A Play by Ashley
CHARACTERS:
GIGALO the red rose. 21 years of age.
JULIA the black rose. 25 years of age, wants to become a supermodel.
SETTING:
In the third universe in the country of Rakan. On Peace and Blessings Road in the middle of both Gigalo and Julia. Smells like fresh dew and there is a feeling of tension and excitement in the air. In the third universe in the country of Rakan, on Peace and Blessing Road Gigalo is on the left side in front of his home. His home is a big victorian style home, he is the only rose in the garden. Julia is on the right side in front of her house which is haunted tudor style home with broken windows and no stairs. Julia is the only flower outside of her home.
TIME: Summer at 2006 at 12:20 AM when the owls are starting to awaken and “Hoot” to each other.
AT RISE:
The sky is a smoky color and both Gigalo’s and Julia’s home cast an extra veil of isolation and secrecy on the road in the middle of both Julia and Gigalo. It is extremely quiet as if the slightest sound would echo off of their world. Julia is preparing for departure, (i.e., severing her roots, gathering water, gathering nutrients and soil, eating a big breakfast, saying goodbye to her mother and father, Sarai and Ezekiel, and saying goodbye to Dracul, her soil). Gigalo is watching Julia anxiously, and he’s waiting for Julia to say goodbye to him.
GIGALO (Aside) This is it man! This is what you’ve been waiting for. It’s taken you 2 whole years to speak to the woman of your dreams, but I gotta tell you that you kind of put yourself in a chokehold here. It’s 12:20 AM and she leaves at 12:50. This is the time where your battle with rejection, confidence, and anxiety is won. You’ve charmed the petals off of every other flower, it shouldn’t be too hard to put her under your spell. But she’s different, more beautiful, more unique, and much more intelligent than any other woman you’ve approached. Of course there is always the possibility that she’ll say no to having a family, a possibility that she totally not be in love with me. I mean why would she want me. Every time I’m around her I get silent and flustered, barely able to talk. She just thinks I’m a ‘good listener’. I never initiate our conversations but I dream about her and the kids we could have together every night. I always feel small, unworthy of her friendship. I mean I’m Gigalo, the hottest red rose on the whole block and yet I can’t seem to speak to her. There was a time, when I was 20, where I almost told her how much I loved her. The words were just about to come out of my mouth, but her father called her away just then. It’s been a long hard fight, but tonight, I have regained my strength and am ready to tell her just how much I need her in my life. Oh just stop it! You didn’t work this hard for nothing, you’re going to tell her how much you love her and you’re going to make her love you. Oh no…here she comes, It’s now or never man. Here we go.
(Julia finishes saying goodbye to Dracul, her soil and leans forward to say goodbye to Gigalo.)
JULIA (Whispers) Gigalo!
GIGALO Hey Julia, are you all set to go?
JULIA Yep! Just doing the last think on my list which is to say goodbye to my best friend in the whole 3rd universe.
GIGALO Well…before you go, there’s something really important I have to tell you.
JULIA (Worried) Is there something wrong?…Gigalo, what is it? Are you okay?
GIGALO Well, it’s just, there’s a secret I’ve been keeping from you for a long time, and I just really need to let you know what it is before you go.
JULIA (Confused) Okay. Well, what is it?
GIGALO (Sighs) I love you. (hurriedly) I mean, I don’t just love you. I need you. I want you to be the mother of my, our children. I’ve dreamed about you every night since I was 19, I, I –
JULIA Stop! (Pause. Calmly.) I always knew you had feelings for me and –
GIGALO (Surprised and angry) You knew! You, you knew how much I loved you and never said anything.
JULIA (Still calm) Well…Yeah, I knew. I mean, I didn’t think it was this serious, but I knew.
GIGALO (Crushed) So, does that mean you don’t love me back. I mean since you knew and everything. (To yourself) What an idiot! I knew this was going to happen! I shouldn’t, I shouldn’t have said anything, I –
JULIA You’re an idiot Gigalo. I love you too. I’ve loved you for a long time, but –
GIGALO (Angry) But you loved your stupid dream instead huh? And to think, I wanted you to have my children.
JULIA (Angry) My dream wasn’t stupid before! I can’t have your kids anyway. I mean, have you ever heard of a supermodel being successful after she’s had seven kids? Oh…I get it. You don’t want me to be a supermodel. You don’t want me to have my dream.
