Chapt🜚er1🌡TheDream🗏🚨🕶-Maker
Nightfallslowlydesded.Dimitricouldn’tcealhisexhiration．Nightwasthehappiesttimeofthedayforhim，becausethenheakedreams．Dimitriwasahomelesspersonaosleepingwhereverhecou🔥ld．Butnowhewasgettingolderaheneedofashelter.,soheputtogethersomediscardedoldboardsandtisandbuilthimselfamakeshifthomeinanarrowalley．Withcoldwindwhippingathisraggedovercoathepushedashoppingcartwhitainedallhisworldlyposse☍ssionsi🏼nfrontofhimandheadedtowardsafancyItaliaauraheariannaoftengavehimleftovers.Mariannathrustapaperbagathim,taininghalfasteakandsomepraasta．Dimitriwasetedandrushedhome，lookingforwardtoaluxuriousmeadreams.Joethebartenderlookedonwithjealousy．AfterDimitrihadleft,hesaidsarcastically，
"Whyareyousogo🗽♟odtohim，Marianna?Heisonlyahumanscum，burrowingthroughthegarbageslookingforfoodandclothes.Heisabu🆑🎶🕨m,sittingtherealldayfeedingpigeonsbytheke.Hemaynotevenlikeyou.Heprobablythinksyou’retoofat！""Howdoyouknow?"snappedMarianna."Dimitrimaynotknowhowtoexpresshimself，butheisapoetatheart.He’samillioterthanagood-for-nothingdrunkardlikeyou!"
MariannafirstmetDimitribesideagarbage.ThatdayDimitrifoundaursewhilehewasgoingthroughthegarbage.⛖🚜Ittaiwo-karatdiamand
3,000incash.Poorashewas,Dimitrididnotcovetwhatwasnothis.Hewaitedthereb🄤⛍🙈ythegarbageanyhourshopingtheownerwouldshowup.MeanwhileMariannahadfinishedherday’sworkandwasfranticallylookingforherpurse.Whenshecouldn’tfinditanywherei，sheintuitivelykhatJoe,whowasusuallyhalf-drunk，musthavethrownitintothegarbagebagtogetherwiththegarbage.Sherushedoutsideandbeganrummagingthroughthegarbagebagsfromtherestaurant.
"🎥📍Whatareyouupto?"askedDimitriically.
"Iamlookin🔌⚱gformypurse”reple🌉☷dMariannawithoutlookingup.“Joemusthavetosseditoutwiththegarbag🖅🐏e."
"What’sthepurselikeandwhat’sinit?"Mariannastoppedshort,arayofhopegleamedinhereyesasshegavehimadetaileddescription.Dimitrihanded🕾herthepurseandtur💱🕬ogo.Mariannaranafterhimandtriedtopersuadehiminvaintota🍸kesomethingasareward.ToDimitri,worldlywealthdidnotmeananythingsohereplied,
"WhyshouldItakethissinceIdonotevenwantyandmohustheybeca🌎mefriendsandshealwayskeptchoicebitsofleftoversforhim.
Dimitriwasacuriousexampleofararespeanbeing:absent-minded，carefree，notknowingwhathewasabout，andsatisfiedwiththemerefactthathecouldstillthinkahe.Hewasahalfbreed，withsomesortofAsianbloodbutdidnotknowwho🕆😓hisparentswere.Heseemedtorememberbeinginschoolforafewyears，butwasnotreallyliterate.Heworkedforawhilebutdidnotdomuchofanythihoughthewasmarriedothenmaybeheonlylivedwithawomanforawhile．Hewasnotsure．Hehadasocialsecuritynumberormaybehedidn’t．Hehadawidecircleofacquaintanoddingandsmilingtopeoplewhereverhewent，evenexgingjocurreMarks，buthedidn’thaveasinglefriend．
Hewasonlyawakeinhisdreams．Onsunnydayshewouldgooverto🚘📨🝖thelongabandonedwoodendockatLakeMerritt,filthyandsmellywithbirdexcrement.🌭Buthedidn’tmind．Birdstohimwereflyingmessengersfromheavenwhereallhishopeswere.Hewouldsitonthebehem，lettingthemflyaroundhimatleonhishead，shouldersandp．Hewouldstareatthemulti-coloredcloudsihroughthecracksofwhichleakedouttheughterofparadise.Whenduskwasnearhewouldgetupandgobacktohis,pushinghisshoppingcartinfrontofhim.
