She's sitting next to the best looking man she's ever seen in her life. In person, that is. Because she saw Harrison Ford on The Late Show just the other night. This guy doesn't look like Harrison Ford though. He looks more like Christopher Reeve in 'Superman'. He even has the long overcoat and geeky Clark Kent glasses. And his hair, which is straight and shiny and floppy, is as dark as Superman's is but a bit curly and s little grey around the edges...when he is flying through the air in all that spandex or whatever.
It occurs to her suddenly that she's never been alone with a man before. Not that they're technically alone. They are the only two people under the tiny bus shelter. But he probably hasn't even noticed her sitting there. Still, apart from her dad and her teachers, she's never actually seen a real man up close before. Not this close. And definitely not one that looked like a bona fide movie star. Her friends would call him hunky. And by friends, she means the girls in her grade who've kissed a boy who's not gay and never talk to her except to point out when her hair is especially frizzy and even then it's never to compliment her on it's frizziness.
Her hair is pretty frizzy today unfortunately. And she has one really red zit on her chin. But it doesn't stop her shifting forward on the bench, trying to get a better look at her bus shelter companion, who she can only see in profile. His eyebrows are thick and bushy and he's pursing his lips together, making the bottom one stick out. And there's a tiny dimple on his shaven cheek.
All the boys she knows don't shave yet. Although Rob Sussman does wear aftershave that smells like he's had a bath in vinegar and cherry cough syrup. Not a great combo. This guy probably wears nice aftershave, expensive stuff, classy stuff. He looks real classy, real...manly. And he probably has to shave two times a day because there is hair even on his hand just above the wrist bone and a few on the knuckles? He's probably covered in it, but not like Cornelius in 'Planet of the Apes'. She doesn't know why she thinks this. The only guy's chest she has seen is Brian Fry's freckly, concave chest when he took his shirt off the other day, and there was not a hair in sight.
It's probably the reason why her mom thinks girls and boys should not go on school trips together, and why her parents did not want her to go on this one. Because everyone starts making out in the back of the bus and taking their shirts off when the teachers aren't looking. Then teasing unsuspecting geeks who were so not looking. As if she would ever want to. Brian is gross. All boys are gross.
This guy...isn't though. A boy, or gross. Movie star man. Maybe she should tell him that. Get his autograph. Or, you know, maybe not. Like he'd wanna hear that from a certified dweeb with rain-frizzed hair. He probably hears it all the time, from real girls. Pretty girls. Girls his age. Who like lots of hair on their movie star men's chests. It's as she's deciding that utilising her big mouth to talk to Superman dude would be another dumb move in a life littered with dumb moves that he takes off his glasses and casts her a sideways look - with blue, blue eyes - as if he totally knew all along that she was checking him out.
Not that she was really checking him out. Not in that way. Not in a serious way. Only in a...scientific way. Like he was a slightly non hairy ape waiting for the bus. Or an exhibit at the Air and Space Museum. Yeah...kinda like that. She was studying him for future reference is all.
"Hey," is all he says.
And her mouth almost drops open at the sound of his voice. It's like a musical instrument. Jazzy. Husky. Low. Nothing like the pipsqueaks she goes to school with who're meant to be of the same species.
"Hey," she says back, gives a little nod. She looks out at the deserted D.C. street, the tarmac being pummelled with rain before she asks him: "Are you waiting for the bus?"
Superman momentarily stops rubbing his rain-splattered lenses with a handkerchief, looking over at her like maybe she's retarded. Not the first time she's been looked at that way. Probably won't be the last either. She's started to grow somewhat immune.
