Starring:
Mo McKynzie as Marisol Montgomery
Yodeet Nymberg as Nina Greene
Lolita Marie as Summer
Chinna Palmer as The Stranger
Cody Smith as Aaron
Henry Howland as Waiter
Akanimo Effang as The Host
Director & Sound Designer: Nathan Gabriel
Writer, Creator, & Producer: Jade Madison Scott
Supervising Producer: Virginia Wilson
Producer: Will Stokes
Beyond Underscore & Dialogue Editor: Michael Ronstadt
Theme Composer: Sterlyn Termine
Show Art: Julia Patrick
Introduction
HOST
Before we begin I want you to know that you can listen to the entire series along with bloopers and bonus content on Apollo+. Apollo+ is a new platform where your subscription gets you early access to ad-free episodes, bonus content, behind the scenes content, supercuts and more. 70% of the revenue goes directly to creators. Join Apollo+ through the Apollo Podcasts app OR by going to apollopods.com/plus. Now, on to the show. WGC Productions presents
(The sounds of birds and the Beyond bleed through.)
The Beyond
STRANGER
Marisol!
MARISOL
No!
(The sound design balks and buckles. The world is warping and breaking in an attempt to return to the introduction.)
STRANGER
You can’t move forward if you can't look back-
MARISOL
I said no!
(Marisol is sucked back into the Introduction)
Introduction
HOST
Small Victories.
(Marisol is hyperventilating.)
HOST (CONT'D)
Hey, what’s wrong with you?
MARISOL
Mind your business. I gotta go. You do the thing.
(Marisol stalks off.)
HOST
Mar....Uh, be aware of strong language, mentions of drug abuse, mentions of sexual situations, and frank talk of death and suicide.
(Small Victories Theme.)
INT. SUMMER'S KITCHEN
Music that resembles, but for copyright reasons is not, Lovin' You by Minnie Riperton
MARISOL
This thing with Summer has been going on for about a month now, and I could lie to you. It’s beautiful. I think about it all the time. And I just thought it’d be a one-time thing, but sometimes when she touches me, when she kisses me, sometimes it feels like she means it. Like I can do something other people can’t.
(SFX: Coke Heartbeat)
MARISOL (CONT'D)
To her I’m special. Like, actually special. And sure I hate myself, but who cares? Who could care about anything?
(Marisol and Summer laugh)
SUMMER
You get the glasses, I’ll get the wine.
(Marisol grabs two glasses and Summer pulls a bottle of wine out the fridge. She speaks as she pours.)
SUMMER (CONT'D)
Can I, uh, Can I ask you something?
MARISOL
Sure.
SUMMER
The scar, what happened?
MARISOL
Bear fight.
SUMMER
Ooo, a bear fight. What a stud.
MARISOL
Sure.
SUMMER
Seriously, what happened?
MARISOL
Ex-boyfriend. Ex-friend.
SUMMER
Were you close?
(Pause)
SUMMER (CONT'D)
I’m sorry.
MARISOL
Don’t be. It’s a reminder.
SUMMER
A reminder of what?
MARISOL
The world is a terrible place full of, uh, terrible people. Trust is heartbreak. Love is betrayal. It reminds me of a bunch of things.
SUMMER
Have you talked to someone?
MARISOL
(sincere)
About what?
SUMMER
It sounds like you’ve had a very traumatic experience, Marisol.
MARISOL
Traumatic? Please. Niggas die every day.
SUMMER
Don’t say that.
MARISOL
Well, we do. It wasn’t even the first time I almost died, you know.
SUMMER
Oh, sweetie-
MARISOL
(harsh)
Don’t touch, don't touch me. Don't touch. Can we maybe stop talking about this? I don’t really like thinking about it.
SUMMER
Of course. Of course.
MARISOL
(sullen)
Cheers.
(Transition Music.)
EXT. CITY STREET- LATER
Marisol is running down the busy city street. Half-out of breath.
