Status: Complete
Wild Child: Love Cannot Save You Part 1
What Do You Think Of Elephants?
As they made their way down 9th street, having just exited the Bargain Book Shop, Caroline held her very own copy of Nietzsche’s “On the Genealogy of Morals”. The book seemed to thrum slightly in her hands, as if charged with some kind of hidden power, and she couldn’t wait to get home and read it.
Her day had been...well, perfect was the only word she could think of to describe it. Jim had shown her around D.C, introducing her to the shops, theatres and clubs that he frequented whenever he sought inspiration and entertainment, and Caroline couldn’t help but feel oddly privileged.
From what she had seen of him so far, Jim seemed like somewhat of a loner. It was clear that he preferred to be on his own, occupying himself with books and poetry and intellectual pursuits. And yet, here he was spending the day with her, keeping her entertained with outrageous stories and unique philosophical anecdotes.
All in all, Caroline had gathered that Jim, like her, did his own thing for the world to see. He was oblivious to how others perceived him, and had no apparent desire to please. Perhaps it was that which created the somewhat magnetic aura that seemed to draw her to him.
“So,” said Jim as they found their seats towards the back of the bus, “what do you think of Washington?”
“It’s really hip!” said Caroline, grinning. “I never imagined that there would be so many cool places around here! That coffee place you showed me-“
“Coffee ‘n Confusion,”
“Yeah, I didn’t think there’d be anything like that here. In New York, I went to open mic nights all the time! But I just thought that people here…”
“A lot of people are,” he murmured, seeming to read her mind once again, “and a lot of people aren’t. You just have to know where to look, that’s all.”
As he spoke, a woman, probably in her forties, took the seat across from him. And Jim, for no reason at all, immediately started staring at her.
Caroline shifted in her seat, uncomfortably. She and Jim were sitting in silence now, and the smile on his face had faded. He looked deep in thought, almost as if he were lost in another world.
As the bus crossed over the bridge into Arlington, Jim was still staring, and the woman was now visibly uncomfortable. Caroline had no idea what was going though his head. At that moment, she would have given anything to be able to read his thoughts. He hadn’t said a word since the woman had taken her seat. He’d just stared and stared.
Caroline drummed her fingers against her knee, trying to look anywhere but at the woman. She didn’t want to make her any more uncomfortable, but it was hard not to let her curiosity get the better of her. What in the world was Jim doing?
Then, after what seemed like an eternity, Jim said something. Not to Caroline, but to the woman he’d been staring at incessantly. With a completely straight face, and as casually as if he were inquiring about the weather, he asked,
“What do you think of elephants?”
The woman tried to ignore him, but that just got him going. The more she tried to ignore him, the more he went on about elephants. Elephants, elephants, elephants! Caroline could see the poor woman become more and more uptight with each passing second, and she found herself torn between pity and amusement.
“Well,” said Jim, his voice now raised ever so slightly, “if you don’t like elephants, what if we call them pachyderms?”
By this point, the woman was absolutely terrified, and Jim seemed to be loving every minute of it. When the bus finally came to a stop on Ridge Road, she ran out like it was on fire.
For a few moments, Caroline just sat, completely bewildered. Then, finally, she was able to find her voice.
“What was that about?”
“That?” said Jim, “Just an experiment.”
At once, a million questions sprang to Caroline’s mind. She wanted to know what motivated him to conduct these “experiments” and how he thought of them. She wanted to ask him how long he’d been doing these kinds of things, and what it felt like to act out the way he had. She wanted to know everything about Jim Morrison, because she sensed that there was a lot more to him than he let on. But, at that moment, all she was capable of saying was,
“Well, thanks for the book.”
Her day had been...well, perfect was the only word she could think of to describe it. Jim had shown her around D.C, introducing her to the shops, theatres and clubs that he frequented whenever he sought inspiration and entertainment, and Caroline couldn’t help but feel oddly privileged.
From what she had seen of him so far, Jim seemed like somewhat of a loner. It was clear that he preferred to be on his own, occupying himself with books and poetry and intellectual pursuits. And yet, here he was spending the day with her, keeping her entertained with outrageous stories and unique philosophical anecdotes.
All in all, Caroline had gathered that Jim, like her, did his own thing for the world to see. He was oblivious to how others perceived him, and had no apparent desire to please. Perhaps it was that which created the somewhat magnetic aura that seemed to draw her to him.
“So,” said Jim as they found their seats towards the back of the bus, “what do you think of Washington?”
“It’s really hip!” said Caroline, grinning. “I never imagined that there would be so many cool places around here! That coffee place you showed me-“
“Coffee ‘n Confusion,”
“Yeah, I didn’t think there’d be anything like that here. In New York, I went to open mic nights all the time! But I just thought that people here…”
“A lot of people are,” he murmured, seeming to read her mind once again, “and a lot of people aren’t. You just have to know where to look, that’s all.”
As he spoke, a woman, probably in her forties, took the seat across from him. And Jim, for no reason at all, immediately started staring at her.
Caroline shifted in her seat, uncomfortably. She and Jim were sitting in silence now, and the smile on his face had faded. He looked deep in thought, almost as if he were lost in another world.
As the bus crossed over the bridge into Arlington, Jim was still staring, and the woman was now visibly uncomfortable. Caroline had no idea what was going though his head. At that moment, she would have given anything to be able to read his thoughts. He hadn’t said a word since the woman had taken her seat. He’d just stared and stared.
Caroline drummed her fingers against her knee, trying to look anywhere but at the woman. She didn’t want to make her any more uncomfortable, but it was hard not to let her curiosity get the better of her. What in the world was Jim doing?
Then, after what seemed like an eternity, Jim said something. Not to Caroline, but to the woman he’d been staring at incessantly. With a completely straight face, and as casually as if he were inquiring about the weather, he asked,
“What do you think of elephants?”
The woman tried to ignore him, but that just got him going. The more she tried to ignore him, the more he went on about elephants. Elephants, elephants, elephants! Caroline could see the poor woman become more and more uptight with each passing second, and she found herself torn between pity and amusement.
“Well,” said Jim, his voice now raised ever so slightly, “if you don’t like elephants, what if we call them pachyderms?”
By this point, the woman was absolutely terrified, and Jim seemed to be loving every minute of it. When the bus finally came to a stop on Ridge Road, she ran out like it was on fire.
For a few moments, Caroline just sat, completely bewildered. Then, finally, she was able to find her voice.
“What was that about?”
“That?” said Jim, “Just an experiment.”
At once, a million questions sprang to Caroline’s mind. She wanted to know what motivated him to conduct these “experiments” and how he thought of them. She wanted to ask him how long he’d been doing these kinds of things, and what it felt like to act out the way he had. She wanted to know everything about Jim Morrison, because she sensed that there was a lot more to him than he let on. But, at that moment, all she was capable of saying was,
“Well, thanks for the book.”