by
Enrique R. Carrasco
©2025 Enrique R. Carrasco
CAST OF CHARACTERS
MICHAEL, in his thirties
RUTH, a homeless woman in her fifties
SAM, in his thirties
HENRY, in his fifties
CYNTHIA, in her thirties
REBECCA, in her twenties
PETE, in his twenties
PASSANGER ONE, can be dual role with MICHAEL
PASSANGER TWO, can be dual role with RUTH
ATTENDANT, can be dual role with CYNTHIA
ACTOR: INTRODUCTION, can be dual role with HENRY
CONDUCTOR, Voice Over, any actor not in Scene Two
INTRODUCTION
Setting: A stool center stage. The ACTOR is sitting on the stool scrolling through his/her phone.
Lights up.
(The ACTOR scrolls for a bit then looks up at the audience.)
Hey. I’m just mindlessly scrolling through funny animal videos on TikTok. You do the same, right? Come on. Admit it. Maybe not TikTok, but Insta? Facebook? So many of us are sucked into countless hours of scrolling. Why? Sure, entertainment. Nothing wrong with that. But there’s something else, isn’t there. This (the ACTOR holds up the phone) is also a hiding place. It’s a place that protects us from others. It’s also a place where we hide from ourselves, afraid of confronting things that lurk in our subconscious, things that if unearthed would force us to reckon with being truly human, as painful as that might be. But as you’re about to witness, there are seemingly chance encounters that disrupt the hiding places we’re in, with consequences that…well, you’ll see.
Lights down.
SCENE ONE
Place
Annapolis
Time
Present Day
Setting: There’s a bench center stage and something resembling a ticket booth.
Lights up.
(MICHAEL enters wearing summer clothing. He carries a satchel. He goes to the ticket booth.)
MICHAEL
Hi. I’m here for the evening schooner ride. Just want to confirm my reservation.
ATTENDANT
Your name?
MICHAEL
Cranson. Michael.
ATTENDANT
You’re all set.
MICHAEL
Great. I believe I ordered a drink ticket.
ATTENDANT
You did indeed. Let me get it for you.
MICHAEL
Quite the evening tonight.
ATTENDANT
It’s Friday. It’s summer. It’s Annapolis. Everybody is out.
MICHAEL
Having fun.
ATTENDANT
The only way to live, my friend.
(The ATTENDANT hands him the ticket.)
MICHAEL
You got that right. Thanks.
(MICHAEL sits on the bench, pulls out a book from his satchel, and begins to read. PETE, carrying a lunch tote, enters, stays standing and stares at MICHAEL, who looks up at PETE briefly and goes back to his book. PETE continues to stare.)
PETE
Hi.
(MICHAEL looks up.)
MICHAEL
Hello.
(MICHAEL goes back to his book.)
PETE
Nice afternoon, don’t you think?
(MICHAEL doesn’t look up.)
MICHAEL
It is.
(pause)
PETE
Won’t stay that way. Supposed to storm later.
(pause)
Can I sit?
(MICHAEL looks up and gestures with his head at the bench.)
MICHAEL
Sure.
(PETE sits, looks out at the water, then at MICHAEL.)
PETE
What’s that?
MICHAEL
I’m sorry?
PETE
(Points at the book.)
That.
MICHAEL
It’s…it’s a book.
(pause)
PETE
What’s it about?
MICHAEL
Poems. It’s a book of poems. Poetry.
(They look at each other, then MICHAEL returns to the book.)
PETE
You know that’s weird.
MICHAEL
What is?
PETE
You reading a book. On this bench. In public. It’s kinda like…if you were sitting here in your underwear….with a hole in it.
(MICHAEL closes the book and looks at PETE, trying to appear polite.)
MICHAEL
What would make me look unweird?
PETE
Your phone. Look at your phone. Like everybody else.
MICHAEL
I don’t have one with me. I left it at home.
PETE
That’s weird.
MICHAEL
Noted.
PETE
What’s your name?
MICHAEL
My name?
PETE
Yeah, your name.
MICHAEL
Why do you need to know—
(MICHAEL catches himself and tries to stay polite.)
Michael. My name is Michael.
PETE
Mine’s Peter but everybody calls me Pete. Nice to meet you.
(PETE extends his hand to shake. MICHAEL looks at it, then at PETE, and shakes his hand.)
PETE
You here for the Annapolis Schooner Sail?
MICHAEL
Yes.
PETE
Big boat, isn’t she.
MICHAEL
It is indeed.
(pause)
She?
PETE
The boat’s a girl.
MICHAEL
What’s her name?
PETE
Rebecca.
MICHAEL
Really.
PETE
You look surprised. Why’s that?
MICHAEL (pensively)
I knew someone by that name.
PETE
Did ya.
MICHAEL
Yes. I did.
PETE
It’s a nice name.
MICHAEL
It is. It’s a very nice name.
PETE
Girlfriend?
MICHAEL
No.
(PETE and MICHAEL look at the water.)
PETE
Need a lot of money to buy one of those, huh.
MICHAEL
A rich lawyer could easily swing it.
PETE
Is that what you are?
MICHAEL
I used to be.
PETE
Used to be. What do you mean?
MICHAEL
I’m a law prof now. Swore an oath of poverty. Relatively speaking.
PETE
Professor! What do you teach?
MICHAEL
Contracts, among other things.
PETE
That sounds hard.
MICHAEL
It can be. What about you, Pete? Do you work here?
PETE
Yeah.
MICHAEL
What do you do?
PETE
I help dock the boat. I catch the ropes they throw me. Tie them to the dock.
MICHAEL (kindly)
Well, that’s important.
PETE
Not really.
(pause)
But I’m goin’ to community college!
MICHAEL
Oh, yeah? That’s great, Pete!
PETE
Getting my Commercial Driver’s License. Do some long-haul driving. See the world.
MICHAEL
The world?
PETE
Well…maybe Montana. Hawaii.
MICHAEL
Pete, you can’t drive to Hawaii.
PETE
Oh.
(PETE opens his tote, takes his sandwich out, and takes a bite.)
Want a bite?
MICHAEL
No thanks. I just ate.
(pause)
It’s quite pungent. Your sandwich.
PETE
Pungent?
MICHAEL
A strong smell.
PETE
Must be the onions.
MICHAEL
Onions?
PETE
Yeah. Bologna…with mustard and onions.
MICHAEL
What?
PETE
Sometimes I get tired of eating it.
MICHAEL
Then why do you eat it?
PETE
It reminds me of my big brother. It’s his favorite sandwich.
(pause)
He used to come by now and then to play cards with me and mom. He liked poker but he lost all the time. He always brought me a Snickers, my favorite.
MICHAEL
Sounds like he’s a good brother. Why do you say he used to, if I may ask.
PETE
He’s gone.
MICHAEL
I’m so sorry.
