If Only You Could See
What Am I Really Doing Here?
It’s an over cast day in Charigo and twenty-seven year old Eric Harris is playing ‘Call Of Duty’ in his mom’s living room. It’s about 4:30 in the afternoon, but the lack of natural light makes it feel later.
The house it simple, yet cosy. Photo frames of Eric and his older Brother, Jason, line the walls and about the fireplace. Both growing boys with tons of freckles and that bright orange, ginger hair Ron Weasley made fashionable.
Eric is talking away to the person on the other end of the Xbox live connection. There is a knock at the door, which he ignores.
The knock rings throughout the house again. Sharper and louder this time.
ERIC: Mom!
PAM: You get it; I’m busy.
ERIC: So am I.
She ignores him.
The knock comes again.
ERIC: Oh seriously! Is it that important?!…Oh, not you. There’s someone trying to knock my door down…I don’t wanna answer it-
Eric continues playing the game.
PAM: Eric! Get the door!
He actively ignores her, pulling a defiant face as he chooses not to do as his mother asks.
The knocking comes again, only this time it doesn’t stop.
ERIC: Oh for-! Into the mic. Hold on – B.R.B
He pauses the game, drags himself off the sofa and goes into the hall to open the door, which is still being knocked.
ERIC: Opening the door.You know we have a frigging do-
He comes face to face with a pretty looking girl. She’s wearing a white hat, pulled over her chocolate coloured hair. It’s positioned towards the back of her head, showing off the vast amount of excessive volume her hair holds, while still being neat and well kept.
Her red velvet coat, with black trim, is double breasted and tightly fastened with a matching red belt tied to pull her middle in. The look is all matched off with a simple pair of black skinny jeans and ankle boots with a kitten heel.
She beams up at him with an uneasy full smile. Eric almost falls over himself, looking at this pretty girl who’s been impatiently knocking at his front door for the past few minutes.
ERIC: Finishing his sentence. –or bell.
KARLA: I don’t think it works.
ERIC: Yeah, it does.
He leans out of the door and presses the little grey button, only for no sound to chime in the house.
ERIC: Or maybe it doesn’t…
Karla smiles, looking up at him.
ERIC: So…?
She smiles a little more.
ERIC: Can I help you?
KARLA: Oh…you have absolutely no idea who I am, do you?
ERIC: Nope.
KARLA: This is the right house? She gets her phone and reads from it. I’m at 1215 Washtenaw Avenue, right?
ERIC: Yeah – that’s here.
KARLA: Daniel was supposed to pick me up from the airport? But when I got here he sent me a text saying he was in bed and didn’t wanna get up. So I had to get a cab and he said I’d get the money back.
ERIC: Dan said that?
KARLA: Yeah.
ERIC: You’ll be waiting for that money for a very long time.
KARLA: Great.
ERIC: Sorry, but I still have no clue who you are-?
KARLA: I’m Karla.
ERIC: Karla…?
KARLA: You are in a band, right?
ERIC: Justified Sugar.
KARLA: Yeah!
ERIC: What about it?
KARLA: And you’ve just been signed to Thick Records?
ERIC: Yeah…?
KARLA: And you did ask for a light and sound technician for your tour?
ERIC: Yeah…?
KARLA: Holding her hand out for him to shake, smiling.Hi. I’m Karla, your light and sound techy.
ERIC: Dumbfounded. But you’re a girl.
KARLA: Well the last time I had a period I was! Oh my God!
She covers her mouth with her cream coloured gloved hand; she gets the giggles and can’t stop herself laughing.
KARLA: That was so vulgar! I’m sorry. Her giggles become stronger, while her eyes get wet. Sometimes my mouth just moves and I don’t think. Is that gonna be a problem? Me having periods that is? Laughing harder. Oh my God! I’m so, so sorry. I can’t stop things falling out of my mouth. Blushing and calming down.Sorry. I can be a little bit of an idiot sometimes. But, to be honest – that would have been an accepted comment back home with my friends.
Eric laughs with her.
ERIC: You’re gonna get on with the band just fine. Do you wanna come in? It is kinda cold.
KARLA: Thanks.
She follows him indoors, moving aside so he can close the door behind her. Karla is holding her medium sized pink suitcase in her gloved hands.
ERIC: You can leave that there if you like.
KARLA: Thanks. It’s heavier than it looks.
She dumps it just away from the front door.
ERIC: Do you wanna come through into the living room?
