THE LOCKED GARDEN
(A screenplay by Wei Xiaoting)
Something about the title made her pause. It felt different, quieter, more intimate. There was a poetry to it that the others lacked.
Tang Fei adjusted her position, settling into a more comfortable position against a cushion. She opened the file, and as the first page loaded, the noise of the audition room seemed to fade into the background.
Her eyes caught the opening line, and suddenly she wasn't just reading anymore.
She was seeing.
FADE IN:
The hospital smelled faintly of disinfectant and wilted lilies.
Tang Fei's breath slowed. She could smell that hospital, sterile and sad, where flowers came to die alongside hope.
Lin Ruo sat across from the doctor, her hands folded neatly in her lap, the edge of her sleeve brushing against the white table. The clock on the wall ticked softly, steadily, and mercilessly.
