Almost Transparent Blue by Ryu Murakami Page A

louder."
    "Kei, that kiss mark on your neck's from Kazuo? Right? From Kazuo?"
    "Ya idiot, it's from the party, one of the black guys. Look, see here? What a black guy did."
    Kei rolled up her skirt and showed a big kiss mark on her thigh. Cut it out, Kei, Kazuo said. He pulled down her skirt.
    "Yeah, I know about the one on your leg, but the one on your neck wasn't there yesterday, right? Hey, Ryū, it wasn't there, right? I guess you did it, Kazuo, it's O.K. if you did, but just say so, Kazuo."
    "My mouth isn't that big, is it? And if it's O.K., you don't have to make such a big thing of it, right?"
    "Hey, Ryū, turn up the sound. Ever since Ah got up this morning Ah've been wanting to hear this, so that's why Ah came all the way over here, turn up the sound."
    I was lying on the bed and pretended not to hear Kei. It was too much trouble to get up and walk over to the amps. I trimmed my toenails. Reiko and Okinawa had spread out a blanket in the kitchen and were lying there on their stomachs.
    "I'm not talking about any kiss mark or anything, I'm just saying what I always say. I'm saying something more—you know, basic. We should just be a little more, you know, better, you know, take care of each other, that's what I mean.
    We're living at kind of a different level from all the straights, so let's take care of each other."
    Rubbing his leg, Kazuo asked, "What's all that shit, Yoshiyama? A different level from the straights? What're you talking about?"
    Without looking at him, Yoshiyama said in a low voice, "None of your business."
    My toenails had a smell just like the pineapple. There was something poking my back; when I pulled aside the pillow and looked, it was the bra Moko had forgotten.
    The wired bra was embroidered with flowers and smelled of detergent. I tossed it in the closet. The silver negligee was hanging there. I remembered the taste of Jackson's warm come and felt sick. I felt there must be a little bit left somewhere in my mouth; when I ran my tongue around, sometimes the taste seemed to come back. I tossed the nail parings on the veranda. I could see a woman walking a German shepherd in the garden of the hospital. She greeted someone passing her and stopped to talk. The dog pulled the chain taut. From where I was, the inside of the woman's mouth looked black, like back in the days when women used to dye their teeth, I thought her teeth must be really bad. She hid her mouth when she laughed. The dog strained forward and whined loudly.
    "We, you know, we need each other. I mean, I don't know, but you're all I've got left, my mom's gone, and there're a lot of people against us, right? It'll be a bad scene if that welfare office guy finds you, and when they get me again this time it won't be just the juvie pen. We should help each other, just like we used to, remember how we swam in that river in Kyoto? I want things to be like they were back then, when we were just getting to know each other. I don't know why we have to fight like this, let's try and get along better, money's no problem, we've made out so far, and I'll go to work again. Hey, look, I'll go get a table and some shelves and stuff from that place Moko told us about in Roppongi, and there still seems to be a dresser and oven or something there, too. And then, Kei, you can paint them again.

    "I'll get together some bread, right, I'll work, I'll get together some bread, and you can have another cat. Remember that gray Persian in the store, you said you want it? I'll buy it for you. And we'll find a new apartment, with its own john, and we'll get a new start.
    ' 'Yeah, we could even come here to Fussa like Ryū, get a house and have Reiko and Okinawa or somebody live in it with us, right? There're lots of rooms and lots of old GI houses around here, and we can get grass and have parties and stuff every day. A cheap used car even, Ryū has some foreigner friend who wants to sell one, we'll buy it and I'll get a driver's license. I can get one quick,