The Other Shore (27 page)

Sleepwalker:

(
Frightened.
) Don’t—Don’t—

Thug:

Switch, change to a different pose!

(
Sleepwalker switches to a strange pose, rather like a suffering Jesus Christ.
)

Thug:

You know that guy? Answer me!

Sleepwalker:

Which guy? That horny bastard who just went by? You say you utterly refuse to be friends with such scoundrels.

Thug:

I mean that scum hiding in the cardboard box on the other side.

Sleepwalker:

You ask, do you mean that homeless tramp?

Thug:

Yes, I’m asking you!

Sleepwalker:

You say you don’t know anybody, you don’t socialize with anybody, in fact you’re afraid to socialize with people and that’s why you’ve come out to take a walk by yourself at this hour of the night.

Thug:

Get him out of there!

Sleepwalker:

You haven’t got the nerve to bother him, you say, after all you’re the one who’s always being bothered, not the opposite. Besides, it’s not that you don’t want to bother people, it’s that you’re unable and you’re powerless, you even lack the courage. That’s why you’re in such dire straits.

Thug:

Get your ass over there and pull the guy out of the garbage dump for me! And keep on dancing!

Sleepwalker:

You say your legs and stomach are sore. They won’tlisten to your commands…You say you’re not a dancer, you really haven’t had any training. Would it be possible to stop?

Thug:

I told you to pose for me! Just like before. That’s right. Stay there, you got me?

Sleepwalker:

You say you’re not going to risk your life. Man only lives once, wouldn’t you say?

Thug:

Scram!

(
Sleepwalker extracts himself completely out of the shadow of the doorway. Immobilized at the centre of the street, he tries in vain to recapitulate his former movements
.

A car zooms by somewhere in the distance. Silence resumes
.

Prostitute enters, empty-handed and without her umbrella
.)

Prostitute:

(
Approaching Sleepwalker.
) What’s wrong? Stomach ache?

Sleepwalker:

No, just tying my shoelaces.

Prostitute:

Got any cigarettes? Give me one.

Sleepwalker:

No, you say, at this moment you have nothing. (
Thinking to himself.
) Except your life, which is also in other people’s hands.

Prostitute:

Oh, forget it. Stay with me for a while!

Sleepwalker:

You say no problem. You also want to have someone here with you. (
Thinking to himself.
) That way there’d be someone to call the police in case you’re hit by a stray bullet or something. (
Looks back at the doorway.
)

Prostitute:

What are you looking at?

Sleepwalker:

Oh, you say you’re not looking at anything. Talking to yourself has become a bad habit, and you don’t even know you’re doing it.

Prostitute:

(
Turns her head and looks at her own leg
.) There’s a hole.

Sleepwalker:

(
Startled.
) You ask, what hole?

Prostitute:

The hole in my stockings. (
Adjusts her pantyhose.
)

Sleepwalker:

Oh, stockings. They’ll run after some time. There aren’t any stockings that don’t run.

Prostitute:

But they’re new. I bought them only yesterday.

Sleepwalker:

That’s certainly quite regrettable. (
Thinking to himself.
) It’s amazing, she feels no regret for herself.

Prostitute:

I stumbled and fell.

Sleepwalker:

You say it’s raining and you’re wearing high heels, no wonder you stumbled and fell. (
Thinking to himself.
) You didn’t want to know whether she did stumble and fall, only whether or not she was raped, but it’s too embarrassing to ask.

Prostitute:

I’m beat.

Sleepwalker:

Go home then, you say you also feel that you’ve had enough.

Prostitute:

I wouldn’t dare…

Sleepwalker:

(
Thinking to himself.
) You feel the same way. You can’t go home either, but you don’t tell her.

Prostitute:

I’m scared.

Sleepwalker:

(
Thinking to himself.
) It’s the same with you, you’re in the same boat. Apart from the fact that you haven’t been raped, you’re not that much better. You’ve taken one step already, but you don’t know whether or not you’d be able to take another one. Of course you didn’t tell her.

Prostitute:

(
Whispering in his ears anxiously.
) I’m sure he’s still there. He hasn’t let go of me and he’s still watching me somewhere near by. You see, when I left he was tailing me. I can’t let him know where I live and I can’t let him know I’m scared of him, I definitely cannot let myself fall into his hands. You got me?

Sleepwalker:

(
Thinking to himself.
) You understand totally and completely. Your situation is more or less the same as hers. She’s already told you, but you still can’t tell her yet.

Prostitute:

(
Loudly
.) You, you’re such a lousy yellow-bellied wimp!

Sleepwalker:

Why? You can’t help asking.

Prostitute:

Ever slept with a woman?

Sleepwalker:

You say of course you’re not a virgin, and you’re not a homosexual either. The problem is, you see, at this time you can’t pay.

Prostitute:

We can go to your place if it’s not too far, that is, if you don’t have an old lady waiting for you at home. But you don’t look like you’re hitched.

Sleepwalker:

You say of course it’d be a pleasure, but you don’t want to die in the hands of a woman.

Prostitute:

Do you think women are terrifying or something?

Sleepwalker:

It depends on what kind of woman.

Prostitute:

Don’t you find them sexy? Or is it because you don’t really want to do it?

Sleepwalker:

Oh, you say, you find them more than sexy. They’re so lovely, so vulnerable, and so alive, unlike those deadpan images on the billboards.

