Red Ribbon Blues

- The day I found out I was HIV positive

was the worst day of my life.

I felt my whole world suddenly turn upside down.

I didn't know what to feel or how to react,

so I ran and ran for miles.

I didn't know where I was going.

Even though I knew I couldn't escape the news,

somewhere in the back of my mind I felt

if I could keep running just keep running, maybe

It's pretty silly, isn't it?

Then again, just how are you supposed to face

a death sentence?

Oh really?

You sure?

Yeah.

Well fuck you too.

Honey, I'm home!

What's wrong?

Oh no.

It all started at a funeral.

- You know since this epidemic began,

we've all spent time, too much time, mourning.

I'm 29 years old

and I've been to 23 funerals.

We all loved him.

I know.

Darcy and I have been friends

ever since we lived in the same (mumbles) building

on the lower east side of New York.

We shared some good times and some bad ones.

When I moved to L.A. to paint full time,

I felt like a part of me was missing.

I was pretty happy when she decided to move too.

Darcy.

I didn't think you'd make it.

- Yeah well, came to pay my respects to Evan you know.

I can't believe he's gone, man.

You know, he was gonna take me camping.

Yeah?

Yeah, I've never been camping before.

Guess I ain't going now.

I hate this fucking disease.

I hate the memorials too.

Troy!

Troy.

- Duke and Harold have been together for years.

They had owned a gallery before Harold got sick

and Duke started panicking.

They gave me my first show.

It was a disaster but we all became friends.

How you doin' Harold?

We're all having sort of a bad day.

Yeah.

- Somebody tell me when the good ones are supposed

to start again.

I was just trying to convince Darcy

to come to a group meeting.

Troy please not now, come on.

- Yeah, what's it gonna take to get you back?

I'd rather stick needles in my eye okay.

- That'd be about the only place you haven't stuck 'em.

Duke.

Excuse me?

Sorry, I'm sorry, sorry.

Feeling a little bitchy today.

I'll say.

Listen, I'll tell you what.

You come to the next meetin,

I'll give you, half a dozen of Harold's Percodans.

Yeah? When was that meeting?

- We called our support group, Defiance

I always thought the name was a little extreme but

when it came to a choice between that

and Duke preferred Randy Schultz love children

Defiance didn't seem so bad.

Oh, look who's here?

Darcy dear, I knew you'd show up.

Don't give me any shit.

Nice to see you too babe.

- In addition to Darcy, Duke and Harold

there was James, the straight lawyer

Francis, the unapologetic cruiser

Alice, who's ambition in life was to become

the gay Martha Stewart.

And then there was Helen

who was always available to be a surrogate mom.

Troy

No. Thanks Helen.

You bring them pills?

- Okay, welcome and it's great to see you all here tonight

and especially Darcy, who hasn't been with us for awhile.

As you all know, we lost Evan last week

and, although we mourn the loss

we know he's in a good place now.

But I'm in an even better place

because I'm still alive.

I thought that we could start tonight by

discussing how we feel about Evan and

coming up with a joint resolution.

Again with the resolutions.

- Come on guys, we've been through this before.

Resolutions are symbolically important.

- I think we all agree that we should be unified

but, a joint resolution sounds like we're sending

out a communique from NATO or something.

- Fine, if you don't want to pass a joint resolution

can we at least have a moment of silence, okay?

Hey Francis, you got a cigarette for me?

I ran out.

Hey James, do you think you'll be able

to lend me your car on Thursday?

Hey, what's so funny?

Unbelievable. I can't even get a moment

of silence done with this group.

Lighten up Troy.

- No, Darcy. You get a little more serious.

The whole purpose of this group is for us

to try and help each other.

And yet every time I try to get something going,

you guys shoot it down.

Troy, darling. We really appreciate you

trying to lead us each week, we truly do.

Lord knows, none of us could do it.

Right?

But, must you be

Such a pain in the ass?

Thank you.

Who are we kidding?

- Okay, okay. I relinquish my feeble attempts

at leadership and open up the floor

to anyone else who cares to lead off the session.

- Come on Troy come on.

Don't be so sensitive.

I lost my insurance last week.

- The insurance companies had figured

out a dozen different ways to cancel a policy ever.

Sometimes they just raised the premiums to such

an extent that it becomes impossible to pay.

The net effect, to be canceled.

- I'm a painter. There's no way I can afford

insurance on my own, so

when Apothecary Industries announced their indigent

drug program, I immediately signed up.

They ran it like a lottery.

Every six months they had a drawing.

100,000 people signed up for 7,000 slots.

I didn't win. I was the 85,612th person on the waiting list.

But hey, they said I was automatically enrolled

in the drawing in six months.

You know, when your T-cell count is dropping

every day, six months may as well be a lifetime.

Even the AIDS trials couldn't keep up.

God bless 'em, they tried.

But the drug was just too expensive.

With their budgets stretched so thin

trying to care for people who were dying,

they just didn't have the funds

for people who needed D64.

Hey.

Bad time?

What's goin on?

Troy, I'd like you to meet Chris Lee.

Nice to meet you.

Mr. Lee is sort of an insurance agent.

I thought you guys were fully covered.

Well, our problem is Harold's policy

doesn't cover D64.

Because he has full blown AIDS,

they say his, what do you call it?

Risk reward ratio.

- Isn't high enough to put him on the drug.

- You got some nerve comin into my friend's house

- Troy, Troy listen he's not from our health plan.

But you said Mr. Lee was in insurance.

Early, receivable death benefits.

Mr. Strayhorn and Mr. Kelley contacted me

about buying out Mr. Kelley's life insurance policy.

I'm a viatical agent to be precise.

Death futures, to be precise.

They'd become all the rage.

You sold your policy at a discount to a broker.

They advantage to Harold, was that he got

some of his money while he was still alive.

The advantage for Mr. Lee was he made

a hell of a profit on Harold's death.

He's giving us 80 cents on the dollar.

Which is a very good price I might add.

- Duke, if that life insurance was supposed

to be your nest egg when Harold...

I'm sorry Harold.