- 12 hours ago
Seven Years of Silent Devotion - FULL
Category
🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:00This is the last time.
00:08Bring me condoms.
00:09I don't ask why. I never do.
00:12Twenty minutes later, I'm at his door, soaked through.
00:15Rain plastering my hair to my face, my thin shirt clinging to every curve.
00:19He opens the door, stares.
00:21Eyes drag down my body, lingering where the wet fabric clings.
00:24His voice drops.
00:25That's my good girl.
00:26I hand him the bag. I've loved him for seven years.
00:28Tonight, he's going to use these with someone else.
00:31Claire, his first love. The one coming back.
00:34Here. The size you wanted.
00:36He takes the bag. His thumb brushes my knuckles.
00:39She's not here yet. Why don't we use them first?
00:42I freeze. He laughs.
00:44Relax. I'm not that much of an asshole.
00:47I set you up on a date next Wednesday.
00:49The guy's rich, oblivious, stable.
00:51You've been with me long enough. It's the least I can do.
00:54His eyes are cold and serious.
00:56She's coming back, and he's clearing the decks.
00:58I clench my fists.
00:59Just send me the address.
01:01Sir.
01:01I turn to leave.
01:02Wait.
01:03He wraps a Burberry shawl around me.
01:05Don't leave tonight.
01:07But she's coming.
01:08You believe that?
01:09You think I'm that much of a scumbag?
01:12It's just been you.
01:13And he is kissing me.
01:14We're desperate.
01:15Nothing gentle about it.
01:16His hands grip my hips, pushing me back against the door.
01:20The shawl falls.
01:21I should stop this.
01:22I know I should, but his mouth is on my throat, and my head falls back, and my fingers are
01:27already in his hair.
01:28He carries me to the bedroom.
01:30This is the last time.
01:31Claire's flight lamp's tomorrow.
01:33So be a good girl.
01:35Go on that date.
01:36The mask slips.
01:38He's choosing her, after all.
01:39I bite his shoulder.
01:41I'm hard.
01:41He doesn't stop.
01:43Damien is an animal.
01:44They say men slow down after 25.
01:47With him, not even close.
01:49Sun's up when he finally finishes.
01:51Heads for the shower.
01:53I grab my clothes and go.
01:55That's our rule.
01:57He hates sleeping next to anyone.
01:59Seven years, no matter how exhausted, I always crawl to the guest room.
02:08Morning.
02:09He's back from the gym.
02:11Saved you breakfast.
02:13No time.
02:15Gonna miss my bus.
02:16I can drive you.
02:17No.
02:19I blurt out.
02:21My promotion results are out today.
02:24Can't be seen in your car.
02:28People will think I slept my way to the top.
02:31Por favor, quiero hablar contigo.
02:34The room goes dead silent.
02:36That cold laugh.
02:38Fine.
02:39Suit yourself.
02:43Your blind date.
02:45Next week.
02:48The room spins.
02:52One night made me almost forget why I came here.
02:56I was supposed to hand him the condoms and say goodbye.
02:59Instead,
03:03I let him touch me.
03:05Again.
03:06Again.
03:07I take the card.
03:08The edges sting.
03:10Okay.
03:11I whisper.
03:13I'll go.
03:14For years,
03:15I've spent every weekend at his place.
03:17He built me a walk-in closet just so I'd stop leaving clothes behind.
03:21Today,
03:21I'm packing it all up.
03:23Pink slippers.
03:24The pajamas.
03:25The matching robe I bought to make this feel real.
03:28Everything is gone.
03:29He just leans in the doorway.
03:30Watching.
03:31Arms crossed.
03:32Face unreadable.
03:34I zip the last bag.
03:35Stand up straight.
03:36Meet his eyes.
03:37We're just boss and employee now.
03:39He lets out a cold laugh.
03:41Don't worry.
03:42I won't make things hard for you at work.
03:45I make it to my desk at 9.57.
03:47Breathless.
03:48Heart pounding.