MARISOL
(internal)
So, I almost died. I’m always almost dying. People die. That’s life! You know the first dead body I ever saw, I was a little kid. Me, Sam, and Ollie, we were playing in the street, and in the alley there was this homeless guy toppled over, eyes wide open. Died alone. No one even knew his name. Shit happens. I never even got to see Mom, the crash was so bad. And Sam, I had to ID him. He used a gun so his face was all….so what? People die all the time.
(Marisol swallows hard.)
MARISOL (CONT'D)
Boo, what a bummer. I mean....I should really, I mean I’m kinda boring when I get like that, right? All doom and gloom. Like, I’m so annoying. I’m so fucking, that’s why no one likes me or wants to really be around, but I don’t blame them. I get it. Everyone likes me better when I’m high, been that way since I was 13. I’m just, hell, I like me better when I’m high. But, like, actually high and not just coasting on some, fuck. Fuck, I need some more oxy, man, something to, is that…..holy fuck, that’s Aaron. That’s fucking, oh this is great. I bet he has some on him, right? What? No. Stupid. You, you, fucking idiot. No, just keep walking. Just don’t look at him. Don’t notice me. Don’t notice me. Don’t-
AARON
T?
MARISOL
Fuck.
AARON
Marisol! Hey, I was just at the store and, hey, it’s
(Aaron runs to her.)
AARON (CONT'D)
It’s me.
MARISOL
Yeah, I know that.
AARON
Right, I guess you….um, you’re awake.
MARISOL
Yeah, I know that too.
AARON
I-
MARISOL
You still sell?
AARON
No.
MARISOL
Are you kidding?
AARON
A lot’s changed for me, Marisol.
MARISOL
Yeah. Lot of that going around.
AARON
Um, would you like to maybe get a coffee or a tea and catch up or something? You can, of course, say no and that would be totally fine and I’ll respect that and I’ll never have-
MARISOL
Hot chocolate. I want hot chocolate.
AARON
Hot chocolate it is.
(Transition Music.)
INT. CITY DINER
The two are sitting in the corner booth of a busy diner.
AARON
So….
MARISOL
I hoped I’d never see you again.
AARON
Don’t blame you.
MARISOL
I can’t look at my body without thinking about you. I look at myself and I feel all wrong.
AARON
Sorry ‘bout that.
(Marisol huffs.)
AARON (CONT'D)
Thanks for not pressing charges.
MARISOL
What would I look like sending a Black man to jail?
AARON
You could have. I would've gone. I would've-
MARISOL
Dude.
(Beat.)
AARON
Does it hurt?
MARISOL
You tore me open.
AARON
Uh, you got your meds, right?
MARISOL
Oxy. Better shit than you could ever pull.
AARON
Oxy? They didn’t give you too much right? I know you’re trying to be sober now-
MARISOL
Don’t do that. We aren’t friends. You don’t get to talk to me like that anymore.
AARON
Right.
(Beat.)
MARISOL
I wasn’t lying.
AARON
Huh?
MARISOL
Before you gutted me like a fish, you asked if I ever even loved you. I did. You were my first love, did I ever tell you that?
AARON
I didn’t know.
MARISOL
Yeah. Back then all I wanted was to be close to you and now every day I hope you die.
(Beat. Aaron laughs. Marisol laughs too.)
AARON
You don’t pull any punches do you?
MARISOL
No. I don’t.
AARON
Man, I missed you, man.
MARISOL
You’ve lost weight.
AARON
Yeah, it’s been a stressful past couple of months.
MARISOL
Oh, did your close friend and first love stab you too or….
AARON
No, but finding out you’re the kind of person who could kill someone you thought you loved ain’t exactly a walk in the park. Marisol, I’m sorry for what I did to you.
MARISOL
It doesn’t matter. I don’t forgive you.
AARON
That’s okay. It's just, if you need to hear it to heal-
MARISOL
What are you doing?
AARON
I’m apologize-
MARISOL
No. You’re acting different.
AARON
Like I said, a lot’s changed for me. I found God.
MARISOL
Whose?
AARON
I’m a Muslim now.
MARISOL
So, you didn’t even have to go to prison to join The Nation. Good for you.
AARON
T-
MARISOL
No, no, congratulations. At least one of us gets to come out the other side of this better. Thought it’d be me, but fuck me, right?
