Daria
in
"The Next Step"
PART TWOINT: Tom's car
Daria keeps her eyes out the window.
Tom: I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable. I realize we're not a couple anymore, and I'm not trying to be your boyfriend.
Daria doesn't respond.
Tom: But I still like talking to you, and I was kind of hoping we could still chat about things every once in a while, on the phone if not in person. I don't have any friends who I connect with as well as you.
Daria: Tom, I'm not opposed to the idea of us talking like friends. But it's too soon. There's still too much emotional attachment that we need to detach before we can relate on a different level.
Tom: So, you're still convinced that we should... detach?
Daria: (frowning) Tom, you're treading on very dangerous territory.
Tom: Okay, sorry, you can't blame a guy for trying.
Daria: Yes, I can! I didn't reach the decision to break up with you lightly. I thought about it for a long time before deciding it was the right thing to do. And it's not a decision I'm going to reverse just because you're lonely. I'm sorry that it hurt you, but in the long run it's better for both of us, and if you really think about it I believe you'll agree. So when you act like I might change my mind on the spur of the moment just because you're feeling vulnerable, it just shows me how little you really know me.
Tom: You're right. I'm sorry. It's just that... you're not easy to get over.
Daria: (gently) You will.
They pull up in front of Daria's house.
Tom: Call me later?
Daria: I'll think about it.
She gets out and heads into the house.
INT: Morgendorffer Kitchen
Jake is cooking something with tentacles. Daria walks in.
Jake: Hey, Kiddo! Ol' Dad's got a special treat for tonight! Calamari a la Antoine! With my own special touch!
Before Daria can respond, Helen comes in.
Helen: Oh Daria, have you taken a moment to fill out all those scholarship applications? If you hurry, you might still get some money for this year!
Daria: Dad: please don't make me eat that. Mom: I've just dropped off the forms at the Post Office.
Jake: You don't like seafood?
Helen: Good for you, Daria!
Jake: Helen! Couldn't I have a little support here?
Helen: I meant it was good that she got those applications in. (She notices the tentacles coming out of the pot on the stove) Aahh! Jake, what the hell have you done now?
Jake: (proudly) It's Calamari a la -
Helen: I don't care what it is, it looks absolutely dreadful, get rid of it!
Jake: But Helen!
Daria: Looks like sandwich night.
Daria makes her way to the refrigerator and is about to open it when she notices a new note on the door. It syas, "Daria - Tom stopped by. Are you guys getting back together, or what? - Quinn"
Daria: Hey, how long has this note been here?
Helen: Jake, can't you just cook hamburgers or something like everyone else?
Jake: Oh, you should talk! Every time it's your turn to cook dinner, we have frozen lasagna! Just how many of those damn things do we have crammed into our freezer, anyway?
Daria: (peeved) Did Tom stop by today?
Helen: Oh, and I suppose your Toilet Bowl Stew is any better?
Jake: That's Kitchen Sink Stew!
Helen: That's your opinion, buster!
Daria: Want to see my tattoo?
Jake: Fine, if you're such the culinary expert, let's see you cook anything on Earth that didn't come out of the freezer!
Helen: For your information, I am more than capable of putting together a recipe, preferably one that doesn't involve tentacles!
Daria leaves them to their arguing.
INT: Daria's room
Daria picks up the phone and is about to start dialing when she hears the tone indicating she has a message. She dials into voicemail to retrieve it.
Phone: Hey Quinn, it's Jamie. Want to get together someti –
Daria skips it.
Phone: Quinn, it's Jeffy. If you're not already busy a week from Saturday –
Skips again.
Phone: Quinn? It's Joey, I was –
Skips.
Phone: Quinn? It's - (skips) Hey, Quinn, I hoped – (skips) Quinn, maybe we could – (skips) Daria? It's Jane.
Daria stops herself from skipping again and pays attention.
Jane: For some reason Tom just stopped by here looking for you. I didn't know where you were, and frankly I probably wouldn't have told him anyway, but I thought I should let you know so if he finds you you won't be caught off-guard. Call me, okay? Oh, and don't worry if I sound pissed off, it's got nothing to do with you.
