VOICES IN THE DARKNESS (Lights up on a small caf in New York City; a man, around forty, stands at the counter

stage left getting ready for the day, this is SVEN. There are tables strewn around the stage; the caf has a distinctly pleasant atmosphere. As SVEN goes about his business, ROY enters through the door stage right. He carries a computer bag and goes up to SVEN.) SVEN: Ah! Roy. What can I do for you today? Taking a nice break from working on your newest novel to enjoy a nice drink? Or perhaps you are suffering from the dreaded writer s block and wanted a change of scenery? ROY: No, Sven. I m actually meeting with my agent today. I m about to publish another book. You remember the guy; I met him here a couple months back? His name s Jason. SVEN: Yes, Jason. I remember him. Nice fellow. So, tell me. What s your latest masterpiece about? I do enjoy your novels ever so much. ROY: Half of them would go unwritten without your help, Sven. And you know me, pretty usual modern fantasy this time around. It s about the voices in all of our heads; those evil voices in the dark. That s the title; Voices in the Darkness. SVEN: Sounds spooky. Well, I ll be sure to buy a copy the minute it s on store shelves. ROY: Don t be ridiculous. I ll give a free copy, and a signed one at that. I always do, Sven. SVEN: Well, yes. But I still like to support you in your endeavors by actually buying a copy of the book. I feel like I m cheating you out of money when you give me one for free. ROY: Sven, you aren t poor anymore and neither am I. I can afford to give you a free copy of my book and you don t have to earn everything you own. SVEN: Well, some philosophies die slower than others. I ll put a pot of coffee on for you and Jason so that you can be sure to have something nice and hot to drink. ROY: Thanks, Sven. (ROY sits down at a table and pulls out his computer. As he types, an attractive young woman enters through the door and crosses to SVEN; this is COURTNEY.) SVEN: What can I get for you, miss? Anything to drink? Perhaps a nice pastry to start your morning off right? COURTNEY: Just some coffee will be fine, thanks. SVEN: I just put the water on to boil. It should be done in a couple of minutes. I make it a habit to know all my customers. My name is Sven Jensen. And you are?

COURTNEY: Courtney. Pleased to meet you. I m new in town. SVEN: I thought as much. I had never seen you before, so that s what I assumed. Don t be offended, of course. ROY: Sven just knows everyone. This caf is sort of a local gathering place for most people who know where to find it. COURTNEY: And you are? ROY: The name s Roy. Now, Courtney, why don t you have a seat? Unless you re in a hurry, of course. COURTNEY: No, I m not in any hurry. I have time to stop and chat. ROY: So, what brings you to our little corner of the universe? COURTNEY: I ve always wanted to be an actress, so I figured New York was as good a place as any for a start. It s pretty overwhelming, coming from a small town to a big city like this. SVEN: Try coming all the way from a little village in another country with little more than a shirt on your back and hope in your heart. I like to think I made the best of it. ROY: Don t mind him. He s always eager to rattle off his stories about how hard his life was after he first immigrated. They re actually fascinating, if you have the time to listen. I ve just heard them all far too often. COURTNEY: I ll have to ask him sometime. So, tell me Roy. Why are you here? ROY: In the city or the caf? COURTNEY: Either one, I don t really care. I ve got nothing better to do with my time. ROY: Well, I m in the city because I grew up here and never really wanted to leave. I m here right now because I m waiting for someone. COURTNEY: Oh, is it your girlfriend? I m sorry, I don t mean to intrude. ROY: No, my agent. I don t have a girlfriend. Don t have the time. SVEN: Too much effort for him. He also doesn t have the luck. I don t think he s ever found a girl that matched his ludicrous criteria. (JASON enters in a hurry from stage right.) JASON: Hey Roy! Sorry I m late. Traffic was really bad. Ooh! Finally got a girlfriend I see? That ll be good for publicity.

ROY: She s not my girlfriend, Jason. I met her today. Take a seat, please. JASON: Well, you never know with love-at-first-sight and whatnot. (SVEN gives all three coffee. COURTNEY politely excuses herself from the table and sits at the counter talking with SVEN. JASON sits and continues.) Thanks for the coffee, Sven. Now, Roy. We all read your new book and we absolutely love it! Well, most of it at least. ROY: What do you mean, most of it at least? What was wrong with it? JASON: Well, some guys up top aren t exactly comfortable with releasing a book that features a main hero whose love interest is also a man They feel it would be bad for business. ROY: So, showing support for a downtrodden majority is now bad for business? I think it will be a great boon to Voices in the Darkness s sales. JASON: See, that s what I said! I thought it would be great for sales but once they explained it I kinda saw their point. Now, don t think I ve got anything against gays. I think it d be a great move but the world isn t ready for it. ROY: I don t get your point, Jason. What do you mean the world isn t ready for it? Most modern fantasy doesn t even mention the homosexual minority. Do you think it was in a negative light? Or the romance was unrealistic? JASON: No. The problem is it s too well portrayed. The characters are too realistically in love. I think people might have a negative reaction. They ll accuse you of encouraging kids to be gay and we ll be wrapped up in another hurricane of bad press. I m not sure the guys up top will stand for that. ROY: Well, to hell with them. I think people need to read Voices in the Darkness as I meant it to be written. It s a serious protest against people who despise gays. JASON: Yeah, and that s not gonna go over too well if you know what I mean. We already dodged a bullet with your last novel, which featured teenage suicide as a main theme. I don t think we can spare the time or effort to dodge another one. ROY: Well, what do you suggest I do, Jason? JASON: A minor rewrite, here and there. Change the love interest into a woman and bang! Perfectly good novel to publish. Great story, great characters, great message. ROY: Um it can t have a great message if I deliberately edit out the main message. Isn t that defeating the point?

JASON: I guess you re right Ugh. This puts me in such a bad position. I don t have anything against gays I just have to agree with the big guys on this one. ROY: You don t have to be so defensive, Jason. I m not gay. I understand your points though. I guess I could edit From the Deep and release that instead It was just a standard ancient evil horror story. JASON: Brilliant! Million dollar idea there. No controversy in a nice horror story, right? Hey, maybe we could sell film rights to this one! ROY: I ll get to working on it, Jason. I ll send it to you within the week. Thanks for meeting with me today. I think we got a lot done. This has been really eye-opening for me. JASON: Remember. I m just the messenger. Don t take anything out on me. I think it s a wonderful story that people will need to read in about ten to fifteen years. Not right now, Roy. Not right now. ROY: I understand, Jason. I m not mad at you, don t worry. You re just doing your job. (JASON exits. To SVEN.) This world sure is a messed up place, isn t it? SVEN: You re talking to a man who came from another place with nothing and had to fight tooth and nail for everything he had. Of course I think the world is messed up. But you know what? There s not much you can do about it if you refuse to challenge it. ROY: Sven, you sly dog, are you telling me to fight to get Voices published as is? SVEN: No, I m saying you have a wonderful weapon against the hideous nature of the world and you should not squander it. ROY: Thanks, Sven. Cups of coffee with a side of major insights. It s a nice place you got here. COURTNEY: Um I couldn t help but overhear. You wouldn t happen to be Roy Jackson, now would you? ROY: The one and only, unfortunately. COURTNEY: I just love your books! I ve read all of them several times over. I never imagined I d run into my favorite author in a small caf like this. SVEN: Eh. It s New York. It s surprisingly hard to be seen around here, but also surprisingly easy to be found.

ROY: Well, Courtney. I m writing a new book. Maybe I could swing by sometime and let you read parts of it? I love fan feedback, you know. COURTNEY: I d really like that. I d probably best be going now; I ve got to find some place to audition if I ever want to make it big! SVEN: Roy, perhaps you should introduce her to Lauren? I m sure an accomplished actor like your sister would certainly be beneficial. (LAUREN enters with DANIEL not far behind) Speak of the devil. Both Lauren and Daniel! LAUREN: Hey big brother! How d everything go with Jason? Is the book actually going to be published? ROY: Sadly, no. I m going to publish From the Deep instead. The guys up top shot Voices down for encouraging homosexuality. DANIEL: I told you having a gay guy as the main character would come back to haunt you. It s a sin, Roy. People don t like reading about sinners. ROY: Oh, that s a load of bull. People love reading about sinners and besides. I legitimately think this something people need to take a stand on. DANIEL: They are taking a stand. Against it. ROY: Not my point, Daniel. I think they need to stand up and fight for gays like they fought for blacks in the Civil Rights Movement. It s the same thing, basically. DANIEL: No, they re very different. You re born black. You choose to be gay. LAUREN: Can we not talk about this? I actually had something exciting to tell you until Daniel had to get up on his pulpit and preach about the evils of gays... SVEN: Do tell. I d much rather hear what you have to say instead of listening to an age old debate with no right answers. LAUREN: Well, I m on my way to audition for a new director! He wants to make a movie and he specifically asked for me. ROY: Who is this director, sis? LAUREN: Brand new. He s never made anything, so you wouldn t know him. But, it s at a legit casting office so I know he s not a rapist or something.

