The Caged Bird Is Finally Heard

Las Vegas, Nevada 10:49 pm outside The Ortiz & Frasier Enterprise building. A tall, 5'9" African-American young woman with a puffy black curly-haired afro who is in her early 20s racing towards the building with a satchel bag on her shoulder in an all dark blue denim jumpsuit looking a bit distressed and frustrated and starts trying to unlock the door with her ID but fails.}

Roxie:( frustrated continuously trying to scan her ID but fails) come on, come on I need to get in here PLEASE (starts hitting the plexiglass with her hand screaming and whimpering slumping towards the ground with her back against the glass sighing clutching her satchel close to her chest slightly shivering due to the weather.) my day could not get any worse than it already has.

{ A car pulls into the parking lot and a lady gets out of the car closing and locking her door who looks as she is in her late 40s slightly overweight with greying hair, trench coat covering a nightgown, and old nursing shoes and she starts walking towards the building yelling causing Roxie to look up.} ROXIE, ROXIE RENEE MONROE.

Roxie:(gets up grabbing her satchel walking towards the women) Mom what are you doing here it's late you need to go home now. (grabs her mother's arm lightly pulling her to the side)

Bernice:( yanks her arm away) I am only here because you promised to get back with my billing company and give them the money for my electricity bill, my car payment, my rent, your father's hospital payments, and my-( Roxie cuts her off)

Roxie:( sighs and puts her hand over her face) Mom I already explained everything to you I will take care of it but now is not the time.

Bernice: You did not do that because I got an alert saying if I don't pay by tonight my electricity will be turned off you can't even do the simple things I ask of you.

Roxie:(looks at her mother in disgust) you have some nerve telling me I can't do a simple task when you came all this way from city-port to my job to complain about everything YOU NEED TO BE PAID that's rich coming from you.

Bernice:(gets in Roxie's face) who do you think you are raising your voice at I am your mother don't you ever forget that I brought you into this world I can easily take you out, you ungrateful little girl.

Roxie:(starts getting angry walking back and forth away from her mother) Me (pointing towards herself) I'm ungrateful you have some nerve I cook for you, pay all your bills, check up on you, take you to your doctor appointments, I clean for you I-(Bernice stops Roxie)

Bernice:(rolls her eyes) Oh stop it with a non-sense you don't do all that for me

Roxie: (gets angrier) That's the thing you are so blinded and controlling of me you think what I'm saying isn't true when it is and you get mad and brush me off that's all you do I can"t t-

Bernice: (cuts Roxie off once again) Oh hush up all that noise if your father were here he would not approve of how you are talking to me.

Roxie:(loses it) Why can't you hear me out for once? I try so hard every day at work and home helping everyone and the one time I want to be heard I get ignored this is the thanks I get. It is 8:00 pm and you come to my job demanding me to give you something I already told you I would handle yet you want to berate and criticize me about how I don't do enough for the job that I have had since I was 19 and you say I don't work hard enough for you? I come into work earlier than every one else working my butt off and getting no credit just small projects while doing coffee runs for everyone leaving after everyone else does even though I know it's not worth it but I still do it and you wanna know why? I'll tell you why it's because I have to support you and you alone paying every single bill for you with the minimum wage-sized paycheck I get every Sunday barely having enough for my personal use when it's all over but you wanna call me ungrateful. Ever since dad died I am all you have well at least that's what you tell me every time I say I might not be able to give you the money you always use dad as an excuse to guilt me into giving in to you, you have a job where is the paycheck you say you've gotten in the mail you say you are going to pay me back for each time I pay a bill yet I have not seen a dime of the money you owe me. I know I shouldn't be talking to you like this but you have crossed the line berating me the person who is paying every last one of your bills with my paycheck from my job because I feel like I should do my part by helping you since we lost dad, not just you, you have no idea how much I miss him I wish he was here to tell me what to do with you because at this point I am at my breaking point with you always nagging at me, berating and criticizing me about everything from my job, my love life, not paying your bills and then some well guess what mom I am not a little girl anymore you can't control and guilt me into doing what you want .you can't even give me a simple thank you just a "you could have used more than that" not once have you ever tried talking to me about losing my father and how much I am suffering, I am 22 years old taking heart medication all because I am so stressed out with all the pressure being put on me you don't understand how overwhelmed I am yet I continue to do so all because of you the person who can't give her only child a thank you for keeping her lights on or buying and cooking for you even though I have my own life and place I still take the time out of my everyday schedule to check on you to see if you are okay but what you should be asking me is am I okay?. (drops to her knees crying uncontrollably and her mother in tears grabs her hugging her tightly)

Bernice:(voice breaking tears streaming down her face and let's go off Roxie looking at her daughter's tear-stained face) I didn't know you felt this way ever since your father died I just lost all hope and it was just me alone in that empty house and I just needed someone there I was just so scared of being alone and I took all my frustrations out on you and I never thought about how much of a toll his passing and all the stress I put on you would mentally and emotionally take on you, you are too young of a beautiful woman to be taking care of my responsibilities you have your own life to deal with and I don't know how to fix this you probably hate me.

Roxie:( looks up at her mom smiling) I don't hate you it's just I've just been taking care of everything for you financially since my dad passed away and I am yours and his only child so I took on the role of taking care of you and it took a lot out of me and I held in a lot for so long I didn't mean to snap at you mom.

(Bernice hugs and kisses her daughter's forehead)

Roxie: ( looking at her mother with a serious stern look in her eyes) this does not mean everything you put me through is swept under the rug, You put me through a lot throughout my 22 years of life everything you put me through is never going to leave but we can work on rebuilding and changing our relationship I can't forgive you I don't hate you either because I know you are hurting just like I am but that doesn't mean you get to treat me the way you have been treating me since dad died I want you to change so we can at least be a fixed family instead of the broken one we once were we can get through this I promise, Like dad used to always say family may be broken into pieces of a puzzle you just have to be able to find and put those pieces of that broken family back together.

Bernice: you know what Roxie I'm sorry for what I've put you through and all you've put up with it's just since your father passed away I didn't mean to put all that stress on you.

Roxie:(looks at her mother) well why do you always put me down why is everything always about you and not how much I have been taking on all by myself? I just want to be more than a provider for you I don't want you to always be a caretaker for me.

Bernice: Roxie you are my flesh and blood and I have always said that I will pay the bills that were left behind that was the arrangement since we have a shared income you do understand that.

Roxie: Well then why are you always pushing me to do more work than you if you already have me taking care of your bills.

Bernice: I am sorry I didn't mean to put all that stress on you it's just when daddy died I just wanted you to come in and take over like I did with your dad and my brother.

Roxie: Mom that was wrong of me to ask you to do that and you also shouldn't put that on me taking over being a caretaker loving you through losing daddy but you are right it is time for us to start to rebuild our relationship and change how we have dealt with each other since daddy's passing (pulls out her wallet and gives her mom some money) here's your payment for your bills you have until Sunday to pay rent

(Bernice laughs taking the money pocketing it and helpings her daughter)

Bernice: let's go home we have a lot of catching up to do.

(They both get into their cars driving to Roxie apartment)