Daria's face creases into a frown. She dials another number.
Elsie Sloane, Tom's sister, picks up the other end.
Elsie: Hello?
Daria: Elsie? It's Daria. Could you put Tom on?
Elsie: Hey, Daria. Are you guys getting back together or something?
Daria: (tightly restrained anger) Just put him on, please.
Elsie: Um, sure. One second.
A moment passes.
Tom: Hello, Daria?
Daria: (anger no longer so tightly restrained) What the hell is your problem?
Tom: What do you mean?
Daria: You know damn well what I mean! Am I going to have to get a restraining order against you or something?
Tom: Wait, Daria, it's not like –
Daria: Look, don't give me any more of your crap, all right? I know you stopped by here today and I know you went to Jane's house next. Just how long did you drive around town looking for me?
Tom: Daria, if you'll just let me –
Daria: And by the way, is it possible that you happened to overhear my plans to go to the library that time you coincidentally showed up at Pizza Prince while I was there?
Tom: Daria –
Daria: Get this through your head, nutcase! I am not your girlfriend anymore! I never will be again! And if you come within twenty yards of me, I'll show you the kind of damage these boots are capable of inflicting. STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM ME!
She slams the phone down hard, kicks her door shut, and throws herself onto the bed to stare angrily at the ceiling.
The Next Day...
INT: Jane's room.
It's morning. Jane is asleep on the floor in front of a canvas that shows her mother and father in a large cauldron being cooked by cannibals.
The phone rings. She stirs, but doesn't get up.
It rings a few more times, then the machine gets it.
Machine: (Jane's voice) Abandon all hope, all ye who call here.
Beep.
Amanda: (on phone) Hi kids! It's Mom. I was calling to see if anyone's seen Summer's children lately; they've taken another unannounced trip. We can be reached at... hmm, what did I do with that number... oh well, we'll call again in a few weeks! Bye-bye!
Jane: (suddenly awake) NO! Wait! (she grabs the phone) Hello?? HELLO?!? Dammit, dammit, dammit, dammit, dammit!!
INT: Lane kitchen
Jane stomps sullenly into the room and pulls up a chair next to Jesse, who's eating cereal. She steals his coffee and starts drinking it.
The phone rings again.
And again.
Jesse: Do you want me to get that?
Jane: Grmblmbl...
Jesse picks up the phone.
Jesse: Trent's house. (pause) Oh, hi. (pause) Uh-huh. (pause) Nope. (pause) Cool. (pause) I'll ask. Hey Jane, have you seen your sister's kids?
Jane: (suddenly alert) Who are you talking to?
Jesse: It's your dad, I think.
Jane: Gimme that!! (she grabs the phone) Hello? Dad? Is that you?
Vincent: Well hi, Penny! I didn't expect you'd be at home!
Jane: It's Jane, Dad.
Vincent: Oh! Say Jane, have you seen Summer's kids? They've run off again.
Jane: No. Listen, I need to ask you something really important. Do you know what happened to that college fund Mom set up for me and Trent?
Vincent: Trent's going to college?
Jane: No Dad, I'm going to college, or at least I will be if I can figure out what happened to the money that's going to pay for it.
Vincent: Don't you have to finish high school first, honey?
Jane: (scowling) Dad, I finished high school a week ago.
Vincent: Well, good for you! I always knew one of my kids would make it.
Jane: Yeah, fine, yay for me, do you know where the money is?
Vincent: Well to be honest with you, I had no idea your mother set it up. Let me see if I can find her...
Jane: You're not going to leave me on hold while you go look for her in Bangkok, are you?
Vincent: Oh no, she's right around here somewhere... hold on a second, Jane.
Jane waits, fidgeting.
Amanda: Hello?
Jane: Mom! I've been trying to find you for days! Where are you?
Amanda: Hmm... I think we're in Utah. It was pretty late when we got in last night.
Jane: Utah?! I've been calling every embassy, hotel, and prison on seven continents, and you're in UTAH?
