- 14 hours ago
Fool's April & Broken Heart Asm
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Short filmTranscript
00:00at a gathering with friends my husband a highly respected university professor suddenly dropped
00:06to his knees before me his voice trembled as he spoke the unthinkable sarah mia's heart is a
00:11perfect match with yours she needs the transplant immediately for a moment i was struck completely
00:15dumb yet somehow i wasn't surprised but a person only has one heart i'll contact the best surgeons
00:21in new york to fit you with a state-of-the-art artificial one arthur i am three months away
00:25from
00:26my due date we we can always have another baby let's just give this one up for now while i
00:32sat
00:32there paralyzed by the sheer cruelty of his words a girl's crisp melodic laughter rang out from across
00:38the room happy april fools professor your heart isn't actually a match sarah i was just messing
00:43around i can't believe you actually went and begged your wife professor the tense atmosphere in the
00:47room instantly evaporated into boisterous laughter our friends began to tease him that was a cruel
00:52joke mia you put arthur in an impossible position if mia told me we were a match i bet arthur
00:56would
00:57have dragged me onto the operating table himself amidst the laughter i was the only one sitting dead
01:01silent on the sofa i rested a hand over my rounded belly my heart slowly turning to ash arthur had
01:07never
01:07once been angry with mia to him this frail sickly student of his was a fragile porcelain doll that
01:13needed constant protection but this time he stood up his face uncharacteristically dark the crowd
01:18belatedly quieted down after a suffocating silence someone whispered to mia
01:23the joke too far you know how protected the professor is for sarah series first started at
01:26columbia university a colleague made an off-color joke about sarah and arthur put him in the hospital
01:30hearing this mia froze tears instantly welled up in her doe-like eyes she reached out gingerly tugging
01:36at the hem of arthur's shirt i'm so sorry professor it's april fools i just wanted to play a little
01:42prank
01:42when arthur remained silent she turned her pitiful gaze to me sniffing delicately
01:47sarah i didn't mean any harm if you're angry you can yell at me i'll take it
01:51oh come on she's just a straightforward girl she spoke without thinking
01:55yeah arthur she's been your star student for three years you even dedicated your recent thesis to her
02:01you can't let a silly april fools joke ruin that arthur's expression finally softened
02:05don't ever make a joke like that again mia nodded eagerly
02:11then he turned to me a hint of guilt flashing in his eyes
02:17i'm sorry sarah i should have verified it before coming to you for a favor a favor he casually
02:23reduced demanding my heart and my unborn child's life to a simple favor but this wasn't the first
02:29time whenever it came to mia the usually rational fiercely logical professor arthur davies became
02:35hyper emotional and inexplicably blurred the lines on christmas eve he had driven 300 miles through a
02:41blizzard to boston just because she texted him that her stomach hurt when i questioned him he simply
02:48sighed her health is fragile sarah i was worried something terrible had happened yet when i his wife sat
02:54alone in our home five months pregnant waiting up for him all night in pain he wasn't worried when
02:59my violent fetal movements left me in agonizing breathless pain he wasn't worried through my
03:04morning sickness my contractions my edema and my hair loss he wasn't worried with me he was always
03:10as cold and pragmatic as a machine sarah creating a life is naturally difficult you just have to endure
03:14it until the baby is born when the hormones made me irritable or depressed he dismissed it as female
03:19hysteria threw out a few half-hearted platitudes and locked himself in his
03:24study every single time i had to swallow my despair to avoid disturbing his work yet the crowning
03:30achievement of his career a research paper that took him five grueling years to complete featured
03:35mia's name on the very first line of the acknowledgements an undergraduate student who
03:40had absolutely no professional contribution to the work by the time i found out it was already
03:44making headlines in the interview video arthur looked into the camera with a soft affectionate smile
03:49in my five years of teaching mia might not be the most gifted student i've ever taught
