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Submitted into Contest #86 in response to: Write a story where flowers play a central role.... view prompt

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High School Gay Coming of Age

Episode 1

At rise: in ALICE'S  room. Day. ALICE'S mother LISA comes home from a hard day at work with chinese food. 

Sign cue: 5:40 PM

LISA enters center stage right 

LISA 

ALICE, honey are you okay? 

LISA walks into the center stage. 

(LISA then spots ALICE)

Sign cue: ALICE hung herself 

LISA 

No! No! Not my baby! 

LISA runs to stage down stage left 

(LISA Drops holding ALICE, LISA is crying)

LISA 

Baby it’s going to be okay! Stay with me. 

(LISA checks ALICE'S pulse) 

Blackout 

Episode 2

At rise: in ALICE'S room. Day. ALICE comes running into her room from school. 

Sign Cue: 3:30 PM

ALICE enters center stage right 

 (ALICE goes to sit on her bed and checks the phone. ALICE reads mean posts about her on instagram) 

ALICE 

What the Fuck! It's not fair. This can't be happening again. 

(ALICE cries on the bed) 

Episode 3

At rise: ALICE'S room. Day. ALICE is crying on her bed. 

Sign cue: 3:35 PM

(ALICE looks at her phone, then remembers her morning at school) 

Sign cue: Flashback to ALICE'S high school, at 10:00 AM 

ALICES enters downstage left to center stage

Sfx. Help, I have done it again

I have been here many times before

Hurt myself again today

And, the worst part is there's no-one else to blame

(ALICE walks down the hallway and everyone is staring at her when she walks her classroom) 

Sfx. ends 

ALICE

Freezeframe begins

(turns to the audience) 

When I walked into the room all eyes were on me. I went to go to my seat but before I  could make it there people threw paper at me and started calling me names. People called me by my birth name, Alex. I don't know how they found out. I moved schools to escape this and accept who I am. Do you think one of my so-called old best friends told someone here? But how did they find me? This can't be happening to me again. 

(ALICE runs out of the room)

Freezeframe ends

Sign cue: End of Flashback, Back at ALICE'S home, 3:45 PM 

Episode 4

At rise: ALICE'S room. Day. ALICE is pacing around her room. 

Sign Cue: 4:00 PM

ALICE is pacing back and forth from down stage left to down stage right

ALICE 

Why does this keep happening to me?

(ALICE falls on the floor in tears) 

Sign Cue: Flashback to ALICE'S high school, at 12:30 PM 

ALICE enters down stage left to center stage 

(ALICE goes to walk to a table to eat her lunch when some bullies push her to the floor) 

BULLYS 

What kind of freak are you? Are you a boy or a girl? 

OTHER BULLY

It's a he. It has a penis. 

BULLY 

Let's check. 

Sfx. Be my friend, hold me

Wrap me up, enfold me

I am small and needy

Warm me up and breathe me

(The bullies try to take off ALICE'S pants. Alice resists and fights back. When they can't take them off they punch ALICE in the face. The Bullies leave ALICE there crying) 

Sfx. ends. 

Sign Cue: End of flashback, Back in ALICE'S room, At 4:20 PM 

(ALICE is on the floor crying just like back in the flashback. ALICE makes it to her closet) 

Episode 5

At rise, ALICE'S room. Day. ALICE is in her closet finding a dress then putting it on her bed. 

Sign Cue: 4:30 PM 

ALICE walks from center stage to center stage left.  

(ALICE goes into her closet again to get a belt, ALICE hangs the belt over a closet rod. ALICE then looks at her phone, ALICE thinks about the bullies) 

Sign cue: outside of ALICE'S high school, 3:05 PM 

ALICE enters from center stage right to center stage

(ALICE stops when she hears people calling after her) 

BULLY 

Hey freak wait up we wanna talk to you.

(ALICE tries to get away when the bullies catch her. )

OTHER BULLY

Hey idiot! Stop, we just wanna see if you have a dick. What are you? 

(ALICE tries to get out of their grasp ) 

ALICE 

Leave me alone please! I didn't do anything to you.

 (ALICE yells at the bullies) 

BULLY

Oh but you did. You can't just go around lying to everyone about what you are. You say you are a girl but you are a guy. What kind of freak are you?

ALICE 

I am a girl. Just leave me alone please. 

Sfx. Ouch I have lost myself again

Lost myself and I am nowhere to be found

Yeah I think that I might break

Lost myself again and I feel unsafe

 (ALICE gets away from their grasp and starts walking away from them. ALICE starts walking home) 

(The BULLIES speed up) 

(ALICE starts running, ALICE makes it home safe and the BULLIES leave her alone) 

Sfx. ends. 

