Pick Up The Broken Pieces Part 2

Doris watches as the ambulance start to pull away from outside the School of the Arts. A shocked and distraught crowd starts to disperse. Doris doesn’t understand what’s happening. She’d worked out that for some reason she was witnessing her friends final moments at the School but she had no memory of Leroy dying and is shocked by what appears to have happened. Suddenly a thought flashes through her mind and she feels physically sick.

Doris: “Oh My God! Is this my fault? First Danny and now Leroy! Am I doing this? Is this because I’m here?”

Doris’ quiet words go unnoticed by the crowd. Doris makes her way to a bench outside the school to sit down. She is shaken by her realisation and thinks that if she doesn’t sit down she may just pass out. As she sits there she takes deep breathes in an attempt to regain her composure. After a moment she sees another Doris Schwartz coming out of the school and hurry off up the street and then another one, looking slightly older, standing next to Sherwood and Lydia. Doris watches them for a moment, Lydia is crying and the others are trying to comfort her. Doris begins to wonder what is happening but her brain starts to ache with the complexity of it all.

Sherwood: “Doris help me get Lydia inside, she could do with some kind of drink.”

The older Doris takes Lydia’s arm while Sherwood takes her other arm.

Sherwood: “Come on let’s get you somewhere more comfortable.”

Lydia looks up and sees the school in front of her and starts to shake her head.

Lydia: “No, No I don’t want to go in there. I can’t stand to be in the place where Leroy died.”

Sherwood: “Lydia we need to get you into the warm besides you’re the Principal, you have to go back in there.”

Lydia continues to shake her head: “No Elizabeth, I can’t work there now, not after what has happened. It could never be the same again. I quit!”

Sherwood: “Lydia it’s just the shock talking. You’ll feel differently in time.”

Lydia sobs: “No I won’t. Leroy was like my son and he died on my stage. I never want to go into that place again.”

At that moment Doris felt the sensation of the light surround her and after a flash she finds herself back in the hospital corridor. In front of her standing motionless are Holly, Nicole and Danny and just like with Coco and Bruno there is empty space where Leroy and Lydia had been standing.

Doris puts her head in her hands as everything feels too much for her. Lurching from one drama to another she doesn’t know how much more she can take. Her heart sinks as she hears the unmistakeable sound the light makes just before someone disappears. She looks up just in time to see Holly disappear and as the light starts to spread across her own body she closes her eyes and wonders what nightmares will unfold this time.

Doris still has her eyes closed but she can tell she is in a crowd of people because of all the chattering she can hear. Slowly she opens her eyes as she hears Holly’s voice.

Holly: “It’s a beautiful cake; you guys this is really too much.”

A bald headed gentleman stands next to Holly, who Doris knew she’d met before but couldn’t remember his name.

Bald guy: “Well we hate to see you go Miss Laird and we wanted you to know that.”

Holly: “Thank You.”

Bald guy: “And we’ll miss you and we know you’re going to be a big success out there in Hollywood land.”

For the first time Holly looks up and smiles: “Thanks you”

She then pauses for a moment before asking: “Who are you?”

Bald Guy: “Oh I’m sorry.. Mr Dyrenforth, new Principal and thrilled to be here. I just love talented young people.... Speech, Speech”

The crowd around Holly beings to clap expectantly. Doris notices how good the cake looks and suddenly feels very hungry.

Holly: “Erm, I guess I just really wanted to say thank you all for everything you, you’ve done for me here. Erm, I’m gonna miss you all a lot, my friends, my teachers, and especially this place.”

Doris feels a lump come to her throat as she shares Holly’s sentiments.

Shorofsky: “May I have a hug?”

Holly laughs: “Oh Mr Shorofsky.”

As Doris watches the student and teacher hug she wishes he’d been speaking to her because she could really do with a hug right now.

Sherwood then approaches Holly to hug her: “Knock em dead out there baby.”

Holly smiles: “Thanks, Miss Sherwood, I will.”

Then Jesse takes his turn: “Hey listen, if they need any Spanish types with high cheek bones, you know who to call right?”

Holly: “Yeah, you’ve got it!”

Holly looks round and becomes serious for a minute: “Jess, where’s Nicole?”

Jesse: “Oh, you know she’s around here somewhere.”

Dusty followed by Leroy take their turns hugging Holly goodbye. Doris is a little taken aback seeing Leroy alive and well after what she had previously witnessed. As Leroy hugs Holly Doris notices Holly looking around the crowd. Suddenly Doris and Holly make eye contact but just at the moment the light appears and Doris finds herself back in the hospital corridor. She feels a little relieved that nothing too traumatic happened this time but looks up and sees the light surrounding Danny. Doris feels a little confused, she already knows that Danny is dead so has no idea what she could possibly see this time.

As the light clears Doris finds herself in a rowdy auditorium. She sees a banner above the stage stating “Happy Graduation 1988”. Lydia stands at a podium on the stage and all around her people are dressed in burgundy graduation gowns and mortor boards.

Lydia speaks into a microphone: “Well I never thought this day would come but it gives me tremendous pleasure to finally be able to say Congratulations Danny Amatullo on achieving your High School diploma!”

Danny bounds on to the stage with a big grin on his face and accepts the diploma from Lydia.

