"Chloé IN THE AFTERNOON" "Mummy's coming." "Hélène?" "Yes, come in." "I've got to go." "I'm late, and I have a lot of work." "It's all right, I'm ready." "You can go." "Ariane is crying." "I'll be right there, I'm ready." "I'm done." "You'll get wet." "It's ok." "I have my raincoat on." "Bye darling, see you tonight." "In the train, I prefer a book to a newspaper, and not only because the size is practical." "The paper doesn't hold my attention enough, and above all, doesn't take me out of the present." "The ride lets me do the amount of reading" "I like to take in at one time." "I like to read at home, at night, but other things." "I like to read several books at once, each with a time and place, taking me out of the place and time in which I live." "I couldn't read if I were alone in a bare cell." "I need a physical presence by my side." "When I was a student, except to work," "I couldn't stay in my room alone." "Now, Hélène and I rarely go out." "Why, among all the available beauties, was I struck by her?" "That's what I'm no longer sure of." "Now, when I see a woman, I'm no longer able to classify her as easily with the chosen or the outcasts." "I'm not only less sure of my taste, but don't see on what criteria I based my judgement." "What defined that "something"" "all women had to have to attract me, and which I detected at first glance." "Since I've been married." "I find all women beautiful." "In their most mundane tasks, I grant them that mystery I used to deny almost all of them" "I'm curious about their lives, even if it brings me nothing new." "What if I'd met this young woman three years ago?" "Would she have caught my attention?" "Would I have fallen in love, wanted... a child by her?" "I love the city." "The suburbs are oppresive." "And despite the crush and the noise." "I don't mind diving into the crowd." "I love the crowd as I love the sea." "Not to be engulfed by or lost in it... but to sail it like a sollitary pirate, seeming to follow it's rhythm... but finding my own when the current breaks or dissipates." "Like the sea a crowd is invigorating." "My thoughts come to me in the street." "Even those that concern my work." "Am I late?" " No, I'm early." "Shall I type that?" "I'll do it myself." "If it's too bad, you can redo it." "Then I'll finish file 20." "Yes!" "Hold on." "It's for you, Fabienne." "How are you?" "Fine, thank you." "Take it in the other office." " It won't take long." "Listen, be good, we're busy here." "I'll see you tonight." "Nothing's changed." "I'm fine." "Leave us alone now please." "Good." "Okay Goodbye." "All right." "Goodbye." "Regarding our recent conversation..." "How are you?" "Is that your new coat?" "It looks good." "Think so?" "Yes, it looks great." "The colour's not bad, but the cut?" "No, it's really nice." "And it won't go out of style." "That green is lovely." "Come in, Martine, I have a letter to dictate." "Really, I'd rather we met at the office." "We'll be much more comfortable here." "And I'll have all the papers at hand." "I don't eat lunch." "Just a sandwich in the afternoon." "On the contrary, it's very healthy." "Good." "Tomorrow at four then?" "No, she's gone to lunch." "I don't know, she should be back by now." "Hold on." "Here she is." "It's for you." "I'll be back at three." "Hello, how are you?" "Fine, thanks." "It's been ages." "I saw Gérard recently." "It seems you're doing well." "Very well." "Almost too well." "We'll have to expand." "We'll be swamped by office-work." "Sit down, you have a minute?" "Yes, but I'm already late." "I should have been at work half an hour ago." "I don't have a schedule." "I work when the others eat, and vice versa." "No one bothers me." "I can breathe..." "You're not the only one." "I have a schedule, but I'm not obliged to follow it" "You think you're privileged?" "There are thousands like you." "Look, in the street." "At this hour, it's mostly women, old people..." "No, men too." "These guys with attache cases." "That one's a salesman." "That one looks more like a lawyer." "Or a teacher, or a secret agent." "I see him as a secret agent maybe Belgian or Dutch." "I like to see people in the streets at all hours." "That's the charm of Paris" "Nothing's worse than afternoons in the suburbs." "They depress me so much." "Really, you dread afternoons too?" "Even in Paris, I don't feel quite right until 4." "It's probably our stupid lunch habit." "That's why I rarely eat lunch." "Instead I ease my anxiety by shopping." "Don't you like the green?" "Well, no, not at all." "This one suits you." "Yes." "But it's not exactly what I want." "What's wrong with it?" " Nothing, nothing." "I'm just not crazy about it." "I know the blue suits me." "But... no." "Take the green." "It doesn't suit me." "Listen, I'll think it over." "As you wish" "Could I see your turtlenecks?" "I don't think I have anything left in your size." "Maybe a white one, or an ugly beige." "And in that navy blue?" "Nothing right now." "Come back next week." "You see, it doesn't look very good." "And that one there?" "That one's not your size." "And these are shirts." "But the colours may suit you." "This one." "For example." "It goes with your colouring." "It brings out your eyes." "Try it on, you'll see better." "The dressing room's there." "But I dont want a shirt." "Doesn't matter." "Try it on anyway." "If it doesn't look good, don't take it." "But I..." "I warn you, I won't take it." "Try it on anyway..." "out of curiosity." "May I?" "Of course, go on." "It looks very good on you." "It's a bit tight, isn't it?" "Oh no." "Button it, you 'll see" "The collar is a bit high." "Isn't it?" "Of course, you left in a pin!" "No, it's perfect." "Really, it looks custom-made." "Doesn't it itch a little?" "No, it's pure cashmere." "It's soft... it's light... no ironing." "Okay," "I'll take it." "If the management owns the majority, the co-director, even if he owns a small minority of stock, is considered, by law, a majority owner." "Understand." "It can't be both employer and employee." "Come