“Spicy Cinnamon”
By: Jesse Pacheco
It’s Mid-Day in DIA, Terminal 15. A three o’clock to New York is scheduled to depart in fifteen minutes. The Narrator enters from off stage.
Narrator: Don’t Judge a Book By its Cover, a time-less lesson that its best displayed in this tale of two unlikely friends who share a common problem, they’re both going to be delayed on their way to New York in The Little Play, “Spicy Cinnamon”
A young college students dressed in “Goth” clothing enters from stage right, he plops down in an open chair, looking annoyed. Static comes from over the loud speaker. The student sits up, listening.
Voice over the Loud Speaker: The 3:15 to New York has been delayed until further notice due to harsh hail storms along the North Eastern coast. We apologize for the inconvenience.
The student sits back angrily, looking slightly more annoyed
He pulls up some large headphone over his ears
Old Man enters very slowly from stage right…
The Old Man sits and taps the student on the shoulder
The student tries to ignore, but cannot
Student: What Do You Want!!!???
Old Man: Oh I was just was wondering if you would know when our flight was scheduled to leave young man.
Student: (slightly more annoyed) No I don’t. Sorry okay nice talking to you bye.
Puts headphones back on
Old Man: Well thank you……
Old Man taps his shoulder again…
Student: Yes??
Old Man: Well I just wanted to know….
Students Waits…
Old Man: Would you like a piece of hard Candy
Student: No. I hate candy.
Old Man: Nonsense. I’m sure there is some flavor you’d enjoy sucking on for an hour or so… Let’s see, (ruffles through bag) green apple, butterscotch, Oh! Young man, would you describe yourself as someone who… Lives dangerously?
Student: Why?
Old Man: Spicy Cinnamon! (Holds out a piece of candy)
Student: Still No.
Old Man: No? Suit yourself (unwraps and eats the cinnamon candy)
Old Man starts to fidget and twitch in his seat. He spits out candy into a napkin
Old Man You made a wise choice friend
Student: I guess so-
Old Man: You Guess Right! Oh my mouth hasn’t been burned this badly since I had that-
Student: Stop Please
Old Man: Well alright, alright… So do you have family in New York?
Student: I beg you, you crusty old raisin, Please stop pestering me. My life is horrible enough without some wrinkled old coot jawing my ear off non-stop.
Old Man: …..Well I have Family in New York, My Daughter lives there with her husband and two little girls Stacy and Xenia. Both Spelled with “Z’s” Which actually has a very funny, very long story to it…
Student begins to sob…
Old Man: Hey now, okay, we’ll save that one for the flight, now what makes the life of a young, rather feminine, man so terrible?
Student: Well, I’m flying half way across the country all alone, my band left without me three days ago and I’m probably going to fail out of my university because I blew my exam
Old Man: Oh you’re in a band? Why’d they leave without you?
Student: I don’t want to talk about it…
Old Man: Okay, then I’ll tell you about my old band, we called ourselves Big B and The Raisinets-
Student: Stop! Okay, we’re not a “band” per se, we’re more of a industrial-folk-rap-trio, they left without me because I had my stupid exam, and now they’ve enjoyed two days of hitting up all the goat sacrificing and cemetery blood-drinking parties without me…
Old Man: Oh, sorry you’re missing out on all that fun; in my day we called them sock-hops…. So you’re in college, what are you majoring in?
Student: Advanced Reactor Physics
Old Man: Oh Interesting, I was a Reactor Physicist from graduation till retirement in summer of 1979, as a matter of fact, I have very fond memories of designing reactors in Africa…..
Student: Oh my god (shocked) you’re THAT Old Man?!?! Do you think you could give me some pointers? These projects are just killing me.
Old Man: Certainly my young, feminine, cripplingly, depressed kind of creepy, friend.
They shake hands for a very long time
Student: You graduated in 1979?!?!
They both exit, The Narrator enters
Narrator: And from there, our two unlikely friends were off to New York. The band waited for their friend and they signed a record contract, which was lucky because when it came to nuclear physics, the Old Man’s better days, were over, and the Student failed out of school. But it was okay because the trio became American sweethearts, and the Old Man even went to a show, where he died of heart-failure. But the events of that night were the inspiration to the hit single “Spicy Cinnamon”
THE END