Stand By Mee

The House on the Hill
Stand by Me
Act 2 â€" Scene 1




Vanessa intently watches Connie while playing with her toys in her yard. Connie works in her garden digging dirt to plant flowers. In a box, sitting next to her are geraniums in small pots.

VANESSA
(sneaks up behind Connie) What are you doing?


CONNIE
Nessa, there you are! (looks up from the garden) I was wondering if you were EVER going to come over and speak to me. (pause) What have you been doing? I'm getting the garden ready to plant flowers. Aren't they pretty?

VANESSA
(pouting) I was playing ... by myself. My mom won't play with me.

CONNIE
Oh, I see. Is your mother busy?

Walking toward Connie, Vanessa stops and starts kicking at the box of flowers.

VANESSA
(frowning) Can you play with me?

CONNIE
Does your mother know you are outside? (under her breath) ... dressed in dirty clothes?
Umm, I'm a little busy with the garden at the moment.
Vanessa rolls her eyes and starts kicking at the box again

VANESSA
My Mom never plays with me.

CONNIE
(pause) Well ... why don't you help me plant these flowers? Look, there are pink, red, and purple ones just waiting for you to plant in the holes I'm digging. Here. Plant this one. (hands Vanessa a pink flower)


VANESSA
Okay.


CONNIE
Do you ever plant flowers with your mother?


VANESSA
(throws the flower on the ground)
No.


CONNIE
If you're going to be huffy about this young lady, then perhaps you should go play by yourself. (pause) I want my flowers to look nice. (hands her the flower she dropped) Nessa ... what is your mother doing today? You never said.


VANESSA
Mom...


CONNIE
Yes ... Here, you take the flower out of the pot, like this, and then put it in the ground like that. (pause, smiling) Is it a big secret? Is your mother planning a big surprise for you? Hmmm???


VANESSA
Mom ... (digging in the ground) is in her room.

CONNIE
Good job ... in her room? Is she ill?

VANESSA
No, she's just tired all of the time.


CONNIE
Oh, I see. (looks at Vanessa) Do you take care of yourself a lot?


VANESSA
Yes, and my mom too. She said not that I'm eight, I should be able to do a lot of stuff by myself.

CONNIE
Well, I suppose this is true (pause) at some point. Has your father come back?

VANESSA
No, he's in prison. Drugs. I'm not supposed to tell anyone.

CONNIE
Well, yes. But your mother had already mentioned this to me. So, it's all right. Don't worry. I won't tell her. Okay?

VANESSA
Okay. I have no one to play with.


CONNIE
Oh, you don't have any siblings? A sister or brother?


VANESSA
I asked my Mom for a brother once.

CONNIE
Oh, well ... what did she say?


VANESSA
She told me they are overrated.

CONNIE
Interesting reply.

VANESSA
She told me to be happy I have a cat. (pause) but he ran away last year in a bad storm. (shrugs)


CONNIE
Oh, I didn't know about this. I'm so sorry. It can be lonely without someone to play with, right?


VANESSA
Yes.



CONNIE
(hands Vanessa another flower) Here. Why don't you plant this one? Purple is my favorite color.

VANESSA
I even found one online. He looked like he would be a good brother.

CONNIE
Online?

VANESSA
(excitedly) Yes! I found an adoption web page on the computer. His name is Michael. I think he would be a good brother ... not a bad one. He's four.

CONNIE
Is it that easy? Can you simply pick out children on the internet to adopt? That would almost be like choosing children right off of the street to take home with you. I always thought there is a huge process in adopting children. What did your mother think?

VANESSA
(frowning) She thought if he would be a good brother... I should... put my picture next to his on the computer and see if ... we could be adopted together.

CONNIE
Oh... well, that's an interesting solution. Isn't it? (looks at Vanessa) I'm certain we could think of a better solution than that. Don't you think?

VANESSA
I don't know. I told her I was going to run away. That was my solution.

CONNIE
Oh my! You are serious about wanting a sibling then? (pause) Running away is a big, scary, adventure isn't it? Were you certain you wanted to do that?"

VANESSA
Yes, I was! And AM! I told my mom if you won't get me a brother. I'm going to run away!


CONNIE
... you're still here though. You didn't get too far away, or did you?



VANESSA
I didn't want to leave my stuffed animals.

CONNIE
You're stuffed animals?

VANESSA
My Mom said ... "Go pack your bags then and make certain you take all of your toys. Don't forget your favorite stuffed animals. Don't forget anything important. Because after you go, I'm going to pack up all of your things and give them to kids in an orphanage for kids who WANT parents."

