The Other Name

by Jon Fosse

  Okay, I say

  and I think that if Asle had fallen in The Lane, on the little steps outside number 5, and had lain there, covered in snow, had just stayed there under the snow, who knows how it would have ended? because people rarely walk by there, not in weather like this at any rate, he could have frozen to death, he definitely would have frozen to death in the snow, I think and I raise my coffee and milk again and Asle raises his pint

  We’ve known each other a long time, you and me, I say

  Almost our whole lives, he says

  That’s what it feels like anyway, he says

  and he takes a sip of beer and puts the pint back down and he says he needs to piss and now that he’s recovered it’ll be fine, Asle says, and he gets up and I stay in my seat, looking straight ahead, at his pint, at the golden yellow beer, and then I hear a crash and I look up and I see Asle lying on the floor in his black overcoat and I get up and go over to him and The Bartender comes over to us and stands there with his hands hanging down and I look at Asle and the men sitting alone each at his own table get up and come over to us and one of them bends down and takes Asle’s hands and holds it for a long moment, then looks diagonally up at us

  His pulse is weak, he says

  and he looks at me and I just nod and I hear Asle softly say help me up then, he says, and the men who came over are just standing there and I say it’s no good, you’re not well, this is the third time you’ve collapsed, I say and the man standing there says yes that happens sometimes, that happened to him too, I’ve probably heard of the shakes? he says, or delirium tremens, as they call it, the DT’s, he says and he says that twice he’s been on boats where people died of it, but that was a long time ago, he’s not a young man any more, not by a long shot, no, he says, and he says that they took both of the men who died and wrapped them up real well and tied a weight to their feet and then they were carefully lifted overboard and then when the captain said rest in peace they dropped the body into the sea while one of the religious people onboard, because there are always one or two believers onboard a boat, said the Our Father and then anyone who knew a little of the psalm tried to sing Nearer My God To Thee and then it was over and everyone felt relieved and then, especially then, you felt better after a drink or three and someone else says yes, you sure did, and a third says yes that used to happen a lot before, that someone would die far from shore and be dropped into the sea, he says, what else were you supposed to do with the body? so far from shore? in the heat? in the boiling hot sun? the only thing you could do was wrap the dead man up well and tie a weight to his feet and then drop the body into the sea as soon as you could, he says, and the sea took him in, he says, and someone else says yes, yes, that’s true, for the sea has God in it, he says and a third person says that the sea is the biggest graveyard in the world, and maybe the best one too, someone says, yes, there’s more of God in the sea than in the earth on land, someone says and then it’s quiet and then someone says

  Sea and sky, he says

  Sea and sky, yes, someone else says

  and two other people say that they’d also been there when people had the DT’s and died from it and were buried at sea, but that was a long time ago, it’s not like that any more, that’s just how it used to be, before, a long time ago, now boats have freezer rooms of course, and they’ve had them for a long time, someone says, and thank goodness for that says the third man, and someone says that he used to have the DT’s himself, he says, yes, well, who hasn’t, someone else says, but he’s shaking so badly, I say, yes the best thing would be for you to take him to The Clinic, The Bartender says and someone else says that’s right, someone there’ll probably admit him, and he’ll get medicine that’ll maybe make him stop shaking, he says and Asle says they need to help him up and he thinks dammit what happened? what’s wrong with him? he’s fallen down again, and he’s on a boat? yes, he is, and since he’s so wobbly on his feet they must be on some some really rough seas, he thinks and his drink, where’s his drink? he thinks, because if he just has a little more of something strong, and a little more beer, he’ll be fine again, Asle thinks and I hold him by the arm and The Bartender takes his other arm and then we pull and Asle helps as much as he can and we get him to his feet and then Asle is standing and I’m holding his arm

