Rising
silently from the cavern her lithe body had created in the double waterbed,
Janey unfurled her long, slender limbs from beneath her. The bearded form
beside her grunted as the water shifted, causing him to roll to the centre of
the bed. Janey froze. Her hazel eyes widened and darted around the near-silent
space of his studio apartment, from her latest sleeping conquest to her finish
line of his front door. She could not even remember how many times she had done
this before, but each fresh night still sent her heart hammering in her chest,
her lips dry and her hands shaking. Smacking his coral lips, his breathing
slowed once more to a gentle purr and she allowed herself the briefest sigh of
relief as she plotted her escape route. The early dawn sun glinted off the keys
to his scarlet Mini which she knew waited patiently outside for her. They were inches from her grasp, so
enticingly near, yet just too far. Forwards she padded, keeping one eye fixed
on... John? James? Jack? She couldn’t bring herself to care enough to remember.
Studying the length of floor lit by a swath of sunlight, her hands closed
around the keys, and she eyed up the leather wallet lying next to it with the
tip of the TOTP tickets he bragged so arrogantly about in the bar last night
poking out of the notes pocket. They seemed to be winking at her, so she
grabbed the wallet and stuffed it into the patch pocket of her best miniskirt,
delicately picking her way through the obstacle course of hastily discarded
clothes and last night’s spliffs until she reached the door. Janey slipped out
and down the narrow staircase, touching the fingers of one hand gently to the flowered
wallpaper and counting the money in his wallet with the other. She caught a
glimpse of his driving licence and drawing it out of its plastic pocket she
tossed it carelessly over her shoulder. “For a time of free love, that
certainly cost Jerry dear.” She muttered.
