He said he was going back to school. I was shocked and ecstatic.
That's great!
Yes. I've gone through the catalogue and I'm really
excited.
Wow! What are you going to major in?
Well I'm not sure about a major just yet-- I want to
start off with one class and see how it goes.
So what are you going to start with?
Fencing.
I thought maybe I didn't hear him right and then I
remembered how he had mentioned a fascination with the
sport in the past.
Fencing?
Yeah-- fucking fencing.
He repeated it, fucking fencing.
Oh. I repeated it, oh.
II. Nico
I told Nico I'd go to the swinger's club under two
conditions: one, that he pay the one hundred dollar
entry fee, and two, that he didn't touch me.
III. No Means No
I feel gypped when I realize that Punk Rock Boy is sweet. Chances
are, if you're with a Punk Rock Boy you want him to act like he looks-- tough,
crass-mouthed, a bar fight always around the next corner. But mine is a pastry
chef who doesn't drink much or do drugs and instead of being sullen and silent,
never shuts the hell up.
IV. Poetry
One entire week during high school, Jeremy Ross and I
cut French class and made out on the stairwell. Friday
he showed me a poem he'd written about our experience
and after that, never spoke to me again.
V. Older Brother
You'll never be as cool as my older brother.
Deborah Stoll lives in Venice, CA. Her first
book, Drink, Love, is forthcoming from Equator
Books in 2005. Her short story "Messages" is featured in the March
issue of Swivel, and her children's
book, The Robin Girl, is currently being made into an animated movie.
