White: Queen’s Bishop c1>d2

The clacking of therapist Zofia Kowalzik’s high heels on the sidewalk added to the hypnotic rhythm of the city streets, which seemed as though they were calling forth for adventure, excitement, and romance. At least, that was what Ms. Kowlzik was hoping she would find as she looked out from her thin, transparent-rimmed glasses. She had a youthful face framed by wavy dark brown hair which contrasted her fair skin, crimson lips, and piercing blue eyes. She was adorned with an elegant yet conservative black suit-skirt and white blouse. Her hopes had developed an air of quiet desperation as she stood to approach the age of thirty, yet for all her professional gains, she could never shake up the feeling that she was getting passed up by friends who had engaged, married, and had families.

Zofia’s clientele were primarily local young women who had a lot in common with her, being mostly foreign-born and far from home brought here for study as Zofia had been from her native Poland. By happenstance, she spotted one of her newest clients, Ingrid, who had a sweet smile on her face as she was approached by a suspicious-looking black man. Zofia knew through her last session with Ingrid that she didn’t have any black acquaintances, which was one of the issues she was worrying about the most, as her greatest fear was coming to be believed to be a racist which had caused no shortage of social anxiety. Zofia hadn’t picked up the slightest hint that Ingrid harbored any prejudice, and by her body language now, no such suggestion was apparent. If anything, it seemed to Zofia that Ingrid was helplessly naïve and ill-equipped to handle a man who could use her fear against her.

Zofia stopped in her tracks and observed the conversation with rapt attention, anyone who didn’t know better would either think that she fancied the man or that she was gaining some kind of a voyeuristic thrill at seeing him approach the young, innocent Swede. Zofia thought about her clients – how many of them had been charmed out of their knickers and onto their backs by roguish strangers which caused their lives to progress calamitously. It’s these cautionary stories that made Zofia opt out of pursuing romance, but as she watched Ingrid start batting her eyes and shifting about nervously in response to the man’s approach, Zofia wondered if what she was really feeling wasn’t concern for Ingrid’s well-being, but jealousy.

The man glanced in Zofia’s direction and tracked his eyes up and down her smooth legs and luscious D-cup breasts, then smiled and redirected his attention back to Ingrid. Zofie felt as though she had been called out for gawking and an embarrassed blush crept onto her face. As the black man began to show Ingrid a map that he was holding, Zofia considered making an approach to intervene in what she feared would be Ingrid’s seduction.

(Link to board: https://lichess.org/editor/rnb1kbnr/pp1p2pp/2p1p3/q4p2/P1PP4/5N2/1P1BPPPP/RN1QKB1R_bKQkq-_0_1?color=white))