who is Who

Who Is Who

One Act

By John Blais

Characters:

Abbey………a young woman

Clair………..a young woman

Andy………..a young man, Abbey’s husband

The nurse……woman or man

The Set:

 ……is a hospital room with two beds. It is clean, bright and clinical.  The two beds are against the back wall. Between them is a window which looks down several stories to the street.  The door is in the wall to the left of the audience. Clair who has just delivered her baby has flowers and a box of candy on her bedside table.  Abbey who is eight months pregnant, and has been in a sever auto accident has a leg in a cast and her wrist and her head are bandaged. Her eyes are black and she has a bruise on her cheek.  She has recently moved to this room in the maturity ward and has no flowers or candy.  Both women have the backs of their beds cranked up so they are in sitting positions.

The play opens with Claire looking at a pamphlet while Abbie has her eyes closed and is dozing. Her hands are on her very pregnant belly.

Andy enters. He wears blue jeans, a blue working man’s shirt and a baseball cap.  Seeing Abbie asleep, he walks quietly taking off his baseball cap as he does. Claire looks up from her pamphlet and smiles]

Andy

 Maybe I should come back.

Abbie

 No, no. I’m awake.

Andy

  Didn’t want to wake you.  (He looks around the room.) They brought you down here, the maturity ward.  It isn’t coming early is it?  Is it?

Abbie

  Going to give me a kiss?

 Andy

  Huh? Yeah, sure.   (He bends down to kiss her but doesn’t know where to put h is hands or where to kiss her bruised face. He stops.)  I don’t know how to do this.

 Abbie

 (She lifts her hand up and with her fingers poking out of her cast, points to her lips.) Right here, you can kiss me right here.

Andy

 (He kisses her carefully and quick. He stands back.) They got all the tubes out of you.

Abbie

 I know. The doctor said if it wasn’t for all my broken bones and … this (She puts her hand on her belly) I could go home.

Andy

That’s just wonderful. I wish …I mean if I knew where I could touch you…I’d …but I guess I’ll have to wait to hug you. You look a lot betternow too. You got color in your face now. You were so white there.

Abbie

  I feel good…except when I try to move. Andy, I’ve got wonderful news. I do.

Claire

  (As she moves to get out of bed)  I should leave you two be alone.

Abbie

 Oh. Andy, this is Claire. She just had her baby.  Big boy it was. What? Eight pounds…

Claire

 Ten ounces.

Andy

  Hi.

Claire

 Hi. I’ll let you two alone.  I’m going to get my baby.  You can just walk in the nursery now. You could never do that before.

(Claire gets out of bed and exits.)

Abbie

Did you talk to my mom?

Andy

 Yeah, I called her.  She told me you were out of intensive care. Hearing that was really a relief.  I couldn’t stay at work any more. I had to get down here. Everything is going to be alright, Abbie. I’ve been thinking about it, and I know we can do it.

Abbie

 Everything is going to be alright.  You’re going to be so happy.

Andy

We can do it. We’ll go to those classes she talked to us about. We’ll learn just what to do. We will.  We can do it. We’ll love the baby just as much. Maybe even more.

Abbie

  Can I tell you?

Andy

 And you can’t blame yourself. You got know that, Abbie. It wasn’t your fault. You understand. You can never think that. If you start thinking like you said last night, it just won’t work, honey. You can’t blame yourself. Just remember, it’ll be our baby and we’ll love him or her just as much.  Like I said, maybe even more.

Abbie

 Andy, let me tell you.  They can fix the baby. It won’t have the brain damage. They can fix it.

Andy

  Huh? They can fix it?  They can?  They really can?

Abbie

   Uh huh.  But you got to say it’s okay.  They’re coming for me any minute now. You only have to say it’s okay. They can fix our baby.

Andy

 Fix the baby?  I don’t understand.  How?  Are they going to do brain surgery on it?  You mean…but didn’t the doctor say there was nothing they could do?  It lacked oxygen for too long.  All that: the brain stuff, everything. They’re going to operate. Gezz.

Abbie

  You have to say yes too.

Andy

 Sure, sure….but it isn’t going to be dangerous. I mean you know just a little baby, not even born yet…if it’s too risky….if it’s too risky, we just should

Abbie

  I’ll just have to go another nine months. That’s all. The baby will be perfect, just like it was before the accident. Andy, it’ll be just another nine months. I won’t mind that at all.

