Jamey drinks her coffee with a straw, sipping it slowly and stabbing the bottom of the mug in search of grinds. Jamey has green eyes but she wears black sunglasses to cover what the Visine can't. Jamey's fingers are long and slender and her nails are painted red. They're curved but sharp and she cut me once by accident. Jamey has a blue beret that she tucks her brown hair under. She says it makes her feel exotic. She looks out from under it and reads Greek tragedies, relating.

Jamey's shirts are always long and dark. She says she doesn't like to show her arms because they're too skinny. I think she's just hiding the scars. Jamey wears black boots because she thinks they're good for stomping. Jamey says it's better to stomp than to be stomped on. Once Jamey had pink satin ballet slippers. I ask her where they are now. Jamey says she buried them in her basement. "Oh," I say.

Jamey never leaves a tip when we go out for coffee. She draws on napkins and leaves them instead. I think Jamey is an artist. She draws rivers and mountains and skylines with her black pen. I took one of the napkins once and hung it on my wall. Jamey says I'm foolish when I tell her that it sings me to sleep at night.

Jamey doesn't like her dad. She says he caps her creativity when he tells her to be home by midnight. Jamey likes her mom because she lets her stay home from school when she's tired. Jamey has a cat named Ginsburg and she feeds him hamburgers. She makes me drive her to McDonalds about once a week. Jamey tells me to take Ginsburg when she's gone. I ask her where she's going but she just stirs her clouded coffee and asks the waitress for the check.

Jamey used to play the piano but now she says she can't always hit the keys right. I think it's because her hands shake a lot lately. Jamey takes out her pen and begins to sketch a sunflower but the lines jump around like live wires. She sighs and crumples up the napkin, tossing down a dollar instead. She tries to sip her drink but when she picks up the half empty mug little drops rain down on the table. Jamey tells me she's coming down and excuses herself. I pick up the napkin and dab at the spots on the table. Then I wipe my eyes quietly and toss it down again.

I think Jamey is beautiful. 1