She follows him into the room where he just was. He catches her eyes looking at the television screen, cocking her eyebrow.
ERIC: Oh. Jumping and turning it off.I – uhm…I was just –
KARLA: It’s okay. I used to live with four guys. They pretty much lived on C.O.D.
ERIC: I hardly ever play it.
KARLA: Right…
ERIC: You’ll be staying here.
KARLA: Here?
ERIC: Well…not in the living room, but…yeah-
KARLA: With you?
ERIC: Er…and my Mom. Is that okay?
KARLA: Yeah, yeah. Totally fine.
ERIC: It’s just that we’ve got a spare room and you don’t wanna stay with Dan and Benji.
KARLA: Honestly, it’s great. Thank you.
ERIC: Erm, I’ll show you to your room, if you like?
KARLA: That’ll be good, thanks.
Eric smiles and takes her back out the internal door they’ve just come through.
ERIC: This is the living room by the way. The dining room is though that door at the end, and that leads into the kitchen. Or you can get to the kitchen by the door at the end of the hall.
PAM: Eric, who was at the door?
ERIC: Oh, come and meet my Mom.
Eric leads Karla into the kitchen, where they find Pam who is sitting at the breakfast bar, with her laptop and piles of spreadsheets, notebooks and files covering the marble surface.
ERIC: Mom, this is Karla; she’s the techy we got for the band. You said she could stay here…?
PAM: Oh, yeah. Hi, I’m Pam.
KARLA: Nice to meet you.
PAM: Sorry, it doesn’t normally look like this.
KARLA: It’s fine; I’ve seen and lived in worse, believe me-
ERIC: Mom, it always looks like this when you do the accounting. To Karla. Come on.
PAM: I work from home Eric. You can’t even say you do that!
ERIC: Bye Mom. He closes the door. She owns her own business and is always trying to make me feel bad because I refuse to get a “real job”.
KARLA: Oh – right.
ERIC: We’re full time rock stars. That’s more than a full time job – that’s a life style.
KARLA: And being part-time C.O.D champion.
Eric blushes.
KARLA: I’m kidding.
ERIC: Oh. He laughs. I’ll show you your room.
He goes to the bottom on the stairs and picks up Karla’s pink suitcase.
ERIC: Shit! What have you got in here?!
KARLA: My life. I got fined for excess baggage.
ERIC: I’m not surprised!
He leads the way up the bedroom steps to the hallway upstairs.
ERIC: First room is my Mom’s. Dad left a long ass time ago. This is the bathroom; Mom’s got an en-suit so that’s ours. My bedroom is the one on the end and this is yours.
He opens the white door to show a tiny room, with flowerily curtains and a matching bedspread.
ERIC: It used to be my room, but when my brother moved out I went into his room and this is mainly used for my Grandma over the holidays…I know it’s pretty small-
KARLA: It’s brilliant!
ERIC: Really? You don’t just have to-
KARLA: I really mean it. It’s so much more than what I was expecting. Take it from a girl who’s lived on sofas and in vans – this is really brilliant.
Eric visibly relaxes.
ERIC: I’d better let the rest of the guys know you’re here.
KARLA: Okay.
ERIC: Why don’t you start moving yourself in? You might as well unpack; we’ve got another few weeks before he hit the road, no point of living out of your case just yet. I’ll be right back to help – I mean, if you want help?
KARLA: That would be a great help. Thanks.
Eric smiles and jogs off back down stairs while Karla goes into her new bedroom. First thing she does is open the window, even though the air is crisp and it’s started to drizzle, the room is in need of an air out – like all spare rooms do. She then heaves the suitcase onto the single bed, and unlocks the digital padlock so she can unzip it and flip the lid over. After digging around she finds her iPod docking station, which doubles up as her alarm clock. Putting it on the bedside table she sets the clock up, and removing her iPod from her coat pocket slips it onto the connector and fills the room with the soft sound of ‘Unwanted’ by Kill Hannah.
Karla takes her coat off, hooks it over the closet handle and starts to empty her case, either into the closet itself, or in the bedside table drawers. Things like, make up and hair products find themselves on the shelf or on the deep windowsill.
After a good ten minutes she’s almost finished, when Eric comes back.
ERIC: Sorry, that took longer than I thought. Oh wow. You’ve nearly finished?
KARLA: Yeah, I don’t fuck about.
ERIC: I can tell.
He starts to pass her things while she finds a place for them.
