A Play by Diego

Performance: July 2002


CHARACTERS:

CS the school – 20 years old
Sequoia the school A.K.A Esq. – 5 years old
 
Time:  The morning
Place:  The streets.  We see a taco truck, workers working.  Cars are driving by.
At rise:  We see CS on the phone


CS:

Hello?  Who is this?  What can I do for you?  How could it be you have no money for my bills?  
So you’re telling me that the sponsors you had for me won’t give me any money no more? 
 Alright!  Goodbye!!  (Slams the phone down hard)  
 (Continued frustrated)
How could this be?!  I need to get some money fast.  I have to tell my students.  
 (To students)
Sorry students, but I just go a call from the school board 
telling me that they want to shut me down… 
(A knock at the door)

 Esq., how are you doing?  I was on my way to go see you.  I need to speak with you.  Now that you’re here it saves me the trip.

SEQ:

What’s wrong?  Did something happen?

CS: I got a call from the school board telling me they were going to tear me down if I don’t get twenty grand by one hour.  They’re going to kick my students out and tear me down!
 
SEQ:

(Angry)  How could this be?!  You’ve been here twenty years, even before I was born.  
You taught me everything I know.  
I wouldn’t be in the position I’m in if it wasn’t for you.  They can’t do this to you!

CS:

But they are so if I don’t act fast, I’ll be gone in the blink of an eye.  
I need to borrow money from you.

SEQ: Have you tried asking anyone else?
CS: I already called my cousins to ask them for some money.  They rejected me.  I don’t know why.  I know I can count on you being my best friend and all.  
I know you can lend me some money, right, Esq.?
SEQ:

(Surprised)  What?*#!  I know we’re best friends, like brothers b-b-but…
I can’t help you in this situation.

CS: What?!  What?!  How could you do this to me?  I know I couldn’t count on my cousins but “at least,” I thought, I could count on you!  I never thought you would do this to me. 
SEQ: I know we have been friends for a long time, since we were little, but, but never mind. I don’t need to give you any explanations why or why not I don’t want to lend you money.
CS: (Shocked)  What do you mean by that?  Okay, so now you’re saying I wasn’t a good friend to you?  That’s what you’re trying to say now?
SEQ: No, you’re getting everything wrong.  I’m trying to say that –
you’re too old and they should tear you down.  You’re falling apart.
CS: So now you’re saying you think you’re better than me? Let me get this straight, you would tear me down yourself?!!  I know I’m falling apart but my students matter more to me than anything else.  I just want them to graduate on time.  It doesn’t matter if they shut me down after that, they can do whatever they want.
 (He whips around so fast out of anger that he breaks one of his own windows).
SEQ: Wait, calm down!
CS:

How can I calm down after what you just said to me?

SEQ: Relax.  Take some deep breathes, you’re going to have a heart attack.  Don’t you see you are old and your heart doesn’t function that good anymore?
CS: Can’t you see you just let me down?  I know you think we’re just like brothers, but to me you were just like my son.  Can’t you see that?
SEQ:

Oh, I never knew I was like a son to you.

CS:

But you know now.

SEQ:

But see, if I lend you the money you need, I won’t be able to grant my own wish.

CS::

And what is that?

SEQ: See, ever since I saw the Olympics it as like heaven to me.  I thought:  “How cool would that be, having the Olympics right here?”  All the people smiling, all the athletes.  Cameras all around, taping the event.  Everybody watching it on television, not just watching the athletes surprised at the stadium, surprised at me.
CS: So what are you trying to say?
SEQ: Don’t you understand?  I’m saving the money that I have to make me bigger 
so everybody will admire me.
CS: I understand, but if the school board closes me down, I won’t e able to graduate my students.  They won’t have a future no more.  They will live, but they won’t have good jobs…  
one of them was probably destined to be an athlete for the Olympics.  
Haven’t you ever thought about them and their future?  
It could turn out that there would be no more Olympics just because one of them didn’t graduate.
SEQ: Now you’re making my head hurt.  I can’t think straight.
CS: Please Seq, time is running out.  I have less than half an hour to get the money.
 
