(_She hurries over, Left, and closes the door. Sam takes his pipe from his coat pocket, fumbles around in the other outside coat pocket, finds his bag of tobacco, pulls it out and begins painstakingly to fill the pipe. Meanwhile he follows Lucy Belle’s movements with an intent, questioning gaze._) LUCY BELLE (_coming back to him_) Honey-baby, been crazy ter see yo’--! SAM (_lays his pipe on the table and takes her in his arms_) Honey-baby! (_Kisses her fondly._) Mah lil’ gal! LUCY BELLE Seem ter me I miss yo’ mo’ an’ mo’--! SAM Sho’ nuff--? LUCY BELLE Lonesome yere widout yo’. SAM (_playfully_) Go ’long! LUCY BELLE (_shaking her head_) So lonesome some days dat I don’ know w’at ter do. SAM (_patting her cheek_) Po’ lil’ baby-budigee--! LUCY BELLE Hones’, kain’t seem ter git uster yo’ bein’ away. SAM Jes’ remembah dat I misses yo’ as much as yo’ does me. LUCY BELLE I know, Sam-boy--I knows yo’ does! SAM (_sits in a nearby chair and pulls her over on his knee_) Tain’ gwine ter be dis way long. LUCY BELLE (_with a little cry of joy_) Gee, w’en yo’ comes home like dis--an’ s’prise’s me-- SAM (_laughing_) Make yo’ feel good--? LUCY BELLE Oh, Gawd--! (_Strokes his hair fondly. Someone passes down the alley. She gives a start._) SAM W’at’s de mattah--? LUCY BELLE (_making a valiant effort to hide her agitation_) Nuffin’--! SAM Yo’ mus’ got de fidgets. LUCY BELLE (_nodding_) Maybe--from bein’ yere nights--alone. (_Plaintively._) Oh--oh, Sam-boy, I don’ wan’ yo’ ter go ’way no mo’! SAM (_with puzzled impatience_) W’at yo’ talkin’ ’bout, gal? LUCY BELLE I don’ wan’ yo’ ter go ter Baltimo’ no mo’--! SAM Honey-baby, I got ter git back on de job! LUCY BELLE No, yo’ ain’--. SAM W’at’s de mattah wid yo’? Is yo’ crazy--? LUCY BELLE Dat ain’ de onliest job in de worl’-- SAM Dat don’ make no diff’rence. LUCY BELLE Yo’ kin git somefin’ yere. SAM Walk de streets agin like I did las’ monf? LUCY BELLE Thin’s ain’ so slow now. SAM Slower den dey evah was! LUCY BELLE So hard on me bein’ yere alone--an’ wid de chillen. SAM Kain’t he’p it, honey-baby. Jes’ got ter keep gwine ’long like we is--’till thin’s break bettah. LUCY BELLE Wukkin’ hard--? SAM Sho’ is! LUCY BELLE Diggin’ in de streets ain’ no kind-a job fo’ yo’. SAM Bettah den nuffin’. LUCY BELLE (_feelingly, as she strokes his hair again_) I knows dat yo’ doin’ all yo’ kin--! Gawd bless yo’--! But I wan’s ter be wid yo’, Sam-boy honey-baby--all de time. SAM (_his tones vibrant with emotion_) An’ I wan’s yo’ wid me--! LUCY BELLE Den--le’s go ter Baltimo--now-- SAM W’at yo’ mean--? LUCY BELLE Next week. SAM Next week--? LUCY BELLE Er--er maybe de week aftah. We been figurin’ on gwine dere all ’long. But le’s don’ wait till yo’ git somefin’ steady. Yo’ kin’ allas git somefin’. SAM (_turning the thing over in his mind_) I don’ know, honey-- LUCY BELLE Sho’ yo’ kin! I don’ wan’ ter stay yere no longer widout yo’. Please--! SAM