Lydia: “Child you better give me a hug, I’m so proud of you and so happy you’ll finally be out of my hair.”

Danny hugs her and then takes the microphone: “Well they said it would never happen, but finally I’m Free”.

At that moment music starts to play, Danny pulls off his graduation gown and hat and launches into a song:

“Looking into your eyes I know I'm right,

If there's anything worth my love it's worth a fight.

We only get one chance,

But nothing ties our hands.

You're what I want,

Listen to me.

Nothing I want,

Is out of my reach.

(I'M FREE)

HEAVEN HELPS THE MAN who fights his fear,

Love's the only thing that keeps me here.

You're the reason that I'm hanging on,

My heart's staying where my heart belongs.

(I'M FREE!)

Running away will never make me free,

And nothing we sign is any kind of guarantee.

But I wanna hold you now,

And I won't hold you down.

I'm shaking the past,

Making my breaks,

Taking control,

If that's what it takes.

(I'M FREE)

HEAVEN HELPS THE MAN who fights his fear,

Love's the only thing that keeps me here.

You're the reason that I'm hanging on,

My heart's staying where my heart belongs.

(I'M FREE!)

But I wanna hold you now,

And I won't hold you down.

You're what I want,

Listen to me,

Nothing I want,

Is out of my reach.

(I'M FREE)

HEAVEN HELPS THE MAN who fights his fear,

Love's the only thing that keeps me here.

You're the reason that I'm hanging on,

My heart's staying where my heart belongs.

(I'M FREE!)”

(I'M FREE)

HEAVEN HELPS THE MAN who fights his fear,

Love's the only thing that keeps me here.

You're the reason that I'm hanging on,

My heart's staying where my heart belongs.

(I'M FREE!)

Everyone in the auditorium is dancing and singing along. The energy is infectious and even Doris raises a smile and starts to sway to the music. After recent events this feels like welcome light relief. Doris doesn’t understand how Danny could have graduated when he’s already supposed to have died but for the first time in a long time she felt good.

All too soon the music ends and the light engulfs Doris taking her back to the hospital, where only a solitary Nicole remains in the corridor.

Doris sighs: “Well Nicole, it’s just me and you. Mrs Berg’s already told me how your life turns out so I’m not sure I’m going to enjoy this.”

Doris expects the light to come and take Nicole away but for a long time nothing happens. Doris looks around her and everything else is still motionless. She wonders what is now happening, the silence making her feel nervous. Then without warning the light appears and takes Nicole quickly followed by Doris.

Doris shivers as she finds herself on a snowy street at night. She has no idea where she is the and there’s no sign of Nicole. Suddenly she hear the screech of a car approaching, looking down the street she sees a car going too fast and totally out of control coming towards her. She steps out of the way and the car swerves to miss her but at the speed it was going the car turns over and comes to a stop against a sign post.

Doris’ shaking hand moves up to her face as she stares at the bodies of Danny and Nicole lying motionlessly on the sidewalk. She can see the snow next to them stained red with blood.

She instinctively feels she must go to help but something inside stops her. She realises she’s getting a second chance and can’t interfere. She realises Nicole will die because that’s what happened all those years ago but also knows that Danny dies if she interferes. Other people as rushing round the accident scene trying to help. Tears run down Doris’ cheeks as she watches helplessly. Nicole’s eyes open for a second and she looks at Doris before they close and Doris knows her friend is dead.

The light takes Doris back to an empty hospital corridor. The door to room 421 opens and Mrs Berg comes out.

Doris rushes to her “Mrs Berg, what’s happening? There’s this strange light which keeps taking me to see people leaving the school and what’s happening in there who is trying to kill me?”

Mrs Berg: “Calm down dear, all in good time. The natural order of things had become chaotic, so time is trying to correct itself and showing you what should really happen to people”.

Doris: “So everything is okay again?"

Mrs Berg: "Well, as okay as it can be, you're still here aren't you so that throws the balance a little and your actions could affect things in the future but for the moment things are okay!"

Doris: "And Danny is alive?”

Mrs Berg nods: “Yes dear Danny is alive and your daughter will be fine too. Nicole died in the car accident as she should have done all along and things have become more stable again.”

All around people start going about their business again and Doris feels like a weight of responsibility has lifted from her shoulders. She enjoys a few moments of peace. Then a thought crosses her mind

Doris: "What about Leroy? I saw him dead!"

The smile slips from Mrs Berg's face as she shakes her head "No".

Doris: "But I don't understand I have no memory of those events ever happening, Leroy didn't die."

Mrs Berg: "Time was showing you how people left the school just because those events hadn't happened to you yet doesn't mean they won't happen in the future."

Doris nods: "So I can move into the future as well as the past, how can that be?"

Mrs Berg shrugs "I don't know dear I can't explain everything myself. However there is something else you need to discover."

Doris is puzzled: "What's that?"

Mrs Berg: “It’s time to discover what happened to you dear."

At first Doris is a little confused: "To Me?"

At that moment the door to room 421 opens slightly. Doris looks at the open door and then back to Mrs Berg who nods her head encouraging her to enter.

Doris swallows hard and reaches out her hand. She avoids the handle remembering how hot it had been when she'd touched it earlier and carefully pushes the door open wider. She looks back at Mrs Berg but the old woman is no longer there. Doris takes a deep breath and steps inside.

To be continued.....