Chapter 32: The Reunion Special (Segment 6)

BODIES OF WATER
S1 E30 - Reunion Special
Close Captioned • Recorded Live

*COMPLETE TRANSCRIPT OF TELEVISION BROADCAST*

[Jamie rises to follow Cora offstage. Danna puts a hand on his shoulder to stop him.]

HOST: Not so fast, you. We still have one more clip from your time in paradise, and I'm sure everyone here can guess which one.

[Jamie cranes to look offstage in the direction Cora went. The clip begins to roll on the screen behind him. A black-and-white image shows Cora and Jamie lying in bed beneath the covers. Fade in as the scene begins to play.]

CORA: Okay, Mister Open Book. Tell me one real thing about yourself. Not some make believe. One verifiable fact that I don't already know.

JAMIE: [whispering] I think I might be... I think I might be in love with you.

[Cora pulls away.]

CORA: Why would you say that?

JAMIE: Sorry.

[Cora sits up in bed.]

CORA: No, that—that can't be. That can't possibly be true.

JAMIE: . . . [choked noise]

[Jamie gets out of bed. He pulls on a pair of jeans and an unzipped hoodie sweatshirt.]

CORA: Jamie?

[Cora gropes blindly around herself.]

JAMIE: I'll be back. I just need to clear my head.

CORA: Wait. No, I-I don't know what to say.

JAMIE: Don't worry yourself. Just go to sleep.

[Jamie exits the bungalow.]

[Cut to live reaction shot from the studio. The audience is hushed. Danna stands on stage alone in front of the empty sofa where Jamie had been seated.]

HOST: Awkward!

[Audience laughs.]

HOST: And then this happened. Remember?

[Cut to bungalow exterior. Jamie walks away from the front door and disappears out of view.]

[Cut to bungalow interior. Cora kneels on top of the bed with her hand over her mouth.]

CORA: [whispers] Jamie?

[Cora crawls to the edge of the bed and feels around for the light switch. Image switches to full color as lights turn on.]

CORA: Jamie? Are you there?

[Cora searches the bungalow. She exits the front door in an oversized t-shirt and flip flops.]

[Cut to bungalow exterior. Cora walks away unsteadily with her arms extended for balance.]

CORA: [calling out] Jamie! Jamie!

[Fade out to live closeup of Danna in the studio.]

HOST: We lost track of our lovebirds in paradise that night, and now look. They've gone MIA on us again! [She looks off stage, pressing a finger to her earpiece] Are they coming back? [She sits down on the empty couch] Ah, the joys of live television! I know we're all dying to know what happened that night after Jamie and Cora wandered out of camera range. Hopefully we'll have a chance to ask them. But for now, let's take a peek at what happened backstage, moments ago.

[Cut to backstage at the studio. A shaky low-resolution image follows Jamie from behind. He walks briskly through a corridor and addresses a crew member. Audio is subtitled for clarity.]

JAMIE: Mel! Did you see her? Where did she go?

PRODUCER: That way. You'd better hurry!

[Jamie breaks into a jog. He turns a corner. Cora comes into view. She walks toward a door marked "Exit."]

JAMIE: Cora!

[Cora turns around.]

JAMIE: [breathless] Wait! Let me explain.

CORA: They're still taping us. [She points over his shoulder].

JAMIE: For God's sake! [Jamie turns and approaches the camera with his palm up to block it.] Give us a moments peace, would you? [The image goes black, then cuts to a different camera angle.]

CORA: Don't bother. It's not worth it.

JAMIE: Please give me a moment.

CORA: No, I can't be here. I need to go.

JAMIE: Listen to me. I need you to hear this. [He grips her by the shoulders.] I didn't know about the cameras. Whatever else you may believe of me, I could never sink that low.

CORA: It seems awfully convenient for you, doesn't it?

JAMIE: Cora, please. You can't believe anything Danna tells you. She's had it in for me since—

CORA: Sure. [She shrugs off Jamie's hands.] You didn't know a thing. And yet somehow, by pure coincidence, you didn't reveal one single personal thing about yourself the entire time, except for the one night— [voice rising] —the one and only night when you were out of camera range. Is that the story?

