Cheat (2023)

[bunniefuu]

Daddy, please.

Dad, you there?

God, I hate this thing.

Can you hear me?

I can hear you.

Can you hear me?

Hey, yeah, sorry.

I was just connecting to my car.

This phone sucks.

What's up?

Just checking in.

Are you close?

Yeah, I'm about 20 minutes out.

You just remember your manners.

You're a guest in someone's home.

Yeah, a dead girl's home.

Dad.

I'm sorry, but I don't think I'm totally

comfortable with the situation.

Don't be like that.

They're trying to turn their tragedy into

something positive.

It's admirable.

I don't understand why you couldn't stay

in a dorm or...

It's a small art scholarship.

They could have just as easily given it to

a local student.

Well, maybe they should have.

I'm gonna pretend you didn't know.

I didn't say that.

I'm sorry.

This program is a really good opportunity

for me, Dad.

Are you sure you don't want to be a nurse?

They get great benefits.

Dad, we've been through this.

Please.

I shouldn't worry about you.

sh*t!

Maid.

Maid!

Are you okay?

Dad, yeah, I'm okay.

Just hold on a second.

Maid!

Yeah, yeah, stay on the phone.

I think there's just something in the

road.

Maid?

Hey, Dad.

Sorry.

There was just a tire in the road.

I had to move it.

Just be careful.

Text me when you get there.

Okay, I will.

I love you.

I love you, too.

I love you more.

I know.

Bye.

Here we go.

Please don't be rude, huh?

Hey!

Hi!

Finally!

It's so nice to meet you in person.

I know.

I hate Zoom.

I'm sorry my wife couldn't be here to

greet you.

This whole thing's been really hard on

her.

She has her good days and her bad.

Yeah, I bet.

Where's my manners?

Luggage?

Oh, it's in the trunk, but there's not

that much.

I can grab it.

Nonsense!

You're our guest.

Living room's straight through here.

Feel free to hang out here whenever you'd

like.

We have cable, all the

streamers, and a pretty decent

selection of books if

you're into that sort of thing.

You know what books are, don't you?

I do, yes.

Sorry, that was a bad joke.

It's pretty quiet around here most of the

time.

Kitchen's right through this way.

Maeve?

Sorry, you just... you have such a

beautiful home.

I'm not used to having this much space.

Well, for this semester, consider it your

home.

Come on, right through here.

Just watch the door there.

Feel free to eat or drink anything that's

in the fridge.

Pantry's right there.

Beer and wine in the small fridge.

How old are you?

I just turned 21.

Okay, then.

Back door, straight there.

Just be careful we get the occasional

bear, but it's a bit of a rarity.

Laundry's down the stairs to the right.

Wi-Fi password on the fridge.

Okay.

Should be it.

Anybody home?

Yeah, in the kitchen.

That's lovely.

This is Lydia.

She lives next door.

Her and my daughter

were... Finally!

Okay.

Hi!

Okay.

Maeve, this is Lydia.

Her and my daughter were... really close.

Are you kidding?

We were besties.

Nice to meet you.

Nice to meet you.

I was thinking that maybe

you could go to school with

Lydia, just to show you

around being first day and all.

Yeah, sure.

That'd be great.

Okay.

Well, I just wanted to stop by on my way

home and say hi, but I have to run.

I'll come grab you tomorrow morning.

So nice to finally meet you.

We're gonna have tons of fun together.

Later.

I'll be by around 8.

Yep.

See ya.

She can be a bit much sometimes,

but she means well.

Come on.

Up the stairs.

I'll show you your bedroom.

So your bathroom is straight down there on

the left.

Feel free to set it up any way you'd like.

We have our own and our room.

And then this is your bedroom.

It's a little small, but I think it should

do the trick.

No, it's great.

Thank you.

Okay.

I'm gonna make some dinner around 6 o

'clock if you're hungry.

No pressure.

Um, actually, I think I'm just gonna lie

down.

Long drive.

Okay, no worries.

Maeve?

I'm sorry.

I shouldn't have come in here.

The door was open.

I'm sorry.

It's okay.

I'm sure you think it's weird we kept a

room like this.

