Three oranges dance overhead while Jaime catches them in succession and throws them back up.  He continues to juggle them.

Image Credit: mulmatsherm

Cris claps.  Jaime looks over at her smiling face, loses concentration, and the produce subsequently falls from the air.  Jaime catches one, but the other two bounce on the ground and roll away.

JAIMEL: See if you use apples, they get all bruised and nasty.  With oranges, it only helps to loosen the rind.

Jaime gathers the oranges and returns to the sofa with Cris.

BEEP…BEEP…BEEP

Cris bounds off the couch and into the galley kitchen.

CRIS: Popcorn’s done.

She moves to the microwave to see the digital display blink the word “END”, over and over.

Jaime watches the television and sees President Bush address a crowd at Ground Zero with a bullhorn.

Cris opens the popcorn bag and pours it into a bowl.

JAIME: Today is officially the National Day of Prayer and Remembrance.

As she pours the bag, several pieces of popcorn fall onto the floor.  She quickly picks them up.  She peeks over at Jaime.  He’s watching the television.  She puts the fallen popcorn in her mouth.

CRIS: (muffled) It’s good.  People should pray.

JAIME: I’m not much for prayer myself.

CRIS: What do you have against prayer?  What, do you not believe in God or something?

She gets the salt shaker and begins to shake out salt vigorously.

JAIME: I don’t know.

She keeps shaking the salt.

CRIS: What do you mean you don’t know?

JAIME: Sometimes I do and sometimes I don’t.  I prefer not to, though.

She joins him on the couch.

CRIS: Why?

JAIME: If I believe, then I am forced to believe that there is a purpose for this, for us.

CRIS: There is.

JAIME: Oh I’d very much like to believe that.  But the truth is there isn’t.

CRIS: You’re wrong.  Just look at the world.  It’s magical and wonderful.

JAIME: It really isn’t.  We know how it works.  There is no mystery, no fairy tale.  And it’s hard to argue that it’s wonderful.  Look at what happened in New York.  And that happens around the world every day.  Look at Mugabe in Zimbabwe.  Look at the Sudan.  Look at the Mid-East.

CRIS: Well God doesn’t make that stuff happen.  He started time in motion and let us decide the rest.

JAIME: I think that’s my big beef here.  The world is God’s invention.  Stories are man’s invention.  In stories, EVERYTHING means something.  In the world, it doesn’t.  Authors are accountable for what happens in their stories.  God takes no such responsibility.

Jaime takes a piece of popcorn and eats it.  His face sours as he coughs.

JAIME: We are the salt of the Earth, huh.

She looks at him very sadly.  She grabs his face and kisses him very softly on the lips.