Aperture on the East by Meris Lee Read Free Book Online

few
customers were enjoying bowls of snails in a lemongrass broth. Ivan
looked at the pot of soup and could hear his own stomach sing to
the aroma, but Sofia led him inside a café instead. Sofia ordered
two cups of durian smoothie. Ivan grabbed a cup and took a sip
through the large straw. Despite the interesting odor, the smoothie
was sweet and refreshing.
    “ The actual fruit stinks,
but this is my favorite iced drink in Vietnam,” said
Sofia.
    They sat down near the corner of the
café, looking at the passersby through the glass window. Ivan was
thinking about the social advances he had made that day when Sofia
said, “To tell you the truth, I saw you and your friends back
there. You were pretty good on the skateboard. Actually, you were
amazing. I am not good at any sports. I could walk pretty far
though. I am an hour’s walk away from my house.”
    “ That’s a long walk. Do
you come every Sunday?” said Ivan. He couldn’t believe that he had
just been called “amazing” by a girl as pretty and smart as
Sofia.
    “ I come to the beach
whenever I can. I adore the beach. During the week I am occupied
with school work, but on the weekends I am allowed on the beach for
as long as I want.”
    Allowed? Ivan thought that was a
strange word to use.
    “ I’m from Novosibirsk,”
said Ivan, “which is a landlocked city. So, I love the beach,
too.”
    “ Do you miss
home?”
    “ I miss speaking Russian
and hearing Russian, and maybe the food, too. Other than that, I’m
having fun here.”
    “ I have never been to
Russia, believe it or not,” said Sofia. “My father is too busy to
take me.”
    “ What about your
mother?”
    “ My mother died a few
years ago. She had a sick liver,” said Sofia quietly.
    “ I’m sorry to hear that.”
Ivan didn’t know what to say next, and they sat silently drinking
their durian smoothie. Ivan liked Sofia’s company, and didn’t mind
the void of words.
    Sofia finished her drink and said, “I
have to go now. I will see you tomorrow in school.” She got up from
her chair.
    “ Sure. And maybe next
Sunday I will see you on the beach again?” Ivan said nervously as
he also got up from his chair to walk Sofia out of the
cafe.
    “ Maybe, and we can have
another durian smoothie, or something else,” said Sofia with a
smile. Ivan could feel his heart melt away in that
instant.
    They closed the café door behind them,
and Ivan followed Sofia to the curb. There was a black sedan parked
in front of them with its engine running. Ivan saw the silver hood
ornament in the form of a woman with arms outstretched behind her
as if she were about to fly. Two overlapping R’s were underneath
it.
    The driver came around to open the
door to the backseat.
    “ Bye, Ivan,” said Sofia.
She kissed Ivan on the cheek, and hopped into the car.

Chapter 9
    “ She’s not bad,” said Mai,
who was enjoying a chilled Coca Cola with Ana in the Rocking Waves
Nightclub. They were sitting at a table around the dance
floor.
    It was ten o’clock on a Sunday night.
The number of people present was more than half capacity. The band
was taking a break, so Ana could actually talk to Mai without
screaming at her.
    “ She is pretty good on
stage,” said Ana. “Thanks for coming out with me tonight. I am too
old to come to this kind of place by myself.”
    “ Thank Mr. Tran for
letting us off early,” said Mai. “I don’t get to go out much. We
Vietnamese women are not supposed to be coming to places like this.
But I am old school. I see a lot of young Vietnamese girls here.”
She squinted and surveyed the multi-ethnic mix of
patrons.
    “ They could be from Japan
or Korea, you know,” said Ana.
    “ If I don’t look at those
girls and just listen to the music, I am fine,” said Mai. “The way
they dress and dance is not decent.”
    Ana chuckled at Mai’s conservative
ideals of women; she decided to change the subject.
    “ It’s funny,” said Ana. “I
gave her that guitar long ago. She loves