Seen Not Heard: An Alexis Fawx Story

SCENE OPENS on Anna (Alexis Fawx), a frazzled woman dressed in a patient gown, as she sits on the edge of her hospital bed with her eyes closed. Her body is tense but still, with her fists clenched. The room is dark and only her silhouette is really visible, set against the various shadows that move in the hallway on the other side of the curtain. Anna muses:

‘Monsters are not only bred from darkness, monsters are also created. A monster by definition is an imaginary creature that is typically large, ugly and frightening. It’s the unknown lingering under your bed making you wish your blankets had the power of invisibility. A monster comes in many shapes and forms; its main purpose to destroy. They are creatures of elaborate pain, a motherless, fatherless creature shadowed in robes, veiled in black taking shape of all the things we fear most.’

Suddenly we flashback to a different time, many years ago. We are looking at the face of 18-year-old Anna (Bobbi Dylan). She sits on the edge of her bed. An older man walks into frame with a paper bag in his hand. ‘Hi sweetie, how was your day?’ the man says as he blindfolds the young woman, intimately caressing the side of her face as he does so. His index finger grazes her mouth for a brief second and then he reaches over into a brown paper bag he has by his side. ‘Are you going to be a good girl?’ She nods and opens her mouth somewhat reluctantly. From the paper bag, the man takes a small container of chocolate pudding and dips his finger in it. He slides his finger into her mouth as she licks the pudding off. ‘You know what happens if you get this wrong, don’t you Anna?’ He whispers. The girl looks up, despite being blindfolded, and nods as she chews. She hears the bedroom door slam.

Back in the present day, Anna is now having a panic attack, rocking back and forth. ‘I guessed it right!’ She half cries, half laughs as she continues to rock back and forth. A young male hospital orderly (Seth Gamble) walks into the room. Taking the woman by the shoulders, he guides her back into bed, tucking her in. ‘Don’t worry Anna, everything is going to be alright. The doctor will see you in the morning.’ He smiles gently, as he caresses her face intimately and she closes her eyes.

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The next morning, Anna wakes up suddenly. Sitting in a corner of the room is the girl from her memory, her younger self, still dressed in her nightgown. ‘It’s about time you wake up sleepy head, the doctor is waiting for us!’ The younger Anna says innocently.

At the same moment, the orderly walks in to the room. Both women look at him, but he only looks at the older version of Anna, ‘The Doctor is ready for you,’ he says. Anna gets up reluctantly, examining herself and the younger woman beside her. She is expecting the orderly to say something — but he seems oblivious. Finally, the younger Anna takes her hand and pulls her forward, as they follow the orderly out of the room.

In the doctor’s office, Anna sits in a chair in front of the doctor (Eric Masterson) as he reviews her chart. He asks how she is feeling, how her appetite has been, and whether she’s still been having those dreams they talked about. As Anna struggles to answer, the younger version of her leans in and whispers ‘Remember dear, you must be seen and not heard!’ Anna closes her eyes to try and tune it all out.

We flashback to another memory of the younger Anna. She opens her eyes to stare at herself. She is sitting in front of a mirror, as her mother brushes her hair. We don’t see the woman’s face, but we hear her saying ‘Remember dear, you must be seen, not heard!’ Young Anna listens to this being repeated before she starts to say it to herself as well.

Back in the doctor’s office, Anna opens her eyes in a panic. The Doctor tries to calm her down, as she starts shouting ‘be seen, not heard’ repeatedly. He yells for help and the orderly comes back in to take her away. The younger Anna watches them leave with a sly smile on her lips before turning around and winking at the Doctor, who has no idea she is there.

Later that night, the orderly comes in to Anna’s room with a dinner tray. ‘I’m not hungry!’ Anna shouts, as she turns over in her bed to reveal the younger version of herself also lying there. ‘You have to eat something,’ the orderly tries to coax her. The younger Anna sits up, picking a piece of food from the tray. ‘You should really be a good girl Anna, you know what happens when you misbehave!’ She whispers, slipping her fingers into Anna’s mouth and then licking them herself. She then stands up and walks over to the hospital orderly, before looking back and saying, ‘I’m eighteen now … so why don’t I show you how a good girl should behave!’ She pulls the orderly’s pants down, gets on her knees and asks to give him a blow job. In a calm voice, he says ‘sure Anna’. Young Anna slides the orderly’s cock into her mouth. Older Anna watches from the bed, utterly confused. Her mind races. Is what she’s seeing even REAL?