Keatyn Unscripted (The Keatyn Chronicles Book 8)

by Jillian Dodd

  I nod as she breaks down crying, Winnie rushing to her side.

  I walk out in the hall and call him.

  He answers with, “Why are you calling me now? You need more money?”

  “No, my name is Keatyn. I go to school with Whitney. Look. I know you’ve been kept away from her. I know she’s told Whitney bad things about you. But I have just one question.”

  “What’s that?”

  “Do you love your daughter? Do you have any desire to have a relationship with her?”

  His voice softens. “It’s all I’ve ever wanted.”

  Then come to St. James hospital. She needs you.”

  “What’s happened to her?”

  “She tried to kill herself tonight. But she’s going to be okay. Her mom has been taking her hatred for you out on Whitney, for quite some time, I think. In spite of that, she’s a beautiful and smart young woman. But what she really needs right now is her daddy.”

  “I live nearby. I’ll be there soon.”

  “She’s in room 345.”

  About twenty minutes later, a handsome man who is very obviously Whitney’s father, rushes toward Peyton and me.

  He stops dead in his tracks and glares at his ex-wife.

  Peyton, who has just come out of Whitney’s room, grabs his arm and says, “Malcolm?”

  He nods, so she leads him toward Whitney’s room saying, “She’s still out of it, but her vitals are good. She’s going to be okay.”

  I follow them down the hall and watch as he walks slowly into her room and looks at the daughter he hasn’t seen in years.

  He gets choked up as he sits down next to her, takes her hand in his, and whispers, “Hey, Sugar Plum, Daddy’s here. There’s so much I need to tell you when you wake up but know that I love you, I’ve always loved you, and I don’t care what your mother says, I want you in my life.”

  I sneak back to the waiting room. Whitney’s mom and Winnie are gone.

  Peyton soon joins me. “Even after what she almost did to me, is it bad that I still want to be her friend? We’ve been through so much shit together.”

  “I think you should follow your heart, Peyton.”

  “What about you?”

  “I don’t think Whitney and I will ever be friends, but I fully support you.”

  She pulls me into a hug. “Thank you. That means so much to me.” She starts sniffling. “I can’t believe she almost did that. I almost tried to kill myself once, too.”

  “You did?”

  She nods her head. “After my mom. Cam. I thought it would be easier not to go on.”

  “What stopped you?”

  “Dawson.”

  “Dawson?”

  “Yeah, he doesn’t even know that I was thinking about it, but he was kind to me. He knew I was upset, told me that he hoped we could still be friends regardless of his brother. Then he gave me a hug and I proceeded to cry all over his shoulder. And I decided then not to do it.”

  “Dawson is a good guy.”

  “Yeah, he is. Do you think we should call him?”

  “I think he already knows,” I say, smiling as I see both Jake and Dawson walking down the hall toward us.

  THE SCRIPTS

  Keatyn scripted out her perfect life, and her scripts and dreams gave readers great insight into what she desired. You saw a lot of scripts in the first book. Scripts were a device used to show Keatyn’s growth. Her near-kidnapping pushed her growth. A big part of that growth was living her life, not scripting it. That was one thing that Aiden did—helped her live a life unscripted. It was even a part of his proposal. “You and I are like a promise,” he says. “A wish. Proof that fate and luck bring people together. Proof of love at first sight. Proof that true love can survive the kiln. I promise you a life that’s better than anything you’ve ever scripted. So, what do you say, Boots? Wanna get hitched?”

  In this first script, she just wants Brooklyn to finally kiss her already!

  FADE IN: MALIBU BEACH HOUSE

  THE DECK BATHED IN THE MOONLIGHT.

  A young couple says goodnight. The handsome surfer heads home, so the young blonde slips out of her wet and sandy dress. She’s wearing only her bra and panties.

  KEATYN

  (Lays dress across chaise to dry.)

  BROOKLYN

  (Comes back up the stairs. Sees her with no dress on. His eyes run hungrily down her body.)

  KEATYN

  (Shocked and slightly embarrassed at first.)

  You’re back.

  BROOKLYN

  (Swallows hard. Desire fills his eyes.)

  KEATYN

  (Feeling bold, she takes a step closer to his waiting arms.)

  (They share a passionate kiss. The kind of kiss that makes a girl feel desired.)

  (His hands slide down her back, leaving what feels like a trail of fire behind them. The kiss is better than either one had ever imagined.)

  BROOKLYN

  Break up with him, and be with me.

  And in the next two scripts, she’s hoping he will want to make sweet love to her—or something like that.

  FADE IN: MALIBU BEACH

  A FEW PEOPLE ARE SCATTERED ON THE UPSCALE PRIVATE BEACH OF THE MALIBU COLONY. PAN SCENE OF THE GORGEOUS HOMES LINING THE BEACH.

