【时间旅行者的妻子】34

Santa is magic. Youre not Santa. Meaning Im not magic? Geez, Louise, youre a tough customer. Im not Louise, I know. Youre Clare. Clare Anne Abshire, born May 24, 1971. Your parents are Philip and Lucille Abshire, and you live with them and your grand

【时间旅行者的妻子】36

Thats a great idea. But what I really need isnt money, its clothing. Clare looks at me doubtfully. Does your dad have any clothes he doesnt need? Even a pair of pants would be great. I mean, I like this towel, dont get me wrong, its just that where I

【时间旅行者的妻子】44

He strolls on, braying, blissfully unaware, with his wallet in his left back pocket. He has a large gut but almost no backside, and his wallet is pretty much aching for me to take it. I amble along behind them. Henry has a clear view as I deftly inse

【时间旅行者的妻子】45

Hmm, my, you should take this to the security guards, hmm, theres quite a bit of cash in here, yes, the man wears thick glasses and peers at Henry through them as he speaks and Henry reaches around under the mans jacket and steals his wallet. Since H

【时间旅行者的妻子】48

Jesus, Henry. He shuts the door and I hear him walking back to his room. I throw my self a reproachful glare as I pull on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt. I walk down the hall to Dads bedroom. His door is shut. I knock. No answer. I wait. Dad? Silence.

【时间旅行者的妻子】52

I laugh and laugh. I have escaped again! Houdini, Prospero, behold me! for I am a magician, too. Nausea overcomes me, and I heave bile onto Kimys mums. Saturday, May 14, 1983 (Clare is 11 almost 12) CLARE: Its Mary Christina Heppworths birthday and a

【时间旅行者的妻子】54

Then it starts to move, slow. It goes in circles, and then stops on H. Then it speeds up. E, N, R, Y. Henry, says Mary Christina, whos Henry? Helen says, I dont know, but youre blushing, Clare. Who is Henry? I just shake my head, like its a mystery t

【时间旅行者的妻子】55

Everyone is weirded out. Im very weirded out. Husband? Husband? Thursday, April 12, 1984 (Henry is 36, Clare is 12) HENRY: Clare and I are playing chess in the fire circle in the woods. Its a beautiful spring day, and the woods are alive with birds c

【时间旅行者的妻子】56

（You can still be cool ）when youre dead. In fact, its much easier, because you arent getting old and fat and losing your hair. Clare hums the beginning of When Im 64. She moves her rook forward five spaces. I can checkmate her now, and I point th

【时间旅行者的妻子】67

I guess. And what do you vote for? Clare is silent. Her pragmatism and her romantic feelings about Jesus and Mary are, at thirteen, almost equally balanced. A year ago she would have said God without hesitation. In ten years she will vote for determi

【时间旅行者的妻子】59

I move Queens Bishop to KB4. Its not fair that you know everything about me but you never tell me anything about you. True. Its not fair. I try to look regretful, and obliging. I mean, Ruth and Helen and Megan and Laura tell me everything and I tell

【时间旅行者的妻子】60

It makes me kind of wonder about fairy tales. I mean, if youre real, then why shouldnt fairy tales be real, too? Clare stands up, still pondering the board, and does a little dance, hopping around like her pants are on fire. I think the ground is get

【时间旅行者的妻子】63

Sunday, September 23, 1984 (Henry is 35, Clare is 13) HENRY: I am in the clearing, in the Meadow. Its very early in the morning, just before dawn. Its late summer, all the flowers and grasses are up to my chest. Its chilly. I am alone. Ive never seen

【时间旅行者的妻子】64

Pretty please? Okay, Ill try. She stands up, slowly. This is the year Clare got tall, quickly. In the past year she has grown five inches, and she has not yet become accustomed to her new body. Breasts and legs and hips, all newly minted. I try not t

【时间旅行者的妻子】66

I help myself to a doughnut. Its a Bismarck, my favorite. The frosting is melting in the sun a little, and it sticks to my fingers. Clare finishes her doughnut, rolls up the cuffs of her jeans and sits cross-legged. She scratches her neck and looks a

【时间旅行者的妻子】73

Ruths parents are in San Francisco for a week, so at least she will have some time to repair, clean, and explain, but Im glad its not my house all the same. Ruths older brother, Jake, has also invited his friends, and altogether there are about a hun

【时间旅行者的妻子】74

HENRY: A long time has passed, maybe an hour or so. I eat half the potato chips and drink the warm Coke Clare has brought along. I nap a bit. Shes gone for so long that Im starting to consider going for a walk. Also I need to take a leak. I hear heel

【时间旅行者的妻子】75

Clare is going to kill me for this. Im a friend of Clares parents. They were worried about her taking the car to a party where there might be alcohol, so they asked me to go along and play chauffeur in case she got too pickled to drive. Helen pouts.

【时间旅行者的妻子】80

Spanked? Clare looks at me, smiling, her eyebrows halfway to her hairline. Never mind. So you went to a movie, and...? Oh. Well, then he wanted to go to Travers. What is Travers? Its a farm on the north side. Clares voice drops, I can hardly hear her

【时间旅行者的妻子】12

Nell and Etta always got mad when I did anything in their kitchen beyond getting myself a Coke, and since Ive moved to Chicago I dont have anybody to cook for, so I havent been motivated to work on it. Mostly Im too busy with school and all, sol just