Gabrielle:  (opens the door, surprised)  Max, what are you doing here? 

Max:  (pointedly) Waiting for you.

Gabrielle:  (still puzzled) Who let you in?

Max:  The manager’s a good friend of mine, he let me in.

Gabrielle:  (dismissively)  Well, if you can let yourself in, you can let yourself out.  I really have no desire to see you.

Max: (still sitting, leg up on bed, leaning against bed post, angry) Obviously!  Otherwise you wouldn’t have sent your mother as an emmissary for yourself.

Gabrielle: I’d rather not talk about this now.

Max:  (springs up) Well, I want to talk about this. (approaches her)  I want to know why you had to send you mother instead of coming yourself?

Gabrielle: (trying to brush him off with a reasonable smile)  I had a few errands to do, it was much easier....

Max: (angry)  Don’t hand me that line!  (now hurt)  Now you’re avoiding me, why?

Gabrielle: (swallowing)  I said I don’t want to talk about it.

Max: (getting closer)  You want to tell me what’s going on?  What is happenning between us?  I mean, has it gotten so bad you can’t even bare the sight of me any more (reaches out to touch her arm)

Gabrielle: (brushes his arm away, walks away with her back to him, slightly breathless)  Don’t do this, just leave me alone

Max: Not until you tell me what’s happening!

Gabrielle:  (determined) All right, if you won’t leave then I guess I will (approaches door but Max shuts it and locks it, she looks afraid)  What are you doing?

Max:  I’m making sure you don’t run out on me again!  At least not until we starighten a few things out.

Gabrielle:  (trying and failing to sound convincing)  There’s nothing to straighten out...

Max: (takes her arm, insistent)  Oh no?  What about when you came into the bar last night.  You wanted to tell me something, huh?   You never got around to it.  Hmmmm. (he places his hand on her cheek and she shakes her head).  You wanted to go on with your new life, you wanted to tell me something about how you’ve committed to somethng else (he’s shaking her now and she’s tearing up)... I want to know what it is!  What can’t we be together?!  Why can’t you live a life with me?!

Gabrielle: (tries to pull his hand from her cheek, softly)  You’re hurting me...

Max: (Holds on tighter, frustrated and angry)  You’re destroying me!

Gabrielle: (tearing up, pleading)  Please don’t say that...

Max:  (still holding on to her, intense) During the trial, you begged me, you begged me to realize that I was in love with you, to let you itno my life...  that I’d been in love with you all along.  You got that, now what do you want from me?  Why, why don’t you want it any more? 

Gabrielle: (softly)  Stop it...

Max:  No, I’m not going to stop it.  You stop playing these games with me (brushing the tears from her cheeks)  Please, no tears... It’s not going to work this time, I’m sorry.  I’m not going anywhere, you got that, not until you give me some answers. (now holding her face in his hands)  You hear me (her eyes close).  I am not leaving until you tell me what in hell is going on!

Scene II:  Gabrielle opens her eyes with a new attitude

Gabrielle: (no more tears, and in rather clipped biting tones)  All right Max.  You want to know what’s going on.  You want to hear what was so difficult for me to tell you yetserday, why I was so afraid to tell it to your face .  It’s quite simple really...  I don’t love you anymore (Max is confused and shocked).  I’m not sure I ever really did.  Maybe it was lust (laughs mockingly) instead of love (he removes his hands from her hair), or maybe I just wanted you because I couldn’t have you.  Whatever it was it’s gone, because I feel absolutely nothing for you  anymore. (Max backs away from her)  Ah, there it is.  You finally got the truth out of me, do you feel better now? 

Max: (shakes his head in denial, quietly)  You don’t mean this...

Gabrielle: (still mocking)  Oh yes I do.  I’m sorry it was not what your were expecting but then again you wanted the truth and you got it.  (now angry)  Now get out!

Max:  Gabrielle..... I... (she angrily throws his coat at him, he stares at it, looks up crushed, trying to be glib)... OK, you win... you can’t say I didn’t try... I guess it was too late too little, wrong place wrong time...huh?

Gabrielle:  (eyes burning) You got the answers you wanted, so leave me alone

Max:  Right, nothing like hanging around where you’re not wanted.  (turns, opens the door, pauses at the door frame, leans on it...says softly)  Take care, OK? (He leaves.  Gabrielle walks stiffly to the door, slowly closes it firmly, leans against it, her chin wavers as she blinks back the tears)
 

Scene III: Gabrielle loses the battle and slides down the door sobbing,  Max on the other side of the door hears her.  Asshe moves from the door to clng to her bed post he enters the room...

Max:  (he walks up behind her, tosses his coat on the bed)  Liar...

