Coordinates for Cracks in the Pavement
Following a cryptic note from a mysterious artist, Leaf and Leo are led on a scavenger hunt through a city park. They discover that the clues aren't in hidden objects, but in the landscape itself.
EXT. VIMY RIDGE MEMORIAL PARK - DAY
A relentless July sun beats down. The park is aggressively normal: families picnic on blankets, dogs chase frisbees, kids shriek on a distant playground.
SOUND of cheerful park ambiance, distant traffic
LEAF (17), inquisitive and intense, stares at his phone, then at the surrounding area. LEO (17), pragmatic and already sweating, shields his eyes. They stand near the north-east entrance, looking lost.
LEO
> So... what are we looking for?
LEAF
> I don't know. A hidden message? Another note? A QR code stuck to a lamppost?
Leaf scans every surface. They’ve been here twenty minutes. He circles a bench, peers under it. He checks behind a trash can. He runs a hand inside the hollow of a 'Donated by the Rotary Club' sign. Nothing.
Leo sighs, kicking at the grass.
LEO
> Maybe she’s just messing with you. Sent you on a wild goose chase to the most boring park in the city.
Leaf pulls a folded, worn piece of paper from his pocket. He unfolds it. On it: a string of numbers and a hand-drawn symbol—a SPIRAL inside a TRIANGLE. He glances at his phone again, at a map app with a single pin dropped exactly where they’re standing.
LEAF
> The coordinates are precise. To the metre. We're in the right spot. It's a test. I just don't know what the question is.
Frustrated, Leaf slumps onto the edge of a low concrete planter. He stares at the ground, at the interlocking pavement bricks.
His eyes trace the lines... then stop.
CLOSE ON a single, triangular paving brick. A pattern of CRACKS radiates from a central point. A perfect starburst. A spiral.
Leaf’s eyes widen. He pulls out the note, his gaze darting between the drawing and the cracked brick.
LEAF
> (a whisper)
> It's not *on* something. It *is* the something.
He grabs Leo, pulling him down.
LEAF
> Look. The cracks in this brick. What does that symbol on the note look like to you?
Leo crouches, squinting.
LEO
> A spiral... in a triangle.
He looks from the note to the triangular brick. The connection dawns on him.
LEO
> No way. That’s a total reach.
LEAF
> Is it?
Leaf whips out his phone, pulling up a photo of a hand-drawn map covered in symbols and coordinates. His fingers fly across the screen, finding the spiral-in-a-triangle symbol. He types in the numbers next to it.
A new pin appears on the park map, a hundred metres away.
A surge of adrenaline hits Leaf. He grins.
LEAF
> Let's go.
He takes off at a jog, Leo scrambling to follow, his skepticism melting away.
MONTAGE
A) EXT. PARK BENCH - DAY
Leaf and Leo examine a bench. Leo runs his hand along the underside of a wooden slat and stops.
CLOSE ON his finger tracing a small, deep CARVING of three wavy lines.
Leaf finds the symbol on his phone, punches in new coordinates. They run.
B) EXT. DECORATIVE WALL - DAY
They scan a low stone wall. Leaf points.
MACRO SHOT of a specific PATTERN OF MOSS growing on one stone. It matches another symbol.
New coordinates. They’re off again, a giddy excitement building.
C) EXT. POPLAR TREE - DAY
They circle a tall Poplar. Leo spots it.
CLOSE ON a particular arrangement of KNOTS on the trunk, forming a distinct shape.
Leaf nods, already typing. They are no longer walking; they are reading the landscape.
END MONTAGE
EXT. ANCIENT OAK TREE - LATER
The last coordinates have led them to a wooded area at the far end of the park. A massive, ancient oak tree dominates the space, its branches creating a wide circle of shade.
They search the area around it, getting frustrated again.
LEO
> Leaf! Over here!
Leo is at the base of the oak, pointing. Leaf rushes over.
LEO
> Look at the roots.
A thick, gnarled root has grown out from the trunk, curled around in a wide arc, and grafted itself back into the ground. It forms a perfect, living CIRCLE.
And in the very centre of that circle sits a single, small, round STONE.
The final symbol: a circle with a dot in the centre.
LEAF
> (breathing it out)
> This is it.
But there are no more coordinates. This is the end of the trail.
Leaf runs his hand over the tree’s rough bark. He begins examining the trunk with intense focus, searching for the prize. He finds a fold of bark, almost perfectly camouflaged. Behind it... a HOLLOW.
It’s dark inside. He reaches in tentatively. His fingers brush against something cool and metallic.
He pulls it out.
A small, olive-drab METAL BOX, about the size of a book. It’s heavy, like an old army surplus case, held shut by two simple latches.
This is the answer.
Leo leans in, his eyes wide with anticipation.
LEO
> Open it, man!
Leaf’s heart hammers in his chest. He places the box on the ground, kneeling before it. He places his thumbs on the latches, ready to flip them open.
The sun dips behind a cloud, casting the scene in a sudden, ominous shadow.
At that exact moment—
SOUND of a sharp, insistent PHONE VIBRATION.
Leaf pauses, his thumbs hovering over the latches. He pulls his phone from his pocket.
A text message from an UNKNOWN NUMBER.
CLOSE ON THE PHONE SCREEN
The message contains only five words:
Are you sure you want to?
Leaf’s triumphant expression dissolves. His blood runs cold. A wave of dawning horror washes over his face.