Thefirstthinghedidwhehomewastotakehisdirtyoldsleepingbagfromthesho🞗🔖ppingcartandspreaditoutatitsusualer．Theedhis"spoils"fromthegarbage．Apairofhalf-worntennisshoes，hissizeandstillserviceable．Whydopeoplethrowthesethingsaway?Hecouldn’tuand．Then，therewasashirt，quite．Yes，hecouldthrowhisdipidatedoneaway,andtomor🉁🄘♟rowhewouldputonhisnewshirtandshoesandfeelquitedebonair．Hepyasariwhohadjustmadeamilliondolrs．HelighteduphiskerosenecookingstovetoheatupMarianna’sleftovers，andafterthissumptuousmealwouldgotobed．Hislifewassosimple．Toputitintoaformu，itwouldbe：limitedmaterialsneeds＝unlimitedsatisfa．Thatwasbecau🇹🝝sethefocusofhislifewasnotwhenhewasawake，butwhenhewasasleep．Heytodaybecausehehadgatheredalotofmaterialtobewovenintohisdreams．Forhim，thiswasjustlikefeedinginformationintotheputertanizedandrepyedonthes．
While🜚havinghisdinner，heweheeventsoftheday：Thatmhepassedanimposingofficebuilding．AbckRolls-Roycestoppedsmoothlybeforeitandaliveriedchauffeurgotouttoopenthedoorforamaneandapipeinhismouth——obviouslyanold-fashioy．HewasallegedtobethepresidentofWorldBank．"Sowhat?"thoughtDimitri，"Ibeoooinmydreams”．Thenhepassedahigh-cssshoestoreforwomen,sellingshoesandotherleathergoods．Apairofglitteringtoelesssilverhigh-heeledshoesdispyedinthewindowcaughthiseye．"Whatclotheswouldgowiththem？"h🄉🟀emused．"Astraplessroyalblueeveninggownperhaps，ingbi-skirt?Bothwoulddo”hedecided．Justthen，thesalesgirl’sarmreachedoutandtooktheshoesaway🍆🅳fromthewindowdispytotrythemonaer．Dimitriwascurioustoknowwhothewomanwas，sohewalkedtotheentraheshopandpeeredin．Thebrilliaoenailspeekingfromthesilvershoesmesmerizedhimandkindledfmesofprimitivelustfromwithinhimlikelightedmatchesthrownintoabarrelofgasoline．
"MayIhelpyou?"avoicecoldly．Itwasthestorema🁫nag☉♏eringtodrivehimaway．
"Nowayyouhelpme”mumbledDi🁃mitriandpushedhiscartaway，thinkingmeanwhileabout"morematerialfort♳onight"．
Heimmediatelyydowntosleepafterhisdinnerandinnotimeheseemedtoseeanobscuremoonintheskyshiningonawindingmountainpath．Ashlitteringformsuddenlyemergedfromthewoodsarouhandstartedwalkingtowardsadarkaesehousefurtheron．Itwasafreakish，ugly-lookingpygmyw🁏earingtheeborateesofthegDynasty．Hishatandcoatweremadeofmaterialwovenwithgoldthreadandwereshininginthemoonlight．thedoorofthehouse，whichletelydark，hedrewafoot-longkeyfromhispocketandtriedtofititintotheold-fashionedeselock．Hestoodontip-toesaledwiththelodkeyforalongtimebuttonoavail．Heflewihrewthekeyontothegroundandstompedonitagainandagain，makingsqueakysoundstoexpresshisflustration．Thenhecalmeddownabit，pickedupthekeyandtriedagain．Thistimeitworked．Hecarriedtheheavylockboriouslyintothehouseandclosedthedoor．Ititchdarkinside．Heopehetrunkothedoorandimmediatelytheroomlitupwiththebrilliahegemsirunk:pricelessdiamonds,rubies,pearlsandsapphiresallytherepiledinaheap．