Amanda: Well, we've been trying to help Summer –
Jane: Track down her little delinquents, I know. Look, Mom, where's the college fund?
Amanda: The what?
Jane: The college fund! The bank account you set up a few years back for me and Trent's college tuition!
Amanda: Oh Jane, don't worry that. Your father and I prepaid the mortgage six months in advance last time we were there.
Jane: I don't care about the damn mortgage, Mom! I need the college money so I can GO TO COLLEGE.
Amanda: Don't you have to graduate from high school first?
Jane: MOM, I graduated from high school! And I got accepted into the Boston Fine Arts College! Now, I need to pay for it, and you told me the money was there! So, where is it?
Amanda: Well, let me think... I'm almost certain I set up the account when you started high school...
Pause.
Jane: (impatiently) Can you remember anything else?
Amanda: Hmm...
Jane: Can you at least tell me which bank it's in?
Amanda: Well, I remember it was a red brick building...
Jane: Mom, this is really important!
Amanda: Oh Jane, college isn't as important as some would have you believe. Your father never got past ninth grade, and look at how well he's doing!
Jane: (very peeved) Look, Mom. If you didn't want to pay for my education, that's fine. But you told me the money was there, and I was counting on it. Now I've been through a lot to get here, and I don't want to blow the whole thing because you can't remember where you put a few thousand dollars!
Amanda: A few thousand? Oh Jane, it wasn't nearly that much. I think it was around a hundred or so.
Jane: WHAT??!? You only put away a hundred bucks for both me and Trent to go to college?
Amanda: I would imagine that with interest it's a little more than that by now...
Jane: AARRRGGH!!
Jane shakes the phone in a strangling grip, finally pulling it out of the wall and throwing it across the room, where it catches Max on the head.
Max: Ow! Hey, that really hurt!
Jane ignores him and stomps into the living room, shoving Nick out of the way. He trips and lands on Trent, who's sleeping on the couch.
Trent: (waking up) I didn't know she was your daughter, officer!
Nick: Whoa, Jane, what's the deal?
Jane: STUPID Goddamn parents! A hundred bucks for college? That won't even buy one freakin' BOOK!
Trent: You found a hundred bucks for college? Cool.
Jane: NO, Trent, I found Jack Squat for college! And thanks to our idiot mother, I'm probably not even going to be able to go! Well, congratulations, Trent, you got your wish! Looks like I'm staying here forever!
Trent: Whoa, Janey. That's kind of harsh. It's not my fault...
Jane: Just leave me alone! And get this goddamn drum kit out of my way!
Jane is about to kick though Max's drum set when he dashes over to it and valiantly grabs a set of cymbals out of her reach. She doesn't even seem to notice, but instead just stomps out the door and slams it shut.
Jesse: Whoa.
Trent: Yeah.
There's a moment of silence. Suddenly, Jane bursts back in. She looks around the room slowly, taking in the clothesline hanging with Nick's laundry, the recently rescued drum kit, Jesse's amps stowed in the corner, and a number of boxes that have been stacked up against one wall.
Jane: (chillingly calm) Trent, just what exactly is all this stuff doing here, and why have these three guys been hanging around so much for the past week?
Pause.
Trent: Um... well, it's like this... see, I missed a kind of important gig a while back, and so the guys couldn't make their rent payments, and, well, I kind of let them move in here to make up for it.
Dangerous pause.
Jane: I see.
Trent: It's only for a few months.
Jane: Hm.
Trent: I hope you're not mad.
Jane: (still icy calm) Mad? No, I'm not mad. "Seven Shades of Pissed Off", now that might be a better way to describe it.
Trent: Uh... sorry?
Jane turns and walks slowly out the door, closing it gently behind her.
Nick: I think that went over okay.
Jane: (from outside) AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUGGGGGHHHH!!!!!!!
Jesse: Maybe not.
