The Girl in the River

Chapter 5

    "Of course."

    With hesitation, she reached over and took one. It was sticky with syrup, crispy brown on the outside, and delectably soft on the inside. Delicious. She'd always wondered what these tasted like.

    "Thank you."

    "Have more, if you want. If I eat much more I'll be sick later."

    She stared at him. Did he mean this wasn't his first cup? He could afford to buy himself more than one, more than he could even eat?

    "I didn't say I was already sick! I've just had enough now. You want another?"

    "Thank you."

    "Did you dry everything off okay?"

    She flinched again. She'd gone back to staring at her lap, but he was still there.

    "What?" she asked.

    "From the other day, did any of your, um, roots get damaged?"

    "Oh!" she flushed "No!"

    He waited for her to say more but she just let her head droop again.

    "Do you want to play a game with me?"

    "What kind of game?"

    He gestured to the area off in a side street that had been set up with booths with games and prizes for the children. They were all pay-to-play so she'd never spent much time around them.

    "We'll just pick one of those. Come on."

    She found herself following him, even accepting the cup when he handed it to her with the understanding that the last two dumplings should be hers as well. Bewildered and semi hidden behind her hair, she watched as he paid the man at one of the booths and was handed a few leather balls.

    "This one's easy, you just have to make it bounce off the side wall there and get it to land in one of the baskets. You've never played this before?" he said, holding out two of the balls to her.

    She shook her head.

    "I'd rather just watch" she whispered.

    "Hm?" he tilted his head, moving his whole body closer to listen again.

    Sage ducked when he did that and moved a little away on instinct. Her eyes had focused momentarily on a section of his jaw, leaving her with a sensation of heat and a strange feeling at her lips.

    "I'll just watch you do it," she gasped "From over here, I'll just watch from here."

    He chuckled at her and did toss the first two balls himself. They both made it into baskets and he turned back to her with a wide grin.

    "I haven't done that in a while but I guess some skills don't wear off." He faced her with a twinkling bravado that charmed her in spite of herself. "You should try though, I can hold the dumplings again."

    "Oh, no, I'll hold them. Just go again, it's fine."

    A group of the other young people joined them then, crowding around the booth. They didn't necessarily leave Sage out, they never really did, but they were used to her silence and she couldn't help the way she instinctively shrank back from any group. She was hardly able even to listen in a situation like this, where voices were loud and fast. Dipping her head so her hair would fall and sidling back away from them, she watched them from the most inconspicuous edge of the circle she could find. It was rare for her to be so nearly a part of a group and she was awake to the novelty of it.