Sandwiches By The Geese

Exterior suburban house. The Roberts’ house. Quiet street. Nighttime, Christmas Eve.

Victoria sits on the rooftop, earbuds in playing music. Enter Wayne, running.

Wayne (slightly out of breath)

Hey. Where are you?

Looking around. Sees Victoria.

Wayne (cont.) (louder)

What are you doing up there?

Victoria (takes off headphones, sees Wayne)

Oh hi, Wayne. Come on, get up here. You could use the cardio, fattie.

Wayne (under his breath, climbing up to roof)

Running all the way over here was cardio enough. Need to get myself a car.

(Sits on roof next to Victoria)

It’s midnight. What was so important? 

(Silence)

Victoria

Why did you ask me if I liked you? Back in like October I mean. Before you and Sienna got back together. Why did you ask me that?

Wayne

Why are you asking me this now? 

(Silence)

There was just a lot going around and I couldn’t tell what was true. To be honest Roberts, I still don’t know what’s true. I figured-- 

Victoria (interrupts.)

What do you know?

Wayne (hesitates)

I know what you said at Teresa’s party. Quinn told me.

Victoria

Oh.

(More uncomfortable silence. Wayne picks up an earbud and puts it in his ear.)

Wayne (nodding head to beat) (mock disappointment)

Showtunes? Really? 

Victoria (laughing)

Shut up. You can’t even be talking, I've seen your playlists, cornball. 

Wayne (laughing)

Hey do not hate on The Wallflowers. My music taste will never not be peak.

Victoria

Oh is that so?

(The two continue laughing until the laughs are spent. Victoria and Wayne shift closer to each other but “only because they were laughing”. Back to the silence.) 

Wayne

Why am I here tonight, Roberts? 

Victoria (falsely-playfully; doesn’t know if she should’ve asked him to come tonight)

I don’t know, why are you here tonight, Park?

Wayne

Why am I here tonight, Victoria?

Victoria

I don’t know… I mean, you’re the one who came here, so wouldn’t you-- 

Wayne (interrupts.)

Victoria.

Victoria (sighs. Avoids eye-contact with Wayne)

Fine. You know why. 

(Both look straight ahead, down at the roof tiles, at the street, anywhere but each other. Victoria picks up the other earbud and puts it in her ear. More silence.) 

Wayne

And you know why I came. 

Victoria (a little surprised.)

I do? 

Wayne (gives a look.)

Yes. You do.

Victoria (musters up courage to ask further.)

But since when? And what about Sienna?

(Wayne opens his mouth to answer, but Victoria stands.)

Victoria (cont.)

Wait so you have feelings for me?

Wayne (Wayne nods.)

It was back during the musical last year. I never did anything because you’re my best friend. I had no clue if you felt anything back.

Victoria

Oh my God. You idiot. I had feelings for you, too. I just never knew that… well you know… and I still--

Wayne

Yeah, I know.

(Shorter silence.)

Victoria

Well I mean what do we do now? You’ve obviously got Sienna, and I’ve got Patrick. So it doesn’t matter anymore. The past is the past and it doesn’t matter. I mean you have a girlfriend. And I’ve got whatever I’ve got with Patrick. So it doesn’t-- 

Wayne (interrupt.)

Do you want to know why I got you with Patrick? Because I had to. I had to. I knew I felt something for you, of course I did. I’m not stupid. But I was with Sienna. I am with Sienna. But what was I supposed to do when it was your touch that made me flutter. I got you with Patrick because I needed you out of my head. He’s a good man and I figured he’d treat you right.

Victoria

Wayne… what do we do? I mean I know what I want to do. I think you want it too. But we can’t. I mean God Wayne what will people think? Sienna has always hated me. She has. And people already suspect something between us because of the things that she has said. You know how people are. They’ll call you a cheater and me a homewrecker and we’d be done for.

Victoria (cont.) (standing up.)

But I think we would work well together. I think we would. There’s no doubt there. I mean the past happened for a reason, right? And there’s a reason that even though we missed our shot last year, we have a new chance to make it work. There has to be, right? 

Wayne (standing up.)

Sienna and I have fought every day for the past three months. I have put more liquor into my system since September than I have ever before. I was dying, Roberts. But it was your smile that inspired mine. It was your laugh that helped me find mine. Do you remember that time we went to the sandwich place by the lake and we left the others to go feed the geese? I haven’t stopped thinking about that. It was so perfect. Even though they put peppers in mine and you know how I can’t handle spice.

Victoria

Even though you ended up eating half of my sandwich like a fattie because you couldn’t handle the peppers.

Wayne

Even though that lady’s dog almost peed on you.

Victoria

Even though the geese were really aggressive and bit your hand the second you tried to feed them.

Wayne

Even though you had to bandage my bleeding hand with your sandwich wrap paper.

(A silence.)

Wayne

If we do this, let’s do it proper. You deserve proper. 

Victoria (chuckles.)

Thank you Wayne. We’re gonna figure this out.

Interior suburban house. House party. Chaotic, jumbled. Wayne sits on the couch, talking to his friends. Sienna enters, making her way through the crowd. Slaps Wayne.

Sienna

You are such a fucking asshole. I had one bad day. One. And you end eight months of love for it? What the fuck is wrong with you?

Wayne

What?

