The Human Body

2

Prince's home was finally finished and the mover's were still moving his stuff in even after a week. It's been nice seeing Johnny socialize with someone else besides me and catch up with someone. Even if he wasn't so fond of him. I was still trying to figure out why, but I didn't want to have one on one with either of them to find out. I was sure one of them would tell me why soon. Their jam sessions were really good and it gave me something to listen to while I worked on my ocean painting. I would work on it at night as well when I couldn't sleep and since my...situation...happened I've been painting more than ever and it's been so nice to get lost in a world that wasn't my own.

Johnny was doing well and was even going to audition for a movie today. It was good for him since he and his girlfriend had split and even if it was a mutual agreement, he was still taking it hard. But for the first time since coming home, I was alone in Johnny's house and was sorting through some stuff from my apartment since I was going to be living here now. I heard steps coming up upstairs and I turned around knowing it was Prince. "Hey, whoa." He looked around at all the stuff. "Hey, sorry I'm just sorting junk." I said to him. Prince laughed. "Don't worry about it. He said with a smile. I was a little confused.

"Do you need anything?" I asked him. "Nah, I just wanted to see what you were up to." He said as he looked into a tote. "Are all these yours?" I asked as he pulled a canvas out. "Yeah, some of my old work, though." He rain his fingers over the painting of a naked woman laying in bed. "You...you really like black women, don't you?" "I love them and I love painting them because there's not enough of them in art. Think about it. Michelangelo, Van Gogh, Boticelli, Rembrandt, they all painted white women." Prince picked up another canvas that was a five by twelve of a naked black man standing in a pool. He blinked. "You're white?" "Yes." I said. I cocked an eyebrow. "You're....light skinned." I told him. Prince laughed as he realized how goofy his question was which made me laugh.

"I just...I don't know. I wouldn't expect this from someone like you." I squinted. "Because I'm a white woman?" I asked him. "...Yeah. I'm sorry, I just...I don't know it makes me happy to see women of my color getting recognition....from a white person." I scratched my head. "I'm...not like the people...of my past? I don't know what could ease your surprise." "No, no. It's not a bad thing. It's incredible." He placed the canvas into the tote. "Could you paint me?" He asked. I ran my fingers over a painting. "I think I could." I said looking at his eyes. I heard Johnny walking up and I turned my head over to him. "Home already?" I asked him. "Yeah, I got the part, too." I smiled and was really proud of him.

Johnny looked at Prince and I hadn't noticed that Prince's fingers were brushing over mine in the tote. I pulled my hand away slowly. "Can I talk to you?" He asked Prince. Prince looked at me and then back to Johnny. "Yeah, sure." He said as he walked down stairs with Johnny. I wanted to catch snippets of their conversation because I knew it had to be about me. Maybe I wouldn't be going with Johnny this time while he was filming his movie. Maybe I'd get to stay here and watch the house. It'd be fun because I'd have Prince to talk to if I got bored.

Johnny and I stepped outside and he lit a cigarette. "What's up?" I asked him. "Look...Felicity isn't...well." He said slowly. I cocked an eyebrow. "She mental?" I asked him. Johnny shook his head and we were standing in his front yard. "She's got a bad case of depression." I turned my head towards the house and then back to Johnny. "She seems fine now." "That's the thing...it comes randomly. She has...I think they call it 'manic depression'." I crossed my arms. "She's not a teenager. If you want me to baby sit-" "I don't want you to baby sit her. Look, do me this favor to pay me back for fucking my ex girlfriend." That stung, but he had a point.

I sighed. "So what, I just watch her? I just sit with her? What do I do?" Johnny took a massive drag. Oh, man this was really heavy. "Just check on her. Anything can throw her into depression. A painting doesn't come out right, she gets alone and her thoughts get to her. If she's depressed for more than a week, stay with her. She's...she's already tried to end her life before. Three times." My eyes got wide and I saw Felicity going into the kitchen from upstairs through the window. "She's an adult. She's got her whole life ahead of her." Johnny shrugged. "That doesn't help. Besides, she really likes you. She doesn't come around to people often."