The 209th day of the year.

“Hey, I like your socks”

Geoffry looked down at his ankles, his trousers must have risen up when he had sat down and his socks were clearly visible to anyone who cared to notice. He looked up, there were several people in the bar but only one seemed to be interested in his hosiery.

“Do you have a camera?” He didn’t know why he asked that, maybe she seemed so young that he thought she might have forgotten it and something about her made him feel protective in a way he imagined fathers sometimes felt.

She laughed, “I’ve got my phone” and she pointed it at him.

Geoffry didn’t really understand what she meant but something else was very clear; she was wearing a red t-shirt with the words Texas Joe proudly lettered across her young and attractive chest.

“Hi, I’m Joe, I’m from Texas, ” and now he laughed.

“Good evening, I’m Geoffry, I’m from here but I don’t have the t-shirt yet.”

Texas Joe smiled, there was something fox like about her mouth and a thought crossed his mind that maybe she didn’t need protecting after all; she just needed feeding.

“They’re nice colours” she added, and he remembered they were talking about his socks.

“Cornfield hybrid, evening sky.”

Her eyes opened in surprise and now she reminded him of a Koala Bear; a Koala Bear dressed in tight blue jeans and a red t-shirt, he couldn’t see her feet. The jeans were ripped so he figured she couldn’t have a lot of money and since he was sitting and she was standing his eyes were level with her knee. Her knee was not pale, maybe she was wearing make up?

“I’m 20”, her conversation skills, like her chest, were clearly still developing and then she sat down in the chair across from him, neatly filing her knee under the table as she did so.