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Show 197 the l i v i n g room and disappeared into the short vestibule that led to the bathroom and bedroom. The apartment was identical to Simon's except i t was a mirror-reverse and was spread with i t s own assortment of objects. A pink stuffed elephant on the couch, a stack of magazines (Newsweek, C o l l i e r ' s , Esquire, Arizona Highways) on the coffee table along with some scattered sheets of graph paper and a fat ring binder, matted prints of European cathedrals and v i l l a ge churches on the walls, no potted plants in iron plant-stands but a vase containing weavable zinnias on the top shelf of the low bookcase. A puffy white q u i l t lay heaped in a chair, a p i le of books on the floor waited for d i s t r i b u t i o n in the shelves, a small-screen Philco television set shared the top of a cabinet with a stuffed baby a l l i g a t o r. Otherwise the place was featureless. " I t ' s okay, he's asleep," she said, coming back i n. Lorin followed her into the kitchen, his ears ringing, and sat down at the breakfast bar while she took a glass down from the cabinet over the sink and fetched out a carton of milk from the refrigerator. He didn't mind two percent, she hoped,hoi ding up the carton. No no, two percent was fine, he said, lost in thought. He was surprised at the number of things he had learned tonight. She f i l l e d the glass and returned the carton to the refrigerator and then sat down across from him. He f e l t her watching his adam's apple as he drank. "Feel any better?" she asked. " I t always takes a few minutes," he said. "Are you sure we're not going to wake your roommate?" "As long as we're quiet. How long have you had ulcers?" " I don't know i f that's what they are, actually. It may just be i n d i gestion." |