“In the mind-bending abyss of number 23, one man’s reality blurs into a thrilling, murderous fiction.”
Watch the original version of The Number 23
Prologue:
In a place unmarked on any map, in a store hidden in the criss-cross labyrinth of a forgotten side street, a book sat on a dusty corner shelf. It bore no insignia, no autograph, just a simple, plain title: “The Number 23”. Overlooked by most, it lay undiscovered, waiting for the one who would unwrap its conundrum. Veiled in mystery, it harbored within it a tale that mirrored reality with a disturbing precision.
Chapter 1: The Mundane Life of Walter Sparrow
At first glance, Walter Sparrow was undeniably an ordinary man. A diligent worker who wore his commitment and upright morality like a second skin, he found satisfaction in his job as an animal control officer in the bustling city of New York. He thrived in predictability, found solace in orderliness, and, like clockwork, his life duly adhered to this rhythm.
Like any other day, one quiet afternoon, Walter found himself chasing a stray dog through the city’s labyrinthine side streets. The dog, quick and agile, led him to a part of town he had never ventured into before. It was here in this forgotten alley that Walter found a peculiar shop that looked as ancient as time itself. A sign swayed above the door, creaking rhythmically under the weight of the years, adding to the eerie charm.
Compelled by an inexplicable curiosity, Walter pushed open the heavy oak door. The scent of aged paper and dust wafted through the air, stirring a sense of nostalgia within him. His eyes scanned the withering stacks of books and mountains of paraphernalia that stood as silent spectators of a forgotten era.
Deep within the shop, in the farthest corner, a specific book caught his eye. A shiver ran down his spine as he read the title “The Number 23”. He didn’t know why, but he felt a peculiar connection to it. Paying the shopkeeper, he tucked the book under his arm and exited the eerie store, unaware that his reasonably ordinary life was about to take an extraordinary turn.
Back at home, Walter could not resist the silent call of the book. He opened the first page and let the words pull him in. The novel narrated the tale of an average man whose life was eerily reminiscent of Walter’s own. This protagonist lived in New York, worked as an animal control officer, and even bore astonishing physical resemblances to Walter himself. The similarities were uncanny, filling Walter with a sense of unease and intrigue.
The more Walter read, the more entangled he became in this peculiar story. He couldn’t shake off the feeling of déjà vu that clung to him like his shadow. How could a man he had never met, living in a place he had never heard of, pen down a story that, in essence, was his own life story?
This inexplicable connection shook Walter’s orderly world to the core. He couldn’t comprehend how this was possible. He was a rational man; he didn’t believe in fate or cosmic connections. Yet, here he was, living his life through the pages of a book.
As the chapters progressed, his life unfolded on the paper, spiraling him into a growing obsession that threatened to consume him. One by one, the coincidences stacked up, dismantling his world as the fabric of reality seemed to blend with fiction.
Unbeknownst to him, this was only the beginning. The line between Walter Sparrow’s real life and the book’s narrative was blurring, and a number was about to tip the scales entirely – the number 23.
As Walter lay awake that night, the book beside him, he couldn’t shake the sense that his ordinary life was about to change in ways he could hardly fathom. As he finally dozed off, the number 23 danced behind his closed eyes, marking the beginning of a mystery that would engulf his life.
Chapter 2: Unsettling Parallels
Walter Sparrow, the protagonist, sat reclined on his worn-out couch, shaken by what he had come across. His weathered face reflected the unease as his furrowed brow went through the pages of the peculiar book named ‘The Number 23’. It wasn’t the title that was intriguing enough; but the uncanny resemblances that the book bore with his life.
He was an unexceptional man, leading an unremarkable life. He had accepted the mundanity of his existence, always ensnared in an endless loop of tasks. As an animal control officer, his days were filled with stray dogs, chaotic cat owners, and the occasional slithering snake marking territories in suburban homes. It was an ordinary life until this book entered it.
The protagonist of the book, ‘Fingerling’, echoed Walter. Apart from sharing the same occupation, Fingerling too grappled with the drudgeries of life, the repetitive narrative of the everyday. Fingerling’s experiences, his thoughts, even his reactions mirrored Walter’s, sending shivers down his spine. It was like gazing at a distorted image of himself in a murky mirror.
