Living in Sin (On Hold)

46 _ The Killing Joke: Part-1

“What was the first thing that crossed your mind when you first saw me?” I asked, shooting a glance at her and meeting her eyes for a second. She smiled almost to herself just before looking ahead again.

“Jerk.”

“No, I mean what was your first impression of me?”

“Well, I said jerk.”

“What? You mean, like … jerk?”I frowned while she obviously on purpose avoided my eyes, but an audible giggle still came my way. “Seriously?”

“Well, you were … kissing who I thought was my depressed sister.”I chuckled at the mock (?) disgust with which she said the word kissing.“You even tried to make eye contact with me!”

“Of course I did.” She didn’t even blink talking about the time when I’d tried to flirt with her. It all but encouraged me. “I even looked for you when we were dismissed.”

“In your dreams, you mean? I saw you knocked out, like you were home.”

“So you did check me out, huh?”

“I was simply keeping the potential sex-offender in check.”

“Ouch!”

She laughed heartily but I could only smile, then without any control of my tongue, I absentmindedly confessed my thought.

“You look so beautiful when you laugh.”

“Heh, yeah.”

She turned to me with a dismissive laugh but the frivolity in her eyes ebbed a little when she saw my serious face.

“Thanks. So,” she started again, turning away to the other side just to immediately look at me again. It was luck that we were now in the less crowded area. Otherwise, with the way we were riding with our eyes not really on the road most of the time, we’d have run into someone. “Do you want something to eat? I know Liz robbed your of your breakfast.”

“I’ll just get something when we get to the mall.”

“The mall?”

“Yeah, Axus. It’s this shopping complex downtown, about twenty minute’s ride from here. I need new clothes, and a new haircut. And I want to buy you something.”

She raised an ‘about time’ brow and we both laughed. I was really loving how this was going. At this rate, we’d get really close in no time.

Then I noticed what’d made her ask me about breakfast. Ahead of us on the right was a ‘bush-side’ ice-cream vendor, probably also selling wings or sandwiches.

As we rode past my would’ve-been breakfast, my stomach signaled for the first time with a grumble that there was no food in it. It made me start to regret my decision to pass up the food and I almost didn’t see her staring at me.

“I do try not to look this good, you know. But people, they just can’t stop staring.”

She displayed a shy smile before looking back ahead. I patiently waited, and it wasn’t long before she spilled.

“You know, I’m glad that … … that this is you.”

“Okay. I’m not catching on right from the start.”

“Right. I mean, when I first saw you, I was kinda disappointed.”

“You were?” My breath caught and my feet on the pedals automatically slowed. There’re things I could take without a flinch but not this: not her judging me. “Why? Because I am … … because of my sexuality?”