“Mom: You two are grounded. No parties, no car, no hangouts, nothing social, no boys, no phones, and no dessert for a month! Also, tomorrow you have to take care of your sisters because they have to stay home from school. Do you know why? Because they have a serious cold! Also, a little bird told me that you had forgotten to pick them up and drive them to swimming in the first place, so you guys owe me $50 for almost having them miss swimming and me having to pay for a lesson that they didn’t go to!”
Characters:
Dad: 40-41
Mom: 37-38
Julia: 16-17
Lily: 16-17
Macey: 10-11
Rose: 10-11
Cashier: 23
Scene One: High School/Pool – afternoon
We see a giant high school hallway with open lockers, gossiping girls, and boys.
Macey: Julia! Lily! What have you been doing? You’re supposed to be taking us to swimming.
Julia: What…. are….. you….. thinking??
Macey: Me and Rose need you guys to take us to swimming!
Lily: Ugh! Rose! Macey! I told you not to come here!
Rose: Sorry, we can’t walk to swimming!
Lily: Why not?!?
Macey: I don’t know? Could you walk five miles in those stilettos in the rain?
Julia: Fine, get in the car. But you’re dead meat if we’re late to Zach’s party!
Rose: You guys are gonna be walking everywhere when Mom finds out you two forgot to take us to swimming. She got you that car for a reason.
Lily: Don’t you dare tell mom!
Macey: $25 for each of us – and your dessert tonight.
Lily: Fine!
They arrive at the pool, Rose & Lily disappear into the locker rooms.
Scene Two: Party/fight – late afternoon
We see the party, with drinks and dancing.
Knock! Pound! Knock!
Mom: Julia Jasmine Roberts & Lily Morgan Roberts, GET IN THE CAR RIGHT NOW!!!!
Julia: What the heck mom?
Lily: Yeah, you totally embarrassed us!
Mom: Oh, please I’m sure everyone’s parents have done that. But let’s cut to the chase. Do you think you might have forgotten something?
Lily: Tsh, no!
Mom: Take a guess, how long do you think you have been at this party?
Julia: I don’t know, like an hour?
Mom: NOT EVEN CLOSE AT ALL! You guys stayed here for FOUR HOURS! And guess what arrived two hours ago, soaking wet, chilled-to-the- bone at my doorstep an hour ago?
Lily: Oh, s**t.
Julia: Dang it!
Mom: You two are grounded. No parties, no car, no hangouts, nothing social, no boys, no phones, and no dessert for a month! Also, tomorrow you have to take care of your sisters because they have to stay home from school. Do you know why? Because they have a serious cold! Also, a little bird told me that you had forgotten to pick them up and drive them to swimming in the first place, so you guys owe me $50 for almost having them miss swimming and me having to pay for a lesson that they didn’t go to!
We see them, arriving at the house, handing in all their electronics. Then, we see Macey & Rose on the couch, watching TV with hot chocolate. Transition to night.
Scene three: Home/ Morning-late afternoon.
Julia makes macaroni and cheese, hands it to the girls, washes the dishes, and heads up to her room.
Ring! Ring!
Macey & Rose: Oh, servant! Where are our cookies?
Julia: Don’t even think about calling me that or I’ll dye them green and poison them!
Rose: And what do you think Mom will think then?
Lily makes the cookies, and glances down at her phone. She starts scrolling, and types something in.
Lily: Here are your cookies. I’m leaving for Dean’s party. I’ll be back before mom gets home. Don’t even think about telling her.
Time passes. Lily gets home. Mom comes home, checks on the girls, takes their temperature, and makes dinner.
Rose: Hey, mom! What’s for dinner?
Mom: I thought I’d make your guys’ favorite chicken noodle soup because you aren’t feeling well. Please don’t holler across the house like that, it’s not good for your voice. Your throat is sore enough.
Mom: Lily, darling, will you please come set the table?
Lily: I don’t want to!
Mom: It’s not an option!
We see Lily set the table, and mom is busy in the kitchen. Time passes.
Mom: Dinner time!
