My Word-of-the-Day Challenge

Directions: Use the Word of the Day from Merriam-Webster.com from the month of August in a scene; each day’s post must be a continuation of the previous day’s post.

Word count limit: 150 words

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August 1, 2021, Merriam-Webster Word of the Day: Pulchritude (n.)

Definition:

• physical comeliness
• The verb pulchrify (a synonym of beautify), the noun pulchritudeness (same meaning as pulchritude), and the adjective pulchrous (meaning “fair or beautiful”)

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At 6’5″, Bjorn Rackham dwarfed all other persons milling around the noisy fish market. Massive arms folded tightly in an aged leather jacket, he leaned on a lamp post, looking over the heads of a pair of vendors selling plump red snapper to a flurry of customers. He didn’t blend well with the scene but he didn’t need to.

His dirty blond hair was trimmed closely on the sides and left medium length on top, combed back away from robin’s egg blue eyes that followed a pulchrous man with short dark hair and glasses.

The man was a flawless, if not chilling, representation of a monster browsing gladsomely among a sea of incognizant prey.

Bjorn observed the man exchange words and smiles with an optimistic tuna vendor. The man then flicked a backward glance at Bjorn, offering a tainted, altogether different kind of smile.

word count: 144