ERIC: Uhm, Karla?
KARLA: Yes…
ERIC: Do you have I.D?
KARLA: Who’s asking?
ERIC: Well, I am.
KARLA: Yes, Eric, I have I.D?
ERIC: Is it fake?
KARLA: No…
ERIC: Oh. Just, well…we were planning on going to a club tonight – kind of a welcome hello for you. Give you a chance to meet everyone.
KARLA: Everyone? How many is everyone? I thought it was a four-member band?
ERIC: Yeah, it is. It’ll be the band, friends, girlfriends, and few family members.
KARLA: Oh right.
ERIC: Is that okay?
KARLA: Yeah, it’s fine.
ERIC: When Dan said about it, I said I’d have to find out if you were old enough-
She giggles.
KARLA: What are you trying to say Eric?
ERIC: That you don’t look a day over eight-teen, and definitely not twenty-one.
KARLA: Laughing. Thank you very much.
ERIC: So…
KARLA: So…?
ERIC: How old are you?
KARLA: Sitting beside him on the bed. Oh Eric honey. You’ve just broken the first golden rule.
ERIC: What rule?
KARLA: You never, ever ask a lady her age.
ERIC: But…I didn’t – I thought you wouldn’t be able to come.
KARLA: Laughing.I have I.D, I’m over twenty-one and the only person who will ever get to see my I.D is the door-man, bar staff, passport control and Mr. Police-man – if he asks nicely.
ERIC: Oh…I’m sorry I didn’t know-
KARLA: Giggling.Honestly, how could you not know about golden rule number one?
ERIC: Guess no one’s ever told me.
KARLA: Stick with me kid; I’ll turn you into Prince Charming-
ERIC: Kid? I’m twenty-seven!
KARLA: Really? Then you’re older than me.
ERIC: Oh yeah…by how much?
KARLA: Ha! You don’t catch me out that easily!
ERIC: Snapping his fingers. Drats!
KARLA: Laughing.Drats?! You sound like my Grandpa!
They laugh together while he helps her to feel more at home and relaxed.
Little does Karla know, Eric is never this shy around knew people, but Karla has really taken him by surprise. Newly single, after a two yearlong relationship (that she ended,) Eric didn’t think he was ready for even just a fling yet. Then Karla knocked on his door; and Eric wasn’t the fling kinda guy.
The house it simple, yet cosy. Photo frames of Eric and his older Brother, Jason, line the walls and about the fireplace. Both growing boys with tons of freckles and that bright orange, ginger hair Ron Weasley made fashionable.
Eric is talking away to the person on the other end of the Xbox live connection. There is a knock at the door, which he ignores.
The knock rings throughout the house again. Sharper and louder this time.
ERIC: Mom!
PAM: You get it; I’m busy.
ERIC: So am I.
She ignores him.
The knock comes again.
ERIC: Oh seriously! Is it that important?!…Oh, not you. There’s someone trying to knock my door down…I don’t wanna answer it-
Eric continues playing the game.
PAM: Eric! Get the door!
He actively ignores her, pulling a defiant face as he chooses not to do as his mother asks.
The knocking comes again, only this time it doesn’t stop.
ERIC: Oh for-! Into the mic. Hold on – B.R.B
He pauses the game, drags himself off the sofa and goes into the hall to open the door, which is still being knocked.
ERIC: Opening the door.You know we have a frigging do-
He comes face to face with a pretty looking girl. She’s wearing a white hat, pulled over her chocolate coloured hair. It’s positioned towards the back of her head, showing off the vast amount of excessive volume her hair holds, while still being neat and well kept.
Her red velvet coat, with black trim, is double breasted and tightly fastened with a matching red belt tied to pull her middle in. The look is all matched off with a simple pair of black skinny jeans and ankle boots with a kitten heel.
She beams up at him with an uneasy full smile. Eric almost falls over himself, looking at this pretty girl who’s been impatiently knocking at his front door for the past few minutes.
ERIC: Finishing his sentence. –or bell.
KARLA: I don’t think it works.
ERIC: Yeah, it does.
He leans out of the door and presses the little grey button, only for no sound to chime in the house.
ERIC: Or maybe it doesn’t…
Karla smiles, looking up at him.
ERIC: So…?
She smiles a little more.
ERIC: Can I help you?
KARLA: Oh…you have absolutely no idea who I am, do you?
ERIC: Nope.
