Piazza Mattina<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Franco smoked a cigarette, Milos next to him repeatedly smoothed his finger across his eyebrow, looking into the centre of the square.\u00a0 A grey-stained travertine fountain, a sculpture of a horse with large, open wings from it\u2019s shoulders, reared back between two dolphins posed diving from the pool, jets of water from the horse\u2019s mouth and the dolphin\u2019s snouts.\u00a0 Across from Franco, Nico looked up from the morning paper, a woman wearing a black dress, drinking coffee at another table.\u00a0 She raised her arms and touched the edge of the red umbrella shade above her, stretched her back and shoulders.\u00a0 The fabric of her dress pulled across her chest, the sun on the side of her face.\u00a0 Nico slid his hand inside the top of his shirt, pressed his fingers into the side of his neck and shoulder, nodded toward her.\u00a0 Franco turned, his arm across the back of Milos\u2019 chair.\u00a0 A light breeze caught a flake of ash from his cigarette, floated down onto his black t-shirt.\u00a0 He brushed it off.\u00a0 Nico pushed his coffee cup to one side, laid the paper flat on the table, started reading.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cA man shot himself in the hand, hoping that his ex-girlfriend would be impressed and take him back.\u00a0 He attracted city police attention after the man, twenty four years old, went to the hospital with a bullet wound to his left hand, which he at first attributed to a shooting accident while hunting deer.\u00a0 When questioned further, the man admitted that he had shot himself in the hope of winning back his ex-girlfriend, eighteen years old, after she broke up with him.\u00a0 He told police he had made the decision to shoot himself out of desperation.\u00a0 The man’s hand is expected to heal, and the injuries are not life threatening.\u00a0 Local reports state the man’s ex-girlfriend was not impressed, saying that she would not take him back.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Franco looked up, stroked along his throat with the tips of his thumb and forefinger.\u00a0 \u201cWhy would you shoot yourself in the hand?\u00a0 I don\u2019t get it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cA girl told me to stand on a thumb tack once, so I guess its similar.\u201d said Milos.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWhy did she tell you to do that?\u201d Franco asked.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cShe said she\u2019d kiss me if I did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cHow old were you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cFive.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cDid you do it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Milos nodded.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cAnd did she kiss you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWell, it must have been nice to get a kiss.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Nico lifted the paper, lined the top of the pages with the top of the woman\u2019s black dress, followed the curving shape of her chest.\u00a0 \u201cIs that girl still staying with you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWhich one?\u201d Franco asked.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThe short one.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cNo, she\u2019s gone.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWill you see her again?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t think so.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cDidn\u2019t she model for you Milos?\u201d Nico asked.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Milos nodded.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cDo you sleep with your models?\u201d Franco asked.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cSome of them, not always.\u00a0 I never intend to.\u00a0 I had a model tell me that it\u2019s a turn-on to be painted.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cLike how?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Milos took a cigarette from a packet on the table.\u00a0 \u201cShe said she was frustrated at the painting because it took my attention away from her, because she was naked yet I wasn\u2019t really focussing on her.\u00a0 So she refused to let me continue unless I slept with her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cAnd did you?\u201d Nico asked.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWas that good?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cIt was very intense, but a bit empty afterwards.\u00a0 And it didn’t feel right.\u00a0 It felt very mechanical, like she was using me.\u00a0 I just wanted her to go.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t even finish painting her.\u201d\u00a0 He lit the cigarette, followed the water falling from the horse\u2019s mouth into the pool of water at the base of the fountain.\u00a0 The sound of the flowing water echoed on off-white stone buildings enclosing the wide, stone paved square.\u00a0 People walking, talking among themselves, the hum and murmur of morning conversations.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Nico lowered the paper again, looked at the top of the woman\u2019s legs.\u00a0 The line of her black dress contrasted her white skin.\u00a0 Franco threw his cigarette on the ground, rubbed his forefinger under his nose, the strong smell of tobacco.\u00a0 He watched a teenage girl walking hand in hand with her boyfriend along the front of the cafe.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Milos called over the waiter and asked for a pen.\u00a0 He opened out a white, paper serviette on the table, drawing rhythmical arabesques, the cigarette in his drawing hand.\u00a0 \u201cI had a dream last night.