Everybody sits at a rectangular table and starts to eat.
Macey & Rose: Dinner! Yay!
Lily: Uhh…dinner?
Mom: Why? You guys love this dish too!
Lily: I’m stuffed.
Mom: How could you be stuffed?
Lily: We had a big lunch, right Julia, right Macey & Rose?
Rose: No, we had macaroni and cheese, you left after Julia made it for us.
Mom: Oh. You left did you? I thought my instructions were very clear. Take care of your sisters, and don’t leave the house. Also, remember you’re grounded.
Macey: Lily told us not to tell you, because she was going to Dean’s party.
Rose: She found out on Instagram, I saw her checking it while she was making our cookies. She also threatened to dye them green and poison them. Also, Julia’s innocent. You should half her groundment, and double Lily’s.
Mom: You know what? That’s a terrific idea! I hereby half Julia’s groundment, and double Lily’s!
We see Lily pull Julia aside and whisper in her ear.
Lily: How much did you pay them?
Julia: I didn’t.
Lily: Never in a thousand years would they do that.
Julia: Maybe you’re just jealous that they like me more.
Lily: We both know that’s not true.
Macey: Hey mom, when’s Daddy coming home?
Mom: He won’t be home for another week, remember he’s doing that fashion show in Milan.
Julia: Mom, can we get a cat?
Rose: Yeah!
Macey: Yeah, mom please!
Lily: Please!
Mom: Well, I’ll think about it. We’ll have to talk with your dad about it.
Julia: Why? He’s never around, it’s not like he’ll object when he’s never even here.
Mom: He’ll be back soon. I’ll tell you what – I’ll talk to him tonight. You girls definitely deserve it though. And I mean my little girls – not my big girls.
We see the girls disappear into their bedrooms, and their mom sits on the couch and calls dad.
Scene Four: Phone Fight – Night
Mom: Hey honey.
Dad: Hi sweetheart. How are you holding up?
Mom: Good. Listen – the girls wanted to get a cat and I was wondering if you were okay with it.
Dad: (sighs) Well, I think we should. One cat for Julia & Lily, another for Rose & Macey.
Mom: I’m sure they’ll be overjoyed.
Dad: I’m sorry, I just have some much work to do. I have to stay in Milan for a couple more weeks, they want me to do more outfits for their shows.
Mom: George! How long is this going to keep going? First it was days, now its weeks! We need you too! The girls need you! You’ve already been there for a month now, and Macey & Rose are entering middle school soon. Julia & Lily have already started to sneak out to parties. Please come home.
Dad: I know, I’m trying. Stay strong, I love you, bye.
Mom: Bye.
We see mom slam the phone on the counter, and storm away.
Scene Five: Animal Shelter – Late Morning
It’s morning and we see them walk into a pet shelter.
Mom: Okay girls, Julia & Lily you guys find a cat that you want, and you have to agree – no bribing! Same with you two.
Rose: Look at this beige one, it’s so cute!
Macey: I like that one too!
Rose & Macey: MOOOOOM! We found one!
Mom: Okay honey! Your sister found one too!
Macey: We got a British Shorthair!
Julia: We got a tuxedo cat!
Lily: We named him Cooper.
Rose: Ours is named Cous-Cous!
Mom: Well, I’m glad you guys are happy.
Macey: What’s wrong mom?
Mom: Your dad’s not coming home for a couple more weeks.
Rose: But mom! Graduation’s in two weeks!
Mom: I know, I know.
Macey & Rose start to cry, and hug their cats. Their crying turns to sobbing, and we see Julia & Lily attempt to calm them down and comfort them, but to no avail.
Scene six: Graduation day – late morning/ early afternoon
Macey is wearing a white dress with yellow flowers, and Rose is wearing a blue dress with a bow. They look happy, but disappointed because their dad isn’t there.
Principal: Would the twins Macey & Rose Roberts please come to the stage?
Applause. We see them make a speech, get handed awards, and leave with their sisters & Mother.
Mom: Rose, honey, I’m so proud of you for winning the best attendance award!