KARLA: This is the right house? She gets her phone and reads from it. I’m at 1215 Washtenaw Avenue, right?
ERIC: Yeah – that’s here.
KARLA: Daniel was supposed to pick me up from the airport? But when I got here he sent me a text saying he was in bed and didn’t wanna get up. So I had to get a cab and he said I’d get the money back.
ERIC: Dan said that?
KARLA: Yeah.
ERIC: You’ll be waiting for that money for a very long time.
KARLA: Great.
ERIC: Sorry, but I still have no clue who you are-?
KARLA: I’m Karla.
ERIC: Karla…?
KARLA: You are in a band, right?
ERIC: Justified Sugar.
KARLA: Yeah!
ERIC: What about it?
KARLA: And you’ve just been signed to Thick Records?
ERIC: Yeah…?
KARLA: And you did ask for a light and sound technician for your tour?
ERIC: Yeah…?
KARLA: Holding her hand out for him to shake, smiling.Hi. I’m Karla, your light and sound techy.
ERIC: Dumbfounded. But you’re a girl.
KARLA: Well the last time I had a period I was! Oh my God!
She covers her mouth with her cream coloured gloved hand; she gets the giggles and can’t stop herself laughing.
KARLA: That was so vulgar! I’m sorry. Her giggles become stronger, while her eyes get wet. Sometimes my mouth just moves and I don’t think. Is that gonna be a problem? Me having periods that is? Laughing harder. Oh my God! I’m so, so sorry. I can’t stop things falling out of my mouth. Blushing and calming down.Sorry. I can be a little bit of an idiot sometimes. But, to be honest – that would have been an accepted comment back home with my friends.
Eric laughs with her.
ERIC: You’re gonna get on with the band just fine. Do you wanna come in? It is kinda cold.
KARLA: Thanks.
She follows him indoors, moving aside so he can close the door behind her. Karla is holding her medium sized pink suitcase in her gloved hands.
ERIC: You can leave that there if you like.
KARLA: Thanks. It’s heavier than it looks.
She dumps it just away from the front door.
ERIC: Do you wanna come through into the living room?
She follows him into the room where he just was. He catches her eyes looking at the television screen, cocking her eyebrow.
ERIC: Oh. Jumping and turning it off.I – uhm…I was just –
KARLA: It’s okay. I used to live with four guys. They pretty much lived on C.O.D.
ERIC: I hardly ever play it.
KARLA: Right…
ERIC: You’ll be staying here.
KARLA: Here?
ERIC: Well…not in the living room, but…yeah-
KARLA: With you?
ERIC: Er…and my Mom. Is that okay?
KARLA: Yeah, yeah. Totally fine.
ERIC: It’s just that we’ve got a spare room and you don’t wanna stay with Dan and Benji.
KARLA: Honestly, it’s great. Thank you.
ERIC: Erm, I’ll show you to your room, if you like?
KARLA: That’ll be good, thanks.
Eric smiles and takes her back out the internal door they’ve just come through.
ERIC: This is the living room by the way. The dining room is though that door at the end, and that leads into the kitchen. Or you can get to the kitchen by the door at the end of the hall.
PAM: Eric, who was at the door?
ERIC: Oh, come and meet my Mom.
Eric leads Karla into the kitchen, where they find Pam who is sitting at the breakfast bar, with her laptop and piles of spreadsheets, notebooks and files covering the marble surface.
ERIC: Mom, this is Karla; she’s the techy we got for the band. You said she could stay here…?
PAM: Oh, yeah. Hi, I’m Pam.
KARLA: Nice to meet you.
PAM: Sorry, it doesn’t normally look like this.
KARLA: It’s fine; I’ve seen and lived in worse, believe me-
ERIC: Mom, it always looks like this when you do the accounting. To Karla. Come on.
PAM: I work from home Eric. You can’t even say you do that!
ERIC: Bye Mom. He closes the door. She owns her own business and is always trying to make me feel bad because I refuse to get a “real job”.
KARLA: Oh – right.
ERIC: We’re full time rock stars. That’s more than a full time job – that’s a life style.
KARLA: And being part-time C.O.D champion.
Eric blushes.
KARLA: I’m kidding.
ERIC: Oh. He laughs. I’ll show you your room.
He goes to the bottom on the stairs and picks up Karla’s pink suitcase.
ERIC: Shit! What have you got in here?!
KARLA: My life. I got fined for excess baggage.
