Journey back
Act 1
William. Where´s the sugar?
He is looking for the sugar. Susy does not reply.
William (a bit louder this time). Where´s the sugar?
He keeps looking for the sugar.
Susy. I´m leaving.
W. What sort of an answer is that?! I asked you where the sugar was.
She gets up.
W. Where are you going?
S. I told you I was leaving.
W. But where are you going?
S. I don´t know.
He is still looking for the sugar.
W. It was here yesterday … What do you mean, you don´t know? You´ve always known where you´re going.
S. I thought I´d make a change.
W. What has got into you? ... And why don´t you tell me where the sugar is?
S. Because I don´t know where it is.
W. Will you help me look for it at least?
S. I have to go.
W. But you don´t even know where to go.
S. I know that I want to leave …
It is then that he notices the red suitcase.
W. You´re really leaving … We´ve always worked things out.
S. We´ve always silenced things out.
W. But you never complain. I thought we were happy.
S. You were happy.
She takes her suitcase and heads for the door.
W. Tell me you´re coming back.
S. I can´t.
W. Susy!
She closes the door, leaving William staring at the door.
The lights go down.
The lights come up.
William is too stunned to speak at first. He is still staring at the door. Then he gets up and starts looking for the sugar again. While he is talking he keeps adjusting his glasses and rolling his socks up and down.
William. Susy always knew where to find the sugar. She would always find everything. I would ask her where I put my glasses and she would find them for me. She has always had the better memory. I had the sense of direction, but she would remember where we had all our dinners on our different holidays and where we took every photograph. I would get some places muddled up, but Susy never did. Even though I was always the one to find our car or where we had parked our bicycles, - I never get lost - I would have been lost without her.
Pause.
William. She would know where the sugar is … She said she didn´t. But I´m sure she knew. She was just angry with me. She´ll come back once she has calmed down. … I remember now that we had a similar fight a few years ago. We were on holiday somewhere … Susy would know where … and we were sitting in a café. I was reading the newspaper and Susy was looking at the menu. All of a sudden she says:"You don´t look at me the way you used to." I don´t remember what I replied. But it can´t have been a good answer because she stormed off shortly afterwards. I called after her, but she didn´t turn around. She wasn´t gone for long, though. She got lost and asked me to get her. I am sure the same will happen now. She will not know where she is and she´ll ask for my help. I will apologise and she will run into my open arms. Just like last time. … I don´t know why I was worried there for a while. Of course that is what´s going to happen.
Pause.
William. But somehow … Somehow the situation felt different today. She was calm. She didn´t leave in a huff. It seemed as though she had everything planned. Her suitcase was packed. … On the other hand she said she didn´t know where she was going …
Pause.
William. The day I met Susy started as a bleak and miserable day. Everything had gone wrong. I overslept, spilled my coffee all over my white shirt, missed the bus … But in the end missing that bus was the best thing that could have happened to me. …
He is still looking for the sugar. While he is looking he keeps bumping his head or his toe somewhere and then he curses.
William. This is ridiculous. Where can it be? Why did Susy have to decide to be an independent woman today of all days?! She knows that I cannot start a day without my coffee with sugar. And especially not today since I slept worse than usual. I keep having this terrible reoccurring dream. I have become used to it, but tonight there was an alteration I did not expect. Usually I am being followed by a huge, ugly monster with green ears and a fat belly. But last night he had company. A rather fit guy to my dismay. I was able to outrun the fat one, but not, however, his friend. He was Superman and Batman in one. 4 tea spoons of sugar that is the way I like it. I have been drinking coffee with four tea spoons of sugar since university. I never thought I would become a coffee drinker when I was in grammar school. I was strictly a tea drinker then. And only herbal tea. I was obsessed with tea and I would get nervous when my mother forgot to buy the right tea. It had to be the one from this little, rather quaint shop around the corner of our house. I liked the old lady who worked there. She always told me the most amazing stories. She told me tales about tea as well. Looking back now they were probably all made up, but at the time I believed them and that is what counts.
Short Pause. William bumps his foot again and sits down. He curses and rubs his toe. Then he adjusts his glasses every few minutes.
