Ladislav Kadlec

She was definitely not skinny. Her young face and satine skin felt fresh and full of life. But once her full lips spoke, she only had words of despair, critique and ridicule. I didn’t care though. My eyes glided along her thighs. Thighs that spoke of womanhood.

“Would you like to get something to eat first?” I asked.

“I’m fine, thanks,” she answered. “Let me grab a coat and we can go.”

Luckily, the question did not offend her. For a while we just sat in silence. I watched her, but turned my eyes away when I noticed she wasn’t comfortable. When she got up, her generous rear swished from side to side in rhythm of the song we were both listening to in awkward silence.

Ever since her sister moved away from our small provincial town;, I’ve been fantasizing about her younger sibling. The younger sister was closer to me agewise.

But the older sister electrified me with her eyes. She had a sharp tongue and a mind like a razor. When I first met her, I forgot about everything and everyone. All I could think of was her face, her ponytail. Her freckles.

A girl like that, I should have known she would move away as soon as she could. Had she stayed here, she would have withered like a flower devoid of water. I always saw her carrying a book under her arm in school. She was in a higher class, but the distance between us felt like between me and a teacher. 

As soon as she graduated from the local high school, she was gone. Only visiting during the summer months for a week or two. I was always hoping to bump into her in a street, town library or a store.

But I never had the courage to talk to her. Until last year. I was going to the movies with the younger sister. Whilst I was waiting for her by their house’s gate, the older sister arrived.

“Hello,” she said with a smile.

I was so shocked to see her, I didn’t muster any words. My neck parched instantly. 

“I’m talking to you,” she said directly at me. I suppose in case I didn’t realize she was talking to me before.

“H-hi,” I finally mustered.

She wore a light summer dress that hugged her figure. The curves of her body caused many sleepless nights for me. And she giggled. It pleased me and gave me cold shivers at the same time.

“What’s wrong? Cat got your tongue?” 

“N-no.”

“Do you always stutter?”

I didn’t have even a second to respond.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude. You seem like a sweet boy.”

Another punch straight to the gut. Her having thought I stuttered was far better than where the conversation was going.

“Y-you know, we went to the same school. I was just a few grades below you.”

“Really? I’m sorry, I don’t remember you at all. So, can I help you with anything?”

“I’m just waiting for your younger sister, I replied. We are going to see the latest Star Wars movie.”

“Is that what you’re into?”

“Oh no. Not me. I prefer independent films. You know, real art.”

Oh God, I was trying so hard.

“I see.” 

“Usually I make it for the Thursday art films,” I said with pride.

Her eye brows moved upwards, wrinkling her cute nose in the most adorable way. In that second I felt that time stood still and I wondered whether I had lived that rare moment that art has been depicting for centuries. The sensation of that all encompassing love. 

With utter shock I realized that my face must have turned crimson red. That realization only expedited the process and now I felt the burning sensation spread down from my cheeks and all the way below my throat.

She noticed and smiled at me. The utter embarrassment was crowned when her sister appeared on the stoop.

“Ready,” she said with her typical indifference and waddled down the steps towards me. “Are you coming?” 

“Yeah, I’m coming,” I replied. “You know, maybe if you’re still here this Thursday…we could, like, check out a movie?”

“Hey, come on you,” said the young sister and started wobbling towards the town square, where the movie theater was.

“It should be—”

“Hurry up!”

“Quite good movie this—”

“I’m not waiting all day!”

“Week. Some eighties cult—”  

“Hello!!”

“Classic.”

She looked at me and then her gaze passed onto her sister. She had her arms crossed across her chest and was trying really hard to display her impatience.

The strawberry goddess moved her eyes back to me.

“OK. If I have time,” she said after the longest time in my life.

The setting sun shone brighter than ever in the history of the universe.

“Great! It’s a date,” I said before I could control my mouth.

She giggled again and disappeared into the house. I ran after the sour puss tapping her foot a few meters away. She was complaining all the way to the movies, but I barely heard her. Let alone understand. 

And the Star Wars we went to see? Don’t ask me whether it was one where the dark side temporarily triumphed or not. I wouldn’t be able to tell you. It was all a blur until the next Thursday evening.