murakami, haruki - Norwegian wood

up from the south and you can see them flying over the lake. Put in
one little episode like that and people love it, it's so graphic and
sentimental. The usual part-timer doesn't bother with stuff like that,
but I can make decent money with what I write."
"Yeah, but you have to find those "episodes'."
"True," said Midori with a tilt of her head. "But if you're looking for
them, you usually find them. And if you don't, you can always make
up something harmless."
"Aha!"
"Peace," said Midori.
She said she wanted to hear about my dormitory, so I told her the
usual stories about the raising of the flag and Storm Trooper's radio
callisthenics. Storm Trooper especially made Midori laugh, as he
seemed to do with everyone. She said she thought it would be fun to
have a look at the dorm. There was nothing fun about the place, I told
her: "Just a few hundred guys in grubby rooms, drinking and
wanking."
"Does that include you?"
"It includes every man on the face of the earth," I explained.
"Girls have periods and boys wank. Everybody."
"Even ones with girlfriends? I mean, sex partners."
"It's got nothing to do with that. The Keio student living next door to
me has a wank before every date. He says it relaxes him."
"I don't know much about that stuff. I was in a girls' school so long."
"I guess the glossy women's magazines don't go into that."
"Not at all!" she said, laughing. "Anyway, Watanabe, would you have
some time this Sunday? Are you free?"
"I'm free every Sunday. Until six, at least. That's when I go to work."
"Why don't you visit me? At the Kobayashi Bookshop. The shop itself
will be closed, but I have to hang around there alone all day. I might
be getting an important phone call. How about lunch? I'll cook for
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