Sienna

And you knew I was tweaking off Adderall that day because of finals and I wasn’t thinking straight and when you left I knew that it ruined was and that you think that’s just how I am and how it was gonna be but--

Wayne (interrupts.) (cool logical tone.)

Well maybe I thought that’s just how it was gonna be because that’s how it was. My bad for seeing it the way it is. 

Wayne (puts his drink down and stands up.) (cont.)

Sienna we were not progressing at all. Maybe you don’t realize this, but our relationship has had issues for months. I did what was best, and I think that some part of you knows that’s true.

Sienna (laughs.)

That’s such horseshit. You are horseshit. Fuck you, Wayne. No, you know what? I’m not even upset. I’m not even sad. If what we had was so nothing to you--

Wayne (interrupts.)

I never said it was nothing.

Sienna

If it was so nothing to you, I’m glad we’re done. You obviously never cared about me at all. 

Wayne

I only ever asked one thing of you. I only ever asked for you to trust me. And you couldn’t even do that. You wouldn’t even talk to me. Sienna, I had no clue who you were half the time, because you wouldn’t talk to me. Do you know how hard it is to be with someone who doesn’t give any opening at all into who they are?

Sienna

You are so stupid. No, it’s worse. You are so unfair. I mean trust isn’t a “yes or no” thing it’s something that is built and I was working on it. I swear to God I was working on it, but you just couldn’t be patient could you? You just couldn’t sit there and wait and let me figure things out. 

Wayne

Sienna, how was I supposed to know that you were working on it when you couldn’t even tell me what you had to work on in the first place? 

(He turns around and walks back toward the sofa.)

Nevermind. It doesn’t matter. We had a good thing, Sienna. Well, we had a not-half-bad thing. Why can’t you just be happy about those eight months? You are just so mad about everything.

Sienna (scoffs.)

And you aren’t?

(Takes a beat. Realizes.)

Oh my God. Of course you aren’t. I’m stupid. 

(She takes a seat at the kitchen counter.)

“She’s just a friend.” Horseshit. I should’ve known. I should have fucking known. You are so not comforting. You never were, not about her at least. 

Wayne (trying to play it off.)

What are you on about now?

Sienna

And you always defended her, too. I actually can not believe you right now. I should have known. That bitch.

Wayne (slightly losing control at the word “bitch”.)

Oh my God. There is no way you are bringing up Victoria. Keep her name out of this. You are being ridiculous. Keep Victoria out of this. This is between you and me. Keep it between you and me. Do you understand, Sienna? 

Sienna (laughing in disbelief.)

I actually can’t even-- You are so pathetic. She is a bitch and you are too. Hey everyone, I dated an absolute fucking bitch for eight months! And now he’s off trying to be with some other bi--

Wayne (interrupts.)

Holy God shut the fuck up. Don’t call her that. You say all this horrible shit about her and you need to stop. She is my best friend and I’ve known her a hell of a longer time than I’ve known you so just stop. Stop dragging her through the mud of our shitfest. 

Sienna

You make me sick to my stomach. 

Wayne

You want to know what makes me sick to my stomach? When you shit talk my friends. You always said such horrible shit about her. She is and has always been nothing but kind and caring and sweet and she never deserved the shit you said about her. 

Sienna (standing up.)

You’re in love with her.

Wayne

I’m not. You need to stop. 

Sienna (steps toward him.)

No, you love her. If you loved me, you would’ve tried. You would’ve listened. You would’ve fought for me as hard as you’re fighting for her. You would’ve made it work. You would’ve asked to try again. You would’ve forgiven me. You would’ve made it all okay. And you didn’t. 

Wayne (taking a breath, regaining his temper.)

I can forgive the things you said to me or about me. But you brought Victoria into this and she did nothing you. She has never done anything to you at all. I can forgive the words you used against me but I can not forgive you for the horrible words you have used against someone so important to me. 

Sienna

I just needed reassurance. All you did was lecture me and give me all this horseshit, when all I needed was reassurance. You made me the bad guy and accused me of not trusting you. What was I supposed to think? What was I supposed to do?

Wayne

You have been nothing but cruel to Victoria and I won’t stand for it. I assured you nothing was going on between us the first time it came up but you wouldn’t stop bringing her up. You were obsessed with her.

Sienna (scoffing in disbelief.)

That’s hilarious. I was obsessed with you. I wanted you, you fucking idiot. You are so genuinely stupid.

Wayne

And therein lies the issue. You didn’t love me either. You were obsessed with me.

Sienna (completely and utterly loses it.)

I’m so glad we ended this. I am realizing so much right now. You know what? You’re right. I never loved you. I never cared about you. You’re actually incredibly unimportant to me. And guess what? I cheated on you with Mark and I am so glad I did. You deserve to get cheated on you loser bitch. I should’ve broken up with you for good the first time. I should’ve listened to Barbara. I should’ve listened to my family. I should’ve listened to everyone else. Mark always listened to me. And he thought the Victoria shit was crazy too. He always understood my point of view and never instantly took someone else’s side. He actually cared about me. You never deserved me. I got treated so much better by everyone else. Fuck you, Wayne Park. 

(A silence. Sienna breathes hard. Atmosphere marinates in her words. Wayne grabs his cup and finishes his drink. He grabs his keys.)

Wayne

Fuck Mark.

Exit Wayne

Sienna (calling after Wayne)

Wayne, wait. Please.