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Authors: Regina Doman
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high school, I started going to this one acupuncturist, and it got me interested. The Army—I’m in the National Guard, by the way—will pay for med school, but they probably won’t pay for say, acupuncture training.”
“What’s acupuncture again?” Rose asked, as they sat back down at the table.
“Also not a proper topic for meal conversation,” Leroy said. “Ask him some other time, and he’ll tell you all about it.”
“What, Leroy? Are you grossed out by the thought of having sixteen-inch pins stuck all over your body?” Alex asked, munching potato chips.
“It’s not what I want to think about right now,” Leroy said.
“But really, it’s fascinating,” Paul insisted, but Rose could see that there was a mischievous glint in his brown eyes. “They’re actually needles, and they’re not inserted into the skin terribly far. Most people barely feel them...”
“Speaking of pins and needles, I like sewing,” Rose said, raising her voice a bit. “Quite a lot.”
The company groaned. “You just reminded us that you’re a girl,” Alex said. “Stop right there or we’ll run away screaming ‘Cooties.’ Back to something sensible. If you want to talk Asian, let’s talk about Godzilla. We never did see that movie you got, Paul. When are you going to bring it out?”
H IS
There had been a call from his lawyer that afternoon, with news Fish didn’t enjoy hearing.
“I realize that you’re in school just now,” his lawyer had said. “Is it too difficult for you to make the trip?”
“No, I’ll come,” he said, rubbing his temples, where he could feel a headache already beginning.
After hanging up, he got up and tried to return to the paper he had been writing. But what his mind wouldn’t think about, his body traitorously wouldn’t forget. Soon he had to get up and go searching for aspirin.
“Hell,” he said to the wall in the bathroom. It was a fairly apt description, not a curse.
After he had paced around the house restlessly, he gave up, grabbed his rock climbing backpack, a few other things, and took off for the woods.
He knotted his rope to a strong branch at the top of a cliff and slid down to the bottom, thirty feet below. This cliff face was particularly challenging, and he had never made it up before. Since he was working alone, he had an extra safety rope.
Painstakingly, he worked with his toes and fingers to find holds in the rock, and began inching his way upwards. He fell only once, near the bottom, and the ropes caught him. He swore more than he needed to, and started again.
...You’re not worth much, boy. Wouldn’t get more than five dollars in Times Square in the old days...
The fragment of past conversation flew out at him as a pebble he had dislodged hit him in the face. He frowned and tried to clamp his memory down by taking a more difficult way. But he found he only got more frustrated.
When he got halfway up, he realized he was at an impasse—the part where the rock jutted out above his head. He couldn’t get any further without risking another fall. Relentlessly, he tried to work around it, ignoring the obvious, and soon found himself swinging in midair at the end of his ropes. He turned to catch himself with his hands before he smashed into the cliff face and steadied himself. No, this was not his day. It was getting dark, too. He gave up.
No good, boy. Still no good.
He couldn’t go home yet. Packing up his gear, he trekked further into the forest, pressing on through the dark woods. At last, weary and getting chilly in the autumn night, he stopped and turned back home. He had to live with it, somehow. He had to go on.
Hers
Rose tried on three different outfits without making up her mind, and finally resorted to raiding Kateri’s closet before she found the perfect sweater. Pulling it on, she gathered up her books and looked around at her tiny dorm room before leaving. It was a mess, a real mess. She groaned. Kateri was a
“What’s acupuncture again?” Rose asked, as they sat back down at the table.
“Also not a proper topic for meal conversation,” Leroy said. “Ask him some other time, and he’ll tell you all about it.”
“What, Leroy? Are you grossed out by the thought of having sixteen-inch pins stuck all over your body?” Alex asked, munching potato chips.
“It’s not what I want to think about right now,” Leroy said.
“But really, it’s fascinating,” Paul insisted, but Rose could see that there was a mischievous glint in his brown eyes. “They’re actually needles, and they’re not inserted into the skin terribly far. Most people barely feel them...”
“Speaking of pins and needles, I like sewing,” Rose said, raising her voice a bit. “Quite a lot.”
The company groaned. “You just reminded us that you’re a girl,” Alex said. “Stop right there or we’ll run away screaming ‘Cooties.’ Back to something sensible. If you want to talk Asian, let’s talk about Godzilla. We never did see that movie you got, Paul. When are you going to bring it out?”
H IS
There had been a call from his lawyer that afternoon, with news Fish didn’t enjoy hearing.
“I realize that you’re in school just now,” his lawyer had said. “Is it too difficult for you to make the trip?”
“No, I’ll come,” he said, rubbing his temples, where he could feel a headache already beginning.
After hanging up, he got up and tried to return to the paper he had been writing. But what his mind wouldn’t think about, his body traitorously wouldn’t forget. Soon he had to get up and go searching for aspirin.
“Hell,” he said to the wall in the bathroom. It was a fairly apt description, not a curse.
After he had paced around the house restlessly, he gave up, grabbed his rock climbing backpack, a few other things, and took off for the woods.
He knotted his rope to a strong branch at the top of a cliff and slid down to the bottom, thirty feet below. This cliff face was particularly challenging, and he had never made it up before. Since he was working alone, he had an extra safety rope.
Painstakingly, he worked with his toes and fingers to find holds in the rock, and began inching his way upwards. He fell only once, near the bottom, and the ropes caught him. He swore more than he needed to, and started again.
...You’re not worth much, boy. Wouldn’t get more than five dollars in Times Square in the old days...
The fragment of past conversation flew out at him as a pebble he had dislodged hit him in the face. He frowned and tried to clamp his memory down by taking a more difficult way. But he found he only got more frustrated.
When he got halfway up, he realized he was at an impasse—the part where the rock jutted out above his head. He couldn’t get any further without risking another fall. Relentlessly, he tried to work around it, ignoring the obvious, and soon found himself swinging in midair at the end of his ropes. He turned to catch himself with his hands before he smashed into the cliff face and steadied himself. No, this was not his day. It was getting dark, too. He gave up.
No good, boy. Still no good.
He couldn’t go home yet. Packing up his gear, he trekked further into the forest, pressing on through the dark woods. At last, weary and getting chilly in the autumn night, he stopped and turned back home. He had to live with it, somehow. He had to go on.
Hers
Rose tried on three different outfits without making up her mind, and finally resorted to raiding Kateri’s closet before she found the perfect sweater. Pulling it on, she gathered up her books and looked around at her tiny dorm room before leaving. It was a mess, a real mess. She groaned. Kateri was a
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