Written by Tee Hoida

Directed by Felicia Dominguez

Sound design by Troy Cruz

Voice Actors:

Grandma played by Lisa Kornetsky

Moon played by Erin Dillon

Radio played by Cathlyn Melvin

Matty played by Jeremy

Theme music begins.

Intro: Auricle - Season Two, Transmission. This show contains adult content and strong language. Content warning for Episode One: Loss, death of a loved one, and panic attacks.

Silence. Tape player engages. Pencil scratches on paper.

Grandma Sunny (distorted)

Eggs, butter, bread… thick bread, syrup, milk, maybe. Maybe whipped cream… Matty? Matty!? Whipped cream for the pancakes, I mean… french toast? Yea? Okay. Whipped cream. For the waffles.

Moon

Grandma, I can do the shopping…

Grandma Sunny (distorted)

It’s okay Moon, I’m just tired. Thank you sweetie. You’re such a good girl. But it’s Matty’s birthday breakfast. I want to do it… oh dang it, this thing’s still on.

Tape player disengages. Tape player engages. Music plays.

Moon (distant)

What are you recording?

Song ends abruptly.

Grandma Sunny (distorted)

Mixed-tape. Except we used to put the cassette into the radio to record. Sounded better. All I can do now is record it like this-

Moon (closer, distorted)

Or press save on your phone.

Grandma Sunny (distorted)

Not the same. Not the same.

Tape player disengages. Radio static. A radio tunes in skipping over snippets of music and DJ segments. Compacts into electronic tones. The tones range in volume and measure.

As they crescendo, static overwhelms them and-

Silence.

Radio

[Beeping]

Tape player engages.

Matty

Testing one two three testing. Okay. This is Matty in Crown Heights Brooklyn and its… Tuesday. What else should I say?

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Wait, let me play that back.

Tape player disengages. Rewinds. Tape player engages.

Matty

(Sigh) Let’s try it again.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Beeping.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

I know but the tape player in’t getting it… wait. Moon!

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Moon is my sister. MOON!

Footsteps and door opening.

Moon

It’s not a big apartment, you don’t have to yell. I hear ya.

Matty

You didn’t come till I yelled.

Moon

Fair enough. What… What’s that?

Matty

Radio.

Moon

A radio?

Matty

Yeah.

Moon

Well, where did it come from?

Clothes rustling.

Matty

I bought it at the block party.

Moon

Matty, I gave you money so you could buy ice cream, and candy, and other junk at the block party with your friends, not for… whatever that is.

Matty

I don’t have any friends.

Moon

Cause you don’t talk to anyone. Ugh, this is the longest conversation we’ve had this week now that I think of it.

Matty

If I talk to Radio, can I keep them?

Moon

Them?

Matty

Yeah, Radio can be my friend.

Moon

Aren’t you a little old for this?

Matty

For having a friend?

Moon

For having a radio as a friend. I mean… ugh. I mean. At least you’re… talking… Why do you have Grandma’s tape recorder?

Matty

I wanted to see if you could hear radio talking.

Moon

Talking?

Matty

Radio, say something.

Silence.

Matty

Wait. Did I lose him?

Dial click as turned on. Static, snippets of broadcasts, more static.

Moon

I have to finish getting ready for work. Just… promise me you’ll think about making a friend okay? Like a human friend. Okay?

Matty

Okay.

Moon

I know this all… sucks okay. And I miss grandma and our old apartment and old neighborhood, too. Ya know that, right?

Radio dial clicks off.

Matty

Okay.

Moon

Oh and that was all the fun money for this week that you spent on that radio, ya know? Hope it was worth it.

Matty

Okay.

Sound of a kiss on the head.

Moon

Mwha! Love ya.

Receding footsteps. Sigh. Static.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Hey, you’re back!

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Of Moon?

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

She’s big and loud sometimes, but Grandma always said Moon is just big cause she’s so full of love.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Grandma is… she was… Grandma took care of Moon and me. She’s gone now.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Dead. She’s dead. You get that?

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Yeah. No signal, fine. Okay. Whatever.

Tape player engages. Many tape players engaging. Tape player disengages.

Grandma Sunny

Dirt. Plant food. A plant that’s easy for a kid to take care of. Gardening… thing. Shovel.

Clanging as buckets and tools are moved around.

Moon

Grandma, I set up an app on your phone, why are you using that thing?

Grandma Sunny

It’s better. I can hold the tapes.