  A group of boys are preparing to surf. A blonde girl walks down the beach to join them. She is in a very skimpy bikini. A couple of the boys greet her.

  BROOKLYN

  (Turns to face Keatyn. His eyes take in her skimpiest bikini. He realizes she’s grown up. She’s not the girl he became friends with. His eyes fill with desire, but he greets her casually.)

  Hey, Keats. Surf’s up.

  KEATYN

  (Walks closer to him. Makes him uncomfortable.)

  I see that.

  BROOKLYN

  Forget surfing. I need to talk to you.

  (He drags her up to his bedroom.)

  KEATYN

  (Pretends to look surprised, but she isn’t. She speaks in a slow, sexy way, plays with her hair, and licks her lips suggestively.)

  What did you want to talk about?

  BROOKLYN

  (Pulls her into his arms.)

  I don’t want to talk. I just want you.

  (He kisses her and throws her on the bed. They kiss passionately, and then he ravishes her body. She can’t think or speak; she’s so overwhelmed by his touch. He strips off her bikini then they make love.)

  (Or maybe they have sex. Whichever one would be hotter.)

  (Probably sex.)

  (And it wouldn’t hurt. Even though it’s her first time.)

  (Because that wouldn’t make it as sexy.)

  (And then they would do it again. And like again. Because he can’t control his passion for her. He’s been keeping it locked inside him for far too long.)

  (Oh, and be sure to get numerous close up shots of his abs. They really are amazing.)

  FADE IN: BUDDY’S RESTAURANT ON THE BEACH - SUNSET

  A young couple is sitting at a picnic table on the big deck. The breeze is slightly blowing back the girl’s golden blonde hair. Handsome surfer boy reaches across the table and takes her hand.

  BROOKLYN

  (grinning)

  I’m so glad you’re single. I’ve thought of you every day since we met. I recall it was your birthday. You had gotten a new surfboard and were desperately trying to use it.

  KEATYN

  (smiling sweetly)

  You taught me how to surf.

  BROOKLYN

  (leans across the table and kisses her)

  There’s a lot I want to teach you. I want to be your first, Keats. You haunt my dreams. I love you.

  Do I want to haunt his dreams?

  No. Don’t want this to be a horror flick. Let’s fix that.

  BROOKLYN

  (leans across table and kisses her)

  There’s a lot I want to teach you. Come back to my place. I want to make love to you, Keats.

  But after she is sent to Eas
tbrooke, this happens.

  THE SETTING: BOARDING SCHOOL

  A group of boys are playing soccer in a big green lawn in front of the path to the commons area. They are split up into shirts versus skins because half the boys. . .

  What am I doing?

  Screw it.

  The scenes I write never seem to happen. I’m done planning it all out. Planning for every contingency. That’s the old me. That’s the me that Vanessa liked. The girl that always behaved exactly how she was supposed to.

  I’m going to live in the moment, because if this doesn’t work and the stalker finds me, I might not have that many moments left.

  This is the script of my life, and I’m in charge of living it. I don’t care what crazy teen girl would do.

  This is about what I want to do. I’m wadding up the script and throwing it in the trash.

  Right now I want to run down there, steal the ball, and kick it in the goal.

  The fact that Keatyn stops scripting her life is a really important part of her growth that you may not have realized at the time. But this statement that she’s done scripting her life, is a big deal. She’s taking more responsibility for her life.

  Of course, she still occasionally slips, as referenced here when she writes a script that isn’t supposed to actually be about her, but is. I have to admit, I worried about putting this in the book. It very much foreshadows Aiden in his white Maserati saving Keatyn by smashing into the van Vincent was driving. And this is the dress that he has made for her first movie premiere.

  FADE IN: A BEACH IN MALIBU BATHED IN MOONLIGHT

  A young prince is riding down the beach on a white stallion.

  A girl is also on the beach. She’s wearing a gorgeous pink strapless gown with a corseted waist. The skirt of the dress is layer upon layer of pale pink ruffles. Her hair is half up, the rest is cascading in curls onto her shoulders. A tall, dark man dressed in a black suit has a hold on the princess’ wrist and is dragging her up the beach to the dragon’s lair.

  PRINCESS KEATYN

  Help!

  DARK MAN

  No one is going to hear you scream.

  The prince hears the fair maiden’s scream. He turns his horse around and gallops toward the noise. He sees the girl. And instantly falls in love. He’d do anything to protect her. He jumps off his steed and pulls out his sword. Fights the man to death.

  Then he turns his attention toward the princess, who was knocked to the ground in the scuffle.

  PRINCESS KEATYN

  (Turns to face her rescuer. And recognizes his handsome face.)

  Even though Keatyn isn’t writing about herself, she does help Logan script out getting back together with Maggie.