Itwasargeregurroom,lihsturdytrunksonbothsides．Thepygmyjumpedaroundopeningthistrunkandthatuntiltheyen．Hejumpedontoadeskattheendoftheroomandlookedattheimmehspreadbeforehim．Sometrunksheld🁾goldingots，goldsandgolds，rings，bracelets；others🌏，silver．Hecrossedhislegsetedlyandshouted："HowrichIam!”Justthenahugepythonslitheredsoundlesslyoutfromtheerofthedarkroomandwounditselfroundandrouablewherethepigmysatcross-legged．Ohepython，thepygmyflewinteandscreamedshrilly，
"Wherehaveyoubeento?Youweresupposedththereguardireasures！Ihadtoopenthedoormyselfandalotoftroubleitcausedme!”Hegrewangrierashespoke．Onseeinghimsoangry，thepythonuncurleditselfandturoaseductiveagnakedwoman，andlikeMedusa，shehadhairofsnakes．Shekbeforehimandaskedfivehepygmypulledoutawhipfromunderhisbeltandcrackeditonherinfury．Shecriedandkowtowedtobeghimforpardon．Redweltsappearedonhersnowwhiteskin．Shelookedathimbeseegly．Thepygmystoppedandturoacreaturewiththestrongmuscurbodyofamanbuttheheadof🃔🗢🝖amonster．Oneeyewasinthemiddleofhisfadtheotheratthebackofhishead．Therewasarhinoceroshornoopofhishead．Hepulledthewomantoherfeet．Thegemsandtreasuresintheroomthenturomulti-coloredclouds，driftingandfloatingintheroom．Someofthemcametogetherandformedasoftmattressforthetwomoomakelove．Attheheightoftheirlove-making，theybothtransformedagaintohugepythowiogetherinaricableknot．
Nightfallslowlydesded.Dimitricouldn’tcealhisexhiration．Nightwasthehappiesttimeofthedayforhim，becausethenheakedreams．Dimitriwasahomelesspersonaosleepingwhereverhecou🔥ld．Butnowhewasgettingolderaheneedofashelter.,soheputtogethersomediscardedoldboardsandtisandbuilthimselfamakeshifthomeinanarrowalley．Withcoldwindwhippingathisraggedovercoathepushedashoppingcartwhitainedallhisworldlyposse☍ssionsi🏼nfrontofhimandheadedtowardsafancyItaliaauraheariannaoftengavehimleftovers.Mariannathrustapaperbagathim,taininghalfasteakandsomepraasta．Dimitriwasetedandrushedhome，lookingforwardtoaluxuriousmeadreams.Joethebartenderlookedonwithjealousy．AfterDimitrihadleft,hesaidsarcastically，
"Whyareyousogo🗽♟odtohim，Marianna?Heisonlyahumanscum，burrowingthroughthegarbageslookingforfoodandclothes.Heisabu🆑🎶🕨m,sittingtherealldayfeedingpigeonsbytheke.Hemaynotevenlikeyou.Heprobablythinksyou’retoofat！""Howdoyouknow?"snappedMarianna."Dimitrimaynotknowhowtoexpresshimself，butheisapoetatheart.He’samillioterthanagood-for-nothingdrunkardlikeyou!"
MariannafirstmetDimitribesideagarbage.ThatdayDimitrifoundaursewhilehewasgoingthroughthegarbage.⛖🚜Ittaiwo-karatdiamand
3,000incash.Poorashewas,Dimitrididnotcovetwhatwasnothis.Hewaitedthereb🄤⛍🙈ythegarbageanyhourshopingtheownerwouldshowup.MeanwhileMariannahadfinishedherday’sworkandwasfranticallylookingforherpurse.Whenshecouldn’tfinditanywherei，sheintuitivelykhatJoe,whowasusuallyhalf-drunk，musthavethrownitintothegarbagebagtogetherwiththegarbage.Sherushedoutsideandbeganrummagingthroughthegarbagebagsfromtherestaurant.
