Lilytrip
Characters:
Lily
Daphna
Susan/Present-Day Susan
Young Lily
Girl 1/Annie
Girl 2/May

Lily: Creative and loving woman in her thirties. She’s an established author already who works very hard. She can have a bad temper at times.

Daphna: Witty and insightful woman married to Lily. She supports her wife, but comes home frequently tired because she hates her job.

Susan/Present-Day Susan: Cold and callous mother of Lily. Although never physically abusive, she constantly belittles her daughter. She, despite this, believes she is a good mother.

Young Lily: A kind and quiet middle school girl. She has trouble making friends and doesn’t know why her mother always yells at her. 

Girl 1/Girl 2: Young Lily’s friends, who are also in middle school. They have trouble understanding Young Lily’s situation and her relationship with her mother.

Annie: Vibrant and bubbly middle school girl. She is imagined by Lily.

May: Smart and slightly quieter middle school girl. She is also imagined by Lily.

(LILY, a Korean-American in her thirties, dances around her room, brushing her hair. She’s singing into her hairbrush.)

LILY
I feel amazing! I can go out. I can have fun!

DAPHNA
Who would’ve thought that antidepressants would work?

LILY
Okay, okay, You were right. Thank you.

(They kiss.)

LILY
But you weren’t right about swallowing the pills. That still sucks. It’s easier to write, though, still rocky, but better. I think my next novel will be about my mom actually. I’m just not sure that people will get it.

DAPHNA
Because she…?

LILY
Yeah.

DAPHNA
How do you think you’ll paint the effects she had on you?

LILY
I don’t know yet. Trauma isn’t from a single event, you know? Over time, I just internalized all the things she said to me. 

DAPHNA
Why don’t you start with a collection of short stories? So, we see what you’re talking about. 

LILY
Yeah, I like that.

DAPHNA
Glad I could help.

LILY
Always. My hairbrush concerts aren’t going to pay rent.

End of Scene 

(YOUNG LILY sits at her desk, intensely focused on her reading. She’s crying and hyperventilating. SUSAN, her mother, walks in furiously.)

SUSAN
(mocking) 
It’s so easy!

YOUNG LILY
I’m sorry.

SUSAN
How are you so stupid, Lily?

YOUNG LILY
I don’t know. I’m sorry. 

SUSAN
A C+? Do you know how much it costs to send you to that school?

YOUNG LILY
I’ll do well on the next one.

SUSAN
You better. Careless and sloppy. You take after your father. 

YOUNG LILY
I’m sorry. It won’t happen again. 

SUSAN
I have invested so much time being your mother. You better be worth all the pain and suffering you’ve caused because I can be just like your dad and walk out that door. 

End of Scene 

(A spotlight shines on LILY downstage on a pillow typing at her computer. Lights on YOUNG LILY centerstage. She speaks as LILY types.)

YOUNG LILY
Hi! My name is Lily Choi. Growing up, I was never loved. I always needed to prove myself to my mother. When I was seven years old, she told me that if I ever lived an alternative lifestyle, I would get AIDS. I didn’t know what AIDS was. I didn’t even know what an alternative lifestyle was.

(SUSAN enters as a part of LILY’S mind, joining YOUNG LILY centerstage.)

SUSAN
(to Lily) 
Do you seriously think people will believe that?

LILY
It’s the truth.

SUSAN
It sounds like complete bullsh*t.

LILY
But it happened! Okay, fine. I’ll restart.

YOUNG LILY
She would say things like, “That’s so gay.”

SUSAN
You’re overreacting. Plenty of people say that.

LILY
But it’s bad, like really bad. It’s degrading!

SUSAN
But so many people have experienced that. Wake up! You aren’t special, and no one will want to read your work. I don’t know why you bother.

LILY
Fine.

SUSAN
Find examples of me being homophobic that are striking but not so striking they seem unrealistic or off-putting. 

YOUNG LILY
I know it doesn’t sound bad, but believe me. It is. It’s horrible. I internalized everything last thing she said. I hate literally every inch of my being.

SUSAN
You’re not seriously typing that are you?

LILY
You’re not even in my life anymore, why are you here?

SUSAN
You put me here. 

LILY
Well, get out.

(SUSAN abruptly exits as though pushed off stage. GIRL 1 and GIRL 2, YOUNG LILY’S age, enter with smiles of childlike naivety. They seem pleasant. When they see YOUNG LILY, they suddenly become somber.)

GIRL 1
Oh my god, did she, like, hit you?

YOUNG LILY
No, not exactly. It’s hard to explain.

GIRL 2
It’s okay. My mom gets upset with me too when I get bad grades. 