No.

No, I don't think that.

Well, I do.

My wife insisted.

She was having a real hard time.

She was in denial for a while.

I guess I thought keeping it like this

would help, but...

I don't think it made things worse.

Here.

I've dinner ready downstairs if you're

hungry.

Come down whenever.

Wine?

No, I'm okay.

Thank you.

Uh, this is good.

I'm not much of a cook.

My wife used to do all the cooking

until...

well, I had to learn.

I'm getting better.

I mean, this is great.

You're a terrible liar.

Okay, so maybe not great, but it's edible.

Okay, I appreciate your honesty.

Maeve, there's something you should know.

My wife, she's been in and out of her

facility since it happened.

She's not violent or anything.

She's just very depressed.

We're trying to get it under control,

get her some help, but...

we don't know when she'll get out or be

back.

I understand.

I'm sorry.

It's difficult to fathom.

I'm a psychiatrist who failed in treating

his own family.

Um...

How are you doing with everything?

You know, it's been a while since anyone

asked me that.

I deal with it differently, I guess.

I play a lot of tennis.

I drink on occasion.

Truth is...

Anna and I weren't very much in love

before we lost Abby.

We had her when we were so young.

It wasn't always ugly.

It was hard, but it was mutual.

Copacetic.

We were planning on getting a divorce.

Sometimes people just fall out of love,

I guess.

Relationships can be complicated.

Anyway, we're gonna tell Abby,

but...

I'm sorry.

We don't have to talk about this.

No.

It's okay, it's good.

It's good to talk about it.

Nobody ever wants to talk about it.

Anyway, we decided to...

be together.

Grieve together.

I guess, so we started a foundation.

I thought it'd be good for Anna.

Keep her mind off things, keep her busy,

but...

I'm not sure it worked out that way.

Well, um...

I also understand complicated

relationships.

How so?

My mother left us when I was five.

So it was just my dad and me.

And my boyfriend at the moment,

um...

He had to go away as well.

Facility?

Prison, actually.

I'm sorry, it must be hard.

It's fine.

We were high school sweethearts.

And he got into some stupid sh*t.

He's been in there a couple years now.

And it's probably for the best,

but...

He still thinks that we're together.

Which I mean, guess...

I guess that we would be, technically.

I never ended things officially.

Kind of a hard conversation to have,

given the circumstances.

Well...

Here's to complicated relationships.

You know what?

I think I will have some wine.

Okay, then.

Cheers.

Do you do drugs?

Drugs?

No, no.

That's not my thing.

Do you?

No.

Well, except weed and mushrooms.

But they're natural.

I do take Xanax, but I have a prescription

for that.

So what... What

happened with Abby?

Another suicide, unfortunately.

Another?

Yeah.

Shitty to say, but you get used to it

after a while.

Doesn't sound like something you get used

to.

We have one of the highest suicide rates

in the country.

Must be the weather.

Or the fact that we're in the middle of

f*cking nowhere.

Still must have been hard on you.

f*ck yeah, it was.

She was my ride or die.

But who am I to judge?

This world is a messed up place.

If she wanted to bail early, more power to

her.

I don't necessarily blame her.

I guess that's one way to look at it.

But... it's still all just hard to

process.

Abby did what she had to do.

I'm sure she had her reasons.

Look, I miss her.

I miss the sh*t out of her.

Don't get me wrong, but I get it.

I can't wait to transfer out of here.

Be happy you're only here a semester.

These are portraits by Paul Moemer.

And he was a modernist painter.

And he was painting at the time of

Picasso.

And he was actually

friends with a lot of

important painters of

the day here in America.

So I'm thinking about,

when I look at these,

the modernist slant that

he has on all his work.

Which is the impulse to make things flat

and to abstract them.

And almost come to a point where they become

like an Egyptian formal line structure.

And we do see that in something like this

that's reminiscent of Picasso.

But with Paul Moemer's work...

You see something going on a little deeper

as he gets into other portraits.

Like this one here, for instance.

You see an emotional well coming up.

And that happens with all of his works.

Because inside of all these characters is

a secret.

