Ria: Escapade

Ria

After practically wolfing down the slightly stale bread and cheese, Ria gulped down the water and sighed. Of course, it was nothing compared to Mumma’s superb cooking but …she had been so hungry.

And the bed now stood in all its shabby dignity, between them as they tried to arrive at a truce. Ria swayed in tiredness as a wave of darkness seemed ready to engulf her. She sighed and admitted to the truth of his observation.

*

The only time she had come close to giving up her virginity had been with Ronnie Prouse, a senior at school, and that had been at Prom Night. She had gotten drunk for the first time in her life on the spiked punch and the boy had also had dark hair and tanned skin, reminding her vaguely of Philippe. He had not gotten around to deflowering her, for a friend had called her name when one of Pappa’s bodyguards had come looking for her. She had hastily pushed the sweating, stumbling Ronnie with his uncertain, clumsy hands, off of her and run away. She had never known