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List of Characters
Thady Tristessa Alle, Female, Main Character
Adelphie Nedra Johnston, Thady's Sister
Jenue Lawanda Allen, Thady’s Best Friend
Nathalie Lorant Johnston, Thady’s Mother
Dyson Metcalf Johnston, Thady’s Brother
Dallon Arwan Allen, Thady’s Husband
Brisies Antonella Allen, Thady’s Daughter
Denise Baback Johnston, Thady’s Father

Shades of Grey

(Stage is set up in five areas on two levels. The top level is about six or seven feet off the ground and is separated into a hospital room and a bedroom. On the bottom level, there is a street scene, a park/backyard, and a living room. An alternative to this design for small theaters or theatres on a small budget is to have two sections. One permanently set up as a hospital room, and the other to serve as the other locations.

(Thady, late twenties/early thirties, is lying on the bed in the hospital room with tubes hooked up to her, and she is unresponsive. The room is filled with get better soon cards, flowers, balloons, and an open bag of candy sitting on the nightstand.

(Natalie enters leading a six year old Briseis by the hand. Natalie sits in the chair beside the bed and pulls Briseis onto her lap.)

Natalie: See, Sweetheart. Mommy’s alright. She’s just sleeping. She’s going to wake up any minute. Now, go sit with Grandpa for a while.

Briseis: But I don’t want to. I want to wait until she wakes up.

Natalie: You can’t wait until Mommy wakes up. She’ll be asleep for several more hours.

Briseis: I thought you said that she was going to wake up any minute.

Natalie: I accidentally said minute instead of hour.

Briseis: I still want to stay with Mommy. She stayed beside my bed the whole time when I was in the hospital to get my tonsils out. I can stay by her bed while she’s in the hospital.

Natalie: Mommy’s going to be in the hospital for a long time, Briseis.

Briseis: I thought you said she was just sleeping.

Natalie: Well, it’s like sleeping for a really long time. It’s called a coma.

Briseis: Then why don’t they just wake her up, Grandma?

Natalie: It isn’t as easy as that. A coma is a really deep sleep that even doctors can’t wake Mommy from. She has to wake herself up or it might hurt Mommy.

Briseis: Why would it hurt Mommy?

Natalie: Why don’t you go see if Grandpa can find a doctor to tell you?

Briseis: Okay, but if Mommy wakes up, will you come get me?

Natalie: I will make sure to tell you right away.

Briseis: Okay. (Exits.)

Natalie: Thady, I know you can hear me in there, or at least, I think so. I don’t know how I could go on without you. Briseis is handling it okay. I can’t seem to tell her why you’re in the condition you are in, and to tell the truth, your father and I are starting to question whether to keep the life support on. The doctors told us that after the first month that the chances of you waking up dropped drastically. You’re almost there already, but I don’t know what I would with out you. Briseis needs you, and I can’t bring myself to take you away from her.

(Pause. During Natalie’s next speech, lights fade on her as lights come up on the bedroom. A twenty-year-old Thady stands in front of a full-length mirror in a wedding gown. Jenue is helping Thady put on the final touches; she is dress in a medium grey dress. Denise is sitting on the edge of the bed in a dark grey suit.)

Natalie: I hoped that one day you will see her getting married. In a white dress, mind you. Not that just off-white grey dress you were intent on wearing. Why did you decide to have your color scheme be shades of grey I will never understand, but in the end, I felt that I did very good in letting you have you way at your wedding. I only made some slight changes in a few things. Like that cake…

Thady: Thanks for staying in here, Dad. I was getting tired of Mom trying to take over my wedding.

Denise: (Not looking up from paper.) Not a problem, Sweetheart. I personally was tired of her asking me to run errands.

Jenue: There you go, Thady. All done. I’m sure your mom will be back soon to tell us what we did wrong.

(All laugh.)

Thady: My bouquet is ready, right?

Denise: When I was down there last, but who knows your mother might have decided to change the flowers on you.

Thady: It’s okay. I ordered a spare just encase.

Jenue: I can’t believe it.

Thady: You can’t believe what?

Jenue: That you are actually going to be marrying my brother. We’ll be actual sisters.

Denise: I thought you would have fixed them up years ago, Jenue. I’m disappointed in you.

Jenue: Don’t tease, Mr. Johnston. If Thady didn’t stay home so often in high school, I know that I could have set them up then; but Mrs. Johnston was so unstable since the death of Dyson and Adelphie. I couldn’t have felt right about taking Thady away from her.

