE: “Really?”

ELSA: “I was getting tired of chicken…”

PENELOPE: “McDonalds burgers are made from Telletubbie custard, ya know?”

ELSA: “No it isn’t….”

PENELOPE: “What do you know?”

DENISE: “Stop it you two. Stay focused on the goal.”

Elsa from an hour ago reaches in a cabinet and takes out a bottle of ketchup and attempts to put it on her burger. She violently starts hitting the bottom of the bottle but the ketchup is not coming out. Finally a huge glob of ketchup flies out of the bottle and completely misses the burger.

Penelope immediately runs towards Elsa from an hour ago and leaps for her shoes. She lands on Elsa from an hour ago’s shoes and the ketchup lands on Penelope’s belly. Elsa from an hour ago looks down at Penelope confused. Penelope stands up, takes the ketchup bottle from Elsa from an hour ago and runs away out the back door dragging Elsa and Denise with her.

Out back by the dumpster, they catch their breath from the thrilling event they all just either witnessed or went through.  Elsa doesn’t know what to say as she leans against the dumpster.

PENELOPE: “First of all….you’re welcome.”

DENISE: “Alright Penelope, what did mommy say about bragging? Let’s just do what we need to do next.”

PENELOPE: “Sorry momma.”

Penelope extends her hand out to Elsa.

PENELOPE: “Alright Blondie. Time to hold my pinky again.”

ELSA: “Do I have to? What the hell just happened?”

Denise gives Elsa an evil glare and Elsa catches it and reaches for Penelope’s pinky.

Immediately they travel in time again.

PRESENT TIME

Penelope now sits in the sandbox building a sand castle while Denise is sitting back in a chair knitting a scarf.

PENELOPE: “Good thing we don’t have to deal with that girl anymore, huh?”

DENISE: “Tell me about it.”

PENELOPE: “Promise that was the last time we do favors momma?”

DENISE: “Yes Penelope. I promised, didn’t I?”

PENELOPE: “I know….just making sure.”

Penelope and Denise hear screaming from the door of the office and hear a frantic knocking.

They look at each other.

TO BE CONTINUED….