The night is hot and sticky, and dark as the insides of corn sacks, ‘cept for the streetlight yellow that Fiya sits under. Sittin on the sidewalk with her legs in the road, and she sits by herself and she whispers. Fiya talkin to Fiya and no one near to hear what she’s sayin, ‘cept maybe God.
Prayers she could be makin if prayers are spoken in French, for she is practicin the words she’s learned in school today. ‘Bonjour,’ she says and ‘Je t’aime,’ and ‘Je suis perdu.’ And her lips put together in kisses when she’s speakin, for French is a language of lovers even when the words is all broken and hissin.
And Fiya is lost and she does not care that she is – as lost as she can ever be in a town that has only one street. ‘Je t’aime,’ she says again, and she means the world when she says it, the whole world. And she means it, too, as only a girl can. And she makes a list in her head of all the good things she has done today, and she finds she is one short of what she intended.
Fiya opened a door for old Mrs Halligan, and she got a ‘thank you’ and a ‘god bless you, my lovely,’ for her trouble. And she ran an errand for Mr Colly who lives next door, and it was tobacco he wanted from Arthur’s Pipe Emporium, a quarter ounce of Newminster Cavendish the smoke of which smells ever sweet. And she gave some of her pocket money to Mrs Sheridan who was collectin for the orphans and Mrs Sheridan smiled and nodded and she said that Fiya was good. And Fiya dropped a penny into Blind McAllister’s tin cup and he said he knew who she was from the smell of her perfume, but she wasn’t wearin scent so she knew he was fibbin.
But five was the number she’d set herself today. Five good deeds to make the world a better place now, and she’d done only four. So, she’s sittin on the sidewalk under a streetlight yellow sun and she’s speakin in French and thinkin in English and she’s as lost as ever a girl can be when there is no place to be lost in.
On the other side of the street and hid in the dark of a shop door, crouches mad Mikey Halfpenny, and he’s watchin Fiya and strainin his ears in vain to hear what she says. And Mikey Halfpenny does not know why he has followed Fiya here, why her name is a repeatin song in his head. He makes his own lips into kiss shapes and in his head he is nearer to Fiya than he is, so his lips touch hers when she says ‘Bonjour’ and in his head he is actually kissin Fiya.
Mikey Halfpenny – half of what he should be and a half-wit to boot, and Mikey’s not for kissin, not with his hands crooked and his teeth black and his eyes all wanderin like crazy lookin. Not for kissin in daylight where kisses can be seen, nor for kissin under streetlights, but only ever in the dark of shop doors and the dark of his own head. And mad Mikey Halfpenny says in breathless whisper that he loves Fiya and he always will; and Fiya says again ‘Je t’aime’; and like that they could be lovers.
And if only Fiya knew, how she lightens the heart of mad Mikey Halfpenny, then might she understand that she has five good deeds in her day. And with that understandin she would no longer be lost and no lobger sittin in the street just thinkin and runnin French words through her lips.
Oh my god this is lovely! I am so glad you took your precious time to visit my blog and write this sweet little story. Thank you for your kind effort. If you don’t mind, I would like to share it on my blog, giving you the credits of course!
Once again, thank you. You truly made my day
I was actually inspired to write this fiction by a real 17 year old girl called Fiya who is learning French and trying to do good deeds to make the world a better place – a 100 good deeds.
Everyone should, today and tomorrow and every day, do at least one good deed… it should be a habit.
Oh my god this is lovely! I am so glad you took your precious time to visit my blog and write this sweet little story. Thank you for your kind effort. If you don’t mind, I would like to share it on my blog, giving you the credits of course!
Once again, thank you. You truly made my day 🙂
Patricia Ann McNair 
The night is hot and sticky, and dark as the insides of corn sacks, ‘cept for the streetlight yellow that Fiya sits under. Sittin on the sidewalk with her legs in the road, and she sits by herself and she whispers. Fiya talkin to Fiya and no one near to hear what she’s sayin, ‘cept maybe God.
Prayers she could be makin if prayers are spoken in French, for she is practicin the words she’s learned in school today. ‘Bonjour,’ she says and ‘Je t’aime,’ and ‘Je suis perdu.’ And her lips put together in kisses when she’s speakin, for French is a language of lovers even when the words is all broken and hissin.
And Fiya is lost and she does not care that she is – as lost as she can ever be in a town that has only one street. ‘Je t’aime,’ she says again, and she means the world when she says it, the whole world. And she means it, too, as only a girl can. And she makes a list in her head of all the good things she has done today, and she finds she is one short of what she intended.
Fiya opened a door for old Mrs Halligan, and she got a ‘thank you’ and a ‘god bless you, my lovely,’ for her trouble. And she ran an errand for Mr Colly who lives next door, and it was tobacco he wanted from Arthur’s Pipe Emporium, a quarter ounce of Newminster Cavendish the smoke of which smells ever sweet. And she gave some of her pocket money to Mrs Sheridan who was collectin for the orphans and Mrs Sheridan smiled and nodded and she said that Fiya was good. And Fiya dropped a penny into Blind McAllister’s tin cup and he said he knew who she was from the smell of her perfume, but she wasn’t wearin scent so she knew he was fibbin.
But five was the number she’d set herself today. Five good deeds to make the world a better place now, and she’d done only four. So, she’s sittin on the sidewalk under a streetlight yellow sun and she’s speakin in French and thinkin in English and she’s as lost as ever a girl can be when there is no place to be lost in.
On the other side of the street and hid in the dark of a shop door, crouches mad Mikey Halfpenny, and he’s watchin Fiya and strainin his ears in vain to hear what she says. And Mikey Halfpenny does not know why he has followed Fiya here, why her name is a repeatin song in his head. He makes his own lips into kiss shapes and in his head he is nearer to Fiya than he is, so his lips touch hers when she says ‘Bonjour’ and in his head he is actually kissin Fiya.
Mikey Halfpenny – half of what he should be and a half-wit to boot, and Mikey’s not for kissin, not with his hands crooked and his teeth black and his eyes all wanderin like crazy lookin. Not for kissin in daylight where kisses can be seen, nor for kissin under streetlights, but only ever in the dark of shop doors and the dark of his own head. And mad Mikey Halfpenny says in breathless whisper that he loves Fiya and he always will; and Fiya says again ‘Je t’aime’; and like that they could be lovers.
And if only Fiya knew, how she lightens the heart of mad Mikey Halfpenny, then might she understand that she has five good deeds in her day. And with that understandin she would no longer be lost and no lobger sittin in the street just thinkin and runnin French words through her lips.
Love it.
Oh my god this is lovely! I am so glad you took your precious time to visit my blog and write this sweet little story. Thank you for your kind effort. If you don’t mind, I would like to share it on my blog, giving you the credits of course!
Once again, thank you. You truly made my day
I was actually inspired to write this fiction by a real 17 year old girl called Fiya who is learning French and trying to do good deeds to make the world a better place – a 100 good deeds.
Everyone should, today and tomorrow and every day, do at least one good deed… it should be a habit.
Oh my god this is lovely! I am so glad you took your precious time to visit my blog and write this sweet little story. Thank you for your kind effort. If you don’t mind, I would like to share it on my blog, giving you the credits of course!
Once again, thank you. You truly made my day 🙂
How fine that we all can find one another in this way!