The Grasshopper

Chapter 41

After the commercial break Babe sat at the very edge of the couch so that her head would be closer to her guest, Mr. Kaella. But not only for that reason. She leaned on the couch with her left shoulder so that Prince could see her profile. He saw a cascade of blue hair, long eyelashes, lips…

“Your lips… How the two overhangs at the ends of the upper lip lie on the lower lip. And this leaves that gap in the middle… You can’t press them closed, can you? How I will open them, spread that gap with my tongue, tonight… and penetrate… Tonight? What tonight? Now! During the next break!” the impatient Prince decided.

“You know, Miss Babe, before I continue with my recollections, I’d like to say something else to our viewers.”

“Go ahead, Mr. Kaella.”

“This reminded me… I mean, this between the commercials… Although it sounds kind of coarse… But, dear Consumers, it isn’t so. We trust you completely… but… we all know how fast we live today, how many obligations we have. And a person simply forgets to surrender to the Inspectorate… I don’t know… a toothbrush… paste… from last season. And then this is discovered and completely unnecessary problems are created.

“So we are reminding you so that you, dear viewers, will be spared such unfortunate situations. And don’t be angry at our inspectors, when they go through your houses and apartments. Do you know how many people are employed by the Inspectorate? How many families survive from their earnings? The inspectors are part of us, part of our community and they are working solely for the common good.”

“Of course they understand that, Mr. Kaella,” Babe said.

“I know, I know that you understand, dear Consumers,” Mr. Kaella continued. “I just mention that in passing… to pay homage, to take this opportunity to thank the inspectors for their effort and fervor… Actually,” a smile lit up his old face, “I wanted to say something else. I was reminded by this, when the speaker listed everything that had to be returned, and says ‘children’s toys’… It reminded me of my granddaughter. I adore her, Miss Babe.”

“You do?” Babe uttered with tight lips.

“Yes. I also love my two grandsons. But they are young men… and she… she’s grandpa’s little butterfly. And these toys… We returned them at the end of every season. I mean, dear viewers,” Mr. Kaella looked at the camera very sincerely, “so that you don’t think that we Kaella’s don’t abide by the law. On the contrary – very strictly. To show through action, not only words, that we respect the laws and Constitution of our State.

“And … what was I … ah, yes… grandchildren… it is never a problem for them to return the old toys. Boys… as you know yourself…” Mr. Kaella grinned at the camera, “they destroy them the second day, disassemble their toy car…

“And grandpa’s butterfly… she had a little pony. And when we were supposed to hand it over to the Inspectorate, my little granddaughter cried and cried. And this son of mine, strict as he is, wanted to take away her little horsy. And I jumped up, dear viewers and shouted ‘Well, this won’t do!’ I picked up my little granddaughter with her pony in my hand, and ran away from my son and daughter-in-law to my chambers, and immediately called the President of the State… I don’t remember who it was at the time… and ordered him to change the law, that children don’t have to return toys.

“You know how it is… Everything in life is important. What you do, what you have achieved, what you have given humanity… But children, grandchildren… they are the most important and the most beautiful thing of all.

“And then this son of mine, and a bunch of people from the Company, from the Inspectorate, from the university… all kinds of psychologists, lawyers, psychiatrists, sociologists… I don’t know who all… started convincing me that it didn’t work that way, that it undermined the Constitution, that it fundamentally perverts the young consumer’s soul… and so on. But I wouldn’t allow them to take that little horse from my butterfly.”

“Stop boring with the stories about that granddaughter of yours and that nag, old man!” Babe panicked, thinking that this would discourage Prince. So she slowly raised her leg and glanced over at him.

“And finally we agreed that children could keep only one toy until their fifth year. That is what we said. Anything more than that and the future Consumer would be forever lost in space and time,” Mr. Kaella concluded his recollection.

Having seen Prince’s lustful gaze, Babe realized that he wasn’t at all listening to his father. On the contrary, he had completely leaned over towards her when her blue-black skirt rose up… when she crossed her legs, when the squares on the two fishnets intertwined, when the tattooed black lace on her perfect, smooth thigh eliminated all other thoughts, everything else…