03:52but she is unequivocally the most resilient i thank her for walking into my life she gave me
03:56the courage to continue my research last week i accidentally dropped my favorite vase it shattered
04:01into a dozen pieces when arthur saw it he didn't even blink he just calmly asked the housekeeper to
04:07sweep it up but that vase was irreplaceable it was one we had sculpted and fired together in italy
04:13during the most passionate year of our marriage he had once held it up looking deeply into my eyes
04:19and solemnly declared it would be our family heirloom
04:24let me just let me glue it back together i had whispered squatting on the floor with trembling
04:29hands trying to gather the fragmented pieces of our memories he frowned and pulled me up by my arm
04:35it's just the cheap vase sarah let it go my eyes welled with tears but his gaze simply dropped to
04:41my
04:41stomach is the baby making you act out again i tried to comfort myself he's a rational man i thought
04:46it's normal for him not to care about sentimental trinkets but that night when i brought a plate of
04:51fruit into his study my eyes fell upon a locked transparent display case on his desk inside sat a
04:57cheap twenty dollar fountain pen from a local stationery store a gift from mia at that moment
05:02it felt as though a bucket of ice water had been poured directly over my head we had the worst
05:07fight
05:07of our marriage i completely lost it i grabbed a paperweight smashed the glass case
05:14and threw the cheap pen into the trash can but the very next second arthur scrambled to fish it out
05:19cradling it in his hands as if it were a priceless treasure when he finally looked at me his eyes
05:24were
05:25brimming with disgust and impatience go look in the mirror sarah look at yourself you look like a mad
05:30woman you broke the damn vast yourself today so what exactly are you blaming me for now swear on the
05:36bible that you hadn't developed feelings for mia if you had they would both rot in hell
05:42arthur a staunch man of science actually hesitated it took him a long time to finally speak
05:47yes i am tempted by her the word struck me like a physical blow but we haven't crossed the line
05:53and we never will so you can drop the wronged wife act tears stream down my face he sighed stepping
05:59forward to gently smooth down my messy hair sarah we've been together for 11 years there's no
06:04freshness left to be brutally honest kissing you feels like my upper lip tuck was on my lower lip
06:09sometimes i even regret that we eloped to vegas the second we turned 18 back then i didn't know
06:13that 10 years later i would fall for someone else he was the one who bought out the city's fireworks
06:17just to make me smile when we were young now he was the one looking down on me casually discussing
06:22his change of heart mia has a lively personality she's not dull and suffocating like you she likes
06:26to goof off she likes watching cheesy romance movies she loves feeding stray cats by the road you used to
06:30do those mundane things too but when she does them i just find her incredibly adhering i can't control my
06:34heart flutter finally he lit a cigarette his tone was gentle yet unimaginably cruel as long as you
06:39wanted the position of mrs davis will always be yours but you have to accept the reality she is the
06:45only one in my heart now after that night i spiraled into an endless cycle of breakdowns and internal
06:51torment i cried until my eyes were swollen shut i tried to detach myself emotionally i tried pretending i
06:58didn't care when he came home late when he missed my prenatal checkups when he took mia to hawaii for
07:03a
07:03research trip i was only lying to myself and today when he knelt in front of all our friends begging
07:08me to carve out my heart for mia and abandon our six-month-old baby i finally realized something
07:14this marriage was completely utterly meaningless
07:19sarah i know i was wrong please forgive me her voice carrying much more confidence than before
07:27someone chimed in to help her sarah mia didn't mean any harm she never takes things seriously remember
07:32that time she got drunk and babbled about wanting to marry the professor i didn't mean it like that
07:36i just meant she speaks without a filter everyone knows you and arthur have an unbreakable bond there's
07:39no room for anyone else i offered a quiet hollow smile and looked directly at mia
07:44it's fine i don't blame you
07:47the crowd let out a collective sigh of relief then i delivered the final blow
07:52arthur and i are getting a divorce soon anyway i wish you get everything you've ever wanted mia