INT: Morgendorffer Living Room
Quinn is on the phone
Quinn: Of course, the green one was better – not that the blue one wasn't nice too... (pause) No, of course I'm not just agreeing with Sandi! I'm just saying, I don't think she was trying to talk you into getting a bad outfit. (pause) Stacy, could we maybe talk about something else? (pause) Like, I don't know, what are your plans for the summer? (pause) Isn't there something other than shopping? (pause) Oops, is that my call waiting? I have to go, bye Stacy!
Quinn hangs up with a sigh.
A moment later, the phone rings. Quinn picks it up.
Quinn: Hello? Oh, hi Sandi! (pause) Actually, I was just talking to her. (pause) Why would I have said that? I was actually telling her how I thought the blue one was nice. (pause) Sandi, isn't there something else we could talk about? Like... what are your plans for the summer? (pause) Besides that! (pause) Sandi, I have to go.
Quinn hangs up a little more forcefully.
There's a knock at the door. Quinn gets up and answers it. It's Jane.
Quinn: Thank God, someone normal.
Jane: Excuse me? All that shouting I was doing must be affecting my ears.
Quinn: It's just that I was afraid you were one of my friends wanting to go shopping.
Jane: Yup, I'm definitely hearing things. Look, is Daria here?
Quinn: No.
Jane: Figures. I'll try back later.
Quinn: Wait! Um... why don't you wait here?
Jane: (taken aback) Okay, this is going well beyond auditory hallucinations and extending into true insanity. Do me a favor and keep sharp objects away from me, okay? Despite the way they're behaving, I'd like to keep my ears.
Quinn: I just want someone to talk to!
Jane: I don't know anything about clothes, fashion, boy bands, or who's dating who.
Quinn: Thank God! Have a seat, I'll get you a drink.
Quinn heads for the kitchen. Jane doesn't move right away.
Jane: Oh, yeah Jane. We've lost it.
A few minutes later, Jane's sitting with Quinn in the living room sipping coffee.
Jane: How'd you know I like black coffee?
Quinn: Well, you're one of those artistic types. All artistic types like black coffee. It's, like, a thing.
Jane: So... what did you want to talk about?
Quinn: Whatever you want, as long as it's not something you think I want to hear.
Jane: (raising eyebrow) Ooookay. Well, shall I tell you about the Hell my life has become lately? I'd love to vent about that for a while.
Quinn: Sure!
Jane: Well, it all started about a week and a half ago when Daria and I were shooting the bull at Pizza Prince, and Tom comes in –
Quinn: What's with him lately? I mean, he shows up here, he shows up at the library, he's calling all the time. Didn't she dump him?
Jane: Wait, go back for a minute. When did he show up here?
Quinn: Yesterday. I sent him to your place. I figured he picked Daria up there. Mom said he dropped her off here while I was out.
Jane: He dropped her off? But Daria wasn't at my place. How did she end up in his car?
Quinn: Whatever it was, she couldn't have had a good time. She was sitting in her room alone listening to that orchestra from Siberia through headphones. She only does that when she's, like, really pissed off.
Jane: I don't like this. Tom's apparently been stalking her all week, he finally gets together with her, and she gets upset and now suddenly she's gone. (she frowns) Can you borrow your mom's car?
Quinn: She'll never know about it, she's out with some clients all day. What are you thinking?
Jane: We need to go talk to my ex.
Quinn: What about all that venting you wanted to do?
Jane: Not to worry. Yelling at Tom has always been one of my favorite stress relievers.
INT: Sloane house
The doorbell rings. Tom goes to answer it, and is startled to find Jane on the other side.
Tom: Oh, hi!
Jane: (threateningly) "Oh, hi!" Go to hell!!
Tom: Eep! (slams door shut and locks it)
Quinn: What was that?
Jane: Couldn't resist.
Quinn: Let me do most of the talking from now on, okay?
Jane: Haven't you always done more talking than anyone else?
Quinn knocks on the door.
Quinn: Tom? It's Quinn! We need to talk to you!
No answer. Quinn knocks again, louder.
Quinn: Tom!
The door opens. Elsie is there.
Elsie: Jane? What are you doing here?
