Oliver Benjamin
again for some time to come. Solipsism had overtaken her: she could
now only revere herself.
One dry spring afternoon, she noticed two strange men stopping
to watch the Anarkids. After that, she saw them everyday. They
strolled around compulsively just as everyone did in that area, one of
the few places in L.A. where anyone seriously strolled. Though
unexceptional at first glance, she gradually came to see an
uncommon and quizzical beauty in their faces.
First of all, it was difficult to guess either of their ethnicities. One
was a short, brown-skinned man with very fine features and loosely-
curled brown hair. A study in earth tones, his skin, hair, and eyes
brought to mind a box of assorted chocolates. One day she noticed
that his palms were brown as well, whereas most black men had far
lighter skin there. And his nose was narrower than most African-
Americans. Leona had known plenty of black guys—it was generally
only they who ever found her attractive. Her breathtakingly large
buttocks seemed a source of enjoyment for this portion of the
population only. But that was just sex; even they ultimately preferred
thinner ones as mates.
The other man could not have been more different. He had pale,
almost phosphorescent skin and closely cropped hair, and although
his features were vaguely Asian, he would have been the tallest Asian
she had ever seen, a face long and noble like a melancholy horse.
Together with the short brown one, they seemed an unlikely duo
from some science-fiction movie, a renegade alliance from
neighboring planets. And yes, they were beautiful, with that
evocative kind of beauty that occurs when blood is mixed, genetic
exile absolved.
Leona watched them for weeks as they strolled silently up and
down the pavement bemusedly observing the sunbleached extremes
of humanity. She decided that they must be foreigners, so curious did
everything seem to them. She wanted to know where they were from
and who they were. But she couldn’t figure out a way to engage them
in conversation without sounding foolish. “Hi,” she imagined herself
floundering, “You two sure are unusual looking.” She knew what it
was like to be singled out as different.
One day, she decided to forgo her usual cigarette break and
instead followed them as they circumnavigated the business district.
The fact that they almost never said anything to each other or anyone
else made them even harder to approach. She had to get back to
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