Stock
April 20th, 2021
Starring: Emilio (male, mid 30’s), Peggy (female, early 70’s)
The local grocery store. Peggy pushes her shopping cart down aisle seven. She spots Emilio (in slacks and a button-down) restocking a shelf, going over to him.
PEGGY
Sir…?
Do you have tahini in-stock?
Emilio looks up, revealing his name tag that reads “Associate Manager.”
EMILIO
Tahini?
Aisle six, left side, upper shelf.
PEGGY
Six?
I think I checked there
I didn’t see…
Emilio puts down his box.
PEGGY
Oh it’s ok, you don’t have to...
Emilio shakes her off and gets up, walking towards aisle six. Peggy follows him with her cart. Emilio stops halfway down aisle six, pointing up:
EMILIO
There.
PEGGY
Oh.
Yes.
That’s it.
I guess I walked right by—
EMILIO
No worries.
Peggy gets her first full look at Emilio. She stares at him for a moment.
EMILIO
...can I help you find something else?
PEGGY
No
Wait um
Did I teach you?
EMILIO
What?
PEGGY
AB Calculus.
I used to teach...
Dr. Lesky?
EMILIO
Um
Oh
Oh yeah
Yeah I—you did.
PEGGY
You were mid 2000’s, sometime.
Class of...‘06?
EMILIO
‘07.
PEGGY
‘07, so close!
I still go through the yearbooks. My old rosters.
Try not to forget anyone.
EMILIO
That’s nice.
PEGGY
It’s good mental work. For retirement. Keeps me sharp.
EMILIO
Same for me, but the store. Knowing where everything’s at.
…
…
So what do you remember? About me?
PEGGY
You?
um
You sat on the right side of the middle row. Head down, taking notes. Didn’t talk much but…you listened. Always did well on test day.
EMILIO
Yeah.
That’s...all right.
Except—
PEGGY
What did I miss?
EMILIO
I wasn’t listening. I worked on my comics the whole time.
And I cheated. On the tests.
…
…
I liked you. You were passionate.
But I didn’t need your class. No calculus would’ve gotten me where I wanted to go.
PEGGY
Which was…?
EMILIO
RISD.
Which put me in debt and make me hate art
Then Wall Street crashed
Had to hit reset
…
It’s ok. I’m making ends meet.
But it made me realize what I wish I’d learned.
Budgets. Taxes. Retirement, savings, how much stuff really costs. You’re never taught that. Then you hit the world and it’s...you’re behind. From the beginning.
Sort of criminal, if you ask me.
…
PEGGY
I’m sorry
That the system let you down.
EMILIO
Not your fault. You brought a lot of value to a lot of lives. Just not mine.
PEGGY
Well
You brought some value to me.
EMILIO
Did I?
PEGGY
Every student finds a way.
Plus...no one else ever found me tahini.
EMILIO
Yeah. Yeah I guess not.
They both stand there, unsure of where to go from there. Emilio realizes Peggy hasn’t gotten her tahini, and she isn’t tall enough to reach.
EMILIO
Oh um—
He gets a bottle off the shelf and hands it to her. Peggy puts it in her cart.
PEGGY
Thank you Emilio.
EMILIO
No, thank you.
For your business—
PEGGY
No problem.
Peggy starts to push her cart away.
PEGGY
Bye now.
EMILIO
See you.
Peggy moves past Emilio and walks towards one end of aisle six. Emilio walks toward the other end. Peggy pulls out her shopping list and looks, then turns around. She calls out:
PEGGY
Barley?
Emilio turns around, then recites, on-command:
EMILIO
Aisle nine, right side, dead center.
Can’t miss it.
Peggy gives a nod, then wheels her way towards aisle eight. Emilio walks back towards aisle seven, smiling ever so slightly.