➕ Beauty ➕

Alaska

...Gemma sits speechless for a good ten seconds.

Least awkward as possible! I think of a new question. "Uhh. Favourite colour?"

Almost fast as light, she responded. "Red."

"Favourite food?"

"Pepperoni pizza."

"Favourite band?"

"Paramore."

"Family members?"

"Mom, dad, separated; I live with dad. One sibling, brother; Lives with mom."

"Oh, gosh!"

Under her breath she said, "Yeah..."

"Favourite book?"

She raised the one in her hand.

"Why?"

"It rules."

"Umm, umm, umm. Birthday!?"

"My birthday is next week, April 12th."

I record all these in my head.

Gemma, now an 8/10. "Okay my turn... Birth place?"

"Somewhere in Canada!"

"Drug use?"

"Nothing but medicine!"

"Favourite singer?"

"Mac DeMarco."

"Pets?"

"Two dogs. Both golden retrievers!"

"Best friend?"

"Probably Jake!"

"First real kiss?!"

"Nobody, nowhere."

"Wait really...?"

Then I said under my breath, "Yeah..."

Suddenly we're back to reading, both huffing.

Becoming sidetracked again, I can't stop looking at her. Her legs, her knees, her shoulders, her arms. While looking I Catch a trivial glimpse of a bruise near the top of her forearm. She tried to pull her sleeve further down hiding the mark. "How did that happen, it looks horrible?"

"It's nothing." Her eyebrows now in a frown. "I got it at home."

Repulsively, I repeated "Why what happened?"

"Nothing!" I can tell by a pull in her lip area, she's biting the inside of her mouth.

I try to look past her. It's excruciating trying to face her. "It's just-.

A change from positives to negatives occurred, "Look, all I'm going to tell you about my life outside THIS thing we have going on: Ava and Harriet's parents are friends with my dad. Ava's a whore, and Harriet's dumb. My dad drinks at night clubs and bars with their parents, and we're in dept; but my moms too much a bitch to help us with money even if her own child is at risk. And my brother is the only one that helps, and all he can do is send bread and noodles in the mail but he's going to college and I won't see him anymore. That's it!"

-5/10