244.英文正文(244)
therewasnotelescreen,buttheremustbehiddenmicrophones:besides,theycouldbeseen。itdidnotmatter,nothingmattered。theycouldhavelaindownonthegroundanddonethatiftheyhadwantedto。hisfleshfrozewithhorroratthethoughtofit。shemadenoresponsewhatevertotheclaspofhisarm;shedidnoteventrytodisengageherself。heknewnowwhathadchangedinher。herfacewassallower,andtherewasalongscar,partlyhiddenbythehair,acrossherforeheadandtemple;butthatwasnotthechange。itwasthatherwaisthadgrownthicker,and,inasurprisingway,hadstiffened。herememberedhowonce,aftertheexplosionofarocketbomb,hehadhelpedtodragacorpseoutofsomeruins,andhadbeenastonishednotonlybytheincredibleweightofthething,butbyitsrigidityandawkwardnesstohandle,whichmadeitseemmorelikestonethanflesh。herbodyfeltlikethat。itoccurredtohimthatthetextureofherskinwouldbequitedifferentfromwhatithadoncebeen。
hedidnotattempttokissher,nordidtheyspeak。astheywalkedbackacrossthegrass,shelookeddirectlyathimforthefirsttime。itwasonlyamomentaryglance,fullofcontemptanddislike。hewonderedwhetheritwasadislikethatcamepurelyoutofthepastorwhetheritwasinspiredalsobyhisbloatedfaceandthewaterthatthewindkeptsqueezingfromhiseyes。theysatdownontwoironchairs,sidebysidebutnottooclosetogether。hesawthatshewasabouttospeak。shemovedherclumsyshoeafewcentimetresanddeliberatelycrushedatwig。herfeetseemedtohavegrownbroader,henoticed。