There's something going on that they're

telling you silently through the works.

So if you can put that in your minds as

you're back in the studio and painting.

I think that's going to make your work

sing.

Look at him.

He's a freak.

I mean, I bet her mom did it.

She's supposed to be a real nut job.

I heard there's some serious creeper in

the woods spying on people in town.

And if he catches you cheating, he tries to

k*ll you and make it look like a suicide.

No one listens to me.

I'm not saying the curse is real,

but the story is.

Bro, the curse is not real.

Why is her boyfriend doing this?

He said she knew she was going to die.

She k*lled herself.

Of course she knew she was going to die.

You're f*cked up.

I'm sorry, but it's true.

What's the curse?

I mean, is it like some urban legend or

something?

It's the curse of the farmer's daughter.

Abby did not die from a curse.

I'm not saying it's a curse.

I'm just trying to tell you idiots the

history.

You guys suck.

I'm out of here.

Hello?

Hello.

There is an inmate from a correctional

facility who needs you to accept the

collect call and associated charges.

Say yes or hit the number one on your

keypad to accept.

Say no or hit the number two on your

keypad to decline.

No.

Hey.

You look nice.

Ah, just a shower and a suit.

I'm going to this thing.

I wasn't sure it was going to happen,

but I shouldn't be back too late.

Are you going to be alright here on your

own?

Uh, yeah.

I should be fine.

Okay.

Will you have my cell phone?

Call me if you need anything.

Yep.

Hey.

Hey.

You forget something?

Would you like to come with me?

Yeah.

Sure.

Hi.

Hi.

Thank you everyone for coming tonight.

I want to thank Robert and Charlotte for

putting this together.

Unfortunately, Anna can't be with us

tonight, as many of you know.

But we're hoping to have her back home

soon.

Tonight we celebrate Abby's life.

While cut short, it's important to

remember the good times.

I'm grateful for the time I had with her,

as short as that may have been.

This year marks the one year anniversary

of her passing.

We're continuing to keep her and her memory

alive through our scholarship foundation.

Every year we will award one college

senior a financial scholarship for future

educational pursuits that they otherwise

might not have had access to.

And we're doing it right here, our very

own Crary College of Art and Design.

A place where Abby spent so much of her

time as a passionate artist and a student.

I truly believe this will not only benefit

our scholarship recipients, but continue

to put our college and our town on the

map.

That being said, we

have a remarkable young

woman who is the first

recipient of that award.

And she's here with us tonight,

Maeve Johnson.

Once again, thank you so much for your

ongoing love and support.

I couldn't have done it without you.

Thank you so much.

That was nice tonight.

It was.

Thank you for inviting me.

Thanks for coming with me.

I'm sorry.

I should go to bed.

Thank you.

The National Weather

Service is issuing a winter storm

warning for silver creeks

in the surrounding areas.

Expect temperatures to dip to the 19s in

most places.

Snow to humiliate overnight.

Anywhere from winter to winter should be

expected.

High winds and a potential pale or breezy

rain will be a possibility.

This is the 92.6 WFL exposure report.

Hey b*tch!

Jesus f*cking Christ!

What, were you going to walk to class

without me?

What, were you going to walk to class

without me?

So I was thinking... about you not doing

drugs.

Can I change your mind about that?

I have this friend that could guide us

through the experience.

Come on.

Hey.

Hey.

I'm Maeve.

I know.

I'm sorry about Abby.

Yeah, me too.

She didn't k*ll herself, you know that.

I saw your sign.

How do you know that?

She told me.

Told you what?

No one's listening.

I'm listening.

I'm not like the others.

I promise I want to hear what you have to

say.

It's too late.

Too late for what?

It's too late to stop her.

Stop who?

Clara.

Okay.

You're not listening.

Wait!

You know the memorial was really nice the

other night.

Yeah, it was.

How you doing?

You holding up okay?

Good.

Yeah, good.

What's up?

Charlie, what?

What's up?

Charlie, where are you going?

Thank you.

Hello?

Hello, there is an inmate from a correctional

facility who needs you to accept a.

..

No.

Lydia, I need to tell you something.

Okay.

