Friday, July 11, 2014

Leaving Rhode Island: Where We'll End Up


                (KRISTIN, JEFF, and NATALIE are all at a coffee shop.)

 

KRISTIN:  So, we’ve decided then?

 

NATALIE:  Yes.  I’ll go back.

 

JEFF:  Natalie—

 

NATALIE:  It’s fine, Jeff.  I can go back.  I like Rhode Island.

 

JEFF:  You’re allergic to shellfish!

 

NATALIE:  That doesn’t necessarily—it’s fine!

 

KRISTIN:  So I’ll move to New York.

 

JEFF:  So I guess I’ll move to L.A.

 

KRISTIN:  Oh my God, I can’t wait to take photos of creepy people on the subway.

 

JEFF:  I’m going to have to work out so much.

 

NATALIE:  And I’ll start posting links on Facebook about things that aren’t true.

 

KRISTIN:  I’m, like, really excited to become an adult, you guys.

 

NATALIE:  I’m so glad we got all this straightened out.  I was afraid we were all going to want to move to the same city—

 

JEFF:  Oh my God, that would be so embarrassing.

 

KRISTIN:  Like—oh hey, everybody—look at us.  Three friends all doing the exact same things with their lives.

 

NATALIE:  Kill me.

 

JEFF:  So New York, L.A., and Natalie goes back to Rhode Island.  Perfect.

 

NATALIE:  Or Chicago.

 

                (A beat.)

 

KRISTIN:  What?

 

NATALIE:  Or, like, maybe I’d go to Chicago.  For, like, a year or something.

 

JEFF:  Uhhhhh…When did we discuss this?

 

NATALIE:  We didn’t.  I’ve just been thinking about it.

 

KRISTIN:  Yeah, and I’ve been thinking about doing paleo, but I put it to a vote first, didn’t I?

 

JEFF:  Good luck getting me to give up tortellini.  Goooood luck.

 

NATALIE:  What would be so bad about a year in Chicago?

 

KRISTIN:  Natalie, what is Chicago?  Like, what even is it?

 

JEFF:  Oprah isn’t even there anymore.  Oprah, like, broke up with Chicago.

 

NATALIE:  I just think it seems cool.

 

KRISTIN:  So you don’t want to move back to Rhode Island?

 

NATALIE:  I mean, I wouldn’t mind it, but I don’t know if that’s definitely what I want to do forever.

 

JEFF:  I knew this was going to happen.

 

KRISTIN:  Why can’t you guys just make a plan and stick to it?

 

JEFF:  Whoa, whoa, whoa.  What do you mean ‘you guys?’  I’m sticking to my plan.\

 

NATALIE:  Oh, you’re so full of it, Jeff.  You told me two days ago that L.A. freaks you out and you want to go to Seattle instead.

 

KRISTIN:  EXCUSE ME?

 

JEFF:  That’s practically L.A. anywhere!  It’s like—on the same side of the, you know, beach!

 

NATALIE:  Coast?

 

JEFF:  Thank you!  You know I have trouble finding my words when I’m nervous.

 

KRISTIN:  Seattle?

 

JEFF:  Oh, shut up, Kristin!  You get to go to New York.  Nobody cares if you don’t have a six pack in New York—you don’t understand the kind of scrutiny I’ll be under!

 

KRISTIN:  You don’t think I’ll have trouble living in New York?  Do you know what the rent is like in New York?  I’m going to be paying thousands of dollars to live an apartment the size of a pantry!

 

NATALIE:  Well, where else would you rather live?

 

KRISTIN:  Honestly?  I kinda want to live in Kentucky.

 

JEFF and NATALIE:  KENTUCKY?

 

KRISTIN:  I don’t know!  I DON’T KNOW!

 

JEFF:  Why Kentucky?

 

KRISTIN:  It just seems nice.

 

JEFF:  Have you ever actually been to Kentucky?

 

KRISTIN:  Have you ever been to Seattle?

 

NATALIE:  I’ve been to Chicago.

 

KRISTIN and JEFF:  Shut up, Natalie!