The parallels were uncanny. Each chapter revealed another aspect of Walter’s life fictionalized in print. Every dialogue seemed to have borrowed words from his vocabulary, every experience felt as if it was ripped away from his memory. It was like his very existence, an entity he held as his own, began to disintegrate and resurface within the pages of this book.
The more he read, the more he could see his life unravel on paper. It was no ordinary resemblance. It felt calculated, intentional, as though the author had studied him, noted down his every move, his every thought, and poured it into the book. As troubling as it was to discover his life was the source of some cryptic novel, Walter could not resist the pull of it. He was drawn to it, a moth to the flame.
Simultaneously, a character in the book had the same job description as Walter’s. This character moved in the realms that Walter was familiar with. The description of the character’s duties, the tools and the timing were detailed to the extent that it was as if the author shadowed Walter, imbibing his work essence. This character, seemingly ordinary, disturbed Walter the most, for it hinted at a deep-rooted connection, one that was beyond mere coincidence.
Walter was assailed by a sense of fear and curiosity. Fear, that his life was being manipulated by a strange unknown entity. And curiosity, to uncover the truth behind these unsettling parallels. The fear gnawed at his sanity, while curiosity fueled his obsession with the book.
These unsettling parallels provoked numerous questions in Walter’s mind. Was his life being watched? Was this just a coincidence, or was there someone out there, mirroring his life through the protagonist? Every rational thought he forced out was soon drowned by the paranoia growing within him.
The story of ‘Fingerling’ in ‘The Number 23’ was an eerie mirror of Walter’s mundane life, coiled with hints of mystery. The unsettling parallels between life and fiction sent Walter spiraling into an abyss of anxiety and confusion. It was the beginning of his obsession, his descent into a labyrinth of cryptic codes and terrifying predictions.
Chapter 3: The Dark Cloud of 23
Walter Sparrow’s life suddenly seemed to be unfolding like the pages of the mystery novel, ‘The Number 23.’ As he dug deeper into the text, he couldn’t help but link the tantalizing and twisted plot to his own existence. The number 23 was taking on an obsessive significance in his life, clawing its way into his consciousness. He saw it everywhere – from the date on the newspaper to the numbers on license plates. The number seemed to hold an uncanny power over him, transforming into a symbol of fear and dread rather than just a simple counting number.
The intriguing and terrifying narrative of the book began to twist and twine with Walter’s everyday life, unnerving him. It was as if he was holding a mirror up to his own life, reflecting back the shadows and demons he never knew existed. The number echoed in his mind, a haunting refrain that he couldn’t shake off. It was everywhere, all around; an omniscient presence that steadily built into an intense crescendo in his life.
His fixation with the number began to seep into his professional life. As an animal control officer, he started to see the number in the addresses he’d visit, the number of cases he had, even the number of steps he took. His calm, predictable world started to tilt on its axis, teetering dangerously towards chaos and madness.
Slowly, a chilling realization dawned upon him – his birthday. Adding up the days, months, and years of his birth date, he arrived at the dreaded number 23. Staring at his birth certificate, Walter felt his blood turn to ice. Was this all just a bewildering coincidence, or was there a deeper, more sinister conspiracy at play? The number was becoming an obsession, a weird fascination he couldn’t shake off.
Every waking moment was consumed by thoughts of the number. He would ruminate on it, turning it around in his brain, examining it from every angle. The world around him seemed to revolve around the axis of 23. His obsession began to strain his relationships too. His wife and son were baffled and worried by his behavior.
Stranger still, the protagonist in the novel experienced a similar fixation with the number. The character’s life seemed to parallel Walter’s, as they both began to see the number 23 in every facet of their existence. It was as though the character was Walter’s doppelgänger, etching out a life of shadow and reflection in the pages of the book.
As he dived deeper into the mystery, Walter felt himself getting more entangled in the web that the number 23 was spinning. Amidst the mounting dread, he couldn’t shake off the feeling that he was moving closer to a shattering revelation. The strange occurrence of the number ascended from coincidence to a spine-chilling pattern.
The once regular and mundane experiences of his day took on a sinister hue. Every clock he looked at read 23 minutes past the hour; every street he passed seemed to be 23rd street; every bill he paid seemed to round off to 23. It felt like he was living a jigsaw puzzle, with every piece falling into place to form the dreaded number 23.
