An Almost Perfect Thing (7 page)

(to audience)
I can't stop myself. I go into new bookstores, I spend hours in libraries.

CHLOE

Really?

GREG

(to audience)
What is he doing without her? Has he left town? Is he still alive?

(to CHLOE)
If the articles are good enough. If you give me enough details.

CHLOE

I will. I promise.

GREG

(to audience)
All she cares about is prolonging the project. She says she'll give me details, but she won't.

Beat.

Unless I change my tactics.

(to CHLOE)
We've been asked to go on this talk show.

CHLOE

(to audience)
He wants to go on this talk show.

GREG

(to CHLOE)
It'll be exciting.

(to audience)
It'll be terrifying.

CHLOE

(to GREG)
You'd have to give them the questions.

GREG

(to CHLOE)
Definitely.

(to audience)
The talk show will prove to her how angry people are getting at her. At her silence. And it'll push her closer to me.

The rest of the scene is to the audience.

CHLOE

The talk show will make him feel important.

GREG

It'll make her realize how scary it is "out there."

CHLOE

The more important he feels because he has me—

GREG

The scarier she thinks it is out there—

CHLOE

The more he'll need me.

GREG

The more she'll need me.

CHLOE

And the more he needs me, the longer he stays with me.

GREG

The more she needs me, the more she does what I want. Gives me what I need. And besides…

CHLOE

I'll get to sit beside him. Our legs and arms touching.

GREG

I've never been on TV before. I've always wanted to be on TV.

SCENE FIVE

Shift. GREG and CHLOE speak to the audience unless otherwise indicated.

CHLOE

(imitating host)
"Ladies and gentleman, please join me in welcoming our very special guests—Ms. Chloe Evans and Mr. Greg Kalowitz."

GREG

It's a short flight. Just for the day.

CHLOE

It starts off—

GREG

Fine.

CHLOE

Weird.

GREG

(imitating the host)
"We've all got one very important question on our minds, Ms. Evans. Who did your hair? Because you look fabulous."

CHLOE

Thanks.

GREG

(imitating the host)
"So, when you're not with this guy, what've you been up to? Going to school? Any special young man in your life? Who's gonna play you in the movie? Or maybe you could play you. Do you want to be an actress? What do you want to do?"

CHLOE

I don't—

GREG

(imitating the host)
"You've sure got the look for the big screen."

CHLOE

(imitating the host)
"And how are you doing, Mr. Kalowitz? Must be feeling pretty good. Is it true last week you were voted your city's most eligible bachelor?"

GREG

I'm in the top ten. It's nothing.

CHLOE

(imitating the host)
"I'm sure you're a shoo-in. So what about those pictures of you two? Was that your first time at a party like that, Chloe?"

GREG

Chloe's been working so hard. She deserved a little relaxation.

CHLOE

(imitating the host)
"It definitely caused an uproar. How do you respond to that?"

GREG

I think what people—

CHLOE

(to the host)
Would they prefer I stay locked in my room like before?

GREG

(imitating the host)
"Well, you weren't exactly locked up in your room before. You were upstairs. At least that's what it says in the last article."

CHLOE

(to the host)
Not all the time.

GREG

(imitating the host)
"How do you respond to people who say you just want your fifteen minutes of fame?"

CHLOE

(to the host)
I never asked for it.

GREG

(imitating the host)
"You chose to be in the newspaper."

CHLOE

(to the host)
To tell my story. Because I survived. If I don't share how I did it, then it's like it never happened.

GREG

(imitating the host)
"Personally, I think I'd want to forget it."

CHLOE

(to the host)
That's stupid.

GREG

(imitating the host)
"Some people say you're just wasting police time and tax dollars by not giving him up. How do you respond to that?"

CHLOE

(to the host)
The police are choosing to investigate. I'm not making anybody do anything.

GREG

(imitating the host)
"There's a dangerous person out there. That person will abduct another one of our children. Right? And you can prevent that. So…"

CHLOE

(to the host)
So—

GREG

(imitating the host)
"So why don't you prevent that? Our viewers are curious as to why you're protecting him. It's clear he needs to be punished. Why the secrecy? Are you still in contact with him? That's a common question because you don't seem too afraid that he's gonna come after you. Isn't that obstruction of justice? Impeding an investigation? The police are being patient, but are you ever afraid you could be charged? Go to jail? Get locked up again? What does that feel like? The possibility of being locked up again? Must not bother you too much. Unless of course none of this is true. Some of our viewers are going back to the theory that you were just a runaway."

CHLOE

(imitating the host)
"Greg, everyone's calling you the Last Hope. Everyone—even the police—are relying on you to figure this one out. I mean, that must be—"

GREG

(to the host)
That's not true. I'm a journalist. My responsibility is to—

CHLOE

(imitating the host)
"But that is your nickname. Right? The Last Hope. Pretty nice title. What's going to happen after the series is done? I'm sure you'll get plenty of offers to—"

GREG

(to the host)
I plan to move into investigative journalism. I find it—

CHLOE

(to the host)
We're gonna write a book together. Me and Greg. We're gonna write a book together. And it's gonna be so good. We're gonna travel all over the world together and—

GREG

(to the host)
We'll see.

CHLOE

(to the host)
We're going to write a book together.

GREG

(to the host)
We'll see.

CHLOE

(imitating the host)
"Well that's a pretty good place to wrap it up."

GREG

(to the host)
Thanks so much for having us.

