EILEENS DIARY – PART THREE

Opening Scene: Hector is sitting on the sofa and Tina on the floor as they both stare at Lenni. Lenni is staring at the R.S.V.P. from Rob.

LENNI: reading

Dear Sally,

Thank you so much for inviting me to the wedding. After a good amount of negotiating, and agreeing to use some of my own money, I was able to get permission to come! My father just got promoted at the embassy, so he won't be available. But my mother agreed to take some time off from work and I'll be on mid-term break from school, so the two of us will definitely be there. It'll be fantastic to see the garden and everyone in Brooklyn again.

See you soon!

Rob Baker

HECTOR: All right! Rob is coming to the wedding!

TINA: Wow. It'll be so great to see him again.

LENNI: I don't believe it. He's actually coming.

Lenni bites her lip as Tina raises her eyebrows and Hector looks at the diary.

HECTOR: Funny. That's what Eileen writes…about James coming back.

Lenni looks up just as Max and Sally come in.

SALLY: Hello everyone.

LENNI: Hey Dad. Hey Sally. Guess what?

MAX: What?

LENNI: Rob is coming to the wedding!

SALLY: Good gracious. Is he really?

LENNI: Yeah! He has school break and his mom is taking time off work.

MAX: Well that's fantastic.

SALLY: Oh it is. I mean if it wasn't for Rob, I never would have met Lenni.

MAX: Really?

LENNI: That's right. Rob knew Sally from the poetry workshop.

TINA: And he introduced her to us when he was trying to get us involved in the garden project.

MAX: Ah ha. So if not for Rob…

Max looks at Sally, who pokes him in the ribs.

SALLY: I wouldn't have met you either.

Max grins and Sally giggles. Lenni turns to Hector and Tina.

LENNI: We've got to tell the others that Rob is coming.

HECTOR: Well I'm supposed to go down and meet Alex. I can tell him and Gaby.

TINA: How about we go and tell Jamal?

LENNI: You can do that. I still have a lot to do here.

TINA: All right.

Tina and Hector leave as Lenni continues going through the R.S.V.P.'s and writing down who's coming. But she looks at the one from Rob and smiles.

CUT TO: The bodega. Alex has his mouth open and Gaby is squealing as they look at Hector, who had a broad smile on his face.

ALEX: You're kidding?

HECTOR: Nope. He sent an R.S.V.P. and everything.

GABY: This is so awesome! We get to see Rob again!

ALEX: Yeah. Good grief, it's been what? Three years?

HECTOR: Yeah. Just like when James came back.

GABY: It is?

HECTOR: I just got to that part. Eileen finds out that James is coming to see her during his leave from Vietnam…and she hasn't seen him for three years.

ALEX: Wow. So what happens?

HECTOR: I don't know yet. I mean…I thought this would be interesting to read…but it might turn all mushy.

GABY: Well feel free to let me read it if it does. I want to see if he likes her.

Hector makes a face.

HECTOR: Girls.

Gaby giggles as Alex shakes his head.

ALEX: Come on Hector. Let's see if it does turn mushy.

CUT TO: Alex's room. Hector is reading aloud from the diary as they sit on the bed.

HECTOR: Dear Diary…I knew James was coming today, but he didn't say he was going to show up here! I get out of class and just about jump out of my skin. He's standing right across the road, grinning at me. I ran over to him and gave him a big hug. Everyone was staring but I didn't care. We spent the whole afternoon talking about stuff, just like we used to in high school. It's so great having him back.

Hector nods and looks at Alex.

HECTOR: It doesn't sound mushy so far. Seems they're just good friends.

ALEX: Yeah. Rob and Lenni were like that.

HECTOR: They were?

ALEX: Yeah. I mean…when Rob first met Jamal, he was sure he hated him. And when he first met me, we almost had a fight.

HECTOR: Oh yeah. Cuz of the smear flyers, right?

ALEX: Right. He was even mad at Ghostwriter for reading his poems without permission.

HECTOR: Oh boy. Rob does say he's touchy about who reads his poems. Never sends any to me…but only to Lenni.

ALEX: Rob sends poems to Lenni?

HECTOR: Yeah. Kind of like how Eileen sends poems to James. She trusts him because he's her best friend.

ALEX: I guess so. Lenni was Rob's best friend too. They got off to a much better start…and she was actually nice to him…so they got along really well. And they teamed up a lot whenever we had a case.

HECTOR: But…it didn't get…mushy?

ALEX: Nah. I mean…Rob was shy enough about making friends…let alone asking out a girl. All he would do is tease me and Jamal about our girls.

HECTOR: Yeah. He wrote to me about that. Says it's only a matter of time before I start liking girls.

ALEX: And what did you say?

HECTOR: Ha! I told him I'll start liking girls when he does.

ALEX: Good answer.

HECTOR: Yeah. Although he says his school is only for boys, so he doesn't know any girls anyway.

ALEX: Really? His school is only for guys?

HECTOR: Yep. He's glad about it too. He says if he were to get a girlfriend from Australia, she might not let him come back here. He'd be stuck there forever.