Denise: Nat would have been fine. One thing you need to understand about Natalie, she tends to overreact to everything, and she is very controlling and lazy. She wants everything her way, but she doesn’t want to work for it. She almost adopted a child once when Thady was a girl instead of a boy like she wanted.

Thady: Dad, you don’t understand Mom. She’s a lot more unstable than you think. You know that she almost killed herself five times after Dyson and Adelphie’s death because she thought that you had abandoned her. You never came home, and Mom was thoroughly convinced that you blamed her for Dyson and Adelphie’s deaths.

Jenue: I think I’ll wait outside.

(Exits.)

Denise: Why would she think that?

Thady: Because you were never there, like always. “Family is supposed to stick together during troubling times,” was all that she kept saying, and you had to not be there for some reason. Mom changed after the deaths of Dyson and Adelphie; we all did. I had to sign her up for counseling.

Denise: (Puts paper down.) Did all of this really happen? Have I been that bad of a husband?

Thady: No, Dad. You’re not a bad husband. After Dyson and Adelphie’s death, you were more attentive when you were home, but you needed to take some time off work. You don’t need to work so much. I also think that you need to take some time off and go on a romantic get-a-way with Mom. She has been a little depressed since I left for college.

Denise: I don’t know if we have enough money for that

Thady: Trust me, Dad. You have enough money for that…and the vacation days as well. You’re plane leaves on the twentieth, and you are headed to the beautiful Cancun.

Denise: Since when have you decided when the family is going on a vacation?

Thady: Consider this as an early anniversary present.

(Lights fade to black. Lights come up on the hospital. Natalie is sitting beside the bed knitting, and Denise is sitting beside her reading a newspaper. Jenue enters. Natalie and Denise look up.)

Natalie: I thought that you were going to bring Briseis.

Jenue: I have something that I’ve been meaning to talk to you two about.

Denise: (Not looking up from newspaper.) Talk to us about what?

Jenue: I’ve been contacted by Thady’s lawyer.

Denise: And?

Jenue: It is specified in Thady’s will that should anything happen to her that I am to take full custody of Briseis.

Natalie: That’s ridiculous! In times of trouble, family should stick together. She should stay with me and Denise.

Denise: You can’t fight the law, Nat

(Neither woman listens.)

Jenue: I am family. I’m Briseis’ aunt. I have just as much right to be her guardian as you do. More, in fact. I have the law on my side.

Natalie: I don’t care about the law! That is my granddaughter! What do you know about children anyway?! You and your husband can’t have kids!

Jenue: Thady trusted me with Briseis for a reason! She doesn’t trust her daughter with you two!

(Denise puts his paper down powerfully and stands up. The women pay attention to him.)

Denise: Stop this now! If Thady decided that Jenue would be a better caretaker of Briseis, then we need to respect that decision. If you two want to argue this further, go outside.

(The women look at each other and walk out of the room.)

Denise: Look what you did now, Thady. I don’t disagree with your decision, but you aren’t the one that has to live with your mother after this. You know how she can get, but it is the best thing for Briseis. Jenue would be a good mother to Briseis. They are very close, and Nat and I are not the best parents. You know that.

(During Denise’s next paragraph, lights fade on the hospital and come up on the park/backyard.)

Denise: Even I know that Nat didn’t watch you like she should have. She would send you out with your siblings and leave you to take care of them, and when Dyson did something wrong, she would blame you for not watching him. The neighbors would complain to me whenever they would see me arriving home from work, but I never had the energy to do anything about it.

Thady: Be careful, Adelphie.

Dyson: Why do I have to stay here with you two? I’m old enough to go out on my own.

Thady: So am I, but I have to watch Adie and you have to help me.

Dyson: Who says? Mom? What she going to do? Tell Dad? What has Dad ever done about it? He’s always at work and whenever he is home, he just sits on the couch, with a beer, and sports on the TV. He won’t get up from the couch, and you and mom usually have to drag his drunk, sorry a**…

Thady: Dyson!

Dyson: What? I said a**. So what? We’re teenagers now, Thady, and with the way we are left to ourselves, we might as well be considered adults

Thady: Dyson, why are you so set against disobeying Mom? What’s gotten into you?

Dyson: Why are you so set to be her slave for the rest of you life? C’mon, Thady. If you don’t start to insert your independence, you’ll always be at this house taking care of Adelphie forever.

Thady: I don’t mind taking care of Adelphie.

(There is a sound of a car horn from offstage.)

