(An empty school theatre. JESS stands center-stage, dressed plainly in black, with brightly coloured hair. ALEX enters, walking up the aisle. JESS notices him, but ignores his approach.)
JESS:
These violent delights have violent ends. And in their triumph die, like fire and powder; Which as they kiss... consume.
ALEX:
Romeo and Juliet, act two. You always hated theatre.
JESS:
I still do. Nothing's changed.
ALEX:
So why are you here?
JESS:
The festival's on.
ALEX:
(Sighs.) I know. Why are you in here? Where's Will? Aren't you two normally inseparable?
JESS:
(Jumps down from the stage.) He's busy with the festival.
ALEX:
So, are you just going to leave without him? Not staying for the rest of the day?
JESS:
Unless you have a problem with it. Are you coming, or not?
ALEX:
Yeah, okay.
(They exit the theatre, heading into a corridor that is lined with brightly colored banners. WILL is chatting with people near a stall, seemingly oblivious to their entrance. JESS and ALEX continue to walk, in the opposite direction.)
ALEX:
Do you want to... wait for him? It looks like he's finished.
JESS:
No, not really.
ALEX:
Well, I'm going to go back--
JESS:
He can meet us at the gates, if he's ready to leave. It's too crowded to stay in here.
ALEX:
(Grabs JESS'S arm.) Would you just stop for a moment? What's up?
JESS:
It's nothing, alright?
ALEX:
Are you two fighting again?
JESS:
Just drop it!
ALEX:
I'm not dropping it! What is it with you two? I shouldn't have to ask daily if you're still bloody well talking to each other!
JESS:
If it irritates you that much, then go get some new friends!
(WILL walks up to them, standing behind JESS)
WILL:
Hey, Jess... Alex. How are things?
JESS:
Hi, Will.
WILL:
I didn't see you at the performance. Where were you guys?
JESS:
Sorry. We were busy.
ALEX:
Jess was busy. I forgot. Sorry, man.
WILL:
It's alright.
JESS:
I'm out of here. Catch you later.
(JESS exits through the main doors, leaving WILL and ALEX standing in the hallway.)
ALEX:
Found her in the theatre. What's wrong with her?
WILL:
I... dunno. She's been acting strange since yesterday -- came by my place for like, ten minutes and was totally wigging out. Maybe she's into drugs or something.
ALEX:
Maybe. Follow her?
(WILL and ALEX walk out the doors too, nearly tripping over JESS’S feet. She sits hidden behind a pillar at the base of the stairs, badly beaten copy of 'Romeo and Juliet' in her hands.)
WILL:
Hey, Jess? You okay?
JESS:
(Standing up) Jesus Christ! I left for a reason! Do either of you understand what it means when someone says they’d rather be left alone?!
ALEX:
Maybe if you actually told us what was wrong we’d-
JESS:
It’s none of your business!
WILL:
Can we all just calm down?
JESS:
Just stay out of this! Both of you!
WILL:
Just tell us what’s wrong with you! We’re friends, right? We’re allowed to be worried when you start acting like this!
JESS:
Acting like what?! Like I’m scared? Upset? Worried? Jesus, do neither of you idiots understand anything?!
ALEX:
Just tell us what the hell is wrong already!
JESS:
(Stands up, leaving book on ground and looking angry.) You really wanna know? Fine. Nothing makes me feel more fantastic than coming home and finding Mum on the phone to the morgue because Dad finally died.
ALEX:
Oh, god.
WILL:
Jess, if we’d known we would’ve-
JESS:
Save your breath. I’m out of here.
(JESS runs off down the stairs, leaving ALEX and WILL standing together on the steps. WILL reaches down, and picks up the book, closing it.)
ALEX:
Shit, man. Should we go after her? Call her mum? Call someone?
WILL:
There is thy gold, worse poison to men's souls, doing more murders in this loathsome world, than these poor compounds...
Sunday, November 30, 2008
The Frame
We see the world through a frame
Pure and bright
Awash in faded hues of grey
Starry nights
Celebrated with oil and paint
Loved by bristle and sponge
We see the world through a frame
Told what to think
Told to feel everything
Blissful nothingness
Emptiness of the soul
Computed by the beliefs of others
We see the world through a frame
Governed by none
Loved by all
Sunlit skies
Celebrated with love and warmth
Envied by all
We see the world through a frame
Wooden panels protecting us
Keeping us from the knowledge
Fighting for peace
Hating for love
Killing for the freedom of our souls
We see the world through a frame
Pure and bright.