YOUNG LILY
But it wasn’t just bad grades. It was literally every single thing. I was never enough for her. She held me to this impossibly high standard. 

GIRL 2
I don’t get it. That doesn’t really sound like abuse. I mean, some kids actually get beat up by their parents. Like, black eyes and stuff.

(Abruptly, DAPHNA enters where LILY is. LILY immediately shuts her computer. As she does this, lights cut out over YOUNG LILY and the other girls.)

DAPHNA
Knock knock!

LILY
Hi! You scared me.

DAPHNA
Oh, sorry, did I interrupt my love in action? How’s it going?

LILY
It’s going... It's just- just I’m having trouble remembering some stuff, and I can’t say what I do remember in a way that’s clear. I don’t know. I think it’s the meds.

DAPHNA
What do you mean? You’ve been so much better since you started them.

LILY
It’s like I can’t write this while I’m in a better place. I can’t write while it’s pushed out of my mind.

DAPHNA
I mean if writing this is causing you so much stress, maybe it’s not worth it.

LILY
What? Are you saying I’m a sh*tty writer?

DAPHNA
No, not at all. I just mean… Maybe you should just take a break.

LILY
David said the deadline for a draft is 3 months. I have to write now!

End of Scene 

(DAPHNA enters, taking off her heavy messenger bag with a sigh of relief. It’s been a long day. She pours herself a glass of wine, a healthy pour. As she takes a sip, she spills wine on her shirt.)

DAPHNA
Sh*t, my favorite work shirt.

(Suddenly, an aggressive knock at the door. DAPHNA answers the door. PRESENT-DAY SUSAN shoves her way in and takes off her jacket as if she is welcome.)

PRESENT-DAY SUSAN
Oh Lord, I hate your neighborhood. Well, you look like sh*t.

DAPHNA
Good evening to you, too, Ms. Choi.

PRESENT-DAY SUSAN
How’d my daughter find such a sloppy roommate?

DAPHNA
How’s my girlfriend so amazing when she has such a b*tch of a mother?

PRESENT-DAY SUSAN
I saw the article. Lily’s writing a new book? What’s it about? Don’t waste my time, Daphne, just tell me. It’s about me, isn’t it? She’s doing it to screw me over. I called her “r*tarded” once, and she never let it go.

(LILY walks in.)

LILY
Mom.

PRESENT-DAY SUSAN
Daphne and I were talking about your new book. What’s it about? I want to see it.

LILY
It’s Daphna, and the book’s not for you.

PRESENT-DAY SUSAN
You’re only going to have two readers, and both of them are in this room. Just don’t lie, okay? I always wanted the best for you.

(Lights cut out over PRESENT-DAY SUSAN, LILY, and DAPHNA. Downstage of them, SUSAN drags on YOUNG LILY. SUSAN holds YOUNG LILY by the collar of her shirt.)

SUSAN
What did I say? WHAT DID I SAY?

Young Lily
Not to talk back.

SUSAN
And what did you do?

(SUSAN tightens her grip on her daughter.)

YOUNG LILY
Let go of me!

SUSAN
Watch your tone. I’ve told you a thousand times. 

YOUNG LILY
You’re hurting me.

SUSAN
No wonder you don’t have any friends, you have a bad tone! There’s a reason no one loves you.

(Lights cut out on SUSAN and YOUNG LILY. They exit. Lights on PRESENT-DAY SUSAN, LILY, and DAPHNA.) 

PRESENT-DAY SUSAN
I don’t know why you’re so ungrateful. I was better to you than my mother ever was to me, you know. Remember that.

(PRESENT-DAY SUSAN exits. LILY is seething.)

LILY
I have to write this book. 

DAPHNA
It’s causing you too much stress. Take your meds.

LILY
Stop nagging me all the time! I need support right now, not constant criticism.

DAPHNA
I’m trying to support you.

LILY
Well, be quieter in your support. And wash your shirt.

End of Scene 

(A spotlight shines on LILY downstage on a pillow typing at her computer. Lights on YOUNG LILY centerstage. She speaks as LILY types.)

YOUNG LILY
My mother… My mother… She’s just cruel.

(Lights cut out on YOUNG LILY.)

LILY
I can’t remember the specifics, but I know it affected me my whole life. That’s all I know... I can’t tell this story. I can’t write this.

(Spotlight fades into full stage lighting as LILY shuts her computer. YOUNG LILY begins to address LILY.)

YOUNG LILY
What did I do wrong? Why doesn’t Mom love me?

(LILY gets up to hug YOUNG LILY.)

LILY
I'm sorry. I'm sorry you grow up to be this. I'm sorry I let you down.