ROY: I m your brother, Lauren. Big brothers come first to protect the little ones that come after. That s what Dad taught me. I have to ask. LAUREN: Ugh. I m twenty-three, Roy. I can look after myself. ROY: Hey, sis. Do you mind taking my new friend Courtney along? She wants to be an actress too; this might be a lucky break for her. COURTNEY: I d be really grateful. I don t even want to audition; I just want to watch. LAUREN: No harm in bringing another along for the ride. Come on Courtney, let s go rock this audition! (They exit, hand in hand. As they do, a mysterious shadow creeps into the room, clad all in black- ANAHZI. When he speaks to one character or another they react but the others on stage do not.) ANAHZI: (To DANIEL) Look at them, hand in hand and happy. Doesn t it just strike you as odd? Courtney had never met this girl but she holds her hand like they were best friends . DANIEL: So, that Courtney. She s quite the beauty, isn t she? ROY: Yeah, she s really pretty. And guess what, Daniel? She agreed to go on a date with me. Jealous, aren t you? ANAHZI: (To ROY) How could anyone other than your sister ever love you? You re too dark, too disturbed, too corrupted. You ll die a lonely death and no one shall mourn you. DANIEL: No way, man! Hey, do you have any money on you? I m supposed to be collecting money for that new homeless shelter, you know, the one they built just up the street? Everybody at church is pitching in to help. ANAHZI: (To DANIEL, who remains shocked and motionless) My child, I do not want the money of a man who wrote a novel encouraging homosexuality. It s tainted with the heavy burden of his sins. DANIEL: Yes, Father. ROY: What was that? DANIEL: I think I think I just heard the voice of God! Well, nevermind about the money, I ll just put up the poster. Hopefully people will notice. Sven, can I put this up here?

SVEN: Course you can. I could care less as long as it doesn t cover up any of the other fliers or the logo. DANIEL: Well, I ve got to be going too. Good luck with Courtney, Roy. Maybe she s the one. See you later, Sven. (He exits through the door in prayer.) ANAHZI: (To ROY) Did you hear the spite in his voice? He doesn t want you to have Courtney. He wants her for himself. You ve got to beat him to it, to show him up somehow. ROY: So, Sven. Give me your honest opinion. Do you think I have any chance with Courtney? Any chance at all? ANAHZI: (To ROY) You ve got no chance in hell, boy. You know that already. You re ugly, stupid, and fat. What kind of woman wants a man like that? SVEN: I think you have as good a chance as any with her. Don t get your hopes too high though, Roy. I m not saying you re a bad guy, of course; you just don t know anything about her. You can t force these things. ANHAZI: (To ROY) He s lying to you too He knows you have a better chance than he s letting on. He saw the way she looked at you. He wants her for himself too. SVEN: Although I m not sure if I m really the best person to judge these things. I didn t find her that attractive, to be honest. ANAHZI: (To ROY) Now he s trying to make you question your judgement Trying to throw you off. Don t listen to him, Roy. Listen to me You might have a chance if you act quickly. Seize the initiative. ROY: How can you think she s not attractive, Sven? She was really pretty and that gorgeous smile She was my idea of an ideal woman. SVEN: Well, first she s probably about half my age. That puts a dent in things. Second, call me a cynic but I don t believe in love at first sight. It takes time to blossom and grow. ROY: Well, thanks Sven. That s just what I needed. A daily dose of cynicism after meeting a great girl. SVEN: I don t mean to rain on your parade, I m just pointing out what I think, which is what you asked for. You know what, go for it. I don t think you ll listen to me otherwise.

ANAHZI: (To ROY) You never know. Lightning might strike and she could fall in love with you but I highly doubt it. After all, most women would sooner die than date someone like you. (ROY looks uncertain and then goes back to typing on his laptop as the lights come down and then back up to signify the passage of time; it is now the next day, and ROY and COURTNEY are happily sharing a drink. SVEN stays at the counter.) COURTNEY: I couldn t believe it either! The director cast me as the second female lead in the movie despite the fact I d never been on stage or screen professionally! ROY: Wow, that s really impressive! I m glad I could help you with your big break. Were you really that phenomenal at the audition? COURTNEY: I didn t think so, but the director said the chemistry between Lauren and I was so amazing he had to keep us together! I think that s the reason I got the role. ROY: Well that s a good reason as any! To success! (They make a toast as ANAHZI creeps back out of the shadows.) ANAHZI: (To ROY) You don t think that chemistry could be caused by ? No, it s not possible. That sort of woman is never pretty in real life. ROY: Well, I brought the manuscript for you to read. I m really proud of this one, honestly. I m glad I can share it with you especially now that the publishers rejected it. COURTNEY: I m sure I ll love it. Did you finish From the Deep to submit yet? I d really like to know when that s coming out too. I adore your writing. ROY: I m glad. Sometimes I feel like nobody appreciates it; it s refreshing to her something different for a change. And yeah, I m done with From the Deep. A little cutting of the more gruesome bits and some tweaking here and there and it s all ready. I honestly wouldn t have time to spend with a beautiful lady if I hadn t finished. COURTNEY: Oh, you re only saying that. You don t mean it. ANAHZI: (To COURTNEY) Oh dear. He thinks this is a date, doesn t he? This could get awkward very fast No, he just said it to be nice. You aren t beautiful, not in the least. ROY: No, I really do. I think you re one of the most beautiful people I ve ever met. Not to mention clever and funny. It s almost like we re the same person.

COURTNEY: Well, thanks. That makes me feel good about myself. Well, I ll try to get this read pretty soon and get back to you. ROY: Take your time, there s no rush. Take as long as you need to. I ll wait as long as it takes to hear your opinion. ANAHZI: (To COURTNEY) This is getting dangerous, isn t it? Maybe you should tell him before you lead him on too far Right? Deny him now, save him the pain later. COURTNEY: I ll make sure not to have it take that long. Well, thanks for inviting me out. I had a great time but I think I d better be going now. ROY: Aw, come on. The night s still young. There s a lot we can still do together, just you and me. I d love to have you start reading my story. COURTNEY: That s an attractive offer but I really must be going. I ll read this as soon as possible and get back to you as quickly as possible. ROY: Well that s no fun. At least let me walk you home and how about we do this all again tomorrow night? I had a marvelous time. You make me happy. ANAHZI: (To COURTNEY) And there it is. The final warning sign. Time to set this man in his place, don t you agree? I ll step back and let you handle this one. COURTNEY: Roy, I want your honest answer to what I m about to ask. Do you promise you won t lie to me? ROY: Of course, I ve got nothing to hide. Ask away. COURTNEY: You want to be more than friends with me, don t you? ROY: Isn t that painfully obvious? I thought this was a date Isn t that what you thought too? COURTNEY: No, not at all. I thought it would be a quick hand-off of a manuscript, not a romantic dinner with mood lighting and drinks. I m sorry. I should have told you sooner. I m sorry, but I don t see you as anything more than a friend. ROY: Oh. Well Damn. I don t know what to say. Can I at least know why not? Is it something I did? Something I said? The way I look? COURTNEY: No, none of that. It s nothing that petty. I just don t feel anything special about you. I m sorry, Roy. You re great, but I don t think I can do this.

ROY: Oh, but you feel something special about someone else, don t you? COURTNEY: Yes. I m in exactly the same situation you are right now with me with someone else. A friend of mine. ROY: Oh. Well. I wish you the best of luck then. I only want what s best for you, Courtney. I love you; I want you to be happy before anything else. COURTNEY: But what about you? Surely you want to be happy too? I don t want you to be upset about all this Please, you have to understand. I don t want to hurt you, I never did. ROY: Don t feel bad, Courtney. As much as I d like to be able to change the way you feel I can t. And I ve been unhappy for my entire life. It s my sad lot in this cruel world, and I m resigned to my fate. The best I can do now is help others. COURTNEY: That s a depressing outlook. I m sorry. I really feel horrible now I just don t know what to say. ROY: Don t say anything. I ll get over this; I ll get over you. I always want what I can t have. It s my curse in life. COURTNEY: I have this awful habit of falling in love with people I can t have too. I always have. You know how I said I was in love with someone else? ROY: Yeah, but you have a lot more going for you than I have for me. You re great looking, quite smart, incredibly sweet, and hilariously witty. I m ugly, depressing and arrogant. COURTNEY: I m just so confused Here you are, and I don t want you. I want someone I ve got no chance in hell with. I already told them and they refused. ROY: Can I at least know who this lucky person is? COURTNEY: I feel terrible for saying this but She s a she. I know, it shouldn t be possible and it s not right, and I don t even know what I really want. I m so confused about everything. ROY: It s not wrong. That s how God made you. You ll always be beautiful, at least to me. I ll cherish you forever. I would take a bullet for you, Courtney. Even if it means you d still never love me. COURTNEY: I would send you softly into the night with a kiss, then. And if you really want to know It s Lauren. I feel absolutely terrible saying that, since she s your sister and all, but there you have it. Out in the open.