William. I cried for days when she died and somehow continuing to drink tea after she passed away seemed impossible. Without her stories drinking tea was not the same. I tried to find a suitable replacement for the tea. I drank different juices, mixed them. That was exciting for a while. But it was only a short romance that couldn´t replace my lost love. So, I decided I should allow myself to grieve properly before looking for something else. The grieving process took some time. In fact, all my last grammar school months were spent with trying to forget my love of herbal tea and the stories the lady had old. But then at the university salvation came. I smelled something quite heavenly from my dorm in the morning. It was the smell of freshly brewed coffee. How could I have “oversmelled” this smell in all those years living at home!? My father was a big coffee drinker … I followed the whiff of coffee and found the small coffee stand. Sadly, it was not run by an old lady, but by quite an unfriendly young man. But his great coffee made up for the fact that his manners were quite unacceptable. I must admit that I might have overdone it a bit with my coffee drinking. But with everything new you just can´t get enough of it at the beginning. But this time it was not a rebound love. Even after the newness of the coffee had worn off, I still loved it. It simply became a maturer love.
Pause. He gets up and starts looking for the sugar again.
William. I enjoyed going to university. It was the freedom I liked the most. But I was what you would call a loner. I hated envying the rich, privileged, handsome boys who were easy-going and always knew what to say to a girl. I thought I was better than that. I had always sworn to myself that I would never care what other people were like in comparison to me and stick strictly to myself. But with most things you set out to do …
Short Pause.
William. I got lucky with Susy. Even today after all these years I don´t know how I managed to win over such a catch as she was … still is …
He looks at his watch.
William. She should have called by now …
Then his gaze falls on Susy´s mobile phone on the table.
William. I don´t understand. She never leaves the house without her mobile phone … That was probably the only thing I didn´t like about her when I met her. Her constant typing. But she claimed that she couldn´t just ignore her friends´ text messages. I admit that I thought that that was quite endearing. She was always there for her friends. And for me, too. In hindsight probably more than I was for her. But I was there for her, too, wasn´t I? … I could get quite immersed with my course work. I have always been like that. Susy and I had quite a few arguments about it. We arranged to go for dinner and I would forget about it because I got so caught up in my lab project. But I would always try to make it up to her.
William looks at his watch again.
William. Susy will surely find a payphone somewhere. She will call any second now … Mrs Prism will surely have some sugar. But is it worth going to her for sugar, I wonder? Mrs Prism rarely stops talking once she has started … Unless …
He looks in the cupboard.
William. Got it. She loves chocolate. If I give her this, she will definitely want to eat it right away. What she likes besides talking is chocolate and talking about chocolate, but I can only hope her desire to eat the chocolate will be greater than to talk about it. One time I wasn´t so lucky. I wanted to borrow some flour because I wanted to bake a cake for Susy´s birthday and I was in a hurry. So, I took some dark chocolate with me because I new that that was her favourite and I thought I could distract her with it. Unfortunately, she proceeded to tell me why this was her favourite chocolate and when and where she had eaten it the first time. I have never met anyone who tells stories in such a detailed way. She seems to find pleasure in things that a normal person would find unnecessary and boring.
William looks at his watch again.
William. Why hasn´t she called, yet? … I´ll risk it. Mrs Prism better eat that chocolate right away.
William takes his mobile phone with him.
The lights go down.
The lights come up.
Mrs Prism. Oh, Mr Walker. How delightful to see you!
William. Yes, yes the pleasure is all mine … Mrs Prism, I …
Mrs Prism. Do come in.I have just baked an apple cake.
William. That is very kind, Mrs Prism, but …
Mrs Prism. No, buts. Come in, come in.
William. Mrs Prism …
Mrs Prism. I insist, Mr Walker.
William. In that case …
Mrs Prism. Splendid … I see you brought something.
William. Ah, yes. This is for you.
Mrs Prism. For me? But I couldn´t … You didn´t have to.
Before William can finish his sentence Mrs Prism has already snatched the chocolate out of his hands.
William. Of course. It´s my pleasure.
Mrs Prism. Why, thank you. I absolutely adore chocolate. Have I told you the story about my first chocolate experience?
William. You have, yes.