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWhat was it?\u201d asked Franco.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Milos sat back, turned the serviette round in ninety degree increments, screwed it into a ball.\u00a0 \u201cI was in this house filled with stuffed horse heads on plaques, and I took one and went down to a beach and starting running around naked, thinking that I was riding this horse, but it was just a head.\u00a0 Then I took it down to the sea and started washing it, and there were these people telling me not to eat it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWhat do you think it means?\u00a0 It\u2019s quite surreal.\u201d Franco asked.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t know.\u00a0 It\u2019s just a dream.\u201d Milos said.\u00a0 \u201cWhy did she leave?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThe girl?\u00a0 We spent a few days in bed or drinking, and then last night we just ended up sitting there saying nothing.\u00a0 When I got up this morning she was gone, left a note to say thanks and that she had to go.\u00a0 That was it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cDid you like her?\u201d Nico asked.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cSo-so.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWell, better sooner than later then.\u201d Nico replied.\u00a0 The woman in black glanced across at him, her black hair back in a ponytail, light red lipstick on her lips.\u00a0 She licked froth from her top lip.\u00a0 Nico tried a smile, the woman turned and looked the other way.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The sound of birds taking off all at once, Milos watched an old man riding a bicycle quickly passed the fountain.\u00a0 On the south side of the square, the pillared entrance of an old library, a man sat on the steps wearing black jeans and a white t-shirt, playing acoustic guitar.\u00a0 He watched the birds fly into the air.\u00a0 A young woman in tight blue jeans and a black top sat on the steps near to him, reading, put the book flat on her lap to listen to him play.\u00a0 Milos tapped Franco on the shoulder, pointed at the man.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Franco smiled and laughed, then stood up.\u00a0 \u201cSo what\u2019s on for the rest of the day?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cNot sure.\u00a0 But there\u2019s a party tonight.\u201d Milos said.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cAt the Albergo Constante.\u00a0 Raf knows about it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Franco took some coins from his pocket and dropped them beside his coffee cup.\u00a0 \u201cOkay.\u00a0 Well, I\u2019m going, but maybe see you tonight?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Milos leaned forward, tapped the ash of his cigarette in a glass ashtray on the table.\u00a0 \u201cSure.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Franco left them, walked by the woman in black, looked down, the top of her dress fitted tightly, shaped around her body.\u00a0 He walked across the west side of the square to be in the sun, looked up to open windows, boxes hung and filled with vibrantly bright marigolds.\u00a0 Window shutters being pushed open to the expansive light blue sky, a few thin, white clouds moving slowly.\u00a0 Outside a doorway, two old men in flat caps smoked pipes, arguing over a game of chess.<\/p>\n
_Calder, the Avalanches, Fontano<\/strong><\/p>\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Franco closed the door to his apartment, took off his shoes, tucked them under a metal spiral staircase to the left leading up to a mezzanine floor.\u00a0 The sound of the air conditioning in the ceiling, air blowing through a wall duct.\u00a0 He went into the kitchen space, opened the fridge and took a bottle of mineral water, unscrewed the cap, a sudden burst of gaseous fizz.\u00a0 He poured a glass.\u00a0 As he drank, he looked over the long, high ceiling apartment.\u00a0 Two square-armed, white couches opposite each other in the lounge space on the other side of a black marble bench, a glass coffee table between them on a thick white rug.\u00a0 Behind the couch to the left, a large, unframed canvas hung on the white painted wall, the black outline of a faceless female nude holding an open black box, painted on a solid background of carmine red, the contents of the box hidden from view.\u00a0 Behind the couch to the right, a medium sized, black framed canvas covered with a mix of cardinal and dark red oil paint, defined by multi-directional, textured brush strokes.\u00a0 At the far end of the apartment, an open study with an oak writing desk and matching rectangular oak stool in the middle of the floor, an oak shelving unit to the left filled with a mixture of records, books, CDs, stereo, small pictures, a cardboard slot-together model of Calder\u2019s The Big Bird<\/em>.\u00a0 To the right of the study, the double-height white painted wall continued uninterrupted.\u00a0 Natural wood strip floors laid running to a pair of French doors, red curtains drawn back.\u00a0 Franco walked over and pushed both doors open, a warm breeze from outside filled the apartment with a refreshing, light airiness.\u00a0 He went to the oak shelves and turned on the stereo.\u00a0 Two Hearts in 3\/4 Time, <\/em>the Avalanches.\u00a0<\/p>\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Through the open doors, a stone balcony with a simple iron balustrade, a one meter continuation of the interior hanging above a narrow street.\u00a0 An apartment directly across with an identical balcony shaded from the morning sun, the balcony doors open, white net curtains blown by the gentle breeze.\u00a0 Franco watched and waited.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Nothing changed.