Surayah Pierce:

1. The NU Support Group – Allan Nason Prize winner

Caitlyn George:

1. Strangers by 30

Roree Stewart:

1. White Liar

Talin ‘Maggie’ Teague:

1. Letters from Afar

Characters:

Vincent, senior, 21-years-old, white, private, in PT gear

James, senior, Air Force, 21-years-old, white, staff sergeant, in an Air Force uniform

Frozan, senior, 26-years-old, Afghan, second lieutenant, in a Corp of Cadet OCP uniform

Preston, senior, 20-years-old, white, staff sergeant, in a Corps of Cadets uniform

Michael, junior, 21-years-old, African American, sergeant, in PT gear

Narrator

The group of Corps students in uniform stand at the back of the stage. Upstage five chairs face the audience. The students are shrouded in darkness, but a low light highlights the

Narrator: Good evening to you all and welcome to the NU Corps Support Group production. As a forewarning, this play will contain themes that can be found upsetting and uncomfortable, but these are true stories that need to be told. Thank you for listening tonight, and please keep an open mind to these experiences.

SCENE 1: FINDING NORWICH

PROJECTED ON SCREEN:

What brought you to Norwich University?

The word ‘family’ flashes all over the screen and then it fades back to the question.

(VINCENT and MICHAEL walk up to chairs. VINCENT sits in the seat to the far left while MICHAEL sits in the seat on the far right.)

VINCENT: My brother. I needed structure because I have ADHD, and I really struggle to focus on—on anything and I wanted to join the military. So, the structure of the Corps of Cadets and the availability of the Air Force and other services here really attracted me to this school, but coming here is probably one of my biggest regrets.

MICHAEL: What brought me was my aunt, she’s an NCO in the United States Army. She saw some shit that kind of made her want to chill out for like her last ten years. So, she works a HR job now for the Army, but her boss, who’s the inspector general for the Massachusetts Guard, is a Norwich grad. Big Norwich guy. Still has all his Norwich memorabilia in his office, still wears his ring. So, I spoke to him a few times. He was kind of all for it, like “This place is cool. You can go here. Try to become an officer. It’ll be fun. You know, it’ll probably be like bullshit for the first couple months.” Which it was. (Said matter of factly.) But, besides that, the fact that Norwich gave me a fat bag?

The words ‘financial aid’ and ‘false promises’ flit across the screen several times before they fade back to the question.

(PRESTON, FROZAN, and JAMES join VINCENT and MICHAEL at the chairs.)

FROZAN: Well, if I’m staying away from flowery responses, it was the full scholarship. Because economy, financial status, and financial stability play a huge role in terms of my education, and Norwich was one of the places that gave me a full scholarship. But that was not necessarily the main reason, I was determined to get an education. If it wasn’t Norwich, it would have been somewhere else. But I knew that I needed to get out of my country in order to pursue higher education. Norwich trusted me with the chance, I got the full scholarship, and now I’m here.

JAMES: So, initially, I came here because I wanted to play sports and, you know, like serve my country. But, as time went on, I realized that the athletic experience is full of shit here, and I’ve kind of talked about it to different people. But I ended up leaving sports my junior year. It’s not like on the players, it was like the coaching staff, that facilitates, that kind of toxic environment. But I’m happy, like where I’m going in life. I’m going out West to do work around nuclear missiles for the Air Force. It’s something that I’m passionate about, and, you know, obviously, I love our country and the people here in our country. So, I’m very happy, like where I’m going and like what I’m getting out of the Corps career-wise.

PRESTON: I came to Norwich University for two reasons: the first being that I was an Air Force Academy reject. There’s kind of a reputation for Norwich as being the Academy-rejects school. So, I came here because I was getting the same experience, trying to pursue an Air Force contract to be a pilot, and also because out of the other schools that I applied for and was accepted to, including Ivy Leagues, and local state schools, I received the most scholarship money that I would be able to use towards my education here.

The screen goes blank, and the Corps students get up from the chairs. They stand at the back of the stage again.

PROJECTED ON SCREEN:

What has the Corps environment been like for you?

The words ‘TOXIC’, ‘IMMATURE’, ‘SEXIST’, and ‘UNSAFE’ are presented on screen in bold. The words linger for several seconds before fading back to the question.

(All of the Corps students walk to the chairs and take a seat.)

JAMES: So, I think I got a lot out of the Corps my freshman year because I was in a very toxic environment. I wasn’t personally affected by the toxic environment because it was good to see what not to do. Kind of like a case study almost of like leadership.

