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ZEKE: I'm surprised you two didn't gang up on me, you both being minorities and me just an ordinary guy.

WENDY: After what you just had us do, I wouldn't call you ordinary. And what's this "minority" crap? Who's a minority?

JAKE: How about anyone who is oppressed because of something that makes them different from most people, something that is beyond their control. Do you choose what God you believe in? Or did you have it drilled into you from early childhood so that you wouldn't be able to believe differently, even if you tried? At any rate, whether you choose to be a Christian or not, you still pay the consequences. People look down on you because you're a fuckin' Jesus freak, a Bible thumper, a–

WENDY: For your information, I do choose Jesus Christ as my lord and savior, of my own free will, and I take pride in that. The Bible says you have to be willing to suffer for Him, and I can deal with that. I take responsibility for my choices, which is more than I can say for you. What, you're saying you can't choose who you're gonna sleep with?

JAKE: It's not just about who you sleep with! When will you get that through your head? It's how you feel, and who you feel those things for.

ZEKE: So who do you feel those things for? Anybody?

JAKE: Why should I tell you two?

ZEKE: It might feel good. Cathartic. I mean, you never get to share that stuff, do you?

JAKE: No...You guys gotta swear that this stays between us.

ZEKE: You got it.

WENDY: Promise.

JAKE: Well, there's Gabe Williams.

WENDY: Oh my gosh! Is he a homosexual?

JAKE: No! I don't think so. Would you try the word gay? You sound like my mom. Anyway, I always assume someone's straight.

WENDY: Yeah, that would be wise.

ZEKE: I don't know if it's wise to make assumptions about anything. I mean, you assume, obviously, that because Jake is gay, he would only be attracted to other gay people...Sometimes I think I'm bi.

WENDY: What?!

ZEKE: I mean, I can more than tell when a guy is good looking and it's possible, I think, that I could have sex with a guy if I really wanted to.

WENDY: It wipes out the whole "It's not a choice" theory.

ZEKE: No, it doesn't. Because even though I could probably have sex with a man and even enjoy it...it would have to be the absolute right man, and I don't think there are many. Most of the time, it would just be dissatisfying. But it's an interesting thought. (To Jake) So what do you like in a guy?

WENDY: Zeke!

ZEKE: I'm curious.

JAKE: I like guys who appreciate what God gave them. They don't have any extras. They're not fat or particularly muscular. They don't work out in the gym. They have that boyish look, innocent, childlike–

ZEKE: That sounds like Gabe, all right.

JAKE: Yeah, I...I've been in love with him for a few years. It doesn't go away, even when we don't have the same classes or see each other. The feelings get covered up for awhile only to resurface later. And there's a thoughtfulness that isn't apparent in an infatuation. I want what's best for him and I'm careful in how I think about him. His image seems too sacred to defile.

ZEKE: Do you ever think about telling him how you feel?

JAKE: Of course. But if he's not gay, what's the point? It'll only keep us from being friends. I'm already afraid he could read my mind. I know it's stupid, but I'm afraid he's going to see something in my eyes, and start feeling uncomfortable around me.

WENDY: That would only happen if you weren't careful.

JAKE: I'm tired of being careful. If I'm with him and I don't tell him how I feel, I'll go crazy.

WENDY: Can't you just see him as a friend, not someone you want to have sex with?

JAKE: I don't know. I want to be able to. If only you could see him the way I do. He's so beautiful. In every way. How many times I've lied in bed just... I visualize what it would be like if we...

WENDY: You sexually fantasize about him? If you really love him, you should pray for him. Do you know if he's a Christian?

JAKE: I wish I could put faith before passion, but I can't. I wish I could put you in my shoes for a day to see what it feels like, but I can't. I need him so much, but I'm too afraid to reach out. So I fantasize as some fucked up compensation, and then...But if what you say is true, God could damn him to hell and me too. Because if he actually was gay and we loved each other, that would be wrong for some reason. I believe in Jesus. I believe He's a real person up there, because I talk to Him now and then. I say, "Why, Lord? I'm in love, I just want love..Why do I love if I can't? Why am I even here?"

WENDY: Somewhere in the world, there's a girl who's going to love you that way.

JAKE: I'm not attracted to girls. I don't know why, and I don't care about the cause. Physically, I like guys, and you can't explain that away.

(SOUND: the phone rings. ZEKE gets up to answer it.)

ZEKE: Hello. Will you please stop calling here? Or am I going have to start screening all my goddamn phone calls? Maybe I'll just call the police, how about that?

(WENDY gets up and grabs the phone.)

WENDY: I would rather be friends with a gay man or anyone else for that matter than a bigot. And I'll tell you something else, the Word says judge not lest you be judged. Keep this up and you'll be harassing your way straight to hell.

(WENDY hangs up the phone.)

ZEKE: Bravo!

JAKE (Tentatively): Thanks.

ZEKE: You know, I feel like we're making these true confessions here, and I haven't said much about myself.