\u00a0 He went over to the desk and sat on the stool, straightened his back, looked at a framed postcard, Fontana’s Concetto Spaziale Attesa<\/em>.\u00a0 A long slit in a red canvas, the edges of the slit pushed inward revealing darkness inside.\u00a0 He took a fountain pen and pad of writing paper from a drawer in the desk, drew on the centre of the pad, light strokes, crossed lines, hatched bars.<\/p>\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 A telephone on the wall next to the apartment door rang three times.\u00a0 He got up and answered it.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cHello?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cFranco, it’s Raf.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s up?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cNot much.\u00a0 What are you doing tonight?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cNot sure.\u00a0 Milos said something about a party.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYep, that\u2019s right.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWho\u2019s is it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cA friend of mine.\u00a0 You\u2019d like to meet her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cOkay, sounds interesting.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cIs that girl still staying with you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cSo it\u2019s just you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cGood.\u00a0 I\u2019ll come over later.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cOkay.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Franco hung up, laid down on the couch beneath the solid red painting, shut his eyes.\u00a0 His ear against a white cushion, he listened to the sound of the air conditioning, continuous and unchanging, overlaid by the sound of the red curtains flapping in the breeze and the sound of the music.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n_Pink on white<\/strong><\/p>\n\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 From the moment the doors to his apartment opened, Ynes moved to hide behind the white net curtains, her body against the wooden door frame, one eye peeking into his apartment, her cheeks flushed, pink on white.\u00a0 She watched him answer the telephone, then fall asleep on the couch.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n_The Albergo Constante<\/strong><\/p>\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Franco woke at six thirty in the evening.\u00a0 He went into the bathroom, went to toilet, washed his hands and face, brushed his hair, came back out to the kitchen and made himself a small antipasto of bruschetta, mortadella, olives, pepperoncini, provolone and anchovies, topped with olive oil and cracked pepper.\u00a0 The balcony doors still open, the end of a breeze across the backs of his arms and neck, splitting the fading heat of early evening.\u00a0 He turned and looked at the shade across his balcony, sun hitting the closed doors of the apartment across the street.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Just before seven, the buzz of the intercom.\u00a0 Franco pressed the button to release the front door, left the apartment door on the latch.\u00a0 The sound of footsteps coming up the stairs, Raf entered wearing a grey suit with a high collared white shirt, the top two buttons undone, the grey lapels of the jacket cut low and pulled tight around his sides by a single black button, tight-fitted matching grey pants over the tops of black leather boots.\u00a0 His brown hair cut and styled into a nuova-pompadour.\u00a0 He raised his head to Franco, walked over and took an olive from the white plate, popped it into his mouth, chewed, took the stone from between his lips and dropped it on the black marble bench-top.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ve been sleeping?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Franco nodded.\u00a0 \u201cAll afternoon.\u00a0 I woke up half an hour ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYou were up late last night?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYeah.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThe girl?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYeah.\u00a0 She left this morning.\u00a0 I\u2019m going to get changed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cOkay.\u00a0 I\u2019ll fix some drinks.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Franco went up the spiral staircase to the mezzanine.\u00a0 Raf opened a cupboard next to the fridge, took a bottle of Cinzano Bianco, poured two small glasses, drank both, poured two more.\u00a0 He carried one glass with him into the lounge, across to the oak shelves, looked through the CDs.\u00a0 Vampire Weekend, Back To Mine, Feist, Kistune Maison, K&D, Gotan Project, Vivaldi, Lhasa De Sela.\u00a0 He pulled out Le Quattro Stagioni<\/em>, dark green and white Gill Sans lettering over translucent, light green and white tones on the cover.\u00a0 He slid the CD back on the shelf, pulled out Lhasa De Sela, loaded the CD into the player, skipped forward, pressed play.\u00a0 De Carla a Pered.<\/em>\u00a0 Sat on the back of the couch he faced the painting of the red girl, stared at the black box, stood up, his face close to the surface of the painting.\u00a0 The featureless face looking down at him.\u00a0 He smiled at her, sipped his drink, listened to the dismal voice in the gypsy-like music.\u00a0 At Franco\u2019s desk, he picked up a fountain pen, wrote a single word on a pad.<\/p>\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Fuck<\/em><\/p>\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He put the pen down, ripped the page from the pad and covered it with his hand, looked up to the red girl.\u00a0 \u201cYou show me yours, I\u2019ll show you mine?