Haunted by shadows of the letter, his nights were consumed by nightmares of the number. His dreams echoed the eerie narratives of the book, filled with heart-thumping chases and spine-chilling murders. Each dream was cryptically linked to the number, leaving him drenched in sweat and fear.
Walter Sparrow stood at the precipice of an abyss filled with terrifying obsessions and paranoias. Caught in the web of the number 23, he felt disconnected from reality. The line between fact and fiction blurred, blending into a murky nightmare. As he teetered on the brink of insanity, the dark cloud of the number 23 continued to loom heavily over his life, threatening to engulf him in its storm. Little did he know, his life was morphing into a chilling narrative that was spinning out of control, with the number 23 at its helm. The terrifying ride had just begun.
Chapter 4: The Face Behind the Pages
Walter Sparrow’s daily life had become a puzzle, an enigma intricately woven with the threads of the number 23. Every tick of the clock, every turn of the head, he found himself trapped in the spiral of twenty-three. The book that was once a fascinating curiosity now held a menacing presence, a puzzle box yet to reveal its most disturbing secrets.
His investigations had led him to a sprawling path, a maze with only one solution. To find the author of the book, Topsy Kretts. The name seemed as puzzling as the book itself, as if a riddle of letters and words. But he was determined, fueled by the desperate need for answers. For, how could a stranger write a book that mirrored his life with such eerie precision?
Days turned into nights and Walter’s search led him through winding roads and dimly lit alleyways, past strangers who looked at him curiously. His obsession with the number echoed in his erratic patterns around the city, his paths weaving a strange pattern. All roads, he believed, led to Kretts. Yet, the more he searched, the more elusive the author seemed.
Finally, after days of relentless pursuit, Walter found himself standing in front of a dilapidated house at the end of a winding road, the supposed residence of Topsy Kretts. As he climbed the creaking stairs, he felt a chill run down his spine. The house seemed eerily familiar, like a haunting echo from his book’s pages.
He knocked on the door. His heart pounded in his chest, each pulse replaying his building dread. But, to his shock, the door was answered by an elderly woman, her frail figure very far from the image he had of the elusive Kretts. His insides coiled in confusion as she revealed a chilling truth: Topsy Kretts was not a person, but a pseudonym. The real author had died years ago under mysterious circumstances – an unsolved mystery that left a cold trail.
Stunned, Walter realized the uncanny connection. ‘Topsy Kretts’ was an anagram for ‘story keeper.’ A wave of realization crashed over him; it was no mere coincidence. The unfolding reality around him was more twisted than he had ever thought.
With each ticking second, his life was becoming an echo of the words written by a dead man who seemed to know him better than anyone else. Every page he turned, every chapter he flipped open, seemed to push him deeper into the labyrinth of his pulsating fear. The face behind the pages was not there, yet the story continued.
His investigation had only churned up more questions, more fears. His own image reflected back at him from the mysterious author’s words, written in a code that only he could decipher. The fictional murder loomed over his life, like the perpetual dread of impending calamity.
The fear was no longer just about the number 23. It was about the book, its author, and the terrifying possibility that he was living in an elaborately carved reality inspired by the pages of a fictional book. Walter was no longer the master of his own narrative; he was a character caught in the tightening web of the book’s haunting tale.
The terrifying maze of ‘The Number 23’ was taking over Walter’s life, blurring the lines between reality and fiction. As he walked back into the cold night, the dread of his own story unraveling in the hands of a ghost continued to consume him and the enigma of Topsy Kretts, the ‘story keeper’, lingered ominously.
Chapter 5: The Fictional Murder
The fictional world of the book was turning too real for Walter Sparrow. He found himself standing on the precipice of insanity, staring into the abyss of a fictional murder that seemed destined to reach out from the pages and stain his hands with blood. The hint of the crime in the book turned his life upside down. Each letter, each word, each sentence stabbed at his mind. It was as if the ink on the pages crept onto his skin, imprinting a sinister crime he hadn’t committed yet.
The murder written in the book was gruesome yet meticulously planned. The victim, eerily similar to Walter, was a middle-aged man working an ordinary job, living an ordinary life. Until his life was brutally snuffed out, leaving behind nothing but the chilling echoes of the number ‘23’.