  THE SETTING: EASTBROOKE AUDITORIUM.

  THE BACHELOR PRINCE SET OF THE BEACH IN THE MOONLIGHT.

  LOGAN

  (Taking Maggie’s hands in his)

  I brought you here because I owe you an apology.

  MAGGIE

  (Wearing a look of confusion at being brought onto the stage. Then her face shows shock)

  An apology?

  LOGAN

  Yes. I’ve been blaming you for our breakup and it’s not all your fault. If I hadn’t been texting that girl, we’d still be together. I’m really sorry, Mags.

  Maggie smiles at him in a way I’ve never seen her smile. I’ve also never heard him or anyone else calls her Mags.

  Logan smiles back at her, clearly happy that for the most part she’s been following our script, and continues.

  LOGAN

  I also want you to know how I feel about you.

  Maggie instantly frowns and says exactly what I predicted.

  MAGGIE

  You hate me.

  Logan lets go of one of her hands and gently touches her cheek. “I may act like I do, but I don’t. I’m still so in love with you.”

  “Bullshit. You’re mean to me.”

  “I know I have been, and I’m sorry. But I’ve realized that it’s not where you’ve been that matters, it’s where you end up that does. I want to end up with you, Mags. Forever.”

  Maggie has tears in her eyes.

  Aiden and I both hold our breaths. We know it could go either way at this point. She could walk out or kiss him.

  Aiden squeezes my hand tightly as Maggie wipes her tears and says, “I want to end up with you too.”

  (They share true love’s perfect kiss)

  At the end of Love Me, Keatyn has decided she can’t see Aiden anymore and that when she leaves for Thanksgiving break, she won’t be coming back. She reverts to writing a new script. I added this here for a couple reasons. It shows the stress of lying to Aiden is adversely affecting her, and it also totally foreshadows the conversations that take place with both Brooklyn and Aiden at the end of the story.

  Something amazing has happened. I’m pretty sure that when I yelled at the moon last night, it reversed my wish.

  Because for the first time since I came to Eastbrooke, I’m able to write down a script for my perfect life.

  FADE IN: MALIBU BEACH

  A YOUNG COUPLE IS STANDING IN THE MOONLIGHT ON THE UPSCALE PRIVATE BEACH OF THE MALIBU COLONY. PAN SHOT OF THE OCEAN WAVES SHIMMERING IN THE MOONLIGHT.

  MALE LEAD: YET TO BE CAST

  (Taking Keatyn’s hand in his)

  Happy Birthday.

  KEATYN

  (Leans in to kiss him)

  It’s been a long year.

  MALE LEAD: YET TO BE CAST

  But we’re here. Together on the beach. That’s all that matters.

  KEATYN

  That and the stalker is in jail.

  MALE LEAD: YET TO BE CAST

  I was worried when he kidnapped you.

  KEATYN

  I’m just glad it’s over, and so happy we’re together.

  MALE LEAD: YET TO BE CAST

  (Grins adorably)

  There were times when I didn’t know if we’d make it. We’ve both grown up a lot. It’s like everything and nothing has changed.

  KEATYN

  We’ve changed. Our love hasn’t.

  MALE LEAD: YET TO BE CAST

  I told you fate would bring us together.

  KEATYN

  I didn’t believe you.

  MALE LEAD: YET TO BE CAST

  It’s not where you’ve been that matters; it’s where you end up that does.

  Wanna know a secret?

  KEATYN

  Of course.

  MALE LEAD: YET TO BE CAST

  I wished for this.

  KEATYN

  What do you mean?

  MALE LEAD: YET TO BE CAST

  I made a wish on the moon. For you.

  KEATYN

  (Happy tears stream down her face)

  I wished on the moon too. For my perfect boy.

  MALE LEAD: YET TO BE CAST

  (Brushes away her tears)

  A thing of beauty is a joy forever.

  KEATYN

  You told me that before. I thought it meant I was pretty.

  MALE LEAD: YET TO BE CAST

  What do you think it means now?

  KEATYN

  I think it means love is a thing of beauty.

  MALE LEAD: YET TO BE CAST

  We’re a thing of beauty. I love you.

  KEATYN

  I love you too.

  (They share true love’s kiss)

  THE END

  ROLL CREDITS

  Aiden and Keatyn are closer than ever. And although Keatyn seemed to be pushing him for sex, when it came down to it, she didn’t want to do that with him until he knew the truth about her. So before the truth about her came out at Winter Formal, she had scripted what she would say to him. I think the scripting helped her to work it all out in her head because she was really nervous to tell him. And she was afraid he would hate her.

  THE SETTING: HOTEL SUITE AFTER WINTER FORMAL

  AIDEN

  (Opening a bottle of champagne)

  KEATYN

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