She drew a few quick sketches of his face.She drew a few quick sketches of his face. The mouth and cheeks seemed to carry all of the expression on Thomas' face. His eyes, although darting about him, never resting, seemed to be blank, as if the thoughts which he might have never lingered long enough to register there. On each cheek was a long scar, white against his dark tanned skin. His teeth were very white, but crooked; one of his front teeth seemed to be chipped. She rapidly did a study of his entire body. He did not sit on the cot provided to him, but sat on the floor, his buttocks and the soles of his feet touching the ground, his arms wrapped around his legs below the knees. His chest was narrow and hairless; his stomach concave. His genitals seemed enormous. She looked at the picture she had drawn. She could not pinpoint her mistake, but she could feel its presence. She studied the drawing, then looked from it to the subject. Yes, the face: now in profile, the crooked nose, the slashed cheeks, the smooth eyepits. The chest: ribs showing, tiny nipples almost concealed by his tan, a large mole under his right pectoral muscle. His abdomen: stomach curving in, pelvic saddle seen under his leathery skin. His genitals: testicles flattened heavily on the floor, penis hanging straight down, the head and the first two inches of shaft lying in front of him like something carelessly discarded. |