unflnlshed SLory" !

"# %& '(#)*+

(1) 8ore. 1o bore ls Lo Llre oneself Lhru Ledlous lLeraLlon or dullness. 1o lLeraLe ls Lo repeaL.
uullness ls dullness. uull, dull, dull. lf Lo lLeraLe ls Lo repeaL, Lhe word relLeraLe ls redundanL,
dundanL. 1hls ls Lhe quallLy of sLaLe of my belng. lL sways from Ledlous Lo dull.

(2) When l come home from work Lhere ls my boyfrlend Lo Lalk Lo. Pello, he says, how was
work? Ckay, l say, even lf lL wasn'L.

(3) l work as an ushereLLe ln a movle house. SLaLloned aL Lhe loge my [ob ls Lo accepL Lhe loge
people's LlckeL sLubs and gulde Lhem Lo a seaL wlLh my flashllghL. uull. LxcepL when Lhey
showed Lhe super show "#$ %&'()*+(.

(4) "#$ %&'()*+( ls Lhe sLory of a man who grows Lo be very, very old. Pe grows Lo be one
hundred and LwenLy years old and naLurally grows Lo be as wlse. lL ls a rellglon sLory for modern
people and everyone came Lo see lL. All seaLs were Laken up for Len days and for Len days l
pushed Lhrough Lo gulde people Lo alsle sLeps or Lo a plece of floor on whlch Lo slL. When aL lasL
"#$ %&'()*+( wenL on lLs lasL day and Lhey showed ,+-.+, lL was dull agaln.

(3) uull ls noL as bad as Ledlous. 1edlous ls worse Lhan dull. When my work becomes Ledlous l
play secreL games wlLh my flashllghL. ln my work my flashllghL ls my only real companlon. l
flash lL agalnsL my palm and see Lhe LranslucenL red ouLllne of my hands, lLs green velns, Lhe
creases on my knuckles, Lhe flngernall llne on my flnger, or flash lL on and off on someone's fooL
resLed on Lhe back of a seaL unLll Lhe fooL sllnks down. Loge people are noL allowed Lo resL Lhelr
feeL on Lhe back of Lhe seaLs, alLhough aL Llmes l leL Lhem. l have power over Lhe loge people-l
leL Lhem do or noL, and gulde Lhem well or noL. ln guldlng l someLlmes flash a llghL on a sLep
shorL of Lhe sLeps down and someone always Lrlps. lL enLerLalns me buL lL neverLheless ends ln
boredom.

(6) ln drama Lhere ls an elemenL called comlc rellef. lL releases Lhe audlence form a hold and
allows Lhem Lo breaLhe. A flashllghL game l play glves me Lhls rellef, relleves me from boredom.
ln guldlng people Lo seaLs l swlng my llghL along a row and as l brlng Lhe llghL back, l flash lL
agalnsL a face. 1he face vlewlng Lhe movle reacLs, and as l caLch lLs lnsLanL expresslon, l cllck off
Lhe llghL. lL all happens ln half a second, lL Lakes masLered calculaLlon and a qulck Lhumb. 1hen l
go back Lo my sLaLlon aL Lhe boLLom rlghL of loge and slL on my sLool and play ln my mlnd Lhe
expresslon l 'd seen (no Lwo have been Lhe same) and ln a few seconds l am bored agaln. 1he
comlc rellef afLer lLs relaxlng effecL brlngs Lhe audlence back Lo a more lnLenslve hold, uanLe
sald. uanLe ls my boyfrlend.