MICHAEL: You can definitely tell when you find people who are trying to run from whatever they got going on, like within themselves, and people who use the Corps as a cover. And then people who are just in the Corps to benefit from it. We were talking about this in class, like, people who let the Corps go to their heads, and that’s kind of been what has ruined my experience a little bit. A lot of bad leaders and that’s from, in my opinion, that’s from like an objective perspective, not a subjective one. They just like demonstrate traits that would not be conducive to being a leader.

PRESTON: I was a part of the only majority female platoon at Norwich in fall of 2020 and, as a result of this, we were called the weak platoon, our own rook brothers threatened to leave because we weren’t “as capable as them.” They consistently insulted our female staff sergeant; they consistently harassed and bullied her because she wasn’t as good as our other cadre. We were seen as weak because we couldn’t keep up with the boys at PT because we were females. There would be consistent meetings between the “boys club” in our platoon that included many of our rook brothers because we weren’t good enough for them.

FROZAN: There was no gym in the village I grew up in. Well, there were a lot of things that we didn’t have, but the entire country thought gyms were a foreign concept. It was not part of the daily necessity. It was non-existent. So, for me to be put in a situation where I had to not only push myself physically but to be put against a man, it was like out of this world. I was like, “These people are crazy. What are they thinking?” I remember the first time my cadre asked me to run, and I couldn’t run; my form was so bad that they had to make me sit down and watch YouTube videos to learn how to run because the way I ran looked really funny, and I didn’t realize it. Obviously, it wasn’t just that, I was alien to this new environment and everyone else also thought, “Well, she’s an alien.” They didn’t know how to deal with me, I guess. And then there’s the culture of not being listened to. When I tried to talk to them, they kind of pushed me aside. So, I isolated myself; I shut down completely.

VINCENT: It’s been toxic and hostile. Definitely not what I signed up for and, so, I have tried—I’ve basically reverted my schedule to that of a normal student’s as much as I can. I don’t go to formations because it’s pointless, which I don’t get in trouble for. I don’t really do any of the Corps stuff other than some of the really important things like showing respect to other people, for example, Jeet, the guy that passed away two years ago now, he was a friend of mine, so I showed up to his echo taps, but other than that if it’s not important, like formation, you will not see me there.

PRESTON: I had a very abusive cadre. Both mentally and emotionally, and in some cases physically, though not to me. They were very vindictive, poorly behaved, and just terrible leaders from the outset, and you know coupled with the fact that we were all so isolated because of Covid, we weren’t fully permitted to leave unless for class, so we were constantly exposed to that abuse and maltreatment. I was also coming off a difficult period in my own life, mental health-wise, and had just barely recovered myself, so I ended up sliding back into a significant mental health decline. Another contribution from the Corps that I find that I will never ever pursue again, and will not recommend that anybody else pursue, is the gender dynamic.

(The lights fade out on the students. Everyone gets up except for VINCENT and JAMES.)

SCENE 2: Norwich Forever

(A single spotlight falls on VINCENT.)

VINCENT: I kind of want to talk about the sexual assault on campus.

(PRESTON joins VINCENT and JAMES at the chairs. The spotlight encases them all.)

VINCENT: It’s a really swept-under-the-rug topic, especially for men. I know a hand full of men, and I include myself in this, who have been sexually assaulted by women and nothing ever came of it. Like I’ve talked to all the correct people and heard nothing back about it, a lot of it was because they’re women who have done it.

PRESTON: As a female in the Corps, I am significantly more disrespected than I would have been in any other school, even in any other military program. I do have a long history of leadership and challenge and competition in military environments. I was a nationally recognized Colorguard commander. I lead multiple teams across the US, both physically and academically in military settings, and I have never had significant gender problems. Obviously, most females encounter some sort of gender problems in their lives, but they have not been nearly to the extent that they have in Norwich.

JAMES: I hadn’t really met someone before Vincent and I talked recently, in the past few weeks, who had also experienced sexual assault, um, from female to male. And it’s just like, no one really cares, as like being a guy. And especially since, I’m kind of a weird person in that, I’m a very emotionally sensitive person, but like, outwardly I present as this like big, strong white guy, and I’m just like, you know, that is part of me. But I’m also not really like that. And so, I usually just stay closed off to people because I figure, you know, if I don’t show my cards then they can’t say anything.

