Journey On Charlie Brown: A Peanuts Jukebox Musical
Chapter 2: The Ball Game
Earlier That Day
It was around 12:00 in the hot and damp afternoon,and a very enthusiastic Charlie Brown was scavenging through his closet to find a set of clothes to wear,but given his outfit he always wore it was redundant. For today was the first big baseball game of the season for his team,granted his team had never won a single game aside from the time he left town for a spelling bee that he failed,but he always kept a sense of hope whenever a game came around. Unfortunately this came at the expense of being the manager of his own team and since they always lost,a whole lot of insults and derogatory names were given to him even from his closest friends. Once he got his baseball hat,glove,and bat he took a quick look in the mirror and smiled "Here it is Charlie Brown,the big game. You know you always lose,but today will be different and I know it."
He heard a knock at the door and it was none other than Linus Van Pelt,Charlie Brown's closest friend aside from Snoopy. He too had a baseball hat,glove,and bat and was one of the more forgiving members of the team,but he did have his limits. They happily greeted each other with a handshake as they soom made their way towards the ballfield.
"That optimism of yours always keeps us energised Charlie Brown. But it also brings out the worst of the team whenever we lose." Linus said to which Charlie Brown replied "I know we never win any games,but it's that shred of optimism and hope that always gets us closer and closer every time."
Linus smiled at the boys enthusiasm and merely joked "It's nice to see some positivity on this team for once. Even if it's very rare."
It was a fairly nice day since they were at least guaranteed some clear skies before the large amount of rain that would follow it. Soon they made it to the baseball and all of their teammates were there. Lucy,Schroeder,Pig-Pen,Violet,Freida,Patty,Shermy,and Snoopy. They were unfortunately much more cynical about baseball due to their massive losing streak so it was mostly obligation that kept them coming back for more.
"Your late." Lucy annoyingly muttered while Violet jokingly added "Were you too busy getting ready with your 1 clothing style?"
Charlie Brown got in the face at the thought since he did take a while looking for which shirt to wear,but he brushed it up and decided to call for a team meeting before the game started.
"Ok people team meeting." The kids then got into a group circle while Snoopy merely decided to just sit on Linus's round head.
"I know we've never won a game,but it's not for the lack of trying. And you know just as much as I do that my optimism gets us closer and closer every time." Charlie Brown confidently remarked before Lucy cynically added "Yeah until you mess up at the last second." to which Violet and Patty chuckled quietly at the insult before Charlie Brown continued "Aside from that,I have a feeling in my bones that today will be the day we finally win a game. And I'm so confident in that,that if we win,root beers on me." This got the team to perk up and they got their game faces on and proceeded to practice before the big game started.
Soon the game began and in typical Charlie Brown fashion they had been getting pummeled to the ground,but a little harmless strategy Charlie Brown thought of like gritting your teeth before you swing the bat would gain them some momentum. It was a constant back and forth and mish mash of success and failure as they played the game the best they could,admists all the frustration and raging,they were all still having fun despite them not wanting to admit it.
Waking up in the light,of a shining new day giving thanks to the moon,for guiding my way,there is no greater gift to the soul. Lie in each breath that my body can hold. So great spirit,hear my voice,today.
Welcome,magic,welcome sweet sun ray,love is no secret look all around you welcome to this day
Life is simple and clear,when you make the right choices it's true that you're here,when you find your own voice oh my brothers and sisters believe,you are just what you are meant to be. Oh great spirit,hear my voice today.
Welcome,magic,welcome sweet sun ray,love is no secret look all around you welcome to this day.
Welcome,magic,welcome sweet sun ray,love is no secret,look all around you.
Welcome,magic,welcome sweet sun ray(sweet sun ray),love is no secret,look all around you welcome to this day.
Look all around you. Love is no secret,look all around you,welcome to this day.
Soon it was a tie between both teams and this next point would win the the game. Both teams were absolutely exhausted from the match but they were equally determined to win the game. Unfortunately for Charlie Brown's team,he was up next but the team did actually show some support for Charlie Brown as they shouted stuff like "Go Charlie Brown!" and "You're our favorite Blockhead!"
He took deep breaths at the mound and thought to himself "This is the moment of truth,this is the defining moment that will cement your place in baseball history. Be. A. Baseball. Hero. Charles." but the next thing he knew it,his team was screaming with frustration and the other team was cheering and gloating. He had lost them the game in such a quick instance that he simply stared off into the sky with an embarrassed and somber face as tremendous guilt and self loathing overwhelmed the kid,but that was just an appetizer for what the ret of the team had to say. The entire team aside from Linus marched up to him in a group with very angry scowls before they all took a deep breath shouted at once "YOU BLOCKHEAD CHARLIE BROWN!" causing him to be launched across the field.