Jane: Scaring Tom out of his wits.
Elsie: Cool. You should come over more often.
Quinn: We really need to talk to him, could you tell him Quinn is here too?
Elsie: Quinn who?
Quinn: Morgendorffer!
Elsie: As in, Daria?
Quinn: Yes. I'm her sister.
Elsie: Daria has a sister? Funny, she never mentioned it.
Quinn looks a little taken aback.
Jane: Turnabout, Quinn. Turnabout.
Quinn: Look, we really need to talk to Tom, could you get him for us?
Elsie: Sure, come on in. You can wait in the library. (She lets them in, then goes off shouting) Hey, Tom! Get out from under your bed and get down here, you've got company!
INT: Library (Sloane's)
Jane is looking at some titles on the shelf, Quinn is standing in the middle of the room looking around disdainfully.
Quinn: Why would you ever want a room like this in your house? It's just weird.
Jane: But just think of the closet space they must have.
Quinn: Hm. Well, I suppose you take the good with the bad. Listen, try not to scare him again when he comes in here, okay? Let me talk.
Jane: Go ahead. I'm just gathering evidence.
Before Jane can explain her remark, Tom walks in, a little shaky.
Tom: You didn't come here to beat me up again, did you Jane?
Jane: Well, that depends on what you did to piss off Daria so much.
Quinn: Jane! I said I'd do the talking!
Tom: Quinn? Why are you here?
Quinn: Sit down, Tom. We need to discuss something.
With a last glance at Jane, Tom sits.
Quinn: Tom, we need to talk about Daria. Something you did has her really upset, and now we don't know where she is.
Tom: I don't know what I did to piss her off so much!
Jane: Oh, cut the crap, Tom! You've been following her around all week. First you show up at the pizza place and don't buy any pizza. Then you tail her to the library –
Tom: I was looking up stuff on Bromwell! I didn't know she'd be there!
Jane: Don't give me that! There's an entire wall of Bromwell publications right behind you, and if you try to deny it I swear I'll dump the whole shelf over your head!
Quinn: Jane! Let me handle this!
Jane fumes, but says nothing.
Quinn: So you made sure you were at the library when she was, you've been calling, you stopped by the other day looking for her, and you apparently found her after a lot of trouble because you drove her home. I don't know what happened after that, but something got her really mad and I know when a girl is upset over a guy.
Tom: I haven't been following her!
Quinn: I also know when a guy is lying. Start telling the truth, Tom, or I'll leave you to Jane.
Jane cracks her knuckles behind his head.
Tom: I... oh, dammit, I have been following her.
Elsie: You jerk!
Everyone spins around. Elsie comes in, having obviously been spying at the door.
Tom: Elsie, this is none of your business!
Jane: Never stopped her before...
Elsie: Don't you know how scary it is for a girl when there's a guy stalking her? How could you do that to Daria?
Tom: I wasn't stalking her!
Elsie: What else would you call it?
Tom: I didn't mean any harm! I... I want her back.
Jane: Fat chance of that now, pal.
Tom: I know that! But I thought, if I could just spend some time with her, maybe she'd remember what it was like. All I wanted to do was get her to give us another chance! I mean, we could be seeing each other the whole summer, it doesn't have to end now.
Elsie: You never know when to quit, do you?
Tom: Stay out of this, Elsie!
Jane: No, she's got a point. What if we'd broken it off earlier, instead of trying to keep something alive that just wasn't? Maybe it wouldn't have gone so badly in the end.
Quinn: Look, Tom. I happen to think you and Daria made a great couple. But I know my sister, and if she's decided it's over, it's over. She's not going to change her mind unless something happens that changes why she broke up with you in the first place.
Tom: I don't see how that's going to happen. She's still going to one school, I'm still going to another, and there's the whole so-called social class crap.
Quinn: So, what happens when school is over, and you're on more even ground?
Tom: We could be two completely different people by then! It would never work!
Quinn: Tom! Listen to yourself! Listen to what you're saying!
Tom starts to speak, but then doesn't. He hangs his head, and seems to be desperately trying not to cry.