VINCENT: The women here have a lot more power than they know. There are two sides to that coin: there’s some that think they don’t have the power… so they don’t, but the women who realize that they are such a minority at this school can really take advantage of a lot of the men, and they do. It’s disgusting, but nothing—my friend over here is the only person on campus who I’ve been able to talk to about it, who’s actually understood it and has not only seen but lived what I’ve experienced. It’s something that I didn’t believe in before I came here, men being sexually assaulted. I was sexually assaulted by a girl on campus, and I got high fives for it; it was so disgusting.

JAMES: But, you know, when push comes to shove, it’s like what Vincent said, it’s celebrated. Like everyone thinks it’s awesome. Like the more sex you have to more it makes you a better human being. And it’s like, you know, obviously that’s not only ridiculous, but that promotes this mentality of it doesn’t matter how I have sex, like as long as I have more sex, like that makes me a better person, kind of. Which is just, I don’t know, like foul. About a month ago I told someone, like when they brought up sexual assault, I was like, “Yeah, you know, I was sexually assaulted, and it really negatively affected me for a while.” And they were like, “Oh, like what are you? A pussy?” And, so, it’s like, you know, what do you do? You just shut down and you don’t say anything.

PRESTON: There are significant instances where I find that I have to step in for young women, in particular freshman and sophomore women, for being belittled, run over, or completely ignored by their male peers or even their male superiors. If this is an environment in which we were supposed to be treated like the leaders that we are and that were supposed to be trained, and acknowledged as such, this environment would rank very low on a scale of 1 to 10.

(Beat)

I’ve had friends who have been chased or followed from the gym, back to barracks in the dark, out to their vehicles. There is a significant portion of this campus that covers up sexual assaults, sexual abuse, relationship abuse, emotional abuse, and I, in fact, was a victim of two separate sexual assault events by the same man on campus. There is quite a bit of manipulation between young female cadets and upperclassmen males, particularly in the chain of command, who take advantage of that as well.

JAMES: I didn’t know what had happened to me for a few years, you know? I always knew something was wrong, but similar to Vincent’s experience, it was how I lost my virginity. And, um, basically, there was a squad leader in charge of me. I was underage drinking off campus two years ago on Halloween. She was sober. And so, like, looking back now, I can see how predatory she was and how she searched me out throughout the night to make sure that I was under her supervision, you know, and in control. I can also see why there were good conditions for her to commit that crime. Uh, cause, like, I’m a law nerd, so I kinda look at it through a criminal lens. But, like, you know, she’s in charge of me first. So, she can use that against me to either silence me or try to encourage me to go with her, which she did.

PRESTON: The resources here regarding that sort of lack of safety for females and males are slim to none. Title IX, while something that is federally mandated, doesn’t tend to produce results that should be produced because much of what they encounter is hearsay. Much of what they encounter in an investigation is based, not so much on the personal recollection of an individual, but the evidence of what they can find, which is usually a back-and-forth he-said-she-said instance, making it an ineffective organization. There is no accountability on this campus whatsoever.

VINCENT: I think there’s two systems: there’s the front, the system that we all know and live by, and that system is put in place not for the students, but for the school so that the school can cover its own ass. So, they can say they have this system put in place, but really, it’s a merry-go-round of information where you have an issue, you put it in the system, and the most it’s going to do is come right back to you. Whether that’s to bite you in the ass or just to remind you that if this is going to happen, there will be zero repercussions. That’s the first system and the second system is like a borderline conspiracy, but it seems to be that people who get in trouble get talked to behind closed doors. I wouldn’t even say it’s a slap on the wrist but more of like a “Really bro? You did that?” and the next thing you know, they’re like “Okay, I’ll take your word for it. You can walk free.”

(Beat)

There are people on this campus who are known for sexual assault, like their personality and their character on this campus are like, “Don’t let them into this party; they’re going to be creepy and sexually assault you.” I used to not believe in that until one of my friends became that person, and I was like, “Nah, that’s bullshit,” and then I stepped away from that person because that’s kind of what you should do.

JAMES: I even went to a sexual assault training yesterday for a department and no one cared. Like everyone thought it was hilarious and like laughing about it, about all forms of sexual assault from, you know, male to male, female to male, female to female, male to female. So, it doesn’t really resonate with people unless you’ve really experienced it here. And, even then, like you have this sense of, to use Vincent’s phrase, and I really love it, the phrase is “competition of who has the biggest Stockholm Syndrome.” And I think that really applies to this because, like even after that meeting, there was someone I talked with who disagreed with what constitutes as sexual assault. And I said, matter of fact, like, I shared my story about how I was assaulted, and they replied with, “Well, you know, I’m sorry that happened to you. Um, that also happened to me, but I still disagree.” So, it was like this person had been sexually assaulted and, still, like, the gears weren’t turning. I think this is part of a larger problem in our society and you can see it. I’ve done a lot of counseling and looking into how it affected me because it did severely affect me.

