This is actually a serious piece. The purple text indicate exuberant flights of fancy and imagination on the part an 11year old boy expressing a joyful but feminine personae. (He can't help it. this is the real Rainbow. )People around him worry, oppress and even regard him as a threat. When I was very young I might been a little bit like Rainbow until I had it beaten out of me. Is there a better way?..

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RAINBOW

by Larkin

 

I love to look at myself in the mirror. I spent loads of time there. I am absolutely sure that I am high on the list of the world's prettiest people.

I comb my beautiful blond hair this way and that and practice making all different kinds of expressions and faces. I open my mouth and stick out my tongue as far as I can then look really close at my eyes and then I blink them real quick.

Sometimes, I turn quickly and act like I was suddenly surprised by a camera crew that was following me because I am so famous. Then I would make a face and say, "I have no time for paparazzi." After that, my bodyguards would rush me to the airport.

I would carry on conversations with myself all the time. "Rainbow, you have a phone call from Paris Hilton."

I would say, "Tell here I'll call her later."

"Oh Rainbow, Hannah Montana says that she'll meet you at Disneyworld on Friday." Oh, that was just my agent.

I would say, "Tell her I can't make it and that Britney and I are friends again and we are going on tour together."

 

There was a loud knock on the bathroom door. It was my Mother. "Richard, what are you doing in there, you have been in there for an hour!"

I yelled back, "Okay, I'm coming."

I hate my name Richard. It just doesn't have anything to do with me. I'm so not Richard, you know what I'm sayin? That's why I changed it to Rainbow

 

You know, I wish I was a magician and I could cast spells on people. I'm sure I'd be a good magician. Of course I wouldn't be old and wear a robe, I would be young beautiful and be surround with nymphs and magical beings that I created. I would live in a castle that was high in the mountains and everyone in the kingdom would love me.

 

"Richard! Get out of the bathroom; other people have to use it."

I picked up my clothes and quietly slipped out and back into my bed room. Why is the real world so awful? Why is it grey, angry and unhappy? I climb up on my bed and cuddled with my Hello Kitty pillow. Like always, my Mother barges into my room.

"Richard, put some clothes on and change out of those underpants so I can wash them."

I tried to hide them but she came over to my bed and tugged my hand out from under Hello Kitty.

"Richard, why do you do this? Why do you paint your finger nails like a girl? You know it makes the boys pick on you. If you come home crying I can't do anything about it."

She bent down closer to me and offered me a tidbit of sympathy. "Richard, if I could change the world for you, I would, but I can't. This is just how the world is. Do you know that next year you will be 13. That makes you almost an adult. You have to start growing up sometime."

She threw a clean pair of underpants at me and then held out her hand for the dirty ones. My Mother never fails to find some way to embarrass me.

When she finally left, I looked down at my nails. "What's wrong with pink, I like it."

I lay on my belly clinging to Hello Kitty and like a bird, my imagination flies off again.

 

My Mother and older Brother are not really my family you know, I'm really an orphan. They found me in a meadow and now they are planning to sell me into slavery for a lot of money because I am so beautiful. There was a long chain connected to my collar. I was only wearing underpants and I was standing on a platform so everyone could see me. A horrible old man covered with warts raised his hand and bid $20. Someone else bid $25 and someone else bid $50.

I was shivering because no one cared about me. I was afraid some ugly man would buy me and make me run the vacuum all day. The crowd parted and there was Captain Jack Sparrow from Pirates of the Caribbean. He looked at me and then at the auctioneer.

He said, "I bid, one thousand in gold! The auctioneer quickly bang his hammer and said, "Sold!"

I was so excited. He looked just like Johnny Depp. He came to claim me. I was little enough for him to lift me up into his arms.

Leave it to my Mother to embarrass me. She came up and told Jack Sparrow that my underpants were not part of the transaction and could she please have them back. He was polite and gracious. He pulled off my underpants and gave them to my mother.

 

My bedroom opened again. It was my brother. No one knocks in this house.

He said, "Hey, were in my room again going through my shit?"

I sat up and said, "No, I wasn't."

He gave me a dirty look and before leaving, said, "Faggot." and slammed the door.

 

Captain Jack Sparrow looked at me and said, "Sorry, I spent all of my gold buying you. I can't afford going around buying underpants for just anybody. I followed him naked back to the ship.

 

I pulled the front of my underpants down and looked at my penis. I said to myself, "Wow, where did that come from?"

It was a boner. Well, not a very big one but a boner none the less. I got up and put on a CD with some DDR music to dance to.

 

The stage manager said to me, "Rainbow, you're on in two minutes! Quick! Take off your underpants and put on your head set mic."

 

This was my "It's all about me." National tour!

 

I jumped off my bed and ran out to center stage. There were dancers in back of me and back-up singers over to the side. When I ran out front, the huge crowd jumped to their feet and screamed. There were flashing lights and the air filled with Mylar confetti! I did cart wheels and summersaults and turned around and showed them all my behind.

 

My bedroom door flew wide open. "RICHARD, turn that down!"

I jumped back on the bed and hid behind Hello Kitty. My Mother looked mad, but also confused.

