Her hair was a total mess, tumbling loosely down her small shoulders, with pieces of mud and grass caked to the tendrils. When she reached me, she slapped the ball against my chest and hissed, “Is this your ball?” I was so struck down by the sight of this tiny mud-covered girl that I just nodded like a fucking eejit. Jesus Christ, who was this girl? Clearing my throat, I took the ball from her and said, “Uh, yeah. It’s my ball.” She was tiny, seriously fucking small, barely reaching my chest in height.