PETE
No, he’s not dead. I mean he disappeared.
MICHAEL
He disappeared?
PETE
Yeah. Sort of.
MICHAEL
Why?
PETE
One day mom and I came back from the grocery store and found a letter from him. He moved to the Northwest. Realized the life he was living in Chicago—
MICHAEL
Chicago?
PETE
Yeah.
MICHAEL
You lived in Chicago?
PETE
We did. Mom and me. But we got tired of the winters. So we moved here.
MICHAEL
Sorry I interrupted. Go ahead. About the letter.
PETE
Sam said that one day he was on his way to work, and something happened, something that changed his life, that made him realize he wasn’t really happy. It was too hard for him to say goodbye. He knew I would be really upset. Mom, too.
(pause)
So he left without telling us, without seeing us.
MICHAEL
I’m sorry, Pete. That must’ve been hard.
PETE
He promised he would come back to visit. He hasn’t yet. But I’m sure he’ll keep his word.
(pause)
He said something kinda crazy in the letter.
MICHAEL
What was that?
PETE
He said avoid people with canes.
MICHAEL
What do you think he meant by that?
PETE
I have no idea.
(With sudden movements, MICHEAL starts putting away his book.)
MICHAEL
Well, I better get over to the boarding line. Have a nice evening.
(MICHAEL starts walking away.)
PETE
Hey, why did you become a professor?
(MICHAEL turns to look at PETE.)
MICHAEL
For the same reason I don’t carry a phone.
PETE
What does that mean?
MICHAEL
Take care of yourself, Pete.
PETE
You, too! And you know what, Michael? I might become a lawyer and someday buy a big sailboat! Sail anywhere and everywhere! You think I can do that?
MICHAEL
Of course, you can.
(pause)
And Pete.
PETE
Yeah?
MICHAEL
Maybe it’s time you to try a new sandwich.
Lights down.
SCENE TWO
Place
Chicago
Time
Years Earlier
Setting: A bench or two chairs without arm rests are center stage. The lighting should create a space within which the interactions take place. Ideally, the rest of the stage should be as dark as possible. MICHAEL is dressed in business casual with a nice winter coat. He carries a business bag with court papers. If possible, to create a visual contrast between the two characters, MICHAEL should be clean shaven. RUTH is dressed in dirty pants, shirt, coat, and hat. She wears worn, dirty footwear. She carries two rather large bags with her belongings. Her hands and face are dirty. Note on pauses: The use of pauses and their lengths are intended to be an integral part of the dialogue. They suggest an awkwardness of the encounter between two strangers and in particular between a well-to-do individual and a homeless person. Hence, the lengths of the pauses should be generous with this purpose in mind.
Lights up.
(MICHAEL enters. While on the phone, he looks around, finds the seat, and sits.)
MICHAEL
Look, what’s most…
CONDUCTOR (V.O.)
Grand Avenue.
MICHAEL
that might be the case but…listen, we win if the court…let me finish…just hold on, if the court buys our argument that Billington is dispositive…stop worrying about it so much…look, I’ll call you when I get home in about an hour.
(MICHAEL lets out a long sigh and runs his hands through his hair. He starts scrolling suggesting he’s looking at social media. RUTH enters, shuffling with her bags, crosses MICHAEL and sits down, looking down. She doesn’t look at MICHAEL until indicated below. MICHAEL glances at her and tries to distance himself as much as possible from her on his seat. He resumes scrolling, but one can see he is bothered that RUTH has sat down next to him. All of this should last at least a minute, including a long pause after she sits.)
RUTH
Cold out.
(long pause)
Windy, too.
(pause)
The worst day yet. The cold. The wind.
(pause)
The worst day.
(MICHAEL stops looking at the cellphone.)
RUTH
Nice here.
(pause)
Warm.
(pause)
Yes. Warm.
(pause)
I like warm.
(MICHAEL looks up annoyed then down at his cellphone.)
RUTH
It’s safe.
I’m safe.
(pause)
Here.
(pause)
I won’t get hurt.
(pause)
No one will hurt me.
(pause)
Not here.
(MICHAEL glances at her, puts away his cellphone, preparing to get up. RUTH looks at him for the first time.)
RUTH
Where are you going?
(Without making eye contact, MICHAEL continues to get up.)
MICHAEL
I…uh…I have…I have to…uh…stretch my legs.
RUTH
Are you scared of me?
(pause)
MICHAEL
(looking at her)
What?
RUTH
Do I scare you?
(pause)
MICHAEL
No.
(MICHAEL looks away.)
RUTH
Look at me.
(MICHAEL slowly looks at her.)
RUTH
Are you? Scared?
(pause)
MICHAEL
Why…why are you asking me this?
(RUTH looks forward.)
RUTH
You really don’t have to stretch your legs.
(pause)
Do you?
(MICHAEL sits back down but looks unsettled. He looks forward; long pause.)
RUTH
It was a beautiful lake.
(MICHAEL looks at her, surprised at the sudden change in topic.)
RUTH
Clear. Calm.
(pause)
It shimmered in the morning. So peaceful.
(MICHAEL resumes looking at his cellphone; long pause.)
RUTH
You don’t need that.
MICHAEL
Sorry?
RUTH
It won’t help you.
(She reaches for the phone. MICHAEL pulls away.)
MICHAEL
Don’t do that! Don’t touch me. Leave me alone.
RUTH
You’re afraid of me, aren’t you.
MICHAEL
Look, ma’am. I don’t…I really don’t—
RUTH
(looking forward)
(pause)
Took us weeks to plant them. All over town.
(pause)
Weeks.
(pause)
But they liked them. Everybody liked them. We liked them. Flowers. They make you happy. The colors. Shapes. The scents.
(pause)
What makes you happy?
MICHAEL
Getting off this train.
RUTH
She was the pretty one. The favorite. They would never say so. But I knew. I tried so hard. To be like her. To be pretty. But I knew that would never happen.
(pause)
Were you the favorite?
MICHAEL
You’re…what you’re saying…what you’re asking me…you shouldn’t be.
RUTH
Why?
MICHAEL
Why?
RUTH
Yes, why?
MICHAEL
Because I don’t know you. Because you don’t know me.
RUTH
Are you sure?
MICHAEL
What kind of question is that?
RUTH
Are you sure that you don’t know me? That we don’t know each other?
MICHAEL
Of course, I’m sure.
RUTH
But you pass me just about every day. And sometimes I pass you. We pass each other. You and me. And now we’re here. Together. Finally.
(MICHAEL looks away.)
MICHAEL
This shouldn’t be like this.
RUTH
Like what?
MICHAEL
We shouldn’t be talking.
RUTH
What’s your name?
(MICHAEL looks at her.)
RUTH
Your name.
(pause)
MICHAEL
You don’t need to know my name.
RUTH
I do.
MICHAEL
Why?
RUTH
Do you want to know my name?