JAMIE: I know how it looks, but—

CORA: Stop. Just stop.

JAMIE: But—

CORA: Please don't insult my intelligence. I feel stupid enough as it is.

[She turns away from him and heads for the exit.]

JAMIE: [calling after her] Cora! Wait.

[Cora stops but doesn't turn around.]

JAMIE: Believe what you want, but I meant everything I said to you that night. Every word.

[Cora shakes her head.]

JAMIE: [voice ragged with emotion] Please. Please believe that much.

CORA: [turning to face him] It doesn't matter anymore.

JAMIE: Yes, it does! [More softly] I can't let you walk out of here thinking none of it was real.

[Cora wipes her cheek. She walks up to him, kisses her fingertips, and presses them against his lips.]

CORA: If it was real, then show me now.

[He reaches for her, but she backs away.]

CORA: Not like that.

JAMIE: How?

CORA: Give me what I asked for from the beginning. Go do the show without me, and let me walk away.

[Cora exits the building.]

[Fade out to live shot of stage. Danna sits alone on the couch. Jamie walks out from off stage and rejoins her.]

HOST: Ah, here he is! Our poor Jamie, all alone.

JAMIE: [clears his throat] You sound awfully cheerful about it.

HOST: No! Not at all. We've all been shipping the two of you. #Jamora has been trending for weeks!

JAMIE: [To audience] Sorry to disappoint you.

[Cut to close up of an audience member. She yells loudly enough to be heard off mic: "We still love you, Jamie!"]

HOST: [patting his knee] There, you see? That lady still loves you. No, I know what will cheer you up.

[Danna points to the screen behind him. It displays the header of an Instagram account.]

HOST: Look at this! That was your Instagram account one month ago, just before the show began to air... and now here it is today.

[Image fades into a new view of the same account.]

HOST: Look at that blue checkmark, and all those lovely followers. Isn't that exciting?

JAMIE: I'm sure my agent will be pleased.

HOST: Good. Now, stop moping and tell us the truth. What happened during the two hours of missing footage when you and Cora left the bungalow that night and went out of camera range?

[Jamie stares at her for a long moment. Then he closes his eyes, tips back his head, and laughs.]

HOST: Is something funny?

JAMIE: [wiping tears of laughter from his eyes] The gap between the scenes, eh?

HOST: Go on. Fill us in.

JAMIE: You want to know what Bond and Moneypenny got up to after the camera cut?

HOST: If that's what you're calling yourselves now.

JAMIE: What happened between Jane Eyre and Mr. Rochester in between the chapters?

HOST: [in a sing-song voice] We're losing paaaatience...

JAMIE: My dear Danna, I've already told you several times.

HOST: What?

JAMIE: In the gaps between the scenes, that's where the real story unfolds.

HOST: And luckily we have you here to provide a recap.

JAMIE: No, I think not.

HOST: Your fans need answers.

JAMIE: Hmmm. Perhaps I took her in my arms and kissed her silly. Was that it? Or perhaps I cuffed her on the shoulder and called her 'old sport,' or something very British like that.

HOST: So? Which is it?

JAMIE: Whichever you want it to be. You're welcome to make believe any scene you like.

HOST: So smooth, isn't he? I'm starting to see why Cora kept comparing you to various amphibians. But we're not letting you off the hook with a slippery answer like that.

JAMIE: It's the only answer you're getting, I'm afraid.

HOST: Come on. Give us a hint.

JAMIE: Use your imagination.

HOST: You do realize you're on a reality show, right? The whole reason people watch—the whole reason they follow you on Instagram—is because they don't want to use their imagination. They want reality.

JAMIE: No, they don't. They want a good story. Perhaps they want to escape their own real lives for a time. But reality? It's all a matter of perception, isn't it? Nothing but an illusion that changes color depending on the quality of light.

HOST: Just a simple rundown of the events, please.

JAMIE: Very well. We both got lost in the darkness. We wandered aimlessly for hours and never once crossed paths.

HOST: I don't believe you for a second.

JAMIE: No, no one ever does. [He smiles sadly] But if I told you a different story, would you believe it any more?

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