If you come back to me, I'll never leave you", I whispered into the furry ear. "I'll make you all the pies you could ever eat.

My ego doesn't need soothing. I don't want him soothing anything of mine, including you.

I wondered if kicking him in the head would make the whole explanation pop out of his mouth in one chunk.

A girl half my age swept by and slammed two giant tankard filled with beer on the table. Ragnvald held his up. I smashed my tankard against his. Beer splashed. We raised the tankard and pretended to take much bigger gulps than we did.

He joked while Dali cut him, mangling the words with his monstrous jaws, snarled with a pretended rage and dramatically promised to "kirrrl youraaalll for this!

The sight of me puffing and straining apparently amused him to no end.

What’s the deal with the hair?” Curran tore his gaze from the book and grimaced. “Grows every flare. Can’t help it." We stared at each other. “Waiting for the Fabio joke,” he said.