I don’t even have 50.
SWEET BY JJ SMITH 34THPARALLEL MAGAZINE ISSUE 142
EXT. CASH MACHINE
A woman at a cash machine turns to Harry.
WOMAN
It only gives 50s.
She cancels and the cash machine spits out her card.
WOMAN
I don’t even have 50.
She wanders off down the street staring at the end of her world.
Harry slots in his card. The cash machine spits out a wad of 50s.
An old man lying on a bench raises a hand.
OLD MAN
Can you spare 50?
INT. SUPERMARKET
Harry stops at an empty shelf.
HARRY
Out of Vegemite again.
The checkout chick swipes a bag of chips.
CHECKOUT CHICK
That’s 14.85. Did you watch the football?
Harry hands her a 50.
CHECKOUT CHICK
Got anything smaller?
EXT. FOOTBALL STADIUM
Harry drives around looking for a park. The car’s driveshaft falls out.
The stadium scoreboard clock hits 70 minutes as the road service guy pulls up.
ROAD SERVICE GUY
This never happens. I’ll call a tow truck.
Limeburner knocks on the car window. He stoops down to Harry’s level.
LIMEBURNER
You going soon?
HARRY
Don’t park at back. I’ve got a tow truck coming.
The home side scores a goal in added time. The tow truck takes Harry’s car to a garage.
EXT. GARAGE
The mechanic puts the driveshaft back in.
MECHANIC
This never happens. Drive it around for a few days, see if it holds up.