День триффидов
A Light in the Night
Theover-alleffectwasTradeFairinitsneglectofhumanfoibles—abookleftafewinchesoutofplaceorwiththewrongcoloronitsjacketwouldruinthewholecarefullyconsideredbalanceandtone—so,too,wouldthepersonthoughtlessenoughtowearthewrongclotheswhensittinguponthewrongluxuriouschairorsofa.IturnedtoJosella,whowasstaringwide-eyedatitall.
"Willthislittleshackserve—ordowegofarther?"Iasked.
"Oh,Iguesswe’llmakeout,"shesaid.Andtogetherwewadedthroughthedelicatecreamcarpettoexplore.
Itwasquiteuncalculated,butIcouldscarcelyhavehituponamoresatisfactorymethodoftakinghermindofftheeventsoftheday.Ourtourwaspunctuatedwithaseriesofexclamationsinwhichadmiration,envy,delight,contempt,and,onemustconfess,maliceallplayedtheirparts.Josellapausedonthethresholdofaroomrampantwithallthemostaggressivemanifestationsoffemininity.
"I’llsleephere,"shesaid.
"MyGod!"Iremarked."Well,eachtohertaste."
"Don’tbenasty.Iprobablywon’thaveanotherchancetobedecadent.Besides,don’tyouknowthere’sabitofthedumbestfilmstarineverygirl?SoI’llletithaveitsfinalfling."
"Youshall,"Isaid."ButIhopetheykeepsomethingquieteraroundhere,Heavenpreservemcfromhavingtosleepinabedwithamirrorsetintheceilingoverit."
"There’soneabovethebathtoo,"shesaid,lookingintoanadjoiningroom.
"Idon’tknowwhetherthatwouldbethezenithornadirofdecadence,"Isaid.