Prostitute:

That’s it, let’s go straight to your place! (
Whispering.
) How much? It’s up to you.

Sleepwalker:

Surely it’s a dream. (
Whispering.
) A bad dream! (
Loudly.
) You say of course you’re willing to have a woman with you, because there’d be a witness in case you’re shot by a sniper’s bullet. You say you’re a lovely girl. It makes one’s heart ache.

Prostitute:

You’re a good man, and good men are hard to find. (
Snuggles up to him.
)

Sleepwalker:

It’s difficult to judge whether you’re good or bad, you say. You can only say that you’ve never done anything extremely bad like murder, rape, arson, fraud, or extortion. But you’re not completely free from sin either. The feeling of sin is actually quite tempting to you.

Prostitute:

It’s nothing. Tell me, is there anybody who can resist the temptation?

Sleepwalker:

And you can’t help thinking of the hole in her stockings, can’t help seeing that dark and hollow muzzle of a gun coming towards you, you seem to be walking towards death one step at a time…

(
Sleepwalker puts his hand around Prostitute’s waist and leads her towards the pile of cardboard boxes, smiling.
)

Prostitute:

Is this your home? Seriously.

Sleepwalker:

(
Beating on a box to get the dirt off.
) Have a seat, make yourself at home!

(
Tramp crawls out from the cardboard box.
)

Prostitute:

Hey, this is really fun! (
Feeling happy and laughing.
)

Tramp:

It’s not funny, you little moppet! (
To Sleepwalker
.) You gave me your word. You’re not being honest.

Sleepwalker:

You ask what use is honesty? You may look honest, but who knows what you’ve got hiding behind your back? You may be as honest as the day is long, but how come you can’t even find a decent place to live in? (
Throws himself down and sits on the cardboard box
.)

Tramp:

You don’t sleep, and you’re here to screw around so that nobody gets any sleep. Out with it! What is it that you really want to do?

Sleepwalker:

You say your problem is exactly that you don’t want to do anything. Moreover, you can’t be sure.

Tramp:

You want these cardboard boxes? Why didn’t you say so in the first place? Don’t beat around the bush with me. Take them, take them all and get out of here!

Prostitute:

Do you really wanna go inside that box?

Sleepwalker:

It’s better to be inside in this bitter cold. Come on…

Prostitute:

No! Don’t come near me! You’re so dirty.

Sleepwalker:

What, are you so clean yourself?

Prostitute:

You’re even dirtier than that bastard!

Sleepwalker:

People, they’re all garbage!

Prostitute:

Including yourself?

Sleepwalker:

All bastards, bastards and sluts, they’re all the same.

Tramp:

Right, a real wise guy.

Sleepwalker:

It doesn’t take too much wisdom.

Ruffian:

So you’re an intellectual?

Sleepwalker:

Intellectuals stink.

(
Prostitute giggles, so happy that her feet keep kicking at the cardboard box she’s sitting on
.)

Tramp:

Hey girl, don’t knock down my bottle in there.

Sleepwalker:

You got wine in there?

Tramp:

You know, man can survive anything, but he can’t live without wine.

Prostitute:

Why didn’t you say so earlier? (
Puts her hand inside the cardboard box and gropes around. She takes out a worn-out bag.
) Wow, you really got something there!

Tramp:

Stop!

Prostitute:

You got money in here?

Tramp:

It’s very hard to say. (
Takes out a wine bottle and puts the bag aside.
) Life’s okay as long as there’s wine.

(
Tramp takes the cap off the wine bottle and takes a mouthful. He hands the bottle to Prostitute, who grabs it and downs a big gulp.
)

Tramp:

Don’t drink it all. You shouldn’t drink too much of this stuff, although you can’t live without it either. (
To Sleepwalker.
) You want some?

Prostitute:

He thinks it’s dirty. (
Laughs aloud.
)

Sleepwalker:

Slut.

Prostitute:

What did he say?

Sleepwalker:

You say you didn’t say anything.

Tramp:

You look like a happy girl.

Prostitute:

Why not?

Tramp:

I’ll say. If you want to be unhappy, you’ll be unhappy. It’s enough to be alive, what more do you want?

Prostitute:

I really want to have an old father like you.

Tramp:

Oh, really?

Prostitute:

You think I’m lying? To an old guy like you? I wouldn’t bother.

Tramp:

Then you’ve got one.

(
Prostitute gives him a loud kiss.
)

Tramp:

That a girl.

Prostitute:

(
Pulls the bag over.
) Hey, can I open this? Is there anything to eat in there?

Tramp:

(
Takes the bag and puts it aside.
) Even if there was anything, it wouldn’t have lasted till now. And I wouldn’t have to be up all night if they hadn’t messed up my things.

Prostitute:

Pa, I’m hungry!

Tramp:

What am I goin’ to do with her?

Sleepwalker:

Do you trust her? You’re asking the old guy.

Tramp:

I trust everybody, as long as everybody trusts me. (
Smiles
.)

Prostitute:

Pa, got any cigarettes? I wanna have one.

Tramp:

Who doesn’t want one at this time? But it’s a luxury, like women.

Prostitute:

You think of women too?

Tramp:

Oh, women, expensive stuff.

Sleepwalker:

Some are free, you say.

Prostitute:

(
Giggling.
) You don’t believe women have feelings?