Rose: Thanks, Mom.
Mom: Oh, and my darling Macey won the best grade award! I’m so proud of you both!
Macey: Thanks, mom, it means a lot.
Mom: Both my two girls won awards, and you guys each had better than average attendance & Grades! I wish you could tell how proud I am of you guys!
Rose: Mom, stop. You’re making us blush!
Mom: Oh my gosh.
We see their father enter the room, as they are leaving it. Their mom almost faints.
Macey: Dad what are you doing here?
Rose: Well, it doesn’t matter you missed it anyway.
Dad: Hey, hey, at least I made it!
Rose: Honestly, we don’t want to talk to you.
Intermission. / ½ way through the movie.
Scene Seven: Sister talk/ huge fight. – night.
We see everybody enter the house, and walk up to the rooms for bed.
Macey: Hey Julia, can we talk to you for a moment.
Julia: Yeah, sure of course.
Rose: We really need our big sister right now.
We see Lily walk past, looking sad, and jealous. Julia, Macey & Rose enter into their room. They sit on the bed.
Rose: Why is dad always away? He’s never here for us. Him coming here late just reminded us of that feeling. I feel like he’s more of like a close family friend.
Macey: Yeah. He’s never here for our birthdays, or graduations, or concerts, and he’s leaving AGAIN, in the morning. He doesn’t even have time to play a game with us. Let alone, tuck us into bed, kiss us goodnight, or do anything a father should do. He was barely even around when we were little!
Rose: “It sort of hurts deep down. Like a big cut. Like he’s neglecting us. The Kardashian kids get more attention from their dad than we do, and Kanye West is like 100 times more famous!”
Julia: I know how it feels, before dad was famous he was the best. I remember playing with him when me and Lily were five years old. He wasn’t here for our middle school graduation, and that hurt too. I have on video, when he promised he would be there. But, he never showed up. It broke my heart.
Julia sniffles a little bit and they all form one big hug. The girls join in the crying, and we see Lily standing at the doorway. She comes in and hugs them too. We move downstairs to where mom & dad sit on the couch. Mom sighs.
Dad: Look Grace, I’m sorry. Hey, at least I tried. But, I get back to Milan tomorrow morning.
Mom: George that made it worse! If you were going to be late, just don’t come at all!
Dad: Well, now they know that I remembered!
Mom: They don’t care!
Dad: How do you know?
Mom: Because they’re my kids!
Dad: And, they aren’t mine?
Mom: Barely, you’ve missed so many milestones in their life, it’s like you were barely present. Macey & Rose hardly know you at all.
Dad: Come on, they understand, I’m the money maker in this family, I leave to make money, I leave them so they can have a roof over their head, so they can have toys to play with.
Mom: No, George. No excuses, we’re rich, you don’t have to work! We don’t have to worry about money! If we lost half our money, or even 75% We still wouldn’t have to work! This is about the kids, not you. Why are you so selfish?. They’re growing up without a dad. Did you ever think about how they feel? What impact this might be making on them? Huh? Have ever bought them a birthday present? Or sang happy birthday with me and them and their friends? No! You haven’t! You’ve kissed them through the ipad in Milan, more times than you’ve actually kissed them in real life! What is wrong with you? You could buy them a mansion. You could buy them all the toys in the world, but they wouldn’t care! They wouldn’t care George! Because one theres only one thing they want from you, and you can’t but it.
Dad: Me. They want me.
Mom: Yes George, they want you. Not me, not Lily, not cats, you. They only wanted cats because that means that you would actually talk to them about getting a cat, and actually approve something they want. So you could actually talk to them.
Dad sighs.
Mom: It’s like you don’t even exist.
Dad: I know, I know.
Dad shakes his head.
Mom: I have one more thing.
Dad: Fine, I’m ready.
Mom: I’m pregnant.
Dad: (groaning) Do they know?
Mom: No, I’m telling them tomorrow. Make a choice, be there for them and this kid, or not be a part of their lives at all. Choose.
