Frankie can fall asleep anytime. His dad said, "Frankie, you sleep like a log." When Frank said this, he always flirted with his blond hair. Sometimes he would carry Frank on his shoulders, spinning in circles, and flying around the room. Frank would yell and enjoy every moment.
Nick remembered the smell of his father. Such as Marlboro cigarettes and aftershave. He can still breathe this scent from the depths of this brain at any given moment, and breathe in the fragrance that the great man has long lost. It smells so bad. Nothing can compare to the smell and smell of a good person.
After the boys go to bed, Marisa will turn off the TV and read a book. Her legs curled down, her fingers wrapped around her long black Hawaiian hair. Nick would sneak out and reach the top around the corner.
"I saw you, Nicole," she said. "You little beast, go back to sleep. Your parents will be back soon."
It was the way she jokingly called him a beast that let Nick know that she didn't really believe that he was a beast. He is Marisa's beast, and she is his beast.
"I'm thirsty, monster," Nick would say.
"I think you have drunk the entire ocean now. How many times is this?" she said. Her brown eyes stared out from the top of the book. Maybe it's "Gone with the Wind". She read the book many times, and the pages began to fall off. She would organize the scattered pages in order, and then put them back on the cover, never missing Scarlett's non-lady behavior, and the dark, sexy behavior of Rhett. Nick wouldn't be surprised if she had memorized the entire book.
He always wanted to know the appeal of that book. Once, he was in the public library with his mother and Frank. He took the book off the shelf and hid it in a corner. Before his mother came to him, he read as much as possible.
This whole thing fascinated him. He thought Scarlett was silly, and he didn't understand why Marissa seemed to like her so much. Marisa was nothing like Scarlett. Rhett, on the other hand, now he is the kind of character Nick can support. He is bold and decisive. He got what he wanted. He is decisive and manly. Nick imagined him strutting with an incredible smile, which makes the ladies want more-what do you want more? he does not know. He can only think of more arrogance and more smiles.
A smile and a kind of arrogance, now this is what Nick can do. He tried it at school one day. He was eight or nine years old and fell madly in love with Sophia Cook. Oh, Sophia, she has the darkest hair and darkest eyes. She is very smart. She is the best reader in the class. Her reading ability is only the fourth grade level. When reading, she would put away the books and walk into the fourth grade classroom. One day, Nick strode up to her and smiled at her.
Sophia looked at him and giggled. "What's the matter with you, Nico Eriksson?"
He didn't know what to say. So far, he has only used Reid's smile. Before he could say what Reid was about to say, Nick laughed again and put every penny of Butler in. Sophia giggled again, and then Nick laughed. They laughed and laughed again, breathlessly laughing, and forgot why they laughed in the first place. Sophia was sent to the fourth grade reading class, and Nick was forced to stand in the corner because of disturbing the classroom.
"Twice," Little Nick said. "I've only been out twice, Marisa."
"My Nick, you know there are at least three. Okay. Hurry up," she said.
Nick ran into the kitchen, filled it with the largest glass he could find, and took a sip from the glass slowly. He knew he was trying his luck, and he knew he was helping his parents to come, and his father would not be happy to see that he hadn't slept so late. He did not finish the glass of wine. Since he had drunk two large glasses of water before, Marissa's worries were tumbling in his stomach. He went to bed lazily, past Marisa, and down the corridor. He climbed onto the bed and listened to Frankie's breathing again.
In the process of growing up and DúLì, the most difficult transition is learning to sleep without Frankie breathing. He will slow his breathing and keep up with his pace. Ten or fifteen minutes later, the front door opened, and Nick imagined a huge warm breeze that smelled like his mother's hair, and his father's aftershave wrapped him with its imaginary weight. He felt tired immediately.
Marisa sometimes sleeps in an empty bedroom, and then Nick's father will take her back in the morning. Sometimes his father would take her home that night. Either way, his mother would walk into their room and put back on him the blanket Frank always kicked off. Then she would lean against Nick, kiss his temple, comb his hair, sleep deeply on his limbs, and never fall asleep in the end.