PRESTON: This university in general perpetuates a significant negative outlook toward life in my opinion. I have never seen so many people sick with mental health challenges in my life, and I have been exposed to quite a few, considering that I was a trained mental health advisor and peer counselor for most of my years of high school and middle school. I have never seen so many people who are miserable in the place that they’re at.

(The lights fade out and the students stand up and join the rest at the back of the stage.)

SCENE 3: Norwich Together.

PROJECTED ON SCREEN:

What has kept you in the Corps?

The words ‘I Will Try’ haphazardly flash across the screen before being replaced with the question again.

(JAMES and PRESTON come to the seats. A light falls on them.)

JAMES: So, I’m not a quitter. Which, you know, I don’t like the term quitter because I don’t really think it describes people. But just the concept of, like, for me to be commissioned into the Air Force, I need to stay in the Corps. That’s kind of like the rule. But, um, you know, for me it’s very plain and simple that I had to do it in order to commission.

PRESTON: So, there’s two reasons that motivated me to stay in the Corps: the first being the scholarship money. Some of that scholarship money goes away if I become a civilian student. The second being that I’m not a quitter. I came here for a reason, I came here to earn my ring and to earn my ability to succeed in the military, and while that’s not a goal that I have anymore, in part, because I believe that the detachment here is discriminatory, I still believe that I earned this privilege to be here. And as a result, I needed to stay.

(Beat)

The only thing that I would say that I really truly, you know, was able to enjoy here is the friends I made, and not the friends I made in the Corps because those friends are ones that were made out of challenge, out of strife. But my civilian friends, those are the friends who will remain after I am gone, whereas my Corps friends only talk to me and interact with me on a level that is purely business.

The word ‘Friends’ blooms across the screen and is accompanied by pictures of friends.

(MICHAEL and FROZAN join JAMES and PRESTON at the chairs.)

FROZAN: Funnily enough, I was thinking about this question when I was giving a tour the other day for a group of families with prospective students who will join Norwich in the fall, and many were joining the Corps of Cadets. I told them that the Corps of Cadets creates an expectation that you will find a community once you join the Corps. It’s like a fairy tale. And it’s like the perception that we have about love. You fall in love, and then it’s not precisely those flowers and rainbows or butterflies that we expect all the time.

(Beat)

Obviously, it was a fairy tale that turned into a disappointment. But you go in, and it takes hard work, sometimes you might not even find that community in the Corps. Maybe it is on this campus, but not necessarily in the Corps. But in some ways, the Corps kind of instills that desire within you that this is the place you can find your community. But if you don’t find it in the Corps, don’t be disappointed. There are a lot of other ways that people can find their communities. And that’s what I have realized.

MICHAEL: There’s nothing else here keeping me around except the people. The experiences that I’ve gained with these people are, like, invaluable, like, I’ll literally take those to my grave. I’ll take what I’ve learned here to my grave. I’ll take what I’ve learned here to wherever I go in life. Because a lot of these people are great, a lot of these people deserve more than what they have right now. And to some of these people, they may or may not know it, but they have saved my life many times. Like both literally and figuratively. And, you know, these are the types of people who are important. There’s a saying in the military, “This type of training is the best experience you never want to have agai,n” and that’s the truth. The experiences you have with the people around you make it worth it. I can really say that there’s people here who I would take a bullet for, lay my life down for, just because I think they’re worth it.

(VINCENT finally joins the other students.)

VINCENT: What’s kept me in the Corps? Pure ignorance and lousy decision-making have kept me here. I’ve been told to leave by so many people, and because of my personality, I have always done what people told me not to do. Which is toxic as fuck. I should have left after my freshman year, but I stayed because I thought I had friends, and I’m still friends with these people, but it’s not what’s important. You must remind yourself that you’re your number one, and I have not been doing that, so by not keeping myself as a number one priority, I stayed here.

(The lights fade on the students. MICHAEL stands up and walks to the back of the stage.)

SCENE 4: Farewell Seniors!

PROJECTED ON SCREEN:

The Future of our alumni

(A light encases the 4 Senior Corps students.)

FROZAN: You’re either a person who gets disappointed and walks away from the situation or you’re the kind of person who can give the situation a second chance. Who stays there and works through and says, “No, actually, I’m going to sit here and find my place, find my grounding, and actually, I’m going to fight for it.” I think that’s who I have been, the second person, when I came to Norwich.