07:58sarah stop talking nonsense in front of everyone i found it laughable you can kneel in front of a
08:04room full of people and beg me to give my heart to another woman but i can't even mention divorce
08:08it was an april fool's joke what is the big deal mia has already apologized and i've reprimanded her
08:13if you keep making a scene you're only going to embarrass yourself calm down sarah you're pregnant
08:17don't let a little misunderstanding ruin your marriage yeah arthur clearly cares about you we all
08:21saw it he normally never yells at mia hearing this i slowly turned my gaze to arthur my voice
08:26was eerily calm you weren't angry just now because she disrespected me you were angry because she
08:29joked about being a match when you heard the truth you were just disappointed arthur stiffened a moment
08:34later profound irritation flashed across his face for god's sake i'm begging you can we not do this here
08:38if you don't care about your dignity mia still cares about hers a tidal wave of sheer exhaustion washed
08:43over me i closed my eyes fine i'll see you at the lawyer's office on monday i stood up to
08:50leave
08:50sarah please don't blame the professor he just wants me to have a healthy body it's my fault i
08:56looked down coldly at the girl crying crocodile tears you went to all this trouble with this prank
09:00just to prove your place in his heart you must be thrilled right now her face turned deathly pale
09:04as if she had been slapped i looked away and walked past her sarah don't forget your mother is still
09:10staying at my family's private hospital my footsteps halted never in my wildest nightmares did i think the
09:16man i loved would use my sick mother as leverage to protect his mistress after a long agonizing
09:22silence i forced a smile and helped mia up from the floor everything i just said was a joke too
09:32i don't blame you mia choked back a sob that's good i was so scared i caused trouble for the
09:38professor
09:38the farce finally ended
09:42arthur offered to drive me home on the way he uncharacteristically tried to explain himself
09:48i only said that to scare you i would never do anything to your mother you suffered a grievance
09:52today as an apology i'll go with you to your prenatal checkmate tomorrow sarah we've been
09:56together for over a decade it's not like i don't have feelings for you i just wish you could learn
09:59to
09:59get along with mia i leaned against the cold car window feeling absolutely nothing i was serious about
10:05what i said today let's get a divorce arthur from now on whatever happens between you and her is
10:11none of my business the car was silent for two seconds then he let out a low chuckle this is
10:17the
10:17seventh time you've brought up divorce since you got pregnant next time you throw a tantrum try a new
10:22trick just as he finished speaking his phone rang frantically he answered it and then slammed on the
10:34brakes get out mia's having an episode i have to go back to her i looked out the window at
10:39the torrential
10:40downpour i paused for a second then opened the door and stepped out into the storm his rushed voice
10:46chased after me find somewhere to take cover i'll come back and pick you up after i drop her at
10:51the
10:51hospital late at night in a thunderstorm it was impossible to hail a cab i stood shivering beneath the
10:57awning of a convenience store but the person who eventually arrived wasn't arthur it was mia holding
11:03an umbrella she smiled sweetly at me looking perfectly healthy see sarah with just one word from me he will
11:12abandon you anytime anywhere i didn't want to engage with her i turned to walk away but she lunged forward
11:19grabbed my arm in a vice grip
11:24during the struggle she shoved me hard my foot slipped on the wet pavement and i tumbled violently
11:30down the concrete steps blinding agony ripped through my abdomen hot blood mixed with the freezing
11:35rain dying my dress a horrific crimson mia panicked for a split second then sneered
11:43dropped the umbrella and ran back to the car waiting on the street
11:46i woke up the next morning in a sterile hospital room
11:58the doctor stood beside my bed looking grimly at my chart mrs davis i am so sorry you suffered severe
12:03trauma the baby couldn't be saved for your own safety we must perform an emergency dc procedure
12:09immediately if we don't your life is in danger furthermore due to the damage you will not be
12:14able to conceive again if you understand please sign here i was born with a condition that made it
