Ellinor was really wound up.
âI wonder what would happen if they shut down all the TV stations for a couple of weeks, and at the same time saw to it that people couldnât drink any alcohol. Then at least the ones who didnât go right out and hang themselves would be forced to react to what the hell is going on.â
No matter how much Maj-Britt disliked using the telephone, soon there would be no other alternative; she had to ring the office and get this girl replaced. She had never had to do that before. They had always seen fit to leave on their own.
The thought of a mandatory telephone conversation made her even angrier.
âMaybe you should apply to join them. With those clothes you wouldnât even have to change.â
It was quiet for a moment, and Maj-Britt kept watching the TV.
âWhy would you say something like that?â
It was hard to tell whether she sounded angry or sad, and Maj-Britt went on.
âIf you ever passed by a mirror and glanced at yourself then you wouldnât have to ask such a dumb question.â
âSo whatâs wrong with my clothes, in your opinion?â
âWhat clothes? I havenât worn my glasses in so long that unfortunately I havenât been able to see any.â
It was quiet again. Maj-Britt would have liked to see if her words had hit home, but refrained. On the TV the credits had begun to roll. The programme was sponsored by NorLevo, a morning-after pill supplier.
âCan I ask you one thing?â
Ellinorâs voice sounded different now.
Maj-Britt sighed.
âI have a hard time believing that I could actually stop you.â
âDo you enjoy being so mean, or is it only because you feel youâre such a failure?â
Maj-Britt felt to her dismay that she was blushing. This was outrageous. No one had ever talked back to her before. Nobody had dared. And to presume that she regarded herself as a failure was an insult that could get this loathsome little person sacked.
Maj-Britt turned up the volume with the remote. She had absolutely no reason to reply to an insult.
âIâm proud of my body and I donât think thereâs any reason to try and hide it. I think I look great in this shirt, if thatâs whatâs making you so upset.â
Maj-Britt still didnât shift her gaze from the TV.
âWell, itâs up to you whether you want to walk around looking like a whore.â
âRight. Just like itâs up to each of us to decide whether to lock ourselves in a flat and try to eat ourselves to death. But that doesnât mean that a person has no brain. Or what do you think?â
That was the last thing either of them said that day. And it annoyed Maj-Britt to bursting point that Ellinor had had the last word.
As soon as she was alone she called the pizza delivery.
   Â
Six days had passed since she sent her reply. Six days to let her feeling of repugnance slowly but surely fade away; or at least it no longer bothered her more than she could stand. She had enough to think about with being annoyed at Ellinor. But then one morning she again heard a noise in her useless letter basket, and before the flap on the letter-box snapped shut she knew that it was another letter from Vanja. She could feel it through the whole flat; she didnât even have to go to the door to have it confirmed.
She let the letter lie there, and avoided looking towards the door when she passed by in the hall. But then Ellinor arrived, of course, and beaming with happiness she stuck it right under Maj-Brittâs nose.
âLook! Youâve got a letter!â
She didnât want to touch it. Ellinor put it on the table in the living room, and there it lay while Ellinor cleaned and Maj-Britt sat silently in the easy chair, pretending it wasnât there.
âArenât you going to read it?â
âWhyâs that? Do you want to know whatâs in it?â
Ellinor kept cleaning and
âI wonder what would happen if they shut down all the TV stations for a couple of weeks, and at the same time saw to it that people couldnât drink any alcohol. Then at least the ones who didnât go right out and hang themselves would be forced to react to what the hell is going on.â
No matter how much Maj-Britt disliked using the telephone, soon there would be no other alternative; she had to ring the office and get this girl replaced. She had never had to do that before. They had always seen fit to leave on their own.
The thought of a mandatory telephone conversation made her even angrier.
âMaybe you should apply to join them. With those clothes you wouldnât even have to change.â
It was quiet for a moment, and Maj-Britt kept watching the TV.
âWhy would you say something like that?â
It was hard to tell whether she sounded angry or sad, and Maj-Britt went on.
âIf you ever passed by a mirror and glanced at yourself then you wouldnât have to ask such a dumb question.â
âSo whatâs wrong with my clothes, in your opinion?â
âWhat clothes? I havenât worn my glasses in so long that unfortunately I havenât been able to see any.â
It was quiet again. Maj-Britt would have liked to see if her words had hit home, but refrained. On the TV the credits had begun to roll. The programme was sponsored by NorLevo, a morning-after pill supplier.
âCan I ask you one thing?â
Ellinorâs voice sounded different now.
Maj-Britt sighed.
âI have a hard time believing that I could actually stop you.â
âDo you enjoy being so mean, or is it only because you feel youâre such a failure?â
Maj-Britt felt to her dismay that she was blushing. This was outrageous. No one had ever talked back to her before. Nobody had dared. And to presume that she regarded herself as a failure was an insult that could get this loathsome little person sacked.
Maj-Britt turned up the volume with the remote. She had absolutely no reason to reply to an insult.
âIâm proud of my body and I donât think thereâs any reason to try and hide it. I think I look great in this shirt, if thatâs whatâs making you so upset.â
Maj-Britt still didnât shift her gaze from the TV.
âWell, itâs up to you whether you want to walk around looking like a whore.â
âRight. Just like itâs up to each of us to decide whether to lock ourselves in a flat and try to eat ourselves to death. But that doesnât mean that a person has no brain. Or what do you think?â
That was the last thing either of them said that day. And it annoyed Maj-Britt to bursting point that Ellinor had had the last word.
As soon as she was alone she called the pizza delivery.
   Â
Six days had passed since she sent her reply. Six days to let her feeling of repugnance slowly but surely fade away; or at least it no longer bothered her more than she could stand. She had enough to think about with being annoyed at Ellinor. But then one morning she again heard a noise in her useless letter basket, and before the flap on the letter-box snapped shut she knew that it was another letter from Vanja. She could feel it through the whole flat; she didnât even have to go to the door to have it confirmed.
She let the letter lie there, and avoided looking towards the door when she passed by in the hall. But then Ellinor arrived, of course, and beaming with happiness she stuck it right under Maj-Brittâs nose.
âLook! Youâve got a letter!â
She didnât want to touch it. Ellinor put it on the table in the living room, and there it lay while Ellinor cleaned and Maj-Britt sat silently in the easy chair, pretending it wasnât there.
âArenât you going to read it?â
âWhyâs that? Do you want to know whatâs in it?â
Ellinor kept cleaning and
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