CONNIE
Your mother said this to you?

VANESSA
Yeah. She usually tells me to go away when she's busy... with her friends.

CONNIE
Your mother is interesting. She has unique ways of solving problems.

VANESSA
I guess so. (shrugs) I still have no one to play with either.


CONNIE
Oh, I see. So, let me get this straight. You don't want to run away?


VANESSA
No.


CONNIE
I didn't think living the hobo life in the street was for you but you seem rather invested in it for a moment.

VANESSA
No. I just want someone to play with.


CONNIE
(smiling) You can stay here. You can always help me plant flowers. (pause) If you want.

Connie stands up and walks over to the box with one flower left in it. She hands the flower to Vanessa and looks back into the box.


(shouts) Wait a minute! What is this?

VANESSA
(immediately stops, walks over to Connie looks into the box)
What?

CONNIE
What is that in the box? This wasn't in here earlier. Where on earth did this come from? (reaching into the box pulling out a pom-pom)

VANESSA
It's just a big cotton ball.


CONNIE
I don't think so. (pause) I know whom this belongs to... but it can't be.


VANESSA
It's just a poofy thing... (shrugs)

CONNIE

Poofy thing? (sigh) No, I know whom this belongs to... But how did it get in here? (Pause, excitedly) He must have come back!

VANESSA
Back?

CONNIE
Yes, Bob was his name.


VANESSA
Bob? Who's Bob?


CONNIE
Well, he was my friend ... but it didn't end very well.


VANESSA

(inquisitive look) End?


CONNIE
Yes, I hate to admit this but ... I killed him. He died. It was a long time ago.


VANESSA
... you killed him?


CONNIE
Yes, and this pom-pom was ... his toy. But how did it come back? That's impossible (pause) it was such a long time ago.

VANESSA
I don't know! (stares wide-eyed at the pom-pom)


CONNIE
He must be back from the dead. It's that simple. (shrugs)


VANESSA
He's a ghost?


CONNIE
Oh no! Bob was much better than a ghost. (pause) You see ... Bob was my imaginary friend when I was five.

VANESSA
Really?

CONNIE
Yes! Really. We did everything together. We played together. We went on trips to the moon. We once traveled the ocean in a box ... just like this one right here.

VANESSA
You did?

CONNIE
Oh yes! He was quite fun to play with.

VANESSA
(serious) Then why did you kill him?


CONNIE
Believe me, it wasn't a proud moment of mine, I haven't seen him since, either.


VANESSA
What happened?


CONNIE
Hmmm ... I don't recall all of the details. However, we fought, and ... well (pause) I flushed him down the toilet. (pause) It was a sad, horrible day.

VANESSA
Wow! That is bad! What did he do?

CONNIE
I don't remember exactly. All I can remember is getting mad at him ... and ... flushing him down the toilet. (smiling at Vanessa) However, he appears to be back, would you agree? I haven't seen this toy in years. (showing Vanessa, the pom-pom)

VANESSA
He must be back!

CONNIE
I would think so. I often found him in my room hiding in the closet. That was a favorite hiding place of his. Why? I don't know. I preferred to hide under the bed ... maybe that's what we were fighting about. (pauses, shrugs, smiles) I don't know.

Miranda yells from the distance, "Vanessa... where are you?"

VANESSA
Ummm, that's my Mom. (looks at the box) Can I have ... this box?

CONNIE
I was just going to throw that away.


VANESSA
No! Can I have it? ... Please.


CONNIE
I suppose so ... I'm done with it anyway.


VANESSA
Ummmm ...


CONNIE
Yes?

VANESSA
Umm ... Ummm ... can I have ... Bob too?

Miranda yells again from a distance, "Vanessa! Come home!"

CONNIE
(sigh)I suppose so. Yes, that probably would be a better idea if you kept him in your bedroom. I might get mad and flush him down the toilet, again. He probably wouldn't like that. I can't even imagine how he got out? It was a big, powerful flush too. (handing her the pom-pom) You should ask him how he got out. I'm curious to know.


VANESSA
I will! (runs home with her box). I'm right here ... Mom!


CONNIE
(yells out to Vanessa) Nessa! Come back another day! I've got more plants to go into the garden!

VANESSA
Okay! BYE!

Connie cleans up the garden tools and places them in the shed. She walks toward the house.

CONNIE
(yells) Emmaline! I have a surprise for you...