Джеймс Фрей – Incite (страница 3)
Mary laughed, a sweet, melodic tone. “I can assure you, I’m feeling very at ease.” She picked up her beer and took a quick sip.
“I’m Julia,” the next woman said. She was black, with short hair, and dressed in purple paisley. She reached for my hand, and I shook back. “Where you from?”
“Pasadena,” I said. “You guys?”
“Northern California,” Mary said. “Ever heard of Susanville?”
“Never.”
“You’re not missing out,” she said with a quick laugh. “I grew up north of there on a ranch. Moved to Piedmont when my dad retired.”
“I’ve never heard of Piedmont either,” I said, and she laughed again.
“Touché, Mike.” I beamed.
“So, how’d you all become friends?”
I noticed a look between Tommy and Mary. Mary shook her head slightly. My stomach dipped—I hoped that didn’t mean they were together.
“Julia and I are locals,” Jim said. “Grew up in Oakland, known each other since kindergarten. You play pool?”
“A little.”
“Eight ball,” Jim said. “You and Mary, me and Julia.” He handed me a cue.
I was about six feet tall, and Mary had to be a foot shorter than me. But she was gorgeous. Long, blond, curly hair that flowed loose down her shoulders like a waterfall. I didn’t want to say no to being on her team, but I turned to Tommy.
“That’ll leave you out.”
“The night is young,” he said. “I’m going to get something to drink. Want anything?”
“Not now,” I said.
Julia racked the balls and stood back. Mary looked at me. “You wanna break?”
“You go for it,” I said. I hadn’t played a lot of pool at home, and I wanted to pull off looking cool in front of this girl for as long as I could.
She broke, and the 14 ball fell into a side pocket.
“Do all of you guys go to Berkeley?” I asked.
“We do,” Jim said, gesturing to himself and Julia. “Art program. She paints; I sculpt.”
“Not me,” Mary said, lining up her new shot. “Stanford. Prelaw.”
“Really?”
“It gets better,” Julia said. “She’s there on scholarship. Smart kid.”
“Why are you here if you’re at Stanford? That’s like an hour away.”
“Taking a quarter off,” she said. “I’m interning for a firm across the bay. Divorces and bankruptcies.” She rolled her eyes and added, “Real exciting stuff.” She missed her shot.
Julia took a pull from her beer and bent down, taking aim at the 3 ball.
“So, Mike,” Jim asked, “why are you showing up in the summer?”
“I’m starting in the fall,” I said, “but I got a job over the summer. It’s no internship with a law firm, though. You’re looking at Berkeley’s newest janitorial staff member.”
“Nice,” Jim said with a laugh. “I hope you’re not the poor sap who has to clean up Wurster Hall. My studio is a mess.”
Julia missed, and I was up. I searched for a good shot. There was a long one, right along the bumper. I knew I couldn’t make it, so I tried a closer, easier shot and missed, of course.
“No worries,” I said. “Just cleaning out empty dorms.”
Jim was really good. He got three balls in before missing on an awkward, reaching shot.
Tommy came back with a beer.
“So,” I said as Mary leaned over to take her shot, “prelaw, huh? What kind of lawyer do you want to be?”
“It’s better to ask what kind of lawyer I
“John!” Tommy shouted. At once, the whole group turned. Someone was walking toward us, a huge grin on his face. Everyone smiled wide when they saw him.
“Tommy!” The guy waved as he made his way over. John was tall, wearing jeans and the coolest jacket I’d ever seen. It was denim, but embroidered intricately all over the back, shoulders, and arms. Bright splashes of color—flowers, spirals, and a peace symbol.
It was clear everyone in the place knew him. He slapped hands with the people at the bar and hugged one of the waitresses.
“What’s up, man?” Jim asked, and gave him a hug, thumping him loudly on the back. John kissed Julia and Mary each on the cheek. When he got to Tommy, they did some kind of secret handshake.
“Everything is up, guys. It is a good day.” He turned to the waitress and shouted, “Bring a round of—what are you guys drinking? Looks like three beers and a … What’s that, Julia?”
“Jack.”
“Three beers, a Jack, and I’ll take a Scotch and water.” He turned, noticing me for the first time. “You want a drink?”
“No thanks, I’m good.”
“Suit yourself. I’m John, man. Good to meet you.” He stretched out his hand and I took it.
“Mike,” I said.
“Cool,” he said, clapping me on the shoulder. “So who brought you?”
“Tommy,” I said. “I’m his new roommate. Spent the day on a bus ride from Pasadena, and this is my first look at Berkeley nightlife.”
“Well, we better make it a good one, then. You’re not drinking anything, so we’ll need a higher level of discourse.”
Tommy laughed. “Higher than beer and pool?”
“Did you guys see the news today?” John asked as he sat down. I looked back at the pool table. It was my turn.
“No,” Julia said, her brow crinkling. “I was in the studio all day. What’s happening?”
“The bastard just said that he’s mining Haiphong Harbor.”
“The bastard?” I asked. I took a shot and missed the pocket by an inch.
“We don’t say his name,” Jim said with a laugh.
Mary laughed. “If you say Nixon three times into a mirror, he’ll appear next to you.”
“What’s Haiphong Harbor?” I asked.
John took off his hat and twirled it in his hands. “Don’t know your Vietnam geography?”
“I know Hanoi and I know Saigon,” I said. “I know the Ho Chi Minh Trail and the Gulf of Tonkin.”
“And what, may I ask, is your position on the war?”
It was Mary’s turn, and she drilled the 5 ball into the side pocket. She held out her hand as she walked past me and I slapped it. “Good shot.”
“Thank you.” She lined up another one.
“My father,” I said to John, “would tell you that the Vietnam War is being fought to prevent the vile spread of Red Communism and strengthen our alliance with Australia. I worked with him nine to seven almost every day of the year, selling furniture, and he said that at least four times a week.”
John smiled and put his hat back on. “And what do you say?”