Moon

You can also lose the tapes.

Grandma Sunny

Anything you can hold can be lost. At least on the tapes my voice is… solid. Let your old grandma have her way sometimes, sweetie.

Moon

What’s the plant for?

Grandma Sunny

For Matty. The kid needs something to take care of.

Moon

(laughs) Matty and me take care of you.

Grandma Sunny

That won’t be forever you know.

Moon

Yeah, okay let me turn this thing off.

Tape player disengages.

Matty

Hold on, I want to get this on tape.

Tape player engages.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

I know the tape player makes it sound like you’re just beeping, but maybe some scientists can do something with it.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Of course, you’re real. Moon just doesn’t have time to listen right now. She’s got work and school and all sorts of adult stuff to do.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

I’m just nine, I’m not an adult. Neither is Moon, she’s only seventeen. Courts say you’re an adult at eighteen, but we got a special permission to stay together without an adult. Then we got a case worker who is on Moon’s butt all the time so she’s got to pretend to be an adult.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

No…. I think you’re a kid like me. But you’re special. Different. That’s why we got to record this.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

I’ll say what you’re saying. Go on before we run out of tape.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Yeah start as far back as you can remember.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

They used to just listen to stuff on the radio.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

It was all around them and they were a part of it.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

They started doing more than just listening.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

It was scary?

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

… Uh. …they were scared when they started to do more than just hear stuff so they just listened and was happy doing that.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

But people don’t really use the radio so much anymore and it was quiet on the radio so they found this radio and met me and now we’re best friends.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

What does it feel like to be you?

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

You don’t know how to describe it?

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

For me I feel like… a person. I guess. A human. I’m soft in parts and harder underneath. The case worker says I’m an anxious child. She told Moon I was nervous to make friends cuz after losing grandma and having to move neighborhoods I am afraid of losing people.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

(Sighs) I don’t think losing people is scary, I just don’t wanna do it anymore.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

…Uh. Maybe… Losing someone feels like being cut. Having little cuts taken out of you. Like I’m less than I was when I had grandma and my old friends. I feel like the cheese with the holes in it.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Well what do you feel like?

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Static. … Oh uh, they say they feel like static. Many little bits. Moving together. ….If you are many bits like static, is there more than just you?

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

You are the only one like you?

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

That’s okay. I might be the same as a bunch of other kids in lots of ways, but Grandma says there is only really one of me in the whole world.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Yup, different and the same.

Radio

[Beeping]

Beat.

Matty

Okay, last question, why are you here?

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Yeah, I get you have always been like alive in a way, but why are you here? What do you want?

Radio

[Beeping]

Static burp.

Matty

It’s okay if you don’t know. It’s just something they always ask the alien, ya know? What is your purpose on our planet?

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Yeah, okay not an alien, but-

Knock on door.

Moon

When you are finished talking to yourself, dinner is ready!

Matty

Coming! … Hey, do you eat?

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

That sucks.

Tape player engages. Many tape players engaging. Tape player disengages.

Tape player engages. Footsteps on concrete.

Matty

So this is our new neighborhood. Social worker says it’s better than the old one, but Moon says she’s full of shit. The landlord just wanted Grandma’s apartment.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

The neighborhood. You know what a neighborhood is, yeah?

Playground sounds: Kids, cityscape.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Not with eyes, with words? You can’t see?

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Everything is sound. You’re blind? Why didn’t you say anything?

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Fine, fine, okay, you have no eyes, my bad.

A car speeds past with very loud horn. Gasp. Short panicked breaths.

Radio

[Beeping]

Breaths become sharper. Running footsteps.

Radio (struggling)

[Beeping]

Cityscape distorted by air whipping over the tape recorder. Music plays haltingly

Radio

[Beeping]

Music plays. Erratic breathing. Breathing steadies. Normalizes.

Radio

[Beeping]

Door opens. Door close. Cityscape halts as the door closes.

Matty

Yes. It’s helping…

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Radio, how do you know this song?

Tape squeaks at the end of tape. Tape player engages. Many tape players engaging. Tape player disengages. Tape player engages.

Moon

Why are you recording?

Matty

For science.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Did you hear that?

Moon

Hear what? Static?

Matty

Try lower.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

How about now?

Moon

What? Okay like something. Noise. Beeping.

Matty

Can you try lower?

Radio

[Beeping]

Moon

Matty-

Radio

[Low beeping]

Moon

What was that?

