Cast

Laurie - Wife
Jim - Husband
Jen - Friend
Rae - NewComer

Scene

Three women sit at a kitchen table- Drinking, smoking and playing cards.
Laurie appears nervous – shaky hands, chain smoking, and constantly drinking.
A couple of empty beer bottles sit on the counter next to some dirty dishes.
Jen seems cheery about nothing in particular.

Rae: Thanks for inviting me over Laurie. I don’t know too many people in town yet, pretty much just Jen.

Laurie: Well, Jen’s friends are always welcome in my house. Jen has helped me through a lot of hard times.

Jen: (cheerfully)Aw… thanks. (giggle)You girls want a drink, I brought some home made wine.
(She wiggles the cork from the bottle)

Laurie: Great I need to take the edge off. I’ll get some glasses.
(retrieves glasses and returns to table)
Fill‘er up.
(Jen pours drinks)

Rae: Just half a glass for me thanks.

Jen: Whatever you say. More for us, hey Laurie.

Laurie: Yeah sure. (glances at Rae suspiciously) You smoke?

(Jen begins shuffling cards)

Rae: No.

Laurie: Mind if I do?
(lights a new smoke from her old one)

Rae: Not at all.

Laurie: I have to smoke in the kitchen ‘cause the smoke is bad for the kids’ lungs. Hey Jen are you gonna deal those cards.

Rae: I didn’t know you had kids. Where are they?

Laurie: They’re watchin TV.

Rae: Wow they sure are quiet. I had no idea they were here.

Laurie: They know they can’t come bug us cause I’m smoking an it’s bad for em.

Jen: Laurie has beautiful kids. Wait till ya meet em. You’ll love em. (giggle)

Laurie: That’s why I moved to this town. I had to keep my kids safe. Had to get away from their Dad. He was doin bad drugs so I left. To keep my kids safe. As soon as I found out I was pregnant I quit all those drugs but Jim didn’t. He just kept on doin it. So I left. Came here cause my friend Joy moved here around that same time.

Rae: That was really good of you to think about your kids safety. Does he still have contact with the children?

Laurie: Yeah, everyday. Jim’ll be home from work soon and you’ll get to see ‘im yerself. (Rae appears shocked)
After I left he went to a coupla those rehab things. He says he don’t do those drugs no more but you know what they say. “once an addict always an addict”.

Rae: Who says that?

Laurie: My friend Joy. She says no man got the right to abuse a woman and I should kick that bum out cause he’s just lyin all the time.

Jen: (happily) Less talkin’ more playin. The cards are getting all mixed up. (giggle) I told you we can’t play war with more than two people.

Rae: Are you telling me that Jim is violent with you?

Laurie: He sure is. He’s on probation right now for rippin my shirt an threatenin me. I came home one night from a party at my friend Joy’s house and there he was passed out on the couch. So I knowed he musta been doin drugs or somthin cause it wasn’t that late to be sleepin on the couch. So I waked him up and he started yellin, and we argued, and next thing I know he’s grabbin me by my shirt and telling me to shut up or he’s gonna hurt me. Well my shirt was all ripped up and I got real scared so I called the cops. They came right away and they hauled him off to Jail. He got a whole year probation and has to go to meetings every month. I got a restrainin order and he wasn’t allowed to move back in for a coupla months. Joy says I shouldn’t have never let him come back but I know them kids need a Dad. It’s not right to grow up with no Dad. I never got to know my Dad till I was twenty-one. All I had growin up was my Mom’s different boyfriends runnin around my house screamin and throwin things. But no Dad. That’s not right, kids need their Dad. That’s why I married Jim last year. ‘Cause I want the kids to have a proper family.

Jen: Yeah. Family sure is important. My parents are still married.

Rae: I don’t think an abusive husband counts as a good family. Did he stop hurting you after he went to jail?

Laurie: No. He’s still super abusive. He’s always makin me feel fat and dumb. I know I’m not skinny anymore but that’s cause I had two of his kids. He makes me feel so ugly and fat. An he thinks he’s so great cause he’s so smart and he went to college. Well I never even got to go to highschool but that don’t mean I’m some dummy. That don’t mean he gets to make me feel stupid all the time like I got no brain in my head. I know he’s always lookin at other women cause he thinks I’m so ugly. My friend Joy even told me that one of her friends saw Jen and Jim neckin’ at a party.

Jen: Hey that’s not true. Come on Laurie, I’m your friend I would never do that. We’ve talked about this before.

Laurie: I know Jen. It musta been some other pretty girl. That’s how he likes em. Young and Pretty. You know what they say “Once a cheater always a cheater”.

Rae: Who says that?

Laurie: My friend Joy. She knowed Jim for a long time and she knows what a bad guy he is. Runnin around with girls all day. He says he’s workin but I never been to his work or seen what he does. He probably sits around lookin at dirty magazines cause I’m not pretty enough for him. I’m too fat and too old. And I’m stupid cause I stay and let him make me feel like crap. That’s how he makes me feel like I’m no good and I can’t do nothing. All he got me for is takin care of his kids so he can run around with his friends and tell them what a loser he married. I do everything I can for him and it aint never good enough. I’m never good enough. Joy says I got to get rid of him cause I’m not stupid and I’m not ugly and no man got a right to make me feel so bad. No man got the right to be so abusive.

Jen: She’s right Laurie. You’re not stupid or ugly. I think you just need to start feeling better about yourself. We’re out of wine. You got any beer in the fridge.
(gets up and retrieves two beer from the fridge. Rae still hasn’t finished her half glass of wine)

Rae: You know I don’t know you very well Laurie but I have to say you shouldn’t be in a relationship if it’s making you feel so bad. Are you safe here with him?