  Little to drink and I’ll be fine, Asle says

  No I don’t think so, The Bartender says

  You need to go to The Clinic, I say

  and Asle says what the hell, he doesn’t need to go to any Clinic, he’s not sick, he just needs a drink, a lot to drink, he says and I say it’s time for us to go to The Clinic now and the men standng around us say yes he’s right, and one says he knows too many people who died from the shakes and The Bartender says he can call a taxi and I say yes and Asle says what the hell, but what can he do? there’s no place for him here on this boat, Asle says and I see that The Bartender has gone over to the bar and picked up a phone and he’s saying something into it and then he comes back and says he’s called a taxi and it’ll be here in a couple of minutes and he says maybe I need a drink for strength and I’m about to tell him that I don’t drink, I had to stop, but The Bartender has already gone and he comes back with a generous pour in a glass and he holds it out to me and I say I don’t drink any more, I’ve had my share and that’s enough, I say and The Bartender says he understands and he lifts the glass to his own mouth and empties it in one go and then he says we can go outside now, the taxi’ll be here any minute, he says and I see Asle standing there in his black coat and I go and put on my shoulderbag and pick up Asle’s and put it on him and then I take Asle by the arm and steer him across the room and one of the other men takes Asle’s other arm and a third goes to open the door for us and we go out and then one of the men who’s come outside with us gives Asle’s shoulder a shake and says it’ll be fine, he’ll get through this, he himself has been through what Asle is going through now, even if it was a long time ago, and he got through it, just barely, he says, but he was on a boat, far out to sea, and Asle is on land, and there’s good medicine you can take now, medicine that reduces the shaking and helps you get to sleep, he says and the taxi comes and The Taxi Driver gets out and opens the rear door and Asle gets in and I go around the car, open the door, and get in next to Asle and I say we’re going to The Clinic and The Taxi Driver starts driving without saying anything and I don’t say anything either and when we’re in front of The Clinic I pay for the ride and I say no when The Taxi Driver asks me if I want a receipt and then I open the door and get out and The Taxi Driver gets out too and opens the door on Asle’s side and I take Asle’s arm and get him out of the taxi and The Taxi Driver asks if I can handle the rest on my own and I say yes it’ll be fine, I say and then Asle says where the hell is he? wasn’t he just on a boat? in rough weather, the weather was bad as hell! he says and I hold Asle’s arm tight

  I can walk fine by myself, he says

  But you kept collapsing, I say

  Yes I know that, he says

  That’s just because the weather’s so rotten today, he says

  and then Asle says he just needs a little more to drink and everything’ll be fine, a drink is all he needs, he says and I say yes yes and I open the door to The Clinic with one hand and we go inside and I see that no one else is there and Asle says I need a drink, he says that several times, and then he asks where he is, and I say we’re in The Clinic, because he’s not well, I say and while I keep hold of Asle’s arm we go over to the reception desk and the woman sitting behind the desk slides open the window she’s sitting behind and I say he’s not doing too well and I nod at Asle and she asks me his name and date of birth and I’ve never been able to remember birthdays and I ask Asle when he was born and he answers who do I think he is, do I really think he’s someone who goes around remembering things like that? he says and she asks for his relations, yes, that’s what she says, and I say I’m just a friend but I know that his parents are dead, and he also had a sister but she�
��s dead too, Alida was her name, and now why am I saying that? I think, and then I say that he was married twice and he has three children, one grown son and two younger children, a boy and a girl, and she asks if I have their names and addresses and I say I don’t even know their first names, he always just talks about The Boy, who’s grown-up now and lives in Oslo, and The Son and The Daughter, who live with their mother somewhere in Trøndelag, and I say that the only thing I know is that his first wife was named Liv and the second was Siv, I don’t know their last names or addresses or anything like that, I say and then I say where he lives and I give her my name and my address and phone number and she says that a nurse will come get us in a moment and then a doctor will examine Asle and I thank her and then Asle and I go sit down on a sofa and I say now we’ll just wait a little and then a doctor will examine him and he says he doesn’t want anyone to examine him, not a doctor and not anyone else, he doesn’t need any doctor, that’s the first thing, he says, and the second thing is that there isn’t any doctor here on this boat, so the only thing he needs is a drink, and this boat? why is he on board this boat? and where is he? and what’s the name of this boat he’s on? is he on The Last Boat? Asle asks and he says he doesn’t think we’re in Bjørgvin, this is some other city, so where are we now? Asle says and I say that we’re in Bjørgvin and Asle says no, no goddamn way, he’s been in Bjørgvin long enough to know what it’s like there so where are we? we’re not on a boat, have we landed on Sartor? he says, are we in Flora? where are we? he says, now, yes, now he’s got it, we’re on Sartor, no doubt about it, he says, yes, that’s where we are, Asle says and then I see a nurse holding a door open and I take Asle over to the door and The Nurse says welcome and then we go through the door and The Nurse points across a corridor and she opens the door to an office and we go in and a man is sitting behind a desk inside and that must be a doctor and The Doctor says yes and I say he’s shaking like this and he collapsed a few times, he was unconscious for a bit, and he’s started saying things that don’t make sense, and well he doesn’t entirely know where he is and stuff like that, I say and Asle again says can’t I find him anything to drink, he needs a drink, if he could just get a little drink everything would be fine again, he says, and why are we on Sartor? what are we doing on Sartor? he says, when did he get here? he says and I look at The Doctor and I look at Asle and The Doctor says Asle needs rest and The Nurse says I can leave now, they’ll take care of him now, Asle needs his rest now, just rest, he needs to sleep and rest as much as he can, she says, but I can call tomorrow and then maybe I can come see him, or maybe the best thing would be to let him rest more and I won’t be able to see him, she says and I say Asle might need some things and I can come by and bring him whatever he wants at least, I say and she says I can call tomorrow and they’ll know more, she says and I say thank you for all your help and then I tell Asle take care