\u201d\u00a0 He waited and laughed, folded the page in half and put it in his pocket, went to the bathroom, shut the door, locking it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The entire wall above a white porcelain sink covered with a mirror, Raf turned on the hot water tap, vaporous steam rising.\u00a0 He leaned forward and stared at the reflection of his dark brown eyes.\u00a0 In the mirror, in his eyes, a smaller version of himself, a reflection of his reflection in the centre of his dark pupils, dissipating twists of vapor rose between his face and the surface of the mirror.\u00a0 He opened his mouth, smiled and licked his teeth.\u00a0 He turned on the cold tap and mixed lukewarm water, washed his hands using a bar of cherry soap.\u00a0 A knock on the bathroom door.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m pouring more drinks.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Raf turned off the tap, dried his hands, went back out.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Franco dressed in dark blue jeans, black leather shoes, a dark green polo t-shirt, a black leather bracelet on his left wrist.\u00a0 He picked at the antipasto on the kitchen bench-top, passed a glass of Cinzano to Raf.\u00a0 The music changed. \u00a0Close to me<\/em>, The Cure.\u00a0 \u201cSo, who\u2019s this girl?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cA friend of mine.\u201d\u00a0 Raf replied.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI know, you already told me that on the phone.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cDrink your drink.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 They both drank.\u00a0 Raf reached for the bottle, poured more.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cBut she\u2019s nice?\u201d Franco asked.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI told you that on the phone too.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYou said I\u2019d like to meet her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWell, there you go.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Raf looked over at the picture of the red girl holding the box.\u00a0 Outside, the sound of a car horn echoed along the narrow street.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cTaxi.\u201d Franco said.\u00a0 He picked up his keys and wallet from the bench-top.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 They finished their drinks and left.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 A white Fiat Oggi stopped at the end of street just before it narrowed.\u00a0 Raf climbed into the front, Franco in the back seat sat forward, his arm on the back of Raf\u2019s seat.\u00a0 The taxi driver crunched the gears into reverse, accelerated back without stopping to check for cars coming along Via Principale, pulled the hand-brake and turned the steering wheel.\u00a0 The car skidded and span through ninety degrees, the taxi driver crunched into first gear, accelerated forward.\u00a0 Franco fell back, laughing, Raf wedged one leg in the foot-well, his arm against the door, trying not to get flung around.\u00a0 The driver yanked the steering wheel with both hands, leaned into each corner, the window wound down, shouting at people crossing the street, at other drivers, beeping the horn.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 They turned into a side street, a row of three story houses along one side, a large, open park on the other, short kept green grass and gravel paths lined with green-leaved faggio trees.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cLa Grande Sosta\u201d said the taxi driver, pointing to the park.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Raf raised his head to a narrow house, a bronze plaque on a stone wall next to a blue wooden door, Albergo Constante<\/em>.\u00a0 \u201cThis is it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 A group of people congregated outside the hotel, several young men standing with a girl dressed in a light red, seven-eight coat, curly brown hair tinted red, with pouting red lips, bright blue eyes, thick features on her face delicately arranged on a canvas of pure white skin.\u00a0 All of them smoking cigarettes.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Franco leaned forward.\u00a0 \u201cDrop us off along the street a bit.\u00a0 I want to walk down.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The taxi driver nodded.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 They pulled over further down the street, Franco gave the driver a note and they got out.\u00a0 A girl wearing a black dress, overlapping layered bands of fabric from her hips down to the middle of her thighs shimmering with every step and the sway of her hips.\u00a0 She walked toward them, playfully bit her teeth at Raf and laughed.\u00a0 He turned his head with her, followed her body as she walked passed them toward the hotel.\u00a0 Franco put his hand around the back of Raf\u2019s neck, feeling short hairs.\u00a0 They looked at each other, burst out laughing.\u00a0 The taxi drove off.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The black dress shook all the way down the street in front of them, turned down a set of steps as the girl reached the hotel.\u00a0 An amalgamation of sounds swelling from the basement: loud music, people talking, laughter.\u00a0 Raf and Franco reached the group standing out on the street, the girl in the red seven-eight coat singing lines from a song:<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 summer in the city, means cleavage, cleavage, cleavage<\/em><\/p>\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 (pause, the girl takes a drag on her cigarette)<\/em><\/p>\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 la\u00a0 –\u00a0 la,\u00a0 la – la la la,\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 la\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 cleavage, cleavage, cleavage<\/em><\/p>\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cMan that chick is sexy.