and cultivated - Waif (5) (2242 hits)
Category: GeneralRating: 1.95 on 24 reviews (Rate this item) (V)
Submitted by Smurfs (View user info) at 2005-05-02 14:36:23 EDT
Your lives - Waif (1) - http://www.ubersite.com/m/64996
are full of possibilities - Waif (2) - http://www.ubersite.com/m/65080
that are ignored - Waif (3) - http://www.ubersite.com/m/65253
by those you love - Waif (4) - http://www.ubersite.com/m/65347
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As she stepped through the doorway, the first thought that had crossed her mind was about the amount of money that had exchanged hands. It was more a culmination of a thought that had started as she had stepped through the arched doorway, past the uniformed doorman, and along the gaudy red carpet into another world. She felt eyes slithering along her body as she walked past the assortment of power players and hedonistic tourists. The desk didn't even bat an eye, the bellman in the elevator tipped his hat, his eyes staying low and ravishing her legs.
You can always tell a whore.
Her father had surprised her, roughly shaking her awake and waiting while she got dressed, watching as she left the bathroom door open. They had taken a cab uptown, stopping in front of The Gap. He had pointed and handed her a wad of bills, grunting for her to 'get something nice,' while his eyes studying the building across the street. She wandered through the store slowly, trying not to notice the sneers and whispered comments emanating from both customers and salespeople. Her fingers trailed along material and she stepped lightly between the racks, afraid a sudden movement would wake her from the dream. A thin white dress shirt with French cuffs, puffed at the shoulders, a white bra, white underwear. Black slacks that hugged her thighs, tapering out at the ankles. Pulling her boots off, a pair of sandals - a mixture of wood and cork - with floral stitching that slid between her toes.
In the dressing room she turned before the mirror, three simulacrums twirling against her. Running fingers through her long hair she pulled it into a heavy ponytail that reached the middle of her back. Plucking a few strands forward to fall against her face she smiled sourly at the mirror, puckering her lips into a sneer. 'Here's to you...' she breathed and head high, paid the cashier before returning to her father in the waiting cab that sat idling against the curb. It was her fourteenth birthday.
Inside the elevator, light music was being quietly pumped from invisible speakers. Closing her eyes, she leaned against the glass wall as inked bodies danced in her mind. Slowing, grinding to a halt, the door opened with a ring that came from the 1950's. Before her was a gold trimmed hallway that looked as if it had been plucked from Versailles. Ornate vases, overflowing with blooming rainbows sat upon marble tabletops as oil paintings in gilded frames watched her walk towards the only door in sight.
She knocked once, not surprised when the door swung open under the slight force of her tiny hand. Men always thought answering the door ruined the mood, turning this scenario into a congenial experience. As if even allowing the slightest sense of common courtesy would whisk them from their fantasy, waking them to the realization that they were fucking a girl who didn't even bleed monthly yet. She bled weekly though, offered as a virgin, torn apart by men who paid extra to see ruby nickels trickle upon white sheets.
The room was light, the windows thrown upon, high enough above the city streets that the cacophony had settled into a slight soothing murmur. A bottle of champagne sat smoking in ice and an older man stood by the window to her right, his hands resting upon the railing. Part of her wanted to rush him. Wanted to watch has he fell, screaming, silenced by the street. Wanted to fill a flute to the brim and feel the bubbles burn their way to her stomach as the crowds gathered around his broken body, pointing into the sky.
Instead? 'Hello.'
He turned slowly, anciently, his wrinkled hands folding themselves into his long sleeves. With his chin he motioned her to a chair covered in red velvet. 'Good evening.' His voice was almost cloying, saved by a slight rolling of honeyed Italian elongation. 'You're so young.' This statement disarmed her. Unsettled her. 'Do you know me?' he asked, his eyes betraying nothing.
'Should I?' She rubbed her hands on her new pants, cringing as the material shined from her sweat.
'You could have, but it's not important. Some things are... some things aren't.'
'And you?'
He laughed, a laugh that made her imagine a grandfather she never had. 'Oh, I can assure you there are some that would say that I'm important... but personally? I've never really put much weight behind the praise of others. You work your entire life towards goals, towards ends... and as you age you'll find that your mistakes are obscured by history along with your achievements, only to be remembered by the wrinkles written upon your skin.'
He sat. Lowering himself gently into the chair opposite her, winking, 'But somehow, I think you'll age far more gracefully than this weathered old man.'
The silence was heavy, an uncomfortable Pinter moment.
He leaned forward, his heavy eyebrows shading his eyes, 'What's your name dear?'
'Jane.'
He shook his head slowly, the front of his shirt bunching. 'No, no... not that name... your real name.'
Chewing her lip she stared at the champagne bottle, her mind trying to calm her heart. The whole situation was frightening her. She had become used to the scenario. The grasping hands... the breath, wet with alcohol. The fullness pressed against her stomach, the insecurity in their eyes drowning in desire. The pain had faded long ago, emptiness filling pleasure. The minutes she lay crushed by apathy.
