Part 1 Part 2

Context: Little grey rock, you’ve withstood the storm. Allowed a new pair of eyes to form. You’ve regrown your limbs and spine. It’s time to go home now, friend. It’s time.

Setting: An airplane/The airport

Tags:[MF4F][Established Relationship][Exes to ?][Remorseful Ex- Boyfriend Speaker][MIL From Hell Speaker][Determined Ex-Girlfriend Listener][HARD Angst][Fight/Argument][Apologetic][Family Bonds][Surreal][Making Up?][Reverse Comfort][CW: Mentions of Abuse/Neglect/PTSD]

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[M] = The mother from Hell

All other dialogue is him

[Scene opens aboard a plane]

[SFX: Airplane ambiance/the Listener fiddling with their phone]

[VM] You have… 29 messages…

Where are you?! I ran home when I got your email but you were already gone, and no one will tell me anything! Please, I am freaking out, can you please just call or message me?!

[SFX: Fade in of a plane landing/the internal chaos of people racing to disembark]

[VM] Next message

Hey… h-hey, hon, I got your text. Thank you for texting me back, I was… I was really scared. You’re at the airport, OK, I get it. I wish you’d just pick up the phone so we could talk…

[SFX: More shuffling/people getting their bags]

[VM] Next message

...Please don’t do this- P-Please, tell me what I need to do to fix this, to make it work!

[. . .]

[VM] Next message

I understand… I understand you want space from me, but… a whole year..? You forwarded the emails and all, it… it looks like a great program… but isn’t it something you could accomplish without… breaking up…?

[SFX: The Listener getting up]

[VM] Next message

I can prove it to you. If you want space, I get it… but I’m not giving up just yet. When you get back in a year, I swear to GOD I will be at that airport to get you… if you’ll let me.

[SFX: Plane chatter fading into airport chaos as the Listener moves on]

[VM] Next message

I promise you… Give me this one chance to show up. To show that I can work on myself. Please, will you give me that…? I know you don’t owe me anything, trust me, but… please…? I’ll be there and… I love you. If you ever get scared out there, you just play this to yourself, OK? If you need me to come get you, I will.

[...]

[VM] Next message

I’ll be there—one year. I promise.

[SFX: The call to VM ending]

[Well… here you are, one year later. The airport is swarmed per usual as you head toward baggage claim. You peer around occasionally but you don’t expect-]

“Baby!!!”

[You turn at his call and see him sprinting toward you. The sheer terror on his face makes you hesitate and he almost bowls you over as he embraces you]

“Baby!”

[Pause!]

[His breathing is labored, far more than it should be. Tears pour down his face as he clings to you]

“Please don’t go! Don’t go! Please! I made it!”

[Pause??]

[His breathing grows more ragged]

“N-No, I… I-I can’t breathe…! W-What do I do?? I don’t know what to do!”

[Pause…]

“F-Follow you to the flight lounge? O-OK…”

[You help him stand and hurry to the private lounge]

[SFX: Airport chaos/droning transitioning to BGM: elegant jazz/classical music]

“Oh, it’s quiet… Thank God it’s quiet…”

[Pause…]

“I’m sitting… Please don’t go, OK? Please? I know I’m bombing this but I’ve… It’s been so hard without you… But I made it! I made it…”

[. . .]

[He laughs. It’s a little manic]

“Yeah, I know… I look like shit… Running the company without you has been… hard.”

[Pause…]

[His voice softens considerably]

“Don’t apologize… God, look at you… Still so beautiful and still with those hauntingly sad eyes…”

[He pulls you into an embrace. For a moment, it’s tense… but it’s still him… and you still love him, despite everything]

[Pause…]

“I missed you so much… Every single day…”

[. . .]

[You hold him as he both breaks down and calms. He whispers how he missed you while you gently rub his back or pet his hair]

[. . .?]

“I’m listening… I’m just appreciating you hugging me back and petting my hair like you used to…”

[... Pause…?]

“Do… I understand why you left? Or what you want most out of life?”