ROY: Well, I think an intervention is in order then. I ll talk to Lauren, Courtney. Even if there s no chance in hell she ll return your feelings Well, it s still worth a shot. COURTNEY: Thank you Roy. I know it doesn t mean much after what I ve said, but still It s nice to know how much you care about me. (COURTNEY exits. ROY walks to the bar where SVEN is polishing glasses and collapses. ANAHZI follows ROY.) ANAHZI: (To ROY) I said you had no chance in hell, didn t I? But you didn t listen to me and look where that s gotten you! She s a lesbian. Couldn t have picked a worse girl, now could you? SVEN: Don t beat yourself up, Roy. You did two brave things. You told her how you really felt and despite how that turned out you still accept her for who she is. Isn t that a wonderful thing? ROY: Yeah, it is. Find out that the girl I really want is a lesbian and she has a crush on my sister but I still accept her? There must be something wrong with me. ANAHZI: (To ROY) You should condemn her for what she is, like Daniel. Don t let her corrupt your sister too. That horrible disease broke your heart. Now break hers. Get your revenge. Get even. Get your sister to play along and then when her guard is down take it out from under her nose! Just like she did to you. That s the only way you ll feel better about all this. Your heart and soul cry out for vengeance. ROY: No. There s nothing wrong with me. And nothing wrong with her either. God made her that way and she is one of his most precious creations. I made a deal. I m going to do my best to help her with my sister. SVEN: That s a smart lad. I knew you d come around sooner or later. Don t let darkness cloud your heart and soul. She can still love you, just not in the way you hoped for. ROY: Thanks, Sven. You re oddly good at stopping that nagging little voice that gets in my head sometimes. Really a mean little bastard, that little voice. SVEN: I had my own mean little bastard. I learned to conquer it and boldly move ahead and never listen to it. I guess that s just another service I offer. Well, Roy. Looks like you ve got some work to do. ROY: I do indeed, Sven. (Lights dim on the three of them to signify the passage of time. When the lights comes back up, SVEN is still at the bar, but now ROY and LAUREN are having a conversation while ANAHZI watches in the background.)

LAUREN: Yeah, your friend got cast alongside me as the other lead girl because we apparently had so much chemistry together. It was honestly kind of creepy. If I didn t know better I d say she s a lesbian. ROY: What do you mean by honestly kind of creepy, sis? What did she do that was unusual? LAUREN: Well, she stayed really close to me, and every time I would brush her hand or whatever her eyes would light up like fireworks. It was really kind of weird. ROY: And how did that make you feel? ANAHZI: (To LAUREN) Lie to him. Don t tell him the truth; he ll shun you and disown you as his sister. He doesn t want a sister like that, especially one that steals his girlfriend. LAUREN: Like I said, I thought it was pretty damn creepy. I m not exactly looking forward to this movie now that s she s the other lead. ROY: I told you not to lie to me, sis. How did it really make you feel? Come on, you can tell me. I won t hate you for anything, I promise. LAUREN: I don t know Honestly, I don t. It felt right but that can t be right, can it? I m supposed to feel that way about a guy, not about another girl. That s just wrong. ROY: No it s not, Lauren. I think it s fine; I even wrote a novel to protest people who think samesex relationships are wrong. If you ask me, you felt the twinges of love. I think you should talk to her about it. LAUREN: I don t want to talk to her about it. I d rather not see her again, Roy. I don t know what I felt But whatever it was it scared me. ROY: If that s the way you really feel, I m sure she ll understand. After all, she s probably not expecting you to return her feelings. But one thing; she s a good person, Lauren. Don t let her go unless you re absolutely sure. LAUREN: No offense, but why are you telling me all this? I thought you thought she was the most perfect woman in the entire world; why do you want me to have her then? ROY: Because that s the way God made her, and there s nothing I can do to change that. The best I can do now is make sure she s happy. I had no chance in hell, obviously. But that doesn t mean there s nothing I can do for her, Lauren. As long as I care for her, I can still love her in a different way.

LAUREN: Wow. I never thought you could be so sweet. I still don t know though. This whole situation is just bad. I m so confused about how I feel and what I want. ROY: Well, that s to be expected, honestly. The heart is a fickle thing. You never know exactly what it wants, mostly because it never knows exactly what it wants. I just want you to know something, Lauren. I ll stand by your decision no matter what. I m your big brother. That s what I m here for. If you think you really love her, I ll stand by both of you. I ll still love you. I can t make your mind up for you, Lauren. You have to think this through yourself; only you know what you want. LAUREN: If only there were more people like you in this world, Roy. I think it would be a much better place because of it. Well, thanks for the little pep talk. I ve got to think about this; I m still so confused. Wish me luck, Roy. ROY: Oh, what would be the point? I m sure you don t need it. You ll make the right decision on your own; I m sure of it. (LAUREN shrugs and exits. ROY crosses to the bar and collapse again in tears. SVEN moves to console him and ANAHZI moves in to belittle him.) Sven, do you think I made the right choice? ANAHZI: (To ROY) How could you do something so stupid? That s a crime against nature. A crime against God. And you helped her? You should have taken your vengeance now. SVEN: I don t know, Roy. Do you think you did? ROY: I don t know. I ve never felt worse, but at the same time I ve never felt better. I feel like I made a positive difference in someone s life today but at the same time SVEN: I understand. You lost a great deal today, but you did a very brave thing. Not many people would willingly sacrifice their happiness for that of someone else. ANAHZI: (To ROY) You shouldn t have. You have the same right to be happy that Courtney has, and you threw it away for her. Take a stand for yourself. You re weak. You make me sick. ROY: I want Courtney to be happy I can t just change the way I feel about her, but at the same time helping her feels good I still Just don t know. SVEN: You know what that tells me Roy? It tells me beyond the shadow of a doubt that you truly love her. If all you care about is her happiness, then there s nothing else it could be. ANAHZI: (To ROY) She doesn t love you. She never will. You can try your hardest but you ll never change the way she feels about you. It makes no difference if you love her.

ROY: But Sven. She s a lesbian. I don t love her. I can t love her. SVEN: I don t see how that s relevant, Roy. If all you care about is her happiness then I d say you love her regardless of how she feels. ANAHZI: (To ROY) Listen to him go on and on. He doesn t know anything. He can t know anything. He s never been in this situation before. He doesn t know how it feels. You know what I say you do? Break her heart, but don t do it in a subtle manner. Rip her heart out before her very eyes and crush it. Disown Lauren because of what she chose in life and rebuke Courtney as a child of the devil. Go with Daniel on this one. Write a scathing novel demonizing homosexuality and especially lesbians. Take your revenge, Roy. That s what you need; that s what you want. Vengeance, Roy. It s the only way to patch up your heart and soul after all this. You know how you felt about Courtney, and you know how she feels about you. That s not very fair, wouldn t you say? She tore your heart out and tried to put it back in. She failed, Roy. You may never love again after this. And yet you want to listen to this old man, and let her go unpunished? No. Take your vengeance. Avenge your broken heart and soul. Then you ll feel better about this whole ordeal. Don t listen to this man. He doesn t know you like I do. I ve been by your side for as long as you can remember. Watching. Whispering. You even wrote a book about me. Don t you think I know you best? ROY: No. I m sick and tired of all this shit. Time and time again I think about others instead of thinking about myself. Well, not anymore. I may not even have a heart. I m going to go and take my vengeance. Make Courtney feel my pain. SVEN: And that will magically make it go away? No, it won t. It might for a short time, but then you ll feel even worse. You had this magnificent opportunity to prove to her what kind of man you really are. Selfless and compassionate. You re a dying breed, Roy. Please, don t be stupid. ROY: I d rather be a conceited bastard then suffer from my awful curse. I ve never known love, Sven. Don t I deserve to? SVEN: That s where you re wrong. You know love, you just don t understand it. If you really want to go and make her suffer, I won t stop you. I just want you to know I think it s a bad idea. ANAHZI: (To ROY) What more are you waiting for? He just invited you to go and take your revenge. He might think it s a bad idea but what does he know? He has no way to know what you re feeling. ROY: Sven. Tell me. What do you think I should do? I ve always valued your opinion Sven. You ve stopped me from making bad choices before. Do you have any advice?

SVEN: I won t lie to you. I don t know how you feel or how deeply this girl hurt you. But what I do know is that you have the chance to make a positive difference in two lives, Roy. Let them be happy. Accept them for who they are and how they feel about each other. And don t forget that Lauren is your sister, Roy. Like you said, it s a big brother s job to look after the little ones that come after. ANAHZI: (To ROY) That only makes it worse. Courtney left you for your sister. Don t stand for that. Take you revenge. Go, now, Roy! Avenge your heart! (ROY gets up to leave; SVEN s next line stops him dead in his tracks.) SVEN: I wasn t finished, Roy. You said you value my opinion and you ll have it all, whether you want it or not. I think you truly love this Courtney, and that s why you re tearing you heart, mind and soul apart over her. But you re mistaken to think that there is only one way to show her how much you love her, Roy. You know what I think, Roy? I think it takes a good man to love someone, it takes a great man to accept someone unconditionally for who they are, and it takes a wonderful man to love someone unconditionally for who they are, but it takes an angel to love someone unconditionally despite who they are. That s the chance you have, Roy. Don t waste it. You can show her how much you care for her by making damn sure she s happy. Or you could take your petty revenge and turn into the very person that Voices in the Darkness condemned. ROY: Sven I never thought about it like that I guess you re right. Thanks. I never really thought about that I just got so caught up in my pain and self-loathing I couldn t see her point of view. I guess it was an amazing thing I did. I ve shown Courtney that I m not like everyone else, and I ll accept her despite what the world says. Thanks, Sven. SVEN: (Turns to ANAHZI, who leaves the caf after SVEN s line, obviously afraid.) Like I said; dispelling those evil voices that creep into our heads is just one of the many services I offer. And I know it doesn t mean anything, but I think you ll come to see the greatness of what you did. ROY: Thanks, Sven. That means a great deal coming from you. You know, sometimes I forget why I come here. It s not for the food or the drinks or the atmosphere, it s for the wise man who moonlights as a caf owner. SVEN: Well, you know. Sometimes wisdom has to be found in an unusual place to be understood. (DANIEL enters. ANAHZI creeps back in the door behind him.) Ah! Daniel. What can I get for you right now? ROY: Hey, Daniel! Are you still collecting money for the homeless shelter? I ve got some for you if you want it.

