92
Continued from previous page…
CHARLOTTE
Myles, don’t go.
Stay here for
the night.
MYLES
I cant possibly stay
with you tonight…
Not after what you
just said… That was
pretty fucking disturbing.
CHARLOTTE
No, no, I didn’t mean
it like that…I meant—
stay here— in one of my
guest bedrooms… You’re
upset and you
shouldn’t be driving.
MYLES
I’ll be fine.
CHARLOTTE
You can’t make it over
to Belinda’s tonight.
It’s almost 10:30…
By the time you get
there, she’ll be in bed.
Go over there tomorrow
after you’ve had a good
night’s sleep. You’ll be
able to think more
clearly in the morning.
MYLES
Then I’ll stay
in a hotel.
CHARLOTTE
Why can’t you stay here?
My house is much more
accommodating than a
hotel… Besides, I want
to talk to you about some things…
Come on… I’ll make you breakfast
in the morning…That’s
better than anything
you’ll get at some hotel.
MYLES
Not the hotels
I stay in.
CHARLOTTE
Oh, that’s right..
I forgot. You’re
Mr. Bigshot.
Myles manages
to muster up
a smile.
CHARLOTTE
Come on..
whadya’ say?
MYLES
Alright, fine…
I’ll stay.
CHARLOTTE
Good.
MYLES
I’m gonna go clean
up real quick…
Why don’t you get
dressed and
we’ll talk.
CHARLOTTE
Perfect.
When Myles returns,
Charlotte is waiting
for him in one of the
chairs in her bedroom.
He sits on the edge of
the bed. They stare at
each other for a while.
MYLES
I know what you’re thinking…
And I know what you want
to talk about…
And.. I’m afraid you’re probably not
gonna like some of the things that
I have to say. Not after hearing what
you said just a few minutes ago.
CHARLOTTE
Are you going
to marry her?
MYLES
Of course…
I might even ask
her tomorrow.
CHARLOTTE
Are you going to have
any more children?
MYLES
I hope so.
CHARLOTTE
Well, then…
I guess congratulations
are in order.
MYLES
That might be a wee bit
presumptuous…
I don’t know if she’ll say “yes.”
She’s more than just a little
upset with me right now…
I’ve been a real asshole
lately.. obviously.. and not just
because of this.
CHARLOTTE
What do you
call “this?”
Myles stands
up and paces
back and forth.
MYLES
I call this being scared…
and impulsive…
Terrified, if you will…
Whatever word you wanna
apply to it, it’s there…
This is more than just
pre- “settling down” jitters…
This is the always ridiculous
notion that living on the edge
is eternally more fun than
being.. traditional.
CHARLOTTE
Is that why you’re
with me?
It’s more dangerous?
MYLES
Probably.
CHARLOTTE
Have you been
with anyone else?
MYLES
No…
Isn’t this enough?
CHARLOTTE
Well, just offhand,
I’d say that being
with me is enough
for any man…
But that’s just me.
MYLES
(in anguish)
Oh, God, what have I done? …
I’m going to have to live
with this for the rest of
my life! … If it were
anyone else but you..
maybe I could dismiss this
easier.. as being some sort of…
foolish mistake…
But it’s not…
It’s you, Charlotte! I know
the connection that
you two have.
CHARLOTTE
Now I’ve got two
gargantuan secrets.
MYLES
What?
CHARLOTTE
Never mind…
Myles, we’re just gonna
have to forget about
what’s happened
between us and move on…
The best way we know how…
We can get through the
uneasiness, I promise.
MYLES
I don’t see how you can
be so cavalier about
all of this… We’re gonna
have to see each other
in the future from time to
time with Belinda present…
Don’t you think that’s going
to be a little bit awkward?
CHARLOTTE
We’ll just have to
be good actors.
MYLES
Cute.
There is an
extended pause.
Then Myles
decides to drop
one of his bombs.
MYLES
Course’ …
It might not be
as frequent as
you think.
CHARLOTTE
What do you
mean by that?
MYLES
Remember when I said
a few minutes ago that
you might not like some of
the things that were gonna
come out of my mouth?
CHARLOTTE
Yes.
MYLES
Well..
here’s one of them.
CHARLOTTE
(apprehensive)
Go ahead.
MYLES
I’m taking Belinda
away from all of this…
I’m going to convince her
to leave the Go-Go’s…
Permanently.
Copyright 2022
by Clark Wright