Janet closed her eyes, took a deep breath and watched as her breath became steam in contact with the cold air. She looked to her left once again, hoping to see the train coming closer. It wasn't, so she looked in her bag, took a pack of cigarettes and lit one.Surely enough, two puffs later, there was the train. Slightly annoyed she threw the cigarette in the tracks and entered the train.
- One way to Wellington, please. - she told the lady, before giving her some coins and getting a stamped paper ticket back. She always prefer ed when the person in the train was a lady. They seemed nicer, for some reason. With a sigh, she rested her head on the window and watched the trees and cars go by. It was gonna be a tough day.
After the train had slowed down and opened its doors, Janet jumped out and made her way into the station. After a brief stop at the toilet to fix her hair and put a hat on, the girl left the station, lighting another cigarette to make up for the one she had to throw away before. At that rate she'd have to buy a new pack before lunch, and God knew how expensive cigarettes had been getting. Oh well, the more money spent on cigarettes, the less money spent on food. She didn't get to her current 50 kgs by eating. With an angry gesture she tried to fix her fringe, already destroyed by the wind. "Stupid winter." she thought, before stopping to wait for a green light. Wellington was a nice town, but the weather was very, very irritating. After a few minutes walking Janet found herself in front of the café she had been looking for. She could see Brad inside, a mug in front of him, and a book in his hands. Brad liked to read about philosophy to pretend he was more intelligent than he actually was. That always annoyed Janet. Taking the hundredth deep breath that day, she threw the cigarette butt in the gutter and went in.
- Hey. - she said, sitting in front of Brad.
- Oh, hey! How are you?
- I'm alright. Sorry I'm late, the fucking train was late again. What are you reading?
- The Metamorphosis. It's Kafka. Really good.
Janet looked at the cover. A huge insect was lying in a bed. It was pretty gross.
- Do you actually like it, or are you reading it so people think you're smart?
- ... What?
- Just asking.
Brad looked at her weirdly and took a sip of coffee. He stared at the street outside for a while before asking her:
- So, why did you wanna meet?
- I'm starting this new project and I wanted to try it out with you. If you don't mind. Well, not that it matters if you mind or not, but I thought it'd be polite to ask.
- ... Ok, you're scaring me. What is it?
- It's pretty simple really. I just say whatever I think whenever I think it. For example, normally I wouldn't comment on how I think you should never wear skinny jeans, 'cause your legs are too fat for it to look good. But now I'll say it. Got it?
- You're kidding right? - Brad's hand instinctively touched his leg. Half of it was muscle!
- Not really. I'm gonna do it for two weeks and see what happens. My theory is that people are never ready to handle the truth and they run away from it. How long can you take it?
- Don't be stupid, Jan. - He put his book in his bag, avoiding Janet's eyes. What was wrong with her?
- Well, not all of it is bad. For example, your hair looks really good today. There's probably enough product in it to supply ten pageant kids for five years, but you can hardly tell.
- You know what, you're being a bitch. God knows why, but you're being a fucking bitch. I'm not staying here. - Brad grabbed his bag and his jacket and left. What the hell was wrong with her?
Janet looked at her cellphone. Three minutes. That was even quicker than she had thought. She took Brad's mug, finished his coffee and grabbed her stuff. If she hurried, she could probably meet some three people before the day ended.
- Stop being a bitch, Janet. - Claire stated simply.
- I'm not being a bitch, I'm just saying what I think. - Janet was getting tired. After Brad there was Sam, who lasted 5 minutes, and Louise, who lasted impressive 10 minutes, before running away crying. People were turning up to be way more boring then she thought.
- Well, how come everything you think is negative?
- I don't know. Maybe I'm a negative person.
- Well, maybe you like being a bitch.
- Yeah, maybe. So what if I do?
- Well, I think that if you do you shouldn't hide it behind some 'psychosocial experiment' or whatever the fuck you're calling it. We all know you're a bitch. Own up to it.
Janet looked at the sea. Maybe Claire was right. Maybe the experiment was an excuse for her to be a bitch guilt-free.
- Brad, Sam and Lou didn't know how much of a bitch I am. They left.
- Yeah, that's cause they're pussies. - Claire took a puff out of her cigarette and blew out the grey smoke with a deep sigh.
- Can I have a smoke? - asked Janet - I'm all out.
- No. - said Claire, before taking another puff.
- What do you mean no? I always give you smokes when I have them.
- So? I don't feel like giving you one. Besides, the only reason you give me smokes is so you can collect the favour later on. It's very annoying.
-... What?
- Yeah, it's true. You know what else is annoying? How you keep talking about your weight, what you ate today, the diet you're on this week... Get over yourself, honey. You're not gonna get any skinnier.
- You know what? You're being a cunt. I'm outta here. - Janet's cheeks were red with anger. How dare she talk about her weight, the fat cow? She got up and walked away.
Claire looked at her phone. With a smile in the corner of her mouth, she shouted to Janet's back.
- Six minutes, bitch! That's all you can last!
Janet gave her the middle finger without looking back. Claire laughed. The poor thing had so much to learn about being a bitch. And with a laugh-turned-snort she took another puff from her cigarette.
