Ugly Naked People
By Giselle Renarde
Smashwords Edition
Copyright 2010 by Giselle Renarde and Untreed Reads Publishing
Cover Copyright 2010 by Dara England and Untreed Reads Publishing
The author is hereby established as the sole holder of the copyright, and has granted permission to the publisher to enforce said copyright on their behalf.
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This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to the living or dead is entirely coincidental.
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Ugly Naked People
By Giselle Renarde
Cuddling in beside her on the subway, Rave wrapped a mischievous arm around Astrid’s shoulder. Action was a form of language. An arm around a shoulder said, “This girl is my girl, and I want the whole world to know it.” They had entire conversations without opening their mouths.
Astrid blinked three times fast. She swallowed hard. Public displays of affection made her nervous, and she felt like she’d been tossed naked into a barren corridor—there was always a chance someone might see. Why couldn’t Rave keep her hands to herself? Astrid glanced around the subway before realizing the act of turning her head only confirmed there was indeed something to stare at. She froze, but the desire to examine strangers’ reactions proved too hard to suppress. Her gaze shifted across the car to check out every figure in her peripheral vision.
“Well? Aren’t you going to say anything?” Rave finally challenged.
If Astrid asked her to move her arm, Rave would move it—this, she knew. “What good are words?”
“True,” Rave agreed, tugging at the dry tips of Astrid’s blond hair. “We have pretty thorough discussions without them.”
With a weak smile, Astrid inched forward in her I-can’t-believe-it’s-not-velvet subway seat. Her shoulder snuck beyond Rave’s reach. Rising up, she stood by the subway doors. As she waited for the train to pull into their station, a wave of dizziness destabilized her like an earthquake. Her head grew too heavy to hold upright. It fell back before she could stop it.