JAMES: I think the Corps kind of functions with a façade. They promote professionalism and all this stuff that, in the abstract, seems great, but then, functionally, they don’t do it at all. Since I was assaulted, I really dissociated from the Corps, and I’m very apathetic toward the institution as a whole.

(Beat)

I think that’s kind of what drew me toward the Air Force because they treat people with a lot more respect than, you know, some of the other branches in my opinion. And so I’m happy that I’m in a position where I can now positively affect people’s lives. Yeah, I don’t plan on keeping anything that says Corps of Cadets on it when I graduate. I plan on either giving it away, throwing it away, recycling it, or whatever.

PRESTON: I recently had the opportunity to earn my junior ring, and I chose not to buy one. Despite the fact that I’d earned it, despite the fact that I qualified for it, despite the fact that it’s a tradition and something that many people get to in spite of their challenges with this university. I decided that there was not a single part of this university that I wanted to wear on my body and represent to the world, so I chose not to buy one. I did not participate in the ceremony beyond sending off my Rook siblings by playing in the band that marched them down. Beyond that, I decided that I wasn’t going to let them mark me like that because I don’t want to represent what Norwich is perpetuating here. I don’t want to represent the morals and values that they are teaching future officers, and I don’t want to be a part of a tradition that pushes people down, ruins their mental health, and, in particular, silences women and men and their suffering regarding how they’re treated on this campus.

VINCENT: This school is one of the grimiest places I’ve ever fucking been, and I’m embarrassed to say that I go here, my friends are embarrassed to say they go here. This school is not what you think it is until you’re four years in, you’re stuck, and you can’t leave.

(The lights fade on the students. They all stand up and head to the back of the stage.)

END.

INT. An empty apartment in NYC – AFTERNOON

CHARLIE, a man of 31 with shaggy hair and a beard, dressed in jeans and a plain yellow t-shirt with pristine white sneakers, kneels on the floor of the living room. Pictures are scattered haphazardly around him, some of them ripped, others faded. Charlie holds one up to the light streaming in from the curtainless window in front of him. The picture shows Charlie, 21, without facial hair and wearing a backward baseball hat and dirty sneakers, linking arms with DANIEL, 21, both holding red plastic cups and smiling.

CUT TO:

EXT. A yard – NIGHT

Charlie and Daniel blink into the flash of a camera, laughing. The music from the house behind them thumps rhythmically as laser lights occasionally sweep through the yard, a result of the party. Outside is relatively quiet, but inside, a lot of noise and chatter can be heard faintly.

CHARLIE

Can you believe the turnout? I never thought we’d be those guys.

You know, known for throwing the best parties on campus.

DANIEL

I know. Cheers to us!

They CLINK glasses. The two begin walking back towards the house. Charlie stops for a second and thinks deeply before speaking. His face falls slightly.

CHARLIE

Dan?

DANIEL

Yeah?

Daniel takes a sip of his drink.

CHARLIE

What do you think about Claudia?

Daniel laughs heartily.

DANIEL

Jesus fucking Christ, Charlie. I thought you were about to ask me the meaning of life or some shit.

Lighten up, she’ll come around eventually. You just have to be the ‘cool guy’ and she’ll HAVE to go out with you.

You throw the best parties on campus, after all.

Daniel pats Charlie on the back, and Charlie smiles.

CHARLIE

Yeah, I guess you’re right.

Damn women, right?

Daniel and Charlie laugh and continue to walk up the steps of the porch and into the chaotic party inside the house.

CUT TO:

INT. An empty apartment in NYC – LATE AFTERNOON

Charlie puts the photo of Daniel and himself down and picks up another. He stares at it for a long moment, his head falling slowly into his chest before standing up and grabbing the tape from beside the box in front of him. Charlie tapes the picture to the bare wall opposite the windows. The sun casts a glare on the photo, settling just right so that the person in the photo is undistinguishable. Time moves on rapidly, and the sun begins to set. Charlie remains staring at the picture. It is of CLAUDIA, early 20s, her long blond hair falling over her shoulders, a mock-serious look on her face.

CUT TO:

INT. A scarcely furnished apartment in NYC – MIDNIGHT

The flash of the camera reflects in Claudia’s glasses. She sticks her tongue out.

CLAUDIA

Charlie! You promised you’d stop

taking unsolicited pictures of me.

CHARLIE

‘Unsolicited’? Where’d you learn that word, Clau?

Claudia pretends to laugh.

CLAUDIA

Ha-ha, very funny. I got a degree too, you know.

You’re not the only lover of the arts in this relationship.

