{insert standard disclaimers}
Cash in Hand or
I'd Buy that for a Dollar
Part 1: the Shortfic Speech Saga
"He's so cute," Akiko said, gazing at him with this rather
sickening dreamy look in her eyes. Like she would ever have a chance
with him.
"Yeah. You know Haruko asked him out at the beginning of this
year?" Now Hitomi was getting caught up in it too.
"Really? She's only a sophomore."
"It wouldn't matter if she were the Queen of England. He's only
got eyes for one girl," I interjected. I hated to ruin their gossip,
but there was no point in getting excited over something that would
never happen.
They all knew it too. Akiko sighed, that goofy look still on her
face. I followed her gaze and considered the object of her attention.
He _was_ the cutest thing on two legs in the city and technically, he
was the most eligible bachelor at school. Too bad he acted like he had
the IQ of a brick and couldn't get it through his concrete skull that my
sister wanted nothing to do with him.
Oh well. It sure helped to provide some pocket change. Akane
wasn't too happy about the pictures, even if she tried to ignore them.
Still, she tolerated them, not that I would stop if she didn't. And
I'll admit, he did get the most darling pink flush in his cheeks
whenever I had new pictures for him.
"Look at that," Emiko said, smiling. She was working on her
predatory look and doing a good job. He was yelling at some skinny,
barely there kid and really laying it on... "I bet he's a great
kisser." That set them to giggling.
"No way. Those are virgin lips."
They gaped at me. "Uh-uh. You're saying he's never kissed a girl
before?" I suppose they had a right to be surprised; they didn't know
him like I did.
I nodded. "Yep. The only girl he would consider putting his
mouth on is my sister." Not that she would ever let that happen.
"It would still be worth it to try." Of all the... They were all
acting like nitwits now. Sure they could try, but I didn't think they
would be too happy with their results. Time to nip this in the bud.
"Put your money where your mouth is, ladies." I stood up,
brushing myself off. This would be easy money. "Since none of you have
the guts to do it yourselves, how much are you willing to put in the
pot?"
That got them. "I'm up for 1000," Emiko said without hesitation.
"This should be good," Akiko chimed in. "2000 for me."
Hitomi jumped right in too. "Ooh. Put me down for 2000."
I looked back at him. 5000 yen to give him a kiss? That's like
giving me 100 yen a day to breathe. Dumb or not, I bet he _was_ a good
kisser; he used his mouth enough for it. This was going to be well
worth the setup, even if I wasn't his 'true love'. Not that I believed
my sister was his true love either. The poor boy was seriously deluded
after all.
But when I'm standing in front of him and he's got that confused
look on his face... When he starts complaining about respect and the
proper behavior for one of his station... When he tries to hide the
fact that he's blushing... Deluded or not, I'll know I got my money's
worth.
End
------
Thanks to all who dropped me a line for your help and encouragement.
I changed a few things, tried to make it easier to follow who was
speaking (though I never had any trouble), tried something different
with the ending and hopefully explained the 'why?' This is the problem
with writing from the middle to the end, back to the beginning - I know
exactly what's going on and everyone's motivations and tend to leave all
that out, so maybe I'll stop doing that.. And just so y'all know I'm
not deluded, this isn't just some 'oh I think I'm in love' thing, so
none of that silly stuff. It's not love, it's a simple monetary
venture - just keep telling yourself that.
--
Lara
o--------------------------------------o
| Attend Eastern Michigan University |
| Less Effective |
| More Destructive |
| You'll get yours |
o--------------------------------------o
lara@emunix.emich.edu