{"id":256295,"date":"2026-07-13T14:40:17","date_gmt":"2026-07-13T11:40:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/1kitap1.com\/en\/close-relationships-with-strangers-krista-diamond\/"},"modified":"2026-07-13T14:40:17","modified_gmt":"2026-07-13T11:40:17","slug":"close-relationships-with-strangers-krista-diamond","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/1kitap1.com\/en\/close-relationships-with-strangers-krista-diamond\/","title":{"rendered":"Close Relationships With Strangers – Krista Diamond"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"<\/figure>\n

The door opens, and Dr. Ruby is back, this time with a security guard. I know he is a security guard because I\u2019ve seen him somewhere else before, have probably been kicked out of somewhere else by him at some point before, maybe I have even been hurt by him at some point before.<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s hard to remember, and it doesn\u2019t matter. It\u2019s all an endless scroll now, a dream, a nightmare, a blur. He discreetly signals that I need to follow him. Dr. Ruby doesn\u2019t look at me. He smiles at the women, who don\u2019t even notice him.<\/p>\n

Their eyes are closed, their expressions serene and blissful. This building could be demolished with them inside and they\u2019d yawn and shrug and drift off to sleep. In direct contrast, the creatures in the crate are whimpering now, a shrill pleading that is so much worse than any other noise they\u2019ve made. \u201cCome on, Ben,\u201d the security guard says, and the fact that he knows my name is enough to signal it\u2019s over. But I can\u2019t stop looking at Dr. Ruby\u2019s hands on that crate, his power to still the animals inside, those fingertips that have felt the pulse moving below Jack\u2019s skin.<\/p>\n

I go with the security guard, knowing the offer to do this the nice way is valid for only so long. We leave the room and shut the door, and in that dark, narrow hallway, he tells me I\u2019m not a very good liar, and I know that isn\u2019t true. I\u2019m a great liar, and getting better at it every day. Sometimes I hate that about myself, but not that often. Not anymore.<\/p>\n

Before the security guard throws me out into the hot sunlight, I hear Dr. Ruby talking to the women, promising that after this treatment they will be younger, more beautiful than their peers, or at least it will appear that way. Their soft applause and other noises of approval. The sound of the crate opening. 1kitap1.com\/en chapter twelve A stylist texts me: Need photos of Laura in new Versace. Alfred Coffee, Melrose. 9 a.m. It\u2019s purely a money gig, the kind of job I hate.<\/p>\n

But I have no choice but to take it as I look for him. Soon the Mia Luna money will be completely gone.<\/p>\n

\n

Thank you for downloading this Simon & Schuster ebook. Get a FREE ebook when you join our mailing list. Plus, get updates on new releases, deals, recommended reads, and more from Simon & Schuster. Click below to sign up and see terms and conditions. CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP Already a subscriber? Provide your email again so we can register this ebook and send you more of what you like to read. You will continue to receive exclusive offers in your inbox.<\/p>\n

1kitap1.com\/en 1kitap1.com\/en los angeles, amid scandal 1kitap1.com\/en chapter one When she asks me what I photograph, I say people, which is technically true. We\u2019re on a first date in Los Feliz\u2014a bar inside a bungalow, banana leaves shading the porch, blood orange margaritas. She is a teacher at a private elementary school in Hancock Park. The cocktail is pulpy. \u201cFamous people,\u201d I say.<\/p>\n

\u201cI take pictures of famous people.\u201d \u201cFor magazines?\u201d the teacher asks. \u201cSometimes.\u201d \u201cYou\u2019re being opaque.\u201d \u201cWebsites mostly.\u201d \u201cWhat kind of websites?\u201d I press my fingers against the condensation on the glass. \u201cCelebrity websites.\u201d \u201cOh.\u201d I ease into what I want to ask her: \u201cYour profile said you teach third grade, right? What school is it, again?\u201d<\/p>\n

She gives me the name in a tone that says, Come on, I can tell you already know it. But I keep pushing. \u201cYou must be around celebrities all the time. Teaching where you teach.\u201d \u201cI really can\u2019t say.\u201d \u201cDo the parents usually pick them up or do the nannies\u2014\u201d \u201cNo, I really can\u2019t say.\u201d She knows what I\u2019m trying to do. \u201cRight,\u201d I say. \u201cI\u2019m sorry. I shouldn\u2019t have asked that.\u201d She nods, stirs her drink. \u201cYour teeth are nice,\u201d I tell her. \u201cLike, they\u2019re a little bit crooked.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSorry?\u201d \u201cThey\u2019re a little bit crooked in a good way, I mean.\u201d \u201cThat doesn\u2019t sound like a compliment.\u201d \u201cI mean, I\u2019m always looking at veneers. I\u2019ve been looking at veneers all day. Your teeth are real and that\u2019s nice.\u201d The teacher reaches for her ice water and starts drinking it very quickly. She sets the glass down and doesn\u2019t look at me.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t really want to talk about my teeth. So you\u2019re a\u2026 is it okay to say paparazzi?\u201d \u201cWell, yeah, it\u2019s not a slur.\u201d \u201cIt has negative connotations. You don\u2019t want to be called something else? Celebrity photographer, maybe?\u201d \u201cNo, I wouldn\u2019t want that.\u201d Mentally, I compare her to famous actresses who have played teachers, trying to figure out which one she looks the most like, organizing them by the ones I\u2019ve photographed, the ones I haven\u2019t yet, the ones I could be photographing right now.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ll give you some free advice, a celebrity meditation coach once told me. Be present. \u201cYou like the term paparazzi?\u201d she asks. I finish the margarita, attempt to recalibrate. \u201cIt\u2019s accurate.\u201d \u201cBut your profile said photographer.\u201d \u201cThat\u2019s accurate too.\u201d \u201cSo this is a stepping stone to being a photographer photographer\u2014doing something artistic.\u201d She relaxes.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

This is a short excerpt from the opening of “” by Unknown, quoted for review and introduction purposes. All rights belong to the copyright holders.<\/em><\/p>\n

\n
\n

Table of Contents<\/p>\nToggle<\/span><\/path><\/svg><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n