ANAHZI: (To DANIEL) I ve told you before, my child. I don t want his tainted money. He supports those abominable sinners. He could even be one himself. Don t take his money. DANIEL: Oh, no. Collection ended yesterday. Thanks for the thought, though. ROY: Aw, I could have sworn they said at church last Sunday the collection would last till the end of the week. Ah, well. These things can t be helped. SVEN: So, Daniel. What brings you to my humble establishment today? DANIEL: I was actually hoping to catch you here, Roy. I wanted to talk to you about that new book- the unpublished one. ROY: Voices in the Darkness, yeah. What did you want to say about it? I ll make sure to send you an autographed copy if it ever gets published, of course. DANIEL: No, no, not that. I was wondering if the main characters were based off of anyone you actually knew. The gay couple, I mean. ROY: Why, so that you can stalk them and preach about the evils of being gay? Lighten up a bit, Daniel. It s not that big of a deal. I wrote a book in support of homosexuals and I ve yet to be smitten down. You don t hear about gays constantly being struck by lightning on the news either. I really don t think God has anything against them. DANIEL: In the bible it s made very clear he does. Leviticus 18:22- You shall not lie with a male as one lies with a female; it is an abomination. ROY: Leviticus 11:8, on the subject of pigs- Their flesh you shall not eat, and their dead bodies you shall not touch; they are unclean for you." No touching pigskin hasn t stopped anyone from playing football. DANIEL: Look, I know you don t share my beliefs about these things. But I honestly think that I need to pray for the gay couple in question. ROY: Daniel, it s fiction. I didn t know any gay couples until today. (SVEN looks concerned and DANIEL is alarmed. ANAHZI laughs to himself softly.) Though that s not a bad idea I think I need to go talk to Jason again. Bye, Daniel. You helped a lot. ANAHZI: (To DANIEL) Did you hear that, my child? He didn t know a gay couple until today. You know what that means. You know who they are. DANIEL: Sven, do you anything about this gay couple that Roy was talking about?

SVEN: Yeah, two gentlemen who stopped in not long ago. They were quite nice fellows; wellmannered and everything. ANAHZI: (To DANIEL) You know he s lying to you, Daniel. You were right, my son, about that Courtney girl. You know what you must do. DANIEL: Sven. I was wondering does anything about Courtney strike you as odd? Especially with regards to Lauren? SVEN: No, she seemed normal to me. Maybe a little unusual but then again everyone in New York is a little unusual. DANIEL: Really? I thought she seemed a little too taken with Lauren Wouldn t you agree? SVEN: No, I wouldn t. I think she was a little awestruck being in the same room with an accomplished actress of Lauren s caliber, and that s to be expected. ANAHZI: (To DANIEL) Don t dance around the subject, my son. Ask him directly. I must know so that I can grant you blessing in your task. DANIEL: You re sure? I would have sworn she struck me as a lesbian. You know, she just had that look and personality. SVEN: Eh. Maybe she was. I don t really pay that much attention to such trivial details. I only care about how a person is on a deeper level. Every individual is different. DANIEL: Maybe so, but some are just wrong. You know what I mean, Sven? Everybody is different and those differences are great normally. SVEN: No, everyone is different. Different doesn t mean good or bad. It just means different. Just because I m from a different country or someone is of another race doesn t mean we can t worship the same God. ANAHZI: (To DANIEL) His devotion pales in comparison to yours, my son. He may claim to worship me but as long as he refuses to acknowledge the evils of homosexuality he will never truly know me. DANIEL: Yeah, I guess you have a point. God loves everyone, doesn t he? So, um, Sven. I have a rather difficult problem. Can I have your advice? SVEN: I make it a point to give my wisdom freely to those who ask for it. What do you need, Daniel?

DANIEL: I think I ve been hearing the voice of God. (SVEN is taken aback) Yes, I know it sounds crazy but I really think I have been. SVEN: Well, if it truly is God I would make sure to listen to what he has to say but be careful, Daniel. You never know if the voice you hear is that of God or that of the Devil. It s surprisingly easy to get the two mixed up. ANAHZI: (To DANIEL) Daniel, my son, do not listen to him. You have answered my call to the best of your ability and that is all I ask of you. I will have a difficult task ahead for you but I promise it shall be in my holy name. DANIEL: I ll make sure to consider that. Now, in your honest opinion, Sven, what should I do if I disagree with someone s lifestyle choices? SVEN: What an odd question. Well, I would ask them about it and see if they would be willing to change. There s no harm in asking. Might I inquire as to what this is about? DANIEL: It s Roy. I know he thinks he s doing the world a great favor but I m not sure he should write a book that encourages homosexuality. It s a sin, Sven. Everyone knows that. SVEN: I don t know what to tell you. I don t personally agree with you, but I can sort of see where you re coming from. I think you had better leave this between you and Roy. He just stepped out to find Jason. He ll be back soon. (COURTNEY walks in, obviously hesistant.) Ah dammit. DANIEL: Courtney! How are you this fine day? Might I ask as to why you re here? Waiting for Roy? COURTNEY: No, I m actually waiting for Lauren She asked me to meet her here. I m really nervous though I don t know what s going to happen. DANIEL: (He moves out of earshot) I knew it. I knew it. She s waiting for Lauren-nervously. Dammit. Father, why could you not have told me sooner? ANAHZI: (To DANIEL) I had to let you see for yourself, my son. See how that vile disease can corrupt even otherwise good people. Lauren was your friend. You loved her, even, and look where this Courtney has brought her. That vile Courtney has brought her down to her own level. I hate them, my son. I hate both of them. DANIEL: Father, what would you have me do?

ANAHZI: (To DANIEL) You know very well, my son. Go forth, and do my work in this word. In my holy name I sanctify you. DANIEL: As you command, Father. (To SVEN. He doesn t make any gesture to COURTNEY) I m sorry, but I ve got to run. Thank you for all your help, Sven. I ll see you around. SVEN: Anytime Daniel, please. (DANIEL exits; ANAHZI goes with him) I worry about that boy sometimes. Well, most of the time, to be honest. He s too fixated on his religion. Nothing wrong with believing in God, of course, but everything, when taken to extremes, has the opportunity to become less than wholesome. COURTNEY: I don t know what you mean by that. I think he s a nice enough guy maybe a little intolerant but I can t change that. SVEN: Yes, he s nice enough. I just worry that he spends so much time thinking about what the bible says he never actually takes the time to evaluate anything for himself. Might I ask as to why you re so nervous? You don t have to tell me if you don t want to, of course. COURTNEY: Well I just don t know how things are going to work out. I mean, I trust Roy and I think what he s trying to do for me is great but I m not sure if this is really what I want. I m just so confused about the entire thing. SVEN: Well, the only person who can decide if you really want something is yourself. I wish you luck, Courtney. And for the record, I think you re a wonderful person. (ROY enters with JASON. They are having a heated argument.) Um, gentlemen. I don t mean to intrude, but we were in the middle of a conversation. ROY: Sorry, Sven. Look, Jason. I promise you that this book needs to be published. I ll just do some minor rewrites and I think it will be much better, and the message will be far more poignant. JASON: Minor rewrites! You want to change the focus entirely to some straight guy and his relationship with a lesbian couple and then have the straight guy die instead of the couple?! We can t do that, Roy. People will be in an uproar. ROY: That s why we have to do this. People need to be in an uproar. That s the first step towards changing the world, Jason. JASON: Well, yeah. I don t exactly want to change the world, my friend. Especially not if I d have to support fictional lesbians.

ROY: They aren t fictional, Jason. (Gestures to COURTNEY) Now, I don t want anyone to know that all of this was based on real events, but I m telling you- it was. Keep it secret, alright? JASON: Whoa. You don t mean Oh. I had no idea. Sorry mate. Well, your secret is safe with me, but the book still isn t going to be published. Sorry. ROY: Why not, Jason? Why won t you fight with me on this one? You keep agreeing with the naysayers but then making it known you aren t one of them. Come on, Jason. I need this book to be published. The world needs this book to be published. JASON: Like I said, Roy. It s a wonderful book and a powerful sentiment, but the world isn t ready for it yet. It s not the time. Maybe ten, fifteen more years. ROY: If we don t take a stand then nothing will change, Jason. I need your help on this one. Where s the Jason I knew? Where s the man who stood beside me and fought to get a book published about teenage suicide? JASON: He s right here, Roy. I haven t changed. I agree with you on this. I think it needs to be published just as much as you do but hear me out on this one. The world isn t ready for it yet. When we published that last novel of yours, we took more heat than we could imagine. The guys up top don t want to deal with that again, and especially not from the same author, Roy. And it would be worse this time. Teenage suicide is not nearly as controversial as same-sex relationships. We can t publish your novel, Roy. I m sorry. I d like to, I really would . But the worldROY: Fuck the world, Jason! This isn t about the world and this certainly isn t about me. I didn t write the damn thing as a publicity stunt! People need to understand the suffering and pain that good people are forced into every day because of the way they were born. The world is a sick place, Jason. That s why I wrote this book- to help people understand the intense hatred facing this minority, and to open eyes. When I wrote about teenage suicide it generated a huge backlash because it s one of those issues that nobody likes to talk about; they just want to ignore it and hope it goes away on its own. Homosexuality is the same way; people just want to hate it and call it immoral and be done with it. Nothing s that simple, Jason. Publishing Voices in the Darkness might alienate half a million people from my writing, but if I change one person s mind it will be enough for me. I ll have done what I set out to do. One book can t change the world, Jason. One man can t change the world, but at least I can still try. Please, Jason. You have to let me try. JASON: You re absolutely right. This book does need to be published and I ll do whatever it takes to accomplish that. You ve got my word, Roy. I ll fight tooth and nail to get this published.