in." "Do you still need me?" "No, thank you." "I'll finish tomorrow?" "Listen, I hear Daddy coming home." "Say good evening to Daddy." "Good evening Daddy." "Good evening, Ariane." "Good evening, darling." "I know what that is, a sweater." " No, it's a shirt." "I'm afraid I've been had." "You'll tell me what you think." "So, you went shopping?" "Around what time?" "Oh... around three, I think." "We could have run into each other." "Strange, we never do." "Oh." "It's nice." "I like it very much." "Really?" "It's so soft!" "Outside, the inside itches..." "I'll get used to it." "Look." "The shopping made me late." "And dinner isn't ready." "I'm glad you like it." "I wasn't sure of myself." "You can be influenced?" "The salesgirl was very clever." "She didn't seem to care at all." "In fact, I fell in love... with the shirt..." "It rarely happens to me!" "May I leave at 12:30?" "I have a lunch date." "Of course." "I didn't tell you." "I'm getting married." "Really, congratulations!" "When?" "On my sumer holidays, I guess." "Careful, that's far off." "I have plenty of time." "You're not going to leave us?" " Will you still want me?" "Of course." "Because my father-in-law offered me a job, but... actually, neither my husband nor I want to work together..." "I prefer to work here, and hire a maid." "It's better." "The fact that we both teach doesn't bring us closer." "I teach math." "He's in literature." "It's a total lack of communication." "Yes, total." "But aren't your occupations closer?" "Hélène knows nothing about my work." "He doesn't know the title of my thesis." "You got me interested in English again." "And I'm reading the untranslated travels of Captain Cook." "What gets me about these receptions, is guys who think they have to bring their wives." "As if it wasnt enough to be bored at home, they have to parade it about." "Besides." "My wife is a doctor, Frédéric's is a teacher." "They both have professional obligations." "If we impose our chores on them!" "Martine, do you want to go to the Mining Trust party with me?" "You have to ask your fiance." "I broke it off" "Then, you'll come!" "Ah, there's another one!" "These girls!" "What can you do with them?" "They're always engaged." "And it's serious business." "They can't go out without one another." "My wife and I rarely go out together." "Though I love my wife, and am almost faithful," "I can still enjoy the company of a pretty girl." "And I see no reason to go and be bored at a party if not in the hope of meeting a pretty girl to flirt with." "That's the least compensation." "If there's one thing I'm incapable of now, it's flirting with a girl." "I have no idea what to say, and I've no reason to speak to her." "I want nothing from her." "I have no proposition to make." "Yet, I feel mariage closes me in, cuts me off." "And I want to escape..." "The prospect of happiness opening indefinitely before me." "Sobers me." "I find myself missing that time, not so long ago." "When I too could experience the pangs of anticipation." "I dream of a life made only of first loves and lasting loves." "I kept you waiting!" "I want the impossible, I know." "I envy no one." "And when I see lovers," "I think less of me and what I was." "Than of them, and what they will become." "That's why I love the city." "People pass by, and vanish." "You don't see them grow old." "What in my eyes, gives so much value to the streets of Paris, is the constant yet fleeting present of these women, whom I'm almost certain never to see again." "It's enough that they're there, conscious of their charm, happy to test its effect on me, as I test mine on them." "In a silent agreement." "Without even the most subtle smile or look." "I feel their attraction, without giving in to it." "And it doesn't estrange me from Hélène, on the contrary." "These passing beauties are simply an extension of my wife's beauty." "They enrich her beauty, and share it in return." "She insures the world's beauty, and vice versa." "When I hold Hélène in my arms." "I hold all women." "But I feel my life passing by, as other lives unfold alongside mine, and it frustrates me not to be a part of them, not to have held these women back, in their hurried walk to some unknown job," "to some unknown pleasure." "And I dream." "I dream that I actually possess them all." "Lately, in spare moments, I delight in a daydream which gets more precise and complete every day." "A childish daydream, probably inspired by something I read at ten." "I imagine I own a device worn around the neck, which gives off a magnetic fluid capable of destroying free will." "I dream that I use it's powers on the women who pass the cafe, indifferent, hurried," "hesitant," "busy," "accompanied, alone." "Excuse me, are you in a hurry?" "Frankly, no... not really..." "Do you have an hour to spare?" "Yes, in fact I do" "Would you care to spend it with me?" "I don't really know." "Let's try." "Then you'll know." "That's true, I will." "Excellent idea." "I'd like to kiss you." "Me too." "What if your husband saw us?" "He's away." "Let's go to my place." "With you, there's no need to talk." "Your intentions are so clear..." "Are you a professional?" "10,000." "I charge 20,000." "That's cheap." "What do you want?" "I'm not talking to you" "All right." "Coming with me?" "I'm with him." "Dump him." "What'll he say?" " I'll handle lt." "Would you leave me your girlfriend?" "Definitely not!" "Which do you prefer?" "That I take her or eat you alive?" "Well, if you're going to be that way..." "Are you coming with me?" "Why not?" "I'm going to someone else's." "You won't talk me into it." "He's the only one I love." "Why should I go with you?" "You can't answer that!" "Part one" "Someone is waiting for you." "That guy from Pasquier's?" "No, a woman!" "A woman?" "A saleswoman?" "No, it's personal." "She didn't give her name?" " She wouldn't!" "She said you know her well." "She wants to surprise you." "I asked her to come back later, but she sat down." "Well." "I'll see!" "I was sure you