The exercise:
Write about: Crystal.
Capitalization optional.
I had forgotten about the gang until I came across one of my entries while searching to see if I'd already used a different prompt. To help myself find them whenever I want to revisit their tale I've now given them their own label.
That means they join Bobby and Henri as the only characters on the blog with their own tag. I think so, at least. I might be forgetting somebody else.
Badminton tonight was pretty good. There was more of a mix of skill levels this week, so that helped (me feel better about myself). Plus I'm steadily improving, with the assistance of some of the more veteran players.
My body still hates me right now though.
Mine:
I met Crystal at a dinner party in our final year of college. She was dating Tim then, but that would all end in an ugly mess within a few weeks. Jake brought me but I don't think we were even officially dating - he just didn't want to show up without a girl on his arm.
There was a game on the big screen TV. Football? Probably. Whatever it was, it had the attention of all the boys in the house. Most of the girls were in the kitchen, babbling about inane garbage while sipping cheap wine like it was a rare vintage from some remote, nearly inaccessible area of Europe.
Not my scene, thanks. I grabbed a beer and headed for the porch and fresh air. I was probably out there for five minutes before I realized I wasn't alone.
"Some party, huh?" Crystal said. She was sitting in a big rocking chair and had a beer in each hand. That was the first thing I noticed about her.
"Yeah, it's a real honor to be here," I said, walking over to clink our drinks together. Normally I would have hung back, waited for her to indicate I was welcome to approach. But things between us felt instantly comfortable.
"Pull up a chair," she said, pulling her long blonde hair free of its ponytail. I still remember the night she cut it off, two days before the bank job. "It's going to be a long night."
2 comments:
Now that you're getting the hang of badminton you should try squash as well. It's enclosed, so it's harder for the ball to get away from you ;-)
It's quite cool to see you're slowly building up a library of characters like this, though we seem not to have heard from Bobby in quite a while. I wonder what mischief he's gotten into since our last meeting? (I can guess what mischief Henri has gotten into on the other hand!)
Heh, that's a nice scene for a party, and really doesn't foreshadow the terrible events yet to come! It's almost like they're nice, normal people right up until that one decision :)
Crystal
"Are these glasses real crystal?" asked Judith. She held one up to the light, eyeing it critically, turning it slightly to see the light refract through the facets. On a voluptuous cushion on a hard-backed chair opposite her an attack-chihuahua watched her with bright brown eyes, nose resting on paws and ears slightly pricked as though listening for intruders. Judith lowered the glass, and pinged it with her forefinger.
"Yes," said Maggie, eyeing the dog warily. She'd been chased round the herb-garden by it twice now, and though she'd started wearing flats while visiting she was not enjoying the exercise. "Johann brought them back from South Africa for me. I believe he flogged the workers himself to get the crystal mined."
Judith pinged the glass again, and pursed her lips. "There is a slight bluish tint, my dear," she said. "I think there may be an inclusion...?"
Maggie sighed. Of course Judith would spot it; she was actually surprised that the damn woman didn't have a jeweller's loupe in her eye to better inspect the present. "Plutonium," she said. "It's very hard to get out without a centrifuge."
Judith suddenly smiled, revealing teeth so white that she either never ate or spent a fortune at the dentist. "Ah," she said, and it almost sounded like she was cooing. "Rarity! I am pleased. You may take Camille for walkies as a token of my gratitude."
At the mention of her name the attack-chihuahua's head had come up, and her eyes fixed on Maggie.
"Oh god," she gasped, and ran for the back door, a familiar ache growing already in her calves.
Greg - I played squash in university and a bit with friends while I was living in Vancouver. Apparently there are courts to be found around here but I haven't put an effort in to find them yet.
Yeah, we should drop in on Bobby again soon. And thanks, I'm quite enjoying writing about these three.
Hah, poor Maggie. At least she came prepared this time!
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