Pure and bright
Awash in faded hues of grey
Starry nights
Celebrated with oil and paint
Loved by bristle and sponge
We see the world through a frame
Told what to think
Told to feel everything
Blissful nothingness
Emptiness of the soul
Computed by the beliefs of others
We see the world through a frame
Governed by none
Loved by all
Sunlit skies
Celebrated with love and warmth
Envied by all
We see the world through a frame
Wooden panels protecting us
Keeping us from the knowledge
Fighting for peace
Hating for love
Killing for the freedom of our souls
We see the world through a frame
Pure and bright.
Eye-to-eye
It's such a shame;
We can never see eye-to-eye,
As, unfortunately,
You're taller than I am.
Worsening matters further,
I would appear,
That you have no idea whatsoever,
About what's going on.
You're expecting me to
Stay perfectly happy,
When everything around me has
Fallen to the ground.
Just help me with the pieces,
Those shards I can't reach.
It won't hurt you,
I promise.
It'll only hurt me,
Because that's my life,
Lying uselessly in your hands,
Taking up space.
Sorry to waste your time again,
I know you have other,
More important
People to talk to.
But for once,
Could you please,
Realise that I actually exist?
Thanks.
We can never see eye-to-eye,
As, unfortunately,
You're taller than I am.
Worsening matters further,
I would appear,
That you have no idea whatsoever,
About what's going on.
You're expecting me to
Stay perfectly happy,
When everything around me has
Fallen to the ground.
Just help me with the pieces,
Those shards I can't reach.
It won't hurt you,
I promise.
It'll only hurt me,
Because that's my life,
Lying uselessly in your hands,
Taking up space.
Sorry to waste your time again,
I know you have other,
More important
People to talk to.
But for once,
Could you please,
Realise that I actually exist?
Thanks.
Wouldn't, Shouldn't.
lean down and touch me; i will show you
all the scars and scrapes,
the bruises and knobbly knees
from someone who isn't the one
you were looking for.
this is from the time my skin itched,
dancing across muscle
and bone, flying across skin as i
tried to cut it out and failed.
i told you once and you wavered,
harsh words imprinted on stupid
screens; telling me "it's okay, we
love you, remember that" and i knew
you were a liar.
you can't love someone who is
bigger and stupider than you will
ever be; even if you claimed to
once.
let's just put it simply; i want you
to just understand that this doesn't
go away like a bruise; fade like a scar
or pass like a cloud. it is real and scary
and scarring.
if you want to help; go ahead and listen
or fabricate a lie to say you couldn't shouldn't
wouldn't be able to make it.
i wouldn't blame you.
all the scars and scrapes,
the bruises and knobbly knees
from someone who isn't the one
you were looking for.
this is from the time my skin itched,
dancing across muscle
and bone, flying across skin as i
tried to cut it out and failed.
i told you once and you wavered,
harsh words imprinted on stupid
screens; telling me "it's okay, we
love you, remember that" and i knew
you were a liar.
you can't love someone who is
bigger and stupider than you will
ever be; even if you claimed to
once.
let's just put it simply; i want you
to just understand that this doesn't
go away like a bruise; fade like a scar
or pass like a cloud. it is real and scary
and scarring.
if you want to help; go ahead and listen
or fabricate a lie to say you couldn't shouldn't
wouldn't be able to make it.
i wouldn't blame you.
icarus and helios
together, my love, we could overtake
darkness, live life as it should always be,
and see our own dawn. but you shall wake,
alone, as I have fallen to the sea,
swirling in your love and light, caught up by
thoughts of you and your gleaming, golden hair
instead of waking with you, as I try
to stay forever, but i am not there,
forever lost in waves, drifting away
from you. we shall not speak again, my love
for now I am gone, with nothing to say,
save farewell. but know this; that i have loved
well, i loved my sky and heavens, and you
my sun, my love and my light, loved me too.
darkness, live life as it should always be,
and see our own dawn. but you shall wake,
alone, as I have fallen to the sea,
swirling in your love and light, caught up by
thoughts of you and your gleaming, golden hair
instead of waking with you, as I try
to stay forever, but i am not there,
forever lost in waves, drifting away
from you. we shall not speak again, my love
for now I am gone, with nothing to say,
save farewell. but know this; that i have loved
well, i loved my sky and heavens, and you
my sun, my love and my light, loved me too.
Daedalus and Icarus
“Icarus fell because he wanted something that was bigger than he was. He tried to reach his sun because that’s what he wanted. I don’t want to be Icarus, Nadia. I can’t have you and my job, because you’re so much bigger than that. My number’s there if you need me.”
He slid his hands into his pocket, looking around the park. Nadia stood quickly, hands trembling as she held the envelope to her chest. The wind was icy against her face, and she looked down, bracing herself against the cold. Matt relaxed, looking up the path he was about to walk down.