"🎥📍Whatareyouupto?"askedDimitriically.
"Iamlookin🔌⚱gformypurse”reple🌉☷dMariannawithoutlookingup.“Joemusthavetosseditoutwiththegarbag🖅🐏e."
"What’sthepurselikeandwhat’sinit?"Mariannastoppedshort,arayofhopegleamedinhereyesasshegavehimadetaileddescription.Dimitrihanded🕾herthepurseandtur💱🕬ogo.Mariannaranafterhimandtriedtopersuadehiminvaintota🍸kesomethingasareward.ToDimitri,worldlywealthdidnotmeananythingsohereplied,
"WhyshouldItakethissinceIdonotevenwantyandmohustheybeca🌎mefriendsandshealwayskeptchoicebitsofleftoversforhim.
Dimitriwasacuriousexampleofararespeanbeing:absent-minded，carefree，notknowingwhathewasabout，andsatisfiedwiththemerefactthathecouldstillthinkahe.Hewasahalfbreed，withsomesortofAsianbloodbutdidnotknowwho🕆😓hisparentswere.Heseemedtorememberbeinginschoolforafewyears，butwasnotreallyliterate.Heworkedforawhilebutdidnotdomuchofanythihoughthewasmarriedothenmaybeheonlylivedwithawomanforawhile．Hewasnotsure．Hehadasocialsecuritynumberormaybehedidn’t．Hehadawidecircleofacquaintanoddingandsmilingtopeoplewhereverhewent，evenexgingjocurreMarks，buthedidn’thaveasinglefriend．
Hewasonlyawakeinhisdreams．Onsunnydayshewouldgooverto🚘📨🝖thelongabandonedwoodendockatLakeMerritt,filthyandsmellywithbirdexcrement.🌭Buthedidn’tmind．Birdstohimwereflyingmessengersfromheavenwhereallhishopeswere.Hewouldsitonthebehem，lettingthemflyaroundhimatleonhishead，shouldersandp．Hewouldstareatthemulti-coloredcloudsihroughthecracksofwhichleakedouttheughterofparadise.Whenduskwasnearhewouldgetupandgobacktohis,pushinghisshoppingcartinfrontofhim.
Thefirstthinghedidwhehomewastotakehisdirtyoldsleepingbagfromthesho🞗🔖ppingcartandspreaditoutatitsusualer．Theedhis"spoils"fromthegarbage．Apairofhalf-worntennisshoes，hissizeandstillserviceable．Whydopeoplethrowthesethingsaway?Hecouldn’tuand．Then，therewasashirt，quite．Yes，hecouldthrowhisdipidatedoneaway,andtomor🉁🄘♟rowhewouldputonhisnewshirtandshoesandfeelquitedebonair．Hepyasariwhohadjustmadeamilliondolrs．HelighteduphiskerosenecookingstovetoheatupMarianna’sleftovers，andafterthissumptuousmealwouldgotobed．Hislifewassosimple．Toputitintoaformu，itwouldbe：limitedmaterialsneeds＝unlimitedsatisfa．Thatwasbecau🇹🝝sethefocusofhislifewasnotwhenhewasawake，butwhenhewasasleep．Heytodaybecausehehadgatheredalotofmaterialtobewovenintohisdreams．Forhim，thiswasjustlikefeedinginformationintotheputertanizedandrepyedonthes．
While🜚havinghisdinner，heweheeventsoftheday：Thatmhepassedanimposingofficebuilding．AbckRolls-Roycestoppedsmoothlybeforeitandaliveriedchauffeurgotouttoopenthedoorforamaneandapipeinhismouth——obviouslyanold-fashioy．HewasallegedtobethepresidentofWorldBank．"Sowhat?"thoughtDimitri，"Ibeoooinmydreams”．Thenhepassedahigh-cssshoestoreforwomen,sellingshoesandotherleathergoods．Apairofglitteringtoelesssilverhigh-heeledshoesdispyedinthewindowcaughthiseye．"Whatclotheswouldgowiththem？"h🄉🟀emused．"Astraplessroyalblueeveninggownperhaps，ingbi-skirt?Bothwoulddo”hedecided．Justthen，thesalesgirl’sarmreachedoutandtooktheshoesaway🍆🅳fromthewindowdispytotrythemonaer．Dimitriwascurioustoknowwhothewomanwas，sohewalkedtotheentraheshopandpeeredin．Thebrilliaoenailspeekingfromthesilvershoesmesmerizedhimandkindledfmesofprimitivelustfromwithinhimlikelightedmatchesthrownintoabarrelofgasoline．
