Anna's Decision

pte

to. He had a transistor that a scrap dealer had given him, after he had sold him all kinds of wires, toy boxes

o embarrass myself on the street. I lived like an artist, with applause, admirers and fans,

n't as drunk as usual. To tell the truth, it was the first tim

he matter

, she's

? No!

ancer. He didn't smoke, he didn't drink, he hadn't merited death. The doctors had talked about probabilities, quality of life, treatments. But one day he disappeared, a

I didn't need to see my reflection to know it. We keep a bit of every look, every

lothes to throw away. I was showering thanks to Redman, who

e, but I don't wan

ll end up ruined

ncil has said that...Well, the

rant it to me,' I waile

thing, they say it's not their job. You know the "I work f

want sy

t the ticke

cause self-assurance lasted unti

The Waste Land", by Thomas Stern

ts called to see if th

y coming all t

er to negotiate with. She

adduced, holding back a veiled

k soon,' I caugh

he

ent for a

Ju

o until then? 'Take advantage of my contract as a musician. Find a room. '

ed Redman to show me a picture, to which he had happily agreed. 'Blonde, like Rachel and like me, light-eyed. I was all o

A dark-skinned boy, wearing a trench coat of the same color and

n't loo

this

as most stupid. Sh

at was m

ha

om my house. We cou

eally

ked hi

don't h

ck walked past us. They stopped, expressed their

time. For the second time I was free of them. Only a sli

?", I was te

memories in my head. Her crawling form under the sheets accom

thought about her and the images of both of them naked were grotesque to me. I started to touch myself, but was

ife and son, who were in Romania. I knew the story, the yellow photos and old Bill's frustrated

xcited, even more by the thought of Erika protesting about our idyll, a fiura emerged strongly on the scene. Harlan, the Indian - was he the one who had called out to me in the distance at the funeral? I squeezed my nipples an