Matty

Did you hear him? What did you hear?

Moon

Uh. Something like… hello?

Matty

I was right!

Radio

[Low beeping]

Moon

What range? Who the hell is that, Matty?

Matty

I got the idea from a kid on the bus's phone. When it went off all the kids could hear it, but not the adults. So I asked the kid-

Moon

You talked to another kid?

Matty

Yeah, but that’s not the point, I’m trying to say that -

Moon

I’m just saying it’s good you made a friend-

Matty

That kid’s not my friend, he’s a jerk, but he did tell me that his ringtone on his phone is special, only kids can hear it. It’s a special frequency. So I asked Radio if they could change their frequency. And we’ve been trying for like a month, but they were real nervous about testing it out, but I said we can trust you-

Moon

Matty. Have you really been talking to someone on the radio? Like really with someone talking back?

Matty

I told you I wasn’t making it up.

Moon

Radio?

Radio

[Low beeping]

Moon

Shit. Oh shit.

Matty

Now you can hear them too!

Moon

Who the hell are you?

Matty

It’s Radio.. My friend-

Moon

Who are you? Why are you talking to a kid-

Radio

[Low beeping]

Matty

It’s not like that.

Radio

[Low beeping]

Moon

Matty give that to me.

Matty

No.

Moon

Ugh! I’m going to turn it off so it doesn’t talk-

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Radio won’t be able to talk to me if you-

Radio

[Beeping]

Moon

That’s the point.

Scuffle and sounds of plastic.

Radio

[Beeping]

Moon

What do you want?! Why are you-

Matty

Radio’s mine!

Radio

[Beeping]

Erratic static.

Matty

You're scaring them!

Moon

Let go-

Matty

No!

Mechanical thud, plastic cracking, metal hitting.

Beat.

Matty

What did you do? I hate you! You’re mean! I wish that truck hit you instead of Grandma.

Moon

Matty-

Matty

I hate you! I hate you!

Tape player engages. Many tape players engaging. Static. Tape player disengages. Tape player engages. Static. Tape player disengages. Tape player engages. Static. Tape player disengages.

Tape player engages.

Grandma Sunny

Fine then I will record it on my tape recorder and you can record it on your phone. That way it’s stored in two places. Super safe.

Moon

Okay, fine.

Cell phone app tone.

Grandma Sunny

Now, it’s not the ingredients that make it special, it’s how you do it. So any recipe online is going to tell you to put a little sugar in your eggs to make them super fluffy, but they won’t say how it’s best to sprinkle the tablespoon of sugar in along the edges of the bowl before you whisk-

Moon

Does it really make a difference where you sprinkle the sugar before you mix?

Whisking.

Grandma Sunny

We aren’t mixing, we are whisking. Pay attention. You’re the one who likes your eggs like this.

Moon

It’s just scrambled eggs.

Grandma Sunny

And it’s not like you can unbreak an egg, so might as well do it right.

Egg cracking on side of a pan.

Moon

What if…

Grandma Sunny

What if what Moonie?

Moon

What if I can’t make them like you do?

Pans clanging.

Grandma Sunny

That’s possible. But if that’s the case you’ll find your own way of making them, maybe it’ll even be better than my way.

Moon

Show me how to make french toast instead. For Matty.

Whisk stirring in pan.

Grandma Sunny

Sure thing, all we need to do is add milk-

Tape disengages. Tape engages. Scanning through radio stations. Static, brief voices, music. Static.

Moon

Hello? Is anyone there?

Scans to another station.

Moon

Hello? Radio? Are you there?

Scans to another section of static.

Moon

Radio, if you’re there would you come back and just…

Scans to another station.

Moon

Radio? Radio? Matty won’t talk to me. But I listened to the tapes and I… I’m sorry I was an asshole. Whatever you are… I don’t know. Can you just… they need to talk and I know they’ll talk to you. So could you please.. Help me out?

Scans to another section of static.

Moon

I tried to fix the other radio. But its circuit board was cracked. This is the fifth radio I’ve bought. Guy at the antique shop thinks I’m some kind of collector now. Yesterday I put them all around me and I turned them all to static and just listened for hours. …Because. …Because I really don’t know what to do. Ya know. I’m only a kid too. And I have to fix this because Matty was talking again. And now they aren’t. …Did Matty tell you how Grandma died?

Static.