03:49My co-workers already there with coffee.
03:51For the future director.
03:53Don't forget us little people.
03:55I blush.
03:56Results aren't even out yet.
03:57Please.
03:58You've worked your ass off for five years.
04:00It's yours.
04:01The team crowds around,
04:03hyping me up.
04:04I let myself smile.
04:05If I get it,
04:06omakase.
04:07My treat.
04:08The whole office cheers.
04:10Three minutes.
04:11I refresh my inbox.
04:13We regret to inform you.
04:15Promotion denied.
04:16No.
04:17My mind goes blank.
04:19Static filling my ears.
04:20HR walks in.
04:22Behind her,
04:22another woman.
04:23This is Claire,
04:24your new director.
04:26Personally appointed by Mr. Kane.
04:28I look up and stop breathing.
04:30She's exactly like the photo.
04:31The one Damien kept hidden in his wallet.
04:34She is back.
04:35And she's aiming for his bed.
04:37I feel like I have a heavy flu.
04:38I walk to his office like a robot.
04:41Can't stop wiping tears.
04:47Why?
04:48He doesn't look up.
04:52What?
04:54Director of operations.
05:00Fifty positions in this company.
05:02Why did you give her mine?
05:09She wanted it.
05:11She wanted it?
05:12I gave seven years to you and this company.
05:15I almost died on that Africa assignment.
05:23Nina.
05:24This is reality.
05:26I decide what happens here.
05:28I just want fairness.
05:38Fairness?
05:39If we weren't sleeping together,
05:41you wouldn't be here.
05:42You took the shortcut.
05:43Now you want fairness?
05:45It hits me like a physical blow.
05:48I worked until I collapsed.
05:50I had to prove I deserved to be here.
05:52But he's right.
05:54I got in because of him.
05:56He gave me everything when he wanted me.
05:58Threw me away when he didn't.
06:01Fairness.
06:01I don't get to ask for that dot.
06:04So I'm done.
06:05Quitting.
06:05Today.
06:07Meeting Damien was like a bad movie.
06:09Fresh out of college.
06:11New York.
06:12Boyfriend cheated.
06:13Moved on like I never happened.
06:15I was drowning.
06:16So I went to a bar.
06:18Tried to drink the pain away.
06:19I'd never been that drunk in my life.
06:21Drank until I didn't know my own name.
06:23I'm shy.
06:24Like painfully shy.
06:26But that night I walked up to the most beautiful man I'd ever seen
06:29and sat down like I belonged there.
06:30It was Damien.
06:31Looked like he stepped off a magazine cover.
06:34Cold.
06:35Turning everyone away.
06:36Want to come home with me?
06:37The words came out before I could stop them.
06:39He took a sip.
06:41That low laugh.
06:42First time I heard it.
06:44Never met anyone as bold as you.
06:45That night in my tiny apartment.
06:47Broken radiator.
06:49Mattress on the floor.
06:50It was beautiful.
06:51So beautiful I lost myself.
06:54Thought I'd never see him again.
06:55I was wrong.
06:57Next day.
06:58Job interview.
06:59I walked in.
07:00Looked up and there he was.
07:01Sharp suit.
07:03Same cold eyes.
07:04My heart almost stopped.
07:06I recognized him.
07:08Stayed calm anyway.
07:09A few hours later I had the offer.
07:12First day he cornered me in the elevator.
07:15Nina Parker, right?
07:16Can you handle a physical only thing?
07:18I'm usually careful.
07:20But his eyes were too deep.
07:22I...
07:23I can do that.
07:24The moment I said it, I knew I was screwed.
07:27By day he was my boss.
07:28By night my lover.
07:30He gave me money.
07:31Jewelry.
07:32Designer bags.
07:33But he also taught me everything about work.
07:36I started hoping.
07:38Stupid, desperate hoping.
07:40Maybe he'd love me back.
07:43Today that fairy tale died.
07:47Today I learned, if it's not yours, it never will be.
