Rain (screenplay)

[ Setting: early 1990's; a shabby kitchen in a working class neighborhood of Boston Massachusetts; two young men with shoulder length hair sit in miss matched chairs at a chipped Formica table]

EDDIE: (staring out window at driving rain) Sigh.

JOEY: (looks up from magazine) Did you just say, "Sigh"?

EDDIE: Oh, I just feel trapped by all the rain today.

JOEY: Yeah? (leans back and folds arms over chest) But you didn't actually sigh. You said "Sigh".

EDDIE: Huh? (turns to face Joe) Oh.

JOEY: Don't you think that's strange?

EDDIE: Uh, so much rain in July? No, not really.

JOEY: Oh no... saying sigh - instead of actually sighing.

EDDIE: Oh. It's from "Peanuts".

JOEY: What?

EDDIE: And "Batman". Uh, Sunday comics. When we were little kids, my brother and I were really, really into comics. We punctuated our own actions by saying the printed words used to indicate sound effects. When we played - you know; like Pow! or Blam!

JOEY: Blam.

EDDIE: Yes. Screech! and vroom! when racing Matchboxes - stuff like that. Saying "sigh", or "gasp", or "sobbing" at the appropriate moment - instead of actually sighing or gasping or sobbing - was just a small step beyond that. It's - was fun.

JOEY: Fun (flexes quotation mark fingers on either side of head).

EDDIE: Yeah(averts eyes). I guess I still do it. Sometimes.

(JOEY returns to reading, while EDDIE turns back to the view outside; minutes pass)

EDDIE: (draws in long deep breath, then exhales forcefully while speaking) SIGH!

JOEY: (under his breath) Freak.