AARON
I know I hurt you, but Islam is teaching me to be gentle and kind and patient, and-
MARISOL
You tried to kill me. You told me you loved me and then you tried to kill me.
AARON
And it is the worst thing I have ever done in my life.
MARISOL
Exactly. So don’t think reading out of some old book and praying a couple of times a day is going to fix that. You’re a terrible person, Aaron. You were born a piece of shit and you'll die a piece of shit. You can’t change. No one can.
AARON
I’m sorry I hurt you, Marisol. I’m sorry I never knew you well enough to love you back.
MARISOL
I meant it, you know? I hope you die. Every day. I pray for it.
AARON
I’m sure you do.
(Pause)
AARON (CONT'D)
I should go. Thanks for talking to me.
MARISOL
Wait…you really don’t sell anymore?
AARON
No. I’m glad you’re alive, Marisol.
(Aaron leaves. Beat. Marisol slams her fist on the table hard, rattling the silverware.)
MARISOL
Fuck.
WAITER
Ma'am-
MARISOL
Sorry. Saw a, uh, saw a fly. Can I get a green tea to-go?
(Transition Music)
AD BREAK
The Host is listening to one of the other Apollo+ show’s in his headphones as he sits in the void.
HOST
(to himself)
Why does anyone still even live in Gunnaway? You could not pay me to stay-
(He sees the audience)
HOST (CONT'D)
Hey, there! I didn't know you guys were coming by. Let me just pause-
(He pauses his show.)
HOST (CONT'D)
Sorry, I was just listening to Afflicted on this new podcasting platform, Apollo+, which you….may not know anything about. Okay, so Apollo+ is a creator-owned platform where people like you and me subscribe and then 70% of the revenue goes directly to the audio drama creators. And they can use that revenue to pay their cast or help make another season of their show or make more episodes or anything! It’s a sweet set-up, especially since Small Victories is one of the shows you can listen to over there. And on Apollo+ the episodes don’t have ads and you can listen to Small Victories bonus content and you can listen to the entire season at once instead of waiting each week. And it’s super easy to join. All you have to do is join Apollo+ through the Apollo Podcasts app OR go to apollopods.com/plus. It’s so easy even a fictional character in an incorporeal space can do it. But I really do want to know how Mama Cherie is getting out of this so I’m gonna go back to Apollo+ and you can go listen to whatever Marisol is getting up to right now.
INT. ART STUDIO
The Art Studio is an art-focused community center. Marisol stands at the front desk. In the background you can hear the scattered conversations of children.
MARISOL
-Greene. Nina Greene. Do you know where she’d be? I’m her girlfriend and I wanted to bring her-
NINA
Marisol?
MARISOL
Hey! Hi. Here, got you some tea.
NINA
Oh. Uh, thanks, Darla. I’ll take it from here. Come on, let’s head this way.
MARISOL
Happy to see me?
NINA
What? Yeah. Yes. Totally. Look, you have to give a heads-up, though. I've got class. I have papers to grade.
MARISOL
Oh, if today's no good-
NINA
No. I mean, it's sweet. I told you to come, you came. You wanted to surprise me. That's sweet. Romantic.
MARISOL
You sure?
NINA
It's romantic.
MARISOL
Alright. Now come on. Show me the art. I wanna see what the most perfect girl in the world is working on.
NINA
Right. Sure. Sure. This way.
(They enter a class room)
INT. NINA'S CLASSROOM
MARISOL
Dude, guess who I saw today?
NINA
Who?
MARISOL
Aaron.
NINA
What? Are you okay? Did he-
MARISOL
I’m fine, but get this, Aaron, Aaron found God. Mr. I-Know-Where-You-Live found God. Isn’t that funny?
NINA
Are you sure you’re okay? You’re kind of acting strange.
MARISOL
I mean, I did just run into the man who tried to….No, I think I’m maybe not so okay. Nina, he was all thin and pale and he looked sort of haunted, but he seemed….he was happy. Why does he get to be happy?
NINA
Are you not happy?
