"Michael Kandel - Hooking Up" - читать интересную книгу автора (Kandel Michael)

the gravity and the difference in the water. Wondering about the differences
between Earth and Nerol, she fell asleep.

When it was time for her appointment, Topaz and her mother went to a glass
building and up an escalator to a room where there was a sharp piney smell and a
lot of people waiting. One boy had a bandage on his head. His lower lip stuck
out, as if he had been punished. It made Topaz feel funny in her stomach to see
the bandage, though the bandage didn't have any blood on it. She hoped the plon
wouldn't hurt when it went in. She and her mother sat on a very comfortable
couch, and to pass the time her mother leafed through a colorful magazine about
movie stars. Earth people seemed to like colors more than Nerolians did. In
their clothes and shoes, too, there was a lot of color. Perhaps her mother would
take her shopping soon, and Topaz would get some new clothes for school.

A woman gestured, and Topaz's mother said, It's our turn. What's wrong with you,
Topaz? Topaz didn't know what was wrong with her, but she didn't seem to want to
get up. Come on, dear, said her mother. Don't be frightened. It's nothing, I
promise. Topaz knew she was being silly, but she couldn't help it. She shook her
head no, over and over again. The woman who had gestured at them made an
unpleasant smile and gave a shrug. I'm sorry, said Topaz's mother, but I have to
talk to my daughter. I can't just drag her in kicking and screaming.

Her mother looked at her with that patient, sad face that made Topaz do whatever
her mother wanted, but this time Topaz looked away, so she couldn't see it.
Please, dear, said her mother. You're being unreasonable, you're acting like a
little child. Topaz said, I don't want anything inside my head. What about your
braces? said her mother. They're in your head, aren't they? They're in my mouth,
said Topaz. It's not the same. You don't want to be different, do you, Topaz?
asked her mother very sadly. You don't want to be the only child in school who
isn't hooked up, do you? And they'll all laugh at you. Think how you'll feel.
Topaz started crying. Take me home, please, she said. I don't want anything
inside my head.

You're really surprising me, said her mother. I'm surprising myself too, said
Topaz, in tears, even starting to sob a little. It made her nose run. I can't
help it. I don't know why, I'm sorry. There, there, said her mother, holding her
and patting her head. Her mother then told the woman that she was sorry but it
looked like they would have to reschedule. The woman said, It's not so unusual
for kids to get cold feet, and she gave them a few colorful brochures. Here, she
said, this provides some information. We're always afraid of what we don't know.
And before they left, she put out her hand to Topaz and said, Here, look, honey,
in my hand. Topaz looked and saw, in the palm of the woman's hand, a silver
cylinder so tiny, it looked like part of an electronics kit, the kind Ian had on
Nerol. That's a plon, said the woman. Do you want to hold it? No, thank you,
said Topaz, wiping her face, and they went home.

Later that day, her mother had a serious talk with her father. Topaz heard some
of it, from the next room, even though their voices were low. Her mother said:
It must be difficult for the child to adjust. Think, dear, it's not just a new
school and new friends, for her it's a whole new planet. It's not new to us, we