Day 24

ACT I

CHARACTERS

Zeta: Late thirties, long face with bony features, in three piece suit with briefcase in hand

Henry: Late Twenties, curly hair, wearing comfortable clothing and glasses.

SCENE ONE

(A large industrial elevator opens its gated doors and two men step inside. They face the audience. Zeta stands still while Henry is touching his picture. Both men wait for a moment, until it is realized that Zeta, though closest to the button, will not press it and Henry with a slight laugh and a glance to Zeta reaches across him and the doors shut and they begin to go up.)

Henry

I can't believe we won. I mean, its fantastic when you think about it, how many must have put in to the lottery. And only the two of all the thousands

Zeta

Millions

Henry

Millions! Each put in a ticket and we got it. It makes a soul feel fantastic, like I'm years younger, am I flushed?

Zeta

(Pause)

I feel just the same. Colder maybe, but I don't I'm sick. Maybe your sick, did you think about that? Perhaps, that's why you feel flushed.

HENRY

(His attention is back to photograph)

I doubt it, nobody I've seen gets sick. Its too warm to get sick. But I wouldn't let it bother me anyway. There's too much excitement.

(Gestures to Photograph)

Zeta

That's a nice picture

HENRY

Yeah, I know, don't they look great? I can't wait to see them.

ZETA

Your family?

(Pause. Henry works the muscles of his face looking for an answer, exhales and speaks with low confidence.)

HENRY

Well…Yes

ZETA

Oh...I know, with as much time as we have spent down there I think that anyone is prone to forget. Nice though, that we get to keep mementos.

(He raises his briefcase and shakes it)

I've been hauling this around for longer than I've been here. Can't get rid of it, always seem to feel pained, probably the same for you though.

Henry

Oh yes, well, I mean, I wouldn't want to. Look at the smiles on their faces, and that solid house in the back, and the cherry tree. I mean, isn't it encouraging? Every time I thought about setting it down and breaking, I would just look to their faces, smiling, all saying, "We miss you..."

ZETA

Daddy? Uncle? Kenneth? Jerry? Big Brother? Thief?

(Henry gives Zeta a hard look)

HENRY

I can't be sure. But, who are you to talk? You don't even know what that is.

ZETA

It’s a briefcase. I just haven’t opened it

HENRY

That's what I'm saying. How can you criticize me, if all you can remember is hard plastic clutched in your hand? At least open it.

(Zeta raises it to chest level and runs his hand over it for a moment)

ZETA

That's not true, I do remember a few things. Feelings mostly.

(He pops the latch off the right lock with his thumb.)

There was this feeling of warmth, like I had my eyes closed and the sun was pouring around me. It felt fantastic, energizing.

(He pops the second latch with his left thumb)

And then there was a feeling like wind, or maybe falling? But the heat was peeled off of me, and I was still blind, like I was holding them shut. And the wind kept coming faster and faster.

(Zeta looks up and away, towards the audience, for a beat, remembering.)

HENRY

And then what?

ZETA

And then…I’m not sure, but eventually I wake up down there. I have this case in my hand, and nothing else. Not even a name, so I call myself Zeta.

(He scratches at a gold plate near the handle with the word.)

It’s the case’s name really.

(Henry’s attention is on the case)

Henry

Well my name is Henry…

ZETA

Really? How did you remember? I’ve been trying for so long to get mine again. (Speculative) Did you have to pray?

HENRY

I just always had it, never forgot it. I’ve heard that doing something really terrible makes you forget everything, even your name. Do you think you did something terrible?

ZETA

No, no…Well-

HENRY

Well, you don’t know, just like I don’t know. I guess we’ll both be surprised when we get up there.

ZETA

Yeah…(He glances from his case to the photograph then back again)I couldn’t have done anything too terrible right? Probably just blasphemous; spitting on a church, or taking a pass at a nun, right? I didn’t do anything too bad.

HENRY

How should I know. We never met before. Look in your case, maybe there will be something special in there, like little red tally marks for each child you’ve killed.

ZETA

There wouldn’t be anything like that? Would there? I mean I’ve been hauling this around for so long.

HENRY

But you’ve never opened it. There has to be a reason for that. So do it, open it—or if you want I can do it for—

(The elevator shudders violently and lurches to the left, the lights flicker then steady themselves.)

HENRY

What do you think that means? Is it breaking down?

ZETA

I don’t think so. Maybe we’re just getting close to the top, to wherever we’re going to end up.

(Henry nods, then stands straight)

Henry

Then I have to get ready. I want to look good when I see them again.

ZETA

You’re fine. But how are you going to find them?

HENRY

What do you mean?

ZETA

I mean, how are you going to get to this family, that really might not be your own? We’re going to end up wherever this decides to put us, and that can be anywhere. Nowhere even.

HENRY

I think you’re just a pessimist

ZETA

How is that? How could you possibly come to that?

HENRY

You should be overjoyed right now, and your not, that how I know. We have been given a second chance at life, no matter what that means and you’ve been trying to drag me down into some kind of mire of paranoia. This—

(He holds up the photograph)

This is all I have, a I carried with me while I was down there, all I can remember in the slightest. And I don’t want you to belittle it. You don’t deserve to.

(Beat)

ZETA

So you remember something?

HENRY

A little now, yes. I think the conversation brought something up, its been so long since I’ve got my blood pumping.

ZETA

What do you remember?

HENRY

Well, its winter—I can tell because of the frost on the window and I’m outside. I can see my breath. And inside there are the kids, their backs at me, looking at something, and she’s just to my right, turning away like she needs to grab something quickly-teakettle or something.

ZETA

Then? Do you go inside?

HENRY

I don’t know, its still, like another photograph.

ZETA

Maybe you were outside for a reason, maybe you weren’t allowed inside.

HENRY

Well, I don’t want to hear it, not from a man who only has feelings to go back on. You don’t get to judge me, and you’re stalling anyway, so that you don’t have to look in the case.

ZETA

I’ve decided I don’t need to.

HENRY

What? Your not scared anymore?

(He takes a swipe at the case)

Not afraid to give it away?

ZETA

You’re nuts, and I don’t care anymore. I thought what you said was right, if I don’t even know my own name, then what the hell does this mean to me?

(The elevator shakes again and the lights go out. The sound of rain comes into the scene and the elevator arises up to a city street with heavy rain coming down. They both stare forward at the empty street and after a beat ZETA is the one to pull the gate open.)

HENRY

I wish I had an umbrella…

ZETA

Here

(He holds out his case and Henry takes it, then proceeds to take off his overcoat and put it over Henry’s head and shoulder)

I don’t want these. Take them and find your family, or don’t, I don’t care right now.

(He storms off stage left, covering his head with his arms from the rain)

Henry

…Shit

(He looks up at the rain and then tugs the coat up higher over his head and takes a few quick steps out before the case spills open, its lathes being undone. Photographs and small trinkets spill out and Henry tries to gather them back up, then pauses as he picks up a single photo, then produces his own and his eyes bounce between the two. He tucks them into pants pocket and scoops everything back in and begins to head off stage right.)

The same, they’re the same.

End

This is a draft of the ten minute play. I don't know. Its a thing.