MICHAEL
You don’t belong here.
RUTH
Ruth. My name is Ruth.
(pause)
I need to know your name.
MICHAEL
Why?
RUTH
(She looks forward.)
In the winters the lake would freeze over. Ice nearly a foot deep. We used snowmobiles to get about here and there. Dad would put up the ice shanty near the house. We caught rainbow trout. Lots of them. She was pretty. But she couldn’t fish, not like me. What’s your name?
MICHAEL
I’m not going to tell you.
RUTH
But that’s not how it works.
(MICHAEL looks at her incredulously.)
MICHAEL
What the hell are you talking about?
RUTH
(She looks at him.)
Please. Your name.
MICHAEL
Michael. Satisfied?
RUTH
(She looks forward.)
Dad told me to watch her while he went back to the house. He needed more bait. Said he would be right back.
MICHAEL
Let’s end this…little…chat. Whatever you want to call it.
RUTH
(Looking at him.)
Why?
MICHAEL
(Pointing here and there.)
Look around. Ruth. See that woman with the grey coat? Maybe she’s worked all day cleaning offices. The man standing over there in the blue parka. He might be a grocery clerk. The three over there, crammed next to each other. Who knows. Maybe one’s an accountant, the other two a musician and a mortician. Now, Ruth. Do you see what they all have in common? They all have phones. They’re all looking at their phones, tapping on them, scrolling. And do you know what else they have in common? They all want to be left alone!
(MICHAEL holds up his phone, turns away from her, and purposefully handles it to indicate he wants to be left alone but it’s clear he’s just staring at it.)
RUTH
(looking forward)
She might have been prettier, but she wasn’t smart. I was the smart one. Are you happy, Michael?
MICHAEL
Please leave me alone.
RUTH
Where’s dad, I asked. I’m bored, she said. Where is he? I want to see Sara, she said. They gave her an awesome kitchen set for Christmas. Are you happy, Michael?
MICHAEL
I don’t want to talk to you. I have nothing to say.
RUTH
(Looking at him).
You have a lot to say, Michael. All of us here have a lot to say. About so many things. Are you happy, Michael?
MICHAEL
(Turning to her.)
Okay. Ruth. You really want to know?
RUTH
Yes.
MICHAEL
Okay. Here’s the condensed version. I’m about to make partner at the biggest law firm in Chicago. My wife—before you ask, her name is Cynthia— is a doctor. We’re closing on a five-bedroom house next month, in which we’ll raise lovely, smart children. We have plans. We have futures. We don’t look back. We look forward. But you can’t understand that. That’s obvious. You can’t understand me. You never will. And that, Ruth, is why I don’t want to talk to you! That’s why I have my phone!
RUTH
But you haven’t answered my question.
MICHAEL
Yes, I have!
RUTH
Are you happy, Michael?
MICHAEL (angrily)
Yes! I’m the happiest man in the universe! Okay? The happiest!
(Long pause; MICHAEL’s body language shows that he regrets being harsh.)
RUTH
(looking forward)
I got one! It feels big! I said. I don’t care, she said. I’m going to see Sara. Wait for dad, I said. She wouldn’t listen. I said wait. Wait for dad! She didn’t. She ran. I ran after her.
(MICHAEL’s face softens.)
RUTH
There was a soft spot in the ice.
(pause)
I ran as hard as I could. As fast as I could.
(pause)
I couldn’t save her.
(long pause)
MICHAEL
I’m…I’m sorry….
(pause)
What…if I may ask…what…what was her name?
RUTH
Julia.
(pause)
MICHAEL
That’s a nice name.
(MICHAEL attempts to look at his phone to lose himself into scrolling social media. But he’s obviously distracted, repeatedly raising the phone to look at it and then lowering it. Ultimately, he sighs and lowers the phone to his lap and continues to look down.)
MICHAEL
Where was it?
RUTH
What?
MICHAEL
The lake?
RUTH
Charlevoix.
MICHAEL
Charlevoix?
RUTH
Michigan. Up north.
(long pause)
MICHAEL
Hmm.
(He looks at her.)
RUTH
You know, Michael, we’re invisible. To most of the world. But we see. We see so many things. And I’ve seen you. So many times. When we’ve passed each other. But you’ve never looked me in the eyes. Even though you’ve passed inches away from me. No one does. It’s not because you want to avoid giving me a dollar. It’s not because I’m hard to look at.
MICHAEL
Then what is it?
RUTH
You’re afraid. Afraid that if you look at me your eyes won’t be able to hide the hurt you’ve buried inside you. The hurt that threatens to bring you pain, anger, sadness, regret.
MICHAEL
She was pretty. And smart, too. Smarter than me.
(pause)
RUTH
Who?
MICHAEL
My sister.
RUTH
She’s gone, isn’t she.
MICHAEL
Yes.
RUTH
What was her name?
MICHAEL
Rebecca. We were both athletes. Tennis. Started when we were kids. I might’ve been older, but I couldn’t hold a candle to her on the court.
(pause)
Look. I…uh…I have to make a call. I have an important case that—
RUTH
Case?
MICHAEL
I have a trial—
RUTH
I see.
MICHAEL
I’m sorry but I really have to / I got into University of Chicago Law. She wanted to follow.
(pause)
But one night, she went out to celebrate high school graduation. Of course they had to drink.
(pause)
MICHAEL (Cont.)
She got drunk. Her best friend drove the car straight into a tree. She was the only survivor. But she broke her spine. One day a tennis star bound for U of C on an athletic scholarship. The next, a paraplegic.
(MICHAEL starts to open his bag.)
I…uh…have to check some notes before… I was angry. So angry. How could you be so stupid?! You idiot! Your life is over! All because you and your friends were stupid drunk!
RUTH
Why would her life be over?
MICHAEL (angrily)
Because she became a damn cripple!
(pause)
Sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.
RUTH
You’re hurting, Michael.
MICHAEL
Her life was far from over. Didn’t take long before she became a star and was recruited to play wheelchair tennis at Alabama. Pre-med.
RUTH
Wheelchair—
MICHAEL
Same game only you play in a sports chair designed for tennis.
RUTH
What was it like? To see your sister play?
MICHAEL
I didn’t. She asked me to, but I always came up with an excuse. I was too busy becoming a kick-ass lawyer.
(pause)
Then one afternoon, when I had just returned from court, my parents called. She was in intensive care. A sepsis infection. She was in organ failure.
(pause)
You’re right, it’s really cold outside. And the wind—
RUTH
Michael.
MICHAEL
I had someone cover for me at work and rushed to see her. When I walked into her room I was devastated. My sis. My dear sis. Emaciated. Her skin so pale…shockingly pale. She was helpless.
(pause)
I never left the room. I held her hand. Stroked her hair. Read to her. She loved poetry. I told her to hang in there. You’re so strong. You’ll be out of here soon. We’ll take a trip. Just the two of us. You pick the place. Rome? Berlin? How about Buenos Aires?
