In the room where he waits, hunger br has become his friend and confidante. br When hunger returned after a long trip, br he ran toward it like a lost lover back br from desert travails with exotic stories br of horses and wild fruit. Now, he holds br hunger in his arms murmuring, tell me, br again, those stories. The details never br change, and, as time goes on, he begins br to tell the stories himself, so by heart br he knows them. After some time, they br have nothing left to tell. There is no br gnawing in his gut, though hunger is br there. In the pale light, clearly the bet br has been lost; he is satiated by hunger.