A is for Applejuice, a flash fiction story by Jean M. Hodges
Curses weren’t always a bad thing; Ginger figured there were worse things in the world than being a Black gorgon.
Ginger knew this, and she knew her and all the women in her family was more of a protection, anyway; a genetic talisman bestowed upon them by cruel and beautiful gods in some ancient land long, long, ago, maybe.
So, yeah, Ginger didn’t mind the snakes in her hair so much? She just wished That Cute Kaida could really look her way someday.
That Cute Kaida worked at the corner store down the street from Ginger’s house; Ginger first caught sight of them when sneaking into the store in the middle of her lunch break to grab some corn chips before class.
That Cute Kaida was the owner’s teenage nibling, working in the store after dropping out of their own high school and working on their own GED to get into community college.
“They did my baby dirty, Miss Ginger,” the store owner, would say, clicking her tongue and whispering something in a Spanglish Ginger couldn’t understand. “As if it’s their fault their Mama was a werewolf. They missed so many classes just to take care of their baby brothers and sisters! Is that a crime? These damn white teachers…”
Ginger only caught glances of them, really; sometimes sweeping up the corner store floors, sometimes bopping to a song on their auntie’s radio, sometimes behind the counter, studying in between working the cash register.
However, despite all the information Ginger gathered from just seeing them on snack stops in between school, classes and coming home, That Cute Kaida only really knew Ginger for one thing:
“Hey, Applejuice! Will that be all? It’s nice to see you again”
And Ginger would blush, smile, and pay.
THE END
Original publish year: 2017
(c) Jean M. Hodges
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