(YOUNG LILY exits. Suddenly, ANNIE and MAY, girls in middle school, enter. They’re a ball of excited energy. They address the audience.)

ANNIE
I’m Annie, the theatre nerd!

MAY
And I’m May, the tech enthusiast.

ANNIE
We were put into a group project together for history class, and at first, we thought the project wouldn’t be fun because we have, like, nothing in common. Literally nothing. But we ended up becoming good friends. For our project, we brought acting and tech and art together to make animation.

MAY
Yes, everyone loved it. And we got an A+. And from there, we started the Annie-Maytion Club! Unfortunately, our animations don’t always go as planned. We get deadlines and tech issues. And on top of that, we’re normal kids who have normal problems, like family issues and friend group issues.

(MAY notices LILY.)

MAY
Are you the author of Marginalia?

LILY
Yes. Who are you?

ANNIE
I’m Annie, the theatre nerd--

LILY
I got that part.

MAY
We’re figments if your imagination. It’s pretty here. Can we be in your next book?

LILY
I don’t know. I was really focused on writing a piece about trauma. I don’t really see how you could fit into that.

ANNIE
Why make your book about your boring trauma when it could be about us? We’re fun! And have just enough insecurities to be relatable.

LILY
It’s not that simple.

ANNIE
Imagine a world where it was.

MAY
Wouldn’t that be nice?

End of Scene 

(LILY sits downstage with her computer in her lap. DAPHNA walks in. She stops in her tracks when she sees LILY.)

DAPHNA
You were in the exact spot when I left this morning.

LILY
I-I didn’t realize how much time passed. I’m not functioning. 

(DAPHNA picks up a remote and turns toward the audience as she’s trying to turn on the TV. No response.)

DAPHNA
That’s weird. Are there batteries in this?

LILY
I didn’t pay the bill. I forgot. I was busy. Sorry.

DAPHNA
I asked you to do it a week ago. I gave you like, four reminders. What’s going on?

LILY
I just have no energy. I stopped taking my meds.

DAPHNA
Why? 

LILY
I couldn’t. My memory of her was too foggy, but now it’s worse. I’ve never been this bad before.

DAPHNA
Lily, you’re not yourself right now. Take your medicine and then let’s talk.

LILY
But I have to write. 

DAPHNA
Get me on the phone with David right now. I’ll tell him you can’t write this piece. 

LILY
No!

DAPHNA
Lily! You haven’t gotten groceries. You haven't paid our bills. I can’t live like this. I can’t live with you.

(LILY freezes and wipes away tears.)

LILY
I don’t- I don’t deserve anything. I don’t deserve love.

DAPHNA
Lily… you know that’s not true.

LILY
I haven’t written anything for my book.

DAPHNA
What’ve you been doing all day?

LILY
Sitting here alone with my thoughts. And Annie and May, apparently.

DAPHNA
Who?

LILY
Versions of… me that aren’t actually me, but somehow are… me.

DAPHNA
What?

LILY
They’re characters for the antithesis to what I want to write.

DAPHNA
Let’s see it.

(DAPHNA hovers over LILY’S shoulder. ANNIE and MAY enter, walking across the stage.)

MAY
Why does your name get to go first?

ANNIE
Because we’re the animation club. Get it, Annie and May? May-Annie-tion doesn’t make sense.

MAY
Oh.

(ANNIE and MAY exit.)
    
DAPHNA
I like this!

LILY
Daphna… I grew up constantly wondering what I did wrong. Wondering why I was never like the other girls. Do you know what that’s like? I was never pretty enough or skinny enough or good enough. How could I go through all this and only have some stupid elementary level book to show for it? I thought having the childhood I had would make me go on to do great things that, like, I don’t know, do something to society, or for society, or something If I can’t do that… why was I even abused? I could’ve been happy this whole time.

DAPHNA
I’m sorry, Lily. I don’t know why you went through what you did. But maybe this book about Annie and May will resonate with people and make children feel a little less alone.

End of Scene

(A spotlight shines on an excited LILY downstage on a pillow typing at her computer. Lights on ANNIE and MAY centerstage. They speak as LILY types.)

ANNIE
It’s not about where you come from or where you end.

MAY
It’s about the path you take to get where you are now. It’s about how you overcome the obstacles Sunshine Middle School hurls your way.

ANNIE
And how you grow as a person.

MAY
And learn to love yourself!

(LILY shuts her computer screen and lights cut out over ANNIE and MAY. SUSAN enters.)

SUSAN
I can’t believe this is what you’re writing now.

LILY
Get out.

SUSAN
(Charmingly) 
But I have great ideas for your book. Don’t you want them?

            End of Scene
            THE END