Dyson: That’s my peps. You had better not tell Mom, Thady.

Thady: That’s not Jason Ebright, is it?

Dyson: And if it was?

Thady: He’s a bad kid. He steals all the time.

Dyson: He steals because his family is poor. Him stealing is a way to make money. The world isn’t in black and white, Thady; it’s more like shades of gray.

(Dyson exits.)

Thady: Don’t worry, Adie. He can take care of himself.

(Jenue enters.)

Jenue: Was that your brother who just left with Jason Ebright?

Thady: Yes.

Jenue: He’s going to get himself in lots of trouble.

Thady: He’s not going to graduate, but let’s forget about him. Why are you over here?

Jenue: Oh, my brother has his girlfriend over, and you know how much I like her.

Thady: Yeah. She’s nothing but a gold digger. Dallon could do so much better.

Jenue: I think you should tell him how much you like him.

Thady: I couldn’t do that! He’s on the popular kids, and I’m not. Why would he want to risk his image on me? I’m a nobody.

Jenue: You’re not a nobody, Thady. If you got out more, you would be popular.

Thady: I have to watch Adie….

(Lights fade to black. Lights up on hospital room. Briseis is in the bed with Thady with her arms around her.)

Briseis: I miss you, Mommy. Auntie Jenue is nice and so is Grandpa, but I don’t want to talk with Grandma any more. I don’t think she’s telling me the truth whenever she talks to me, and Auntie and Grandpa aren’t telling me anything at all. I want to know what’s wrong with you and how you got this way. I know that you are going overseas as a translator, but I don’t know where. I know that Grandma was really angry and sad about you leaving, but I don’t know why.

Remember when you said that, “People are not in black and white; they are in shades of grey.” I didn’t understand that saying then, but I think I understand it now. It’s a metaphor. We learned that in school. The saying says that people aren’t only good or bad; they are only mixtures of good and bad. But I don’t think so, Mommy. You’re good. Those people with the planes were bad. Sometimes despite all of a person’s good or bad ways, they do something that makes them fully bad or good.

(During the next section, the lights fade on the hospital and lights come up on the living room. Thady, nine months pregnant is pacing in front of the sofa with dialing frantically on the phone; she’s in obviously in labor.)

I wish I remembered Daddy. I know he died about the same time I was born, but you never told me if he ever meet me. If he did, I bet if I thought long enough I could remember him. What color was his hair? What color were his eyes? What did he smell like? I wish I knew. It’s like not knowing him stops me from knowing who I am.

Why did you decide to go across the ocean and leave me behind? I love Auntie Jenue, but I missed you. Grandma, Grandpa, and Auntie Jenue wouldn’t tell me, and I wondered why you didn’t tell me. Were you tired of me? Did you leave me because you didn’t like me any more? I love Auntie Jenue, but I love you more. Why did you leave me?

Thady: Jenue, pick up. Pick up. Pick up. Pick up. (Hangs up; dials again.) Dallon, don’t do this to me. Pick up. Pick up. Pick up. (Hangs up; starts crying.) Why? Why? Why? Why? (Collapses on sofa.) What am I going to do?

(The doorbell rings. Thady gets up and hurries toward the door trying to wipe the tears out of her eyes. She opens it, and Jenue wraps her arms around Thady’s neck.)

Jenue: Oh, Thady, it’s horrible. Maybe Dallon got out before they hit.

Thady: When what hit?

Jenue: Were you not watching TV?

Thady: No, I’ve been trying to call you for thirty minutes. I have to go to the hospital.

Jenue: He won’t be there, Thady.

Thady: Who won’t be there? What’s going on?

Jenue: You should sit.

Thady: We don’t have time for that. I have to get to the hospital.

Jenue: Even if he was there, you wouldn’t be able to see him, Thady.

Thady: WHAT’S GOING ON?

Jenue: Two planes crashed into the World Trade Center.

(Awkward pause.)

Thady: What?

Jenue: Two planes crashed into the World Trade Center. I can’t reach Dallon. All the phone towers are overwhelmed.

Thady: What? How did planes crash into World Trade Center?

Jenue: They’re terrorists. Which floor does Dallon work on?

Thady: Floor 87 in the North Tower. We have the get to the hospital.

Jenue: He might be alive then. If he gets out and doesn’t stop to help anyone.

Thady: That doesn’t matter right now….

Jenue: What do you mean that doesn’t matter? He might be dead. Do you have no compassion for him? Don’t you love him?