12:18incredibly difficult for me to get pregnant when i was 23 i had a child back then arthur was just
12:24making a name for himself in the academic world during his busiest period i traveled with him to three
12:29different countries in a single week managing his schedule until i collapsed from sheer exhaustion
12:34i woke up in the hospital only to find out i had been a month pregnant and the overwork had
12:38caused a miscarriage that was the first time i ever saw arthur cry he held me tightly sobbing
12:44apologies into my hair i'm so sorry sarah it's all my fault i didn't take good care of you
12:50we'll have another one i promise you we will it took six years six years of praying in churches
12:56and agonizing hospital visits before we finally conceived this baby and now he wouldn't even get
13:01the chance to be born in complete silence i signed the consent forms i didn't make a single call
13:06to arthur after the surgery my body felt hollowed out a nurse helped me back to the ward as i
13:13walked
13:13down the hall i bumped straight into mia she was wearing a fresh set of clothes her cheeks rosy
13:19she looked nothing like the wicked vicious girl in the rain last night sarah are you at the hospital
13:27alone why didn't the professor come with you then her lips curled into a malicious smirk and she
13:33lowered her voice oh i almost forgot he's at the pharmacy getting me medicine for my upset stomach
13:38you bled so much last night you must have been terrified right but even if you told him what
13:43happened he would just say it was an accident on my part when i didn't react she suddenly raised her
13:48voice feigning remorse i'm so sorry sarah did i make you mad again arthur who had just rushed over
13:56with a pharmacy bag heard her he immediately stepped in front of her shielding her with his body
14:01his brow deeply furrowed sarah can't you just leave me alone her body's very weak right now
14:10arie stared at him with dead eyes without a single word i bypassed them and continued walking arthur
14:16watched my retreating back his heart inexplicably skipping a beat he stopped my nurse where is she going
14:24sir i cannot disclose a patient's private medical information the nurse replied politely he wanted
14:30to press further but mia tugged his sleeve where else would she be going a prenatal checkup obviously
14:35come on professor you promised to take me to the movies today let's go during my two days of
14:41hospitalization i received 18 missed calls from arthur his texts grew increasingly irritated
14:50i sent one single reply don't forget tomorrow morning at the lawyer's office he replied instantly
14:56are you seriously still playing this game fine just don't back out tomorrow and use some fake
15:00illness as an excuse the next morning at nine i stood waiting outside the lawyer's office
15:10half an hour later arthur finally arrived he stepped out of his car slowly arrogantly adjusting
15:16his suit but the moment his eyes landed on me he froze his gaze dropped locking onto my completely
15:21flat stomach sarah where is the baby i followed his gaze looking down at myself and gave a serene
15:29smile the day before yesterday while you were abandoning me in the freezing rain to go to mia
15:37i lost this child his pupils dilated wildly all the color drained from his face in an instant
15:44what are you saying our baby is gone he was in your womb for six months he was already formed
15:49what happened why didn't you tell me i had no energy left to entertain his belated grief let's just sign
15:54the papers i turned and walked toward the entrance sarah he lunged forward grabbing my wrist in a vice
16:01grip sarah what are you hiding from me he was my child too looking at his pale horrified face i
16:09actually
16:10let out a laugh yes he was your child but where were you you never accompanied me to a single
16:15checkup when i had my first ultrasound you weren't there when i had the genetic scranning you weren't
16:19there when i was lying in a pool of my own blood in the pouring rain crying for help you
16:24still weren't
16:25there how dare you call him your child his breath hitched his voice trembled violently his eyes wide with
16:34disbelief i i went to get mia that night i i was so busy with with work i shook my
16:41head no you weren't
16:42busy you had time to take mia to the movies to get her nails done to take her shopping you
16:48had time to
16:49bring her to academic galas to expand her network you just didn't have time for me or for your child
16:56he was rendered utterly speechless he opened his mouth but no sound came out after an eternity
