Scene Five
 
  The Knopf living room, early the following morning. ROSALIE is collecting her school books as NADINE enters from the kitchen carrying a small bulging grocery beg which SHE extends toward her daughter.
ROSALIE
What’s that?

NADINE

It’s your lunch.

ROSALIE

Oh, Mama…you made me a turkey.

NADINE

It’s not a turkey. It’s two sandwiches, a piece of cake, a banana and a tangerine.

ROSALIE

I can’t eat all that.

NADINE

You always eat all that.

ROSALIE
                          (opening the bag, extracting one sandwich and the piece of cake, putting them on the table,

                                    imitating Betty Claire Richmond)
Not since I’m goin’ to the Christmas Dance, with Ham Hudson. I gotta lose weight.

NADINE

Ham Hudson?

ROSALIE

He was the big one who was over on Friday. He’s one o’ those who believes, Mama. He believes my brother is Art Knopf, he believes Chuck Hatfield is his best friend, and he believes I’m going to the Christmas Dance with him.

NADINE

Rosalie, what is this all about? (A car is heard driving up and parking. ROSALIE peers out the window, then begins guiding Nadine toward the bedroom.)
ROSALIE
Excuse me, Mama, but it’s integratin’ time. (NADINE stares in bewilderment as ROSALIE closes the bedroom door. Then
we hear a knock.)
ROSALIE
Why, Betty Claire Richmond! And Sharlene! (THE GIRLS enter. BETTY CLAIRE is a dimpled young thing with a mole on her left cheek, a mellifluous Georgia drawl and one of the most fantastic bodies in all of Florida.)
ROSALIE
You look so well, Betty Claire. And, you, Sharlene, you look so tired.

SHARLENE

I was up till two this morning doing thirty pages of Spanish translation. Why didn’t you tell me…?

BETTY CLAIRE

I didn’t realize you lived just six blocks away from us, Rosalie. Why, I declare, it was a complete surprise to me until Sharlene said, not more than five minutes ago, "Wouldn’t it be a gesture of thoughtfulness and friendship if we asked Rosalie Knopf to ride to school with us?" Didn’t you, Sharlene?

SHARLENE

Yeah.

BETTY CLAIRE

So that’s why we’re here.

ROSALIE

Why?

BETTY CLAIRE

To ask you to ride to school with us.

ROSALIE

Oh, Betty Claire. Two on a bike is unsafe enough.

BETTY CLAIRE

I’ve got my car, Rosalie.

ROSALIE

Your car?

SHARLENE

Some people have cars.

ROSALIE

What kind of car?

BETTY CLAIRE

A four door sedan.

ROSALIE

I mean, what make?

BETTY CLAIRE

Why, a brand new 1956 Plymouth.

ROSALIE

Oh.

BETTY CLAIRE

Sharlene has a 1951 Olds.

ROSALIE

That’s American, too.

SHARLENE

What’s wrong with American?

ROSALIE

Oh, nothing.

BETTY CLAIRE

What is it, Rosalie?

ROSALIE

You’d laugh at me.

BETTY CLAIRE

We’d never laugh at you, Rosalie.

ROSALIE

Promise?

BETTY CLAIRE

Scout’s honor.

ROSALIE

Sharlene didn’t promise.

BETTY CLAIRE

Sharlene…

SHARLENE

Why should…?

BETTY CLAIRE

Sharlene…

SHARLENE

Scout’s honor.

ROSALIE

I’ve got autophobia.

SHARLENE

Huh?

ROSALIE

I’ve always had autophobia. Ever since my parents had a Kaiser-Frasier that fell apart in the middle of Beacon Hill.

BETTY CLAIRE

What is autophobia, Rosalie?

ROSALIE

You’ve never heard of autophobia?

BETTY CLAIRE

Of course, I’ve heard of it. I just always forget what it means.

ROSALI E

It’s fear of cars.

SHARLENE

Fear of cars?!

ROSALIE

All that chrome.

SHARLENE

I like that chrome.

ROSALIE

Oh, it’s pretty. It certainly is. And I don’t have anything against it on cloudy days.

BETTY CLAIRE

On cloudy days?

ROSALIE

Only on days like today. When the sun is out and it keeps reflecting and reflecting.

SHARLENE

So what?

ROSALIE

It causes accidents.

BETTY CLAIRE

The chrome does?

ROSALIE

The sun shining on the chrome. It blinds the people in the front seat.

SHARLENE

That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard.

ROSALIE

It’s statistics, Sharlene. Didn’t you read that article in the Reader’s Digest, "The Dangers of Silver Chrome"?

SHARLENE

No, I didn’t. And what’s more I think…

BETTY CLAIRE

I read it, Rosalie.

ROSALIE

Then you understand.

BETTY CLAIRE

Of course I do. But you don’t have to sit in the front seat, Rosalie. You can sit in the back seat.

ROSALIE

That’s sweet of you, Betty Claire. But somebody has to sit is the front seat. The driver, for instance.

SHARLENE

                                  (tugging at Betty Claire’s am)
Come on. Let’s go..

BETTY CLAIRE

I’ll tell you what. I’ll push the seat back as far as it can go.

ROSALIE

Thank you, Betty Claire, but I…

SHARLENE

Come on…

BETTY CLAIRE

And I’ll put the visor down and sit all the way back like this. It’ll be so safe.

ROSALIE

I think I’d better ride my bike.

                                  (BETTY CLAIRE hesitates a moment, sighs and turns.)

BETTY CLAIRE

All right Rosalie.

                                 (SHE begins to walk toward the door with a look of puzzlement and frustration.)

ROSALIE

There are same cars without chrome that don’t frighten me.

BETTY CLAIRE

There are?

ROSALIE

A few foreign cars.

BETTY CLAIRE

Like what kind, Rosalie?

ROSALIE

Well, there’s one you probably never heard of. It’s called a Porsche.

BETTY CLAIRE

Diane has a Porsche!

ROSALIE

She does?
 
 

LIGHTS DIM