Something weird happened.

Um...

Yeah.

Can you just put your phone down for a

second and just look at me, please?

Okay, so...

This morning...

I saw this weird girl outside of my

window.

But she didn't look like she was from

here.

Like... Her clothes

were really old and...

Worn and... And dated.

She just like...

Kept staring at me.

Like, right through me.

So?

So that doesn't seem odd to you?

No.

Not really.

Where would she have come from?

It's probably one of the Amish girls.

They come into town to do carpentry for

people.

No.

She wasn't Amish.

I know what Amish girls look like.

This was different.

Did she say anything to you?

No.

Did you say anything to her?

No.

I was inside with the window closed.

But she just kept staring.

I'm sure it's nothing.

Probably just some rando walking around.

This is a weird town, Maeve.

Yeah, but it just...

It didn't seem like a random person.

It seemed like...

Like what?

I don't know.

I can't describe it.

But...

I've been getting this weird feeling

that...

I'm not sure.

That I'm constantly being watched.

I don't know what to tell you.

That's not all.

I slept with Mr. Walker.

What?

Are you kidding me?

You f*cked him?

Can you stop yelling?

I cannot believe this.

You are much different than I thought,

Miss Johnson.

We might end up being besties after all.

This is not a joke, Lydia.

This is bad.

I think it's awesome.

Mr. Walker is super hot.

How did it happen?

I don't know.

We were...

talking, drinking a little.

It just...

happened.

You sl*t.

Stop!

No.

He and his wife are separated.

They were gonna get a divorce.

Who cares?

I care.

I kinda like him.

You're a better person than me.

Lydia, does this...

sound like something that you may have?

I'm so over this.

I don't know.

It's just... freaking me out.

Well, don't let it.

You are a master of your own thoughts.

Remember that.

You just feel guilty about Mr. Walker.

But you shouldn't.

Yeah.

Yeah, you're probably right.

Come on.

What are you doing tonight?

I don't know.

We should do something.

See, I told you we have the shittiest

weather.

Yeah, it's not like Georgia.

Oh, sh*t!

Ew, don't step in it.

Ew!

It's too late.

Gross.

I'm

gonna run to the bathroom.

Why all the clothes?

Maria has a headache.

Oh, rot!

You're just dramatizing again.

By George, you were right after all.

I did pet it.

Oh, what should I do?

No.

I thought I was drowning.

He's dead.

He's dead.

And I'm left with a fool like you.

I tell you what to do.

Have a bit of shut-eye.

You'll wake up in an hour feeling your old

self again.

And there'll be no more silly stories

about falling for a middle-aged roustabout.

It's me.

Maeve!

Maeve, it's me.

Open up.

Maeve, please open the door.

I'm not crazy.

I'm not crazy.

What is going on?

I saw her.

Who?

The girl.

The girl from the walker's house.

The Amish girl?

She's not Amish.

Well, whatever.

You know what I mean.

Just calm down, all right?

It's all good.

You think I'm crazy?

No.

Well, yeah.

I swear she was out there!

Don't open it.

Maeve, you're being silly.

We can't stay in the bathroom,

are we?

Come on.

Jesus, finally.

What are you two doing in here?

Hooking up?

I should go home.

We are.

Not my idea.

No, I mean the city.

No way.

I'm not letting you do that.

I'm gonna call my dad in the morning and

tell him he was right.

What if I stay with you tonight?

You would do that?

Yeah, of course.

Do you believe me?

No.

But I don't want you to go, either.

I kind of like you.

Yeah?

Tomorrow.

Will you go with me?

Maeve, come on.

Look, I just... I want to

hear what he has to say.

If he tells me that I'm a certifiable nut,

then that's fine.

But I just... I need to know.

Okay.

Thank you.

I'm not gonna be able to sleep.

Is that Brandon?

No.

Lydia...

Do you think that you'll ever get married?

Not to Brandon.

I didn't mean now.

Just, you know, down the road.

I don't really think about it much.

You?

I always thought I would, but...

No, I'm not so sure.

Well, there's no reason to stress about it

now.

Yeah.

I guess.

We have plenty of time.

Oh, well.

