Sometimes those three words aren’t right. You think you feel what most people feel when they say those words, but those words aren’t the right ones. There’s got to be an alternative somewhere in the English language, but you haven’t found it yet. In the meantime, sit across from someone at a Puerto Rican restaurant and listen as he talks about politics or his childhood or something completely unrelated. Listen more to the tones of his voice than the words he says and be aware of your own words bubbling up in your throat like the beer in your glass. When you just can’t stop yourself anymore, tuck your hair behind your ears, take a deep breath and say:
有时候那三个字不符合情境。你觉得你能感觉到大多数人说出这三个字时的感受，但是这三个字并不合适。英语中一定还有其他可以替代的词，只是你还没有找到。与此同时，在波多黎各人饭店，你坐在某个人的对面，听着他谈论政治或是他的童年或者其他毫不相干的事情。你听着他说，更多的是注意到他的声调而不是所说的内容，你意识到你自己想说的话不断涌到嘴边，就像是杯子里冒着泡的啤酒一样。当你再也克制不住时，你把头发捋到耳后，深吸一口气，说道：“这些大焦做的真好。”他会同意你所说的。
But perhaps you’re not at a restaurant. What then? Perhaps you’re on the sidewalk, and it’s cold, and he doesn’t have gloves so he puts his hand in your pocket. You’re walking quickly because the wind is whipping through the nighttime streets, and all you can think of is his bare hand tightening around your gloved one. If only you weren’t wearing gloves, then it would better because touching is better than most things. Being with this person is better than most things. You come to a stop because the light has changed, and he looks at you all goofy from above the collar of his coat that he has buttoned as far as it can go and squeezes your hand. Look him straight in the eyes and say:
但是可能你不是在饭店。那在哪呢？也许你是在人行道上，天很冷，而他没有戴手套，就把手插在你的衣兜里。你走得很快，因为大风刮过晚上的街道，而你脑子里唯一想着的是，他没带手套的手握着你戴了手套的手。如果你没戴手套就好了，就可以触摸到他的手。跟这个人在一起胜过任何事。交通灯变了，你们停下来，他从他一直扣到顶头的大衣领口上傻傻的看着你，把你的手握得更紧了。你看着他的眼睛，说到：“你真应该买副手套。”他会说是的。
Maybe by now you’ve found your way to a sort-of-friend’s house party. How do you go about this now? You’ve said hello to all the people you know, you’ve had three-to-five glasses of wine, and you’ve been listening to some kid wearing an ugly sweater play his lousy guitar for half an hour. COOL he covers Lana Del Rey THAT’S AWESOME. How much is the appropriate amount of time to stay? You’re sure you’ve exceeded it by now. You must have. The boy you’re with has just come back from the kitchen and sits next to you on the window sill. He’s not touching you, just sitting there holding a can of Hamm’s and looking like he doesn’t want to be there either. He turns to you but doesn’t say anything, so you say:
也许你现在去参加一个朋友办的派对。这下你怎么办呢？你跟所有你认识的人打过招呼，喝了三五杯酒，还听一个穿着丑丑的毛衣的小孩弹吉他弹了半个小时。酷的是他还弹了新晋热门歌手的歌曲“棒极了”。应该呆多久才合适呢？你很清楚你已经呆得过久了。一定是。跟你一起的男孩刚从厨房回来然后挨着你坐在窗台上。他并没有碰你，只是坐在那里，端着一听饮料，看起来好像也不想在那呆。他转向你，但是什么都没说。于是你说道：“我受不了这些人了。”而他会赞同说这些人太逊了。
The dark helps, it always does, but if it’s morning, and the sun has got your freaked, you’ve still got options. You might be sitting with him at the kitchen table drinking coffee from mismatched mugs and saying nothing because sometimes saying nothing is the best thing to say. He’s miles away, and you’re thinking you should take a shower or fix your hair or at least brush your teeth because you feel dirty and self-conscious. You wish the sun weren’t so bright on your face and you wish there was something other than corn flakes for breakfast so your stomach won’t start making hideous noises. You’re about to open your mouth and say something to break the silence, but he speaks first. He tilts his head slightly and says:
夜晚帮了忙，总是如此，但是如果是在早上呢，太阳使你很烦躁，但你还是有选择的。你可能跟他一起坐在厨房餐桌旁，喝着不相配的杯子里的咖啡，你们什么都没说，因为有时候什么都不说是最好的。他在神游，你在考虑应该冲个澡或是去修修头发，或者至少刷个牙，因为你觉得很脏自己都能感觉到。你希望太阳不要把你照的那么清楚，你希望除了玉米片还能有点其他的早点这样你的胃不会发出可怕的声音。你正准备开口说点什么好打破这沉默，但是他先开口了。他稍微倾了下头说道：“你使我感到真的很幸福。”而你也很同意他所说的。
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