SYNOPSIS

ACT 1:
Joey hurls his skateboard across his girlfriend’s dorm room. It’s over after what she’s done.

Scarred by his mother at a young age, JOEY grew up under the heavy hand of an abusive, alcoholic father in the tough streets of Brooklyn. His good nature has roven unbreakable though. He’s avoided drugs in his own life, and managed to vent his emotions less through fighting and more through is paintings.

Sulking on the stairwell at a raving college party later that night, he’s approached by ALISHA, a sensual, fun-loving ollege girl who just happens to be his ex-girlfriend’s best friend. The two end up hanging, flirting until the sun rises. In good humor, his friends make fun and bicker over the fact Joey stayed up all night with a sexy girl and didn’t get laid, even though they’re familiar with Alisha’s convictions. Saving herself for marriage is a quality he ultimately finds attractive in her, but it’s certainly not ideal, and possibly not even feasible for him.

ACT 2:
Living out of a backpack, Joey finds himself spending more and more time with Alisha, her roommate, KIANA and her lovable hippie DJ neighbor, SPAX, who's next door apartment shares an interconnecting closet. His genuine honesty and overall gentleness wins everybody over in seconds. Of course he’s unaware that she’s had a crush on him for years, which has surely influenced her
decision to allow him to sleep in her and Kiana's sanctimonious bedroom, a room unlike the rest of the well-partied apartment, is
nicely furnished, and always under lock and key.

Joey introduces Alisha and her girlfriends to his beloved New York Hardcore scene by bringing them to a small outdoor concert with his friends. A scene so masculine and opposite Alisha’s it only drives her attraction deeper.

He and his friends skate, play ball, hang out and argue over sex, drugs and...Alisha. To make things more interesting one of Joey’s friends, TONY (a loudmouth Italian New Yorker) is dating Alisha’s friend ANGELA (another loudmouth Italian New Yorker). These two not only say what everyone else is thinking, they say what everyone else is not thinking. Because in fact, they never shut up, they always cause trouble, and they’re usually quite vulgar–especially Tony.

Fun as it all seems, Joey struggles financially and can't seem to muster the emotional fortitude to finish community college–a very sore spot for his ego, especially in the face of the nonchalance with which Alisha approaches her law degree. Her perfect life contrasts so deeply with his own that little by little demons are slowly awakened within.

Escalating the inner struggle, Joey accepts an invitation from Alisha’s FATHER to invite some of his friends to her parents for a Ranger’s game. No doubt he’s keeping his finger on his daughter’s pulse, but things erupt when he hassles Joey for quitting college. Given Joey’s past struggles with anger, there’s no telling where this could lead. The triangle of emotions exposes deeper character as the father, the daddies girl and the boy she loves collide.

Then there’s the other girl, BETHANY, a hot European in a New York city hardcore band, at whose place Joey spends the night from time to time. Her reputation for being wild and, as Angela puts it,“Turning boys’ heads to mush,” far precedes her, especially in light of her band’s imminent record deal. Though Joey insists they’re just friends, speculation can’t be avoided, especially since Alisha is sexually off limits, and they too claim to be only friends.

As he tries to keep his history of fighting in the past, Joey is faced with some douchebags connected to the events that led to his breakup with his ex. Of course the douchebags have to bring Alisha’s name into the confrontation; His resolve to keep his violence in the past is put to the test. Unbeknownst to him, Alisha’s father bares witness to it all.

All of Joey's struggles force his close friend JAMES to reflect on his own life, both on his relationship with women and his relationship with his over-the-top Bernie Mac-like father, who insists his own son is actually a white man in disguise.

One evening, after an exhausting bus trip, Joey rouses from a nap in Alisha's room to see her and Kiana before their vanities, half naked, getting ready to go out. No doubt aroused, he’s blind-sided as the girls flirtatiously entice him to masturbate under the covers. Further confusion and shame are now piled onto an already complicated situation -- at least in his mind.

ACT 3:
It all comes to a head when he paints a picture of the one thing he's never been able to paint: a girl. But who is the girl? When the painting sells at a gallery for $20,000, Joey vanishes from Alisha’s life. His close friends worry for him and Alisha crashes. Despite her strength and loving support, she never fully recovers. Her once bright spark is now but a dim glow. No longer the insatiable angel of joy full of tongue-in-cheek wit.

After spending some time in Vermont maturing, Joey moves into Bethany’s apartment in Manhattan. His artwork now featured in several Manhattan galleries, the tables have turned; Joey's sun has finally risen and Alisha’s party has ended. After taking in a beautiful New York sunrise one morning he skates to his favorite park and makes a phone call.