Sign cue: End of flashback, back in ALICE'S room, at 4:55 PM 

ALICE take out her phone and calls her mom

ALICE 

Sfx. Ring

Mom please pick up, I need you. 

Sfx. Ring

Please Mom 

(ALICE is crying)

Sfx. Ring

OPERATOR 

You have reached the voicemail box of 

LISA

LISA BLUNT

OPERATOR 

Please leave a message after the beep

Sfx. beep 

Episode 6 

At rise: ALICE'S room. Day.  ALICE hangs up the phone. 

Sign Cue: 5:00 PM

Sfx. Be my friend, hold me

Wrap me up, enfold me

I am small and needy

Warm me up and breathe me

Be my friend, hold me

Wrap me up, enfold me

I am small and needy

Warm me up and breathe me

ALICE walks center stage down

ALICE sits down at her desk and starts writing. 

Sign cue: 15 minutes later,  5:15 PM 

Sfx. ends. 

ALICE 

(turns to the audience) 

Dear those who care, 

I couldn't take it anymore. Being in my own body has been a challenge that no one should face. I hate that I was born a boy but am truly a girl. I hate that people can't see me for me. I hate myself, I hate how others see me. I can't go on living like this anymore. People make fun of me for just being who I am. I hate this world and I hate the people in it. I can't take the beating anymore, I feel as if the world would be better without me. Without someone to challenge their own beliefs. Everyone would be happier without me. I'm just a burden to those who do care. I can't take down the people I love with me. They must be free, something I never was. I love you mom, more than you think. Please don't hate me or the ones who pushed me throw the breaking point. Just no none of this is your fault. It's no one's fault, I just couldn't go on with the hate in my heart anymore. So for that i say my goodbyes. I LOVE YOU.

Sign Cue: 5:20 PM 

(ALICE puts the note in an envelope and writes “To the ones who I loved”.)

EPISODE 7

At rise, ALICE'S room. Day. ALICE gets up from the chair and puts the note on the bed. 

Sign cue: 5:25 PM 

ALICE from center stage up to center stage left

Sfx. Help, I have done it again

I have been here many times before

Hurt myself again today

And, the worst part is there's no-one else to blame

Sign Cue: 5:26PM 

Sfx. Be my friend, hold me

Wrap me up, enfold me

I am small and needy

Warm me up and breathe me

SIgn Cue: 5:27 PM

Sfx. Ouch I have lost myself again

Lost myself and I am nowhere to be found

Yeah I think that I might break

Lost myself again and I feel unsafe

Sign cue: 5:28 PM 

Sfx. Be my friend, hold me

Wrap me up, enfold me

I am small and needy

Warm me up and breathe me

Be my friend, hold me

Wrap me up, enfold me

I am small and needy

Warm me up and breathe me

Sign cue: 5:29 PM

(ALICE walks into the closet)

Sign cue: 5:30 PM

NARRATOR

In the US, 1 in 5 students ages 12-18 has been bullied during the school year. Approximately 160,000 teens have skipped school because of bullying. 

Sign cue: 5:31 PM 

(ALICE puts her chair under the belt she has tied around the closet rod) 

Sign cue: 5:32 PM

NARRATOR 

The most commonly reported type of bullying is verbal harassment (79%), followed by social harassment (50%), physical bullying (29%), and cyberbullying (25%).

Sign cue: 3:33 PM

(ALICE puts her hand on the belt) 

Sign cue: 3:34 PM

NARRATOR 

70% of school staff have seen bullying. 62% witnessed bullying two or more times in the last month, and 41% witness bullying once a week or more 

Sign cue: 3:35 PM

(ALICE puts the belt around her neck) 

Sign cue: 3:36 PM

NARRATOR 

42% percent of students who reported being bullied at school indicated that the bullying was related to at least one of the following characteristics: physical appearance (30%), race (10%), gender (8%), disability (7%), ethnicity (7%), religion (5%), and sexual orientation (4%)

Sign cue: 3:37 PM

(ALICE kicks the chair from under her) 

Sign cue: 3:38 PM

NARRATOR 

Unconsciousness in cases of accidental asphyxia can occur within 1 minute. Loss of consciousness results from critical hypoxia, when arterial oxygen saturation is less than 60%. "At oxygen concentrations [in air] of 4 to 6%, there is loss of consciousness in 40 seconds and death within a few minutes".

Sign cue: 3:39 PM 

NARRATOR 

It only takes a minute or two for you to lose your life. Two minutes for your soul to leave everyone you love. Bullying makes people lose a fight with themselves on whether they are worth it or not. Think before you do something that can potentially kill another living soul. Think before you speak. 

Fadeout 

March 23, 2021 16:49

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