SUNSET VALLEY
Written by Zeferovic
Episode 2: "Perfect Imperfections"
FADE IN.
INT. MOTEL ROOM – NIGHT
The ceiling fan spins. The clock on the wall is still missing its hands. ELLIOT MARSH grips the newspaper with his name in the obituary.
He looks up. MARGOT VANCE is gone.
A low SIREN WAILS outside.
EXT. MOTEL – NIGHT
Elliot steps outside. The town is eerily still. The sky is still golden, never shifting to night.
Across the street, JONAS KEENE leans against a gas pump, watching him.
JONAS
You look like hell.
ELLIOT
I was just told I died here. So yeah, rough night.
Jonas smirks, gestures toward the street.
JONAS
Walk with me.
EXT. MAIN STREET – NIGHT
Sunset Valley is quiet. Almost too perfect. Every window display is spotless, every car parked at the perfect angle. But something is off.
JONAS
Ever notice how nothing changes here? The town. The people.
Elliot glances at a man painting his fence—every stroke the exact same motion, over and over.
Further down, a woman waters her garden. The water never runs out.
ELLIOT
It’s like a postcard that never fades.
Jonas stops outside a barbershop. Inside, a man sits in a chair, getting the same haircut, over and over.
JONAS
That’s Bill Carver. You’ll see him in that chair every night. Same cut. Same words.
They watch as the barber chuckles.
BARBER
Same as usual, Bill?
BILL
Same as usual.
The scissors SNIP.
Elliot steps back, unnerved.
ELLIOT
Why does no one notice?
Jonas studies him.
JONAS
Maybe they do. Maybe they just pretend not to.
INT. SHERIFF’S OFFICE – NIGHT
SHERIFF BILL HARLOW sits at his desk, staring at an old photograph.
It’s a picture of Elliot, Jonas, Sylvia, Margot… and himself.
He runs a thumb over Elliot’s face. Sighs.
SYLVIA (O.S.)
It’s him, isn’t it?
He looks up. DR. SYLVIA LANG stands in the doorway.
SHERIFF HARLOW
Yeah. It’s him.
Sylvia crosses her arms.
SYLVIA
Then we don’t have much time.
EXT. OUTSKIRTS OF TOWN – NIGHT
Jonas leads Elliot to a fence at the town’s edge. Beyond it, the land drops off into nothing.
Elliot steps forward. His foot hovers over the edge.
JONAS
Careful. You step too far, you don’t come back.
Elliot looks down. Below, there’s nothing. No land. No sky. Just a swirling, golden void.
He recoils.
ELLIOT
What the hell is this place?
Jonas exhales, pulling something from his pocket—a photograph. He hands it to Elliot.
It’s a picture of Sunset Valley. But in the background—another version of the town. Slightly different. The sign reads:
WELCOME TO SUNRISE VALLEY.
Elliot’s hands tighten around the photo.
ELLIOT
This isn’t real.
JONAS
That’s the thing about perfection, Elliot. It’s fake. And when something’s fake long enough… it starts to break.
A sudden CRACKLING SOUND fills the air.
Elliot and Jonas turn. The sky flickers. Just for a second. Like a glitch in a film reel.
Then—a streetlamp nearby SHATTERS.
JONAS
Shit.
ELLIOT
What was that?
Jonas grabs his arm, pulling him back toward town.
JONAS
That’s the cracks forming. And if the cracks are forming—
A DEAFENING HUM fills the air. A deep, unnatural vibration that rattles the town.
Elliot looks back.
The void beyond the fence is GROWING.
Jonas pulls him harder.
JONAS
It means the town is falling apart.
CUT TO BLACK.
TO BE CONTINUED...