We tried.

No, I see somebody moving in there.

Maeve, come on.

It's freezing.

Can I help you?

Hi.

Yeah, is your son home?

No, he's not here.

I'm sorry.

Well, do you know where he's at?

This is important.

I don't know.

Try the library.

He's a real bookworm.

I swear, sometimes I think he's not even

mine.

Are you okay?

Yeah.

The library?

Yeah, that's what I said.

Thank you.

What a f*cking weirdo.

Are you here just to make fun of me?

No, we're not.

I don't believe you.

I wouldn't be that cruel.

Yeah, but she would.

Why should I help you?

Because we're hot.

See?

I believe you, Ollie.

Yeah?

Yeah, I do.

Okay.

What do you want to know?

This stuff is real old.

Can't find this on the internet.

That's her.

That's the girl I saw.

Are you sure?

That's Clara Miller.

What happened to her?

She found out her father was having an

affair.

She was too afraid to tell her mother.

Thought she wouldn't be able to take it.

So...

she tried to save her family.

She confronted her father, hoping he would

end the affair, but that didn't happen.

He demanded that she tell no one and never

talk about it again.

The guilt was too much

for her, so... I'm sorry.

She decided to take matters into her own

hands.

She followed him one night.

When she got her chance, she blew the

mistress away with a r*fle.

Three days later, her father slit his own

daughter's throat.

Okay,

so?

It still doesn't mean anything.

There's more.

I'll tell you later.

After this, strange occurrences started

happening all over Silver Creek.

Suicide rate went way up.

Then, reports started coming in that

people saw Clara Miller in town.

Then rumors started spreading.

What were the rumors?

Cheating ruined her life, so Clara would

k*ll anyone that cheated.

Why does she make it look like suicide?

So she never gets caught?

So let's go to the police.

And tell them what?

They'll never believe us.

Hey.

Hey.

I haven't seen you in a bit.

Yeah.

Lydia's been keeping me busy.

Right.

How's Anna?

Not coming home as soon as we expected,

I'm afraid.

I'm sorry.

Did you tell her?

Can't keep wasting money on rehabs that

don't work.

You know, the other

night, we shouldn't... Stop.

We're both adults.

We made a decision.

I like you, Charlie.

I like you too.

I don't want to make things harder.

You're not.

Trust me.

It's nice having you here.

Have you...

Have you ever heard of the name Clara

Miller?

Not... No, I don't think so.

Why?

Should I have?

I think we're in danger.

What kind?

Someone...

Something...

is coming for me and coming for you.

I don't understand.

I keep seeing this girl.

I saw her the other

day staring at me in the

window and then again

at the movie theater.

She's watching me.

I think this town is cursed.

And I'm scared.

This is the girl.

Where did you get this?

The library.

It doesn't make sense.

Do you recognize her?

I saw her.

Yesterday.

He's dead.

Who?

Who said?

Elijah.

I did a bad thing.

He asked me to.

What happened?

He said it would help him.

I felt bad for him.

I didn't think it was real.

I didn't know.

Didn't know what?

It would k*ll him.

He asked me to sleep with him.

He said it was the only way he could be

with Abby again.

He said it was the only

way Something about him

wanting her to come for him

the way she came for Abby.

He said it would take a few days.

How long has it been?

Three days.

Maybe she won't come for me.

I mean, I don't even love Brandon.

We're just dating.

It's not like we're married.

I don't want to die.

I've never even left this town.

There's still so much I want to do.

So this kid, you know, is that a stopper?

I don't know, but I hope so.

What the f*ck?

Do you see her?

Yeah, I see her.

Do you?

This way.

What the f*ck?

What the f*ck?

There

is an inmate from a

correctional facility who needs

you to accept a collect

call and associated charges.

Say yes or hit the number one on your

keypad to accept.

Say no or hit the number two on your

keypad to decline.

Yes.

Hi.

I'm sorry we haven't spoken in a while.

This isn't going to work.

I've met someone.

We've lived together.

And I didn't mean to hurt you.

I should have told you earlier,

but I was scared.

Things are really messed up right now.

And I just wanted to say that I wish you

well.