\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWho?\u201d asked one of the men wearing tight, dark-blue jeans and silver rimmed dark sunglasses.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThe chick who sings that song.\u201d the girl replied.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Raf and Franco raised their heads to them, turned down the stone steps to an open front door, went into a long room packed with people.\u00a0 Raf pushed his way through toward the middle of the room, someone grabbed his arm, threw their arms around his neck, kissed him on the cheek.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cHello sexy.\u201d\u00a0 A girl in a tight, white singlet, tight blue jeans, black hair, blue-grey eyes sparkling like smoky quartz. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cImilia, fuck you\u2019re hot.\u00a0 How did you get that hot?\u201d\u00a0 Raf smiled, kissed her cheek.\u00a0 \u201cHere, I want you to meet someone.\u201d\u00a0 He turned round to face a man in a purple corduroy baseball cap, a trimmed grey beard, talking to a girl dressed all in black, a smock top and jeans, a large brown fringe over bright blue eyes highlighted with silver liner.\u00a0 Raf smiled at them, they smiled back, continued talking to each other.\u00a0 \u201cSorry, looking for someone else.\u201d Raf said.\u00a0 He looked back to Imilia.\u00a0 \u201cLost him, never mind.\u00a0 There\u2019s a girl here wearing a black dress.\u00a0 Have seen her?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Imilia shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWell, I\u2019m going to get a drink.\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cLook out for Franco, my friend, the one I want you to meet.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cHow will I know him?\u201d Imilia asked, touched his side, felt his grey jacket, a soft wool blend.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cJust ask if he\u2019s called Franco.\u201d\u00a0 He walked off.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Toward the back of the room, steps led up to a half level.\u00a0 Purple silk drapes with elaborate Indian-style patterns hung from the ceiling, pulled across and tied to the walls.\u00a0 A DJ playing St\u00e9phane Pompougnac house, behind a table covered in a black sheet, a pair of decks, <\/strong>large speakers on the ground in front of the table.\u00a0 In the far corner of the half level, at the other side of a group of people, Nico and Milos with an Asian woman wearing a polka dot dress, a wide red belt high around her waist, black glasses, her black hair tied back in a ponytail, holding a glass of white wine.\u00a0 Milos saw Raf and waved him over.<\/p>\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cHey Raf, this is Jun-ko.\u201d\u00a0 Nico touched the side of the woman\u2019s arm, played with the short sleeves of her polka dot dress.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cNice to meet you.\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYou too.\u201d said Raf<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cJun-ko\u2019s having an exhibition at the Galleria le Cioccie e la Fica.\u201d Nico said.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cInteresting.\u00a0 You have some bits and pieces there?\u00a0 Is it going well?\u201d Raf asked.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYes.\u00a0 It went very well thanks, but it finished today, I was just telling Nico.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cAre you from here?\u201d Raf asked.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0 I\u2019m leaving tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cTo go home?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 She shook her head.\u00a0 \u201cNo.\u00a0 I\u2019m going to the coast for an exhibition at Galerie de Bite et des Boules.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cCool.\u00a0 Milos is a painter.\u201d Raf said, nodded to Milos.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI know, we were just talking about that as well.\u201d\u00a0 Jun-ko looked at Milos, back to Raf.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Raf nodded.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t suppose you\u2019ve seen a girl in a black dress?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Jun-ko shook her head.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cDo you know where I can get a drink?\u201d\u00a0 he asked.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 She pointed down the steps, a table with bottles of drink and glasses set up along the side wall.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThanks.\u00a0 Nice to talk to you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cSame.\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Raf bumped into Franco coming up the steps.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI lost you.\u201d Franco said.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYep.\u00a0 I\u2019m going to get a drink.\u00a0 Do you want anything?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Franco showed him the glass he was holding, Raf carried on down back into the crowded basement, Franco continued up, waved to Milos and Nico.\u00a0 He stood and watched the DJ mixing records, a grey haired man wearing a black jacket over a white t-shirt, light blue jeans, headphones on one ear, one record playing, he held and released the other, changing the speed control on a mixer, matching beats.\u00a0 A low stone wall at the edge of the half level, Franco stood watching people.