(pause)
Just a few more stops before I get off. I have to rush home to make this call.
RUTH
You’re not done.
MICHAEL
If we don’t win this case.
RUTH
You have to finish.
MICHAEL
I can’t.
RUTH
Yes, you can. You can’t keep running away.
MICHAEL
It hurts.
RUTH
Hurt is real, isn’t it. We don’t see it, we don’t feel it until we do, when there’s no way to escape it. Nowhere to hide from it.
MICHAEL
The night before she died, she had a lucid moment. She said I was always better than you on the court. She reached out for my hand. She looked at me. I knew then that she had always loved me. Despite failing her as a brother.
(pause)
I thought I could save her. As if I had some sort of superpower. As if I could command her body to expel the sepsis. That’s how crazy I was. How desperate I was. Don’t leave me, sis.
(pause)
But she did. I couldn’t save her.
(very long pause)
MICHAEL
Ruth.
RUTH
Yes?
MICHAEL
It wasn’t your fault.
(pause)
RUTH
Rebecca loved you. She forgave you.
(pause)
MICHAEL
You tried your best.
RUTH
Michael, I fell into the hole in the ice.
MICHAEL
What?
RUTH
She jumped in to save me. I made it back to the surface. I tried to find her. But all I saw was darkness. I hung on. I lived. She didn’t.
MICHAEL
My god.
CONDUCTOR (V.O)
Fullerton. This is Fullerton.
(RUTH gets up and shuffles in front of MICHAEL to exit the train.)
MICHAEL
(Not wanting her to leave; concerned about her.)
Where are you going?
(RUTH stops and looks at MICHAEL.)
RUTH
Thank you, Michael.
(She resumes her exit but then turns to look at him.)
That.
(She points at the cellphone; MICHAEL looks down at it.)
You don’t need to hide behind it. Not anymore.
(Exit RUTH. MICHAEL looks in her direction.)
CONDUCTOR (V.O.)
Next stop, Belmont.
Lights down.
SCENE THREE
Place
Chicago
Time
Same year as Scene Two
Setting: In the middle of the stage there’s a bench or four chairs without armrests that will act as bus seats. All four characters sit very close to each other, as they would when crammed together on seats at the front of a typical bus. The lighting should focus on them, with the rest of the stage as dark as possible. The effect should be of a small space in the bus, a space within which the characters live with no regard for any other living space. PASSENGER ONE and PASSENGER TWO sit on either side of SAM and HENRY. Throughout the play they are engrossed with their cellphones, constantly scrolling through what appears to be various social media sites. They never speak or look away from their screens. It’s as if they exist in their own hermeneutically sealed spaces. There’s a chair off to one side facing the four chairs. This is where CYNTHIA will sit.
Lights up.
(HENRY, PASSENGER ONE and PASSENGER TWO are seated. HENRY doesn’t have a cellphone. He stares straight ahead. He has his forearms draped over a cane handle that stands in front of him. SAM, carrying a business bag, enters and spots the empty seat.)
SAM
Excuse me.
(SAM crosses in front of PASSENGER ONE and HENRY. PASSANGER ONE and HENRY ignoreSAM. HENRY continues to look straight ahead. SAM looks at PASSENGER TWO and HENRY.)
SAM (Cont.)
May I?
(PASSENGER TWO and HENRY ignore SAM.)
SAM
Okay. I’ll just…
(SAM sits and puts his bag on his lap. He opens the bag, pulls out his cellphone and cradles it with both hands. He’s just about set to become absorbed with his phone when HENRY, still looking straight ahead, takes his cane, sets it on his lap, and slides the cane over so that the bottom part of the cane moves over SAM’s bag. SAM stares at the part of the cane on his lap, then at HENRY, who still looks straight ahead.)
SAM
Uh…sorry…
(pause)
Sir?
(pause)
Excuse me.
(HENRY slowly turns his head at SAM.)
HENRY
What.
SAM
Your…you know. Your…cane.
(pause)
HENRY
What of it.
SAM
It’s…well…
HENRY
Well, what?
SAM
Look.
(SAM points at the part of the cane on his lap. HENRY looks at the cane, then at SAM.)
SAM
I’m sure you didn’t realize it. We’re squeezed in here like sardines.
(pause)
Not exactly first class. Ha!
(HENRY stares at SAM.)
SAM
So…so if you wouldn’t mind. If you could just…you know…move it. Off my lap.
(pause)
HENRY
You can move.
SAM
What?
HENRY
Move. You can move.
(SAM looks around.)
SAM
There’s no…the bus… is, well, full.
(HENRY looks straight ahead.)
HENRY
I know that.
(pause)
You can stand.
SAM
Stand?
HENRY
Stand.
(pause)
SAM
But this seat was empty.
HENRY
You own it?
SAM
What?
HENRY
Do you own this seat?
SAM
What kind of question is that?
HENRY
A simple one. You either own it or you don’t.
SAM
Of course, I don’t own—
(HENRY looks down at his cane.)
HENRY
What do you think of it?
SAM
Think of what?
(HENRY looks at SAM, then down at his cane and taps it.)
HENRY
This.
(pause)
SAM
Your cane?
HENRY
Yes.
SAM
It’s…it’s useful? I suppose?
HENRY
Picked it up at a flee market. Two bucks. Man said it’s walnut. Made in Moldova. Said he got it at an estate sale. Tried to sell me a watch. Told him I don’t wear a watch. Never owned a watch.
(HENRY looks at SAM’s watch.)
I see you got a watch.
(SAM looks at the watch.)
HENRY
Where did you get it?
SAM
The watch?
HENRY
Yes.
SAM
That’s none of your business.
HENRY
It is my business.
SAM
How’s that? How is it your business?
HENRY
You’re sitting next to me.
SAM
(becoming exasperated)
Because there’re no other seats!
HENRY
Do you own this seat?
SAM
I’m not playing this game.
HENRY
It’s not a game.
(CYNTHIA enters and takes her seat. She takes a book out of her satchel and tries to read as SAM and HENRY continue their exchanges. She looks up occasionally, becoming increasingly concerned.)
SAM
Okay. Fine. Your cane is really cool. It’s awesome that it’s from Morocco.
HENRY
Moldova.
SAM
Wherever the hell it’s from. It’s great. Now, all I want to do is look at this!
(SAM holds his cellphone up and taps on it.)
SAM
Now, can you kindly remove your cane from my lap.
(SAM touches the cane to move it.)
HENRY
Don’t do that!
SAM
What?
HENRY
My cane! Don’t touch it.
SAM
Then—
HENRY
You touch the cane, you touch me.
SAM
That’s ridiculous!
HENRY
Why?
SAM
Because…because it’s an inanimate object.
HENRY
What does that mean?
