Flush Dolls

"Yes." Carroll let go of my chin, and his answer seemed casual.  "More beautiful than Euna?" I asked. "Yes." This response was perfunctory. I didn't give up. "Prettier than Odette?" "Yes." With a faint smile, Carroll was patient for my questions. I thought for a moment and then asked, "Well, more beautiful than your ex-girlfriends, those celebrities?" "Much more. You are the most beautiful animal I have ever seen." "Really?" I turned my head, looked at my reflection in the car window, and moved my face to enjoy my peerless beauty from all angles. The car drove past a shopping mall, and there were claw machines behind those French windows of it. A row of crimson machines stood there neatly, and there were all kinds of plush toys. Against the dreamy light, that place seemed like a fairyland to me. Never had I seen this wonder, so my eyes lit up.  "Like it?" Carroll leaned over and pushed me to a corner in the backseat.  The claw machines got all my attention, so I didn't notice the light