The Visit

Pages 139-151: Both my trip to Leper's house and my visit with him were a disaster. First I traveled overnigt on the train, then took the bus. I reached town at dawn. I walked the rest of the way to Leper's.
When I went inside, Leper told me he spends most of his time in the dining room because he gets his meals there three times a day. I felt something was very wrong when Leper said people get into problems in their living rooms. It seemed he felt just living was a problem. Things became worse when I asked him when he was returning to the army. Using the word "normal" really upset Leper. He accused me of thinking he's a psycho. The army was going to give him a Section Eight discharge. He explained this was for the mentally disturbed soldiers. It would ruin his life forever. He wouldn't even be able to get a job.
He called me a savage and said I had knocked Finny out of the tree and crippled him for life. Angrily, I kicked the chair he was sitting in knocking him and the chair over.
Mrs. Lepellier came in, suggested I stay for lunch, and later go for a walk which we did. I thought the walk would help Leper but it didn't. He started telling me strange stories about his life in the army. Leper said he couldn't sleep at night. He couldn't eat the food in the Mess Hall. He thought he saw his corporal changing into a woman and yelled for others to come see. He thought a man was coming toward him carrying an amputated leg.
I couldn't listen any more. I told Leper to shut up. I told him I didn't care what happened to him. It had nothing at all to do with me. This was not my real world. I returned to the peace at school.