"MayIhelpyou?"avoicecoldly．Itwasthestorema🁫nag☉♏eringtodrivehimaway．
"Nowayyouhelpme”mumbledDi🁃mitriandpushedhiscartaway，thinkingmeanwhileabout"morematerialfort♳onight"．
Heimmediatelyydowntosleepafterhisdinnerandinnotimeheseemedtoseeanobscuremoonintheskyshiningonawindingmountainpath．Ashlitteringformsuddenlyemergedfromthewoodsarouhandstartedwalkingtowardsadarkaesehousefurtheron．Itwasafreakish，ugly-lookingpygmyw🁏earingtheeborateesofthegDynasty．Hishatandcoatweremadeofmaterialwovenwithgoldthreadandwereshininginthemoonlight．thedoorofthehouse，whichletelydark，hedrewafoot-longkeyfromhispocketandtriedtofititintotheold-fashionedeselock．Hestoodontip-toesaledwiththelodkeyforalongtimebuttonoavail．Heflewihrewthekeyontothegroundandstompedonitagainandagain，makingsqueakysoundstoexpresshisflustration．Thenhecalmeddownabit，pickedupthekeyandtriedagain．Thistimeitworked．Hecarriedtheheavylockboriouslyintothehouseandclosedthedoor．Ititchdarkinside．Heopehetrunkothedoorandimmediatelytheroomlitupwiththebrilliahegemsirunk:pricelessdiamonds,rubies,pearlsandsapphiresallytherepiledinaheap．
Itwasargeregurroom,lihsturdytrunksonbothsides．Thepygmyjumpedaroundopeningthistrunkandthatuntiltheyen．Hejumpedontoadeskattheendoftheroomandlookedattheimmehspreadbeforehim．Sometrunksheld🁾goldingots，goldsandgolds，rings，bracelets；others🌏，silver．Hecrossedhislegsetedlyandshouted："HowrichIam!”Justthenahugepythonslitheredsoundlesslyoutfromtheerofthedarkroomandwounditselfroundandrouablewherethepigmysatcross-legged．Ohepython，thepygmyflewinteandscreamedshrilly，
"Wherehaveyoubeento?Youweresupposedththereguardireasures！Ihadtoopenthedoormyselfandalotoftroubleitcausedme!”Hegrewangrierashespoke．Onseeinghimsoangry，thepythonuncurleditselfandturoaseductiveagnakedwoman，andlikeMedusa，shehadhairofsnakes．Shekbeforehimandaskedfivehepygmypulledoutawhipfromunderhisbeltandcrackeditonherinfury．Shecriedandkowtowedtobeghimforpardon．Redweltsappearedonhersnowwhiteskin．Shelookedathimbeseegly．Thepygmystoppedandturoacreaturewiththestrongmuscurbodyofamanbuttheheadof🃔🗢🝖amonster．Oneeyewasinthemiddleofhisfadtheotheratthebackofhishead．Therewasarhinoceroshornoopofhishead．Hepulledthewomantoherfeet．Thegemsandtreasuresintheroomthenturomulti-coloredclouds，driftingandfloatingintheroom．Someofthemcametogetherandformedasoftmattressforthetwomoomakelove．Attheheightoftheirlove-making，theybothtransformedagaintohugepythowiogetherinaricableknot．