第30部分(第2/7 頁)

　all　gotten　high　at　Jeremy　Scott　Tompkinson？s　house

beforehand　and　would　all　go　on　to　get　trashed　someplace　else　afterwards；　so　what　did　it　matter？

Nate　picked　at　his　pizza　and　squeezed　his　eyelids　shut。　The　last　lax　party　of　the　year。　The　last　lax

partyever　。　Damn。　The　tears　were　already　beginning　to　fall。

The　gym　was　up　on　the　roof　of　the　six…story　East　End　Avenue　redbrick　school　building；　with

giant　plate　glass　windows　overlooking　the　shimmering　East　River　and　Queens。　One　afternoon　near

the　end　of　tenth　grade；　Nate；　Jeremy；　Anthony　Avuldsen；　and　Charlie　Dern　had　volunteered　to　put

away　the　gear　after　lax　practice。　They？d　hung　out　for　a　while　shooting　hoops　and　then　hidden　from

Rick；　the　janitor；　behind　the　giant　metal　rack　where　the　balls　were　stored。　When　Rick　was　done

and　the　lights　went　out；　they？d　lined　up　in　front　of　the　windows？right　where　Nate　was　standing

now？watched　the　sun　set；　smoked　some　weed；　and　eaten　Starbursts　until　nine。　An　alarm　had　gone

off　when　they　finally　left　the　building；　but　they？d　sprinted　to　Carl　Schurz　Park　a　few　blocks　away

and　had　never　gotten　caught。　That　had　been　a　good　time。　Now　the　good　times　were　about　to　be

over。　Maybe　they　already　were。

Nate？s　eyes　scanned　the　horizon　above　the　silvery　water　and　low　industrial　buildings。

Somewhere　southwest　of　Queens　was　Williamsburg；　Brooklyn；　where　Blair　lived　now。　He

wondered　what　she　was　doing。　Standing　on　her　roof；　maybe；　smoking　a　Merit　Ultra　Light　and

sticking　thumbtacks　into　the　little　voodoo　dolls　she？d　probably　made　of　him　and　Serena。

Don？t　flatter　yourself；　honey。

Nate　flicked　the　tears　away　from　his　gorgeous　green　eyes　with　his　thumb　and　dropped　his　barel