Page 209 - A Little Life: A Novel

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THEIR NEXT-DOOR SUITEMATES their second year in Hood had been a trio of
lesbians, all seniors, who had been in a band called Backfat and had for
some reason taken a liking to JB (and, eventually, Jude, and then Willem,
and finally, reluctantly, Malcolm). Now, fifteen years after the four of them
had graduated, two of the lesbians had coupled up and were living in
Brooklyn. Of the four of them, only JB talked to them regularly: Marta was
a nonprofit labor lawyer, and Francesca was a set designer.

“Exciting news!” JB told them one Friday in October over dinner. “The
Bitches of Bushwick called—Edie is in town!” Edie was the third in the
lesbians’ trio, a beefy, emotional Korean American who shuttled back and
forth between San Francisco and New York, and seemed always to be
preparing for one improbable job or another: the last time they had seen her,

she was about to leave for Grasse to begin training to become a professional
nose, and just eight months before that, she had finished a cooking course in
Afghani cuisine.
“And why is this exciting news?” asked Malcolm, who had never quite
forgiven the three of them for their inexplicable dislike of him.
“Well,” said JB, and paused, grinning. “She’s transitioning!”
“To a man?” asked Malcolm. “Give me a break, JB. She’s never

exhibited any gender dysphoric ideations for as long as we’ve known her!”
A former coworker of Malcolm’s had transitioned the year before and
Malcolm had become a self-anointed expert on the subject, lecturing them
about their intolerance and ignorance until JB had finally shouted at him,
“Jesus, Malcolm, I’m far more trans than Dominic’ll ever be!”
“Well, anyway, she is,” JB continued, “and the Bitches are throwing her a

party at their house, and we’re all invited.”
They groaned. “JB, I only have five weeks before I leave for London,
and I have so much shit to get done,” Willem protested. “I can’t spend a
night listening to Edie Kim complaining out in Bushwick.”
“You can’t not go!” shrieked JB. “They specifically asked for you!
Francesca’s inviting some girl who knows you from something or other and
wants to see you again. If you don’t go, they’re all going to think you think