Moon

I was ready- Well, I was getting ready for her getting older, getting sick, slowly going away. She was getting forgetful, but the doctor said it was just age, otherwise she was so healthy. We had time. I thought we had so much time left. Enough at least. To be ready.

Static.

Moon

She was holding Matty's hand and Matty let go and she stepped off the curb and. And. A truck hit her. She was there and then she was gone. I guess. I don’t know. I wasn’t there. But Matty was. They had to pick Matty up and carry them into the ambulance. Matty was frozen in place. Where they’d let go of Grandma’s hand. Matty didn’t talk. Grandma didn’t have her cell phone. Matty spent a whole day in the hospital alone before I found out what happened. They wanted to take Matty away.

Static.

Moon

But I got ‘em back. Little by little. I got some of Matty back. Enough that the caseworker thought with me was better than without.

Static.

Moon

I know you didn’t know Matty before. But they were, a mile a minute. So smart with this hoard of friends. They had a million things planned a day and they’d do most of them.

Static.

Moon

I didn’t know a person could change in a moment. Some people said Matty broke, but no Matty was too strong to break. No Matty changed. Just changed. And that’s okay. Except. When they don’t talk. I need Matty to talk. And not even to me. Matty can talk to you, only you. I’m cool with that. As long as they have someone. Can you be that someone? I don’t care what you are. Please?

Familiar music begins to play.

Moon

Radio?

Radio

[Beeping]

Moon

Radio?

Music continues.

Radio

[Beeping]

Moon

Wait. Don’t go. Let me get Matty.

Radio

[Beeping]

Moon

Wait for what?

Radio

[Beeping]

Music continues.

Moon

How do you know this song?

Radio

[Beeping]

Moon

How did you know it was our Grandma requesting it on the radio?

Radio

[Beeping]

Moon

What tape of Grandma’s did Matty play for you?

Radio

[Beeping]

Song ends.

Moon

All of them. Geez.

Radio

[Beeping]

Moon

You were listening to her for years?

Radio

[Beeping]

Moon

If you were listening to other people too, why come to Matty? I mean we were all there-

Radio

[Beeping]

Moon

She couldn’t hear you. …She was probably too old.

Radio

[Beeping]

Moon

I’m glad you came back. Do you want to surprise Matty in the morning or should I take you to their room right now?

Radio

[Beeping]

Moon

Okay, I’ll take you there.

Sound of radio and tape recorder being picked up. Soft footsteps. A door creaks. Radio and tape recorder is placed on a table.

Moon (whispering)

Anything else?

Radio

[Beeping]

Moon (whispering)

Good night, Radio.

Door creaks. Static. Radio plays the song, but it’s slowed down and some of the instrumentation is replaced by something like NES 8-bit tones.

Matty (waking up)

Grandma?

Matty

Radio?

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

What do you mean say goodbye? You just came back.

Music ends.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

If you wanna stay, then stay.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

You need more what?

Radio

[Beeping]

Erratic static.

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

What question?

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Why what? Wait! Why what?

Radio

[Beeping]

Matty

Wait! Moon!? I don’t understand. I don’t-

Door opening. Fast footsteps.

Moon

What happened?

Bedding rustling.

Matty

Tell Radio they can stay!

Radio

[Beeping]

Panicked breathing.

Moon

What happened? Why can’t it stay?

Radio

[Beeping]

Moon

But Matty needs you. You-

Matty (sobs)

Please, stay.

Radio

Good night ...

Maaatty.

Matty crying. Song playing. Static.

Moon

It’s okay. It’s okay. I’m here. I’m here.

Silence. Theme song begins.

Credits: Transmission - Episode One, Imaginary Friend was written by Tracy Hoida, directed by Felicia Dominguez, designed by Troy Cruz. Episode One features: Grandma Sunny, played by Lisa Kornetsky. Moon played by Erin Dillon. Matty played by Jeremy. Radio, played by Cathlyn Melvin. Theme music by Troy Cruz.

Auricle was created by Felicia Dominguez and Tracy Hoida. The production of Auricle is made possible through donations from listeners like you. If you'd like to donate, please visit our website auriclethepodcast.com. That's a-u-r-i-c-l-e thepodcast.com and view the donation page to make a one time donation. If you are a fan of our work, please subscribe and follow, like, and rate us wherever you listen, or follow us on Instagram or Twitter @auricle_podcast. For questions or pitches, email us at auriclethepodcast@gmail -

Static. Radio tuning. Screeches of frequencies. Music ends. Silence.