SAM
It means…it’s a thing. A piece of wood. It’s not alive. Not human.
(HENRY bends down and touches SAM’s shoes.)
SAM
Hey, don’t do that.
HENRY
Why not?
SAM
They’re my shoes for Christ’s sake!
HENRY
But your shoes. They’re…inanimate. That’s the word you used, right? Inanimate.
SAM
So?
HENRY
You walk with your shoes?
SAM
Obviously.
HENRY
I walk with my cane.
SAM
Fine. You made your point. I won’t touch your cane.
(SAM awkwardly tries to hold his cellphone to start looking at it. HENRY uses the tip of his cane to dislodge the cellphone. SAM fumbles with it.)
SAM
Hey! Are you nuts? That’s assault and battery, man! Back off! Get your…precious cane out of my space!
HENRY
Where you headed?
SAM
Where am I headed?
HENRY
That’s right. Where are you headed?
SAM
Why are you asking me all these questions? Where I’m headed is none of your business.
HENRY
Actually, it is.
SAM
How? How could it be your business?
HENRY
Because you’re sitting on my seat.
SAM
How could this be your seat?
HENRY
Do you own that seat?
SAM
No. No, I don’t own this seat. But neither do you.
HENRY
How do you know?
SAM
How? What? How do I know?
HENRY
Yes, how do you know?
SAM
Because it’s a freaking public bus!
(pause)
HENRY
Where you headed?
SAM
It’s. None. Of. Your. Business. Just like it’s none of your business where everybody else on this bus is going. Just like it’s none of my business where you’re going.
HENRY
Do you want to know where I’m going?
SAM
No. I don’t want to know.
HENRY
You’re free to ask.
SAM
I’m free alright. I have the freedom, the right, under the law, under divine right, to be free from you!
(pause)
HENRY
Where you headed?
SAM
Ahhh! To work. Okay? You see this bag?
(SAM points to the bag.)
It’s my work bag. Do you want to know what’s in my bag? I’ll tell you. A yellow pad, three pens, a travel pack of tissues, hand sanitizer, and a lunch tote with a sandwich, a bologna
SAM (Cont.)
sandwich with mustard and onions. And, yeah, on the healthy side, apple slices. Is that enough information for you?
HENRY
Mouthwash?
SAM
What?
HENRY
Mouthwash. Do you have mouthwash? In your bag?
SAM
No, I don’t have mouthwash!
HENRY
Your breath will stink.
(SAM stares at HENRY with a mix of puzzlement and disbelief.)
SAM
(His voice slowly rising.)
You know. That’s why I want to look at my phone. It’s my refuge, my shelter. It brings me peace. It protects me. From you. From everybody on this bus. From all the chaos that waits for me when I step off this thing. From all my weaknesses, my mistakes, my failures, my faults. From all the shit that has led me to this seat. Today. On this bus. Sitting next to you, a fucking schizo with a walnut cane from fucking Moldova!
HENRY
(He speaks matter-of-factly.)
But you don’t have mouthwash. Your breath will stink. Your teeth will rot. They’ll fill with puss. They’ll pull your teeth. All of them. To save you from madness. But that won’t work. So they’ll inject you with malaria. Induce a coma. But that won’t work, either. Then they’ll run electricity through you. You’ll convulse so violently that you’ll break your spine. Then they’ll lobotomize you. Then you’ll die. But you won’t go to heaven. Because your breath will still stink. Hell won’t take you, either. You’ll spend eternity in purgatory, joining all the other lost souls with stinking breaths.
SAM
YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE!!!
(While both are sitting, they struggle with the cane. HENRY frees it from SAM’s grasp. SAM’s bag and cellphone drop to the floor. SAM falls hard to the floor, moaning. HENRY stands and furiously smashes SAM’s cellphone with the cane. He drops the cane and walks off stage. CYNTHIA rushes to SAM.)
CYNTHIA
Sir, I’m going to help you up. We’ll take it nice and slow.
(She helps him get up and sit.)
CYNTHIA
You took a pretty nasty fall. How do you feel?
SAM
Awful.
CYNTHIA
Where does it hurt?
SAM
My head.
CYNTHIA
I’m a doctor. Let me look at your eyes. Can you follow my finger?
(CYNTHIA tracks its movement.)
Good. What happened?
SAM
He didn’t like my sandwich.
CYNTHIA
Your sandwich?
SAM
Bologna, mustard, and onions.
CYNTHIA
That’s…that’s…
SAM
Gross. I know.
CYNTHIA
I didn’t say that.
SAM
That’s who I am. I stink. My life’s been a trail of miscellaneous debris, no better than a slice of rotting bologna.
CYNTHIA
I’m sure it hasn’t been.
SAM
It has. I’m a big mustard stain.
CYNTHIA
Maybe we should get you to an emergency room. There’s a hospital just a few more stops away. I work there. You can talk to someone. Check your head again.
SAM
Why couldn’t I be like you?
CYNTHIA
What do you mean?
SAM
A doctor. Somebody that people look up to, not down on. Somebody with a future.
CYNTHIA
You shouldn’t say that about yourself.
SAM
I thought I was in control of my life but I’m not. I’ve been numb. For a long time.
CYNTHIA (kindly)
Sir, you really should come with me.
(SAM gets up.)
SAM
I need to get off this bus. I’ve been on it too long.
CYNTHIA
Promise me you’ll see someone.
SAM
I’ll be okay.
CYNTHIA
Are you sure?
SAM
Thank you for helping me.
CYNTHIA
Stay safe.
SAM
Goodbye.
(SAM starts to exit.)
CYNTHIA
Do you want this?
(She holds up the cane.)
SAM
Save it. For another lost soul.
(SAM exits)
Lights down.
SCENE FOUR
Place
Chicago
Time
Same year as Scene Three
Setting: On stage right is a dining room table. Stage left is dark. There’s a “day chair” (not a hospital wheelchair but a wheelchair used daily by paraplegics or others with significant mobility challenges) located at the edge of stage left.
Lights up on stage right.
(MICHAEL, facing downstage, is seated at the dining room table typing something on his laptop. It should be positioned so that his face can be seen. He starts and stops repeatedly, seeming distracted by his thoughts. He closes the laptop. The cell phone is to his right. He picks it up, stares at it, and tosses it on the table. He rests his chin on the palm of his hand, lost in thought. He yawns and rubs his face with his hands to suggest he’s sleepy. He puts his arms and head on the table to take a quick nap. Lights go down on stage right; lights up on stage left.)
REBECCA
Michael?
(pause)
Michael.
(pause)
Michael.
MICHAEL
Rebecca?
Yes, it’s me. Come see me.
MICHAEL
Now?
REBECCA
Yes.
MICHAEL
Where are you?
REBECCA
Follow my voice. Over here.
(MICHAEL walks into REBECCA’s space.)
MICHAEL
Rebecca. Hello.