***

(7) uanLe and l llve ln a room noL far from Lhe movle house l work ln and Lhe unlverslLy he
aLLends. Pe ls a scholar sLudylng Lngllsh and urama and one day he would llke Lo wrlLe for Lhe
movles. ln a drawer ls hls Lreasured folder of ldeas for movle sLorles, buL more lmporLanL Lo hlm
now hls play. 1he play, a lasL requlremenL for hls compleLlon of hls unlverslLy degree, ls abouL a
counLry glrl ln a clLy, who comes Lo do any odd [ob [usL Lo eaL, and for shelLer. Per plLlful
lgnorance ls abused, buL ln Lhe end she survlves. ln LruLh, uanLe's play ls abouL me, buL he
leaves from lL lmporLanL blographlcal lLems abouL my own clLy llfe.
(8) lor lnsLance, l bore myself usherlng because lLs pay allows me my room, some food, and a
lrlday nlghL maLhemaLlcs course (l am Lo be a cerLlfled accounLanL) aL Lhe unlverslLy uanLe goes
Lo. We meL Lhere. Cn a lrlday nlghL, Loo weL ouLslde Lo walk, we saL on Lhe same damp bench
aL Lhe unlverslLy faade and Lalked abouL our courses. l undersLood much of whaL uanLe was
Lelllng me abouL drama, and when Lhe raln leL off, lL baffled hlm Lo know LhaL l flrsL of all
ushered for Lhe movle house a block down. 1he sLrong, unexpecLed raln made my face and bare
arms gllsLen agalnsL Lhe faade llghL. l have a flne face, afLer my moLher, whose provlnclal llfe
formed year afLer year Lhe ardenL cool ln her expresslon. My eyes, llke hers, slanL sllghLly up, l
hardly palnL Lhem, Lhey are of Lhemselves dark. WeL halr pressed agalnsL my nape, l and grew
sharply aware of buL lgnored uanLe's lnclslve gaze. ?ou don'L look llke an ushereLLe, he sald. l
am ouL of unlform, l sald. uanLe leaves Lhls ouL of hls play. ln hls play hls counLry glrl suffers so
much.

(9) Cne week afLer uanLe moved ln wlLh me, we had our flrsL blg quarrel. We foughL over Lhe
papaya he had broughL ln wlLh hlm, a glfL for me, whlch l lefL Lo over-rlpen severely on Lhe
wlndow slll.

(10) ?ou lgnored lL! uanLe smashed Lhe papaya lnLo our garbage.

(11) l only forgoL abouL lL!

(12) lL was Lhere for a week, couldn'L you even smell lL!

(13) l had lmaglned a flrsL flghL wlLh a lover Lo be ouL of romance, buL ours was exLremely
sLrange. As we baLLled, he hoLly asked me Lo a movle house Lo quleLly Lalk our quarrel ouL."
WhaL? l shouLed. l was Lhere all day, l wlll be Lhere all day Lomorrow.

(14) We wenL Lo a movle house. uanLe flnds movle houses quleL places Lo Lalk ln. All our flghLs
have been flxed, and sweeLly, ln movle houses, alLhough noL once has uanLe broughL me for a
Lalk Lo Lhe movle house l ushered for.

(13) 1he room uanLe and l llve ln ls one of flve oLher small square spaces ln an old, leanlng Lwo
sLory house, and ln lL we have puL everyLhlng we own. 1wo sLeps from our bed ls uanLe's desk,
full of books and papers. Cn our wlndow slll ls a burner on whlch l cook our food. A bureau
wlLh Lhree draws sLores our cloLhes and ls also our dlnlng Lable on whlch we place our meals,
have coffee, keep our canned or cellophaned food, and occaslonally seL a plaLe of frulL. under
our bed are shoes, Lhlngs, newspapers, and our sulLcases. We have a chalr for uanLe's desk.
When we Lalk or eaL he slLs on hls chalr and l slL on Lhe floor or bed beslde hlm.

(16) AfLer work l help uanLe wlLh hls play. l Lype lL ouL for hlm ln hls renLed ClllveLLl, uslng Lwo
or Lhree flngers from one hand whlle resLlng my head on Lhe oLher. 1lred from work l Lype
slowly, buL ln Llme uanLe's counLry glrl amuses me, and begln Lo go more rapldly.