JAKE: Well, that's okay. It's not necessary.

ZEKE: Yeah it is. You two have been in the hot seat. I might as well... (Another pause) I used to have several acquaintances but no friends. Down in Ashland where I used to live. I could never skim the surface, cruise the outer layer, wade the shallow end. Nobody talks like we're talking now. It's the goddamn pep rally, did you see the new Van Damme flick. Somehow I just couldn't relate, couldn't find my way "in" to a conversation. I'm not sure why, I could only ever communicate by some artistic means. People said I was ugly. I believed it. Couldn't accept I was just different. I took people's shit every day, all day, "Hey Zeke, can I be your friend?" Fuck you! Why couldn't I just say "Fuck you?" "You wanna come to my house and have peanut butter sandwiches and grape juice? And if you don't like grape juice, there's orange juice. We can play G.I. Joes. Then we can go to bed. But you'll have to watch out for Jim, he sometimes goes poopie in bed." (Laughing) Stupid, huh? But at the time, those words sort of stung. Don't ask me why.

(ZEKE goes to the shelf and grabs his darts. He starts to throw the darts at the dart board. As the conversation progresses, his energy in the activity increases.)

ZEKE: I'm not so bitter about it anymore. I mean, if you belong to that clique, that's just what you do. You are required to stand there, smoke a cigarette, laugh at others, have your orgies and pretend you're cool. Talk about your lurid sexual back-of-the-bus encounters and your peach Schnapps and try your damnedest not to give a shit about anything that matters. (Pause.) Fuck it. You know, it's okay to have friends. But why do people have to be so damn choosy? I've never been able to choose my friends. Never had that luxury. Why can't everyone fit in and be equal? Why can't we share and give of ourselves? Am I making sense? Or am I speaking in some foreign fucking language?

JAKE: I'm with you, man. How did you break free from your isolation?

ZEKE: By moving up here. I mean, my dad got transferred. An act of God. No way I could start over and build a new image for myself down there. When we moved I decided it was time to start that band I'd always wanted. I didn't have any musical knowledge or skill, just inspiration. I needed a way to let go of the pain of rejection and resentment. The band's really helped me, not just with the way people see me, but in the way I see myself.

WENDY: Wait, wait, I'm confused. I've seen you guys perform, and...

ZEKE: What?

WENDY: Well, in my humble opinion...I mean, it just seems to me that you don't care what people think about you at all. Unless "freak" is the image you want to project.

ZEKE: No, what I want to project is the self confidence to express what's inside of me. Sometimes it's nice and pretty, sometimes it's not. But it's always a great feeling to let it out. You should try it some time. You'd be surprised at how good you feel once you learn to loosen up a little.

WENDY (Pause): Loosen up, huh? Is that the answer for me? You seem to know everything. I guess I should give up all I believe in so I can dance around like a lunatic and howl at the moon and impress everybody. Forget that the master of the house is coming back soon. Fall asleep and miss the train. Just so the world won't hate me like the world hates all Christians because we don't think self-indulgence for a few years is worth eternity in hell. People don't want to hear the truth. They don't see God's laws in the context of His vast love because they won't listen long enough for me to get to that. They'll believe there's a god and think that's enough. But it's stupid because you have to be specific if you're going to get anywhere in a religion; you have to pick one. But no, we can't do that. That requires commitment. We're too busy drinking and smoking and playing and fucking. There can be no order, only chaos. And anything worth doing must be sinful, which is why I can never go through a day, an hour, or even a second without being tempted by some hellish thing that's okay for everyone else to do. Do you ever think I might just want to do it too? But I can't or else I would be a hypocrite. And oh boy, you would all love to crucify me then, wouldn't you!

ZEKE: No. I wouldn't. I don't have an ax to grind. But if you could just listen... for moment...without planning what you're going to say next. Do you think, maybe, that your experience might be limited to some extent? That the answers to some things might not be found in church? That everything's not black and white.

WENDY: I know what I believe.

ZEKE: Yes you do, and I respect that. But your beliefs are not all-encompassing. Are they?

WENDY: What do you mean?

ZEKE: I mean, do you have any beliefs about slam dancing?

WENDY: I guess it depends.

ZEKE: Okay, well, let's examine this for a moment. If I put on some loud rock music, which you can't judge cos you don't know what they're saying, but if I put on some music and started dancing around the room in reckless abandon, is that bad?

WENDY: Oh I don't know.

ZEKE: Well, let's see.

(ZEKE turns on a tape. SOUND: a very loud burst of rock music, but more conventional than the ones before. ZEKE dances around the room wildly, occasionally pushing JAKE and WENDY aside and to the floor. He jumps around on the bed, knocks things off shelves, and screams senseless things into the air. He grabs JAKE and starts to dance with him. He pulls him on the bed and dances with him awhile. Then they jump to the floor and dance around WENDY, pick her up, run around in circles, holding her in the air, then throw her on the bed. Then they are all on the floor dancing until the music stops, and they collapse onto the floor.)