Thady: Yes, but…

Jenue: Then why aren’t you…

Thady: I’m in labor.

Jenue: Oh my god! Where’s your bags?

Thady: They’re in the bedroom.

Jenue: I’ll go get them; you head out to the car.

(Jenue leaves, and Thady stands in the middle of the room. She starts crying but regains composure by the time that Jenue reenters with two medium sized bags.)

Jenue: Do you need help getting to the car?

Thady: No, I’ll be fine.

Jenue: Then why are you still staying here? We have to get you to the hospital. You’ve already been in labor for thirty minute! Go!

Thady: Jenue, I’m scared. I’m scared for him

(Lights go to black. Lights up on the hospital room. Natalie is knitting.)

Natalie: Jenue forced us to give her Brisies. She showed me your will that said should anything happen to you the custody of Brisies goes to her and her husband. I don’t understand why you would want to separate the family, especially at time like this. I didn’t stop you from letting Jenue take care of Brisies while you were overseas, but you shouldn’t separate the family during times of crisis. You know how I feel about it; you were there after Dyson and Adie’s death when I thought your father had abandoned me. I was not there, and if it hadn’t been for you, I would have killed myself.

(Pause. During the next monologue, lights fade on the Hospital room as lights rise on the bedroom. Thady is sitting in bed, about nine months pregnant; she is wearing the same cloths as the previous scene. Dallon is getting ready for work.)

Natalie: I brought you some flowers. I thought you would like them. They use to be your favorites, and when I saw them in the window of the gift shop, I just had to buy them. Besides this room is so plain. Your father keeps saying that we’re lucky that you have a room all to yourself and that we should count our blessings, but I wouldn’t mind some color or something in here.

Thady: Have a nice day at the office.

Dallon: I can’t have a nice day at work when I know that you’re here all by yourself. It worries me.

Thady: If I go into labor, I’ll call you, and then immediately call Jenue to come take me to the hospital. You don’t have to worry.

Dallon: It still worries me.

Thady: I’ll be fine, Dallon. Oh.

Dallon: What! What is it?! Are you in labor?

Thady: No. She just kicked really hard that’s all.

Dallon: (Smiles.) You mean he kicked really hard.

Thady: No. I mean she kick really hard. I want a girl.

Dallon: And I want a boy. (Pause.) I wonder if it had been better to find out what sex the baby was.

Thady: I personally think that it’s more fun arguing with you about it.

Dallon: But we could have decorated the baby’s room in blue.

Thady: You mean pink.

Dallon: No, blue with a sports theme.

Thady: No, pink with a castle theme.

Dallon: I love you.

Thady: I love you too.

Dallon: Why did it take me so long to notice you? We use to live right next door to each other all whole lives. Why did it take me until college to see how perfect you are for me?

Thady: Because I never had the courage to tell you how I felt about you.

Dallon: That wasn’t the only reason. I was the one that asked you out after all. I guess it wasn’t until college that I actually separated you from your mother. She was always there trying to control the entire situation. She always got under my skin.

Thady: She likes you though. She thinks I could have done better, but she knows I could have done much worse.

Dallon: I still don’t want our daughter named after her. It might give her the idea that she can control her like she use to control you, and I won’t have that.

Thady: No, if it turns out to be a girl, you want to name her Briseis, after the Achilles’ war prize. That sets the much better example that she is nothing but a prize for men to win.

Dallon: Briseis is a beautiful name.

Thady: If it’s a boy, I want to name him Dyson, after my brother.

Dallon: You’re brother was a trouble maker, and I don’t want my son to take after his example.

Thady: My brother sacrificed his life to protect his friend.

Dallon: His friend was the head of the local gang, Thady.

Thady: I never said that it was worth the sacrifice; I just said that he laid down his life to save his friend. That is noble no matter how bad Jason was.

Dallon: I would much rather call him Tyler after my father.

Thady: How about be call him Dyson Tyler?

Dallon: How about Tyler Dyson?

Thady: That sounds weird, Tyler Dyson.

Dallon: After you say it for a while, it won’t sound so weird.

Thady: I guess. (Pause.) We just have to agree on a name in case it is a girl.

Dallon: How about Briseis Adelphie, after your sister?

Thady: Briseis Adelphie… I like it, but Natalie Adelphie sounds better.

Dallon: How about Briseis Natalie?

Thady: You’re still calling her after my mom.

Dallon: And I’m not happy about it, but I want you to be happy too. She would be half yours after all.

Thady: We could always wait and see what happens when she’s born.