ROY: Thank you Jason. That means a lot to me. If it means anything to you, I say you re doing the right thing. JASON: I know I m doing the right thing. I can feel it. And Roy, I want you to know it s a brave thing you re doing. It takes a strong man to stand up for what he believes, and a stronger man to stand up for what he believes despite what the world says. I ll see what strings and such I can pull to get this done. If we go down now, I want you to know I m with you until the end. (ROY nods as JASON exits- ANAHZI creeps in the door as he does.) ROY: Well, I m glad Jason s finally on my side for this one. Sorry you had to see that, Courtney. Sometimes people just don t understand and won t stand up for something they know is right. COURTNEY: Roy. I noticed when you were talking to Jason you mentioned something about shifting the focus of the book? ROY: Oh, yeah. I probably should have told you about that- I m going to rewrite the book based on this whole ordeal. I think I can make it that much more real, this way. ANAHZI: (To COURTNEY) You know how the story goes Such a conceited martyr, isn t he? Writing a story where he dies to save you and Lauren to prove his point that homosexuality should not be condemned? It s pure fantasy, just like your infatuation with Miss Lauren. She s as straight as they come. She s charming, drop-dead gorgeous, a wonderful smile, such a creative actress and that angelic singing voice not to mention she s possibly the sweetest person on earth and nicer than anyone else you ve ever met. She could have any man she set her mind on. She s probably already gotten a few. There s no way in hell she d throw away all that for an ugly, stupid girl like you. COURTNEY: But Roy I m not sure about all of this. Am I really in love with Lauren? Is she in love with me? She seems Well, as straight as they come. She s the kind of girl who could get any guy she wanted I don t think she feels the same way. This whole thing was just a bad idea. I m sorry Roy. I think what you re trying to do is great but this was just a silly fantasy. There s no way she feels the same way. ROY: You never know until you try, Courtney. I won t lie to your face and say I m totally positive that she feels the same way about you, but I can say that she felt something. ANAHZI: (To COURTNEY) Oh yes, she felt something about you alright. Hatred. Pure, unrestrained hatred mixed with disgust. You just couldn t hide how taken you were with her. She doesn t share your feelings. She despises you.

COURTNEY: Probably disgust. Or maybe even hate; there are times when either of those can feel like love. I can t do this, Roy. I ve got to go. If Lauren comes by tell her I m sorry I ever fell in love with her. SVEN: Why don t you just wait and see what happens, Courtney? I m sure you re over exaggerating. I don t think Lauren hates you. She s not that kind of person. She s very openminded. ROY: Sven s absolutely right, Courtney. Lauren s a great girl, honestly. She d never hate you for having a crush on her. She d probably take it as a complement. COURTNEY: Thanks, both of you. I just don t know. I want to stay here and wait for her and cling to that tiny sliver of hope But I know there s no point in getting my hopes up. I ll only be inviting pain into my life. SVEN: If you live your life in the crippling fear of being rejected, you ll never be accepted. You ll spend all your life finding reasons to exclude and hate yourself and let wonderful things pass you by. ROY: Listen to me, Courtney. I know how you feel right now, believe it or not. We ve all been there before. You re letting your fear take control of your life. Don t let that happen, Courtney. I can speak from experience. I used to live in such crippling fear of being rejected and hated that I tried to take my own life. If Lauren hadn t found me passed out on the living room floor, I would have succeeded. That s the real reason I wrote a novel about teenage suicide, Courtney. Fear almost lead me to commit suicide when I was a teenager. It s not an easy thing to do, but you have to conquer that fear. ANAHZI: (To COURTNEY) The irony of this whole situation is killing me! Listen to Roy go on about how he knows the way you feel. He does, that s for sure. He was in exactly the same position you are now just the other night. He still wants you, Courtney. That s the only reason he s trying his hardest to help you. He s hoping he can still change your mind. SVEN: Roy is right, Courtney. Nothing good comes from fear. It s a dark road that we all walk down at some point in our lives, and if we blind our eyes to the light, when can never escape. Don t let that happen to you, Courtney. Hang on to whatever hope you ve got, no matter how small. The greater the odds against you, the sweeter the victory becomes. COURTNEY: There s no point in hoping about this, Sven. I can t change how Lauren feels just by hoping she ll return my feelings. Roy, you know that.

ROY: But that s your problem, Courtney. You don t know how Lauren feels, at least not yet. You should wait and see. You ll never know until you try. ANAHZI: (To COURTNEY) No, I think you know perfectly well how she feels. She stood you up, Courtney. That s glaringly obvious if you ask me. COURTNEY: Isn t it obvious how she feels? I ve been waiting here ever since I got her call and she still hasn t shown up. That speaks volumes, Roy. She s just playing a cruel joke. She probably thinks it s funny to stand up the stupid lesbian. ROY: Don t talk about my sister like that! She s a sweet girl, Courtney. Rarely an unkind word to anyone. She s just confused, that s all. She doesn t know what she s feeling so naturally she s just as afraid as you are. SVEN: I can vouch for what he says. Lauren is one of the kindest, gentlest people I ve ever met. She would never deliberately break someone else s heart. COURTNEY: Will you please stop making this worse for me?! I know she s sweet. There are a hundred more reasons I fell for her. I have to leave. I can t deal with this. It hurts too much. I m sorry, Roy. I really am. ROY: Courtney. Listen to me. I know my sister. She would never want to hurt you. I m sure she s just fighting with her emotions just like you are. Wait just a little bit longer, alright? COURTNEY: Five more minutes. That s all I can bear. SVEN: I m sure you won t regret it, Courtney. And although it means nothing, I honestly hope she returns your feelings. I hate seeing people this upset about anything. ROY: So do I, Courtney. Nothing would make me happier right now than to have Lauren walk through that door this minute and tell you how much she loves you. I want you to be happy, Courtney. I don t want your heart broken. ANAHZI: (To COURTNEY) Isn t that cute? The idiot probably planned the entire thing with Lauren as his revenge on you for breaking his heart. Can t you see, Courtney? He tore himself apart over what you did. It s only natural for him to take his vengeance. COURTNEY: That means a lot to me, actually. Thank you, both of you. (LAUREN enters, very hesitantly. COURTNEY s face lights up.) Lauren! You actually came! I ve been waiting for you. Now, what was it you wanted to talk about?

LAUREN: Um Sven, Roy Could you both please leave? I want to discuss something with Courtney privately. SVEN: Certainly. Come along, Roy. Let s give these two their space. (ROY and SVEN exit.) ANAHZI: (To LAUREN) Look at her. Brimming with excitement all because you came to meet her. Idiot. She thinks this is a date, Lauren. You have to kill her hopes now. You know how you feel. You know what you must do. LAUREN: I m sorry I m late. I had a lot of thinking to do and I almost didn t come tonight. I have a question for you, Courtney. Please answer truthfully, ok? COURTNEY: I won t lie to you, Lauren. What did you want to know? LAUREN: I don t know how to say this in a less blunt way but Are you a lesbian? ANAHZI: (To COURTNEY) There s your answer, Courtney. Not do you love me or maybe do you want to be more than friends but instead are you a lesbian ? Do you hear the disgust in her voice when she pronounces that word? Lie to her, Courtney. Don t hurt yourself more than you have to. Swallow your heart and defy Sven and Roy. Protect yourself. COURTNEY: I m not quite sure, to be honest. I don t know what I really want or what I ve been feeling lately Well, that s a lie. I know what I really want and I know how I feel I love you, Lauren. I want you. ANAHZI: (To LAUREN) At least she s honest about it. Now, make her suffer for what she is and how she feels. You know what to do, Lauren. You know how Roy felt about her, and you know how she feels about you. You have a glorious opportunity here. Avenge your older brother s loss. Make her feel his pain. Break the little bitch s heart. LAUREN: I was afraid of that. Look, Courtney. I think you re wonderful and all but I m just not like that. I don t want to hurt you, Courtney, I never did. I understand that it took a lot of courage to admit that to me, but I just don t know how I feel about you. When we were at the auditions I felt a spark between us and I still am not quite sure what it was, and until I can figure that out for myself I m going to have to say I don t want you. I m sorry, Courtney. Having to tell you all of this makes me feel like a total bitch and I can see how much this is hurting you but there it is. I m sorry, Courtney. I don t love you. I d still like to be your friend, though, if it wouldn t be too awkward for you ANAHZI: (To COURTNEY) Still be your friend after what she s done to you?! You pour your heart and soul out to her and this is how she repays you? Roy and Sven lied to you. You should have listened to me. I would have saved you all of this pain, Courtney. I m the only one you can trust.