WENDY: You put something in the drinks.

ZEKE: It's possible. I don't remember.

(SOUND: loud BANGING on the door, rocks thrown against the outside wall, shouting.)

SCOTT (OFFSTAGE): Hey Jake, come out and suck my dick, you little faggot.

ROBBY (OFFSTAGE): "Come out! " Get it? Come out!

(ZEKE gets up and grabs a baseball bat, and exits.)

SCOTT (OFFSTAGE): Fuckin cocksucker.

ZEKE (OFFSTAGE): What do you think you're doing? Get the fuck out of here. Now!

SCOTT (OFFSTAGE): Oh I'm scared.

ROBBY (OFFSTAGE): Don't hurt me please. Don't rape me.

(SOUND: Fighting. A body thrown against the wall. Grunts and groans.)

SCOTT (OFFSTAGE): What's wrong with you?

ROBBY (OFFSTAGE): We're just having fun. It doesn't have anything to do with you.

SCOTT (OFFSTAGE): It's just the little queer boy--

ZEKE (OFFSTAGE): I'M GONNA FUCKING KILL YOU, NOW GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE!

(SOUND: a person's wind being taken out of him by a blow to the stomach from a baseball bat.)

SCOTT (OFFSTAGE): What the fuck are you doing? Stop it. (A beat, then a painful--) Hey, ow! Goddamnit!

ROBBY (OFFSTAGE): Come on. What a fuckin' psycho.

SCOTT (OFFSTAGE): No, I'm gonna beat the shit out of–

ROBBY (OFFSTAGE): Come on, Scott. (Urgent, commanding) Come on!

(SOUND: Silence..............................)

(ZEKE comes in. He is exhausted.)

WENDY: Are you alright?

ZEKE: I will be...Just gimme a minute.

JAKE (Pause.): I've never had a night quite like this.

WENDY: That is one thing which we have in common.

JAKE (To Wendy.): Hey, that's kinda cool, isn't it? Something in common. I bet if given the chance, we could find lots of things...

WENDY (Shaking her head): I can't come here again. I let go of something tonight I shouldn't have.

ZEKE: What do you mean? Just because we're different doesn't mean we can't be friends.

WENDY: Do you know what's happening tomorrow?

ZEKE: No.

WENDY: Neither do I. But I might disappear with every other Christian. Thoughts of the Rapture should make me happy, but they don't. Because I look at you and...

ZEKE: Let me live my own life. And him too.

WENDY: I had a friend a couple years ago. You may have known him...Mike Clark?

(Jake shakes his head.)

WENDY: The basis of our friendship was that we agreed to disagree, especially on matters of faith. So I didn't do anything. And he was in a car accident, and he uh...I let him just slide through life without giving him what he needed.

ZEKE: You can't force someone to believe. You can't make choices for people.

WENDY: That's true. But I can make choices for myself. I can choose who I care about. (Pause.) We're too different. Look...I liked your music tonight. And I don't want to. I don't want to live the kind of life you live, or if I did, I can't. It's better to just stay away. (A beat): Well...I've got to get home. I'm tired. Who wouldn't be after spending the evening here?

ZEKE: I'll let you go now. I guess.

WENDY (To Jake.): You want a ride?

JAKE: No, thanks. I actually came here to listen to a song he wrote for me.

WENDY: Oh. Another song.

(WENDY heads for the door, then stops and turns to them.)

WENDY: I'm glad I got a chance to get to know you guys.

ZEKE (Nodding): Yeah...

JAKE: Me too.

WENDY: Well, goodnight.

ZEKE: Goodnight.

JAKE: See you at school.

(WENDY exits.)

ZEKE: I never thought that would happen. Someone can't be friends with me because I'm too evil.

JAKE: We both are.

ZEKE: Do your parents know?

JAKE: They've got to by now. I was there before to answer any nasty phone calls, but...By now, some major damage has definitely been done. That's why I hesitated to come over. But I knew it had to come out sometime. Might as well let the assholes do it for me.

ZEKE: Would you like to sleep here tonight?

JAKE: Really?

ZEKE: Sure.

JAKE: Um...Where would I sleep?

(ZEKE motions to the bed.)

JAKE: Oh, where would you sleep?

(ZEKE motions to the bed.)

JAKE: Um, when you said you were bi–

ZEKE (Laughing): No, no. We're gonna sleep...I just thought you might wanna be close to somebody. You don't have to–

JAKE: Oh, I will. Yeah, that's cool. (Shyly) You're kinda cute. What if I wanted to touch you?

ZEKE: I guess it depends on where...I think human affection is basically a good thing.

JAKE: Well, I guess I'll call home...That should be fun. I think I'll use the one in the other room.

ZEKE: Alright.

(JAKE exits, leaving ZEKE alone in the room. He bows his head and starts to pray. Blackout.)

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