the last book I ever read (Early Work: A Novel by Andrew Martin, excerpt seven)

from Early Work: A Novel by Andrew Martin:

Every time Leslie talked about Brian, I felt depression gnaw into me. In the days between Kenny’s return and Brian’s arrival, I spent a lot of time listening to the Sonic Youth albums from their scary period—Sister, EVOL—songs about killing and being very nervous. They sounded like traveling on an interstate bus at night. Julia was used to me falling into periods of shallow darkness. She made sure I wasn’t contemplating self-harm and let me be.