I ve been here forever. I m your oldest friend. There s never been a day where I didn t whisper thoughts into your ear or help you make a difficult decision. COURTNEY: Oh Um Well If that s the way you feel it can t be helped I m sorry to have offended you. I ll be going now. If you never see me again Know I still love you (COURTNEY exits in tears. LAUREN goes to the counter and collapses, and ANAHZI follows her. SVEN enters.) SVEN: Lauren, if you don t mind, could you let me know what happened between the two of you? Courtney just ran by in floods of tears and Roy went after her. LAUREN: I rejected her, Sven. I didn t feel the same way about her. I think it broke her heart. I feel terrible about the whole thing but I can t change how I feel. That s the end of the story. SVEN: But is that the way you really feel, or is it just the way you d like to feel? LAUREN: What do you mean, Sven? SVEN: There s a quote by one of your famous Americans- Benjamin Franklin, if memory servesthat I think is quite applicable. Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. LAUREN: I m not following your thought, Sven. What does that have to do with anything? SVEN: It s what you did, isn t it? You sacrificed your true feelings because you were so afraid of what the world would think if you gave into them. You gave up your freedom for a little safety. If you ask me, it makes you seem thoroughly spineless. ANAHZI: (To LAUREN) He doesn t know what he s talking about. You didn t sacrifice your true feelings. You aren t a lesbian like Courtney. LAUREN: I didn t sacrifice what I felt! I know how I felt and I didn t love her the way she loved me! Why can t you accept that, Sven? Like it or not she s heartbroken and I m to blame. ANAHZI: (To LAUREN) You should be proud you broke her heart after what she put your brother through. She deserved it. She was a worthless bitch. SVEN: That s what you keep saying. And I ll keep countering with same words. Is that how you really felt, or how you d like to feel? LAUREN: I I don t know, Sven. I admit I felt a spark when we first met She seemed so innocent, so kind. But then when Roy started talking about how she was a lesbian I m so confused about everything. I had it all planned out and then I came here and gave my speech that I thought was directly from my heart but then I saw her tears and I felt like a part of me

died. I don t know why her crying had such an impact on me but it did. I was expecting I d feel relieved to have gotten everything out in the open but now I m questioning everything I thought was so clear. I don t feel relieved. I feel absolutely horrible for breaking her heart. I don t think she ll ever forgive me for it, and for some reason that really bothers me. I don t know why but I feel like I need to be close to her. She made me feel carefree and happy when we were together at the audition. I felt like she would accept me no matter what. SVEN: And you were quite right to think that, Lauren. Courtney would have undoubtedly accepted you no matter what, and I expect she ll still accept you now, even after what you ve done. ANAHZI: (To LAUREN) No way in hell she ll accept you now, Lauren. You tore her heart out before her very eyes and crushed it red and bleeding in your hand. How could anyone forgive you after that? LAUREN: That s a first. Sven condemning someone for their actions. How could she possibly look past this? I broke her heart, Sven. I hurt her more than I ve ever hurt anyone before. If I was Courtney I d never want to see myself again. SVEN: I don t mean to condemn you. And I m positive Courtney won t hold a grudge if you seize the initiative and talk to her. She s a forgiving sort, if you ask me. LAUREN: I still don t think it s a good idea. She needs space after what I put her through. If I try to patch up our relationship now I think I d just make things worse I really don t want that, Sven. I didn t want to hurt her. ANAHZI: (To LAUREN) No one likes a liar, Lauren. You meant to hurt her. You wanted to hurt her to get back at her for what she did to Roy. You should be commended for your success. SVEN: It sounds to me like you had carefully planned all this with the ultimate goal of hurting her. If your speech wasn t meant to hurt her, then what did you expected it to do? LAUREN: I Guess I did want to hurt her, at first. That makes me seem horrible, but it s the truth. Or maybe I wanted to just be friends I don t know. It seemed like the right thing to do. SVEN: Well, it obviously wasn t considering you ve done nothing but second guess yourself. Lauren. I ll ask you one more time. How do you really feel about Courtney? That s all I want to know. Your honest opinion on that girl. ANAHZI: (To LAUREN) You honestly hate her, don t you? She s a lesbian, after all. There s nothing about her that could change your mind. Sure, she was nice to be around and she had that stupid laugh that you thought was so cute, but remember what really counts.

LAUREN: I m not exactly sure. I m so conflicted about this whole thing. On one hand I think she s wonderful and I m extremely glad I met her because she s such an amazing person and when I was around her it felt like everything was right in the world. But on the other hand, she s a lesbian and I m not sure what that means to me. SVEN: Why is everyone so terribly afraid of that word? I want you to forget about that, for a moment. Forget she s a lesbian. I want to know how you feel about her. Can you tell me that? ANAHZI: (To LAUREN; obviously distraught) Well other than the issue that she was a lesbian she Agh! Damn you Sven. (He exits, defeated.) LAUREN: I guess I guess I d say I love her. When we were alone nothing felt more right, but at the same time it all felt so wrong. SVEN: It felt so wrong because she is a lesbian and that word is such a powerful taboo these days that it can pervert feelings and ruin otherwise wonderful things? It that it? The only reason it felt wrong was because she was a lesbian? LAUREN: Yes, Sven. The only reason I felt like the whole situation was wrong was because Courtney is a lesbian. Call me narrow-minded, but that s the truth. SVEN: I wouldn t call you narrow-minded. More cripplingly afraid of what you feel and what the world associates with those feelings. I think the reason Courtney s crying had such a great effect on you was because deep down, you share her feelings. (ROY enters without LAUREN or SVEN noticing.) From what you ve said there s no other explanation. There s nothing wrong with you, Lauren, despite what the world might say. LAUREN: I don t care what the world might say. I only care about what you would say. Or what Roy would say. I m afraid Roy would disown me. He loved Courtney, remember? If I returned her affection, I d be stealing her from him. ROY: Do you really think so little of me, sis? I wrote an entire book about how same-sex relationships are fine, and I m going to rewrite it to include you and Courtney happily together. I told you before, I still love Courtney. I just have to show it in a very different way. I want her to be happy, Lauren. I want you to be happy. I don t give a damn what the world says, you re my sister and I ll stand by any choice you make. If you think I d disown you for accepting yourself as God made you, you re wrong. LAUREN: Roy! Do you really mean that?

ROY: With all my heart, sis. If you love Courtney, that s the end of that. You have a wonderful opportunity here. Show her how much you care- she needs you, Lauren, and you need her. Go to her and talk to her, I m sure she ll understand. SVEN: I couldn t have said it better myself, Roy. Don t waste this opportunity, Lauren. She s a great girl, and so are you. This sort of chance only comes once in a lifetime. LAUREN: Are you sure? I still don t know what I should do I ve got the nagging feeling that nothing I m feeling is genuine. I hurt her, and now I feel bad and want to make amends Do I really love her? ROY: The only person who can answer that is you, sis. If you love her, you ll know. You might have doubts but that s to be expected. SVEN: Don t listen to that little bastard in your head. You have to make your own decisions. In the end, you re the only one who knows what s right for you. LAUREN: (Thinks for a long time.) You re right, Sven. I think I think I really do love her. I feel like I ve almost missed the greatest opportunity in my lifetime. Thanks, both of you. I ll never forget what you did for me tonight, and I don t think Courtney will either. You both did an amazing thing. Where is she, Roy? I need to talk to her. ROY: Well, you re in luck. She agreed to come by tomorrow in the late afternoon to read my revised manuscript. Come on, Lauren. Let s go home. You ve got a big day ahead of you tomorrow. Night, Sven. (LAUREN and ROY exit as SVEN cleans up the counter. Lights then shift again to signify another passage of time. When they come back up, JASON is excitedly talking to ROY at a table with a manuscript as DANIEL sits at the counter talking with SVEN. ANAHZI is near DANIEL.) JASON: Alright, all your revisions seem great! I ve got a meeting tonight with all the big guys to press our case. I think we ve finally got the upper hand, Roy. ROY: Glad to hear it, Jason. I hope this book changes people s preconceived notions about homosexuals. This world is a terrible place sometimes. Half the time people don t even get to know someone before they start hating how they act or how they dress or whose hand their holding. DANIEL: They hate it because it s sin, Roy. Like it or not publishing this book will send you straight to hell because you re encouraging people to be gay. You aren t even gay, Roy. Why do you keep trying to help those sick people?

