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Writer's picturePeter K F Cheung SBS

Break Even

  1. FADE IN.


  2. Act 1


  3. INT. SITTING ROOM - 09:30

  4. .

  5. Smartphone in hand, Peter is checking his entrepreneurship fund.


  6. PETER (V.O.): Oh, for my holdings, both Day's Gain and Total Gain are in green.


  7. Pausing.


  8. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): When it happened the last time, I wrote a screenplay with the title A Resounding Cheer to celebrate that.


  9. Peter checks his diary.


  10. PETER (V.O.): It was Jan 21, 2022. On the next trading day, my gains have returned to the red until now.

  11. Pausing.


  12. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Will today's stock market sustain its momentum?


  13. It's 10:00. Peter checks the numbers again.


  14. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): My total gain has already changed to red.


  15. Act 2


  16. INT. STUDY - 10: 30


  17. Peter is typing on his smartphone.


  18. PETER (V.O.): As I can complete that task at home, I don't need to go back to chambers.


  19. Pausing.


  20. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Furthermore, an afternoon meeting at Central has become a Zoom one, without the in-person option.


  21. Pausing.


  22. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I'll give my secretaries red packets at the next opportunity then.


  23. Peter takes another look of his entrepreneurship fund.


  24. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Oh, some stock prices are falling. I had better buy low.


  25. Having checked his buying power on an App, Peter does his orders.


  26. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Warren Buffet says the stock market is a device for transferring money from the impatient to the patient.


  27. Thinking.


  28. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): But I've to attend the afternoon meeting. And I've a hunch that stock prices may have recovered before the market closes.


  29. Having amended his pending orders, we hear Ding! Ding! Ding!


  30. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I've matched my price with the last asking price.


  31. INT. SITTING ROOM - 11:30


  32. Smartphone in hand, Peter monitors his entrepreneurship fund.


  33. PETER (V.O.): Now, the stocks I bought earlier have become even cheaper.


  34. Peter touches his throat.


  35. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Oh, I've a sore throat.


  36. Pausing.


  37. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): It shouldn't be a symptom of COVID-19, I hope.


  38. Peter consumes some throat lozenges.


  39. INT. STUDY - 14:20


  40. Having set up his iPad Mini, Peter waits. As soon as he is let in, we hear an image on screen saying Hi to Peter.


  41. PETER: Hi, I guess it's you.' the secretary - the first time we're seeing each other face-to-face since early 2020.


  42. PETER: Hi, I guess it's you.


  43. SECRETARY: I recognise you though!


  44. PETER: I've white hair, right?


  45. Smiles. Soon the meeting begins. Peter makes interventions from time to time.


  46. PETER (V.O.): It's my membership in this committee that has made me try to experience how investment in equities is like.


  47. Pausing.


  48. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Apart from having a brief period of a few % positive gain in October 2021, I've been losing.

  49. Thinking.


  50. PETER (V.O.): Is there a difference between investing with one's own money and investing with others' money?


  51. Act 3


  52. INT. SITTING ROOM - 22:00


  53. The TV is on. Peter has his eyes on his entrepreneurship fund on his phone screen.


  54. PETER (V.O.): My hunch has become a little reality. My Day's gain and Total Gain are in green.


  55. Pausing.


  56. PETER (V.O.): It has taken me a lot of investment, both in money or in kind, just to break even, at times.


  57. Peter touches his throat.

  58. PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Having had honey and cold drinks too, my sore throat is being relieved.


  59. Peter smiles.


  60. FADE OUT


  61. THE END












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