The Only Way Is Down
- Peter K F Cheung SBS
- 8 minutes ago
- 3 min read
FADE IN
Act 1
INT. BEDROOM/ DINING ROOM - 07:45
Kaji, the family pet, leads PETER from the bedroom to the dining room for breakifast. As they move, Peter catches a glimpse of his SON who is leaving home. The door clicks shut.
PETER (V.O.): Today is his birthday anniversary.
FLASHBACK
INT. HOSPITAL ROOM - DAY (1998)
Peter's WIFE lies in a hospital bed, holding a newborn baby. Peter (44) stands beside her.
PETER: He's perfect. Look at him, He has your eyes, your nose...
WIFE: We chose this day for him.
INT. HOTEL RESTAURANT - NIGHT (Last Saturday)
A dinner reception. Cousin WAI, seated at the head table, watches Peter's wife and their doctor son. He turns to Peter and remarks.
COUSIN WAI: Your handsome son looks just like your wife.
RETURN TO PRESENT
Act 2
EXT. SILVERSTRAND BAY - 15:00
The beach is grey. A red flag flutters on a pole. Peter wades out.
PETER (V.O.): I'm content with a quick swim.
Leaving the bathroom, he walks to the foot of the cliff-side staircase.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): 175 steps. I've counted. Another great workout.
Peter's shoes slap the concrete. He stops mid-climb. He touches the green railings. He looks down at the yellow step edge.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): They repainted.
He continues climbing, his breath a little laboured.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Stacks and stacks of staircases. Everyone's aspirations, stacked upon each other. The bottom. The middle. The top.
MONTAGE
A. PAK KAU COLLEGE-1973. Peter (19) starts working as a full-time teacher.
B. HOUSING DEPT-1974. Peter (20) joins civil service as a Housing Assistant.
C. LANDS DEPT-1980. Peter (26) resumes land in Tuen Mun as a Land Executive.
D. LEGAL DEPT-1985. Peter (31) appears in courts for the Govt as Assistant Crown Counsel.
E. LAW REFORM COMMISSION-1988. Peter (34) works in the legal secretariat as Senior Crown Counsel.
F. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY DEPT-1991-Peter assumes the office of Asistant Director formulating Hong Kong's IP legal policy.
FLASHBACK
INT. GOVT POLICY BUREAU - DAY (1998)
Peter (44) works frantically in an office. Outside the door is a name card: Deputy Secretary (Special Duties).
PETER (V.O.): I've just been promoted to deputy departmental head. To groom me further, I've been seconded to do some general policy work.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Some of my special duties are to help abolish the Urban Council and the Regional Council.
END MONTAGE
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): 1998. A good year. A son. A new title.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): We'll celebrate tonight.
Peter reaches the top of the staircase, breathing heavily. He looks down at the steps.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): And then the bottle neck. I waited 13 years from Deputy to Head.
He leans against the railing, staring at the beach.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): And I knew when I reached the top, the only way was down.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): After retirement and sanitization, I started private practice. It's like walking up another staircase.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): When I watch my our son go to work, I see my own younger self, too.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The process never ends. It just changes staircases.
Act 3
INT. BEDROOM -21:30
Peter uploads an image to a draft on his laptop. It shows some of the steps of the Silverstrand Bay staircase.
PETER (V.O.): The staircase represents a fixed path: once I commit to a step, my movement is directed to the next. And when I reach the top, the only way is down,
Thinking.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): When I climb, every step looks the same. When I descend, I finally see the whole staircase. And I realize it was never that high. I just made it high in my head.
Reflecting.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I climbed from 1973 to 2011. I decended from 2014 to forever, And I've learned that the staircase isn't a ladder to heaven-it's a bridge back home.
The END
FADE OUT
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