  You’re leaving? he says

  You don’t have to go, he says

  I do have to go, I say

  But you can’t, we’re too far out to sea, he says

  I have to go, I say

  And you need to take good care of yourself, I say

  and then I leave and cross the corridor and go out to the reception area and I see that some more people have come to The Clinic now, they’re sitting and waiting their turn, and then I leave The Clinic and stop outside the door and I breathe in deeply and breathe out slowly and I see that it’s started snowing again, big white snowflakes are falling and falling and I think now I’ll go to The Country Inn and get a room there and then maybe I’ll see Asle tomorrow morning, and then I’ll drive back to Dylgja, as early as I can, I think and it’s snowing, not heavily, not lightly, but evenly, quietly, the snow is coming down in big snowflakes evenly and quietly over Bjørgvin and I think now I really need something warm to drink, yes, a cup of coffee, a cup of coffee with milk would hit the spot, I think and I walk away from The Clinic and I think that I was only able to take a couple of sips of coffee back at The Alehouse before we had to go to The Clinic, and it would have been nice with something to eat too, just something light, I think, so now I need to go somewhere you can get food and drink, anywhere’s fine, I’ll get a cup of coffee with milk, definitely, I think and I think that if only I had a phone number for one of Asle’s children I could have called them, the best would be The Boy, the eldest, who lives in Oslo now, but I don’t even know his name, and I’ve heard about The Son and The Daughter and I know that Asle’s first wife was named Liv and the second wife was Siv but I don’t know where they live or anything like that, I think and then I see the lights from a sign above a door and the glowing sign says Food and Drink in a blue swoop of letters, that’s where I’ll go, I think, and then I’ll go to The Country Inn, and I’m sure I’ll be able to get a room there even though I haven’t reserved one, sure, there are lots of times I’ve just showed up at The Country Inn and asked for a room and they’ve always had space for me, even if I had to sleep on a spare bed in some kind of store room in the attic that one time, so I’m sure it’ll be fine, they’re so helpful and nice at The Country Inn, I think and I open the door beneath the shining blue sign that has Food and Drink on it and I go in and right inside the door I stop and look around and I see that there’s a bar in the middle of the place, it’s not an especially big place, there’s some kind of rectangle in the middle of the room and then some tables by the walls, but no customers, yes actually there’s one woman sitting alone at one of the tables, with medium-length blonde hair, she’s sitting and rolling herself a cigarette and there’s a glass of red wine on the table in front of her, and she looks familiar, doesn’t she? no, I’ve never seen her before, that’s just something I’m imagining, since people look like other people, I think and I wait and I watch for a bit to see if I can just go sit down or if I’m supposed to go over to the counter and then The Bartender nods towards me and I go over to the bar and The Bartender looks at me and holds out his open hand towards me

