Not Who She Seems

NOT WHO SHE SEEMS
COUCHSURFING THIEF GETS CAUGHT REDHANDED BY HOMEOWNER

SCENE OPENS to Marcy (Natasha Nice) walking up the steps of a home, a backpack slung over her shoulder. Dylan (Mickey Mod), a young man in a business suit, opens the door and greets Marcy. Marcy is warm and bubbly, and cute to boot, introducing herself to Dylan, asking if he’s the cool dude that’s hosting her. Dylan, a little flustered with this attractive and inviting young woman, cheerfully says that that’s him! He welcomes her inside, telling her that although they used a couchsurfing-slash-couch-crashing app, she doesn’t actually have to stay on the actual couch. He has a guest room that she can use.

Marcy is pleased for the guest room, and follows along as he leads her to it. However, when Dylan’s not looking, she shiftily looks around, as if making note of where everything is.

Once she’s shown to her room, Marcy giggles and hugs into Dylan, thanking him for letting her stay. It’s so hard on the Internet since nobody’s as they seem. Dylan’s a little bashful at the attention. After they pull away, he says he’ll leave her to get settled and that he’s in the kitchen if she wants anything. He then leaves her be. As he does, Marcy’s smile fades. She takes out her cellphone, and texts ‘I’m in!’ to someone, then grins.

TITLE PLATE

CUT TO Marcy joining Dylan in the kitchen, sneakily taking pictures of Dylan’s valuables along the way with her cellphone, including a fancy camera. She asks about the camera, saying that her boyfriend is a photographer. Dylan seems a little taken aback that Marcy has a boyfriend, though remains friendly. ‘He doesn’t mind you going off on adventures on your own?’ he asks. ‘Nah, I’m a big girl,’ she responds with a flirty grin.

As if fearing she might be saying too much, she turns her attention back onto Dylan, distracting him with small talk. Whenever he’s distracted, she continues taking pictures of expensive belongings that are left out in the open.

Dylan then realizes what time it is. ‘Shoot, I’m going to be late,’ he scolds himself, looking a little frantic. She playfully tells him to hurry up and get to work. He doesn’t need to entertain her. She has plans for the day, anyway. ‘Okay, if you’re sure, although I’m happy to. Oh, that reminds me!’ He grabs a spare set of house keys and gives it to her. ‘That way you’re not stuck here,’ he says with a laugh. She smiles and thanks him for the keys, then cheerfully sees him off.

As soon as Dylan’s gone, she checks her phone again and sees a text. The words praise her on what she’s taken pictures of so far and encourages her to check out the bedroom.

Marcy makes her way to the bedroom, then begins checking drawers and closets. She sees a briefcase and opens it, but there’s just some boring papers in there, so she closes it and continues on. Her eyes then fall on the bed and she hums with curiosity as she crouches down and peeks under. There’s a box there that catches her attention. ‘Jackpot!’ Her eyes light up and she reaches beneath the bed to try and reach it, placing her phone beside her on the floor. She has to stretch her arm far, her fingers almost close enough to grasp the box when a strong voice booms behind her, ‘What are you doing?!’

Marcy recoils and kneels up, shocked to see Dylan in the doorway. He looks just as shocked, even angry. She jumps to her feet and lies, greeting him and saying that she lost an earring and was just looking around the house. Even as she says this, she’s clearly nervous, stuttering a little. Dylan raises a brow and asks what the earring would even be doing in HIS room since she shouldn’t have been in there. His tone is much more different, and he is no longer a friendly, bashful young man.

Marcy is more nervous now, lying again and lamely saying that it could’ve rolled under his door… She’s still trying to act sweet and bubbly, although Dylan is not swayed. She attempts to steer them away from the conversation and asks what he’s doing back so soon? Dylan says that he forgot his briefcase in his rush to take care of Marcy. He gestures to the very briefcase that Marcy had looked through earlier. ‘Funny, I don’t remember it being open when I left,’ Dylan says in a cold, knowing voice.

Marcy tries to make more excuses, going on the defensive, though none of her arguments are convincing. In fact, they make her look even more suspicious. Dylan declares in a low, firm tone that there’s more to this than she’s telling him. What is she REALLY doing in his bedroom? She tries to bring up the earring again but is cut off by Dylan. ‘Don’t start lying to me again,’ he interrupts her.

Dylan then snags Marcy’s phone and looks at the screen. ‘LEO wants to know if you ‘found anything valuable in the bedroom,” he says mockingly. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about. You’re misreading that. It’s just my boyfriend checking that I made it here all right,’ Marcy says. ‘You were going to rob me, weren’t you, you and this Leo,’ Dylan states. While she still tries to defend herself, he starts calling the cops on her phone, saying, ‘We’ll just see what the cops have to say about this.’

‘Please don’t call the police. I can’t go to jail, I didn’t even do anything,’ Marcy begs, now approaching him in a desperate attempt to woo him over again. She falls to her knees and paws at him, saying that no one was hurt, and she didn’t even take anything. He can even look in her backpack to check for sure! She CAN’T go to jail. She’ll do ANYTHING if Dylan just lets it slide.

‘Anything?’ Dylan questions in a way that sends shivers down Marcy’s spine. She’s in too deep to back out now, especially with freedom just at her fingertips. ‘Anything,’ she breathes.

Marcy lets out a shuddery sigh of relief when he agrees and hangs up. She then asks what he wants her to do — cook, clean? Dylan looks her over and says that she’s a pretty woman, and smart, too, so she should be able to figure out what he wants from her in exchange for his silence. When Marcy realizes that he wants to fuck her, she is horrified — she has a boyfriend! She rants and raves about how ridiculous the request is, but Dylan is calm and collected the whole time. In the end, he says it’s her choice, though Marcy realizes that, with the options she’s been given, it’s hardly much of a choice at all.