"WHAT'S YOUR NAME?"
A ten minute play
for two children of the same age. (11 years)
One girl and one boy.

CHARACTERS:
JAKELIN:...a young girl.
ABEL:...a young boy.

TIME: Today.
PLACE: Ghetto.

ONE ACT:
SCENE: A trash heap along a slummy street.

AT THE RISE OF CURTAIN: A young boy is seen, ragged book bag slovenly sagging from his back. His clothes are tattered. He is poor, but he appears to be used to his situation. He is walking home from school when he encounters a young girl seated in a pile of rubbish. The moment that he sees her he stops in his tracks, and stands there staring at the girl. She just sits there very still. She just stares back at the boy. After a few moments the boy breaks the ice. He goes over and sits down beside her. Neither of them speak.They just sit there staring into each other's eyes. The boy is first to speak.

BOY: "Hi...I haven't seen you before. What's your name?"
GIRL: in a subdued whisper, "Jakelin."
BOY: "What's that?"
GIRL: a bit louder..."JAKELIN."
BOY: "So...you CAN, talk. I see that you can smile too. You're not from around here."
JAKELIN: "No. What's your name?"
BOY: "Abel."
JAKELIN: in a shy stutter. "A-A-bah."
ABEL: "My name is, Abel."
JAKELIN: "A-A-Abel...Abel?"

Abel takes a sheet of wrinkled paper from his book bag. He shuffles himself closer to her and points at something on the sheet of paper.

ABEL: "See...my name...Abel."

Jakelin's eyes probe what he's pointing at. Then she raises her eyes and looks at his eyes.

ABEL: "Oh. Don't pay the red, F, no mind. That's just my grade on my spelling test in school today."
JAKELIN: "Red F?"
ABEL: "That's my teacher telling Mom that I'm doing, FINE, in my spelling."
JAKELIN: "Fine?"
ABEL: "Psych...Not really. Mom says that means I'm not doing so fine in spelling. Jakelin, I can tell that you can't read. Where did you come from? What are you doing here?"

Jakelin doesn't answer. She lowers her head and fixes her eyes on her lap.

ABEL: "Hey...you're leaking...are you crying?"
JAKELIN: whimpering. "No."
ABEL: "Well what ever you're doing...cut it out...or you might flood us out."

Jakelin does not reply. She continues sobbing.

ABEL: "Is there something hurting you, Jakelin? Jakelin?...Jaaaklin?"
JAKELIN: "I miss my family."
ABEL: "Why? Where are they?"
JAKELIN: "I don't know. They took them away from me."
ABEL: "THEY?"

Jakelin looks up at Abel while rubbing her eyes.

JAKELIN: "The people at the walls."
ABEL: "I've heard the story about the people at the walls. Where are you staying?"

JAKELIN: "Here, for now, I guess."
ABEL: "Here? In a pile of trash? No. You can't stay...wait a sec'. Did you eat? Are you hungry?"

JAKELIN: I don't know. I've been hungry for so long...that I've forgotten how being hungry feels."
ABEL: "Why don't you go ask somebody for food...anybody?"

JAKELIN: "Oh no. Then they'll just grab me...and throw me out."
ABEL: "Throw you out? How did you get in?"

JAKELIN: "You won't tell...will you, Abel? Please don't tell."

Abel begins to rifle through his book bag.

ABEL: "Hey. I've got a jelly sandwich in here someplace...oh...here. It got smutchy but it's strawberry...the goodest kind. Here, Jakelin, eat."

Jakelin begins eating the sandwich as if she is starving.

JAKELIN: "Oh thank you, Abel. I'd offer you some of this tuna that I found...but it's green."
ABEL: "Green tuna?"

JAKELIN: "Not all of it...some of it is black."
ABEL: "You didn't eat any of that stuff, did you?'