MARISOL
No, I am. I am, but if he’s happy too, he tried to kill me, goddamnit.
NINA
Come here.
(Marisol hugs Nina.)
MARISOL
God, you give the best hugs.
NINA
No, you give the best hugs.
(Pause)
MARISOL
I’m sleeping with Summer.
NINA
What?
MARISOL
I’m angry all the time, but when I’m with her-
(SFX: Increasing High-Pitched Whine)
NINA
Marisol-
MARISOL
When I’m with her I’m not angry. I’m not happy. I’m not anything. I’m numb. It’s like how coke used to feel or how oxy makes me feel. She makes me all empty inside and that’s good you know? It means I don’t have to be angry or sad. I get to be nothing. I get to rest. I’m tired, Nina. I’m so tired of having to be somebody alone-
NINA
Marisol, what’s up? Why aren’t you saying anything?
MARISOL
Nothing. I just missed you.
NINA
You don’t have to miss me. I’m right here.
MARISOL
Yeah. Hey, is that….that’s me.
NINA
Oh, you weren’t supposed to see that yet. It’s not finished. It’s a part of that new collection I was talking about. It’s called “The Message”. It’s about people and what they tell us and what they mean to-
MARISOL
You really like me, huh?
NINA
Yeah. A little.
MARISOL
I don’t know if I tell you this enough, but you’re good. You’re really good. You gotta get this in a museum. I swear if I have to march to the Smithsonian myself and beat those old white people up till they see your genius, I will.
NINA
Not a museum. A gallery.
MARISOL
Right. A gallery. A gallery with nothing but this. Nothing but you.
NINA
What if we moved it up? The wedding.
MARISOL
What’s the rush?
NINA
I want to do it before anything changes.
MARISOL
What's changing?
NINA
Everything changes all the time and I don't want to change without you.
MARISOL
Hey, you don't need to worry about that. The way I feel about you now is how I felt about you when we met and it's how I'll feel when we're getting frisky in a nursing home. I mean, when you get lucky enough to fall for a literal goddess you'd have to be a dumbfuck to let that go.
NINA
You know I'm not actually perfect, right?
MARISOL
You mean you aren't literally the second coming? Oh, the betrayal. My heart can't take it.
(Marisol laughs. Nina laughs)
NINA
I'm serious. Next week. At the courthouse. I'll invite my parents down. We could have a picnic after. Catered, of course.
MARISOL
But all our wedding plans-
NINA
It’s just some fancy party. We can have that any time. Don’t you wanna just skip to the good part?
MARISOL
I always wanna skip to the good parts. That's where most of the trouble comes in.
NINA
Please?
(Small Victories Theme.)
CLOSING
HOST
You have just listened to Small Victories. Starring Mo Mckynzie as Marisol.
MO
Boo, what a bummer.
HOST
Yodeet Nymberg as Nina
YODEET
You know I'm not actually perfect.
HOST
Chinna Palmer as the Stranger
CHINNA
You can't move foward if you can't look back.
HOST
Lolita Marie as Summer.
LOLITA
Oh, a bear fight. what a stud.
HOST
Cody Smith as Aaron
CODY
I'm a Muslim now.
HOST
Henry Howland as Waiter
HENRY
Ma'mm.
HOST
And Akanimo Effang as the Host. Theme Composer, Sterlyn Termine. Original Cello Music Composed by Assistant Sound Designer Micahel Rondstadt. Script Supervisor, Virginia Wilson. Director and Sound Designer, Nathan Gabriel. Created and Written by Jade Madison Scott. This episode of Small Victories may be over but the fun doesn’t have to end. Listen to the entire season on Apollo+. Not only can you listen to our show but you can also listen to and support other shows like, Primordial Deep, Omen, Afflicted, Sidequesting and more. Not to mention that when you subscribe to Apollo+, 70% of that revenue goes to the creators you love! And they can use that revenue to make new episodes, new seasons, bonus content, and make sure the cast and crews of their shows get paid. It’s a win-win. Or a win-win-win-win? Or a win-win-win? Look, I don’t know what it is, but I do know that Apollo+ is good for me, you, and the crew. What more could you ask for?