Double Happiness

1. FADE IN

2. 
   

3. Act 1

4. 
   

5. INT. BEDROOM - 07:30

6. 
   

7. Soft sunlight filters through curtains. PETER stirs awake, blinking against the light. He reaches for his phone on the bedside table.

8. 
   

9. PETER (V.O.): Time to check...

10. 
    

11. He taps the screen, scrolling through a flight tracking app.

12. 
    

13. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Arrived Tokyo.

14. 
    

15. He sits up, running a hand through his white hair.

16. 
    

17. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): How would my younger daughter's teachers and classmates in Niigata react to her offer from that niche art production house?

18. 
    

19. A faint smile crosses his lips.

20. 
    

21. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Double happiness isn't receiving happiness twice, but seeing my own joy reflected in the eyes of my own children.

22. 
    

23. Pausing.

24. 
    

25. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): A parent's heart has two chambers: one for their own dreams, the other where their children's happiness beats.

26. 
    

27. Act 2

28. 
    

29. FLASHBACK

30. 
    

31. INT. CORDIS, HONG KONG - 20:00 (30 Nov, 2025)

32. 
    

33. Many round tables. Elegant chaos. Peter sits at the table with red tablecloths with other RELATIVES. On stage, his SON-IN-LAW and DAUGHTER#1 speak in turns.

34. 
    

35. PETER (V.O.): This week has been a lot of pressure for our elder daughter. But seeing everyone here, for us...it's worth it.

36. 
    

37. Watching attentively his son-in-law's body language and listening attentively the Korean-Cantonese interpretations.

39. DAUGHTER#1: ...lastly, I've a special gift for my husband's family...

40. 
    

41. PETER (V.O.): Family is the first place we learn that happiness multiplies when it is shared, and deepens when it is witnessed.

42. 
    

43. Peter's daughter#1 unveils a framed drawing: it depicts the newly-wedded, Peter and his wife, and her mother-in-law and her late father-in-law.

44. 
    

45. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): We met briefly online during Covid, about a fortnight before he passed away.

46. 
    

47. The eyes of daughter#1's husband and mother-in-law go wet instantly.

48. 
    

49. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Tears don't cancel out happiness. Often, they're the river that carves the canyon where deep, lasting joy can flow.

50. 
    

51. The room murmurs, appreciative.

52. 
    

53. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Double happiness isn't the absence of pressure, but the beautiful release that comes after bearing it with grace.

54. 
    

55. Peter and his WIFE look at the drawing again, their hearts full to bursting.

56. 
    

57. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Double happiness is often quiet. It's not a shout of triumph, but the deep settling sign of a heart at peace.

58. 
    

59. INT. LIVING ROOM - 11:45 (1 December, 2025)

60. 
    

61. Peter's DAUGHTER#2 appears, a wild light in her eyes.

62. 
    

63. DAUGHTER#2: I got it.

64. 
    

65. WIFE: Got what?

66. 
    

67. DAUGHTER#2: The offer from that niche Studio near Tokyo. A residency. The one I wanted but was too scared to believe in.

68. 
    

69. PETER: This is wonderful news. The best!

70. 
    

71. DAUGHTER#2: I know where to relocate now.

72. 
    

73. PETER (V.O.): More importantly, she finds her new path.

74. 
    

75. Peter leaves and soon reappears with a stack of 10000 yen bills.

76. 
    

77. PETER: That's all I have got; and you can't bring more than 1 million yen into Japan.

78. 
    

79. DAUGHTER#2: But I know there's a global exchange in Central where I can deposit Hong Kong dollars and withdraw Japanese yen while in Japan.

81. INT. ATM CORNER - 15:00 (Yesterday)

82. 
    

83. Standing before an ATM, Peter presses the buttons with deliberate precision.

84. 
    

85. PETER (V.O.): Our younger daughter will need some money for relocating to Tokyo.

86. 
    

87. We see stacks of Hong Kong five-hundred-dollar bills emerge from the cash slot.

88. 
    

89. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Two days. Two pieces of perfect happiness for our girls.

90. 
    

91. Peter smiles, a deep, peaceful, all encompassing smile that wrinkles the corners of his eyes.

92. 
    

93. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Double happiness is the alignment of two truths: loving who you're with and doing what you love.

94. 
    

95. EXT. HONG KONG AIRPORT - 23:30

96. 
    

97. Terminal 1. Peter drops off his daughter#2 and her luggage, watching as she walks alongside his wife toward the departure hall.

98. 
    

99. PETER (V.O.): We rarely arrive at joy by a straight road. Sometimes, it finds us at the crossroads of two difficult journeys, finally completed.

100. 
     

101. RETURN TO PRESENT

102. 
     

103. Act 3

104. 
     

105. INT. BEDROOM - 22:30

106. 
     

107. Peter uploads a photo of two dried coconnuts adorned with the "double happiness" character to a draft on his laptop.

108. 
     

109. PETER (V.O.): The character 囍 isn't just two joys side by side. It's one joy mirrored, strengthened, and made complete by its twin.

110. 
     

111. Thinking.

112. 
     

113. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): In 囍, one joy is for the union created. The other is for the roots that nurtured it and the new branches that will grow from it.

114. 
     

115. Reflecting.

116. 
     

117. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): My account is never measured in dollars, but in moments. And for the past few days, the balance of joy has been paid in full, with interest.

118. 
     

119. FADE OUT