You’re skin and bones.
BECKY: I don’t know where it came from.
COLE: What do you mean?
BECKY: It might be full of pesticides and antibiotics. Or it might be made of lettuce grown in some country where people get paid five cents an hour, or tomatoes picked by starving nine-year-olds.
COLE: Hm. That sounds needlessly complicated.
(Becky chuckles despite herself. She picks up a fork, starts picking at the salad a bit. A few moments pass.)
I suppose Troy must be calling County Care to pick me up.
BECKY: Probably. Are you better now? Do you know where you are?
COLE: I’ve pieced it together.
BECKY: That must be annoying.
COLE: Eh. Lucidity is overrated, remember that.
(Cole continues to eat. Becky looks at him.)
BECKY: I should come and visit you more often.
COLE: It’s not the most welcoming place, I don’t blame you.
BECKY: Do you hate it?
(Pause.)
COLE: Never really thought much about it, it’s just—where I am at the moment.
BECKY: But does that—? Does that make you sad?
COLE: I guess at a certain point you stop worrying about that, you just take things as they come.
(Pause.)
BECKY: I wish I was like that. I hate it here. As soon as I turn eighteen, I’m moving out of this town.
COLE: Oh. You think it’s going to be better someplace else?
BECKY: I mean, I don’t know? It’ll be different, at least.
COLE: Towns aren’t much different nowadays, Becky.
(Silence.)
BECKY: Grandpa I just like hate everything about life.
(Cole looks up at her, stops eating. Pause.
Troy reenters with a glass of water.)
TROY: Okay, Dad—we’re gonna take you home, okay? Some people from where you live are coming / to—
COLE: Don’t—. You don’t need to talk to me like I’m a child, Troy, I’m—.
(Troy puts the water on the table.)
TROY: They’ll be here in a minute, let’s just wait outside.
(Cole gets up. He begins to exit with Troy, then stops and turns back to Becky. He goes to her.)
COLE: For the intelligent person, the world is full of idiots. I know that’s not very helpful.
(Cole kisses the top of Becky’s head, then exits with Troy. Becky and Eddie are left alone. Pause.)
EDDIE: You—okay?
(Pause.)
BECKY: Yeah. (Pause) Yeah, I’m fine. (Pause) I think I’m gonna walk home tonight. Can I go out the back? Will the alarm go off?
(Pause.)
EDDIE: No, you’re okay.
BECKY: Cool.
(Becky pauses, then heads toward the back.)
EDDIE: Do you— . . .? You really hate everything about life?
(Becky stops, turns to him.)
BECKY: I don’t know, I just—. (Pause) I guess I just haven’t figured out how to be a happy person without being stupid and naive.
(Pause.)
EDDIE: I know the feeling.
(Silence.)
BECKY: Look, thanks for the job, okay? That was cool of you.
(Becky approaches Eddie, her arm outstretched. Awkward pause.)
EDDIE: What—what are you doing?
BECKY: Shake my hand.
EDDIE: What?
BECKY: Let’s just shake hands.
EDDIE: Why?
BECKY: Because this is awkward and I don’t know what else to do. Jesus.
(They shake hands. Pause.)
Good luck okay?
(Pause.)
EDDIE: Okay.
(Becky smiles at him a bit, then exits.)
Scene Seven
Much later, the middle of the night.
The room is untouched from before, looking more desolate and decimated than ever. It is mostly dark.
DORIS (From off): Eddie?!
(After a moment, Doris enters. She is wearing a coat over her pajamas, obviously having been woken up out of bed.
She enters the space, sees the food, the torn up wall, the broken speaker. She reaches into her purse and takes out a small can of pepper spray.)
Eddie, are you here?!
(Eddie enters from the kitchen.)
EDDIE: Hi, / Mom—
DORIS: OH—Eddie, for God’s sake, I almost sprayed this pepper spray right into your face! I really almost just did that!
EDDIE: Sorry, I didn’t mean / to—
DORIS: What’s happened, what’s the emergency?! I’m at my wit’s end with you this week, Eddie—what happened in here?! Why is there food everywhere? Have you been drinking?
EDDIE: No, no, / I just—
DORIS: I’ve never been more embarrassed than I was yesterday, you provoking your brother, and everyone looking at us, are we supposed to be here after hours? You realize they could take money out of your paycheck for these damages, and you—. What is the big emergency?!
(Eddie exits into the kitchen, Doris