"Now guys,we all make mistakes I'm sure we'll do better next time." Charlie Brown stammered as he got off the ground and tried to lighten up the sour mood,but they were not having it one bit.
"Oh no Charlie Brown,there is no next time!" Freida and Lucy shouted in unison to which Charlie Brown asked out of confusion "What do you mean?" before Snoopy walked up to the boy and handed him a piece of paper which Charlie Brown read.
"Y'all are quitting?!"
"As long as we have you as our manager,we will never win a game. Ever. The only time we ever won was when your stupid bald head was away for that spelling bee." Lucy growled to which Charlie Brown slowly started to hang his head as the other kids added other vicious and personal insults.
"Face it Charlie Brown,you can't be trusted to do anything right. You couldn't get us a proper tree for the Christmas pageant,you couldn't pass a spelling bee,and you can't even manage a baseball team." Violet smugishly insulted him as the other kids shouted in unison "YEAH!" before Patty viciously added "The only reason God made you Charlie Brown was so you can ruin everything. That's the only thing you're good for.
"I'm…. just…. trying...….to help." Charlie Brown quietly mumbled as the sky was starting to become completely covered with clouds and rain started to pour. The kids with the exception of Linus walked up to Charlie Brown one last time and yelled all at once almost as if it was rehearsed "If you really want to help us Charlie Brown,then stay out of our lives!" just as a loud boom of thunder accompanied it.
Charlie Brown turned ghost white at the prospect and he started to nervously whimper with tears in his eyes "You guys don't mean that? You can't mean that?" but the kids merely turned around and folded their arms,they were done.
"Come on Snoopy,you can't mean that?" Charlie Browwn asked the dog but he also turned around too and threw his hat on the ground to wither in the rain along with all the other kids as they headed for home,leaving Charlie Brown standing completely alone. Linus tried to approach Charlie Brown,but he could tell that he wanted to be alone.
He had screwed up before granted and they have said mean stuff to him before,but he couldn't imagine them saying that kind of stuff to him. He even remembered that although he got them the wrong tree,they still accepted it once they learned what the true meaning of Christmas was about,but they simply and ironically ignored it. He took a deep sigh and slowly but surely started to make his way home as he walked at a snail's pace.
The rain was getting harder and harder but he continued to walk at the slow speed he was trudging at,soon however he got back to his senses and tried to run for home but he slipped on the wet sidewalk and slid through a little patch of woods on a mudslide. As he slid down,many of thr branches cut him and tore off his shirt,small rocks pelted him in the eyes making them blackened,and his little hair got stuck on a hanging branch and got plucked off once the speed of the mudslide out matched the weight of the branch. Once the mudslide stopped and resided,he was left laying down in the dirt and mud as he was getting more and more frustrated,that combined with the shunning from his friends and the mudslide that messed him up,something finally snapped inside him,he had finally been broken as he put aside everything else anddashed for home.
Present Time.
Charlie Brown was still staring out the window as he burried his face in his hands once again to cry some more for at least another minuet,but stopped once he heard kicking at the door. Kicking at the door obviously meant Snoopy was hungry but Charlie Brown simply yelled "Go away Snoopy! I thought you didn't want me anymore!" as Snoopy continued to kick,but he eventually did stop and decided to get something from the fridge instead despite him having dog food normally. A little while later,Charlie Brown decided to clean himself up with a nice bath and homemade dinner from his parents,but he was still emotionally broken by the way he was treated at the ball game. Afterwards he stared off into the mirror as he decided to be alone for a while longer.
Charlie Brown: Look at me,I will never pass for a perfect friend,or a perfect manager,can it be,I'm not meant to play this part? Now I see,that if I were truly to be myself,I would break my friend's heart.
He walked outside and took a walk around the thin woods and hills that surrounded his neighborhood as the sun was slowly starting to set.
Who is that boy I see,staring straight,back at me? Why is my reflection someone I don't know?
Who is that that perfect friend? It's not me,though I've tried,when will my reflection show,who I am inside?
How I hope,that a time will come that I can free myself,from their expectations,on that day,I'll discover someway to be myself,and to make my friends proud.
They want a doicile lamb,no one knows who I am,must there be a secret me,I'm forced to hide?
Must I pretend that I'm someone else,for all time? When will my reflection show,who I am,inside?!
He sat at the dock that stood above the pond that was used for fishing and skating during the wintertime and stared off into the clear water that provided a clear reflection of himself and the sky.
When will my relection show,who I am,inside?
A single tear dropped from Charlie Brown's eye and into the pond as it rippled greatly.
Author's note
I didn't go super in depth into to the ball game since I know very little about baseball so I kept it to the main essentials of a ball game.
"WELCOME TO THIS DAY" AND "REFLECTION" COPYRIGHT OF WALT DISNEY RECORDS.