Act I: Scene I
Characters
NARRATOR
GRAYSON GOODMAN, Male – mid to late twenties
RENEE, Female – mid forties
PAUL, Male - late teens
WILLOW, Female - mid to late twenties
Setting
Late afternoon in a restaurant in downtown Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.
NARRATOR: Renee has a drink with a friend downtown in the city one day a week. She enters the restaurant and greets him with a hug and kiss on the cheek. Grayson Goodman pulls the bar seat back with a goodness so meek. As he slowly sips on his Grand Marnier, he sits back and converses with Renee. His ears are always open to what she has to say as she tells him what's going on in her life today.
RENEE: Grayson, I'm at the top of my career, but I'm so empty inside I fear.
GRAYSON GOODMAN: (replies looking at Rene) Renee, I admire your tenacity in this life, your award-winning accomplishments have taken you far. To me and many others, Renee, you are a rock star.
NARRATOR: Grayson Goodman always keeps her hoping as he mends her weekly moping and helps her keep on coping as they chat around the bar.
NARRATOR: Then there is Paul, who worked in the mall, always thought he could ball, but never being truthful at all. Paul is walking from the restroom, but trips and takes a fall. Grayson Goodman helps him up and leans him on the wall and then he urges Paul:
GRAYSON GOODMAN: It's time for you to stop lying and learn to stand up tall.
NARRATOR: Grayson sips on his drink, and then he tells Paul:
GRAYSON GOODMAN: It's okay to stop and think. (Grayson gives him a wink.) Be yourself and no one else—or else you will sink.
NARRATOR: As he walks away from Paul, Grayson runs into Willow. He finds out that evening that she's recently became a widow. Her husband died in the war. A 23-year-old mother of four, she can't take it anymore, so she tells him:
WILLOW: Grayson, I'm suicidal. Why did it happen to me? What did I do to deserve this? I miss my family. I miss my husband every day; I miss the father of my kids in every way.
NARRATOR: Grayson was left speechless; he has no clue what to say. He just gives Willow a warm hug, and never touches his Grand Marnier.
(fade to black)
YOU ARE READING
Savor the Moments: Inspired by True Stories
Short Story"In this collection of lyrical stories, Desouvre has created a character - Grayson Goodman - who meets everyday people on his travels. Over a glass of Grand Marnier in a hotel or a neighborhood bar, strangers meet to share their stories and their pr...