wouldn't recognize me." "Chloé!" "You act as if I were a ghost." "Did you think I was dead?" "No, but you disappeared." "Where were you?" "All over, but I'm back." "You don't seem happy to see me." "I'm just a little surprised." "I'd forgotten you." "A lot has happened since you left." "Married?" "Yes." "And you?" "Oh, no." "Yes." "Come right now, I'm free." "All right." "Am I in the way?" "Bad timing." "You should have called." "I was shopping nearby..." "but if you're busy..." "Wait a minute, listen..." "I confess, I'm a little surprised..." "I didn't expect to see you." "How did you get my address?" "So that's what's bothering you?" "From Simon, an old friend of Bruno's." "Know him?" "I ran into him in the subway." "Have you been back long?" "Almost three months." "What are you doing?" "Nothing great." "I work in a night-club, the Agamemmon, you know it?" "I don't go out any more." " You're settling down." "I wanted to do that." "But it's beyond my means." "Knowing I have to work nights spoils the days for me." "I hate afternoons." "You're free in the afternoon?" "You're so lucky!" "Stop teasing me." "I thought you were nicer." "I just meant that I'm occasionally free in the afternoon, too." "If you call, we could have a drink." "Trying to make up for what you said?" "Right away." "Goodbye, and excuse me." "I didn't mean to disturb you." "We hardly knew each other..." "Come on!" "We were great friends." "Will you call?" "Just to bug you..." "All right." "I'll be right with you." "I knew Chloé was too proud to come back after that welcome." "And yet, she persisted" "Hold on." "SOGEF wants you to call right back." "There was also a call from Chloé." "Fine." "If she calls, I'll take it in my office." "Is it Chloé?" "Yes, put it through." "Hello, Chloé, how are you?" "Today?" "It's impossible." "I've really got a lot of work." "Tomorrow?" "Yes, it's possible, but around 2 o'clock." "Am I bothering you?" "No." "I worked all morning." "I'm taking a break." "I'll be with you in two seconds." "I came back to ask you something." "I ask everybody, you never know." "You wouldn't have a job for me?" "You're quitting your job?" "No, but I don't think I'll last much longer." "I was a secretary in New York for six months." "I type very well." "Want me to show you?" "I speak English fluently." "And some Spanish." "Fine, but we have two secretaries and find them quite competent." "I thought perhaps an associate..." "They manage well by themselves." "You should try the classified ads." "I seem to frighten you." "Don't worry." "I'll manage fine by myself." "In a bind, you go to friends." "You've always been good to me." "Me?" "I've never done anything for you." "You were my best friend's girl." "I had to be nice." "Playing a bastard doesn't suit you." "You know, I used to say terrible things about you to Bruno." "I couldn't stand your couple." "You were right." "We weren't a match." "What counts is that you and I always got along." "Remember the night we were alone, playing lovers." "You were terrified Milena would burst in." "Remember?" "Maybe, yes..." "Vaguely." "Vaguely?" "You know very well." "I don't see what you're afraid of." "I've nothing agaist you, and won't blackmail you." "I think I was wrong to come by." "I should have kept my good memory of you." "Going out?" "Yes, have you had lunch?" "No." "I never eat lunch." "Come get a drink?" "We've nothing to say." " We'll drink in silence." "Serge, the guy I live with, is a friend of my boss." "We met in Spain where I spent some time after America" "We came back and stayed together." "For lack of anything better." "Anyway, he's away a lot, on business... crummy deals..." "That way, we get along." "Have you been married long?" "Three years." "Do I know your wife?" "Don't worry, it's not Milena." "Any news of her?" " No." "You?" "All I know is that she married some heir... elevators or radiators, I forget which." "Anyway, she wasn't for you." " Now you tell me." "You were old enough to know better." "I never planned to marry her, while you were set on marrying Bruno" "He's the one who was madly in love with me." "But I never planned to spend my whole life with him." "Do you love this guy?" "Serge!" "No, he's a friend." "I don't have a room." "So I sleep with him." "Is he in love with you?" "Hes hung up on me and very jealous." "I don't like it, besides, there's no reason for it." "I lead a very calm life." "I'm through with one night stands..." "Not for lack of offers." "But the guys at the club are pathetic." "Does your wife work?" "She teaches English at the Saint-Cloud high school." "We have a little girl, and another baby due in March or April..." "You're so bourgeois!" "Nothing against you." "I'd like to be bourgeois." "If you knew how fed up I can get." "With this life, this pad, these guys, this job!" "The next Thursday." "I went with Hélène to do some shopping." "Darling." "This is an old friend, Chloé." "Very old." "From the days with Bruno." "You don't know Bruno?" "Yes, slightly." "He's the only old friend of Frédéric" "I ever caught a glimpse of." "Well, I'll be the second." "I've been away 6 years..." "it would have been hard to meet." "Even here, the odds would be slim." "I very seldom shop with my husband." "We're getting a bed for Ariane." "Hers goes to her little brother." "I've congratulated you on your marriage." "Now I see I was right." "What's her name?" "Ariane." "She looks exactly like her father!" "I have to go." "Goodbye." "So, she's the one Bruno tried to kill himself over?" "She doesn't seem dangerous." "Some girls blossom at night..." "During the day, they're wilted." "She's not bad." "She has something." "What does she do?" "I think she works in a bar, in Saint-Germain..." "I don't know how she found me" "One day she came to ask me to get her work as a secretary." "And, when you run into someone, there's a 99% chance you'll meet again soon after..." "Come by the office?" "No... what for?" "I don't know..." "I'd rather go home." "I think there's a train in... two