by RCJ Graves
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\nConrad Toad was sunbathing by a little pond in Central Park, snacking on the occasional gnat, when an enormous blue and black butterfly fluttered by overhead. Conrad\u2019s eyes bulged. Magnificent, he thought, she\u2019s beautiful.<\/p>\n
\u201cHullo, up there!\u201d Conrad called.<\/p>\n
Brittany Butterfly pointed her black antennae at Conrad. To her he was a massive, slimy, predatory blob with an enormous mouth. Fear shot to her wings, and she fluttered higher and further away.<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t be afraid,\u201d Conrad said. \u201cI wouldn\u2019t hurt someone as beautiful as you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brittany pointed her antennae back to the heaving, beastly mouth and saw it had two big, honest eyes on top of its head, and she saw her reflection\u2014fantastically, magically beautiful\u2014in those eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou wouldn\u2019t?\u201d she asked, as she batted her wings and dropped a little closer to Conrad.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, never,\u201d Conrad said. \u201cI eat the ugly little things, the gnats and flies and mosquitoes, you know. You\u2019re way too pretty and too big too.\u201d Conrad blinked vacantly at the butterfly as he spoke.<\/p>\n
Brittany could detect neither deceit nor craftiness from Conrad, and butterflies\u2019 antennae are especially sensitive to such things, so she fluttered even closer to him in order to give him a better look at her.<\/p>\n
She watched herself in his eyes as she came closer. \u201cYes, I am very beautiful,\u201d she agreed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe should be friends,\u201d Conrad said, his wet eyes bulging with pleasure at the sight of her.<\/p>\n
Brittany laughed.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, no, no, no!\u201d she exclaimed to Conrad\u2019s surprise. \u201cWe could never be friends. It wouldn\u2019t be right.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy sure it would,\u201d Conrad said, \u201cbeing friends is fun.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brittany laughed. \u201cOh, no, no, no! That would be wrong: I am the beautiful, glamorous Brittany Butterfly, and you are an ugly, bulgy-eyed, slimy, big-mouthed, moist blob of ugliness. You see, we just don\u2019t go together.\u201d<\/p>\n
Conrad\u2019s eyes became even moister than usual, and then big tears rolled out.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy would you say I\u2019m ugly?\u201d he asked. \u201cAren\u2019t I nice?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUgh, nice and ugly,\u201d Brittany answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut no one else says I\u2019m ugly,\u201d Conrad countered.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll prove it to you then,\u201d Brittany said with confidence. Conrad\u2019s wet eyes blinked up at her. \u201cThere\u2019s a human, a little girl, not far from here who\u2019s reading a book on a big round stone,\u201d Brittany continued. \u201cWe\u2019ll find her, we\u2019ll each get her attention, and then we\u2019ll see what see says about us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Conrad just blinked up at Brittany not knowing what to do. But inside himself, he felt a warm little light glowing, and he knew that that light was not ugly, no matter what a butterfly or a little girl or anyone said.<\/p>\n
\u201cOK,\u201d he finally agreed. \u201cPlease lead the way, beautiful Brittany Butterfly.\u201d Brittany laughed and fluttered off, and Conrad hopped along behind.<\/p>\n
The girl wasn\u2019t very far away. Her sneakers dangled just above a fragrant patch of red clover. Conrad plunged toward her, enveloped in the smell and softness of the clover. Then he leapt with all of the light and joy inside of him and bumped the little girl\u2019s foot, startling her.<\/p>\n
The little girl snapped her book shut and looked down at Conrad. Conrad\u2019s big, wets eyes stared up at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, hello, Mr. Toad,\u201d the girl said, \u201cAren\u2019t you friendly?\u201d Conrad\u2019s heart burst with joy. He looked around for Brittany, but she was nowhere to be found.<\/p>\n
Conrad wondered why she had left. He had proven he wasn\u2019t ugly, so she should want to be his friend now. He hopped off through the clover to find her.<\/p>\n
\u201cGoodbye, Mr. Toad,\u201d the little girl called after Conrad as she watched him disappear into a nearby flower bed. Then she opened her book and gasped. \u201cOh no, no, no!\u201d the little girl said. \u201cPoor butterfly!\u201d And she used a napkin to wipe Brittany from the pages. by RCJ Graves Conrad Toad was sunbathing by a little pond in Central Park, snacking on the occasional gnat, when an enormous blue and black butterfly fluttered by overhead. Conrad\u2019s eyes bulged. Magnificent, he thought, she\u2019s beautiful. \u201cHullo, up there!\u201d … Continue reading
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\nRCJ GRAVES<\/strong>‘ fiction and poetry is widely published in print and online. His work has recently appeared in Boston Literary Magazine<\/em>, Danse Macabre<\/em>, Fear and Trembling Magazine<\/em>, The New Flesh<\/em>, Poetry Quarterly<\/em>, and The Short Story Library<\/em>. He lives in Augusta, GA, where he teaches literature and rhetoric at Paine College.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"