Yellow Dress: Act 2, Scene 2: Rule-Breaker

(A sealed locker room 6000 feet in the air.
Blue lockers line the walls.
Two benches sit in the middle of the floor.
Large industrial fans spin furious above the lockers.
The smell of Axe deodorant fills the room.

Sean is laying on one of the benches unconscious.
The lights flicker and suddenly The Man is standing in the room.
He laughs to himself. Sean stirs and awakens.)

The Man:
Hello Sean

Sean:
You’re not Cody.

The Man:
I’m not.

Sean:
You look familiar.

The Man:
Do I?

Sean:
I dreamt I was kissing Cody.
Hasn’t happened in a long time.
Where are we?

The Man:
A holding cell.

Sean:
Doesn’t look like one. Am I in trouble?

The Man:
Yes.
No.
We have a few questions.

Sean:
Whose we?

The Man:
I mostly mean me.

Sean:
You really look familiar.
Do I know you?

The Man:
Who do I look like to you?

Sean:
No one.
You’re definitely not him.

The Man:
We need to talk about Cody.

Sean:
What about him?

The Man:
You said you dreamt you were kissing him.

Sean:
You got a problem with that?

The Man:
I do. Fucking fags like you make me sick.
That’s what you want me to say right?
You’re just raring to pick a fight, aren’t you?

Sean:
You roll with the crowds I roll with
When you’re into who I’m into
You better be prepared to defend yourself.
I may be gay, but I am not weak.

The Man:
You don’t believe that, do you?
You are quite afraid of this world, aren’t you?
You dress a certain way.
You speak a certain way.
You behave a certain way.
You think that just because you suck dick,
You haven’t locked yourself into certain parameters,
To avoid a repeat of what happened to you in High School.
I’ve been watching you, Sean Minos.
You think you’re different,
Because you defy stereotypes,
Yet in doing so you yourself
Have become a stereotype.

Sean:
How about you go fuck yourself.
You don’t know shit about me.

The Man:
I know more than you think.
And I am eager to know more.

Sean:
Look, am I being charged with something?

The Man:
You’re not being charged.
This isn’t a police station.

Sean:
You said this was a holding cell.
Looks more like a high school locker room.
Smells like one too.

The Man:
A high school locker room?
Is that what it looks like?
I always find it funny to think about
How you humans comprehend our world.
A locker room.
I suppose that would be prison for you.

Sean:
Would you just tell me what’s going on here?

The Man:
Have you ever seen a locker room with no entrances or exits?

Sean:
The fuck are you talking about?
There’s...

(Sean rushes around the room,
Pressing his hands against the lockers,
Searching for a hidden exit.
When he gets to the “fourth wall”
He almost falls off the stage.
The house lights rise revealing the audience for a moment.)

Sean:
Who are they?

The Man:
Pay no attention to the folks behind the curtain.
They are but observers here
To hear your testimony
In preparation for the coming trial.

Sean:
Trial?
For who?

The Man:
For Cody.

Sean:
What did he do?

The Man:
Don’t worry about what he did or didn’t do.
Think of yourself as a character witness.

Sean:
No wait just a minute,
I didn’t agree to any of this.
I don’t even know how I got here.
I’m not telling you shit until you give me some answers.

(The Man laughs. It is malicious.
He rolls up his sleeves, walks up to Sean,
And grabs him by the throat.
He then pins the kid against one of the lockers.)

The Man:
Listen you little maggot.
I am not someone to be fucked with.

(He lifts Sean shirt and runs his hand along the scar).

If you don’t do what I say,
I’ll rip that scar that lines your stomach
WIDE OPEN.

(His hand goes lower.
He grabs Sean’s crotch.)

Oh. I see how it is.
You’re enjoying this,
You little pervert.

(Sean struggles to get The Man off of him.)

You think I look like him, don’t ya?
The one who gave you that scar.
It makes you hot, doesn’t it?
You wanted it.

Sean:
Fuck....
You.

(The Man releases Sean who falls to the floor choking.
Sean crawls towards the audience.)

Please! Somebody help me!

The Man:
They can’t help you.
They are forbidden from interrupting the process.
The only way you’re getting out of here alive
Is by giving the information that I need.

Sean:
Alright! Please!
Don’t fucking touch me
I’ll tell what you need to know...

The Man:
Good. Why don’t you start at the beginning?
When did you meet?

Sean:
Since we were kids, but...
We didn’t start talking until senior year.

The Man:
What prompted you to start?
I need details.

