Monday, January 1, 2018

A Short Lunch

            INT.  RESTAURANT  MIDDAY

            ALICE sits at a restaurant table. She is dressed in business
            clothes.  She appears impatient.  Several beats pass.
            MARIBELL walks up to the table and takes a seat.

                                MARIBELL
                      Sorry.

                                ALICE
                      Are you...

                                MARIBELL
                      Yes.  Maribell.  The car service was
                      late.  And the traffic.

                                ALICE
                      So you recognized me?  When you came into
                      the restaurant?

                                MARIBELL
                      I've seenmany photos of you.  John has
                      three of them in his wallet.

                                ALICE
                      He does?

                                MARIBELL
                      Yes.  And the boys.  Adorable.

                                ALICE
                      You've seen the wallet photos?

                                MARIBELL
                      Yes.

                                ALICE
                      John has all of us, all of us framed in
                      oak on his desk, on his desk.

                                MARIBELL
                      I've seen that one too.  You can't miss
                      it.  It's as big as his laptop, sitting
                      up at attention next to his laptop.  John
                      pecking away at his computer, throwing
                      glances at that photo.  It's not oask, by
                      the way, it's maple.

                                ALICE
                      Throwing glances?

                                MARIBELL
                      Howdid you know of that framed family
                      photo?  You've never visited John's
                      office?

                                ALICE
                      Why would John throw glances at the
                      photo?

                                MARIBELL
                      Guilt.

                                ALICE
                      John and I made love last night.

                                MARIBELL
                      I'm happy for you.

                                ALICE
                      Doesn't that bother you?

                                MARIBELL
                      you're married to him.

                                ALICE
                      You're not what I expected?

                                MARIBELL
                      What did you expect?

                                ALICE
                      John is attracted to the intellectual
                      type.

                                MARIBELL
                      Oh, yeah.

                                ALICE
                      Yeah.

                                MARIBELL
                      News to me.

                                ALICE
                      Looks, let's cut to the chase.  You're
                      fucking my husband and I want it to stop.

                                MARIBELL
                      No.

                                ALICE
                      No?

                                MARIBELL
                      No, I'm not fucking your husband.  Not
                      anymore.  He fired me this morning.

                                ALICE
                      Really.

                                MARIBELL
                      Called me into his office and said it
                      wasn't working out.  A bit of
                      coincidence, don't you think.

                                ALICE
                      How do yo mean?

                                MARIBELL
                      You calling me and asking to meet me for
                      munch.  I mean out of the blue...you
                      never come to the office...your the
                      mystery wife at the office...no one ever
                      sees you.  Everyone says your the career
                      obessed type....and out of the blue you
                      call me and ask me, secretly, to lunch.
                      And that morning, this morning, I get
                      fired.  Coincidence.

                                ALICE
                      I don't know.

                                MARIBELL
                      You're a lawyer, right?

                                ALICE
                      Yes.

                                MARIBELL
                      Is this sexually harrassment?

                                ALICE
                      Is what sexual harrassment?

                                MARIBELL
                      You husband firing me.  I mena, think
                      about it...he comes on to me, his
                      secretary, his employee, and we end up
                      fucking, as you say, almost every Tuesday
                      night at the Gramercy park Hotel, room
                      1501.  Lots of dinners.  This watch.
                      John bought me this watch for my
                      birthday.  This goes on for five months.
                      And then last week I tell John that I'm
                      falling in love...not with John, mind
                      you.
                      I'm having this affair with someone else,
                      you see....and John didn't know about it.
                      And when I told him, he started to cry.

                                ALICE
                      John started to cry?

                                MARIBELL
                      Like a baby.  Poor thing.  So I gave him
                      one last 1501...that's what he called
                      it...let's do a 1501...well, anyway,
                      right after that, after I ghave him
                      everything he wanted and more, he got
                      cold.  Very cold.  Wouldn't talk to me
                      until this morning...when he fired me.
                      Harrassment, yes?

                                ALICE
                      Who's harrassing who?

                                MARIBELL
                      Really Alice, I can call you Alice?  It
                      seems to be a classic case  Listen to me,
                      talking about cases and law.  What do I
                      know of such things.  But that's what my
                      lawyer said, it's a classic case of
                      sexual harrassment.

                                ALICE
                      You've seen a lawyer already?

                                MARIBELL
                      Of course.  Wouldn't you?  After John
                      fired me, I just grabbed my things,
                      deleted a couple of important files from
                      the computer, just to stick him.  My
                      lawyer says I shouldn't have done that,
                      but he could explain it, you know,
                      emoptional distress, things like that.
                      Left and went to a friend's office.
                      Funny, he's an emplyment lawyer.
                      Specializes in the stuff.  He says I have
                      a classic case.  Worth a lot of money.
                      Then I came here.

                                ALICE
                      What is it you want?

                                MARIBELL
                      You're the one who asked me to munch.
                      And it appears you've gotten what you
                      want.  I am no longer fucking John.  God,
                      I hate that word.  We made love.
                      We had sex.  All kinds.  He likes things
                      from column A and B, if you know what I
                      mean.

                                ALICE
                      Are you planning to proceed with this
                      lawsuit?

                                MARIBELL
                      Look, I'm sure this is difficult for you.
                      You don't know what to say or how to
                      react.  I mean, you're a woman, a
                      professional woman, and I'm certain you
                      have feminist ideals, you know equality
                      and all, equal pay for equal work and all
                      that other stuff...so part of you wants
                      me to sue John and recover the damage he
                      has done to me.  But then, you are also a
                      mother, with two children and a family
                      and neighbors and friends and a house in
                      Englewood, so that side of you just wants
                      me to go away and disappear to protect
                      all of what you have, particualrly to
                      protect your sons.  And you are also
                      John's wife...god knows what that
                      means...maybe you want to kill
                      John...maybe you want to kill me...maybe
                      you want to go through some deep denial
                      and foregt it ever happened.  So you're
                      confused.  But if you think about it,
                      this situation is nothing that money
                      can't solve.  Money can solve so many
                      things.  I figure, if you get rid of me
                      first by paying me some reasonable hefty
                      amount, you can then decide what to do
                      next, that is either get rid of John or
                      protect the kids, the house, the friends,
                      the two BMWs and that membership at the
                      Englewood Field Club.

                                ALICE
                      You know about the Field Club?

                                MARIBELL
                      Don't ask...it'll be too upsetting.

            A waiter brings a glass of champagne.

                                MARIBELL (cont'd) (contíd)
                      Thank you.  (to Alice)  I ordered this on
                      the way in.  I don't usually drink at
                      lunch, but I'm too upset.

            Maribell chugs the entire glass of champagne.

                                MARIBELL (cont'd) (contíd)
                      I don't really have an appetite.  And I
                      have to go to the health club to work off
                      this emotional stress I'm feeling.  So if
                      you sdon't miond hgetting the champagne
                      I'l be on my way.

            Maribell stands.

                                MARIBELL (cont'd) (contíd)
                      It was nice meeting you.  Looks like a
                      nice restaurant.  I'll have to try it
                      sometime.

            Maribell leaves.  Alice remains at her chair staring off into
            nothing.

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