(17) She ls abouL Lo begln her fourLh paLheLlc advenLure ln Lhe clLy and she enLers lL wlLh as
much enLhuslasm and cheer as she dld her flrsL. She wlll noL learn her lesson. She accepLs work
from Lhe nexL sLrange man who shows klndness, and ls agaln used for acLlvlLy oLher Lhan Lhe [ob
agreed on. As pub walLress, uanLe's counLry glrl lures conLacLs for her employer, and blg
swlndllng occurs. When Lhe syndlcaLe ls exposed, lL ls she who goes Lo prlson.
(18) lL ls ln prlson where she ls loved, and flnally survlves, buL uanLe has noL wrlLLen Lhe play's
end yeL, and as hls Lhesls deadllne approaches, he rushes hls work, snapplng aL me for Lhlngs l
do LhaL mlghL dlsLurb hls Lhlnklng. Pe howls aL me one evenlng for cooklng flsh. lnLense
concenLraLlon and Lhe hoL nlghL had made hlm persplre, and l sLand aL aLLenLlon whlle he howls.
When he reLurns Lo hls work l Lurn Lo fllp Lhe frylng flsh ln Lhe pan. Pe wlll eaL Lhe flsh when lL ls
cooked, and forgeL LhaL lL had fllled our already very warm room wlLh food smoke.

(19) 1wo days before deadllne, mldway Lhrough Lhe lasL acL of Lhe manuscrlpL, Lhe / of uanLe's
renLed CllveLLl caLches, and he conLlnues Lyplng wlldly wlLhouL Lhe /s. l am made Lo flll ln Lhe /s
wlLh a black felL-Llp pen. lL ls work as Ledlous as lL sounds and soon my /s dance, leanlng all Lo
Lhe lefL and Lhen Lo Lhe rlghL, or Lhey sLand very sLralghL llke soldlers.

***

(20) uanLe's unlverslLy scholarshlp ls a glfL from hls wldowed cousln ln 8aLangas. ln reLurn,
uanLe promlses her hls Lhesls, and ln Lhe summer, a day afLer hls graduaLlon, wlLh hls play ln hls
bag, we go on a bus Lo Lhe Lown of 8alayan, where hls cousln llves.

(21) She ls a shorL woman wlLh Lhlck arms and hands, and ls boss of her pollshed house. 1wo
servanLs hurry, flxlng our lunch, and she shouLs aL one for noL seLLlng me a place. Shrewdness ls
sLressed as she Lalks ausLerely of managlng her small fleld of coffee, of planLlng and harvesLlng,
and she shouLs agaln aL Lhe foreman who comes ln, Lardy wlLh hls reporL. neverLheless, she ls
obvlously generous. AL lunch we learn of a servanL's Lwo small chlldren she ls carlng for, of
oLher young sLudenLs she sends Lo school, of money for a sewlng machlne she has lenL Lhe
foreman's wlfe. 1he Lwo small chlldren slL aL Lable wlLh us and Lhey run back Lo play as rapldly
as Lhelr meal ls eaLen, buL noL wlLhouL a qulck klss on Lhe guardlan's cheek. Llderly, and loved
slmply Lhe way she ls, Lhe woman ls called 1'yang by uanLe and Lhose around her.

(22) AfLer our lunch, uanLe Lakes hls Lhesls from Lhe bag. 1hls ls for you 1'yang, he says, wlLh an
arm abouL her Lough shoulders. lL ls a gesLure LhoughL exLremely noble by Lhe much older
provlnclal cousln, and 1'yang crles Lerrlbly as she recelves uanLe's xeroxed copy of hls badly
LypewrlLLen play.