The more Walter read about the murder, the more he could envision it. The scenes painted vivid pictures in his mind. The location was a typical suburban home with 23 steps leading to the front door, the timing was 11:12 pm (1+1+1+2=5, 2*3=6, 5+6=11, 1+1=2), adhering to the terrifying theme of 23. The victim was killed by a stab wound to the heart, the weapon withdrawn and inserted exactly 23 times.
The hairs on the back of Walter’s neck stood on end as he imagined the detailed scene. He could hear the deafening silence wrapping around the home like a suffocating blanket. He could feel the heavy air, thick with the primal fear of the helpless victim. Walter’s heart pulsed in his ears with an unmatched rhythm, as if mimicking the dying beats of the book’s victim.
The smoky lamplight flickered on his face as he dragged his eyes through the explicit details. His palms were sweaty, and a shiver ran down his spine, sending a jolt of cold through his entire body. It was as though he was standing in the victim’s house, watching the horrific scene unfold before him.
Every minute detail, from the color of the wallpaper to the worn-out carpet under the victim’s lifeless body, seemed a part of the room he was sitting in. His surroundings morphed into the book’s setting, the fictional murder taking over his reality. Even the smell of the fresh ink on the pages started to emulate the metallic scent of the victim’s blood.
Walter found himself lost in the labyrinth of his mind, his imagination staging the fictional murder in his reality. The details were so precise, so tangible, he could almost reach out and touch this new, terrifying world. He was disturbed by his ability to visualize the murder so vividly. Am I becoming a killer? The thought echoed around his skull, a chilling prediction of his imminent metamorphosis into the book’s protagonist.
His worst fear was that he was gradually falling into the fictional world, blurred lines of fantasy and reality no longer discernible. Was he living the script of the book, or was he writing his own destiny? Walter soon realized that this was no ordinary connection between a reader and a novel. Rather, it was a terrifying bond threatening his sanity, his morality, and ultimately his freedom.
Chapter 5 concluded, leaving Walter Sparrow in a state of perpetual fear. For the first time, he wished he had never opened ‘The Number 23.’ But he knew, as clear as the terror gripping his mind, that he couldn’t un-know what he had learned. He had unwittingly embarked on a journey from which there was no turning back. The fictional murder was now embedded so deeply in his subconscious that it had begun to manipulate the fabric of his reality.
How do you escape a murder that hasn’t happened yet? Walter thought to himself, the weight of his predicament sinking deeper into his core. Little did he know, his life was heading toward a climax as chilling as the chapters he was turning, each page leading him one step closer to the unraveled truth of the number 23.
Chapter 6: Life Turns Into A Living Nightmare
Life, as Walter Sparrow knew it, had been irrevocably altered. The number 23, once a simple numeric value, had metastasized into an insidious symbol that invaded every corner of his existence, defining its every contour. Each mundane object, each passing moment, bore the mark of this number, whispering its hidden secrets to him in a language that both mystified and petrified.
Awaking from fitful slumbers under the influence of recurring nightmares – each echoing the chilling narrative of the book – he traced the patterns on his bedroom ceiling, finding the number 23 existing within. The room, once his sanctuary, now seemed a crypt scrawled with cryptic numerological graffiti.
Days morphed into eerie replicas of each other, each marked by an increasing sense of dread and paranoia. Walter’s occupation, once mundane, now turned sinister as he noticed that his daily tasks, his work routes, even the animals he encountered seemed to bear the unrelenting stamp of 23.
His relationships, too, began to bear the burden of his obsession. His wife Agatha, an island of solace in the churning sea of uncertainty, looked at him with unfamiliar concern. His son, Robin, hesitated at his volatile behavior, the boy’s laughter replaced by a wary silence. Walter’s dog, usually vibrant and playful, grew listless, mirroring his owner’s growing unease.
Within the pages of the cursed book, the protagonist’s life twisted in a terrifying pattern around the number 23. The book slowly opened a world where reality and fiction blurred, an unsettling echo to Walter’s chaotic reality. As he drowned deeper in the narrative, the fictional murder – a gruesome crime committed with meticulous planning – held him in a vice-like grip.
Hallucinations began to play tricks on his sanity: innocent bystanders morphed into his fictional victims; blood seemed to stain his hands no matter how hard he scrubbed. Every reflection whispered accusations. Each shadow harbored a potential victim. The world had become a cruel stage, with him as the unwilling actor, drawn into a performance he feared he could not resist.