Charlie walks over to Claudia and tucks a stray piece of hair behind her ear. Claudia looks up at Charlie.

CHARLIE

Oh, really?

CLAUDIA (whispers)

Really.

CHARLIE

What’ve you been working on lately?

Charlie sits on the couch next to Claudia as she pulls out a small green notebook. Claudia opens to a page.

CLAUDIA

It’s not finished. It’s also not very good. But I was feeling melancholy a few days ago.

CHARLIE

Nothing new there, huh?

Claudia smacks Charlie on the arm with the notebook.

CLAUDIA

It comes with the territory.

CHARLIE

Read it to me, Clau.

CLAUDIA

I hate reading the things I write out loud.

CHARLIE

I know. But I love when you read to me.

A pause.

CLAUDIA

I only do it for you. I’d do really anything for you, Charlie.

CHARLIE

I know.

Claudia clears her throat overdramatically and then begins to read. Charlie watches her closely.

CLAUDIA

“I feel content in a place I’ve always hated. Is this what growing up feels like? Or is this what complacency feels like?

There’s nothing to do and no one I want to see, but somehow, I’m okay doing nothing and seeing no one. They don’t want to see me and do nothing together anyway.

The friends and family I left behind here aren’t the people I want to sit and do nothing with anyway. They don’t fill the silence with comfort, love, and understanding. Instead, the lapse in our conversations unveils the time between us and our lives. I don’t know them, and they don’t know me.

I want to sit at a table in a restaurant, have a drink, and smile at the people I can sit with in comfortable silence. Except we won’t choose silence at the table. We’ll laugh hard and pretend to make fun of each other’s orders and talk about anything we feel like.

Someone will get shushed for saying something raunchy. Someone will get embarrassed by an anecdote someone else is telling. Someone will laugh so hard they fear they’ll spit out the sip of drink they just took. Someone will scold another in a friendly way. Someone will be uncharacteristically quiet because they’re just soaking up the feeling of being in the then and there. Someone will feel lonely for a brief second before remembering where they are, and who they’re with, and it’ll go away for a bit.

And we won’t choose silence for a little while.

But the best part is that we could.”

Charlie exhales. He’s now lying with his feet propped over the back of the couch, his head hanging off the front end.

CLAUDIA

I know. It’s not the best. Please don’t be too harsh, oh wise and effortlessly proficient writer, Charlie.

Claudia laughs, but Charlie remains staring at the ceiling.

CLAUDIA (whispers)

Please say something, Charlie.

CHARLIE

I don’t know what to say.

CLAUDIA

What do you mean?

CHARLIE

Why do you put yourself down about what you write?

CLAUDIA

Oh. I don’t know. Insecurity, I suppose. I never feel like anything I write is worth the time it’d take for others to read it. Or listen to it.

CHARLIE

But the time you spent writing it mattered?

CLAUDIA

Yeah, it did. A lot.

CHARLIE

Then it matters to the people you wrote about.

I’m one of them, right?

Claudia smiles, and Charlie responds with his own wide smile.

CLAUDIA

You are.

CHARLIE

Which one?

CLAUDIA

Guess.

CHARLIE

Hmmmm…

Charlie puts his hand on his chin. He then spins around and sits upright on the couch, staring at Claudia.

CHARLIE

The one telling the embarrassing anecdote.

I bet it was about Lily.

CLAUDIA

Oh, absolutely. She always did the wildest shit in college. I remember the one time she broke into that mean old biology professor’s office to steal his beloved $200 red fountain pen.

The two laugh heartily. Claudia looks out the dark window into the black night. She sees her reflection looking back.

CHARLIE

Clau?

Claudia turns to look at Charlie, her expression sad as if she already knows what Charlie is going to ask.

CLAUDIA

Yeah?

CHARLIE

Which one was Scarlett?

Claudia stands and walks over to the window. She stares out.

CLAUDIA

I don’t want to talk about this anymore.

CHARLIE

We can’t ignore it forever, Claudia.

If we don’t talk about it, we’ll never be able to get over it.

Claudia whips around, tears streaming down her face, an accusatory finger pointed at Charlie.

CLAUDIA

It’s not just something we ‘get over,’ Charlie. God, I can’t believe you’d be so fucking insensitive. She was our friend. She was so important to the group!

CLAUDIA (voice breaking)

She was so important.

Claudia begins to sob. She falls slowly to the floor. Charlie remains on the couch, staring out the window where Claudia had just been standing. The lights dim and the only thing visible is Charlie’s darkened reflection in the window.

