Ronald Rabbit Is a Dirty Old Man - Lawrence Block [43]
Rozanne asked what kind of a summer Ellen was having.
“A dreary one,” Ellen said. “Perfectly drab. There are no people around.”
I said, “I gather nothing happened with Ralph.”
“His name isn’t Ralph.”
“I didn’t really think it was, but I couldn’t remember it for some reason.”
“It’s Ronald.”
Rozanne said, “How could you forget that? Ronald as in Rabbit.”
“It guess that’s why I forgot.”
“I wish I could forget,” Ellen said. “He’s Ronald Rabbit, all right.”
“Oh, then something did happen.”
“Barely. He came while he was on the way to the bed. It won’t be hard to follow your advice about not falling in love with him, Larry. And he won’t fall in love with me. He won’t even look at me. My poor mother.”
(Oh, I forget to tell you, Lisa. Ralph—I mean Ronald—is Ellen’s mother’s current husband. But not for long, if Ellen is to be believed.)
Well, that at least got the conversation around to the topic of sex. Next, I told Ellen to come over and give me a kiss because I had forgotten how braces tasted. (She wears them on her teeth.) (Where else?)
We have a long absorbing kiss, and then I went over and kissed Rozanne, and then I said, “Well, that’s two sides to a triangle. Now why don’t you two kiss and make out?”
Rozanne’s face took on a troubled look. She had already told me once or twice that she could see herself doing all sorts of more obviously sexual things to a girl, but couldn’t quite picture herself kissing one.
Ellen didn’t share this hangup. She went right over and put her arms around Rozanne and kissed her full on the mouth, and I looked at the two of them, and all at once my pants felt too tight.
Rozanne’s face was all flushed when the kiss ended, but whether this was from excitement or embarrassment I couldn’t say. Perhaps a mixture of the two. She sighed and sat down on the edge of the bed and Ellen sat next to her and put her head on her shoulder. (Put her head on Rozanne’s shoulder, that is to say. It’s a lot easier to describe situations involving only one person of each sex, let me tell you. As soon as there are two girls in the game, pronouns start getting screwed up.)
Rozanne looked down at her, then put an arm around her. “God,” she said, “you’re just a kid.”
“I know.”
“It’s scary.”
“It must be,” Ellen said. “After all, you’re old enough to be my older sister.”
“Well, when you put it that way—”
“Have your breasts always been that big?”
Rozanne’s color deepened. “I wouldn’t say always.”
“When?”
“Well, just about since I was your age. Wait a minute, let me think. You’re sixteen? No, they were still growing then, because I went to an E cup just two months after I turned seventeen.”
“Somehow I’m not encouraged. An E cup!”
“Right now I’m not wearing anything. Larry doesn’t like me to wear a bra. He says he likes to watch me bounce.”
“I don’t blame him.”
“But I have to at the office. It’s a rule they have; everybody has to wear a bra.”
“Even the men?” I put in. But neither of them paid any attention.
“I don’t blame them, either,” Ellen said. “If you bounced around the office, nobody would get any work done. I’m not wearing a bra either. Big beastly deal. There’s nothing to bounce. When I don’t wear a bra, nobody notices.”
“Well, don’t let it get to you, Ellen.”
“I wish I was built like you.”
“Are you kidding? I used to walk around feeling like Elsie the Cow. And the men are terrible. I wouldn’t mind if they just wanted me for my body, but it wasn’t even my body, it was a small part of my body.”
“Small?”
“I mean, it’s no fun going through life following your tits from room to room.”
“I suppose. I hope I’m not bringing you down now, making such a fuss over them, but I can’t help it.”
“No, of course not.”
“They’re beautiful. Pardon me, you’re beautiful.”
“So are you.”
“Oh, please.”
“You’re adorable. You make me feel all funny inside.”
“Honestly?”
“Cross my heart.