JASON: Well, if you re going to hell you can take comfort knowing I ll be right there with you, Roy. It s a great thing you re doing, standing up for what you believe. ROY: Daniel, they aren t sick. They were born that way. I can t suddenly stop liking women and just decide I like men. It s biological, Daniel. ANAHZI: (To DANIEL) He questions my judgement, my son. He is no friend of yours. I would never create people that were born into sin. DANIEL: No, it s a choice. God would never willingly create sinners. It s a disease, Roy. There s no other explanation. And like all diseases, it needs to be exterminated. SVEN: Daniel, are you feeling alright? You seem a little more passionate than usual and you look like you haven t slept at all for the past couple days. DANIEL: I ve had to do a lot of soul-searching, Sven. I think I ve finally learned what God has planned for me. I told you, I heard the voice of God. I have a calling now, Sven. It s wonderful. I finally know my purpose in life. JASON: Well isn t that just great? Alright, Roy. I ve got to run if I want to be on time for the big meeting. I ll tell you how it went as soon as it s over. Wish me luck. This might just be the single most important moment in my life; I m going to help the great Roy Jackson on his crusade to change this dirty world. ROY: Good luck, Jason. (JASON exits.) Well, Sven. Hopefully that will go over well and Voices in the Darkness will finally reach people. I think that it could change lives. ANAHZI: (To DANIEL) His book could change lives. His book could doom hundreds of otherwise innocent people and send them to hell, my son. DANIEL: Only for the worse, Roy. You realize what you ve done, haven t you? You re encouraging sin, Roy. You re sending people to hell. ROY: I highly doubt effeminate men are thrown in the same place as the killers, thieves and blasphemers. I don t think just being homosexual is grounds for someone to go to hell. ANAHZI: (To DANIEL) He doesn t understand my will the same way you do, my son. You are my favored son, Daniel. That is why you were chosen. DANIEL: It is, Roy. You don t understand. I have heard the voice of God and he has commanded me to turn you from the path you now walk. You want to help people, Roy. You always have. You need to demonize homosexuality.

SVEN: I think you re overtired, Daniel. Why don t you go home and sleep it off. I m sure you ll feel better about life in general after a nice rest. DANIEL: No. I don t need rest. I know what I must do and I know that the time is now. I have watched and waited long enough. Now is the time for action, as the Lord commands me. ROY: If it truly is the voice of God, then more power to you. But watch out. Sometimes the voice of the devil can sound just the same. ANAHZI: (To DANIEL) He claims I am the devil, my son. You know what voice you hear. You know my purpose for you. DANIEL: I am not hearing the voice of the devil! I know it s God I m hearing in my head. I know he has a task for me that I must do, whether I want to or not. Dammit, Roy, why can t you understand?! SVEN: Daniel. I think you need to calm down. You re getting far too worked up about all this. We re all friends here. We only want what s best for you. DANIEL: I know what s best for me. I have heard the voice of God and He anointed me to cast down those who would encourage others to engage in sin. You re making a terrible mistake, Roy. That book cannot be published. If you really care about the plight of the homosexual minority then you need to pray every night for their swift recovery from the terrible affliction that grips then. They are a crime against nature and abhorrent sinners. Their souls must be saved, Roy. That s why you must pray that they will swiftly return to normal. ROY: I m sorry, Daniel. I can t agree with you. I m sorry that s the way you feel. You need to go home and rest, Daniel. It s obvious you re not quite right in the head at the moment. ANAHZI: (To DANIEL) Now he tries to pass you gift off as a form of insanity. Refuse to stand for this blasphemy, my son. Leave. Now. DANIEL: Roy! Listen to yourself. You claim that the voice of God is some form of mental instability?! No! I have heard the voice of God, I know I have. And I know what he has commanded me to do! Goodbye, Roy. I hope you see the errors of your ways. ROY: Right back at you, Daniel. (DANIEL exits as COURTNEY enters- he gives her a murderous stare as they pass. COURTNEY looks disheveled, like she s been crying heavily. ANAHZI slips back into the shadows but remains on stage, barely visible.) Courtney! You came. Jason just left to go to a meeting with the guys up top. We have a real chance to publish Voices, Courtney! Isn t that great!?

COURTNEY: Wonderful. Hopefully it ll open some eyes. Sorry, I m not in a very good mood right now. Can I just take the manuscript and go? I ll get it back to you as soon as I can. I m not going to be very busy for a while. ROY: Aw, you re no fun. And what do you mean you won t be very busy for a while? Don t you have to shoot the movie? COURTNEY: I m going to talk to the director tomorrow. I can t do the movie I can t bring myself to face Lauren again and I certainly can t act opposite her. I m genuinely surprised she managed to be as civil as she was. I half expected her to go off on how disgusting and unnatural I am and how she s normal like every other damn person and so she never has to worry about if people she loves will ever love her back. SVEN: I m very sorry about what happened last night between you and Lauren. It was a terrible thing for you to have to go through. If it s any consolation, I m sure she doesn t hate you, Courtney. You can still be friends with her. COURTNEY: I don t want to be her friend. I want to be so much more than just friends with her. I m positive I m fucked up in the head because even though she broke my damn heart I still can t bring myself to feel anything but love for her. ROY: You re fine, Courtney. I understand that last night was very difficult for you and that you re mad at the two of us for persuading you against your better judgment to open your heart up to her, and I fully accept the blame for the consequences of our actions. I m sorry, Courtney. I thought I knew my sister better than I did. COURTNEY: I don t blame you, Roy. I m actually glad you managed to convince me to talk to her. I think it s better for both of us this way. Everything got out in the open and now we go our separate ways. SVEN: You never know, you might even meet again somewhere down the line. Courtney, don t blame yourself either. It s not your fault. Some things are beyond our control. COURTNEY: It s a little late for that, Sven. I ve done nothing since blame myself since last night. I hate myself for being attracted to Lauren. I hate myself for not being good enough for her. I hate myself for breaking Roy s heart. But most of all, I hate myself for being a damn lesbian. SVEN: There s nothing wrong with it, Courtney. You are as God made you. We all have our lots in life; some are lucky than others. I won t deny anything you ve said, but know I don t hate you for any of those things.

ROY: And I don t either. Especially since one of them is wrong. You never broke my heart, Courtney. I m perfectly fine. In fact, I feel privileged that you were comfortable enough to talk to me so freely about how you felt. I like to think I made a positive difference in your life, and that s good enough for me. COURTNEY: You did, Roy. I really appreciate all you ve done and tried to do for me, even if I m not very good at showing it. I ve never been the best at showing my feelings. SVEN: Because you re so used to living in confusion and deathly fear about what you felt. It s alright, Courtney. I m just glad we could be of service. ROY: You should know by now that neither one of us will condemn you for anything. We accept you freely and with open hearts, despite what the world says. Anyone who was a problem with you being a lesbian should choke and die if you ask me. COURTNEY: Thanks, that makes me feel a little better about myself. Now, can I have that manuscript? I d really like to start reading it, if you don t mind. ROY: Ah. Damn. I left the second copy at home. Hey, Sven. Can you drive me over to my apartment really quick so I can pick it up? SVEN: Certainly, Roy. Courtney, do you mind if I leave you to hold down the fort until we get back? COURTNEY: No, I ll be right here when you guys get back. I m looking forward to reading this manuscript. (ROY and SVEN exit. ANAHZI steps out of the shadows- He should have been on stage, but not visible until now. COURTNEY is very troubled.) ANAHZI: (To COURTNEY) Feeling better about life since last night, Courtney? Wasn t that just so much fun? You spent the entire night crying because of what that bitch Lauren said to you. How could she be so cruel to you, Courtney? She cut right into your chest and when she saw the first tears gathering in your eyes she dug her hand into the wound and slowly, painfully, horribly, tore your heart out before your very eyes. But that wasn t enough for the little bitch. She had your heart bleeding in her hand and she could have stopped and saved you further pain if she had really cared about you, but instead she crushed it in her hands. Did you see the look in her eyes, Courtney? She had been waiting for that moment. She knew how much you loved her, and that was the way she repaid you. (COURTNEY walks behind the counter and opens a drawer.) She doesn t love you Courtney, not in the least. No one shall ever love you Courtney, because of what you are. The world will hate you. Everyone will turn their back on you because of an accident of birth. (COURTNEY pulls out a knife from the drawer.) Except for me, Courtney. Think about it. Who has stood by your side this entire time and tried time and time again to

warn you about that little bitch Lauren? I did, Courtney. But you never listened to me and you let your heart take control and look where that s gotten you. It hurt me to see you crying last night, Courtney. I m the only one who will ever love you. Join me Courtney. Leave that pretentious idiot Sven, that pitiful fool Roy, that mean bastard Daniel and especially that bitch Lauren behind. Come into the night, Courtney. Leave this cruel, hateful, violent world behind. It has nothing but hate for you. Nothing but hate. (COURTNEY lifts the knife to her neck and prepares to slit her throat. ANAHZI laughs cruelly.) COURTNEY: (Drops the knife and turns around as the door opens) You guys are back so soon? (LAUREN enters; ANAHZI lingers on stage and tries vainly to speak; neither woman can hear him.) Oh. Hey Lauren. I thought you were Sven for a second there. LAUREN: Um Courtney I m not exactly sure how to tell you this but Well, this is really awkward COURTNEY: That s alright, Lauren. You don t have to say anything. I understand. I m sorry I put you in such a bad position last night. I m dropping out of the movie tomorrow, by the way, so you won t have to worry about seeing me anymore. Again, I m very sorry for what I put you through. LAUREN: No! That s not what I want, Courtney. I don t know how to say this Well, first I m very sorry about last night too. I didn t mean to hurt you, and I broke your heart. Can you ever forgive me? COURTNEY: I can t hold a grudge against you, Lauren. I love you too much, like it or not. It s stupid, I know, since there s no chance in hell you ll ever feel the same way. LAUREN: Courtney I I I do. I want you, Courtney. You made me feel so happy when we were together that it made me afraid of what I was feeling. That s why I hurt you, Courtney. I was so afraid I didn t know what to think. But I do now. COURTNEY: What? LAUREN: I was so afraid of being shunned and cast out of the world I almost let the greatest opportunity of my life pass me by. I don t want that to happen, Courtney. I love you. I realize that now. COURTNEY: I I can t believe it. Did Sven put you up to this? Or maybe Roy? Look, as much as I appreciate the gesture it s alright. You don t have to lie to me just to make me happy. You have the same right to be happy I do even more, if you ask me.