[Pause…]

[He listens, eyes pained]

“Of course, I know what you want most… You wanted a nice, loving family…”

[Pause…]

“...No. Loving families don’t dump all their problems on one person then suddenly have to work ‘crazy hours’ when said person needs support in return…”

[Pause…]

“No, they… They don’t withhold affection or give the silent treatment when they don’t want to deal with something…”

[. . .]

[At that comment, his eyes flash with defiance and fear]

“But I do love you!”

[Pause!!]

[He jumps. It’s the first time you’ve ever raised your voice at him so you aren’t surprised]

“Baby!”

[Pause…]

[The wind seems to leave him as you speak, trying to go back to moderate calmness]

“...No… It’s OK, just… You’ve never raised your voice at me, even that much… Please, I never meant to make you feel like you had to… beg for my affection and respect… You just always seemed OK, like you had a handle on everything, and I thought we were doing so well, you know? The only times we really fought were over my mother…”

[Pause?]

“...What do you mean those fights were never really about her?”

[. . .]

“... When you brought up that my mother mocked every single one of your interests, you were hoping I’d realize that I did it, too…? When did I…?”

[Pause.]

“...Right. Right… You stopped opening up to me so much after that Christmas… B-But, this isn’t… It wasn’t me making fun, I was just teasing, we always tease each other over everything…”

[. . .]

“...That’s not true. I don’t just want you for ‘what you can do for me’. I want you! I want the woman I love, who’s stood by me through EVERYTHING, who helped me realize my dreams and passions!”

[Pause.]

[He stops dead, blinking a few times]

“What do I do for you? Babe, c’mon…”

[Pause?]

“I can think of lots of things! I share chores with you, we work great together-”.

[Pause.]

“What do you mean ‘how is any of that ‘for you’? It’s our shared space and our business!”

[Pause!]

“... But it’s not you…”

[. . .]

“... You feel like… my mother and I only ever bother with you when we need something… You feel like I take her side because, deep down, I know I’m not giving the same energy to this relationship… and it hurts to feel like a pathetic puppy waiting on your Master to notice you, again…”

[. . .]

[His voice cracks at your quiet admittance]

“...I k-know you just want to be loved and appreciated… I know you just… wanted me to give you one simple form of proving that I was committed to you… I know it probably doesn’t mean much, but… I intended to, that night… I was going to propose…”

[Pause…]

“You would have said no anyways…? Jesus… The panic attack broke things between us, didn’t it… I suppose I should have known that… I think part of me did, to be honest. I’ve never seen you scared, much less so scared that you’d panic like that…”

[Pause…]

[He sits silently by you for a moment, tears running down his face]

“... I never understood why you pushed yourself that hard… I sat there and thought, ‘Who does she feel the need to prove herself to’? And, surprise surprise, it’s her shitty boyfriend, all along… The call always comes from inside the house, doesn’t it?”

[Pause <3]

[He laughs, even though it’s a sad one]

“Yeah, well… thanks for telling me I was only shitty sometimes… and for apologizing for your poking… I know you never meant any harm by it, you just... were sick of a problem looming overhead and wanted to fix us... and I wouldn't even admit there was a problem...”

[Pause…]

“...You know… This night reminds me a lot of the night my Mom went low contact with me, for a good bit… It was such a nightmare. Panic, confusion, but then you put your arms around me, and told me it would be OK… and I believed you. You helped me through one crisis after another, you helped me stay in school… and all you wanted was for me to show you that I wanted to be your family…”

[. . .]

[He sighs through his nose again]

“...Maybe I can’t prove it to you alone… My mother has been a stormcloud in our relationship for years now, and I’ve been shitty about standing up for you… I did, this time. I wish you had been there to see it… I yelled at her to get her liposuctioned ass to the award ceremony, and boy did she get her ass there…”

[Pause?]

[He laughs, rubbing his face]

“Hoho, yeah. She smacked me on the back of the head for that one. Almost forgot my name for a solid minute. I wanted her to be there, though. I wanted her to see what we had accomplished together…”

[...Pause?]

[He smiles sadly]

“...If you want to know what she thought… I can call her right now with my solemn promise that if she even thinks about insulting you, I will tear her a new hole where hopefully a soul can squirm back in, hang up, and promptly block her harder a streamer with a riled up fanbase.”

[. . .]

[He gives you a sad but reassuring smile]

“I promise.”