 

JEFF:  You started this.  Look what you started!  This has been started!

 

NATALIE:  Why can’t we all just do what we want to do?

 

KRISTIN:  So Jeff’s going to live in Seattle and be boring, and you’re going to live in Chicago and, like, do improv and eat deep-dish—

 

JEFF:  Oh my God, I love deep dish.

 

NATALIE:  I know, right?

 

KRISTIN:  --And, like, eat at the original Uno’s—and I’m going to be in Kentucky and we’re going to be the lamest people ever!

 

NATALIE:  Maybe deciding our futures as a group isn’t the way we want to go.

 

JEFF:  You need your friends to tell you that all the choices you’re making are wrong.

 

NATALIE:  No, I don’t, Jeff!  I have a mother!

 

KRISTIN:  One of you better move to New York!  I need a place to crash when I go see Wicked.

 

JEFF:  You’ve seen it six times.

 

KRISTIN:  I will end you right now if you get into it with me about Wicked.

 

NATALIE:  Kristin—

 

KRISTIN:  End. Your. Life.

 

JEFF:  Does anybody want to swap with me?  I’ll move to Chicago—even if it is Oprah-less.  I just don’t want to move to L.A.

 

KRISTIN:  Well, I’m not moving to L.A.  I can’t be around people who smile all the time.  I always think they’re hiding something.

 

NATALIE:  Maybe I could move to New York?

 

JEFF:  I’d go back to Rhode Island.  I’m like a ten in Rhode Island.  Like, in L.A., I’m a four.  But in Rhode Island—

 

KRISTIN:  I’m sorry.  You think you’re an L.A. four?

 

JEFF:  I’m not?

 

KRISTIN:  You’re like an L.A. two.

 

JEFF:  That’s so mean!

 

NATALIE:  Kristin!

 

JEFF:  Natalie?

 

NATALIE:  Okay, yeah, you’re, like, a two—two point five, max.

 

JEFF:  Now I’m definitely not going.

 

NATALIE:  So wait, am I going to L.A. now?

 

KRISTIN:  Where am I going?

 

JEFF:  Can I please just go somewhere where I can be fat?  My metabolism is literally slowing down by the minute and I need to plan ahead for that.

 

NATALIE:  Can we just take a second?

 

                (A second.)

 

Okay, now—Kristin?  Dream place?

 

KRISTIN:  I—

 

NATALIE:  Dream place?

 

KRISTIN:  Iowa.

 

JEFF:  IOWA?

 

KRISTIN:  Yes.

 

JEFF:  What happened to Kentucky?

KRISTIN:  I thought Kentucky sounded cooler, but if I’m being honest, then—Iowa.

 

NATALIE:  Okay, fine—

 

KRISTIN:  Oklahoma—

 

JEFF:  THAT’S A RED STATE, KRISTIN!

 

KRISTIN:  I WANT A FARM!  IT’S NOT POLITICAL!

 

JEFF:  THEN WHY DO THEY CALL IT AN ANIMAL FARM?

 

NATALIE:  Jeff—

 

JEFF:  Tokyo.

 

KRISTIN:  What?!

 

JEFF:  You know how much I love karaoke.

 

KRISTIN:  But—

 

NATALIE:  And mine would be Toronto.  So…

 

                (A beat.)

 

ALL:  …Cool.

 

KRISTIN:  You guys, our Facebooks are going to be, like, wicked interesting.

 

JEFF:  You’re going to run a farm.

 

KRISTIN:  You’ll be, like, in another country.

 

NATALIE:  So will I.

 

KRISTIN:  No, you won’t.  You’ll be in Toronto.

 

NATALIE:  I…Never mind.

 

JEFF:  We’re going to be the best best friends ever.

 

NATALIE:  I love you guys so much.

 

KRISTIN and JEFF:  Awww—

 

NATALIE:  But I never visiting that farm.

 

JEFF:  Me either.

 

                (A beat.)

 

KRSITIN:  That’s fair.

 

                (Lights.)

No comments:

Post a Comment