ALEX: That's true. Sally was saying that's why it's taken so long for her and Max to get married.

HECTOR: It is?

ALEX: Yeah. She's from England…and even has kids there. But she's stuck here for good since she's marrying Max. But she said she's okay with that now.

Hector nods and looks back in the diary.

HECTOR: Well…let's see how it goes with Eileen and James. Maybe she'll mention his last name now that he's there.

CUT TO: Lenni's loft. Lenni has the diary at the counter as Jamal and Gaby sit across from her.

LENNI: So it seems Eileen had a lot of fun with James while he was visiting her. They went to all sorts of places together. The amusement park…the beach…the garden.

GABY: I still say it sounds like they're dating.

LENNI: Well she does say she's wondering about that. But…James hasn't done anything to imply that they are.

JAMAL: Maybe. But just because he doesn't say it, doesn't mean he isn't thinking it.

Lenni nods and picks up the diary.

LENNI READING:

Dear Diary…It was so great with James today. I still can't believe he came all the way here to see me. I can tell that the whispering is bothering him, but he just keeps saying not to worry about it.

GABY: Whispering?

LENNI: Yeah. The other kids at her college are whispering about him…since he's obviously a soldier in the war. But he just ignores it…and tells Eileen to be grateful that she can't hear what they're saying.

JAMAL: Wow. That makes it even more impressive that he came to see her. I mean, he wouldn't have to put up with that if he had gone somewhere else.

LENNI: I know. It's not like she didn't warn him about all the protests and stuff. She wrote to him about it all the time.

GABY: All the more reason he might like her more than she thinks he does.

Lenni raises her eyebrows and turns the page.

LENNI READING:

Dear Diary…Today I am so heartbroken. And so confused. I never expected this to happen, although I had always hoped that it would.

GABY: Oooh. Never expected what?

FLASHBACK: A train station. A tall soldier is getting ready to board the train as a beautiful young woman with long brown hair is weeping. The soldier puts his bag down and holds her as she cries. She then pulls away as he smiles and signs to her.

SOLDIER: (signing) Don't stop writing, Eileen.

EILEEN: (signing) I won't James. I'll never stop writing.

James looks at Eileen and touches her face, wiping a tear away with his thumb. Their eyes meet and James takes a deep breath and then kisses her, holding her face. Eileen timidly kisses him back, putting her arms around him. They finally pull apart and James gives her a frightened look before grabbing his bag and getting on the train.

EILEEN: James!

James appears in the window, his eyes full of tears. He then holds his hand to the window, holding out three fingers. Eileen gives a nod and holds out her own hand with the same three fingers out.

CUT TO: Lenni's loft. Lenni stares at the diary as Jamal sits back and Gaby grins.

GABY: I knew it.

JAMAL: Yeah...He really did love her.

LENNI: I'll say. But…good grief. Did he have to wait 'til the last minute?

JAMAL: Well…he was probably shy about it. Why he ran off and got on the train.

GABY: But he did make the sign for I love you…so it's not like he didn't say anything.

Lenni nods and bites her lip.

FLASHBACK: The back window of a taxi. Rob looks back at Lenni and puts his hand in the window with three fingers out.

CUT TO: Lenni nodding and looking at the others.

LENNI: Well…now that we know that he was her boyfriend…we've got to find out what his last name was.

JAMAL: Right. Then we can look for Eileen.

LENNI READNG:

Dear Diary…I finally got a letter from James. He first apologized for the way he kissed me and ran off at the train station. He said he couldn't help but kiss me, but then panicked after he actually did it. But he also says he's in love with me.

Lenni looks at Jamal and Gaby, who grin at each other. Lenni also grins and turns back to the diary.

LENNI READING

I wrote back to him right away. I said I was glad that he kissed me. I'm so in love with him, I can hardly stand it. I miss him so much already, even more than when he left before. I am going to pray at church every day until he comes back again. I want him back safe and sound.

JAMAL: Wow. Did she go to church before?

LENNI: She does mention it a few times. She prays that James doesn't get hurt or killed in the war.

GABY: Oh man. I sure hope he survived it.

JAMAL: Yeah. We may never find Eileen otherwise.

LENNI: I know. And she'd be so heartbroken.

Lenni skims the diary and turns to the end.

LENNI READING:

Dear Diary…I got a letter from James and he says his service in Vietnam is finished! Oh but I'm so glad! He's going to be coming home soon and wants to see me again. But I'm a bit worried. He says he has BIG news to tell me and also a BIG question he needs to ask. I don't know about the news, but I can guess what the question is. Is he going to propose? And if he is, what will I do about college? I have a whole year left of school. Oh but I can't wait for James to get here. I want to kiss him again. And if he IS going to propose, I already know my answer!

Lenni then turns the page and lets out a gasp. Jamal and Gaby look at each other and back at her.

JAMAL: Wait! What does she do? Where's the rest?

LENNI: I don't know! That's the last page!

GABY: What?! But…what's the big news?

JAMAL: And did he propose or not?

LENNI: I don't know! She must've started a new diary since this one was full!

The three of them look at each other and back at the diary.