The Last Gamer
FADE IN
Act 1
EXT. ESTATE STREET - 11:45
The sun hangs high. The street is alive. PETER walks with a steady, non-hurried rhythm.
He wears a light green shirt, dark blue jeans. A grey hat sits atop his head. White, slim, stylish closed-ears headphones hug his ears.
His face is calm. Content.
Through his headphones. The Platter's "Only You" plays. Peter's fingers tap lightly against his thigh. Keeping time.
PETER (V.O.): My main agenda today is to show up at the lunch with some of my former PCLL classmates.
Peter walks towards a MTR station.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): We graduated in 1985. We've different life choices. Some of us reconnect, still gather.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Friendship doesn't require sameness. It requires showing up.
Act 2
INT. CHARIOT CLUB - 12:45
Elegant. ARTHUR sits at a round table. He wears a hat. Beside him. CHAPMAN, spectacles. They look up. Standing in the doorway: Peter, still wearing his grey hat and headphones.
ARTHUR: Look at you. Stylish.
CHAPMAN: Why is everyone wearing hats today?
Peter sits next to Arthur as he slowly removes his hat.
ARTHUR: I've become bald. That's why.
Peter takes off his hat.
PETER: My hair is all silver.
CHAPMAN: Both of you are fine.
GILBERT and SHARON arrive.
They settle in. Orders made. The conversations turn gossipy. The rich. The famous. The absurb. Peter listens.
PETER: I've no idea of any of the stories.
They stare at him. Exchange looks. Amused. Then, Sharon elaborates and Gilbert helps Peter understand.
PETER (V.O.) : Duolingo. Swimming. Screenplays. Keyboard. That's my day. That's my life. And it's full.
Listening.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): One become what one pays attention to. Some pay attention to gossip. Some pay attention to becoming.
Listening.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I can spend my life chasing the spotlight. Or I can spend it becoming the light. One is loud. The other lasts.
Food is put on the table. Then, GRACE arrives and sits beside Peter. She asks Sharon.
GRACE: Do you still play Mah Jong?
SHARON: Mah Jong? I've been teaching others how to play!
PETER: I haven't played in decades. Have the rules changed?
Sharon explains with enthusiasm.
MONTAGE OF PETER ON MAH JONG 1964-1972
A.Neigbour#1's house. Peter watches his MUM playing Mah Jong with NEIGHOURS.
B. Neigbour#2's house. When there are just three GAMERS present, Peter would join.
END MONTAGE
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I'd step in. And if I won, I'd get a little pocket money.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I was never the first choice. I was the one they called when the first choice didn't show. And I learned to be okay with that. More than okay. I learned to be ready.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The last gamer isn't the one left out. It's the one who fills the empty seat. The one who makes the game possible.
Recalling.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I stopped because I knew it wouldn't help me get any university degree. In the 1981 HKU law class facebook, I stated "Studying" as my only hobby.
Recalling.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Some of my classmates laughed at my hobby. But they're admitted straight from matriculation, I waited seven years.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): If studying wasn't my hobby. I wouldn't have my first degree in Philosophy as an external student. I wouldn't have my law degrees. I wouldn't have this life.
Act 3
INT. BEDROOM -22:30
Peter uploads an image to a draft on his laptop. It captures the two teapots while he and his former PCLL classmates chatted about Mah Jong and he remembered being the last gamer in his teens.
PETER (V.O.): The last gamer doesn't come last. The last gamer comes when it matters the most.
Thinking.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I'm not late. I'm not early. I'm exactly on time-for my own life.
Reflecting.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Nothing about the law. Everything about living. That's what today taught me.
The END
FADE OUT
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