Jane

A Story by Karen Preston

Most boys annoyed Jane. Ed was no exception.

“Stop it!” Jane roared the words out of her small heart shaped mouth. They came out big and hung in the air all spikey.

‘Come on Jane let me see em.” Ed was always begging to see them. All curious and stupid was what Ed was. He stretched his hand out towards her cloak. “Forget it Ed! You’re not ever going to see them!” Her brow wrinkled and her eyes peered behind slit lids. Why did he have to live next door to her? Especially now that she had turned.

Most boys were annoying and dumb, but Ed made an art of it. Jane pulled her cloak tighter. “I heard you showed em to Charlie.” Ed wined. Charlie was Jane’s best friend since kindergarten. Jane rolled her eyes unconsciously. Her hand held her chin and she pushed her lip into a sneer with her index finger. She huffed air. “Yeah, so what.” “So that means you is a harrrrrlot.” He said failing to hit his mark. “Oh o.k. Whatever you say wettie Eddie.” Ed’s face crumple as she punched him smack in the middle of his pride.

Jane took out a cigarette and held it between her fingers as if she had been born with one in her hand and sat down on the steps and spider webs. “Go home Ed.” She watched the cold air wrap around her already frozen words. Ed’s face showed remorse at his poor efforts. He shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “Come on Jane you know I didn’t mean it.” His words were mumbled and fell to the hard ground in a pile. The weight of her gaze forced his head down. “Fine. I’ll see ya tomorrow then.” Jane watched him trudge across the lawn and cross the unmarked barrier of properties. Finally when Ed was all the way inside his house Jane pulled at the tie ties holding her cloak closed. Like the curtain on a stage it parted. She let it fall behind her. Her naked shoulders grew gooseflesh but she hardly noticed because Jane had wings.