Gabrielle: (spins around, tears streaming down her face, pleading)  Max, I told you to go... if you care anything about me...

Max: (he takes her hand, leans on the bed post)  You know I care about you, just as I know you care about me.

Gabrielle: (pulls her hand away and says almost brokenly)  No...

Max:  (gently) What’s wrong?   Why all the tears  (she tries to brush them away) You still love me... more than ever...

Gabrielle: (shakes her head in denial) No.... no that’s not true

Max:  The why are you crying?  Why are you lying to me?  Because you’re afraid?

Gabrielle:  (plaintively) Max... please don’t....

Max: (now both arms wrapped around the bed post)  That’s what it is, isn’t it?  The truth Gabrielle.  Are you afraid that I’m going to hurt you again?
 

Scene IV:  Max still holding onto the pedpost, Gabrielle is more composed.

Gabrielle:  (swallowing) The truth... I’m afraid... I’m afraid of you Max, and don’t I have good reason to be?

Max:  Not anymore... (his cheek now resting on the bedpost)  The last thing I want to do is hurt you.

Gabrielle:  (rueful)  I’ve heard that before (walks past him)  It doesn’t ever stop the pain though, does it?  How many mixed signals am I suppossed to figure out?  He loves me, he loves me not, that’s a game I used to play when I was a little girl but I’m not a child anymore.

Max: (turning toward her, reaches for her arm)  I’m not playing games either.

Gabrielle:  (she spins away)  How do I know that?  I mean what’s different?

Max: (insistent) I’m different... and you’re different and everything has changed us...

Gabrielle:  Not because you wanted it to change... you can’t just wave your hand and have everything come out brand new because it just... isn’t.

Max: Look at me (she turns away, he gently takes moves her chin with his fingers toward his face)... look at me.  Everything is different, everything we’ve felt and experienced these last few months... we’re not the same people any more...

Gabrielle:  (painfully)  People don’t change...

Max: (softly)  No?  You’ve changed... (takes his hand off her chin) why can’t you grant me the same thing.

Gabrielle:  (tenderly)  Max... it’s not that I feel you would deliberately try and hurt me...it just...(her voice cracks)... happens.

Max: (fiercely) That was the past Gabrielle, and all the old painful baggage that went with it.  All the mistakes, mine,  your compulsions, my self-deception, it doesn’t exist anymore.  And that’s why wherever you go you can walk with your head high and I can look at myself in the mirror when I shave in the morning.  Doesn’t that say something to you?

Gabrielle:  It says we’ve come a long way but that still doesn’t ...

Max:  (passionately insistent) Together!  We’ve come a long way together (Gabrielle moves over to the bed and he swings on to as well)  Would you take a look at us?  We’re like a couple of kids starting from scratch.

Gabrielle: (resisting)  But we’re not kids any more.

Max:  Says who?  The older I get the more I realize that youth isn’t wasted on the young, they’re too damn busy trying to grow up.  (persuasively, intently, softly)  But we have the luxury of being young, because that’s how I feel when I’m with you, and how you feel when you’re with me.  Together we have something new, exciting and yes even pure....

Gabrielle:  Pure? (laughing ruefully) Max and Gabrielle...

Max:  Yes pure, as strange as that sounds.  It’s like iron that’s heated and been forged into steel, it’s like coal being pressed into diamonds.  We know somethng those mized up kids don’t know, we know the value of our feelings, and we know the meaning of everything we say and do. 

Gabrielle:  (eyes cast down, mummuring)  Yes.... that’s very virtuous but...

Max:  It’s not  virtuous, it’s not sentimental.  It’s fact.  We have had to learn how to trust each other... together... and that’s the hardest ting to learn.

Gabrielle:  (sadly)  Max, trust is the most beautiful thing, I agree.  But it’s not as as strong as steel, and it’s not as pure as diamonds.  It’s fragile, it’s so fragile, and we’ve shattered it before.... and we’ll shatter it again.

Max:  (devoutly) I won’t... and I know in my heart you won’t either.

Gabrielle:  (resignedly) You don’t know that for the both of us... I’m sorry.  But if you really want cared for me, if you really wanted what’s best for both of us... you’d completely forget about me...

Max:  (sad and incredulous) Forget you.... funny.   (reaches and touches her cheek, she leans into the palm of his hand)  You could have asked me to do almost anything else in the world but that.  I could never forget you.  We’ll always be connected, ... by Al... by our feelings and by (his voice catches)... a million memories.... (she shakes her head disconsolately).... Don’t worry (he gets up, now resigned) ,  I’m not going to try and convince you.  You want to keep pretending we don’t belong together I am through trying to convince you.  It’s your life Gabrielle... I hope it’s enough for you... (he leaves as she turns into her pillow to cry her heart out...)