GIGALO No, that’s not it. Well…actually, yeah. I don’t want you to, sure, going to the first universe and being a supermodel is cute. But, it’s unrealistic. Why don’t you just stay here, on the third universe.
JULIA All my life, I’ve wanted people to know how beautiful I am. On this third universe, I’m a freak, an oddity. Every thing here is so plain and normal. But on the first universe I would be exotic. I would be around all the most beautiful people. I’d feel like I belonged. Don’t you understand, I don’t belong here. I’ve never belonged here.
GIGALO Yeah, yeah, yeah. It’s all about you huh. It’s all about what you want. What about me? I’ve just professed my undying love for you and here you are babbling about being some supermodel. Don’t you think I have dreams to. I have always wanted the family I’ve never had as a child. I’ve always wanted a beautiful wife, with a bazillion beautiful kids, and you, you’re the key to unlocking my dream.
JULIA Gigalo, I love you too. Really and truly, but, I can’t let you stop me from getting my dream. You’ve grown up always having people look down on you fondly. You’ve always been seen as beautiful. But me, I have always been seen as some purple thumb on an all white hand. People always want to know what’s wrong with me. This is my only chance to prove to myself and everyone else that I am beautiful. That nothing’s wrong with me. Why can’t you understand that.
GIGALO No, no, no. (Sighs) I do understand it’s just, it’s just that you don’t understand. This is more than love to me Julia. I mean sure, I’m seen as beautiful, I live in front of a beautiful house that beautiful people inhabit. But I’m lonely. You’ve seen me jump from girl to girl and I know you probably thought –
JULIA (Nastily) Yeah, I thought you were filling a quota –
GIGALO Well you were wrong. In all those flowers, I was searching for something. Do you want to know what.
JULIA (Sarcastically) Sure.
GIGALO I was searching for my other half. I was searching for someone to fill that hole that had been growing inside of me since birth. My mother was vain, she discarded me because to her, I didn’t look the way she wanted. I thought all women were like that, that is, until I met you. In the beginning you were like the mother I never had and the friend I’ve always needed. You were the reason I woke up every morning, and now I know that if you leave me I will always be half a man. Do you really want to do that to me Julia? Do you want me to live an incomplete life?
JULIA What! Do you want me to live an incomplete life? (Aside) I’ve known Gigalo all his life and I must say, I’ve never seen him this way before. It’s sweet you know, to have a guy be this in love with you. I mean, he is hot, and we would have beautiful kids, but it’s 12:40. I have 10 minutes, I’ve worked too hard to let my dream go. I’ve already severed my roots and said gooodbye and plus, Gigalo is a very manipulative person. I mean, how else do you think he gets the girls. And another thing, his looks are deceiving, under that sweet smile there’s just something about him that scares me. An unforgiving darkside that I’m afraid I won’t be immune to. But…I have to make this decision. (To Gigalo.) I’ve gotta go. Sorry.
GIGALO What!
JULIA I thought about it, and I’ve decided that I’ve worked to hard to let my dream go.
GIGALO But Julia you can’t –
JULIA Yes I can, and I will –
GIGALO So that’s how you want it huh. That’s where the story ends. I’ve given so much of myself to you, and you’re just gonna leave me like this.
JULIA Gigalo you don’t need me to be happy. You don’t need me to feel complete. You can’t love someone else until you love yourself right?
GIGALO Yeah but –
JULIA Okay then, so me leaving is the thing for both of us. It will give you time to find yourself, and maybe, once you’ve put yourself in order, we can talk about marriage and children.
GIGALO So you do love me, you’re just going to leave me.
JULIA Yep, that’s how it looks.
GIGALO Well, on no! It’s already 12:42, you really need to go.
JULIA There’s no way I can make it.
GIGALO Here (whistles for the wind), this will get you to the airport on time. Good luck, I love you.
JULIA I love you to. See you again one day. (Julia exits.)
GIGALO You know, she’s right. I never thought about the fact that the problem was inside of me. Now that she’s gone, I kinda feel relieved. It’s all about me now. Maybe I can mend the broken relationship between my mother and I. Fill my own hole, and who knows, maybe I might float on over to the first universe and visit Julia, maybe, we might even go through some nuptials.
FIN