[...Pause]

“OK. Here goes…”

[SFX: The call being made/answered]

[M] “Hello?”

“Hey, Mom… I’m with her at the airport. You’re on speakerphone. For the love of God, PLEASE behave yourself.”

[Pause…]

[M] “Oh… Hey, kiddo. It’s weird hearing your voice when you aren’t pretending to like me.”

[Pause.]

[She snorts]

[M] “Fair enough. I can’t say I like a lot of people in my life. At my age, you sort of lose the energy for it. Who knows, maybe you’ll age more graciously than me. Seems like you already had a pretty good plan laid out.”

[Pause…]

[M] “...Let me say my piece and then, if you want, you can tear into me. It… means a lot that you respect me, even if you don’t like me… When we met, I saw a lot of the woman I used to be before I got divorced. Someone driven to be their best while extending care and support to everyone they could. Like you, I gave everything and got little to nothing in return, even from my own son… I get that I’m a bitch, not denying, but you need to know that his father was great at manipulating people. He was the reason I had to largely cut said son off for a while…”

[Pause…]

[He looks away, ashamed but resolved]

“I’ve been having to work a lot of that out in therapy, too, yeah…”

[M] “...The big difference between father and son is that my son actually learned how to change himself for the better. I’ve seen him do it twice now and, honestly, I think he could go three for three, given the opportunity.”

[Pause??]

[She barks out a laugh]

[M] “I know! Me risking riling up his ego by gassing him up! I guess therapy’s not all bad. Puts things in perspective. Might even be nice to have someone sit in with me, once or twice. Who knows?”

[Pause…]

[M] “Oh, don’t go getting choked up, you’ll make me choke up. Finish your talk. Enjoy your night. Love you.”

[SFX: The call ending]

[. . .]

[He laughs quietly and puts his phone away]

“I guess that is pretty close to a miracle, isn’t it? Certainly unexpected, I’d say… but we’ve both been working hard. Trying to, at least, I… I wanted to show you that you’re worth it and that things can change… I’m ready to show you if you’ll let me?”

[Pause?]

“If I make a call, right now, there will be a party waiting at your favorite restaurant. We’ll take a limo, be there in twenty, and when the moment feels right, I will propose to you in front of everyone.”

[Pause…?]

[He deflates a bit but keeps steady]

“If you don’t want to go then it just becomes a party to celebrate our made family. Nothing going to waste.”

[Pause <3]

[His eyes widen and he looks at you in uncertainty]

“...D…Did you just say yes, you’d marry me…?”

[Pause <3]

“...What about the proposal? Do you still want…?”

[Pause…]

[You embrace him and he breaks down in your arms again, sobbing in relief]

“Baby… Oh my God, are you sure? I know I look rough, I haven’t slept, but I want to do this for you if it’s still what you want!”

[Pause…]

“...I did have a panic attack, yeah… Damnit, I knew I’d bombed it! Or… I thought I had… since you still want to marry me…?”

[Pause <3]

“You never wanted a big grand gesture … You really did just want me…”

[Pause <3]

“You just want to go home…?”

[Pause <3]

[He smiles against you]

“...You know, that sounds really… nice. There’ll be plenty of parties in the future anyway, right?”

[Pause <3]

[He laughs a little, still crying as you help him stand]

“True. We have a pretty massive one to plan, don’t we? After all, I’ve seen your little wedding planner book, and you are hankering for some pretty specific things.”

[Pause…]

“Don’t apologize… If you want a crazy wedding, you’re getting it. It’s the least you deserve after your impressive decades-long career of asshole-wrangling.”

[Pause <3]

[He hugs you again, lingering. What cements it all is that, in the chaos and the music and the bustle around you… he still makes you feel safe]

“...I love you so much… I promise you, I will never take you for granted again.”

[Pause <3]

[He laughs quietly]

“No… No more trying to solve a problem that wasn’t yours to solve. Just the two idiots that love you and, who knows, maybe a few other tiny idiots along the way, huh?”

[<3]

[SFX: Fade out on them meandering their way out of the airport together / improv convo, if desired]

[The End]

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Note: I guess I, too, am a sucker for a happy ending <3