  A glass of beer for the gentleman? he says

  No thanks, I say

  What can I get for the gentleman? he says

  Just a cup of coffee, I say

  I can do that, he says

  and then The Bartender is already filling a white mug with coffee from the percolator and Food and Drink is printed on the mug and then he asks if I’d like a little something to eat with that and I say yes, maybe, a bite to eat with that would be nice, I think and The Bartender hands me a menu and I glance at it quickly and I see that I can get an open-faced ground-beef sandwich with onions and I say I’d like an open-faced sandwich, ground beef, anyway I always get that, I think, and The Bartender says he can take care of that, I can just take my coffee and sit down and he’ll bring me the sandwich, he says, and I say thanks very much, and then I ask him if he has any milk for my coffee and he apologizes and says he should have asked me about that himself of course, he says, and yes of course he has milk, he says and then he puts a little pitcher of milk down on the kitchen table next to the mug and he hands me a little coffee spoon and I take the spoon and pour a little milk into the coffee and stir it and then I look for an empty table, and I see the woman with the medium-length blonde hair sitting alone and there’s an empty table behind her and I go over to the table and put the mug down and at the exact moment I sit down the thought comes to me, Asle’s dog! Bragi, his dog, he’s alone in Asle’s apartment! and it may be a while before Asle gets out of The Clinic in the worst case, yes, it might take a long time before he gets back home to his apartment and his dog, so I need to get into the apartment and get his dog, Bragi, and walk him, and then it’d probably be best to take him with me back to Dylgja, I think, because I need to take care of the dog until Asle is better, until he’s back home, I think and I take a sip of the coffee and it’s very hot but good, coffee really warms you up, and I take another sip, yes, that’s good, I haven’t had anything to eat or drink for most of the day, I think, almost nothing, so this’ll be good with a littl
e food, and at the same moment a feeling of happiness comes over me, I’m glad I can just be sitting here together with other people, so to speak, even if it’s just the woman with the blonde hair sitting in front of me drinking red wine and smoking, and people should drink as much as they want, I mean except for people who can’t stop when they need to, no that’s not what I want to think about any more right now, I think and I wonder if I’ve seen her before, the woman sitting in front of me with her back to me, some time or another? maybe we’ve even spoken to each other? or met somehow? it’s definitely possible, and anyway it’s good that there’s somebody else at this café too and I didn’t end up sitting alone, it’s always a little sad to sit all by yourself in a café, it’s like something that should be there is missing, not like when I’m at home, then it feels like something’s wrong if I’m not alone, but not when Åsleik’s there, but anyway there’s no one who ever comes to see me besides him, I think, so how can I even think about it? about how I get sort of uncomfortable when people come visit me, I think, and I think that Asle’s dog can’t be left by himself, so I need to go get the keys to his apartment and then get the dog, I need to go back to The Clinic and get the apartment keys and then I need to drive and get the dog, yes, Bragi, yes, and then I’ll need to look after him until Asle is better again, I think and I see The Bartender coming towards me carrying a white plate with a ground-beef sandwich on it in one hand and a knife and fork in a white napkin in the other hand and he puts the plate down in front of me and he puts the knife and fork in the napkin next to the plate and then he says he hopes the food tastes good and I think it looks absolutely great, I’m so hungry, and I start eating right away and I eat the food and drink my coffee and it tastes incredible, I was really hungry, I think and I see the woman with the medium-length blonde hair sitting at the table in front of me stub out her cigarette and stand up, and I see that she’s pretty drunk and I think now she’s going to come talk to me, and I look down and I take another mouthful of ground beef, onions, and bread