关注眼前人[二]
开篇：润墨网以专业的文秘视角，为您筛选了一篇关注眼前人[二]范文，如需获取更多写作素材，在线客服老师一对一协助。欢迎您的阅读与分享！
格琳斯・格尔特斯奇 / 文
夏艺玲 编译
3
“You left it in the lift,” he said. “May I sit down?”
His voice was soft. Cultivated. What could I say? The tables were all pretty full so I nodded. He said bon app it and began to eat. I’d always thought he picked at his food. But as I watched, I noticed that he selected small pieces, speared them and moved them carefully to his mouth.
“Have you been there?”
“Been where?” I was totally dazed. From dropping my book and banging my head and everything.
“Australia, New Zealand.”
I stared at him and thought again of what Mark had said about me reminding him of someone. An Australian? Maybe an ex-girlfriend or wife?
“Not such a strange question,” he said. “You’re old enough to have travelled there. And Katherine Mansfield, Janet Frame, are most likely in the book.”
His smile crinkled up his eyes.
“No, I haven’t and yes, they are,” I said.
That’s how it started. He asked me a question, nodded when I spoke and then asked another. I was off, talking about reading, books and all that stuff I love.
Days later Malcolm passed our table with his tray and spontaneously I said a seat was free. Mark stared at me and I felt a rush of heat to my cheeks.
After that, Malcolm often sat with us and he and I discussed a lot of things. We spoke a little about ourselves too. I told him how Mom had brought me up on her own at the start of the Hippie Era. He said he had married during that time but divorced a few years later. Mark asked me how come Malcolm and I always had so much to talk about.
“He’s easy to talk to. And he reads a lot.”
“You two got so much to say, I don’t get a chance to open my mouth all lunch-time.”
“You do. You shove food in.”
One lunchtime Malcom asked me if I’d like to go to a reading with him.
“Um. Don’t know.”
“Amelia Turner. Shortlisted for the Booker Prize last year.”
I wanted very much to go. But although I no longer thought Malcolm quite so weird, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go out in his company.
“Afterwards, I’ll cook us curry. Do you like it?”
三
“这是你忘在电梯里的，”他说，“我可以坐下来吗？”
他说话的声音很温和而且举止文雅。我还能说什么？况且其他所有的桌子都坐满了人，于是我点点头。他一坐下就开始吃了。我一直都觉得他很挑食的。但是在我观察他的时候，我发现他挑了很小的一块，把它切开，然后慢慢地把食物放进嘴里。
“你去过那里？”
“去过哪里啊？”我觉得很茫然但我很快想到丢在电梯里的书、碰到他的头和一切能够想到的事情。
“澳大利亚，新西兰。”
我看着他，想起了马克和我说过的，我像一个他认识的人。一个澳大利亚人？或者是前女朋友，或者是前妻？
“不奇怪啊，”他说。“你完全有可能去过那里旅游。就像书中提到的凯瑟琳・蔓丝菲尔、珍妮特・佛林一样。”
他的笑使他的眼睛眯成了一条线。
“我没有去过，不过她们是去过。”我说。
我们就这么聊开了。他问，我答。我说话的时候，他认真地听着并点着头，接着又问一个问题。我们就这样聊着，从读书到所有我喜欢的东西。
过了几天，当麦可牧拿着托盘经过我们桌子的时候，我主动站起来跟他说这个位置是没人坐的。马克很惊奇地看着我，我觉得我的脸刷的一下子就红了起来。
从此以后，麦可牧就经常和我们坐在一起，我们无所不谈。偶尔也会谈谈自己的事情。我告诉他我的妈妈是如何在那嬉皮士年代把我抚养成人的。他说他在那个年代结过婚，但是没过几年就离婚了。马克很奇怪地问我们为什么有那么多的话题。
“他很健谈而且读过很多书。”
“你们有那么多话说，以至于我没有发言的机会。”
“哦。那你就吃饭吧。”
有一天吃饭的时候，麦可牧问我是否愿意和他一起看一本书。
“嗯，我不知道。”我有点犹豫。
“阿母利亚・特纳，是去年小说奖的入围者。”
我很想去，尽管我现在已经不再觉得他很奇怪了，但我还不是很确定我是否愿意和他一起出去。
“然后我做咖哩饭，你会喜欢吗？”
[未完待续]