(Cody wanders in through the audience.
He’s no longer wearing a dress)

Cody:
Hello!?
Is there anybody here?

Sean:
I heard him! He’s Here!

The Man:
He’s not here.
You need to focus.
What did he say when you met him?

Sean:
He said...

Sean & Cody:
Don’t be afraid.

Sean:
I was just a scrawny punk kid.
I ‘ve always been a scrawny punk kid.
Even before I realized I was gay
the jocks found a reason to pick on me.

Cody:

Don’t be Afraid.

(A cracking sound. Like a bat hitting a baseball.
Sean reacts as if he’s been kicked in the stomach.
Another Cracking sound.
Sean reacts as if he’s been punched in the jaw.
Another cracking sound.
Sean reacts as if he’s been pushed to the ground.
More cracking sounds.
Sean trembles in pain.)

Cody:
Don’t be afraid-

Sean:
He said.

Cody:
Leave him alone.

(The cracks continue and
Sean continues to be beaten
By an invisible force.
The Man opens a locker
and pulls out pair of sunglasses.
He removes his mask
and puts on the sunglasses.
He removes his jacket and
unbuttons the top few buttons of shirt
Revealing a white wife-beater underneath.
His stance changes.
He is now Seth Mallory.
Seth assumes the position of the attacker,
Obviously pantomiming kicks and punches.
Soon Seth’s fist is bleeding, as is Sean’s face.)

Seth:
Don’t look at me.
Don’t even think about me.
I saw you.
Looking at me.
I saw you.
Staring at my ass.
You fucking faggot.
How dare you
Try to treat me
Like I treat women
How dare you
Try to treat me
Like a piece of meat.
You’re a victim.
You’re not even a beta.
Gamma. Delta. Omega.
You’re the bottom of the barrel.
You’re nothing to me.
You don’t exist.

Cody:
I said...
LEAVE HIM ALONE

(The beating stops.)

Sean:
One day I was getting pummeled
By this guy named Seth Mallory.
A real Patrick Bateman type.
Dead eyes. Cocky smirk.
Not all the way there in the head,
But you couldn’t tell him that.
And in steps Cody.
Perfect hair.
Big wide shoulders.
He stepped in and said...

Cody:
The fuck do you think you’re doing?

Seth:
The fuck do you think?

Cody:
You wanna get arrested for assault?

Seth:
The fucker had it coming.

Cody:
Could get slapped with a federal felony.
All the shit you were saying.
They could call this a hate crime.

Seth:
What is so wrong with hate?

(Cody moves over to Sean and helps him out.)

Cody:
Practice starts in 10 minutes.
Better get there quick
before coach starts to wonder
if somethings up.

(Seth moves to a locker and changes back into The Man.)

Sean:
Didn’t need to do that.
Five more minutes and
I’d’ve had him on the ropes.

Cody:
Are you suicidal?
Seth could’ve killed you if he wanted to.

Sean:
I’m tougher than I look.
It’d take more than some
Dumb jock to kill me.
I also don’t need
some other dumb jock
to try and rescue me.

Cody:
A dumb jock? Really?

Sean:
I know who you are Cody Mason.
And I guess you know who I am.

Cody:
The kid who almost got kicked out
Because of his violent and obscene art.
Sean Minos, your reputation precedes you.

Sean:
Great.

Cody:
So are the rumors true?
Are you, ya know,

(He whispers)

...Gay?

Sean:
What makes you think that?

Cody:
That one drawing of the
minotaur with the huge cock
kinda gave it away.

Sean:
That thing? Nah that's just uh...
That's just my interpretation
of the uh... minotaur myth.
You know those ancient Greeks,
they loved their phallic imagery.
Just living up to my namesake.

Cody:
Yeah, so you say.

Sean:
Don’t you have practice to get to?

Cody:
Yeah I guess you're right.
Hey listen we uh, we should
hang out sometime.
Swap critiques on our art or some shit.

Sean:
The captain of the wrestling team
wants share his art with me.
Isn’t that just a little gay?

Cody:
Fuck you’re right.
Maybe I shoulda just let that guy
keep kicking your ass.
Maybe that would come off as less gay.

(Sean stares at Cody.)

Kidding. I’m kidding of course.

Sean:
Yeah we can chill,
I kinda owe you a critique, don’t I?
You know where to find me.

Cody:
Cool.

Sean:
Cool.

(Cody fades away.
A light raises on The Man right behind Sean.)

The Man:
What a quaint little story.

Sean:
Are we done here?
Will you let me go?

(The Man laughs.)

The Man:
Oh, Sean.
This is just the beginning.