Hopeless
Transcript: BETH. She's upstairs getting ready for her date night. So's dad. You should stay home tonight and we could work on- Scene 2 CHARLIE. Hey, B. Where's mom? 2 weeks later. Beth sits on her bed in the girls' shared bedroom, staring into space as she breathes shallowly and hugs herself. She seems completely opposite of herself from just a month ago. End Scene 3 BETH. (putting down homework, getting up to greet her) Hey, Char. Welcome back, love. CHARLIE. I'm glad you didn't. CHARLIE. (enters from the door on SL, Beth starts and picks up a text book that was previously sitting, unused, on her bed) Hey, B. What's shakin', bacon? BETH. (fighting to keep her voice calm) Oh, I'm fine. Studying a little bit for Schumer's History of the Americas test tomorrow. CHARLIE. (plops onto the bed next to her) Is that so? What's America got to do with...mating practices among meerkats? BETH. (slams the book shut, laughing weakly) i guess i was trying to distract my physical body with something so I could let my thoughts run away with the wind. CHARLIE. Huh. That sounds kind of deep. Want a burrito? I'm going to Rosa's Bocce party, and she said her mom's cooking for everyone. They're mexican, by the way. I love Mexican food. I mean, who// doesn't but- BETH. What? You're leaving? CHARLIE. Well, yeah. BETH. But...but you promised Mom you would stay home tonight. You swore you wouldn't go out tonight. CHARLIE. Oh, let's not go back to that. Really, what's the big deal? BETH. When you give someone your word, that usually means you stay true to the deal. CHARLIE. (gets up to leave) Do you like nachos? I'll bring you nachos. BETH. Charlotte! CHARLIE. Bethany! Look, it'll be fine. I'll be back by midnight, which is when Mom and Dad are supposed to be home. You won't have to lie for me. Why don't you call what's-her-face...? BETH. (suddenly withdrawn) You mean Emily? We're not friends anymore. CHARLIE. Oh. Sorry? BETH. Nope. I guess you could say she'd never been a real friend. Go To Rosa's. I'll see you... CHARLIE. Tonight? BETH. (distracted) Oh. Yeah. When you get home. CHARLIE. (kisses Beth's cheek) Yep. Bye, sister. BETH. Bye. Charlie exits the room, and then the house. Immediately after, Beth stands and goes to her desk, where she opens a drawer and withdraws a small orange bottle. It is her father's leg pain prescription. She pours a large amount of pills onto her open palm, then clutches them in a fist. For a minute she returns back to the shallow breaths and hugs herself. Then, she stares at her fist before stuffing as many pills as she can into her mouth, swallowing. Hopeless CHARLIE. Sure. Thanks for keeping quiet. I'm going to bed. BETH. I wish I was. I did it for a reason. Scene 4 CHARLIE. throws backpack down) Who said I was leaving? Scene 1 A small hospital room. A hospital bed is placed in the middle of the stage with two chairs placed on either side of it. Lights up. A girl lies in the bed, sleeping fitfully as another holds her hand, sitting in the closest chair from SL. BETH. (sits back down to gather her school things) It's Wednesday night. You always leave at exactly 1:00 AM on a Wednesday night. Well, technically Thursday, but I'm not trying to get technical. CHARLIE. Look, B. I'm staying home tonight. You are going to work on whatever assignment to keep up your Little Miss Perfect gig. You're also not going to tell anyone that you've seen me. Okay? BETH. (smiling angelically) I wouldn't dream of outing you, Char. End Scene 2 BETH. (startling awake, calls out intelligibly) CHARLIE. Why did you try to end your life? I'm very curious to see what you're going to surprise me with. BETH. My reason is my own, Charlie. Do you want to tell me why you weren't even home when you swore to mom you wouldn't leave? No? I thought not. End. BETH. Goodnight... BETH. So are you. Beth's 18 year old sister and best friend. Not only is Charlie not good at anything that Beth does, their parents are getting a divorce and neither parent wants her to come with them. Charlie couldn't care less. Three months ago. The set has been changed to look like a cozy living room. Beth sits on the couch working on homework. It is already late into the evening, and Charlie finally walks into the room, having obviously just gotten home. a charming 17 year old girl. Beth is good in sports, academics, and is the President of the French Honors Society at her school. She also hates her life. Charlie Scene 3 BETH. (holding cellphone and sitting with her laptop) Yeah, that's great. Practice is tomorrow at 4, right? I can do that. Don't worry, you can borrow my extra spanx. It's totally cool. You know what, I'm going to finish this essay for Schumer. Yep, and my sister's sleeping; I don't want to be rude. I'll talk to you tomorrow. Yeah. Alright. Goodnight. (hanging up and looking over at Charlie) Really. Be glad I love you. CHARLIE. Love you, too. BETH. (startled) I thought you were asleep. CHARLIE. I was, but because I have the ears of a hawk, I heard you