The distressing possibility of fiction seeping into reality left him gasping for air. The thought of him committing such a horrific act haunted him; he had become a prisoner in his mind, trapped within the bars of his delusions.
His pursuit for truth turned into a race against time. He fought to untangle the twisted threads of his life, to decode the looming murder, and to liberate himself from the dark shadow of 23. An unspoken question lingered: Would he solve the mystery before succumbing to it?
Determined to wrestle free from the nightmare, Walter sought professional help. Psychologist Dr. Sirius Leary attempted to navigate Walter’s mental labyrinth. Yet, the perplexity and burstiness of Walter’s experiences proved too intricate to unravel.
The final straw was when Walter realized that even the name ‘Walter Sparrow’ added up to 23. It was as if his destiny had been predetermined, coded within the confines of that number. Each revelation pushed him closer to the precipice of madness, every ‘23’ echoing like the tolling bells of his impending doom.
As the chapter closed, Walter found himself standing at the edge of a terrifying abyss, staring into the darkness within, where the brutal reflection of number 23 stared right back. The line between Walter Sparrow and the book’s protagonist had become hauntingly thin. His life had indeed turned into a living nightmare, with ‘The Number 23’ as the puppet master, pulling at the strings.
Chapter 7: Unraveling The Mystery
The anxiety and fear that had been gradually building up inside Walter Sparrow reached its peak as he tirelessly scrutinized every symbol, every metaphor, every word related to the number 23 in the book. His focus was undeterred as he was gripped by an inexplicable urge to excavate the truth shrouded by the mystifying number. The world around him faded into irrelevance as his mind morphed into a vortex of theories, equations, and ominous symbolism surrounding ’23’. His obsession was like that of a moth to a flame, harmful yet impossible to resist.
His life had become a cryptogram, each number he encountered was another piece of a gigantic puzzle. Dates, times, receipts – he saw 23 everywhere, swirling around him like an inescapable cyclone. His fingers repeatedly traced the dreaded digits on the worn-out pages of ‘The Number 23’, turning a simple curiosity into a worrisome obsession. Every mention of the number flooded his senses with a chilling dread, and yet, he felt a magnetic attraction to the enigma, like an adventurer determined to solve a long-lost mystery.
Each day that passed, his sanity began to crumble under the immense weight of his obsession. He found himself on a precipice, teetering between the realms of fantasy and reality. His mind was in a chaotic whirl, consumed by the possibility of mirroring the fictional murder described so vividly in the book. He wrestled with insomnia, his nights filled with horrific visions of the crime and the relentless stalking of the number 23.
As he continued his journey into this mathematical abyss, the edges of his reality blurred further. The line between ‘The Number 23’s protagonist and himself was erased, swallowed by the engulfing darkness of the puzzle. The distinctions between the ‘real’ and ‘fictional’ began to merge, painting a picture that left Walter horrified yet morbidly entranced.
With dogged determination, he tried to decipher the hidden meanings behind the number 23, drawing a chillingly close connection with the crime he feared he might commit. He saw codes where there were none, and patterns in every mundane interaction – all leading back to this complex numerical mystery.
In this labyrinth of confusion, an odd burst of clarity hit him, like a lightning bolt tearing through the storm. He realized that the number itself wasn’t the root of his fears. It was the echoes of his own life in the book, the dread of following into the protagonist’s footsteps, and committing the heinous act that instilled dread into his heart. The number 23 was merely a symbol, a disturbing mirror reflecting his deepest, darkest fears.
Yet, Walter felt as if he was a puppet in the hands of destiny, dancing on the strings of the number 23. His life was turning into a re-enactment of the eerie novel, and he saw himself turning into a reluctant actor caught in this eerie performance. The world around him felt like a stage, and the protagonist’s gruesome act seemed like the script he was fated to follow.
Every rock he turned, every mystery he unraveled, led him deeper into the rabbit hole. His obsession with the number 23 was spiraling down a path that could shatter his reality. He was neck-deep in this whirlpool of uncertainty, with the chilling echoes of the book ringing in his ears and the number 23 flashing in front of his eyes.
As the ominous shadows of the number 23 stretched over him, Walter Sparrow found himself on the edge of a dark abyss. If he didn’t unravel the mystery soon, the fictional murder might no longer be fiction. His quest wasn’t just about uncovering the truth, it was a desperate fight to reclaim his life from this insidious number, a battle against time and fate. The game was far from over, and Walter Sparrow was at its epicenter, entangled in the web of ‘The Number 23.’