LAUREN: Neither of them put me up to it, Courtney. They helped me realize what I felt all along. I m not lying to you, Courtney. I feel the same way about you that you felt about me. If I may be so bold as to ask, do you still feel the same way? COURTNEY: Of course I do. Lauren, even after you broke my heart and made me cry I still wanted you and I certainly still want you now. I love you, Lauren, now and forever. LAUREN: That s all I want from you, Courtney. Just to know you love me as I am. I ve never been happier in my entire life. I feel like I m on top of the world. COURTNEY: I know the feeling. I never thought this would happen to me. I thought it was my lot in life to be miserable But you ve proven me wrong, Lauren. (They embrace and move for a kiss- ANAHZI lets out a brutal cry of rage. However, before they kiss, DANIEL comes through the door with a handgun concealed on his person. ANAHZI creeps up behind him.) DANIEL: Both of you. I ve come here to deliver an ultimatum from God himself. Repent your sins as lesbians and live normal lives and both of you will walk out of this room. If you refuse to repent, then you will die. LAUREN: Daniel, what s gotten in to you? I know how devoted you are but I thought you d at least be happy for my sake. I ve found love, Daniel. DANIEL: What you have is a horrible crime against nature, not love. I m on a holy mission bestowed on me directly by God himself. I ll ask again. Repent, or die. COURTNEY: Daniel, don t you want us to be happy? We ll be happy together. I can t just change the way I feel about Lauren. DANIEL: No, but a bullet in your brain will. (He pulls out the handgun and aims squarely between COURTNEY s eyes.) I ll only ask one more time. Repent, or die. The choice is yours. You have until 10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 (At 2 , ROY enters, takes in the scene and steps in front of DANIEL, shielding the women with his body.) ROY: Put the gun down, Daniel. Nobody has to get hurt tonight. DANIEL: Yes they do, Roy. They refuse to repent from their evil ways and thus the Lord has commanded that they must be killed. Step aside, Roy. ROY: No, I won t step aside. If you want to take the shot, take it. I ll thank you if you do. DANIEL: Roy, what are you doing? Why won t you let me take the shot? Get out of the way. I don t want to kill you, but I will if I have to.

ROY: No. I won t move, Daniel. If you want to take the shot, take it. I m ready and willing to die here and now. DANIEL: Why, Roy, why? Why won t you let me shoot them? Or at least Courtney. She broke your heart, Roy. Let me kill her for you in the name of God. ROY: In the name of God? You make me sick, Daniel. I won t let you kill these girls because you think you heard the voice of God and he commanded you to. That s not my God. He wouldn t command you to murder. DANIEL: But Roy, they re lesbians! Sinners. Abominations. They go against God s will, and I have been sent here to punish them. For you as well as Him. Courtney broke your heart. Let me take my shot and rectify her mistake. ROY: Her mistake? It wasn t a mistake that God made her, and it s not a mistake that she fell in love. God loves while man kills. And I m sick and tired of it. Sick and tired of the misery and suffering which good people like my sister and Courtney suffer every damn day. All because people like you say it s unnatural and a crime against nature. I say it s beautiful. Love is beautiful. And who gives a damn if they re both women? They re in love. That s what matters. DANIEL: Roy, you re missing the point. I don t care if you think they re in love. They re lesbians, Roy. Lesbians. ROY: And you re a bastard, Daniel. But you don t see me shouting it in the streets or hearing the voice of God commanding me to kill you for it. DANIEL: Call me what you will. I don t care. God has commanded me to kill them. That s all that matters to me. ROY: God would never command you to kill his children, Daniel. He loves his children. Even Lauren and Courtney. I know he does, even if you don t think he can. DANIEL: He doesn t Roy. They re sinners against God. He hates them. God hates them Roy. Why can t you see that? ROY: Because it isn t true. God doesn t hate. God is incapable of hating his creations. God loves all his children. We are blind and deaf to the world but he has a plan for all of us. He made Courtney and Lauren the way they are for a good reason. I didn t realize that either, until this minute. I realize now that God purposely brought them into my life and now has sent me here to stop you from killing them because he doesn t want them to die. I know he loves them. And I know I love them. I don t give a damn what you think they are or what you say God has told you. I say you have heard the devil and mistaken it for the voice of God. I won t move Daniel.

You can either shoot through me, or give up your mad crusade against them. Sven will be back any minute. You know as well as I what will happen when he returns. DANIEL: I ll only ask one more time, Roy. I don t want to kill you, but I will if you don t step aside. Now, move! Let me take my shot! ROY: One click. That s all it would take, Daniel. One click would end my miserable life and give you a clear shot. And you know what else? I would welcome death with an open heart and open arms. Because if you kill me here, it means I win. People will see you from the cruel, murderous bastard you are. Shoot me, Daniel, if you dare. DANIEL: No, I have no quarrel with you. I won t shoot you. Just move, please, Roy. We were friends, remember? Move. I don t want to hurt you! ROY: Shoot me, Daniel. If you want to kill them that badly you re going to have to kill me too. I won t move. Pull the trigger. DANIEL: I can t. I can t shoot you, Roy. I m sorry, Father I ve failed you. ROY: You didn t fail him, Daniel. You ve shown him how wonderful you really are. You passed his test. You let the sinners live. DANIEL: Father, what should I do? Tell me! I don t understand! (ANAHZI smiles and laughs cruelly. Then he whispers to DANIEL.) ANAHZI: Wait my son. Wait until he is close enough that you get a clear shot. Then take it, my child. They are sinners and deserve to be punished with death, regardless of what Roy says. (DANIEL exhales slowly in preparation as ROY again advances to take the gun from DANIEL; however, once he gets very close DANIEL raises it and fires without warning. Luckily, ROY realizes before he fires and jumps in front of the gun; the bullet hits him in the chest and he collapses, dying.) DANIEL: No! What have I done?! Father, why have you forsaken me! Roy, please Roy, don t die on me! (To COURTNEY and LAUREN) Help me! He s dying. Oh my God, I killed him. Roy, I m so sorry. I never meant for things to end like this. (He runs to the phone and makes a very distraught call.) Please, we urgently need help! A man has been shot! We re in Sven s caf You know where it is? Good. Please hurry! ROY: (Weakly) Things never go according to plan, Daniel. You had pure intentions, I m sure. You were just confused. I don t blame you. I don t hate you. LAUREN: Roy, you can t die! You said you d always be there to protect me you said that s why big brothers were brought into the world first; to protect the little ones that come after.

ROY: I m sorry, Lauren. Looks like I ve fallen down on my duties. I m sorry. I tried my best. COURTNEY: I didn t want you to get mixed up in all this I never thought this would happen because of me I m so sorry, Roy. ROY: Don t be, Courtney. Remember when I told you I would take a bullet for you? I made good on my promise. I won t hold you to your end of that bargain. DANIEL: Hold on, Roy. The ambulance is on its way. You only need to hold on a little longer. ROY: I think this is the end for me I can t feel anything. It s a strange thing to die. Daniel, I want you to go to my apartment. There are unpublished manuscripts on my computer. I want you to do me a favor and publish them for me. Can you do that? (DANIEL nods) Good. They say death makes an artist, but can it make an author as well? Go, Daniel. Before the police get here. (DANIEL hastily exits.) LAUREN: Do you have anything for us? Any last requests, Roy? ROY: Only one. Love each other for the rest of your lives. But don t forget me, alright? COURTNEY: That s two requests. Well, I guess I did owe you a kiss. (She bends down to kiss ROY on the forehead, but he stops her.) ROY: No, I think my debt will better be given to my sister. (COURTNEY smiles and kisses LAUREN tenderly; ROY tearfully recites Shakespeare.) Oh, how this spring of love resembleth, the uncertain glory of an April day, which now shows all beauty of the Sun, and by and by a cloud takes all away. (He dies as lights crossfade to downstage right, where JASON is talking to the audience like they are the publishing company. He holds a stack of papers triumphantly as he speaks.) JASON: Gentlemen, I just don t know how he did it but Roy has given us a real winner here. This book is absolutely fantastic! He took Voices in the Darkness and reworked so it stars two women, Courtney and Lauren, and then he made the men into a character named after him and a guy named Daniel! The wise old caf owner, Sven, is still there and so is the voice, Anahzi. This book could be the biggest thing in the modern history of publishing! I know what you re thinking; why would we publish a book about lesbians? And the answer is because people need to read it and understand what Roy understood. He knew there was nothing wrong with them and that s how he wrote it, and I tell you it moved me to tears in the climax when the main guy died to save the women. This book is beautiful gentlemen, and we are going to publish it in its entirety with no alterations at all! Roy had a singular vision when he wrote this book; to change the way the world views homosexuals. Now, one book might not succeed, but we can t be

docked for trying! A round of applause for Roy Jackson, gentlemen! May the bigots and homophobes drag him kicking and screaming into the night!

END