***

(23) As summer seLs ln more harshly, a change ln uanLe's LemperamenL slowly occurs. All day
he slLs quleLly aL hls desk dolng noLhlng. Pe brlngs ouL hls folder of ldeas for movle sLorles, buL
does noL sLudy Lhem. Pe geLs up before l do ln Lhe mornlng and has noLhlng for breakfasL. Pe
nods goodbye when l leave for work, and greeLs me, noL always wlLh a klss, when l come home.
Pe says noLhlng abouL Lhe drled flshes l now fry Lhrlce, or more, ln a week. noLhlng l do makes
hlm snap aL me aL all.

(24) Work on your sLorles, uanLe, l scold hlm one mornlng.

(23) l am Lhlnklng abouL my Lhesls.

(26) ?our Lhesls ls flnlshed.

(27) l worked hard on lL, l deserve a resL.

(28) l Lhen plan Lo one day shock hlm ouL of hls complacency, and durlng a quleL Llme aL work,
guardlng agalnsL falllng asleep on my sLool, l wrlLe a menLal llsL of posslblllLles: Come home wlLh
ClemenL, Lhe downsLalrs malnLenance man. Come home walklng llke ursula, Lhe orchesLra
ushereLLe. noL come home aL all.

(29) 8uL l cannoL noL come home aL all because Lhere ls no oLher place l know l can go home Lo,
and ClemenL, who ls ln facL more femlnlne Lhan l, already walks llke ursula.

(30) So Lhen l begln Lo Lalk Lo uanLe abouL my lrlday nlghL maLh class. 1he LgypLlans, our
Leacher sald, were profound pracLlLloners of maLhemaLlcs. 1he pyramlds Lhey bullL are
sLrucLures of preclse and hlghly reflned measuremenL. MaLhemaLlcs was Lhen dlrecLly
connecLed Lo naLure and Cod. 1he archlLecL was also a prlesL, and ln some of Lhe pyramlds are
felL unLll Loday dlvlne vlbraLlons. Lach lrlday l pondered on whaL our Leacher sald abouL Lhe
LgypLlans and Lhelr maLhemaLlcs, and Lold lL Lo uanLe wlLh enLhuslasm. uld you know, uanLe, l
sald Lo hlm one evenlng, LhaL Lhe CreaL yramld ls made of over Lwo mllllon blocks of concreLe,
and each block welghs beLween Lwo Lo sevenLy Lons? Pow Lhe LgypLlans llfLed Lhe blocks up Lo
four hundred feeL ls a mysLery. 1he LgypLlans used a secreL maLhemaLlcal process yeL unknown
Lo us, and one Lheory says lL was levlLaLlon. uanLe would slL and llsLen Lo each new plece of
knowledge l broughL home for hlm. ln Llme, he began Lo go ouL evenlngs, Lo a booksLore LhaL
sLayed open laLe, Lo posL a leLLer, for a walk. 1hen, so palnfully swlfL, he one day dld noL come
home aL all.

***

(31) AL work Lhe nexL day l load fresh baLLerles lnLo my flashllghL and ln Lhe dark flash lL brlghLly
agalnsL my palm, flngers, knuckles, and bllndly lnLo Lhe loge people's faces unLll Lhey squlnL. l
flash llghLs on and off anyone's fooL resLlng on Lhe back of a seaL. Loge people are noL allowed
Lo resL Lhelr feeL on Lhe back of seaLs. Culdlng a lone man Lo hls seaL l flash a llghL shorL of a
sLep up and he Lrlps. ursula vlslLs my sLaLlon Lo belng me cheer. l Lell hlm LhaL uanLe has
broughL wlLh hlm my sulLcase lnsLead of hls. Mlne ls of sLraw and hls, of leaLher, and ursula
convlnces me Lo uanLe's LhoughLfulness: lL was a glfL, don'L you see? l Lell her LhaL he also dld
noL brlng Lhe burner, Lhe chalr, and some books on Lhe desk. ursula convlnces me, before she
hurrles back Lo her sLaLlon aL Lhe orchesLra, lL means noLhlng else buL LhaL uanLe wlll come
home one day.