Jane: Wow Quinn, you are good at this.
Quinn: I think we're done here. Come on, Jane, let's go.
Elsie: (looking uncomfortable) I'll, um, walk you out.
EXT: Sloane House, front porch.
Jane: Well Elsie, it's been real. Take it easy. (she heads to the car)
Quinn: Nice to meet you, Elsie.
Elsie: Hang on a second. Can I ask you something?
Quinn: Sure!
Elsie: How did you get so smart?
Silence.
Elsie: Quinn?
Quinn: Sorry, I just never thought I'd hear anyone ask me that.
Elsie: What do you mean?
Quinn: Never mind, I don't want to go into it. What can I say, I've dated a lot of guys, and I know what makes them tick. That's the great thing about being girls; we're much harder to figure out than they are.
Elsie: I wouldn't know.
Quinn: Well, you're what, sixteen? I think you need to apply a little pressure to the parents to let you start dating. I mean, you need to get in on the ground floor, or you spend all your energy catching up later.
Elsie: Well, unless they change some fairly major rules at the Fielding Preparatory School for Young Women, I'm more or less single until college.
Quinn: Bummer. Maybe you should just go to Lawndale instead. Anyway, gotta go, bye!
Quinn leaves. Elise is left on the front step, looking thoughtful.
INT: Helen's car
Quinn's driving, Jane's in the passenger seat.
Quinn: I wonder where Daria is today?
Jane: I'm not worried about that anymore. She can take care of herself. Listen, could you drop me off someplace?
Quinn: Sure, I guess so. Where do you want to go?
Jane: The mall.
Quinn: The mall?
Jane: Yeah, you know, big, sprawling building in a sea of parking lots, filled with overpriced merchandise and morons?
Quinn: Okay, but if Daria asks were you are, I'm not going to tell her. She'd never believe me.
Jane: Do tell her to give me a call, okay?
Quinn: Sure, Jane.
They pull into the mall parking lot.
Quinn: Say Jane, would you really have beat up Tom over this?
Jane: Nah. I'd decided against that before we even got there. (she gets out of the car) The coin came up heads.
Quinn shakes her head, and drives away as Jane heads into the mall.
Two Days Later...
EXT: Morgendorffer House.
The sun is just coming up. Tom's getting into his car. He takes a long look up at Daria's window, then sighs and drives away.
INT: Morgendorffer Living Room
It's at least two hours later. Daria comes down the stairs in her sleepwear. She opens the front door and picks up the newspaper. As she does, she sees a note on the front step. It says "Daria".
Daria: Tom.
She takes it inside and reads it.
Note: Dear Daria,
I'm writing this letter to you because I know you'd get upset if I stopped by again, and frankly I could stand to live without getting kicked in the throat.
I'm sorry for everything. I'm sorry I followed you around, I'm sorry I lied about it, and I'm sorry for making you uncomfortable. I still don't think we had to break up, but I'm trying to come to terms with your decision.
You won't be hearing from me again for a while. I need to get over you, and I can't do that if I'm always wondering whether I'm going to see you around, or knowing that you're so close by. I'm moving in a week or so, to a condo my father owns near Bromwell. The address is on the envelope if you want to write.
I hope that you can forgive me, and I hope that someday we can get together like we talked about, and see if maybe there's something still there worth holding on to.
Love,
Tom
Daria: (whispering) "Love, Tom".
INT: Cranberry Commons
Quinn and her friends are back at the mall. Quinn's walking a little behind them, obviously not entirely happy.
Stacy: Anyway, once I got them both home, I tried them both on and studied them really carefully, and I decided the blue one was better after all.
Sandi: I'm glad to hear we agree on this, Stacy. We mustn't be torn apart by baseless arguments at the start of the summer. It could ruin the entire season.
Stacy: (a little miffed) "Baseless"?
Sandi: Did I say that? I meant to say, er... "minor, but entirely justified".
Tiffany: But, that doesn't even sound the same...
Quinn: (sigh)
Sandi: Sorry, Quinn, what did you say?