Dallon: You mean when he’s born.

Thady: No, when she’s born.

(Lights go out. Lights come up on the hospital room. Jenue is sitting in the chair knitting, Denise is reading a newspaper, and Briseis is laying in the bed with her mother.)

Denise: It says here that Clinton is behind Obama in the primaries.

Jenue: Thank God, that women is Satan herself.

Briseis: Mommy always said you shouldn’t judge people. “The world isn’t in black and white, Briseis; it’s more like shades of gray,” or something like that.

Jenue: That was the last thing her brother even told her. She’s tried to keep it ever since then.

Denise: She nearly did too.

Briseis: When didn’t she?

(Awkard pause.)

Jenue: You can ask her when she wakes up.

Briseis: Why?

Denise: You’re mother wouldn’t want us to talk about it.

Briseis: What was my uncle like?

Jenue: He was…(Pause.)

Denise: Reckless. Do you know what a gang is?

Briseis: No.

Denise: They are a group of people that steal, sell drugs, and kill each other. You uncle was a friend of someone who was in a gang.

(In the next section, the lights fade as the light lights come up on the living room scene. Thady is sitting on the sofa doing homework, and Natalie pacing by the door.)

Briseis: Why?

Denise: I don’t know.

Briseis: He had to have something positive about him. Every one does.

Thady: You should sit down, Mom. You pacing by the door isn’t going to make him come home any sooner.

Nathalie: He didn’t even call saying he was going to be working late.

Thady: Does he ever?

Nathalie: Sometimes.

Thady: Sit down, Mom.

Nathalie: I don’t know what to do, Thady. I don’t feel right about leaning on you, but I have to have someone help me. I can’t take care of Dyson and Adie by myself at the same time. I can’t believe that Dyson isn’t home yet either.

Thady: Dyson is running around with the wrong crowd. There’s rumors that he’s part of their gang, but I can’t tell if he is or not. He doesn’t always were their colors to school.

Natalie: See what I mean. I can’t control that boy, and your father just hasn’t tried.

Thady: One of these days, Dyson’ll do something, and the police will take care of him for you.

(There is a knock on the door. Natalie opens it expecting to yell at her son for being late and forgetting his key again, but a police officer is standing there. Pause.)

Officer: Mrs. Johnston?

Natalie: Yes. May I help you, Officer?

Officer: May I come in?

Natalie: Yes.

(Officer enters.)

Officer: Is Mr. Johnston here?

Natalie: No, sir. What is this about?

Officer: Can you sit down, ma’am? I have some bad news.

(Natalie sits beside Thady.)

Officer: I’m afraid that you son is dead.

(There is an awkward pause. Then Natalie bursts into tears. Thady puts her arms around her top comfort her but addresses the officer. She is wants to cry but is in control of her emotions.)

Thady: What happened?

Officer: He was shot. We’re still looking into the details. Can I ask you some questions?

Thady: Is there anyway you can come back tomorrow? I’m going to have to contact my father and take care of my mother.

Officer: Certainly.

(Officer leaves and closes the door behind him.)

Thady: Mom, you’re going to have to let go of me so I can call Dad.

Natalie: Why? Why did he have to be friends with that horrible kid? Now he’s dead!

Thady: We can’t judge Jason, Mom. There is no black and white, only shades of grey.

(Lights go out. Lights up on the hospital room. Natalie is sitting beside the bed knitting, and Denise is reading a newspaper.)

Denise: Thady has a living will. After a month, we are suppose to take her off life support.

Natalie: But she was already in coma for about two weeks before they could get her back in the states.

Denise: She has a living will.

Natalie: How are we going to explain it to Briseis?

Denise: Tell her the truth.

Natalie: She’s too young to understand.

Denise: She can understand more than you think.

Natalie: Children should never have to deal with the same burdens as adults.

Denise: It’s her mother, Natalie. She needs to know what is the truth of what’s going on. All she knows if her mother is sleep and can’t be woken up. She needs to know what is really wrong with her mother and how it happened so she can be at peace with it.

Natalie: I need some coffee. Will you go get some for me?

Denise: Okay, but we’re going to continue this conversation when I come back.

(Lights start fading from the hospital scene to the living room scene. Thady is sitting on the sofa doing homework, and Denise is sitting beside her reading a newspaper.)