Chapter 8: The Climactic Confrontation
Walter’s obsession with a book titled ‘The Number 23’ and the shifting realities of his life had achieved a fever pitch. His everyday life was dictated by the number 23, and he feared an unfathomable crime looming ahead. As he reached the final pages of the book, he became engulfed more than ever by a mounting terror.
Walter started spotting patterns. Little snippets of information began matching up, and the storyline appeared less like fiction with every passing moment. The murder in the book bore a striking resemblance to his own life. His heartbeat echoed in his ears as he read, the harsh mountain of dread sinking around him.
The realisation hit him thunderously. The protagonist of the book was him. He was the animal control officer, and the victim was his wife. Panic risen in his throat, a choking sensation, as he put down the book and ran his hand through his hair.
His wife, Agatha, the woman he had loved for years, his high school sweetheart and the mother of their child. Could he really kill her? But the book, ‘The Number 23,’ was pushing him along that path, guiding him with its uncanny parallels.
The number 23 was present everywhere in his life, dictating his actions. It was there in his birthday, in his age, in the number of years they’d been married, even in the numerology of his name. The number was there, lurking, shadowing his every move.
He decided to take matters into his own hands. Walter knew he had to find out who wrote this book, who had such intimate knowledge of his life, and confront them. His first stop was the curiously empty building where he had bought the book.
There, he met a woman named Fabrizia who claimed to have sold him the book. She, too, was disturbed by his revelation and confessed that the book was given to them by an anonymous author named Topsy Kretts. That name etched itself in Walter’s brain as yet another lead to follow.
His search for Topsy Kretts led him to a rundown, deserted house. Records indicated that it was once inhabited by a successful author whose pen name was Topsy Kretts. But the house hadn’t seen life for over fifty years.
Walter’s life, once familiar, was slipping through his fingers, like sand in an hourglass. They say every person has a place in this universe. Was it his destiny to become a fictional character in a murder story?
He found a dusty, old note hidden in the house’s broken spine, written in a shaky handwriting that said, “It is the number that commands us, every day of our lives.” The note sent chills down Walter’s spine.
His obsession consumed him, and he spent days and nights deciphering the message. It was then it hit him like an avalanche. Walter Sparrow, the man who had lived a life dictated by schedules, love, and mutual respect, was living in the shadow of a number. His life was enslaved by 23.
His investigation led him to a hidden room within the house. There, he discovered a shocking truth. The novel he was obsessed with was actually the author’s confession. A confession of a murder he had committed, the details of which matched his own life too closely for comfort.
Walter realized that the protagonist of the book, the animal control officer, was the author himself and that his fear of killing his wife was the author’s traumatic memory, projected onto him. His life was not predestined by the number 23, but manipulated by the guilt of the author.
In that climactic confrontation with his own fears, Walter discovered the real culprit was not him but the numbers that had held him captive. He had been living in the shadow of another man’s crime, manipulated by his confessions.
From then on, Walter decided to break free from the number 23. He learned that while life could be full of unexpected twists and turns, he was the author of his own story, not a number, not a book, not a dreaded prophecy. No longer a slave to his hallucinations, he pledged to lead a life guided by love, not fear.
This chapter brought Walter’s life full circle, confronting his darkest fears to rediscover the power of his own free will. Unveiling the disturbing reality behind the Number 23, he stepped out of the shadows into a space where he could breathe freely again. A space where his life was dictated by him and not by an ominous fictional narrative.
In the end, Walter learned that he was more than a number. More than a victim of circumstances. He was Walter Sparrow, an animal control officer, a husband, a father. Walter Sparrow was a man whose life was his to live, his to control, and no one else’s.
Some scenes from the movie The Number 23 written by A.I.
Scene 1
FADE IN:
EXT. QUIET SUBURBAN TOWN – MORNING
WALTER SPARROW (40s, animal control officer, weary) is on his route, driving an ANIMAL CONTROL VAN.
WALTER (V.O.)
Another day, another stray.
INT. ANTIQUE BOOKSHOP – DAY
Walter browses books absentmindedly, until his eyes land on a book: THE NUMBER 23.
WALTER (V.O.)
Ah, now this one catches my eye.
He PICKS UP the book, flips it open randomly.