I really do.

I know you'll do good once you get out of

there.

Take care of yourself.

I wish things were different, but they're

not.

Maeve, I don't know what to say.

She's coming for us.

I don't know what we're supposed to do.

Hey, guys.

I'm sorry about Lydia.

I don't know what we're supposed to do.

I don't know where we should go.

I do.

There he is.

Hello, sir.

Eli, is it?

Eli, is it?

Who's inquiring?

Mr. Miller.

We don't mean to be a bother, but we have

a few...

You're already a bother, and I suggest you

leave now.

Are you related to Clara Miller?

Who wants to know?

It's important.

We're only going to take a small moment of

your time.

We're students at Creagh College.

We've been researching the county.

Mainly suicide since the late 1800s.

That's a little on the dark side,

eh, boy?

Sir, your family's been living here for

centuries.

Well, my family's lived here a long while.

All are buried across the field there.

All but one.

Clara.

My great-granddaddy, so I'm told.

He was some kind of evil.

God-fearing.

Yet evil.

The truth will set you free, he used to

say.

Doesn't make much sense, does it?

So tell me.

What are you all really here for?

Mr. Miller, this is going to sound crazy,

but...

Clara's coming after us.

Well, that's what Clara does, little lady.

Seems like you've done your homework.

About every ten years or so, somebody

tracks me down, asking about Aunt Clara.

They don't usually get very far.

So you know?

About Aunt Clara's displeasure with the

unfaithful?

Seems like you all made your bed.

Is there a way to stop her?

Mr. Miller, please!

Please!

Maeve.

No.

Time for you to go to bed.

Please.

Maeve, let's go.

Time to go.

Please.

Let's go.

Come on.

I suggest you go now.

I'm leaving.

Let's go.

Come on.

We'll find a new way.

Let's go.

Wait!

Aunt Clara.

This has been going on long enough.

Forgive me.

You'll know what to do with this.

I don't get it.

You'll know what to do with it.

What, so we just slit her throat like her

father did and she just goes away forever?

Yeah, as if it's that easy.

It's not just slit her throat.

Then what is it then?

We have to decapitate her.

And then we have to bury her head and her

body in separate locations.

How do you know this?

I don't.

It's just the best interpretation of what

I've read.

And who's going to do that?

f*ck me dead.

We're already dead.

Except for Ollie.

Just because she's not after me doesn't

mean I can't help.

I can't let you do that.

This is our mess.

He's right.

I agree.

We need to stop her.

Please.

There's a warehouse outside of town.

It'll be a bit cold, but it's big.

And if we put her out in the middle...

Yeah, then maybe I can sneak up from

behind and do my best to decapitate her.

Do you ever think she wants something more

than just to k*ll?

What do you mean?

Like, is she trying to tell us about

something or warn us about something?

Ollie, she goes after people who cheat.

You said it yourself.

Yeah, but it just feels so wrong.

Evil has no rules.

Quarter past twelve.

Do you see anything?

No.

Maeve?

Maeve.

Maeve.

Is this what you want?

Huh?

Maeve.

I'm right here.

She's here.

You're still going to get Anna tomorrow?

Yeah.

That's the plan.

She knew about Abby.

Something wasn't right.

Yeah.

And to think I didn't believe it?

You couldn't have known.

I suppose so.

Wouldn't it be nice to have her home?

Talk about it?

That'll be good.

Yeah.

It will be.

I think so.

I want to be there for her.

I owe her that.

Trying to make things work.

That'll be nice.

Yeah.

Yeah.

What about you?

Oh, I'll be fine.

I'm just going to focus on school for a

while.

But dating life on hold.

You know Maeve Johnson?

Under different circumstances.

Different time.

I know, Charlie.

Right.

You don't think it'll be weird if I stay?

Of course not.

Do you?

No.

As long as you don't.

I absolutely insist that you stay.

I want you to stay.

Good morning, Charlie.

Charlie!

Where the f*ck did this sh*t come from?

Why did I do different?

The truth will set you free.

I've met someone... we've loved together.

Do you ever think she wants something more

than just to k*ll?

Hey dad.