Two Exes in One Day (An Original Play)

(Lights come up on a bare stage and Carrie stands in the middle of it with a spotlight on her)

Carrie: May 10, 2010. That was when it happened. That was the day that my life changed forever.  You see, I had a secret...a really sort of awful secret that I carried around with me wherever I went. I wanted to tell somebody...anybody...but I didn't know who I could trust. Hell, how did you even bring something like that into a conversation? But, finally, I worked up the courage to tell my best friend, Ariel. I had told her plenty of things before and her lips always remained sealed, but I guess something about this was different. I mean, I knew it was going to be a bit of a shock, but I guess I still thought I could trust her. I just never expected what happened to be plausible. The conversation I had with Ariel is still so clear in my mind. It never fails to haunt my thoughts and my dreams. I remember it...every word...as if it were just yesterday.

(There is a blackout as the scene changes. There are two beds on opposite sides of the stage. Carrie is on one bed and Ariel on the other. Carrie picks up her phone and dials Ariel's number. After a few rings, Ariel picks up.)

Ariel: Hey, girlie. So, are you going to tell me what the heck's going on with you? You've been like...off...recently. Is everything alright?

Carrie: No, it's not. I don't even really know how to tell you this.

Ariel: Oh, my gosh, you're pregnant, aren't you?

Carrie: What? No!

Ariel: Okay, phew! That's a relief! But if it's not that...then what it is? Are you having problems with Jake?

Carrie: Not yet.

Ariel: What the heck does...oh, my God! You cheated on him, didn't you? With who?

Carrie: That doesn't matter. What's important is that it was just a one-time thing and it's over. I love Jake.

Ariel:  Are you sure about that?

Carrie: Yes, of course! What I did was a mistake! A really, really big mistake. What I'm struggling with is I don't know what to do. I don't know where I go from here. Do I tell Jake?

Ariel: No! You'd just be asking for a nasty breakup. What you need to do is pretend like this never happened.  You move on.

Carrie: Okay, I can do that. But, Ariel...this stays between us, okay?

Ariel: Of course.

Carrie: Promise?

Ariel: I promise. Your secrets are always safe with me.

Carrie: I know they are.

Ariel: Listen, I have to go do homework. Just try to get some rest, okay?

Carrie: Yeah...okay.

Ariel: Alright, I'll see you tomorrow at school. Bye.

Carrie: Bye.

(Lights go out on Carrie's side after both girls hang up but the lights remain on Ariel's side. After a few seconds, Ariel picks up her phone again and dials a number)

Ariel: Hey, Lily! Okay, you'll never believe what Carrie just told me!

(Blackout and the scene changes again. Carrie is standing on a bare stage once again and begins another monologue)

Carrie: She broke my trust. Everything that I admired about our friendship was gone forever.  My secret spread throughout the school like a wildfire in the summertime, and, by the next day, everyone, including the staff, knew what I had done. I remember walking through the hallway and I couldn't figure out why everybody was staring at me. I thought maybe I had a rip in my jeans or a button on my shirt was open or something. But then I got to my locker. The word "slut" was written all over it and I found note after note inside it telling me how bad of a person I was. Somebody even wrote that I should go kill myself. But none of these things compared to what Jake had to say to me.

(There is a blackout and the scene changes to an empty classroom. Jake and Carrie are inside and Ariel, without being noticed, is watching them through the window in the door)

Jake: Is it true? Did you cheat on me?

Carrie: Jake-

 Jake: Answer me! Yes or no?

(Carrie nods)

Carrie: I'm so sorry-

Jake: You're sorry?

Carrie: Yes! It was a mistake, okay? People screw up sometimes and I screwed up big time!

Jake: Who was it?

Carrie: That's not-

Jake: Who was it, Carrie?!

Carrie: Just some guy I met at a party. It was one kiss and then I told him that I was already seeing someone and I left. I love you, Jake. I love you and I'm so sorry! Please...forgive me.

Jake: Would you forgive me if I cheated on you?

Carrie: If I knew it was just a onetime thing then yes...of course.

Jake: No you wouldn't! And I wouldn't expect you to. This is not some little bump in our relationship, Carrie! This is a really big deal!

Carrie: You think I don't know that?! I know what I did was wrong in every sense of the word and I will never forgive myself for it. But I am begging you to forgive me.  There's too much between us for either of us to just walk away.

Jake: Oh, yeah? Watch me! It's over, Carrie. You broke my heart and I'm done with you.

Carrie: Jake-

Jake: I have nothing more to say to you, Carrie.

Carrie: You know, if it had been you who cheated everything would've been different. Boys who cheat are "cool" and popular. But when girls do it they get called dirty names and people tell them what a horrible person they are. Boys who are cheaters don't get people telling them to go kill themselves!

Jake:  I agree with you, but that still doesn't make what you did okay.

(Jake leaves and Carrie buries her face in her hands, sobbing. The lights slowly dim as she sinks to her knees. Once everything goes dark, the scene changes and lights come up on a blank stage with Carrie in the middle)

Carrie: Jake never spoke to me again and I didn't want anything to do with Ariel from that point on. I never understood why she did what she did. Maybe to get a leg up on the social ladder...I don't know. As for me, I could never shake the reputation of the "school slut". No matter what I did. I probably could've won the Nobel Peace Prize and my fellow students wouldn't have perceived me any differently. I still regret that I cheated on Jake...every day I think what would've been different if I hadn't done what I did. But, in time, I forgave myself and learned to love me...every part of me. In reality, I think that's all anybody could ever need.

(Carrie grins to herself as the lights fade to black)