The Ducks of San Sebastian

Chapter 20

All work and no play made Marco a dull boy, if playing instigator in the sordid lives of his peers had enough of a higher purpose to make it work. If it were play, then the adage didn't have the right ring to it. All play and no work made Marco a lazy boy, one who had begun to shirk his club-related work and slack off on his college essays. They were due in a few months, but that was no excuse: a good person did not procrastinate, and it wasn't like there was much else to do with his time.

For lack of anywhere else to sightsee, there was the local library branch he would visit on occasion during his morning walks, mainly to pick up a local newspaper for his father. It was unclear what value it had compared to the Chronicle, the Times, or any of the more established newspapers he could get himself in the city, but his father would read it diligently regardless. After work he'd read it in his armchair, and share details with his mother like he were informing her Netherfield Park had been let at last—but whenever Marco read it, all he saw were which family businesses were closing and which local politicians had embarrassed themselves. There wasn't much else at the library but books, books found in such excess that their novelty wore off, and printers for public use.

Reading was a dignified hobby, and one encouraged by the club and his parents, but Marco found it hard to justify devoting excessive time to it when he was already exposed to an excess of words on a daily basis. He couldn't possibly be malnourished, a Philistine, or whatever the clinical term was for a lexical deficiency. In the old days, people might pass the day without seeing any words at all that weren't on street signs, but in the present, text messages and Reddit had a sufficient variety of words to convey his thoughts without being forced to rely on antiquated notions of reasoning. Not to say that he didn't enjoy reading when he did read, enjoying it enough for the book club, but it felt too erudite for a summer vacation.

Shortly after the incident that made speculating on Isaac and Vice President Cynthia's relations lose its taste, Marco woke up to a text from his mother asking him to pick up a book from the downtown library—the main branch of the San Sebastian libraries, and the most glamorous of them all. That was simple enough, Marco reasoned. Half an hour there, half an hour back, he'd be back before lunch. And it would be a dignified expedition, not like his spying from the other night, one in pursuit of family values and the arts. He got dressed in a hurry and began walking to the bus stop, not stopping except to notice one of his neighbors needed to trim their hedges. It was undignified to go for a natural, organic, wildlife-friendly look in suburbia, not unless one hired a landscaper to design such a look for a five-digit sum.

A half-remembered muscle memory was about to lead Marco, as he was waiting for the bus, to text the group chat to see if anyone was around. If they split searching the aisles, they'd find his mother's book in half the time. Priya had grown absent, texting often but being too busy with Kenny to be present physically. His outing with Jessica to see Isaac in action had been transgressive, and it was a reminder that while they contented themselves with imaginings of what could be, others were living those same moments. It was no surprise, then, that Priya believed a bird in the hand was worth two in the bush: hers was a rough-feathered pigeon and not a peacock, but it was better than nothing. So that was Priya taken care of, and Marco realized fully then that Isaac had his own priorities: unlike Jessica, he would never be carried by impulse to join Marco for an outing just because, not when there were greater celestial forces that pulled him to and fro. There was no point, then, in texting them, and by the time Marco solidified this notion, he was halfway downtown.

A familiar voice greeted Marco when he entered the library, and while Marco knew he was supposed to feign surprise, it was common knowledge that the universe had it out for him:

"Marco, what a surprise seeing you here!" President Haneul said warmly. "Are you here for the piano recital?"

"The piano recital?"