CUT TO:

INT. An empty apartment in NYC – NIGHT

Charlie is staring out the window, his reflection staring back. Charlie sinks down the wall, tears in his eyes. A picture on the other side of the room, scattered on the floor, catches his attention. Charlie crawls to the picture and picks it up with shaking hands. The only light is the full moon shining in through the window. The picture is of Daniel, Claudia, LILY, SCARLETT, and MONROE all smiling, laughing, and lounging on a deck, the ocean in the background.

CUT TO:

EXT. The deck of a big house in Rhode Island – AFTERNOON

The friends laugh as Charlie lowers a Polaroid camera and waits for the picture to print and reveal itself. He shakes the picture to make it develop faster, eager to see the outcome.

LILY

You’re not supposed to shake them, Charlie!

MONROE

Yeah! It ruins them. Shakes the ink

around or some sciencey shit like that.

Charlie quits shaking the picture and stares at the two with an accusatory stare.

CHARLIE

Then why do they do it in the movies, huh?

LILY

Because those are the MOVIES. Everything is exaggerated to keep the audience entertained. I thought you’d know that given your proclivity to binge-watching and being a self-proclaimed cinephile.

Claudia walks over to Charlie and takes the picture from his hands. She stares at it as if inspecting something under a magnifying glass.

CLAUDIA

Do I really look like that? Jesus.

CHARLIE

I think you look fine.

CLAUDIA

Of course you do. You have to.

Claudia gets on her tiptoes and kisses Charlie on the cheek. Scarlett observes the encounters silently, a faint smile on her face.

DANIEL

What’re you thinking about, Scar? You’ve

been so quiet lately. What’s all that about?

Scarlett looks up into Daniel’s looming figure and shrinks down in the chair she is sitting in.

SCARLETT

Overwhelmed, I suppose.

DANIEL

By what? The school year is finished.

Why can’t you enjoy summer? You’ve kind

of been a downer on this trip.

LILY

Daniel, that’s not fucking cool. What’s your problem? You’ve been acting more like a dick recently. What’s all that about?

DANIEL

I just don’t understand. One minute you’re laughing, and the next it’s like a switch turns on, and you barely talk or do anything with us.

Scarlett turns her head to stare at the ocean. Charlie walks over to Dan and puts his hand on his shoulder.

CHARLIE

Come on, man. It was a hard

semester for everyone. Cut her some slack.

Daniel waves his hand at Scarlett and walks into the house to get a beer. Scarlett continues to stare at the ocean. Charlie, Claudia, Monroe, and Lily look at each other.

MONROE

Who’s going to tell him he’s the downer?

You know it’s not your fault, Scar.

Daniel has never taken breakups well.

LILY

Yeah. He’ll come around eventually.

He just needs time.

Claudia walks to Scarlett and whispers in her ear.

CLAUDIA (whispers)

Do you want to walk with me to the shore?

SCARLETT (whispers)

Yes. Please.

Scarlett begins to cry lightly as the two walk to the deck stairs and down towards the faraway shore. Daniel slides the door open and watches them go as he sips on his drink.

CUT TO:

EXT. A small beach – AFTERNOON

Scarlett sits with her legs pulled up to her chest, crying in earnest. Claudia stares out at the ocean as Scarlett cries. The ocean pulls at the sand rhythmically. The wind is quiet, and faint laughter can be heard from the house’s direction.

CLAUDIA

Daniel has always had a way with words, huh?

Scarlett lets out a bitter laugh and sniffles. She wipes away her tears.

SCARLETT

Yeah. It used to be something I liked

about him. How do you and Charlie do it?

CLAUDIA

Do what?

SCARLETT

Make it work so effortlessly.

CLAUDIA

It isn’t effortless. Nothing ever is.

They both stare at the rising tide, the silence broken by the crashing waves and laughter.

SCARLETT (whispering)

I think you’re wrong.

Claudia turns to look at Scarlett, who is still staring at the ocean.

CLAUDIA

About what?

SCARLETT

I think some things can be effortless.

CLAUDIA

Like what?

SCARLETT

Like floating.

Claudia turns fully to look at Scarlett, who also turns slightly but does not meet Claudia’s concerned stare.

CLAUDIA

Have you kept up with your appointments

and medications?

SCARLETT

No. I don’t think they work, really.

CLAUDIA

Oh, Scar. You promised you’d really try

this time. You promised you’d try to be better.

Scarlett turns to look at Claudia.

SCARLETT

Claudia, sometimes I don’t want to be better.

CLAUDIA

Now, what the hell does that mean?

SCARLETT

I guess I don’t really know.

