Life as an afterthought

Chapter 5, page 10.

            They poured tea into their cups, David a beat after Junko, and put sugar and milk. She admired the very intricate patterns of blue flowers on the cup.

              “What about you?” David said, taking a large sip, like he was having his morning coffee at his kitchen table, “You’re studying French literature, right?”

              “Right.”

              “Why did you choose that?”

              Junko pondered her answer as she enjoyed the complex taste of the tea spreading through her mouth. Basically she had obeyed her father’s wish; for Genzou it was unthinkable his daughter would leave university without being educated about great authors, from Shakespeare to Hemingway, Mishima, and Dostoevsky. Her only rebellion was to choose French literature and read Rimbaud and Flaubert instead of Russian or American literature, the countries Genzou deemed as the places that gave birth to what he called ‘real’ authors - besides Japan, of course.

              “I failed the entrance exams for all the other faculties,” she finally said.

              “Which faculties were they?”

              “Ah, you know, law and business management? That kind of stuff.”

              “I see,” David tried smaller dose of tea, like it was new kind of medicine he was trying to figure out the best amount to take.

“And who’s your favorite author?”

              “Camus.”

              “Who?”

              “Albert Camus.”

              “Is he famous?”