REBECCA
Hello, dear brother. It’s good to see you.
MICHAEL
Likewise.
(long pause)
Rebecca, I…I
REBECCA
Shhhh…there’s no need.
MICHAEL
But—
REBECCA
I’m glad you’re here. I’ve missed you.
MICHAEL
And I’ve missed you, too. So much.
(pause)
How, how are you?
REBECCA
I’m good, Michael. Really good.
MICHAEL
(clumsily trying to appear casual in the next few lines)
Good to hear!
(pause)
Uh…school? How’s premed going?
REBECCA
Physics is a real challenge.
MICHAEL
You’ve never met a challenge you didn’t love, right!
(awkward pause)
REBECCA
How are you, Michael.
MICHAEL
Me? Never better! Yeah, working my tail off but I’m on my way to partnership! I’ve become the antitrust expert at the firm! Do you know what’s funny about that?
(pause)
I said, do you know what’s—
REBECCA
What’s funny about that big brother?
MICHAEL
My lowest grade in law school was in antitrust! Got a B. Can you believe that? But I didn’t care for the professor. He sweat a lot. Sneezed a lot, too. A real turn off. Yeah, just uh…just uh..bad…man—but not a bad bad man. I’m sure, in his heart—
REBECCA
Are you happy, Michael?
(long pause)
MICHAEL
Am I happy?
REBECCA
Yes, are you happy?
MICHAEL
Why would you ask me that?
REBECCA
In my dreams I’ve seen you crying. Even in your office. You shut the door and break down. Why?
(MICHAEL walks down stage. He hangs his head for a few beats.)
MICHAEL
Regret, Rebecca. It’s real. It’s painful. Overwhelming. And it comes when I least expect it. And it won’t stop. It never stops.
REBECCA
Michael, look at me.
(MICHAEL turns to look at her.)
REBECCA
When I woke up in the hospital, I couldn’t move my legs. I couldn’t feel them. As hard as I tried to wake them up, they just laid there, limp, dead. When they told me I wouldn’t walk again, that I would spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair, I felt a rage. A rage so intense that I could bring down the hospital, kill me in an instant. Why did I have to go out and down shots of tequila to celebrate graduation? Why did I get into that car? Okay, I committed a crime, the crime of idiocy. But why was the punishment so severe?
(pause)
The rage eventually turned into sadness, which turned into what I thought would be a life of regret. Until one day when I was finishing my rehab, my therapist said she had heard I played tennis. She had a friend who volunteered at a wheelchair tennis clinic. Would I be interested in trying it out? But I said I played real tennis. She gave me a look.
MICHAEL
Awkward!
REBECCA
Yeah, that was pretty much stupid.
MICHAEL
Did you go?
REBECCA
I did. They strapped me into a sports wheelchair, like this one. Gave me a racquet. Put me on the court. They fed me a ball. I pushed awkwardly but I got to it. And when I sliced the ball over the net I felt so happy. I cried with joy. It was then, at that moment, that I forgave myself. And I let go of regret. I let it go. And I’m happy.
(pause)
Michael, my dear brother, you need to do the same. Can you do that?
MICHAEL
Will you help me?
REBECCA
Come over here, you silly boy.
(They hug; she taps the wheels.)
REBECCA
What do you think?
MICHAEL
I’ve never seen one up close. It’s..it’s crazy weird, sis.
REBECCA
Always the smartass, dear brother.
MICHAEL
Where are the brakes?
REBECCA
Brakes? After my first push I’m constantly moving. Moving through time and space, through possibilities, not knowing for sure what comes next but always hoping, hoping I’ll win the point. But even if I don’t, I feel alive. I can’t run. I can’t feel my legs, but I’m whole in who I am. Not half of what I used to be. I don’t need brakes, Michael. Hey, would you like to try?
MICHAEL
Me? No, I—
REBECCA
C’mon!
MICHAEL
I’ll be fine just watching you play.
REBECCA
Yeah, right. You’ll be glued to your phone, like most people in the stands.
MICHAEL
I didn’t bring it with me.
REBECCA (in mock shock)
What?
MICHAEL
You heard me.
REBECCA
Are you okay? Are you having night sweats? Convulsions? Projectile vomiting?
MICHAEL
Haha. I’m fine. Never felt better, actually.
REBECCA
Well, if that’s the case, I want you to try this.
MICHAEL
Sis, I really don’t think—
REBECCA
I’m making an executive decision.
MICHAEL
A what?
REBECCA
An executive decision, meaning you will try this weird chair. You can’t defy your sister!
(REBECCA transfers to her day chair. MICHAEL sits in the sports chair and awkwardly tries to strap himself in.)
MICHAEL
Now what?
REBECCA
Here’s the racquet. Now I’m going to toss you the ball and you’ll have to push the chair to meet it and use your wicked top spin—that was the best part of your game, but I was better.
MICHAEL (lovingly)
Stop!
REBECCA
Use that top spin to crush your opponent. Ready?
(She tosses the ball, but he doesn’t move, not even his racquet.)
REBECCA
You’re supposed to move and swing, Michael!
MICHAEL
I have no clue how to do this.
REBECCA
No worries. We have the rest of our lives to play together.
MICHAEL
Hey, let’s take a trip together. Just the two of us. This summer.
REBECCA
Where to?
MICHAEL
Have you heard of Charlevoix?
REBECCA
No. Where is it?
MICHAEL
Northern Michigan. It’s a beautiful little town. They plant petunias and geraniums all over. There’s a beautiful lake there. We can go sailing!
REBECCA
I would love that! How did you find out about it.
MICHAEL
Someone I met. Her name is Ruth.
REBECCA
Ruth. That’s a nice name.
Lights down.
SCENE FIVE
Place
Chicago
Time
Same year as Scene Four
Setting: There’s a kitchen counter center stage. On it are a bottle of wine and filled glasses, a long baguette, and other items suggested by the dialogue as they make dinner.They drink now and then throughout the scene.
Lights up.
CYNTHIA
How much cumin?
MICHAEL
Just a touch.
CYNTHIA
A pinch?
MICHAEL
Sure, my love. A pinch, no more, no less.
CYNTHIA
Take me to court if I mess up?
MICHAEL
You know it. Can you hand me the garlic press?
CYNTHIA
Take it easy on the garlic.
MICHAEL
If I mess up?
CYNTHIA
You’ll sleep in the guest room tonight.
MICHAEL
Rude.
CYNTHIA
Will you pour me a little more? I need it.
MICHAEL
Why is that?
CYNTHIA
I witnessed the most bizarre thing this morning on the bus.
MICHAEL
There’s always something weird happening on mass transit.
CYNTHIA
True but this was truly bizarre. These two guys got into a fight.
MICHAEL
A fight?
CYNTHIA
One was harassing the other with a cane, sticking the butt of it on the guy’s lap, like this.