ERIC: I’m not surprised!
He leads the way up the bedroom steps to the hallway upstairs.
ERIC: First room is my Mom’s. Dad left a long ass time ago. This is the bathroom; Mom’s got an en-suit so that’s ours. My bedroom is the one on the end and this is yours.
He opens the white door to show a tiny room, with flowerily curtains and a matching bedspread.
ERIC: It used to be my room, but when my brother moved out I went into his room and this is mainly used for my Grandma over the holidays…I know it’s pretty small-
KARLA: It’s brilliant!
ERIC: Really? You don’t just have to-
KARLA: I really mean it. It’s so much more than what I was expecting. Take it from a girl who’s lived on sofas and in vans – this is really brilliant.
Eric visibly relaxes.
ERIC: I’d better let the rest of the guys know you’re here.
KARLA: Okay.
ERIC: Why don’t you start moving yourself in? You might as well unpack; we’ve got another few weeks before he hit the road, no point of living out of your case just yet. I’ll be right back to help – I mean, if you want help?
KARLA: That would be a great help. Thanks.
Eric smiles and jogs off back down stairs while Karla goes into her new bedroom. First thing she does is open the window, even though the air is crisp and it’s started to drizzle, the room is in need of an air out – like all spare rooms do. She then heaves the suitcase onto the single bed, and unlocks the digital padlock so she can unzip it and flip the lid over. After digging around she finds her iPod docking station, which doubles up as her alarm clock. Putting it on the bedside table she sets the clock up, and removing her iPod from her coat pocket slips it onto the connector and fills the room with the soft sound of ‘Unwanted’ by Kill Hannah.
Karla takes her coat off, hooks it over the closet handle and starts to empty her case, either into the closet itself, or in the bedside table drawers. Things like, make up and hair products find themselves on the shelf or on the deep windowsill.
After a good ten minutes she’s almost finished, when Eric comes back.
ERIC: Sorry, that took longer than I thought. Oh wow. You’ve nearly finished?
KARLA: Yeah, I don’t fuck about.
ERIC: I can tell.
He starts to pass her things while she finds a place for them.
ERIC: Uhm, Karla?
KARLA: Yes…
ERIC: Do you have I.D?
KARLA: Who’s asking?
ERIC: Well, I am.
KARLA: Yes, Eric, I have I.D?
ERIC: Is it fake?
KARLA: No…
ERIC: Oh. Just, well…we were planning on going to a club tonight – kind of a welcome hello for you. Give you a chance to meet everyone.
KARLA: Everyone? How many is everyone? I thought it was a four-member band?
ERIC: Yeah, it is. It’ll be the band, friends, girlfriends, and few family members.
KARLA: Oh right.
ERIC: Is that okay?
KARLA: Yeah, it’s fine.
ERIC: When Dan said about it, I said I’d have to find out if you were old enough-
She giggles.
KARLA: What are you trying to say Eric?
ERIC: That you don’t look a day over eight-teen, and definitely not twenty-one.
KARLA: Laughing. Thank you very much.
ERIC: So…
KARLA: So…?
ERIC: How old are you?
KARLA: Sitting beside him on the bed. Oh Eric honey. You’ve just broken the first golden rule.
ERIC: What rule?
KARLA: You never, ever ask a lady her age.
ERIC: But…I didn’t – I thought you wouldn’t be able to come.
KARLA: Laughing.I have I.D, I’m over twenty-one and the only person who will ever get to see my I.D is the door-man, bar staff, passport control and Mr. Police-man – if he asks nicely.
ERIC: Oh…I’m sorry I didn’t know-
KARLA: Giggling.Honestly, how could you not know about golden rule number one?
ERIC: Guess no one’s ever told me.
KARLA: Stick with me kid; I’ll turn you into Prince Charming-
ERIC: Kid? I’m twenty-seven!
KARLA: Really? Then you’re older than me.
ERIC: Oh yeah…by how much?
KARLA: Ha! You don’t catch me out that easily!
ERIC: Snapping his fingers. Drats!
KARLA: Laughing.Drats?! You sound like my Grandpa!
They laugh together while he helps her to feel more at home and relaxed.
Little does Karla know, Eric is never this shy around knew people, but Karla has really taken him by surprise. Newly single, after a two yearlong relationship (that she ended,) Eric didn’t think he was ready for even just a fling yet. Then Karla knocked on his door; and Eric wasn’t the fling kinda guy.