Natalie: I’ve never noticed how much those Jenue and I fight until you were in the hospital. We have very different views on matters, and like to voice them. We seem to enjoy arguing with each other. I think it helps us deal with the fact that you might not make it out of this alive. We both love you so much. I think it is really difficult for the both of us to think of you not being there. She’s so much like her brother that I can’t help but to put his faults on her. He never took enough care of you. I can’t believe that he allowed you to stay in that big house in the middle of nowhere all by yourself when you were pregnant. What would have happened if you fell or something and couldn’t get to the phone?

Thady: Mom and Adie are late. They’re never late. I hope nothing happened.

Denise: Don’t worry. They’re fine.

(Phone rings. Thady gets up and walks over to it.)

Thady: Hello. (Pause.) What? Where? (Pause.) Which hospital?

Denise: (Puts paper down.) What’s wrong?

Thady: They were in a car accident. A drunk driver hit them. They’ve both been taken to the hospital.

Denise: Are you okay?

Thady: Of course, I’m fine. I wasn’t the one in the accident.

Denise: You were kind of out of it after your brother’s death.

Thady: Dad, we don’t have time for this we should get to the hospital.

Denise: Us being there won’t help the doctors take care of them.

Thady: But what if they are dying? We should be there so we can say goodbye.

Denise: Saying goodbye isn’t going to make the pain any less.

Thady: Dad, we have to go. Do you care about either of them at all?

Denise: Of course, I do, but I care about you too. And I need to talk to you right now.

Thady: We can talk in the car on the way over there.

Denise: Okay, Thady, let’s go.

(Lights go out. Light up on the hospital room. Jenue is sitting beside the bed, and Briseis is laying on the bed with her mother.)

Briseis: What was my daddy like when he was my age?

Jenue: I don’t know; I was too young.

Briseis: What was his favorite food?

Jenue: Hotdogs and macaroni and cheese.

Briseis: Together?

Jenue: No separate.

Briseis: What was his favorite color?

Jenue: Blue.

Briseis: What color were his eyes?

Jenue: Green. Haven’t you seen a picture of him?

Briseis: Mommy doesn’t keep photos of him around. I think she still misses him too much.

Jenue: When we get back to my house, I’ll give you one of mine.

Briseis: Thank you.

(Pause. Lights fade on the hospital room as lights come up on the park/backyard. Thady and Dallon are sitting on a park bench.)

Briseis: Where my mommy and daddy in love?

Jenue: They were star-crossed.

Briseis: How did they meet?

Jenue: We grew up next door to each other. Your father and I use to play in her backyard all the time.

Briseis: When did my mommy and daddy start to like each other?

Jenue: Well, your mommy started liking your daddy when she was in middle school, but he didn’t start to like her until late high school/early college. I don’t know for sure. He never talked to me about who he liked.

Briseis: Where they happy together?

Jenue: I never saw a couple that fought less

Briseis: I’m sad that he died so soon after my death.

Thady: That was funny. Where should be go next?

Dallon: Well, I could give you the haunted tour, but that’s usually better at night.

Thady: I imagine.

Dallon: Why did you decide to go to school here, Thady?

Thady: (Suddenly nervous.) Why did I decide to go to school here?

Dallon: Yeah.

Thady: Well… It has a pretty good Linguistics Department, and I wanted to go to school with Jenue.

Dallon: I can see that. You never had a lot of friends in high school, if I remember right. You were always home helping your mom even before your brother’s death. I’m surprised that she let you come this far to go to college. She’s the clingy type.

Thady: She’s not so bad. Not everything is black and white; most people operate in a shade of grey.

Dallon: You say that shade of grey thing a lot. How come?

Thady: It was the last thing my brother ever said to me, but it stuck. At first, I said it as an honor to him, but then I started to believe it. It’s amazing how many people try to think in black and white and don’t take all of people’s motivations into account.

Dallon: Yeah. (Pause.) How did your brother die anyway? I never did get any straight answers from anybody.

Thady: Oh, he was hanging out with Jason Ebright, and there was a drive by shooting by a rival gang. Dyson jumped in front of Jason to protect him. They never caught who did it.

Dallon: Wow. That’s why your mom kinda went crazy for a while.

Thady: Yeah that and my sister was killed shortly afterwards because of a drunk driver. (Awkward pause.) I think I should head back to my dorm to see if Jenue is feeling better.

Dallon: Hey, Thady, wait.

Thady: Yeah.

Dallon: There’s this party on Friday, and I was wondering if you would like to go with me.

Thady: Are you asking me out on a date?

Dallon: Or we could go as friends if you rather….

Thady: No, I’d be happy to go to this party with you.