07:52Since I didn't get promoted, I don't need his signature to quit.
07:56I go straight to HR.
07:58Diana's the only one who knows about us.
08:03She gives me a hug.
08:05Thanks for everything, Diana.
08:06I hug her back.
08:08Can you keep my resignation quiet?
08:09Just for now, I don't want anyone to know I'm gone.
08:12She squeezes my hand.
08:13I promise.
08:14My grandma calls that night.
08:17Sweetie, did you get the promotion?
08:19You said I'd be the first to know.
08:21My throat closes up.
08:23I can't stop crying.
08:26Grandma, I think I'm done with New York.
08:29A beat of silence.
08:30Then she says, excited.
08:32That's great.
08:33I've been worried sick.
08:35When can you get here?
08:36I'll have pot roast, mashed potatoes, peach cobbled, everything you like.
08:41That's when I lose it.
08:43I know what she's doing.
08:44Saving my pride.
08:46Back home, I'm her favorite story.
08:48Her girl in the big city.
08:50I want to make it all worth it.
08:52Bring her here.
08:53Get us a real home.
08:54I have the whole future mapped out.
08:56I can almost touch it.
08:58And now, gone.
09:00I can't sleep that night.
09:02Start scrolling.
09:042.10am, I see it.
09:06Claire's Instagram story.
09:07Funny how some habits never change.
09:09The photo hits me like a physical blow.
09:11A woman in bed.
09:13Tangled sheets.
09:14A man's arm wrapped tight around her waist.
09:16And on his finger, the Cartier ring.
09:19I forget how to breathe.
09:20I know that ring.
09:22I save months to buy it for him.
09:24He looks at it and sighs.
09:26Nina, you don't need to splurge on me.
09:28There's really no point.
09:29I smile.
09:29But you deserve the best.
09:31He kisses me and looks so in love.
09:33I never think he'll wear it.
09:35Not in public.
09:36Next day, at the all hands, there it is.
09:40On his finger.
09:41The office buzzes.
09:43I sit frozen.
09:44Then he catches me.
09:46Tilts his wrist.
09:46Just enough for the ring to catch the light.
09:49Now that ring is in her bed.
09:51Onto his hand wrapped around her waist.
09:53Tears hit my screen before I feel them.
09:56And then, the last lie dies.
09:58Damien sleeps fine.
10:00He doesn't mind holding someone through the night.
10:02He just doesn't want to hold me.
10:04One week left.
10:05Then I'm done.
10:07Claire finds me at a coffee shop.
10:09You're the one who's been in Damien's bed for seven years.
10:12She says.
10:13She pulls out a hair strip from a plastic sleeve.
10:16Found it in his guest room.
10:18Before I can answer, she throws iced coffee in my face.
10:21And slaps me.
10:23You pathetic bitch.
10:25I swing back.
10:26But a hand catches my wrist.
10:28Damien.
10:31Claire turns on him, shaking.
10:36Damien.
10:37You promised me forever.
10:39We weren't...
10:40apart...
10:41six months before you replaced me?
10:43Damien's voice goes cold.
10:45Go wait in the car.
10:47She storms out.
10:49His eyes land on me.
10:51Didn't I tell you to keep this between us?
10:53I didn't say a word.
10:54I snap.
10:55She hunted me down.
10:56I nod toward the street.
10:58A black Porsche pulls up.
11:00My date is here.
11:01The one you picked out for me.
11:04Something flashes in his eyes.
11:06Then his mouth flattens.
11:07Have fun.
11:09It sounds like a threat.
11:11He drops his coat over my soaked shoulders and walks out.
11:15So, the guy Damien picked for me.
11:17A total trust fund disaster.
11:19The rich brat drives me home.
11:22I wait until his car disappears around the corner.
11:24Then turn.
11:25And walk straight into Damien.
11:27He's leaning there, checking his watch.
11:29Home after only an hour?
11:31No dinner?
11:32No movie?
11:32He that bad?