Then she said, "Okay, that did it, you're going back to therapy! Now put some clothes on!" She turned and left.

Oh God am I bored...I don't care anymore

 

I still don't know what this boner thing is all about but sooner or later, I'm going to get to the bottom of it. I started to get dressed. Maybe if I go out I can get discovered! I think that is very important that I get on TV. What`ll probably happen is that I'll find someone to beat me up again. I must deserve it because it keeps happening. I only wish they would kidnap me too. Whatever they do with me it has to be better than this. God if I got kidnapped it would be in Nancy Grace and she would be calling for an Amber Alert!

 

"Be on the lookout for a very beautiful boy being held captive by a gang of convicted Catholic Priests that escaped from a supermax prison."

 

Nancy Grace would be begging the whole country to help.

 

"Poor Rainbow was kidnapped by a gang of killers and rapists. Now that she has been rescued she is in negotiations for a book deal and there is talk about a movie and possibly a mini-series."

 

Ooops, I meant, he has been rescued...Oh well.

 

I thought to myself, "God, what would that be like?"

I handed the man behind the counter money for two packs of Starburst, one tropical fruit and the other super sour. I noticed someone was breathing down my neck. I turned and looked. It was Freddy Connor. He hates me and everything I stand for. I have no idea why. He's not buying anything; he's just following me around the store trying to make my life miserable.

He keeps bumping up against me and so nobody else except him and me can hear, he says, "Faggot!"

When we got outside he said, "You're a fuckin little faggot, you know that? People like you should be killed."

Since he's not the only one who calls me that, I guess he might be right for all I know.

You make me wanna puke! I'm going to kick you faggy little ass!"

He is joined by his equally mean and jerky friend, Warren. Two against one is completely fair in their rule book so I run. It's the only real edge I have over them is that I can run very fast and I can run forever. When I was sure I had left them far behind, I sought refuge in Blockbuster. That was good for a half an hour at least.

I wonder if it really possible to become a cartoon? Everything there is funny all the time and nothing terrible ever happens. I would go from cartoon to cartoon making friends with all my favorite characters. There are some movies I like. I would like to live with Edward Scissorhands. He looks like Jonny Depp too.

I picked up a catalog and headed out the door. This was not my day because I ran right into Freddy and Warren and another guy. Warren grabbed me and Freddy moved up for an intimidating face to face.

"You fuckin little fairy!" I tried to break away and Warren kneed me in my butt.

I have no idea why, but they were pissed and they meant business. Warren was holding me and Freddy was getting ready to punch me in the stomach. I looked and Freddy's face suddenly looked twisted and scrounged up. The third kid that was there with them dropped his mountain bike and now had Freddy in a head lock. He looked up at Warren and said your next. I started and started to run. When I looked back, Freddy was on the ground and Warren on the other side of the street. The kid that did it was more like an older teenager. He had longer black hair and a red bandana headband. I cautiously walked closer. He was smiling. Freddy got up and stormed off like he was really mad.

He called out to me, "If those two assholes bother you again, you fuckin tell me about it."

Nothing like this had ever happened to me before. My whole life I was getting beat up and running. When I got closer I saw that he had a silver septum ring in his nose. When he opened his mouth I could see that his tongue was pierced too. His eyes were dark and lips were full pouty in a defiant way.

He picked his bike back up and got on it just for something to sit on. Warren and Freddy were way down the block getting further away.

He said, "What's your name?"

I have no idea why I did it but I told him my name was Richard.

Then I said, "I mean, it's really Rainbow."

He nodded, "I like that better."

I said, "What's yours?"

"He said, "Mark but Marko is fine."

He looked like he was studying me like he was looking for something wrong about me.

He asked, "How old are you anyway?"

I told him that I would be twelve in a couple of weeks. I asked him how old he was.

He said, "Sixteen."

He did look almost like an adult. I guess I would have just walked off but he kept talking to me.

He said, "You gay?"

I didn't know what to say because most people that asked me anything like that we making fun of me or they were curious like I was a circus freak. I shrugged my shoulders and gave him a super goofy smile.

He leaned towards me a little and said, "It nothing to be ashamed of, everyone is different."

I was caught off guard by that because nobody says anything good about being gay.

He continued, "Well, which is it, are you gay or not gay?"

When he put it that way, I didn't really know. I mean I sort of thought I might be but I didn't really know what being gay was?

In an effort to be honest and with wide eyes, I said, "I really don't know?"

He smiled and said, "Well, if you were, I'd still like you."

He looked both ways and then said, "If you want, I'll give you are ride home on my bike."

From the very start, I was really liked Marko. I shrugged my shoulders again and smiled.

"Hop on."

I got up on the bike and sat on the seat. Marko stood up behind me and started peddling.

He said close to my ear, "You on ok."

I shook my head yes. When he peddled, he went up and down behind me. He was much bigger than me. When he went up, his chest and stomach rubbed up my back. When he went down while he peddled, his stomach and chest rubbed down my back. I didn't move away like when a stranger touches you because I like it. We rode fast down the hill.

He whispered in my ear. "Rainbow, you are so cute."

 

Continued only upon request.... jet2larkin [ at ] g mail [d o t ] com

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