he wasnt startledSUDDENLYrubyred dress right her youthful blackskin like tar her big smile like starchedwhite pressed shirt  her huge brown eyes humoured 

                                                 a young man left  inconspicuous  Howdy Doody  though no man carries a candle to a woman 

                      hes hopelessly heterosexual  heterosapiosexual

Excuse me he blurted while splitting themtipping his left shoulder cleaving them in two  she hurriedly replied No please, excuse us. in her voice a fascination that could have been moreseemed a prelude to conversation How do you do that?  he wouldnt have been curtthey were eye to eye she slipping just past himhe caught her scent citrus her friend sidestepped providing a wide berth  he wouldnt have been curt with her Lotsa practiseNO   he would have enjoined enjoyed her

then they were passed

she was too younghe was too old to throw a look back over his shoulder as much as he wanted  creepish isnt part of his vocabulary

           she  a match inadvertently struck in the dark flaring extinguished at the epitome of her conflagration

he returned to his book

1250,  Sunday,  21  8. 22

223preferred to 1423,  Sunday