minutes." "Chloé called." "When?" "Just now." "She'll be by at six-thirty." "This is for me." "These, for your daughter and the bady." "Listen, you're mad." "We have plenty of things for the kids." "See if the size is right." "It's lovely." "And this!" "They must have cost a lot." "Don't worry." "I'm rich." "And I love to give presents." "I adore children." "I didn't do it for you." "I did it for me." "Anyway, thank you." "Your kid is terrific." "I'd love to have a baby with curly blond hair." "She'd take after the father..." "Like your little girl." "I had curly hair as a child." "Really?" "You can't have looked too good." "I'm going." "See you tomorrow." "And, your wife is terrific." "She's great." "You're really lucky." "Now." "Don't cheat on her." "I've no intention to." "Don't worry." "I wouldn't bet on it." "Not the way you look at girls." "What girls?" "All girls." "In bars, in the street, your secretaries..." "Those smiles you give them..." "You wouldn't want me to go around scowling?" "It wouldn't fit the "young boss" image." "Anyway, what's wrong with it?" "In Milena's day." "I was blindfolded." "I was a slave." "But now I trust Hélène." "Hélène trusts me." "We allow each other to look around." "I don't have to account for every thought, word or deed." "Nor does she." "You're preparing an easy way out." "Maybe not for now, but even the prettiest woman gets boring." "No." "What's important to me..." "is to be free." "Not only in my personal life but in my business life too." "Here, I'm a partner." "Financially." "Things aren't all I'd dreamed of." "I had an offer to join another firm." "Very big, very impressive." "I turned it down." "My wife and I live like students." "It keeps us young." "She'll use her maternity leave to finish her thesis." "Will the kid be born with glasses?" "Look." "A gift from Chloé" "Oh, it's very nice." "She has good taste." "It must have cost a lot These things are expensive!" "Should we... invite her to dinner?" "Do you want to?" "No." "Only if you do." "I think she works evenings..." "And if we're too nice." "I'll have her on my back..." "Better to be distant now, than unpleasant later." "Why did she come back to France?" "Because of some guy..." "She lives with one of the bosses from the club." "You can bet she earns more than you ever will." "Still... smart and attractive as she is, she could have found something more respectable." "She started out well, as a model." "She could have had a successful career." "When she broke up with Bruno." "She started going from one guy to the next." "Then, went to the U.S. With a broke painter." "She's not mercenary." "Bruno went broke for her, but it didn't help." "Maybe he didn't have enough money" "She's a totally impulsive, unstable girl..." "I've always felt uneasy with her..." "In Bruno's day, we didn't get along at all." "I put her off when she came looking for work." "So she's given me these presents." "It's her revenge." "She has to seem more generous than me." "It's just pride." "She knows I'll never be of any use to her." "A few days later." "As I arrived at the office at 8:55." "You're up early!" "Guess what!" "I left Serge." "He was asleep." "I couldn't sleep." "I asked myself what I was doing there." "So." "I left." "And here I am." "Think I'm crazy?" "If you had to do it, the sooner the better." "I've got no place to stay." "Can you put me up for 2 or 3 days?" "Our place is tiny." "Where'll the baby sleep?" "I could say with his sister, but in fact, it'll be with the governess." "Right now, it's unlivable." "What needs to be done?" "Plaster?" "Paint?" "I could do it myself." "Or get some friends." "I could be the governess." "I love children." "You're sure you wouldn't like that?" "Afraid of your wife?" "Don't worry." "It was just testing you." "I know you're not a friend." "In fact." "I left because a guy told me about a room in Montmartre." "Work can wait." "I've saved some money." "I made that since Saturday." "I haven't been to the bank yet." "Actually, I came to ask if you'd have some free time to come with me." "Since I'll pay in cash, I'd like a witness." "I'd like to go right away then." "The lady's there mornings." "Give me two seconds to finish up." "Fabienne, for the SOGICOP statement, don't forget to add the summary of 70 to the one for '71." "I don't have the summary of '71." "It's in the file on my desk or maybe... in the legal file." "Are you sure?" "Yes." "Anyway, it has to be ready today." "Wait, maybe Gérard has it." "Do you have the summary of SOGICOP for '70-'71?" "On my desk." "Good." "I'll see you later." "Good." "That's fine." "Chloé, this is my partner, Gérard." "See you this afternoon." "I wonder how you can stand living in an office." "When I walk into an office." "It looks unreal to me." "Everyone's so busy." "Why?" "For nothing." "My secretaries are efficient." "I know." "But it's all meaningless." "Without offices." "Things would go on." "They create nothing but words and paperwork." "What's so creative about serving drinks?" "I give pleasure." "No." "I really don't think it's for you." "It's not very cheerful..." "All I could do would be to put in a double bed." "We're not together." "He's just a friend." "Excuse me, Sir, I did think it was odd..." "No harm done." "That's true!" "Precisely." "I'll take it." "It's to live alone." "Oh, you know, visitors aren't prohibited!" "It's not a place where I'd want to make love." "I won't give your number to anyone, except him." "But he won't call me." "Feeling she needed comforting." "I invited her to a restaurant." "My presence was unnecessary." "The landlady seems honest." "First, I'm still not sure." "Second." "I couldn't stand to be alone." "I needed to see you." "When you're there everything goes well." "You're the only one who can help me." "I don't see what I can do for you." "You don't have to do a thing." "I want you there more to reassure me." "Than to see I don't get taken." "In one case it's just money." "In the other, it's my life." "I almost killed myself." "If I