CHLOE

(imitating the host)
"The whole world is waiting, Mr. Kalowitz. Good luck."

SCENE SIX

Shift. GREG and MATHEW both speak to CHLOE and the audience. CHLOE is in her own space, post talk show, speaking to GREG or herself.

CHLOE

Five… four…

GREG

You okay?

MATHEW

Sorry I'm late. I got here as fast as—

CHLOE

Three… two…

GREG/MAT

Chloe?

CHLOE

You trapped me.

GREG

I didn't—

MATHEW

—mean to. The traffic was—

CHLOE

Five… four…

GREG

(to audience)
She counts like this all the way to the airport.

MATHEW

(to audience)
Still freaks out when I'm ten minutes late.

CHLOE

Three… two…

MATHEW

(to audience)
Secretly—

GREG

—I knew what would happen.

MATHEW

(to audience)
I do it on purpose sometimes. Come home late. It reminds her how much she needs me.

GREG

(to audience)
Because she does need me. I'm the only person left on her side. Now she'll know how angry people really are. And that'll motivate her to tell the truth. Give me his name.

MATHEW

(to audience)
And also… I just love that feeling I get when she has to rely on me to calm her down.

CHLOE

Five… Mathew—

GREG

(to audience)
We fly back and that night I go to an opening of some underground art space. Everyone who's anyone is there.

CHLOE

Four…

MATHEW

Don't panic. I'm here. Just breathe and count.

GREG

(to audience)
The Last Hope. I hear it over and over in my mind.

CHLOE

Two…

GREG

(to audience)
I feel like I'm on display.

CHLOE

One… Mathew—

GREG

(to audience)
People keep coming up to me. Buying me drinks. Talking to me.

MATHEW

Think about how many houses there are in the neighbourhood.

GREG

(imitating public)
"Congratulations. What're you going to do after this? Signed any book deals? What about TV?"

CHLOE

How many neighbourhoods there are in the city.

GREG

(imitating public) "
Are you going to catch him? When are you going to catch him?"

MATHEW

So much space.

CHLOE

So much space.

GREG

(to audience)
They're all counting on me. Everyone. They need me to get the secret. She needs me to tell her story.

MATHEW

You're okay. I'm here now.

GREG

(to audience)
It feels… I feel… Like I'm flying. Finally free.

CHLOE

So much space.

GREG

(to audience)
At the end of the night I go home with a twentysomething named Jasmine.

CHLOE

Think about all that space.

GREG

Tell me everyone wants me. Everyone needs me.

CHLOE

Breathe—

GREG

Everyone loves me.

CHLOE

Just breathe.

GREG

Everyone loves me so much!

SCENE SEVEN

Shift. GREG's condo.

CHLOE

How could you do that?

GREG

I'm so sorry. I—

CHLOE

Why didn't you stop them?

GREG

I couldn't—

CHLOE

The Last Hope?

GREG

Chloe—

CHLOE

Is that what you think of yourself?

GREG

Of course not.

CHLOE

Are you going to stay with me when this is over?

GREG

Yes. I've told you—

CHLOE

Why should I believe you?

GREG

Because you trust me.

CHLOE

Do I?

GREG

I hope so. Or we might as well just quit this right now.

CHLOE

Maybe we should.

GREG

Chloe, you have to believe me. I didn't know it would go like that. I gave them questions. They didn't listen. Didn't you see—

CHLOE

I don't care what people say about me, you know. I don't even care if they read these articles. I just care about us writing them. Together. What do you think about that?

GREG

I think… that's your choice. But I care about people reading them. As long as we're giving them the truth, that is.

CHLOE

What does that mean?

GREG

It means… maybe there's more truth that you could be telling.

CHLOE

Like what?

GREG

Like… what kept you there? For six years.

CHLOE

He did. He watched me.

GREG

All the time? Because I don't believe that. I think there were plenty of times that you could've run. But you didn't. Because he did things to make sure you stayed.

CHLOE

Things?

GREG

Shackled you, chained you, starved you, abused you, physically, sexually—

CHLOE

Those are the details you want for your story?

GREG

Those are the details that people want. Those are the details that are going to make them understand.

CHLOE

Fine. Maybe there was one time I could've run.

GREG

Just once?

CHLOE

Once is all you get, remember?

I was cooking. He was vacuuming in the bedroom.

Lights up on MATHEW's house. The doorbell rings.

Mathew?

The doorbell rings again.

And my heart is… It's my chance. People have come to the door before but he was there and I had to hide.

Mathew?

This time he can't hear. I open it. Just a crack. They can't see me.

(imitating salesman)
"Good evening, I'm here on behalf of North America's largest child relief—"

He wants a donation. I can whisper to him to call the police. I can run out the door. I can do anything.

GREG

So what did you do?

CHLOE

Slammed the door and went back to cooking.

GREG

Why?

CHLOE

I was making chicken. It was gonna burn.

MATHEW enters. CHLOE's lines are now to MATHEW.

MATHEW

Why were you by the door?

CHLOE

I wasn't—

MATHEW

I saw you.

CHLOE

I needed fresh air.

MATHEW

You're lying.

CHLOE

I couldn't breathe.

MATHEW

You were trying to leave me.

CHLOE

Mathew, no—

MATHEW

Why were you trying leave me?

CHLOE

I wasn't. It was one second. I needed air.

MATHEW

What did I do?

CHLOE

Don't panic—

MATHEW

DON'T TOU
CH ME!

He gets his gun.