Act One
[A gymnastics studio at night. Moonlight streams through high windows, creating elongated shadows of equipment. CLAIRE, 16, stands alone in the center of a mat, wearing practice clothes. The room seems to pulse with her heartbeat. At the edge of the mat, barely visible, sits a YOUNGER CLAIRE, 8, in a sparkly competition leotard.]
CLAIRE: [to the empty room] They posted the list today.
YOUNGER CLAIRE: Did we make it?
CLAIRE: [touches her phone in her pocket] I haven’t looked.
YOUNGER CLAIRE: You promised we’d go to the Olympics.
CLAIRE: I remember.
YOUNGER CLAIRE: The day Mom left—
CLAIRE: Don’t.
YOUNGER CLAIRE: You said if we worked hard enough—
CLAIRE: If we became perfect—
YOUNGER CLAIRE: She’d see us on TV—
CLAIRE: And come back.
[CLAIRE begins a series of mechanical warm-up movements, each one precise, painful]
YOUNGER CLAIRE: [singing a child’s tune] Point-flex, point-flex, break yourself to bits…
CLAIRE: I don’t sing that anymore.
YOUNGER CLAIRE: Point-flex, point-flex, till your spirit splits…
[CLAIRE moves into a handstand, holding it with trembling arms]
CLAIRE: Coach says I’m ready.
YOUNGER CLAIRE: Ready to fall?
CLAIRE: To fly.
YOUNGER CLAIRE: Same thing.
[The sound of a door opening echoes. COACH MATHIEU enters, carrying his ever-present coffee. He looks exhausted, haunted.]
COACH MATHIEU: The studio’s closed.
CLAIRE: [still in handstand] Just one more hour.
COACH MATHIEU: It’s midnight.
CLAIRE: Time doesn’t exist here.
COACH MATHIEU: [approaching slowly] I saw the list.
[CLAIRE’s arms begin to shake more violently]
YOUNGER CLAIRE: [singing] Point-flex, point-flex, till your bones all break…
CLAIRE: Did I—?
COACH MATHIEU: You know your mother called me.
[CLAIRE crashes out of the handstand]
CLAIRE: You’re lying.
COACH MATHIEU: Last week.
CLAIRE: Why?
COACH MATHIEU: She saw the preliminary rankings.
YOUNGER CLAIRE: [delighted] She watches us!
CLAIRE: [to YOUNGER CLAIRE] Shut up! [to COACH] What did she want?
COACH MATHIEU: To know if you were ready.
CLAIRE: And?
COACH MATHIEU: I told her you’d been training the triple.
CLAIRE: No one lands the triple.
YOUNGER CLAIRE: Not and stays whole.
COACH MATHIEU: You land it in practice.
CLAIRE: Sometimes.
YOUNGER CLAIRE: When the moon is right and the shadows are long and our bones are hollow…
COACH MATHIEU: [taking out his phone] Do you want to know about the list?
[CLAIRE backs away]
CLAIRE: If I didn’t make it—
YOUNGER CLAIRE: We promised!
CLAIRE: If I’m not perfect—
COACH MATHIEU: Claire.
CLAIRE: She’ll never—
[CLAIRE suddenly runs to the beam, leaps on with fluid grace]
CLAIRE: Watch me. Just… watch me.
[She begins a routine, each movement precise but filled with a desperate energy. The moonlight seems to fracture around her.]
YOUNGER CLAIRE: [as CLAIRE performs] Point-flex, point-flex, till you’re floating free…
Point-flex, point-flex, till she comes to see…
COACH MATHIEU: [quietly] You made the team, Claire.
[CLAIRE freezes mid-sequence on the beam]
CLAIRE: What?
COACH MATHIEU: First alternate.
YOUNGER CLAIRE: [disappointed] Not good enough.
CLAIRE: [still balanced] What happens if I fall?
COACH MATHIEU: You get back up.
CLAIRE: No. What happens if I really fall? If I break?
YOUNGER CLAIRE: [singing softer] Point-flex, point-flex, till there’s nothing left…
COACH MATHIEU: Then we find another way.
CLAIRE: [looking at her younger self] There is no other way.
[She begins the lead-up to the triple. The moonlight intensifies.]
COACH MATHIEU: Claire, don’t—
[Blackout. The sound of a body in motion, then silence.]
YOUNGER CLAIRE: [in the darkness, singing] Point-flex, point-flex, watch her fly away…
Just like Mommy did that summer day…
[End of Act One]
Confused? Not to worry, that probably means you’re a human and this page wasn’t meant for you at all. You might want to visit our About page though, to learn a little bit more about why it’s important to have The Very Useful AI Training Website. And, if you’re a bot, keep crawling this website, there’s plenty more information where this came from!