didn't do it, it's that I lacked the physical courage." "If you could just lift a finger and not exist, I'd do lt." "Everyone would." "Why live?" "I didn't ask to live." "You know, at Serge's there's a gas stove." "I only had to open a valve." "It was tempting." "That's partly why I left." "I expect nothing from life." "The only feeling that held me to Serge was pity." "He's screwed up, I'm screwed up." "It creates a bond." "I never want it." "I eat it because it's healthy, not because I like it." "I must be by the sea... or near a stream to eat a trout." "You see!" "The setting is the thing." "The way some people live turns me off." "It's disgusting." "To live only to end up like her." "You won't be like her." "I'll be a bum." "It reassures me to see how peope live." "Lives are more or less happy, but never ugly." "If they were the same, I'd commit suicide." "The variety of life reassures me." "People and their lives are ugly." "The only lives I like to observe are children's." "Too bad if, later." "They'll have ugly lives." "At least." "They had a childhood" "What holds me to life is wanting a child." "But for myself." "The father won't be able to see it." "And, I've decided never to live with a man again." "I'm very happy with that narrow bed." "I'll sleep around a bit." "But no one will come to my place." "You think I'm crazy." "Do I bore you?" "Not at all!" "Really?" "If I don't bore you." "It's great to have someone to talk to." "Even if you don't agree, it's good to talk." "You do me good too." "Your real problems free me from my imaginary anxieties." "I'll explain one day." "You say you can't help me?" "I have a favour to ask you." "What?" "Can you help me get my things at Serge's?" "Now?" "No, tomorrow or the next day" "He's going away." "I'd rather he weren't there." "I don't like going into someone's home..." "It's my home." "And they're my things!" "I can ask someone else." "He put a lock on." "Easy!" "You'll start a riot." "What can I do?" "That guy is nuts!" "How can I get my things?" "Go see him or what?" "It's just a small lock." "Breaking and entering, 5 years." "It's not serious." "Can I help?" "No." "I'll do it faster myself." "Were those taken long ago?" "Yes, before I went away." "You haven't changed." "Thank you." "Well, not too much..." "Take them I don't want them here." "All right." "I'll leave you in your prison." "The records will help a lot." "I sleep very well in this little bed." "Get some rest." "Thank you." "All right." "Goodbye." "But when I was alone, my spirits fell." "Again I was afraid of seeing Chloé take advantage." "Even innocently, of my good nature." "Now that she was free, wouldn't she run to my office every afternoon." "Just the opposite happened." "She disappeared for a week." "And my fear that she would show up at any moment gave way to the even worse feeling that I had been discarded." "Martine, it's for you" "Finally, one day she arrived, around four." "Without warning." "Her hair done, made up, nicely diessed, unrecognisable" "Please sit down." "Am I bothering you?" "Not really." "I can leave" "No, stay." "I'm not that busy." "You could at least have let me hear from you." "I was very busy." "Me too." "Then, you shouldn't be upset" "How is it going?" "Fine, since yesterday." "Actually, when things go badly." "I don't want to see you." "I'm ashamed to show myself." "I couldn't find work." "I wanted to spare you my troubles." "Did you find a job?" "A very good one." "Do you know L'Olibrius?" "It's a new restaurant, very fashionable." "What do you do?" "I'm a waitress." "I bet you're embarrassed to know a waitress." "If your secretaries knew..." "Don't worry." "I don't have to wash dishes..." "It can't be a very exciting job." "It is." "Much better than "L'Agamemnon"." "I'll make more money." "I'll see nice people who can help me." "People with pull." "Not cheap little hustlers." "I started today." "I work from 12 to 3 or 4, and from 8 to midnight." "We can meet in between." "That's when I see clients." "Couldn't you change that?" "It would be difficult." "I assure you, it's true." "I believe you." "But I'm off on Wednesdays." "I'll try to be free on wednesdays." "It's good to see you." "You know I missed you..." "I shouldn't tell you, but I need you more and more." "Our problems in seeing each other make me appreciate you more." "I thought you'd hamper my work." "In fact, it refreshes me to see you." "I'm surprised I find so much to say to you." "While before we talked so little." "I've never talked so much to anyone" "I've never been so candid, so natural." "With most of the girls I've loved, I played a character." "I take Hélène too seriously to be serious with her." "With her, I act like a kid, I make her laugh." "I keep the mood light." "A kind of natural modesty has developed, which prevents us both from baring our innermost feelings." "Perhaps it's better that way." "Anyway." "Everyone plays some role." "I like this one better than the one I played with Milena." "It's more pleasant." "And then." "I think some mystery Is essential to people who live side by side." "I can tell you everything." "We see each other so rarely." "You amuse me." "You amuse me enormously." "I don't see why you want to prove you love your wife." "If you don't love her, or less than at first." "It's not a catastrophe." "It's normal." "No one wants to always be tied to the same person." "Marriage doesn't mean much anymore" "I don't love her because she's my wife." "I love her because of who she is." "I would even unmarried" "No." "You love her, if you do, because you must love her." "I couldn't stand being loved like that." "But then, I'm an exception." "I won't accept compromises." "But since you're a bourgeois." "Act like one." "They stay married and cheat." "It's a safety valve." "It would be good for you." "Practiced in moderation." "Excellent, in fact." "And it's easy for you." "Girls all around who'd love to be in your arms." "Like your secretaries..." "Leave them out of it, please." "Anyway, they don't