A Friend

                                            ( From Where the Crawdads sing)

Set instructions: Stage is set as a beautiful sunset on the beach with seagulls flying, warm breeze, and bright light of the sun. It is mostly silent except the crashing ocean waves and seagulls squawking. The sun casts long shadows along the beach. When 15 year-old-girl, Kya Clark comes walking slowly. She is beautiful and graceful along the beach even though she scowls occasionally. She is by herself deep in thought and seems to be in no rush to be anywhere. She lets out gentle sighs and pulls out a small feather. Flipping the feather over and over again in her delicate fingers. The sun very slowly begins to fade. A breeze picks up and Kya’s long black hair lifts off her back and flows with the wind.

Monologue: It has been weeks maybe a month since Tate promised to come back. [pause] Why has he not come back? Has he found some other girl? Tate was everything to her, but was she everything to him? [pause] Tate had taught her to read, write, and gave her a friendship she could never take back. [she begins to turn in the other direction when a feather at her feet catches her eye] [picks up a feather along the beach] it was sodden and trampled on. It reminded her of her relationship with Tate. Had it been trampled on enough to where she would never see him again? [deep sighs come from Kya. Her eyes are starting to tear up]

Maybe she should except the fact he was gone. Probably off with a beautiful girl who was as good at biology as he was.p[pause] She would love him no matter what but, he might have different plans. Would he be with a girl who lived in a shack and drew pictures of seagulls? [tears begin to run down her cheeks falling in the soft sand] Her head hurt with the thought of him. But then a new thought occurred to her.

What if she didn’t need Tate? She was just as smart and talented as he was. If Tate truly loved her he would have come back the day he said he would. [the tears begin to stop slowly] She didn’t need him. She had lived almost her whole life alone. Why did she need him now? [starts to walk faster along the beach dropping the two feathers]

If she wanted to be happy she didn’t need Tate. Tate used to make her happy, but she decided from now on the thought of him made her angry. Tate was nothing but, trouble and she can find better happiness. Tate would never come back she had to accept the fact. [the warm air slowly becomes colder and the light is running out. Kya begins to head back to her shack] She did not need Tate. He did not need her. It was as simple as that. But still their was a pang of regret stabbing her in the side. Maybe it was not that she needed Tate but that she needed a friend. [lights fade slowly. Kya has a confused look on her beautiful face then the lights go out and the certain closes dramatically]