17:03he finally forced a raspy whisper from his throat but you still you shouldn't have gone through that
17:08alone you didn't even let me see him one last time i closed my eyes drowning in exhaustion
17:16arthur don't forget you were the first one to give up on him when i was three months from my
17:22due date
17:22you knelt in front of me and begged me to kill him god simply granted your wish the grip on
17:28my wrist
17:28instantly went slack when i opened my eyes the rims of his eyes were bloodshot
17:35that was because of a joke i didn't mean it i was looking forward to this baby too i just
17:42bought a
17:42bunch of baby clothes yesterday i hired a designer for the nursery i've been reading the parentsy books
17:48he rasped desperate to prove himself just last week i would have given anything to hear those words
17:53to know he cared but right now my heart felt absolutely nothing it's too late
18:01the baby is gone he fell dead silent it took a long time before he choked out
18:09it's okay we we can always have we have no future
18:12i cut him off it was spring in new york but the wind still bit into my skin he jolted
18:19as if
18:19waking from a nightmare his expression slowly morphing back into a forced desperate calm
18:26right we're here to sign the divorce papers
18:35the process was quicker than i imagined the moment i stepped out of the law firm a massive
18:40literal weight lifted from my shoulders the agonizing heartbreak i had once envisioned didn't happen
18:47we ended our marriage as casually as if we were picking up groceries i got into his car to go
18:53back
18:53to the house one last time to pack my things the ride was suffocatingly silent the only sound was the
18:59stereo softly playing an old love song from a decade ago it was the cd i had gifted him for
19:05his birthday
19:05the year we started dating as soon as i walked through the door i saw a pair of fluffy bunny
19:10slippers that didn't belong to me sitting in the entryway mia's lease expired she's just staying
19:15in the guest room for a few days arthur instinctively explained i had already looked away
19:20but he kept explaining almost nervously she doesn't get along with her roommates so she
19:25couldn't go back to the dorms i walked into the walk-in closet i had only been gone for two
19:29days
19:30but my clothes had been shoved into a dusty corner racks of pink dresses and skirts now dominated my
19:36space arthur frowned when he saw it she brought a bit too much stuff please don't be mad i didn't
19:44say
19:44a word i just systematically folded my clothes and placed them into my suitcase he stood in the doorway
19:49watching me in silence leaving the closet i walked into the master bedroom it looked exactly as i had left
19:55it i meticulously gathered the last of my belongings as i was about to walk out you forgot this arthur
20:01suddenly held out a small velvet box inside was a silver cross necklace after my first miscarriage
20:06he had driven to a remote monastery and begged a priest to bless it for me when i found out
20:11i had
20:11laughed through my tears i had teased i thought you didn't believe in god i don't he had smiled gently
20:18stroking my hair but you do from that day on i never took it off looking at it now i
20:25offered a
20:26faint smile i don't want it anymore throw it away or keep it it's up to you his hand hovered
20:32frozen in
20:33the air for a second before he slowly awkwardly withdrew it i ignored him dragging my suitcases into
20:39the living room we had moved into this house when we were 24. five years of memories were embedded in
20:46these walls by the time i finished packing the sun was setting do you he asked softly want to get
20:53dinner together i was slightly taken aback by the audacity but politely declined no thank you he pressed
20:59where are you going let me drive you i don't need you to i called a cab his lips parted
21:04but he swallowed
21:04whatever he was going to say he lowered his head and silently wheeled my two suitcases to the front door
21:12that was when mia walked in seeing me she beamed sarah you finally came home arthur felt a sudden
21:19spike of anxiety go back to your room mia why professor didn't you say yesterday that sarah
21:26is pregnant and will definitely come crawling back she blinked innocently you told me to use the
21:30opportunity to bond with her as the words left her mouth she suddenly realized something her eyes
21:36dropped to my flat stomach after a brief flash of panic the tears began to fall on cue she looked
