Chapters | Dead Love

11. Blame it on the Fug...

“To throw away life, eat blowfish.” That is what the Japanese say. Fugu, blowfish, puffer fish, globefish, swellfish, river pig, Sphoeroides testudineus–whatever you call it—it contains in its skin, liver, ovaries, and intestine a neurotoxin that is 160,000 times more powerful...

11. Blame it on the Fug...

Unlike me, Ryu did not drink deeply. He merely dipped his lips in the broth. His mouth was glistening, and I wanted to lean toward him and kiss him. Then the noise in the restaurant began to sound like water, like water running, like a brook or a stream. Musical. Hypnotic. And my...

11. Blame it on the Fug...

“And you,” he said softly, “ you have no reason to be afraid?” The sake arrived. Ryu seemed relieved. It was cloud-white and cool. He drank deeply. “I’m not afraid of powerful men,” I sighed, thinking of the one man this adjective conjured up, the one with the scalpel...

11. Blame it on the Fug...

Then I pushed the thought aside. Ryu sighed. His white teeth flashed for an instant, then the smile disappeared. “Ahhh, so we’re in a mood tonight, are we? What’s wrong Ryu? Are you sad?” Ryu did look sad. True, I hadn’t known him long, but I had never seen him that way. “What...

11. Blame it on the Fug...

Ryu laughed awkwardly and answered in less than perfect English. “No, Elin,” (he could never seem to say “Erin”). “It is only poisonous if it is prepared incorrectly. Yamada-san knows exactly what to do with this fish. Honto.” All right. I believed him. I nodded and put...

11. Blame it on the Fug...

Those who eat fugu soup are stupid. But those who don’t eat fugu soup are also stupid. — old Japanese proverb Ryu was back and I, stupidly, was excited. He’d been gone for a little less than a week, but to me it seemed like forever. Tokyo is a bizarrely beautiful city where...

10. Girl Crazy (4)...

The yakuza narrowed his eyes. “She’s not my girlfriend,” he said. First, there was silence. Then, Ryu watched the mercurial Clément change once again. “Look,” he spat, his thin gray face becoming rock hard, like something carved out of stone. “Look, I’m tired. You dragged...

10. Girl Crazy (3)...

The three old men nodded, began talking amongst themselves. Clément sauntered toward Ryu, took a stand at his side. “I’ve won this round. You’re mine, now,” he whispered and put his right arm, the one with the fingerless hand, around the yakuza’s shoulders; the other arm...

10. Girl Crazy (2)...

“He is a devil and he wants our souls,” warned the second old man. “Oh, don’t be ridiculous,” scoffed Clément. “Can we put aside these absurd suppositions? What I want is for the drop to commence as planned. I want Ryu, here, to handle it. He will be working with me.” “Perhaps...

10. Girl Crazy...

“Gomen. So sorry,” said the third old man, his small head pushed forward, neck elongated, like a turtle peering out of its shell. “We apologize for our rudeness. “You are . . . ?” “Clément,” sniffed Clément with a toss of his head full of dark curls. “Ah, Clément,”...