murakami, haruki - Norwegian wood

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quadrangle. I began by telling Naoko how I had given my right hand a nasty cut while working in the record shop, then went on to say that Nagasawa, Hatsumi and I had had a sort of celebration the night before for Nagasawa's having passed his Foreign Ministry exam. I described the restaurant and the food. The meal was great, I said, but the atmosphere got uncomfortable halfway through. I wondered if I should write about Kizuki in connection with having played pool with Hatsumi and decided to go ahead. I felt it was something I ought to write about. I still remember the last shot Kizuki took that day - the day he died. It was a difficult cushion shot that I never expected him to get. Luck seemed to be with him, though: the shot was absolutely perfect, and the white and red balls hardly made a sound as they brushed each other on the green baize for the last score of the game. It was such a beautiful shot, I still have a vivid image of it to this day. For nearly two-and-a-half years after that, I never touched a cue. The night I played pool with Hatsumi, though, the thought of Kizuki never crossed my mind until the first game ended, and this came as a real shock to me. I had always assumed that I'd be reminded of Kizuki whenever I played pool. But not until the first game was over and I bought a Pepsi from a vending machine and started drinking it did I even think of him. It was the pool hall we used to play in, and we had often bet drinks on the outcome of our games. I felt guilty that I hadn't thought of Kizuki straight away, as if I had somehow abandoned him. Back in my room, though, I came to think of it like this: two and-a-half years have gone by since it happened, and Kizuki is still 17 years old. Not that this means my memory of him has faded. The things that his death gave rise to are still there, bright and clear, inside me, some of them even clearer than when they were new. What I want to say is this: I'm going to turn 20 soon. Part of 260
what Kizuki and I shared when we were 16 and 17 has already vanished, and no amount of crying is going to bring that back. I can't explain it any better than this, but I think that you can probably understand what I felt and what I am trying to say. In fact, you are probably the only one in the world who can understand. I think of you now more than ever. It's raining today. Rainy Sundays are hard for me. When it rains I can't do laundry, which means I can't do ironing. I can't go walking, and I can't lie on the roof. About all I can do is put the record player on auto repeat and listen to Kind of Blue over and over while I watch the rain falling in the quadrangle. As I wrote to you earlier, I don't wind my spring on Sundays. That's why this letter is so damn long. I'm stopping now. I'm going to the dining hall for lunch. Goodbye. 261
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HARUKI MURAKAMI was born in Kyoto i
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First published as Normeei no marl
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The stewardess came to check on me
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a kick to some part of my mind. Wak
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"I just know," she said, increasing
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along the path. "I'm sorry," she sa
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Once upon a time, many years ago -
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national anthem, too, of course. Yo
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for ashtrays held mounds of cigaret
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anything about the others myself, I
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"But that's impossible," he said ma
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Almost a year had gone by since I h
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eally wouldn't be any bother to you
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occupying that central position. Tr
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wiper. Kizuki had left no suicide n
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Naoko called me the following Satur
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somebody in the dorm had taken down
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answers they wanted. And so I went
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hesitation. "Not exactly fashionabl
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he said. "Swallowed 'em whole." "Wh
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and while she was putting on her st
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That winter I found a part-time job
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arrived at Naoko's room the cake wa
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trying to go on, but had come up ag
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I picked up my clothes and dressed.
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at the end I added: Waiting for you
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etter. As you say, this is probably
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Maybe this firefly was on the verge
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During the summer holidays the univ
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dust covered his desk and radio. Hi
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she said. "I had a perm this summer
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omantic company? New women in far-o
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lecture. When it was over I went to
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Watanabe, I have this feeling like,
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problems far more urgent and releva
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ain." "Shouldn't you go home and ge
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expensive school trips. For instanc
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esting on her lap. "That was the pr
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you." "I'd like that," I said. Mido
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the shutter and stepped a few paces
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"Thanks," I said. It suddenly dawne
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I nodded, swallowing a mouthful of
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"You're very clear about what you l
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"I'd go and have a look around at l
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unning away." "Even if this place b
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"It's true. Don't you think I'm ter
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different from other people's. I'm
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call," I said. 'As long as lunch is
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At 11.30 Nagasawa was ready to give
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"So find a vending machine and a ni
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the events had undoubtedly happened
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this time I am very, very calm. Cle
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We eat freshly picked fruits and ve
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to the Ami Hostel. A woman receptio
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still taste my morning coffee. By t
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PRIVATE NO TRESPASSING. A few clues
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merely a nice person but whose nice
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my question. "The first thing you o
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"What should I do, then? Give me an
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I nodded. "I think the three of us
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we can ask a staff member to buy fo
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"I'm sure I'll be fine." "So, that
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With Naoko gone, I went to sleep on
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weightlessness on the secretion of
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"It's lovely, though," said Naoko.
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never plays it unless I request it.
