Page 83 - A Little Life: A Novel

“Fuck ’em,” he said, “I’ll stay here with you,” and Jude laughed a little,
although he winced as he did so, and carefully tipped himself backward
until he was lying on his side, and Willem helped lift his legs up onto the

bed. His sweater was freckled with more flecks of rust, and Willem picked
some of them off of him. He sat on the bed next to him, unsure where to
begin. “Jude,” he tried again.
“Go,” Jude said, and closed his eyes, although he was still smiling, and
Willem reluctantly stood, shutting the window and turning off the bedroom
light as he left, closing the door behind him, heading for the stairwell to
save Malcolm and JB, while far beneath him, he could hear the buzzer

reverberating through the staircase, announcing the arrival of the evening’s
first guests.