PAPERBACK PICKUP LINE

 

“Have you ever thought about what would happen,”

he said, “if a mermaid and a minotaur got together,

and their kids got the human half of each so now they’re just,

some dudes?” She sipped her wine and arched an eyebrow.

 

“Can’t say that I have, no,” she replied cautiously.

 

“Well, me and my brothers. We’re those dudes.”

He did sound matter-of-fact, in spite of the ludicrous

nature of his claim. She smiled to cover a scoff.

 

“So then, what do you all do, with that?” she asked,

sincerely curious, at least to know where this story was going.

 

“We fight crime!” he declared proudly.

 

Later, many years later, she told him that she stayed,

not because she believed him, but because she had to know

how the story ended, not whether or not it was true.