21:42at arthur with big pitiful eyes i'm so sorry professor i didn't know sarah hated me so much
21:48that she'd go this far it's all my fault i'll leave right now i'll never appear in front of you
21:53two
21:53again she sobbed so violently that her whole body shook and within a minute she began gasping for air
21:59clutching her chest arthur's resolve crumbled he expertly fetched her pills and a glass of water
22:04coaxing her to swallow them before gently patting her back it's not your fault don't blame yourself
22:10he murmured to her before i walked out the door i glanced back one last time mia was leaning into
22:16arthur's chest from an angle he couldn't see she looked right at me and smirked i withdrew my gaze
22:22completely dead inside and walked out
22:27the door shut arthur didn't look up he just mechanically continued patting me his back
22:32professor i'm so sorry i really didn't expect sarah to go as far as to kill the baby
22:40how is the apartment hunting going he interrupted her his voice flat i'm looking i'll move out as
22:45soon as i can she froze tears pooling in her eyes he nodded and finally pulled his hand away from
22:50her
22:51get some rest i'm going for a walk mia grabbed his sleeve can i come with you please
23:02arthur rarely refused her requests but this time he shook his head without a second of hesitation
23:08he couldn't explain what he was feeling his chest felt incredibly tight and a suffocating need to
23:13flee the house had overwhelmed him the truth was when he went to the lawyer's office today he had
23:18fully intended to bring sarah home he had specifically worn the dark charcoal suit she loved
23:23most and spent the morning grooming himself like he told her eleven years of marriage wasn't nothing he
23:29had feelings for her and he naturally assumed she still loved him too especially since she was
23:34carrying his child he knew exactly how desperately she wanted to be a mother because of that he was
23:40willing to give her an out a stepping stone to come back to him but he never imagined that the
23:45child would be gone and that he had been completely kept in the dark panic had set in he hated
23:51himself
23:51for leaving her in the rain that night so he interrogated her demanding to know why she hadn't told him
23:56but her answers all pointed to one terrifying conclusion she was completely utterly done with
24:02him but how could that be he thought frantically she loved me so much arthur wandered aimlessly down
24:07the neighborhood streets they used to stroll together torturing himself with that question
24:12an old retired professor from the university happened to walk past
24:17arthur where's sarah you two used to take a walk together every single evening an old retired
24:23professor from the university happened to walk past arthur's throat went dry sarah's sick she's
24:29resting at home the old man nodded chuckling as he patted arthur's shoulder i have to say i've never
24:36seen a couple more in love than you two do you remember your first year at columbia you brought sarah
24:43into the lab to help out that arrogant prick jason made a nasty joke that she only got into the
24:47university by sleeping with you you beat him black and blue when the administration was threatening to
24:52expel you sarah went and begged jason for mercy she secured the settlement arthur stopped dead in his
24:58tracks sarah begged jason you didn't know the old man looked surprised the poor girl was so terrified
25:10the expulsion would ruin your academic career she practically got extorted he forced her to pay five
25:15thousand dollars i heard she had to pawn the vintage diamond grandmother left her just to get the cash
25:22the old professor waved goodbye and walked away leaving arthur standing frozen on the sidewalk for
25:27a very very long time he only knew jason had mysteriously agreed to drop the charges
25:34he never knew sarah had swallowed her pride and begged the man who insulted her
25:39no wonder the heirloom necklace she never took off had suddenly vanished
25:43no wonder she kept smiling and telling him not to worry those few days
25:48arthur closed his eyes a single tear slipped down his cheek as dusk settled he sat on a park bench
25:54pulled out a cigarette and lit it he rarely smoked because sarah hated the smell he only ever smoked when
26:01he was at his absolute breaking point his phone buzzed it was mia her voice trembling and pitiful
26:08professor the doctor said my condition has worsened what if i don't survive long enough to get a heart
26:14i'm so scared
26:16i'm so scared
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