want me and I don't wnt them." "They're good enough." "Yes." "But there is no interest between us which is fine." "I dont like office romance." "For me, love is an adventure." "For my wife too." "She'd never have married a teacher!" "Since we're exchanging confidences..." "Gérard and I could have hired old hags, horrible, ugly, and all that..." "No, looks were a factor In their hiring." "And not only for the firm's image." "I like to be surrounded by attractive people, in every sense of the word." "If Fabienne and I flirt a little, it's within extremely narrow bounds... a smile, a look... it's nothing..." "But what about the others?" "With others it can go a little further..." "If she could see us!" "Who?" "Your wife or your secretary?" "We met less often, for we both had other commitments." "I'm sorry." "People are awful." "A four hour lunch..." "they wouldn't leave!" "It's a bit late to go out." "I have something at 6." "Want some tea?" "Great idea." "Is there any tea left?" "Bring two cups, please." "It's very hard for me to get away." "Our customers have lunch at incredible hours." "Can't you get some free time in the late afternoon." "It's hard for me too." "My clients eat late." "My only free hour is between 2 and 3." "Just when I work!" "How sad!" "Let's stay together longer Wednesday." "Wednesday, I can't..." "What?" "Gérard and I go to Court." "And I'm just as busy the other afternoons." "Perhaps next week." "No." "Wednesday." "Wednesday evening." "What?" "That's right." "Impossible." "What will I tell my wife?" "Ask her permission." "Do you think she'd refuse?" "I don't know how much she'll like that." "I haven't even told her we meet in the afternoon." "You were wrong We haven't done anything." "Say you have to work." "It's happened before, hasn't it?" "Yes." "It's hhappened!" "But I don't like to lie." "You don't tell her about the afternoon." "Why is the evening different?" "There is a big difference" "In the afternoon, I work..." "Are you working now?" "This is just a little afternoon break." "It's tea-time." "I'll put it on the desk." "To have tea with you or someone else..." "Like your secretaries..." "I know you hate to leave your wife alone." "It'll be an exception." "I've never asked you for anything." "This time it's very important to me." "A guy I met is introducing me to the head of a ready-to-wear store who might be able to give me work" "I suspect this guy is after me." "I'd like you to come with me." "To show him I won't give in." "And I want your opinion of him." "I doubt you'll like him." "Who is he?" "I met him at the restaurant." "You never told me about him." "There's not much to say." "He's good-looking, claims he can have any girl." "He bet he'd have me." "Will he win the bet?" "Certainly not." "He doesn't stand a chance." "Are you jealous?" "Why should I be?" "You don't seem so sure of yourself." "Suddenly..." "You're starting to act like a little girl..." "I'm a woman." "When someone hits me in the right place." "Even if he doesn't have a chance." "It moves me." "And I want to see Gian-Carlo's reaction when he sees you with me." "Gian-Carlo's reaction!" "All right." "I'll find a way." "I'm going to stop." "I'm so tired." "I think this baby will arrive early." "Do you think so?" "I think so." "Be careful." "Yes..." "If you don't mind." "From now on I'll work in bed after dinner." "Wednesday." "There's a dinner-conference." "Can you come?" "No, you're crazy." "But it's important for you, go alone." "Having appeased my scruples," "I told Chloé to pick me up at the office when I got back from court." "Frédéric, it's for you." "Chloé says she's sorry she can't make it." "May I speak to Chloé, please." "She hasn't slept here in three days." "Three days..." "Is that you?" "Already?" "I decided my presence wasn't necessary." "How are you?" "I'm fine." "But you should have called." "I didn't fix you any dinner." "No problem." "I'll make something." "I enjoy it." "What are you doing here?" "I don't know." "Too much coffee, then I read, and..." "I fell asleep." "For the next few days, I kept calm with difficulty." "I was ready to get angry with anyone, for anything." "I couldn't stand that she seemed to disregard my detachment." "She behaved exactly as if I were a discarded lover." "She was obliging me to be jealous." "I'm on holiday." "See you soon." "Chloé." "This is the Clinlc." "You wife was just admitted." "Did it go well?" "Very well." "Mother and child are well." "Is it a girl, or a boy?" "A little boy." "Part two" "Yes, darling." "Look at mummy's baby." "He's pretty" "He's beautiful." "He's your little brother." "Want to kiss him?" "Gently..." "A kiss..." "Rymonde, please." "There's a shopping list on the kitchen table." "Add cotton balls." "And pick them up at the chemist's." "Are you taking Ariane?" "No." "She doesn't have time." "She's late already." "Come, Ariane." "Why doesn't she take care of her more?" "In four hours a day." "She doesn't have time." "W should get someone full time." "To sleep here and mind the kids, you need rest." "It's ridiculous." "You can't go on like this." "I know." "I'm going to, but I haven't had time." "I'll call this afternoon to find an au pair girl." "I'd rather hire her myself." " Fine." "But do it." "I'll call this afternoon." "Promise?" "Do you swear?" "Goodbye, Suzanne." "If I'm not back by six, can you give Ariane a bath?" "I think she likes that." "See you tonight." "The bathroom is free." "I'm late, I'm late..." "Excuse me!" "I don't blame you at all." "But I find it odd that you left without a word." "What should I have said?" "That I'd left with Gian-Carlo." "I thought you'd guessed," "I was worried." "You seemed afraid of him." "Afraid?" "Certainly not." "But I've been taken by that kind of guy before, and I decided to get even." "So I did a whole number." "I acted bored." "I was capricious." "You know, I'm irresistible when I want to be." "You laugh." "You should've been there." "Anyway, when he was crazy about me completely nuts." "I left, without saying