Properties
- end_line
- 1986
- extracted_at
- 2026-01-27T17:14:57.710Z
- extracted_by
- structure-extraction-lambda
- start_line
- 1943
- text
- 1860 mother in this LaSalle convertible they had. My mother didn't think Jane was pretty,
1861 even. I did, though. I just liked the way she looked, that's all.
1862 I remember this one afternoon. It was the only time old Jane and I ever got close
1863 to necking, even. It was a Saturday and it was raining like a bastard out, and I was over at
1864 her house, on the porch--they had this big screened-in porch. We were playing checkers. I
1865 used to kid her once in a while because she wouldn't take her kings out of the back row.
1866 But I didn't kid her much, though. You never wanted to kid Jane too much. I think I really
1867 like it best when you can kid the pants off a girl when the opportunity arises, but it's a
1868 funny thing. The girls I like best are the ones I never feel much like kidding. Sometimes I
1869 think they'd like it if you kidded them--in fact, I know they would--but it's hard to get
1870 started, once you've known them a pretty long time and never kidded them. Anyway, I
1871 was telling you about that afternoon Jane and I came close to necking. It was raining like
1872 hell and we were out on her porch, and all of a sudden this booze hound her mother was
1873 married to came out on the porch and asked Jane if there were any cigarettes in the house.
1874 I didn't know him too well or anything, but he looked like the kind of guy that wouldn't
1875 talk to you much unless he wanted something off you. He had a lousy personality.
1876 Anyway, old Jane wouldn't answer him when he asked her if she knew where there was
1877 any cigarettes. So the guy asked her again, but she still wouldn't answer him. She didn't
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1878 even look up from the game. Finally the guy went inside the house. When he did, I asked
1879 Jane what the hell was going on. She wouldn't even answer me, then. She made out like
1880 she was concentrating on her next move in the game and all. Then all of a sudden, this
1881 tear plopped down on the checkerboard. On one of the red squares--boy, I can still see it.
1882 She just rubbed it into the board with her finger. I don't know why, but it bothered hell
1883 out of me. So what I did was, I went over and made her move over on the glider so that I
1884 could sit down next to her--I practically sat down in her lap, as a matter of fact. Then she
1885 really started to cry, and the next thing I knew, I was kissing her all over--anywhere--her
1886 eyes, her nose, her forehead, her eyebrows and all, her ears--her whole face except her
1887 mouth and all. She sort of wouldn't let me get to her mouth. Anyway, it was the closest
1888 we ever got to necking. After a while, she got up and went in and put on this red and
1889 white sweater she had, that knocked me out, and we went to a goddam movie. I asked
1890 her, on the way, if Mr. Cudahy--that was the booze hound's name--had ever tried to get
1891 wise with her. She was pretty young, but she had this terrific figure, and I wouldn't've put
1892 it past that Cudahy bastard. She said no, though. I never did find out what the hell was the
1893 matter. Some girls you practically never find out what's the matter.
1894 I don't want you to get the idea she was a goddam icicle or something, just
1895 because we never necked or horsed around much. She wasn't. I held hands with her all
1896 the time, for instance. That doesn't sound like much, I realize, but she was terrific to hold
1897 hands with. Most girls if you hold hands with them, their goddam hand dies on you, or
1898 else they think they have to keep moving their hand all the time, as if they were afraid
1899 they'd bore you or something. Jane was different. We'd get into a goddam movie or
1900 something, and right away we'd start holding hands, and we wouldn't quit till the movie
1901 was over. And without changing the position or making a big deal out of it. You never
- title
- Chunk 2