11:33I try to push past.
11:34He grabs my wrist.
11:36Yanks me back.
11:37What is it, Nina?
11:38Still obsessed?
11:39Can't handle one night with a guy who isn't me?
11:41I'm getting engaged to Claire.
11:43Whatever we were, it's over.
11:45Cause trouble?
11:46I can have you out by Monday.
11:48I look him dead in the eye.
11:50Voice steady.
11:51Don't worry, Mr. Kane.
11:53I know a dead end when I see one.
11:55I walk away.
11:57I don't look back.
11:58But from the hallway window,
11:59I see him leaning against his car,
12:02trying to light a cigarette.
12:03His hands are shaking.
12:05He doesn't drive off until my apartment light comes up.
12:09I get home and list everything Damien ever gave me.
12:13Bags.
12:14Jewelry.
12:15The luxury crap.
12:16All of it goes on Poshmark.
12:18At work, I smile and say,
12:21Hello, Damien.
12:22Like none of it happened.
12:26The overseas account wraps soon.
12:28Then I'm gone.
12:30I book my flight home.
12:36Nina, want to grab dinner?
12:39Ethan slides a latte onto my desk.
12:41I smile.
12:42Least I can do is thank him.
12:44Yeah.
12:45I'm in.
12:50We walk out.
12:51A delivery guy hands Ethan roses.
12:54He turns to me, ears red.
12:59These are your favorite.
13:00I saw it on your Instagram.
13:05People start hooting.
13:07I freeze.
13:09Oh, he's asking me out.
13:12I open my mouth to let him down easy.
13:15Then I see it.
13:16A black escalade across the street.
13:19Damien behind the wheel, staring at the flowers between us.
13:23His face goes dark.
13:26He lays on the horn.
13:28Once.
13:30Twice.
13:32Again.
13:33Then he peels out.
13:36The project wraps.
13:38My last day.
13:40I get stuck at a client dinner.
13:42Mark Dalton, the account director, keeps pushing drinks.
13:45His hand on my shoulder.
13:47I smile through it.
13:55After cold rain.
13:57No caps.
13:58I start walking.
13:59Then I hear footsteps behind me.
14:02Mark.
14:02I run.
14:05My phone hits the ground.
14:07I don't stop.
14:18I hit the emergency button on my watch.
14:21Damien set himself as the contact.
14:27A girl answers.
14:30Damien's in the shower.
14:31Claire, I'm being followed.
14:33Tell him to call the cops.
14:35She laughs.
14:37Still playing victim?
14:38Nina's begging to talk to you.
14:41If you pick up, I'm leaving.
14:46All right, baby.
14:47I won't.
14:50The line goes dead.
14:51I stand in the rain.
14:53Then I look up.
14:54Under the next streetlight.
14:56A shadow.
14:57My blood goes cold.
14:59Next morning, Damien glances at my desk.
15:02Empty.
15:04He figures I overslept.
15:05At 10.30, Diana from HR screams during the meeting.
15:09It's Nina.
15:10Something happened.
15:12Damien goes white.
15:13Diana turns her laptop around.
15:15He shoots to his feet.
15:17What the hell do you mean?
15:18A video.
15:20A man grabs me by the hair.
15:22Drags me towards an alley.
15:23I fight.
15:24He kicks me down.
15:25I keep hitting the emergency button on my watch.
15:28The watch Damien bought me.
15:29The one with GPS.
15:32The one linked to him.
15:33He grabs his phone.
15:34No missed calls.
15:36Nothing.
15:36Then he checks the blocked list.
15:38My number.
15:39Blocked.
15:39Not by accident.
15:40By Claire.
15:41Nina filed a complaint.
15:43Mark Dalton tried to assault her last night.
15:46A stranger helped her get away.
15:48She's asking us to use the footage and press charges.
15:50Where is she?
15:52She resigned a week ago.
15:54She's already gone.
15:55Left New York.
15:56Why wasn't I told?
15:59Company policy.