Quinn: Oh, nothing...
Stacy: Oh my God! Look at the Cashman's window!
Collective gasps from all around, except Quinn, who's not looking.
Quinn: What, did they put the clunky shoes on the mannequins again?
She looks up, and is instantly as stunned as the rest of them.
The window has been completely worked over. Two undressed mannequins, painted black, are picking through a pile of dismembered mannequin parts. Some of them are full torsos which wear various shirts and jackets, others are pairs of legs that wear pants and skirts. There are severed hands wearing bracelets and heads that have hats or sunglasses. The scene is backed by a mural that shows blazing furnaces, giant gears and cogs, and steam-venting pipes.
Stacy: What... what have they done?
Sandi: This is outrageous! Come, ladies. We'll get to the bottom of this!
The foursome heads purposefully into Cashman's having to squeeze past a considerable crowd to do so. Quinn hangs back for a moment to look at the window more closely, and smiles.
EXT: Cashman's
The same walkway where Quinn and Theresa hung out before. Quinn opens the door and steps out.
Quinn: I thought it might be you!
Jane: (sitting on the bench) What do you think? I hope you don't mind I snatched that application I found in your Mom's car, but I find myself suddenly in need of a well-paying job. Sure, it's not the Guggenheim, but I'll take what I can get.
Quinn: Sandi practically threw a fit. She threatened never to come back, and the manager told her she wouldn't be missed. There's enough of a crowd out there to more than make up for any extra business we bring in.
Jane: Ha! That's icing on the cake, Quinn. So, does this mean you girls are doing your shopping on Degas Street from now on?
Quinn: Nah. Even with the gruesome window, this place still has the most fashionable clothes in town. Sandi will come around.
Jane: What are you doing here, anyway? I thought you were over the whole shopping thing.
Quinn: Well, in the end, it was the only thing my friends and I could find to do together. Although, it looks like now we'll have other things to talk about if we keep coming here.
Jane: Glad to be of service.
Quinn: Oh, just one thing? Your third mangled body from the left is mixing two different blacks. That's a definite fashion don't, you know.
Quinn leaves while Jane chuckles.
INT: Pizza Prince
Daria and Jane are splitting a pie.
Jane: So where were you all day?
Daria: I went down to Degas Street and kicked around for a while. I just wanted to be somewhere I knew Tom wasn't.
Jane: Are you going to see him before he leaves?
Daria: I'm still thinking about it. I'm still mad at him, but I don't want him to think I'll never forgive him. Maybe I'll just write him a letter in return.
Jane: Nah, let the boy suffer.
Daria: How's your situation?
Jane: (sighs) Frustrating. I mean, the Cashman's gig isn't bad, but even if I stay there through December, it only barely covers room, board, and tuition for the first year – and that's assuming I cut my art supplies budget in half and don't go up to visit you at all. Not how I wanted to spend the summer or the fall.
Daria: I don't even know what I'm going to do with my summer. I mean, I suppose I'll work somewhere, but I have no idea where. And I'll have to pick something fast to keep my mother from doing it for me.
Jane: You know, I'll bet Nutty Nutty World would hire you back in a New York minute.
Daria: I don't want any employer that would hire Kevin. Incidentally, how are things at home? You know, living with the band.
Jane: Eh. It's not really a problem, I only flipped about it at first because it was just one more thing I didn't need. As long as they practice only when I'm at work, I can handle it.
Daria: That's good.
Jane: Of course, there are some other ground rules. Like Jesse isn't allowed to sleep with me anymore.
Pause.
Daria: Someday, explain that to me. I don't think I'm up for hearing the explanation now.
Jane: You know, a week ago I felt like we had this pretty well sorted out. I mean, there were some question marks, but I felt like we were more or less in control of things and all ready for the next step.
Daria: Someone once told me that things never really are under our control. We just tell ourselves otherwise so we can function.
Jane: That's a stupid rule.
Daria: Well, be that as it may... (she lifts her cup) To the next step?
Jane: To the next step.
END