He was always there when danger was close behind. With a casual wave of his hand he shooed it away and waved goodbye to her worries. In these moments, his appearance had hardly been observed. But this time she knew of no threats at her heels, so when she rounded the corner toward home and spotted him halfway to her door, she surveyed him up and down. His rickety body was weighted with a round stomach that hid under a holey sweater. His white beard frosted his dark skin as it grew up his neck and down his face and all around his withered lips. His feet shuffled one in front of the other, toes peeking out for fresh air.
He didn't have to look up to know that she was coming. She could see the corners of his mouth stretch further across his face with her every step. Her hips led the rest of her as her golden hair trailed a half pace behind. And then finally when she was near, he let out a deep chuckle and said, "Girl, every time I see you, it aggravates my integrity. I just want to put my mouth on your bottom and gobble you up. I think you'd taste sweet as honey."
A mix of bewilderment and fear rushed between her mind and her bones. He knew that just like that it was all undone. They peered into each other's eyes, his wise from the years and hers fresh with youth. And for a moment neither of them knew what to do. But then it became clear. They laughed. They let it roll out of their bellies through their wide open mouths to be set free in the crisp Autumn air. That's all there was to do: laugh that good laugh as they walked down that Harlem street and invited everybody to stare.
