(Characters: Celeste, Joyce
Setting: Deliberately stalled elevator, between the 2nd and 3rd floors, Hotel Casanova. 5:30 p.m.)
Celeste: You can’t make me.
Joyce: You’re wrong about that.
Celeste: What gives you the right.
Joyce: I like to think it’s love but if it lightens your burden to think of me as a beastly tyrannical bitch than that’s fine by me.
Celeste: Well I do I do think that.
Joyce: Look listen maybe you’ll learn something the world’s bigger than either of us you or me.
Celeste: What gives you the right.
Joyce: To make you do something you don’t want to do.
Celeste: Yes.
Joyce: That’s easy because if you consistently make decisions which endanger your future than I’ve every right to step in and do what I deem best.
Celeste: This has nothing to do.
Joyce: It happens to grown ups all the time and if you want to wait till then it’ll be ten times worse and ten times longer and I can assure you of that.
Celeste: Do you enjoy this does it make you feel like a big empress throwing your weight around bossing people like you rule the roost run there come here hop to it.
Joyce: No not really.
Celeste: Oh you think you’re doing me a big favor making a big sacrifice to help out the lesser beings who can’t get their affairs in order.
Joyce: You said it not me that you can’t get your affairs in order but no it’s not a big power trip and frankly you’re something of an irritation and I’m obliged to put up with you and clean up your messes if need be but mostly you’re like an itch up my ass that I just can’t scratch.
Celeste: I’m not going to.
Joyce: Going to what you’re not going to what.
Celeste: Just sit back and.
Joyce: Oh what just sit back and take it well actually yes you are and don’t flatter yourself that I expect one tenth of anything I say to penetrate that thick skull of yours because I don’t have any illusions about you nor expectations you’re too much in love with failure I can see that everybody sees it but I do intend to make it tougher for you to fail and I do intend to slow you down but I’ve got no illusions about what your chances are you’ll do what you want to do and I’ll do what I need to do.
Celeste: You make it sound so simple.
Joyce: Common sense usually is and so is love.
Celeste: That word again well fuck that word fuck love.
Joyce: You’re upset that’s understandable.
Celeste: You’re such a Johnny-one-note you know.
Joyce: So long as it’s the right one.
Celeste: Such hypocrisy.
Joyce: You think so.
Celeste: Yes I do.
Joyce: In all your wisdom you actually think that in all your poor little me wisdom your famous inability to tell black from white or right from wrong and you’ve got the nerve to point your finger and say hypocrite.
Celeste: Oh give me a break for Christ’s sake.
Joyce: No more breaks you spoiled little shit.