JAKELIN: "Not yet. This strawberry jelly sandwich is good for now."
ABEL: "There's a couple more where that one came from. I'll give them to you, Jakelin. And, by the way,

"Where'd you get the nice clothes that you're wearing?"
JAKELIN: "These are nice clothes?"
ABEL: "I'd trade up with you any time. Where are your shoes?"

Jakelin pushes her feet under her body.

JAKELIN "What shoes?"

Abel takes his shabby sneakers off and offers them to Jakelin.

ABEL: "One of the laces is missing...it flip-flops a little, but you'll get used to that."
JAKELIN: "Oh no, Abel...I couldn't..."

ABEL: "Stick your feet out, Jakelin."
JAKELIN: "Stick my feet out?"
ABEL: "Yes, Jakelin. Stick your feet out."

Jakelin sticks her feet out...but slowly.

JAKELIN: "But what will you wear, Abel?"
ABEL: "Stick your feet out, Jakelin. Come on. Stick 'em, stick 'em stick 'em."

Abel slips his sheakers on Jakelin's feet.

ABEL: "There...makes for the better. No?"
JAKELIN: "Yes. But..."

ABEL: "But how'd you get in?"
JAKELIN: "You wont tell?"

ABEL: "I wont say nothing."
JAKELIN: "Promise?"
ABEL: "I wont spill a single word...I promise."

Jakelin inhales a deep breath...and exhales her reply.

JAKELIN: "I got in by crawling through a tunnel that we dug under the wall."

ABEL: "That's smart. Cool, Jakelin. Yes. I like that."
JAKELIN: "I like that too. But my knees and my elbows didn't like it."
ABEL: "Lemme see."

Jakelin shows Able her elbows and her knees.

ABEL: "OW! Got scraped up pretty much, huh?"
JAKELIN: "Ugly much."
ABEL" :Does it hurt?"
JAKELIN: "Only when I breathe."

Abel stands, extends his hand, and offers to help Jakeiln to stand.

ABEL: "Let's go."
JAKELIN: "Go where?"
ABEL: "HOME."
JAKELIN: "I have no home."

Abel kneels and takes Jakelin's hand.

ABEL: "Yeah ya do too."
JAKELIN: "I do?"

ABEL: "Yep. Right up the street."
JAKELIN: "Where you live?"

ABEL: "Yep. Where I live."
JAKELIN: "That's your Dad's and Mom's place."
ABEL: "Nope. That's my place. They just live there."

Jakelin laughs as Abel pulls her up to her feet.

JAKELIN: "You're funny."
ABEL: "Nope. I'm Abel."

JAKELIN: "I can't walk very fast, Abel."
ABEL: "How come? Tootsies hurt, huh?"

JAKELIN: "What's tootsies?"
ABEL: "What hurts?"
JAKELIN: "My feet."
ABEL: "Then your tootsies are your feet."

Jakelin laughs again.

JAKELIN: "You make me laugh, Abel."
ABEL: "I made you laugh, I made you talk. Now...if I can just make you walk."

JAKELIN: "Oh, I can walk, just only slowly. I've been walking almost all day."
ABEL: "You've been walking, almost ALL DAY?"

JAKELIN: "Well...mostly running. They've been trying to catch me."
ABEL: "Then your twiggies must be sore too."
JAKELIN: "My twiggies?"
ABEL" "Those little skinny legs of yours."

Jakelin begins limping while towing Abel.

JAKELIN: "My twiggies haven't been getting much to eat. Which way, Abel?"
ABEL: "Straight ahead...and there's much jelly sandwiches where we're going."

JAKELIN: "Jelly? Strawberry?"
ABEL: "Strawberry. The bread is sort of dry and crunchy, I always toss the crust."
JAKEIIN: "WHAT? You waste bread by throwing it away?"
ABEL: "You sound like, Mom."

Jakelin stops limping and towing Abel. She looks back at him. There is hope in her expression.

JAKELIN: "Abel...do you think your people will like me?"
ABEL: Dad and Mom loves everybody...even me. Come...let's go home."

CURTAIN.