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 A woman with large purple discs for earrings, her small head accentuated by short black hair scraped back, standing with a man with a large, pointed nose and ginger hair.\u00a0 She nodded her head as he talked, continued to nod when he stopped talking, turned frequently to look at a girl dressed in a tight, open backed red dress, a large dragon tattoo over her smoothly curved body.\u00a0 A man with long slick-back hair tucked behind his ears, backed up against a wall, another man, older, with a shaved head, five silver studs in a row inside the top of his right ear standing in front of him.\u00a0 As the older man talked, his mouth moved slowly, the back of one hand touched the forearm of the younger man.\u00a0 A man in an extravagant red hat styled to slump on one side, large white buttons sewn around the edge of the lapels on his black jacket.\u00a0 He held the fingers of a woman wearing a tight red dress cutting a straight line across her breasts, shoulder length black hair, bright rouge-red lipstick and black mascara, he rubbed his thumb over her red painted nails.\u00a0 Two young women with starved-model looks either side of a much older man, one with fiery red hair, thick blue-green eyeliner over pale white skin, looking bored, the other with long black hair and blue eyes, wearing a black leather jacket, both with their arms linked in the arms of the man.\u00a0 He stared with one lazy eye at his reflection in a mirror on the wall, beside the mirror a canvas covered entirely in black paint.\u00a0 A girl with dyed black hair, a stud in either side of her bottom lip, wearing a white top with black stars, holding a drink, a cocktail stick with a cherry resting on the rim.\u00a0 She stared up at a teenage guy with a nose-ring, a styled, effeminate haircut, wearing a black cotton jacket buttoned to the top.<\/strong><\/p>\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cCan\u2019t you find anyone to talk to?\u201d\u00a0 A girl in a tight white singlet and blue jeans came and stood next to Franco.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Franco smiled, raised his drink.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cFranco?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He nodded.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cImilia.\u201d she said, introducing herself.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re Raf\u2019s friend?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cMm-hmm.\u201d\u00a0 He held his drink up to the crowded room.\u00a0 \u201cNice place.\u00a0 Do you know everyone here?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 She pressed her lips together, looked over the room.\u00a0 \u201cProbably not.\u00a0 And it comes with the hotel, the room.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 (Milos nudged Nico, pointed with his hand across to Franco and Imilia, Nico smiled.)<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cAre you looking for someone?\u201d Imilia asked.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cNot specifically.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 A woman in a high necked top near the front door with striking dark brown eyes, short brown hair heaped on top of her head.\u00a0 She held a drink, watched people.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cAlthough, Raf told me about you.\u201d Franco said.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWhat did he tell you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cHe said I\u2019d like to meet you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cAnd would you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He smiled.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Imilia moved her head lightly to the beat of the music, bit one side of her bottom lip.\u00a0 Her tight top, the outline of a thin bra covering small breasts.\u00a0 She leaned across to him.\u00a0 \u201cTell me Franco, what turns you on?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He rubbed one side of his throat with his forefinger, looked up, to the right.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t think\u201d she said, \u201cjust tell me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He rubbed the back of his neck, pulled his hand forward and stroked across his jawbone, below his cheek.\u00a0 \u201cI like watching women undress in front of me.\u00a0 I like seeing their bodies.\u00a0 I like when they won\u2019t let me touch them, but make me watch them crawl around in front of me, naked, showing me everything, not letting me touch, tying my hands up.\u00a0 And I like thinking about all the other naked woman I\u2019ve seen or been with, and I think how similar they are or how different, and I think how good it is to be with a naked woman again.\u00a0 But I also like to think that she\u2019s thinking of all the men she\u2019s ever been with, and I hope that she\u2019s been with hundreds of men.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cMmm, maybe it makes it bigger than the moment, and it\u2019s good that I can be a part of all that, like it\u2019s all been building to that one moment for a very long time.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cHmm.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cOr maybe it just makes me think that they\u2019re dirty and that they\u2019re a good fuck.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYou like dirty girls?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI like naked girls.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He stared down at a lamp on the ground, the light-bulb visible through the top of the shade.\u00a0 When he looked back up, he saw yellow green spots outlined in red floating across the image of the room.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 She closed her hand around his finger, rubbed back and forward, her mouth open.