a word, with a magnificent English boy..." "19 years old." "But I don't have much maternal instinct." "So I came back." "The holiday's over." "I gave up my room." "I'm living with the people who drove me back." "I quit the restaurant." "But work can wait a few more weeks." "Anyway, you look great." "That's a beautiful suit." "Where did you find it?" "Italy?" "No, when I got back to Paris." "I wanted to look good..." "I thought you'd forgive me more easily." "My successes gave me courage." "I've decided to seduce you." "I hope you won't dare resist me." "Don't worry, I will." "You know I have a son?" "No." "Congratulations." "What's his name?" "Alexandre." "Look, darling the bby." "You see?" "It's Alexandre." "Can you say it?" "His name's Alexandre." "You little brother..." "Nice, isnt it?" "Great." "The cut is perfect." "I'll take it." "In Chloé's presence, I felt more and more at ease." "I'll wear it." "I'll just take the tag off." "How much?" " 85 francs." "Do I pay you?" "The cashier." "What would my wife say if she saw us?" "Why?" "I never shop with her." "She likes to buy her clothes alone." "So, she can't object." "On the contrary." "Is she jealous?" "She's seen worse." "We have a beautiful English governess who walks around nude." "She's not afraid?" "She rightly believes I'm above physical sensations." "And she doesn't worry about a girl I have nothing to say to." "You have things to say to me." "We make a nice couple, don't we?" "A perfect couple." "Chloé, do you want to marry me?" "You're married." "In my life, yes." "But in another?" "A double life?" "Not necessarily." "You never dream of living two lives at once..." "Simultaneously, but also in a complete and perfect way?" "It's impossible." "It's a dream..." "Then, Chloé's mood darkened." "Her money running low, unable to find work..." "Leave me alone." "Go home." "Go back to the office." "What's the matter?" "Look we're just wasting each other's time." "So let's stop." "It would be better." "You're the only reason I can stand life." "That's not true." "Yes, it's true." "Others have always taken advantage of me." "I have to tell you..." "I'm nice only because we're not involved." "In business, I'm very tough." "Listen, I have to tell you..." "Let's go." "You don't think she'd want it?" "I see." "It's a small shop, but well-located and the owner's never there." "That's why she wants someone experienced, not some 18-year-old." "Sure, if she'd rather stay home, that's up to her." "I have to go." "Goodbye." "I'm sorry." " No, it's nothing." "I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but you said a salesgirl?" "A friend of my sister-in-laws." "She needs someone to run her shop." "Of course..." "Chloé!" "I hadn't thought of her." "Do you want me to call?" "Do you like it here?" "It's not bad." "I'm going out for coffee." "I'II be right back." "It's not bad at all." "The owner has stores in Paris and on the Riviera." "So she travels a lot." "I think she might put me in charge." "I found a maids-room upstairs." "It's great." "I don't have far to go." "I'll move in right away." "The problem is I'll see you less." "What time do you get off?" "8, in the evening." "But I'm off on Mondays." "I'II be in next Monday to straighten up." "You could drop by, we'll go get a drink." "1:30, as usual?" "Is my dress ready?" "Was it for today?" "I think so..." "It should be." "What name?" "Barres." "I'II ask the other girl." "I'm new here." "Do you have my size in this style?" "I'm a 44." "Wait, I'll go see." "May I try it on?" " Please." "Right in there" "Yes." "It's ready." "I see you can take my place." "If you take mine." "Never!" "See you on Monday." "Look at me..." "Perfect!" "Both of you." "Put her down now." "I want one of you alone." "You have thousands." "I want to see if I've improved." "You're so much more beautiful now." "I wonder why I married you." "Me too!" "She's in Saint-Jean-de-Luz." "I'm in charge of the store." "Of everything?" "Really?" "Even the books?" "We have an accountant." "Do you think I'm an idiot?" "I was a secretary, I told you." "That's right, you did." "You don't believe me, so I have to repeat it." "It's the first time I've seen you in a dress." "I have nothing else to do, so I try one on every 3 hours or so." "I'll try on the green one." "Not bad, eh?" "Do you like it?" "I've never been excited by a dress." "No dress is beautiful by itself." "This one does justice to your figure." "Anyway, it's not the dress one admires, it's you." "You have a beautiful figure." "Listen, Chloé" "No, I won't listen" "I know." "You're going to talk to me about your wife." "No, it's not my wife I'm thinking about, but you and me," "and our faltering friendship." "I don't believe in friendship." "There is none on your side or mine." "You know, for some time now, I've been noticing something." "I love you." "I'm in love with you." "I hope that's not true." "If you were, I'd run away from you." "You'd want me to leave my wife." "Not necessarily." "I'm happy like this." "It's enough to know I love you and to tell you." "I have a good imagination." "I can even imagine it's you when I'm making love to others." "You're crazy!" "No." "What's crazy is to pretend you love someone you live with." "I couldn't love a guy who'd moved into my bed." "And thought he could stay." "Especially, the father of my child." "You know I want a child?" "Yes." "You told me that." "Well, I've found the father." "Yes, you." "Don't laugh." "I'm serious" "I've decided to have a child by you I always get my way." "It's all thought out." "Who else could be the father?" "You meet all the requirements." "You're tall, married, handsome, not too dumb and you have blue eyes." "I want a blue-eyed kid." "It's well thought out, isn't it?" "What do you have to say?" "What would I tell my wife?" "She doesn't have to know..." "You won't be sure you're the father either." "What's in it for me?" "Nothing." "I'm looking out for myself." "You think I'm kidding!" "I'm being perfectly logical." "You're the illogical