INT. ANIMAL CONTROL VAN – LATER
Walter drives, engrossed in the book. Eerily, the PROTAGONIST is described as a mild-mannered animal control officer. Walter LAUGHS nervously.
WALTER (to himself)
Well, that’s a coincidence.
Suddenly, a STRAY DOG runs into the road ahead. Walter BRAKES sharply, gasping with surprise. But he has managed not to hit the dog.
WALTER (aloud)
Number 23, you’ve got my attention.
FADE OUT.
Scene 2
INT. WALTER’S LIVING ROOM – NIGHT
Walter, late 40s, a man of simple tastes is sitting in his usual recliner. He is reading ‘The Number 23’, his face a mixture of fascination and bewilderment.
FADE IN:
WALTER
(reading aloud)
“The relentless specter of 23 taunted me. I felt it in my bones, beneath people’s glances… Even the ticking seconds on the clock seemed to be against me.”
He pauses, glancing around the room as if expecting to see something. He shakes his head, chuckling to himself about his growing paranoia.
WALTER
(narrating to himself)
“This is ridiculous, Walter. It’s just a book.”
He resumes reading. As he finishes a chapter, he freezes. The book tumbles from his hand.
WALTER
(murmuring to himself)
“An animal control officer finding solace in the rhythm of routine…”
He leaps up, pacing the room, his brow furrowed. He picks up the book again, flipping back to the earlier page. His eyes scan the written words, widening in anxiety.
WALTER
(to himself)
“That’s… that’s what I do! Is this some kind of joke?”
He grabs his coat and rushes out of the room, leaving the book behind, opened to the page that has upturned his world.
FADE OUT.
Scene 3
INT. WALTER SPARROW’S HOUSE – LIVING ROOM – NIGHT
Walter, bespectacled and clenched-jawed, pours over the book ‘The Number 23’. His brow is furrowed, eyes squinting at the pages. On the coffee table, a dated calendar, a digital clock, a photo from his last birthday. All exhibit the number 23.
WALTER
(mockingly, to himself):
Twenty-Three. The magic number.
He chuckles, slightly unnerved. He gets up, pacing around the room, book clutched tightly in hand. He stops, staring at the digital clock. It reads 11:00 pm.
WALTER
(to the clock):
Well, at least you’re not 23.
He turns to leave, but not before the clock Flickers. It now reads 11:23 pm. He freezes, eyes wide with disbelief.
INT. WALTER’S HOUSE – KITCHEN – NIGHT
Walter, still shaken, heads towards the fridge. As he takes a milk bottle, his eyes fall on the calendar. A red circle marks today’s date, the 23rd.
Suddenly, his phone rings – the caller ID reads ‘UNKNOWN’. He answers, on edge.
WALTER
(defensive):
Who’s this?
CALLER
(deep, gravelly voice):
Twenty-Three.
The call ends abruptly. Walter, visibly shaken, drops his phone. The screen shatters, reflecting his escalating fear of the number 23.
FADE OUT.
Scene 4
INT. USED BOOKSTORE – DAY
Walter Sparrow, mid-40s, animal control officer, is hunched over a worn-out copy of ‘The Number 23,’ absorbing every word.
DISSOLVE TO:
INT. SPARROW’S LIVING ROOM – NIGHT
Walter, at his desk, surrounded by papers filled with scribbles of number 23. He flips through the book to the ‘About the Author’ page, face filled with determination.
INSERT – THE AUTHOR PAGE
The name ‘Topsy Kretts’ printed boldly, yet no photo or further information.
BACK TO SCENE
Walter sits back, contemplating. He pulls out his laptop and Googles the name ‘Topsy Kretts.’
CLOSE ON – LAPTOP SCREEN
“Search Result: No match found for ‘Topsy Kretts'”
Walter’s eyes widen, stunned with the revelation. His cell phone rings, breaking the silence.
INSERT – CELL PHONE SCREEN
The time displayed is ’23:23.’ Walter answers the call. It’s his wife, AGATHA SPARROW(42), sounding worried.
Agatha Sparrow (V.O)
Are you okay, Walter? You’ve been buried in that book for days.
WALTER
Aggie, It’s…it’s strange. The author, Topsy Kretts, doesn’t exist.
Agatha Sparrow (V.O)
What do you mean ‘doesn’t exist?’