(Lights go out. Lights go up on the hospital room. Natalie is sitting in a chair beside the bed knitting, and Briseis is laying down on the bed with her mom.)

Briseis: What was my mommy like when she was my age?

Natalie: What?

Briseis: What was my mommy like when she was my age?

Natalie: She was helpful and very kind.

Briseis: What was her favorite subject in school?

Natalie: English.

Briseis: I hate English.

Natalie: That’s your father in you.

Briseis: What was his favorite subject?

Natalie: History.

Briseis: Really? That’s my favorite subject.

Natalie: You’re a lot like your father.

(Long pause.)

Briseis: Which subject did my mom hate?

Natalie: She didn’t hate any subject.

Briseis: Which subject did she not like so much then?

Natalie: Math.

Briseis: I hate math.

Natalie: (Knowing what comes next.)Your father hated math too.

Briseis: Really?

Natalie: Why are you asking all of these questions suddenly?

(During next section, lights start to fade on the hospital room and come up on the living room. Thady and Dallon are sitting on the sofa cuddling.)

Briseis: I’m losing Mommy, and I feel like I never really knew her. I would come home and tell her my day, but I never thought to ask her about her day. I would always ask for my favorite food but never even though about what hers was.

Natalie: It was lasagna and broccoli.

Briseis: I hate broccoli.

Thady: When do you want to hold the ceremony?

Dallon: As soon as possible. I hate this waiting when I know that you’ll soon be my wife.

(Denise walks in the front door and hangs his coat up. He’s in his work clothes and goes to change but stops when he hears Thady’s response.)

Thady: Maybe we should just elope and forget about all of this.

Denise: You two are not going to do that.

Thady: Oh, hi, Daddy.

Denise: Don’t “Oh, hi, Daddy.” me. You two are got going to get married until you get jobs to support yourselves. I did not approve of your marriage right after college, but it will only be over my dead body that you two will marry before you have jobs.

Thady: But Daddy…

Denise: No, “But Daddy” me. I’m happy for you two, but I will not have you living in my house when you should be in a place by yourselves. The first year is hard enough without having Natalie and me in your personal space.

Dallon: You wouldn’t be in our personal space. We could stay in Thady’s room; it’s big enough for the two of us.

Denise: Until you get into a fight and don’t say you won’t. Every couple does. I will not be woken up in the middle of the night to a door being slammed, and you two need to be able to slam your doors. It’s one of the best ways to get ride of anger.

Thady: Well, I have good news that I wanted to tell the two of you. I’ve been hired as a translator by this pharmaceutical company.

Dallon: I thought you want to stay at home and be a house wife.

Thady: I do. I’ll be able to work from home, and they’re really flexible with stay at home parents. I’ll get paid for each translation so I’ll be able to work at my own pace.

Denise: Then you’re just waiting on you, Dallon. As soon as you get a job, you two can set a date, but not before then or you won’t be allowed in my house. Understood?

Thady: Yes, Daddy.

(Denise leaves.)

Dallon: He can be rather forceful, can’t he?

Thady: You have no idea.

(Lights go out. Lights come up on the hospital room. Denise is reading a newspaper, and Briseis is laying in bed with her mother.)

Briseis: Grandpa, what happened the day my daddy died?

Denise: Well, some bad men.

Briseis: Mommy told me you should never think people as bad. You don’t know why they do what they do.

Denise: (Puts paper down.) Well, then. Some people stole some airplanes and ran into buildings.

Briseis: Why?

Denise: Because they hate the United States.

Briseis: Why?

Denise: Because they think that God wants them is kill us.

Briseis: Why?

Denise: Because we don’t believe the same things as them.

Briseis: But we do believe in God.

Denise: They believe in a different one than the Bible.

Briseis: There are different Gods?

Denise: Yes.

Briseis: Which one do they believe in?

Denise: Allah.

Briseis: Who’s that?

Denise: Their God.

(The lights on the hospital room start to dim and come up on the living room scene. Thady is in civilian clothes but a fully packed army bag on her back. Natalie is sitting on the sofa; she’s very angry. Jenue is standing talking to Thady.)

Briseis: Why to they believe in Allah and not God?

Denise: Their Torah is different than our Bible.

Briseis: What’s a Torah?

Denise: It’s their version of the Bible.

Briseis: What’s the difference between their Bible and ours?

Denise: I don’t know for sure. I’ve never read it.

Thady: Don’t tell Briseis that I’m going to go fight in Iraq.

Jenue: Why Thady?

