The Violent Outburst That Drew Me To You

Finegan Kruckemeyer

• Publisher: Currency Press
• Year: 2015
• ISBN:
  9781925359312
• Topic: Letteratura
• Subtopic: Teatro

Sixteen-year-old Connor is angry. He doesn't know why, and he doesn't know where to direct it. People and things he once liked annoy him. His parents, his best friend, his once-cool uncle now officially suck. Then, the outburst. Connor is dropped in a forest … for a week … by himself … to calm down. But his anger has travelled with him.Then a girl called Lotte walks into the woods.And she is angry too …From Inaugural Sydney Myer Creative Fellowship recipient Finegan Kruckemeyer comes this smart, sweet and fiery tale about two offbeat kids who, at war with the world, find a moment's peace with each other. It's a reminder of the impatient impulse in all of us to kick and scream at the universe, and the equally impatient impulse to lie in a forest glade and plan for the future.

PART ONE: OUT OF THE WOODS

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PROLOGUE

CONNOR inspects a door.

CONNOR: There’s a number of features you have to take into account. This is a good model, good solid wood, nice coat of paint, nice look to it.

It’s heavy.

It swings well—see that swing? Really relaxed on the hinges, I’m not doing very much, yeah? That’s just the natural momentum—that’s good.

Location’s really important. People go for the bedroom one usually, but then it’s on their terms. Then, after it’s happened, you’re in your room, which is where they’d tell you to go anyway. You’re incarcerating yourself.

So I prefer one like this—middle of the house, near the living room, nice echoey hallway. Lovely acoustics here, good solid resonance.

And then you loosen the thing up—see, there’s that swing. Really beautiful movement, does half the work for you.

And then … you just say the magic words.

MUM and DAD enter, mid-argument with CONNOR.

MUM: Connor Nicholls, don’t you dare go an/

CONNOR: /I said, leave me the fuck alone!

He swings the door and it slams, loudly. Beat.

And that’s a good door.

SCENE ONE

CONNOR: The most annoying thing about Mum and Dad … is they used to be kind of nice. If I think back, I can remember some good stuff—like this one time, after we finished painting the side of the house:

The three stand in weary silence, viewing a wall. DAD puts an arm around CONNOR.

DAD: Job, mate.

CONNOR: Or this evening a couple of months ago:

MUM is on the couch as CONNOR enters.

MUM: Hi, Connor.

CONNOR: Hi, Mum.

MUM: Friday night—you going out?

CONNOR: Um … no. No, I reckon I’ll stay in.

MUM: Oh—okay. You want a cup of tea?

CONNOR: Nah.

He sits down beside her.

What are you watching?

MUM: An SBS thing—it’s about insects.

CONNOR: Oh, yeah?

They sit together, in contented silence.

Or even this, when we hired a dumb boat last summer and everything went wrong.

All are frustrated. MUM goes for the oars.

MUM: Look, will you just let me/

CONNOR: /I can do it, Mum!/

MUM: /We’ve been going the wrong way for half an h/

DAD: /Just give her the oars, Connor!

In the struggle, an oar goes overboard. A tense silence … broken by all laughing.

CONNOR: Even some of the arguments are cool. But not anymore. Not since they got all weird and crazy.

DAD holds his wallet.

DAD: What does ‘I don’t know’ mean?!

CONNOR: ‘I don’t know’ means I don’t know!

DAD: You don’t know where it’s gone?

CONNOR: That’s what I said, didn’t I?/

DAD: /I’m not asking what you said—I’m asking you for the truth! There’s a twenty-dollar note missing from my wallet and I think the person who took it was yo/

CONNOR: /Yeah, and maybe your wife took it ’cause you’re always so tight, and you never buy any of us anything, and every single penny goes on an extension that you don’t even need, ’cause I’ll be gone as soon as I can, and then you’ve got this whole stupid house all to yourselves!

Silence.

DAD: You don’t fight fair, Connor.

CONNOR: … I don’t want to fight at all.

DAD: Mm.

He walks away.

CONNOR: Later that day I buy twenty dollars worth of mixed lolli...