Pure Colour

by Sheila Heti

They could not imagine what her life had been. They longed to be like Annie—so independent, so free. There was something romantic about having grown up without parents, but the idea also scared them. A mother and father was all that they knew, even if they weren’t living with them now. Even if they never called them on the phone, there would always be an umbrella over them, if it rained. They could get wet if they wanted to, but if they wanted to stay dry, their parents would come. They didn’t know that this was where their courage derived from, or that their imagined striking out was no more bold than an evening stroll down a well-lit street. They could go home if they wanted to. They had parents who loved them. Mira had a father who loved her so much, nearly to the exclusion of everyone else. While Annie had no one, she was completely alone. That was why they were drawn to her. Mira and her friends admired her deeply. She was who they were pretending to be.