Mrs Prism. Have I? You know, at my age you tend to forget things. I will be 84 tomorrow. Did you know that?
William. I did not,no. Mrs Prism, I …
Mrs. Prism. Have a seat and help yourself to some cake.
William. Thank you. But, Mrs Prism, I …
Mrs Prism. Mr Walker, why are you fidgeting all the time? You´re like my little nephew. Athough when I come to think of it, he´s not that little any more … I haven´t seen him in years. He never visits me any more. I don´t understand why not. We always used to have such a lovely time ... He´s busy, I suppose … Did you like the cake?
William. I did, thank you.
Mrs Prism. Take another piece.
William. Thank you, I should really …
Mrs Prism. I will never finish this cake on my own. Do take another piece and take some for your wife. Is she well?
William. She is, thank you.
Mrs Prism. Where is she?
William (more to himself). I wish I knew.
Mrs Prism. What was that?
William. She went to town.
Mrs Prism. How lovely. It is a perfect day to go to town. The weather is so nice. Has been for the last weeks.
William. Don´t you think so, too, Mr Walker?
William. Indeed … Mrs Prism, I don´t mean to be rude, but I should really be going.
Mrs Prism. So soon?
William. I´m afraid so.
Mrs Prism. But don´t you want some coffee?
William. No, thank you. But could I have some sugar?
Mrs Prism. Plain sugar? But that is not healthy for you, Mr Walker.
William. Oh, I don´t intend to eat it as it is. It´s for … a cake I want to make for my wife.
Mrs Prism. But you can give her mine.
William. And I will. But I wanted to bake her her favourite cake.
Mrs. Prism. You are a good husband. I wish my husband had been that good to me. He never baked me a cake. He never even brought me flowers for my birthday ... He always forgot my birthday.
William. I´m sorry to hear that … I really only need a little bit of sugar and you will get some back once my wife brings some with her from town.
Mrs. Prism. Nonsense … Here you go. And take the pieces of cake, too.
William. Thank you. Bye bye now.
Mrs Prism. Are you sure, you don´t want any coffee?
William. Positive. Thank you.
Mrs Prism. But Mr Walker …
William. Yes, Mrs Prism?
Mrs Prism. Will you and your wife be free tomorrow afternoon?
William. I … I´m not sure …
Mrs Prism. Please say yes. It is my birthday after all and I would like to spend the day with you.
William. But we wouldn´t want to keep you from your family. They will surely want to see you.
Mrs Prism. I doubt my children will even remember to call …
William. I´m sure they will … Thank you for the sugar and the cake.
Mrs Prism starts crying.
William. Mrs Prism … There´s … there´s no reason to cry. Tomorrow´s your birthday and your family will think of you, I´m sure.
Mrs Prism. How can you be so sure?
William. Ummm … Well … You´re a good person and a good mother, too, I presume.
Mrs Prism (sniffing). I don´t know … I haven´t talked to my daughter or my son in months. I have tried calling them, but they never answer. I don´t know what I did wrong.
Mrs Prism cries on William´s shoulder (literally).
William. Mrs Prism …
Mrs Prism. I don´t want to be alone on my birthday … Please don´t leave me alone on my birthday.
William. Of course not.
Mrs Prism lights up.
Mrs Prism. Does that mean you and your wife will come?
William. Umm … Of course …
Mrs Prism hugs William.
William. If your family really forgets your birthday we will be there.
Mrs Prism. Thank you so much. I feel much better now.
William. Good … See you soon then.
Mrs Prism. Tomorrow?
William. Tomorrow. Bye now.
Mrs Prism. Mr Walker …
William. I really have to …
Mrs Prism. Only one more hug. You have such nice broad shoulders and you smell so good.
William hesitates for a moment. But he cannot resist her pleading look.
William. Please make it quick. My wife will be home any minute and I need to bake the cake.
Mrs Prism. Of course, of course.
Mrs Prism holds him very tight and William has to wiggle himself free after a while.
William. Goodbye, Mrs Prism.
She does not let go of him.
William. Mrs Prism!
Mrs Prism. Yes ... See you tomorrow.
All her tears have gone and she smiles a broad smile.
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