opinios

When I came into the guesthouse she was laying by the pool, reading a book. She wore white shorts, a pink t-shirt and an LA Lakers cap. I'd been in the guesthouse for four days and hadn't seen her before, so I figured she must have just arrived.

As I walked past on the way back to my room, I turned to take another look at her. She was kind of tall for an Asian girl, her long legs stretched out on the chaise-lounge as she lay sideways, propped up on one elbow with the book in the other hand. She wore dark sunglasses and her long black hair was tied in a ponytail that was sticking out the back of her cap. She had a nice figure but with the sunglasses and cap it was hard to tell how attractive she was.

She looked up briefly and noticed me looking at her. I felt stupid staring at her like that. I had to say something.

"Hey, is that Nietzsche you're reading?" I asked.

She looked up again and this time stared right at me. She held my gaze just long enough to make me uncomfortable, then without saying a word, she went right back to reading her book. I wasn't sure what to make of it. It occurred to me that maybe she couldn't speak English. We were in Thailand after all and it was entirely possible. I took a step closer to make sure I couldn't be missed and stood next to where she lay.

"Do you speak English?" I asked.

"Yes" she answered.

"Oh, sorry. I guess you didn't hear me. I was just..."

"I heard you," she said. Then, to my astonishment, she again went back to reading her book. I was incredulous. Plenty of girls were politely dismissive. That, I could accept. But this girl just flat out ignored me. There was another guy sitting at the bar. I looked up at him in bewilderment and he was smiling, watching with satisfaction. I felt stupid. I had to do something.

I looked again at her book. It was Nietzsche's "Thus Spake Zarathustra". Not your usual holiday reading.

"Well, why didn't you answer me?" I asked. "That seems a little odd."

She shrugged. "It was just a stupid question," she said. She had an American accent.

"I was just interested and being friendly," I said. "There's no need to be rude."

"Why were you interested?" She asked.

"I don't know. I just was. You don't often see girls reading Nietzsche." I wished I didn't say that. I knew it was stupid immediately.

"Really?" she asked. She was attractive. Definitely.

But I was going nowhere. I looked up at the guy at the bar and he was still looking at me with that smug look on his face. I wanted to smash his face in.

"Sorry, that was a dumb comment," I said. "It's just that..."

"Yes, it was."

I stared at her for a minute. I didn't know what to say. I was completely flummoxed. Time to make a hasty retreat.

"Well um, yes. Lovely. I have to get going. See you then."

I went to my room. I was sure the guy was laughing by now and would probably tell his friends about it later. I would have.

I came out a while later to have dinner. There was a courtyard in the guesthouse that had a set of plastic tables and chairs where guests could have a drink or eat a meal. The food was cheap and pretty good so I ate there a lot. It was also a great place to meet other people.

Tonight it was pretty empty. Looking around for somewhere to sit, I noticed the same girl who had been by the pool earlier. She was sitting at a table on her own, still wearing the same clothes and the Lakers cap. I thought about talking to her again. I had spent a good part of the afternoon fuming about our earlier conversation, or lack of. I felt hard done by. I had tried to be friendly and had been shot down. But I was also intrigued. She was the most blatantly rude person I'd ever met. You had to respect that. And she had that one redeeming feature that I found almost impossible to overlook in a woman: she was the only girl that was there. I was bored and there was no one else to talk to. So I walked over to her table. I think she saw me coming.

"Is that a Lakers cap you're wearing?" I asked.

She didn't look up.

I crouched down next to her, determined not to leave until I got a response.

"Hmm?" I prompted her. I knew I was being an idiot.

Still she didn't look up, and I didn't move.

"You're a very odd person," I said. "I've never met anyone as rude as you. I think it's very interesting."

This time she looked at me as she took a sip of her drink, and I thought I noticed the corners of her mouth break into a smile. Perhaps she was human after all.

"You don't give up, do you?" she sighed at last.

"Actually it's funny you should say that, I've always considered myself a quitter."

"Oh really?" she asked. "It doesn't seem that way."

"Yes, 'if at first you don't succeed, try again then quit'. That's my motto."

This time she definitely smiled.

"Quit while you're ahead is another of my favorites," I said.

She laughed, and looked at me curiously. "Wise words," she said. I thought for a minute then stood up.

"You have a pretty laugh," I said. "You should use it more often."

As I turned to walk away, I felt her hand on my wrist. I looked down at her. She took her sunglasses off and I saw her eyes for the first time. She was very pretty.

"I'm sorry," she said. "My name's Amy. Why don't you sit down - This book is so boring that I just can't read another word of it."

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Submitted by Simon Tierney