“I’ll come back if you call,” he promised, dragging his bag back onto his shoulder. “Just leave a blank message and I’ll know who it is, I swear.”
He slid his hands into his pocket, looking around the park. Nadia stood quickly, hands trembling as she held the envelope to her chest. The wind was icy against her face, and she looked down, bracing herself against the cold. Matt relaxed, looking up the path he was about to walk down.
“I’ll come back if you call,” he promised, dragging his bag back onto his shoulder. “Just leave a blank message and I’ll know who it is, I swear.”
Concise.
This actually got published: In "Ninety-Nine: The Best Short Writing of Tasmanian Secondary College Students."
He just wishes the rain would stop.
They've been standing here for hours, like bloody penguins in their suits, sobbing like it's the end of the world.
They're pathetic, he thinks bitterly, as he flicks the end of his cigarette, watching the ash disolve into nothing as it's hit by the rain. The rookie glares at him through red-ringed eyes, and he looks back down, staring blankly at the grave of their once-boss.
The rain beats down heavier than before, plastering his hair to the side of his neck, as he silently contemplates the dry-cleaning bill for his suit.
He just wishes the rain would stop.
They've been standing here for hours, like bloody penguins in their suits, sobbing like it's the end of the world.
They're pathetic, he thinks bitterly, as he flicks the end of his cigarette, watching the ash disolve into nothing as it's hit by the rain. The rookie glares at him through red-ringed eyes, and he looks back down, staring blankly at the grave of their once-boss.
The rain beats down heavier than before, plastering his hair to the side of his neck, as he silently contemplates the dry-cleaning bill for his suit.
Magical Mystical Statue of Doom.
She set the figure down on the counter gently, groping through her bag for her wallet as the shopkeeper came to the counter, wiping his big hands on a cloth.
"How much?"
He looked over at her, blankly. "You're the first person in ten years to take interest in that old thing, kid. Why you want it?"
"Erm," She glanced up, perplexed. "I... don't actually know."
"It's yours, then."
"Pardon?"
He laughed. "Ten years ain't done that thing any favors. 'Sides, I'm starting to think it's cursed or something."
She cocked an eyebrow, and he sighed. "Look, last guy that wanted that thing was a collector. Before that... nothin'. Not even the people who made the thing wanted to keep it. Frankly, I don't want it in my shop. I'd rather it was with someone who wanted it."
"But I--"
"Kid," he started, setting his hands down on the counter. "I don't believe in them stories that the guys who sell these tell, but I think it chose you. For what, I dunno. Just take it -- 'Sworthless to me, anyway."
The girl nodded her thanks, grabbing the statue and shoving it back into her bag, before walking out.
"How much?"
He looked over at her, blankly. "You're the first person in ten years to take interest in that old thing, kid. Why you want it?"
"Erm," She glanced up, perplexed. "I... don't actually know."
"It's yours, then."
"Pardon?"
He laughed. "Ten years ain't done that thing any favors. 'Sides, I'm starting to think it's cursed or something."
She cocked an eyebrow, and he sighed. "Look, last guy that wanted that thing was a collector. Before that... nothin'. Not even the people who made the thing wanted to keep it. Frankly, I don't want it in my shop. I'd rather it was with someone who wanted it."
"But I--"
"Kid," he started, setting his hands down on the counter. "I don't believe in them stories that the guys who sell these tell, but I think it chose you. For what, I dunno. Just take it -- 'Sworthless to me, anyway."
The girl nodded her thanks, grabbing the statue and shoving it back into her bag, before walking out.
Origin.
I am such a follower.
Hi, I'm Kaya. 16, living in Tasmania, and possibly the only one of my friends who fails to see the beauty in math. I aspire to be a teacher, although being able to write for a living would be the best thing ever.
I created this because of the giant bandwagon, and because I wanted somewhere to write that won't interrupt my other journal. I don't know if this will be abandoned or not, but so far? I doubt it.
I'm going to (hopefully) be posting snippets of writing, dialogue -- anything to make me write faster, or better. I am (in no sense of the word) brilliant at writing -- I am sixteen, after all, and still rather inexperienced. However, I will try anything once.
Peace out.
-K.
Hi, I'm Kaya. 16, living in Tasmania, and possibly the only one of my friends who fails to see the beauty in math. I aspire to be a teacher, although being able to write for a living would be the best thing ever.
I created this because of the giant bandwagon, and because I wanted somewhere to write that won't interrupt my other journal. I don't know if this will be abandoned or not, but so far? I doubt it.
I'm going to (hopefully) be posting snippets of writing, dialogue -- anything to make me write faster, or better. I am (in no sense of the word) brilliant at writing -- I am sixteen, after all, and still rather inexperienced. However, I will try anything once.
Peace out.
-K.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