(CYNTHIA takes the baguette and stabs MICHAEL’s hip with it.)
MICHAEL
Hey! I can sue you for that!
CYNTHIA
The guy with the cane asked the other if he owned the seat he was sitting on.
MICHAEL
What?
CYNTHIA
But do you know what really started the fight?
MICHAEL
What?
CYNTHIA
A bologna, mustard, and onion sandwich.
MICHAEL
Bologna, mustard and onions? Who eats that kind of sandwich? Sounds disgusting.
CYNTHIA
I know, right? The guy with the cane threw the gross sandwich guy on the floor. Hard.
MICHAEL
Was he okay?
CYNTHIA
Physically he checked out okay, but he was an emotional wreck. I tried to convince him he needed to come with me to the ER. Didn’t work.
MICHAEL
And nobody but you noticed?
CYNTHIA
No!
MICHAEL
How was that possible?
CYNTHIA
They were all staring at their phones.
MICHAEL
Wow. Hand me that cane and the knife.
(CYNTHIA hands him the baguette menacingly.)
MICHAEL
Please, no! I’m just the cook!
(CYNTHIA growls)
MICHAEL
Now the knife. Handle first!
(She hands him the knife; they prep for a few beats.)
CYNTHIA
Do you ever wonder why we’re here?
MICHAEL
What do you mean?
CYNTHIA
Why you’re a successful lawyer. Why I’m a respected doctor.
MICHAEL
Well, I suppose it’s because we’re smart and we’ve worked our asses off. We deserve it.
CYNTHIA
I’m not sure of that. Not after this morning.
MICHAEL
How can you doubt that?
CYNTHIA
Maybe it’s all luck.
MICHAEL
How so?
CYNTHIA
We were lucky to have been born into relatively wealthy families, with parents who themselves came from wealthy families.
MICHAEL
Yeah, okay.
CYNTHIA
Well, because of that, we went to the best schools, surrounded by students who themselves came from wealthy families. And because of all that, our brains, even our hormones, were conditioned to perform at high levels. And because of that, we went to Princeton, then to top law and med schools.
MICHAEL
Where are you going with this?
CYNTHIA
Maybe we really don’t deserve where we are. By mere chance, by luck, we’re the product of a chain reaction that made it highly probable we would be where we are.
MICHAEL
I don’t buy that. What about Jason? Just made partner at Goldman Sachs. He grew up dirt poor.
CYNTHIA
But it’s about probabilities, Michael. Jason might be the exception and we’re the rule. That gross sandwich guy. He asked me why he couldn’t be like me, a doctor, someone people look up to rather than look down upon, like him.
MICHAEL
Maybe he’s a slacker. Who eats a gross sandwich.
CYNTHIA
Or maybe he had the bad luck of being born into circumstances that made it probable he wouldn’t end up like us. What if it were the reverse? What if we were born under his circumstance and he in ours?
MICHAEL
So the guy is trapped. He can’t make a choice to make things better for himself. That’s depressing. I don’t buy it.
CYNTHIA
I didn’t say that. It’s just that he has had to face headwinds that we haven’t.
MICHAEL
Okay, you’re right about that. Now, can you cut the tomatoes?
CYNTHIA (playfully)
Are you brushing me off?
MICHAEL (playfully patronizing)
Me? Never. I have validated your feelings—
CYNTHIA
When you’re in a hole…
MICHAEL
Yeah, yeah, stop digging.
CYNTHIA
Thank you.
(CYNTHIA cuts the tomatoes as MICHEAL cuts the bread.)
MICHAEL
I saw Rebecca.
CYNTHIA
Maybe you’ve been working too hard, my love.
MICHAEL
No, I’m okay. I saw her. In a dream.
CYNTHIA
Oh.
MICHAEL
But it was that kind of dream that feels so real. Like I really saw her, you know. It was beautiful. It really was. And embarrassing.
CYNTHIA
How so?
MICHAEL
She put me in her sports wheelchair, gave me her racquet, and fed me a ball.
CYNTHIA
What’s embarrassing about that? You’re still a killer tennis player in your old age.
MICHAEL
I couldn’t move. I was frozen. I had no idea what to do.
CYNTHIA
Haha! Maybe you were the athlete with a disability.
MICHAEL
I suppose I was.
(Silence as they chop.)
MICHAEL
Do you know that a good number of partners at my firm are at least twice divorced?
CYNTHIA
Where did that come from?
(Long pause; MICHAEL is lost in thought.)
MICHAEL
Who was your favorite prof in pre-med, if you can remember?
CYNTHIA
Hmmm…let me think…maybe Professor Jenkins, physics.
MICHAEL
Ha!
CYNTHIA
That’s funny?
MICHAEL
No. It’s just that Rebecca said it was tough for her, too.
CYNTHIA
In your dream.
MICHAEL
Yes. In my dream. Only in my dream.
CYNTHIA
What about you?
MICHAEL
Contracts. Professor Taylor.
CYNTHIA
Why contracts?
MICHAEL
Because she scared the heck out of me.
CYNTHIA
Haha! Now it’s my turn to laugh!
(They drink.)
MICHAEL
You know, she’s still teaching at Chicago.
CYNTHIA
And?
MICHAEL
I think I’m going to pay her a visit. Talk to her about teaching.
CYNTHIA
What brought this on?
MICHAEL
A conversation I had on the train with a homeless woman a while back. I don’t think I told you about it.
CYNTHIA
What on earth did you talk to a homeless person about?
MICHAEL
How to let go.
CYNTHIA
I’m not following you, Michael.
MICHAEL
Did you know that adaptive sports chairs don’t have breaks?
CYNTHIA
Maybe you’ve told me, but I don’t remember. Why not?
MICHAEL
After the first push, you’re always moving, moving through time and space, with nothing holding you back, with nothing weighing you down. You’re in the moment, hoping for the best. And that, my love, is when you feel alive. Truly alive.
CYNTHIA
Give me a kiss, you dreamer.
(They kiss.)
Fade to black.
SCENE SIX
Place
Chicago
Time
Sometime after Scene One
Setting: Pete’s studio apartment furnished modestly in some way. A dining room table with chairs is center stage and a counter of sorts. There are props as indicated in the dialogue.
Lights up.
(PETE is sweeping the floor. There’s a knock on the door offstage. Pete puts down the broom and walks to the imaginary door.)
PETE
Yes?
(another knock)
SAM
Open the door, brother.
PETE
Sam!
(PETE opens the door.)
SAM
Hey, kiddo.
(They embrace.)
SAM
How are you?
PETE
I’m…I’m good! Why? Are—
SAM
I’m in town for a couple of days.
PETE
A couple of days?
SAM
I’m on a business trip.
(They look at each other for a beat.)
SAM
Well, are you going to invite me in?
PETE
Yeah…yeah, of course.
(SAM takes his coat off.)