He looks from the chilling message on his phone, to the box on the ground, then to Leo. Frozen. The choice hanging, heavy and terrifying, in the air.
A relentless July sun beats down. The park is aggressively normal: families picnic on blankets, dogs chase frisbees, kids shriek on a distant playground.
SOUND of cheerful park ambiance, distant traffic
LEAF (17), inquisitive and intense, stares at his phone, then at the surrounding area. LEO (17), pragmatic and already sweating, shields his eyes. They stand near the north-east entrance, looking lost.
LEO
> So... what are we looking for?
LEAF
> I don't know. A hidden message? Another note? A QR code stuck to a lamppost?
Leaf scans every surface. They’ve been here twenty minutes. He circles a bench, peers under it. He checks behind a trash can. He runs a hand inside the hollow of a 'Donated by the Rotary Club' sign. Nothing.
Leo sighs, kicking at the grass.
LEO
> Maybe she’s just messing with you. Sent you on a wild goose chase to the most boring park in the city.
Leaf pulls a folded, worn piece of paper from his pocket. He unfolds it. On it: a string of numbers and a hand-drawn symbol—a SPIRAL inside a TRIANGLE. He glances at his phone again, at a map app with a single pin dropped exactly where they’re standing.
LEAF
> The coordinates are precise. To the metre. We're in the right spot. It's a test. I just don't know what the question is.
Frustrated, Leaf slumps onto the edge of a low concrete planter. He stares at the ground, at the interlocking pavement bricks.
His eyes trace the lines... then stop.
CLOSE ON a single, triangular paving brick. A pattern of CRACKS radiates from a central point. A perfect starburst. A spiral.
Leaf’s eyes widen. He pulls out the note, his gaze darting between the drawing and the cracked brick.
LEAF
> (a whisper)
> It's not *on* something. It *is* the something.
He grabs Leo, pulling him down.
LEAF
> Look. The cracks in this brick. What does that symbol on the note look like to you?
Leo crouches, squinting.
LEO
> A spiral... in a triangle.
He looks from the note to the triangular brick. The connection dawns on him.
LEO
> No way. That’s a total reach.
LEAF
> Is it?
Leaf whips out his phone, pulling up a photo of a hand-drawn map covered in symbols and coordinates. His fingers fly across the screen, finding the spiral-in-a-triangle symbol. He types in the numbers next to it.
A new pin appears on the park map, a hundred metres away.
A surge of adrenaline hits Leaf. He grins.
LEAF
> Let's go.
He takes off at a jog, Leo scrambling to follow, his skepticism melting away.
MONTAGE
A) EXT. PARK BENCH - DAY
Leaf and Leo examine a bench. Leo runs his hand along the underside of a wooden slat and stops.
CLOSE ON his finger tracing a small, deep CARVING of three wavy lines.
Leaf finds the symbol on his phone, punches in new coordinates. They run.
B) EXT. DECORATIVE WALL - DAY
They scan a low stone wall. Leaf points.
MACRO SHOT of a specific PATTERN OF MOSS growing on one stone. It matches another symbol.
New coordinates. They’re off again, a giddy excitement building.
C) EXT. POPLAR TREE - DAY
They circle a tall Poplar. Leo spots it.
CLOSE ON a particular arrangement of KNOTS on the trunk, forming a distinct shape.
Leaf nods, already typing. They are no longer walking; they are reading the landscape.
END MONTAGE
EXT. ANCIENT OAK TREE - LATER
The last coordinates have led them to a wooded area at the far end of the park. A massive, ancient oak tree dominates the space, its branches creating a wide circle of shade.
They search the area around it, getting frustrated again.
LEO
> Leaf! Over here!
Leo is at the base of the oak, pointing. Leaf rushes over.
LEO
> Look at the roots.
A thick, gnarled root has grown out from the trunk, curled around in a wide arc, and grafted itself back into the ground. It forms a perfect, living CIRCLE.
And in the very centre of that circle sits a single, small, round STONE.
The final symbol: a circle with a dot in the centre.
LEAF
> (breathing it out)
> This is it.
But there are no more coordinates. This is the end of the trail.
Leaf runs his hand over the tree’s rough bark. He begins examining the trunk with intense focus, searching for the prize. He finds a fold of bark, almost perfectly camouflaged. Behind it... a HOLLOW.
It’s dark inside. He reaches in tentatively. His fingers brush against something cool and metallic.
He pulls it out.
A small, olive-drab METAL BOX, about the size of a book. It’s heavy, like an old army surplus case, held shut by two simple latches.
This is the answer.
Leo leans in, his eyes wide with anticipation.
LEO
> Open it, man!
Leaf’s heart hammers in his chest. He places the box on the ground, kneeling before it. He places his thumbs on the latches, ready to flip them open.
The sun dips behind a cloud, casting the scene in a sudden, ominous shadow.
At that exact moment—
SOUND of a sharp, insistent PHONE VIBRATION.
Leaf pauses, his thumbs hovering over the latches. He pulls his phone from his pocket.
A text message from an UNKNOWN NUMBER.
CLOSE ON THE PHONE SCREEN
The message contains only five words:
Are you sure you want to?
Leaf’s triumphant expression dissolves. His blood runs cold. A wave of dawning horror washes over his face.
He looks from the chilling message on his phone, to the box on the ground, then to Leo. Frozen. The choice hanging, heavy and terrifying, in the air.