16:01Anyone below director level only needs department sign-up.
16:05You remember she didn't get promoted last round, right?
16:08That shuts him up.
16:09No one in the room knows why better than he does.
16:15I land.
16:20Give my statement.
16:22Snap my sim in half.
16:25Back in Buffalo,
16:26I buy a condo.
16:29Bring my grandma to live with me.
16:32Sell all Damien's gifts.
16:34A few hundred grand.
16:38I open my own boutique.
16:40A dream since I was a kid.
16:43Opening day,
16:45my grandma smiles.
16:47Friends pack the store.
16:50Maybe this is enough.
16:51Some nights,
16:52I still think about New York.
16:54About Damien.
16:58For a while,
16:59I think I'll never get over him.
17:02Then six months later,
17:03I see a man at a bar.
17:05Same build.
17:06Same profile.
17:08Even the way he lifts his glass
17:10looks like Damien.
17:12I wait for the ache.
17:14Nothing.
17:15I turn back to my friends and laugh.
17:18I know then,
17:19even if Damien stands in front of me,
17:21I can say long time no see
17:23and mean it.
17:24Somewhere along the way,
17:26I let him go.
17:27A year passes.
17:28I never expect to see Damien again.
17:31My clothing store gets popular.
17:33A local chain pays trolls
17:35to post fake reviews.
17:37I sue.
17:38They tank.
17:39Then last Tuesday,
17:42five men with bats
17:44corner me in an alley.
17:45Damien appears out of nowhere.
17:48Shoves me behind him.
17:50He fights.
17:54Tosses me his phone.
17:55Call the police.
17:56Before I can dial,
17:57a knife flashes.
17:58The man rushes straight at me.
18:00Damien turns.
18:01Throws himself in front of me.
18:03The blade sinks into his side.
18:04Blood soaks his shirt.
18:06He leans against me,
18:08breathing rapid,
18:09and wipes my tears with his thumb.
18:11Don't be afraid.
18:14I'm too stubborn to die.
18:16Even as they load him
18:17into the ambulance,
18:20it feels like a dream.
18:22Luckily,
18:23the stab wound isn't deep.
18:25Damien gets stitched up
18:26and moved to a regular room.
18:27His parents rush over.
18:29Claire comes with them.
18:30In the hallway,
18:31she yells at me.
18:32If it weren't for you,
18:33he wouldn't be hurt.
18:34I stay calm.
18:35I never asked him to save me.
18:36She freezes,
18:37then laughs bitterly.
18:39It was me.
18:39I blocked your number on his phone.
18:41That's why he never got your calls.
18:43I turn to leave.
18:44Her voice stops me.
18:45We broke up a year ago.
18:48She hands me a thick envelope.
18:50Two dozen boarding passes.
18:52Flights from New York to Buffalo.
18:54All bought by Damien.
18:56For the past year,
18:57he flew here twice a month,
18:59just to watch you from a distance.
19:01His friends told him to talk to you.
19:03He cried and said he had no right
19:05to be in your life anymore.
19:06She shrugs.
19:07I'm telling you this
19:08so you know I've let go too.
19:10Damien wakes up.
19:11I'm there.
19:12His eyes go red.
19:13Nina.
19:14I thought I'd never see you again.
19:19I set down the boarding packs.
19:21Haven't you already seen me many times?
19:23I'm sorry about the promotion.
19:25He says.
19:26I planned your transfer
19:28before we're giving Claire the position.
19:31I squeeze my eyes shut.
19:33Then why didn't you tell me
19:35when I came crying to your office?
19:37He freezes.
19:38Says nothing.
19:39I stand.
19:41Because you thought
19:42I just needed to follow orders.
19:44You didn't care how I felt.
19:46Right?
19:47His face goes pale.
19:49I pay his hospital bills
19:51and leave.
19:53In the rearview mirror
19:54he stands at the window.
19:56Then he's gone.
19:57And he's gone.
19:59He's gone.
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