SAM
You got somewhere I can—
PETE
Give it to me.
(PETE hangs it on the coat rack.)
SAM
Wicked out there.
PETE
It’s February in Chicago. Have you forgotten?
SAM
I wish I could. Hey, what’s that on your shoe?
(PETE looks down and SAM flicks PETE’s nose.)
PETE
Sam!
(SAM wrestles playfully with PETE.)
SAM
You still fall for that!
PETE
I’ll get you back!
SAM
Good luck! Hey, nice pad, Pete. You’re moving up in the world.
PETE
Suits me just fine.
SAM
You’re not too far from mom.
PETE
You’ve seen her?
SAM
I called. Are you free tomorrow?
PETE
Yeah. I don’t work weekends. Not usually.
SAM
Good. We’ll spend the day together.
PETE
Super!
(awkward pause)
How…how was you flight. Here. From…
SAM
Seattle. Pretty smooth. A bump here and there.
(awkward pause)
PETE
Hey, what can I get ya. I got some beer.
SAM
Water’s fine.
(SAM sits at the table as PETE fills the glass from a pitcher.)
PETE
Ice?
SAM
Pete, if I want ice, I can get a chunk outside.
PETE
Still a wise ass.
SAM
Still.
(PETE fills another glass for himself, brings them over to the table and sits; awkward pause.)
SAM
Hey, I got something for you!
(SAM goes to his coat and pulls out a Snickers bar and tosses it to PETE.)
PETE
Hey, thanks, Sam!
(PETE unwraps the bar and takes a bite as SAM sits.)
SAM
I figured you were still addicted to it. Have you ever lived a little and tried something else? Maybe KitKat? M&Ms?
PETE
I would never be unfaithful.
SAM (playfully)
But it’s a candy bar, stupid!
PETE
We’re engaged.
SAM
Funny guy.
(awkward pause)
So what kind of work are you doing these days?
PETE
I’m a paralegal.
SAM
Really!
PETE
What? You think I’m not smart enough?
SAM
Of course, you’re smart enough.
PETE
I got a certificate and do family law.
SAM
What’s that all about?
PETE
I handle mostly divorces.
SAM
Is that right?
PETE
Most of ‘em want to kill each other.
SAM
In love one day and the next trying to rip each other’s throats out.
PETE
That’s pretty much it.
(PETE takes another bite.)
SAM
Pete… I’m sorry—
PETE
You know mom cried for weeks.
SAM
I’m so sorry, Pete.
PETE
I’ve missed you. A lot.
SAM
And I’ve missed you and mom a lot.
(pause)
Pete, you know so many times we fall into patterns in life that after a while become dead and meaningless. Every day is a repeat of the day before. We think we’re happy. But we’re actually not. Do you get what I’m saying?
PETE
Yeah. I think so.
SAM
And so many times we don’t try to break those patterns.
PETE
But if they’re dead and meaningless, why not?
SAM
Because we’re afraid.
PETE
Of what?
SAM
Of what’s on the outside of those patterns. It’s safer to stay in them. Take no risks.
PETE
What happened? I mean you said something happened that made you realize you were unhappy.
SAM
I was on a bus one morning and I sat next to a man with a cane.
PETE
You said something about that in your letter.
SAM
He was crazy. Kept poking me with his cane. All I wanted was to disappear into my phone, disappear into that dead zone, that safe space. But he wouldn’t leave me alone. I finally exploded and we fought. He won, smashed my phone and left me the cane.
PETE
What the hell?
SAM
But, Pete, it was the best thing that happened in my life. He didn’t just smash my phone. He smashed the lifeless pattern I was stuck in. Does that make sense?
PETE
Do you have another Snickers?
SAM
What? No.
PETE
I think I need another one after that story.
(they laugh)
SAM
Hey, I’m hungry. Whatcha got here?
PETE
Not much I’m afraid. How about a sandwich? I don’t have bologna, mustard, and onions. I gave it up.
SAM
I gave it up, too. After the fight. What else might you have?
PETE
How about a PB&J?
SAM
Sounds great!
(PETE grabs the stuff to make the sandwiches and places them on the table. PETE divides the bread.)
PETE
Two for me and two for you. Or should we do five each and play five-card stud.
SAM (playfully)
Now that’s hitting below the belt, Pete!
(PETE puts a big glob of peanut butter on his slice.)
SAM
Bro, you’re going to choke to death on that!
PETE
Nah. The secret is the jelly.
(PETE puts a huge glob of jelly on the other slice. SAM stares in astonishment.)
SAM
I don’t know what to say.
PETE
Then shut up and make your sandwich, bro!
SAM
Haha.
(SAM starts making his sandwich.)
PETE
So what do you now?
SAM
I’m in sales. I work for a company that sells organizational software to college athletic programs.
PETE
Cool.
SAM
Landed a big one a few months back, University of Alabama’s wheelchair sports programs.
PETE
I’ve seen some of that stuff. Impressive athletes.
SAM
They are. Alabama’s wheelchair tennis team has won seven national titles in the past eight years.
PETE
Awesome.
SAM
For sure. There’s a big booster of the team. Michael Cranston.
PETE
That’s funny.
SAM
What?
PETE
I met a guy named Michael in Annapolis.
SAM
Annapolis?!
PETE
We moved down there to be near Aunt Beth but didn’t like it.
SAM
Why?
PETE
Felt funny. We’re made for Chicago.
SAM
What did you do down there?
PETE
Worked for a schooner business. Took tourists out on the bay. That’s where I met this guy. We talked while he was waiting to board.
(SAM takes a bite of the sandwich.)
The guy didn’t have a cane but he sorta made me think I could do other things.
SAM
That’s good, Pete.
PETE
Nice guy. Never saw him again.
SAM
I guess that’s why they’re called tourists.
PETE
What’s a booster?
SAM
Usually a big donor with a lot of money to give to the program. But this guy brings more enthusiasm and passion for sport than lots of money, at least that’s what I’ve been told. Apparently, his sister played there.
PETE
A pro now I imagine?
SAM
No. She passed.
PETE
Oh.
(they eat)
PETE
Hey, Sam.
SAM
Yeah?
PETE
I think I’m gonna go to law school someday. Become a rich and famous lawyer and buy a big sailboat. I’ll take you and mom wherever you want to go! Anywhere in the world! We’ll be together again! What do you think?
SAM
Sounds beautiful, Pete. I can’t wait.
PETE
So where are you going from here?
SAM
To Annapolis.
PETE
Really?
SAM
Crazy, right?
PETE
Sure is.
SAM
Corporate wants me to meet him and his family.
PETE
You should try the schooner.
SAM
I will.
PETE
I love the water. When you’re sailing, you’re always moving. Nothing holding you back, nothing weighing you down. You feel like anything’s possible. You know what I mean?
SAM
I do little brother. I truly do.
THE END
Subtext 