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laughing. "How many girls has he sl
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"I couldn't get wet," she said in a
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Reiko sat alone on the carpet, play
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She picked up the basketball again,
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it in hot water, taking a few days
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I said I liked him and thought he w
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all this talk about me. You came he
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have negative thoughts about her be
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draw people - or draw me, at least
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her, outside work, or sports. She h
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est side, I'd say he succeeded. His
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anana; if we got lonely, we'd go to
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the window. She had drawn her knees
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changes to be reborn in utter perfe
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feed and a garden hose. Naoko screw
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"We'll be back before lunch." The t
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used it to make a whistle. The trai
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adios in our rooms, so if I don't c
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"It feels like ancient history," sa
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"Well, it depends how you look at i
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"She was the kind of person who too
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something inside me had died. I jus
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dining hall. "Is he a doctor or a p
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"Fine," said Reiko. "But if we keep
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most. Then I'd have her play the pi
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to go on with her story. "Well, any
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and saying "There there,' and she's
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There was nothing I could say, and
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ever experienced before, never once
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Of course. I told him everything th
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everything he could to heal me, and
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night before, Naoko was the usual N
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the way, when you went to Tokyo?" "
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her body in my hands. In the darkne
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"You see what?" "Nothing. Just "I s
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I'd make lots of babies for you as
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"Hmm ..." "And I'm just spacing out
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Midori came for me at 9.30 on Sunda
Page 210 and 211: "I don't know, I've never done it w
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Page 216 and 217: comes we have to treat them to sush
Page 218 and 219: Watanabe." "Glad to meet you," I sa
Page 220 and 221: "No, I guess not. It's complicated,
Page 222 and 223: "I really can't say until the time
Page 224 and 225: know if I can keep going to univers
Page 226 and 227: At 1.30 she left the hospital to do
Page 228 and 229: "After I do my laundry tomorrow mor
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Page 232 and 233: make people get really vicious all
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Page 236 and 237: "Will you really take me to a porno
Page 238 and 239: stolen bases. After noon I went bac
Page 240 and 241: made myself a cup of tea with a tea
Page 242 and 243: "I do." "Look, the world is an inhe
Page 244 and 245: Eventually a waiter came and took o
Page 246 and 247: "What do you mean "that kind of tal
Page 248 and 249: "You know, Toru," she said, "I have
Page 250 and 251: "I can leave," I said. "No," said H
Page 252 and 253: of loving anybody. There's always s
Page 254 and 255: "Do you know somewhere we could pla
Page 256 and 257: "Or is it that you don't like being
Page 258 and 259: anybody's said to me in the past ye
Page 262 and 263: There was no sign of Midori at the
Page 264 and 265: I sipped my whisky and soda, then s
Page 266 and 267: open a pistachio, "the whole time I
Page 268 and 269: "You know," she said, "I have this
Page 270 and 271: "There aren't any trees around here
Page 272 and 273: early." "Wait a minute, I thought y
Page 274 and 275: "Me, too," I said. "Every once in a
Page 276 and 277: situation conducive to sexual excit
Page 278 and 279: eyond the window cast a soft white
Page 280 and 281: so painful for me to write letters.
Page 282 and 283: Thinking back on the year 1969, all
Page 284 and 285: shovelling snow when there was time
Page 286 and 287: over this, and then climbed into he
Page 288 and 289: great couple." "Yeah, right!" I sai
Page 290 and 291: I went to a phone box and dialled h
Page 292 and 293: gardeners in the area and because h
Page 294 and 295: you to one of our sessions if possi
Page 296 and 297: A letter came from Midori on 6 Apri
Page 298 and 299: eginning of October." "Whew! That c
Page 300 and 301: ago. My sister helps out there thre
Page 302 and 303: even noticed that my hairstyle had
Page 304 and 305: Saturdays and Sundays: waiting on t
Page 306 and 307: of letters like this, but from Naok
Page 308 and 309: whisky. Itoh said I could spend the
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it for you soon. I went to the univ
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"I've been really lonely these past
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you don't know the answer to someth
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eak, without a sound, soaking her h
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"But really, Watanabe, you don't wa
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her bed. I had no doubts about thos
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The fourth thing I have to say is t
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Reiko wrote to me several times aft
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nails being driven into the lid of
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The wind tore along the sand beach
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However I might phrase it, though,
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On the train out to Kichijoji, Reik
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tiny flowers in the grass, the subt
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"The jacket and trousers are hers,
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her why she was burning stuff like
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stroked her hair. "Don't worry,' I
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amount of cash. So don't worry. I w
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the point. I can't forgive myself.
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"So play it terribly." I brought ou
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myself inside her. "You're not goin
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you: you'll do fine wherever you go
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TRANSLATOR'S NOTE Haruki Murakami w
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murakami, haruki - Norwegian wood

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