Thady: I’ve taught her not to hate people, but I’m going over there to get revenge for Dallon. I’m doing exactly what I’ve told her not to do; it will make me look like a hypocrite.

Natalie: You are.

Jenue: (To Natalie.) She’s about to go over seas. You can, at least, be civil to her.

Natalie: I don’t have to be civil to a person that wants to leave their daughter an orphan.

Jenue: You…

Thady: It’s okay, Jenue. She has the right to be angry at me. I am leaving my daughter to go risk my life to kill people that didn’t actually and probably didn’t plan my husband’s death.

Jenue: Then why are you going?

Thady: I’ll feel better if I go to Iraq and do something. Every time I look at Briseis, I see my husband, and I’m haunted by the fact that I have done nothing to those that killed him.

Jenue: Thady…

(Briseis enters and runs over to her mother. Thady kneels and hugs her.)

Thady: You be good with Auntie Jenue, okay?

Briseis: When will you be back?

Thady: I don’t know.

Briseis: Will you be back to watch Hannah Montana with me?

Thady: No, Briseis. I’ll be gone a really long time.

Briseis: Will you be tomorrow to take me to school?

Thady: No, I won’t be home for a few months, at least.

(Briseis pulls back from her mother.)

Briseis: You won’t be back for months? Where are you going?

Thady: I have to go across the ocean for my job.

Briseis: You never had to do that before.

Thady: I have to if I want to make more money.

Briseis: But we’re fine now. Why do you need more money?

Thady: I have to go, Briseis. Kiss me goodbye.

Briseis: No.

Jenue: Briseis!

Briseis: No. She’s leaving me behind. I won’t kiss her goodbye.

Thady: Briseis, I…

Briseis: No!

(Briseis runs out of the room.)

Jenue: Briseis!

(Jenue starts to go after her, but Thady stops her.)

Thady: She’ll be fine, Jenue. She just needs to be alone right now.

(Lights go out. Lights up on hospital room. Briseis, Natalie, Denise, and Jenue are there all of them are in black. They are all around Thady’s bed.)

Jenue: Briseis, you understand what’s about the happen right?

Briseis: You’re about to take off the things that are keeping Mommy alive, but why?

Natalie: Because Mommy’s not going to awake up.

Briseis: How do you know that she’s not going to wake up?

Denise: We don’t, Briseis, but Mommy gave us instructions that if she has been in a coma for more than a month that we are suppose to remove the life support.

Briseis: But why? Why does she want to die?

Jenue: Briseis darling, would you want to live like your mother? Would you like living with a tube down your throat and needles pushed in your veins?

Briseis: But she’s going to get better!

Denise: Most people don’t wake up after a month on life support.

Briseis: (Vindictive.) That’s because people take them off it before their time.

Denise: Briseis, this is going to happen no matter what you say. I suggest you say good-bye to your mother.

(Awkward silence.)

Briseis: I want up on the bed with Mommy.

(Denise picks her up and puts her on the bed. Briseis lies down next to Thady and puts her arms around her.)

Briseis: Mommy, I love you, and I don’t want you to leave. But they won’t listen to me. I’m sorry that I refused to say god-bye when you left to go across the ocean. I’m sorry that I haven’t been the best little girl, and I promise to do better. I also promise not to cross the street without looking and having an adult with me. Please, Mommy wake up. Wake up, Mommy.

(Briseis starts to cry. Denise picks her up and holds her.)

Denise: Goodbye, Sweetheart. I’m sorry that I wasn’t there throughout your childhood and because of that that you’re life was harder. I’m sorry that I encouraged you into going over seas. I know that when you leave you’ll be reunited with Dallon, Dyson, and Adie, and that we all will see you again some day.

(Natalie and Jenue start crying.)

Natalie: I’m so sorry, Honey. I’m sorry that I leaned so heavily on you when you were young. I’m sorry that I wasn’t strong enough to stop your brother and take care of your sister. I’m sorry that I was so insecure after their deaths. (Overcome with tears.)

Jenue: We didn’t get to enjoy being sisters for nearly as long as I thought we were going to, and I promise to take good care of Briseis and not to give your mother too much hassle when she wants to watch her. Tell Dallon that I miss him, and I’ll be seeing the two of you soon. (Overcome with tears.)

(Knock on the door. A doctor comes in.)

Doctor: Are you ready?

Denise: Yes.

Doctor: Okay.

(The doctor walks over to the Life Support Machine and turns it off. Lights blackout as the machine dies.)