WALTER
I searched online. Nothing came up. It’s like Kretts is a ghost.
Agatha Sparrow (V.O)
Maybe you’re just overthinking, Walter. It’s just a book.
Walter looks at the book, then at his scribbles of number 23 scattered around. The fear in his eyes widens.
FADE OUT. TO BE CONTINUED…
Scene 5
FADE IN:
INT. WALTER’S LIVING ROOM – NIGHT
Walter, mid-forties, worn face framed by stubble, sits alone in a dimly lit room. His eyes dart nervously between the book and the clock – the numbers 23 glaring back at him. He’s sweating, his hands shaking as he turns the pages to a particularly gruesome murder scene.
WALTER
(reading aloud)
“The blade glistened under the moon’s glow, blood seeping into the ground…”
Suddenly, a loud BANG. Walter jumps. He turns to see an empty room.
CUT TO:
INT. KITCHEN – NIGHT
Walter, now visibly disturbed, pours himself a glass of whiskey and gulps it down. His eyes keep flickering to the book in the living room. Finally, he slams his glass on the counter and marches back into the living room.
BACK TO:
INT. WALTER’S LIVING ROOM – NIGHT
Walter, bracing himself, picks up the book, his eyes running over the horrific details of the murder in the book. He stops mid-sentence, realization dawning on his face.
WALTER
(to himself)
“This…This isn’t possible…It’s too…real.”
He slams the book shut, breathing heavily. His eyes dart to the clock again. The time: 11:23 PM. A cold shiver runs down his spine. He sinks onto the couch, the weight of the impending dread pushing him down.
FADE OUT:
TO BE CONTINUED…
Scene 6
INT. LIVING ROOM – NIGHT
WALTER SPARROW is sitting on the couch, surrounded by papers scribbled with the number 23. He looks twitchy, paranoid. The room is dimly lit, the ticking of a clock is heard.
WALTER
(to himself)
It’s everywhere…it’s everywhere!
He picks up a paper and starts scribbling. The sweat trickles down his face. He becomes more erratic.
The door SLAMS open. AGATHA, Walter’s wife, walks in, looking worried and tired.
AGATHA
(angry)
Walter, this is madness! You’re losing yourself in a figment of your imagination!
Walter looks up, startled. His eyes are wide with fear and obsession.
WALTER
(defensive)
You don’t understand, Agatha, the number… it’s everywhere, it’s haunting me!
Agatha looks at Walter, sorrowful. She picks up a picture of them, happy and normal, just months ago.
AGATHA
(tearing up)
This isn’t you, Walter. This obsession, it’s… it’s destroying you, it’s destroying us!
She pleads with him, but Walter’s focus is on the papers. Lost in his own world, he starts seeing hallucinations – shadows, and the number 23, everywhere.
Suddenly, a loud THUD sounds, making Walter jump. He looks around, petrified. The room is silent, suspenseful. The THUD was just a book hitting the floor. Walter starts laughing, a bit hysterical, a bit relieved.
FADE OUT.
Scene 7
FADE IN:
INT. WALTER’S STUDY – NIGHT
Walter, disheveled and haunted, is surrounded by walls of notes. The number 23 is scrawled everywhere. He’s at his desk, his hand shaking as he tries to put the pieces together.
WALTER
(to himself)
It’s all connected… The number… The murder…
His wife, AGATHA, enters. She is worried, torn between her fear for her husband’s sanity and the unraveling mystery.
AGATHA
(Worried)
Walter, you’re scaring me. You need to stop this!
Walter doesn’t respond, his eyes fixated on a particular page. It depicts a cryptic image – A CLOCK, its hands on 11 and 1.
WALTER
(Excited)
11 and 1… That’s 23!
Agatha watches, alarmed. Walter now moves to a picture of a street sign – BAKER STREET, hanging crookedly.
WALTER
(Whispering to himself)
Baker… 2 A’s, 2 K’s… each letter’s position in the alphabet… it’s all 23!
He quickly jots down numbers on a piece of paper, his hands shaking. Agatha tries to intervene, grabbing his hand.
AGATHA
(Desperate)
Enough, Walter!
Walter pulls away, standing up abruptly.
WALTER
(Angry)
You don’t get it, do you? It’s all around us!
He points to his notes, the desperation in his voice palpable.
FADE OUT.
TO BE CONTINUED…