Claudia, tears rolling down her cheeks, throws her hands up and huffs a sigh.

CLAUDIA

You know, I’ve really tried.

But I can’t help someone who doesn’t want it. Scarlett, I care about you. We all do. Even Daniel. You’re important. You are so important to the group. Please. Don’t give up on us.

SCARLETT

I know, Clau. Thank you.

Would it be okay if I sat here alone for a while?

Scarlett hugs Claudia and the two sit for a few seconds longer before Claudia nods and gets up to leave.

CLAUDIA

You’ll always be important to the people

who care to know you.

Scarlett laughs heartily. Claudia joins in.

SCARLETT

How very English major of you.

Claudia smiles briefly and then turns to the house. Her smile drops once she is facing the house. Scarlett’s falls once Claudia’s back is to her.

CUT TO:

INT. An empty apartment in NYC – NIGHT

Charlie rips the picture in half and then rips it again and again. He throws the pieces into the air like confetti and watches as they glide to the floor.

Charlie pulls a journal and a pen out of the box. He repositions himself so the moonlight is a makeshift lamp as he opens to a blank page and begins to write.

CHARLIE (V.O.)

Everything loses its luster after 21.

Relationships, friendships, college. Drinking.

Gambling. R-rated movies.

You can do anything, and therefore, nothing

is as pleasant as your first legal drink.

As your first try at a casino.

As the uncertainty of young, new romances.

As a billowing figure with the see-through essence of a ghost, Claudia appears next to Charlie while he writes and looks over his shoulder.

CHARLIE (V.O.)

I think somewhere I fucked it all up.

I can’t tell when or where, but

somewhere it fell apart.

CLAUDIA

Charlie, you never took responsibility for

the parts you played in other’s unhappiness.

Charlie does not react to Claudia’s memory talking to him.

CHARLIE

You never did either, Clau.

You weren’t without blame just because

you-

CLAUDIA

Tried more than the rest of you?

I know that.

CHARLIE

Well, you never acted like you knew.

It was always Daniel’s fault.

Or mine. Or Monroe’s for never making a more profound effort. You live in melancholy, Claudia. She lived in sadness. They’re different.

Claudia laughs quietly, and it echoes around the apartment.

CLAUDIA

I’m not even actually here and you’re still arguing about this?

God, Charlie. How pathetic are you?

CHARLIE

I want you to leave.

Claudia begins to fade.

CLAUDIA

You’ll always be alone, living in the same safe places you called home nine years ago. I once wrote about finding a home in other people and not some random place. I see it didn’t stick with you.

Nothing ever did.

The apartment goes silent. Charlie is staring down at the journal page, now wet with tears. They fall silently from his eyes as the sounds of the city outside slowly fade in. A car honks its horn, a dog barks, a door slams shut, someone far away yells.

Charlie begins to write again.

CHARLIE (V.O.)

I think Stephen King had it wrong in The Body. It’s not, “I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was 12 – Jesus, did you?”

I think it’s rather something like, “I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was 21 – Jesus, did anyone?”

CUT TO:

EXT. The house in Rhode Island – AFTERNOON

All the friends laugh at Lily’s overexaggerated dance moves to a popular song. Monroe hugs Lily closely as they dance together.

CUT TO:

INT. The scarcely furnished apartment in NYC – MIDNIGHT

Claudia smiles up at Charlie as he leans in to kiss her. The two fall back on the couch giggling, two glasses of wine on the coffee table. A car horn honks outside.

CUT TO:

EXT. A yard – NIGHT

Monroe, Lily, Scarlett, Claudia, Charlie, and Daniel pose in front of the house, wide smiles on their faces, cups and bottles in their hands. Daniel kisses Scarlett as Lily makes a fake disgusted face. The friends laugh. Music blasts out into the yard as the front door opens, and someone walks outside.

Charlie turns to stare at the door and catches his reflection in a window, his friends behind him smiling and drinking as they talk.

CUT TO:

INT. An empty apartment in NYC – DAWN

Charlie stands staring out the window into the brightening city beyond. His reflection is not easily seen. Eventually he turns and packs up the box and walks out the door. The picture of Claudia remains taped to the wall. The remnants of the picture on the porch lay scattered on the floor. Scarlett stares up at the ceiling. Waves are heard faintly.

CUT TO:

EXT. The Atlantic Ocean – DUSK

Scarlett floats silently further and further out towards the sunset, her eyes staring at the darkening sky as her head slowly sinks below the surface.

CUT TO:

BLACK.

The wave sounds fade.

CUT TO:

CREDITS