\u00a0 \u201cDo you think I\u2019m a dirty girl?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cPerhaps.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cDo you want to see me naked?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cPerhaps.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cDo you want to fuck me?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Imilia caught something out of the corner of her eye.\u00a0 She turned and looked down, Raf standing below them, his hand over his ear, blood across his hand.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWhat happened to your ear?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cShe bit me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWho?\u201d asked Franco.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThe girl in the black dress.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cOh, you found her.\u201d Imilia said.\u00a0 \u201cWhy did she bite you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI told her she could.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cOh.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m going.\u201d Raf said.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWhere?\u201d Franco asked.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cSomewhere else.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Imilia pulled Franco’s finger, it clicked at the knuckle, she smiled at him.\u00a0 \u201cLet\u2019s go.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWhat about your party?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 She shrugged her shoulders, shook her head, smiled.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t care.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Franco looked down to Raf.\u00a0 \u201cMeet us outside.\u00a0 I\u2019ll get Nico and Milos.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Franco led Imilia across to Nico, Milos and a woman in a polka-dot dress.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re going somewhere else.\u201d he announced.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWhere?\u201d asked Milos.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cDon\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Nico leaned across to Jun-ko.\u00a0 \u201cYou want to come?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 She raised her wine glass.\u00a0 \u201cThanks, I can\u2019t.\u00a0 I have to go back to the gallery and finish packing up.\u201d\u00a0 She smiled.\u00a0 \u201cIt was nice meeting you though.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cSame.\u201d\u00a0 He kissed her on the cheek.\u00a0 \u201cGood luck with de Bite et des Boules.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 She laughed.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Outside, on the street, Raf waited with a serviette around his ear serving as a bandage.\u00a0 The yellow-white street lights below the dark-blue sky.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cWhat happened to your ear?\u201d Nico asked.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cA girl bit me.\u201d Raf replied.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cA girl bit your ear?\u201d Milos asked.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cYep.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s not good.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 They hailed a taxi, a red and black Fiat 600 Multipla, Milos jumped in the front, the other four squeezed in the back.\u00a0 Nico slid open the window, put his head and shoulders out, a lit cigarette in his mouth.\u00a0 Raf reached across, tapped Nico on the arm, laid his hand out for a cigarette, he took one and put his head out the window on the other side, held the serviette with his free hand.\u00a0 Imilia rested her forearms on top of the front seats, smiled at Milos.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by James Bent (Australia) \u00a0pentru versiunea rom\u00e2n\u0103 click aici\u00a0 Piazza Mattina\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Franco smoked a cigarette, Milos next to him repeatedly smoothed his finger across his eyebrow, looking into the centre of the square.\u00a0 A grey-stained travertine fountain, a sculpture of a horse with large, open wings from it\u2019s shoulders, reared back between two dolphins […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[507,22],"tags":[1147,404,1116],"class_list":["post-3648","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-egophobia-26","category-short-story","tag-egophobia-26","tag-james-bent","tag-short-story"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6DakB-WQ","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/egophobia.ro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3648","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/egophobia.ro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/egophobia.ro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/egophobia.ro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/egophobia.ro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3648"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/egophobia.ro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3648\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4382,"href":"https:\/\/egophobia.ro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3648\/revisions\/4382"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/egophobia.ro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3648"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/egophobia.ro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3648"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/egophobia.ro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3648"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}