Andy

  What are you talking about?

Abbie

  We just start all over. It’s called cloning. It’s like the sheep they did. Remember that story.  They improved everything now. And it’ll be the same baby. [She pats her belly] Right here.  It’ll be completely the same exepte it’s birthday.

Andy

  Oh.

Abbie

Andy?

Andy

  I need a breath or something. Too much too soon. It’s all changed and it’s going to be alright now.  I just need to breathe for awhile.

[Andy takes a few deep breaths]

Andy

It’s going to be alright. Our baby will be normal.  Abbie, it’s wonderful, wonderful. What can I say?

Abbie

Can you give me a hug?

[Andy bends down and reaches his hands but doesn’t know where to put his hands. She says, “wow” and then,“that’s okay” and then “no, wow”and then they give up]

Andy

 I guess we’ll have to wait.

Abbie

  Oh well.

Andy

  Yeah.

[They are silent now. Abbie rubs her belly.  Andy turns to the window and looks out.  It is a well timed silence before he turns to her again.]

Andy

  Won’t that be an abortion?

Abbie

  Abortion?  No, it’s a procedure. It’s going to be the same baby, Andy. The same baby. Everything will be the same: nothing different.

Andy

  Then who…

Abbie

 Is who?

Andy

The baby in there now.

Abbie

  It’s our baby.

Andy

 Won’t it have to go…go [He swallows hard] Go for the other one.

Abbie

   Go for the other?…I guess. It’s all part of the procedure, Andy. They already got the DNA. We’ll just start over.  It is the same baby. But this time, there won’t be an accident. I won’t even get near a car.

Andy

The same baby, it’ll be the same baby. You’ll  just do it all over again. Oh. Oh yeah. I’ll drive you. Or your mom… your mom  if I’m at work. You can call her when you got to go some place.

Abbie

 No, I won’t go anywhere. I’m staying home. It’s our first one.

[Andy turns and looks out the window again..   Abbie rubs her tummy and they are silent for a long time.  Andy’s head moves as he watched the people walking the sidewalks below.]

Andy

  [Facing the window still]      It sure makes you wonder about things.

Abbie

    Wonder about what?

Andy

  I  don’t know.  Just looking down there. The people.  They all look like…what do they say?  Like ants: one is the same as the other. Going this way and going that way: just different birthdays is all. [Andy turns to her now]  Makes you wonder who is who.

Abbie

 Who is…who?

Andy

  Yeah.  Who is who.

[Claire Enters. She has her baby swaddled in a powder blue blanket. She is smiling down at it, rocking it back and forth. She has a bottle of water she is trying to feed him. She looks up]

Claire

 Here we are: baby and me. I get to give him a little water.  You should have heard him crying in there. But as soon as I picked him up: he knew who is mommy was. Didn’t you? Hmm.  [She puts her hand to his face as she admires him.  A clank comes from the hallway, she looks to Abbie]

Claire

 Oh, that’s right, I think they’re coming for you, Abbie. I saw the nurse with the wheel chair.

[The Nurse enters with the wheel chair. She smiles]

The Nurse

We’re all set for you.    No, no. Don’t you try. Here let me.

[The Nurse helps Abbie get out of bed. It takes awhile for finding the right places to put her hands. Andy tries to help, sees he’s of no use and stands back. Abbie groans a few times, says “wow, wow” and then seated she sighs with relief.]

Andy You okay?

[Abbie doesn’t answer as she watches Claire fuss with her baby. She smiles.]

Claire

Good luck now, Abbie. We’ll be thinking of you, me and little…what are we going to call you huh. Hmm, what are we going to call you? We’re going to have to talk to daddy about that. He says Bob, but that’d be Robert. You’re no Robert are you?  I don’t think so. You don’t think so, do you? Hmm. Come on, come on take a little water.

Abbie

 You’re so lucky. You don’t have to wait. [then as she is being wheeled out and while Claire is talking to her baby] Actually, Andy, you know what?  It will only be eight more months, not nine.

[The Nurse, Abbie and Andy exit]

Andy

 [Off stage]  Eight months? How do you figure that?

END