"Good night, my beautiful child," she would say. She would walk into her room and wait for their father to follow her in, or send Marissa home. He closed the door gently behind him. Nick would hear the lock click.
The day of Marisa's death was as usual, and the sun was shining brightly. Nick woke up that morning, just like he woke up every morning. His mother made pancakes for them and made them the same size carefully to avoid the children quarreling. She complained that Nick and Frank were going to devour them, or she might have said something about two hollow legs.
Marissa graduated from university and went home to prepare for the wedding. This will be a victorious event. Everyone is very excited. This family likes any reason to celebrate. Aunt Luo and mother were going to buy a dress that day, because Aunt Luo did not find a suitable dress, the wedding was only two Saturdays away.
Frank and Nick are talking about surfing. It seems that they are either surfing or talking about those surfing.
The phone rang, and old Francis answered the phone.
He only said two words—"Oh, no", but when he said, they were all stunned and looked at him. The fear on his mother's face.
"Marissa passed away last night," he said after hanging up the phone.
No one has moved. It seems that they didn't hear what he said.
Nick felt that his legs and arms were numb, and his head became heavy.
"Oh," his mother whispered. She wiped her hands on the apron, then took off the apron and folded it neatly. The boys stood up, lined up, and followed their mother out the door. Mom, Dad, Frank and Nick. The drive to Aunt Luo and Uncle Xixi is very small, but it always seems to be that morning.
Marissa died of a cerebral aneurysm in her sleep. Just like that, Nick chanted over and over again in his mind. that's all. ended.
She was buried in a wedding dress. The whole town was present.
When he stood at the door of Marisa's room, he remembered every word Aunt Luo said to him on the day of her death. Her body was the first corpse he had ever seen.
"She is with our Lord now," said the aunt. "This is not the way I would choose," she said. "But this is the case. God made his choice, which is not understandable by the human mind. "She is my gift," she said, "but it is true. She is an angel now. "
"Aunt Luo, she has always been an angel," Nick could hardly say the word choked up.
"Yes," said the aunt. She was smiling, tears streaming down her face. When the coroner came out of the room, Nick stepped back and gave way.
"I'm very sorry, Luo," the coroner said, putting his hand on her arm.
"thank you, sir.". Nick didn't understand why her voice sounded more proud than sad.
When they came in pushing the gurney, they put Marisa's small body on the gurney. Nick never wanted to stay there anymore. He needs to be anywhere, except there.
"Child, you better go now," said Aunt Luo. "Your mother will stay, but you—you have to go. Come and see me tomorrow."
Nick felt very ashamed. Frank and his father and Uncle Hee went to deal with the arrangement, but Nick couldn't do that because it turned out that he couldn't stay either. He wants to live a comfortable life. He wants to play a role, but what he wants to do most is to climb on his bed, cry for Marisa, cry for Aunt Luo and Uncle Hee, and cry for himself.
He lowered his head and nodded slightly to Aunt Luo's departure. When others came with food and condolences and shoulders stronger and better than him, he slipped out the door. News from their town spread as fast as the wind.
He ran back to his home not far away. He often does this. When his house came into view, he just kept running. He didn't know how far he ran, but he ran for hours. He found himself on a beach that he had never been to in his life. He sat on the beach for a long time, then walked home.
When he got home, it was already dark. He took a shower and climbed onto the bed. He stared at the ceiling for a long time.
That's it, he thought, it's over. Marissa was sleeping when she died. He didn't know if she knew she was dead.
Nick also hugged Aunt Luo. He knew that Aunt Luo would not let him go unless she felt she had squeezed every ounce of hug from him. He thanked her for the party.
"Then, my Nico, come and sit with me. Let's reminisce, nephew. You look thin. What do you eat? What do they eat in Portland? Is it the kind of vegetarian food that makes you skinny? ?" She said a few vegan words softly like swearing, and then squeezed his side for emphasis. "There is nothing there," she said. "Put your narrow back into my kitchen. Aunt Luo will give you a plate." (to be continued) (end of this chapter)