The words slid from her lips like smoke, 'My name's Eleanor.'
'After Aquitaine?' He smiled, 'A beautiful woman... thought by some to hold a bit of Helen and Guinevere's likeness. Strong too. A powerful name for a powerless girl.'
She sank into the chair, embarrassed.
'Your father or your mother's choice?'
'My own.'
'Then your given name?'
'I was never given one.'
'I see,' he replied, bemused. 'Do your parents ever take you to Church?'
'No.'
'Do they pray?'
'The only time my father talks to God is to curse him.'
'And your mother?'
'Dead.'
'You?'
She shrugged.
'You don't know?'
'He definitely hasn't been there for me.'
'It's not fun then is it?'
'Huh?'
'Being overlooked by the benevolent all-powerful omniscient Being.'
She stared at him, the hairs on the back of her neck rising. The frightened feeling that had been nagging her had gone from bothersome to raging. 'What do you want with me?'
'Are we going to have sex? I doubt it... I don't even think I can anymore, but it's gracious of you too assume that.'
She tilted her head, 'Then what?'
'Just a conversation.'
(to be countinued)
User Reviews
Submitted by fried-green-potatoes (user info) at 2005-12-05 23:38:58 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Submitted by ruthless (user info) at 2005-11-16 14:58:28 (#)
Ranking: 0
Summer is waaaaay over... where is this dude?
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I'm guessing he's flipped to a new project following the trip.
Submitted by ruthless (user info) at 2005-11-16 14:58:28 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
Summer is waaaaay over... where is this dude?
Submitted by Stabkill (user info) at 2005-10-07 18:45:45 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Smurfs was killed by anti-americans in Greece. :(
Submitted by Smurfs (user info) at 2005-07-04 13:22:52 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
I'm going to try and write another instalment in florence, my apologies, traveling Europe all summer.
happy 4th
Submitted by Dea (user info) at 2005-06-15 03:32:51 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by NOWorNEVER (user info) at 2005-06-10 12:59:14 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
what ever happenned to this series, i was enjoying it??
Submitted by jumpinjellyfish (user info) at 2005-06-03 14:24:01 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
I am finally getting around to reading the rest of this series. For some reason it's South Park Stupidity Day on Uber and I need something good to read.
This is great writing.
Submitted by Circe (user info) at 2005-05-28 05:44:19 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
"Eyes slithering along her body" is one of the absolute worst images that writers routinely use. Otherwise, this was okay. Please check your email re: Uberdirectory.
Submitted by AshK (user info) at 2005-05-22 22:28:31 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
I'm a little behind on my Ubering, but I look forward to more of this series.
Submitted by Santa_Claus_ (user info) at 2005-05-21 16:20:16 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
http://www.ubersite.com/m/49408
Submitted by Luckystar (user info) at 2005-05-09 13:44:26 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
You need to finish this before I burst!
Submitted by Davros (user info) at 2005-05-06 12:58:08 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
I am guessing that this is where the interconnection (is that even a word?) comes in.
Good stuff though.
-Dave
Submitted by munkeypants (user info) at 2005-05-03 14:21:06 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
aaaah... where is this leading to??
Submitted by iamasmallgoat (user info) at 2005-05-03 13:52:41 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
"the edge of your seat thriller of the Internet"
keep up the excellent work.
Submitted by ThineJericho (user info) at 2005-05-03 01:29:46 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Just read through the series up to this point.. got a few predictions, but hopefully none turn out completely true.
Submitted by algermetiphist (user info) at 2005-05-02 23:26:13 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Wanted to watch has he fell, screaming, silenced by the street.
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HA! I found a typo! Great job. I had about thirty in what I wrote the other day in class. Not that I'm jealous or anything...
Submitted by LadyPlural (user info) at 2005-05-02 21:22:49 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Reverend Lovejoy:
Homer, this is really low.
Homer: Not as low as my low, low prices!
Mr. Plow
Submitted by runswithscissors (user info) at 2005-05-02 18:00:09 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
+2 as always....
and thank you for at least giving me hope that someone is finally going to treat her
well!!!
Submitted by Yes (user info) at 2005-05-02 16:25:07 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
good stuff, keep it up.
Submitted by HadToBeDone (user info) at 2005-05-02 15:08:05 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Aw, that old guy was so nice to me. HER!! To HER!
SHUT UP AND STOP LOOKING AT ME!
Submitted by Crystle (user info) at 2005-05-02 14:54:45 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Damn you... you always leave me hanging!
Keep it up... and I'm hoping this is the good twist.
Submitted by fudgepacker (user info) at 2005-05-02 14:53:17 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
i await the next one with the curious anticipation of a virginal 14 year old.
Submitted by Mr.Brightside (user info) at 2005-05-02 14:46:32 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
keep it up man
Submitted by ruthless (user info) at 2005-05-02 14:42:51 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Ah, a curious twist...