Dad: Are you suggesting a divorce?
Mom: Choose.
Dad: I choose…………
Scene eight: The announcement – morning
Mom: Girls! Wake up! I have a graduation present for you!
We see mom in a robe, and a small blue bag with yellow tissue paper inside, and a red bow on top.
Macey & Rose: YAY!!!! WOOHOO! SUMMER! PRESENT! YAY!!!
Mom: Open it!
Julia & Lily come down, to watch the present opening.
Mom: It’s for you guys too! Come on!
They throw out the tissue paper and look in the bag. Inside is a positive pregnancy test.
Julia, Lily, Macey, & Rose all gasp.
Macey & Rose: EEeeeeeeeeee!!!
Julia: Oh my gosh, Oh my gosh, Oh my gosh!!!!!!!!
Lily: No!
Mom: Yes!
We see them form a huge hug.
Mom: I also have some sad news. Your father and I…
Julia: Yes?
Lily: Mom?
Macey: Mommy tell us!
Rose: Yeah mom, come on!
Mom: Your father and I are getting a divorce.
Rose: Mommy, will you have to get a job? What will happen to the car and the house, and our money?
Macey: Mommy, are we gonna be okay?
Mom: Oh, honey of course we are! We will hire a good lawyer, and he will defend our case. And, if we win, we will get most of the money, the house, & the car.
Lily: Dad never was around anyways.
Julia: Hey mom, do we have to spend time with him in Milan? Do we have to do school in Milan? I don’t want to leave here.
Mom: Oh, no honey. There’s no doubt about it that were staying here. F**k Milan. Sorry girls didn’t mean to cuss.
Rose: It’s okay.
They all hug.
Mom: Lets get donuts, spend all day in our Pjs and binge watch Glee!
Macey & Rose: Yeah!
Lily: Woohoo!
Julia: Alright!
Scene nine: Donut shop/home – late morning
They arrive at the donut shop, wearing their pajamas. Macey & Rose are wearing matching pastel pink, with white & Blue dot pajamas. Lily is wearing a blue night dress, with small white flowers. Julia is wearing a coral sweatshirt & Sea foam sweatpants. Mom is wearing a white nightgown, with a pretty off-white pattern. They enter the shop. In the shop is a whole selection of donuts ranging from rainbow & unicorn to matcha & ube.
Macey: WOW! Mom, look they have a unicorn one! I’m getting that!
Rose: Mommy! Check it out they have a glazed rainbow one! Can I get that one?
Mom: You guys can each get one donut & one drink.
Lily: That strawberry shortcake one looks goooood!
Julia: I’m gonna get the confetti-cinnamon-sugar one!
Mom: Has everyone decided on which donut & which drink they’re going to get?
Macey: Yup!
Julia: I know!
Lily: I’ve decided.
Rose: It was a hard choice, but yes!
Mom: Okay, may I please have one unicorn, one glazed rainbow donut, one strawberry shortcake, one confett-cinnamon-sugar, & one match donut please? Also could I have two hot chocolates, one caramel macchiato, one thai iced tea, and one match latte please.
Cashier: That will be $29.75 please.
Mom: Here you go. Now, everyone grab your donut, and your drink. Don’t eat or drink in the car. You know the rules.
They get home and plop on the couch, turn on the tv, and watch & eat.
Scene Ten: home/ – early afternoon, time passes: About 1 month.
Time passes, about 1 month.
Mom: Lily, Julia, come on! We have to be at the court in three hours! It takes two and a half to get there!
Lily: Coming Mom!
Julia: Just putting on my shoes!
Rose: Mom, remind me what we’re supposed to do?
Mom: I left some money on the counter. You can go shopping, bake, cook, or shop for your baby sister.
Macey: $400?!?
Rose: Awesome! Why couldn’t dad file for a divorce sooner?
Mom: Honey, I filed the divoroce. I asked him to choose us or his job.
Julia: And he chose his job.
Mom: We might be gone a while. Don’t spend it all in one place.
Macey & Rose: Bye mom!
