Caleb and Scarlet Make an Ex Tape Series by Mia Clark

Art college final project? Sometimes you play it safe, sometimes you make an ex tape. CALEB Scarlet's always been a red hot mystery to me. I've known her my entire life and she's definitely my best friend, but... I'm also in love with her? Yeah, it's complicated. Then she asks me to star in her final art project for college. I'm thinking an artsy black and white indie film, but she goes full steam ahead with what she likes to call her "ex tape... moreArt college final project? Sometimes you play it safe, sometimes you make an ex tape. CALEB Scarlet's always been a red hot mystery to me. I've known her my entire life and she's definitely my best friend, but... I'm also in love with her? Yeah, it's complicated. Then she asks me to star in her final art project for college. I'm thinking an artsy black and white indie film, but she goes full steam ahead with what she likes to call her "ex tape." Look, there's two ways this can go: bad or catastrophic. Maybe that's what I need, though. To pretend date her and pretend break up with her so I can get everything out of my system and move on with my love life. Even if it's fake, if it's pretend, if it's temporary... at least then I'll know what it's like. Except what if I want more after? I need to remember this is just for her art project. SCARLET Why doesn't Caleb have a girlfriend? I have no freaking clue. Listen up, ladies. Caleb has the abs of a Greek god and a smile that will literally make you want to have his babies immediately. I should know seeing as he's my best friend. And no, you can't date him. Sorry? Not really. Since he doesn't have a girlfriend and he's my best friend... why not make an ex tape? I want to create something classic yet controversial, steamy and transformative. Ex tape . Ex-boyfriend and girlfriend. Get it? And, you know, we'll bang. It'll be like an adult movie with an artistic twist. It's for my final project. We're just pretending to be a couple. We aren't actually dating. This doesn't mean I'm going to fall in love with him for real. It definitely doesn't mean I'm already in love with him... less

It's just for the movie. It's acting. We're actors... That's what I keep telling myself, at least. SCARLET Caleb's the only person I've ever liked being close to. He's the only one I've ever felt like I can be close to. There's a lot of reasons for that, but I doubt you'll understand. It's hard and it's complicated, and... I think it's giving me the wrong idea about a lot of things? I'm confused and I think I'm about to mess this all up... moreIt's just for the movie. It's acting. We're actors... That's what I keep telling myself, at least. SCARLET Caleb's the only person I've ever liked being close to. He's the only one I've ever felt like I can be close to. There's a lot of reasons for that, but I doubt you'll understand. It's hard and it's complicated, and... I think it's giving me the wrong idea about a lot of things? I'm confused and I think I'm about to mess this all up. I'm screwing with the vision for my art project because of it. It's supposed to look real. It's supposed to be passionate. For the movie, at least. In reality? Um... Caleb's my best friend. That's it! Stop thinking there's anything else going on here, because it's not. That's what I keep telling myself, at least... CALEB Look, I know this is supposed to be about Scarlet's final art project. That's the entire point of making this "ex tape" with her. But right now it's not. Not for me, at least. I know it's supposed to be and I need to remember that, but it's a little difficult. I shouldn't be feeling this way. I shouldn't be thinking this way. Maybe you think it's fine. What's the worst that can happen? A lot. I know exactly what can happen. How? Because it's happened before. You don't understand how much something like that can hurt. Scarlet's my best friend. That's it. It's just for the movie. It's acting. We're actors... less

Even if she's just my friend, for some screwed up reason I've always thought of Scarlet as... ...Mine? CALEB It's not the easiest thing to date a girl. Any girl. Even if it's supposed to be pretend, even if it's just for her final art project, for her "ex tape," it's not like that makes it any easier. It probably should, but dating Scarlet almost seems impossible sometimes, fake or not. It's like.. moreEven if she's just my friend, for some screwed up reason I've always thought of Scarlet as... ...Mine? CALEB It's not the easiest thing to date a girl. Any girl. Even if it's supposed to be pretend, even if it's just for her final art project, for her "ex tape," it's not like that makes it any easier. It probably should, but dating Scarlet almost seems impossible sometimes, fake or not. It's like... once I think we're finally on the same page, she starts reading a completely different book and I'm left wondering what I was even doing? Why did I start reading this book in the first place? Everything's so intense between us. And then it's not. It completely changes. Is it me? Is it Scarlet? I don't see my best friend anymore. I see the girl who ran away from me... SCARLET I know Caleb and I are best friends, but sometimes I want to have my own secrets. I need them. You're supposed to share everything with your best friend, right? Except I'm not, so what's that make us? I don't want to hurt him. The thing is, he's going to try to be there for me forever because that's just what best friends do. And I guess I could tell you I'll change, that I'll be more considerate, that I'll stop screwing up my life and I won't ever do it again. Would you actually believe me, though? Sure, I can play as Caleb's girlfriend in a movie. I can do it for my final art project. I'm actually really looking forward to it. In real life, though...? Um, no. Sorry. I really am. I'm sorry, Caleb. less

Romance movies are forever. You know what's going to happen. You can hit rewind and replay your favorite scenes over and over again. Real life? Yeah... not so much. SCARLET I've always loved romance movies. You can see the first time the hero and heroine fall for each other. If you watch that scene enough, sometimes you can pick up on new things each time... moreRomance movies are forever. You know what's going to happen. You can hit rewind and replay your favorite scenes over and over again. Real life? Yeah... not so much. SCARLET I've always loved romance movies. You can see the first time the hero and heroine fall for each other. If you watch that scene enough, sometimes you can pick up on new things each time. You can see how her lips curl slightly when he says just the right thing, and you can see how his eyes widen when he suddenly realizes that this is the girl he's falling for. Real life? Yeah... not so much. I mean, I'd really love that, though. That's kind of what Caleb and I are doing right now, but I can't watch this over and over again. I want to. I wanted to make a movie of us. It's us acting, playing roles, but I could still watch it over and over again. I could relive the excitement, feel the passion and the heat, remember exactly how it felt when I did this and Caleb did that , and... I love Caleb. He loves me, too. Because we're friends. Friends love each other, but that's different from loving a boyfriend or a husband or something, right? I don't know. I've never had a boyfriend or a husband or anything. I've only ever had Caleb. CALEB I thought this was supposed to be a cute coming of age going away to college love story? Scarlet and I having fun at college. Oh, look at that silly girl! She wants to make an "ex tape" with her best friend for her final art project. Ha ha ha! Laugh laugh laugh! Plus shenanigans and hilarity ensues. That's probably what was supposed to happen. I wish that's what was happening. Listen, I'm not trying to ruin my story for you. Or Scarlet's story. It's our story together, but we each have our own side. I'll be honest and say that I don't think she's going to tell you the entire truth, though. Maybe I won't tell you the whole truth, either. Maybe I'm not in love with Scarlet. Maybe I don't want to date her. I know what happens in the movies. The guy goes after the girl and they both realize they've been in love with each other for so long but never had the courage to say it. That's great. This isn't like that, though. This is real. less