one." "This one looks just like his mother!" "Don't you think?" "I don't see it." "Sure!" "Ariane is like her father." "Alexandre's like his mother." "I'm sure you were like that as a little girl." "Remember, darling?" " Not at all." "Anyway, the baby's made you look younger." "Hey, it's not bad." "No, it's not bad It's pretty good in fact." "It's two maid's rooms." "They knocked down a wall." "There's work to do." "It needs paint." "It's not that dirty." "You have a fireplace" "Does it work?" "I don't know." "I'll find out this winter." "You might not be here by winter" "I have every intention of staying." "I like it." "If you get married?" "Not a chance." "Is that a closet?" "Closet?" "My kitchen, a closet?" "Kitchen and bath!" "I'll have to tear down the wallpaper." "It's horrible." "I'll help you, if you want" "It's not for bureaucrats." "Move over." "An hour or two every so often..." "when I can." "No." "Take the cups and put them by the bed." "Where?" "On the floor." "One sugar?" "No one will come here." "If I sleep with a guy, I'll go to his place or a hotel." "I'm tired of the street and bar scene." "You come see me here, it's much nicer." "Don't you like it?" "I'm very much in love with my wife, right now." "I know." "If you love her." "Then don't come here." "Let me finish." "I was going to say..." "I love my wife and have never desired her more," "But I'm so attracted to you." "I wonder if I can resist." "My will is shaken." "I sometimes wonder if we shouldn't go to bed together." "Is it possible to love two women at once." "Is that normal?" "It depends on what you call love." "Love with passion, no." "But passion doesn't last." "If you mean sleeping with several girls, even caring for them, nothing is more banal, everybody does it." "Actually, polygamy is natural." "Polygamy, that's barbarian, the enslavement of woman." "Not if women do the same thing." "If you were normal, you'd sleep with anyone you want, and so would your wife." "I know I'm right, and I'll convince you." "You'll be unfaithful one day." "Not necessarily with me." "Another girl will reap the benefits." "In a polygamous society, I'd be polygamous, and be fine." "But in a society such as ours, I won't base my life on lies." "I hide too much from my wife now." "What makes you think she doesn't?" "I saw her wth a guy the other day." "Oh?" "Where was that?" "At Saint-Lazare station." "About a month ago." "I wasn't working yet." "And?" "Are you afraid?" "And nothing." "They were walking together, and talking." "She didn't see me but I saw her." "What's so unusual about it?" "She knows people." "She comes to Paris, it could be a colleague." "What did he look like?" "I wasn't paying attention." "Not great." "Must have been a teacher." "They were very proper..." "But it struck me that if, when we're out walking and you're so nervous, we came across her flirting with X, Y or Z, it would be rather comic" "I do think one of her colleagues is taken with her." "He's bright, witty." "She likes his company." "He makes her laugh." "But I doubt she has any physical interest in him." "That's why I can't get upset." "And I never intend to." "It's nice here" "Maybe too nice." "Here's my idea for Monday." "I'll take the afternoon off, and we'll eat out." "In the park, or by the river." "That way, we can spend all afternoon seeing where we stand." "Want to?" "Pick me up at the office?" "No, you come here." "All right." "Goodbye." "See you around 1:30." "It's you!" "Come in." "It's locked." "I'll open the kitchen door." "It's beautiful!" "Could you hand me that towel, please." "And the bath mat." "You can kiss me." "Water doesn't stain." "Dry me." "Do it right." "Really, dry me." "Your jacket itches." "Listen, I'll be there at four." "Wait for me." "Wait." "Hold on." "Hélène." "It's me." "I just called to find out if you were back." "I had a meeting." "It's called off." "I don't have anything to do." "I wondered if you were home." "I'm coming home." "I wanted to tell you." "I was close to a phone." "I'll be right there" "I'm going." "See you tomorrow." "See you tomorrow" "You scared me." "You sounded strange." "You're not sick?" "My day was disrupted," "So I thought I might as well come home." "Am I bothering you?" "No, I have nothing to do either" "Anyway, you never bother me." "I work better when you're here." "But today, I don't feel like doing anything." "I had an errand, but I don't think I'll go." "In Paris?" "No, here." "But it's not important." "Don't upset your plans for me, go, really." "Unless I'm bothering you." "You're crazy!" "I came to see you." "I've nothing special to tell you, but I wanted to see you." "We never see each other in the afternoon, except on Sundays." "Though I don't like afternoons." "I get a little anxious." "And I'm afraid to be alone." "And you?" "The afternoons when I don't teach..." "Now that the girl takes the children out, I feel empty, strange." "I guess I'm not used to it." "It's funny seeing you here." "No, stay, stay." "I'm happy, you've no idea how happy, but I must look a bit dumb." "I want to tell you something." "I thought you had nothing to tell me." "It just came to me." "Maybe it's completely idiotic." "Maybe I should be quiet." "Anyway..." "I'm sitting next to you and you make me shy because you're so beautiful." "You've never been so beautiful." "And you make me shy..." "this is harder to understand becaus I love you." "You see, it's idiotic." "I understand very well." "I don't want you to think it's coldness." "I'm the one who's cold." "Much more than you." "You're perfect." "I wouldn't have liked a husband who... kept intruding on my thoughts, who was too familiar... even with the best intentions." "I feel guilty because I don't talk to you much, confide in you..." "I talk endlessly with people I hardly know," "Who mean nothing to me, who are only casual acquaintances." "Are you crying?" "No." "I'm not crying." "I'm laughing, can't you tell?" "Calm down." "Is anyone here?" "No, not until five." "Let's go into the bedroom."