SEQ: What should I do?!  What should I do?!!
CS: I know what you should do, give me the money now!!!
SEQ: Are you trying to rob me?
CS: I’m just trying to make you do the right thing!!!
(Without thinking, SEQ punches CS and knocks him out.)
SEQ(aside): What have I done?  I just punched my best friend.  In the condition he’s in, I probably killed him.  I never learned CPR how am I going to revive him?  
 (Paces back and forth, banging his hands on his head).  
 AAGGGHH!!!  What should I do?  
 (He tries pouring HOT water on CS’ face).  
 Damn, it’s supposed to be cold water.  
 (He lightly taps CS on the face to wake him.  He doesn’t wake.  
Then he takes smelling salts and puts it up to CS nose.)
CS: What?!?  What happened?
SEQ: Thank god you’re alive.  I thought I killed you.  
I don’t know what I would’ve done if you were dead.
CS: Well to me, I’m already dead cause you let me down and I’d rather be dead than to see you think about yourself and not about others.  I never thought you were like this.  I didn’t know you were so greedy that money means more to you than our friendship.
ESQ: I’m not greedy.  I’m just careful about my money.  It took me some time to gather this money up.  If I back out of the deal with the contractors there’s going to be some problems I’ll have to take on.  They’ll probably take me to court, sue me for however much money and if I lose the case, I’ll be going to detention for twenty to thirty years.
CS: We shouldn’t be fighting each other.  We should be trying to gang up on the school board.
SEQ: But how we gonna do that?  (Pause)  Ahhhh!…  I just remembered something.  I know some things about the school board that no one else knows.  I’ve seen them pocket some extra money from other schools, organizations, and from fundraisers.
CS: Are you trying to say what I think you’re saying?
BOTH: Blackmail!!
CS: I heard that they were having a meeting soon to discuss fundraisers.
SEQ: I got a plan.  This is how we’re going to do it.  We’ll sneak past the security guards and get there before the school board gets there and hide.  Then we’ll record the conversation and get just what we need to take them down.
CS: But remember we have less than ten minutes.
 (They go to the meeting and get the info they needed.  
They wait until everybody except for the main guy leaves and they jump out.)
BOTH: Gotcha!!
SEQ: We caught you red-handed.
CS: We know what you and your school board pals have been up to!
SEQ: We recorded the conversation you were having about the extra money you’re been pocketing.
CS: We can take you down any time we want with this tape in my hand.
SEQ: Don’t you have any shame for what you have done?  We should call the cops right now and arrest you and your school board buddies.
CS: I bet I’m not the only one that you wanted to shut down.  
I’m sure you’ve done this a lot of times.
SEQ: Poor little kids, raising all that money just for you to take it away like that.
CS: Probably ruined all of their lives because of the greed you have.  
You remind me of someone else I know.  Maybe someone right next to me.
SEQ: Was that a joke?  Do I need to laugh or something?  Ha Ha Ha NO.
 
CS: Oh, sorry Seq, I didn’t mean to insult you.
SEQ: I know I’m kinda greedy at times but at least I’m not the school board.
 
CS: Which brings me to the next conclusion, bout you.  We need to make a deal here.  Let me explain.  See you tried to shut me down and I know secrets about you that no one knows.  
Do you know where I’m headed?
SEQ: To make it easier, if you shut CS down, we will reveal your secrets and take you down like you took down all the other schools.
CS: So this is what we’re gonna do. No, what you’re gonna do.  You’re gonna stop your troops fro destroying me and your gonna come up with the money you need to take care of me or else.  
And yes, I do mean you.  Catch my drift?
SEQ: Oooh!  We gotcha.  You never thought the tables would turn on you.  Don’t you just love it?
CS: Oh, and something else, since we touched the subject.  For doing what you did we’re gonna add a little extra sauce to the pizza.  You have to fix me, every detail.  Make me like new with a real basketball court, a football field, a gym and an extra level on me.
SEQ: And tell you what… since we’re best friends, we should be neighbors so we can watch each others back all the time.  Alright, we out.
(They leave).
 (Two weeks later.  CS and SEQ are chillin.)
SEQ: I told you it would be ok didn’t I?
CS: Yes you did.  Yeesss you did.
SEQ: We got it all now.  We gave a future to the students, you’re fixed up. 
We’re best friends again and we’re the bomb!
BOTH: Cause we’re that good!!
 (They give each other some dapp).
     
    The End.



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