_(Rene (in a tiger mask), drinks wine fr...

_(Rene (in a tiger mask), drinks wine from the box on the aft of the ship. It seems peaceful if cheaply decadent. Gene enters.) _

GENE: Is that supposed to be a joke?

RENE: I'm sure it is, but it never felt like it.

GENE: I mean your costume.

RENE: Let me guess, you don’t like tigers. It’s understandable. They’re number two on the big cat list. Everyone prefers lions.

GENE: What?

RENE: When April and I were little, we looked very, very alike. Because we're twins—if you couldn't tell—anyway, Dad used to make me wear this to tell us apart. So, no, it's not a joke. It's a tribute, it's why it never felt like a joke.

GENE: It's funny.

RENE: Really?

GENE: No, I mean, it's a funny tribute.

RENE: Thank you.

GENE: I don’t think we’ve officially met. I’m Eugenio.

RENE: I know. I heard my brother in law butcher it earlier.

GENE: David?

RENE: Dave. Mom calls him “David” because she saw a movie once where this rich woman called people by their full names even though they have nicknames and everyone found her endearing, so Mom thinks it’ll do the same for her. But it doesn’t.

GENE: It’s good to meet you.

(Gene extends his hand.)

RENE: Put that thing back, I’m not touching it.

GENE: Why not?

RENE: I don’t want to get whatever you’ve got.

GENE: I served with your dad.

RENE: Tell me something I don’t know.

GENE: Your mother’s overbearing.

RENE: She’s alright, you just have to give her a chance.

GENE: Okay…

RENE: Oh I get it, that’s the thing that I didn’t know.

GENE: It took me a while to see that in my own mother.

RENE: Where is she? Back in the homeland?

GENE: She’s dead.

RENE: Right.

GENE: I’m not Mexican.

RENE: Who said that you were?

GENE: People just assume.

RENE: Shame on you.

GENE: For what?

RENE: For assuming that I’m people.

GENE: They usually think I’m Mexican or an Indian.

RENE: Indian indian?

GENE: No, Native American.

RENE: Who thinks that?

GENE: People in the army.

RENE: No wonder we haven’t won any wars lately.

GENE: I think they can only conceive of so many things at once.

RENE: I think you're an optimist.

GENE: That’s a crime?

RENE: Where I’m from? Yes, yes it is.

GENE: We’re from the same place. I’m Puerto Rican.

RENE: From the same country.

GENE: My father lives here.

RENE: Ah.

GENE: We’re a colony.

RENE: Thought no one had those anymore. I’m kidding. I passed geography in ninth grade. I know California is on that side and that New York is on the other and that Texas thinks its somewhere else. If Puerto Rico seceded from the union, just decided to be done with the whole United States thing and stop sending kids to play for the Yankees, would you go down there and fight?

GENE: Of course.

RENE: Why?

GENE: Because that’s what I have to do.

RENE: Thank you, thank you for saying that.

GENE: You’re welcome. Why?

RENE: Because I’m glad to know there’s someone who hates himself as much as I do.

GENE: I signed up.

RENE: No wonder you liked my dad so much.

GENE: He was a good solider.

RENE: Why are you speaking in the past tense?

GENE: Because he’s passed on.

RENE: How do you know? There’s nothing in the casket.

GENE: I was there.

RENE: Well, that’s nice and all but you should know that he’s been dead long before anyone told us about it happening. So, frankly, this whole thing is kind of a nuisance.

GENE: He was a great man. He was my lover.

RENE: Do you really think Mom’s overbearing?

GENE: He was my lover.

RENE: No, I heard you. I’m not shocked. Do you want me to be shocked? I’m not shocked.

GENE: I thought you should know.

RENE: Well, it’s good you’re here. Because you’d bomb your own people. So thanks for dropping the flag off now get the f##k out of here.

GENE: I can’t.

RENE: Because you’re going to prove to all of us how great he was? You’re going to tell us war stories and we’re all going to get together and have a nice big cry for this former asshole.

GENE: I can’t swim. And we’re in the middle of a lake.

RENE: I thought you were in the army.

GENE: We don’t swim. That’s the Marines.

RENE: What about rivers?

GENE: We build bridges.

RENE: And when someone destroys them?

GENE: Then we can’t get across.

RENE: Yes, we’ve all got our problems.

GENE: Sí, es verdad.

RENE: I like it when you say things in Spanish.

GENE: Do you want me to say something else?

RENE: No.

GENE: I don’t hate myself.

RENE: Of course you do. We all do. We’re mammals. I sneaked a peek when they were loading him on board. I wanted to see if I looked like him. It’d been so long since I saw him. I wanted to see if he was like I remember. The dirty joke was that it was exactly like I remembered—not there.

(If Renee hasn’t taken off his mask already, it should come off here.)

GENE: Gracias.

RENE: Por?

GENE: Por no decirle a nadie lo que sabes.

RENE: De nada.

GENE: Sabes español?

RENE: Sí. Did you love him?

GENE: Tu padre?

RENE: Sí.

GENE: Sí. Mucho. Can I have some wine?

RENE: Sure.

(Rene pours him some wine.)

GENE: It was a tiger that did it.

RENE: No sh#t.

GENE: No sh#t.

RENE: Bueno, salud.

GENE: Por?

RENE: Por mi padre.

GENE: Salud.

(They toast.)

GENE: I’m sorry.

RENE: What?

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