Julia, Lily, & Mom leave the house, and drive away in the car.
Rose: Where should we go first?
Macey: First we need to get food, I’m starving!
Scene eleven: The mall. – late afternoon
We see Macey & Rose walk into the park lot, and look at a sign.
Rose: OOOOOOOH, they have a Panda Express here!
Macey: Mm, mm, mh, mn, mm!
Transition to Panda Express.
Rose: Can I please have a kids meal with orange chicken & chow mein, a kids meal with Beijing beef and white rice, and two small sodas?
Cashier: Sure, that’ll be $19.50.
Macey: Here you go!
We see them sit at a table, inaudible chatting and eating. They wipe their hands & mouth on napkins, throw their plates away, and walk out the door.
Macey: Where should we go next?
Rose: I think we should get baby stuff.
Macey: Okay, let’s plan this out. We have $380.50. Let’s use $80.50 at the baby store.
Rose: That brings us to $300, I think we should get some new clothes for ourselves.
Macey: Okay, so let’s say like $50 for each of us?
Rose: Alright, then we’ll have $200, lets get some makeup for ourselves, Mom, Lily, & Julia.
Macey: Okay, so like $75 on makeup?
Rose: Eh, that’s a little much.
Macey: Well, it’s for all five of us.
Rose: Hm, true. That’s $15 for each of us, so it’s $125 left. Let’s give $25 to each of us for toys, and take fifty for each of us, and save it for meals.
Macey: Okay, let’s go!
Transition to baby store.
Rose: “All this stuff is so cute!”
Macey: Lets get some onesies!
Rose: Okay, this set of three onesies is $20!
Macey: Okay, put it in the shopping cart!
Rose: This is so fun!! Lets get some toys!
Macey: Okay, I got some toys, our total is $50.
Rose: Okay, binkies and bottles!
Macey: Got them!
Rose: We have $10 dollars left.
Macey: $5 dollars. Because we have to -$5 because of tax.
Rose: I already got a swaddle blanket.
Macey: Okay, let’s check out.
Cashier: That’ll be $74.67.
Macey & Rose: Oh, my god.
We see them go out, and then come back in, and come out again with a stack of bags.
Rose: Oh my gosh! That was so fun! I can’t wait to do your nails!
Macey: Yeah, the baby stuff we got is so cute!
Time passses.
Macey: You’re so good at doing nails! I think we should bake a cake for mom!
Rose: A happy divorce cake?
Macey: No, silly! A happy baby cake! With some divorce aspects.
Rose: You were totally going to do a divorce cake!
Macey: Was not!
Rose: Was too!
Macey: Okay, fine, you got me.
They start to bake a cake.
Rose: How should we decorate it?
Macey: Well, we know it’s a girl, so maybe like pink with white dots?
Rose: Sure!
Scene twelve: home/ – evening
Mom: We’re home!
Macey & Rose: How’d it go??
Lily: We WON!!!!
Macey & Rose: EEEEEE!
Julia: You have to explain to them what we won.
Mom: Well, we got the house, 56% of the money, the car, and most importantly I got you guys, so no Milan.
Macey & Rose: No Milan! No Milan! No Milan! Yay!
Mom: I thought we could brainstorm baby names tonight.
Macey, Rose, Lily, & Julia: Okay!
Mom: I was thinking…….. Isabelle or Ava.
Macey: I like Ava!
Julia: What about Harper or Evelyn?
Lily: Nah. I like Ava.
Rose: Yeah, Ava!
Mom: Okay, Okay. Ava it is.
Scene thirteen: Welcome home! – late morning! Eight months later.
We see mom enter the room, with bags under her eyes, carrying a baby girl.
Rose: She’s so cute!
Macey: She looks just like you!
Mom: She looks like all of you guys.
Lily: She’s adorable!
Julia: I’m so excited!
Mom: Meet your new baby sister, Ava Lily Roberts.
Lily: You chose me? As the middle name? Why?
Mom winks at Lily. Ava opens her eyes, makes a gesture with her hand, and they all huddle around her.
The end.