Laurie: (Sips from her beer and lights another cigarette)
Yeah. I’m plenty safe. Now that he’s on probation he’s gotta leave the house any time I tell him to. If he starts fightin with me or makin me feel bad I just gotta call the cops and they’ll come get him. And Jen’ll come over to keep me company.

Rae: Sounds Risky

Laurie: Nah

Rae: You’ve had a pretty hard life Laurie. I hope someday you can feel happy.

Laurie: Happy? I can’t be happy as long as I’m bein abused all the time. (pause) All the time.

(offstage sound of a car with no muffler)

Jen: That sounds like Jim’s car. (glances at watch) Finally done work.

(Jim enters stage right. He is obviously fatigued)

Jim: Hey hon, I’m finally home.
(sets down lunch box on counter).
What a long day. I missed you.
(hangs up jacket and puts smokes on table)
How was your day? I got you another pack of smokes.
(bends to kiss Laurie but she turns away. Affectionately pats her back instead)
Hi Jen. (notices Rae)
Oh hi. Who’s your new friend sweetie?
(rubbing Laurie’s shoulder)

Laurie: This is Rae. She’s a friend of Jen’s.

Jim: Hi Rae. It’s good to meet you. (shaking hands) I’m Laurie’s husband Jim.

Rae: (warily) Hi.

Jim: (turns towards the pile of dirty dishes) Hey Laurie, did you want me to get these dishes done for you?
(starts filling the sink without waiting for a reply)
Did the kids eat yet?

Laurie: Of course, what, you think I’m too messed up to feed my own kids. They had some mac an cheese like an hour ago.

Jim: (nervously) That’s great hon. You do such a good job. Maybe I’ll just get some carrot sticks for them to snack on. (grabs carrots from fridge and exits stage left.

Laurie: See what I mean. Nothing I do is good enough for him. The dishes aren’t done, the kids weren’t fed well enough. And I saw the way he looked at you. (looks at Rae).
You know I even heard one time he was neckin’ with Jen. I bet he’s gotta couple a girls on the side.

Jen: Laurie I’ve told you over and over that nothing has ever happened between me and Jim. I’m your friend. I would never do something so hurtful.

Laurie: Oh I know Jen. I don’t blame you. It was probably just a girl that looked a lot like you. Somebody else. But I know he did it. All men’ll do it if they get the chance.

Rae: All men? I think that’s a little exaggerated. I thought he was polite when he shook my hand and I certainly didn’t think he was ogling me or anything. Who told you he’s being unfaithful?

Laurie: My best friend Joy. She wouldn’t lie to me. She’s says I’m like her sister. I’m her family. She is always warning me about what a bad guy Jim is. Jim doesn’t like her. He says she should get a real job and then maybe she’ll get her kid back from welfare. He says she’s a drug dealer but Joy says she don’t do that no more. Jim’s just tryin to cause trouble cause he don’t want me to have no friends. He don’t want me to have no friends ‘cept jen cause that’s his friend.

Jen: Come on Laurie. You know I’m your friend more than his. I just don’t feel like I gotta bad mouth him all the time.

Jim: (re-enters stage left)
The kids are fine. I asked them to brush their teeth and get their pajamas on.

Laurie: I coulda done that. You think I can’t do nothing without you. I don’t need you for nothing.

Jim: No, no hon. That’s not it at all. You’ve been watching the kids all day and I thought you could use a break. You can just relax for now.

Laurie: (very agitated) No you relax. You think I’m gonna fall for that. You think I’m stupid or something. You’re the one who’s stupid. You’re the loser.

Jim: (in a soothing voice) Calm down hon. I don’t think you’re stupid. I think you’re wonderful. I love you and I love our children.

Laurie: Well I don’t love you. I’ve never loved you. I hate you. You’re nothing but a loser and a drug addict.

Jim: Come on. I know I’ll always be an addict but I quit drinking more than ten years ago and I haven’t done any drugs since I got out of rehab three years ago. I stopped for the kids and I stopped for you.

Laurie: Joy says "once an addict always and addict”. She says you must be hidin it. You must be lyin.

Jim: With all due respect to Joy, I may be a recovering addict but I am no longer using.

Laurie: Are you calling her a liar? I knew it. You don’t want me to have no friends. You think I’m stupid and worthless. Well you’re the one who is stupid and worthless. I want you to get out of my house. The cops said you gotta leave if I say so cause you’re an abuser.

Jim: (resigned)
That’s fine. I’ll go if that’s what you want. Just let me say goodnight to the kids.
(Jim exits stage left)

Laurie: No you won’t. They’re my kids.
(Laurie follows Jim off stage left.)

Rae: I don’t think I can handle this. It’s
too crazy for me.

(Jim and Laurie re-enter stage left)

Laurie: (screaming) I told you to get out of my house and I meant now.
GET OUT! GET OUT!

(Jim snatches up his jacket as he heads out the door)
(Laurie shoves him out the door and slams it behind him. Noticing his lunch box on the counter she re-opens the door and throws it – hard)

Jim: Ow. Careful.

(Door slams again)

(Laurie takes a couple of deep shaky breaths, gets a beer from the fridge, sits at the table and lights another smoke)

Laurie: (calmly) Whose turn is it to deal? Are we going to play another game?

Jen: (Cheerfully) Sure. Wanna play Go Fish?

Rae: (uncomfortably) Um, I think I’d better get going.
(Rae goes to door and puts on jacket)
It’s late and I should think about getting myself some dinner. Thanks for inviting me over. You girls have a good night.

Jen: OK. I’ll call you.

Laurie: Bye

(Rae exit stage right)

Laurie: I don’t know about that girl, Jen. She’s up to something. I don’t trust her. Did you
see the way she looked at Jim? She wants him.

(lights fade to black)

to be continued ...